Private/Closed The Merciless Mirai Region

Ry_Burst · Jan 1, 2018

https://pokecharms.com/threads/the-merciless-mirai-region-disscussion.18524/#post-565388
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---
In 1996 a young trainer by the name of Red became Champion of the Kanto Region, at only sixteen which is quite a feat that many trainers had failed at. Three years later and up and coming fifteen year old boy named Gold rose up the ranks of the Johto League and became champion of his home region. Four more years passed by and an up and comer named May became Champion of her home region at the age of seventeen. Four years passed by, until Dawn became champion of the Sinnoh Region overthrowing the powerful trainer Cynthia at only fourteen years of age. By the time 2010 rolled around, a new champion of the Unova region had risen at only age fifteen by the name of Black. And then, four more years went by and the Kalos region also discovered that they had a young prodigy by the name of Serena who became champion at the young age of sixteen. And in the Alola region the whole region was in shock, that two years after a young Kalos Champion arose, that an eleven year old boy named Sun who was originally from the Kanto Region, became the champion of their newly formed Alolan League.

What do all of these trainers have in common? They all became champions while under the age of 18. With this people began to have the feeling that Pokemon Battling was becoming a kids game and was losing much respect as a respectable sport. So to keep up with older audiences, new laws were passed making the youngest a trainer could be to become a trainer as fifteen. And to become a trainer at age fifteen was a rare feat and very hard, with the entire test very biased against young children. The majority of the population who decided to go into Pokemon Battling for real could only get their trainer's licence at around their ate teens and early adulthood. However due to this, things like Pokemon Showcases became more accepting of young members and received an influx while other job opening where people could work alongside Pokemon increased in the number of employees. And the sport of Pokemon Battling and earning badges became more intense and in a sense corrupted. People would go to gyms to gamble and a losing policy began to rear its ugly mug. If you lost three gym battles, then you would lose your licence and couldn't take a remedial one for roughly 10-15 years. Many regions became less centered with Pokemon Leagues after this and Pokemon battling became less common. Crime rates slowed in those regions. Friendly battles still existed but there was so many regulations that many people seemed to quit all together and battles would normally take place in Contests and Showcases.

However one region grew and Pokemon Battling became a massive sport for it, that seemed to make it well known compared to the other regions. The region added extra rules for trainers taking this challenge that I will cover first however, maybe I should tell you abut this region.

It is called the Mirai Region and it is known for not only it's Pokemon Battles but it's tourism. There are lavish buildings, fine food, and so many great things to do for your average tourist. However it is also known for it's Pokemon Battles. Battles are ruthless and only for the strong of heart. It is not a simple region with easy badges to win. Veteran Trainers, and even champions flock here only to discover it as another league. It is a harsh, yet well renown region. It's tourism combined with strong league and a large variety of Pokemon, make it well sought after and respected. And I mentioned earlier there are rules to this region that the MPL (Mirai Pokemon League) added to increase the difficulty and prevent young trainers from rising to the top and making a fool of their system.

1.) All trainers entering the region must only have one base form Pokemon that can evolve, 3000 PokeYen, and a medium sized backpack. Inside it can be clothes, and personal items, but there can be nothing of any value (ie Gold Nuggets, Pearls, Jewelry, credit cards, etc.) and nothing to help the training of Pokemon (ie Held Items, Berries, Potions, etc.).
2.) If you lose three gym battles instead of just having you licence revoked your Pokemon must be released into the Mirai wild.
3.) You must have your trainer's licence with you at all times. If you get caught without it, you will be sent to jail and your Pokemon will be released. Officers can at any time check you for a licence. (This often happens with younger trainers, to try to limit young trainers.)
4.) Trainers can take on the gyms in any order, but they must arrived and register for the League in the large port city of Dolvious.

With these rules, everyone begin the region at equal stakes hopefully. However many people often have training and well bred Pokemon, if they come form rich families so that is often something that separates the upper class from others. Corruption also plays a part with richer family members paying guards to leave their children alone, and are often left to pick on others. And there is a lot of thievery and unfair battling, in the first town of Dolvious as people see it as easy money and easy wins.

Another not involving the crime is that there are multiple crime syndicates within the region itself, that bribe public officials and the police to ignore them, leaving them to do as they please.

With all of these aspects combined the Mirai region is often the place where many people have their dreams thoroughly crushed to a pulp and are left with nothing. And you are no exception. This will be a hard journey and are you sure you would want to travel through it.

It was the July 28, 2032 as the boat came into harbor of the large city of Dolvous. On board the boat a young man named Felix Waters felt a wave of nervousness flow through him. The Mirai region was known for its harshness to trainers. It was famed across the world as being one of the toughest leagues out there. Countless trainer had tried to conquer the league, only to become one of the countless lost souls, who were left stranded in this region with no money and no Pokemon until they could escape on a boat as a stowaway to whatever home they had left, or try to survive among the homeless here until you found some way to make a living. That was rare.

As people began to file out of the boat, Felix made his way and slipped into the crowd of citizens. He hadn't actually paid to board this boat, and so if anyone called him out on it, he would be in trouble for sure. However the gruff guards who had dealt with countless stowaways did nothing to check for tickets or anything. There was only one main reason that a poor person would come to the Mirai region. To take their League Challenge, only to lose.

--
"Next. Trainer Licence." A man grumbled at the front of the line. He was wearing a beige MPL polo shirt, and a cap.

Felix stepped forward and stuck his hand in his pocket to pull out his wallet. He opened it up and pulled out his trainer card and slid it in front of the annoyed man.

The man gave a grumble as he picked it up. "Felix Reuben Waters. Born in Vermilion. Received Trainer Card in Canalave City. And you're nineteen. So you seem a bit young for someone taking on the Mirai Pokemon League." The man looked up at Felix and glared him in the eye. "You're not gonna win it at all." His voice was emotionless as he delivered his warning. "You're lucky to even have a Pokemon Training Licence at only nineteen. To participate in the League it will cost 500 PokeYen.

Felix was annoyed with this new information. He had already had his stuff searched and he had been made sure he only had 3000 PokeYen. And now he had to give up 500 of it. Normally it wouldn't be that big of deal, but now money was seemingly everything here in the Mirai Region. Grumbling, Felix handed hi, the money from his wallet and retrieved his licence from the man.

"Welcome to the Mirai Pokemon League," the man droned again, with a lack of emotions.

Felix walked past the man and made his way out of the registration building, after snatching a trainer's guide from the stand. He flipped open the book and sat down on a bench, with the crowd of the busy streets around him. He flipped to section involving Pokemon Centers and began to read.

Pokemon Centers are different in the Mirai region than any other region. While many other regions provide free heathcare for trainer's Pokemon and a place to lay their head, the Mirai region is different and better for the economy. There are costs that apply to all Pokemon Centers to any person without at least one gym batch. The costs are as shown.

Single Healing - 500 PokeYen - This package gets you healing for one Pokemon on your team.
Double Healing - 750 PokeYen - This package gets you two Pokemon healed.
Full Team Heal - 1000 PokeYen - This package gets your entire team healed.
Place to Sleep - 1000 PokeYen - This package allows you to stay the night in the center.
Healing and Sleep Package - 1500 PokeYen - This package allows for you to heal one Pokemon and sleep in the center for the night
Full Heal and Sleep Combo Package - 2000 PokeYen - This package allows for your entire Team to be healed and lets you stay the night in the Center for the night.

However priority is given to trainers with a badge and if it fills up, and a badge carrying trainer wants to stay the night, someone who purchased a sleep package will probably lose their spot. So if you plan to stay the night, then the earlier you pay and sign-up the better. There are no refunds.

Felix closed the guide book, and slipped it into his backpack. After reading that he felt a sense of dread fill him, and felt his hand go up the the Pokeball on the chain around his neck. It belonged to his only Pokemon, Volt. Volt was a Male Shinx and was the Pokemon Felix planned to take this challenge with. But with the lack of free healing until he received a badge, scared him internally. The fight for the first badge is the thing that drove away countless trainers. Could he pull this off?
--
Name: Felix Waters
Money: 2500 PokeYen
Team: Volt (Male Shinx)
Bag: MPL Guide

MelodyMay · Jan 2, 2018

As Prince moved about happily, Jezebel stayed leaning against the railing of the boat. "Stay nearby, would ya? Someone's going to try to steal you!" she snapped at him. Prince moved back to her side and giggled, covering his mouth with a tentacle. Jezebel could only sigh; they had been close friends for four years and it still never ceased to amaze her just how... tranquil her pokemon always managed to stay. She couldn't blame him, though. She was excited to! The wide open spaces, the action, the adventure; she couldn't wait for the boat to dock!

"Let's just make sure we don't throw away our shot, alright? Phillip spent a lot of money to get us on this boat and I'm not sure they could get us a ticket back," she reminded her consistently unruffled water type. It wasn't much longer before the boat docked in Dolvous City. It was bigger than Maile City, that was certain. For the first time since she left Alola, she felt a twinge of nervousness in her belly as the outline of the city pierced the sky. "Oh great..." she muttered; why did it have to be so big? She hated big cities! Prince, floating nearby, held her hand with his tentacle, giving her a gentle smile. Jezebel returned it before rushing to get in line.

Once off the ship, one of the first building was a Mirai Pokemon League Registration building. Jezebel dashed inside, trying to beat all the other people coming off the boat; who knew how many of them could be hopeful trainers?! She managed to snag the next spot in line, right behind a boy with thick brown hair. She could practically feel the anxiety coming from this guy. "He needs to relax," she mouthed to Prince. Spotting a small stand of books along the wall, she motioned for Prince to go grab her some while she held her spot in line; other trainers were filing in quick and she as not losing this spot if she could help it.

""Felix Reuben Waters. Born in Vermilion. Received Trainer Card in Canalave City. And you're nineteen-" she heard the bored employee tell the person in front of her before Prince came back. He brought a trainer guide, complete with a regional map and a map for each city. "Nice grab, buddy," she told him as she started to read while she waited. She had just gotten through the part about pokemon centers, as that seemed most relevant to her current situation, when it was her turn to register.

"Hello, sir," she said cheerily as she handed him her license. Then he asked for her entry fee. "500 PokeYen?!" she yelled loud enough that she was sure the people outside the building could hear her. She only had 3000 and pokemon centers were really expensive here! They couldn't rob her like this! But this league was also her only shot at making a living in this place and 3000 wasn't even enough to catch a boat back to Alola. So she tried haggling, flattery, and bribery. All of which nearly had the employee about ready to call security. Not wanting to lose her chance, Jezebel handed over the money before snatching back her license and leaving in a huff.

Once outside, she could still see the guy that had been in front of her in line. She considered battling him for easy cash but if he had an electric or grass type, Prince would have a very bad day. But that stood for any trainer here, really. What she needed was pokeballs. "So what I need is the pokemart," she said aloud to her partner. "Do you think this place is like Kanto with separate centers and marts or like Alola where they're one building?" she asked him. "Frill ill; Frillish lish," her partner said, pointing a blue appendage at her trainer guide. "Yeah, I know you grabbed the book for things like this but the section on pokemon centers didn't say!" she asserted.

------
Name: Jezebel Xienstein
Money: 2500 PokeYen
Team: Prince (Frillish, Male, Cursed Body)
Bag: MPL Guide

Spoiled Bread · Jan 2, 2018

Peter Rayleigh walked slowly on the pier, his face is very pale and he looked like he would threw up any time. Actually, he threw up right at that spot. Gaining the pitiful stare from the people nearby.

How can people live on those thing? Asked Peter to himself. He never had to ride a boat before, his family prefer going by plane. So he never now that he had sea sickness.

But anyway, he regained his spirit quickly and dashed to the registration site. Unfortunately for him, the lines was already pretty long. He didn't has any choice except stand at the back of the line.

He spent the time reading the guide book several times carefully. There's nothing like too much preparation. After finished reading the book for the third times, it was his turn to register.

"Peter Rayleigh from Seffron City, huh? I have heard about the name. Looks like you are the spoiled brat type, right? Then there's no problem if you pay 500 PokeYen. Your parents would find a way to send you money anyway." The guard said with an obvious grin. Peter held himself from screaming to this man.

The truth is, because this journey is unauthorized by his parents, he wouldn't receive any financial or morale support. But Peter wouldn't tell this to this cocky man. He paid his license and get out immediately. His next destination is the PokeMart. He wanted to be fully prepared for his journey.

Ry_Burst · Jan 2, 2018

To further his current dismay, he soon learned upon further reading, that the Pokemart was on the other side of the city, on the completely separated from the Pokemon Center. So say he needed to go to both placed it would be a walk through the city. And a taxi cab would cost too much to get from one to another and it would knock out a large chunk of his money. But this was no time to sulk. He needed to make some progress which would be needed. He flipped to the town map portion of his map and looked for Dolvous City on it. After a few seconds of finding it, he looked around for his next stop. The next gym town was just beyond a thick forest called the Lost Souls Forest. Apparently when trainers lost their gym battle for the first gym the third time and had their Pokemon released, the Pokemon seemed to congregate in the forest, which was already naturally filled of ghost type. So apparently this Lost Souls Forest was full of strong Pokemon and ghost types, so it was going to be a tough walk. His best bet would be to head to the PokeMart and buy some potions and try to make it through the forest.

And so he made his way towards the PokeMart, which was roughly a thirty minute walk through the city. While he was tempted to get a taxi, and ride there, but that would waste his money fast. So he kept walking and made his way there. It was a large building with a blue roof like most PokeMarts. However behind the counter, beside the clerk was a burly police officer. And there was another lined up by the exit. They seemed to be expecting a robbery at any moment. Felix could feel their eyes as they all glared at me in unison, as Felix currently was the youngest person in the store. Most people had lost a great deal of trust and respect for younger people after those laws had passed, is what he had been told by Reggie, an old Pokemon Battler he had trained under. And he knew not just from Reggie's teachings, but from experience with adults who seemed to hate the fact he had his licence.

Ignoring their stares, he picked up two Potions from the shelf after checking the price. As he had already learned, prices were double then what they were in other regions. So the two Pokeballs would set him back 800 PokeYen. But he needed to grab something else before he left. He walked towards the far end of the shop, and also grabbed an Antidote, which combined with the Pokeballs would cost 1000 PokeYen. He took his three items and walked up the counter and placed them down.

"You plan on paying for these?" The cop at the counter barked angrily, as the clerk beside him silently took the items in his hand. It was pretty obvious that the cop was in total control.

"No, I wasn't going to buy them. I was just going to ask for them." Felix snipped at the man, as he pulled out his wallet and pulled out the 1000 PokeYen.

"Hey! Watch that attitude!" the man barked at Felix, sending spittle and whiffs of his bad breath in Felix's direction. "That'll cost you 1500 PokeYen." The man shouted angrily as the clerk placed the items in the bag.

"Wait a minute." Felix muttered. "You're ripping me off."

The cop was quick to react, leaning forward and snatching Felix's collar. "I decide how much it costs and since I don't like you, that'll cost 500 extra PokeYen. As your personal I'm sorry gift for me." Grumbling, I pushed his arm away from me, freeing his grip from my shirt, and handed him the 1500 PokeYen. The bag was handed to him that contained his items, and the cop gave the young man a rude smirk as he said this simple phrase, "Thank you, and come again."

The fact he had been ripped off this early in his adventure really annoyed Felix. This really set him back. He would have to try to conserve his money some way or another. But first he would have to make his way through the Lost Souls Forest. While deep in thought, he felt himself run into some other trainer who was making their way inside the PokeMart. "Sorry," he mumbled as he stumbled back.
--
Name: Felix Waters
Money: 1000 PokeYen
Team: Volt (Male Shinx)
Bag: MPL Guide, 2 Pokeballs, 1 Antidote

MelodyMay · Jan 2, 2018

Eventually Jezebel had the bright idea to check the city map she saw earlier in her Trainer's Guide. It took her a while to navigate the large city, bigger than any she had ever been in, on the little map but she eventually found the store. It was on the other side of town from the Pokemon center but that was okay. She had no interest in heading there anyway. She went ahead and checked her regional map to see where she might want to go after the Pokemart and noticed the Lost Souls forest looked promising.

"Listen to this Prince," she told him as she let him navigate her, hand in tentacle. She had the city map unfolded and flipped past the top of the book so Prince could reference it when he needed to. "'Full of ghost Pokemon and the Pokemon of those who lost gyms three times, the Lost Souls Forest is dangerous for rookie trainers as ghost types can be difficult and the released Pokemon are stronger than those typically found in the wild.' Sounds exciting!" she said, giggling like an excited school girl.

Roughly turning back to the map, she started running ahead of Prince, still holding his blue and white tentacle like arm. When they finally arrived, she was surprised to see the boy from earlier again. She supposed she shouldn't be though; pokeballs hadn't been allowed when arriving and new team members are definitely top priority. She saw him looking more flustered than before and bump into another trainer. Chuckling slightly, she went to him. "Having a rough day?" she guessed with a smile.

------
Name: Jezebel Xienstein
Money: 2500 PokeYen
Team: Prince (Frillish, Male, Cursed Body)
Bag: MPL Guide

Spoiled Bread · Jan 2, 2018

Peter's visit to the Pokemart was greeted with a bump from a boy. He mumbled something like 'sorry' and stumbled back. Peter was in a bad mood after forced to walks for roughly 30 minutes so he just gave the boy a sharp look and enter the pokemart.

He recalled what he need and quickly collect it. Two potion, one antidote and one pokeball. He brought it to the counter.

The clerk started pack his goods. Total cost is 1800 PokeYen.

"You plan on paying for these?" Suddenly the cop beside the clerk spoke to him in a mocking tone. He has an ugly grin on his face.

Peter paid the money and walked out of the pokemart. Totally ignoring the cop. He can heard him barking in the store. It is sad that the rumour of corruption in Mirai is true, if this keep happening this region would scare its potential visitor away.

Peter Rayleigh
700 PokeYen

Team:
Porygon (download)

Bag:
2 potion
1 antidote
1 pokeball

BurbleBurble · Jan 2, 2018

The boat wasn't the worst place where Kiran had slept, even in third class. Had a desk, nice bed, night stand...No shower, but there were some public ones for all the 3rd class to use...He shuffled around in the third class stepping out into the Mirai region. They were here for a reason- to try their hardest to win the Arceus forsaken league challenge that called Mirai home. And no doubt more than half wouldn't get past the first gym. But Kiran was not going to be one of them...at least he hoped not. He couldn't let Mr. Redmont down. He had to stick it to the bitter end.

Kiran soon found himself in a line to get his Trainer's license updated. And in a few moments he found himself called up by a bored looking man. "Next," The clerk called, and Kiran stepped up, handing over his license to be registered. "Kiran Cassio Redmont...Born in Kalos...Registered in Kalos...Eighteen? A little young to be doing this." The man grumbled in pure disinterest, giving Kiran a dirty look. "Whatever, you'll fail like everyone else. That'll be 500 Pokeyen." And Kiran had no objections, despite knowing that was a chunk of his money down- words of his father echoed in his ears.

"There is no success without sacrifice."

The five hundred was put down on the desk- and quickly taken away, in exchange for a fancy little stamp being put on the card- and more importantly, a face on a database. "Welcome to the Mirai League," The man droned on. "Next."

And off went Kiran, swiping a league guide as he left. He needed to track down the Pokemart to make some key purchases- two Pokeballs, two Potions. Though some things in the guide left him a bit...frightened. Not a significant amount to fully push away Kiran however. The fact that you had to pay for Pokemon Centers and double the normal prices for Pokemart equipment...yikes. Having a badge negated the Pokemon Center cost at least. So getting a badge seem to be rather important.

A long walk around the city let Kiran think some more...when he wasn't apologizing to locals and tourists for bumping into them. Would Gina be able to take a hit to even use the Potion? Gothita weren't exactly valued for their tanking qualities. What other Pokemon should he obtain? A Pokemon that had been trained already yet bitter from it's past experiences? Or a fresh one? The forest ahead was supposed to hold ghosts and released Pokemon from failed challenges, both of which were...not ideal. Even the name was foreboding. The Forest of Lost Souls?! Maybe they should've chosen something like "Ghost Woods" or "The Winding Woods"...Then again, Kiran wasn't the advertiser for this place. And neither of those sounded less intimidating.

He found the Pokemart with it's trademark blue colors, but there was a bit of a crowd...okay, three or so people...that he didn't want to nudge by. An empty bench was nearby- which he decided where he would wait to get into the shop. Besides, he needed more time to think over his purchases. His father was rich, yes, but no money would be coming from him. Not because his father wasn't aware- It was because Mr. Redmont wanted Kiran to be challenged, as he had been all his life.

"One day this company will be yours, Kiran. Don't you understand? Once I die, and your the owner of Medicall, these experiences will make sense."
"Are you sure, father?" Kiran remembered the face that Mr. Redmont had made after he had said that.
"That's Mr. Redmont to you."

---
Name: Kiran Redmont
Money: 2500 PY
Team: Gina (Gothita)
Bag: MPL Guide

Ry_Burst · Jan 2, 2018

The young man recoiled as the boy he had bumped into to shot him a somewhat annoyed look only to hurry inside the Pokemon Center. "I should have pick-pocketed that jerk. If I was paying attention, I could have snatched his wallet and made some extra cash." This was the thought embedded inside Felix's mind as he gave an angry glance to the boy. However he was hoping to try to take this challenge honestly, and not have to stoop to the level of so many others who had taken this challenge. However he still knew that he might break at some point. He wasn't a total fool.

"Having a rough day?" A young woman, who looked to be about in her late teens, early adulthood asked him in a somewhat curious and playful tone, after giving a slight chuckle. Felix scanned her with his eyes sizing her up in his head. The girl, who had spoke, was a bit shorter than him and his immediate thought was a twang of paranoia. Not because she was a female and he just happened to be one of those nervous types who stutter uncontrollably around anyone of the opposite Sex. His reason for this paranoia was simply after all the things he had heard about people tricking new trainers and mugging them of them possessions this early on, when they were at their weakest. He knew very well that there was probably a great deal of people who stayed in this city not just to train against weaker trainers, but to build up a large income. This could be some kind of trick.

However the Pokemon to her side, eased his mind slightly. It was a Male Frillish, to whom he recognized from the registration line for the MPL. The same Pokemon had passed him and then went back to the person behind him. So maybe she was that person and she just recognized him. However he knew it would be best to play it safe. A little paranoia and fear was good. It kept you from doing stupid things.

"A bit rough," Felix began, while glaring at her hands in the corner of his eyes, while he tried to took like his attention was going towards his face. If she was a pickpocket, then her hands would be a give away. "That officer in there thought it would be fun to overcharge me. I'm now left with very little. This region is simply full of people wanting to rip off people like you and me. They seem to think that because we are young, that was are imbeciles." This was a simple statement that would drive away many pickpockets. It was, in a sense, an attempt at having an aura of awareness of any possible plots. However with the way he was holding himself, relaxed shoulders, smooth calm speaking voice, would try to make it seem like it was a normal conversation to any non-pickpocket. The irony was that he was now using the signs he had feared from others just a few years ago. This region was already seeming to change him. But the question was, was it for better or worse.

Pokemon Fanfiction Novels · Jan 2, 2018

On a park bench outside of the Dolvous City PokeMart, a young man with a walking staff sat buried nose-deep in a guidebook. Now and then, he would glance up and look around in search of someone, only to return wearily to his book. After about ten minutes, he sighed, shut the book, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Okay. Let's review.

*Flashback*

A teenage trainer with gray-dyed hair and tuxedo-esque clothing ran eagerly down the gangplank as the docking crew cleared the path. "Come on, Matt!" he called over his shoulder, without ceasing his sprint. "Let's be first in line to register! I know where the building is!"

Further back on the cruiser, Matt leaned over his walking staff to try and see over the heads of the crowd blocking his view. "Sven, wait- I'm blocked off, here. I can't get through- just hold on a minute!"

While there was an undeniable spirit of anticipation present among the new arrivals to the Mirai Region, most of the trainer crowd consisted of adults in their early twenties or thirties. They had matured to the point that there was little pushing and shoving: only a naturally-forming line by unspoken consent. If he had wanted to, Matt could have jostled his way through the crowd and caught up with his friend Sven, but why invite scorn upon himself? There was no need to be a dick.

Sven, apparently, had seen it differently. Waiting among the peasants was beneath him.

By the time Matt had finally made it to the registration building, Sven was nowhere to be seen. Knowing him, the rich-boy was probably taking in the fine sights of the city, whose economy boomed from catering to elites just like him. It was hard to believe that he was here on the other side of the circus curtain, fighting pokemon for the amusement of others. Then again, this was why Matt had come. Sven wanted the advantage of a protector; apparently, he had little confidence in his own pokemon. Matt was here to serve as that escort. But it kinda defeated the purpose if Sven was just going to ditch him like this.

"Next," came the voice of a bored man in front of him. There were still three people to go before it was Matt's turn to register, but as he listened, Matt noticed a pattern. Basically, it was something to the effect of: "Welcome to the Mirai region, asshole. You think you're the bomb, but you're totally gonna get your ass handed to you. Have a nice day."

Then people would complain about the registration fee of 500 pokeyen, and the receptionist would sneer at them some more, and the applicants would leave, grumbling about having to pay for everything. Personally, Matt didn't see what the big screaming deal was. 500 pokeyen could buy you two large bags of chips, or a cheap movie ticket, or an average meal at McDonald's. Honestly, a trainer's license wasn't even a tenth the cost of a driver's license.

Matt's turn came around, and he listened politely to the "welcome, asshole" speech and accepted his trainer's license with both hands. The receptionist, however, kept a grip on the license for a moment longer, making eye contact with Matt. "Mr. McCallister," he said coldly, "our records show that you never finished your Johto league challenge. For most people, they're out as soon as they've lost three gym battles. In your case, it'll be two. Couldn't beat Jasmine of Olivine City, eh?"

"No, sir," Matt said, eyes downcast. "But I'd like to learn from my mistakes. Could you please recommend where I go from here?"

"Back on the next ship to Johto," the man said without skipping a beat, grinning ironically. "But nobody ever heeds my advice, so I recommend that you pick up a guidebook and start charting your own course. You've done this before, haven't you?"

Matt nodded and turned, lifting a guidebook. "Thank you for the heads-up."

The receptionist grunted noncommittally. "You're a polite boy, I'll give you that," he murmured. "I like you, so I'll stress again: it's not too late to go back to the Johto region. Next!"

*End flashback*

After this, Matt had located the Pokemart and stocked his already-bloated backpack as needed. Of course, Sven hadn't been there either, so now he just sat rooted outside, waiting for Sven to come to him. Why hadn't he thought to register the guy's stupid phone number? For all his preparations, he still was letting little oversights like this bite him in the butt. Well . . . there was nothing left to do but go around, asking people if they'd seen him. He felt like an idiot, but many new trainers had likely witnessed Sven waltz down the plank like a jackass. With everyone coming and going, surely someone would have news of him. He took a deep breath, picked up his staff, and began his quest of asking around to random strangers.

"Excuse me, did you see a guy with gray-dyed hair around here?"

"He's about my height, my age, wears those dark clothes that resemble a tuxedo, but aren't . . ."

"Kinda over-eager, like a lemming about to run off a cliff . . ."

"If you see him, could you let me know? Here's my number . . ."

--

Name: Matt McCallister
Money: 1000 PokeYen
Team: Onix (Sturdy)
Bag: TRAINER ITEMS: License (500y), 2 Potions (600y), 4 Pokeballs (800y), 1 Antidote (100y). SURVIVAL ITEMS: MPL Guide, compass, bedroll, water bottle x2, lighter x2, crank-charging flashlight, phone & charger, titanium knife, rice-pan, rice (20 lbs), 2 spare sets clothes, whistle, whetstone, 30 feet of rope. (Like I said, Matt has a cautious personality. He knows the Trainer's Journey is overly romanticized, and he's a f#$%ing boy scout.)

MelodyMay · Jan 2, 2018

Jezebel lost her smile listening to this guy's story. "That sucks but it's not just this region; it's the whole world," she told him bluntly. Shrugging, her playful grin came back. "Buuuuut because I'm in such a good mood today, I'll help you out. Stay right here," she told him before waltzing into the Pokemart. She kept Prince close as she went through the aisles, grabbing two pokeballs and two potions. She made her way over to the berry selection then, making sure to wear a ditzy looking expression the whole time. She had even fumbled with the pokeballs a bit, catching the attention of the clerk and the officer behind the counter.

Pretending to be interested in a particularly plump pecha berry in the back of the stand, she stretched to reach it. However, in the corner of her eye, she kept an eye on the counter. When the clerk was distracted by another customer checking out, she purposefully let herself slip, knocking over most of the bottom row of berries. The softer ones, like pecha berries, splatteresd or badly bruised on impact. She walked and clutched her. Before the cop looked up, as he had also been focused on the man at the counter, Prince was quick to squirt out a bit of water.

Soon the cop had waltzed over to investigate the screams. "What the hell did you do?" He asked rudely. 'Oh, this guy deserves to be robbed,' Jezebel thought as she sniveled and looked up at him. Keeping her best pained face on, she responded. "I was stocking up on berries for my trip through the forest and slipped on that puddle!" Meanwhile Prince stayed by his trainer, glowering at the cop. Jezebel could have kissed that floating jellyfish; pretending to be scared or mad was hard for him but he was being a real trooper.

Sighing in resignation, the cop moved forward to try to do his job. After all, Jezebel kept making pained cries and it was getting on his nerves. Prince shot forward his tentacle, using a constrict attack to clip the man's pocket that was noticeably heavier than the other. Golden coins started slipping out of the guy's pocket where Prince had split the fabric just slightly. Cursing a mile a minute, the cop roughly hauled Jezebel up and dragged her to the counter. Jezebel made the journey harder than it had to be by being as much of a dead weight as possible. The cashier couldnt bring himself to do anything but watch the spectacle. "Just check out, already, and leave!" the cop yelled before walking back to where the accident had happened, wanting to retrieve his ill gotten PokeYen.

He passed Prince on the way; the blue ghost had both of his tentacles drawn up into a fist like ball by his face, shaking in apparent fright of the officer after hearing him yell. The poor little Pokemon stayed near his trainer as she checked out and hobbled outside, trying to leave before the officer realized all of the coins he had dropped were gone.

Jezebel kept up her fake limp as they left the shop. "I kept believe that worked so well; you did great!" she told Prince almost silently, barely keeping up the mask of pain. Making her way back to the young man, she said, "Here you go. Don't know how much I managed to grab but it's something at least." At her words, Prince unfurled both tentacles, revealing about 130 PokeYen that he had managed to snag.

While Jezebel wasn't a fan of crowds, growing up 5 siblings left her feeling odd without another human around. Although she had always been excited about this, she had been a touch lonely with no human companions. Having someone at her side during these shenanigans again felt really good.

------
Name: Jezebel Xienstein
Money: 500 PokeYen
Team: Prince (Frillish, Male, Cursed Body)
Bag: MPL Guide, 2 Potions, 2 Pokeballs

Ry_Burst · Jan 2, 2018

"Well she's not an average thief," Felix thought to himself as he watched the girl weave her way into the store. And with her arrival into the shop, planned chaos was quick to happen. As she faked a fall, Felix felt a faint chuckle escape his lips, which without context made him seem like a horrible person to any passing person. However he watched as the orchestrated act ended, with her Frillish opening his tentacle while facing Felix offering him a portion of his lost money.

Felix was quick to snatch the money and stuff it in his pocket deeply. "Thanks," he mumbled as he took a step forward to get away from the store window. "You might want to walk this way. That guard might realize what's going on and come outside to reclaim what's his." He took some steps forward, towards and alleyway and leaned against a store wall beside an alleyway. That way, if the cop looked out the window, he would have thought they left.

"Thanks for that. My name is Felix. And with that Frillish of yours and your need to buy items, I'm assuming that you're taking on the Mirai Pokemon League correct? Then if so, it might be in the best interest for us to travel together. The journey itself is pretty intense and travelling in a group might be good for both of us."
--
Name: Felix Waters
Money: 1130 PokeYen
Team: Volt (Male Shinx)
Bag: MPL Guide, 2 Pokeballs, 1 Antidote

Spoiled Bread · Jan 2, 2018

"So this is Lost Soul Forest." Peter mumbled to himself. In front of him is a forest with dense canopy. He could see that very little sunlight able to penetrate the canopy and reaches the ground, creating an eerie atmosphere even though now is still daytime.

"Porygon, out!"

"Kukukukukuk."

"In front of me, and keep your guard up." Peter command the little porygon.

He read the map once more and entered the forest. His goal is to reach the next town before the night comes. As long as they keep moving forward with decent speed and didn't go out of track, they should be able to do this. Just in case though, Peter use his kitchen knife to drew an arrow that points to the forest entrance, the next arrow would points to the previous arrow and so on. Hopefully this would help if he somehow went off track.

Fortunately, there's nothing that disturbed their trip so far, or so he thought. There's no trainer and no pokemon in sight. Its like he and porygon is the only moving being in this forest.

"Kukukukuk?!"

"What are you doing looking back? Keep going!"

The porygon nods at its trainer command. But it turned its head once more, it wanted to check something. Was that tree moving?

robinspea · Jan 2, 2018

"Chompy? Nomsy? Uh, Bitly? No... what was that name of that Krokorok from that famous film set in Lentimas Town? The one that was the Bandit's sidekick, the one that was eventually stopped by the Sheriff's Dewott, even after it evolved? It was, uh, Nibs- no, Nippers! Yeah, I think that sounds terrible too."

Hazel eyes squinted at the Sandile on the ground, nomming absentmindedly on the bench leg. Well, it was better for her Pokemon to destroy public property than her own arm. Really, how many times had he bitten her already? Was he still teething or something? Was it his way of saying hello? Why did the egg that Jennifer gave her have to hatch into a freaking Sandile anyways? Why couldn't it have been something cute without dangerously sharp teeth? Like a Minccino, or a Cottonee, or a cute little Munna? Well, I mean, Jen did have a Krokorok working in her bookshop with her, but Sandra was sweet and gentle! Not at all like the little maverick Myrna inherited. Whatever, beggars can't be choosers, right? "What should I call you..."

Just then, she saw a flash of a blue uniform among the crowd, and immediately returned Sandile to his Pokeball. The police officer was talking to some people nearby about something- did she hear Frillish?- probably wouldn't appreciate the by-now fairly obvious bite marks in the bench. It was probably best to evacuate the area while she was at it too. The PokeMart had to be nearby by now. After all, Myrna had walked all across town! However, as Myrna got her nearly-tote bag sized purse (it was practically empty, but still) over her shoulder, a voice started up beside her.

"Looking for a thief. Girl with long purple hair, yellow eyes, only about 18. Wearing long sleeved shirt and jeans, accompanied by a male Frillish. Seen her?" Way to get to the point. Myrna thought about it for a moment, ignoring the "I haven't got all day" from the cop in front of her. She did think she saw some blue-tentacles pass by before, when she first stopped for her break from the city-long walk, but she didn't think much of it.

"I think maybe... she went that way?" She pointed towards a few back alleys, before pausing. "T-Though it could have been the other direction too! I saw a Frillish but I wasn't really paying attention! Sorry, officer..." The guy looked at her somewhat annoyed, eyes sliding to the damage on the bench. "That was there when I got here!"

The officer studied her face for a moment. "Thanks, lady," it came out as a mumble, and Myrna couldn't tell whether that was sarcastic or sincere. "Have a good vacation."

Right. That's what the desk guy who registered her thought too. He had looked her over, typical touristy button-up flower shirt and all, with eyes that seemed like he couldn't tell whether she was smart or just really super incredibly stupid. Even now, his question popped up in her head. Lady, you do know this isn't a vacation, right? Whatever, give me your card. Hell, what was she even doing out here in the first place? As the officer walked away, Myrna couldn't help in feeling quite like an idiot.

Giving a small sigh, Myrna walked down the street once more, only to see that the shop was only a few buildings away from where she had taken a break. Yep, it wasn't like she was used to living in a big city or anything. Though, in her defense, traditional PokeMart buildings were hard to come by in Unova as they were normally just located inside Pokemon Centers. It was a good think she had read about that before coming here, or else she would have wound up walking to the Center first, and would feel like a triple scoop nincompoop. Shaking her head as some other guy with a stick went up to ask her if she had seen someone else nearby, Myrna finally entered the store, eyes wide at the prices. Damn. And she thought Castelia was expensive! Talk about a tourist trap! She had read about the general prices too, and how Pokemon Centers charge you, but just... damn.

Walking out of the Mart with two potions and a pokeball (was she even sure she could use one of those?), she cursed the system under her breath like the rebel she was. "A region of freaking thieves... prices are criminal..." Just, where was the first route that she was supposed to go to again? Looking back at her previous seat, Myrna saw it was already taken by a couple of actual tourists, and most of the others were full too. There was only one that was free, and that was by a nice man in a dress shirt and pants. Seemed honest enough.

Making her way towards him, she joined him on the bench, starting to pull out her own guide until she realized that he had his out. So he was taking on the MPL too! "Um," she started, peeking over. "Do you know where this "Forest of Lost Souls" is? Wow, that sounds depressing..."

--

Name: Myrna Wilcox
Money: 900 PokeYen
Team: Sandile (Moxie)
Bag: MPL Guide, 1 Pokeball, 2 Potions

MelodyMay · Jan 2, 2018

"Not that it was his anyway but I do see your point," she responded as she followed him into the alley. Once safely out of sight of the mart, Jezebel and Prince both took a deep bow, concluding their act.

While Felix spoke, Jezebel congratulated Prince buy give him affectionate rubs on his squishy head and kissing his crown, causing the ghost to squeal with joy. "Well, with trained Pokemon roaming those woods, it can't hurt. And we can help each other train once we get more team members. Speaking of which, relying on Prince in those woods will be risky. Do you mind if we look for pokemon in the city first. Even a Ratatta could help; they're immune to ghost attacks, after all," she explained as she gave a tiny hopeful smile. She had to remind herself that she'd likely find Kantonian Rattata here, not the black variety she was used to. She then realized she had forgotten to introduce herself. "Jezebel Xienstien, by the way. And this is Prince."

------
Name: Jezebel Xienstein
Money: 500 PokeYen
Team: Prince (Frillish, Male, Cursed Body)
Bag: MPL Guide, 2 Potions, 2 Pokeballs

Pokemon Fanfiction Novels · Jan 2, 2018

The sitting young man in dress shirt and pants glanced up, noticed Myrna, and smiled politely. "Hey, comrade. I was just getting to that part of the book. The first few pages are like, saturated with ink about this region's customs, but if we skip to the map on the back . . ."

He glanced at the page, squinted down harder at it, then turned the guidebook sideways. "Well, it, uh . . . it's that way- no- hang on, I'll have it in a second-"

"SVEN!"

A second young man approached the two at the park bench, banging the butt of his staff angrily on the ground as he stomped up to them. "THERE you are! I've been looking for you for the last fifteen minutes now!"

Sven waved at Matt casually. "Hey, man. I've just been here, waiting for you to get out of line."

"If you were merely planning on sitting around afterward, why the hell did you make a mad dash for registration in the first place?!"

"Easy, Matt, easy! I just thought that sitting and waiting was more agreeable than standing in line and waiting. You need to chill; you'll scare away the nice lady, here."

Matt heaved an exasperated sigh, and his eyes flicked to Myrna. "Fine. Who's your friend?"

"I don't know yet, but I was just about to show her where the Lost Souls Forest is on the trainer map. Only . . . I'm not sure if I'm reading this right. Is it upside-down?"

Matt walked up and, sticking his head between Myrna and Sven's, looked over the Mirai Map. "It's sideways. See how the 'n' for 'north' is on the left of the compass, and the written names of landmarks on the page are all tilted? Here." He righted the map. "Lost Souls Forest is northeast of where we're currently positioned. It looks to be the only direct route from this city to the next designated location, at least for trainers. The guidebook also warns that it is NOTHING like Viridian Forest. Far from Caterpies and Weedles, count on seeing pokemon that'll cut your hitpoints in half on the first turn. If we plan on reaching the other side, it will probably be necessary to cross in groups."

He looked at Myrna, and his expression softened somewhat. "Hello. I'm sorry for ignoring you for the last minute like that. I'm Matt, and you've met Sven, here. What's your name?"

Ry_Burst · Jan 3, 2018

At the prospect of catching new Pokemon, a faint smile had spread upon Felix's face. His mind was filled with thoughts of the new Pokemon he could encounter, while she made mention of catching a Kantonian Rattata. He had grown up seeing them in the streets of Vermilion, so they were not a new Pokemon to him. "If you're interested in catching one. Then places like this alley would be out best bet. And as a good note, since we would need to train for our next gym badge along the way, then it might be a good idea to go there in the early evening. The wild ghost types would honestly be the weaker of the Pokemon in the forest, considering of how there are Pokemon belonging to trainers who lost. So they would be somewhat strong, despite having lost three battles." He explained as his eyes scanned the alleyway.

"And before I forget and also because I've had the honor of meeting your partner for this trip, I'd think it would only be fitting for you to see mine." Felix raised his hand up to take the Pokeball connected onto the chain into his palm, and plucked it free. Then he pushed his hand out, and pressed the button with his thumb. In a flash of white light, a small blue Pokemon appeared at Felix's feet. "This little guy is named Volt." Felix said gesturing towards the small Shinx.

robinspea · Jan 3, 2018

Myrna watched the stranger next to her struggled with the map, her eyes staring at the Compass Rose. Should she say something? I mean, he had to know how to read a map, right? Who didn't? But still, it was taking an awkward amount of time. If only she was closer and he'd stop moving, she'd know the direction and excuse herself from their conversation. After all, she didn't want to bother any other trainers if she didn't have to. They were all probably busy doing their own thing, not to mention that some of them might actually want to battle with her. While Myrna had watched battles happen before her, she had yet to be involved in any herself, and just the idea of Sandile possibly being hurt by her inexperience filled her with some guilt.

Thankfully, or maybe not, they were both interrupted by a loud yell of... Sven? What? Myrna investigated the guy in front of her. He was rather plain-looking, but it felt like she had seen him before. She remembered as soon as she saw the walking stick. "Stick man," she muttered under her breath, linking everything together in her mind. This guy next to her- Sven?- must have been the man he'd been looking for. Guess this Matt guy wasn't crazy after all!

Myrna sighed in some bit of relief as Matt took the map, eyes flicking over it while actually knowing what he was doing. "Thank you," she replied as he read the instructions for her, though the comparison to Viridian Forest didn't help her much as she'd never been there herself. The most exposure she had to Viridian City was that she knew it was setting of one of her favorite author's, Shauntal's, mystery novels. Besides that, general knowledge, and a few other Kantonian-based books, that was the most explore she had to that region.

"My name is Myrna," she introduced herself, a small smile on her face. "Myrna Wilcox. Nice to meet you too. Are you both taking on the Pokemon League? Or are you just here on vacation together?" Right as she finished her question, she remembered what Matt had mentioned about registration, which most likely meant that they were doing the former. Still, it wasn't hard to believe that they were young lovers off together on a romantic getaway or something. Especially since they were so young, and the MPL was said to be so soul crushing. A chill went through her as what Matt had said started to sink in. Their were going to be tough Pokemon in the forest ahead, and Myrna was as unprepared as ever to challenge them.

MelodyMay · Jan 3, 2018

"Nice to meet you, Volt," Jezebel said, mentally patting herself on the back for her previous cautious behavior. A Shinx could've killed Prince if it knew any electric moves. The water type in question floated over and grinned playfully at the smaller pokemon. "Frrrrill!" he thrilled, patting the little lion on the head. He then tipped his head back and let loose a spray of water, soaking himself. Refreshed, he shook off a few stray droplets off his skin. His body seemed to take on a new glow now that he had rehydrated.

"Well, maybe not Rattata," Jezebel said, making a bit of a face. "They have better typing in Alola and even there they're... not great. I just brought them up to make a point. But I suppose they're common so they can work if we can't find anything else. And weak ghost are definitely a better opponent than already trained who knows what. Count me in for a late night hike," she said, giving him a thumbs up. With that, she started looking. The alley was fairly barren and opened out onto a sidewalk on either side.. There was one dumpster; apparently the Pokemart was next to a restaurant if the bits of bread by the dumpster was any indication.

She wandered for a bit, going through a few allies until she found a little hub for the harbor district that had several restaurants. "Jackpot! I don't care what species you are, you follow the food," she commented to Prince. Just as she was walking past an alley, she heard the clanging of metal and trash bags. Looking down the closest alleyway, she saw a couple industrial dumpsters and a Growlithe trying desperatley to jump into one. It would just barely catch the lip and then slide back down, as though it couldn't pull itself in.

At first, she thought the fire type was particuarly fluffy but then she noticed the dirty, slightly tangled nature of the coat and the black specks characteristically seen in the ears of uncared for mammalian pokemon. This Growlithe wasn't fluffy, it was just very skinny. The poor thing probably hadn't had a good meal in weeks. Still, stray carnivore is a stray carnivore. "Prince, get ready," she said.

Hearing the nearby voice, the fire dog whirled around, growling his head off. Prince quickly floated into position. "It's already weakened from hunger so this should be a snap. Use water sport," she commanded. The last thing she needed was property owners breathing down her neck for fire damages. As Prince began diligently spouting water in a larger version of the fashion he had used to re-hydrate himself, Grwlithe darted forward, fangs bared.

"He's using bite, Prince; move it!" she shouted. Prince tried to dodge, but the wavy motion of his levitating body left some tentacles out for Growlithe to latch onto. With a dog latched onto one of his lower tentacles, Prince began to panic from the pain; however, the more he screamed and thrashed, the harder the Growlithe held on. "Frill! Frillish frill! Friiiiiill!" he cried.

"Prince, use bubble!" Jezebel shouted over her pokemon's pained calls. Prince blindly shot out a bubblebeam instead, frightened and wanting to do anything to get the dog off. Growlithe immediately backed off when the stream of bubbles hit hard against its shoulder. When the first stream had ended, Prince fired ff another bubblebeam without waiting for a command. "Don't hurt it too bad!" Jezebel called out; she really couldn't afford a pokemon center.

As the Growlithe tried to flee, Prince descended on it, using constrict so that Jezebel could have a clearer shot. He'd also be lying if he said he didn't use more force than needed; that bite had really hurt and he just wanted to see some punishment, is all. Taking out a pokeball, Jezebel did her best to line up the shot; she had never thrown a pokeball before. Prince had just sort of... tapped the button himself when she caught him. Aiming for the puppy's hind flank, she tossed the ball. Her aim was far from perfect but she managed to hit his front shoulder.

The fire pokemon froze as he was engulfed by red light and absorbed into the pokeball. As the pokeball landed roughly against the grimy alley floor, Prince floated back to Jezebel, teary eyed as he favored his hurt tentacle. "You can try to use recover," Jezebel told him as she walked to the wiggling pokeball. Making a face at how dissmissive she had been of his pain, Prince focused as best as he could on the pain and tried to force the water in his body to the hurt area. He didn't quite understand it but whenever he tried to use this move- he could never completely pull it off- the water that helped form his body and kept him alive on land seemed to rush to the wound.

As he focused, the wound started to glow gold. His wound started to heal from the worst parts out. Just as he could really feel the healing spread, the glow faded. "Frill..." he mumbled as he realized that he hadn't been able to sustain the move yet again. Still, it had removed the worst of the pain. The rest would probably be gone after a good night's sleep.

While Prince had been practicing his recover, Jezebel crouched over the pokeball, staring down at it intently. She was nearly sweating from the force of staring at the wiggling ball. It wiggled once. It wiggled twice. It wiggled thrice. Then all was quiet... before... the ball made a clicking noise, signifying the successful capture. Grinning madly and scooping up the ball, she turned back to her companions announcing, "We did it!"

-----
Name: Jezebel Xienstein
Money: 500 PokeYen
Team: Prince (Frillish, Male, Cursed Body)
Jenna (Growlithe, Female, Intimidate)
Bag: MPL Guide, 2 Potions, 1 Pokeball

BurbleBurble · Jan 3, 2018

Well, Kiran had decided...He was sticking to his guns and buying two potions and two Pokeballs as planned. The potions were going to help in the case Gina did take a hit or healing up a Pokemon he had caught, and the Pokeballs would be used for the obvious. He could catch two Pokemon...if both of them worked on the first time. Case in point he needed to be lucky to swipe two Pokemon with the few he would purchase.

In the case he even got in- Kiran bumped into a burly looking cop leaving the mart at the time. "Hey! Watch where yer goin'!" The man barked, gritting his yellowed teeth.

"I-I'm sorry sir! It won't happen again!" Kiran stuttered out. The authority here was no slouch- and he certainly wasn't going to start snarking off to them. Not that it really mattered to this cop.

"It better not." The man huffed, as he began to walk off. But the cop stopped and turned back to Kiran for a moment. "Hold on a moment. You see a girl with purple hair and a Frillish around?" Kiran pondered for a moment. Frillish...blue octopus looking thing, right? Purple hair...Yeah, she was outside the mart just a second ago. But now she wasn't...And to be honest, he didn't see where she went. So he shook his head, much to the disgruntled cop's chagrin. "Hmpf." Was the last word told to Kiran as he stomped off.

The visit to the mart was mostly uneventful. Without the cop there was just the bored clerk (Probably that card clerk's brother) and an employee mopping up some pink mush on the floor. Two Pokeballs and two potions came to the total of a whopping 2000 PY. Another chunk of money gone, but no success without sacrifice.

With a lighter wallet and a heavier backpack, he stepped back out of the mart. There was not much left to see in the city- not without spending money at least. Kiran considered getting a bite to eat...but maybe he could go without a while. The human body could survive a week without food right? Yeah, he'd be fine- "OOF!"

While he was in his thinking process, he bumped into a woman...who was in a conversation with two others already. "Oh gosh, I'm sorry, I wasn't even paying attention...I'm really sorry, didn't mean to interrupt or anything..." Man, now a bunch of thoughts were running through his head. All about how he was making enemies, probably seemed like a pickpocket with a terrible excuse, how rude he came off as...But that was kind of just the Kiran way.
---
Name: Kiran Redmont
Money: 500 PY
Team: Gina (Gothita, Frisk)
Bag: MPL Guide, Potion x2, Pokeball x2

Spoiled Bread · Jan 3, 2018

No way! It can't be!

Peter was shocked when he spotted a tree with a freshly carved arrow sign. He was sure he didn't go off track. The compass didn't show anything weird either. He kept moving forward but it's like he was just walking in circle. He couldn't even find the forest entrance!

Suddenly he heard the laughter of childrens somewhere. He carefully walked toward the source of the voice, but he found no one.

Calm down Peter, there must be explanation for this.

Right when he was deep in thought, a trevenant came out of the shadow and sneaked to the unaware Peter..

But porygon saw this and shoot an ice beam at the trevenant. The trevenant shriek and took a step back. Now, aware of the danger, Peter stood in a defensive stance.

"So, you are the culprit. Huh. Porygon, get ready." Peter spotted an arrow-shaped sign at its body.

"Kukukuk."

The trevenant circled Peter and porygon, as if looking for an opening. Peter sensed this trevenant precaution, and used the opportunity to initiate the move.

"Porygon, use agility!" Porygon's body shine for a moment. There's nothing changed, except porygon is now faster than before.

But the trevenant is ready and use the opportunity to lunge at porygon and attacked with shadow claw, which of course has no effect. Peter conclude that this trevenant had never met a porygon before.

The trevenant looks confused of why its attack didn't worked. Porygon once again used agility before starting to circle the now angry trevenant. Peter hide behind a tree nearby.

"Porygon, ice beam barrage!" By using its boosted speed to do and hit and run tactic. Porygon succeed in delivering some damage to the trevenant without getting hit. Until the trevenant grew more angry and buried its hand into one of the tree.

Suddenly the forest bursted into life. Branches flailing randomly, vines grew and entangle whatever they could touch. Peter himself stared in horror when a root suddenly bind his left leg, he tried to pull his leg but the root won't even budge. Porygon seems busy dodging all the branches and vines. Even for a moment, Peter thought that his adventure would end here and now, he would be cursed and live the rest of his life as another random phantump.

Until the trevenant seems scared at something, retracted its hand from the tree and escaped to the shadow of the forest. It's not long before a vulpix entered Peter's eyesight, but far from the elegant vulpix he used to see, this vulpix is somehow very angry. It threw embers of fire at any moving things it saw. Some of the tree even started to catches the fire!

Peter took caution not to make any sudden movement, his left leg is still binded anyway. He use his hands to gave porygon a signal.

Take care of that crazy vulpix.

Pokemon Fanfiction Novels · Jan 3, 2018

"Vacation together? . . . You think he's my-?" Sven sputtered indignantly, and stomped his foot. "Really, Myrna, just 'cause I dye my hair doesn't mean I'm into men. You've been reading too much yaoi!"

Matt smiled weakly. "If he were, I wouldn't be here. My girlfriend back home would get jealous. Now . . ." He turned northeast, so that his shadow stood at a 3 o' clock to his position. "It's a long walk, and I'm not too keen on being in the Forest of Lost Souls at sundown. Shall we?"

That was when Myrna was side-struck by another trainer who, apparently lost in thought, crashed straight into her. In his peripheral vision a minute earlier, Matt half-imagined he'd seen this same guy barrel into a police officer. Was he clumsy, nearsighted, or just drunk? His apology sounded genuine enough though, so Matt shrugged and hefted his backpack. "Yikes. That was unfortunate. Hey, buddy, are you going to be okay on your own?"

Ry_Burst · Jan 3, 2018

Felix watched as Jezebel battled the Growlithe she had encountered, while she made an attempt to catch it. A Growlithe would be a loyal companion for sure in most other regions with it naturally being in their nature. However since this was a Pokemon that had been raised in a place like this, then it would probably have a distaste for humans. There seemed to be a gap between the rich and Pokemon in Mirai ever since those Pokemon Training laws had been passed, and these Pokemon that lived on the streets seemed to hate humans more and more with each passing day. Raising a Pokemon like that would be hard, but once Jezebel got passed the distrust and hatred for humans the Growlithe had built up, they would be good friends and Jezebel would have an extremely loyal Pokemon on her hands.

"Well congrats on the capture," the young man said with a genuine smile as she made her capture. Felix glanced up at the sky to check the time. Bringing a watch to the region, usually ended with it being frisked as something of value, so he had decided not to bring one. So most trainers had nothing of value. The only thing of value that was allowed through was a Pokedex, which was something extremely rare. Usually only the richest of the rich had one, and having one was often a reason enough to get mugged.

Judging by the sun's position in the sky, it was roughly 3 to 4 o'clock, leaving them with a few good hours until sunset. "Okay, so considering you caught yourself a Pokemon, we should probably make our way towards the Lost Souls Forest. My goal is to catch a Ghost type and do some training, as ghosts can be hard to hit, and useful for catching something stronger." He gave a mischievous grin as he said the last few words of his sentence.

robinspea · Jan 3, 2018

"I wasn't insinuating that- I was just- friends of the same gender can go on a vacation together without it being romantic!" Myrna declared, though a faint blush on her cheeks gave away the fact that she had definitely just assumed that they were together or something. She was going to say that she didn't read yaoi either, but ahhh, romance novels were one of her favorite types, so she honestly had read her fair share of that sort of content. Therefore, she decided that it would be better to get off the subject as quick as she could.

As Matt remarked about the Forest of Lost Souls, Myrna didn't skip a beat in her reply. "Sure," she agreed, a little relieved that she did find a few other trainers to traverse the forest with. Well, at least it seemed as if she wasn't imposing. "Your girlfriend back home... where exactly are you two fro-?" Before Myrna could finish her question, and as she was turning around to head to the forest, she felt another body crash into hers.

Myrna rubbed the spot where she was hit as she looked up to meet the man who rammed her. "No, no! You're fine! I'm sorry- I probably should have been closer to the side of the walkway and, uh..." It took her a second for her mind to catch up to her mouth, and to remember that there was no need for her apologizing in the first place. Hazel eyes scanned the stranger over. He was well-dressed, and just as young as the other men next to her. However, he didn't look like he was a third member of the party that bursting in at the last second. That was when she remembered the crime rate in Dolvous. Her hands were in her pockets then, and she turned to check her purse, which was still, thankfully, zipped. Okay, so this guy wasn't a thief after all. Probably just another trainer or tourist gone lost, or drunk. Now she did have a reason to apologize. "Sorry... crime rate high... can't be too cautious, you know?" Myrna offered a sympathetic smile.

MelodyMay · Jan 3, 2018

"Sounds like a plan; all the strong Pokemon are probably headed to bed," Jezebel said with a proud smile. Her first Pokemon that was actually a challenge to catch... It was an awesome feeling. Still, that Pokemon had done a number to her partner.

"How's your tentacle," she asked Prince as they started heading for the forest. He seemed to brighten a bit at her attention. "Well, looks like he does have a negative trait," Jezebel thought. Her Frillish so was jealous she was surprised his eyes weren't turning green. Even though she had only caught him recently, they had been best friends for years so she couldn't be to surprised by this behavior over a new Pokemon.

The sun was low in the sky by the time they reached the forest; the trees, black against the sky at this hour, loomed over them ominously. The trees had arrows carved into them. Jezebel saw the pattern, a new arrow about every other tree, but a few trees were missing. "Great. There are possessed trees walking around," she grumbled as she started walking in. The path, while well trod, was also covered with fallen leaves that hid rocks, tree roots, and even the occasional hissing bug that would quickly run away.

"For a forest of lost souls," Jezebel commented after a bit of hiking, "we sure haven't seen many ghosts." Prince stayed close to her, both scared of the forest and scared for her. He just wanted to leave. How could land dwellers stand so many trees and rustling noises?!

-----
Name: Jezebel Xienstein
Money: 500 PokeYen
Team: Prince (Frillish, Male, Cursed Body)
Jenna (Growlithe, Female, Intimidate)
Bag: MPL Guide, 2 Potions, 1 Pokeball

Ashen Miko · Jan 4, 2018

“Welcome to the Mirai Pokemon League Registration Desk. If you’re here to get your ass handed to you and lose everything just like all the other losers who pass by here, please hand over your license.” In stark contrast to the people who had been on the cruise she was on, Eleanor could feel nothing but complete disinterest coming from the lady at the registration desk before her. She quickly handed over her registration card with full intent to book it out of there as quickly as she could. “Eleanor Ainsworth, registered in Unova.”

Eleanor silently watched the lady mutter to herself as she filled out a few forms. “Just sign here and hand over the 500 yen and you can be on your way to become one of the many losers in this league~”

Either that or the woman took great pleasure in watching the dreams of some starry-eyed kids being crushed quickly. Whatever the case, Eleanor passed on the fee without a word, took her registration and league guide and walked straight out of the building. After finding a nice shade-covered bench, she pulled out her marked up botanist’s guide to Mirai and opened up both. After running through each for about 30 minutes, she had made the optimal path to attain what she needed for her research as well as make it through the league challenge.

“The first one will be in Lost Souls Forest, huh.” After placing her guides in her hip pouches, she picked herself off the bench. “Guess I should stock up first.”

After wandering for about half an hour through the city, she eventually found herself in the nearest Mart. If Professor Haus hadn’t warned her well in advance about Mirai’s absurd prices for items and the general money grubbing nature of businesses in the region, she would have not been surprised to have gone on a tirade. Even Castelia City wasn’t this bad in terms of prices.

Not wanting to gather any attention from the cop who was clearly keeping an eye on her as she browsed the store while clearly showing signs of not wanting to be there, Eleanor quickly picked out a pair of Pokeballs, a potion, and an antidote and took it all to the counter.

“You planning on paying for that?” The cop who had been keeping an eye on her made her way over to the counter next to Eleanor as the clerk began bagging the items.

“Yes, officer.” After pulling out 1600 yen from her wallet, she quickly handed it over to the cashier who made a count check. There was no need to antagonize her or show any attitude. She just had to get her business done here and then find someone she could travel through the forest with.

Luckily for her, her attempt to keep the officer’s mood from worsening had gone off without a success as she walked away with a merely single “tch” and a single utterance about a replacement.

She quickly placed the items in her messenger bag and walked out into the dirty city, making her way to the entrance of the forest, in hopes of finding other trainers.

Status:
Name: Eleanor Ainsworth
Money: 900 Pokeyen
Team: Lilith the Petitlil
Bag: MPL Guide, 2 Pokeballs, 1 Potion, 1 Antidote, Miscellaneous Research Equipment

Spoiled Bread · Jan 4, 2018

"Damn, this root!" Peter is having a hard time cutting the root that bind his leg with his kitchen knife, although he had make sure it is well polished before he boarded the ship.

"If only I could bring my katana..." But Peter shake off that feeling. He could not, must not, feeling down now. He could heard the the exchange of thunderbolt and flamethrower nearby. Seems porygon had a hard time hitting the crazy vulpix. If it cames to battle of atrition, Peter feared that porygon would be the one that got defeated.

Peter put his all into cutting the root and his effort paid. He peeked from behind the tree. Porygon still using the hit & run tactic, but the agile and crazy vulpix just chase it through the forest while spewing a strong blast of flamethrower.

I see porygon is still weak at improvising.

Next Peter took a look at the crazy vulpix. It bared its fangs all the time, as if angry at the world instead of something in particular. But Peter noticed how well-groomed its tails and bang, also how often its tripped on the roots and rocks on the ground. Peter conclude this vulpix is a freshly released pokemon, enraged when it didn't find its trainer around. Not like Peter cared though.

He scooped a rock and toss it right behind the vulpix. The vulpix startled by the sudden attack and blast the rock with fire.

"Tackle, porygon!"

Porygon registered its trainer command and charged right at the open vulpix. The attack connected with the target, but porygon still took a whole blast of flamethrower. The first tackle sent vulpix crashing into a tree. Porygon didn't stop its attack and deliver the next tackle, pinning the vulpix to the tree.

The battle ended. Peter let out a stressful sigh. This journey if even more dangerous than what he thought.

"Use recover!" Porygon is covered in bright light, when the light faded, most of its injuries is gone. But still, porygon is too tired for another fight. If that trevenant came back they are finished.

"Grrrhhh....."

Peter looked in surprise when the vulpix desperately tried to stand up, only to fell back to the ground, then reattempt to stand up.

"You are stubborn, are you? Well, I like it." Peter threw his only pokeball to the vulpix.

*beep*

*beep*

*beep*

*click*

The capture is a succes. Peter wondered if his decision to capture such an enraged vulpix is a wise one.

For now, both him and porygon need rest. He opened a piece of jerky and bite into it, while porygon use a portable charger to energize itself.

*thump*

*thump*

The ground shook when a seismitoad came to the ground when porygon and vulpix last battled. There's still a strong odor of char there, some tree even still have some sparks of fire, but Peter thought the forest is too wet for that small fire to be a problem so he just left it as it is.

The seismitoad spew some water to extinguish the fire. It also straighten some fallen tree and buried all burnt leaves. Peter fascinated by this sight, it was like seeing a gardener tend to his garden, or a mother cleaning her house.

Suddenly a trevenant with arrow-shaped sign carved into its body appeared and attacked the seismitoad with a horn leech. The seismitoad did nothing, as if the attack only tickled it. It turned its head and poured acid liquid on the trevenant. The trevenant produced the most frightening shriek Peter ever heard before the seismitoad dragged it out of his sight.

Scary. Is that also a released pokemon?

Peter could feel his body shaking out of fear.

Peter Rayleigh

Pokemon:
Porygon(download)
Vulpix(male/flash fire)

Bag:
700 PokeYen
2 Potion
1 Antidote

BurbleBurble · Jan 4, 2018

Well, the good news for Kiran was they didn't think he was some bad guy. But they did think he was terribly, terribly inept. Well, it could've been worse.

"No, no! You're fine! I'm sorry- I probably should have been closer to the side of the walkway and, uh..." The woman spoke, rubbing her arm. Perhaps she realized that she was at no fault here, as she checked her belongings- and thankfully for Kiran, they were all there. Oh, and her! Getting robbed on the first day would suck. "Sorry... crime rate high... can't be too cautious, you know?" She told him, with a smile that also told him 'sorry'.

"Oh, no no, I understand! No worries, I shouldn't be going around bumping into people myself, ha ha..." Now Kiran had two choices, he could walk away like nothing happened...or try to push the envelope and make a pal. So, uh, he was about to get out of there while he could, not being a very 'social' person and all, when the man with the stick asked him a question.

"Yikes. That was unfortunate. Hey, buddy, are you going to be okay on your own?"

"Oh, um." Kiran was a little taken off guard. "I'm...I'll be good, how hard is to pass through some woods? But, I mean, thanks for your concern. My name is Kiran." Oh great, now he went and said his name. Was it a bad thing?...No, probably not. Kiran was just being Kiran.

Ashen Miko · Jan 4, 2018

“I'm...I'll be good, how hard is to pass through some woods? But, I mean, thanks for your concern.”

Having caught wind of those words, Eleanor made her way over in the direction of where they had come from.

“You say that, but the guide for the league implies that passing through in the forest in groups is far more prudent.” Eleanor made a quick stop next to the boy who was making the either haughty or unwise statement. Either way, that kind of thing was best not left alone. “Honestly, it’s better if you try to at least partner up with someone else, given what the guide said.”

As she gazed over the group she had come across, Eleanor pushed up her glasses with her right index finger and wrapped her other hand under chest to grab at her right elbow. Her eyes darted from the taller woman to the walking stick guy and then back to the one she was addressing.

“Besides, wouldn’t having a couple of other people traveling with you be far more useful in general?”

Ry_Burst · Jan 4, 2018

“For a forest of Lost Souls, we sure haven’t seen many ghosts.”

When Jezebel said this, Felix planted his feet firm and stopped. She was right. They had already traveled into this forest for a while, and so signs of life. He closed his eyes and listened to the wind that brushed through the treetops. Something seemed oddly suspicious, about this. Why would these Pokemon be avoiding them like this? Normally ghost types were mischievous, and wouldn’t waste an chance to spook some passing travelers. And while the sun was still in the sky, the canopy of dark oak trees seemed to give a dark overcast to the forest and leaving it with a spooky feel.

“Let’s go, Volt!” Felix said, sending out his partner once more. Almost immediately, the Blue Pokemon’s fur, gave a light dazzle of light. “When a Sphinx senses danger, their fur glows. So there has to be something going on.” Felix said as he looked around the wooded area they were standing in.

Felix felt something cold against the back of his neck, prompting him to wheel around. However nothing was there that was visible. “Volt, use Charge.” Felix said without moving from his new position. His partner’s fur lit up with bright yellow electricity, and supercharged the surrounding air.

“Shup!”

After hearing the faint suprised cry, Felix knew it was a Pokemon. Considering it could become invisible implied it was a ghost type, and judging from where the noise came from, Felix could pinpoint it’s position.

“Okay Volt. I want you to use Spark there,” he said, pointing to the place where the voice had come from. The Flash Pokemon became surrounded in yellow crackling energy and lundged in the area Felix had pointed. While it would have been obvious that the Pokemon would have moved, Felix predicted that considering how close it had bee following him, that it wouldn’t move far. Volt flew past in the air, and the electricity was boosted enough, thanks to the Charge attack from earlier, which cause the Pokemon to get hit and it revealed itself to be a Shuppet. While it was confused and disoriented, Felix made his next move, whipping out a Pokeball from his belt.

Catching Volt wasn’t easy for him, and Reggie was the reason behind his ability of catching. While he still lacked power in his throw, his aim was still pretty good. So in a light toss, the Pokeball bounced onto the Shuppet’s head and the Ghost Type was absorbed into the Pokeball with a red light.

Felix watched as the ball gave a shake. One, two, click. The Pokemon was his. He picked up the Pokeball and smiled. “It seems like something is drawing a lot of ghosts away, maybe a bigger group deeper into the forest, so we need to keep out eyes out. And as for this little guy, I guess she was feeding off my emotions since town.”
—
Name: Felix Waters
Money: 1130 PokeYen
Team: Volt (Male Shinx), ??? (Female Shuppet)
Bag: MPL Guide, 1 Pokeball, 1 Antidote

robinspea · Jan 4, 2018

Myrna looked at Kiran with a new flash of worry. Going through the woods alone... well, it had to be possible, but still. That was a tall order, and the guy in front of her looked more suited for an office than a trek through some ghost woods (and she knew what that felt like). And then there was the logo on his jacket, one which perked her interest immediately... maybe if Myrna could get him to join their group, get to know him, and then maybe explain her situation to him...

“You say that, but the guide for the league implies that passing through in the forest in groups is far more prudent.”

Hazel eyes jumped back up to meet a new pair of eyes, a similar color to her own. Either Sven or Matt had to have a Magnemite on them, because people seemed to be getting attracted to their group right and left (which wasn't exactly a bad thing). Looking her over, this girl had to be a trainer- her attire left no doubt about it. She looked like she knew what she was doing too, something which caused Myrna to feel both a little impressed and intimidated. It took a moment for Myrna to realize that she had been staring at Kiran and this new girl in silence for a while now, and that the girl had asked a question. So she chirped up.

"Uh, yes. A-actually, Sven, Matt and I," when pointing to the two boys beside her, she accidentally got their names wrong, pointing to Matt and calling him Sven and doing the reverse to Sven himself, "we were about to go into the forest ourselves, you see. You can come with us if you want!" She realized that she had started to decide this herself without the other two's input, so she turned to face them instead. "If that's okay, I mean." She finished her statement and sat in a few seconds of silence before she realized she forgot to introduce herself. "Oh! My name's Myrna. Myrna Wilcox. Hi."

Pokemon Fanfiction Novels · Jan 5, 2018

Sven shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "I don't mind traveling together, as long as I get to call dibs if I encounter a pokemon I want."

Matt was silent, doubt brewing in his eyes. "That's assuming any pokemon will show itself to a pack of five humans," he said slowly, looking over the newly-formed group. "And any that are aggressive enough to do so are probably too dangerous. But . . . there is safety in numbers. I think it would make the most sense if we combed the Lost Souls forest as two small groups within relatively close proximity. Not near enough to see or hear the other group of two or three, but close enough to run to the rescue if, for instance . . ."

He pulled a whistle out from under his shirt scruff, which hung on his neck. "You heard this."

Sven chuckled. "Who needs a whistle when you can just scream for help? Well, whatever. If we're gonna break into mini-groups of two or three, I'm obviously still going with yours."

"Fine. But once we've entered the trees, it's whispers and hand gestures only. And no going off on your own for more than three minutes at a time."

*FLASH-FORWARD: Lost Souls Forest, some time later*

It had been three minutes since Matt had excused himself from Sven to search out a wild pokemon. Sven could be silent when appropriate, but his footsteps were too loud. After this, Matt would have to reteach him how to walk with stealth.

Movement alerted Matt from the corner of his eye, and he turned to see a yellow head peering at him from behind a tree trunk. On first glance, the little creature resembled a pokemon, if its face had been scribbled like a child's drawing. Slowly, he lifted his hands in the air to show that he was unarmed. In most scenarios, he would have Onix out in a heartbeat, to attack or defend as needed. This case was special, however, in that some of the Forest's resident pokemon were previously trainer owned. Perhaps this animal longed for human companionship once more, and any method that preserved Onix's health was worth trying.

"Hey, Matt. You said three minutes, and it's been three minutes."

Sven was suddenly behind him. Startled, Matt glanced away for a second, before flicking his gaze back to the pokemon. "(I also said whispers only!)" he hissed. "Look. I think that's a possible domesticated pokemon."

Sven looked at the creature. "It's a Pikachu!" he stated, starting forward. "Or . . . at least, it looks like it wants to be one."

"Get back here!" Matt gurgled, in a voice between a whisper and a scream. "Don't go to it; let it come to us!"

"But you thought it was domestic," Sven protested. As if to prove his point, the pokemon carefully shuffled up to him. It stood at about a foot in height, barely past his knee level. Sven reached out and patted it on the head. "There, see?" he smiled. "He was just lonely. Aww, who's a buddy, who's a-"

There was a sudden crunching noise, and the "Pikachu"'s head bent to the side at an awkward angle. Sven froze.

"Uh-oh. I think I broke his neck."

"Sven! Get back!"

Emitting a high growl, the pokemon charged, and three deep claw marks suddenly appeared in Sven's pants above the knee. He cried out, more than in surprise than pain. A second later, a brilliant light shone before Matt as Onix's massive form appeared. Sven stumbled his way back behind the colossus, and the pokemon turned on its new foe.

"A Mimikyu," Matt murmured. "The guidebook said this forest had ghosts, but I wasn't counting on seeing any this early. Onix, we're picking this one up!"

MelodyMay · Jan 5, 2018

Jezebel watched in silence as Felix caught the little ghost. "Good catch," she complimented. This guy had good instincts. If she battled him- and make no mistake, she did want to battle him- she would have to be very careful. Prehaps waiting until she had a tfhird team mesmber would be best. Both of his pokemon were good against Prince, after all. It also didnt help that Growlithe, who she had decided to call Jenna if it turned out to be a girl, wasn't at full strength yet.

Speaking of Jenna (or Balto if it turned out to be a boy), who knew how long it would take to get that dog to listen to Her? Life as a stray was hard: people yelling at you and tossing things at you; threatening your exisistence at every turn. She couldn't blame the fire pup if it gave her trouble but she was also impatient to start training it.

While his trainer has silent contemplation, Prince floated over to Felix and his newly occupied pokeball. Living in the ocean, he had never seen any other ghost types besides other Frillish and the occasional Jellicent. He had sensed a ghostly presence on the beach where he met Jezebel sometimes but he had never sought out the source out of fear of a fight.

Curiosity overwhelming him, he reached out a tentacle to touch the ball. But even wrapped up in the new Pokemon like this, he stayed aware of there surroundings. He could sense other ghost about but it was why they weren't popping out that scared him. He himself had nearly been another pokemon's meal multiple times growing up and he couldn't shake the feeling that a very dangerous predator was lying in wait; just waiting for them to walk by and be supper.

Ashen Miko · Jan 5, 2018

“Eleanor Ainsworth.” In response to Myrna’s haphazard introduction, Eleanor dropped one of her own to ease the mood while letting her arms back down to her side. “I’d be delighted to join along. I was looking for a group myself.”
-----

In all honesty, Sven and Matt had formed their own little clique that was difficult to penetrate into. Eleanor could only assume this was something natural for siblings so she could hardly complain. Those two were functionally on a similar wavelength so adding hers into the mix would have likely ended up throwing them off more than she would like.

It was not like she wished to be a burden upon those two so slowing down for her own selfishness would hardly be appropriate.

In the meantime, she stuck with Kiran while they traversed the woods themselves. With her annotated botanical guide in tow, she continued combing the area for the sample she was looking for.

“You guys have any Pokemon of interest you want to find?” With her book still in hand, open to a specific page, she turned her eyes back to face Kiran. “I have my doubts that we’ll actually cross through the forest by night but we can still search for whatever we need now and get as much done so we don’t have to divert too much attention from actually getting out of here.”

robinspea · Jan 5, 2018

Myrna nodded to Matt as he laid out the guidelines for their forest journey. No talking, and not alone for any more than three minutes. Seemed simple enough. However, the forest itself was another story. Once Myrna and the others arrived at the foot of it, she couldn't help in feeling a little burst of chill. She hadn't necessarily been inside Lostlorn Forest before, but she had seen several pictures, and there was no comparing the too. The Forest of Lost Souls lived up to it's name: creepy to the max. A kind of deep fog, an ambiguous rustling leaves from around you, and trees with carved arrows that seemed to move just ever slightly out of the corner of her eye. Definitely not Myrna's first image of the Mirai region. She was definitely out of her league after all.

Speeding up to get up closer to the two boys, she followed Matt's instructions to the bone, keeping as quiet as possible. That was, until Matt excused himself. "But-!" She said out in alarm, only to instantly cover her mouth. Was he going to be okay out there? Most importantly, was she going to be okay? No offense, but based on the confusion with the map from before, Sven wasn't exactly the reliable type. Still, Matt wasn't going to go over three minutes, that was the rule. Or well, that was until about five minutes later, when both she and Sven were standing in silence by a tree, all alone in some stupidly spooky woods.

While waiting, Myrna pulled out the spare Pokeball she had just bought. So this was it, was it? The more she thought about it, the more she realized Matt wouldn't leave without reason. He was going to catch a Pokemon, because that's what trainers do. That's what she needed to do, though she had no idea how to do that yet. Would it have been bad to follow Matt? To watch him catch an actual Pokemon? Maybe she could watch Sven catch a Pokemon later on. Yeah, and then after that, she would catch her own. Something cute, but powerful. Maybe there was a Deerling here she could be friends with? After exhausting her own mental list of Pokemon she figured she might find, both the cute and terrifying, Myrna had to break the silence. "Do you think we should look for him?" she whispered to Sven. Only, he was no where to be found.

"...Sven?" She repeated one more time, albeit hesitantly. "Sven. Sven!" Now, she was shouting. It was sure to attract wild Pokemon, but she had to find the rest of her group, right? Wait, whistle. Matt was going to whistle if he was in trouble, but there was no whistle. Wait, but where was Matt? She looked in the direction that she thought he went off to, but it looked... different than before. The trees weren't exactly laid out the same way, and maybe it was just her, but the fog seemed to thicken. "Matt?" She asked, her voice now softer, as she began walking in one direction. Both of them still had to be nearby, right? Her voice picked up once more, and she broke out into a run, calling out. "Matt! Sven? Sven! Matt! Kiran! Eleanor! Matt! Anyone!"

A huge roar took to the sky, and Myrna stopped in her tracks. Above the trees, a giant figure appeared, masked by the fog. Only a tall silhouette, it looked eerily similar to a massive snake. It seemed to roar, jabbing the ground as if it was attacking something. Was that near Matt was? Was it attacking him? Myrna didn't stop to figure out. Her mind a panicked mess, she took off in the opposite direction, heading in the opposite direction and deeper into the woods by her lonesome, until her knees felt weak, and she couldn't run anymore. It might have just been her, but the world around her seemed to get darker.

Out of the fog, several red eyes lit up, staring at her from the black nothingness. And Myrna screamed.

BurbleBurble · Jan 5, 2018

To be honest, Kiran wasn't completely sure in his judgement. He had read the guide about the forest lying to the north and how vicious it was, and how one probably wasn't being wise in going in alone. And he might've just ruined his chances at getting some thanks to him turning down help right in front of him...

“You say that, but the guide for the league implies that passing through in the forest in groups is far more prudent.” A woman interjected, probably overhearing him and his plan to cross the forest alone. “Honestly, it’s better if you try to at least partner up with someone else, given what the guide said.” She pushed up the pair of glasses resting on her face, and Kiran couldn't help but think of her as an employee back at the offices...though there was a lot of people there with glasses, male or female...He needed to get out more if he associated people with glasses with the company. “Besides, wouldn’t having a couple of other people traveling with you be far more useful in general?”

There wasn't exactly any argument, because she was completely right. Kiran was not going to be stuck out in a forest alone. He had to pass one gym at least. Kiran had a feeling that if he failed at this point, his father would think he just gave away his Pokemon and cash and quit while he was ahead. It was a one way road to Manager town and parental disappointment...

"Well...You raise a good point...I suppose that I was being a little facetious." Kiran admitted, running a hand through his hair. "I'm a bit stupid at times, heh..."

At this point the woman who Kiran had bumped in to originally was speaking. "Uh, yes. A-actually, Sven, Matt and I, we were about to go into the forest ourselves, you see. You can come with us if you want!" She pointed towards the walking stick guy and grey haired man respectively. Walking Stick Sven, Grey haired Matt. Didn't seem terribly fitting, but Stick and Sven was alliterative at least. Then she turned towards Sven and Matt, made sure that was okay to even offer, and then turned back to him and the new girl. "Oh! My name's Myrna. Myrna Wilcox. Hi."

Myrna...Interesting name. Not a common one, but neither was Kiran.

“Eleanor Ainsworth.” The new person announced. “I’d be delighted to join along. I was looking for a group myself.”

"It's nice to meet you both, Myrna and Eleanor. You two as well," He said to Sven and Matt. "I said it already but yeah, I'm Kiran."

"I don't mind traveling together, as long as I get to call dibs if I encounter a pokemon I want." Spoke the one Kiran assumed was Matt.

"That's assuming any pokemon will show itself to a pack of five humans, and any that are aggressive enough to do so are probably too dangerous." Said the other of the pair. He had a point, but Kiran didn't see why they wouldn't go through as a group and then go back to train after they were through...but who was he to say? "But . . . there is safety in numbers. I think it would make the most sense if we combed the Lost Souls forest as two small groups within relatively close proximity. Not near enough to see or hear the other group of two or three, but close enough to run to the rescue if, for instance . . ." There was an almost dramatic pause as Walking Stick Sven pulled a red object out of his shirt, tied to a string. "You heard this."

"Who needs a whistle when you can just scream for help?" The grey haired boy snarked. Kiran sort of stopped listening when they began going back and forth. He was mulling his options...
---
In the end Kiran had ended up with Eleanor. It sort of made sense, she had encouraged him to go with others in the first place. She was a little more concerned with plant life than being aware of the surroundings...or maybe she was making sure nothing was wrong with the plants. Yeah, that had to be it.

"You have any Pokemon of interest you want to find?” Eleanor asked, her book still open yet her eyes watching him. “I have my doubts that we’ll actually cross through the forest by night but we can still search for whatever we need now and get as much done so we don’t have to divert too much attention from actually getting out of here.”

"Well, that's a good question!" Kiran responded. "While I'm not looking for any Pokemon in particular, a pure ghost type may be useful. As they are, ghosts have very few weaknesses, and even immunities to very common types. There is however few pure ghost Pokemon. Off the top of my head, I know Misdreavus and Duskull lines have pure ghost classifications. But in the end of the day, I'm quite happy with whatever Pokemon presents itself to me. With enough love and care, any Pokemon becomes viable!...That's what they say anyways. There are a few Pokemon with higher than average...Did I start rambling? I feel like I started to ramble." Kiran went quiet. "So, uh, anything you are looking for?"

Kiran couldn't help but feel...watched? Like eyes boring into his head...No, that was just anxiety about being around people. Had to be. Distant calls and screams...They had to keep moving. He ignored this watched feeling. Kiran was not about to get stuck in the forest overnight.

And with it, he ignored a singular pink orb staring at him from the shadows.

Pokemon Fanfiction Novels · Jan 6, 2018

As Onix bellowed his challenge at the Mimikyu, Matt shot Sven a look.

"How's your leg, man?"

"It hurts, but I can walk. I hope that thing didn't have rabies."

"A ghost with rabies-?" Matt shook his head. "Never mind. Go get Myrna. Now that half the forest is alert to Onix here, we may need her for reinforcements. Come right back!"

Sven dashed off the way he had come, and Matt turned back to the battlefield in time to see his opponent performing a bushido dance of some kind. Swords Dance, he realized. Wild Mimikyu don't learn that naturally. This thing was tamed!

"Onix, use Dig! We need to get him off balance!"

With a roar, Onix plunged through dirt and clay as easily as if it had been a pool. The Mimikyu scurried up to the hole left behind and looked down, and Matt guessed it was confused. A moment later, Onix burst out from the same hole, flinging Mimikyu like a rag doll and tearing its fake head clean off. The thing beneath the rags rose and turned, emitting a hiss of anger. Matt tightened his fist.

"Well done, Onix. Don't worry, those pokemon aren't reliant on Special Attack. Now-"

He didn't get to finish. With a screech, Mimikyu leaped spinning into the air, and the fog around it twisted and stretched, materializing a massive green hammer from seemingly nowhere. Down came the hammer onto Onix's great head with a crack, slamming the serpent's face into the ground.

Wood Hammer! Matt realized, panicked. He drew out a pokeball. And that was x4 damage after a Swords Dance. If he didn't have Sturdy, Onix might not have survived that!

However, as the Grass-type version of Double-Edge, Wood Hammer had also further damaged Mimikyu. Matt flung a capture ball at the shuddering bundle of rags, and in a flash of red light, Mimikyu vanished. The pokeball shook and blinked a couple of times, but stilled after a few seconds. Without pausing to celebrate, Matt sprayed Onix with one of his two Potions, then swept the ball up in his hand.

"Good work, Onix. You two can make nice after this."

Just then, Sven reemerged through the trees. "She's gone!" he intoned with panic. "Myrna wasn't at the spot where I left her."

Matt gritted his teeth. "Are you kidding me? You told her to hold tight while you came to get me, didn't you?"

"Uh-" Sven froze, with a guilty look on his face. "I didn't think to do that. She seemed to be super absorbed in looking at a pokeball in her hands, so I figured-"

"Dude!" Matt shouted at him, furiously. "Not cool! You don't just leave a woman alone in the middle of a haunted forest!"

"Oh, yeah?" Sven suddenly shot back, with surprising force. "You're the one who left first, and you didn't even hold to your own three-minute rule! I try to be a good friend and go looking for you, and this is the thanks-"

A sudden scream cut off their argument, and both trainers stiffened. Sven pointed in the direction it had come from. "Found her."

Matt tore off in the direction of the scream, grabbing Sven's wrist as he ran. "Onix! Back underground, and stay on me!" he commanded over his shoulder. "Come on! We're not getting separated again, so keep up!"

Ashen Miko · Jan 6, 2018

“You were definitely rambling. But there’s nothing wrong with that.” Eleanor let off a subtle smirk. “If anything, it’s better than tired silence.”

Taking one last scan of her book and then her surroundings, she snapped the book shut and placed it back into the pouch. Unaware of the ominous sensations coming from around them, she took a knee near a shrub and put on a pair of gardening gloves and grabbed a pruner stowed within the bag.

“There’s really no need to feel flustered, Kiran.” As she cut down on the stems of a few of the flowers, she felt something soft land on her head and ruffle her hair slightly. “We can look for a Pokemon for you to catch if you would like. I’ve got everything I need now.”

Standing up, she placed the flowers she had cut up into a small plastic sample bag that she had kept within her messenger bag and made a quick sample note on it.

After finishing replacing her gloves in that messenger bag, she pulled out her notebook and made a quick note before pulling her pen away from it and pointing its tip towards right above her head. “You just have to be a little more assertive like this little guy like here.”

“So, little Swablu. Do you want to join us?”

Mystic Zander · Jan 6, 2018

Levi Crowell had traveled many regions, but none as corrupt as this."My experience will be my only tool for survival." The young man thought to himself whilst stepping forward to register. "Hehe, welcome to the Mirai Region trainer, you wont be staying long. 500 PokeYen entrance fee and your trainer card, pronto." The cop grumbled with a wicked smile, taking a moment to not so subtly look Levi up and down before snatching his trainer card and the cash. "Levi Crowell, Cinnabar Island, Kanto. Your registered, now get out of my face!' The cop barked once more, tossing the card back without care. Levi hesitantly nodded, offput by the cops attitude but not very surprised, in normal circumstances, Levi wouldve given the cop a piece of his mind, but he knew that would only lead to something much worse here. "First things first, centers overcharged quite a bit in this region so I should probably stock up on healing items. The nearest shop is....on the other side of the city....greeeeaaat." He groaned while starting his trek through the densely packed streets of Dolvous.

"Thats 1,800 PokeYen, now get out!" The angry cop working the register yelled at Levi, shoving his bag of freshly bought supplies across the table towards the slightly agitated trainer who promptly swiped them off the counter top. "I cant believe the price of supplies had such an influx in this region, its gonna drain me dry." He thought, sifting through the bag as he stepped out the front door which locked right behind him. "Huh? Hey! I bought three pokeballs not two!" Levi yelled, looking up from the bag before proceeding to bang on the door to ultimately no avail. "What is with people in this region man?!" He complained angrily, slowly walking away from the shop while mumbling swears under his breath.

---
Name: Levi Crowell
Money: 700 PokeYen
Team: Titus (Male Shellder)
Bag: Mirai Shop Guide, 2 Pokeballs, 2 Potions

robinspea · Jan 6, 2018

Myrna stood in silent paralysis as the group of Phantump floated closer, a childish laughter coming from their lips. She couldn't move, and she couldn't speak- they just floated around her, blissful laughter pouring out in an almost playful like manner. That's it. She was done for. She had seen a pokemon like this before, but there were so many scary ghost pokemon she didn't know which was which. Was this the type that carried children away? Or the type that used to be a doll, the one that spent its eternal afterlife hunting down its former owner? The only thing she knew about this ghost was that it wasn't found in Unova. That, and the forest suddenly felt colder than ever.

Wait. Her pokemon. Yeah, that's right. She had a pokemon with her. As Myrna reached into her bag for Sandile's ball, the pokemon surrounding her stopped where they were, playful eyes quickly filling with menace. Right as Myrna's hand reached the zipper, they prepared a shadow ball attack. Seeing one of the shadowy orbs forming out of the corner of her eye, she drew her hand back in fear and turned to look at the move the Phantump prepared against her, only to see it vanish.

Her wide, terrified eyes met the Phantump's curious gaze for a second, causing Myrna to try and unzip the bag for her Pokeball once more. Again, they prepared to attack, only to stop once she moved her hand away. Repeating the same thing a third time, and then a forth, with the exact same result, the woman carefully reached up to the top strap of the bag and removed it from her shoulder, throwing it away in a patch of wildflowers. The hostel glare from the Phantump melted quick as ice, and they floated around her, singing playfully. Myrna let out a nervous chuckle. Was there a such thing as a good, almost cute, ghost type? Whatever they were, they didn't seem to want to harm her unless she tried acting like a trainer, so at least she could get a little relief from that.

Spoiled Bread · Jan 6, 2018

"..."

"..."

Am I sleeping?

No, I shouldn't sleep. If I remember correctly, I am in a haunted forest. Yes, yes. Wake up, Peter! You should reach the next town as fast as possible.

Wake up!

Wake up!

Wake u-

Peter woke up with a drowzee right in front of his face.

"Gyaaah!" He unintentionally punched the drowzee's face.

"Porygon! Wake up!"

"Kukukuk!" Porygon jolted into motion. Looks like it also had been asleep. The drowzee saw both of its victim had woke up and ran away.

"C'mon. porygon! Let's get out of this creepy place." Peter motion for porygon to take the lead. Peter took out his kitchen knife to carve some sign, but after recalled the previous event he put back the knife. Sometimes too much preparation can hinder you.