Mero Genus
August 21st, 8:00 AM
Mero soared through the skies atop a Salamence, followed closely behind by the body guards his mother had sent to follow him. There was no doubt in his mind that his mother had paid them top dollar to keep an eye on him as he hadn't been able to lose them. Either way, they would serve to take his Salamence transport back with them. Even he, the heir to the most important family, could not bend the rules.
Regardless, Mero did not wish to bend the rules. The Fortis challenge had been put in place, so that he could test his strength. If he was simply gifted the Pokemon necessary to defeat all his opponents that defeated the purpose of it all. If he was able to put himself in the shoes of a normal trainer during the Fortis challenge then he was simply not worthy of taking it in the first place.
Despite this, Mero was not a show off. He knew that promising to win the league with a dead beat Pokemon such as a Zigzagoon, or Poochyena was simply showing overconfidence. The champion had been rumored to be undefeated for twenty straight years. A truly formidable opponent for Mero, and one that he aimed to defeat. As such, he needed the best start possible to ensure the best end possible.
He plucked the Pokeball from his belt. It was a simple, ordinary Pokeball, holding a rather rare, and powerful Pokemon. He looked into the transparent dome of the ball, and saw his Rockruff looking back. "I can tell you're excited too. Soon enough, we're going to be challenging the highest peaks of the league, but we will need to gather a team together, and train hard." The Rockruff looked at him with determination in his eye, nodding to its trainers words. "As my first Pokemon in this challenge, you will be a leader to the others. If you fall behind, Fenrir, you know what'll happen." The Rockruff nodded again.
Mero looked up to see that his Salamence was now circling around to land. As the Dragon type flew low, Mero jumped off, and returned the Pokemon to its ball. "Thanks for the ride. I suppose this'll be goodbye for now." He said to the Salamence, in a rather business-like tone. The two body guards landed nearby. Mero tossed the Salamence's ball to one. "Take it back home when you're done dealing with the paparazzi." He stated coldly, shoving his hands in his pockets as he began to hear News helicopters overhead.
Each of the body guards let out two Pokemon, and formed a wall to stop the incoming horde of reporters. Two Bastiodon, and two Machamp acted as perfect bouncers to the large number of curious people looking to get a quote from him.
"Mr.Genus! Mr.Genus!" Was all he could hear in the background as he walked towards the entrance of Route 1. He saw the trainers who guarded the exit immediately part ways for him. He simply glared at them as he walked by, "Pathetic..." He spat out, stepping on one of the member's shoes, and grinding into it. The trainer in front of him grit his teeth, but had a look of fear in his eye. Mero put his face close to the trainer's in an aggressive manner, "What's wrong? Too afraid? I should've thought as much from trainers who only fight weaklings." He took 3000P from his pocket, and dropped it on the ground, "Go ahead, and pick it up you pathetic worms." He growled, walking past, "The league won't let me start this with more than 3000P anyway."
For now, he had avoided the paparazzi. His body guards were not there to protect him, but rather to keep reporters away from him. To him, talk was cheap, and it was pointless in saying anything to them. Mero preferred to simply show his strength through his actions. He took his pokedex from his pocket as he exited into Route 1. This Pokedex had a slew of useful features. It was a map, camera, flashlight, phone, and a pokedex all in one. He'd even be able to access his PC boxes through this device. It was an indispensable tool, and was something he needed to protect. While the Pokedex offered him a lot of benefits, it would also make him a target.
Mero knew that his current party was weak, and picking a fight without preparation was simply a foolish move. The male scrolled through the index of potential Pokemon on Route 1. "Hmmmm nothing of value... however, the forest seems to have a host of good Pokemon..." He put the Pokedex away. He hadn't started with anything more than a Pokedex, money, and his Pokemon. His bag was completely empty, and his Rockruff wasn't holding any items either.
Before long, the trainer had made it to the edge of the End Forest. He did not stop, and simply continued walking as if the forest did not intimidate him in the slightest. He remembered the training his tutors had given him. Although it hadn't been in this particular region of the forest, the male still knew exactly how to survive in it. If need be, his Rockruff was rather useful for gathering wood, starting fires, and fending off Pokemon.
The forest was hot, and muggy. It had probably rained heavily the night before, leaving the ground soft, and muddy. However, Mero simply trudged on. If he wasn't prepared to get dirty, then he wasn't prepared to do anything regarding the Fortis challenge. It was standard stuff he'd been doing since he was ten years old. Simply navigating the forest was easy enough, it was the Pokemon he had to worry about.
As the thought crossed his mind, he heard movement to his left. The trainer reacted quickly, diving out of the way as a Rhyperior suddenly charged through. It toppled trees with ease, and growled at Mero. "Hmmmm A Pokemon of a failed trainer? I do feel sorry for you." The Rhyperior swung its tail at Mero in anger. The trainer simply jumped over it, and released his Rockruff. The Pokemon sparkled, and shined a brilliant blue as it stood to oppose the Rhyperior.
Mero studied the movement of the Rhyperior, "Hop in the trees, and use Roar!" He called out, his Pokemon obeying him as the Rhyperior stomped the ground, causing an Earthquake to erupt. His Rockruff let out his attack, a soundwave hitting into the Rhyperior, and causing its anger to turn into fear.
The Pokemon quickly turned, and ran as Fenrir hopped down from the trees. "No damage huh? That's good." Mero knew that the move 'Roar' moved last as it took a while to charge. Having Fenrir jump into the trees was a precaution against the potential Earthquake. He returned the Rockruff, and hooked the Pokeball to his belt. "We'll need to keep up that streak throughout this forest, got it?"
For the next few hours, Mero traversed the landscape. Before long, he had the city wall within his view. He had encountered a few wild Pokemon on his path, but had managed to handle it by having his Rockruff use Roar. It was a move that he had taught the Rockruff through a TM, and it was rather useful for the beginning of his journey.
It would have been a foolish idea to directly confront most of the Pokemon in the forest. His Rockruff was simply not experienced enough to handle battles of that magnitude. However, the first test of the Fortis region challenge was to know when to run, and when to fight. Mero considered the battle to be won if his Rockruff didn't take any damage. It was a self imposed challenge, but he thought it went over quite well.
Despite not fainting any Pokemon, his Rockruff had still gained valuable experience from facing foes much stronger than itself. He could tell the Pokemon was somewhat tired, but would still be able to battle in full form after catching its breath. It probably wouldn't be able to Roar many more times, but at this point Mero didn't need it to.
He headed into the Pokemon Center, and went to the Poke Mart section of the store. He saw the basic items of Pokeballs, and Potions as well as Escape Ropes, Repels, and status sprays. Super potions, and other, more important, items were stored safely behind the employee's desk. He purchased three Pokeballs, and two potions. Doing the math in his head, that was 2000P. He brought the items to the clerk, and purchased them, putting them in his bag.
As he walked out, he saw two trainers battling each other. Both had such weak Pokemon. Although, he supposed that was how they planned to get stronger, and earn some extra money. Trainer hunters were no doubt scouting out the new challengers. The way that Mero saw it, he only had a single day to capture, and train a team that could earn more money for him. He could sleep in the Pokemon center for a single day if he purchased a check up for his Pokemon. If he managed to get the badge, all Pokemon Centers would accept his lodging for free.
Naturally, however, gyms did not give badges to idiot children with a Pikachu. Even though the first gym leader did have to limit the strength of his Pokemon, he showed no mercy to the trainers. Every move was calculated, and every command was from an experienced battler. Some trainers spent years practicing in order to beat a single gym. However, those who were strong were capable of beating the gym within their first two weeks.
For Mero, he had set the goal of attaining his first badge in a week. As such, he would need to take a few risks in order reap the rewards. Right now, he could capture up to three additional Pokemon to help him, and heal them to full by the end of the day. However, Mero only planned to use the three Pokemon for getting more resources. When they were no longer useful to his goals, he would simply release them back into the wild.
His Pokedex would be able to scout out the moves, nature, and stats of a wild Pokemon once he caught it. If it wasn't to his standards, he would simply release the Pokemon, and keep the Pokeball, so that he could capture a better one. By the end of the day, he expected to have an experienced Rockruff, and a team of Pokemon with potential.
Mero went back into the woods, and began to explore. He pulled out his Pokedex, and turned on the habitat overlay for his map. It appeared as though he could find a slew of different Pokemon to balance his team out. At the moment, his Rockruff was susceptible to ground, grass, water, and fighting types. At the same time, Fenrir lacked any sort of bulk, but had good offensive stats. The image of a potential team filled his mind. He would need to find an ice, or grass type to cover his Rockruff. Potentially a Pokemon who had bulk, and was capable of taking a hit. Phantump, and Rowlett came to mind. Those two Pokemon covered grass, ground, water, and fighting defensively.
Mero decided that finding a Phantump would be best, as he would be able to easily counter every type, and provide support to his Rockruff. At the same time, his Rockruff would deal with fire, and ice types as well as flying, and ghost types. This left the opening for dark types, though.
He searched his Pokedex for potential Pokemon that could counter a dark type, while strengthening his resistance to the previous weaknesses. A fighting type like Machop made sense offensively, but not defensively. He needed something with speed. With this, Pokemon such as Scyther, and Yanma caught his eye. However, they did not blend well with the other Pokemon he'd decided on. In fact, they would only increase his reliance on Rockruff for handling fire, flying, and ice types. This would mean that he'd be easily taken down if his Rockruff fainted. The Pokemon was already rather frail defensively, so keeping it undamaged would be too inefficient. However, a few dark types caught his eye. Deino, and Vullaby. Both Pokemon would evolve after a large amount of experience, but both of their final evolutions were incredibly useful at the same time. Deino in particular could pack a massive amount of power, and surprise opponents who had thought it was a weak dragon type without the ability to see. Mero could see the Pokemon was much more rare, and tended to be guarded by other dragons. It was because of this that Mero decided this would be the last Pokemon he captured. Instead, to avoid the risk of a broken Pokeball, he resolved to capture the Vullaby.
With this decision, that left his team rather susceptable to Ice types, however either decision he'd made would have done so. He had already been planning to find a Steel type to deal with Fairy Types, and this simply further helped balance his team. Aron, Bronzor, and Skarmory all caught his eye. Aron would not be susceptable to fire however, and Mero already had Pokemon to deal with water, ground, and fighting types. At the same time, if he could find one with both, Sturdy, and Endeavor, he'd be able to put any Pokemon down to an inch of their consciousness.
So the Pokemon Mero had decided on were Phantump, Vullaby, and Aron. It was certainly not a perfect team, but it would serve its purpose for now. He could possibly even pay another trainer to evolve his Phantump through trade, and provide an even more powerful addition to his team.
Mero marked the target Pokemon with his Pokedex, his DexNav began to beep, and send out radio waves to attract the particular Pokemon he was looking for. Right now, he was looking to find a Phantump as it tended to make its habitat right outside the city.
Before long, he saw one appear, curiously checking out the sound that emitted from his Pokedex. "Alright Fenrir! Let's Go!" He sent out the Pokemon, "Bite!"
The Rockruff shot off at incredible speed, and chomped down onto the Phantump's body. In a jolt of surprise and fear, the Phantump flinched. Mero checked the Pokedex to see how much damage it had taken, "Alright, use Thunder Fang!" He called out, as Fenrir's jaws gripped down harder onto the Phantump's body, and sparked with electricity.
The Ghost type was in a panic, and sent off a Confuse Ray at Fenrir. Mero smirked, thinking that this must have been the way the Phantump was used to warding off predators. Before it knew what was going on, a Pokeball hit the center of its head, and sucked it in. After three wobbles, the ball clicked, and signified a successful capture.
Mero jogged over, and scanned the ball, "Hmmmm looks like we got lucky with this one... Harvest ability." It wasn't much of a surprise to him. Most of the trainers who took the challenge tended to bring the best Pokemon possible. A Pokemon with its hidden ability tended to pass it on to its children. Given the fact that Trevenant were natural residents of the forest, Mero saw that they must have bred with the trainer Pokemon. Given how much of an important food source they were to the ecosystem of the forest it was only natural that Harvest ability was more common. "Looks like I'll be keeping this one with me... for now. "
It'll definitely be useful for healing my team when I'm not in battle. If I can find a single berry, I can multiply it with ease.
Mero used his DexNav once more, and repeated the cycle for the rest of the Pokemon he set out to capture. The next Pokemon on his hitlist was Vullaby. It was simple enough to find the Pokemon he wanted with the ability he desired. All he needed to do was have his Rockruff smash into it with Thunder Fang, or Rock Throw and toss his Pokeball. The bird was rather easy to capture, and so he could check the nature, ability, and overall stats of the Pokemon. As he did this, his Phantump was floating next to him, using Ingrain to heal itself. The Ghost type would need to spectate its teammate, and learn how to battle quickly.
Eventually, Mero found a Vullaby that was satisfactory, and so he moved on to the last Pokemon he wanted. The sun was high up into the sky, and on the descent. Mero checked the clock on his Pokedex, and saw that it was 1:45 PM. He hadn't eaten anything yet, and needed to find something for lunch. He took a break from capturing Pokemon, and began to walk across the woods in search of food. With his Pokedex he tracked down the location in which Berries tended to grow the most.
It was about a ten minute hike from where he had been, but he had managed to find a Sitrus berry tree. The trainer plucked out the berries, and put a few in his back. He wouldn't need many as his Phantump would be able to provide more. He handed one berry to each of his Pokemon, and took a bite of one himself. He watched as his Phantump ate, only to sprout two more from its head. Such a thing confused Mero as that shouldn't have been possible. However, from what he'd read, and studied, Pokemon with Harvest ability tended to manifest their hidden energy through their ability. It was rather unexplained still, just like how evolution could create matter from thin air. Pokemon were truly capable of defying physics, that was certain.
Mero activated the DexNav, and began to attract wild Aron to him. He had his Vullaby, and Phantump stick to the side lines, and watch as his Rockruff put in work. Even though most of Fenrir's moves were resisted by the Aron, it still packed enough power to weaken it enough within two hits. After a total three Aron had been captured, and released, Mero had found what he had been looking for. An Aron with both Sturdy, and Endeavor. He released the weakened Pokemon, and handed it a few berries to heal it.
The trainer returned Fenrir to its ball. It had been using a lot of moves, and although he could heal the damage, the fatigue was something he'd have to wait out. He estimated that the Rockruff would only be able to use a total of five more attacks in its current state. Either way, it had gained a lot of experience through its battles, and had not disappointed its trainer.
Mero sent out the other three Pokemon, "Alright, listen up. We're going to be taking on the gym precisely one week from now. On this team, we earn our meals, and we earn are breaks, is that clear?" The three Pokemon nodded, as if picking up on how experienced their trainer was.
The simple fact about Pokemon was that they tended to obey those who were strong. Those who could properly handle, and understand them were ones who would gain the Pokemon's respect. Naturally, Mero had established this by having them watch his Rockruff battle. At the moment they were all fully healed from the Sitrus berries, and had only used a negligible amount of moves.
For the next few hours, Mero switched between his Pokemon, and combated whatever wild Pokemon he could find. When he encountered the occasional powerful Pokemon, he did not play fair. All three of his Pokemon were to work as a team to fell their more powerful foe. His Aron would take the first hit, and return the damage with Endeavor. Meanwhile, the other two would come out with their attacks, and faint the Pokemon. It was through this method that his team gained quick experience.
His Phantump worked excellently as a support, and healer, giving berries to his Aron whenever it would have to activate its Sturdy ability. The Vullaby was incredibly useful for ambushing, and even seemed to like the dirty nature of the tactic. Being a dark type, Mero was not surprised.
As the sun began to creep downward, Mero made his trek back to the city. He had made sure that his Pokemon were still capable of fighting if need be, and had not been foolish enough to completely exhaust them. Every move they had used had been calculated, so as to teach them the most efficient way to fight. Type advantages were simple, and came as second nature to Mero. Even though his Pokedex listed type advantages for Pokemon he'd owned before, he didn't need them. It was a skill he had memorized a long time ago.
Mero stepped into Murum city, and headed for the Pokemon Center. He paid for the healing service, spending the last of his money for it. Right now, he did not have a single coin to his name. However, this did not bother the trainer as everything was going according to plan. He was on the track to meet his goal, and in a single day he managed to capture three Pokemon, and train them to become formidable teammates to his Rockruff.
Perhaps if any of them proved particularly useful past his first few weeks he'd name them. As he saw them now, however, they were merely a means to an end. They were extensions of Fenrir, and tools for victory. He saw down in the free bed provided by the Center. "Hmph, filthy, and cheap... I suppose I shouldn't have expected anything more. Weaklings get to use it for free all too often."
To Mero, attain the first badge was not a symbol of strength, but rather a symbol that one was not entirely useless. Those who had enough potential to get a badge, but did not act upon that potential, and attain more were dirt in Mero's eyes. The only moment he could begin to conceive that a trainer would not be a waste of space is when they attained their fourth badge. Those were the people who were redeemable in his eyes. However, they only deserved to be on the bottom rung of society. Those who were below them simply deserved to rot.
Mero knew that his worth was far greater than a mere four badges, or even eight. It was his right to be at the top of the world. He put in the effort, and he possessed both the blood, and talent. Just as his Rockruff was objectively above, or equal to the strongest Rockruff, Mero was above, and equal to the strongest humans. All that the two of them needed now was the training, and experience of the Fortis League.
With these thoughts in his mind, he fell asleep.
August 22nd 4:00 AM
Mero woke up bright, and early for the day. With a breakfast of Sitrus berries, Mero set out towards the town's gym. One major difference between Fortis gym's and other region's gyms, aside from their difficulty, was the fact that trainers without a badge were allowed to battle other trainers without the badge there. In most other regions, the gyms simply hired people to act as road blocks, but in Fortis, there were usually enough challengers staying in a single town to keep a decent population of battle ready people flowing.
To those who beat the gym, they were allowed to make use of its facilities. Whether it was for Super training, trading, massages, or anything in between the victor was allowed to make use of it. Naturally, however, the facilities only got better with each successive gym. While the first gym usually did a good job of filtering out the common rabble, some still managed to slip through the cracks. As such, the first gym did not usually have the most up to date facilities for training. However, despite this, they still managed to maintain a mediocre training environment.
Mero theorized that people skilled enough to earn their first badge were at least smarter than the barbarians who congregated around Dolus town. He stepped into the gym, and saw that it was a massive stadium complete with several small field terrains set up for battling in. A single large one made up its center, signifying that it was the Gym leader's battleground. Walls of energy contained the Pokemon's attacks, and prevented them from interfering with other matches. It was no surprise to Mero that the first gym had spared no expense.
Most likely, they had remodeled their gym, so that it could accommodate the massive amount of spectators, and challengers. At the moment, there didn't seem to be a gym challenge going on, but Mero imagined that the seats would have been filled to the brim if there was. While they didn't charge trainers to spectate, they did charge normal people who weren't taking the challenge. This definitely brought in more than enough revenue to keep the gym clean, and in working order. It probably even turned a profit. Gym battles were truly a sight to behold in the Fortis region after all. Interesting strategies, and Pokemon were often seen during challenges.
Mero remembered meeting the gym leader of this place. From what he'd heard, the gym leader was able to battle against sixty trainers on average. On a good day he could even blow past a hundred of them. Mero had to respect this gym leader, as they showed an extreme mental fortitude to be able to handle so many trainers.
Naturally, the leader had chosen to impose a three Pokemon maximum to the rules. This was to keep the flow of trainers going, and to filter out as many challengers as possible. However many Pokemon the trainer chose to go with, the gym leader would match it. This would mean that trainers could have a simple one on one battle with him, or they could have a full three Pokemon on their team. If the trainer had a strong enough Pokemon, but not enough money to buy Pokeballs, they could simply order for a one on one match with the leader.
On this subject, trainers needed to make appointments in advance, and schedule a time that they would battle the gym leader. They simply did not take walk ins, and would throw the challenger out by force if need be. This also allowed the gym to plan events, and advertise. It was not usually a spectacle to watch a first time challenger get utterly destroyed within a small period of time. As such, appointments took the challenger's trainer card into account, and measured how many times they'd challenged the gym. If one day got a larger number of second try challengers, or even third try challengers, it would generate much more intrigue. Advertisers would post the eventful night for all to see, and start selling tickets.
Mero could probably assume that a similar system was in place for the rest of the gyms. Though, he assumed they probably escalated the price in accordance with the gym's order. Less challengers would mean less eventful days after all.
In any case, using the gym's battle terf was free, and Mero would take full advantage of that privilege. There were other early birds like himself. He could respect a work ethic in a person, but there was only so much one could do to improve until they reached their limit. For now, he would make a reservation for a week from today. On the 29th, he would get his first Gym badge, and there wasn't much more to it. They may as well have handed it to him at registration. Though, he could accept having to earn the badge just like everyone else, even though the end result would be the same.
He approached the counter, and waved to the lady at the desk, "Oh my, they've you working this early? I suppose it's for people like myself huh?" The woman seemed to perk up, "Well, it's not that bad, we do get free coffee, what can I do for you, sir?" Mero put his trainer card down "Sorry about that, truly I am. Well in any case I would like to make a reservation for a week from today, is that possible?"
The woman seemed somewhat surprised as she scanned the card. "Is something wrong?" The woman shook her head, "Oh no, I'm just used to new trainers needing to be registered here is all. You wouldn't believe how many foreigners come here with their region's card instead of ours. I'm guessing you're a resident then?"
"That's what it says on the card, right?" Mero chuckled, it was true that many trainers attained their card through this particular desk. It must have been a rather mind numbing job for them. Mero had started his journey with his card. However, many trainers did not understand that they needed Fortis registry.
A Fortis registry card tracked the amount of losses for a particular gym, and connected directly with the trainer's Pokeballs. If a person had three losses to one gym, it would forcefully release their Pokemon within 24 hours. It acted as a fail safe to anyone who may have tried to cheat their way back through the gyms. Badges were also stored digitally in the card. Just like Pokemon, they could be brought out of cyber space into reality, but were much safer in the account registry. It protected the trainer's badges from being stolen as each badge would be ID'd to their card. It would also keep track of the trainer's win to loss ratio if their opponent was also carrying one of the cards. It was password locked, and could even be replaced if stolen.
Of course, the registration was not free. It costed a small fee of 1000P to get the card. For such a high tech trainer card it was truly a bargain. Although, Mero simply pitied the amateurs who would be starting their adventure with 2000P. It was quite unfortunate they didn't do enough research before starting the challenge.
The lady behind the desk scrolled through her computer. "Hmmmm we don't have any spots open on the 29th, but the 30th still has free slots. It says you started your challenge yesterday..." She glanced over the screen, a look of surprise, and fear appearing on her face, "U-Um, if you really want to, though, Mr. Genus, I could move around some of the challengers?"
Mero waved his hand with a kind smile, "No need, the 30th is completely fine." He felt anger fill into his gut. He hated when he had to delay the deadline to his goal, but absolutely despised when he was being given such obvious special treatment. His family name was a mark of pride, and strength. It was not a bargaining tool to get a free pass, and it was an insult to even insinuate he would use it as such.
"Okay, th-then please select the time you want to battle at." Mero glared at her, getting rather annoyed at how timid she'd become. "I'll make the appointment for 2 o'clock" He said simply. "W-Will that be all sir?" The woman stuttered out.
"Yes, now if you'll excuse me I'll be down in the arena. Oh, and please keep my identity private."
"O-Of course, thank you for your time, sir."
With this, the trainer made his way down to the arena level. He stepped into an empty arena, and simply waited for a challenger. He hoped that he'd at least be able to get one battle in before five o'clock.
Fortunately, he had only needed to wait a few minutes before a rather spry, and upbeat trainer stepped into the arena with him. "Hey, newbie, you and me should have a battle." He held up a golden coin with a smirk, "We're betting double on this match, got it?"
Mero stood up, "Oh, I don't have any money, but I do think we could make an arrangement..." He threw out his Rockruff, and watched the trainer's jaw drop. The shiny Pokemon in front of him was certainly worth a lot of money. "If you win, you can have my Rockruff. However, since we're raising the stakes with that Amulet Coin of yours, if you lose, you will need to give me every penny you have."
The challenger smirked, considering the deal for a moment, "Hmmmmm alright, I'll accept those terms. Your Pokemon is still worth far more than my measly 6000P though, but I can't complain. I'll let you decide how many Pokemon we're battling with."
"Alright then, Let's have a one on one. My Rockruff against whatever Pokemon you choose." He told him, crossing his arms confidently over his chest.
The challenger laughed, "You're gonna regret that, Go! Otto!" a Pokeball burst open, and released a Dewott onto the field. "Alright, whenever you're rea-"
"Thunder Fang." He said coldly, his Rockruff immediately, and clutching its fangs down onto the Dewott's neck, only to slam it to the ground, and electrocute it. Mero's demeanor had become cold, and harsh now, his previously cheery attitude having vanished. "Pathetic..."
The trainer took a step back in surprise, "W-Wha... Rockruff can... Dewott... get up!" The Dewott laid limp on its back, barely breathing. Mero returned his Rockruff. The trainer returned his Pokemon, and reluctantly handed the prize money over. Mero counted it, and slapped it against his hand. "Hmmmm you've no money to heal your Pokemon do you? Quite the oversight on your part considering 'Otto' may die if it's not treated hmm?" He took 1000P from his reward money, and waved it in front of the trainer, who was on his knees now. "Please... I'll do anything..."
Mero allowed a sadistic smirk to paint his face, "Bow down, and kiss the ground near my feet, and beg for it." The trainer in front of him bit his tongue, and grit his teeth. He did what was asked of him, and Mero simply stomped his head into the ground. The classes in martial arts he had taken as a youth came in handy on occasion after all. He dropped the money, "Do yourself, and your Dewott a favor, and quit the challenge while you're ahead. You're not going to be able to get a single gym badge, you pathetic worm."
He took his foot off the trainer's head, and walked back, "Now clear the arena, and get out of my sight, or I'll be using my Pokemon to do it for you." The trainer picked up the cash, and choked back their pride, quickly running out of the arena, and heading towards the Gym's built in Pokemon Center.
The rest of the day was spent battling in a similar fashion to his first match. Right now, he needed to establish that he only wanted strong trainers to face him, and that his time was not to be wasted. If a weak trainer had challenged him, then he took it as an insult. He allowed his Pokemon to brutally beat the challenger's Pokemon. He wanted them to see just how worthless they were as a trainer for even daring to waste his time. Naturally, he gained recognition from some righteous trainers who were simply met with an even more brutal fate than the ones they tried to avenge. He hadn't managed to meet any redeemable trainers in the bunch, which annoyed him greatly.What he'd would be the occasional worthwhile battle was drowned out by the sheer amount of pathetic, and worthless challengers. He would have gotten much more battle experience for his Pokemon by simply training in the woods once more.
However, wild Pokemon did not drop money, so enduring boring battles was a necessary evil to Mero. He could at least find enjoyment in putting the weak in their place, and utterly destroying their hope. If they had just continued on, the Pokemon they kept would simply have perished as a result of their stupidity. Weak trainers did not deserve the privilege of having a Pokemon, as it was wasted on them. If anything, Mero considered it to be a service to them. At the very least he was able to give them the option of saving their Pokemon if they swallowed their pride, and accepted their place at the bottom.
When the clock hit 8:00AM he had seen the Gym leader appear. Crowds of spectators had quickly gathered to watch. As Mero was battling challengers who posed no threat to him, he would look over at the battles. The Gym leader was a rather large, muscular, and hairy man. He had dark skin, and black hair with a wild look in his eye. He had a beard that dragged down to his chest, his hair tied up in a bun similar to that of a samurai. Mero recalled his name being Dro Jonson. He wore a red Gi, giving off the impression that he was a fighting type gym leader. Despite this, he was most certainly not a fighting type gym leader. No gym in Fortis limited its leader to a simple type as type match ups were common knowledge to any trainer even wishing to attempt the gym challenge.
From what Mero could gather, the Gym leader had taken a liking to the 100 man challenge in Kantonian culture. In essence, one person would challenge 100 fighters without rest, in the ultimate test of endurance, and mental fortitude. It made sense, considering how many trainers the Gym Leader tended to go through each day. However, the main difference being that Dro actually healed his Pokemon each time he battled, and switched up his team to prevent others from scouting out his battle style, and forming a direct counter. It was truly a spectacle to watch a Pokemon Master such as Dro battle through trainers like he did. Mero simply could not fathom having to deal with so many weaklings each, and every day.
The day ended, and Mero had filled his wallet with the rewards he'd earned. A respectable 30,534P had been made today. Sure, he could have made more, but he had to offer the standard 1000P to the fools who bet everything. He had to give them at least one final shot at saving their Pokemon after all. He hadn't had a single one deny his offer. All of them swallowed their pride to save their Pokemon. This was a sentiment that was bittersweet for Mero. It pleased him because the Pokemon would not have to suffer, and he loved to see them swallow their pride. However, it also angered him to see how pathetic they were, and only reminded him of why their Pokemon was so weak in the first place. Their trainer was weak, and therefore their Pokemon were doomed to be just as weak as them. They accepted hand outs, and showed him what sort of lowly worms they were. If he ever saw them continue after that charity he would not give them that mercy a second time. That final 1000P they had grovelled for was to heal their Pokemon, and end their journey. It was his mercy to the Pokemon, more than the human. In his eyes, the humans were the truly evil ones, and deserved a greater humiliating pain than that of their Pokemon. They failed to bring out the potential in the creature, and so it was woefully unprepared to even defend against his attacks.
If he ever saw the ones he defeated again, he would truly crush them under his foot. Perhaps when they saw the consequences of their weakness, when they saw their Pokemon die, they would learn not to continue. Perhaps then they would learn their place, and their limits.
In any case, the trainer now had a rather thick stack of cash in his wallet to buy any sort of item he wanted, and easily pay for lodging. Perhaps he could even purchase one of the more lavish hotels. Although, he did not wish to go through another boring day in the gym. In the seven days to follow, he would need to spend his time training his team, and particularly the three he would be using.
He sat awake in the Pokemon Center's uncomfortable bed, thinking about which Pokemon he would be using. Surely, he'd need to make sure that his team was balanced both offensively, and defensively. He planned to keep his Rockruff from evolving, at least until it learned a few more powerful moves. However, he wasn't entirely sure if Phantump would actually be useful if it wasn't evolved. Its harvest ability was incredibly beneficial, yet in terms of battle power, it was sorely lacking when compared to its evolution. If its attacks packed more power, he would definitely be able to keep the pressure up on Dro's team. Currently, his Phantump knew Astonish, Leech Seed, Confuse Ray, and Ingrain. If he evolved it, then he would certainly be able to replace Astonish with the much more powerful Shadow Claw. If he leveled it up a bit more, he'd be able to have it learn Curse in place of Confuse Ray. For a Ghost type, it would make sure to do a lot of damage over time regardless of how powerful his Pokemon was. All he'd need to do is stall it out, and recover with Ingrain, and Leech Seed. The risk only came with the fact that Curse required half of one's health to be sacrificed. However, this wouldn't be much of a problem with his Harvest ability, and even less of a problem if it was evolved.
He knew that he would need to have the Phantump on his team, and that he would need to evolve it if he wanted to guarantee a win. He could probably find a trainer to pay, and trade with him. It would be simple enough, happily ask, and if they tried to screw him over, he'd make sure they knew who they were dealing with. Now onto the matter of the third member to his team. Either Vullaby, or Aron. With one he'd be more susceptable to ground, and fighting types, and the other he'd be more susceptible to ice. While he did believe Vullaby would be the better option in terms of typing, he did not thing its stats measured up. However, this was assuming that he managed to evolve his Aron into a Laron by the time he challenged the gym. Lairon would provide enough bulk to cover most of Phantump's weaknesses. Meanwhile, it would be able to dish out an Endeavor, or even guarantee that he'd be able to get at least one hit in. Lairon simply had more defensive, and offensive capability than Vullaby did. So now Mero had decided. His team would consist of Lairon, Rockruff, and Trevenant.
He fell asleep, visualizing his battle with the gym leader...
August 24th 12:34 PM
Mero was in the Pokemon Center with another trainer he had found on the streets. The two began to trade through the machine. For a brief moment, he owned a Machoke. With a simple press of a button on his Pokedex, he ceased all Pokemon evolution nearby. This was his insurance to make sure the trainer didn't simply run off with a Trevenant, and leave him with an Everstone holding Machoke. He traded the Pokemon back to the trainer, watching the two Pokemon evolve simultaneously as his Pokemon was returned to him. The Trevenant roared, and slashed the air with its new move, excited by its new, more powerful, body. With this, Mero simply walked back into the forest to train.
August 26th 6:00 PM
Mero finished his training for the day, only to notice that his Aron was standing in place. It began to glow, and Mero smirked. He had been training the Pokemon hard for the past few days, and his work finally paid off. Its form grew, and thickened, quickly exploding with energy. The Lairon gave a triumphant roar as it attained its new form. His training for the gym was nearly complete now.
August 28th 2:00 PM
Mero watched as his Rockruff learned Rock Slide. Interestingly enough, Mero had learned that Rockruff gained no benefit by delaying its evolution. However, that wasn't necessarily true. Mero saw that there was a potential strategy in this, and had decided to maintain the Rockruff's innocent looking, and weaker form.
In order to train for this strategy forming in his mind, he would need to purchase a few X Attacks, and X Speeds. If his Rockruff could handle the sudden boost in stats, then he knew this strategy would help him greatly during the gym battle. However, for now, Mero decided to end training for the day. He had been working his team to the bone for the past week, and it was only fair to reward their effort. He decided to spend a bit of money on some spa treatment for them, and allowed them to rest for today.
August 29th (Current Day) 6:30AM (Current time)
Mero walked down the stairs of his lodging into the Pokemon Center area. Today he would buy the X Attacks, and X Speeds for his Rockruff to train with. As he did this, he spotted a rather unkempt looking trainer next to him with a Gastly floating around his head, and a Poochyena on his shoulder.
What sort of gutter did this one crawl out of? The very idea of someone so poor owning Pokemon caused anger to rise in the trainer. The boy looked as though he could barely feed himself, let alone his Pokemon. "One Pokeball." The black haired male said to the clerk, who promptly rang him up. "Will that be all?" The boy nodded, and began to walk out of the store.
Mero grit his teeth, and glared at the boy as he made his exit. He could not simply let such a filthy human being get away with owning not one, but two Pokemon. "I'll be buying these." He said in a hurried tone, releasing his Rockruff, "Fenrir, keep that trainer near the exit will you?" The Pokemon nodded, and rushed out the door towards the trainer.
Pokemon: Rockruff(Fenrir), Trevenant, Lairon, Vullaby
Bag: Potion(x2), Sitrus Berry(x 6), X Attack(x3), X Speed(x3), Pokedex.
Money: 19,434 (expenses for things like Spa, lodging, and battle items included)
