Ask to Join The Sinnoh region adventure (Journey in Galar Sequel)

[AriaNights]

“—Right, that’s arguably pretty important! Turtwig, how are you feeling?”

Grant crouched down to look over his turtle friend’s injuries. On a closer inspection, he could’ve probably guessed Turtwig to be moderately injured — though, as he did have some form of medical background, he was able to tell that those pecks struck remarkably true.

“...Hold on, poor guy, I’ve gotcha. Think on the bright side. I’ll have names for you three before we get to the next city.”

After a moment of fiddling, he procured a small purple bottle from one of his pockets — a Potion, as it were, though he only packed two or three. Abra wasn’t one to get into scuffles, but he couldn’t consider himself a ‘doctor’ without something in the way of medicine.

With a few well-placed sprays of the Potion, it seemed that the wound disappeared just like magic. A process that surprised him without fail, every time — for he tried doing this to himself, too, with little to show for it aside from chemical burns.

“...There we are. Good as new. Sorry for the wait — it was way too dangerous to do that mid-combat.”

He laughed a little, before popping open the ball featuring his new feathered ally — repeating the same process with his other Potion, carefully as to not scare the bird, as he glanced to Victoria.

“He’ll be alright soon enough,” he noted, as if trying to be reassuring. “I guess it wasn’t my brightest idea for that to be my first fight, but it still worked out, right?”

 

[BlueMew392]

Victoria watched Grant heal up his Turtwig and newly acquired Starly before nodding at him. "A bit of a rough start, but you managed to pull and win by believing in your Pokémon," she said with a smile, "Sure the type matching weren't in your favor, but that's how a lot of beginning trainers' first battles are. Speaking of which...."

She got Shinx's Luxury Ball and let the electric-type out of it.

The Shinx appeared next to Piplup. "Shinx~!" It cried out before turning to the water type, "Shinx~"

"Piplup~!" Piplup greeted back.

Victoria kneeled down. "Why, hello there, Shinx. I'm Victoria. I hope we get along splendidly and grow close to one another," she said with a smile again before proceeding to pet it's head, "Welcome to the family."

"Shinx~!" Shinx replied and began to purr from the petting.

Victoria stopped with the petting and began to rummage through her backpack before pulling out a Full Restore. She then began to spray the two with the Full Restore, healing any scuffs and wounds they may have gotten from the battle. Since they didn't have that many, one Full Restore sufficed for both of them.

 

[AriaNights]

“Now... We’ll need to get some names going!”

Grant smiled, squatting down to the three Pokémon before him and scratching the side of his cheek lightly in thought.

Now, he’d read all sorts of stories on strategists and foes of all sorts — maybe he should do something like that..?

...Well, he could change up nicknames here and there anyways.

“...Turtwig. From here on out, take pride in the name Gaia.”

...He was going for the cool-sounding names. For a researcher, he wasn’t all that serious, huh..?

The newly-christened Gaia smiled, as Grant glanced over to the new Starly — and paused, for a moment.

“You... I’ve got it! You’ll be Polaris!”

A Pokémon with ‘Star’ in its name had to be called Polaris, he figured. The peckish bird, seemingly satisfied, nodded happily as he glanced to his Abra.

“And as for you, Abra, I think I’ll call you Apollo. I think the name of a magician in those storybooks fits you well.”

...With introductions done, he smiled like an idiot and hopped to his feet — clapping his hands together.

“And that’s that! Man, I gotta say, I think names are the one thing I’m good at.”

...

“...Well, sort of.”

 

[ThAtGuY101]

Dolan was staring into the distance at a beautiful tree covered hillside landscape Seeing wild pokémon living in this environment looked like an amazing sight yet Dolan couldn't grap his camera as he was too fixated on simply looking. He grabbed his camera, and snapped a photo.

He looked over at the others; Victoria caught her second pokémon, a shinx. Grant caught his third pokémon, a starly. "Pokaris and Apollo, huh? Not bad. Cool names" Dolan said. "Dit dittoooo" Aloi cheered.

 

[BlueMew392]

"They're wonderful names," Victoria said before returning both of her Pokémon back into their Pokéballs. She then stood back up and directed her attention towards her two traveling companions. "Now then, shall we resume our travel towards the next city?" She asked, ready to head towards Jubilife City.

 

[AriaNights]

“Why thank you! I’m totally a fan of the fancy stuff, don’tcha know? Only the best for my research squad!”

Grant cheered, pumping his fist to the sky in glee as Victoria continued speaking — Jubilife City..?

...

Plonk! Grant dropped his fist into the palm of his hand, as if only now remembering that Jubilife City even existed.

“That’s totally right! I got so caught up in the chaos that I forgot about that. Let’s make haste, then! We’re on a roll, so let’s keep that pace goin’!”

 

[ThAtGuY101]

"I can't wait to look at the many attractions in Jubilife City. Jubilife City has all sorts of cool stuff! and places to see" Dolan said excitedly. He began making his way around the tall grass. He wasn't about to walk through it ,and get his shoes dirty. Dolan climbed over the ledge since it was much quicker than going around. He looked ahead. Jubilife City wasn't too far ahead ,but it was still some distance away.

 

[EmoKitty21]

Seth laughed a bit at the way Kia was a acting. With a smile he spoke to the young trainer. "I have a bit of business to attend to, what with the league coming up and everything. As you know it will get a bit before I am on my own if no one ends up beating me." Seth had his phone out to text Storm, as he wanted his older friend to meet the group he had travelled with so often. @Clunpsy, @Salasa, @BloodRedRobot

 

[BloodRedRobot]

"Ah..." Jake cleared his throat, as he shifted.

"...well....you're welcome to come with us. I don't think I need to go anywhere here in Jubilife, but either of them might." he motioned to the other two, as he hummed.

Sonny boredly leaned against Seth's leg as if it was a wall. Unlike Kia, Sonny knew Seth wouldn't immediately make him fall over. The Raboot, as usual, looked around with half lidded bored eyes, his paws in his pockets.

So not much had changed from Galar.

 

[Godjacob]

Inside the local Pokemon Center of Jubilife City, a young boy with spiky blonde hair and a Luxio on his shoulder seemed to be focused on a monitor as he seemed to have a split-screen phone call between two others. One, a young girl who seemed his age and had a Roselia on her lap and the other and older woman who seemed to have a Torterra behind her that tried to peak into the call.

Needless to say there was an air of excitement among the call, for the boy who referred to himself as Zeke was set to begin his own Pokemon adventure today. Same with his twin known as Eliza, as both seemed to have their watches present as they worked to synch them while their mother Lily felt a sweat drop roll down the back of her head.

"Don't you think this is a tad much? I mean you just got out of class and you just arrived in Kalos no?" Lily asked, towards Zeke & Eliza respectively as the girl in Kalos rolled her eyes.

"He insists we time this to see who makes it to each milestone first. And since he seems eager to be shown up I agreed to it." Eliza replied as Zeke seemed to mask a sly smirk on his end. The two siblings had made a bet over which would become Champion first, which their mother seemed to discourage but if there had been one thing she failed to quell it was this age ole sibling rivalry.

"Says the girl who flusters at hello. Yeah I think I'll be having the time to beat." Zeke mused as Eliza seemed to blush and pout as Lily chuckled before she decided to speak up.

"Now now, this isn't a race. This is an experience, and you ought to savor every moment of it. Believe me, there is nothing quite like it. Just be sure to call me regularly and stay safe understand?"

"Course mom, love you!"

With that, both trainers hung up the call as Zeke turned to his partner Lightning who seemed far from amused by her trainer's antics as he started his watch which caused him to chuckle. "Oh come on a bit of flare goes a long way. Regardless, let's go find Professor Rowan and begin our journey!"

With a Pokemon Egg in his backpack, a gift from his mother, secured and his partner by his side he left the Pokemon Center of Jubilife City and took in a deep breath as he had shivers running down his veins. This was the beginning of his path to being a Champion, and he'd make sure not to waste this opportunity. Sinnoh was primed and he was gonna conquer it!

However, a few figures who seemed to scramble to the Pokemon Center caught his eye. As Lightning seemed equally curious especially when murmurs began to raise about some "event" today which caused them to come back inside. Seems a few packages were being picked up, but what? Zeke lacked a Pokedex or way to get email so he moved to the desk with Nurse Joy on it.

"Oh, excuse me but is there something going on?" Zeke asked Nurse Joy as the latter smiled at him.

"Oh just a big concert scheduled for today. Should be starting up soon." Nurse Joy explained and further outlined details to Zeke as the latter glanced at his partner.

"Well, a music break couldn't hurt? Mom did say to enjoy the experience." Zeke said, as Lightning sighed as she'd prefer to get a move on but they decided to go check this concert out anyway.

 

[ThAtGuY101]

As soon as Dolan saw Jubilife City, within walking distance he began running. "Looks like we're almost there!" Dolan said. "Dit dit dittoooo!" Aloi cheered. Dolan didn't stop until he was at the city entrance. He stopped and looked at the large sign before taking his first step onto the paved streets of Jubilife City. Dolan had his sights set on looking at the various attractions in Jubilife City. There were so many places to see, and go to. Dolan didn't know where to start. Dolan could go to the global trading station, the pokétech company, or even the Jubilife City TV station. Maybe take some pictures while he was there too. It didn't take Dolan long to snap a few pictures while he was there.

 

[Godjacob]

Zeke and Lightning walked down the main street, as they were familiar enough with the area to know the idea place to make a short cut towards where this concert was suppoed to be, and while the Luxio had been rather indifferent to the event there had been something that had caught the electric type's eye.

Flash!

"Lux?" Lightning said to itself as it turned and saw someone by the entrance of Jubilife City who seemed to be taking pictures all around him as the camera's flashes had gotten her attention. Before Zeke had much chance to even notice this his partner departed as she aimed to get closer to this strange yet beautiful sight of the camera as Zeke soon realized what happened and quickly moved to meet and grab his partner.

"Easy there, can't lose my partner on my first day..." Zeke said, before his eyes turned to the photographer that Lightning had led him towards and given the awkwardness of the meet up he figured he may as well try to salvage this as he smiled.

"Uh, hello there. Sorry my partner seems to be a bit of a flash photography fan. Welcome to Jubilife City!"

 

[ThAtGuY101]

Dolan was so invested in looking at the bright city lights that he almost didn't see the boy and his luxio, "uuugh, Neat pokémon!" Dolan said, pulling his pokédex out. "By joining its tail with that of another Luxio, this Pokémon can receive some of the other Luxio’s electricity and power up its own electric blasts" The pokédex stated. "Nice to meet you, It's fine. I'll just have to be careful around him. I'm Dolan by the way, and you?" Dolan said. "Dit dittooooo!" The blue ditto, Aloi cheered. Aloi jumped down from Dolan's shoulder and morphed into a black and yellow luxio. Though it was relatively easy to tell,, it was still ditto, by looking at its face. "Dittooooo!" Aloi cheered. "That's Aloi" Dolan said.

 

[BlueMew392]

As they continued for Jubilife City and saw that they were really close, Victoria saw Dolan run towards the city without even giving her and Grant a chance to react. "Dolan, wait up!" She called out to him before running herself to catch up, not checking whether Grant would follow suit.

Soon Victoria caught up to Dolan at the city's entrance. "Dolan! I understand that you're enthusiastic on arriving here, but would it be too much to ask to not leave us behind at the very least?" She asked before noticing the boy who was in front of the photographer. "Oh, hello!" She said to the boy with a smile.

 

[Godjacob]

"Holy Jellicent, a Ditto!" Zeke called out with almost child-like excitement as the shapeshifting Pokemon caught Lightning's confusion as the Luxio glanced upon her near identical doppelganger with a curious though cautious inspection. On instinct Zeke reached into his pocket as if to pull a Pokedex to scan the Ditto, but alas he was reminded he lacked a Pokedex of his own and sighed.

"Oh, my name is..." Zeke had began to say before suddenly a new Pokemon and girl had arrived as they also seemed attracted to Dolan which caused him to chuckle. "Seems you are a popular guy. A friend?" Zeke asked Dolan with a chuckle as Lightning glanced at the pair as it seemed their area had began to crowd up.

"As I was saying, my name is Zeke. This is my partner Lightning...future champions of the Sinnoh Region!" Zeke said to Dolan & his presumed friend as he had not made his ambition subtle to any degree. "And may I ask who you are?" Zeke asked, as he figured Dolan and the girl were friends but figured it was best to let them fill in the blanks.

 

[ThAtGuY101]

"Sorry about that, I saw the tall buildings in the distance, and I just got too excited" Dolan said. he felt a bit awkward for nearly forgetting about Victoria and Grant. Dolan was happy to see them catch up. Dolan turned to Zeke, "NIce to meet you Zeke! Nice to meet you too Lightning" Dolan said crouching down to greet the luxio. Aloi reverted back into a ditto, and held its arms out, gesturing for Dolan too pick it up. Dolan picked up Aloi as he stood back up. "I guess I am kinda popular, aren't I? ahahahahahaa! Probably not, but maybe a little" Dolan said.

 

[BlueMew392]

Victoria sighed a bit after Dolan apologized before turning back to the boy, who introduced himself as Zeke. "A pleasure to meet you, Zeke, and quite a bold claim," she said with a smile after tipping her fedora, "I'm Victoria Melis. And I am indeed a friend of Dolan's. We met at Professor Rowan's laboratory after I just arrived here in Sinnoh."

Her attention then turned to the Luxio and further examined. "A Luxio? That's the first evolution state of Shinx, isn't it?" She said. She wasn't expecting to see one of Shinx's evolved form this soon.

 

[EmoKitty21]

Storm had made his way out of the radio station, he was glad to have gotten out when he did as it would have been a swarm of combees compared to how the group of fans surrounded the place. Though he may have avoided the hype for now, it will be worse when him and Seth sing in the near future.

Seth made sure to lean down to rub the tuft of fur of the Raboot. "It is good to see you guys. Hey there is a concert going on in about an hour. You should come see it. One of my friends is performing there. It will be fun to see the show."

Storm made his way throughout the crowds with Jewel, and found himself at the entrance of the city. He hoped the place would be a good resting spot for him. "Man people can be so annoying at times." The espeon just shook her head, and brushed her tail against the leg of her trainer. However, she did turn her head to look at the group of trainers that had gathered there. It also stated that nurse Joy came out of the poke center, it seemed that she had a package for one of the trainers.

Going up to Zeke, Nurse Joy held out a package with his name neatly written across. "Zeke I am sorry to bother you as you are talking, but we just had this delivered for you. It seems to have came from Professor Rowen. If I am not mistaking."

 

[Godjacob]

"Indeed. Lightning's been my partner for a while even before I began my first journey so her evolving was nice to see. And a pleasure to meet you." Zeke said, as Lightning seemed to keep a distance from the group though kept close to her partner especially as Dolan approached close to her which caused Zeke to roll his eyes to the trainers as he had an infectious grin.

"Oh don't mind her, she is a bit shy around new faces." Zeke said as Lightning rolled her eyes every bit the more serious introvert to his rather carefree extrovert. Though the mention of Professor Rowan had caused his ears to perk up.

"Professor Rowan!? Oh man I still have yet to meet him! I kinda am sidetracked by some event here uh a concert or something..." Zeke had began to say feeling that perhaps he'd delay his journey if he'd stuck around, though before he had time to dwell over it Nurse Joy walked over to the group as she seemed to have a package for him which caused him and his Luxio who crawled up to his shoulder to raise an eyebrow.

"Huh? Something from Professor Rowan?" Zeke asked surprised, as far as he knew he had not said much word to him yet. Had his mother spoken to Rowan? Either way Zeke had taken the packed as he was curious what was inside as he went to open it.

 

[ThAtGuY101]

"Mhm! Professor Rowan's lab, in Sangem Town! Just south of here, not very far. Yet for some reason it feels like old history now... Hmmm..." Dolan went. Dolan then turned towards Lightning and Zeke, "That's okay. It's a common trait among many pokémon. Though at least you two seem to have a nice healthy relationship. That's what matters!" Dolan said holding his thumb up.

Dolan saw Nurse Joy come towards them, but he had to look a few times, as it wasn't often he saw one outside the pokécenter. It wasn't the first time he seen one outside the pokécenter, but it was still something that grabbed his attention. "What is it? Money? a cool new hat? Its running shoes, isn't it? Those sweet new running shoes! aaaaahhhhh! Those cool ones designed for comfort and improved running. Like running on air, or running for the first time they say. I'm not sure if they work, but they sound cool" Dolan said, waiting to see what Zeke got.

 

[BlueMew392]

"Indeed," Victoria said in agreement to Dolan pointing out the healthy dynamic between Zeke and Lightning. She then directed her attention towards the shy Luxio and gave it a small warm smile.

Victoria then saw Nurse Joy come their way and give a package to the young Zeke. As he opened it, she listened to Dolan thinking out loud on what it could and talking about running. She turned and lightly tapped his chest with the back of her hand before saying, "How about we let him open the package before we start assuming what it is that could be inside?"

 

[ThAtGuY101]

Dolan turned to Victoria then turned to Zeke, and finally back at Victoria, "fair enough" Dolan said stepping back. "I still think its running shoes, or maybe a hat. Just like yours. You could be twinzies" Dolan said pointing at Victoria. He turned towards Zeke, "Take your time! Be very careful. Opening a package is veeery delicate. You wouldn't wanna damage what's inside do you? You gotta be careful" Dolan said hands clasped together. As soon as Zeke opened it, Dolan was going to snap a picture of his reaction to seeing what's inside.

 

[BloodRedRobot]

Sonny blinked in suprise, but didn't object to the pat on his head.

Jake looked at Seth in surprise.

"...thats...your friend? Wow. The more ya know." He commented as he looked towards the source of the noise.

"I was never super into concerts, but hey, first time for everything, right?"

 

[Godjacob]

Zeke focused first on the package itself, which seemed to contain a number of items. First and most intriguing had been what seemed to be a full Pokedex as it appeared that Rowan was least made aware of his desires to become a Trainer. But that had not been the only thing there, as among the contents included a set of seven Pokeballs which included one Great one much to his shock and a few booklets on the region giving info on careers as well as providing simply tips and tricks to navigate the region as well as a map which had been a lot to take in all at once.

"T-this is...this is the jackpot! Thanks Nurse Joy and t-tell Professor Rowan I appreciate the generosity!" Zeke replied as the Nurse smiled and departed as Lightning seemed to sniff the items curiously. He then turned to the pair as he seemed to smile at the compliments and advice passed his way while the Luxio seemed cautious though the pair seemed friendly enough much as she hated to admit.

"Thanks. We may disagree but we have the same goal which is what counts~!" Zeke said as he worked to set his new gear on his bag as now he was ready to be an official trainer though as he had his things packed he faced the pair once more.

"So, what about you two. Any big plans here in the Sinnoh region?" Zeke asked as he had made his goal clear though was curious about these two as they seemed part of least a trio before bumping into him and he wondered what their journey had been all about.

 

[ThAtGuY101]

"Pretty cool stuff! Not as cool as those sweet running shoes. Like walking on air" Dolan said as he began to daydream about himself walking around in slow motion with running shoes on. "Wait... where was I? Good for you. Looks like your ready for an adventure! Me? I'm gonna take pictures. I'm also gonna write another book" Dolan said excitedly. "Dittooooo" Aloi cheered. Dolan was planning on visiting the pokétech company along with a few other places for writing ideas for his book.

 

[BlueMew392]

Victoria watched Zeke open the package he received, and the Kalosian trainer watched him pull out an assortment of items to get him started on his journey, including a Pokédex.

"Goodness gracious! Seems the professor went a good length to have you all set," she said with a smile while watching Zeke be ecstatic. As Victoria watched, it reminded her on how excited she was when she finally started off on her first journey. Seeing new trainers on their first journey, brings her some nostalgia, which is sometimes the case with a lot of experienced trainers.

Victoria then heard the young trainer ask what their plans were in Sinnoh after he got his things adjusted and settled. "As for me, it's quite simple. I plan to earn eight gym badges in order to enter and compete in the Pokémon League," she answered after Dolan said his response, "Hopefully I perform better than I did in the Johto League Silver Conference."

 

[Godjacob]

"Oh an author huh. Make sure you reserve a copy for me I'd love to see what kind of book you make." Zeke said with a cheeky grin but his encouragement had been genuine as Lightning seemed to flinch at the sudden cheer of support from Aloi as the Luxio none the less just listened to the conversations present as Zeke's attention then shifted to Victoria as she made quite the intriguing reveal about herself.

"Indeed, probably my mother to thank. She has a good relationship with the Professor. And most people here, very much a people person..." Zeke said as Lightning interjected with a notable "Lux!" as it seemed she agreed with that assessment or rather considered it much the understatement. Though he seemed more focused on the second part of her reply as a competitive grin crossed his lips.

"Really? Well then seems that makes us rivals. Seems you have some League experience already, but don't think that will be enough to beat me if our paths cross..." Zeke said, though he seemed to take Victoria's comment in stride as if anything he was excited one of the first people he met was a future rival. "...still, no reason I can't support you along the way. After all, I want to see what you can do at the League, just know I aim to give it one hundred percent and won't hold back on anyone!"

 

[BlueMew392]

"Well, yes, you could say that," Victoria said, with a bit of a light blush and while rubbing the back if her head with her hand, as Zeke pointed out her experience with competing in Pokémon Leagues. She then heard him say that he would give it everything he's got, even if they face each other in the League. "And I look forward to it," she replied with a smile, "I will not hold back either should we face each other off."

Victoria look at Lightning the Luxio and then back at Zeke. "Is Luxio the only Pokémon you possess?" She asked.

 

[Godjacob]

"That's the spirit I wouldn't want anything less!" Zeke said with a big grin as he respected that stance and even Lightning seemed a touch excited at the prospect of a battle with her; much as she was not used to strangers, these two seemed rather pleasant to be around all things considered. Though when she commented on whether Lightning was the only Pokemon he had been in possession of he felt a sweat drop as he realized starting out had a glaring disadvantage compared to more experienced trainers.

"W-well uh, y-yeah I suppose o-oh wait!" Zeke said, as he remembered his mother's gift and pulled from his backpack what seemed to be a Pokemon egg in an egg holder complete with a snuggly "nest" around it and light to keep it warm. "My mother passed me this egg before I left, said it would hatch any day now though I have no idea what it could be."

 

[ThAtGuY101]

"Absol-lutely!" Dolan said cheerfully. "My book is going to be based on my experience in Sinnoh. I write books about the locations I visit. I write books about places of attraction, places of myth, places of historical events ,and all sorts of other interesting facts. I also add my commentary and my experiences when I visit these places and attractions as well as some of the natives opinions on these places and what advice they recommend for people visiting these places. I really like taking pictures and posting them on my blog. I also add these pictures in my books to also show people what these places look like. If I finish my book on Sinnoh, and can convince someone to come to Sinnoh, then I've already acccomplished my goal!" Dolan ranted. He enjoyed talking about his books as well as adventures to different regions.

"Pokémon League? My brother loves to talk about the pokémon league. I'm not really interested in the pokémon league. Too many people try to go to the pokémon league, and stress over whether or not they can get eight badges. Then when they do get eight badges the stress only gets worse, and there can only be one champion meaning a lot of people are gonna quickly beome discouraged and give up. What's even worse than that is many of these people don't have any backup plans for when their dreams of becoming a champion fail. End up in dead end jobs workiing for minimal wage. A cruel cycl-" Dolan caught himself realizing just how dark that sounded. "Ugh-Ugh-ugh-... Not that that would happen to you guys of course! Theres always a chance you will get lucky! No point in worrying about that! uh-hahahahaha!! No need to think about that stuff" Dolan said nervously not wanting crush his friends dreams.

 

[BlueMew392]

Victoria's eyes locked on to the incubator containing the egg. She inched a bit closer and lowered just a bit to get a good look at the egg. "Oh, my! An egg!" She said as she looked at it, "If it's close to hatching, it won't be long until you find out what kind of Pokémon is inside of it. It was very kind of your mother to give you such a parting gift."

She then turned to Dolan as he began to rant about how trainers you compete the league end up giving up and end in not so great paths. As soon as he paused, Victoria couldn't think of a response to the mood changer that Dolan said before he tried to quickly dismiss it. After that, all she said was, "Umm, o-okay?" She won't deny that things of the sort do happen, and that there are trainers that bank on the hopes of winning than they should, to the point where loss will destroy them.

Victoria then straightened herself back up. "Well, that's definitely not how I do things," she said, hoping that she could brighten up the atmosphere, "While that does tend to happen to many trainers, winning shouldn't be the main focus of a journey. Sure, of course winning is what we aim when comes to things like battling and competing in the Pokemon League, but setting out on a journey is about exploring the world that is offered at your fingertips and to possibly grow as a person." She then walked a bit past Zeke and Lightning and looked up at the sky. "Being on a journey gives the trainer an opportunity to get to know the world we live in. To have memorable experiences and perhaps form special bonds. Not just with Pokémon but with people too. Has it ever occurred to you.....if one day.....you just couldn't do that. The world just far from your grasp....."

Instinctively, Victoria raised her hand up into the air, as if she was trying to reach for the sky. Once she was aware of what she was doing, she quickly retracted her arm and turn back to the two with a light blush of embarrassment. "M-My apologies. It seems I drifted into thought myself." She said, "But being a Pokémon Trainer is not just about winning. It's also about growth and working with Pokémon to understand them, discovering what they have to offer. Bonding with them. Of course, I too have had my moments of not being gracious towards my defeats. But after doing so, I would reflect on it and try to work hard to improve so I would do much better the next time. And I guess, by your standards Dolan, me being here can be considered a positive, seeing as I've competed in the leagues of five other regions."

 

[BloodRedRobot]

Sonny hummed as he looked around, when he heard his stomach growl.

He boredly jumped onto Jake's back and adjusted himself so he could stand steady.

He opened up a certain pocket and pulled out a pokepuff.

"Boot."

He said, as he carefully tugged his "hoodie" down and his mouth came into view.

He slowly opened his mouth, (which showed his rabbit buckteeth, maybe to some of the humans for the first time)

He began to raise it to his mouth, as he shut his eyes.

A blackish blue blur charged at him from on Jake's back, and easily knocked him off.

Sonny made a noise of surprise as he landed on his rear, as his eyes spun.

A Sneasel landed a few feet away, the pokepuff in its hand.

It smirked as it looked at Sonny.

Jake's eyes widened as he looked over.

".....so this is that Sneasel I mentioned." he sighed.

"That's Spike..."

Spike stared Sonny right in the eyes as the Raboot stared, and narrowed his eyes.

Spike then casually put the whole pokepuff in his mouth and bolted for it.

Sonny thumped his foot in anger several times, before he gave chase.

"Gah- Sonny!" Jake said, straightening as he grabbed Forte's pokeball and tossed it into the air.

The Chatot flapped his wings as he took into the air.

"Nice catching up with you guys, see you around, if you see Alex or Salasa tell them I said hi!" he said to the group as he ran off after the fire type, with the Chatot flying overhead.

The three pokemon and human turned a corner and were gone from the group's view.

Spike seemed to cackle as Sonny chased him around another corner, coincidentally in front of the other group of trainers.

Jake slowed to a stop nearby as he watched.

Sonny charged forward at his opponent, and used Double Kick, sending the Sneasel flying back.

Spike grunted in pain as he was blown back, and growled.

He prepared to attack, but looked around. He was outnumbered.

Forte flew in the air quietly, waiting to jump in if needed.

"..."

The Sneasel turned and quickly fled.

Sonny straightened and put his paws in his "pockets", as he watched the Sneasel scramble off.

Jake sighed as he walked over to the pokemon, and walked over, as the Chatot landed on his shoulder.

"Don't do that again..." he said in his Galarian accent, and pulled a second pokepuff out of his backpack and tossed it to the Raboot, who proceeded to bite into it with half lidded eyes.

"Well...looks like we're on our own again..." Jake hummed, not having seen the other trainers yet.

"...well...guess we might as well head out towards Oreburgh City. They have that fossil mine, I wanna see if we can dig up a fossil or two..." he commented to the Raboot as he pulled out his Rotom Phone and studied the map, as Forte glanced behind them at the other group of trainers, and recognized them from the lab earlier.

Sonny leaned against Jake's legs as he placed his paws behind his head, and looked at the others with one eye before he blew one of his ears out of his face.

 

[Godjacob]

"Yeah she's the best, gave my sister one two before she left for Kalos. Can't wait to see who our first teammate will be!" Zeke said as he had a cheeky grin at the compliment by Victoria as Lightning gazed upon the egg-case with a bit of what could be best described as "deadpan wonder" as in spite of her usual indifference to things even the Luxio had to admit she was curious just what was to hatch from that egg. As Dolan further explained details of his book Zeke's excitement seemed to only increase as he flashed a thumbs up Dolan's way.

"Sounds awesome man, and hey if you do accomplish your goal here that would be pretty sweet. I am sure you'll get it done no problem." Zeke said as he had worked to try and encourage him, though as Dolan passed a caution towards the two aspiring League contenders Victoria seemed to respond with a moving speech about how it had not been about winning but the journey itself that mattered more. Really it had made him smile, and while he scoffed at the idea of possibly not being champion Victoria summed up the response to Dolan's concerns as he decided to chime in with his own two cents.

"Yeah in the end it is about the experience. Course doesn't mean I don't aim to reach the best, and if fear of failure was gonna stop of break my spirits I would never have left home. Course there is a chance it may not work out, but who wants to worry about what may or may not happen. I'm all about sizing the moment, and I think that if you worry over if it will work out or not you'll never have a chance to make the most of your own adventure." Zeke said, having placed the egg container back in his backpack as he had an emphatic tone behind his brief response as Lightning shook her head but had an amused grin as she seemed to share the view of her partner even if she wasn't as much the extrovert as he had been in expressing it.

"Though, on that subject uh...since you guys seem okay with me around would you protest if I asked to join you on your quest? Figure this journey would be better with numbers and it would be nice to not have an eternal pessimist as my only voice to talk to." Zeke said as Lightning scoffed at that comment which she had known was directed at her as he laid the official offer on the table.

 

[BlueMew392]

Victoria listened to what Zeke wanted to add to the conversation and smiled at him. She then heard him ask if he was able to join the two in their journey. The Kalosian trainer didn't have put much thought to know that having another person around would sound good and liven things a bit more.

"Not at all," she said in regards to whether she would protest, "Having you come along sounds delightful!" She then turned to Dolan to hear his input. "What about you, Dolan? Are you alright with it?"

 

[BloodRedRobot]

Jake heard their conversation from nearby and glanced over, as he debated it.

He recognized them from the lab.

He looked down at his Rotom Phone, and scrolled onto the map.

"...alright...Oreburgh is..."

He looked around at the nearby signs.

"....this way." he pointed.

"We can make it there before dark and still have enough daylight to check out the fossil mine for a while...then we can maybe check into a room at the pokemon center." he said to Sonny, who was still leaned against his foot.

Forte was quiet as he listened to the humans speak.

"......delightful! Pokemon center!" he squawked, flapping his wings a little.

Sonny rolled his eyes, and wished he could swap "sir-speaks-a-lot" over here for a familiar Corviknight, or even a familiar Cramorant.

Jake smiled slightly as he looked at the Chatot.

"You're getting better at that..." he encouraged as he pulled out a pokemon treat and offered it.

The bird pokemon gently took it in its foot and held it, and started to pick away at the treat as he held it.

"I've heard some Chatots being able to make full sentences, although its super rare....maybe you'll get there someday." Jake smiled before he looked back at his map, as Forte adjusted himself to sit backwards on Jake's shoulder, and now faced the newer trainers.

 

[ThAtGuY101]

Dolan turned towards Victoria, "nice, and I wish you luck of course" Dolan said. "Absolutely a positive thing, your out here learning, and improving. Bettering yourself. Absolutely a positive" Dolan said once more. Aloi let out a cheer in excitement.

"Another positive outlook, Zeke. Experience always makes the best stories in my opinion. Honestly you guys are pretty open minded. Usually when I talk like that people get angry or in denial, but you guys don't seem that bothered. Like I said earlier, I wish you both luck" Dolan said. "Join away! You seem cool. Glad to have you wi-" Dolan paused mid-sentence as he glanced over in the distance. He spotted the reboot trainer from the pokélab. "Forgot to finish my sentence... Glad to have you traveling with us" Dolan said.

 

[BloodRedRobot]

Jake put his Rotom Phone away with a small smile as he grabbed Forte's pokeball and returned the Chatot to it.

Sonny straightened up, and stuffed his paws in his pockets.

Jake straightened, and adjusted his backpack straps.

The two started to walk out of Jubilife, headed onto the next route.

"...I'll admit...I wasn't expecting this region to look this different from Galar....especially because there's no wide open spaces like the Wild Area..." he spoke to Sonny as they walked, and the human admired the scenery as they passed.

 

[Godjacob]

"Alright! And you said we'd struggle to find people to travel with. A bit of optimism goes a long way." Zeke had said with a cheeky grin to his partner as Lightning rolled her eyes though in spite of herself the Luxio had been happy to a degree that they'd not be isolated on this journey.

"Anyway, I have my eyes on the first badge. Based on what I've dug around, Oreburgh City is the place to go. So if you didn't already plan to you guys mind setting out there first?" Zeke said with a naturally energetic tone, though Lightning noticed the pause in Dolan's reply and glanced at the trainer he seemed to look upon. Was it someone he had known or seen before?

 

[BlueMew392]

"I don't mind. Although, I do believe Dolan has some business he wants to take care of here, given how he rushed to the city without me," Victoria said, looking at Dolan before turning back to Zeke, "I, on the other have no errands to attend to, so we could leave to Oreburgh whenever he's fini--"

Victoria then paused as she remembers something she forgot to do back in Sandgem Town. Calling home. She had intended to call her parents in Kalos after receiving her starter, but she forgot to do so in all the excitement. She had a bit of a horrified look after just remembering, a bit worried about how her mother will potentially spat out at her.

"U-Uh....o-on second thought, I just came to realization that I had a little errand I forgot to take care in the previous town. So I'm afraid I now have to make a stop at the Pokémon Center before we venture to the next city," Victoria said with a bit of a nervous laugh and a light blush of embarrassment.

 

[Godjacob]

Zeke listened as Victoria explained their situation, seems the pair had business here if Victoria's sudden flustered realization was anything to go by. While Lightning seemed annoyed by the delay Zeke only provided his newfound travel mates with a wide toothy grin as he nodded in understanding.

"Oh no worries, we can wrap up business for you guys here first no sweat! Not in a rush or anything so we're good." Zeke said as he passed a thumbs up his way letting her and Dolan know he had been okay with letting them tend to their stops. Though as Lightning tugged at his pants he glanced at the Luxio who gestured to the watch he had which seemed to be timing his run on his wrist as he rolled his eyes.

"As if my sister isn't stopping to mingle to. We'll be fine." Zeke assured before he turned to Dolan curious about a comment Victoria made.

"So what business do you have here?" Zeke asked curious what sudden rush Dolan had to get to this town since Victoria had already explained her own reason for stopping by.