Helix and Hooves: Trainers of the Future

by The Kelduo

Rating: teen
Tags: Crossover, Death, Doctor Whooves, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Super Smash Brothers, Other, Self Insert, Adventure, Science Fiction, Pokémon
Length: 56601

Two friends travel into the future to prepare for a dangerous threat to Equestria.

Doctor Hooves: the pony with a fascination for time travel. He has always wanted to attempt such a dangerous task as going into the future or into the past, but he had never imagined that he would go into the future alongside intergalactic hero Helix in order to save present Equestria! Who knows what awaits Doctor Hooves and Helix as they adventure into the future... of Pokemon! Will they become the Champion of a whole region of adventure? Or will they black out and never return home? Only time will tell... or will it? Will this timely adventure be too confusing for our heroes to understand? Will our heroes meet their future selves? Only Arceus knows what will happen...

While this story is labelled as a sequel to another of my stories, Guest Star Kelduo: Justice from Afar, it's more of a pseudo-sequel. Helix tells this story to explain what adventure Helix and Doctor Hooves went through during the time that Helix's colleagues took on the threat to Equestria detailed in chapter 48. If you intend to read the prequel story, I highly recommend reading it first so you avoid spoilers for it. However, don't read chapter 48 or the epilogue until after you read this story, so that it flows clearly and you don't find spoilers for which Pokemon that Helix and the Doctor will have. Also in this story are spoilers for Pokemon Sword and Shield, so read with caution.

Published 2019-12-12 18:20:01 UTC
Last updated 2022-01-10 20:24:37 UTC

Chapter 1: A New Generation of Inspiration

Okay, team, here's our stop
It's time to reach for the top!

Meloetta's song sang the truth; a peaceful rural town covered in grass caught my watchful eyes. I landed in front of a house next to a wooden gate. Several sheep Pokemon were roaming around the town, including one that was rolling into the gate and bouncing off comically. One such Pokemon was lying down next to the gate, looking as if it wanted to explore the area beyond. After Doctor Hooves got off my back, I returned to my Decidueye form.

The Doctor looked around in wonder, as did I. He said, "I'm not quite sure why, but this place feels fairly familiar to me. I almost feel as if I am at home."

"Really?" I asked. "How does this place make you feel at home?"

Meloetta smiled. "I believe that is because we are in the region that is based off of Great Britain. I welcome the two of you... to the Galar region!"

My eyes sparkled with wonder. "The Galar region... I have always wanted to travel to Great Britain, but my negative emotions I hid inside had dragged my mindset away from trying to go there with my new powers. However, since I am in the Pokemon equivalent of Great Britain, I have achieved my dream nonetheless! I do have one question, though... Since you are here, the others should be near. Where is your Trainer?"

Meloetta giggled. "Oh, Heart Fist? She's inside with Pummel, Keldeo, and a couple of new friends."

"You made some new friends? And so soon?"

"Why are you so surprised? This always happens on our Pokemon adventures! In Kalos alone, Pummel and Heart and I befriended Shauna, Tierno, Trevor, and Serena in rapid succession! And need I even mention Equestria? After we explained our reasoning for being in Equestria, everypony welcomed us like we were family! Well, besides Chancellor Neighsay. I'd heard that he chained you up with magic as soon as he saw you. Not that it matters, because it's time for me to introduce you to our new friends!"

We followed Meloetta into the house, where three of my friends were sitting on a couch with two other boys. One of the boys had white skin and brown irises. He was wearing a red long-sleeved shirt with some kind of logo on it, and his jeans appeared to be somewhat worn. The other boy had light brown skin, deep purple hair, and yellow irises. He was wearing a woolly blue jacket.

Of my friends, there were Pummel Fist, Heart Fist, Roborygon, and Keldeo, the latter of them also known as the colt Pokemon. Pummel used to be a human alongside his mother Heart Fist, but Archie and Maxie turned them into Pokemon using a special potion. Now they can take on the form and powers of any Pokemon that is registered in their Pokedex. They have chosen to use Machop, a grayish-green biped with powerful muscles, as their predominant species. Roborygon was constructed by Pummel's Pikachu, PhD, in order to assist him and his friends on their adventures. Considering the fact that it was based off of Porygon-Z, Roborygon (aka Roborygon Mk. Z) looks similar to it, except that in terms of colors, he has a Shiny Porygon-Z's color scheme, although the blue and gray are inverted, and yellow is in place of the blue; in addition, he has purple visual monitors in place of yellow eyes. The entire group was watching something on Pummel's phone, which had a jet black case. And from the looks of it, they were watching something very interesting.

"Hello there!" I said, letting our presence be known.

The group turned to me. Pummel replied, "Oh, hey, Helix. Hi, Doctor Hooves. Has Meloetta told you a little about Victor and Hop?"

"She didn't state their names directly, but she did say you made a couple of friends."

The white boy turned to Pummel. "You know them? Are they your friends?"

Pummel answered, "Yeah, let me introduce you to them. Guys, meet Helix and Doctor Hooves."

The brown boy eyed Doctor Hooves strangely. "Doctor Hooves, huh? Pretty quirky name for a Pokemon, even though it's a horse Pokemon."

The Doctor sighed. "Why does everyone here keep mistaking me for a Pokemon? I'm a pony, for Celestia's sake!"

The brown boy almost jumped off the couch. "Whoa! It can talk?!"

Keldeo looked at him, sighing. "He isn't the first creature you've encountered that speaks human, you know. And he isn't a Pokemon. Truth is, my friends and I met him on a faraway planet populated by equines that can talk. We discovered that world by accident after trying to escape the aftermath of a dark lord's defeat. But enough about us, you guys should introduce yourselves!"

"Oh, right!" The white boy shook my wing. "My name is Victor. Victor Sword."

I replied, "It's nice to meet you, Victor."

The brown boy shook the Doctor's hoof. "I'm Hop. It's a pleasure to meet you, Doctor Hooves!"

The Doctor said, "The honor is mine, Hop. It isn't every day that I get to meet someone from the future!"

"From the future?!" Hop gasped. "That must mean you came from the past! But why come here to Galar?"

Pummel answered, "Basically, they came here to the Galar region because they need as much help as they can get in order to defeat a monster that will soon roam around Equestria--that's Doctor Hooves' home planet. His name... Lord Tirek. He's a centaur that gets stronger from consuming magic. When he stole all the magic of Equestria a few years ago, he was bigger than a Primal Groudon! Now, don't worry, because the bearers of harmony defeated him back then and took back the magic with help from the Rainbow Power offered by the Chest of Harmony. But we're sure he won't be a pushover this time either."

Victor exclaimed, "That sounds super tough! If you want to get as strong as you can, I suggest you take on the Gym Challenge. The Gym Leaders will put your skills to the ultimate test!"

I smiled. "That's what I was hoping you would suggest. We can't take it on without Pokemon of our own, though. Do you know how we could get some?"

"Don't put the cart before the Rapidash! You can't go on an adventure without getting used to the customs of Galar. The first thing you need to do is get rid of that Rotom Dex. Nobody uses them anymore!"

"But how will you be able to record Pokemon information without a Pokedex?" Rotom Dex asked.

"It turns out that Rotom have a new device to go into..." Pummel held up his phone, and I saw a Rotom's face on the back of it. "...phones!"

The Doctor gave Pummel a confused look. "I beg your pardon, but this is the very first time I've encountered a phone with a screen rather than buttons. How are you even supposed to work it?"

Pummel laughed. "It's called a touchscreen for a reason. You touch the screen with your appendage in order to interact with the phone. But this may be a little tricky for you, Doctor, because you have hooves."

"But it's no big deal, Doc. Rotom Phones can perform some functions that don't require touching the screen. Here, you can use mine." Victor gave Doctor Hooves his Rotom Phone, which had a red case. "I've already taken on the Gym Challenge, so I don't need this anymore. And you'll need something to carry all the stuff you'll find on your journey, so you can use my bag. It's in my room, on the other end of my home. You'll find it next to my bed, and there's a hat if you need to keep warm."

"Thank you very much, Victor." The Doctor went in that general direction to get his gear.

I held my phone up to Rotom Dex. The phone was dark green like my hood. "Ready to enter your new home, Rotom?"

"Of course I am! But... I could use a little help getting out. I've been in here so long I've forgotten how to exit my Pokedex abode. How can I leave my current appliance with relative ease?"

"The answer to that is quite simple. According to The Dex Can't Help It!, the easiest way to exit a Pokedex..." Roborygon aimed an appendage at Rotom Dex and fired electricity from it. "...is by electrical stimulation!"

"Zz-zzt!" After some erratic movement, Rotom burst out of the Pokedex. "Yow! I love electricity, but that was too much of an overload!" I aimed my phone at the Rotom now flying around. "Here I come!"

The speed generated by Rotom combined with the power taken to enter the phone was enough to push me back a few inches. "Whoa!" I exclaimed.

I looked at my phone's screen, which lit up blue, indicating startup. "Beep boop boop beep..." I turned the phone around to look at its back. After a few seconds, Rotom's eyes appeared on it, and the phone began to float. While it floated, a lightning bolt-shaped protrusion appeared on the top, and a short protrusion appeared on the bottom. "...Phone successfully inhabited! Oh, these circuits are so warm and cozy, Helix!"

I held my Rotom Phone with pride. "With you piloting my phone, you will be able to do far more than if you were in my Pokedex. I am certain of that."

Hop said, "Glad you like the Rotom Phone! As for the Pokemon, I got Lee to bring three of them for you all."

I asked, "Isn't that one too many? Pummel and Heart Fist have exceptional fighting capabilities, and they seem to know enough about Galar to get through without a starter. We're the only ones who really need the help."

"Make that two too many. You're a Pokemon. You could take on the Gym Challenge without a starter!"

I shook my head. "No, I couldn't." I lifted my left wrist, revealing a white bracelet with a Z insignia. "I can't use Z-Moves with my own power alone. And I doubt that I could do whatever special skill is offered in this region."

Hop nodded. "Yeah, you're right. There's no way you could fit yourself in a Poke Ball to go Dynamax. I wonder who could take the third Pokemon..."

"We'll fight that Snorlax blocking the path when we come to it. Right now, I think it's time to set off to find Lee."

The Doctor came back wearing a brown, cylindrical backpack and a gray knit cap. "I have to agree with that, but might I ask, who is this Lee you speak of?"

Pummel showed me and the Doctor his Rotom Phone, which was playing a video of a brown man in a royal robe. A giant Charizard with flaming wings was behind him. "Leon is the current Champion of Galar, as well as Hop's big brother."

Hop jumped up and down. "Come on! Let's go to Wedgehurst to get Lee!"

The Doctor and I stayed for a short time to talk to Victor. The Doctor said, "I mean no offense to you, but..." He turned so that his backpack was visible. It was shifting from side to side. "...this bag is rather uncomfortable, and difficult to get used to. I should have brought along my saddle bags."

"Sorry about that," Victor said sheepishly. "Maybe I can get Mum to whip up a saddle bag for you. We in Galar are used to farming, so it should be pretty easy for us to put together."

"Thank you very much, Victor. Now, without further ado, let's go!"

Victor waved to us as we left his home. "Good luck, guys! I know you can complete the Gym Challenge!"

I turned to Victor before I reached the door. "I know you already took on the Gym Challenge, but aren't you going to come with us?"

Victor shook his head. "No, I'm not going to this time. I would have become the Champion if it hadn't been for Leon's Charizard using its G-Max Move. Right now, I'm taking a little break from battling. I'm sure my partners need it. But when I finish taking my break, Leon better watch out! I've got a sweet trick up my sleeve to take him down."

"Oh, okay. I wish you luck as well, Victor!"

As I walked down the steps from Victor's place, I saw Hop waving to me. "Come on, Helix! You're too slow!"

Elsewhere, a bald doctor in a spherical flying machine scratched his chin in confusion. "That's funny. Why do I feel like somebody ripped me off?"

His spherical red companion answered, "Perhaps it's because someone did reference one of your famous lines."

"Cut it out, Orbot! You should know that nobody would dare rip off the great Dr. Eggman!"

After the long walk through Route 1, we came to a fairly more urban town. A crowd was gathered at the train station, where a Charizard and his Trainer were striking a flashy pose. My keen eyesight allowed me to identify the Trainer as Leon. "Hello, hello, Wedgehurst! Your Champion, Leon, is back! I promise I'll keep doing my best to deliver the greatest battles for you to watch!"

The crowd roared in applause. "Wow, it's our Champion!" "Go, Leon!" "You and Charizard are the greatest!"

We overheard them talking about how they want to fight the Champion, who assured them that Charizard isn't the only Pokemon that can be strong. He wanted the strongest Trainers to come and fight him at the end of their Gym Challenge.

That was when the Doctor waved to Leon in order to catch his attention. "Excuse me! Leon!"

Leon didn't seem to notice the Doctor's attempt to catch his attention, but Hop gave it a shot. "Lee!"

Upon seeing Hop's hand and hearing his voice, Leon grinned. "Hop!" He walked through the crowd to us. "So, it looks like my number-one fan brought along his new friends!" He looked at us, particularly at Keldeo. "Incredible! You've a Mythical Pokemon right there! I reckon he must be yours, Pummel!"

Pummel smiled. "That's right! I'm proud to say that he finally has his own cutie mark! You must have a very sharp eye to have noticed that he's affiliated with me."

"And these fierce eyes over here..." Leon turned to me. "...I've got it! You must be Helix--am I right?"

I nodded. "That's correct. But how did you know about me? I would think that Hop only told you about Pummel, Heart, and their Pokemon."

Pummel shook his head. "Nah, I told Hop about you and Doctor Hooves, and how you would come here to obtain the skills necessary to defeat that magic thief."

Leon said, "Yeah, I heard loads about all of you from my little brother. If you've watched any of my matches, you'd know that I'm the Galar region's greatest-ever Pokemon Champion--and a massive Charizard fan, too. People call me the unbeatable Leon!"

Hop entered the conversation. "Come on, everyone! Bet I can beat you all back to my place! It's right next to Victor's home." He then dashed off, but he didn't know...

...that I was such a fast Pokemon. When he saw me in front of the court at his home, Hop's jaw nearly dropped. "Yow! You're too fast for me, Helix!"

I chuckled. "Never encountered a Decidueye before?"

The rest of the group caught up to us. Keldeo said, "It looks like you didn't think about the speed stat of the final evolution of Rowlet. They're super fast!"

The Doctor turned to Leon. "I beg your pardon, but I'm feeling a tad concerned about when Helix and I will get the chance to obtain Pokemon. I can't bear to think about what would happen if we didn't get the Pokemon and return to save Equestria from Tirek..." He shuddered. "So would you mind showing us these starting Pokemon?"

"Right then! The greatest gift from the greatest Champion... It's showtime, everyone!" Leon pulled out three spherical devices with a red top half, a white bottom half, and a white button on the front. Poke Balls, as every Trainer should know. "Take a good look, you two!" He threw the Poke Balls, and from the first one came a green monkey with orange hands and feet. A stick was hidden behind the tuft of green fur on its head. "The Grass-type Pokemon... Grookey!" From the second came a white rabbit with red toes and ears. An orange band was between its eyes, just above its small pink nose. "The Fire-type Pokemon... Scorbunny!" From the last, a light blue lizard with a yellow fin-like protrusion from the top of its head. Its large curved tail had a dark blue tip. "And the Water-type Pokemon... Sobble!"

The trio of Pokemon went on their own ways to demonstrate their skills and personalities. Grookey climbed up the tree, Sobble jumped into the pond, and Scorbunny stayed on the court. "Whoo! You can't stop me!" Scorbunny exclaimed as it raced around the court, leaving behind fiery footprints.

"Ooh, a Sitrus Berry!" Grookey removed the stick from behind its head and used it to beat against a yellow berry shaped like a pear. "Gotta love that berry beat!"

"This feels nice..." Sobble said before spitting a glob of water...

...said water glob hitting Scorbunny right on the ears. "Wah! I hate water! Gotta dry gotta dry gotta dry!" Scorbunny proceeded to hop high into the air repeatedly...

...striking a tree branch with its head in the process. This caused the berry that Grookey was beating to bounce off the tree branch. "Oops! Oh well, no big deal. I can always find other stuff to hit." The berry fell...

...into Sobble's pond. "Eek!" Sobble quickly leapt out of the water and onto the grass. The poor thing burst into tears. "Waaaahh! Don't startle me like that!"

Grookey jumped down to calm Sobble. "Sorry about that, Sobble! I was just having a little fun!"

Scorbunny soon followed. "Yeah! Besides, it wasn't that scary. That water you splashed me with was actually kinda thrilling, and plus, you weren't alone; we all got in on the action!"

"Yeah, I guess you're right..." In the end, they all laughed about the incident.

Leon declared, "All right! Line up, everyone!" The Pokemon did as instructed, with Grookey on the left, Sobble on the right, and Scorbunny in the center. Leon turned to me and Doctor Hooves. "Which will you choose?"

I glanced at my three options. "I believe I know who I would like as my starting Pokemon, but I feel it would be kind to allow Doctor Hooves to choose first. Is that okay, Doctor?"

The Doctor smiled. "Of course. Thank you very much, Helix!" He then took a look at his choices. "Let's see... I would like to have a starter Pokemon that is curious and willing to try new things. After all, I could use some help with my research into quantum physics. And a Pokemon with flexible digits would be able to make up for my lack of fingers. Therefore, I believe the right Pokemon for me... is Grookey!"

I said, "Out of those three, Grookey most definitely is the right one for you. You know, you can give it a nickname if you want. Anyone can nickname the Pokemon they catch."

"Okay. In that case, I will give him the nickname Ukiki. That sounds like a good name for a monkey like him."

I chuckled. "Nice. That's the perfect name for your new partner. I wonder if there's a Super Mare-io 64 game in Equestria..."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Not that it matters, because right now it's time for me to take my pick. I normally go with Water- or Grass-types to fit my calm and intellectual mindset, but I feel like going outside my comfort zone." I walked over to Scorbunny. "Come on, Hotshot. You're coming with me to begin my Galarian team!"

Scorbunny, which I had nicknamed Hotshot, jumped up and fist-bumped me. "Aw, yeah! You'll score big-time with me on your team!"

I turned back to Leon. "Thank you very much for these new Pokemon, Leon. We will be sure to unlock their full potential, both as friends and as heroes."

Leon replied, "I bet the two of you will, Helix and Hooves. That's why I brought along the Pokemon for you: So you can battle and train to grow stronger together... to conquer whatever evil awaits you!"

Sobble sighed. "Aw, I never get picked to be a partner..."

Pummel looked at Heart and nodded.

She nodded back. Heart crouched down to Sobble and said, "Don't worry, Sobble. I choose you! We'll work together to complete the Gym Challenge!"

Sobble gasped. "Really? ...Thanks so much!" He then jumped into Heart's hands.

"All right, enough of all this Trainer nonsense for one night!" Victor's mother and Hop's mother came from Hop's house. "Dinner's ready, everyone. Bring along your Pokemon, and let's all eat!"

The Doctor gave me a nervous look. "Shouldn't we work to train our team as soon as possible? We don't have all week to conquer Tirek. At this rate, he'll have gotten the magic of all the princesses by the time we start our Gym Challenge!"

I shook my head. "Remember that we can return to Ponyville at any time using our time-space machine."

"Oh, right! I keep forgetting about that!"

And so, after a nice barbecue, we slept in Hop's house for the night.

The next morning, we met back in front of the court. Leon said to us, "You all spent the whole night with your new Pokemon, right? You getting on all right? Understanding one another? Maybe even built up a bit of love?"

The Doctor smiled. "I'm already certain that I'll be good friends with Ukiki. I'm sure that Helix and Heart have gotten to know their own Pokemon pretty good as well."

Leon smiled. "Then listen up, new Trainers of Galar! Believe in yourself and your Pokemon! If you trust in one another and carry on battling side by side long enough, then someday... you might even become worthy rivals for me, the unbeatable Champion!"

I grinned. "And the first step towards that goal..." I turned to the Doctor. "...is a Pokemon battle. Are you ready to learn the ropes of Pokemon?"

Doctor Hooves replied, "Of course, Helix. Will you please demonstrate proper battling techniques for me?"

"Yes, I will. Normally, I would battle my rival--which I consider you to be--but I believe in the saying 'watch and learn.' Besides, even though ponies have had their fair share of combat, you don't know the mechanics of Pokemon battles. So I will instead allow you to spectate as I challenge... Meloetta!"

Meloetta beamed. "Now we're talking! It's been a while since I've had a good battle. I suppose I should take on a more suitable form for this match." Meloetta began to sing, a green sphere of energy enveloping her.

Heroes of light defend against the cold of the night
It is time to unleash my might!

Behold, the tune of this grand Relic Song!
You can sing along!

Harmonic strength is powered by our bond
The show must go on!

Where Meloetta's light green Aria Forme once stood, there was now her auburn Pirouette Forme. Her hair was now wrapped up neatly in a bun, and her skirt was frilled outwards, like a ballerina. "But before we begin the battle, I feel you should check the moveset of your Pokemon."

"I always do." I held up my Rotom Phone. "Okay, Rotom. Bring up the Pokedex entry for Scorbunny and identify the moves that Hotshot currently knows."

But Rotom answered, "I'm sorry, but this phone isn't equipped with the Pokedex application. You'll have to request assistance from Roborygon instead."

"On it." Roborygon brought up a hologram of Scorbunny projected from his single black antenna, which was in the place of where a Porygon-Z's horn would be. "Scorbunny, the Rabbit Pokemon. A Fire-type, Scorbunny warms up for a battle by running around to get fire energy coursing around its body. Once it's ready to battle, the pads on its feet and nose radiate tremendous heat. Scorbunny's moveset right now consists of Tackle and Growl." He then switched to Grookey. "Grookey, the Chimp Pokemon. A Grass-type, Grookey uses its stick to rhythmically strike. The sound waves produced revitalize nearby plants. As it strikes with great speed, Grookey gets more and more pumped. Grookey's moves are Scratch and Growl." Last, he switched to Sobble. "Sobble, the Water Lizard Pokemon. A Water-type, Sobble's skin color changes when it gets wet, and it becomes invisible as if camouflaged. When it gets scared by something, it cries. Its tears have the chemical power of one hundred onions, so attackers won't be able to keep from weeping. Sobble's moves are Pound and Growl."

"I mean no offense to any of the Pokemon," Doctor Hooves said, "but those moves sound considerably weak. My own hooves are likely stronger than them! How can I increase the power of those moves?"

Roborygon replied, "Pokemon become stronger and learn new moves as they increase their level. They can increase their level by obtaining enough experience points. Pokemon get experience points by battling other Pokemon."

"That is very good to know. I feel mildly comforted now, thanks to your lecture."

Roborygon would have smiled, if he had a mouth. "That's what I do!"

Meloetta took on a battle stance while motioning towards Hotshot. "Now, have at me!"

I said, "Hotshot, use Tackle!"

Hotshot ran towards Meloetta and prepared to slam into her. However, Meloetta sidestepped to her right, causing Hotshot to pass right by her. "Whoa! Talk about quick thinking!"

"That was only the prelude to my performance! Time for the opening act!" Meloetta lunged forward and struck Hotshot with a swift kick to the face.

"Ouch! That smarts!" Hotshot exclaimed.

"Behold, a move that even Sectonia would bow down to!" Meloetta cloaked herself in light and began to charge into Hotshot.

I warned, "Jump!" Hotshot leapt right over Meloetta's Dazzling Gleam. "Now, stomp on her!" Hotshot drove his powerful feet into Meloetta's back.

The Doctor was left stunned. "Wait, but... Roborygon, you said he only knows Tackle and Growl!"

I grinned. "Pokemon are not limited to their moves. Moves are the attacks that have official names, like Secret Sword and Thunderbolt. Pokemon can still do other maneuvers. You can tell that a Trainer is having their Pokemon use a move when they say to use a move. That's the difference between using Stomp and stomping an--"

"Look out!" The Doctor warned.

Meloetta punished Hotshot with Psychic, launching him into the tree. "We can't hit pause on the action, Helix! We gotta keep up the pace!"

"I'm not backing down, either!" Meloetta sped towards Hotshot, preparing for another foot strike. "Here comes U-turn!"

I said, "Quickly, Tackle!"

Hotshot's Tackle met Meloetta's U-turn, but the latter won the duel between the moves. "This isn't looking good..." Hotshot groaned.

Having finished executing U-turn, Meloetta flipped backwards into the air. "Now it's time for Sobble to take the stage. I know you can--"

"Now's your chance, Ukiki!" The Doctor launched Ukiki with his hind hooves, and the little monkey grabbed onto Meloetta's face. "Use Scratch, and don't hold back!"

"Just doing what a monkey does!" Ukiki said as it obliged, driving Meloetta crazy.

"You mischievous little chimp!" Meloetta exclaimed in shock. "Get off me!"

The Doctor turned to me. "Now's your chance, Helix!"

I nodded. "Hotshot, use Tackle one more time!"

"Just a little bit more!" Hotshot got back on his feet, and he proceeded to run towards Meloetta.

Meloetta finally got Ukiki off of her. "Got you! Now for the--oh!" Meloetta couldn't finish her thought, because Hotshot unleashed a kick right in her face. She was thrown to the ground by the powerful foot. "You got me good, you two... You finished act one, but I was holding back so you had a chance against me. Now it's time for the real star to debut. Sobble, it's time for you to be Ukiki's training partner!"

"Oh, uh, okay." Sobble timidly walked forward to challenge Ukiki.

"What's the plan, Doc?" Ukiki asked. "I think I'm ready for a new move, but I want your ideas on what to do."

The Doctor replied, "I think it's time for you to utilize that stick of yours. It's time to make like the Pone Age ponies and try beating Sobble with it!"

"Okay!" Ukiki removed its stick from behind its tuft of fur and prepared to strike.

"Dodge it and use Pound!" Heart Fist said.

Sobble jumped to its left, narrowly avoiding the stick, before preparing to slap Ukiki with its front legs.

"Use your stick again!" This time, instead of just smacking Sobble with the stick. Ukiki thrust the stick forward, poking Sobble in the right cheek.

"Owie! That hurt!" Sobble clenched its cheek in pain.

Hop exclaimed, "Nice! Did you already know about type advantages?!"

"Pardon?" Doctor Hooves asked. "Type advantages?"

I said, "I do, but apparently my friend didn't know about type advantages." I turned to the Doctor. "There are many types, but new Trainers should always start by knowing these three types: Water beats fire, fire beats grass, and grass beats water. Ukiki must have used a Grass-type move when it attacked with its stick."

Roborygon brought up a list of Pokemon moves. "Searching move database... Doctor Hooves, it appears that your Grookey used a new Grass-type move specific to Galar: Branch Poke!"

I deadpanned. "...Out of all the Pokemon moves I've heard of, Branch Poke has to be one of the lamest."

"You won't be saying that when Grookey undergoes evolution."

I shrugged. "Good point."

"Sobble, use Pound again!" Sobble dodged another Branch Poke and landed a Pound on Ukiki's orange snout. Surprisingly, the Pound was strong enough to knock Ukiki to the edge of the court.

Hop himself winced after seeing that attack. "A critical hit! What sort of beginner's luck is that?!"

"A what?" The Doctor asked.

I explained, "That's when an attack spontaneously does significantly more damage to the opponent. There can be various causes of a critical hit, such as attacking their weak spot, having obtained a strong enough bond with their Trainer to land a critical hit, or just due to luck. But don't let that lucky shot get you down. Remember that you have the advantage!"

"Right. Ukiki, advance!" Ukiki ran back to the court and continued towards Sobble.

"Sobble, use Pound!" Sobble prepared to slap Ukiki again.

"Jump!" Ukiki suddenly leapt over Sobble, to the latter's surprise. "Use Branch Poke on its tail!" Ukiki poked his stick into Sobble's tail, on the dark tip. "Now, launch Sobble!" Ukiki proceeded to use its stick to hurl Sobble into the tree.

"Oww..." Sobble groaned before its eyes turned into swirls.

Roborygon made a boxing bell sound. "Ding ding ding! Sobble is unable to battle, so Ukiki wins! This match goes to Doctor Hooves and Helix!"

I shook the Doctor's hoof. "You did well for a beginning Trainer. Congratulations on beating Sobble and Meloetta! How did you know to distract Meloetta, giving Hotshot a chance to turn the tables?"

The Doctor chuckled nervously. "Well, actually, I didn't think about that. I merely wanted to get a feel for engaging in Pokemon battles, and I admit that it was somewhat fun. I'm sure Ukiki enjoyed it too."

"Well, I'm glad to see that you wanted to try battling."

Leon told all of us, "Nice job, everyone. You and your Pokemon all fought hard. Made me almost want to let out Charizard and join in on all the fun! Good effort out there! Why don't I get your Pokemon all sorted?"

The participants in the battle stepped forward to have Leon restore their health with Potions and Revives.

Leon turned to me. "And Helix, you've got real promise, I just know it! In fact, I have a suggestion for you: Be a real rival to Doctor Hooves, would you? Push him, so you can make the both of you stronger!"

The Doctor smiled. "That exhilarating experience makes me already want to get stronger with my new friend! I want to become as strong as I can with the help of Ukiki!"

Leon laughed. "So, you want to join the Gym Challenge? You think you're ready for the single greatest competition in the Galar region? Not putting the cart before the Rapidash there, Doctor?"

The Doctor shook his head. "We need to get as strong as we can and build an exceptional team of friends in order to conquer the threat to my home land. If the Gym Challenge is the best way to do that, then I would gladly partake in it!"

"If that's really what you want to do, you have a whole lot you need to learn about Pokemon. Before you even think about getting the Gym Badges, best to think about getting a Pokedex."

"A Pokedex?"

"That's right. A Trainer's Pokedex helps them learn lots of things about all the Pokemon out there, including their strengths and weaknesses. But it's more than just a collection of data, you know. It's a record of a Trainer's passion for Pokemon training!"

"That sounds like an incredibly useful device, Leon. I just hope they don't have a so-called touchscreen... Anyway, how can we obtain these Pokedexes?"

I replied, "During my Pokemon adventures, I was given a Pokedex by a Pokemon Professor, who can often be found in his or her Pokemon Research Laboratory. Therefore, we should go to the Pokemon Research Lab!"

Leon said, "That's the kind of know-how that a Trainer needs! I'll let the professor know to expect you. You'd better let Victor's mum know that you're heading out to say bye, though."

"Right. Okay, everyone, let's go!" The others followed me as I left Hop's--

*CRASH*

I went on high alert. "Did everyone else hear that just now?"

Author's Note

I know what you're all thinking, but Dr. Eggman was the one who originally said "You're too slow!" Sonic just stole that line to use as his side taunt in Super Smash Bros Brawl.

Chapter 2: An Encounter of Legendary Proportions

We hurried towards where the crash came from, and the source of it was obvious. I turned to the others. "I never thought that such a woolly sheep Pokemon could break through a fence like this."

The Doctor looked at the gate in surprise. "I must admit, I'm quite impressed. Those sheep Pokemon seem to have incredibly soft bodies. Did that one really break though the wooden gate?"

Keldeo nodded. "I'm pretty sure it did. Pokemon have been underestimated so many times. I know that because Ash, Cilan, and Iris were pretty impressed when I broke through that iron gate."

I used my sharp eyesight to look further down the path now opened up. "That forest looks pretty dangerous and difficult to traverse. The poor thing could be in trouble."

Hop warned, "But the Slumbering Weald's off-limits! Nobody's supposed to go in there, not even heroic guys like you who want to rescue the Wooloo! I remember the professor's granddaughter went in once, and she came back in a real state... And that was nothing compared to the earful she got from the professor afterward!"

The Doctor replied, "But that is no excuse to allow an innocent Wooloo to get harmed! We've got to do something!"

I nodded. "We're heroes where we come from. This could be a very risky trek, but we still need to rescue that poor Wooloo!"

Roborygon said, "You're right. However, it would be wise for at least one person to stay behind and come rescue you if you need help."

"Good point." I thought about who should come with me. "...Okay. Doctor, Pummel, Roborygon, you're coming with me. Heart, Hop, we'll call you if we need help."

We entered the woods of the Slumbering Weald, which was as mysterious as the name implied. The path twisted and turned, and the dense fog did not help. The Doctor turned to me. "Where could this so-called Wooloo have gone? Do you have any ideas?"

I sighed. "It's quite stereotypical for something to wander all the way into a dark and dangerous place like this. We'll just have to take this path to the end, unless an emergency occurs."

Pummel added, "We'll have to find it fast, before the fog becomes too overwhelming for us."

"Okay. Let's go!" The Doctor proceeded to gallop along the path.

I exclaimed, "Careful! Tall grass tends to house--"

"Whoa!" The Doctor was jumped by a light gray squirrel with a dark gray tail and ears. Its cheeks were filled with something, most likely food for storage.

"--wild Pokemon... Send out your Grookey, and do battle with it!"

The squirrel yelled, "Hey! If you're after my food supply, then beat it!"

"I'm sorry?" the Doctor asked. "I don't speak squirrel."

The squirrel facepalmed. "I'm not a squirrel, dang it! You should know a Skwovet when you see one!"

"Oh, I see." I turned to the Doctor. "Apparently, that Skwovet thinks you're after its food supply, and it won't let you go without a fight."

"Understood. Go, Ukiki!" The Doctor sent out his Grookey. "Use Branch Poke!"

"All right!" Ukiki thrust his stick forward and poked Skwovet in the right cheek.

"Ptoo!" Skwovet spat out some nuts and Berry seeds due to the stick. "How dare you! I was saving those!" It then tried to tackle Ukiki, who took the blow head-on.

The Doctor looked at Skwovet in surprise. "I think that we should refrain from poking its cheeks. That seemed to make it even more irritable. Jump to the side and use Branch Poke!"

This time, Ukiki poked its stick into Skwovet's tail before throwing Skwovet onto its head using the stick as a handle. "Ow! Okay, okay, fine! I give up! Take whatever berries you want!"

I rubbed Skwovet's head. "It's okay, Skwovet. Relax, we're not here for any Berries."

It looked up at me in surprise. "Wait, what? Then why are you guys here?"

"We're here to rescue a Pokemon that wandered into the Slumbering Weald. You see a Wooloo roll by?"

Skwovet shook its head. "Nope, I was too busy gathering berries to notice if one came along. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some berries to gather!"

"Okay, good-bye!"

We left the patch of grass and moved on. After crossing the short bridge, we came across another patch of grass that was to be traversed in order to proceed. "You said that wild Pokemon live in tall grass," the Doctor said. "Any tips on how to check if a Pokemon is lurking in the grass?"

I turned to him. "Do ponies like you have a good sense of hearing?"

"Why, yes. The auditory senses of ponies are exceptional! I don't suppose that means we could hear the Pokemon moving through the grass?"

I nodded. "Indeed. I also have honed my senses, so I can tell that there's a Pokemon about ten feet away. Let us put my hypothesis to the test."

We took about five steps, and we were ambushed by another Pokemon. This one was a stout, blue bird with a black "mask" around its red eyes and gray beak, the black pattern continuing along the sides of the bird. It had a thick yellow stripe going from its belly to where its legs begin. "I'm Rookidee, and I'll be your opponent! I won't take no for an answer!"

The Doctor smiled. "Okay. Ukiki, use Branch--"

I stopped him, saying, "I'll take on Rookidee, Doctor. Your Grookey has a type disadvantage against such a Flying-type." I sent out Hotshot. "Hotshot, use Tackle!"

"Here I come!" Hotshot charged towards Rookidee.

"Nope!" Rookidee hopped to its left, dodging Hotshot's Tackle. "Time to see who's better at dodging--you, or me!" Flapping its small wings, Rookidee flew into the air and tried to use Peck on Hotshot.

"Use Ember!" Hotshot breathed an ember that struck Rookidee's beak directly.

Rookidee's beak was put ablaze. "Whew, a little too hot for my taste! Not that it matters, because I'm still gonna Peck you!" It flew towards Hotshot, but then it zipped right. "Psyche!" Having caught Hotshot off-guard, Rookidee pecked him on the back.

"Hey, that tickles!" Hotshot laughed.

The Doctor tilted his head. "Why would that tickle? It should hurt!"

I explained, "When a Pokemon is burned, it slowly takes damage, and its attacks do less damage. Additionally, Fire-type Pokemon have a resistance to fire and Fire-type moves. Hotshot, Tackle!"

"Let's try this again!" Hotshot used Tackle on Rookidee successfully, knocking it onto its rear.

"Thanks for the battle," Rookidee weakly said with a hint of happiness. "I won't let this defeat keep me from getting stronger!" It then walked away with a slight limp.

"All right. Let's keep going!" I said.

We left the tall grass and kept moving onward. After walking about ten meters, we saw another patch of tall grass ahead. We proceeded towards it when...

"ARRRRROOOOOOOHHHH!!!" A mighty howl pierced the silence.

"That sounded like a Pokemon!" Pummel exclaimed. "And from the sound of it, this one's really tough!" He stepped forward. "I think I'd better take the lead."

We walked a few more feet into the tall grass, and we were ambushed by a Skwovet. "You better not be after my food!"

The Doctor asked, "Didn't we just do battle with you?"

Skwovet raised an eyebrow. "What's that? I don't remember fighting the likes of you... Wait a minute, you must've been the one who bullied my little brother!"

I sighed. "That's the thing about Pokemon; individuals of a species tend to look the same, save for those with different forms or easily noticeable gender differences."

The Doctor smiled. "Oh, I see. I suppose we'll have to battle this one, too?"

Before I could answer, Hotshot punted the Skwovet away. "Team Helix, three! Team Wild, zero!"

We looked at Hotshot in surprise. After a long pause, I said, "...That's the strongest critical hit I've witnessed from a level 7 Pokemon."

We walked out of the tall grass and only got a few meters when...

"ARRRROOOOOOOOHH!!"

I turned to the others. "Stay on your guard. I feel that we're getting close."

We went from walking to running, and we ran a few hundred meters ahead, where the fog was even more dense. "Visibility levels are becoming slim," Roborygon said. "Engaging thermal vision."

"I can see now why this area is off-limits..." the Doctor said with a hint of fear. "I can't even see my own hoof in front of my face!"

We looked around in caution, wary of what could attack us. Even with my sharp eyesight, I had great trouble seeing. I closed my eyes, concentrating on using my other senses to find danger. Then... "Something's at twelve o'clock!" I exclaimed.

We looked straight forward, and two canine Pokemon stood before us. One was indigo; it had long orange-brown braids along each side of its body. The other was deep crimson, with a dark indigo tuft of head fur and tail. The tip of the indigo one's right ear and the tip of the crimson one's left ear were missing for some reason.

The Doctor began to send out Grookey, but I stopped him. "Wait. We don't know if it is hostile to us." I calmly looked at the two Pokemon. "Hello, resident of the Galar region. My name is Helix, and these are my friends, Doctor Hooves, Pummel Fist, and Roborygon. Have you seen a Wooloo come by?"

"..." The Pokemon did not respond. Then they roared, "Lrrroooaaarrrd!!!" "Grrrrrrriiieeeld!!!"

"I don't understand. As a Pokemon, I should be able to understand these fellow Pokemon." I took on a battle stance. "And it seems like they doesn't want to negotiate. They seem like very powerful Pokemon, so I will take them on myself!" I plucked an arrow quill and fired it at the indigo Pokemon using the tension created by my bow-like vine.

However, a familiar blue paw grabbed the quill before it hit its target. "Stop, Helix!" The blue vulpine to whom the paw belonged turned to us. "This strange creature... it has no aura! We stand before something that either is not alive or does not even exist!"

"There is but one way to determine these creatures' existence, Lucario. Activating Ghost-type schematics!" Roborygon changed color, so that he had a black body with purple highlights. His eyes were now white. "Initiating Shadow Ball module." He charged up a purple ball of energy and fired it at the red creature. But the blast of shadow energy went right through the beast, only causing it to ripple. The creature's gaze was fixed on us. "Unbelievable! Shadow Ball had no effect?!"

Lucario groaned, "It's just as I thought. These beings... must be an illusion. We should leave."

I nodded. "Agreed. Let's go!" We tried to flee, but we couldn't. "What's this? It's as if an invisible force is not allowing me to leave!"

"I have the same problem!" the Doctor replied.

"Me too!" Pummel said.

"What are these abominable monsters?!" Lucario exclaimed with a mixture of fear and rage.

"It appears there's only one way out of this. Time for Leaf Blade!" I flew towards the indigo creature and slashed at it with my arrow quill. Still, it had no effect. "This monster... we have no chance of victory!"

"Lrrroooaaarrrd!!!" "Grrrrrriiiieeeeeld!!!" The creatures howled, and more fog rolled in. It was becoming even harder to see.

"I'll contact the others! We need as much assistance as possible!" Roborygon buzzed and whirred, but he sighed. "I can't reach anyone. Something's tampering with my long-range communication features!"

"How can we even fight if we can't even...!" Then I had an idea. I reached into the TM/HM case in my coat--which was outfitted with a hammerspace dimension split into various sectors, each sector in a different pocket--and pulled out the fifth disc my feathered fingers felt. "Trainers have the Poke Dude Show, but I wonder what Pokemon have... Roborygon, time to load a Hidden Machine."

"Excellent! Preparing Teachy TV disc container." Roborygon stretched his beak and split it along the middle horizontally. I inserted the disc, and Roborygon closed his beak. From his antenna came video footage from 2006. I could tell it was from 2006 because of the fairly pixelated graphics, the dense fog, and the thin rope connecting two plateaus near the black and white bird in the center of the picture. I concentrated hard on the bird because I needed to learn the technique to be taught by the video.

"Hey there!" The bird said. "I'm today's host of the Pokepals Show, Starry the Staravia! How are all my feathered friends out there? Ready to learn a new move? I can't hear you! ...'Course, I wouldn't be able to anyway, because this isn't filmed in front of a live audience. Anyway, today I'm gonna teach you how to use Defog!" Starry motioned towards the background. "Having trouble seeing with fog like this? No problem! You got wings for a reason! Don't look at them just yet, because you've still got to watch mine! Stretch those bad boys out like this, then..." Starry thrust his wings towards the fog, flapping like his life depended on it. "...just BLOW that fog outta here!" He then waved to the camera. "Remember, all you wind masters out there: a smart move a day brings happiness to stay!"

"Episode H5 completed!" I retrieved HM5 and returned it to my TM case.

"Okay, time to put this to the test. Defog!" I stretched my wings out as instructed, then I aimed my gusts at the fog and blew as hard as I could. The fog dissipated, but only for a moment. I stepped back in fear. "Oh no, it came back!"

The Pokemon roared, and the fog grew even thicker. "I can't see a thing!" the Doctor exclaimed.

Lucario said, "There is still one thing left to do... absolutely nothing."

The Doctor was taken aback. "What?! How will that help?!"

"I'm glad you asked. Doing nothing is what made a friend of ours famous. He is a mighty ghost-hunting warrior who will not back down from rescuing his friends..."

Just then, the fog began to rush into a very narrow area, and we were soon able to see. "Come on, let's-a go!"

We ran towards the source of the voice, which was also where the fog was disappearing towards. By the time we could easily see, we saw a portly man in a green cap and long-sleeved shirt, as well as blue overalls. He was using a red vacuum to suck up the fog.

Lucario smiled. "...Luigi! I knew you would come to rescue us!"

Luigi smiled back. "Heart Fist called me to find you all, because she was getting nervous about how long you've been gone. You alright?"

The Doctor replied, "Yes, we are, thanks to you and Heart Fist!"

"Doctor! Helix!" Suddenly, Leon came rushing up to us. He seemed quite upset by our actions. "You had me worried sick! I'd been waiting ages for you and your pals Pummel and Roborygon, and you never showed! Why would you wander into the Slumbering Weald like that?! It's out of bounds!"

"Guys, I found the Wooloo!" Pummel came to us carrying a Wooloo. "Good thing it isn't injured. Although I wouldn't understand how it could get injured by physical attacks; the wool could probably make anything bounce off of it!"

"That makes sense. I admit, it took courage to come in here all the same. And I can understand well enough why you did it. You did good, all of you!"

Pummel continued, "But still, we'd better get out of here while we can, before those strange Pokemon come back and the place gets foggy again! We almost fainted because of that!"

Leon looked at Pummel with curiosity. "Strange Pokemon? What are you talking about, Pummel?"

"You'd never believe me. They were canine Pokemon of some sort, and one looked indigo in color while the other was red. When they howled, more fog came in. And when we tried to attack them, our moves went right through them, literally! It's like the Pokemon were made of air, and all that it did when it was attacked was make ripples throughout its body!"

Leon crossed his arms in thought. "Your moves passed right through them? So, the fearsome Pokemon they say live in the Slumbering Weald... Are they actually illusions or something?"

I shook my head. "Can illusions prohibit one's attempts at escape?"

"Good point. Get strong enough and maybe you could be the ones to reveal the truth someday. For now, let's do as Pummel suggested and get out of this place. You'll be all right now that I'm here with you!"

Still carrying the Wooloo, Pummel said, "Sure, we got lectured by the Champion, but this was an amazing experience! This makes a great start to our adventure!"

And so, we left the woods to return to Postwick.

We met up with the rest of the group, and Lucario said, "Our apologies for making you wait. Two unique Pokemon stood in our path, and it's a good thing that you called Luigi to rescue us. Go on ahead, everyone. I'll tell Victor's mum that you're all off to Wedgehurst before I catch up. She would go crazy if nobody told her what happened."

I asked, "Before we go on, I must know something: Why isn't Kirby with you?"

He explained, "The poor pink puffball's still trying to hunt down Faust. He's still sore that he won't be able to see the ponies he knows and loves anymore. The only reason I left him is to spare the writer. She never did anything wrong, and I'm hoping that one of two things happens: either Kirby's anger dies out before reaching her, or he comes to like the new generation and thanks her."

"That's a good idea, Lucario. Okay, we'll see you later!"

We continued to Route 1, where we saw patches of grass on the east path. At this point, Pummel and Heart had already gone ahead and began without me and the Doctor. "Which path should we take?" the Doctor asked me.

I replied, "I believe it's always better to take the path that will give our Pokemon a chance to get stronger. Besides, the path straight north is blocked." Four sleeping Wooloo were laying in a horizontal line across the path. "I respect the privacy of sleeping creatures, so I'd rather not wake them up anyway. Let's take on whatever wild Pokemon jump out at us in the tall grass!"

"Okay. Then onward into the tall grass!"

So we proceeded along the east path, taking on a few Skwovet and Rookidee in the process. As I finished battling my second Skwovet, though...

"I beg your pardon, sir, but might I have a moment of your time?" I used my sharp eyesight once more, and I saw a fairly small larva Pokemon in the grass. It had an indigo neck, top half of its large head, and bottom half of its abdomen. The center of its abdomen was yellow, and it appeared to have a yellow bow tie.

I bent down to the larva. "Of course. My name is Helix. How can I help you?"

The larva said in its helium-like voice, "Thank you very much for offering your aid, Helix. My name is Blipbug, and I am collecting information on various species of Pokemon. However, I am finding trouble with getting close enough to study them, for my species appears to be rich in nutrients."

"If it's knowledge you want..." I pointed to myself. "...then you have asked the right Trainer. I am also on a hunt for as much knowledge as I can obtain. Speaking of which, I would like to know why you asked an owl Pokemon for assistance. Are not owls predators to insects?"

Blipbug nodded. "True, but your scientific attire alluded to the fact that you were filled to the brim with useful information. In my experience, beings that thrive on knowledge tend to be less hostile towards other insightful beings."

"I am glad to know that you are trusting of me. If you don't mind, I have a request for you..." I reached into my right exterior coat pocket. "...Oh, of all the times I could have emptied my Poke Ball Pocket! I hadn't expected to go on a Pokemon adventure."

"Helix! Doctor Hooves!" Lucario came back with something in each of his paws. "Victor's mum said for you to have these. You'll need them for the Gym Challenge." He gave each of us five Poke Balls. "You can't catch 'em all, as they say, without Poke Balls."

The Doctor asked, "Thank you, but how do I use a Poke Ball to catch a Pokemon?"

Lucario facepawed. "It's as simple as throwing it so that it makes contact with the Pokemon you wish to catch. You should have no problems catching that Grubbin."

"Very well, then. Go, Poke Ball!" The Doctor tossed the Poke Ball at the gray larva with the orange head and pincers. It hit the larva's head and opened up, causing the larva to be turned into blue energy that rushed into the ball. It rocked once, twice, three times... click! "Helix, is that a good sign?"

I grinned as I looked at the Blipbug that was now securely in my own Poke Ball. "Yes. When the Poke Ball clicks shut, you know you've caught the Pokemon."

"And another thing..." Lucario handed each of us ~~P~~30,000 worth of Pokemon Dollars. "This is the currency of the Pokemon world, Doctor. It's known as the Pokemon Dollar, or Poke Dollar, if you prefer. And before you express your surprise at how much I gave you, you should know that most items have prices that are multiples of 100 or 1000."

"I appreciate the information, Lucario. Now, let us proceed!"

Before leaving the tall grass, I found another Rookidee, this one not even trying to hide in the tall grass. After battling it, I added the battle-hungry Flying-type to my team. Just three more Pokemon, and I'd have a full team...

"Helix, can you tell me what this is?" The Doctor showed me a purple spray bottle.

I replied, "That's a Potion. You can use Potions to restore Pokemon's health. Different kinds of Potions restore different amounts of health. As the most basic of them, this Potion restores a small amount of health. Where did you find it, anyway?"

The Doctor pointed between the patch of grass that we were in and the next patch. "I found it over there, inside of that curiously large Poke Ball."

I walked over to the large Poke Ball. "Personally, I prefer to call them containers, so as to avoid confusing them with actual Poke Balls."

"I have to agree with your logic. And would it be safe to--hey, come back here!" While the Doctor was talking, a red and brown fox with black paws, a large tail, and black ears stole his Potion and began to make off with it.

The fox snickered. "If you want it, you're gonna have to catch me first!"

I prepared to fire a Spirit Shackle, but I discovered that the sun had reached its peak, so that the fox's shadow was directly below itself. "Darn, I can't strike its shadow at that angle."

Luigi motioned to the Doctor. "Give me a boost!"

"Okay, Luigi!" The Doctor bent down to give the green Mario brother a footstool to jump on to.

"Oh, yeah! Let's-a go!" Luigi cupped his hands together, and blue electricity formed between them. He then used the Doctor's back as a footstool to jump even higher. Once he reached the peak of his jump, Luigi launched the orb down at the fox, and the orb exploded in a burst of lightning. "You can't run from the Thunder Bro!"

The fox let go of the Potion with a groan. "Well, looks like this Nickit couldn't knick it..."

"This one's mine!" The Doctor tossed a Poke Ball that consumed the Nickit. It rocked one, twice, thrice... click! "Just a few minutes into our adventure, and I've already caught two Pokemon!"

I said, "Nice job, Doctor. And yes, it would be safe to expect more of those containers throughout our adventure. I've found them in all the other seven regions I've been to."

After defeating a Grubbin and catching a Wooloo, I came across another container next to the wall in a bare patch. This one held two yellow bottles with a spray cap. I gave them to the Doctor. "Here, these are Paralyze Heals. They help Pokemon recover from paralysis caused by electric attacks or contact with a Pokemon that has the Static Ability."

"Ability?"

I explained, "Every Pokemon has their own Ability. Different Pokemon have different Abilities, but some Pokemon can have the same Ability, much like some Pokemon can learn the same moves. However, Pokemon can only have one Ability. This ability affects the way they battle. For instance, the Overgrow Ability boosts the power of a Pokemon's Grass-type moves when it is low on health, and a Pokemon with the Static Ability inflicts paralysis on those who make direct contact with it."

The Doctor laughed. "What would I ever do without you?"

I smiled. "If you ever need information and I'm not around, ask your Rotom Phone. It's a vital source of knowledge. And yes, I knew that was a rhetorical question."

After catching a Skwovet, I followed the Doctor out of the grass and returned to the main path. We crossed the stone bridge and made our way to Wedgehurst. Several people were outside, and we supposed they were fans; they were saying things like "The Champion's here!" and "It's the ultimate Charizard!" We followed their gaze to a large building with a purple roof and a Poke Ball symbol on the front.

We ran to the building, and Leon was standing in front of it. "Well done! You two reached the goal and managed to find the Pokemon Research Lab! You did a far sight better than I did my first time. I'm hopeless with directions."

The Doctor laughed. "It's a good thing you have that Charizard to help you. Truth is, I'm feeling a lot more confident now that I've got Pokemon with me. My world has grown so much!"

"Glad to see that, Doctor! Now, in we go!"

The interior of the Pokemon Research Laboratory was incredibly vast. The far walls were lined with bookshelves that even required stairs to reach all the books. In the far left corner, there was a window that stretched from floor to ceiling, behind which we could see various kinds of plant life.

Pummel looked around in awe. "So this is the Pokemon Research Laboratory... The Professor must have a great taste for interior design!"

"That's something the both of us can agree on," Leon replied. "Everything in here looks fascinating..."

"Hi there!" a high-pitched voice yapped. We looked down and saw a stout little puppy with a short lightning bolt-shaped tail, a thick yellow band around its neck (probably an electric sac), very short legs, and light green irises with a diamond-shaped reflection. It ran to Leon. "Glad to see ya, Leon!"

"What is it today, Leon?" Up on the second floor stood a young woman with a brown leather coat, a green undershirt, orange sunglasses on her head, and orange hair with a ponytail on the right. "Looking for info on another never-before-seen, superstrong Pokemon? I wish you'd stop it with these outlandish requests."

As she walked down the stairs to talk to us, Leon looked at the puppy. "Good to see you, too, Yamper!" He turned to us. "Yamper here is a real champ when it comes to helping you find your way around. He came to my rescue plenty of times back in the day, when I got lost on the road. Oh yeah, and that's his Trainer, Sonia. What can I say about Sonia? Well, I like the way she cooks. She makes food you can gobble down in a flash."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really? That's it?"

"Seriously! You should try her food. She's the best at cooking!"

Sonia scoffed, "Tsk. What kind of an introduction is that? Did you forget we were rivals during our Gym Challenge? It wasn't just Yamper helping you out. I did, too." She looked at us and smiled. "Anyway, nice to meet you all! Name's Sonia. I'm the professor's assistant."

The Doctor looked at her in confusion. "The professor's assistant? Well then, where's the professor? I was told that Pokemon Professors tend to stay in their laboratory."

"Professor Magnolia? She's up in the purple house on Route 2. You can't miss it."

"Oh, thanks for telling us."

I said, "My apologies if my colleague Doctor Hooves appeared to be somewhat rude when he asked of the professor's whereabouts. My name is Helix, and these are Pummel, Roborygon, Lucario, and Heart Fist. The art of Pokemon training is very new to the Doctor. We all wish to take on the Gym Challenge, but the Doctor and I are in great need of taking it on; we need as much help as we can to conquer a villain that will soon rampage around the Doctor's home planet. Could you set us on the right path, particularly the Doctor?"

As if that was a prompt for him, Leon followed Yamper away from our conversation. Sonia sighed. "What does he think I am? He's always got his head in the clouds. It's no wonder he gets lost all the time." She noticed Heart Fist taking a picture of the lab with her phone. "Oh. Looks like you've got a Rotom Phone."

I took out mine. "We all do." The Doctor took out his, and Pummel took out his. "Except for Roborygon, of course. As a multipurpose robot based off of Porygon-Z, he has no need for a Rotom Phone." I held my phone up, and it began to float. "Say hi, Rotom."

My Rotom Phone obliged. "Greetings, Sonia!"

Sonia said, "Those Rotom Phones are handy little things, aren't they? They've got a map and a navigation tool. That said, Leon still gets lost, so..." As Rotom returned to my pocket, Sonia snapped back to the matter at hand. "Oh, sorry. So tell me, do you know a lot about Pokemon?"

Pummel and I smiled. "You bet!" we both said.

Sonia smiled. "Well said! In that case, I'll make it so that you can use the Pokedex on your Rotom Phones!"

We all offered our phones, including the Doctor. "I would like you to allow me to use the Pokedex on my own Rotom Phone, too, if you don't mind. I'm only a novice when it comes to Pokemon, after all."

His Rotom Phone replied, "Actually, since Victor took on the Gym Challenge, he already got me equipped with the Pokedex function."

"Oh, right. Didn't think about that."

"No worries, Doctor." Sonia took our phones and tinkered with them. "Let's see... Poke App Store... Pokedex application, and... installed!" She returned our Rotom Phones. "Just so you know, those Pokedex applications are a gift from my gran! Could you let Gran know that you received the Pokedexes? She's the professor."

"Okay." We proceeded to leave the lab, Roborygon staying behind to check it out and read the books to learn more about Galar.

When we exited the house, a man in a gray shirt stopped us. "Hey there, Trainers! Sorry to stop you. You just left the Pokemon Lab, right? So that means you've all got a Pokedex, yeah? I love talking to new Trainers and giving them useful stuff." He gave each of us a Potion. "You know what a Potion does?"

The Doctor nodded. "Helix told me that it restores the health or stamina of a Pokemon."

"Yep! You can even use Potions during battle." The man smiled. "Knowledge is power! It's a good idea to talk to lots of different people and read everything you can on your journey!" Then he walked away and did his own thing.

"He sounded like he knew his stuff. I'm going to follow his example." The Doctor proceeded to enter the first house he came to.

I sighed. "There's an easier way to do this. Rotom, call Roborygon and put him on video chat."

"Okay." My Rotom Phone rang a few times, then Roborygon appeared on the screen.

"Hello, Helix! Did you know that Yamask here in Galar evolve into a different species than the one you're familiar with? The books here say that is possible."

"I didn't know that. Thanks. But the reason why I called is because I want to complete this adventure to one hundred percent without having to peek into every household. Can you transmit a map of the places in Galar that have something to offer, such as an item or a Pokemon, or even a battle?"

"Of course. I am preparing it right now." After about fifteen seconds, he said, "Transmission completed. Enjoy your 100% completion adventure!"

After hanging up, I went north past the train station, and Hop was at a fork in the road; the left path went towards a flower shop, and the right path led to a building with a red motif and a Poke Ball symbol above the door. "Hello, Hop. The Doctor and I got our Rotom Phones upgraded with the Pokedex application. Now we can record information on all sorts of Pokemon!"

Hop smiled. "Then it's time to meet lots of different Pokemon and start building up a strong team! But battling strong Pokemon in the wild can leave your team in a bad way, not to mention what battling another Trainer can do, but you already know that stuff as a professional Trainer, right?"

"Right. And that's why we've got Pokemon Centers!"

Doctor Hooves exited the Wedgehurst train station and met up with us. "Helix, have you found out anything good?"

I nodded. "You're right on time, because Hop is going to teach us about Pokemon Centers."

"Right you are, Helix!" Hop turned towards the red building. "Lucky for us, they're dead easy to spot. They look the same wherever you go. Come on, Doctor, bet you've never been inside one!"

The interior of the Pokemon Center was split into three different counters. Straight ahead of us was the most iconic part of a Pokemon Center: the pink-haired Nurse Joy standing in front of a machine with slots for six Poke Balls. Behind that was a large blue screen. To the left was some sort of a cafe. At the counter was a man wearing a plaid shirt and a yellow bow tie. His Pokemon partner was some kind of furry, dark indigo, bipedal... maid? To the right of the center counter was a man in a blue vest, behind whom were shelves of useful items. Between the cafe and the recovery counter was a white and pink computer embedded into the wall. On top of that computer was a spherical white object with a black center of its Rotom-like face and two appendages similar to gloves, with pink ends.

I turned to the Doctor. "This must be your first time in a Pokemon Center, correct?"

He replied, "Well, this is my first time in the Pokemon world overall, so..."

"Then the future Champion's got you covered!" Future Champion, huh? I wouldn't be so sure of that. Regardless, Hop pointed towards Nurse Joy. "First things first--you talk to Nurse Joy at that counter if you want your Pokemon healed up." He walked to the computer. "And Pokemon you catch are kept in computers like this one, see? After all, you can only bring six Pokemon with you on the road in your party." Finally, he showed us the right counter. "The Poke Mart sells all kinds of useful items, like Potions and Poke Balls. Their Potions got me out of a real rough spot the other day!"

A teenager next to the counter of the cafe turned to us. "If you all are Pokemon Trainers, you might want to buy some Potions before you head out!"

"Thanks," I said, "but I'm good. I brought some healing items with me."

Hop said to us, "I'm heading to Route 2! Come find me when you're done here!" Then he ran out the door.

I followed him, but not before healing my Pokemon and purchasing ten Poke Balls, and getting a free Premier Ball as a bonus for buying ten Poke Balls in one purchase.

Before I proceeded to Route 2, I went to the boutique and found a container holding a Clefairy doll to the west of it; a Poke Doll, as they're called. Then I went north and found Hop along the path. He said, "Listen, you said you wanted to take on the Gym Challenge, right?"

"Right. Can you tell me more about it?" I called the Doctor with my Rotom Phone. "Doctor, you'll want to hear this."

Hop said, "The Gym Challenge, mate! The annual competition where Trainers can battle it out for the right to challenge the Champion! But the trick is that you've got to be endorsed if you want to take part. Lee endorsed me about a year back, and I tried to take on the Gym Challenge, but Victor beat me and challenged the champ himself. You heard that Victor lost?"

I replied, "Yeah, but he's planning to join the Gym Challenge again this year. He said he's got a trick up his sleeve."

The Doctor asked, "So, an endorsement? How can we be endorsed, and who has the authority to do so?"

Hop answered, "I'm thinking the professor could help get you an endorsement! Hey, you could be rivals with Heart and Pummel! A proper rival is just the thing every Trainer needs to keep growing stronger, after all. Keeps you motivated, right?"

"Oh, I know all about having rivals!" Pummel came racing towards us alongside Keldeo, Heart, and Roborygon. "I've had rivalries with people such as May, Silver, Barry, Hugh, and especially Helix and my mom!"

"Glad to see you're pumped up about having a rival! The professor's house is way down at the end of Route 2, so let's head there... and give our teams a chance to train up a bit along the way!" With that, Hop ran off to Route 2.

I soon followed him, but something caught my eye as I got to the stairs. "Hmm, what's this?" I walked towards the rock to the left of the stairs, and I saw something glittering. I bent over and picked it up, then I could tell that it was a yellow octahedron with pointed ends, like two rectangular pyramids attached by their base. I tossed it towards Heart, who caught it. "Take that Revive and give it to the Doctor when he catches up to you. Be sure to explain that it restores half the health of a fainted Pokemon."

"Sure thing," Heart replied.

I proceeded down the stairs, crossing a bridge soon after. I saw a sign with the number 02 on it, signifying that I had entered Route 2. When I passed the sign, I found Hop up ahead next to a patch of tall grass. He waved to us. "Over here, guys! It's time we filled in our teams a bit--"

Just then, Leon came rushing to the group, startling Hop. "And I'm here to show you how! You'll need to catch Pokemon if you've got any hope of filling in those Pokedexes of yours."

"Lee?! Where'd you come from?"

Paying no attention to Hop's question, Leon looked at the Poke Balls on the Doctor's outside pockets of his backpack. "Only... look at you, Doctor! You've already caught some on your own!"

"Thanks, but I got a little help..." the Doctor sheepishly replied while looking towards Lucario.

Lucario shook his head. "Don't be modest, my timely colleague. You caught two without my advice on throwing Poke Balls. All I did was teach you how to throw one and give you and Helix five each, the Poke Balls gifts from Victor's mum."

Leon said, "His mum gave you those Poke Balls, did she? I'll give you some more Poke Balls. In return, I'll only ask that you catch plenty of Pokemon! The Pokemon around here seem pretty easy to catch, almost like they're itching to join some Trainer's team, am I right?"

I nodded. "Yeah. In fact, the first Pokemon I caught here was a Blipbug, and it wanted to join my team in order to obtain knowledge on various Pokemon itself!"

"Nice! So, here you go!" Leon handed each of us... twenty Poke Balls? He must make a lot of cash as Champion. "The Pokemon on your team will get experience points when you catch Pokemon, too. And of course, they get experience from battling, so take on the other Trainers you meet along the way to help your Pokemon get stronger. Your team will keep on changing and growing as you get stronger together, no doubt. But that's something even I don't know exactly how yet! Show your Champion something good, all right?"

We nodded. "Got it." Leon and Hop ran ahead along the route, leaving us to do our own thing.

The Doctor beamed. "With all these Poke Balls, I'll catch as many different species of Pokemon as I can! I'm sure even the professor will be impressed!"

We continued onward, taking on a few Skwovet in the first patch of grass. A Nickit I fought seemed to be giving off a yellow aura, and I felt as if I had done something brilliant when I caught it. In the next patch, I accidentally defeated a Caterpie, which disappointed me. Suddenly...

"BANZAI!!!" A racoon Pokemon with black and white stripes and a black band across its eyes ambushed the Doctor. "C'mon, put 'em up!"

"Yikes!" The Doctor jumped back in shock. "This little Pokemon is pretty feisty! What should I do?"

I chuckled. "Relax, Doctor. It's just a little Zigzagoon. These little rascals are no problem." I bent down to the surprisingly hyper Zigzagoon. "Look, this one can't even touch a Ghost-type like me. All a low-level Zigzagoon like this could do is use Normal-type attacks and Sand Attack--" I was interrupted when it suddenly opened its mouth and let its long tongue graze my left cheek. "...Galarian Zigzagoon can use Lick, a Ghost-type move?!"

My Rotom Phone got right to work. "Zigzagoon, Galar form, the Tiny Racoon Pokemon. A Dark- and Normal-type, it restlessly runs around, running into any Pokemon it sees in an attempt to start a fight."

I gasped, "A Dark-type?! I hate to do this, but..." I sent out Blipbug. "...it's your turn. You have any good Bug-type moves?"

He sighed. "I have but one move: Struggle Bug. I do hope it will suffice for my first battle."

"It should. Struggle Bug!" Blipbug became surrounded in a dark blue aura.

"I'm gonna tackle you to the curb!" Zigzagoon charged towards Blipbug.

"Now!" The aura then burst outwards, shoving Zigzagoon several meters away.

Blipbug watched his successful attack in awe. "That was incredible! Perhaps my Struggle Bug attack landed a critical hit?"

I smiled. "I believe so. Now, go, Poke Ball!" I threw the Poke Ball at the stunned Zigzagoon, and after rocking three times, it clicked shut. "Now I've got a Galar form Pokemon!" The Poke Ball shrank back to golf ball size.

"What happened to your Poke Ball?" the Doctor asked.

I explained, "As was said earlier, Trainers can only have up to six Pokemon on their team. All other caught Pokemon will be rendered useless and must be sent to a PC like the computer in the Pokemon Center."

Just then, a strange ring-shaped portal opened up. A disembodied, purple, mitten-like hand reached out from the other side. It floated with its palm upwards, as if waiting to be given something.

The Doctor watched the hand in sheer horror. "Helix... what is THAT?!"

I looked at the hand calmly. "Trust me, this is actually a friend of mine. He must want to help me by taking one of the Pokemon I have to the PC. I'll narrow my choice down to types. I have two Normal-types now, so I'll part with one of them. Between Wooloo and Skwovet, I'll give him..." I handed the hand a Poke Ball. "...Skwovet." The hand disappeared inside the portal, which also disappeared.

"Are you sure this creature is trustworthy?"

"Definitely!" Keldeo replied. "He's helped us out in a bunch of tough situations! However, he can be a little mischievous at times..."

I sighed as I thought back to his antics. "And sometimes his mischief gets a little out of hand. Remember when he thought it was a good idea to prank the Heat Master?"

Pummel laughed. "Oh man, he really had it coming! Not that I don't think that the most fiery Charizard ever was asking for it. Now, if he was Dynamaxed, then the little troublemaker would be nothing but ashes."

The Doctor asked, "How exactly was the prank pulled on the Charizard? I don't understand the true reasoning behind your laughter besides the fact that it was a prank."

I opened my right wing with a smirk. "It would have been more in the prankster's favor if Charizard's nostrils didn't have such an... infernal reaction to the feather used to tickle him."

"I admit, that is quite a humorous--and foolish--prank to pull. But what is the name of the pranking creature?"

I chuckled. "You'll find out eventually. He always refers to himself in the third person, so you'll know his name if he pranks you, which will inevitably happen. For now, let us proceed."

I left the tall grass, leaving the Doctor to catch a Rookidee, and further ahead, I saw a young boy dressed in a red shirt and black shorts. Our eyes met. He said, "It's common manners for Pokemon Trainers to battle when their eyes meet. I'm Jake, and I hope you're ready to take on Skwovet!" Jake sent out his Skwovet.

"Go, Hotshot! Use Ember!" Hotshot fired a burst of flame at Skwovet.

"Use Tail Whip!" Skwovet used its large tail to block the Ember. "Bet you didn't know he could do that!"

I nodded. "That's a clever use of such an attack. But I've got even more clever maneuvers. Use Quick Attack!"

"It's go fast or go home for me!" Hotshot became outlined in white as he rapidly sped around Skwovet, confounding it. "Say when, Helix!"

I patiently anticipated the right time. "Wait for it, wait for it... Now!"

"Yeah!" Hotshot suddenly rammed into Skwovet.

"Again!"

Hotshot used Quick Attack again, bringing Skwovet close to defeat. "No, Skwovet!"

I grinned. "Ember!" Hotshot fired another Ember, this one hitting its target and defeating Skwovet.

Jake groaned in exasperation. "Whenever there's a strong Trainer, I always look right at them... Since you won, I guess I've got to give you this." He gave me ~~P~~360.

The Doctor looked at me in confusion. "Why did he give you his money?"

I explained, "It's traditional for Trainers like us. Whenever a Trainer loses to another Trainer, he or she gives the winner some prize money. But since you're a novice Trainer, I won't force you to give me your money if we fight and you lose. Besides, I don't need more money since I brought some along to Equestria in case they would trade my cash for bits that can be used to purchase the local amenities. You can take the Poke Dollars that I won."

He smiled. "Thanks, Helix!"

"No problem."

In the next patch, I defeated the third Blipbug I had encountered so far on my adventure. On the left side of the path onward was a red sign. I chose to read it. "Trainer Tips," it began.

I motioned to the Doctor. "See this sign, Doctor? It's a Trainer Tips sign. They always offer useful information, so you might want to read it."

As the Doctor read the sign, I passed the container for him to purge before I jumped down the ledge to the other side of the path. Seeing the grass that I passed rustle, I ran back and caught a Seedot--an acorn-like Pokemon--and a Purrloin, a deceiving purple cat Pokemon. I sent Nickit and Purrloin to the PC. I then proceeded back up the path and noticed that the Doctor had jumped the ledge and gotten ahead of me. He was searching the next patch of grass, on the right side of the fork in the road.

"I wonder what could--Ow!" the Doctor screamed. He turned around and saw that a small blue turtle Pokemon with an orange horn and cheeks had clamped down on his tail. "Now that's just rude! Show him some manners, Ukiki!" His Grookey poked the Pokemon a couple of times before the Doctor caught it. "Rotom, time to see what I caught!"

"Okay!" The Doctor's Rotom Phone brought up the Pokemon. "Chewtle, the Snapping Pokemon. A Water-type, Chewtle feels the urge to chomp on anything in front of it because of its need to teethe."

"I see. Well, that makes seven Pokemon, since I also caught a Skwovet and a Lotad. I'd better send Lotad to the PC, since I already have a Grass-type."

The Doctor took the right path, which ended in a container and a ledge which led further along the left path, which I took. I walked through the next patch of grass behind a Lass, whom I allowed the Doctor to battle. While in the grass, I defeated a Hoothoot, knowing that more of those owl Pokemon would appear at night, and I heard the Doctor's joyful shout of victory.

Further along the path, I let the Doctor take on the third and last Trainer before the professor's house, a Youngster like Jake. At this point, he was skillfully using type advantages, taking down the Blipbug with Rookidee's Peck and defeating Nickit with Grubbin's Bug Bite.

"Lose to wild Pokemon... Lose to many Trainers..." the Youngster sighed before giving up his prize money.

After crossing the bridge, there was a patch of grass to our right and a court to our left. But further to our left... "Look!" I pointed past the court, towards a shadow in the lake. "Whenever you see a shadow like that in water, then you can fish for a Pokemon there! Doctor, does your backpack have a Fishing Rod in it?"

"Let me see." The Doctor took off the backpack and opened it up. He soon took out a fishing pole. "Nice to see that Victor was prepared to fish! Any tips, Helix?"

"Yes. When you feel the rod shake, that's your cue to reel in the catch. Some Pokemon can only be caught while fishing, just as some can only be caught by encounters in tall grass or in caves." I demonstrated by casting my line into another shadow nearby. After about twenty seconds, I felt the rod shake. I reeled in a Pokemon, and I smiled when I saw that I reeled in a Magikarp. For me, it's the greatest Pokemon I could catch by means of fishing. I caught it without hesitation, sending Wooloo to the PC.

"Okay. Let's see how my first attempt at fishing fares for me." He cast his line with exceptional skill, and the lure landed right in the middle of the shadow. After about fifteen seconds, the water showed signs of agitation, and the lure fell below the surface. "Whoa!" The Doctor had some trouble hanging onto the rod, but he succeeded in pulling the Pokemon out and onto the surface of the water. Unfortunately, the Pokemon cloaked itself in water and slammed into him. "Ow!"

It tried to get away, but I used Spirit Shackle and pinned its shadow down while it was in the air. As it was suspended, we discovered that it was a new Pokemon: a long, thin fish with a predominantly brown body, a pointed jaw, and an egg-white chin. My Rotom Phone immediately got to work. "Arrokuda, the Rush Pokemon. A Water-type, Arrokuda will charge at anything that moves, leading with its sharply pointed jaw. It's very proud of its jaw."

The Doctor shook his head. "That can't be right. My Rotom Phone's Pokedex has a different entry."

His own Rotom Phone said, "After eating its fill, Arrokuda become very sluggish in terms of movement. That is when its main predator, Cramorant, swallows it up." It then switched to a blue stork Pokemon. "Cramorant, the Gulp Pokemon. A Water- and Flying-type, it swallows Arrokuda whole. Occasionally, it makes a mistake and tries to swallow a Pokemon that isn't its preferred prey."

My Rotom Phone offered different information: "Cramorant is so strong that it can knock out opponent Pokemon in a single hit, but it sometimes forgets what it's battling in the middle of a fight."

"They're both right, actually," Roborygon said. "Maybe they have differing information because you are going on different versions of the sword and shield adventure?"

"Different versions?" the Doctor asked.

"Sword and shield?" I asked. "...Oh, I see!" I turned to the Doctor. "Have you seen any Seedot?"

He shook his head. "Never even heard of one. Any luck, Pummel?"

"No, just Lotad. How about you, Heart?"

"Yeah, I've found a Seedot. No Lotad, though."

I brought my wing down in revelation. "Then it's true. We're taking on opposing versions of this adventure!"

"Right..." the Doctor said with uncertainty. "Anyway, I'll take on Arrokuda!" He used Ukiki to weaken Arrokuda, which was easier because its shadow was pinned down, and he caught the Arrokuda. Rather than add it to his party, he sent it to the PC.

We then went to the grass patch, where we each caught a Yamper. The Doctor sent Skwovet to the PC, while I sent Zigzagoon. After adding the electric puppy to our party, we continued to the purple house, where Pummel and Heart were waiting for us in front of Leon, Lucario, and an elderly woman with a cane and a lab coat.

Pummel waved to me. "I think that might be the professor, considering her conversation with Lucario."

Lucario was currently talking to the woman, probably asking what Leon was going to ask her. "So, how goes your research? Are you doing well in your attempts to unravel the mysteries of the phenomenon known as Dynamax?"

She answered, "Yes, but I am still far from uncovering them all. The whole thing is still full of questions. I'd hoped that my granddaughter would take over my research, but..." She turned to us. "Dear me, I'm sorry. I didn't even notice my guests!" She walked to us while adjusting her glasses. "My name is Magnolia. Welcome, new Trainers of Galar! Now come, let's head indoors."

Magnolia looked at Lucario with a smile. "Why, Lucario dear, I see you've made some new friends."

The Doctor and I exclaimed, "You know Magnolia?"

Lucario nodded. "We go back a long ways, back when I was a little Riolu. Truthfully, this region... was my original home. I lived in the Wild Area with my parents and my brother. Mom and Dad taught us all we needed to know about the Darkest Day, Aura, Pokemon Dens, and how to defend ourselves from Pokemon that have a type advantage over us, such as Heatmor, Sandaconda, and Claydol. We felt at ease with our parents around, but they eventually had an encounter with a Golurk who had been confused by Sigilyph. Its confusion led it to attack us. Fearing for our life, my dad sent a troop of Falinks to lead me and my brother to safety. The Falinks brought me to the Pokemon Professor, Magnolia. However, my brother wasn't quite as lucky as I was; as the Falinks led us, my brother failed to notice the Roggenrola in his path and tripped over it. He tried to keep up with us, but the angry Roggenrola dragged him into a battle. If it hadn't been for the one-track mind of the Falinks, I would have immediately turned around to rescue my brother."

Magnolia sighed. "I saw that the Falinks were somewhat agitated. They must have realized one of the Pokemon they were leading had gotten lost. Little Riolu here, however, had learned well from his parents, for he used his Aura to locate his brother. I know this because I could see the big smile on his face. I bid him farewell as he went back to look for his brother. Such a hopeful little Pokemon, he was."

Lucario smiled. "My determination was definitely worth it. I searched far and wide for my brother, going so far as to head east out of the Galar region to find him. I encountered the ocean, but purely out of my brotherly bond, I gathered up the Aura to evolve into Lucario and find a way to cross. I searched for some kind of ride, and then I looked back to the Galar region. I saw a Snorlax sleeping by the water. Of course! Snorlax could probably be used as a raft to help me cross. I went around and asked some of my Machop friends to help push Snorlax to the edge, and then I climbed on top of it. After it was pushed out onto the water, I concentrated my Aura into a bone, and I used Bone Rush to propel myself across the water.

"At last, I found the Kalos region, which was famous, I had heard, for its Prism Tower in Lumiose City. I went there and asked for help finding my brother, and finally a young woman named Alexa guided me to Shallour City. I first went to the Gym, and its sign mentioned Fighting-types. Riolu and its evolution are Fighting-types, so I went in and asked Clyde at the front. He mentioned someone named Korrina, so I used my Aura to find her in a place called the Tower of Mastery. Luckily, she had adopted my brother, who had also evolved. After pouring out my heart to my brother, he did the same. He explained that the Roggenrola used Explosion and launched him to the Kalos region. I know Explosion is powerful, but I didn't know it was that powerful. Also, it turned out that he was quite happy with Korrina as his Trainer. Therefore, I joined Korrina to be with my brother, and Pummel knows the rest of the story."

I introduced each of us. "Magnolia, I am Helix, and these are my friends Doctor Hooves, Pummel Fist, Heart Fist, and Roborygon. We obtained the Pokedex from Sonia, and we'll be sure to complete it!"

Magnolia replied, "That's good to hear from you."

Leon asked, "Now then, you all know about Dynamaxing?"

Pummel raised his hand. "I do! I watched your latest match on my Rotom Phone, so I know that Dynamaxing makes your Pokemon huge and awesome-looking!"

I shrugged. "I only just heard about it, but Pummel showed me and the Doctor some of the match."

Leon laughed. "Right, right. So, Professor Magnolia's been doing research into the Dynamax phenomenon for years and years. And it takes a proper understanding of the thing if you plan to use Dynamaxing to the fullest!"

Magnolia shook her head. "There you go again, Leon, always talking about Pokemon. There are other things that are worth knowing about, too, you know. Like how many different types of tea there are!"

I nodded. "True, it is important to tell the difference between green tea and mint tea. But I have a very important request: We believe it would help us to rescue the Doctor's home land of Equestria if we took part in the Gym Challenge. However, we need an endorsement for that, and I think the Champion would be the perfect person to endorse us."

Magnolia turned to Leon. "Oh, why wouldn't you endorse them?"

He explained, "The Doctor only just started out as a Pokemon Trainer... There's still loads he doesn't know yet!"

"Dearie, I thought your dream was to have everyone in the Galar region become strong Trainers. Isn't that right?"

"Well, yeah... you're not wrong. That goal's precisely the reason I gave him a Pokemon too, in fact. Right, then. In that case..." He turned to the Doctor. "...how about this? Let's see if you can show me such a brilliant battle that I'm left with no choice but to endorse you. Same goes for Helix. And don't worry. I'll make sure both your teams are in good shape before the battle starts." He then restored our Pokemon.

Hop turned to us. "Right! I'll be waiting outside to watch the battle!" He then ran out the door. We followed him.

Once we got outside, we got on the court. I faced the Doctor. He seemed nervous. So was I. I knew that Pokemon didn't get experience points if they fainted, and I wanted both of us to gain experience. We need experience to become strong enough to protect Equestria. If we fought each other, one side's Pokemon would have to faint. This was a predicament that worried even me...

Lucario broke the tension by saying, "Helix, you're worried about how you want both teams to gain experience to defeat Tirek. I have a solution." He looked at Pummel. "Have you heard of a Raid Battle?"

Leon, Magnolia, and Hop nodded. Hop said, "Totally! Raid Battles are where a bunch of Trainers each use one Pokemon to take on a super tough opposing Pokemon!"

"Good. I think it would be wise if Helix and the Doctor took on you, Pummel, with all six of their own Pokemon."

"But that sounds pretty easy. I mean, Pummel is just a human who got turned into a Machop!"

Pummel chuckled. "You think I'm just a regular old Machop? Think again. I've underwent vigorous training with each of the Master Pokemon and learned all that I could to become the greatest Machop of all time. You don't stand a chance! But to make it even, I'll hold back, at least for the first part of the fight."

I smirked. "We accept your challenge! This will be a battle between classic and modern Pokemon!"

Pummel took the Doctor's place, and the Doctor stood with me on my side of the court. We sent out all our Pokemon. Magnolia watched us with curiosity in her eyes. "I'm rather interested in seeing how you three battle, too."

Leon said, "Listen up, Doctor. The reason I'm unbeatable is because I learn from every battle I see or take part in. That's how I've gotten to where I am today. So show me something good in this battle like no other!" He raised his right arm, as if he was a referee. "Battle begin!"

I exclaimed, "Rookidee, use Hone Claws!" Rookidee flexed its talons, and it gave off a quick burst of orange aura that signified a stat boost; in this case, its attack power and accuracy increased.

"A status move?" Pummel asked. "No doubt you're preparing to hit me hard, but you should know that I hit harder! Bulk Up!" He flexed his own muscles, increasing his attack and defense.

The Doctor turned to me. "What's a status move?"

I explained, "Status moves can either increase the attributes of your Pokemon's skills or decrease those of the opponent, as well as doing other things that are useful in strategizing. Keep using Hone Claws, Rookidee! Hotshot, back him up!"

"You think a fire rabbit can protect Rookidee from this?" Pummel crouched down before charging a small ball of energy from his hands. "Time for a little Focus Blast!"

"Oh, no, you don't!" the Doctor said. "Grubbin, use Mud Slap!"

Grubbin dug up dirt from the grassy area surrounding the court and launched it at Pummel, hitting his glasses and disrupting his move. "Whoa! I can't believe you'd do that, Doctor!"

"Thanks! Now, Chewtle, use Tackle!"

Chewtle rammed into Pummel as he was cleaning his glasses, knocking them out of his hand. "Oh no, my glasses! I can't see without them!"

The Doctor grinned. "Nickit, it's time to gang up on Pummel! Use Beat Up!"

Nickit whistled to the other Pokemon. "Hey guys, time to beat the stuffing outta this guy!"

And then, they charged at Pummel. "Did not see that coming..." In a last-ditch effort to dish out damage, he wildly punched without looking where his fists were going. He made contact a few times, catching my Rookidee and the Doctor's Grubbin off-guard. Pummel found his glasses in the grass and finished cleaning them with Keldeo's help before putting them on. "I didn't know you were such a dirty player, Doctor. For that, I think it's time to show you some real strength! Keldeo, it's time to lend me your might!"

Keldeo smiled. "I thought you'd never ask! It's time to unleash... the Bond Phenomenon!"

At that moment, Keldeo and Pummel became cloaked in a rainbow-colored light, and they proceeded to take on the forms that made them famous. After the light dissipated, Keldeo was revealed to have attained a burning mane, hooves covered in water that could supposedly be controlled, and... lightning bolt-shaped yellow protrusions that gave off electricity rather than blue protrusions that served only for aesthetic purposes? Wait, where was his Magnetic Heart?

However, Pummel's outfit answered my question: he was no longer wearing his red and yellow Nike shoes, instead wearing light blue shoes that were now covered in water. Without the Nike shoes, Keldeo must have forgotten how to use his Magnetic Heart. Additionally, Pummel had donned a glove made of pure fire and electricity due to his red and yellow watch on his left wrist. "What do you think? Like my sweet kicks?"

Hotshot was slowly backing away from the shoes. "Nope... I don't... Nice watch, though. You're pretty hot stuff with it on!"

Blipbug added, "And your hair looks appealing as well. I daresay it makes you appear quite... sharp."

Pummel laughed as he poked his spiky hair. "If you think that's sharp, then you haven't seen a thing!" He thrust his hand outwards, toward Keldeo. The small, beige, diamond-shaped mark on Keldeo's chest changed color to brown, and suddenly, a long object of the same color emerged. I recognized that new move, a move they coined Type Unsheathe. Pummel grabbed the object and swung it around, revealing it to be a sword of stone. Pummel smirked. "What's the matter, Hotshot? You're not looking so hot after all."

Hotshot was backing away even further. "You've got both rock and water on your side. No way I can compete with you now!"

"Excellent use of type advantages," Blipbug said. "I can see now that you truly are quite smart and don't have the bark without the bite."

Pummel laughed. "You're strong against trees, but not against stone." He dug his sword into the ground, causing a large boulder to rise up from the ground in front of himself. "Feel free to compare me to igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic rocks: I ignite my burning determination, take on water and wind without eroding my strength, and can morph to fit my circumstances. That's the power of the phenomenal bond of the Kelduo!"

"The... Kelduo? What an incredible name for the team consisting of you and Keldeo! And a speech with such rock-solid resolve... Thank you. Thank you for providing me with enough knowledge... to show you what I can truly do!" And then, Blipbug began to glow in a bright blue light.

"Wow, that was early in this adventure," Keldeo said, clearly surprised.

But the Doctor was even more surprised. "Blipbug! Is it okay? What's happening to it?"

I smiled. "Evolution. A lot of Pokemon can do it. And it's usually good for a Pokemon to evolve. They change and become stronger than before."

"Nice job, Blipbug. But I don't think that's going to help you beat me!" Pummel swung his sword at the boulder, sending it flying.

"That comment... I do not concur with!" Suddenly, a barrier appeared that blocked the projectile. It seemed to be created by Blipbug's new form: a beetle with a dotted yellow shell covering its whole body, only leaving its glowing blue eyes and yellow "whiskers" visible. "Let us see who has the advantage now: an incredibly versatile Machop, or the Galarian evolutionary family that always goes mind over matter!"

Our Rotom Phones worked together to offer data on the new Pokemon. "Dottler, the Radome Pokemon. A Bug- and Psychic-type, Dottler barely moves, even though it is definitely alive. Hiding in its shell without food or water appears to have awakened its psychic powers, which it uses to analyze its surroundings and prepare for evolution."

Pummel adjusted his glasses. "A pupa-style first evolution, huh? I wonder if you're like all the other Bug-type first evolutions I've encountered."

"In what manner?" Dottler asked.

Pummel closed his left fist. "It's time to find out if you're the odd one out; in other words..." He lunged towards Dottler with his fist pulled back. "...if you're able to defend yourself!"

"I am very honored to be asked such a question." The dots on Dottler's shell glowed bright blue, stopping Pummel in his tracks. "Beware the tantalizing glow of my Confusion!"

Pummel stared at the dots, as if in a trance. "Those lights bring back memories..." He was quick to shake himself out of it. "No! I'm not falling for Confusion this time! I'm a whole new Machop now!" He lunged again with his blazing fist, only to be tripped by a white thread sticking to his feet from behind. "Hey! I'm starting to think that you're trying to troll me, Doctor! Seriously, your Grubbin's String Shot was just rude."

I smirked. "Actually, he's helping me set up a little combo. Get ready, Rookidee!"

"Stop that, you little pest!" Pummel overpowered Grubbin and slammed him around by the string before tearing the string from his shoes. "Now you've done it! Here comes a classic!" He fired a blast of blue energy from his hands, with no starting lag. "Hadouken!"

"Hotshot, knock it back!"

"Time to get into my element!" Hotshot jumped forwards... and kicked the energy ball back at Pummel. "Whoo! I learned Double Kick, perfect for a pyro power player like me!"

"I can kick too, you know!" Pummel deflected the shot with his own kick.

"You like football too? Sweet!" The battle quickly turned into a game of shooting the ball at each other.

After about twenty volleys, both sides were growing bored. "You know what?" Pummel said. "I think it's time to stop playing around. Here comes... my Mega Strike!" The next time the ball came at him, he imbued his shoes with fire before kicking the ball hard enough to send it high above the clouds. Then, with the leg strength of a Mega Blaziken, Pummel leapt after the ball, going so high that the only way we knew he was present was by hearing his bold declaration: "Rising above villains of darkness, the burning determination of the Kelduo is made visible. One punch to win them all... the Elite Torch Fist!"

Moments later, a dozen small fireballs rained down on our team. Most of the Pokemon panicked, except for Dottler and Hotshot. The latter of the two grinned. "...Challenge accepted!"

Pummel landed with a loud crash from reaching terminal velocity. "Well, that should be enough for me to easily...?" He looked up just in time to see Hotshot kicking all the fireballs at him. "You're good." He put his arms up to block the fireballs, and he succeeded. "But not good enough!"

I exclaimed, "Now, Rookidee! Use Power Trip!"

Pummel turned around and faced Rookidee as he prepared a Fire Punch. "Falcon..." Rookidee's deep purplish-crimson form made contact with Pummel's Fire Punch. "...PUUUUUUUUNNNNCH!!!" However, Rookidee was somehow stronger than the reverse Fire Punch and charged him with enough force to throw him into the nearby lake.

"Uh oh..." Just then, Keldeo collapsed.

"What's wrong with Keldeo?" Hop asked, bewildered. "Not a single move touched him!"

Pummel pulled himself out of the water, clearly exhausted. "Side effect of the Bond Phenomenon... We share pain... One of us goes down, so does the other..."

"Just a small drawback for having such an amazingly powerful skill!" Leon turned to us. "Now then, everyone! Well, after seeing a match like that one... I suppose I've little choice but to give you all an endorsement as Champion!" He gave me, the Doctor, Pummel, Lucario, and Heart an envelope with a red ribbon sticker sealing it.

Doctor Hooves beamed. "Thank you very much, Leon! We will be sure to win our way through the Gym Challenge to take you on!"

"You may be a beginner still, and plenty rough around the edges, but it was a proper Raid Battle, and you succeeded against a professional Trainer even with weak Pokemon. Charizard and I were both feeling the excitement in every last cell in our bodies! Doctor, I can tell you've grown a lot since you first fought alongside Helix!" He looked at the rest of us. "And I'd like to see some more thrilling battles out of the rest of you, too."

The Doctor smiled as he looked at me. "This is exhilarating, Helix! We'll be competing for the Champion's title, so I will now know what it's like to have a true rival!" He then happened to look skyward. "Incredible! Could that be... a shooting star?"

We looked in the same direction as the Doctor, and he certainly was right: a small pink meteor of some sort was falling through the atmosphere. It landed next to the court, near the lake, before breaking into four small pieces. I walked over and carefully examined them. "These stones... what could they be?" I kept one and gave the other three to Pummel, Heart, and the Doctor. "Hop, you know anything about these?"

Hop answered, "They're Wishing Stars! With one of those, your Pokemon can Dynamax! They're gonna be massive!"

Leon walked over to us. "Trust you to pull something like this! They say Wishing Stars fall down for those who have a true wish in their heart, you know."

The Doctor sighed. "I should have made my wish as it fell through the sky. Now that it's already fallen, could my time for wishing have passed?"

Magnolia replied, "Don't be silly, Doctor. Those Wishing Stars are composed of a curious sort of rock containing unknown power. They are one of the most precious resources we have here in the Galar region. But they won't do a thing for you in that state. Give them to me now, and I'll have you sorted."

We gave her the Wishing Stars. The Doctor was grinning from ear to ear. "I cannot wait to discover the power of Dynamax! Perhaps we'll even stand a chance against those strange Pokemon in the Slumbering Weald as we progress through this adventure!"

"I do understand your excitement, but don't get carried away. You want to save your energy for tomorrow's journey!"

Sonia came walking down to the professor's house. "Seems I came home right in time for all the excitement!" She turned to us. "Hey, you lot, why not have some dinner. You must be hungry, right? I've been totally obsessed with making the latest trendy curries."

And so, after enjoying Sonia's curry, we slept in the professor's home to restore our energy for tomorrow.

I woke up rejuvenated and ready to continue my journey. "Good morning, everyone! I am ready to begin my latest, most important adventure yet!"

Magnolia turned to us. "Good morning to you, new Challengers."

Sonia asked Pummel, "Is it true that you really met some Pokemon you didn't recognize? Is there anything more you can tell us about them?"

Pummel nodded. "First, as we journeyed further into the Slumbering Weald to rescue the Wooloo, the fog got even thicker. Soon after, two canine Pokemon approached us. As a Pokemon myself, I should have been able to understand them, but all we heard were roars. Our attacks seemed to pass right through them! If it hadn't been for Luigi and his Poltergust G-00, we would have been wiped out by the fog!"

"A right fount of information you are, Pummel."

Magnolia said, "Here, these are for you." She gave me, Pummel, Heart, and Doctor a predominantly white wristband with a black screen on top, a blue logo on the screen. The band was red along the top rim and blue along the bottom rim. "Those are your Dynamax Bands. I made them by fitting the Wishing Stars you found last night into those bands, although I had to improvise a tad for the Doctor, what with his hooves and all."

We slipped the Dynamax Bands onto our right wrist. I examined mine with curiosity. "This constrains my wings a little bit, but that's just a small hindrance. I can always take on another form to Dynamax my partner." I turned to Hop. "So, where do we start our journey?"

He smiled. "We're heading to the station back in Wedgehurst! Let's go!"

Chapter 3: Breath of the Wild Area

Author's Note

A little side note that I forgot to add to the last chapter: On the way back to Wedgehurst, both Yamper learned Bite, and the Doctor's Grookey learned Razor Leaf. Also, both Trainer's Rookidee learned Fury Attack.

Chapter 3: Breath of the Wild Area

Upon returning to the Wedgehurst Station, we were greeted by Hop. "Hey guys! Out with it, both of you! How many Pokemon did you two catch?"

I thought back to Routes 1 and 2. "If I remember right, I caught eight Pokemon."

The Doctor smiled. "Really? So have I!"

"Sweet!" Hop said. "You're well on your way to building a fine team. Doc, I've got a little something you might need in your adventure." He gave the Doctor a reflective disc like the one I used to load HM5, Defog, except his was white instead of sky blue. The Doctor put it in his backpack. "That's a Technical Machine! A TM, mate! Helix, I reckon you know about TMs?"

I nodded. "TMs allow you to teach your Pokemon new moves. I've noticed that the more recent ones can be used over and over without breaking, like Hidden Machines. I know that HMs don't break because the most recent time I used one was when I used the HM known as Defog to attempt to blow away the fog we encountered in the Slumbering Weald, although that failed. Actually, I have an entire case of TMs and HMs in my coat pocket. It might not hurt to get myself a new case, though."

"HMs? Wow, you must be a real vet when it comes to Pokemon! Anyway, Doctor, that TM can teach the move Swift. Lee gave it to me ages ago, and now it's yours."

I turned to the Doctor. "Swift allows your Pokemon to fire star-shaped rays that never miss the target, like a unicorn's magic! Of course, since it's a Normal-type move, it won't harm Ghost-type Pokemon like Gastly. You'll want to know things like that if you want to take on the Gym Challenge."

Hop grinned. "That's right! The Gym Challenge will begin in Motostoke! And our train's waiting, so let's go!"

The inside of the station had brick walls and a white tiled floor. Next to the gateway to the train platform was a poster depicting some kind of trophy. We began to walk towards the gate when...

"Coming through!" Victor came into the station while riding a rolling sheep Pokemon. However, unlike Wooloo, this one had black and white fur and two long horns. "Whoa... whoa!" Suddenly, Victor lost his balance, sending the Pokemon on a crash course for me.

Pummel was quick to grab the Pokemon before it hit me. "Interception! I've got to admit, Victor, that was some great rolling you did! Keep it up, and someday you'll be as good on a ball as a certain jester I know!"

"Thanks! I'm trying to do some teamwork exercises with my Pokemon to help them prepare to battle the Champion, but I'm still working out the kinks. Anyway, I came here because Professor Magnolia told me that you'd be setting out soon. I figured this would be a good time to see you off and tell you a little about something in your backpack, Doctor." He took off the Doctor's backpack and took something out: a red tent, some stakes, and a mallet for the stakes, among other things. "And here, these are for you." He gave me, Pummel, and Heart the same items. "This is all the gear you need to start camping! By camping out with your Pokemon, you'll get to know each other better and even increase your experience! I know you'll be fine if you're together with your partners."

The Doctor gave a shy smile. "Thanks. You know, this will actually be my first time camping out..."

I put my wing on the Doctor's shoulder. "Don't worry. I know you'll be fine. I've gone camping back on my home planet, and it's actually pretty easy."

"That's the spirit! Oh, by the way, look what I've got!" Victor put down two small bags connected by a strong fabric of some sort. "Here's your new saddle bag, Doctor!"

"A... saddle bag?" The Doctor took off his backpack and transferred its contents to the new saddle bag. He smiled with delight as he donned the saddle bag. "This is brilliant! Thank goodness, that backpack of yours was about to break my back!"

"Yeah, sorry about that. It used to be my dad's when he was my age, traveling around and training Pokemon. He and I are pretty tough, so we can handle how heavy the bag is. But now that you've got a saddle bag with the weight evenly balanced on both sides, you should fare better, especially when you come to the rougher parts of Galar. Now, good luck to all of you!" Victor then got back on his Pokemon and rolled it out. "Okay, Dubwool, this time we're taking it nice and easy..."

The Doctor beamed. "There must be all kinds of Pokemon to catch and Trainers to meet! I can't wait any longer! Let's get on the train!"

As we sat in the soft blue seats of the train, we looked up information on Motostoke with our Rotom Phones. I looked at the information in wonder. "So, Motostoke is surrounded by a place called a Wild Area, where several species of Pokemon are abundant. I hope I can find a rare Pokemon... It also seems like we can camp out or go fishing in the various fishing spots. This will be a great experience for all of us. Doctor, what are your thoughts?"

The Doctor answered, "At this point, I'm excited for anything that may reveal itself! I could never get tired of this!"

"...Oh?" From the booth opposite of me and the Doctor, Lucario looked at a spherical blue device in his paw. "Sounds like a request from someone. Let's see who it is..." He tapped the device a couple of times, and his eyes opened wide. "What?! How could she send a request?!"

We all looked at him in confusion. "She?"

He sighed. "My apologies, but I'll have to leave you be after getting off the train. I've got to do what an Elite Star Ally's got to do."

"Elite Star Ally?" the Doctor asked.

I replied, "Lucario is a member of the Expedition Society, and the team he joined has been called the Elite Allies. Expedition Society Members carry an Expedition Gadget, like the one he was using, wherever they adventure. Lucario is also a friend of Kirby, who is known as the founder of the Star Allies due to his most recent adventure."

"You and your friends never cease to amaze me, Helix, and I hope it stays that way."

The train stopped, and we hopped off. Roborygon looked at the person next to the desk. "Excuse me, Station Master! This is the Wild Area Station, correct? Is there a problem that's caused the train to stop here?"

The station master nodded with a sigh. "Yes, this is the Wild Area Station, make no mistake. I'm sorry to tell you that the train is halted due to a flock of Wooloo on the tracks."

Pummel looked at us with a smile. "There's nothing to be sorry about. This is great, guys!"

The Doctor asked, "What is?"

"The Wild Area, of course! It must be huge! I bet there's lots of wild Pokemon to battle and catch here! And that means we could even build an awesome team with just the Pokemon caught in the Wild Area!" He and Hop then raced off to check out the Wild Area.

Well, this is going to make for quite the interesting adventure.

Upon leaving the station, I looked to my left. There were natural formations that prohibited me from going south. I looked to my right. I saw a large urban city in the distance, and all that was between me and the city was the Wild Area: a large, vast field, full of wild Pokemon. Just what I expected from a place with that kind of name. Towards the north end of the station was a woman in a light gray hat and overalls, as well as a plaid yellow shirt. The Doctor was waiting for her to restore his Pokemon's health.

I went further north to a gap in some iron fencing, where Hop was waiting for us. He pointed towards the city. "Look at that, Helix! You're looking at Motostoke, way off that way!"

I gazed at the area between me and Motostoke. "And to think that there are so many Pokemon between here and there to catch... It's time to really build up my team!"

My sharp hearing allowed me to notice Sonia coming up from behind. "Sorry I'm late! Gran gave me a proper earful, in her own way: 'Those new Trainers are setting out on a journey, but what are you doing with your life?'"

Pummel said, "But I thought you were fulfilling your purpose in life. Have you not found it yet?"

"Ah, never you mind that! It's nothing to worry yourself over! Besides, I've been quite curious about those mysterious Pokemon you met in the forest. I'd been thinking I should look into it, so the timing works out fine actually! Who knows, if I discover something really huge, then maybe even Gran'll admit I've got some talent!"

Pummel nodded. "I can easily say I know you can do it, because I have some friends who have had similar ambitions to yours. I wish you the best of luck!"

Sonia smiled. "Thanks, Pummel. But I said you needn't worry about it! I'm glad to be on the road again, truly! It's been ages. It'll be great fun to fish and camp and rough it outside again. I suggest you stick around the Wild Area and do the same!"

"Right!" Hop turned to us. "Listen, if you want to get really strong, then you gotta look in as many of the glowing red dens as you can find. You'll want to battle the snot out of a bunch of Dynamax Pokemon and reap the rewards of your hard work!" He then ran off to find some dens himself.

Sonia said, "But do be careful! Dynamax Pokemon are really on another level, you know! You'd better Dynamax your partner Pokemon, too, if you want to take on Pokemon that strong! You'll find spots here and there in the Wild Area that emit a red or sometimes purple beam of light. If you think you're up to it, check them out. There'll be Dynamax Pokemon lurking inside, waiting for challengers like you! So with that, how about I send you off with a little treat from me?" She gave me a white cylinder with a dome-shaped top. "With a Pokemon Box Link, you can send Pokemon from your team into your Boxes or add Pokemon from your Boxes to your team. Nice, right?"

My eyes sparkled with wonder. "Incredible! Now I can access the Pokemon Boxes at any time, in any place, without worrying about heading to a Pokemon Center! I must say, Galarian technology is much more advanced than I expected!"

"That's great to hear! So go wild catching as many Pokemon as you like, and fill in some more of that Pokedex of yours! The Wild Area is waiting for you! This is the start of your real adventure!"

"Thank you, Sonia. Without further ado, I'll see you later!" And so, we began to journey into the Wild Area.

Not long after passing the iron gate, I spent some so-called Watts to purchase ingredients from a Backpacker. Later on, I would learn that Watts are obtained when you defeat or catch a glowing Pokemon or when you examine Pokemon Dens with glowing rocks.

After I completed the purchase, the Doctor rashly chose to take on an Onix, a rock snake Pokemon. "Helix, what's strong against this Pokemon?"

I replied, "I suggest Chewtle. Water-types are super effective against both of Onix's types: Rock and Ground."

"Okay." He threw his Poke Ball. "Go, Bite Force!" So, he named his Chewtle Bite Force. I admit, that's a good nickname. "Use Water Gun!"

"I'm gonna splash you all over, Rocky!" Bite Force spat some water at Onix, causing it to roar in anger.

"You'll pay for that!" Onix suddenly wrapped its body around Bite Force. It squeezed him tightly, leaving him unable to escape. "Seems like you're in a real Bind now!"

"No!" the Doctor exclaimed in fear. "Get out of there!"

"I... can't..." Bite Force groaned. "Ugh..." After a few seconds, Bite Force's eyes turned into swirls.

"I completely underestimated that Onix..." the Doctor said with a sigh before returning Bite Force to its Poke Ball.

"To think that it beat a Pokemon with not a single, but a double type advantage over it... That Onix must be at a high level," I said with a scowl. "Time for your starter to shine. Grookey is faster and also has the type advantage."

"Okay. Ukiki, use Razor Leaf!" Ukiki swung its stick, sending a wave of green energy at Onix. "Follow up with Branch Poke!" Ukiki ran forward and prepared its stick.

Onix began to swing its tail at Ukiki. "Uh oh, here it comes, Doctor!"

"Jump on!" Ukiki nimbly jumped onto the tail. "Now hang on and use Branch Poke!" Ukiki did as told, repeatedly striking Onix with its stick. "That's it! Keep on hitting Onix!"

"Oh, yeah! I'm really getting in the groove!" As he was beating Onix, Ukiki began to glow bright blue, like Blipbug before him. "You can't beat my own beats!"

"Helix... is he evolving?" the Doctor asked.

I nodded. "I can't wait to see his evolution!"

Upon finishing the process of evolution, Ukiki's body was now larger and a lighter shade of green, like lime green. He had dark green bands on his wrists; in addition, he had two sticks to attack Onix with. "Yes! As a Thwackey, I'm ready to dish out rhythm!"

We took out our Rotom Phones. "Thwackey, the Beat Pokemon. A Grass-type, Thwackey gets more respect from its peers the faster it beats out a rhythm with its two sticks. Sometimes, when it is battling, it gets so caught up with the rhythm that it doesn't realize that it's already defeated its opponent."

I looked at Ukiki's new form, who was still beating the KO'd Onix. "Like that."

He looked at us before putting away the sticks in his leaf-shaped tuft of hair. "...Oh, it's over already? But I was just getting started!"

As the Doctor caught Onix, I told Ukiki, "Don't worry about it. Besides, we could always use some help knocking Berries down from trees. You can strike up a beat that way."

Roborygon added, "And we can use Berries to make various kinds of curry while we camp."

"Really?" the Doctor asked as he put Onix into a Box. "I've never made curry before. Can you teach me how?"

"Sure. First, let's set up camp. This bare spot where the Onix was should make a great camping spot."

We immediately got to work putting up our tents and pounding the stakes. Once the campsite was complete, we sent out all our Pokemon. What surprised me Pokemon-wise was that Pummel and Heart had obtained Pokemon in Galar that I hadn't yet encountered. "Impressive. Where did you find that Pikachu and Eevee?"

Pummel explained, "Actually, someone gave me this Pikachu because I went on a so-called Let's Go adventure in Kanto and caught a Pikachu there."

Heart replied, "Same here, but with Eevee."

"I see. Since someone gave you those Pokemon, they must be special. That's usually the case. Now then..." I prepared the pot for cooking the curry. "...it's time to learn how to make curry!"

Roborygon nodded. "Excellent! The first step is to add Berries to the pot. Each participant can add up to ten Berries to the pot, and more Berries often means a better curry. The second step is optional: add a key ingredient. Helix, you purchased some ingredients from the Backpacker, correct?"

"Correct."

"Then let's put the Berries and an ingredient into the pot and get a fire going!"

We each put three Oran Berries, three Pecha Berries, and three Cheri Berries into the pot. I tossed in the key ingredient... an assortment of mushrooms. "What? The ingredient seller had worse things to offer. Trust me, I don't think it would be a good idea to add fried food to a curry."

The Doctor replied, "Good point. That sounds like a horrid combination, especially since ponies like myself are strictly vegetarian. Anyways, let's get this fire going!"

I told my Yamper, "9-Volt, use Nuzzle on the pile of wood." 9-Volt rubbed his electric sac against the wood, causing some sparks to fly and make the wood glow a shade of red. "Roborygon, what's the plan?"

Roborygon brought up a list of instructions. "First, we fan the flames with the Magikarp fans included in the camping kit. But don't let the flames grow too large, or the curry will burn."

"Okay. Need some help, Doctor?"

"It's alright, I think I've got it..." the Doctor said as he awkwardly held the fan in his hooves.

Together, the four of us Trainers did our best to keep the fire going, while also not letting the curry burn. "Next," Roborygon continued, "we must stir the curry. We mustn't stir too much, or it will spill, but stirring too little will cause it to burn. We need to stir at a precise speed to maintain the balance."

Stirring was much trickier; it is incredibly difficult for four people to stir at once. We kept bumping into each other, and the curry spilled a few times as a result. "There's plenty of room for improvement..." Keldeo sighed.

"And finally, we have to put our heart into it... literally!" Roborygon produced a pink heart, as did I, Pummel, and Heart. "I suppose you don't know how to put your heart into it, Doctor?"

The Doctor shook his head. "I have not been befriended by Equestria's little pink savior, so I cannot throw those pink hearts of pure friendship."

"Very well. In that case, behold the power of Friend Hearts!" Roborygon threw his at the Doctor, who was filled with a pink aura. "How do you feel?"

"I feel... I feel..." The Doctor felt the energy flowing through him. "...I feel like a new stallion!"

"Fantastic! Now, we just need to put our heart into the curry at just the right moment. On the count of three, ready? One, two..." We prepared our hearts. "...THREE!" We tossed our hearts simultaneously, and rather than each one individually falling into the pot, they flew high into the air and combined into one large golden heart. We watched as the golden heart fell into the pot, turning the curry bright orange.

I turned to the others. "Get back. This is going to have explosive results, I'm certain of it!"

Sure enough, the pot began to rumble, then the curry burst high into the air like a volcano. "And the cooking has been completed! Time to dig in!" Roborygon put an equal amount of curry onto each plate and dealt them to us like they were playing cards.

I took a spoonful and brought it to my mouth. Owls are better known for their hearing and eyesight than their sense of smell, but I could still tell that the curry smelled pretty good. "Let's all try the curry at once, okay?"

My friends all nodded.

"All right. One, two, three!" I put the spoonful into my mouth. My eyes widened. "For something I've never tried eating before... this is delicious!"

The others agreed. Pummel said, "And to think that I don't even like mushrooms!"

"Ahem, I'm-a right here!" It just so happened that Luigi had also taken the train to the Wild Area.

"Then again, the reason why I said that was because Discord caused me to accidentally consume a Mini Mushroom while I was in Seaquestria. I didn't really have time to draw out the taste. Now that I'm taking the time to get a feel for the taste, this is really good!"

"And even if it wasn't tasty," Meloetta said, "I can't sing on an empty stomach!"

We rubbed our stomachs in delight after finishing our meal. "Curry Dex updated!" our Rotom Phones exclaimed. A bronze medal with a strange blob-like Pokemon appeared on their screens. "New curry added: Spicy Mushroom Medley Curry, Milcery Class!"

"Would it be safe to assume that Milcery Class is good?" the Doctor asked.

"You can say that. There are five different classes of curry, and Milcery Class is right in the middle. Therefore, it isn't excellent, yet it isn't disgusting."

The Doctor shrugged. "Eh, works for me." After we put away our tents, he said, "All right, let's continue with our adventure!"

I proceeded to the east, catching Bunnelby and Pancham and sending them to the PC. I was about to catch myself a Tyrogue, but I was interrupted by Hotshot. "Heads up! Doc's gonna get himself in a tight spot, and he doesn't even know it!"

I saw the Doctor peeking into a gray well that was emitting a red beam of light. "...You know what? Screw catching that Tyrogue. I've already evolved three into each evolution in the Tyrogue family. Hotshot, finish him off while I go after the Doctor! If you find any other Pokemon, go ahead and take them down if you're up to it."

"Sure thing, I could use the experience!" I left Hotshot to take on Tyrogue as I went after the Doctor.

The Doctor looked into the well with wonder. "What is this mysterious place, some kind of dungeon...?"

Hop reached the Doctor before I did. "That's a Pokemon Den, mate!"

"Whoa!" Unfortunately, Hop's sudden exclamation caused the Doctor to jump surprisingly high for his size. "Uh oh, no no no no no no nononononononononooooooooooo..." The Doctor fell down into the well, which was apparently the den of the Pokemon we had been warned about by Sonia.

Hop looked down the Pokemon Den out of worry. "Well, this isn't good..." He turned to me. "Somebody's gotta do something about this! He can't go it alone!"

I stepped up to the Pokemon Den. "Then I'm going with him."

"No, you don't understand! If you want to stand a chance against a wild Dynamax Pokemon, you need a bunch of friends to help you out!"

"That, I do have." I called Pummel and Heart. "Guys, meet me at the closest Pokemon Den to the Meetup Spot. Pokemon Dens look like stone wells."

"Good start, but are you sure you're up to it? You're just beginners when it comes to Galar."

I smirked. "Do you even know my friends? They defeated some of the greatest threats to our home, including a powerful sorcerer possessed by a corrupted crown, and a planet-sized supercomputer."

Hop jumped back. "You lost me at planet-sized supercomputer. That'd mean you're already as good as Lee! And Lee is the unbeatable Champion!"

"I caught it on tape, as well as the battle against the sorcerer," Roborygon proudly proclaimed. "Need I show you? Oh, wait, I don't need to; I posted it on PokeTube!"

"Really?!" Hop checked his Rotom Phone, which had a blue cover. "...Well, what do you know? You really did post it on PokeTube! I'll have to watch the video later. Guys, I think you're ready to battle the Dynamax Pokemon!"

"You bet we are!" Pummel said as he and Heart rushed over. "Time to take this tough guy down!"

The three of us leapt into the den, Hop and Roborygon staying behind to cheer us on.

I was impressed by the size of the den. I mean, you could fit over fifty Wailord in there and there still be plenty of room. The den was also dark, as if it was permanently nighttime.

"Helix..." the Doctor said without shifting his gaze from the towering enemy before us. "...I've made a terrible mistake."

We followed his gaze to... a fifty-foot-tall Hoothoot. A large, purple and red vortex was swirling above it, said vortex likely being the cause of the dark, cloudy weather in the den. "HOOOOOTHOOOOOOOOOT!!!"

"Pikachu, I choose you!" Pummel sent out his new Pikachu.

"Go for it, Drizzile!" Heart sent out a new Pokemon. This one had green hands and feet, a fairly lanky blue body, and what appeared to be some indigo hair partially covering the center of its face. "Check it out, Sobble evolved!"

The Doctor and I used our Rotom Phones to gather data on the new Pokemon. "Drizzile, the Water Lizard Pokemon. A Water-type, Drizzile cleverly sets traps using water balloons created by moisture from its palms. It is highly intelligent but also lazy, preferring to lay traps rather than engage in direct combat."

"Your turn, Nickit!" The Doctor sent out his Nickit.

"And finally..." I tossed my Poke Ball. "Go, Rookidee!"

The Doctor looked at his Dynamax Band. It was giving off a purple aura. "Huh? What's going on with my Dynamax Band?"

Hop called to us from the other end of the well, "Doctor, that's Dynamax Energy! Your Pokemon can Dynamax now!"

The Doctor looked at Hop with surprise. "Are you crazy?! I'm not ready to do that! I don't even know how to!"

"That's completely understandable, Doctor. But I think I've got an idea..." Pummel pointed at the Doctor's band. "Maybe you could transfer your Dynamax energy to me. Try aiming your band at mine."

"Uh, okay." The Doctor hesitantly pointed his right hoof at Pummel.

Pummel's band took the glow from the Doctor's band. "Nice! Time to show this Hoothoot some Pika-power! Return, Pikachu!" He returned Pikachu to its Poke Ball. "Okay, let's see. I think this was how it worked..." He held the Poke Ball in his right hand, and the energy from his Dynamax Band surged into the Poke Ball, giving it a Premier Ball's color scheme of white with a red stripe along the center instead of a regular Poke Ball's black stripe. Additionally, the ball was now several times larger and appeared to have a digital skin with a purple glow. "I could tell from Lee's match that it would be heavy, but my muscles are not to be underestimated. I'll do one better!" He turned and served it as if it was a volleyball. "Go, Dynamax Pikachu!"

The Dynamax Poke Ball opened, and from it came a Pikachu that rivaled the Hoothoot in size. But this Pikachu seemed different... "You mean, GIGANTAMAX Pikachu!" So, Gigantamax makes the Pokemon look different. This Gigantamax Pikachu's tail glowed bright yellow and was much longer. In addition, Gigantamax Pikachu seemed chubbier...

Then it hit me. But it hit Pummel first, for he said, "That Let's Go fan gave me a first-generation Pikachu!"

"How did you...?" Gigantamax Pikachu asked.

"Oh, hold on a moment!" I quickly took out my Rotom Phone and took a picture of Gigantamax Pikachu while its mouth was open in surprise. I looked at the picture. "...Just as I'd hoped! It looks just like the meme!"

Pummel replied, "You beat me to it. Right now, it's time for Gigantamax Pikachu to unleash its electric might!" He used his Rotom Phone to discover the new moves of the Gigantamax Pikachu. "Use G-Max Volt Crash!"

"Full power, PI-KA!" Gigantamax Pikachu brought down its mighty tail upon the Dynamax Hoothoot, making a sound like lightning crashing down upon the ground. "Gigantamaximum voltage, super effective!"

"It's time to blow you away with Max Airstream!" Dynamax Hoothoot whipped up a massive gust of wind that blew towards Rookidee.

I warned, "Ride the wind!"

"Helix, that's a ridiculous and completely reckless idea! ...I'm going for it!" Rookidee flew into the air and allowed the wind to take him for a ride. "Wow, this is working!"

"Excellent! Now swoop in and use Fury Attack!"

"Got it!" Rookidee soared around Hoothoot and repeatedly pecked it from several directions.

Heart turned to me as her Drizzile prepared some water balloons. "Helix, think you can help us deliver a few surprises?"

I grinned. "You bet." I grabbed Heart with one talon and Drizzile with the other before flying towards Hoothoot. "Bombs away!" Heart and Drizzile bombarded the Dynamax Hoothoot with water balloons. The balloons burst into waves of water. I was happy to see that Drizzile knew Water Pulse.

"Now's not the time for me to get dizzy..." Dynamax Hoothoot began to teeter and sway.

I exclaimed, "He's confused! Now he's open to attacks!"

"Okay!" the Doctor said. "Nickit, time for Beat Up!"

Nickit whistled to its colleagues. "Guys, time to take this guy down!"

We used the strategy known as strength in numbers to overwhelm Dynamax Hoothoot. You'd think that Gigantamax Pikachu unleashed the final blow, but it was actually Pummel; he punched the ground, causing stone pillars to jut up and strike Hoothoot from below. The last pillar created by Stone Edge caused a bright orange explosion to engulf Dynamax Hoothoot. "Tick-tock, my time has come..."

Roborygon exclaimed, "Hoothoot speaks the truth! Get ready to catch him!"

I borrowed Pummel's Dynamax energy. "This one's mine, to make up for the Hoothoot I accidentally defeated and therefore failed to catch." The energy turned my Poke Ball into a Dynamax Ball, as I call it, and I almost lost balance after taking hold of it. Pummel made holding a Dynamax Ball look easy! Regardless, I chose to toss the Ball into the air and flew up after it. "Go, Dynamax Ball!" I kicked the Ball towards Dynamax Hoothoot.

Hoothoot was sucked into the Dynamax Ball, which promptly fell to the ground with a crash.

The Ball rocked once...

Twice...

Three times...

It returned to its normal size. Click!

I took my new Pokemon with pride. "My first Max Raid Pokemon... I caught myself a Hoothoot!" I sent it to the PC.

After some cheering and applause, we left the den and returned to the Wild Area.

Upon exiting the den, Hotshot surprised me greatly. "Cool! I feel tougher than ever thanks to your suggestion!" Hotshot had taken on a whole new form: His ears were drooping to the sides and were completely white; he seemed to be wearing a red turtleneck shirt and black sweatpants; and the band on his nose was now on his forehead. "Let me tell you, there's some really powerful Pokemon out there."

I checked my Rotom Phone, calling Roborygon for the other entry. "Raboot, the Rabbit Pokemon. A Fire-type, Raboot's fluffy fur protects it from the cold and allows it to use hotter fire moves. It kicks berries off of tree branches and uses them to practice its football skills." Roborygon added, "Or in the case of Americans, soccer skills."

Hotshot nodded. "It wasn't just any Pokemon that helped me evolve. I've never seen anything like it. It's this really neat horse Pokemon who makes rainbow explosions. Seriously, he was a real powerhouse."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really? You should introduce me to him sometime after our adventure."

I went east through the Rolling Fields, as my Rotom Phone called them, before heading north towards East Lake Axewell. As I got close to the border, I caught a Combee and sent it to the PC. After that, I entered a nearby glowing Pokemon Den. This one...

...contained a brown donkey Pokemon, a Mudbray. Like the Hoothoot, Mudbray had a vortex above it. "It ain't too often that I get challengers these days. I'm guessin' that y'all came here to take me on and try ta win my loot?"

Lucario nodded. "Yes, we did. I hope you've been training, because I am stronger than ever thanks to some good friends of mine. Isn't that right, Helix?"

I smiled. "That's right. Lucario's now the Aura Master--wait, you're already back, Lucario? And you know this Mudbray?"

"Yes, and yes. I challenged Dynamax Mudbray to a battle back when I was a Riolu here in Galar, but I lost. I vow to defeat him this time. And I'm not the only one who's back."

I followed Lucario's gaze to... Wait, it couldn't be! "What's up, Helix? I'm back and more awesome than ever!"

I looked at the rainbow-maned Pegasus in disbelief. "Don't tell me... Rainbow Dash, you were the one that sent that message to Lucario."

Lucario sighed. "Yes. Somehow, she made it to Pop Star and sent a request via the Connection Orb."

A pink blur promptly jumped Lucario. "What do you mean, somehow? I held onto that super-neat Missile Ability I got from the Lor Starcutter's Ability Rooms and let Rainbow ride me to Pop Star and then I asked Susie to send a request from me and Rainbow to Lucario and then we found our way here by a weird purple portal and then--"

I put my wing over Pinkie Pie's mouth. "Okay, that's all I needed to hear. Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, do you know how to take on giant donkeys?"

Rainbow looked at the Pokemon I was referring to, and her grin performed a magic act; it disappeared. "Uh, well... against that guy, I could, um... I could call him names so he focuses on me."

Pinkie said, "I'll throw him a party!"

Lucario looked at her. "That won't help much. You see, we'll be blown out of this den if he knocks us out four times, or if we take too long to defeat him. Partying is next to useless because we need to defeat him quickly."

"I mean I'll throw a party in his face!" Pinkie took out a party bazooka from her mane. I have to admit, that's a fine upgrade from the party cannon. "Literally!"

"So, you're going to be the distraction? Okay." I turned to Rainbow Dash. "Fly Pinkie Pie up to Mudbray's face and let her do her thing. Then soar around and periodically strike Mudbray."

Rainbow saluted me. "You got it!" She then picked up Pinkie and took her up to Mudbray.

I tossed my Poke Ball. "Show them your atrocious--oh, right..." I groaned after realizing that my Magikarp hadn't reached the level required to evolve. "If only the Doctor--"

"I'm coming, Helix!" As if on cue, the Doctor came through the entrance to the den. He looked at the Dynamax Mudbray. "Okay, this shouldn't be too tough." The Doctor harnessed Dynamax energy and unleashed the Dynamaxed power of his Thwackey, although it was clear that he had trouble handling the Dynamax Ball's size. "Okay, Ukiki! Use Max Overgrowth!"

"Got it!" Ukiki threw several seeds at the ground near Mudbray.

"Whoa! We're right here, big guy!" Rainbow Dash soared out of the way while the seeds sprouted into giant green mushrooms that sapped Mudbray's health. "That could've turned out awful for us, you know!"

"But we're okay!" Pinkie Pie, who had disappeared somewhere after the mushrooms emerged, showed herself from inside of the Dynamaxed Mudbray's right nostril.

The face Mudbray made instantly reminded me of a similar incident with a wild Hippowdon and a certain female Trainer's Pachirisu. "Hey, you, get outta my nose!"

I nodded in agreement. "I'd do what he said if I were you. You're in a pretty dangerous place!"

Pinkie Pie asked, "What's so dangerous about a giant nose? Can't I stay just a--"

Before she could finish, Mudbray blasted her out with a quick snort. "And stay out, ya little pink booger!"

I caught Pinkie Pie before she struck the ground. Luckily, she only had a run-in with mud in her hiding place. "That's why it's so dangerous. But you're lucky all he did was turn you into a projectile. You could've gone too far in and fallen into the throat to become a snack." I shuddered at the thought. "If you were really unlucky, you'd have gone from the throat to the mouth and taken even more punishment before it's feeding time. So if you want to do something reckless like that again, at least do so in a manner that the Pokemon will be tolerant of it and that you will not take a wrong step."

Pinkie sheepishly giggled. "Sorry about that. Maybe Game Freak should ban Pokemon like Mudbray from Galar to keep that sort of thing from happening."

"Or at least ban them from places where they can Dynamax."

"Now it's my turn. Max Quake!" Mudbray burrowed into the ground and tunneled its way towards Lucario.

"Lucario, I know I am not your Trainer, but I still wish to attempt this." I pressed the rainbow-colored stone on the black bracelet on my left wrist, my Z-Power Ring, and the stone glowed purple. "Together, there's nothing we can't do! It's time to Mega Evolve!"

"I am going beyond the limits of Aura! Let's do this!" The Mega Stone on Lucario's collar glowed, and he became surrounded in a spherical purple shell. Soon after, the shell burst apart, revealing the awe-inspiring Mega Lucario with several black streaks in his fur indicating the intensity of his aura. "No mercy! Aura Bomb!" Mega Lucario created a massive Aura Sphere and threw it at the ground Mudbray was tunneling through.

"Well, I'll be--" The explosion forced Mudbray out of the ground. "Aw, dagnabbit!"

The Doctor exclaimed, "One more time, Ukiki! Max Overgrowth!"

"Here goes!" Ukiki unleashed another Max Overgrowth on Mudbray, bringing it ever closer to defeat.

"I'm gonna finish this guy off with a bang!" Rainbow Dash flew towards Mudbray, causing a rainbow sonic boom just before she struck. "Come on, don't tell me a Sonic Rainboom finale isn't awesome!"

Mega Lucario turned back to normal. "Yes, that was awesome."

"I'll catch this one!" Doctor Hooves prepared a Dynamax Ball and tossed it at Mudbray, although with relative difficulty.

Mudbray went into the Ball. The Dynamax Ball rocked once...

Twice...

It opened, and Mudbray broke out. "You'll have to try a tad harder if you wanna catch me. But I admit, ya did good." Mudbray kicked some things towards us before walking away, the items including light blue candy and some berries. "Consider 'em a consolation prize of sorts."

The Doctor sighed. "I really thought I could catch him. Perhaps I should work on my throw..."

I shook my head. "I'm pretty sure it isn't your throw. That Mudbray was just a little too strong for you. Listen, you'll get another chance to catch a Mudbray. I saw more of them further into East Lake Axewell."

We left the den, with the rewards in hand.

Before heading on to Motostoke, though, I realized how late it was; it's amazing how fast time goes by in the Wild Area, considering how much there is to to. I instead chose to set up camp and sleep in my tent for the night, as did my colleagues. As for Pinkie and Rainbow, there's no telling where they went and what they did. Speaking of Rainbow, I sent out Hotshot to talk with him about the Pegasus.

"Hey, Hotshot? There's something you need to know..."

Hotshot held up a paw. "No need to tell me. I didn't know the rainbow-maned horse was a girl 'til I overheard Lucario call Rainbow a she. I feel kinda silly now."

"Don't feel silly. Her sky blue coloring makes it easy to think she's a male. I'm glad you found out, though. I didn't want Rainbow Dash to call you out for calling her a boy."

"Thanks. I also didn't know she wasn't a Pokemon." Hotshot paused. "...You know, maybe when I grow stronger and evolve again..."

I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

After another pause, Hotshot looked at me with determined eyes. "Nobody's ever fueled the fire in my heart more. I think someone like her would make a great partner."

I chuckled. "I don't think it'd be a good idea for one of the bearers of harmony to get married, and to a Pokemon, no less."

"Wait, what? I'm not talking about marriage, pal. I was thinking of something completely different. I mean, that girl's got all the moves. You saw how she handled that Max Overgrowth! She dodged the seeds like a champ! I bet if she and I formed a team, we'd be unstoppable!"

"A team, huh? Sounds like a good idea. I might think about putting together a football team after completing the Gym Challenge." I then threw my cares away as I drifted off to sleep.

I opened my eyes. Everything was black. There was nothing that I could see, except for a small, pixelated flower before me. It had yellow petals. It also had a very weird, goat-like face. A speech bubble appeared above it: "Hi there, Helix! It's me, Disc--"

"No." I repeatedly cleaved the flower with my Leaf Blade, until the flower was no more. "I've no mercy for flowers who steal souls. Come back in a better form."

"Sheesh, okay! I was just trying to make an appropriate reference!" This time, a very strange creature's skeleton in a red suit proudly walked to me. "THEN THE GREAT DISCORD WILL SHOW HIS MIGHTY SKELETAL FORM!"

"Much better, Discord. First of all, what's with the gaming guises? And second of all, how are you in my dream? You're not Luna!"

Discord put on the outer layers of his body and therefore dropped his disguise. "To answer your first question, Button Mash is still in a state after a video game jumpscare. Just wanted to let you know what's going on here in the future. And to answer your second question... wait, why am I even answering that question? I'm Discord, for Celestia's sake!"

"I understand. Tell Button Mash that I truly feel sorry for him getting jumpscared by a video game. Also..." I raised an eyebrow. "Is that seriously the only reason you came to me in my dream?"

"Oh, goodness, no! The truth is, I came to you in your dream for a much more important purpose. I want to give you something that will help you a bunch during your adventure." Discord held out his hand, and in it was a golden twinkle of light. "Take this. You're gonna need it in case you find yourself running low on a little something called... resolve."

"Thanks." I took the light and held it in my wings. "But how do I use it? I mean, I've never actually been in whatever game this is associated with, so I don't know how it works."

"It's quite simple, really. But I don't like simple, so I'm gonna show you." Discord produced another twinkle of light and brought it to his chest. He then walked to his left, saying, "You got any one-hit KO moves? Then use one. Now."

"Okay." I transformed into a bipedal rhino with a rocky hide and a drill for a horn; a Rhydon. I then fired the Horn Drill at Discord's chest, causing him to clutch it in agony. "Too much?"

"No..." Discord groaned. "...just right." He then disappeared as a gray heart appeared where he once was. The heart broke in two before shattering. Moments later, Discord reappeared in his original position with no sign of being impaled. "Ta-da! And that's how you use the power of Record." Not that I'll need it. I never believed in recording my progress. I live as if there are no such things as saving and checkpoints. A tiny Discord appeared on Discord's shoulder and whispered something to him. "...Oh, okay." Discord turned back to me. "Well, I'd better get going. Someone else is gonna be your alarm clock."

Heeding Discord's warning, I woke up and rolled to my right just in time to avoid a blast from Pinkie Pie's iconic confetti-firing cannon. "Morning, Helix! Today's gonna be a party-packed day!"

"Good morning, Pinkie Pie." I sat up before looking at the confetti mess. "Looks like you've got your party cannon out. What's the occasion?"

"How could you forget, silly? We did the occasion yesterday! I'm celebrating day-after-fighting-a-giant-donkey day!"

"Glad to see that you like battling giant Pokemon. Hey, I've got a question for you: Do you like adventures?"

"You bet I do! The number-one reason why I go on adventures is to meet new creatures and make new friends! Better yet, I get to discover tons of new stuff like we did yesterday with that neat glowing well!"

"That's good to know. In that case, I have an idea for you and Rainbow Dash..." I took out an empty Poke Ball. "See this? It's a Poke Ball. These can be used to catch Pokemon. If you find any of these lying around the Wild Area, you'd best pick them up. To catch a Pokemon, just weaken it a little, and then throw the Poke Ball. It may take a few Poke Balls since Pokemon may break out of them, but once you hear the ball click shut, you know you've got yourself a new partner. With six Pokemon, your team's at full capacity, so you'll have to send others you catch to the PC.

"If you're really lucky, then you may find a Wishing Star. They look like dark indigo meteorites with glowing red cracks. Once you find one..." I pointed back to the Wild Area Station. "...then you should take it to the professor, at the end of Route 2. She'll hook you up with a Dynamax Band, so you can make your partners temporarily become giant!"

"Wow! Thanks, Helix!" Pinkie began to hug me, only for her hooves to go right through my Ghost-type body. "Oops! Forgot you were a ghost Pokemon. Anyway, I'm gonna go tell Rainbow Dash everything you just told me so that we can train Pokemon to be our best partners ever!" With that, she zipped out of my tent, allowing me to pack up and head towards the stairs leading into the city known as Motostoke.

Chapter 4: The Gym Challenge and a Noisy Nuisance

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 5: The Wishing Star Scavenger

Almost immediately after entering Route 3, my eyes spotted something that would be quite useful. "Hey, Doctor!" I pointed to a tree next to the entrance to Motostoke. "I think there's something under that tree. It's probably something that I don't need, so you can take it."

"Thank you, Helix." The Doctor walked over and picked up something. "Hmm, a mushroom? I wonder how I could use this..."

"A mushroom?" Mario went up to the Doctor to check out the mushroom. "This isn't like any of the mushrooms I've seen in the Mushroom Kingdom. What is it?"

Roborygon analyzed the mushroom. "Mushrooms like this one can be sold to shops for a high price, as can gold nuggets, pearls, and star pieces, among other things. Sorry, Mario, but you'll have to sell your mushrooms in another castle."

"Mama mia..." Mario shook his head at the corny pun.

We continued past some patches of grass, where I caught a flower-like Pokemon with a single green leg, a yellow flower "hat," and red hair. The Pokedex called it a Gossifleur. I would have added it to my party if I thought it had a strong, useful evolution like Seedot's.

As for the items along the route, I left them for the Doctor to pick up. I had brought along several healing and held items to Equestria in case I ran into a wild monster or two, so I didn't need the items around the route. Besides, the Doctor was just a rookie when it comes to Pokemon, so he really needed them in my opinion... Although I might regret calling him a rookie in the future.

The first three Trainers I ran into along the route were fairly easy to beat, given that my Magikarp, Rookidee, and Scorbunny had recently evolved thanks to Rainbow Dash and her skilled Pokemon; the first Trainer had the Fire-type Vulpix, the second had the Fighting-type Pancham, and the third had the Grass-type Budew and Gossifleur.

Not long after taking down schoolboy Marvin, I ran into Sonia again. "Hey, Sonia. How are you doing?"

"Oh, hey, guys! Y'know, you looked real ace out there during the opening ceremony! Oh, but where were Pummel and the Doctor? I didn't see them at the ceremony."

The Doctor gave Sonia an unsure look. "Honestly, I'm not quite sure if you'd understand. By any chance, have you ever heard of this strange little Pokemon called Hoopa?"

"Hoopa?" Sonia put a hand to her chin in thought. "I haven't heard of that Pokemon before. I wonder of Gran's heard of it."

"I see. Well, the reason I asked about Hoopa is because apparently it used a strange portal of some sort to take me and Pummel to this parallel counterpart of the Galar region. Now, isn't that the oddest thing?"

"You were thrown into a parallel Galar region and took part in that region's Gym Challenge opening ceremony? You're right, that is pretty strange. But why a parallel Galar region?"

Pummel shrugged. "We'll find out soon enough."

Suddenly, Sonia seemed to remember something. "Oh! Let me tell you about something that's a bit interesting." She pointed along the fenced-off path, towards what looked like a factory. "See that building over there? It's a company owned by Chairman Rose. Just past Route 3, there's a mine where they dig up ore. That building over there processes it into energy."

"That must mean that the chairman is responsible for providing the Galar region with energy," Tails summarized. "It's nice to see that the chairman cares so much for this region."

"Yeah, he does seem like a pretty brilliant guy. By the way, I've got a little something for you if the mine gives you any trouble." She held out a coil of rope. "It's an Escape Rope. Any of you want it?"

Lucario obliged. "I'll take it." He slung the rope around his right shoulder.

"Why would you want the Escape Rope? You're a Pokemon!"

Lucario gave a small smile. "I'm just holding onto it in case a friend of mine arrives. He might want this."

"All right. That makes sense. Just be careful, all of you. The way to Turffield is pretty long, so that's kind of a challenge in its own right. Good luck, guys!" Sonia went on ahead and left us to continue our adventure.

The Doctor stopped to pick up a Revive on a nearby rock while the rest of us ventured into the tall grass. This grass was thriving with coal on wheels. I chose to catch one of them--Rolycoly, as I soon learned they were called--but I sent it to the PC. Its name suggested that it would become a Rock- and Fire-type, because coal is used to contain heat, but I already had a Fire-type.

I went south to fight a schoolgirl who had a Purrloin and a Skwovet before encountering a berry tree. Unlike the trees in Kalos, the berries didn't naturally fall down. I had to forcefully shake them out of the tree. I gave it a good shake, and two berries came down: An Oran and a Rawst Berry. I saw more berries in the tree, so I shook it some more. This time, two Oran Berries and a Persim Berry came down. Feeling brave, I shook it again, and down came a Pecha Berry and a Rawst Berry. Another shake, and then came two Pecha Berries and a Persim Berry. One more shake... Thud!

This time, I shook a cherry-like Cherubi out of the tree. Surprised by being shaken out of its home, it took me on in a battle. I was able to catch it with help from Kilowatt's Nuzzle. Having caught Cherubi, I went to pick up the berries, only to discover that they were gone!

"Hey, Helix!" I looked back north and found Keldeo making off with some berries. "Sorry about this, but I'm just teaching you a lesson about why you shouldn't get greedy! Other Pokemon can take the berries away if you shake trees too much and get dragged into a surprise battle!"

"Well, that's new," I chuckled to myself.

I continued down the path to a dead end, where I found the TM for Beat Up. I went back up the path and took down a postman who owned a Delibird; that's when I realized I would need Rolycoly, so I sent Gyarados to the PC and brought Rolycoly into my party. Luckily, my Seedot can evolve into a part Dark-type, so I'd still easily defeat Ghost-types when it came time to evolve.

Not long after the postman, I found a lady who had set up camp with her Pokemon. She was happy to explain to me the HP and PP-restoring effects of curries and offered me a Cheri Berry. She also said to feel free to visit other people's camps. If I had to guess, it's likely easier to get to know someone by means of camping rather than battling. That way, people can meet each other's Pokemon.

This particular camp housed a Wooloo, Vulpix, Yamper, a weed Pokemon called Oddish, a fruit Pokemon called Bounsweet, and a dangerously cute Stufful. I chose to play fetch with the Yamper and play with the Vulpix and Stufful using the Poke Toy included in the camping kit. However, Bounsweet kept a safe distance from me, for Bounsweet are often the victims of bird Pokemon due to their alluring scent. Take it from me, whose current species is the fully evolved form of Rowlet, who repeatedly went after Bounsweet starting in episode 3 of the Pokemon Sun and Moon anime.

I also joined the camper and made curry together. This time, her key ingredient was... precooked burger. Yeah, apparently you can put anything into Galarian curry. This time, we did much better with the curry than back in the Wild Area. We cooked a Sweet Burger-Steak Curry, and it was one step above Milcery Class, Copperajah Class. Copperajah is apparently a bulky elephant Pokemon with a hand-like trunk.

After camping, I fought a schoolboy who had a Sizzlipede--a Fire-and Bug-type centipede (with a chevron mustache) who fell victim to my Rolycoly's Smack Down in one shot--and a Dottler that was easily beaten by Hotshot. After the schoolboy, I found a container with a Super Potion in a bare patch near a large grass patch home to several Rolycoly. I left the container alone because I had plenty of Hyper Potions.

I took on a handful of Rolycoly to get my team leveled up before I went to the entrance of what must have been a mine, a nearby sign confirming it to be the Galar Mine. As I took down the Pokemon, the Doctor went ahead and grabbed some X Defenses in a patch of flowers to the right of the entrance.

When we entered the Galar Mine, the Doctor was quite impressed. "I must say, I've never been in a mine before. This one in particular really captures my attention, but I don't know why. Perhaps it's because I've been holed up in my lab for such a long period of time that I lost my curiosity when it came to actual adventures. Helix, I once again thank you for revitalizing my desire for adventure by helping me construct a real time machine!"

I smiled. "Glad to help, Doctor. It's just what friends do."

"You know," Pinkie said, "I really thought the Galar Mine would have a lot more gems and stuff. Instead, there's just so much brown!"

"Don't fret, Pinkie." Hop showed her the map on his Rotom Phone. "This is just the coal mine. If you want a bunch of gems..." He pointed towards the right side of the map. "...you'll need to head over to Galar Mine No. 2! It takes a lot of energy to keep Galar filled to the brim with energy, so we need two mines."

"Oh, that makes sense. I wonder if there are any rocks in this mine that my sister Maud would like. She really likes rocks!"

"Your sister likes rocks? Maybe she'd be good friends with Gordie, the Rock-type Gym Leader!"

"Maybe. I'll have to get to know Gordie and decide for myself!"

We continued into the mine, where I took down a few bipedal, log-carrying Pokemon called Timburr, and Pinkie tried to go after a rather swift mole Pokemon called Drilbur. Unfortunately, it drilled out of sight, leaving her to continue with us along a railroad. The Doctor turned left off the railway to find a hidden Revive and take on a worker with a black rock Pokemon that had a single ear, Roggenrola. We went further along the path and found a container on another path that we couldn't reach at the moment. It turned out that the path with the container was actually connected to our path, so the Doctor took that path and opened the container while I went through an additional exit that led back to Route 3, but to a previously inaccessible portion that offered the TM for Rock Blast.

We went back to the main path along the railroad before finding another fork in the road. The Doctor began to challenge another worker to a battle, but he learned that Pinkie had already beaten her and her three Timburr. Surprised by that, he chose to go further east only to find Pinkie pilfering a hidden bag of Stardust. I turned back and returned to following the railway so the Doctor could pick up the TM for Scary Face. The railway ended at an open area with a couple of Rolycoly rolling around. Rather than fight them, I picked up a hidden Hard Stone and gave it to my Rolycoly, whom I chose to name Rollanratl, after the boss that Wario fights in the latest Wario Land game.

I battled a worker who had the mole-like Diglett and a Drilbur before crossing a wooden bridge. On the northern end of the bridge, I fought a worker that had a Rolycoly before I found some black boots with red logos next to a gem-filled minecart. My Rotom Phone called them Heavy-Duty Boots and said they were used to avoid the affects of entry hazards such as Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes, even though a grounded Poison-type will still remove the effects of the latter if switched in.

Something that sounded like rolling caught my attention. I turned to look down a second railway and saw the strangest thing. And I'm not talking about Pinkie riding four Rolycoly as if they were roller skates... I'm talking about the living minecart made of coal, carrying a load of red-hot coal, which Pinkie was chasing by using the Rolycoly roller skates. "I'm gonna get you, coal minecart!" Pinkie said playfully.

"Here, I'll help." I pulled one of the two vines on my cloak before preparing an arrow quill to fire using the vine. I fired the arrow quill so that it jammed the minecart's front right wheel, causing the Pokemon to careen off the tracks and tip onto its side. Upon closer inspection, the minecart Pokemon had a face with two triangular eyes and a mouth that seemed to glow bright orange occasionally, as if on the verge of becoming ablaze. "I wonder who this Pokemon is..."

Rollanratl came out of its Poke Ball. "Carkol? That's my evolution that's been rolling around earlier. If you wanna catch him, you better move fast!"

My Rotom Phone warned, "Careful, it's part Fire-type. Avoid using Grass-type Pokemon against it."

"Okay." The Doctor sent out Bite Force. "Use Water Gun!"

"Wait, don't--!"

Rotom's warning came too late, for Bite Force's Water Gun successfully hit its target. However, this seemed to enrage the Carkol, because it was steaming and its eyes glowed orange. "Nice try, squirt, but you only helped me. Time for a steam-powered Rapid Spin!" Carkol rammed into Bite Force at a surprisingly high speed.

"I was about to say," Rotom sighed, "that Carkol can have the Steam Engine ability. This drastically increases their speed if hit by a Water- or Fire-type move."

I growled. "Darn. This really makes up for their Water-type weakness. I'll have to remember to use Ground-types against Carkol..."

The Doctor turned to Luigi. "Say, do you have any ice-based items? I know fire is strong against ice, but still, icy things should help."

"Let's-a see..." Luigi reached into his overalls to find something. "...I've-a got it!" He pulled out a flower with a sky blue face. He brought it to his chest and absorbed it, causing his hat and shirt to turn sky blue and his overalls to turn green. "Oh yeah, Ice Luigi time!"

"I'll shatter your hopes of beating me!" Carkol engulfed itself in flames and charged towards Ice Luigi.

"I'm-a putting you on ice!" Ice Luigi rapidly tossed balls of ice at Carkol. At first, they didn't do much, but as the ice balls piled on, Carkol slowed more and more until it was frozen in a block of ice. "Wahoo! I did it!"

Then I remembered to bring up the Donphan in the room--er, cave. "Pinkie, were those Rolycoly that you were using to chase Carkol?"

"Yep!"

"Did you... catch all of them?"

Pinkie laughed. "No, silly! What point is there to catching a ton of the same Pokemon other than catching every form of a Pokemon? I'm gonna build up a team of all sorts of different Pokemon!" And then, she started vibrating. "Uh oh, my Pinkie Sense is tingling!"

Meta Knight stealthily appeared again. "Hmm, what is this Pinkie Sense you speak of? I still do not understand."

Lucario explained, "In a nutshell, Pinkie Sense is Pinkie's body's way of predicting the near future. For instance, a twitchy tail means something will fall from the sky. An itchy nose means a swarm of bees is approaching. And shaking, like she is doing now, means... it's going to be a doozy. In what way, I cannot tell you, because this Pinkie Sense reaction covers a fairly wide variety of things. One time, it referred to Twilight deciding to just stop trying to figure out Pinkie Sense. Another time, it preceded Kirby becoming Harmony Kirby. Who knows what it foretells this time?"

Pinkie glanced along the second railway, and she suddenly stopped shaking. "I think I do." She ran towards the end of the track, where a much too familiar face was searching for something. "Hey, sorry I was in your--"

The boy in pink stopped her. "You there, little pink thing. Coming this way? I'd advise against it. Any Trainer, even a horse, is in for a beating from me and my Pokemon!"

"That's the second time he's been rude to Pinkie. I'm not putting up with this." The Doctor approached him. "That is no way to speak to the pony who wields the element of laughter! You have no right to belittle her!"

The boy glared at him. "You. You're one of the Gym Challengers endorsed by the Champion, aren't you?"

The Doctor nodded. "As a matter of fact, we all are, including Pinkie Pie."

The boy scoffed. "What a joke. You are aware that the chairman is more important than the Champion, right?"

"I beg your pardon? Are you saying that those who are endorsed by the Champion are inferior to those who are endorsed by the chairman, therefore making us inferior to you?"

"Hmm, so you really are smart enough to recognize that. At least you have a fair amount of deductive skill."

The Doctor was growing more annoyed. "You are an insult to Trainers all around Galar! Calling yourself more amazing than us simply due to ascribed status... Absolute rubbish! I theorize that all people and ponies are created equal, and you dare to challenge our equality? If anything, you are the one who is inferior to us!"

"You would dare to challenge my superiority? I accept your challenge, in order to prove beyond doubt just how pathetic you are and how strong I am." He tossed his Great Ball. "I'd like to see how you get past Solosis." From the Great Ball came a cell on the verge of splitting in two, given the partially divided nucleus with the eyes and mouth.

"A cell-like Pokemon, I see. I would think that such a mentally-skilled organism would easily fall victim to my latest evolution..." The Doctor sent out a green larva Pokemon that somewhat resembled a battery; I recognized the Pokemon from my adventures in Alola. "Behold, my Charjabug!"

"That little larva doesn't stand a chance against the building blocks of living things. Cells can kill if they want to. Solosis, use Confusion!" Solosis emitted a psychic energy that made direct contact with Charjabug.

Charjabug's eyes flickered on and off. "Chances of attacks hitting wrong target increased to thirty percent..."

The Doctor stomped his hoof in frustration. "Why, you've gone and confused my partner! Seems like I need to take the initiative with a means to cure his confusion..." He got an idea. "That's it! Charjabug, turn forty-five degrees counterclockwise and use String Shot! When it hits something, pull it in!"

"Initiating String Shot maneuvers." Charjabug followed the Doctor's orders, and its string attached to an empty oil barrel. When he pulled, the barrel slammed into Charjabug, knocking him back to his senses. "Distortion removed. Attack efficiency returned to normal."

The Doctor smiled. "Curing confusion is like making omelettes: you have to crack a few eggs. Charjabug, reel in Solosis with String Shot, then use Bug Bite!"

"Undergoing fishing rod approach." Charjabug made contact with Solosis using String Shot. As soon as he pulled Solosis in, he opened his mandibles to unleash a Bug Bite for the win.

The boy scoffed. "Don't think you have a chance to beat me. I just gave your Pokemon a little chance to shine, that's all. Fall victim to my next Pokemon, Gothita!" He sent out what I can only describe as a baby goth girl.

The Doctor carefully analyzed Gothita. "It appears I'm up against another Psychic-type. I still have the advantage. Charjabug, close the distance with Spark!"

"Activating electricity generators." Charjabug's eyes glowed yellow as it charged forward.

"Use Psybeam, and aim to the left of Charjabug!" Gothita fired a psychic laser towards Charjabug's left, and the impact knocked Charjabug onto its side. "Face it, your Charjabug doesn't stand a chance. Gothita, use Tickle!"

Gothita used its ribbons and stubby hands to tickle Charjabug's belly. This seemed to baffle Charjabug. "Stimulus causing uncontrollable spasms and unnatural amount of endorphins. Does not compute, does not compute...!"

"Now to end this. Use Pound!" Gothita slapped Charjabug with its short arms, which did a considerable amount of damage after Tickle lowered Charjabug's attack power and defense. This was enough to knock out Charjabug. "I told you not to underestimate me."

"But there's more where that came from. Good luck taking down my next Pokemon!" The Doctor sent out a fox that appeared to be wearing a black domino mask and an evil mustache. "It's your turn, Bandit!"

My Rotom Phone got to work. "Thievul, the Fox Pokemon, and the evolved form of Nickit. A Dark-type, Thievul secretly marks its targets with a scent, which it uses to track down and stalk them."

The Doctor said, "And my Rotom Phone told me that Thievul use their slender body type and sharp claws to sneak around stealing eggs. Pokemon called Boltund are their natural enemies."

"And you named him Bandit?" I chuckled. "Love the name you gave your Thievul, Doctor."

"Why, thank you. I'm honestly not a very original pony when it comes to nicknaming, perhaps because this is the first time I've been allowed the chance to give a being a nickname. Bandit, time to use Hone Claws!"

Bandit scratched the ground with his claws. "Time to get these sharp and shiny!"

The boy scoffed. "You're wasting a turn to merely improve your attack power and accuracy? Pathetic. You've just left yourself open to another helping of Pound!" Gothita waddled ahead for another Pound.

"Ah, but you've only seen one of Bandit's moves. Use Tail Whip!" Bandit proceeded to slam Gothita's face with his tail, knocking her off her feet. "Pokemon moves don't have to be used the way they're normally used. I learned from watching one of Helix's battles. Follow through with Assurance!" Bandit pounced on the defenseless Gothita, defeating it.

The boy sighed. "Oh dear, what have I been doing? Well, whatever. I'll just get this over with. Meet my trump card, Hatenna!" He sent out a small pink Pokemon that consisted of a head with blue hair covering its eyes. The hair on the sides appeared to act as limbs, and behind the hair was a hat-like protrusion topped with a blue spherical growth. Additionally, Hatenna had two small, stubby feet.

Before we could check our Rotom Phones, Roborygon spoke up, although quietly. "Please allow me to give the entry for Hatenna, the Calm Pokemon. A Psychic-type, Hatenna has a strong sense of emotion and can sense others' emotions by means of its hat-like protrusion, hence the name. It never warms up to those without a calm disposition and will immediately run away if it senses a strong emotion."

Hearing Hatenna's Pokedex entry, we all lowered our voices. The Doctor said, "It's quite nice to know that not all Pokemon are rambunctious creatures. Bandit, use Assurance once more." Bandit began to pounce again.

"You won't get away with that again. Disarming Voice!" Hatenna let loose a charming cry that did a fair amount of damage to Thievul. "In case you foolish Gym Challengers don't know, Disarming Voice cannot be avoided."

I told the Doctor, "Disarming Voice is a Fairy-type move, which is super effective against Dark-types."

"Duly noted. Perhaps I should change tactics." The Doctor recalled Bandit and sent out Ukiki. "If I can't dodge Disarming Voice, then I'll just overpower it. Use Razor Leaf!"

"Disarming Voice, again!" Hatenna used its charming cry again. However, the razor-sharp leaves cleaved right through the cry, landing a critical hit on Hatenna. This was enough to knock it out.

The boy glared at the Doctor as he withdrew his last Pokemon. "Well, that was unexpected. I suppose you're more able than I thought."

The Doctor shook his head as he chuckled to himself. "I may only be a beginner when it comes to Pokemon, but that doesn't mean I can't be good at it. Everyone has to start somewhere to get to where they are now."

"And I started at the very top, because I was endorsed by the chairman himself, as I told you earlier. The only reason why you beat me is because I was holding back, to see what you could do. Naturally, I'll remember your battle style and strategies now. I'm sure to easily defeat you if and when we face each other in an official match. Now that we've established that, I won't waste anymore time on you. I've already found all the Wishing Stars in the area." He proceeded to exit the Galar Mine without delay.

I sighed. "For every Hau, there's always a Gladion..."

"I beg your pardon," the Doctor replied, "but could you explain your analogy? I do not recognize either of those names."

"Oh, sorry about that. I forgot you haven't been to Alola. You see, back in Alola, I made two major rivals: Hau and Gladion. Hau's a cheerful, easygoing guy, while Gladion is a dark and brooding boy. Of course, that doesn't mean Gladion is a bad guy."

My powerful auditory senses picked up Lucario chuckling to himself. "Hah... What a fool..."

Pinkie asked him, "What is it? Something funny? Who's a fool? Why's the person you're talking about a fool? Is today April 1st and I don't even know it?! Please, tell us!"

Lucario paused for a long time. Then he turned to us with a devious grin. "About what he said before he left..." He showed us something in his paws. A small group of Wishing Stars, held together by the Escape Rope. "...Bede missed some." He gave the Wishing Stars to those of us who had not yet obtained them, and said challengers used their own Escape Ropes to leave the mine, presumably to get their Dynamax Bands.

"Bede?" I asked. "Is that the unbearably rude Psychic-type user's name?"

Pinkie answered, "Yep, that's his name! I figured it out when he pushed me away back in Motostoke Stadium. Turned out his Challenge Band had his name imprinted on it!"

"Really?" The Doctor checked his Challenge Band. "So they do imprint our names on them! That is nice to know. Pinkie, you could probably remember the names of every challenger if you looked at their Challenge Bands."

Before we proceeded to the end of the mine, I felt something rock in the Team Pocket of my coat. I took out the two Poke Balls that were rocking and sent out the Pokemon within. So, my Seedot and Rollanratl were ready. As expected, Rollanratl evolved into Carkol. Seedot's new species had bulky beige thighs, thin arms with mitten-like hands, a long pointed nose, and a leaf atop its head.

I turned to the Doctor. "Say hello to Nuzleaf."

I took out my Rotom Phone. "Nuzleaf, the Wily Pokemon. A Grass- and Dark-type, Nuzleaf live in the depths of forests. With the leaf on its head, it makes a flute whose song makes those who listen feel uneasy."

The Doctor checked his Rotom Phone. "It appears my Rotom Phone's Pokedex entry has the same data."

Roborygon joined the conversation. "But that isn't all you need to know about Nuzleaf. They hate having their nose pinched because it takes away their power. And while Nuzleaf live deep in forests, they will come out to frighten people. Now that we've got that taken care of..."

He prepared to announce something, but I cut him off. "Wait a minute." I turned to Rollanratl. "By any chance, might you have a second evolution? One that might look like, say, a locomotive?"

Rollanratl gave me an unsure look. "Actually... I don't know. I've only seen Rolycoly and Carkol around here. If I do have a second evolution, though, I'd sure like to evolve into it!"

"Okay. One more try." Roborygon announced to nobody in particular, "Back to adventure!"

Chapter 6: Fierce Felines and the Fighting Farmer

Upon exiting the Galar Mine, we were greeted by the rural landscape that was Route 4. Much of the grass on the route had turned yellow from aging, but that did not keep the route from looking stunning. As a matter of fact, it only made the environment even more so. In a nutshell, Route 4 was a place fit for a farmer... Wait a minute. Farmer? I thought back to the Gym Challenge opening ceremony, back to what Chairman Rose said. The fighting farmer! Here's the Grass-type expert, Milo! Come to think of it, I could also see the first Gym in the distance, and I could make out a green symbol on it.

I gripped Rollanratl's Poke Ball in my wing. "Thank you for evolving into Carkol," I said with a smile.

The Ball rocked, almost as if it was responding to my gratitude.

I visited the Pokemon Camp of a backpacker named Molly. She and a kid in an Eevee costume visiting her camp collectively had the Pokemon Munna (a pink tapir Pokemon that feeds on positive dreams), Woobat (a bat Pokemon with no eyes, light blue fur, and a heart-shaped nose that attaches to the walls of caves), Ralts (a small bipedal Pokemon with green hair covering its eyes, a white "robe," and two small red horns, one on the front and one on the back of its head; Ralts grow quite attached to people with a compassionate spirit but otherwise never appear), Ribombee (a bee-like fairy Pokemon that can produce pollen balls that can heal or hurt), Bronzor (looks like a circular device made of bronze), Milcery, and the world-famous Pikachu.

I decided to share my thoughts on visiting the Galar region with Ralts before I played with Pikachu using the Poke Toy. After that, I figured I should cook a curry with the other Trainers. I was about to toss my berries into the pot when...

"Hey! What did I ever do to provoke you?!" I heard the Doctor shout.

I quickly hurried over to the yellow grass, where the Doctor was being chased by a bipedal feline with a grayish-brown coat, a black coin on its forehead, yellow eyes, and a toothy grin. "Ye didn't do a thing! I'm fighting ye 'cause I want to!"

"Get away from the Doctor, you feisty Meowth who is apparently native to Galar!" I fired a Spirit Shackle, but to my surprise, the feline Pokemon deflected it using his coin.

"You've a fine aim, lad, but ye can't pierce my iron body! Ha ha ha!" And then he came after me, his black claws extended and ready to slash.

"This is too easy." I used Low Sweep, knocking the Galarian Meowth off his hind legs using my right talons. I plucked an arrow quill from my wing, and it became elongated and covered in a green glow. That's when I slashed at Meowth with the Leaf Blade. "I'll return to the Galar region later in order to complete my Pokedex. This one's yours to catch, Doctor!"

"Thanks, Helix!" The Doctor successfully caught the Galarian Meowth, replacing his Thievul with it. "I wouldn't be surprised if this beastly feline could learn a few Dark-type moves."

"You're telling me!" Pinkie appeared out of nowhere and sent out a Meowth that had cream-colored fur, a golden coin, and white eyes. It was a Kantonian Meowth. "This little guy tried to bite me when I went to check out his shiny forehead coin, so I'd be extra careful about that Meowth you just caught."

"A Meowth from Kanto?" I asked. "Where did you find it?"

"I just found it in my Pokemon Box when I visited the Rotomi in Wedgehurst. The Rotomi said something about somecreature wanting to deposit the Meowth under my name. I'm not sure why whoever gave it to me would do that. And Doctor, I wouldn't use that Galar Meowth in the third Gym if I were you. He'd probably melt under the pressure!"

"What are you talking about?" The Doctor checked his Rotom Phone. "Well, isn't that something! Galarian Meowth are Steel-types!"

"As I expected," I replied. "That Meowth suffered great damage from my Low Sweep, which is a Fighting-type attack. You should keep him away from Pokemon that can breathe fire, Pokemon skilled in martial arts, and Pokemon that can control earth."

"I very much appreciate your advice, Helix." The Doctor turned to Pinkie. "By the way, you made fast time returning to Route 4, and that was fast even according to the standards regarding you!"

"Huh," I exclaimed in realization. "You're quite right, Doctor. Pinkie, how is it that you got here so fast?"

Pinkie seemed really surprised by this. "Hold on a minute! You're telling me that you noticed me show up, but you never saw that?!" She pointed with her hoof towards what appeared to be a cable car that, rather than being pulled by a cable, was carried by a large raven Pokemon that had iron armor covering its whole body, aside from some chest fluff. On the raven's back was a man in aviation gear. "Sure seems like you haven't used a Flying Taxi yet. They're really fun!"

I looked at the iron raven inquisitively. "...Do I have to trade away a Corvisquire holding a Metal Coat in order for it to evolve into you?"

It looked back at me with a bemused expression. "You say that as if you've never encountered bird Pokemon that have three species in their evolutionary family."

I shuddered from its bold response, and partially because I have encountered said bird Pokemon. "That answers my question. I admit, you are one of the few creatures who were able to genuinely unnerve me."

The Doctor chuckled. "I imagine that this Pokemon's fierce behavior would be mentioned in its Pokedex entry."

"Wait for it..." Pinkie said as she trotted onward.

"Wait for what?" the Doctor asked.

I shrugged. "We'll see. She's been known to foresee things. How long we'll have to wait, nopony knows."

With that, we continued along Route 4. The Doctor searched every paddock for Pokemon to catch and items to gather, while I peeked into the paddocks every now and then to see if there was anything important to find like held items and Poke Balls. Surprisingly, there were more hidden items than those found in containers. Of course, TMs were still only found in yellow containers, as the Doctor discovered when he found the TM for Pin Missile. One thing that truly surprised me was that the Doctor picked up every bag of powder, herb, and health-boosting roots. "Hey! Don't you know that those are bitter?"

"Of course I do, Helix. Ponies such as myself are vegetarian, and besides, our stomachs are accustomed to bitter herbs." Then the Doctor realized what I was talking about. "...Oh, you mean these are for Pokemon to consume. I suppose that is a small predicament. I'm sure that there are plenty of Pokemon that do not enjoy bitter herbs such as these. Still, I should hang onto these anyway, in case of an emergency."

I joined the Doctor in the western paddock, where he was searching to make sure that he didn't miss any new Pokemon. I caught another Electric-type canine Pokemon, an Electrike, before I overheard some commotion, the source of said commotion somewhere below us.

"Hey, Dug?"

"Yeah, Dig?"

"I've been thinking, and I feel that I've made up my mind. I've waited way too long. It's time for me to evolve!"

"You're kidding, Dig! We can't evolve until there's three Diglett! Right now, it's just you and me."

Having heard enough, I took out my Expedition Gadget. "Hey, Dedenne? Can I get the Ground-type Masters on the line?"

"Sure, Helix. Give me just a moment." I waited patiently for her to get the Ground-type Master Pokemon, who are the most skilled Ground-type Pokemon in the world recruited by the Expedition Society. For your information, there exists one (or two, in the case of couples) individual Pokemon who is/are the best of the best whenever it comes to specific stats or types. These Pokemon have been chosen to join the Expedition Society, and they have been dubbed Master Pokemon. For instance, a certain Greninja is the evasion Master Pokemon, and a certain Gengar is the Ghost-type Master Pokemon.

The Ground-type Master Pokemon picked up. "Hello, dearie. How can we help?"

"Oh, hello, Miss Trio," I replied. "Is your husband available?"

"Of course. Let me get him."

Seconds later... "Hello, hello, hello, Helix! Need some ground-breaking help?"

I answered, "Not exactly. I'm over in Galar, and there's a couple of Kantonian Diglett who want to evolve. Are you okay with sending your son over here to Route 4? The Diglett will be in the west paddock."

"The Galar region, huh? Well, our boy is level 20, so I think he's ready to go without us. Hey, Doug! You want to take a trip to Galar? Helix says there's some Diglett on Route 4 who need your help... Okay, Helix! He's on his way! I just hope he doesn't get self-conscious about getting out of the ground to swim. We Diglett and Dugtrio don't really like to take our claws out of the ground..." Then he hung up.

"Pinkie Pie, over here!" I called out to the pink pony, who was having a fun time with her Milcery. "Can you keep an eye out on this paddock? There's going to be a Diglett coming here to meet up with two other Diglett. You'll get to throw an evolution party when he arrives."

"An evolution party? You can count on me! I've never thrown an evolution party before, but I'll be sure to make it really evolutionary!" Pinkie dashed over to the paddock while the Doctor and I continued onward with Pummel and Heart.

"...Actually, hold on a minute." I looked back at Pinkie. "Where's Rainbow Dash?"

"She's back in the Wild Area training her Pokemon."

"In that case, the party can wait. You've more pressing matters to attend to." I called up the Flying Taxi and put Pinkie inside the cab. "Go to the Wild Area and tell Rainbow that her Pokemon won't obey her if she doesn't have the proper amount of Gym Badges. She'll know if her Pokemon will obey if she checks the back of her Trainer Card."

"Thanks for telling me! Okay, Flying Taxi, let's go to East Lake Axewell!" The iron raven flew off with Pinkie inside the car.

We continued onward to a fork in the road. The path north led straight to Turffield, while the path east led to a dead end between two paddocks, and a Wooloo rolling our way. I casually asked Heart's Drizzile to lob a water balloon up into the air, and I positioned myself between Pummel and the Wooloo.

The Doctor asked me, "You are aware that the Wooloo is heading straight for you, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah, what about it?"

"Aren't you worried that it will..." The Wooloo rolled right through my spectral body, instead bumping into Pummel, who did not flinch. The water balloon from earlier landed directly on Wooloo, soaking it. "...Oh. I hadn't realized that Normal-type Pokemon moves could not harm you. And that was a brilliantly crafted practical joke!"

"Why, thank you." I smiled. "I've always been exceptional at putting together wonderful plans. As for the Normal-type Pokemon not hitting me, that is because my species, Decidueye, is part Ghost-type."

A familiar face from the Gym Challenge ceremony took the same path the Wooloo took to reach us, and he certainly seemed surprised. "Are my eyes deceiving me, or did Wooloo really roll right through you?"

I sighed. "Decidueye such as myself are part Ghost-types. Normal-type attacks go right through me, quite literally." I stepped backward with a smirk, revealing Pummel and the soaked Wooloo. "You should be more concerned about this little guy, Milo."

Milo was quite shocked. "My, are you okay? What happened to you?"

Drizzile and I laughed. "A practical joke involving my type and Drizzile's water balloon. No harm done."

"Whew, that's a relief..." Milo then seemed to realize who we were. "Oh? Wait, you're some of those Gym Challengers, right?"

I began to answer, but the Doctor beat me to it. "Yes, indeed! Allow me to introduce us. I go by several names, but I prefer Doctor Hooves, or simply Doctor. This is my closest friend, Helix. And last we have the mother-son duo of Heart Fist and Pummel Fist."

"Ah, I knew you looked familiar. I saw you out in the crowd during the opening ceremony." Milo shook each of our hands (or in the Doctor's case, hooves). He then gave a warm smile. "You probably already know, but my name's Milo. I'm a Gym Leader who's rather partial to Grass-type Pokemon. To be honest, I've been itching to see just how good the Champion-endorsed Gym Challengers such as yourselves are. Let me find out at the Gym Stadium! Just get past the rest of this route, and you'll run right into my..." Before he could finish, we saw the Doctor make off for the Turffield Gym. "...And what do you know! Seems the Doctor can't wait to take on my Gym mission!"

I raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry? What exactly is a Gym mission?"

"Every Gym has its own mission you have to complete before challenging the Gym Leader! Have you ever been to Gyms in other regions? They've got missions of their own..."

"...Except that Galar's Gyms have more advanced Gym missions than other regions!"

"That's right! Now then, I'll see you there!" Milo went to the Gym, with Pummel carrying the Wooloo along as its surprisingly impact-resistant wool dried. "Thanks for the help, Pummel! Wooloo can't roll easily if their wool gets too wet. The wool won't retain its shape very well."

My main objective was the Turffield Gym, but first, it was time to explore the town.

Chapter 7: Heroes of Herding! The First Gym

Turffield was exactly what I expected it to be: a rural town that offered many natural wonders. My amazement at Turffield's beauty, unhindered by man's creations except for a Pokemon Center, the Gym, and other houses made of natural resources, was increased further by the fact that Decidueye are part Grass-type. At first, I did not have a clue of where to go first. There were a great variety of things to discover, not to mention a possible chance to learn more about Galar's history! Luckily, I hadn't the need to worry, for our friend Hop left the Pokemon Center to the left of the path straight to the Gym.

He waved us over. "Hey guys! You doing all right?"

I replied, "We certainly are. I can't say our team went unharmed, though. We hit a couple of rough patches on the way here, but they weren't too bad. Once we heal our teams up, we should be ready to take on Milo at the Turffield Stadium. Although, I think we'll have to wait a bit for our turn. You should've seen the Doctor make a mad dash for the stadium!"

Hop laughed. "So that's what I heard outside! Sounded like an excited Rapidash out there! Not sure why he'd be that pumped to take on Milo, though."

"I think I know." Keldeo took out something from the cerulean saddle bag he wore on his back. It was a large crimson book with three symbols on the cover: a blue wing, a purple six-pointed star, and a green leaf. They were connected by lines that formed a triangle, and in the center of the triangle, there was a pink heart. "Can someone turn the book to the chapter on earth ponies? The ink dried since I wrote it, so I can't manipulate the pages as well with my magic."

"No problem, Keldeo." Hop took the book and flipped to the aforementioned chapter. "Well, isn't that neat! Says here that earth ponies are associated with nature and the land. That'd mean they must be fond of Grass-type Pokemon. But I don't see what that has to do with the Doctor."

"Oh, right! I never told you what exactly an earth pony is. Basically, earth ponies are ponies that don't have wings or horns. That means Doctor Hooves and Pinkie Pie are earth ponies."

"Thanks a lot! By the way, this is a really cool book you've got. You said something about writing it?"

Keldeo smiled. "You bet! See, I've been thinking that I wanted to learn as much as I could about Equestria and the lands near it, so I did some traveling. I took what I learned and put it into writing. I put that information into categories, and those categories became the chapters in a book. Eventually, I had to put together a couple more books, because there's so much in Equestria to learn about! This issue is about the different kinds of ponies, and it's called History of Equestria: What Makes a Pony?"

"Awesome!" Hop gave back the book. "You should become an official author!"

"I might do that part-time someday, but I'm still a Sword of Justice. That's a career I'll never give up!"

"Good idea. I'm sure your partners must need you! Hey, while we're at it, Sonia was looking for you guys. She wanted to ask you about something. Where's the rest of you guys? You're all probably gonna want to hear about what she has to say."

I turned south and looked towards the sky. When my eyes adjusted to the sunlight, I grinned. "They're coming right now."

First came Tails, using his doubled namesake to fly. Then came Pinkie and Rainbow Dash, the former riding the latter. "Get ready, Gym, 'cause Rainbow Dash is gonna blow you away!" Rainbow said before speeding off to the stadium.

Next came Meta Knight, using his cape which was currently transformed into a pair of bat wings. After him came Sonic, whom we were expecting to come first. "...What? I took the scenic route, found some Pokemon to fight and catch."

Next was Paper Mario, folded into an airplane. After him, Lucario bounded towards us from the plains of Route 4. Then came Mario, using the body of a pigeon Pokemon called Tranquill to fly over.

Hop was astonished when Mario exited the Tranquill's body. "Whoa! Did you just pop out of that Tranquill's body?!"

"Thank you so much, Tranquill!" Mario returned it to its Poke Ball. He turned to Hop. "Yeah, I did. I don't think I introduced you yet, so I'd like you to meet my friend..." He tossed his cap into the air, and it transformed into a top hat-shaped ghost. "...Cappy!"

Hop shook Cappy's hand. "Nice to meet you! Are you some kind of new Pokemon?"

"Nah," Cappy replied. "I'm a Bonneter, from the Cap Kingdom. My species can Capture various creatures, like you saw with Tranquill."

"That's pretty cool, Cappy! Anything else you can do?"

Before Cappy could reply, Bandana Dee made his way over by twirling his spear like a helicopter rotor. After Bandana, Luigi nimbly leaped over Route 4's paddocks and slid to a halt in front of Hop. Shortly after, King Dedede came crashing down after jumping out of a Flying Taxi. The king looked around in confusion. "Hey now, where'd Pummel go? It ain't like him to just disappear!"

"That's because..." A pair of familiar arms lifted Dedede up, followed by the rest of the body. "...you landed on me! Next time you use someone as a landing pad, make sure it's a Dream Lander like Bandana Dee or Kirby. Their rubbery bodies should be able to absorb the impact."

Stepping off of Pummel, Dedede replied, "I'm-a gonna take that into consideration, lil' guy!"

And finally, Amy came in a much less dramatic way than the others, simply walking along Route 4 to reach us. "Hey, everyone! Did I miss anything?"

"Actually," Hop said, "you're just in time! Sonia wanted to ask you all about something." He pointed west, towards a hill. "She's up on that what's-her-face hill. It's the one where you can get a good view."

"Yap yap! Hiya!" Yamper came running from the direction of the hill.

"Aw, you're such an adorable little Yamper!" Amy bent down to scratch the electric puppy behind its ears. "Are you Sonia's Yamper? Think you could take us to her?"

"Sure can! This way, yap yap!" Yamper scampered back towards the hill.

I began to follow Yamper, but Pinkie stopped me. "Wait a minute, Helix! There's something in the Pokemon Center that you've gotta check out!"

"Oh, okay." I followed her into the Pokemon Center.

Pinkie bounced over to the Rotomi. "Hi, Rotomi! I wanna tell Helix about Poke Jobs! Can you bring them up?"

The Rotomi replied in its electric, Rotom-like voice, "I'll get right to it, zzt-zzrt!" The screen changed to one with several companies on the right side, and information on the highlighted company on the left. "See the options on the right? They are Poke Jobs! You can send Pokemon to take on various Poke Jobs to earn experience and rewardzzz!"

"This sounds like quite a useful service," I said.

"You got that right!" Pinkie replied. "Oh! Rotomi, how're my Pokemon doing on the job?"

"They're almozzzt done! Give them a few more hours and they'll be on their way back from the jobzzz!"

"All right!" Pinkie turned to me. "Want to give it a try?"

"Sure. It'll be worth it in the end, I'm certain." I selected the first job in the list, from a fabric-developing company named LASS. "Seems like they want Normal-types to make a variety of different cloths. I think I've got enough in the Pokemon Boxes." I accessed my Pokemon Box and looked over the Pokemon I'd caught. "If dual types count, then I must have enough Pokemon. I'll send Skwovet, Wooloo, and Hoothoot to take on the job."

"And how long do you want them to work on the job?" Rotomi asked me.

"I want them to get as much experience as they can for each trip, so I choose for them to take on the job for the maximum amount of time possible."

"Okay, twenty four hours it izzz!" A short cinematic played on the screen, showing the Pokemon setting off for the job. "Your Pokemon are on their way to the job. They'll do their best!"

After Nurse Joy healed my Pokemon, Pinkie and I left the Pokemon Center. Pinkie said to me, "See? It's easy and fun, and doing Poke Jobs is totally worth it!"

I smiled. "It's nice to know that in Galar, the Pokemon in their Boxes aren't stuck there. They get a chance to get out and refine their abilities by assisting others using their own special powers."

"Well, are there any Pokemon that can control time?" Rainbow Dash had left the Gym, feeling down. "The Doctor beat me to it, so now I have to wait for him to either lose or whoop the Leader's butt."

Just then, a whistle blew as a ring of multicolored lights surrounded me, Pinkie, and Rainbow. It turned out that Roborygon was imitating Captain Olimar. "No time to sit around talking about winning and losing. Come on, Sonia is waiting for you guys!"

"Thanks for the reminder!" Pinkie replied. "Let's go, everyone!"

We went west up the hill, passing by several stone formations that reminded me of Stonehenge. They almost seemed like they had words engraved into them, which would mean they would likely be important later on. I wanted to go check them out to see if my hypothesis was correct, but I prioritized Sonia first. We passed two side roads that each led to dead ends that I would expect to have an item, but they apparently did not.

We found Sonia on a hill, which was where the road ended. "Ah, there you are! I was getting worried about you guys, thinking that you might have lost your way."

"Sorry about that," I replied. "Pinkie wanted to tell me about Poke Jobs, and Rainbow Dash tried to take on the Turffield Gym, only to realize that she was beaten to it by the Doctor..." Then it hit me. "...who's still taking on the Gym."

"No biggie," Sonia said. "Why don't you call him and put him on video chat?"

"Are we allowed to call others during a Gym Mission?" I asked.

Roborygon brought up some website that had a bulleted list of items. "According to the official Gym Challenge website, we are allowed to use our Rotom Phones at any time during the challenge, even in the middle of Gym Missions."

"That's good to know. Okay, Rotom, call Doctor Hooves."

A few seconds later, the Doctor picked up. "Hello? Sorry, I'm a tad busy taking on a Gym Trainer right now. Alar Wind, use Pluck! Did you need something?"

I nodded. "We do, yes. Turns out Sonia wanted to see us on the western hill in Turffield. I think she needed to tell us something."

"Oh, dear! My apologies for being so hasty. Nice work, Alar Wind! I'd be happy to come over, but I don't want to quit in the middle of a Gym Mission. Can you just tell me over the phone, Sonia?"

"Works for me," Sonia said. "Anyway, I wanted you all to come so I could hear what your thoughts were." She pointed us towards a large glyph on a distant hill. I pointed Rotom towards the glyph so the Doctor could see. "That geoglyph you see way over there... What do you think about it?"

We took a moment to look at the glyph. I saw a strange swirl in the upper left region of the hill, giving off lightning bolts, while images of several small people were along the bottom of the hill. But dominating the glyph was a massive bipedal creature with a single eye, a triangular body, short and thin arms, an antenna-shaped tail, and two large triangular legs. My conclusion: "This geoglyph depicts the Darkest Day!"

The Doctor agreed. "You're right! The swirl looks like some kind of cloud, and that colossal creature... it's definitely a Dynamaxed Pokemon!"

Sonia smiled. "Right perceptive of you two, although the portion depicting the black storm has mostly disappeared. We still don't know what that black storm called the 'Darkest Day' was, though, or what connection it has to Dynamax..." She began to twirl her hair with a perplexed look. "Guess I'm the lucky lady who'll be looking into that..."

For some reason, Pinkie pointed towards the geoglyph. "Maybe she can help!"

Sonia looked at Pinkie curiously. "What? Did a Sigilyph use Confusion on you or something?"

Lucario gasped. "No. Pinkie's right. And she's not talking about the glyph. She's talking about a creature whose presence I haven't felt since..."

"Lucario and Pinkie are onto something! Would you excuse me for a moment, Sonia?" Keldeo jumped over the railing towards the glyph and seemingly disappeared into the distance.

I used my superior owl eyesight to identify what they were talking about. I steadily gazed at the geoglyph, and I was able to make out a small figure standing on the glyph. Upon further inspection, the figure was a green quadruped who boasted a slim body shape with delicate legs and long horns that pointed sideways. "That Pokemon! Could it be...?"

Those of us equipped with a Rotom Phone used it to zoom in on the figure. Pummel smiled from ear to ear. "No way! It is her!"

"You know that Pokemon?!" Hop asked. "I've never seen anything like it!"

I smirked. "My friends and I know her all too well. You ever heard of this group of Pokemon known as the Swords of Justice?"

"Say what now?" the Doctor asked. "Work with me here, Wooloo... There we go! Anyway, what was that you were saying about Swords of Justice?"

"The Swords of Justice are quite well-known in the Unova region. They are--"

"A group of Pokemon that work together to help those who are in trouble," Meta Knight interrupted me. "They are known as the Swords of Justice because they are all capable of using an attack that conjures a blade from their forehead, a move known as Sacred Sword. Keldeo, in particular, has gone beyond the Sacred Sword, for he has gained access to his signature move, the Secret Sword. In addition to their sword attacks, the Swords of Justice all have the Justified Ability, which increases their attack power when hit by a Dark-type move."

"Thank you for that valuable insight, Meta Knight. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm at the end of my Gym Mission, so I need to face off against Milo. See you later!" I heard fanfare go off on the other end of the call before the Doctor hung up.

"Man, the Swords of Justice sound so cool!" Hop exclaimed in wonder. "I'd love to see them in action!"

A green blur shot past us towards the stadium, while Keldeo returned to the hill where we were. "Well, you're in luck, Hop!" he said. "I was gonna battle Virizion as training for the Grass-type Gym, but we didn't want to mess up the geoglyph. That's why she's going to see if she and I can fit in a little sparring match in Turffield Stadium sometime after the Doctor's finished taking on Milo."

"A match between Pokemon I've never heard of before?" Sonia's eyes sparkled. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! I cannot miss it!" She began to leave for the stadium, but she stopped. "Oh! I almost forgot to give you all a little something for your thoughts on the geoglyph." She handed each of us a League Card featuring Milo. "Milo's a Grass-type Gym Leader. Grass-type Pokemon have many weaknesses, but that doesn't mean you should let your guard down. They can inflict all sorts of status conditions on your Pokemon, such as poison, sleep, and paralysis. You guys should take these too, so you can keep your team in fighting form." She gave us some Revives. "Now then, let's get ourselves to Turffield Stadium!"

"Okay! But first..." Pinkie ran over to a nearby photo stand-in featuring an obese squirrel Pokemon and a Pokemon that looked like a living Stonehenge. She poked her head in the hole for the squirrel. "I wanna have my picture taken! Anyone else want in?"

To our surprise, Lucario said, "I'll volunteer."

"Really?" Bandana Dee asked. "You don't look like the type to poke your head in a face board."

Lucario chuckled. "True, but Galar was my original home. My parents would take me and my brother to explore the region, and one of the places we would visit was Turffield. As Riolu, my brother and I were enamored with the face board. However, there was one problem... As wild Pokemon, we didn't have any means to take a picture. So instead, we listened to Mom and Dad tell us about the geoglyph and about the history of Galar. We learned so much, like how the heroes used a sword and shield, as well as a pair of Legendary Pokemon, to fend off the Dynamax Pokemon and the Darkest Day." He walked to the second hole in the face board, only to come up short. "Even as a Lucario, I cannot reach the Stonjourner hole? How amusing. Anyone care to help?"

"Leave this to me!" Pinkie used her tail to elevate Lucario the necessary couple of feet needed to get his face aligned with the hole. "Now we're ready!"

I positioned myself in front of the face board, with my Rotom Phone ready to take a picture. "Okay. Pinkie, Lucario, say Dynamax!"

The two shouted in unison, "Dynamax!"

Click!

Pinkie and Lucario left the photo stand-in to check out the photo. Lucario was completely silent. "..."

Pinkie looked at Lucario in confusion. "What's wrong? Don't you like the photo? It doesn't look like you blinked, and I'm not seeing any distractions in the shot."

After some more silence, Lucario finally spoke. "Ha ha ha... You've got it all wrong, Pinkie. I don't hate the photo. I'm just thinking back to my Rioluhood days. I miss the good old days, when my brother and I would play catch with an Aura Sphere made by Dad... when the two of us had practice battles against each other... when everything was normal."

Keldeo sadly nuzzled Lucario. "I feel you, pal. Some days, I just wish I could go back in time, back to before the war that caused the forest fire in the Moor of Icirrus. Because of the war, I became lost, separated from my family... I miss them so much. But if it hadn't been for that war, I would never have met the Swords of Justice. I would never have discovered my destiny. And..." He hugged Pummel. "I would never have met you." Keldeo laughed. "I guess all things happen for a reason, right?"

"You're right," Lucario answered with a smile. "If it weren't for that confused Golurk attacking my family and separating me from my parents and my brother, I wouldn't have evolved... I wouldn't have been given the chance to join Gym Leader Korrina... I wouldn't have met Pummel... And I wouldn't have become the master of Aura."

I nodded. "It's true. All things work together for the good of--"

BOOOOOOM! I was cut off by a beam of yellow and orange energy coming from the stadium. Shortly after that came a green explosion. After the explosion came... butterflies?

"Sounds like the battle's becoming intense," Pummel said. "Let's go see if the Doctor's almost done!"

On our way to the stadium, the beam of energy and butterfly explosion came again, although the former was somewhat weaker than before. "Now, what do y'all suppose that stuff's all about?" King Dedede asked.

"I dunno for sure," Rainbow Dash replied, "but I think that the explosion with the butterflies was some kind of bug move. The Doctor probably used the move because of type advantages or something. After all, don't bugs eat leaves?"

Amy said, "You've got a point, Rainbow. Many kinds of insect larvae eat leaves to grow bigger and prepare for metamorphosis."

Bzzt-bzzt! I felt something vibrating in my pocket. I took out my Rotom Phone and looked at the notifications. As it turned out, the Doctor had sent me a video of his Gym Mission, from the very start to the end of his battle with Milo. "Rotom, remind me to watch the video that Doctor Hooves shared with me."

"Okay, adding My Turffield Gym Mission to Watch Later."

When we entered Turffield Stadium, the Doctor nearly bowled me over. "Oh! Sorry about that, Helix! I was just so excited to show you my first Badge!" He brandished a golden ring with a fragment that had a leaf symbol in the bottom-right corner. "It's not much, but it's still my first step towards becoming Champion of the Galar region."

I smirked. "Oh, I wouldn't be so sure of that. You do understand that you have a rival, right?"

The Doctor returned the smirk. "I've got three rivals, actually. Pinkie and Rainbow Dash are also competing to become the first-ever pony to become a Pokemon Champion, and I intend to beat them to claim the title."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Rainbow Dash shot back. "The most awesome Pegasus deserves the most awesome title!"

"We're all here to become the Champion!" Mario said.

"I look forward to battling you all." The Doctor paused. "Or, at least, whoever I am paired up with in the tournament." He turned to me. "Helix, since I consider you my true rival, I want you to take on the Gym Mission next. Ah, but before I forget..." He pointed us towards the Poke Ball mascot. "That's the Ball Guy. Be sure to speak with him whenever you find him, because he'll have a special Poke Ball to give you each time. Now then, I wish you luck!"

Following the Doctor's advice, I spoke with the Ball Guy, who gave me a dark green Poke Ball with four red petal-shaped details on the front. I recognized it as a Friend Ball, which immediately increases friendship with a Pokemon if you catch that Pokemon with it. After chatting with the Ball Guy, I went to the front of the lobby to speak with the Grass Gym official.

"Welcome, Gym Challenger!" the official said. "Allow me to help you through your registration. First things first--you need a refresher on the Gym Challenge?"

"Actually," I said with a chuckle, "this isn't my first time taking on a Gym Challenge. I've taken on Gym Challenges across several regions, including Kanto, Hoenn, and Kalos. Therefore, I know that I need to complete every Gym and defeat their leader in order to get each of the eight Gym Badges."

She smiled. "Seems like you understand the Gym Challenge well enough. Are you ready to attempt the Gym mission?"

"Sure. But first, I need to take on my Greninja persona so I can fit into my uniform."

She then seemed to recognize me. "Oh! That must mean you're Helix! Well, thanks to the Pokemon sent to help with LASS, we were able to fix your uniform problem. I feel you will be pleasantly surprised when you see what's in your locker."

I went into the locker room and searched for the locker with my name on it. I was expecting them to be alphabetized, but they weren't; instead, they were in numerical order. This actually made it easier for me, for I was sure that there were other challengers whose names started with H, besides the Doctor. I immediately went to locker number 724 and unlocked the combination lock. I had made it easy for me to remember but hard for everyone else, using the three numbers representing the years that introduced special Pokemon powers: 13, 16, and 19. To be precise, those numbers were for Mega Evolution, Z-Moves, and Dynamax respectively.

When I opened the locker, I was surprised to see how much my uniform was changed to fit my species. The uniform was generally the same, but the shirt had been drastically changed. It was now designed like an unbuttoned lab coat, but with sleeves only, akin to a cape you could put your arms in. Those sleeves started with a large circumference like a tank top before tapering down to small cuffs. The sleeves also had a long slit along the underside for the feathers on my wings. Those slits started at the beginning of the sleeve and ended at the cuffs, so my sleeves wouldn't come off of my arms. I carefully donned my new uniform, and it fit snugly. My arms perfectly slid into their sleeves, and the feathers popped out of the slits. Excellent!

I left the locker room happily and walked back to the official. She seemed quite pleased with my attire. "You look great in your new Gym uniform! The audience will go wild for you, I'm sure!" She stepped to the side, allowing me to pass. "Let the Gym mission begin! Give it your best shot!"

"I most certainly will." I walked through the automatic doors and down the following hallway. It wasn't noticeable, but I found it hard to contain my excitement, knowing that I was about to take on my first Galarian Gym.

Corvisquire's Poke Ball in wing, I confidently stepped out into the room where the Gym mission would take place. "Turffield Gym, prepare to--Sweet merciful..." I paused, then I said to nobody in particular, "I'm just gonna cut off the reference right there, because there's kids watching my Gym mission attempt." The reasoning for my amazed exclamation was the sheer size of the Gym mission site. As in, a Greninja couldn't hit a pebble at the other end of the site with a Water Shuriken.

Between me and the end of the mission site were four sub-areas, each ending with a blue platform; several stacked hay bales blocking the exit to each sub-area; at least one Yamper in each of the last three sub-areas; one Gym Trainer in each sub-area with Yamper in them; and twenty Wooloo in the first sub-area.

I walked down the stairs to a short path leading to the first sub-area. The first person I met was a blond mustached man as soon as I stepped into the sub-area. "Hello, sir. Might you be here to teach me about this Gym mission?"

He nodded. "That's right, Challenger Helix. The mission for Turffield's Pokemon Gym is this!" He pointed me towards the grazing Wooloo. "To chase these unruly Wooloo..." He then showed me the hay blockade. "...to the blockades made of bales of straw, like this one right here!"

"Ah, that seems simple enough. Thank you for the advice, sir."

"Oh, you don't have to call me sir. My name's Dan. My brothers and I are just doing our job as referees for the various Gyms throughout Galar, and it's also our job to report the results of battles to the League HQ. Now, let the Gym mission begin!"

I started by running to the left and chasing the first group of thirteen Wooloo to the group of three on the right side of the sub-area, then I looped around to the right side of the group and chased them into the last group of four Wooloo. Having rounded up all twenty Wooloo, I herded them onto the platform in front of the bale blockade. As they rolled onto the platform, my attention was drawn to a nearby digital sign attached to an arrow. The sign displayed the number of Wooloo on the platform. Once the number reached 20, it blinked a few times and changed to arrows pointing to the next sub-area as a Wooloo sign attached to the arrow spun clockwise. My attention turned back to the Wooloo herd as they knocked away the blockade with their combined force.

The next sub-area held nothing except a Yamper patrolling it and a Gym Trainer at the end of the sub-area. Something told me that the Yamper was there to drive away Wooloo, so I waited until its back was turned to sneak the Wooloo past it. After the Wooloo busted the second barricade, I took on the Gym Trainer and defeated his Gossifleur easily with Corvisquire's Peck. Upon defeating the Gym Trainer, I saw that the Yamper ran to the Trainer and stood by his side.

The third sub-area had two long hedges arranged in the shape of a pause sign, with a Gym Trainer on the right side of the right hedge, and a Yamper patrolling the space between the hedges. Just as I was about to put together a plan, my Rotom Phone rang.

The Doctor was on the other line. "Helix, I have some advice for you. By now you've probably made it to or passed the section with a Yamper in it, correct?"

I replied, "That's right. Does your advice have to do with the patrolling Yamper?"

"Yes, indeed! From my experience, it seems that Yamper have some kind of connection to the Gym Trainers. If you defeat a Gym Trainer, their corresponding Yamper will stop patrolling and head to said Gym Trainer."

"Spoiler alert!" an annoyed Rainbow Dash said to the Doctor. "You could've warned us that there was a shortcut before you gave Helix the advice!"

"But that's a good thing," the Doctor answered. "You'll know to herd the Wooloo first instead of battling the Gym Trainer first, because you enjoy the challenge."

"Oh. Well, I can't argue with that."

"Good. Now then, good luck with the Turffield Gym Challenge, Helix! I'm cheering you on from the stands!"

"Thanks, Doctor. I'll see you once I get to the main arena." I hung up.

I herded the Wooloo along the left part of the sub-area to avoid the Yamper completely before taking down the Gym Trainer's Budew with a couple hits from Dottler's Confusion and defeating Oddish with the same attack. Having beaten the Gym Trainer, I chased the Wooloo to the platform, where they overcame the third blockade.

The fourth sub-area looked like it would be an actual challenge. It had four long hedges, arranged in a rectangle with lines that did not meet; the rectangle was longer horizontally than vertically. Two Yamper patrolled the hedges, one for the left hedge and one for the right. I waited until the rightmost Yamper was travelling north, and then I carefully led the Wooloo behind the Yamper, keeping them a fair distance apart to keep the Yamper from noticing. Once the Yamper went around to the other side of the hedge, I herded the Wooloo towards the platform. Making sure that the Wooloo were far enough away from Yamper, I took on the Gym Challenger, who was just north of the hedges. I easily defeated her Bounsweet (a Pokemon that looked like a purple mangosteen) and Oddish with Hotshot's newly learned Flame Charge and Dottler's Confusion respectively.

Finally, I led the Wooloo onto the platform, where they rammed through the last blockade and rolled into the paddocks on either side of the staircase that had been revealed. Afterwards, the gates to the paddocks closed, and I made my way up the staircase.

When I got to the top of the staircase, I turned and waved as steam billowed from pipes on each side of the staircase. I heard Dan say "Gym mission cleared!" through speakers as the door which I had gotten to slid open. I calmly walked through the door, which led to a long hallway that I followed.

I emerged from the corridor, walking out onto the field as the crowd roared with delight. From the other end of the stadium, Milo walked out onto the arena as well. We walked to the center of the stadium and turned to each other. "Nice to see you once again, Milo."

"Same to you, Helix," Milo replied with a warm smile. "I see you've changed quite a bit! Last time I saw you in a stadium, you were a completely different Pokemon! Hope you don't mind me asking, but how'd you change form?"

"Ah, I'm glad you asked." I turned to the crowd. "If it's all right with you guys, I've got a story to tell. What do you say?"

I heard some cheering from the crowd, but especially from my friends. Pinkie Pie in particular was incredibly happy; she was holding a sign with my face on it and shouting, "Tell us, Helix! Tell us your story! I can't take it any longer!"

And Doctor Hooves exclaimed, "I would be honored to hear your story, Helix! Hearing your story will cause our bond to grow even tighter, I'm sure of it!"

I smiled. "Okay, then. Here's my story." Meloetta played somber music as I told my tale. "I used to be your average human, like Pummel and Heart Fist. They're the two dressed-up Machop you see near that enthusiastic pink pony named Pinkie Pie. Anyway, I used to be your run-of-the-mill human who metaphorically puts his pants on one leg at a time. I also happened to be a nerd, which led to me being repeatedly bullied in school. Now, the bullying didn't bother me much; not only did I have high self-esteem and the ability to respond to verbal insults with a strong quip, but I could also escape from lockers easily with my high IQ and recover from physical wounds fairly quickly.

"The real trouble didn't come until one time during middle school. At lunchtime, I once saw a boy sitting at a table alone, with no food or tray to speak of. I tried asking what was wrong, but he did not answer. I had a strong will and therefore refused to give up on anything, so I then asked if he needed anything, but still no response. Finally, deciding that actions spoke louder than words, I decided to offer him my food. That's when he snapped. He shoved the food away, called me an onslaught of curse words, and yelled that he didn't need any friends before he stormed off. That... was a critical hit straight to my heart. I should've found an outlet for the negative emotions that moment caused me...

"...But I didn't. Instead, the negativity turned toxic and corrupted me from within. I became desperate for a way to unleash my rage and get revenge. That's when I learned about Pummel Fist, who had discovered the wonderful world of Pokemon with his mother Heart Fist. I chose to become a Pokemon Trainer myself and do what any great Trainer would do: complete the Pokedex and aim to become the very best. But I wasn't satisfied. I later discovered that Pummel and Heart were transformed into Pokemon due to a peculiar Potion used on them by Archie and Maxie. Therefore, I put together a plan to capture Pummel and take a sample of that Potion for use on myself.

"Everything having gone according to plan, I used that Potion to transform into this Pokemon, a Shiny Decidueye. See, the Potion causes its user to transform into any Pokemon they have registered in the Pokedex and allows them to change their species at will. That's why you saw me as Greninja in Motostoke Stadium. Also, the user can only speak Pokemon, which is why Pummel, Heart, and I have these special pieces of headgear; they translate Pokemon language into human language. Anyway, after training, I challenged Pummel and his friends to an epic battle to blow off steam, and I recruited the villainous Marx Soul and Soul of Sectonia to aid me. Don't judge me; I was corrupted back then.

"Eventually, Marx Soul and Soul of Sectonia turned against me, because they wanted only to kill the heroes I was fighting. Therefore, I had my new teammates utilize my power to defeat the dark villains. After the intense battle, Pummel offered me a chance to redeem myself as a member of the Pokemon Expedition Society, and I gladly accepted. Thanks to some new friends we made between then and now, I have become a true hero of friendship."

The crowd roared once more, and the Doctor was on the verge of crying. "Helix... I had no clue... you had gone through so much... I understand now. I see what has changed you into who you are now. Thank you for sharing your story!"

Milo was amazed. "Oh my, I didn't know you had gone through so much in your life! And all this time I thought you were just a talking owl Pokemon with fancy headgear! Please forgive me for underestimating you."

I chuckled. "I certainly do forgive you. Just do me one favor, okay?"

"And what is that?"

I grinned. "That you go all out against me in our battle!"

Milo smiled. "I will gladly do so. I saw how you so easily completed the Gym mission, so I see no reason to underestimate a hero like you. And it sure seems like you understand Pokemon real well, too. This'll be a doozy of a battle, Helix! No doubt I'm gonna need to Dynamax my Pokemon if I want to beat you!"

I walked to the west side of the stadium, and Milo walked to the east side. "Hotshot, I choose you!" I sent out my trustworthy starter.

"You can do it, Gossifleur!" Milo said as he sent out the familiar flower-like Pokemon.

Dan the referee stood firm. Once we were both prepared to fight, he exclaimed, "Let the battle begin!"

"Let's start out easy, partner," I said. "Give 'em a dose of Double Kick!"

"Got it, Helix. Here goes!" Hotshot rushed in to deliver a pair of powerful kicks to Gossifleur.

"You're going for the direct approach? That's a risky move. Gossifleur, use Rapid Spin!" Gossifleur spun around at a very fast pace as it lunged at Hotshot. To my surprise, the spinning motion combined with Gossifleur's small size caused it to trip Hotshot, leaving him open to attacks. "This is why you should be careful if you're facing a smaller opponent! Now, follow up with Magical Leaf!" Gossifleur released several glowing leaves that formed a circle above Hotshot, all aimed at him.

"Like I told my partner, I'm just getting started. Nail Gossifleur with an Ember!"

Hotshot sat up and breathed an Ember at Gossifleur, causing it to lose control of the leaves, which therefore dropped harmlessly out of the sky. "What's the matter, can't use Magical Leaf and take an attack at the same time? Looks like you need to learn how to juggle tasks. Yeah, that's a football pun."

"Good one. Now, finish her with Flame Charge!"

As Hotshot raced towards the weakened Gossifleur, Milo replied, "Well, actually, my Gossifleur's a boy. And so are my other Pokemon, besides Bellossom and Cherrim."

I raised an eyebrow. "Do you really think now's a good time to tell me that?"

Milo glanced at his defeated Gossifleur. "Oh, dear! I'm so sorry, Gossifleur!" He returned it to its Poke Ball. "You're right about that, Helix. This was not a good time to mention the gender of my Pokemon. It would've worked out better for me if I'd told you after our battle, of course; even more so if you happened to have a Pokemon that knows the move Attract, in which case gender would be very important."

I heard the Doctor say from the stands, "Hold on, that can't be the end of the battle. I was pretty sure Milo sent out another Pokemon to battle me with."

Milo answered, "He's right, I've still got one more partner with me! I'm not going to be done in that easy! My team and I are tough as weeds! Let's see how you deal with Eldegoss!" He sent out a small green Pokemon that looked like it had a full-bloomed ball of cotton for hair and a leafy cloak not unlike Swadloon's.

I checked my Rotom Phone. "Eldegoss, the Cotton Bloom Pokemon. A Grass-type, the seeds attached to the cotton fluff on its head are filled with nutrients. It allows the wind to scatter them so that plants and other Pokemon can benefit from them."

Dan turned to me. "All Gyms in the Galar Gym Challenge allow you to switch your Pokemon upon defeating an opposing Pokemon. Would you like to switch?"

"Yes, I would." I returned Hotshot to his Poke Ball. "Nice job, partner. You deserve a good rest." I then sent out Dottler. "It's your turn, my knowledge-gathering ally!"

Curiously, the Doctor seemed rather irked by my choice. "Wait a minute... Is Helix trying to copy my tactics?"

I shrugged. "How could I? I haven't watched your match yet on my Rotom Phone. Anyway..."

I took a moment to notice the climactic shift in music, and I listened to the crowd chanting "Dyna Dynamax! Max! Dyna Dynamax! Max!" Heeding their chant, I returned Dottler to its Poke Ball, which I held in my right hand. The familiar red energy burst from my Dynamax Band into the Poke Ball, increasing it to its Dynamaxed size.

"...it's time to have some real fun. How about it? You want to give the crowd what it wants, Milo?" I launched the Dynamax Ball behind me, showcasing my now Dynamaxed Dottler.

"I thought you'd never ask, Helix!" Milo returned Eldegoss to its Poke Ball, which became infused with Dynamax Energy. He took a moment to show it some TLC before saying, "Come on, Eldegoss! It's Dynamax time! Get ready to uproot this challenger!" He used his right arm to easily toss the Dynamax Ball behind him, where it burst into a giant cotton bloom of doom.

Both of us having Dynamaxed, the crowd stopped chanting. They then began to sing an unfamiliar but uplifting tune. "Ohhhh ohh oh-whoa! Oh-oh-oh-ohhhh oh-oh-oh! Oh-oh-oh-ohhhh ohh oh-whoa! Oh-oh-oh-ohhhh oh-oh-oh!"

"Looks like everyone's loving the battle so far!" Milo said with a smile. "Let's see if our Dynamax Move leaves you in shock and awe! Use Max Strike!"

"Show him you won't have any of it, Dottler!" I took a quick look at my Rotom Phone to figure out the name of the Bug-type Max Move. "Use Max--"

Alas, because of the time I took to find the name of the move, Eldegoss was able to use its own Max Move. To my surprise, the attack did not come directly from Eldegoss; instead, the ground underneath Dottler broke open, releasing a massive column of energy like the one I saw on my way to the stadium. After taking the attack, Dottler said, "A self-analysis confirms that my already low speed has been reduced more by Max Strike. Other than that, my hard shell gave ample protection."

"Excellent! The joke's on you, Milo. Dottler is already slower, so the side effect does little to aid you! Dottler, use Max Flutterby!"

"A wise choice. Watch as my winged allies go and eat through the opponent's defenses!" Dottler summoned several green butterflies to attack Eldegoss, resulting in a large green explosion. The aftershock of the explosion seemed to weaken Eldegoss more. "The side effect of Max Flutterby is lowering the opposing team's Special Attack."

I turned to Dottler with a smile. "I always knew you'd make a great partner, what with you being the brains of the operation. Speaking of, why don't we finish him off with Max Mindstorm?"

"Ending the fight with a terrain-causing Max Move? You must be a Pokemon of culture as well." After enduring another Max Strike, Dottler emitted several circular waves of psychic energy that overwhelmed Eldegoss, causing Eldegoss to explode and return to its normal size, swirls in its eyes. The Max Move also caused psychic energy to surround the stadium. "Max Mindstorm's side effect is Psychic Terrain. Seeing as you've taken on the form of Decidueye, I assume you know about Psychic Terrain?"

I nodded. "I do indeed. Tapu Lele's Ability causes Psychic Terrain whenever it enters a battle, and said Pokemon lives in the Alola region, which is where Decidueye can be found. In other news, congratulations on defeating Eldegoss!"

Dottler returned to its normal size. "Don't thank me. You were the one who gave me the orders and Dynamaxed me."

Milo sighed as he returned Eldegoss to its Poke Ball. "Looks like the power of Grass-types has wilted from your combined might." He gave me a humble smile. "You're an incredible Gym Challenger, you know that?"

I returned Dottler to its Poke Ball with a light chuckle. "I've actually trained Pokemon before I ever came here to Galar. Those Pokemon are still hanging out in their PC boxes in the Alola region. Seeing as I've trained Pokemon before, this Galarian Gym Challenge tests what I already knew and gives me new information to put to use."

"Oh, so you've been to Alola? Well, unlike most regions, Alola has no Gyms and therefore doesn't have Badges. Know what a Badge is?"

"Actually, I do. A couple of my friends have actually obtained all eight Badges from every region." I turned to the crowd. "Doctor Hooves, do you hear me?"

The various Rotom recording the battle turned to the Doctor, who was shown on the jumbotron. "Yeah, I hear you. What do you need?"

"I just need you and the other ponies to listen carefully to what I am about to say. You'll need to know this information if you want to be successful in the Gym Challenge. Pokemon..." I sent out Hotshot. "...are sentient creatures. They have a mind of their own, like you and me. When we have them battle, they don't follow orders blindly like some beast that you tame. They do as they're told because they respect us. Pummel! Show us your collection of Badges."

"Which one?" The cameras turned to Pummel, who took out a few different cases of Badges. He opened up one of them, revealing eight Badges in top condition. "Will my Hoenn Badges work?"

"Yeah, that'll do."

The crowd, and especially the ponies, looked at Pummel's Badges in awe. "Wowie, that's amazing!" Pinkie exclaimed. "No wonder you and Keldeo work so well together!"

Keldeo corrected, "Actually, we're so awesome together because we have the same kinds of goals and personalities. What's more, he even helped me defeat Kyurem and become a true Sword of Justice!"

"But that's besides the point." I continued, "Badges are a sign of respect. Badges are proof that you've got what it takes. More Badges means higher-level Pokemon will obey you, even if they've been traded to you."

"Traded?" the Doctor asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"I think you're getting a little ahead of yourself, Doctor," Milo replied. "First, you need to know about something called the Y-Comm."

"Y-Comm?" I took out a pencil and notepad. "Can you tell us about the Y-Comm?"

"I sure can. Take a peek at your Rotom Phone's screen. You see a little icon in the bottom left corner that looks kind of like a Y?"

The Doctor, Pummel, Heart, and I all looked at our Rotom Phones. Sure enough, there was a Y symbol in the bottom left corner. Out of curiosity, I pressed the icon, and it opened up a window with six tabs on the left and messages from other Trainers on the right. "What's this? Reminds me of some kind of social media website."

"Well, it does function kind of like that, in that it lets Trainers keep each other updated on what they're doing. This allows Trainers to alert each other to important events, such as getting together for Max Raid Battles or dueling against each other. But the most important part is that it gives Trainers the chance to trade Pokemon."

"That's good to know." I put away the notes before asking Milo, "Mind if I take over to explain trading?"

"Go right ahead, Helix. I won't stop you."

"Okay. Listen up, ponies. Sometimes, there may be Pokemon that you feel like you just can't find. If that's the case, then try trading Pokemon. For instance, let's say you need an Omanyte, and a friend of yours wants a Kabuto. Just trade your Kabuto for their Omanyte, and you're both happy. But the thing is, if the Pokemon that's been traded is at a high level or has reached a high level, and you don't have enough Badges, then they won't think you're worthy of being their Trainer. They'll refuse to fight for you, and they might even sleep on the job!"

Rainbow Dash asked, "So what you're saying is that Pokemon that've been traded to you will be loyal to you, unless they're too strong and you don't have the right amount of Badges?"

I pointed at Rainbow with a grin. "I knew you'd get it, bearer of loyalty!"

"Thanks, but what about Pokemon you caught yourself?"

"And that's where it gets complicated. See, different Pokemon have different personalities, just like different people--or ponies, in your case--have different personalities. Even if you don't have many Badges, your Pokemon may still obey you, depending on the circumstances. Remember when you had your Ninjask battle against my Corvisquire? Training a Ninjask is something you must take seriously. The clue is in the name: Ninjask. It's a ninja Pokemon, so it must undergo strict training. Now, if you had a Pokemon like Rapidash, one that likes to run around quickly, it would likely obey you even if you didn't have enough Badges."

"I think I'm starting to get it now! You're saying that if I caught a Pokemon myself but don't have enough Badges, it probably won't obey me unless I cared for it properly."

"That's exactly my point, Rainbow."

The Doctor chimed in, "So another example would be your Dottler, Helix. If you keep helping it gather knowledge, it will still obey you, even if you have very few Badges. Is that right?"

"Bingo! Now we're getting somewhere!"

And of course, Pinkie Pie made some statements that were amazingly spot-on: "So what you're saying is that a super fat bear Pokemon with a huge appetite would keep obeying me if I kept its belly full of yummy berries and curry; a little bug Pokemon that uses static electricity would obey me if I let it hang out someplace that has a lot of static build-up, like my mane; and a hippo Pokemon that shoots sand out of holes on its body would obey me if I kept the holes free of big rocks that could block them; even if I didn't have enough Badges?"

I shook my head in amazement. "You'll never cease to impress me with all your insanely accurate assumptions, Pinkie Pie." I turned to Milo. "Back to you. Anything else I need to know?"

"Not really. As proof that you have defeated me and taken your next step in the Gym Challenge, allow me to present you with your very own Grass Badge!" Milo held out what appeared to be a fragment of a golden circle. On the fragment was a design of a stylized leaf of spinach.

I looked at the Grass Badge in confusion. "How curious. Never before have I seen a Badge that looked like a fragment of something."

"Well, there's a reason for that. In your locker back in Motostoke Stadium, did you see some kind of golden ring?"

"As a matter of fact, I did." I took out a golden ring with a five-inch diameter. "I brought it with me, too, since I figured it was important."

"Great! Each of the Badges in the Galar region fit in a different spot in that ring." Milo took the ring and fit the Grass Badge on the bottom part of it, slightly towards the right side. "When you've gotten all eight Badges, you'll have a full medallion!"

"That makes sense. Oh, where are my manners? I forgot to thank you for the battle!"

"Same goes to you, Helix." I used Foresight to ensure that my Ghost-type wing would make contact, and then I shook Milo's hand. "I've got some advice for you. The Gym Challenge has a set order to follow, so the next Gym you need to visit is in Hulbury, where you'll meet Nessa. You'll find Hulbury just beyond Route 5, so go there if you feel like you're ready. But you've got the Grass Badge now, so you could instead head to the Wild Area."

"The Wild Area? What does that have to do with the Grass Badge?"

"Oh! My apologies, I forgot to tell you one more thing about Badges in Galar. Here in Galar, higher-level Pokemon simply won't allow you to catch them unless you have the right amount of Badges. With the Grass Badge you should be able to catch Pokemon up to level 25."

"Level 25?" the Doctor asked. "...Then how the hay was I able to catch that Onix in Rolling Fields?!"

"The Onix in Rolling Fields?" This clearly surprised Milo. "That's very strange... Did you by any chance make it faint rather than simply getting its HP very low? That could be the reason why you were able to catch it."

"Ah, I did make it faint. I can understand why that would lead me to be able to catch the Onix."

"Then good on you, Doctor! Higher level Pokemon like that Onix can be powerful allies if you catch them, but it's your choice of whether or not to add them into your party." Milo turned back to me. "Good luck on your Gym Challenge, Helix! And likewise to all your Gym Challenger friends!"

"Thanks. Have fun taking on whoever faces you next!" I turned to leave, but I stopped. "Actually, hold on. I'm not sure if you know this, Milo, but a couple of my acquaintances want to use this stadium for practice."

Chapter 8: Unbreakable Courage

Milo's curiosity was piqued when I had mentioned that two of my friends wanted to spar in the stadium. "Is that so? One of the staff members at my gym mentioned two beings wanting to use the stadium for a match. By any chance, was one of them tall and green with sideways-pointing horns?"

Surprised by his accurate guess, I answered, "You're spot-on, Milo. You know her?"

Milo shrugged. "Not really. It's just that, as a Grass-type user, I read up on various Grass-type Pokemon. If the Pokemon you speak of is around, would you mind having her come down here to the battlefield? I want to make sure she's the Pokemon I think the staff was talking about."

"I'd be glad to." I turned to the audience. "You heard him! Virizion, come on down!"

The Rotom that were currently focusing their lens on me turned to the section of the audience that I was looking at, causing three people to show up on the jumbotron: The green Sword of Justice, Virizion, was in the middle; to the right of her was Keldeo; and to the left of her was the Doctor. The Rotom followed Virizion as she leapt down to the arena.

It took a moment for the Doctor to put two and two together. "...Wait a minute, I was sitting right next to Virizion and I didn't even know it?! Incredible!"

Overhearing the Doctor's sudden epiphany, Virizion turned to him and smiled. "That's right. Sometimes it helps if you pay closer attention to your surroundings, you know."

Milo looked at Virizion in awe. "So my hunch was right... The Grassland Pokemon is one of Helix's two friends who'll be battling here! It's such an honor to meet you, Virizion!"

"The honor is mine, Milo," Virizion answered. "It's not every day that I get to meet a Gym Leader from the Galar region, after all."

Suddenly, Pinkie Pie popped up in front of Virizion. "Why'd you mention the Galar region specifically? Have you met Gym Leaders from other regions?"

Virizion smiled. "I have, actually. You see, back in the Unova region, Pummel Fist proved his worth and managed to capture me and the other Swords of Justice. As his allies, we were able to meet some of the Unovan Gym Leaders, such as Marlon."

"No way!" Rainbow Dash flew down to the arena. "You actually helped him take on the Unova Gym Challenge? Awesome! Did you get to help him fight the Champion?"

"I certainly did, alongside Cobalion, Terrakion, and Keldeo. Let me tell you, Champion Iris was a difficult foe. She came at us with some powerful Dragon-type Pokemon outfitted with a variety of moves to cover their weaknesses and scope out the opposing team's weak points."

"Yeah, she was tough." Keldeo jumped down from his seat. "But you forgot about one of the most dangerous opponents we fought in Unova, and it isn't Kyurem."

"Oh, right." Virizion had an uneasy look on her face. "Cynthia..."

"Cynthia?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Who's that?"

My non-pony friends and I gasped in shock. Harsh memories flooded back to my mind as I explained who Cynthia is. "She's the former Champion of the Sinnoh region, and could easily be the most powerful Champion anyone has ever faced. Pummel only beat her because his Pokemon were greatly over-leveled."

"Why's she so hard to beat? It isn't like she has some kind of legendary Pokemon on her team."

"That may be so," Virizion replied, "but she does have a Garchomp and a Spiritomb. Spiritomb's only weakness is Fairy-type moves, and it is immune to Normal-, Fighting-, and Psychic-type moves. It wasn't until recently that the Fairy type was discovered, so for a long time nothing was super-effective against Spiritomb. Additionally, Spiritomb can raise its evasion with Double Team, put your Pokemon to sleep with Hypnosis, and sap your Pokemon's health while it's asleep with Dream Eater. As for Garchomp, it is equipped with four very powerful moves that can defeat most Pokemon in one hit, two of which have a high critical-hit rate. Cynthia's other Pokemon are also dangerous."

Rainbow Dash seemed partially concerned. "I didn't really get some of what you said, but I think I understand what you're trying to say. You're telling me that Cynthia is a super strong Pokemon Trainer that could possibly kick even Leon's butt if she had a Dynamax Band, right?"

I nodded. "Yup. So if she ever asks you if you want to have a battle with her..."

"Then I'd better make a break for it. I may be the most awesome Pegasus alive, but I don't think I'm anywhere near as good as Cynthia."

"Yeah, that's your best bet."

"Sounds like Cynthia would give a pony like Button Mash a really hard time," Pinkie said.

"Button Mash, you say?" Virizion asked. "Considering the name, Button must be the kind of pony who has an affinity for games. But why do you mention him specifically?"

Pinkie shrugged. "I just had a hunch that Cynthia'd give Button Mash some bad memories. Speaking of..." Completely ignoring personal space, she got right in Virizion's face, muzzle to nose. "I need you to Pinkie Promise that if you ever visit Equestria, you will NEVER bring up Cynthia if you happen to talk with Button Mash!"

"I'm sorry, but..." Virizion lifted her front right hoof. "...I don't have fingers, only hooves. How then could I make a pinkie promise?"

Pinkie got out of Virizion's personal space with a perplexed look. "What does that have to do with a Pinkie Promise?"

"Oh, I think I see the problem," Keldeo said. "Pinkie Pie, I believe you made Virizion think of a different kind of pinkie promise, one that is exclusive to humans. Humans execute a pinkie promise by interlocking their little fingers, which are also known as pinky fingers or pinkies. This kind of pinkie promise is certainly less strict than your Pinkie Promise, but it is still a promise. And Virizion, you and the other Swords of Justice never did visit Equestria, right?"

"Correct. I suppose we must have missed out on some important information?"

"Yeah, you did. One of the things you missed out on was what a Pinkie Promise is. That's a very special kind of promise that Pinkie Pie invented, and it's vital that you keep a Pinkie Promise. If you ever break a Pinkie Promise..." Keldeo turned very serious. "Pinkie Pie will hunt. You. Down."

Virizion flinched from the intensity with which Keldeo spoke the last few words, but otherwise stayed calm. "Understood. Pinkie Pie, will you teach me how to properly execute a Pinkie Promise?"

Pinkie answered, "Sure thing! Here's how it goes..." She began by crossing her front hooves in front of her chest. "Cross my heart..." She then flapped her hooves like wings. "Hope to fly..." Finally, she took a cupcake out of nowhere and stuck it in her eye, which thankfully was closed. "Stick a cupcake in my eye! Got that?"

"I believe so. Now I can properly Pinkie Promise that I will never mention Cynthia around Button Mash." Virizion went through the motions, but without the cupcake. "Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."

"Congratulations!" Pinkie took a party cannon out of her mane and fired it at Virizion, covering her in confetti. "You've perfected the Pinkie Promise!"

"Here, let me help you with that." Keldeo washed away the confetti on Virizion with a low-power Hydro Pump, and I used Leafage to blow the confetti out of the stadium.

"Thank you, Keldeo. You too, Helix." Virizion walked to the east side of the arena. "Without further ado, shall we get started?"

"Sounds good." Keldeo turned to me, Milo, and the ponies. "You guys can take a seat in the stands if you want to watch." I took Virizion's former seat while Milo sat in Keldeo's seat. Pinkie and Rainbow returned to their seats. Keldeo put his saddlebag down next to Dan before walking to the west side of the arena. "Whenever you're ready, Dan!"

Dan nodded. "Let the duel between Keldeo and Virizion commence!"

Virizion leaped high into the air, where she used Magical Leaf to send an onslaught of leaves towards Keldeo.

"Classic Virizion," Keldeo chuckled. He cloaked his tail in water before using it to swat away the leaves. Predicting where Virizion would land, Keldeo fired a high-pressure Hydro Pump in the trajectory of Virizion's path, successfully hitting its target. "Turns out target practice with Greninja really paid off!"

"My skills have also improved since we last met. Let's see how you handle this!" The black blaze running from Virizion's nose to the top of her head glowed bright blue, and she charged towards Keldeo. However, Keldeo swung his horn and fired blades of air at Virizion, sending her backwards several meters. "You learned Air Slash? That's quite impressive!"

Keldeo sent a short wave of water along the ground. "Same goes to you learning Zen Headbutt!"

Virizion jumped over the wave and engaged Keldeo in sword-to-sword combat. "But this is only the beginning of our duel. I'm nowhere close to using my most powerful attacks."

"You do remember that I surpassed you and the other Swords of Justice, right? If you want to beat me, you'll have no choice but to use your strongest attacks!" Keldeo pushed Virizion back with a critical hit from his Secret Sword before charging a Focus Blast in his mouth.

"Everyone has their weak points, and I always aim for those first before resorting to powerful moves." Virizion's horns glowed light green as she stabbed the charging Focus Blast with her right horn, forcing it into Keldeo's mouth.

Milo visibly cringed. "Ouch, that's quite a devious way to use Leaf Blade!"

"I sense... deja vu..." Keldeo gasped as he choked on the Focus Blast, which exploded while it was stuck in his throat. "Oh... that really--" The next thing he knew, Virizion was using her horns to sap Keldeo's health via Giga Drain. In an effort to get himself some breathing room, Keldeo turned around and kicked Virizion away using his hind legs. He turned back and looked at her in rage. "This... was supposed to prepare me for the Grass-type Gym... not the apocalypse! Why didn't you give me a chance to recover after you almost suffocated me by shoving my Focus Blast down my throat?! And before you say anything about me surpassing you, that doesn't give you an excuse to whale away on me while I'm suffocating! I'm your friend!"

Taken by surprise, Virizion stammered, "Oh, uh, I'm very sorry, I guess I just got a little too ahead of myself in the battle. I wanted you to be prepared for anything Milo might throw at you, but..."

Keldeo calmed down some, but he was still very upset. "I understand that, but this is a friendly battle, not a battle between good and evil where we're fighting for our lives. You need to learn to show mercy during friendly battles. That's because if you show no mercy..." His gaze became fiercer as a massive amount of water came in from outside the stadium and formed an enormous wave on which Keldeo stood. "...you get no mercy!"

The Doctor gasped at the amazing sight. "Great whickering stallions! Nopony told me Keldeo could use magic!"

I looked at the Doctor in confusion. "Magic? What're you talking about? He clearly just..." I took a closer look at Keldeo's horn. It was glowing, but not orange like when he uses Secret Sword. Rather, it was glowing light blue! "Wait, Keldeo's horn doesn't glow that color normally. Could that mean..."

Rainbow Dash grinned. "Yep! During the battle with Tirek, Keldeo learned how to use magic. Now he can control water, and he's got a sweet cutie mark too!"

I took a moment to think about what I had just been told. Keldeo had somehow learned how to use magic and earned his cutie mark possibly due to his newfound abilities, and his specialty was water. "When Keldeo had used his magic before in our Galarian adventure to create a literal water bed and mentioned magic while talking about his book, I never really gave it much thought, but now that I know he can use water magic..." I smirked in anticipation. "Oh, this fight just got a whole lot more interesting."

"You're coming at me with Surf? I'll evaporate your chances of beating me with that!" Virizion cried out to the skies, "I call upon the power of nature! Let the sun glow ever brighter with the power of Sunny Day!" The sun's heat intensified as a response to Virizion's exclamation.

The wave became much shorter, but Keldeo smirked. "There's a lot you don't know about me and the new skills I picked up." Keldeo's horn glowed light blue again, and the wave grew back to its original size. "You're pretty smart, using the sun to break apart the water molecules, but I have full control over water! I can just bring the water molecules right back together! And now it's time for my next move. It'll hit you so fast you won't see it coming!"

Knowing she wouldn't be able to outmaneuver the attack, Virizion took the Surf head-on. "A powerful attack indeed, but my type advantage--"

"Will be nullified!" As the wave enveloped Virizion, Keldeo fired a light blue laser at the wave, turning it into rock-solid ice and trapping Virizion within it. Jumping off of the ice block, Keldeo chuckled. "I knew that attack would leave you frozen in shock!"

Although the ice rendered Virizion's communication organs useless, they were already obsolete; the Swords of Justice speak through telepathy. "That is an impressive feat you pulled off, Keldeo. I hadn't the slightest idea that you'd learned Ice Beam." Her body began to glow light green. "But I still have some fight in me!"

Keldeo watched as Virizion broke free of her icy prison using her Sacred Sword. "Good, because I'm not through either!" He used his magic to grab the leftover shards of ice and surround Virizion with them. "Here goes!" At the same time as he sent the ice shards towards Virizion, he fired a Focus Blast above her.

"You're only helping me out by doing that!" Virizion jumped skyward to dodge the ice shards, and she faced the oncoming Focus Blast with a smirk. Then, to everyone's surprise, she used the Focus Blast as a footstool to jump even higher. "Are you ready? This is my most powerful move yet!" Virizion absorbed the intense sunlight, and the blaze on her head glowed brighter and brighter. Suddenly, she fired a massive beam of energy towards Keldeo.

While Keldeo guarded against the beam with his Secret Sword, the ponies were especially awestruck. The Doctor exclaimed, "Harnessing the power of sunlight to fire some kind of solar beam? That's the kind of trick that would make Princess Celestia proud!"

"Except for one thing..." Rainbow Dash replied. "Here in the future, Celestia and Luna stepped down from the throne. Now Twilight's ascended to the throne, making her the most awesome princess ever!"

The Doctor facehoofed. "Drat, I forgot about one of the worst consequences of time travel: spoilers."

Once the Solarbeam ceased, Keldeo was still standing. "Man, you've gotten much stronger! I'd better do something about that." Keldeo's horn glowed light blue, and thunderclouds covered up the sun to rain on Virizion's parade. "Let's see you unleash a solar attack now!"

"I've got something else I'd rather use." Virizion summoned many leaves, which floated around her. "Think you can handle Leaf Storm?"

Keldeo casually laughed. "Not a chance!"

Keldeo's joyful tone of voice confused Virizion. "Oh? Are you not concerned about getting hit by Leaf Storm?"

Keldeo shook his head. "I'd be more concerned about what's above you."

"Huh? What do you..." Virizion looked up, and she saw electricity building up inside the thunderclouds. She looked back at Keldeo with resignation in her voice and facial expression. "Oh. Well played, Keldeo. Well played." A wicked bolt of lightning struck Virizion directly, causing her to collapse.

Dan raised his right arm towards Keldeo. "Virizion is unable to battle, which means Keldeo is the winner!"

Milo came down from his seat and ran over to Virizion. "Oh dear, you sure took a beating! I think I've got something that'll help you." He took out a medicinal herb from his pocket. "Here, try this. It's bitter, but it'll restore your strength."

Virizion opened her eyes and saw the herb. "A Revival Herb... I will gladly accept its strength." She eagerly consumed it, and she had no negative reactions to its taste. She slowly got to her hooves. "I feel much better. Thank you, Milo."

Milo rubbed the back of his head. "Happy to help. Although, I'm quite surprised that you didn't seem to dislike the taste of the Revival Herb."

Virizion chuckled. "I'm not only a Grass-type, but I am a legendary Pokemon who has traveled through many places to save innocent lives. To me, a Revival Herb is comparable to a leaf of spearmint."

"Ah, good point. I forgot that you were one of the trio of legendary Pokemon who helped innocent Pokemon to safety during the war that caused a forest fire in Unova's Moor of Icirrus. Not to mention that you assisted Keldeo's Trainer in the Unovan Gym Challenge!"

"Cobalion, Terrakion, and I are all fierce warriors," Virizion said as her expression became one of amusement, "yet Keldeo was able to surpass all three of us! I even had the type advantage, and Keldeo still defeated me. I know he gained some new powers thanks to his adventures in Equestria, but I am still baffled that I was beaten."

After eating a Sitrus Berry that Milo gave him, Keldeo walked over to Virizion. "Well, if you want to get even stronger, I suggest you work with Milo for a while. He should be able to draw out your hidden potential, because he is the Grass-type Gym Leader of Galar."

"Are you sure?" Virizion asked. "Milo can't Dynamax me, because he isn't the one who has my Poke Ball."

Milo comforted Virizion, stroking her head. "You don't have to Dynamax to be strong. You just have to believe in yourself. If there's an obstacle that seems too great to conquer, just tap into your inner courage like you always do when you face a powerful opponent. And when it gets too tough for you to handle alone, know that you can always take a break. I don't like to push my Pokemon too far. So what do you say?" Milo smiled warmly. "Want to join me so we can become stronger together?"

Virizion gave it some thought. "That does sound inviting, and you do excel at using Grass-types... But I'm afraid I won't be content unless I am allowed to compete with strong opponents. This is only the first Gym in the Galar region that Trainers will take on."

"You make a good point, but there's something you should know about Gym Leaders. If you'll excuse me..." Milo left the field for a short while. When he returned, he had a container holding some Poke Balls. "One thing most people don't know about Gym Leaders is that they use different Pokemon depending on the strength of their challenger." He looked up at me in the audience. "Helix, Doctor Hooves, you two didn't have any Gym Badges when you challenged me, so I only used Gossifleur and Eldegoss to take you on." With that, he put the Poke Balls holding Gossifleur and Eldegoss in the two remaining slots in the container. "And Helix, I know you said you went through the Island Challenge in Alola, but that's different; besides, you were starting fresh with a team of Pokemon you recently caught here in Galar. Now Pummel, on the other hand..." All eyes turned to Pummel as Milo took out six Poke Balls from the container. "It's pretty clear that you've beaten Gyms across the world, seeing as you had so many Gym Badges. You'd better watch out when you reach me, because I'll come at you with several strong Pokemon, including a Pokemon that can Gigantamax!"

This made Pummel start to sweat. "Uh, Keldeo, that'll mean the rest of my team would be too weak, and you'll be at a disadvantage. You sure you can take on even his Gigantamax Pokemon?"

Keldeo nodded. "Virizion was tough, but that's because I was holding back. If Milo's Grass-types put me on the ropes, I can just put them on ice. And if that fails, we've still got one more trick up our sleeve before I have to resort to Dynamaxing."

"Oh, right! How could I forget?" Pummel formed a Focus Blast in his hand, and he shaped it into a heart. "A bond so true... Our friendship will pull us through!"

"You teach me and I'll teach you..." Keldeo put his saddlebag back on. "That's Pokemon for you!"

Keldeo began to walk back to Pummel, but Virizion stopped him. "Before you go, shall we commence the oath once more?"

Keldeo shook his head. "Not this time. It's just not the same without the other Swords of Justice. Maybe I'll find them elsewhere in Galar, and we can all do it together!"

"True, we certainly should wait until the four of us reunite. Very well, then." Virizion hoof-bumped Keldeo. "I wish you good luck on your journey to defeat the self-proclaimed 'unbeatable' Leon."

As Keldeo and Pummel returned to the Gym lobby to begin their attempt, the Doctor turned to me with a quizzical expression. "By any chance, do you know what they meant by an oath?"

I began to reminisce. "The Swords of Justice oath. It is an oath recited by the Swords of Justice to declare the might of their friendship. You really ought to be there when they recite it." I began to get up from my seat. "I would love to stay and watch the rest of the matches, but I must continue my Gym Challenge. You probably should too."

"Agreed. Let's return to the entrance so we can move on to the next Gym in Hulbury!"

The Turffield Gym official who had escorted us back to the lobby stopped me before I could follow the Doctor to the locker room. "Challenger Helix, I offer my most sincere congratulations on defeating Gym Leader Milo! He requested that I give this to you to commemorate your victory." I received a TM that was light green in color. "TM 10 contains Magical Leaf. With that move, you can fire curious leaves that never miss their opponent. And here's something to go with it!" She gave me a uniform with a green motif. Like my new uniform, this one was also tailored to fit my species. "That's a replica of Milo's uniform. I'm sure you'd look great in it!" I put away the Grass Uniform in my locker, after which I changed into my normal getup.

After we exited the Turffield Gym, the Doctor turned to me with a small grin. "Looks like it's just you and me again, eh? The others are still waiting for their turn to tackle the Turffield Gym. Not to be impatient or anything, but I'm itching to move on to the next Gym. What say you? Shall we go through Route 5 together, just us friendly rivals?"

"That's a wonderful idea, Doctor. But first..." I walked towards the stone formations. "I would like to study these stone formations. I feel like they hide some kind of mystery."

"Well, that's because they did." The Doctor took a worn fabric out of his saddlebag. "Until I came and discovered it, that is! Helix, can you tell me what this old length of fabric is?"

I instantly recognized the fabric. "That's an Expert Belt. If you give it to a Pokemon to hold, the power of any super-effective attacks they use will increase by ten percent."

"Is that so? In that case..." The Doctor sent out his Charjabug. "I'll let you wear this Expert Belt. You have moves that cover many types, after all!"

The Expert Belt was a tad too large, so the Doctor looped it around Charjabug's body twice rather than once before tying it. "Expert Belt equipped. Now I will be able to deliver even more damage to Nessa's Water-type Pokemon with Spark if you choose to use me as your partner in the Hulbury Gym."

"Helix, can you translate?" the Doctor asked.

I nodded. "Basically, he's saying that he will deal even more damage to the Water-type Pokemon found in the Hulbury Gym."

Charjabug added, "I will also have access to more powerful moves if you evolve me with a Thunder Stone."

"Oh, and he'll have even stronger moves if you--" I did a double take. "Wait, did you just say Thunder Stone?"

"Affirmative. Galar has no places that give off electrical stimulus, so Charjabug in Galar have adapted to evolve via Thunder Stone."

I put a hand on my head in surprise. "Well, that's new. I'm used to evolving Charjabug in places that give off electrical stimulus, such as Blush Mountain in the Alola region. But apparently Galar has no electrically charged locations, so Charjabug in Galar have adapted so that they evolve by using a special item called a Thunder Stone."

"A Thunder Stone?" The Doctor put a hoof to his chin. "What a curious-sounding object. Is it some kind of stone that gives off electricity, or more like a gem reminiscent of lightning?"

"You're close, but the Thunder Stone itself doesn't necessarily have any similarities to lightning. Thunder Stones are dull green gemstones that don't bear any resemblance to lightning at first glance, but if you look closely, there is a yellow lightning bolt symbol within the gemstone. You'll know a Thunder Stone when you see it. Just... be careful what Pokemon species you use it on, you know? And try not to lose it. Evolution stones are hard to find in the Pokemon world."

"Understood. Now then..." The Doctor looked east towards our next destination with resolve in his eyes. "The Hulbury Gym beckons! Let us proceed onward to Route 5!"

Chapter 9: Attack of the Interviewers

After restoring our Pokemon's health at the Pokemon Center, the Doctor and I made our way east out of Turffield. It pained me somewhat to leave the natural beauty of Turffield, but I quickly reminded myself that my type would resist any stray Water-type moves from the Gym Trainers in Hulbury.

Besides, I needn't worry about leaving the beauty of nature; after crossing the stone bridge, we discovered that Route 5 was a forested area where plenty of wild Pokemon roamed. In the distance, I could see a Pokemon Day Care. Or perhaps it was a Nursery? I would have to get a closer look.

My analysis of the route was interrupted when the Doctor asked me, "Say, is it normal to run into pairs of Trainers?" He pointed towards the first Trainers on the route: a reporter and a cameraman.

"It is, actually." I took out a Poke Ball in preparation for battle. "When you encounter a pair of Trainers, they tend to battle by each sending out one Pokemon."

The Doctor gave me an annoyed look. "But isn't that a tad unfair? It would be two Pokemon against one, and the opponents would be able to have double the normal amount of Pokemon to battle with!"

"It seems that way at first, but there are actually many types of battles. You're used to the most common style of battle, Single Battles. That's where each side sends out one Pokemon."

The Doctor's expression changed to one of curiosity. "Oh? So there are battle formats in which each side can send out more than one Pokemon?"

I nodded. "When each side sends out two Pokemon at a time, it's considered a Double Battle. But two Trainers can also team up and battle alongside each other to battle two other Trainers. That's called a Multi Battle. To make sure things don't drag on for too long, Multi Battle Trainers each only use three Pokemon."

"That's interesting. But would it be possible for one Trainer to battle a pair of Trainers?"

"Most definitely. Trainers such as Brendan and Nate have often had to battle pairs of Trainers alone, in which case they would send out two Pokemon at a time to battle the opposing team's two Pokemon on the field. Depending on how you look at it, this could be considered a Double Battle from the single Trainer's point of view or a Multi Battle from the point of view of the pair of Trainers."

"I see. So, Double Battles and Multi Battles? Such kinds of battles must invoke a multitude of clever strategies and move combinations! I would like to try one out for myself! Although..." The Doctor's sudden burst of excitement subsided as he explained one of his concerns. "Seeing as I am still a beginner, I feel that it would be too difficult for me to focus on two of my Pokemon at the same time as I analyze the opponents' moves and strategies. Would you be so inclined as to assist me as I take on these two Trainers?"

I flinched at first, because it had been a long time since I had engaged in a Double or Multi Battle. However, this was not the time for me to back down and go refine my Double and Multi Battles at the Battle Tree. I quickly pulled myself together with a grin. "Of course, partner. Let's take those two down!"

We initiated the start of the battle against the reporter and cameraman by making direct eye contact. The reporter was certainly happy to have found some Trainers to battle. "Oh, you must be the new Gym Challengers! That means it's time for a special interview! But first..." The reporter brandished her Poke Ball. "...we should get to know each other with a battle!"

The cameraman got his camera rolling. "I can't wait to see how your Pokemon really shine on-camera!" He sent out a pair of interlocked gears with faces. "Are you ready, Klink? Action!"

The reporter sent out a yellow lizard with frills on the sides of its head. "It's showtime, Helioptile!"

I stopped the Doctor before he checked his Rotom Phone. "Leave it to me, Doctor." I pointed at the interlocked gears. "That's Klink, the Gear Pokemon. A Steel-type, Klink are always found in pairs, because they spin while interlocked in order to generate the energy needed to live. They cannot mesh with others or else they will become separated. You could say this makes them twins." Then I changed my focus to the lizard. "And there's Helioptile, the Generator Pokemon. It's an Electric- and Normal-type that gathers energy from the sun by spreading out the frills on its head. These frills have special cells that generate electricity when exposed to sunlight, like solar panels." I then sighed as I muttered to myself, "You probably don't know about solar panels since Ponyville doesn't have advanced technology..."

The Doctor gave me a somewhat smug smile. "First of all, I heard that! And second of all, I do know what a solar panel is. As a matter of fact, solar panels are one of the different kinds of technology I've tried working with. When it comes to dealing with Klink and Helioptile, I believe I have just the Pokemon for the job..." He sent out Onix, most likely the same Onix that he caught at the entrance to the Rolling Fields. "Let's see how you deal with Rattlerock!"

I wing-bumped the Doctor. "That was a clever play on words, Doc. Using the onomatopoeia of the sound certain snakes make when they shake their tail, which can also be considered the sound rocks make when they roll, was quite ingenious!" I sent out Hotshot. "Even more so than the name I gave my starter, which implies that he might as well evolve into some kind of fiery soccer player."

When I sent out Hotshot, he shook his head with a sigh. "C'mon, seriously? You're gonna wait until just now to tell me why you named me Hotshot? So much for surprising you with my final evolution..."

I deadpanned. "Your pre-evolution Scorbunny was literally blazing around the court back at Hop's place, leaving behind burning footprints. Considering not only your powerful hind legs but also the fact that sports are a recurring theme in Galar, I was almost certain you'd evolve into a mighty goal-scoring fire rabbit, hence Hot-shot."

Hotshot began to make a counter-argument, but ultimately failed to find fault in my assumption. "...Eh, you got me there. I'll give you props for your spot-on reasoning." He turned to Onix. "Rattlerock, was it? How's about we rock their world?"

Rattlerock nodded. "Time to rock and roll!"

"Looks like everyone's ready." I turned to Hotshot with fierceness in my eyes. "Use Flame Charge on Klink!"

As Hotshot cloaked himself in flame, the cameraman stayed defiant. "Get ready for a turnaround! Klink, give 'em a dose of Vise Grip!"

I was surprised to see that when Hotshot charged at Klink, the two gears separated to dodge the attack before coming back together and grinding Hotshot with their teeth. "Oh no! Get out of there!"

"I'll help!" the Doctor said. "Rattlerock, use Tackle on Klink!" Rattlerock rammed into the two gears head-first, knocking them away and freeing Hotshot.

I smiled at the Doctor. "I owe you one for helping Hotshot out like that."

"No need. I'm just doing what friends do best."

I looked back at the action just in time to see Helioptile racing towards Hotshot at a fast pace. "Hotshot, jump and use Double Kick!"

"Thanks for the warning!" Hotshot dodged Helioptile's Quick Attack with a jump and delivered two powerful kicks to its back. "You had enough yet?"

I shook my head. "I wouldn't think so. From my experience, interviewers tend to back each other up in battle whenever they're pushed into a corner."

The reporter gave a determined grin. "You've got that right!" She turned to the cameraman. "Cam, time to do what we do best!"

The cameraman returned the grin. "You got it, Gillian!" He turned to Klink. "Klink, cover for Helioptile!" Klink promptly got in front of Helioptile, ready to take attacks.

"Helioptile, use Charge!" The electric lizard spread open its frills and began absorbing energy from the sun.

I gave the Doctor a short explanation: "When a Pokemon uses Charge, the power of its Electric-type moves goes up considerably. Be careful!"

The Doctor seemed to be in deep thought. "Maybe we can somehow interfere with the process. Helix, perhaps attacking Helioptile while it's charging will do something."

My eyes narrowed in inquisition. "That... just might work. But first, we need to get past Klink."

"I won't let you!" The cameraman plugged his ears after giving another command to Klink: "Use Metal Sound!"

Acting quickly, I tossed my High-Tech Earbuds to the Doctor. "Don't ask, just put these into your ears and tune out the attack!"

The Doctor did as he was told and I plugged my own ears before Klink made a dreadful grinding noise from the two gears scraping against each other, causing Hotshot and Rattlerock to cringe in agony. "Klink appears to be quite the troublemaker!" the Doctor said. "Rattlerock, pull through the earsplitting noise and use Rock Throw!"

Opening his eyes in frustration, Rattlerock slammed its tail between the two gears. With the tail jamming the gears, Klink was unable to rotate and fainted due to the lack of kinetic energy. Klink having fainted, the cameraman turned to the reporter with a sorrowful look. "Sorry, but it looks like Klink's act was cut off early. It can't back up Helioptile anymore."

"It's okay," the reporter answered. "Helioptile's almost done charging."

Right on cue, I exclaimed, "Hotshot, use Quick Attack!"

Hotshot slammed into Helioptile, interrupting the charging process. This, in turn, appeared to make Helioptile grow very weak. The reporter continued with a sad smile, "Besides, we didn't engage in battle against these Trainers to win, we did it to learn about them."

The Doctor pumped his hoof in joy. "Excellent! The opponent was weakened from being interrupted during its attempt to charge! Let's finish off Helioptile in style!"

I glanced at the Doctor with youthful hope in my eyes. "You mean..."

"That's right! A teamwork attack!" He turned to Rattlerock. "Grab Hotshot with your tail!" Rattlerock wrapped the end of his tail around Hotshot. The Doctor looked at me. "See where I'm going with this?"

I smiled. "Hotshot, get ready for a Flame Charge!" Hotshot cloaked himself in flames. "Now Rattlerock's got himself a burning rattle!"

The Doctor returned the smile. "I knew you'd get it! Time to show them what we can do!" He exclaimed, "Rattlerock, slam Hotshot on Helioptile!"

"Who rocks?" Rattlerock used the weight of his rocky tail to bring Hotshot down hard on Helioptile. "We do!"

To the Doctor's curiosity, Helioptile fainted not only from the powerful attack but also from major burns that it suffered from the Flame Charge. "Uh, Helix... do you think we went too far with this?"

The reporter shook her head while returning Helioptile to its Poke Ball. "It's okay, you didn't go too far. You just triggered Helioptile's Ability, Dry Skin. That Ability causes Helioptile to take more damage from Fire-type moves but heal from Water-type moves. It also takes damage in harsh sunlight and heals in rain."

"Well, that's good to know." The Doctor returned Rattlerock to its Poke Ball. "Now I'll know which Pokemon to use against Helioptile if we ever have a rematch."

I returned Hotshot to his Poke Ball. "By the way, we never did properly introduce ourselves. My name's Helix."

"And I'm Doctor Hooves, but you can simply call me Doctor."

"Nice to meet you two." The reporter shook my wing. "I'm Gillian, and this is my cameraman, Cam. We're interviewers who've been scouring the region for tough Trainers like you. It's been such an honor to battle with you!"

"Thank you for noticing our battle skills," the Doctor replied, "but I've only just begun my career as a Pokemon Trainer."

I added, "And while I may be a skilled Trainer, I'm nowhere as good as Trainers such as Red or Steven."

"Don't be so hard on yourselves! We could tell just how strong you two are from your interactions with your Pokemon." Gillian held her microphone towards us. "Tell me your thoughts on the battle so the viewers can hear your opinion."

The Doctor answered, "Seeing as this was my first Multi Battle, it certainly opened me up to new experiences. I especially enjoyed the teamwork concept of the Multi Battle format because back in Equestria where I live, friendship is an important trait. That's why my philosophy is that you're only as strong as the bond between you and your Pokemon."

"That's a wonderful philosophy, Doctor! And what about you, Helix? Would you care to add your own thoughts?"

I nodded. "Certainly. It is very important to have a strong bond with your Pokemon, although it does help to have a good strategy when you go into battle. If you ask me, I would not advise neglecting strategy and focusing only on strengthening the bond you share with your Pokemon. You've got to have a good balance between friendship and strategy when going into a battle. I mean, think about it: a strong bond won't save a Shedinja that's fighting a Haxorus with Mold Breaker as its Ability."

Gillian seemed impressed by my remark. "Seems like you really know your way around Pokemon battles, Helix! Thanks to both of you for taking the time for an interview. You might want to turn on the television when you reach the next town, because we'll be airing later today. We hope to see you again someday!"

As we walked past the interviewers, the Doctor turned to me. "I'll be honest with you, I don't have a clue what you were saying about this so-called Shedinja or Mold Breaker."

My eyes widened in realization. "Oh! How could I forget to tell you about Shedinja?! See, Shedinja is a Bug- and Ghost-type Pokemon whose signature Ability, Wonder Guard, is overpowered. This Ability protects Shedinja from all damaging attacks except for super-effective moves. However, it does not prevent indirect damage, as from poison or burn; and it doesn't affect status moves either. The catch?" I chuckled. "Shedinja only has one HP, or hit point. Hit points measure a Pokemon's amount of health. In other words, Shedinja's laughable HP stat means a level 1 Vulpix could knock out a level 100 Shedinja with Ember. Additionally, the effects of all Abilities that would normally affect the damage output or effects of a move will be nullified when a Pokemon with the Mold Breaker Ability executes a move."

"An Ability that negates attacks, and an Ability that negates Abilities?" The Doctor put a hoof to his chin. "How interesting..."

Author's Note

Knowledge is power, so the Doctor is growing more powerful with each chapter.
Of course, he's still a rookie, though. It'll take some time for him to become a good Trainer...

...right?:unsuresweetie:

Chapter 10: Duel of the Feathered Foes

Almost immediately after the interviewers, the path split in two. The first path continued east while the second path turned south. The Doctor checked his Rotom Phone. "Says here that the south path will merge with the east path further ahead. It'll be more straightforward if we continue east, but I'm certain we'll find some useful items and Trainers to battle if we turn south. What say you, Helix?"

I looked down the south path, which contained a Berry tree, a pond, and a Pokemon Camp, alongside some Trainers to battle. There were some patches of grass along the side of the path. "I have to agree with you, Doctor. Looks like there's lots to be found on the southern path." I walked towards the southern path, but a patch of grass on the east path caught my attention. "Actually, it might be better to check out that patch of grass over there first."

"Good idea. We might find some new species of Pokemon if we investigate the tall grass."

We approached the tall grass slowly, watching for any Pokemon that might ambush us. While the Doctor got to work catching the species that were new to him, I watched closely for Pokemon that were exclusive to the Galar region. Unfortunately, it was hard to find any Galar Pokemon with all the Drifloon, Swirlix, Minccino, and Stufful around. So I did what most Pokemon Trainers would do: battle every Pokemon in their path.

Corvisquire took down the Stufful while Hotshot battled the Minccino. I took on the Swirlix myself as Kilowatt zapped the Drifloon. I had to take a break every once in a while to heal Kilowatt, because some of the Drifloon had the Aftermath Ability and therefore burst when defeated.

The Doctor checked his saddlebag to make sure everything was in order. "Oh dear! I'm running low on Poke Balls! Helix, wait there while I run back to the Pokemon Center to stock up."

"Sure thing." I waved to him as he galloped back to Turffield. I used my Rotom Phone to check everyone's levels. It pleased me to see that all six of my Pokemon were at least level 23. "Good job, everyone. You deserve a break." I returned my Pokemon to their Poke Balls.

"Pathetic."

I immediately turned northwest and pointed a quill towards the source of the gruff voice. "You've got some nerve to call me pathetic. Are you sure you don't want to take that back?"

"Why would I? I'm only stating the obvious. Only a weakling would give his Pokemon a break before their power points reach 3 or their health reaches a fifth of its maximum."

I turned my quill into a Leaf Blade and held it at my side. "You sound like the type of Pokemon who likes to take chances. In that case, how about you show yourself and we can settle this one-on-one?"

"Are you challenging me to a duel?" A large, thick leek fell before me, and a figure used the other end to pole-vault itself towards me. The figure was a fierce-looking duck with a dark brown coat and a light-colored underbelly. The leek was easily double the length of the duck. "Then I accept!"

I consulted my Rotom Phone. "Is this a Galarian Farfetch'd?"

"Precisely," the duck confirmed. "Don't bother checking the Pokedex. I'd rather duel an opponent when neither of us knows of the other's capabilities. I find that to be the best way to train."

"Very well." I put away the Rotom Phone. "Let us begin!"

Farfetch'd lunged towards me and swung his leek vertically. I plucked another Leaf Blade and crossed both quills in front of me, successfully guarding against the leek. "A Grass-type, eh? Time to cut through your defenses!" His leek gave off a dark green glow, and he repeatedly tried to slash me with it. However, I parried each strike using my Leaf Blades, even as Fury Cutter grew stronger with each blow. When it seemed like my quills couldn't take it anymore, I dropped my guard and slashed at Farfetch'd with both quills. "Impressive, you are skilled in both offense and defense. Looks like a job for a same-type attack bonus!"

I spread my wings to fly away from the oncoming attack, but I realized that wasn't necessary; I had plenty of experience as a Pokemon, so I was certain I could take the attack. Even if I wouldn't be able to take the attack well, there was one other factor...

Farfetch'd brought down his mighty leek like a hammer, but it happened to pass right through my body. "Rock Smash had no affect? Your secondary type must be Ghost, then. That only makes you more vulnerable to my next attack!" He spun his leek around rapidly, turning his entire body into a weapon using a move called Brutal Swing.

"If Button Mash were here, he'd be reminded of a certain masked penguin boss..." I thought to myself as I ran from the deadly spinning leek. For the most part I ignored other wild Pokemon, because they were easily taken care of by Farfetch'd and his weapon.

"Perhaps I should have stopped spinning earlier..." Farfetch'd moaned as he reeled from dizziness. I considered this my chance to strike, so I flew at him quickly from a low altitude. Although I suffered some recoil damage, using Brave Bird was definitely worth it. After all, it hit its target directly and also knocked the leek away from Farfetch'd. "Hmm, you've more potential than I expected. But you underestimate my inventory!" With a smirk, he pulled out a smaller leek like the ones Kantonian Farfetch'd wield.

I let go of one of my quills and grabbed the other with both arms. I put all my strength into the quill, turning it into an even stronger Leaf Blade, more like a sword than a mere blade. "Come at me!"

Farfetch'd raised his leek for another Fury Cutter, but he was clearly faster without his other leek. This was enough for me to consider it an actual challenge, because he seemed to be quite good at swordplay. He even caught me off-guard twice by fooling me into thinking he would go for one maneuver and then making a different approach than the one I anticipated.

I chuckled before stabbing my Leaf Blade into his shadow and leaping backwards out of the tall grass. "You may have outsmarted me, but I have yet to meet someone who can outsmart Z-Power." I flashed my left wrist, revealing a black hand-crafted bracelet with a Z insignia. Embedded in the insignia was a green crystal with a symbol of a Decidueye's head. "Will you be that someone?"

Farfetch'd narrowed his eyes. "Z-Power? Such a term is unfamiliar to me. Show me what Z-Power is, so that we can find out."

"What a bold Pokemon you are. Very well, allow me to show you the Alolan might that is known as Z-Power!" I crossed my arms in front of me, the Decidueye symbol on the crystal glowing. "Why do I hide in the shadows?" I brought my arms to my sides then held both straight forward, one arm on top of the other. "Opponents know they're visible out in the light of day." I crouched down, my wings/hands covering the lower half of my face, and slowly rose up in an eerie fashion. "So they retreat to darkness, where they think they're safe." When I stopped rising, I lurched forward and spread my wings. "But I'm always four parallel universes ahead of them, for I have mastered the art of reading my opponents." Z-Power surged into my veins from all around: from my Pokemon, from my friends, even from nature. "The only way you could hope to survive my next attack is by reading me. Prepare yourself!"

Farfetch'd got ready to dodge, but couldn't move due to the Spirit Shackle I had pinned to his shadow. "An impressive signature move, and an even more impressive setup involving said move. Dodging is not an option, so I have no choice but to counter your attack!"

"Exactly." I soared high into the sky, producing countless arrows that circled me. I stopped increasing my altitude and looked down at the wild duck Pokemon. "I wish you the best of luck as you attempt to counter my signature Z-Move... Sinister Arrow Raid!"

I swooped down towards Farfetch'd, who gripped his leek in preparation for my attack. I unleashed a dive bomb, but he crouched to avoid it. Seeing the onslaught of arrows coming at him, he twirled his leek to deflect them. "Did you really expect to hit me with those arrows? I am the most elite of my kind on this route!"

Facing away from Farfetch'd and the arrows he deflected or avoided, I grinned. "Nope. I didn't intend to hit you with those arrows. Are you ready for me to show you why I launched those arrows?"

He looked at the arrows around him, and his eyes widened. "...They explode, don't they?"

Boooooom! The arrows promptly exploded, causing Farfetch'd to collapse.

He tried to get up, but failed. "Even with the special Leek... I failed to unlock my critical power... Am I simply considered not worthy in the eyes of fate...?"

I thought back to the days when I was corrupted by rage and tried to find some worthy opponents to unleash my rage on. "That is where you're wrong." I knelt down and offered my wing to Farfetch'd. "It isn't that you're not worthy. The true reason why I battled you was to prove that you can still grow stronger."

"And how..." He looked up at me with distrust in his eyes. "...does this prove that I can grow more powerful?"

"Oh? You don't know about me? I'm Helix, and I just came here to Galar. I am proof that you can become even stronger than before, because I'm not your average Pokemon." I pointed a thumb towards myself. "I am a Pokemon Trainer!" I showed off the medallion with the Grass Badge in place. "And I have this collection of Badges to prove it."

"Humph," Farfetch'd scoffed. "Doesn't look like much of a--"

"I also have this." I opened my Trainer Passport for the Alola region. Not a single stamp was missing.

"...Never mind. Seems you really are a good Trainer." He took my wing and got up. "I'm about ready to join your team."

"No, you're not." I rummaged through the tall grass and found his stronger leek. I dragged it over to him. "You almost forgot this. You don't go anywhere without it, do you?"

"You're right." Farfetch'd grabbed the leek and lifted it onto his right shoulder. "Is your Poke Ball ready?"

"Definitely." I took out my Poke Ball. "You've been through quite the battle, so I'd rather not hurl this at you. Why don't you do the honors."

"Of course, Helix." He pressed the button on the front of the Poke Ball and went inside. The Poke Ball rocked once, twice, thrice... Click!

I recalled Milo mentioning that Nessa, a Water-type user, was the Gym Leader of Hulbury. "Sorry, Rev Rock, but you'd take a beating in Hulbury Gym." I sent Rev Rock to a Box and added Farfetch'd to my party.

Just then, the Doctor returned. "I'm back and ready to catch more Pokemon! Did I miss anything, Helix?"

"Well, I--" Suddenly, one of my Poke Balls shook. "What's this? Kilowatt, are you okay?" I sent out the electric puppy to see what was wrong. To my surprise, he was positively glowing. The bright blue glow completely consumed Kilowatt, and his form began to change. The electric sac around his neck disappeared, and his body became larger yet slimmer. It was like he changed from a Welsh Corgi into a greyhound. "Hold up, I don't remember giving you an Experience Share. Come to think of it, I never even brought one on this adventure."

"What's an Experience Share?" the Doctor asked.

"Yeah, Helix, what is it?" Kilowatt chimed in.

I gave Kilowatt a confused look. "Wait, they don't have Experience Shares in Galar? Strange." I turned back to the Doctor. "Anyway, in other regions, Experience Shares take some of the experience gained in battle and give it to Pokemon in your party that didn't participate in battle."

The Doctor was impressed by this. "Really? And you said you didn't have an Experience Share this time? Maybe Yamper doesn't need experience to evolve."

"Nah, that isn't it," Kilowatt said to me. "It's just that we Pokemon in Galar don't need to participate in battles to grow. We're smart enough to gain experience just by watching battles, and that's what caused me to evolve into Boltund!"

"Boltund, eh?" I checked my Rotom Phone.

"Boltund, the Dog Pokemon. An Electric-type, it generates electricity and channels it into its legs. This process allows Boltund to run nonstop for three full days."

The Doctor checked his own Rotom Phone. "Boltund sends electricity through its legs to boost their strength. Its top speed easily breaks 50 miles per hour. Boltund and Thievul are natural enemies."

"Oh, and before I forget..." I checked the Pokedex entry for Galarian Farfetch'd.

"Farfetch'd, Galarian Form, the Wild Duck Pokemon. A Fighting-type, Farfetch'd from Galar are brave warriors who wield powerful leeks in battle. The stalks of leeks in Galar are thicker and tougher, so Galarian Farfetch'd have become Fighting-types to gain the strength required to carry their leek."

"Farfetch'd?" the Doctor asked. "Never heard of it. Judging from its Pokedex entry, I don't think I saw any while catching Pokemon here. Oh well, maybe we'll find some new Pokemon down on the south path."

I nodded. "Right. Okay, let's head down that way!"

Chapter 11: The Rose's Thorn

For me, the southern path wasn't quite as exciting as the Multi Battle and Galarian Farfetch'd encounter on the main path. Nonetheless, it did have plenty to offer. For instance, I found some Heal Balls hidden by a wide patch of grass where Stufful roamed; and the first Trainer on the lower path, a chef, battled me with what appeared to be a worm in an apple, a Pokemon called Applin. Overtaken by curiosity, I tried looking for Applin in the patches of grass, but I had plenty of trouble finding any. According to my Rotom Phone, Applin were quite uncommon. Even when I did manage to find one, the Doctor beat me to catching it. Blast!

After sending Applin to his Pokemon Box, the Doctor glanced over at me. "Why so glum, Helix? You could always just catch other Pokemon you haven't yet registered in your Pokedex."

"I would, but there's one small problem with that..." I took out some certificates from my pocket. "See these? They're proof that I completed the Pokedex for all the other regions I've been to: Kanto, Hoenn, Alola, you name it! That means I've already caught some of the Pokemon you see wandering around here. I find it redundant to catch Pokemon I've already caught, unless I intend to add them to my team. That's why my heart's focused on catching Pokemon exclusive to Galar!"

The Doctor took a step backwards, caught by surprise from my sudden assertive attitude. "Look, I understand how you feel. I consider it to be quite excessive to have more than one of, say, a certain collectible. If I can go for 100 percent instead of attending to more redundant matters, then I will. But right now... the Pokedex isn't what we should be focusing on. We can always come back later to finish our Pokedex."

I gave the Doctor a stern look while putting away the certificates. "And by later you mean over a year from now, after we finish our adventure. Do you realize how long that is?!"

"Of course I do! It's just that sometimes, it's best to live in the present. We can enjoy what the present has to offer while simultaneously looking forward to what the future has in store. Besides, 100% completion isn't our top priority. Our top priority is to become skilled enough in the ways of Galarian Pokemon battles that we can overwhelm the might of Lord Tirek."

I almost instantly stopped being upset when I heard what the Doctor had to say. "Live in the present... Oh Celestia, I completely forgot about Lord Tirek! You're right, I need to stop worrying about Pokedex completion and get to work training my team like the Champion I am!"

With a sudden burst of energy, I powered through the southern path, taking every chance I could to strengthen my Pokemon and grabbing every item I found. I also took a moment to visit a Pokemon Camp near the pond before proceeding back to the main path. There were a pair of Trainers near the end of the southern path, but the Doctor had already beaten them.

When the south path merged with the north path, I was pleased to see a Pokemon Nursery right in front of me. I knew that I hadn't caught any evolved forms of Pokemon exclusive to Galar, but I went inside anyway. I've often found that Pokemon Day Cares and Nurseries had more to offer than simply breeding Pokemon. However, all I got were a few very small EXP Candies. The person who gave me the candies said she would've given me a Pokemon hatched from an Egg, but apparently she had already given it to, and I quote, "a talking horse who said he feels right at home here in Galar." I could only assume that she gave the Pokemon to the Doctor.

I left the Nursery and continued along the road. When I reached a long stone bridge, I found the Doctor and a physician staring in surprise at a pair of Team Yell grunts who appeared to be left in shock. "Whoa, what happened here?" I asked.

The Team Yell grunts looked at me and the Doctor. "Oi, if it isn't you lot. Look, normally we'd be up for a bout with you, but we just got our tushes handed to us."

I looked at the Doctor, who shook his head. "I just got here. I couldn't have beaten them in a Pokemon battle."

We looked at the physician. "Not I. These Team Yell goons were trying to steal this bike." He took out a portable bike that could be folded up for easy storage. It had a predominantly red paint job. "But a kind lass showed up right on time, and her Pokemon gave them a good thrashing. It was a real sight!"

"Really?" the Doctor asked. "You know where she went off to?"

"Yeah, I tried to hand her this bike as a gift, but she said she didn't need it and took off across the bridge. If you're fast enough, you may be able to catch up to her." The physician began to see us off, but stopped. "Actually, hold on... Do either of you two have a Rotom with you?"

I nodded. "We both have a Rotom Phone." We showed our phones to him.

"Really? That's fantastic! Would either of you like to have this bike instead?"

"I might take you up on your offer, but I need to check my bag first. Victor lent me some of his stuff, so I might already have a bike on me." The Doctor rummaged through his saddlebag, and he finally found a bike in the Key Items pocket. "Ah, here it is! Sorry, but it looks like I already have one. What about you, Helix?"

"I'm not sure. Let me see..." I looked through my coat pockets, but I didn't find a folding bike. "Huh, guess I left my bike at home. Okay then, I'll accept the bike."

The physician smiled. "Great! Now, you probably know how much Rotom love motors, right?"

"Yep, their specialty is entering motors of various appliances. I've even used a Rotom Pokedex!"

"Right! So the idea of Rotom entering motors made me think about the possibility of attaching a motor to a bicycle so that a Rotom could zip into that as well."

I put a wing to my chin. "Hmm... A Rotom entering a bicycle? That's a pretty interesting idea. Perhaps the Rotom could give the bike some kind of turbo charge."

"My thoughts precisely! If you work together with Rotom, you can go places you wouldn't have been able to go on your own! If you and Rotom work as one, there'll be nothing that will get in your way!" The physician gave me the bike. "Go and ride to your heart's content!"

I got on my bike, and my Rotom Phone attached itself between the handlebars. The Doctor and his Rotom Phone followed suit. "So, a bike that can be given a turbo boost by Rotom..." I gave the Doctor a grin. "You know what this means?"

"What does this mean?" he asked.

I gripped the handlebars tightly with intense resolve in my eyes. "It's time for us to team up with Rotom! By working together, the sky's the limit! In other words... it's time to Double Boost!"

I blasted forward, nearly leaving the Doctor in the dust. When he caught up, I began to sing, "Together we can show this world what we can--" Without warning, our Rotom Bikes decelerated to a more casual speed. "Well, that didn't last too long. Guess we need to ride around at the normal speed to recharge the turbo boost."

"That's a good thing if you ask me," the Doctor replied, clearly dazed from the sudden burst of speed. "Next time, at least give me a warning before utilizing the boost, would you?"

I gave a bashful chuckle. "Yeah, sorry about that... It's just that the ability to unleash a turbo boost powered by teamwork convinced me to make a reference."

"Save the non-Pokemon references for when you get further into this adventure, guys." We slammed on our brakes just in time to avoid hitting a familiar face.

I gave her a confused look. "Amy? Shouldn't you be back in Turffield Stadium waiting your turn to take on the Gym?"

Amy shook her head. "Actually, I'm not taking on the Gym Challenge. I came here just to explore the Galar region with my Pokemon."

"You're not fooling me. I see the League Card you have tucked in your right pocket."

She looked in said pocket, then back at me. "Looks like there's nothing that won't go unseen in your line of sight, Helix! You called my bluff, but I'm only participating in the Gym Challenge to get to know my Pokemon even better."

"That still doesn't answer my question about you being in Turffield Stadium."

"I was, but I overheard someone say something about Team Yell over on Route 5, so I ran right over and made sure to give those bootleg Team Skull grunts what for. I continued on ahead across this bridge because the whole ordeal caused me to forget about my first Gym Mission, so thanks for reminding me."

"No problem," the Doctor answered. "Now, shall we see you back to the stadium?"

"It's okay, I can make it back myself. However, I'm disappointed at how little of a fight Team Yell put up. Think either of you could make up for it with a battle against my partner?"

The Doctor stepped forward. "I'll challenge you. I was hoping to battle those Team Yell members, but you already took care of them. You'd better not disappoint me with an easy battle, because I'm ready to give it my all!"

Amy twirled a black Poke Ball with gold rings around it on her right index finger. "Good, because I'm not gonna hold back! Let's see how you stand up against my ace..." She tossed the Luxury Ball, releasing a slender, quadrupedal Pokemon with very short legs and a long, striped body. "Go get 'em, Walker!"

"Time to learn about this Pokemon." The Doctor checked his Rotom Phone, only to put on a confused look. "How strange... All I'm getting here is a question mark."

"It must not be in the Galar region's Pokedex," I replied. "But don't worry, because I know what this Pokemon is. It's known as Furret, the Long Body Pokemon. A Normal-type, it is quick and agile despite its short legs. They build narrow burrows that are very difficult for other species to enter. And even if predators do manage to enter their burrows, the burrows become more maze-like deeper inside, making it even harder to find Furret's nest." I paused. "Also, some guy used Furret and the theme of Accumula Town to create a meme known as the Furret Walk. Now that's almost the only thing this skillful Pokemon is known for," I continued with a groan. "And before you say anything, Doctor, you wouldn't understand what a meme is because Ponyville is nowhere near technologically advanced enough to have memes. I'll explain the concept after our adventure."

"Oh, okay. And you said Furret was a Normal-type? I'd normally go for a type advantage with Rattlerock, but I've a feeling Amy has a trick up her sleeve." He sent out his Yamper. "So it's your turn, Spark Bark!"

"Alright, Walker!" Amy smiled as she began snapping her fingers. "Let's take it from the top! One, two, three, four!" She started clapping her hands rhythmically as her Furret, appropriately named Walker, swayed its body from side to side and grooved to the rhythm.

A drop of sweat formed on the Doctor's forehead. "I may have made a mistake in challenging Amy..."

"How do you know?" I asked.

The Doctor hurriedly dismissed my confusion. "I'll tell you later. Spark Bark, go for a Nuzzle! It's our only hope!"

Spark Bark attempted to ram into Walker with his electric sac, but Walker deftly dodged as it sang:

They say Normal-types aren't strong, but they're wrong
I will prove to you that I can fight! Yes, that's right!

The Doctor's eyes widened. "Well, I guess that's out of the picture. Let's try using Nuzzle defensively this time!"

Spark Bark hunkered down and charged up his electric sac for a counterattack, only for Walker to swerve around the sac and deliver a powerful slam to his back.

I'm good with offense and speed, that's all
I need to be strong 'cause I've got my friend! We'll fight to the end!

I would've tried to assist the Doctor in helping Spark Bark retaliate, but the impressive battling style of Walker had the entirety of my attention. Never before had I ever seen a low-tier species such as that of Walker predict its opponent's movements and react accordingly. If Spark Bark dodged, Walker curved her attack in the direction Spark Bark dodged to compensate. If Spark Bark tried to fool Walker with a fake-out, she wouldn't fall for it. And whenever Spark Bark made a mistake, Walker ensured that he got harshly punished for his blunder.

They say you must have good stats and a great strategy
The truth is, friendship and working together is the key
You don't have to burn, freeze, scare, read minds, or fly
Just work with an ally!

Spark Bark was weakened and ready to have the rest of his HP depleted, and Walker knew that. With a nod towards Amy, she summoned a large wave of water to finish the battle.

You've fought bravely, we can tell--quite well,
But it's time for us to end this fight! And what a fight!

Ears folded back in sorrow, the Doctor walked over and stroked his drenched Yamper, making sure to avoid the electric sac. "I'm sorry, Spark Bark... If I'd known Walker was going to sing, I would never have sent you out there, let alone challenge Amy."

"Hey, don't worry about it." Amy used a Max Revive to fully restore Spark Bark's health and Power Points. With a wink, she continued, "Besides, it isn't every day you run into a Trainer who's also skilled in Pokemon Contests."

"Thanks for healing Spark Bark," the Doctor replied. "But I'm afraid that won't heal the weakened bond of friendship between me and Spark Bark caused by him fainting."

"Relax, Doc. I'm sure he won't be mad at you over fainting a single time. If you really want to have a good friendship with your Pokemon, though, I've got something you might want." Amy gave the Doctor a round bell with a loop of red string attached to it. "Have your Pokemon wear this Soothe Bell. The calming chime should cause the wearer to grow closer to you."

"I really owe you one," the Doctor said as he put the Soothe Bell on Spark Bark.

Amy laughed. "You already did by putting up a better fight than those yellow-bellied Team Skull rip-offs. I don't know about you, but I'm not sure if they even have a leader!"

I shrugged. "Beats me. Although, there is a question that's been on my mind ever since your battle started." With astonishment and exasperation in my voice, I nearly yelled at the Doctor, "How the heck did you know that you were in trouble when the Furret started singing and dancing to the tune of the song I mentioned earlier?!"

Putting on a smug yet innocent smile, the Doctor answered, "Don't you know? Back in Equestria, it's not uncommon to spontaneously break into a song-and-dance routine. Songs are practically our second language! As such, I daresay I somewhat understood what Walker was singing. But that's besides the point. The point is, we Equestrians seem to be unstoppable whenever we sing. Therefore, I assumed the same went for Walker." He sighed. "And of course, my hunch just had to be right."

If I had eyebrows, they would be furrowed in confusion. "If you knew that singing made you harder to beat, then whey didn't you counter Amy's musical strategy with your own song?"

"Because I want to save that for the tournament. A real hero never utilizes his full power until the very end! Have you never read any comics?"

His answer satisfied me, only to leave me with another question. "Wait... You read comics too? I thought you were all about science and technology!"

"I am. But you should know that comics such as Power Ponies have all kinds of futuristic technology. I've even tried building some of the time machines featured in certain comics, but none of them worked. Besides, what kind of pony from my generation hasn't read a Power Ponies comic?"

"You make a good point. Now that my questions have all been answered, shall we press on to Hulbury?"

"I agree, we should get going. Amy, we'll see you later!" The Doctor waved as Amy went back to Turffield to take on the Gym there, leaving us to continue through Route 5 and clear out the rest of the Trainers and items on the route.

Chapter 12: Making a Splash at the Second Gym!

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 13: Playing the Waiting Game

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 14: Meeting at the Captain's Table

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 15: Grinding in the Mine

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 16: Second Visit to Motostoke

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 17: Burning Fury at the Third Gym!

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 18: Heroic Reunions and a New Recruit

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 19: The Wild Area gets Wilder

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 20: History in Hammerlocke

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 21: The Obligatory Desert Route

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Prologue: Roads are Optional

Welcome to the land of Equestria, a place brimming with very special quadrupeds that come in all different colors and sizes! These adorable creatures are known as ponies. Ponies live a fairly peaceful life in Equestria, all thanks to the efforts of the Mane Six who quash the influence of such villains as King Sombra and Queen Chrysalis. Recently, however, Equestria has fallen into a state of unease, for a group of intergalactic heroes has crashed there with no means of returning to their home land. It is up to these heroes and the Mane Six to gather the lost Energy Spheres in an attempt to escape. Let us follow one of the most technologically skilled of these surprising new heroes as he puts his abilities to the test: Helix!

In the skies above Equestria, a dark green avian creature with black wings was soaring at high speeds in search of something important. Its eyes finally settled on the house of a stallion with a knack for timely activities. 'He'd better be home,' the owl thought to itself as it flew to the doorstep. It knocked on the door with its white talons.

A brown stallion answered the door, revealing the interior of the house to be like that of an old-fashioned laboratory.

Before he could get a word out, the owl said in a calm but hurried male voice, "It's time to put our creation to the test, Doctor Hooves. You ready?"

The stallion, who was known as Doctor Hooves replied, "Of course, Helix." He flashed his flank, which had an hourglass for a cutie mark. "I've been waiting forever to put my talent to use. What's the destination?"

The owl, who was known as Helix, thought for a moment as he entered the time-obsessed stallion's abode. "Considering the situation I'm in, a good destination might be the world of Pokemon, perhaps one year and ten months ahead from today to be safe. I am using such precision because new places to explore in the Pokemon world tend to be discovered towards the end of the year."

"The world of Pokemon? That sounds intriguing."

"It is very intriguing. But enough talk, I don't have much time. We must hurry before it's too late to stop a monster that might roam Equestria within minutes from now! The EPOCH must be--"

The Doctor's eyes opened wide. "Wait, a monster?! What good will traveling to the future be if there's a monster in the present?! It isn't like we'll be able to return on time!"

"You know about that big red and black monster who eats magic? He got his hands on an Energy Sphere, and feeding on its energy gave him the strength to break out of his cage in Tartarus. And don't worry about him destroying Equestria or anything while we're in the future, because I plan for us to return only twenty seconds or so after leaving. As for where in the world of Pokemon we will go, input the following coordinates..."

After hearing the coordinates, the Doctor went into a large machine that was cylindrical in appearance, and Helix followed him into the surprisingly spacious interior. As Helix closed the door behind him, though...

"Mele!" A small, slender green biped literally put her foot in the door before making her way inside.

Helix turned to her with no hint of surprise. Rather, he smiled upon seeing her. "You came to check out the future of music, didn't you?"

"Me, mele!"

"Understandable, Meloetta, but I'm afraid you cannot. If you saw your future self, or vice versa... then it would be Alice Through the Looking Glass all over again."

Meloetta gasped. "Mele! Me, mele..." As she left, she waved at Helix. "Me mele melele!"

"I can assure you that I will say hello to future you for present you, Meloetta."

By then, the Doctor had finished inputting the coordinates. "...Okay! Helix, will your mechanical red partner come along?"

Helix nodded. "Rotom is an expert at identifying Pokemon, so he will be a valuable ally."

"Very well." Doctor Hooves pressed a red, flashing button. "If you feel a bit distorted during the trip, don't panic. Traveling through time and space simultaneously may have dizzying side effects. So sit back and hang on as we make the quantum leap to save the day!"

After a long ride through the space-time continuum, Helix and Doctor Hooves stumbled out of the EPOCH, having to lean on its exterior to keep from falling over. Even the artificial Rotom Dex couldn't see straight. "Remind me to deactivate before traveling through time and space..."

Helix replied, "You don't have to tell me. I've been confused before, but this took it to a whole new level... Not that I don't like it. It would be good training for if we go up against something that warps gravity or some other area of physics."

The Doctor had to agree. "I had not calculated the amount of dizziness to be this high..." The Doctor snapped out of his confusion, and he let his eyes adjust to their surroundings: a sandy beach not far from a thriving town. A small shack was close to the coastline. "I'm not one to judge solely by appearance, but this place is incredible! It's as if Las Pegasus was grounded! Although, I do have anxieties about this place, because it reminds me somewhat of the Everfree Forest. There aren't even any Pegasi moving the clouds!"

Helix got over his confusion by consuming a pastel pink berry known as a Persim Berry. "This is the Alola region, a tropical portion of the Pokemon world. You are wise to compare Alola to Las Pegasus, and even wiser to notice the clouds moving on their own. Weather works differently in Equestria than in the Pokemon world."

"What's going on?!" A man wearing green glasses, a hat, and a white, unbuttoned, long-sleeved shirt burst out of the shack. When he saw Helix, though, his demeanor went from shocked to happy. "Whew, it's just you, Helix. Thought an Ultra Wormhole had opened up... Anyways, Alola, Helix! How are you doing? Oh, is that a new Pokemon?"

Helix shook his head. "This is Doctor Hooves, and he hails from Equestria on the planet Equus. You wouldn't understand, because you've probably never watched something like My Small Ponyta. As it would happen, Equus is actually in the same galaxy as Pop Star, Kirby's home planet. I suppose you've met him or his friends?"

"Well, Meta Knight came by a few years ago to take on the island challenge, and he told me a little about Kirby. As for My Small Ponyta, Pummel's Keldeo seems to really love that show. It must be because he's an equine Pokemon like the stars of the show. But I never knew that the planet the show took place on actually existed! ...Of course, I wouldn't anyway even if I watched the show myself."

"The planet that My Small Ponyta took place on doesn't exist; I was talking about the planet from a very similar show in the world where I come from. Without further ado, it's time for introductions. Doctor Hooves, this is Professor Kukui, an expert on Alolan Pokemon. Professor Kukui, this is Doctor Hooves, a stallion who is fascinated with the idea of time travel."

The two shook hands/hooves. "It's an honor to meet you, Professor Kukui."

"The honor is mine, Doctor Hooves. So, what brings you two here?"

Helix motioned towards the EPOCH. "See that machine over there? We used it to travel through time and space to get here from about two years earlier, in Equestria, in order to prepare for a battle with a dangerous monster."

Kukui laughed. "You came into the future to prepare for battling against a monster? Sounds like you'll need a lot of High Horsepower in order to beat it! ...No offense, Doctor."

"None taken."

Kukui turned to Helix with a frown. "I'm not sure there's much left for you to do here to prepare. I mean, you even caught the Ultra Beasts and Necrozma! The best you could do here is defend your title as Alolan Pokemon Champion once more. Other than that, there isn't anything here in Alola that can help you train much."

Helix nodded. "Exactly. Nothing in Alola. But what about other regions? That's why I came into the future, to gain access to future Pokemon skills and powers."

Kukui put his hand under his chin in thought. "Another region? Here's an idea: Have you heard of Ash Ketchum?"

"The child prodigy who wants to be the very best, like no one ever was? The one whose cause is to train Pokemon, and who always has Pikachu by his side? Yeah, I've heard of him."

"That's good to know. Why don't you catch his Tailwind and set off for his destination? Samson Oak could probably get a flight ready for you."

Just then, an elderly man with light-colored hair and a strong tan came over. "Did someone call Me-mikyu? I think I heard Kukui say one of you needed a Ride-don!"

Helix shook his head. "Yeah, but we've got a flight of our own. Remember what I can do? All we really need to know is where this intriguing new region is."

"Right!" the professor continued. "The region Ash went to, as I've been told, is northeast of the Alola region, a Surf's ride away from Unova."

"Thank you, Professor. Tell the Masked Royal that I said hi." Helix morphed from his dark green owl form into something more suitable for flying long distances: a draconic, bipedal Pokemon with green skin; a Shiny Dragonite. Helix put the Doctor on his back. "Doctor, hang on to me as if your life depended on it, because there's a very good chance it will."

The Doctor obliged, and the duo prepared to take off. However, the Doctor first asked Helix, "What did Samson mean by Me-mikyu and Ride-don? And why did the professor say Alola when he saw you?"

"Well, you see, Samson really likes to use Pokemon puns. In this case, he was referring to Mimikyu and Rhydon. As for Alola, that is how Alolan people say hello or goodbye. So when you say Alola, you not only mention this region but also greet its natives. Now, without further--"

"Melele!" Meloetta flew to the group from the northeast.

Helix paused. "...You're the Meloetta from this year, right? You never followed us into the EPOCH?"

Meloetta smiled. "Me, mele!"

"Good. You had me worried for a moment there. Now, what was it you wanted?"

"Mele me! Mele melele!"

"Okay, we will follow you. Time to soar!"

As the trio took flight, Meloetta materialized a group of string instruments and played them while she sang:

Heroes, it's time
Let us... take flight!

Doctor Hooves exclaimed, "I can understand her now!"

Helix smiled. "Music is a universal language. When Meloetta sings, she is speaking her native language. Since she knows music and song like the back of her hand--or hoof, in your case--she can sing in such a manner that beings of any language can understand her."

The Doctor smiled back. "In that case, Meloetta, sing on!"

And she did.

Oh, we're soaring through the sky
We see no need to be shy!
We're soaring, rip-roaring right on by!

Heroes patrol the air, giving bad guys a scare
You can't beat us with your sheer might...

Author's Note

Don't get used to the third-person narration of this story. It's only used to introduce the characters and the plot. For the rest of the story, Helix will be narrating. By the way, EPOCH stands for Exceptionally Potent Official Chronological Hijacker. It's the name of the time machine that Helix helped Doctor Hooves construct. The Doctor thought of the name for the machine.

Also, the italicized text at the beginning of the chapter was a reference to how the Pokemon anime narrator introduces the Pokemon world and the characters involved.