Like No One Ever Was (Pokemon SI)

[Skyfyre]

Spoiler: Patreons:

Thank you to my 58 Beginner Tier Patreons and an extra special thanks to RageLord, Nodal_Gravity, ExaltedRequiem, and HanShotFirst, my Ace Tier Patreons!

"Kiki, we have to go," Carmine told him, attempting to drag the younger boy away, but he dug his heels in and refused to move. "Kiki, c'mon- Kieran!" Carmine shouted as after dislodging him from his spot, her brother had reached out to the bus stop and was clinging onto it desperately, refusing to go.

"No! I finally saw her. For real this time! Then you came and scared her off! You can go back to Blueberry Academy, I'm looking for her again." The boy said mullshly. Kieran's search was a rousing success, which is unfortunately now a problem. The three of us were standing on the edge of town, the bus driver looking down impatiently at the scene as he waited for us to board.

"You're being unreasonable Kieran," Carmine responded with gritted teeth, still trying to pull the boy off. "You're probably just imagining having seen her too!" The boy glared angrily, his expression twisting to something I'd never seen before. At least not in this life. He got pretty pissed off in the DLC, with hints that he was going to get worse in the second half. We all thought that was him being possessed by this 'mastermind' behind the Loyal Trio, but given what Musamune said, I don't think that's the case. Maybe he just has a darker side to him?

In any case, it was proving to be a problem now. "I did NOT imagine it! I saw her, wearing the mask WE gave her! I'm gonna find her, and be her friend, and you can go off to that stupid school. I don't care."

"Gramdma and Grandpa paid a lot for our tuition there, don't be so-" I stepped in before Carmine could finish that sentence, hoping to de-escalate.

"Kieran, I believe you." Carmine whirled around, looking betrayed, but I held a hand up and she let me continue, letting go of her little brother. "I honestly think you did see Ogerp- the ogre, and that's great. But we still need to go," I said, holding out a hand to him."

The smaller boy looked at my hand suspiciously, like it was viper ready to strike. "But if you believe me then-"

"You want to go chasing after her, and I understand. I think it's clear by now that she only lets herself be seen when she wants to. It's been two years since you gave her the mask, and while I'm sure she appreciates it, she took her time to approach you and just wave before leaving again. So maybe you should give her some space and let her look for you on her own time."

"I- it was just Carmine that drove her off before, I'm sure she's ready to see me now." Kieran tried, but his voice was shaky. I shook my head.

"She read your note, she knows who Carmine is. The ogre is still too cautious for a longer meeting, so let's give her time and work on your schoolwork and training your team. Dipplin still wants to evolve, right?"

"Yeah, I guess… the boy trailed off morosely, letting go of the bench. Carmine took the opportunity to drag him away and onto the bus before he could change his mind again. "I just really want to be friends with her, you know?" He said as the bus took off, carrying us to the airport.

"We know," Carmine and I said in unison, her voice a bit more exasperated than mine. She's also been dealing with this longer than I have. "You'll get plenty of time to look for her in the summer and when we're on break," I offered, and Carmine glared lightly at me. What? It's not like he wouldn't think of that stuff anyways.

***

With that matter settled, the rest of our trip back was fairly smooth. Our friends all said hi and inquired as to how it went, and I even had plenty of other students who had been wondering where I was, and more importantly, if I could give them more tips. I hadn't realized I'd made that much of an impression on the other kids here, though I suppose it could be due to exams starting up, however. That, or trying to get advice from Drayton; he's barely motivated enough to help himself!

I was happy to learn that him and Lacey had at least tried to help out those acquaintances of mine in my absence, it was nice of them. And likely very well received by them. We were nearing the end of the first term, so everyone was studying furiously to try and pull up their grades or get the best scores.

I was busy with both that and helping the installation of the Tera Sphere. Technically I could have fobbed that off to Friede and the researchers here, but after having gone all the way to get the Tera crystals over here, I was eager to see how it would all work.

"Man, having this guy around must make the construction a breeze," I commented as I watched the steel beams being lifted into place by Colress' Magnezone. With incredible control, they held it steady at the top of the Terarium. Flying nearby were Skarmorys holding workers aloft so they could weld the beam in place. Though it looked similar to how it had been before, I'd seen some of the construction they'd already done from the outside, how they reinforced the structure. A lot of the terms went over my head at first, but reviewing the engineers' notes was informative, and at least helped prepare me for my math exam, heh.

Colress gave me an odd look from behind his glasses. "Whatever do you mean?"

"Hmm?" I turned my attention back to him. Dun was doing his best to keep me afloat while I observed the construction process, and doing an admirable job at that. He hardly needs more endurance training, but every bit of work they put in helps. Unfortunately, with my time dominated by exams, this project, the Hisuian Goodra project, and miscellaneous activities, my training had slipped a little. Not much, but my team needs to push harder after things are set up to keep its edge.

"You said 'having this guy around,' in reference to Magnezone," the former villain said, lightly patting the top of said Pokemon he was currently riding on. "The way you phrased it was like you had some idea of large scale construction that took place without Pokemon being involved."

"It- well, we make some things without Pokemon of course. Like look right there, the construction crew is using welders, not Fire Types."

"Fire Types would only spook the Steel types involved in the process. Welders can achieve the same degree of heat without triggering those primal instincts," Colress responded automatically. "Hmm, but the way you phrased it did truly feel like you were talking about more than just tool use alongside Pokemon." I blanched slightly before he frowned.

"My apologies, I didn't mean to pry," the man added. "I just hope that if you have an… alternative perspective, you'll feel free to share it. I've noticed how you've been studying hard, but innovations in science are made through both rigorous study and great imagination."

I blushed at the idea of making such 'innovations.' So much of the technology of this world feels fantastical to me. I wasn't an idiot back home, but I never pursued scientific discovery with great passion either. But I want to here. I want to understand how it all works.

"Well, thank you. And I appreciate you mentoring me, it means a lot," I said earnestly. Colress is insanely smart, I hope I can learn a fraction of what he knows some day.

"It's no trouble. At least not on my behalf." He then paused in a manner uncharacteristic for him, even though it was only for a split second. "The world of science caves to many practical demands however, and you might find certain doors closed to you, if you continue to learn from me." He gently warned.

"Is Friede still giving you problems?" I asked, and a faint smile graced his face.

"He has not said an unkind word to me since our first meeting," Colress replied, and I rolled my eyes. Which probably means Friede has been giving Colress the cold shoulder ever since… and that behaving that way is still better than most people.

"I'll have a word with him," I decided, and before Colress could warn me off of that path, I felt a shaking in the incubator. "Oh, the egg just shook! I'll go ask him about it now," I said, digging my heels into Dun's sides gently to indicate we should fly off.

Down on the ground, Friede was overseeing the construction of the massive sphere that would change the Terarium forever. The sphere was split in half, with chunks of Tera Crystal being carefully lowered into the green liquid within the bottom half of the glass. "What's up with the liquid?" I inquired, dismounting Dun and striding forward. Dun slithered off to chat with Friede's Charizard who was hanging out nearby but didn't look nearly as interested as the Professor did.

"Nemona! This is… well I never came up with a name for it exactly," he said with a chuckle scratching the back of his head. "As a placeholder we've been calling it Terarial." Which means that's probably what it will be called forever, now. As names went, it wasn't the worst. "I found some special herbs and plants within Paldea. When ground up and added to water caught within the basin of a Tera Crystal outcropping you get this."

"Fascinating." Those 'special herbs'... Herba Mystica? No, I doubt it, those are almost always fiercely guarded by Pokemon nearby. Still, they could be an offshoot of those mythical herbs. A different evolutionary path that made them less empowering to Pokemon while still having strange properties of their own. "How did you come up with this?"

"There was a bit of an accident when I first Terastalized Cap-"

"Chu…" Captain Pikachu said darkly from atop Friede's shoulders, the electric rodent Pokemon's cheeks sparking with power.

"-which we do not need to get into, hah. But suffice to say, I noticed a boost to the power of the Tera Orb with the water. Experimentation allowed me to refine Terarial to the point that I could use my Tera Orb while abroad."

A fact which had Geeta looking like she wanted to both strangle and kiss Friede, for having come up with a solid answer to Paldea's problems in overseas events but also furious that he never told anyone else. Thankfully, he hadn't been in the room at the time I told her.

I know she wants to get someone new to represent Paldea as the regional Professor, but I'm not sure he'll make the cut. Friede is a bit too much of a free spirit for the role. It wasn't likely that Geeta would pick Sada or someone else either, since she said the person she had in mind was 'young, but had a proven track record.' Well, as long as she's not worried, I'm not either.

"And the Terarial will work on such a scale? No offense but this is on a bigger scale than just recharging your Tera Orb. Also, will the liquid need replacing over time?"

"It might need to be replaced over time, but Tera Crystals are fascinating stuff. They seem to have limitless energy, growing and sprouting all on their own if the conditions are right, albeit slowly." Why does that sound famili- "I helped the caretakers plant the herbs they'll need, so with that, Blueberry Academy should be able to make their own replacements. If worst comes to worst, they could ask the Paldean League for help again and I'm sure something could be worked out. Or Colress will whip up some miracle out his… rear."

I gave him an unamused look at that and he sighed. "In answer to your first question, yes, the Terarial will work on that scale, thanks in no small part to the adjustments Colress suggested. Should it be called Terarial v2 now?" Friede pondered aloud for a moment before shaking his head. "I get the man is smart, brilliant even, and I hope you know me well enough by now to know what that means."

It's true. Friede has a very 'cool' energy about him, but he's well and earned that title as the world's youngest Pokemon Professor and for him to consider someone brilliant is quite high praise indeed. Nodding slowly, I asked, "So why have you been so cold to him ever since this began? We've been working for nearly a month on this, and you barely ever discuss anything with him." They work together, and Friede doesn't complain if they're in a group, but he never stays to chat and is always brusque with him.

Running a hand through his stark white hair, Friede gave me a look. "Maybe you're too young to get it, but what he did with Plasma-"

"Was bad," I interrupted Friede. "Awful and horrible on a level that cannot be described. May Ghetsis burn forever for the things he did. And yes, I know that Colress worked with Team Plasma for a time, but he did so for a very different reason! Trying to advance the potential of Pokemon rather than blind ambition. And he's confessed to his crimes and worked to make amends for over a decade now. Doesn't that mean something too?"

Friede paused, staring at me with that slightly uncomfortable expression on his face. "...You have a better understanding of the situation than I realized, better than most people have. Logically, I understand that view point, and can even agree with it. I trust you and the people working with you. But as I studied for my professorship, we'd be told of the dangers of unethical experimentation. And who do you think was used as an example of that?"

"Colress," I said, craning my gaze up to the top of the Terarium where he was overseeing the work.

"Exactly. So be aware that people will judge you for working with and learning from him. But if you think it's the best way forward, I won't stop you." Charizard stomped forward, giving the Professor a slight nudge with his head. Which, being a 'nudge' from a Charizard, was still enough to push the man off balance slightly.

"Whoa- hey! Okay, okay, I'll try to be politer while dealing with him too."

"Ah, thank you," I muttered, lost in my own thoughts. I talk a big game about wanting to be forgiving, but is that just because I know these people personally? I want to help Colress and Turo, but that's because I know them, and know from the games that they have the potential to do great things. The Rainbow Rocket incident hadn't (to the best of my knowledge, which was limited) happened here, but I had seen a version of Colress that had been willing to fight against Ghestis and save the day, and I had no reason to believe that Colress was so different from the man I was growing to look up to.

On the other hand, if I saw some random, 'no-name' poacher, would I be willing to spare them? The jury is out on Raifort, and I even know she could be a teacher at Uva. I wasn't sure if I hadn't butterflied that event away yet, however. Martha was an Elite Four member, and would likely push for a lenient, if well-supervised, punishment, but I also knew she wouldn't be an Elite for long. Though I might have changed that too.

"Thank you for the advice as well, but I think I'll stick with Colress." I snapped my head up to meet Friede's gaze. "I'll always keep an eye out for cruelties carried out towards Pokemon and I'd never be a party to such acts. But so long as Colress continues to give solid, practical advice and mentoring, I'll learn all I can from him. It might not be the easiest path, but it's the one that will see me grow the most, and that's the path that I'm always going to take." Whoops, nearly said 'that any Glitterati would take,' guess mom and dad have really rubbed off on me.

Friede smiled and reached down, rubbing my hair. "Ack! Hiss!" I batted his hand away and he laughed.

"Growing up so fast," he whispered, low enough that I likely wasn't meant to have been able to hear that. "Keep in mind that you've got other people you can rely on and learn from too."

"True, that Turo sure is a smart Professor," I said, doing my best to keep a straight face, even as I used a modified battle command through hand gestures to send Miles out and snap a pic of Friede's upset face.

"Oi," he said with a deadpan before blinking as the flash went off.

"Sorry, bzzt." Miles said before floating back and I got a good look at the shot, deciding it was good enough to fire off a quick text to Orla.

"Kidding, kidding. Seriously, thank you." On impulse, I gave him a quick hug startling the Professor slightly before he returned it.

"Ah, it's no proble- it's fine. Like I said before, happy to help. This thing is going to be amazing when it's finished." The man scratched the back of his head awkwardly. He really doesn't know how to deal with praise, huh? Maybe that's why he travels around so much; no sticking around to get thanked. Eh, probably more just to live that free lifestyle.

Something that I could admit was tempting at times, but for now, I was eager to see what work could be done here, in an institution as advanced as Blueberry Academy. Letting Friede go, I was reminded of my original question by another shake of the Egg.

"Oh right, meant to ask you if you had anything more you could advise me on how to raise a Goomy and the environment and stuff," I finished inelegantly. There had been just enough time in between the meetings discussing the Tera Sphere and my own duties that I'd had the time to outline my experiment to him and mention the Egg I carried around constantly, but nothing more.

He rubbed his chin. "Goomys are a very social Pokemon, moreso than most Dragons. They still have their pride, even if they can be friendly and are more easily frightened than most of that Type. You've got them situated on the cliffs in the Canyon biome, correct?" I nodded. "I think they've got a good enough handle on the formula and mixture for now," he said, jabbing a thumb at the other researchers, construction people, and Pokemon at work making the Sphere. "Let's head over to check it out."

While Friede was invaluable in helping draft up the designs in the first place, there isn't much for him to do now, but I get the feeling he's too excited to just leave things be which is why he was overseeing things here. I guess Colress is similar in that respect to him. I carefully kept that observation to myself before agreeing. Recalling Dun, I sent out Radiance as a faster flier to keep up with Charizard as we took to the skies.

***

"Ouch ouch ouch," I muttered as I got off of Radiance in a hurry once we arrived. They gave me a gesture with their wings that was half shrug, their crosshair eyes drifting slightly to the side and not meeting my own gaze. It was their way of half apologizing and half saying 'nothing I can do about it.' Radiance was firmly willing to work with me and listen now, but they were still the most standoffish of my Pokemon.

"Are you okay?" Friede asked, dismounting his own Fire Type. Did he hear me say that or just notice it from the heat Radiance radiated? Am I actually on fire? A quick glance at my clothing revealed that nothing had caught on fire as we streaked through the air.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just get a bit warm flying on Radiance," I downplayed it. For short flights it really isn't too bad, and up here the wind is cooling me down nicely.

"It's always warm when I fly on Charizard but not hot. How did you get a Flying License for your Iron Moth if they can't regulate their heat at those speeds?"

There was an awkward silence where I cast my gaze over the verdant landscape and rocky backdrop, looking for something to get me out of this conversation. Okay, chucking a rock at that Scyther would probably do the trick, but maybe not the best choice.

"Would you believe that you don't need a Flying License to fly here?" Technically true; while we are still in Unovan Waters and not international territory, we are in the water, so the argument can be made that flying within the Terarium is a-okay.

"Uhuh, and I'm also supposed to believe that you never flew on Radiance - or any of your Pokemon that you don't have a license for - while in Paldea?"

"Yes?"

"No."

"Nemona!"

Dammit. Thankfully, I was spared a lecture by the shutter sound of a camera catching our attention. Turning around, I saw Sohdayo taking a picture of the Pokemon and environment here.

"Sorry, let's talk about this never," I told Friede before grabbing onto the distraction. "Sohdayo! What are you doing here?"

"Discovering the hidden world of Blueberry Academy's Terarium!" The green haired man exclaimed excitedly. Huh, that one is pretty close to the truth… so I'm sure he'll exaggerate it in some way. Still, it's kinda hard to top reality here.

"Anyone else from the crew down here?" I asked. I know Orla at least will be remaining up top on her ship. She helped with the design of the Tera Sphere a bit, but the Brave Olivine is really her passion. I don't expect Murdoch to come down much and it's hard to get a read on Ludlow, so that just leaves-

"I've got it! The panacea you mentioned" Molly declared triumphantly, pushing her way through the underbrush to get to the clearing we were in. She looked somewhat disheveled from her walk through the wooded space, with some goo still sticking to her pink outfit and holding a full vial of the substance. "Oh, hello Nemona, Friede. What are you doing here?"

"Wynaut?" Sohdayo's partner Pokemon questioned dubiously, staring at the vial of greenish-purple goo within the rogue nurse's hands.

"We wanted to check on the Goomys and Sliggoo and see how they were settling in. And uh, I don't think you should trust that on blind faith - any claim of a panacea is probably unlikely to work perfectly for all kinds of Pokemon." Even the Herba Mystica needed all five types to heal Mabosstiff in the games, and they really were touted as rare, miracle cures.

"Oh." Molly let out in a quiet voice, glancing over from the vial in her hands to the photographer, whose smile had taken on a slight nervous edge.

"Well, it might be a Panacea for some Pokemon," he defended. For someone so bright and knowledgeable about Pokemon, it's surprising that Molly gets tricked by Sohdayo so. Then again, I have the feeling that will change over time. There was a new level of suspicion the pink-haired girl had to her eyes.

Before we could get too far off track, I asked, "How are the Goomys doing, by the way?"

She turned her attention back to me, brightening up. "They're doing great!" Waving a hand, I followed her through the brush to get to the Goomy enclosure. The almost three dozen Goomys were gathered together, nearby a tree, letting rainwater drip down on them. All of them happily cheered as they saw us.

"None of them have spread out," I muttered. This whole clifftop is supposed to be a free space for them. Though there are still other Pokemon wandering around here. "Are they scared?"

"Possibly, definitely for some of them," Molly replied, keeping a bright smile on her face as she waved at the Goomys. "You mentioned rescuing some of them, and it looks like the other Goomys have designated themselves as 'defenders' of the group." Looking closer, I could see there was indeed a loose 'ring' of Goomys in front of the rest of the pack, and I imagined these ones were the ones who had come from the Dragon Tamer Clan. The only exception to this was Sliggoo at the center, likely because her height meant she could respond quickly to any of the younger ones that needed help, as well as serving as a final line of defense.

"When taking the… 'panacea', I tested the Goomys to make sure none of them were sick and they all appeared to be fine. No significant injuries among the bunch and they show no signs beyond the norm for Goomys of their age," Molly explained. Both a good and bad thing, here.

The Sliggoo seemed quite happy at our arrival, and moreso when I released Bahamut. The fully evolved Dragon had a few of the Goomys frightened for a moment until they recognized him and began eagerly swarming forward, climbing on him. My Dragon gave half a pretence of dismissiveness, trying to hold onto that draconic pride… which lasted all of a few seconds before he was happily playing with them too.

This is nice, I'm glad to see he fits in so well here. I'll likely need his help in getting them adjusted here. The majority of the Goomys weren't incredible fighters, at least not by nature. With how things worked out in Kitikami I don't actually have to send that many back, but I'd like to see this experiment succeed. Even in the best case scenario however, that will require waiting.

There hadn't been any signs of changes or evolutions yet, but that was fine. Some of the Goomys were even fitted with Everstones for the moment, to make sure they didn't evolve too early, before they had adapted to the environment. When that would occur exactly, no one was sure, not even Colress. He had suggested slowly letting the more trained Goomys off after another month, however. If one evolved into a Hisuian Sliggoo at that point, the others could be encouraged to evolve as well. If not we'd wait longer and try to spread it out over the next year, to see if/when they could adapt to the environment.

Assuming it works as I intended. Glancing around, I could see the freshly dug earth where iron deposits had been placed. Hidden unobtrusively around trees and shrubs were special humidifiers, designed to make the environment more prone to rain and to add a very slight level of iron to that rainwater. In theory, it should all work out. All the numbers we crunched, every historical document of ancient Sinnoh we could study… it points to this working. But I'm still worried.

Watching the Dragon's play and having fun (even the more serious 'guard' Goomys getting roped into it, enjoying being around Bahamut), the worry wasn't for them. So it must be for me, and my own ambitions. I was coming around to the idea of becoming a Pokemon Professor, and this would be a tremendous step forward. It would prove that my discovery with Notch wasn't just a fluke.

"So, what do you think?" I said, turning brightly to Friede, who had been chatting with Sohdayo for a moment.

"Hmm, well, the set up looks about as ideal as you could get to Hisuian climates," he replied, rubbing at his chin. His own experimentation had him studying plenty of the ancient land before he shut it down. "I'd say the best way forward would be to focus on how the Goomys are trained."

"How so?"

"Well, Goomys can actually learn Iron Tail through the right tutors, Technical Records, or via breeding… despite not having much of a tail at this point in their lives. A Steel Type Move might help them connect with the Typing you want them to emulate. Not sure if you can find enough Technical Records to help teach all of them that, though."

"No, but if I get just one then I can teach it to the others through Mirror Herb!" Which would be expensive to buy, not that I really was ever hurting for cash. Still, I want to do this on my own merits, as much as I can, so maybe I should start looking into the BBQs?

Spoiler: A/N:

There is just so much I want to explore in Blueberry, the world, and the relationships between the characters. Friede making a reappearance wasn't what I originally had planned, but when I saw the plotlines drawing together it just fit. In the anime, he can just Terastalize wherever when flying around, but in the games it isn't useable outside of Paldea, so I decided to bridge that gap by just saying he had invented a way to do so (which makes for a nice reason to include him here).

I know things haven't been the most action-y right now, but hopefully it was still enjoyable and I look forward to seeing you all next time. Let me know what you thought down in the comments or on the Discord. And if you want to read more and have a bit of money to toss my way, I have a a Kofi and a Patreon, subscribers to the latter get early access to the next ten chapters. Thank you, and I hope you're having a great day.

Oh and, for any Sohdayo haters out there... sorry, I hinted that he wouldn't show up again but forgot he does briefly reappear here. Don't worry though, this should really be the last time - when we see the Rising Volt Tacklers again, he'll have left to go his own way.

 

[Skyfyre]

Spoiler: Patreons:

Thank you to my 55 Beginner Tier Patreons, and an extra special thanks to RageLord, Nodal_Gravity, ExaltedRequiem, and HanShotFirst, my Ace Tier Patreons! Your support means so much to me.

I watched as the finishing touches were put on the Tera Sphere from the plaza below. This is going to be huge. Both for Blueberry Academy, and for the world at large. Enabling people to use Tera Orbs outside of Paldea (and Kitakami) would put us on a global stage in terms of battling. New strategies will be opened up, new Trainers will come looking for Tera Orbs wanting to obtain and use them for their own…

"Impressive," a voice rang out clearly beside me and I leaped away with a small shriek.

"Jeez, you startled me," I said, looking over at the icy girl. Elsa's gaze was fixed straight up not even looking at me, yet she was obviously keenly aware of my presence. Been a while since anyone could sneak up on me like that. Did her Ice Aura help her in such a way or is she just naturally stealthy? This world had ninjas with skills beyond what any ordinary person could manage, and I had been distracted, so it was hard to tell.

"You've spent a lot of time setting up the Tera Sphere. Hopefully your skills haven't dulled in that time," Elsa said, finally deigning to look my way, the smile on her face mocking.

Clicking my tongue, I said, "Why do you care so much?"

"The whole school is buzzing like Beedrills over this. New opportunities, dreams of their own strength improving with the Rollout of Tera Orbs, most of them missing out how it will empower all their challengers as well. And even before you brought Terastalization to us, they've been calling you a true Champion. I hope now that you have your precious Enhancement effect-" I turned away, having barely been listening halfway through. Opening Radiance's Pokeball, I hoped aboard my Pokemon as Elsa literally hissed and backed away, the heat shaking the teen.

"Sorry, Egg is hatching gotta go." I said quickly before taking off at literally blistering speeds. Swinging the incubator around in front of me, I saw the Egg inside beginning to crack open. "Hurry," I said, hoping that Radiance could get there soon. In the distance I heard Elsa cry out something that sounded like, 'get back here you ponce!' But I quickly put it out of my mind, focused fully on the Egg.

The Egg had been shaking more and more these past few days, so I'd been hanging around the Terarium, waiting in the hopes that if it happened, we could get to the Goomy grounds so they could hatch there. Unfortunately, it seemed to be happening faster than I imagined, the little one eager to get out of their shell, pieces of it breaking off inside the incubator.

Of course, I also forgot about the Booster Energy, and with a surge of power, Radiance rocketed through the air. In seconds, we were above the clifftop and I launched myself off of the Paradox Pokemon, both to get away from the scorching heat and to start setting the incubator on the ground and opening it up.

Not a second too soon, either, as it was placed down just as the baby Dragon shattered the top of their shell, squirming out of it and onto the wet grass. The purple, gooey Pokemon opened up a bleary pair of eyes to stare at me. "Goo?" He asked, still dazed from the process.

He looks so small. It was all I could think of as I kneeled down in front of the slug-like Dragon. I knew he would grow big fast, but for the moment I could almost fit him inside one of my hands.

"Hi there," I said softly. "I'm Nemona. I'm your Trainer, which means I'm going to look after you and help you become big and strong."

"Goomy?" He said, and I got the impression he had no idea what I was talking about, or possibly even what he was asking exactly. Fair, he's only been conscious for a few seconds or so.

Taking a different tack, I pulled a bottle of Dragon baby formula out that Friede had recommended. It wasn't milk, since Pokemon (aside from Miltank and Gogoat) didn't use that to wean their young, but the slurry had all the nutrients a Goomy would need. It took a moment for me to show him how to drink it from the straw, but once he got the hang of it, he went to town, drinking the whole thing with gusto.

Letting out a small burp, he finished it all and looked up at me with hungry eyes. "Haha, that's good!" I declared while pulling out the Pokeballs on my belt as a distraction. I have plenty more of the formula in my bag, but I shouldn't feed him too much, too fast or he'll just throw up.

"This is where you'll be living, and these are your family." With a click, I released the team one at a time, letting him take in the (comparative) giants that stood around me. It took over half an hour, with how overwhelmed he was by everything and everyone. When going up to inspect them he'd alternate between being afraid and incredibly curious for each of the team. By the end of it, he had clambered over each and every one of them (aside from Anya - despite my strictest warnings for everyone to be on their best behaviour she was still too prissy to let herself get covered in goo), getting a sense for them by feel as much as by sight.

After a short drink, this time only half of a small bottle, I told him, "Now that you've met your family, I'll show you where we'll be staying." Guiding him in further on the cliff plateau, I took him at a sedate pace to see the rest of the Goomys. They were all thrilled when they saw the little guy, eagerly slithering over.

My Goomy recognized them as similar to him and seemed delighted until they crowded him in a bit. Before I could even tell them off however, the Sliggoo called them back to give the little guy some space.

"Thank you," I told her.

"Slig," she said simply, nodding her head. It didn't escape my attention that in sidling up closer to me, she also got closer to Bahamut. She seemed naturally drawn towards him, a fact I wasn't sure he had noticed yet. I wonder when he'll figure out her intentions? I resolved not to spoil the surprise too soon; ever since he evolved, it had been rare when I got to see him act out in a big way, but I felt this might do the trick.

Those were thoughts for later though. For the moment, I just enjoyed watching how my precious new Dragon was handling the world for the first time.

***

"What happened to you?" Lacey asked before covering her mouth, as if surprised by her own bluntness.

"I slept in the Terarium last night," I responded, stifling a yawn. In her defense, I must look awful right now. While I had set up an alarm to give me plenty of time to sleep, that hadn't accounted for my Goomy having slipped by Athena on the night watch. We had a panicked search for him, with the little guy having gotten far too close to the cliffs for comfort. After scooping him up and leaving him back at the small den Sliggoo had made for them, I was nearly late in my rush to class.

I know Athena didn't mean to, and that it was just a problem with her Aura senses getting confused by so many Goomys. Still, it's kinda irritating right now.

There wasn't any time to talk more about it before Professor Hardy's class began, but afterwards Lacey peppered me with questions as to why and I explained.

"Oh right, Goomy hatched yesterday! I've been spending all day with him there in the experiment grounds." I suddenly blanched as I realized that. "I… should probably message a bunch of people." Disappearing suddenly would be worrying.

The responses back showed the usual; my parents were used to it, understanding of such things, my sister only mildly annoyed, and Arven… had his own troubles. At least him and his mom seem to be working things out a bit and Turo is recovering. Still, reading between the lines, there's an awkwardness to all of them. I imagine things were said that couldn't be unsaid.

I wished I could help, but frankly didn't know how to even if I was there. In the end I just offered as much support as I could and let Arven know I'd always be available to talk. For however much that helps. He did seem slightly more cheery when I mentioned I'd be coming home soon for the winter break, at least.

After that it was back to the Goomy camp. I hadn't decided on a name for him yet, wanting the little guy to get a better understanding of who he was and the world before bandying about suggestions. It was amazing how quickly he was growing though, both in size, but also in intelligence and power. Having my entire team around with nothing to do but guide him certainly helps too.

They trained some as, but we were actually limited in how much we could train within the Goomy camp and sometimes had to travel farther afield, like with Athena challenging the Kleavor that prowled on some of the peaks nearby. Teaching the other Dragons gave Bahamut a good opportunity to refine his own technique, and I focused on bringing Anya up to match the rest of the team (no matter how she would endlessly complain).

In one quiet moment after a long session of training, I sat down with her by the ledge, letting our legs dangle over the air. Looking over the edge, the Terarium feels like its own little world, complete with a green sun hanging overhead. The Tera Sphere above gave off a dim light, shaded with green from the Terarial filled within it.

"Your Psychic has come a long way, Notch is quite impressed by your control," I told her as we gazed out. Notch still has her beat in terms of power, even with the STAB boost Anya gets, but that's to be expected as a Legendary.

A fact she didn't miss. ['I'm not strong enough,'] she pouted cutely and I struggled to contain a bout of laughter at seeing her like that. She's empathetic enough to know what I'm feeling, and to know that I know she knows, but still. She doesn't like having something like that brought up so openly.

"It's hard to breach that gulf between them and you, but they have a lot more training than you've had so far."

['And I'm not evolved yet.'] Anya cuts quickly to the heart of the matter, with all the subtlety of a wrecking ball.

"True. You don't necessarily need to evolve to obtain great power - I've heard of Pikachus taking on the strongest in the world before. But if you want it, it'll make becoming stronger easier."

She was quiet for a moment thinking hard before responding. ['I don't know. I want to see what'll happen, to make the right choice. The best way to do that is to evolve but…']

"...You'll see me die," I finished softly. Wild Gothitelles aren't very forthcoming with what they see, but Gothitelles with Trainers have relayed their experiences, with much anguish. "It's a tough path either way. For the time being, I'll leave you without an Everstone, so you can decide." Pokemon could hold back an evolution naturally, but only for so long without intense discomfort and even pain. An Everstone would eliminate such concerns.

"One thing to keep in mind is that if you do evolve, whatever you see… just remember that it won't be the end for me. Yeah, I'll be gone, but if this life has taught me anything, it's that my spirit will go on." To where or how, I didn't know, and if I was honest, those thoughts worried me. Pokeverse has been pretty much a dream come true. What if I get stuck in some grimdark world next time? Or if it just never ends? The weight of eons grinding my sanity down to gibbering madness?

Those baseless worries I did my best to put out of my mind and not scare Anya with. The Psychic Type sat there for a long time, thinking of her future before coming up with her answer.

***

"Are you going to spend all of this term hiding away in the Terarium again?" Carmine demanded, hands on her hips. All of us were on the submarine, having just gotten back from winter break.

"Looking after a baby Dragon is good and all, but you gotta let them find their own wings," Drayton commented from the side.

"I know I know, just wanted to make sure everything would be fine before I left. The others are getting a bit antsy though, so I don't think we'll need to hover quite so much." The fact that I can't risk taking Goomy with me is annoying though. I hadn't realized how difficult it would be when I started this.

"Somehow, I don't think you'll be spending much less time in the Terarium," Chumley commented. "It's not like you've joined any clubs."

"I might!" I shot back with a chuckle. Looking outside one of the thick glass windows I peered through the depths, dark and fathomless. "There's an aquatic exploration club, isn't there?"

"Two of them!" Sally piped up. "I've done a few BBQs for the Terarium Snorkle Club. Picked up some battle gear to help Muk and Slowbro." She flashed me a fierce grin which I returned. She's growing into her own as a Poison Type specialist. Still a bit predictable with her tactics, but part of that is because I've helped her come up with most of them so far. Once she starts developing her own combinations she'll be a solid Trainer.

As we got off the submarine, Lacey stepped her fingers together. "Speaking of BBQs, I was wondering if you could help me. There's a bigger one I want to tackle there."

"Sure, what's the problem?"

"There were apparently a few Dittos hiding around in the last shipment of Ditto blocks. They slipped away after the blocks arrived, and are causing problems in the Savannah Biome. I checked the app and it said the quest is still up." Lacey held up her Rotom Phone and showed the number of BP we would get for it.

I whistled. That's a lot of points. "Alright, let's get going! If we're fast we can get it done today!" Grabbing her hand, I raced down the walkway and towards the school.

***

God, this is taking forever. I scanned across the wide Savannah, searching for something, some Pokemon out of the ordinary, but once more, couldn't find anything. Turns out shapeshifters are hard to find. Who would have thought?

I cursed myself for not realizing just how tough the 'gold' labelled BBQs were and for forgetting why they were often recommended to only be undertaken by a group of students. Luckily, I had Lacey to help, as well as both our teams.

The girl was off, a few kilometers away from me, scanning the rest of the Savannah with her Drillbur and Snubbull. The two had an excellent sense of smell and were keen trackers, but that had only held middling results against the Dittos. The trails shift and change, mingling in with the other scents. Still, she managed to find one so far.

We had both been given six balls to catch the six Dittos with, each one linked to the school's registry and not our own Trainer's licenses. They had also been specially modified, to only accept the capture of Dittos (something I found fascinating and couldn't wait to pick Colress' mind about when I got the chance). With that in mind, we'd been able to try the Pokeballs repeatedly against any Pokemon we saw, but it quickly became apparent that the 'try everyone' method wouldn't work. Not with how expansive the biome was.

I wonder how they're certain the Dittos haven't crossed over into the other biomes yet? Perhaps the Ditto walls that divide the place? But that wouldn't account for Chargestone Cavern. In any case, we'd managed to find three already. Lacey's team had tracked down one of them, while I had spotted one attempting to hide amongst a herd of Rhydons, the eyes not quite right. Radiance had baited out another one by flying around and then making it obvious that it was a Ditto that had copied them and not a second Paradox Pokemon.

Hunting them down afterwards was the hard part. Radiance didn't have many supper-effective Moves against their own Typing, and the Ditto had copied their defenses - and more importantly, their speed. In the end, with the help of Nightwing's Tailwind boosted speed and Phantasm's illusions, we were able to lead the Ditto into a trap where Dun's Earthquake knocked the fake out.

But our early successes have dried up. Even splitting up to cover more ground hasn't yielded any results. I glanced at my phone, wondering if I should check in with Lacey before shaking my head. It had only been ten minutes since our last check in and nothing had changed yet.

"Anything you can sense?" I asked of Athena and Anya, the two most sensitive Pokemon on sensory duty, to try and detect anything amiss regular senses couldn't find. The Psychic Type pouted and shook her head while Athena growled in disappointment.

['Frustration. Minor Self-loathing.'] The emotions came through my empathetic link to her and I patted her on the shoulder.

"It's not your fault, these Dittos are really good at hiding. Considering how perfectly they can copy another Pokemon, it shouldn't be a surprise they can fool your Aura sense too." It does raise the question of how to find the perfect infiltrator though…

"Hey, want to try it with a bit of a boost?" I offered, holding up the Mega Stone ring. Athena gave me a sharp nod before bracing herself. Mega Evolution comes with a lot of dramatic changes and won't last long, but I've got faith in her control.

Focusing, I connected with her through our bond, Mega Evolving her. She grew a bit, her fur becoming dark red-brown in places and becoming wilder. She let out a howl as the transformation finished, and Anya took a frightened step backwards from the raw anger and power she exuded.

"It's okay, she's got things under control." I said, stabalizing Anya while looking straight into Athena's eyes. "You just got to find the Ditto, see if you can detect anything weird in this state."

"Ario," she vocalized, clipped, before rushing off in a burst of Extremespeed. After a few sweeps, she honed in on a pack of Venonats in the distance. Scanning amongst them, they paused, but she locked onto one, seemingly the same as the others. That one stopped, their form rippling as they knew the game was up, until a swift punch took the Ditto out before they could transform and copy her strength.

"Excellent work!" I praised as I arrived on the scene, capturing the fallen Ditto. She gave me a sharp grin before racing off around the Savannah to try and find the others. Calling Lacey, I told her the good news. "We caught one of the Dittos! Only two left."

"Make that one! Milly made some snacks and placed them just out of reach for some of the Pokemon here, and one of them took the bait!"

"Oh that's clever." She mentioned having bonded and trained with that Milcery a fair bit, but I wouldn't have thought of using those talents to bait out the Dittos. "I'm not sure how long Athena can hold out her Mega for, but once she catches the last one let's meet up by the entrance."

***

Unfortunately, even with Athena straining to hold onto it for fifteen minutes, she couldn't end up finding the Ditto anywhere within the biome, no matter how far she looked. After recalling my tired Pokemon, I walked back to the entrance. Lacey was already waiting by the rest area, and from the look on her face I could already tell she hadn't been able to find the last Ditto. She looked dirty and covered in dust from the work she had done, her Pokemon not looking much better. Drillbur and Snubbull were panting hard, and Milcery drooped with exhaustion. The only one that didn't look exhausted was her Carbink, which was likely more due to how hard it was to figure out if their species was tired, and not an actual measurement of their fatigue.

As I walked up, I leaned against the shelter and said, "I think we have to wrap it up for today. It's getting late." It's easy to lose yourself in the Terarium, this place feeling like it's own little world, but the rest of the world i.e. classes, beckon, and not getting a good night's rest sucks the next day.

The pink-haired girl sighed at the thought of leaving the assignment only mostly finished but nodded. "Think they'll have some food left in the cafeteria?"

My stomach growled. "Hopefully. Looks like we'll be saving the reward feast for another day."

"Actually, I was planning on spending my share in a different way. There's an item that the school store sells that can evolve Milly." There was a wistful look to Lacey's face, which I understood all too well, from hard days and nights where a technique or breakthrough had remained just out of reach. Those days always feel less frustrating in retrospect. I guess the eventual success outshined the trials and tribulations.

"Oh, that would have been sweet," I said with a wink, making my pun clear.

Lacey laughed, I laughed, the wall laughed.

…

Slowly, we both turned to see the block that was slightly pinker in color than the others, with two black dots for eyes and a grin that was frozen in place.

Then the moment broke and Ditto tried shifting out of place, but I was already on them. Quick as a whip, I pulled out my Pokeball and pressed the button, capturing Ditto. The ball shook violently in my hand but then, as if sensing my tightening grip and determination not to let them go, the shaking subsided and there was a click.

"Gotcha."

While it took a bit longer than anticipated, the desserts Lacey's new Alchremie made for us were sweet and delicious indeed.

Spoiler: A/N:

So this chapter was written while I was feeling under the weather (doing much better now though) and I wonder if it shows? It's a bit shorter than the others at least, but hopefully it was still enjoyable. Also we get to see a bit more of Lacey and her developing team. If you liked it, please let me know down in the comments below or on the Discord. And if you want to read more and have a bit of money to toss my way, I have a a Kofi and a Patreon, subscribers to the latter get early access to the next ten chapters. Thank you, and I hope you're having a great day.