Narrator-POV:
As the sun descends past the horizon, night falls over the Sinnoh region - human life comes to a rest. But for many pokemon, the day has just begun. Rattata crawl from their burrows, Murkrow flap their wings as stars twinkle to life, and far away - atop the cliff of a mountain - Absol howls at the rising moon. Calamity will soon follow his call.
While darkness blankets the region and city lights turn on for the nightlife, Veilstone City sees a pillar of light shooting for the skies. It slices through the atmosphere, aimed towards the grandest mountain the world knows. Standing tall at 12,000 meters, Mount Coronet accepts the light into its icy crown.
"It's just as we thought." Saturn - Team Galactic's one and only lieutenant commander - mutters to himself while the team of scientists under his command rush to handle every type of machine imaginable.
Seismograph-like devices spit out continuous streams of paper with lines of ink recording seismic activity, but also air pressure, humidity, induction voltage, radiation levels, time dilation, and even quantum errors per second.
Miracle machines that run on wishes and liquidated life force churn out numbers for the scientists to pick them up like a flock of Pidgey in the park.
But among all those sensors, none are as important as the simple camera. Twenty cameras - all of which are pointed at the floating, brilliantly shining Spear Key in the midst of them all.
Its beam slowly begins to dissipate, and its shine fades until darkness once again blankets the meteorite fields of Veilstone City.
The only light that remains is the monitors of the scientists' equipment and the lingering glow of the mystical meteorites that have powered the Spear Key.
Silently, metal pieces seemingly slide around at random, returning the key from its active to its dormant state. A misshapen shape of purposeful twists and branches returns to being a simple, inconspicuous cube.
Floodlights turn on, one after another, as a horde of hardworking Electabuzz flip high-voltage switches under Electivire's supervision. Lit underneath a light bright enough that it might as well be day, the scientists go into a frenzy, throwing themselves at the work ahead of them, fighting for the best scraps of data that might reveal new glimpses into the mysteries of the universe.
Saturn still watches the horizon: the spot on Mount Coronet where the beam ended. "Status report." He orders, startling a nearby flock of scientists. "Did we capture the exact angle?"
"Yes, sir! Cameras 8 to 14 have been fried, but the rest are still intact!"
As soon as the scientist had his back turned to his work, another one snatched it up and did the calculations for him.
"Sir! It's facing west, 12.3 degrees south and 10.67 degrees up."
A third one rushes up to Saturn with a disk in his hand. He presses a button that makes a holographic map of Sinnoh appear. "This is how the beam intersects with our model of Mount Coronet, sir!"
"Well done." Saturn takes the device into his own hands to inspect the map closer.
The second scientist grabs and pulls the third one by his lab coat. His eyes are tightened in a glare. "That was my work calculating the angle!"
"Yeah? But I showed the results. Sucks to be you."
Second winds up his arm for a punch, only to stop dead in his tracks when he notices Saturn staring at them with a scowl on his face.
"Why. Is the map..." Saturn takes a deep, calming breath. "So blurry?"
Second immediately lets go of Third and joins First, who is already busy pretending to work on something else.
"Gulp." Third gulps.
Saturn taps his food on the ground. His eyelid begins to twitch, and his finger taps on his pokeball in irregular patterns. "Yes? Why?"
Trapped in Saturn's gaze, the scientist can only squirm. He looks left and right, but nobody is willing to help him. He's on his own.
He clears his throat. "It's because of the mountain's magnetic interference, sir. Our equipment can't make detailed scans because of that. I had to design my model through visual data points."
"Unacceptable." Saturn's body stiffens up. His eyelids and fingers stop twitching all at once. "Your next task is now to reduce the uncertainty of these parts of the map." He points out the areas of the beam intersecting with the mountain. "We need the exact details of these points and a 1-kilometer radius around them."
Before the scientist could even question his task, Saturn had already thrown the hologram device at him, causing him to fumble and nearly drop it.
"Go and ask Pluto's department for support. Do whatever it takes to gather as much information about these places as possible."
"Yes, sir!" Third salutes and flees.
Third knows how lucky he was. This could have been the end of his career: degradation to a lowly grunt.
However, today, Saturn is under a lot less stress than usual. After all... "Your plan is coming along nicely." He speaks into a phone that is built into his shirt's collar.
"Good." The voice on the other side says. "Secure the comms."
Saturn reacts quickly. With a flick of the wrist, a pokeball clicks off his belt, extends, and flies through the air. Porygon-Z appears - the virtual pokemon resembles a bird with detached wings and a colorful body.
"Trick Room." Saturn orders, and Porygon-Z lets out a string of noise that might have been the call of a duck after it was digitalized, compressed, re-recorded, and compressed over and over again.
The space around Saturn, Porygon-Z, and the Spear Key shimmers in rainbow colors. Motion seen through the barrier takes on a warped appearance, while voices become distorted and mixed with static noise.
"Comms are secured. Did something happen, Cyrus?"
"The other regions have responded."
"They have? Good news? Bad? Mixed?" Saturn's eyelid resumes its unconscious twitching.
"Mixed. Kanto, Johto, and Kalos have agreed to support us. Hoenn, Unova, and Galar have their own disasters to deal with and declined."
"That leaves Paldea."
"And Alola." A chuckle escapes from the mobile phone's speakers, and Saturn follows the lead.
"Let me guess." He picks up the joke. "Is Lusamine being her usual self again?"
Saturn expects laughter but receives nothing.
The earbud refuses to make a single sound.
He checks the status of the call on a display mounted onto his uniform's wrist. He and Cyrus are still connected.
Silence permeates the bizarre space of Trick Room.
It takes a while until Saturn speaks up once more. "Cyrus? Is it bad news?"
"Paldea... has proven itself too incompetent for coexistence." Cyrus takes an audible breath. "Complacent. Inconsiderate. Wasteful. Shortsighted... Rich."
Another silence. "You mean we're going to war against them?"
"Not now. But soon. Their power vacuum has allowed for incompetence to fester in their ranks. They've rejected our offer and are working to close off their borders. They've decided to become an isolationist region, and they hope their scientists can keep them safe from the catastrophe. Conquest will be easy."
Saturn's face scrunches up in concentration, his willpower keeping his stress-incurred twitches in check while he crunches numbers and logistics.
He cannot find a solution. "Who do you want to send for this? We don't have the manpower for this."
"Minerva."
"Mars' mother? But we need her to keep an eye on Team Rocket."
Another pause. But after a while, Cyrus reveals... "It's all or nothing, Saturn. Do your best."
Saturn's mouth gapes open. "Are you serious-- Apologies. I- ... I understand, Sir." He salutes, even though nobody can see him. "I won't disappoint!"
The call ends, and Saturn's eyelid resumes twitching with a vengeance. He pockets away his phone before pulling a roll of drugs from his pocket. Shaped like Mentos gum, one white obloid squeezes its way out of the aluminum wrapper roll as his fingers tighten around it.
His heart begins racing and his mouth begins salivating even as the medicine just sits in his palm. He opens his mouth, tosses it inside, and swallows before the horrid taste could set in.
The effects are near instant. His heart beats harder, his pupils dilate, and his vision distorts. Trick Room ends, and he squeezes his eyes shut. The floodlights become blindingly bright, like little suns on stilts.
"Alright everybody!" He shouts at the top of his lungs, making the frantic researchers stop in their tracks. Shielding his face from the light, the others understand what is going on. "Start packing up! We got what we needed! We're moving back to headquarters! And this week, we'll pay four times your wage for overtime work!"
Cheering erupts from a meteorite-filled field littered with lab-coated scientists and excited helper pokemon. Some researchers reach for their own packs of medicine.
---
Meanwhile, at a desk across from our hero's hotel room, panic turns the hero into a frantic mess.
"ZOEY!" Swole Solo screams at the top of his lungs.
He grabs his girlfriend by her shoulders and tears her upright in her seat. Dried tears stain her cheeks. Despite it, a serene expression covers her face.
Zoey Evans is... "Zoey!"... asleep. Her brows scrunch up at the rough treatment.
She smacks her lips, yawns, and pulls open her sluggish eyelids.
"What happened?!" He screams.
Her brain jump-starts seeing the panicked state of her boyfriend. Her eyes widen and pupils dilate as her heart pumps adrenaline through her veins. "I don't know! What happened?!" She spots the wounds covering his face and hands. "Oh my Arceus, what happened to you?!"
"Me?! Zoey! You--! I--! Arceus damned, I thought you were dead!"
"What?" Zoey asks, perplexed. She rubs her half-asleep eyes - one eye at a time. "Me? Why would you think that?"
"This--! And that--! And the pills!"
Zoey's eyes track Swole's wild pointing fingers, eventually spotting the bottle of spilled pills on the table. "Shoot. Ah forgot to close the bottle."
Swole crosses through the room - back and forth - as he tries his best to calm down. He looks up in the middle of his pacing. "Why are you taking painkillers?"
"It helps with the phantom pain. Most of the time it just tingles in my arm, but sometimes it hurts. They make me a little sleepy."
Hearing this, Swole resumes pacing. Then, he stops again. His eyes tighten in suspicion. "Why--" He cuts himself off before approaching Zoey and looming over her. He grabs her chin and rubs his thumb over her cheek.
She was not wearing mascara, so it is not easy to spot it, but her face is stained with dried tears. "Why were you crying?"
"I cry sometimes." She shrugs it off as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He rubs her cheeks dry, gently around the eyes. She whispers as new tears brim in her eyes. "It's just something that happens sometimes."
"Please don't do this." As her cheeks wetten once more, Swole rubs them dry again. "I'm here for you."
Zoey shakes her head, breaking free from Swole's careful hold of her chin. She feels like porcelain between his fingers. "No, I'm alright. I promise. Don't worry."
Each word holds back a tear, but the dam is breaking.
"What did you bring?" She points at the newspaper on the floor, but Swole ignores her. Instead, he hooks an arm around her knee pits - the other around her back - and lifts her up. "Don't--"
Her voice cuts off as the tears take control.
"Please don't!" She bawls. "Ah don't want to be a burden!"
"Shut up." Swole snaps. He drops to the hotel bed with Zoey clasped to his arms. "Don't say that about yourself." He lays her down, placing her back against the mattress and leaning over her face. "Do you have any idea how angry I am with you?!"
"W-with me?" Her voice sounds soft and hurt. A quiet whisper as Swole bears down on her. The tears stop in an instant as a real threat looms over her.
"Yes! You're pissing me off!" He lowers his lips onto hers, sealing them in a rough kiss before letting off and glaring at her again. "I thought you were dead, you-- you--... you stupid retard!"
Zoey gasps but widens her eyes when his tongue once again invades her mouth in a brief, aggressive kiss.
"You've been crying yourself to sleep instead of just telling me your problems! A burden?! What about what you said at your family's barn? I thought you knew you're not a burden to anyone!"
"But--" Her voice drowns out within his mouth as another kiss lands upon her lips.
"Even if you were a burden, I don't care! I want to shoulder your troubles! Let me be the pillar of strength in your life!"
"You--" Again.
"-- Ouch!" Swole lets up as a sharp pain of a pair of fingers twisting his skin makes him recoil. "You pinched me?"
"You egotistic asshole!" Zoey wraps her legs around Swole's back, her arm around his neck.
"Egotistic? Me?"
"Yes, you!" She pulls herself up to plant a kiss on his lips. "You're so full of yourself! And you're such an egomaniac! You think we don't know how much pressure you're under?! Pah! You're not half as good at lying as you think!"
Unable to come up with a response, Swole just stares.
"We all know how stressed you are! But you're the one who isn't telling anyone anything! You want to be some pillar of strength? Well, me too!" She kisses him again.
"I'm not saying anything because I'm fine!" Swole kisses her back. "You're the one who isn't managing! I just want you to be happy!"
"Me! Too!" Zoey boxes his chest with each word. "Dawn too! We just want to help you, idiot!"
"But I don't need help - no, I do, just not more than you're already giving! You, Dawn, Akari, Mars, and my pokemon are already giving me everything I need! I am happy!"
"We can use Aura too, idiot!" Zoey punches him again before kissing his lips. "I know you're a lying piece of shit!"
"I am happy." Swole lies.
Zoey sighs. "... Then I am too."
But their Aura whispers the truth. They are both broken beyond repair.
There is no fixing this. What kind of hero achieves happiness before fulfilling their destiny?
None do.
"This is what it means to be a pillar of strength." His tired voice whispers. "Promise me, Zoey, that when you're in pain, you tell me. At least grant me that."
She brushes her hand across his cheek, noticing the texture of a couple of shaven strands. "Only if you promise me the same."
"... My stomach and my arms hurt like hell. Do you know how hard it is to keep looming over you like this? And you punched my bruises really hard."
Zoey's eyes widen. "Oh. You meant that literally? Do you want some of my painkillers? They last for twelve hours. But they make you sleepy."
He nods. "Thanks. And please don't take them without telling me about it. I don't want to ever see you slumped over like that again."
"Alright. Deal." She smiles. "Are you going to sleep here tonight?"
Swole purses his lips. "I should, shouldn't I? But I also need to read a bit and make sure Lopunny gets proper rest."
"You can do that here."
"What about Dawn?"
"She and your pokemon can squeeze in right here."
"It'll be pretty tight."
"Rumors say that tight is good." Zoey winks.
"... Alright, you're driving a hard bargain, but I accept. Deal." He kisses her again, and she returns the tender moment with a kiss of her own.
He lowers himself over her body, pressing her against the mattress as her hands roam across his back.
"Well, that was retarded." Zoey suddenly says. "Why were we shouting at each other again? Are we not quite bright in the head? We're soulmates."
"Arguing makes no sense when we can feel each other's intent." Swole sighs.
She giggles. "Ah know, right? Well, at least I'm not the only stupid retard around."
"You're always going to have me to fill that slot. Hurr, durr - look at me, I'm brain dead."
"Pfft--" Air snorts through Zoey's nose before laughter overwhelms her. "Sh-shut up! You can't say that! Pahahaha!"
Swole... the hero... presses his lips against Zoey's neck before blowing air from his mouth, tickling her. "Durr, I'm retard-Swole. I eat the cakes from the urinal."
Zoey laughs harder, trying to push Swole away while her lungs lose the battle for air. "S-stop it! Haha! And what cakes?! Pahaha!"
Swole lets up, bracing himself over her. "They're called urinal cakes." He then kisses her lips. "And don't worry. Even retard-Swole wouldn't eat them, because these lips are made for kissing you." He kisses her again. "And retard-Swole will get beaten up if he tarnishes my lips before touching them to yours."
In the meantime, Salazzle and Lucario try not to watch the strange mating habits of humans. They do not get it, and they do not want to get it either. Instead, they just wait and distract themselves with random junk in the room until Swole and Zoey have had enough fooling around.
Later, our hero calls out his sleeping Lopunny, wakes her, and makes her eat a few berries, then lies down in bed to read with the meager light provided by a bedside table lamp.
Half an hour after sundown, Dawn enters the room, exhausted and with sweat pearling down her forehead. A few blue strands stick to her skin.
"Scoot over." She speaks, barely even looking ahead as she strips down to her underwear. She clambers into the bed, dives underneath the blanket, and puts her hand on Swole's chest. "... Zoey? Where are your boobies?"
"On the other side." Zoey chuckles. "Since when do you look forward to groping me?"
"Shut up. Since I got used to it. Whose chest is this anyway? Is Mismagius playing a prank again? Can't you get her under control?" She yawns loud enough to be heard through the blanket. "Good grief. Don't care. Too tired."
While reading, Swole sticks his hand under the blanket and combs his fingers through Dawn's hair. It leaves his hand a little slick with sweat. "Good grief. Good night, Dawn."
"Good grief, Mismagius. Sleep tight, fantasy-Swole."
Zoey chuckles as she settles in for the night as well, wrapping her arm around Dawn to hold her tight. Their fingers intertwine over Swole's chest as he enjoys the sensations of their breaths against his skin. "Good night."
"Good night."
Swole keeps reading a little longer into the night, starting with Candice's adventuring logbook.
---
Dear diary, today has been especially rough. If it wasn't for Abomasnow, I'd be dead at the bottom of a crevice. Being on Mount Coronet, I was so concentrated on potential attacks that I lost track of my surroundings. A single misstep, and the snow I had been walking on broke away, tumbling down the mountain along with me.
Abomasnow used his roots to grab me just in time before I sank into the avalanche.
Now, my frozen fingers struggle to write this entry. An Aspear Berry lies ready to cure the frostbite, but this is something I have to experience.
The pain, the cold, the shivers... this is what my pokemon inflict upon the enemy. And it is what shall teach me to respect snowed-over paths. They are treacherous.
Glaceon is getting worried. She says blue lips don't suit me. I say it couldn't hurt to try. Ice-blue lipstick sounds like a great idea!
---
Dear diary, we've reached the two thousand meter mark. I might have bitten off more than I could chew.
The pokemon up here are incredibly tough. Every encounter feels worse than the last, and there's only just enough time to heal up everyone before the next pokemon is attracted by the sounds of battle.
We fled into a cave to take a breather, but that one was filled with Golbat. The smell should have clued us in. It reeked! Some of that gunk is still trapped underneath my boots!
In the end, Abomasnow built us an igloo nestled into the side of a cliff for us to take shelter in. It's still scary though. I saw a pokemon that looked a lot like Sandslash digging through snow. What if it digs right on top of us while we're asleep?
Froslass says I'm worrying too much. She's going to stay up all night to protect me, and the others say they'll take turns guarding me.
I'm impressed with them. It's like the moment things became dangerous, there was a switch flipped inside their minds that turned them completely serious.
I wish I had that too. A switch to turn myself brave, fearless, and resourceful.
But no. It's just hard work for humans. I'll need to do my best so I won't hold them back!
---
Dear diary, progress has crawled to a near standstill.
This morning we made roughly 400 meters; this afternoon, just 100. I've spotted one of those newly discovered pokemon. Probopass. He looked like trouble, so we went the long way around him.
That's probably where most of the afternoon went.
On a positive note, Abomasnow and I learned a new trick. We've combined Ingrain and Avalanche into a single devastating move. First, Abomasnow stabilizes himself by burrowing his roots deep within the snow with Ingrain. Then, when the enemy is in the right position, he catches them in a snare and blasts them with Avalanche!
That Piloswine stood no chance!
... That said, I really hope I didn't make a mistake capturing her. People say capturing evolved pokemon is risky because they might rebel, but something just seemed right about capturing her.
It's a serious concern, though. What if I have to defend myself from her while in the middle of a serious battle?
Maybe I should give up progressing further: train up everyone, learn from my mistakes, make sure Piloswine doesn't want to kill me anymore, and then try again?
I'll sleep on it.
---
Second try, and it's already so much easier!
Oh, I mean, dear diary, it's been a few months, but we're back in business!
I'm so glad I've caught Piloswine! She just plows through the snow as if it wasn't even there, and we've already reached 3000 meters just because traveling has become so much easier!
My new tent is also much better. It's tiny. Just large enough for me and Glaceon to huddle together inside the same sleeping bag.
But Candice! Glaceon is an ice pokemon! Why would you huddle with her for warmth?
Good question, ignorant little diary.
Glaceon can regulate her body temperature, stupid.
Anyway, with her and me inside a sleeping bag, Piloswine, Abomasnow, Weavile, and Jynx inside the igloo, and Froslass outside, everyone is perfectly satisfied with the temperatures for the night.
On that note, I envy trainers who don't specialize in ice types. They don't have to manage temperatures like that. They don't know how good they have it when they can sleep a whole night without a cold breath in their face or freezing toes.
On the topic of freezing toes: thermal socks and long underwear were also a new addition to my equipment.
I know this pace won't last, but I'm feeling pumped for tomorrow! Grandpa, I'll pound your record into the ground!
---
Dear diary, maybe I bit off more than I could chew. Again.
We've barely breached the 5000-meter mark, but almost entirely just because I've gotten so much better at avoiding pokemon. Battles slow us down tremendously. And every battle always leads to more battles.
I've learned a new trick using Snow Cloak. According to the textbooks, the ability allows pokemon to avoid some moves while in a snowstorm.
After focusing our training on it, my pokemon are almost able to turn to snow at will - still, as long as they are within a snowstorm. But that's old news. The new discovery I made today is this: it doesn't need to be an actual snowstorm.
Blizzard counts. And even fine snow tossed up in the middle of a battle counts as well!
I'll absolutely use this in the next league championship! Cynthia won't see what's coming!
---
...
...
...
---
17th July: Mysterious Beam over Veilstone City Lights up the Night.
Yesterday at 22:04, many citizens of Veilstone City reported a mysterious event that woke up people in their homes when an intense beam of light parted the sky.
Eyewitnesses who have photographed the occurrence stated the beam originated over Veilstone City's popular meteorite fields - popular especially for couples to enjoy their time underneath a starry night's sky while the rocks from outer space softly illuminate the area.
It has lasted for several seconds, allowing many to see the event with their own eyes.
Conspiracy theories took this as fuel, and rumors began to spread across the pokeweb like wildfire. Some claim this beam was shot from the mothership of an alien invasion, while the meteorites serve as a waypoint for interstellar beings.
Its true sources are still unknown. We here at Jubilife TV have sent an investigative reporter to Veilstone City, but he only managed to unearth even more unanswered questions.
Why was nobody at the meteorite fields? It's a very popular place, as stated before. The chances that on that day, not a single soul has smooched underneath the moonlight: 0%
Perhaps our reporter hasn't found anyone yet. Or... perhaps it really was aliens?
We recommend any young, adventurous couple near Veilstone City to avoid the meteorite fields for the time being to minimize chances of alien abduction and invasive rectal probing.
But if you decide to ignore our warnings, keep your eyes peeled and tell us of your findings online!
---
Dear diary, progress halted once again.
I'm beginning to believe this path to the summit is impossible. From my research, I thought for sure this was the one my grandpa took to achieve his record of 8590 meters. I even found a few of his markers along the way.
But... this climb is too difficult!
It's an over 90-degree wall, with two overhead portions for a total of 200 meters. I can't climb that. I'd need a pokemon who knows Rock Climb.
Abomasnow or Mamoswine should be able to learn this if I had a TM for it! But I spent all my money on the gear for this expedition!
Did Grandpa lie? He told me I shouldn't need any TMs.
... Perhaps he didn't lie. Maybe his pokemon already knew Rock Climb?
... Did he climb this himself?
... No way.
Urgh. I'm too tired for this! Diary, I'm just going to sleep now. Tomorrow, I'll look for another path up.
---
19th July: Rookie Tournament: Veistone City
Sponsored by Team Galactic. Any trainers under the age of 18 are welcome. No sign-up required - just come to Veilstone City Central Park and participate for a chance to win up to 100.000 pokedollar!
Or come to watch the best Sinnoh's youth has to offer as a little taste of what is to come during this year's championship.
When? On the 25th of July, six days from now, starting at 10 in the morning.
What are the rules? One-versus-one matches in a high-stakes single-elimination tournament with randomized brackets. Every battle is a fight to survive!
And what do you get? Food, fun, drinks, and betting - all provided for by your favorite Team Galactic department. In addition, the participants who manage to reach the top three will receive unbelievable rewards!
1st place: 100.000₽ and an exclusive mega-keystone bracelet with a custom design.
2nd place: 50.000₽.
3rd place 10.000₽.
I want you! To fight for the first place.
---
Contest results: Veilstone City
This weekend's winner is Nando--
Dawn:"I don't want to hear it!"
Swole:"Hey, at least you got a mention in this. They completely glossed over my gym victory."
---
Pokemon Pals
\[Depicted on the front cover is the former Indigo League champion Karen dressed to impress in tight leather lingerie, accentuated with silver elements to appear like skulls and bones. The dark-type trainer from Johto poses seductively in cosplay with the sportswear's trademarked POQEMON captioned underneath. Shiny straps of synthetic leather criss-cross over her body and especially her breasts to make them stand out.]
"Minimize your pokemon! You might avoid a rough Stomp-ing. - More on page 5."
"17 heartbreaking pictures of Cubone without his mother on page 9."
"You've been holding your pokeball wrong your whole life. Increase your catch rate by 40% with this simple trick. Page 13."
"Gym Leader Nessa recommends! Try out this new Berry-only diet that's making waves in Galar, on page 16."
---
20th July: Local News
The mystery beam of four nights ago has kept many citizens awake with watchful eyes as they keep guard over the meteorite fields.
However, a local pervert has taken advantage of the situation to fulfill his dubious desires. Unwilling eyewitnesses report a man with wavy blonde hair and broad shoulders snuck through the bushes in the dark, wearing nothing but his birthing suit as he avoided detection for who knows what twisted purpose.
Officer Jenny has been notified and concentrates her nightly patrols on the area. The spokeswoman - Officer Jenny - had this to say: "We do not allow such abhorrent, heinous behavior in our city. We ask anyone to come forward with whatever information you have. A sex pest is not tolerated in our beautiful parks. We will do our best to ensure that you can take your evening strolls without worrying about naked men crossing your paths."
Some eyewitnesses suggest that he could have been the victim of an alien attack. After sufficiently probing his rectal area, they might have transponded him back on our dearly beloved planet without his clothes on.
In other news, Gliscor and his gang of rowdy Gligar have finally been captured, signaling an end to the constant fruit theft at our city's farmer's market.
The trainer responsible for the feat - Paul Shinji - has declined our invitation for an interview, stating his desire to train Gliscor into a formidable pokemon before the upcoming rookie tournament.
Perhaps we will see him take down his opponents with the very same Gliscor that has been plaguing us for well over three weeks?
Or perhaps rising star Swole Solo will take this rival of his down instead? We here at Jubilife TV's local branch dearly hope to see a rematch between the two opposing forces during the tournament.
As a reminder, Swole Solo and Paul Shinji's first televised appearance as pokemon trainers had been during their school tournament's battle for place 3, resulting in Paul's loss. Since then, they've been a disaster to our dear gym leader's reputation, taking down one challenge after another. It seems as if these boys keep crushing anyone who underestimates them, and they'll always rise to even the greatest challenges.
Our reporter in Veilstone City asked around and found a few other well-known trainers who have decided to participate in the rookie tournament:
Ash Ketchum - winner of the Orange League, conqueror of the Battle Frontier, and second place in this year's Jubilife City school tournament.
Nando Naoshi is a young man with musical talent and a traveling bard trying to compete for the Grand Festival for his first time. Some professionals in the field predict he'll take home the coveted Ribbon Cup this year.
Dawn Berlitz - a new pokemon coordinator with a few ribbons underneath her scarf, better known for her meteoric debut, almost winning the contest at one of our grand cities - Canalave City.
Zoey Evans - heiress to the Piloswine Sweater Org.
Akari Platinum is the founder of Sinnoh's newest town: Rootwell Town. According to our sources, she will take time out of her busy schedule and compete for the win against her former classmates.
And many more! Don't forget to come watch on the 25th of July, starting at 10AM!
We'll be there too!
---
Dear diary, there's no other way up. I've traveled as far east and west as reasonable, only to find out that this is the easiest path. Other paths are filled with pokemon nests built into the cliffs, or the rock isn't sturdy enough to hold my weight.
Tomorrow, we'll see if my climbing skills are sufficient. If not, it'll be another surrender.
... I'm afraid.
Not necessarily of height, but of falling. If I fall, Abomasnow will have to catch me. But if he fails, I'm dead. And even if he succeeds, I might break a leg, and the retreat to Snowpoint City might become impossible.
...I'm ashamed. I'm an ice-type trainer, but I can't stay cool under a little bit of pressure?! Pathetic, Candice!
Well, pressure creates heat. So perhaps that's why I can't stay cool? That certainly would explain it.
Either way, I have to try. Tomorrow. I'll find out if I'm worthy or not-- hold on. I've got an idea! I'll be right back, diary!
---
Dear diary, I'm sorry for forgetting you. It's the next morning, and we've already climbed past the cliff.
It was easy! I can't believe I didn't think of it before!
Just use your pokemon's abilities to your advantage, Candice - shut up! Do you know how hard it is to think in this weather? I don't get a single moment of silence! The wind constantly smacks hail against our igloo, and we always have to be on the lookout for strange noises.
And let me tell you, that is DIFFICULT if there is CONSTANT noise!
And the silence is even worse. The moments when the wind turns - imagine this: I'm climbing. My fingers are in pain from the cold, but if I slip, I risk death. The wind constantly presses against me from the left.
Suddenly, silence. The wind stops. The tiniest crackling of the rock and ice becomes audible. And then all of a sudden the wind returns twice as strong from the other side.
Stupid diary. Just use your brain - Asshole.
... I shouldn't attach that much personality to this stupid logbook. It might make me go insane faster.
Grandpa warned me of the insanity. He knew a guy who tried to reach the summit but went insane along the way.
His corpse should still be on the mountain on a different path.
Anyway, you want to know how I climbed the rock wall without Rock Climb, right?
I've used a combination attack. Abomasnow's Ingrain served as the structural anchors, drilling each step deep into the rock. Glaceon's Ice Beam delivered the substance for the steps. And Jynx's Psychic kept it in shape. Now, there's a neat little staircase with a cute railing leading all the way up.
It certainly won't last forever, but it got us 200 meters closer to the top!
Today, I'll finally make some more progress! Grandpa, your record is as good as mine!
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Dear diary, just 300 more meters up, and I win.
This part of the mountain, past the cliffs, has been mostly a big, massive plateau with ancient ruins, collapsed houses, and what seemed to be a village a long, long time ago.
I didn't dare to get too close because pokemon have made it their new home, and the ones up here are all insanely strong and aggressive.
The last fight we stumbled into took out Weavile, Glaceon, and Piloswine.
Honestly, sometimes I wonder how there are even any pokemon left up here. They're so aggressive, but somehow they don't mind living within a few hundred meters of each other?
I theorize they have a system in place to prevent chaos between each other, and we - intruders - have put that system into an imbalance. In a way, it's our fault for being attacked.
... Sometimes, it's difficult to remember that our opponents want to kill and eat us, even though they are still thinking, rational beings.
It... just doesn't really fit into my mind, you know? They're rational, so they should think like me! But of course, they're pokemon. Their rational minds work differently from mine.
Haha, now I wonder what they think when waking up after we knocked them out. It should be a death sentence, yet we simply pull them aside, sometimes into a hole in the snow, and let them recover while we're long gone.
"Huh? I'm alive?"... That way lies madness. Let's stop thinking about this.
Today, it is 4°C in the igloo. I'm freezing. Despite my best efforts, and despite the Aspear Berries, my toes could freeze off soon. 2 Aspear Berries throughout the day and an Ice Heal in the evening just aren't enough.
And more isn't possible either. I'm close to reaching the limits of my body.
For my next attempt, I'll have to teach Jynx some fire-type moves to help keep me warm.
Although? It's just the toes that are the problem. They freeze too fast over the course of the day, and warming myself up in the evening won't make a difference. Once they're gone--
... I'm rambling. I know a diary is supposed to be for rambling, but this is a logbook. Not a diary. Technically.
Goodnight!
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25th July: Catastrophe in Kanto: Route 17 destroyed
Tragedy struck the Kanto region with the most recent Space-Time Convergence. The worst one yet with the resulting pressure wave felt around the world. People riding along the frequently used bicycle roads connecting Celadon City and Fuchsia City have disappeared along with the entire route.
Scientists working for Silph Co. have already begun investigations in an attempt to recover the lost land and the estimated 200 people who had been traveling along the route.
Like with every previous convergence, the displaced air has devastated the surrounding areas. Optimized rescue operations are still underway, but the first numbers are in. 22 people died immediately after the event occurred - their lungs had been crushed underneath heavy weight, and suffocation followed too quickly for the rescue teams to act.
104 people had been buried alive, but a team of specially trained pokemon found and treated them quickly enough before oxygen deprivation could affect their brains.
Another 59 people are still buried underneath rubble but in stable positions and with access to fresh air and water. The digging teams are carefully excavating them at this very moment.
According to official statements, the chances are slim for those trapped within the Space-Time Convergence. Initial reports suggest the affected area is currently stuck in a pocket dimension between our universe and an adjacent one.
Its edges are rapidly dissolving. Kanto researcher Bill explained it for us: "Imagine a balloon in a vacuum. It expands. The pressure inside presses against the walls of the balloon, and without any opposing force from the outside, the balloon has no choice but to expand. But unlike a balloon, space is rigid. It doesn't like to expand. So when the forces from the atoms, and even from the quarks, push without resistance, then molecules are torn apart. Furthermore, while space is rigid, time is viscous. Without time, space inside a pocket dimension would be torn apart within a few moments, but with time, this process takes much longer, giving us the opportunity to try and rescue the people who are currently stuck."
Dear reader, Don't be alarmed if you did not understand what Bill said. The editorial team here at Jubilife TV has no idea either. Either way, rest assured that Silph Co. is doing everything possible to rescue as many people as possible.
We will continue to update you as the situation develops.