As I attempted to pull out the egg, a silver and green chunk of metal flew out and tackled me onto the floor.

“Ferro!” the Pokémon cried out. The living piece of metal and grass bounced around, knocking the air out of my body.

“Ro?” it looked down at me. Its eyes widened in surprise and it immediately jumped off, looking at me with eyes pleading for forgiveness. As soon as I caught my breath, I sat up. Ferroseed slowly hopped closer, probably feeling guilty for attacking me, its apparent parent.

“You’re quite the energetic one, aren’t you?” I said with a smile. Though it didn’t have a mouth, Ferroseed’s eyes crinkled up around the corners, a classic indication of a smile.

“Well, good thing you’re with us.Inkay and I will play with you a lot, isn’t that right?” I told it, looking at Inkay. He turned and chirped happily before getting closer and beginning to float around Ferroseed. Ferroseed gave out a metallic hum and began spinning in place.

I used this moment to scan Ferroseed.

[Ferroseed (Female): The Thorn Seed Pokémon]

Ferroseed sticks to cave walls in order to absorb the minerals from the cave. When threatened, it will shoot out spikes in order to escape.

Abilities: Iron Barbs, Sturdy

Moves: Harden, Tackle, Gravity (Egg Move), Leech Seed (Egg Move)

[Condition: Hungry, Excited]

‘I should probably feed her.’

“Are you hungry?” I asked the freshly hatched sentient ingot.

“Ferroseed!” she answered enthusiastically. Wait, how can she understand me? You know what, now is not the time to question it.

We walked back to the canteen, where the wonderful chef, Nadia, made a rather… scrumptious… dish out of metal ores, stones, and berries. I had to say, Nadia was definitely a great chef. Ferroseed seemed to enjoy her meal very much.

After chatting with Nadia a bit more, she added me on PokéDB. Well, she did after helping me set up my PokéDB account. That way, I could see when she started her own business. Well, at least that’s what she told me. With the account, I was able to go through several forums dedicated towards specific aspects of Pokémon. The most popular revolved around battles, famous trainers, rare Pokémon, and new research from famous professors.

I joined a forum for newly hatched Pokémon, posting a picture of Ferroseed enjoying her first meal. I then went to Nurse Joy and asked if she could do a quick check-up on Ferroseed. While she did that, Audino had me do a few tests.

Nothing too crazy, just some meditation, a few simple exercises, a simple crossword, and a sudoku puzzle, all while having Audino scan me and a machine scan my brain. I did warn Audino that I was extremely tired, getting me a friendly laugh in return. Nurse Joy soon returned with Ferroseed and the news of her being perfectly healthy.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

“You know, this is my first time ever working with a Ferroseed, so thank you for that experience!” Nurse Joy said as she handed Ferroseed over. “As for you, you seem to be doing incredibly fine. Audino can sense your exhaustion, but your body has been able to power through when most others’ would drop. It’s honestly amazing that you were able to do so well, especially with the sudoku puzzle.”

“Well, I’ve always enjoyed those. I used to do a daily sudoku puzzle and a game of solitaire for about two years, so that might explain why I’m so good,” I rationalized. Nurse Joy shook her head at that.

“No matter how good you are, exhaustion will always lead to mistakes, slower performance, and a drop in function,” she countered. “Even though you are experiencing exhaustion, you were able to function just fine. It might be the cortisol and adrenaline your body is able to keep producing that is helping you, but that shouldn’t explain all of it.”

I stood there in silence, trying to think of a way to explain it and not seem like some sort of freak.

“But, this is a world full of Pokémon and people like Bruno,” Nurse Joy continued. “I guess I shouldn’t be all that surprised, but this is very new to me. I’ll definitely need to run several experiments to see how it works… With your permission, of course!”

“As long as I can keep eating for free, you can do whatever you like,” I said with a smile. Wait, that sounded wrong.

“Oh, I’ll make sure I will,” she replied.

‘PHRASING.’

After another minute of silence, Nurse Joy’s eyes widened. “You’re not a Trainer and don’t have a job yet, right?” she asked.

“Umm, no. Why?”

“You know, I receive a lot of gifts from random people, including uncommon Pokéballs, cash, and TRs,” she said, “I offer every Trainer one of these gifts in exchange for some help around here. Usually errands like helping the kitchen with deliveries, moving machines around, organizing, et cetera. Just let me know if you want to help with something!”

“Thank you, I think I will definitely do so in the future. Right now, I just want to sleep. Good night!” I said before heading for the elevator.

“Wait a minute!” I heard someone call out. I turned around to see Officer Jenny standing near the door to the police station.

‘Damnit, I just want to sleep! It’s almost 1am!’

“Alright, Marco. I just want to let you know Calem has cleared everything with us, so you’ll be good to go,” Officer Jenny told me with a smile. “Just make sure to check in with us if anything comes up in the future.”

I sighed in relief. “Thank you, Officer Jenny. Does that mean I can become a Trainer?”

“I’m not too sure,” she shrugged. “That’s something you’ll have to apply for. Or you can ask Calem if you have his contact information.”

“Alright, thank you. I think it’s about time I get to bed. It’s been a long day,” I said, trying to get back to my room.

“Why are you still up?” she asked.

“He just finished having his Pokémon checked and did some tests with Audino,” Nurse Joy piped in.

“Oh, really? What’s wrong with you?”

“I haven’t had a moment of rest since finding myself nearly killed by a Pokémon,” I deadpanned.

“...”

“...”

“I’m going to bed now,” I said as I stepped into the elevator.

0-0-0-0-0

[Officer Jenny POV]

“Jeez, there was no need to be so rude,” I sighed out. I mean, I took his side AND didn’t put him in a cell.

“Oh, give him a break,” Joy chided me. “He’s had a rough day from what you’ve told me. And he hasn’t had any sleep.”

“That’s fair, I guess,” I said. But still, there was no need for him to be so blunt. Talking about blunts...

“Are you still up for that Roxie concert this weekend?”

“Oh, yes! Thank you so much for getting those tickets!” Joy exclaimed. “I’ve been dying to see the band for YEARS.”

“Ha, I know,” I chuckled at her excitement. “That’s why I got them. We haven’t had a day off in so long, so let’s make the most of it. Okay?”

“Sounds perfect!”

0-0-0-0-0

[Marco POV]

I walked into my room, feeling like a zombie. I let Inkay and Ferroseed out, preferring that they sleep out in the room than their Pokéballs. Inkay floated over to my head, promptly starting his light snoring once he got comfortable.

Ferroseed was nodding off as she bounced towards the bed. I guess it’s been a long day for the newborn. She quickly fell asleep at the foot of the bed. I could hear a low whistle coming from her. It was rather comforting and made me sleepy. I layed Inkay onto one of the two pillows, careful not to wake him up. I picked up Ferroseed and crawled into bed, setting her under Inkay.

About damn time I go to bed.

I used the other pillow to support my neck as I lay on my left side. So much had happened today. I hope this isn’t a trend. I began thinking about how different raising Pokémon and training them would be in this world. As I got lost in my thoughts of training, I slowly drifted off to the land of dreams, no longer worried about my situation.