Writer/Editor Note: This originally started as just internal notes, so may be a bit more rough then normal, with that said, it should be considered more of a ‘living’ document. There will be notes on adjustments made as time goes on.
----------------------------------------
Aura definition: A form of spiritual energy described as the essence of every living thing.
The term was ‘coined’ by Professor Laventon for the general population, but Aura itself was known by old Aura Guardians even before Laventon put the name down on paper.
Aura follows the type chart, so Fire Energy cancels Ice Energy, and is itself canceled by Water Energy.
Aura affects both Pokemon and people, though obviously affects Pokemon more.
Aura energy is typed by default but the usual environment the majority of the population live in creates a mix of all the different types enough so that any pronounced Aura effect doesn’t become noticeable. In contrast, if you stay in the same place for a very, very long period of time you might start to artificially obtain an Aura affinity. This is intentionally used in some medical procedures.
For example, someone exposed to high amounts of psychic energy can be placed into an environment of high Dark, Bug, or Ghost energy until enough cancels out.
Sometimes, a person can have an Aura ‘bias’, which can lead them to ‘click’ better with a specific Type of Pokémon, or have certain ‘attributes’ that along with that type of Aura. Have enough of it, and other Pokemon will recognize a person as being of that Type themselves. In the story, Chairperson Erma is seen by Pokemon as being a Fae because of how much Fairy Type Energy she is exposed to and her natural affinity towards Fairy Energy.
Having Aura in general at all is what allows native residents to the Pokémon World to not have to worry about their bones breaking when their overeager Growlithe Tackle’s them when they get home, or from Poison causing their entire homeostasis system to shut down.
As stated before, the majority of the human population do not have any specific Aura Affinity or bias due to being surrounded by so many Pokémon and people, leading them to be considered the ‘baseline’. It can be argued that their default Type could be considered ‘Normal’, due to how flexible the Type itself has been noted to be, but this doesn’t explain why certain humans would still be instinctively afraid of Ghost Types, or why possession may still be a worry for some people.
People who are Type Specialists have been found more likely lean into specific traits or habits as their Aura impacts their body and mind when they reach the higher-levels. This level is around highly experienced Gym Leaders, or Trainers who have engrossed themselves deeply into specific groups of Pokémon for years, like Elite Four members or Champions.
However, it is important to note that these traits and habits are not a hard rule for someone with a specific Aura affinity and do not define people. These are more frequent observations and like with anything, there are always outliers for various reasons… but some features may be important to keep in mind.
Examples:
Fire Type - Naturally higher body temperature, and, paradoxically, prefer warmer environments. Body tends to recover quicker from burns, or have a higher threshold for what would burn them. Tend to have a fiery, passionate personality. Or, alternatively, a warm, inviting one that can flip on a dime to an enraged inferno. Don’t like humid places.
Water Type - Generally found to be very chill people, unaffected by things. “Go with the flow.” However, like a tsunami, if you anger them their fury can be overwhelming and swift. Good swimmers, and can hold their breath for generally longer periods of time. Likes beaches and lakes, dislike dry and arid places.
Electric Type - Can be highly energetic and active people, though some may be one-track mind going along a single current. A ‘small’ shock to them would be enough of a shock to send someone back a couple feet, and they can take it without blinking, or be paralyzed for a shorter amount of time. Prefer to be surrounded by devices powered by electricity, or during thunderstorm season, outside watching the storm roll by.
Grass Type - Likes sunshine, nature, forests, jungles, etc. Some can be rather... ditzy. Many top Grass Type Trainers are also known to dabble in questionable substances, or like to experiment with combining natural ingredients together for food. One of the least harmful affinities if overexposed. Things like Sleep Powder have little effect on them.
Ice Type - Naturally cooler body temperature. Like Fire Types, paradoxically prefer colder environments. Are outwardly cold towards people they don’t know, but have a warmth and caring behind them.
Fighting Type - High physical aptitude and endurance, physical homeostasis of the body is easier to keep stable and healthy for them. Mentally, this also pushes them to keep moving towards some sort of goal or objective. No real preference as to where they prefer to be, but dislike areas of high spiritual energy.
Poison Type - Personality heavily affected by affinity / amount of energy. Those with weaker affinities might have more of a contrarian personality and might disagree with larger societal forces / trends and be more radical in their beliefs. Lots of punks of all different types are on the lower affinity spectrum. People exposed to high amounts or with strong affinities, however, are some of the most toxic and caustic people to be around. Very rude and terse, difficult and unpleasant to be around, and generally awful people. People who veer too far into Poison type energy often have to go through behavioral and Aura therapy because of how much it can affect their lives if not managed well, but there have been a handful of high-functioning heavy Poison affinities who have gone on to be successful in their own right.
Doctors have noted that people with high Poison affinity respond differently to medicines, can withstand hazardous environments well, and get sick less often. Many are also nose-blind and can kinda smell... but that may also be because many of them have a bad smoking habit...
Ground Type - Tends to be the most diverse in terms of personality, and has a lot of overlap with Rock Types a lot. Can be jolly hikers, or no-nonsense businessmen that are immovable in their goals. Have a high physical aptitude, but not as much as Fighting Types. Leans more for a slow and steady build up, rather than a burst of physical might. Love long strolls through nature, or rocky terrain, or hiking.
Flying Type - Happy, high-in-the-sky kind of energy is the most common, however some may be prideful. When using Fly, they have less issues with hypoxia, get less winded during physical activity so may be able to last ‘longer’, but can’t do huge bursts of strength compared to people influenced by Fighting Type Aura. Love areas with high wind, like mountain ranges, or flying in the sky with their Pokémon.
Psychic - Those in academic fields sometimes lean more into this Aura. Overly logical to a fault, and can struggle with understanding emotions and empathy.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
At the middle-end, they may be described as having light Psychic-Abilities, knowing when something is about to hit them and instinctively ducking, which can transition into those people becoming Psychic Class Trainers. At the very, very high-end is when you get Trainers like Sabrina, and Liza and Tate, who can levitate things, and get full precognition abilities. Despise areas of high spiritual energy, and prefer quiet places.
Bug - It was thought for the longest time that ADHD was simply a case of overexposure to Bug-Type Energy. Treatments often involved doses of large amounts of Rock energy, which led to unfortunate side effects and is now considered a barbaric practice that is illegal almost everywhere. In any case, people with Bug Type affinities have lower attention spans, but can also hyperfocus on tasks well. In addition, they care about family immensely, even more so than Dragons. Like and dislike many of the same places as Grass types.
Rock - Compared to Ground Types, it’s noted that those with a Rock Aura lean more serious outwardly, can mask their reactions easier to others and seem immovable, but their kindness once you break through the outer layer can be almost as gentle (if a bit blunt) as one with a Grass Type affinity. Very, very comfortable in caves, and almost can be described as having a sixth-sense navigating through them, and can see better in low-light situations.
Ghost - The type itself by others tend to be viewed as esoteric and eccentric. Perceived as being associated with very religious people who value faith immensely. Are frequently associated with death, as areas of high spiritual energy tend to overlap with graveyards, morgues, mausoleums, past war battle locations, and even hospitals and churches.
In actuality, surprisingly, Ghost Type Trainers have the second biggest range of personality and quirks next to Normal Types. Those with very, very small, budding levels of a Ghost Aura are still very susceptible to being influenced by strong spirits. This is where the stereotype comes from, as the influence tends to make them take on a more devoted approach, who value faith in their beliefs immensely, but this is not exclusive to religion, and can be faith in anything.
However, on the opposite end, very experienced Ghost Type Trainers seem to be the most… put together people on the surface, almost akin to the general population. They are more intune with the nature of spirits and life as a whole, which can translate to them being more expressive in their personal life or appearing more… free spirited. Fantina doing contests, Shauntal writing novels, Ryme with her music, all are ways Ghost Specialists express their own spirit in different ways.
Other high level Ghost Trainers, like Phoebe or Acerola sometimes may be able to ‘see’ passing spirits, which as a result can make them make comments about someone that others cannot see, making them come off as creepy or playing a joke due to their specialty. This is because their Ghost Type Aura is so potent, and their soul more intune with the spiritual, the lines of ghosts and humans become a bit blurred for their normal senses.
Dragon Type - Overwhelming to everyone else not aligned to such an Aura, their emotions feel like they can choke the room depending on the situation. Others may also feel more inclined to follow their decisions or orders. Prideful, family oriented, known temper issues. No clear preference to where they prefer to be, physically at least. Tend to take leadership roles or positions ‘above’ people. The rarest Aura affinity.
Dark - Very emotional people, for better and for worse. Known to be rather manipulative of others, so people with high Dark Affinity are often seen as not nice people. (Lots of politicians have some Dark bias.) Still, someone in control of their Dark Affinity can also be very cool and suave people, so you can also see Rock stars and Actors have some Dark Affinity to them as well. Psychic Attuned people can’t stand being anywhere close to them because of how they wear their heart on their sleeves. Seem comfortable in the same places Ghost Types are, but Ghosts can be averse to them. Some Ghosts and Darks get along quite well though.
Steel - Stalwart and unyielding. If they set their mind on something, you’re not going to convince them otherwise. Sometimes they need a sudden burst of force to get them to make a realization on a situation if they are too set in their ways. Can prefer a wide range of locations, from mines and caves, to carefully maintained and expertly built locations made of heavily processed materials. Can shrug off most things easier, and very rarely get sick, but sudden periods of force, or heat can make them buckle.
Fairy - The least understood and most alien of all affinities. Fairy attuned people are known by others to be strange, unpredictable, unsettling, and even scary. Dream and reality are their domain simultaneously. Have strong senses of fairness that can be easily skewed. A very dangerous affinity if overexposed. Don’t seem to have a general place of preference, but it is known that Mt. Moon is a particular hotspot for Fairies. Rumors that the original Fairies came from the Moon is... technically unfounded, but people find it very convincing. The one thing everyone knows about them though, is that if you cross a Fairy, you’re going to regret it later.
Normal Type - Curiously, the lack of any defined Aura Energy allowed Normal Type specialists to also be the most diverse group… because their Aura has little influence on their personality or body, almost like clay, allowing them to just define themselves without any influence. No real defined personality or traits. Overexposure to other affinities can often be negated, but not cured, by exposure to Normal Energy. The most common Aura Affinity.
Aura and the general population:
General knowledge of Aura for most wouldn’t go beyond a biology textbook, akin to ‘the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell’ level of knowledge, and forgotten. However, certain fields deal with it much more frequently than others.
General Education - Depends on the school, and is gone over briefly during biology more like a footnote in some, an entire day for others, or not at all in the schools that don’t care.
Pokémon Ranger - During Ranger School, Aura is gone over in much, much more detail, as to explain why certain Pokémon may not click with other humans as partners, or why certain people may have different traits that can’t be explained by just genetics.
Doctors and Nurses - Probably the field that knows about it the most, but due to how fluid it can be, it’s only brought up when necessary, and sticking to basic human biology works nine times out of ten. Experimental Aura treatments have been made using Type energy, however they like to try and use that as a last resort, due to how volatile it can be sometimes if something conflicting is introduced.
Trainers - Weirdly, even though Trainers who don’t go beyond half of the Gyms in a Region may never interact with Aura, and may not even know about its existence, it’s the most commonly known field that interacts with it the most. Trainers who continue into the competitive scene at least know of Aura, and think about it from time to time and come to realize why they may prefer a certain Type, or kind of Pokémon.
Mega Evolutions, Z-Moves, Synergy Burst, all rely on the Trainer’s Aura to initiate at varying levels, which is why Trainer’s at higher levels can have a very strong Aura, or knowledge about it, and know how to ‘use’ it. Though, only through these avenues, as most Trainers can’t manifest it physically or visibly.
The ‘Terastal Phenomenon’ seems to be the physical manifestation of Aura and Type Energy, but until the invention of the Tera Orb by Professor Sada and Turo, was limited to the inside of Area Zero, and its intricacies are still widely unknown. This does not depend on the Trainer to initiate, but the Tera Orb requires to be charged after one use if outside Area Zero.
Aura Guardians - Still exist in the modern types, but are extremely rare and thought to have died out. Have the ability to physically manipulate Aura similar to a Lucario. Riley is someone who is training to become an Aura Guardian, but is quiet on reasons why, or how, and only ever shares that with people he trusts.
----------------------------------------
Beta Editors/Readers:
David “TheBlizWiz” R
Garmfild
TopBat