As I flew in the rather large specimen of Swanna, I couldn't help but notice the mature woman riding another Swanna in front of me.

Blonde hair and blue eyes, dressed in what looked like a riding uniform, this woman was Glacia of the Elite 4.

Was she really the only option Steven had? I understand that this is an important matter, but wasn't Phoebe the best option, considering we're going to visit her grandparents?

Questions, questions.

Like the Swannas, when I ask her about them, she tells me they are an elegant Pokémon for an elegant woman. What's next? She tells me that a secret is what makes a woman a woman.

Still, Lance has a pair of Gyarados, so who am I to question her expertise. After all, unlike Steven, from whom I felt nothing, as soon as Glacia greeted me, I felt that chilling energy that emanates calm, and I immediately understood that this was what Professor Oak meant about specialisation permeating and transforming the energy of the specialist, thanks to the symbiotic nature of the relationship between humans and Pokémon.

After a two-hour journey, we reach the town of Mauville, where she orders her Pokémon to land. Once ashore, I get off the Swanna and approach her.

"We're going to rest here, follow me." She said with a warm smile while recalling her Pokémon.

And that smile?

"Yes, ma'am."

I follow her through the city, watching as the modern infrastructure of Mauville and Glacia scares off those who recognise her with a glare, until we reach a large restaurant.

As soon as we entered, a waiter came to greet us.

"Mrs Glacia."

"Get me a private room this time, Max."

"Of course Mrs, this way."

The waiter led us to the room, which was large enough to hold at least two full teams of Pokémon, as Glacia showed off her team with a Pokéball.

Her team consisted of Walrein, Glalie, the two Swannas and Abomasnow, plus the one in the Pokéball.

She spoke to her team, who went about their business and turned to me.

"Let your team out too, I guarantee the food here is top class."

What a strange feeling she gives me. I release my Pokémon.

"Rith." "Goomy."

"We'll eat here, go and introduce yourselves."

My Pokémon obey and go to mingle with Glacia's team, who seem to be getting on well, apart from a little fear from Bel.

"Let's take a seat." Glacia then goes to the table in the centre of the room and I follow her example.

"This is a big place."

"Most high-end restaurants have rooms like this so that trainers can eat with their Pokémon."

And I bet that affects the prices, not that I have economic problems now.

"Make sense, Miss."

"Just Glacia."

"Very well."

At that moment the waiter comes to take our orders, she gets a flank steak with a green salad and I order beef chuck with baked potatoes. To be honest, I was looking forward to eating meat from an animal again, even if it was more expensive than Pokémon meat.

For the Pokémon class, I order calcium-rich food for Roberto and iron-rich food for Bel. At this moment, I see Bel struggling to move a little on the floor.

"Excuse me for a moment."

I stand up and take a wide bucket and my gloves from my bag.

"Roberto, fill it up please."

"Anorith."

Once filled, I pour a bottle of the iron sulphide and place Bel in it.

"Goooo."

She starts bubbling as I return to my seat.

"Thanks for waiting."

"No problem, it's a Gommy right?" She gives me a curious look.

"Yes. Goomy are fragile until they evolve, so I have to take special care of her. I am surprised you know their species."

"I am well travelled, you know, lately I've been disappointed with the last generations of trainers, so I wanted to meet you."

"Me?"

"One of the youngest professors in history, you may not be aware of it but your actions are lighting a fire in the new trainers this season."

"Really?"

"If someone so young can do it, so can I. The youngsters today have too much pride and not enough wisdom. One thing is for sure, this is going to be a great season."

"I agree, the world is moving."

Just then the food arrived. We let the waiter serve the food and start to eat before continuing our conversation.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, a lot of things have happened in the last few years, like the awakening of legends and the recent actions of Team Rocket. Not to mention the reason for our journey."

"It is better to live in interesting times." I can imagine a culture that digresses.

"Is that why you came for me instead of Phoebe?"

"Yes, she is waiting with her grandparents."

"Two members of the elite, I should be flattered that my words are taken so seriously."

"You are a professor of mythology, if anyone knows anything about legendary control artefacts, it is you."

"I'll try not to disappoint."

"Such modesty."

"This food is really delicious, they look happy with their meal too."

I look over at our teams, who are enjoying their food with gusto, even the Glalie with his... red coloured ice.

"I told you, as a gourmet, I only eat good food."

"In that case, send me the places."

"You won't be disappointed. Besides, did you know that you can learn a lot about someone by the way they eat?"

I raise an eyebrow at her.

"For example: You have a perfect posture and use of cutlery, your lips never touch the food and when you speak your eyes never wander, always looking straight into the eyes of those who are speaking unless you are using them to point out what you are talking about."

"And what does that tell you?"

"That you have an aristocratic upbringing."

I got my hopes up for a second.

"Not even close."

"Oh." She looked genuinely surprised.

"I..."

Hang on Marcus, you can't tell her that you were a corrupt bureaucrat and that you learn manners to mingle with high society.

Lies, my posture is based on the shinai blows I received in martial arts school when I was younger.

My point still stands.

"I'd rather not talk about my past."

"I understand."

After that, the conversation turns to food and restaurants, with Glacia displaying her knowledge as a gourmet. When we have finished eating, she pays the bill and we leave, ready to continue our journey to Mt Pyre.

-------

I forgot that Mt Pyre is about the same distance as Petalburg from Mauville, and unlike that cursed Skarmory, when I arrive in this world the Swanna are actually more comfortable to fly on, enough not to trigger my vertigo as long as I don't look down.

So, after two hours of boring travel, we arrive at the entrance, where Glacia recalls the Swanna and leads me inside.

What a light atmosphere, not what I expected from a cemetery. There were people mourning, yes, but it was not mournful, instead a peaceful atmosphere pervades the place.

Apart from the families and the occasional tourist, you can see the channelers around, either with a family, helping with the final farewell, cleaning the place or meditating, with this last group you can see a faint flash of fuchsia or purple light.

One of the channellers greets us and after a quick word with Glacia, she begins to lead us towards the top of the mountain, and despite my exhaustion from the countless stairs, I manage to notice that the higher we go, the more the presence of the ghosts increases.

However, whether it was Glacia or the Channeller, they didn't try anything, I managed to catch glimpses of some Shuppets and Misdreavus, but not Duskull, which is a shame, because without the game's limitations Dusknoir can be really powerful.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

Game restrictions, huh, I stop.

"Marcus?" Glacia turns to me.

"Sorry, I was catching my breath."

With a nod we continue.

It's no surprise that I've played a lot of Pokémon games, not only the main series and Smogon, but also a plethora of fan-made games, and while not all of them were good, some of them had a quality that surpassed anything Nintendo could put out due to its limitations regarding the messy copyright of the Pokémon franchise and the fact that Gamefreak made the game instead of them, I mean Nintendo released Mother 3, I give them the benefit of the doubt.

In all of these fan games, I tend to gravitate towards one Pokémon, Banette, for one reason or another.

While I always look for a Gardevoir, Banette is a Pokémon that I always find myself using naturally, thanks to its utility with the priority moves and the Will-o-Wisp/Curse combo to cheese the bosses, and all that with four moves and a status effect limit. If this world didn't have such restrictions, I might be able to train a Banette to become fearsome, and if I remember correctly, the Banettite should be here in Mt Pyre.

"Hooooooy."

As we reach the top, I hear a cheerful voice calling, and after walking a little further I see Phoebe waving at us.

"You're late." She jogged towards us.

"We stopped to eat on the way." Glacia replies as calmly as ever.

"Mmm." Phoebe pouts.

"If you'll excuse me, miss."

"Uh, sure."

The channeler retreats hastily, unwilling to be part of the dynamic between the two elites.

"You always do the same thing."

"Food is important, maybe if you eat more." She says, casting a glance at Phoebe's chest.

"*Gasp* you."

"Anyway, allow me to introduce you to Professor Poplar." Glacia cuts Phoebe off and opens her hand to introduce me.

The cheerful girl looked at me before smiling and coming over, pushing Glacia aside.

"Hi, I'm Phoebe, has this evil woman given you any trouble?" She bends a little to meet my eyes.

"None at all, Marcus Poplar a pleasure."

"Really? Don't hesitate to tell me."

"Unlike some, I know how to behave."

"A fossil stuck in her ways, you mean."

*cough*

"Phoebe, are your grandparents waiting?" I defuse the situation.

"Ah, let's go."

Suddenly remembering the reason for our visit, she grabs my hand and starts dragging me to our destination, not without hearing a look of annoyance from Glacia first.

She let go of me when we reached a cosy house, which I assume belongs to her family.

"Grandmother, we have arrived!"

An elderly woman in miko dress sat at a table with an equally elderly man in monk's robes.

"We're here Sunshine, don't be so loud."

"Sorry."

"And you're not greeting me."

"Grandpa, you are here!"

"Today is important, my beautiful granddaughter is coming to visit." The old man looks very proud.

"Darling, not in front of the guests." The elderly woman acknowledges our presence.

"Professor Marcus Poplar at your service."

"Glacia of the Elite 4." I bet she has more titles.

"Please be seated, I am Mai Fuchigami and he is my husband Cristian Fuchigami."

"A pleasure." The old man said.

I take a seat in front of Mai, with Phoebe and Glacia by my side. Since neither of them has any intention of taking the lead, I better get started.

"Did Phoebe tell you the reason for our visit?"

"She mentioned that the League has business with us and the Ancestral Orbs."

"Let me explain, the Ancestral Orbs, also known as the Red and Blue, Ruby and Sapphire, or Alpha and Omega Orbs, are what you might call suppression artefacts for the legendary Pokémon Groudon and Kyogre, created by the Draconid tribe to defend the region without the intervention of Rayquaza in case the aforementioned Pokémon return."

The tension was palpable as I had their full attention.

"The Orbs are currently being targeted by two criminal groups, Team Aqua and Team Magma, who are attempting to use them to awaken and control the Legendaries for their own ends. Has Aqua been officially declared criminal?" I ask Glacia.

"Yes, they were involved in attacks on Aether Foundation ships."

Interesting, I bet they think the Foundation is against their philosophy, which is true on paper.

"That is why the League, while understanding their cultural importance, is asking if they can guard the Orbs until these criminal organisations are dealt with, am I right Ms Glacia, Phoebe?"

"You are right, Professor." "Pff, Ms."

While Glacia glares at Phoebe, I wait for the answer.

"......" After deliberating, Cristian nods to Mai and stands up before leaving the room.

"We accept, little Sunshine is part of the League, it's natural for us to work together."

"Grandma."

Cristian enters the room bringing the orbs with him and places them on the table.

Here they are, the oval shaped red orb and the spherical shaped blue orb, if you look closely you can see the faint Omega and Alpha letters in the centre of them.

"Thank you for your trust. Phoebe, you take them, Steven will know what to do with them."

Phoebe nods and takes the orbs and puts them in her shadow. A special technique for ghost type specialists perhaps? While this was happening, Glacia did not take her eyes off me.

"Now that you have done that, excuse us, the Orbs need to get to a safe place as soon as possible."

"I hope this helps stop these people." Mai said.

"It will help, but I fear the legendaries will wake up anyway. At least without the orbs, they will not reach their full potential."

The atmosphere grew gloomy and I got up and walked out, Glacia following shortly after and Phoebe staying to talk to her grandparents.

"Why did you let me do the talking?"

"When Steven told us, Phoebe was the first to react, she knew about the orbs but not what their purpose was and was shocked, she barely ran away here after that, and I may have more experience but you are the only one who knows about this so I think you were the right person to break the news to them."

"I see."

"What do you mean by the Legendaries not reaching their full potential?"

"Mega evolution."

She took a breath and stiffened.

"Well, not exactly, its called primal reversion and it brings out the primordial power they once had."

"How do you know all this?"

"You're wrong about me being the only one who knows, I bet the Draconid elders and the Lorekeeper know, as part of my knowledge comes from the previous Lorekeeper and the murals on the Sky Pillar."

"And the mega-evolution?"

"I am a professor, Professor Sycamore's research is open to me. And the Draconid tribe has kept it a secret for a long time, why do you think they are allowed to be independent from the region?"

She thought deeply.

"I'll visit as soon as I can, don't push yourself."

"You're 10 years too early to be lecturing me, young lady."

"Ho ho ho."

Phoebe left the house with her grandparents.

"Let's go." Glacia says.

"Tell Steven to call me if he needs anything."

"You're not coming?" Phoebe asks.

"No, I plan to catch a Shuppet and then go to Route 120 for my project."

"REALLY!" Phoebe's eyes sparkle in contrast to Glacia's frown.

"Are you looking for Ghost Marcus, I may be able to offer a solution."

Phoebe grabbed me protectively and glared at Glacia.

"Thank you, but a Frostlass fulfils a different role than I wish."

"I understand."

"See, don't interfere."

Phoebe puts her arm around my neck and snaps her fingers at Glacia, who just scoffs.

"Do you need help, I know where all the rascals go around here."

I suppress my tomboy supremacist instincts and reply.

"I appreciate the offer, but I will feel safer if the bullets reach Steven first."

"Aaaaw." Please don't let my willpower fail me now.

"Cristian, our little sunshine is growing up." Mia laughs with a mischievous look.

"That seems to be the case." Cristian nods.

"Moh, stop teasing."

"We have to report, let's go." Glacia looks tired.

"Fineeee, bye Marcus."

"Bye, I will send you the locations of the restaurants soon."

Glacia and Phoebe leave, leaving me with the older couple.

"I'll be going then."

"Come back as soon as you've caught the Shuppet, I'll teach you how to properly raise a Ghost-type Pokémon." Cristian offers.

"I'll do that then, see you later."

"Don't keep us waiting."

And so begins my hunt for a Shuppet and the Bannetite.