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The Fornia League HQ - Sacreus City

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Jessica Gladstone had been hard at work since leaving Unova in Tao's capable claws. Fornia and the surrounding territories were still a clusterMuk, but they had more Trainers every day. She'd done some traveling of her own thus far, gaining Eiwa, an Alolan Vulpix from the tropical islands in Alola, and a Charcadet, Rouge, a Smoliv, Liva, and a Toxel, Mirkke, from Paldea. While there, she'd also applied to Naranuva Academy for a Tera Orb, and after confirming her status as a Champion and completing a minor task, she'd been approved to handle a modern Tera Orb. Unlike generation one, for whatever reason, the modern orbs didn't need a recharge. Ever.

She'd told the Director and his staff that Alex would be coming through soon as well, which had sent the teachers and student council into a frenzy of preparation. She knew he'd probably intended to quietly enroll and earn his Tera Orb, but she'd all but guaranteed he'd get quite the reception, when he finally arrived. She knew the students would benefit from his presence, but being a U.U. grad, he would have probably ignored them without her intervention. The Blueberry Academy was their main rival, and Naranuva famously had an active exchange program for students who wanted to grow from both Paldea and their Terarium. Unlike B.B.A, Unova University had not yet joined the conglomerate of schools across the planet that actively educated the students as they set out on their respective journeys.

Fornia's own education system was all but nonexistent without the Arcean Church to fund it, but Alex and Tao already had most of their production-focused cities building new schools and universities as well. Knowing Alex, he'd probably kickstart properly unifying every school outside the Imperium just by being at the academy, or something.

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Jess intended to do the same as her fiancé, but upon trying to train her Pokémon, she'd found that her partners were not listening, even with their psychic connection. After a week of struggling and only being able to train Lapi, she finally called in Gwen, who was seemingly glad to take a break from her new and sudden position as Queen of Albion.

They were in Sacreus's stadium and had the field to themselves as Jess approached her stubborn grass snake starter and turned to Gwen. "She and the others refuse to move or train, and when they do speak, I'm just not understanding them. Please help." Gwen simply nodded with her serene grace and approached the regal looking Pokémon. They murmured back and forth to each other, as Gwen nodded and seemed to speak in soothing tones.

Then, Amphi came over, murmured, glanced at her Trainer, murmured some more. Then Melodi, Cera, and Maria went over as well. Jess glanced around and saw Delphi snickering at all of them. Gwen looked overwhelmed as everyone started talking at once, and eventually, she Teleported back from them, and moved back to her Trainer, looking quite flustered.

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"They umm…they're very eager to…" She struggled to understand and comprehend what she'd been told. "Contest…each other? I don't really understand what they're-" Jess was already moving towards the team. Serpi rose above them, poking up from behind the crowd of chattering Pokémon. Jess looked, and was, irritated, but that was mostly because she hated to see how reliant she'd become on Alex's ability to seamlessly translate what her team was saying. Without him around, she felt like a newbie fresh from the lab.

He'd also helped her set up their psychic mental web, but for reasons she didn't understand, it refused to connect, lately. She tried again to connect to her starter, and this time, she managed to reach her, and the others. Enough to talk at least. "You're all still really set on the World Festival, aren't you." Jess said to them, in the serene garden that was her mind space. They all replied loudly and unanimously with an enthusiastic affirmative.

She sighed and pinched her brow. "But there's more clout and more challenges in the World Tournament. We can see how we stack up against the best Trainers in the world."

Maria 'stepped' forward then and put a thick claw on her comparatively slim Trainer. Nidoqueen had limited psychic abilities, but she had been around the others long enough by now to speak common. In her mind anyway. "We can do both. But you only want to do one. Why?"

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Jess glanced down at the 'ground' guiltily. "It's long past time that you newer members learned how I became Kalos Queen. Or had the chance to, anyway." She said, frowning as she recalled the series of events. "The Kalos Queen was Serena at the time, and she was basically unchallenged, after her predecessor retired on her fortunes. This was right after our trip to Norstad, where I got Fo," She reminisced, smiling at the now fully grown Articuno, "Hera, Melodi, Maria, and Cera weren't with me yet. In fact, I'm pretty sure the World Tournament hadn't officially been announced yet." She shook her head. "Anyway. The Pokémon Contest runners in Kalos wanted to raise sales and stakes, so Serena agreed to bet her crown on one tournament sized series of contests. I was in Kalos for that semester's spring break, so I figured we might as well try to compete…"

Jess trailed off as she remembered how hard her main six had tried. They were completely new to performing, but between her and Serpi, they'd performed very well, almost like an experienced performer team. She looked up and realized those six had now crowded her where she was mentally reclining. Serpi just gave her a knowing smile, as her snaking fronds took up much of the mental space, not in a menacing way, but one that was purely decorative, and sometimes even defensive. Combining the power of her mind and her team's had been able to drive off the Original Dragon's attempts to pierce her mental defenses during their training with him and remembering that just highlighted how far she'd drifted from them without realizing it. Chari curled around her and positioned her jaw for optimum scritches while being mindful of her tail flame. Amphi sparked excitedly with electricity running along her wool-free and more draconic body, and Empolia put a steely fin on her shoulder, and nodded. Folokraan was behind them, looking as majestic as ever, and not coming too close to the team, as even in their Trainer's mind space she was quite cold.

Her Bastiodon, Cera, was being leaned on by the powerful armored frame of Maria. Hera had used her bug wings to get herself a perch on Cera's steely frill. For her part, Melodi had their new Buneary and Dreepy cuddled in her cottony wings alongside her newest catches from Alola and Paldea. "We won." Jess finally continued. "Serena was…distracted, or something. I'm not sure why. But we saw an opening, and against Fo, she was almost literally blown away. I don't think she expected me to have an Articuno. Nobody expected me to have an Articuno. That's probably why we won." She looked up affectionately at the frosty bird, who mentally nuzzled her. "After that…things happened so fast…I had a crown, and flowers, and Serena had tears in her eyes, and it was all…way too much. So, I had Fo fly me home and I haven't competed since."

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Lapi just stared up at her from her spot in the cotton fluff of Melodi's wings. "You're the Kalos Queen? And you don't want to perform?" She glanced at the others. "You girls were right on this, I acknowledge my wrongness." Jess just frowned. Her rapidly growing bun had been the only one willing to listen to her in battle lately, thus she had gotten the training. And with strength, came arrogance, apparently, as she met her Trainer's gaze. "We need to perform."

"You need to evolve. Many of you do. For a Champion level team, too many of you aren't nearly as strong as the boys. And Alex is only making them stronger by the hour. We need to get back to training." Her gathered Pokémon frowned at her, and Serpi moved away again, ruining her mental relaxation. The others just sighed, and followed, with Maria muttering, "It is like speaking to stone."

"No."

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The word reverberated through the mind space, and suddenly, all the girls found themselves right back next to each other, standing in a circle. Delphi was in the middle of them, and she twirled gracefully in the spot, glaring at each of them, before her eyes landed on Serpi's, and she stopped. "Once again, you're being too petty, big sister. She is preparing you to compete. If you want to win against all the world's Performers, you're going to need to be on Alex's level at least. How well we do in this tournament, will be the bar by which we measure our skill in contests. The higher we rank, the better our chances of winning." The Serperior looked down, frowning, as the prophetic fox's words had merit.

Delphi whirled on Jess then, and her fiery tone of mind made it clear she was tired of the B.S. going on with her team. Especially with how much fun she could sense their brothers having without them. "Then, you can prove our win wasn't a fluke, you can validate the effort we put into beating the Kalos Queen, and demonstrate our brilliance to the entire planet."

Jess rolled her eyes. "That was always the plan. Once any of you actually bothered to start training, I was going to see if you still wanted to do it." Her team shared a look. "Now though, I don't know. Given the mutiny I've had to deal with, that Lapi has endured as well, maybe your punishment should be not performing at all." She smirked at the stunned faces around her. "I'm not kidding. We're too far behind already, but it's not too late to catch up. Alex can't possibly train all his new catches at the rate they're going. How about this, if you can manage a win against the Dragon Emperor of Unova, I'll consider competing in this…World Festival."

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Serpi seemed to be one of the most concerned with competing or was at least the voice of that faction of the party. "But we have to win Contests too, if we want to reach the top."

Jess nodded. "And we will. If you ladies can demonstrate that you're serious about winning. I…can't face Serena again with less than my best." That, it seemed, got her team more motivated. Compared to Alex's horde of battle hungry boys, their sisters were far more…chill. The entire vibe was different. More harmonious, whereas Alex's team was very focused, on being the best.

Finally, Serpi and the others affirmed their willingness to train, so long as that meant good food and lots of rest, too. Thus, now once more in command of her team, Jess set off into the long routes covering Fornia, that would eventually take her via the northern Stoney Mountain pass to the heartland of the Empire. Having battles with the locals would demonstrate two things: that the Emperor, and by extension his chosen Empress, were very much around, and could be at a moment's notice thanks to their not-so-secret psychic powers. It would also demonstrate that their skill and power was not to be trifled with. Tao claimed entire wars had been avoided just by having his Emperor of the age engage the locals in friendly battles. As the stories went, one Emperor took that way, way too far, and started beheading anyone with the skill to beat him, which had been pretty much anyone. After that, Tao had been much more withdrawn from the Empire's history, until he was split in two.

Jess planned to ensure that as many people as possible understood how strong she and her team were. Then, when Alex inevitably outranked her, they'd understand that the hated Dragon Emperor was even more powerful than her. She didn't expect to match him this time, as the size of their teams was quite different, but next time the tournament came around, she intended to match and ideally surpass the boys. For now, meeting them in at least the Semi Finals would be enough.

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Northern Province, Area 2 - Paldea Region

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The Ordo Ultoris, as they now called themselves, had only one singular goal that would occupy what remained of their time on the Earth. Assassinate the Dragon Emperor. They considered this their last and final holy order from the Prophet of Arceus himself, as it was the last mission he'd given their death squad before he'd been beheaded. Like most surviving Arceans, they had heard rumors of Subterra. Unlike most, they didn't care. Their unit was composed of the men who had carried out Caleb Pravus' dirty work, which ultimately made them killers. Very experienced killers.

Thanks to the Dragon Empire, thousands of Arceans had learned, upon being freed of the Church's control over their lives and free time, that their family members were missing, and assumed dead. There were records of many people crossing the Prophet, which the Dragon Empire had made publicly available to see. It was hard to call something untrue when it was easily accessed and verifiable, and even the staunchest believer that was missing a friend or lover or relative had to bend to reality when they saw their connection's name on the list of people that had presumably been murdered by the Arcean Prophet. The Dragon Empire was very up front about the reality of the names on their lists, and Caleb Pravus wasn't the only one with such a list. There had been files on who was abusing children, and who had been abused, as well. Most had been gathered without the abuser's knowledge, but those lists, public as they were, had already inspired crimes of intense violence, as parents learned who had done what to which kids.

Unlike Crusaders, their squad's weapons were old school. Powerful single shot and silenced rifles, each custom modded by the man who wielded them. They had melee weapons as well, but their rifles were by far their deadliest weapon, or so they believed, a gift from the old Earth and the civilizations that had come before. After the unchecked bloodbath that erupted in the wake of the world's governments collapsing, such firearms were universally banned in the Americas, and pretty much every civilized country. Only the Imperium still used them now and only their Thunder Warriors had easy access to them, but the criminal element had adapted, as Pokémon were far more powerful than bullet projectiles. Without the order society brought, strength had determined who ruled, and with the arrival of Pokémon on the planet, strength became measured by who could train the strongest Pokémon.

The Ordo Ultoris did not have many Pokémon though, as the Prophet had seen them as a hindrance to their duties. One did not have to feed and care for a rifle on a mission that required stealth, so rifles they had been given, with only one card to play, Pokémon wise, if the Muk hit the Fan Rotom. Using the long-range night vision scopes on said rifles had allowed them to track the Dragon Emperor as he flitted about Kalos, and while they'd lost him in the mountains between Kalos and Paldea, there was only one place those taking that route came out, and sure enough, after a few days their quarry appeared.

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That night, Julius, their leader, a physically shredded mountain of a man with pale skin, dark eyes, and dark hair gathered them around their strategically hidden campfire within the wilderness of northern Paldea. Though it was winter, mere days away from Festivus Eve in fact, this area remained rather humid, almost tropical even. The rest of Paldea was covered in snow, save where the landscape shifted to desert or arid areas. Those places got just as cold, but moisture was rare around them.

"From the bug we planted on their gear, we've learned the Abomination plans to train in the wilderness, near Fury Falls. While the low valley of the landscape gives us the advantage, his psychic perception and the heavy bamboo foliage, not to mention his Pokémon, will likely help him evade our bullets. Luckily, Jason found us an…alternative route, using some new allies who have cause to dislike the powers that be, especially, the Dragon Empire, as much as we do. They believe helping take down Redwood will increase their fame. T. The band of Pokémon Hunters known as the Shadow Snatchers will be joining us. They've worked with our Church before, apparently, and are eager to do so again. They will draw out and weaken his Pokémon once the other three depart, and once he and his team are exhausted from Battle, we'll take his head."

The group of muscled men seemed to nod and grin darkly, but one, a thinner but no less deadly member of their group, Shinji, had reservations. He was an older Japanese man, and in fact was the one who'd recruited them when Caleb Pravus first decided he needed a covert murder squad. Of all the members, he was the one they all knew the least about, and Shinji kept it that way on purpose. "He's the Champion of the Victory League, Julius. He's in the Ultra Class, rising through it like a meteor with an unbroken win streak that only a few other names, Legendary names, can claim to match. You could throw a hundred Hunters at him, all at once. It wouldn't be enough. Our best Crusaders… were not enough. And he's only grown stronger and expanded that team since the war ended. We don't even know what his current roster is, in its entirety."

Julius glared at the bespectacled sniper. "I'm hearing a lot of complaints, and not a lot of solutions, Shinji. Are you trying to piss me off?"

Shinji pushed up his glasses, as they caught the winter moon. Festivus was looking like it was going to host a full moon this year, as it was still waxing. "No, Julius. I'm trying to keep us from getting bisected by a Sword Rotom. Or worse. Captured alive. Pokémon Hunters are a good idea, but we're going to need real professionals, alongside these…Shadow Snatchers. Lucky for us…my Boss just returned to Italia. He's close enough to give us some aid."

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Julius grimaced. "You haven't spoken with your so-called Boss for a while now. Why do you think he'll aid you still?"

Shinji just smirked darkly. "Because when Caleb Pravus told me to cut ties with my organization, I lied, and ignored him. The only order I've ever disobeyed. Team Rocket talks big with their aspirations…but all they ever had me do was monitor the Arceans. In return for that, Giovanni will help us. He can't be pleased that the Dragon Empire is expanding its influence across half the planet. He'll jump at the chance to take down a rival that strong, when all it will cost is a few Pokémon Hunters."

Julius's forehead vein was bulging slightly with anger as the arrogant Eousian man all but admitted to being a traitor but killing him now would only weaken them. They would need his skills, and his Pokémon, one of the few their squad had on hand, if they were going to take Redwood out. "Fine. I'll…overlook your betrayal, because you're right. But we will be discussing this…surveillance of yours, later…"

Shinji smirked at him. "I'm loyal to your cause, fret not. Team Rocket is nothing but a bunch of weak imbeciles, but they're imbeciles with resources we can use. Nothing I told them was of any real worth."

Julius waved a hand. "Whatever. Just contact your Boss and get us some people. Tomorrow, we'll need to make sure the area is clear of civilians and Academy students. Jason, make sure we don't have any Champion ranks wandering in, either. The last thing we need is El Primero showing up."

Jason just nodded his blonde head as his blue eyes glinted in the darkness. "On it, Boss. One Champion tier distraction, coming up."

As he left to go set that up, the other men retired for the night, prepping their weapons, consolidating their ammo. Julius took what Ultra Balls they had on hand and used his superior stealth skills to catch some of the high-level Pokémon that lived in this area. They were strong, and those he caught had a downright foul temper about being captured so easily without so much as a battle. Once he'd gathered as much of an edge as he felt he could, he returned to their camp and retired as well.

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The Red Fort - Indius Region

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Sikandar Jiyoshi woke from his post-coital nap before his lover, as he sensed his Phone Rotom pinging. He pulled on his absurdly comfortable pants, and checked his messages, grinning in the gloom of the morning light. Without thinking of time zones, he called one of his newest and admittedly impressive friends, Emperor Redwood. He didn't expect an answer, as he saw what time it was on Alex's end, but to his surprise, the Champion and world leader was awake at four in the morning. In the background, Sikandar spied an epic anime confrontation, and nodded to himself. Naruto was a classic, after all, and that particular episode Alex seemed to be on was fantastic. "Ahh, Champion Sikandar. Good morning." Alex said, smirking in the dim light of his end of the call.

"Sorry to interrupt that fight in particular." Sikandar answered, also smirking. "That battle in the Valley of the End has some fantastic animation. Alas, I have some news you'll be interested in."

"Oh I agree, it is pretty epic. But by all means, tell me how our little plan is going." Alex said, seemingly as chill and unbothered by the interruption as Sikandar expected of the man.

"The Kingdoms have agreed to a ceasefire, and since the Imperium has also stopped, the war is officially paused…again. For the immediate future, there will be no further violent incursions into Eousian territory. The other Kingdoms are skeptical about how long it will last, but after hearing that you were the one who got the Imperator to cease hostility, they endeavored to make good on your altruism. Between that, and the good word I've put in with them, you've made a few friends here in Eous."

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Alex's smirk widened as he took in the news, and patted one of his Pokémon, a Lycanroc by the look of him, who was pawing at the man's arm. Evidently, Alex had ceased the belly rubs, and that, was unacceptable to the stone wolf. "Excellent. I owe you for this, Sikandar. Looks like this Festivus will be one we can all celebrate in peace."

Sikandar shook his shaggy head. "No, this one is all you, Alex. Only a few people in Eousian history have been able to make the Imperator pause his war on our northern borders. But you made his Thunder Warrior Legions stand down on all fronts. As thanks, I have a friend I'd like to transfer over to you. I'm sure you've heard the hype around the Incineroar we have here in Eous?"

Alex's eyes widened. He had not been expecting a reward, let alone a new partner. "I do…but that's really not necessary…" It wasn't that he didn't want a powerful flaming tiger, he just already had enough people to train. His team however, was more than eager to bring on a burning cat to their roster.

"Nonsense." Sikandar said. "He's a powerful Litten from a line of ferocious Eousian Incineroar. He'll serve you well, in the World Tournament, I'm sure. Once he's trained up a bit. This is really the least we can do. The Queen of Sekunga insisted I send you this gift, as now you've helped return their Kingdom's Sacred Stone via your Scales, and stopped the near-eternal war on her border personally. Needless to say, she's a big fan. She also asked me to invite you to visit the Kingdoms, when you have time."

Alex just looked surprised, but then smiled genuinely. "Tell her Highness that I'm honored, and I'll make sure her Litten becomes well trained." He chuckled. "My Fire Types are very excited for an Incineroar to bolster their firepower. Send him over when you can, and thank you again, Sikandar. You have just as much of a role in this as I do."

Sikandar smirked. "I do. Which is why I was given a Litten as well. If we end up facing each other in the Tournament, we should have them test their skills in Battle."

Alex nodded. "Assuming he's ready in time…absolutely. I look forward to it."

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The two Champions said their farewells, and shortly after, Sikandar sent over the Litten in question. By this point, his entire team was awake, as were the majority of his traveling companion's partners. Thus, the Eousian fire cat emerged from his Luxury Ball to a small horde of eager, curious, staring eyes. He gave them all a friendly meow, as they took him in. He had the same black and red coloration as a standard litten, but in terms of body size and mass…it was like comparing a tiger cub and a house cat. There was no question as to the shared ancestry of the line, but the Eousian breed was very clearly made of something altogether different than the Incineroar popularized by the Battle Royal style of competition. Judging by the small, but fluffy mane of fur around his neck, his family lineage had intermingled with a male Pyroar at some point.

Alex figured there was probably something in or about Eous, or Sekunga in general, that made the fire cats naturally thicker and more muscled than their island-dwelling counterparts in Alola and Japan. He stepped forward as the smirking fire cub's large eyes rolled over the horde of species before him. He eyed Noir, Espeo, and Leo as they stepped forward beside their Trainer, looking confident as always, and then the young predator's eyes met his. "Hello there." Alex said, eliciting a series of smirks from his team. "Welcome to the team. I'm your new Trainer. Alex Redwood."

The fiery tiger cub nodded and answered him. "The Dragon Emperor. You do speak as we do…fascinating." He briefly scanned the crowd of Pokémon again, before looking at his Trainer. "I wish to be as strong as these are. I wish to evolve."

Alex smirked at the cub. "On this team, we aim to be the Best." He felt the fire for battle burn to life in his eyes. "Do you wish to be the strongest, perhaps in the entire world? Because those are the heights we're aiming for. World Champion status."

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The young Litten looked down, as he tried to comprehend it. He had always known, thanks to his mother, that he would become strong. He'd seen his father, and other males of the line he came from. His mother and grandmother hadn't been small either. In fact, they'd been quite a bit bigger than the males. They had each been the best, as this Trainer would call it, the best in their era. The best in their kingdom. But the entire world? He looked to his left, out over the foreign landscape of a region he didn't know the name of, under a slightly different set of stars in the sky. The world was massive. He understood there were probably many such places he had never seen. And this human wanted him to be considered the strongest, in all of them.

He smirked, revealing sharp, long canine fangs. "I do. If you can make me strong enough to get there, I will climb to that height with you."

Alex held out a hand, and the young cub offered his thick paw. Despite being young, his claws were quite sharp, yet his fur was so soft. His heart lurched as he heard Romulus whimper, knowing his spot lying on his Trainer was at risk, but Alex resolved to always give him belly rubs. They just might need to stop lasting all night. Not for the first time, he wished there was more of him to go around, and he felt Leo suddenly stare into his very essence, as he had that thought. He put it to the side for the moment, though.

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"You need a name, don't you, my new friend. Let's see…" He eyed the Litten again, and since he'd thus far in his life only gone by 'Litten' or cute pet names his maids had given him, he was ready for a real moniker. As usual, Alex's mind went to movies, or classic forms of entertainment, as he tried to recall a suitable name for a tiger. "How about…Khan?" He asked, splitting the name he'd landed on in half, and finding its historical meaning suited for the young cub's bearing.

The young Litten rolled the name around in his skull, and then nodded, as his lips pulled into a smirk. "I like it."

Alex nodded; aware Leo was still staring at him. "Well Khan, breakfast is in a few hours, and after that, we'll be moving on to some training in the grove below. Once we finish there though, I think I'll make my way to Mesagoza with you." Strength wise, he would probably be fine against Paldean Trainers, though there was always a chance they had improved in the time since he'd compared their region-wide Trainer stats to others like Galar and Unova.

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Finally, once Khan trotted off with the other fire types, Blaze at their head. Alex turned to Leo. "What?"

Leo just smirked at him. "Think, oh wise psychic Trainer of mine. How might you be in two places at once? What skill or Move could accomplish that…"

"Shadow Clones." Alex said, but then frowned. "But the Normal Type version requires speed I don't have, and I'm not the best at wielding Dark Type energy."

Leo snarled at him. "You wield Light often enough, and without issue. You understand the Jutsu thanks to your binging. At long last, the time has come. If you want to realistically train all of us for the World Tournament's finals, you'll need to learn this. Ask Tao. I'm right. Even Olympia told you to train harder than you are currently."

Alex just smirked as his eyes shifted from the all-seeing gaze of his Luxray, to the ground before him. He had, of course, considered the option after all the anime lately, particularly after the training methods protag boi had used to increase his Ninjutsu skills, and now that he recalled it, Leo had given him the stare back then, too. It seemed like this was something his thunder cat had been subtly guiding him towards for a while now.

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Finally, he relented, as he sensed Tao ready to weigh in. For this however, he did not need the dragon's guidance. He needed Leo's, the member of his team who had long since mastered Double Team, or Shadow Clones, as he called it. It seemed the difference was in the type of energy one used to make said clones. "Is the principle the same as in the anime? Even distribution of energy?"

Leo smirked at him. "Where do you think I learned to use Dark Energy for them?"

"Alright then…" Alex said, shaking his hands, somewhat nervous, as he sensed his team watching him intently. He was slowly realizing; this was something they had all been trying to push him towards. He activated his Dread Plate, embedded as it was into his armor, and then raised his four pointer and middle fingers in a cross before his chest.

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Several blobs of vaguely humanoid dark energy slooowly pulled away from his tall frame, but then they vanished, as they drew way, way too much power. More than he, being psychic, could handle summoning from the Dread Plate. Infusing them with a passable copy of his sentience was impossible, as the energy's natural immunity to psychic power kept him from doing what Leo had.

He tried using less energy, changing the form of it, or just having it copy him in appearance, but alas, all his attempts met with failure, and by the time he was ready to accept that failure, the sun had risen, as had his companions. He waterbended the sweat away from his skin and out of his clothes, and joined them, figuring if anyone could make clones of themself, it'd be Connor.

"Shadows Clones, eh?" The Kalos Champion said, as Alex explained his dilemma over breakfast. He had long since watched Naruto, and for him his binge had been several years ago now. "I think your Luxray may be asking you to bite off more than you can chew. Even with a Plate, the amount of energy cloning a whole Human would take…" Leo yowled, loudly protesting his words, and Connor smirked at him. "Pokémon are not Humans. What works for you will not necessarily work for us."

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Then, the usually silent Gren, who was munching quietly beside the equally silent Kage, spoke. "Perhaps it is the type of energy, Dragon Emperor." His words drew the eyes of all four humans, and Alex translated the rest of what he said for them with a gentle psychic link. "Leo uses Dark Type energy because he, like me, wields it naturally. He is a hunter of the darkness, and I myself am of the darkness. But you…are Psychic. And Dragon. Perhaps you would have better luck, with those types."

Connor just nodded in approval at Gren. "I think he's on to something, Alex. If this can be done…you could be anywhere you needed to. Training, officiating ceremonies, with my sister, with your apprentice, all at once."

Gren spoke again, then. "I should note that, in reality, my own clones fade when they travel too far from me. The distance is a few miles…though perhaps with mastery, you could further that distance."

Alex stood, shoving the last of his omelet and hash browns into his mouth, before swallowing. His eyes were on fire. "Dragon Energy is…chaotic, by nature, so I'll try it with Psychic Type energy first. Thank you, Gren…if this works…I will owe you. Whatever you desire, should it be in my power to give, you can have."

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The ninja frog silently pondered that offer in its entirety, while Alex used his long stride to step away from them, lest the psychic energy become unstable and explode, or something. He took a deep breath and centered himself. He attuned to the air around him and used one of Meelo's airbender techniques to calm and enhance his mind with the surplus of oxygen to his brain, much like how Pokémon did via use of moves. He closed his right fist, and put it against his open left palm, and with a flash of psychic purple energy from the Mind Plate in his belt, he felt his consciousness split. When he opened his eyes, he saw through all four at once. "This is…disorienting." Both he and his doppelganger said in perfect synchronicity. "Hmm…wait, what if…"

More clones psychically shifted from Alex as he spent relatively little energy on copying and then manifesting a somewhat tangible clone of himself. The real one stayed in his spot, meditating with his eyes closed, while the other ten versions of himself moved towards the picnic table of wide-eyed humans and Pokémon. He focused on one of the clones, and made it speak, or rather, he spoke the words in what he dubbed his 'main mind' and transferred them through the 'clone mind' he desired. "It's a little confusing at first…but as long as my main self stays unoccupied, it seems I can split myself as many times as I need."

Connor glanced at all of the smirking bearded visages of his friend. "And you're not…going to end up violently turning on each other, right?"

Alex chuckled, recalling the Naruto episode that he surmised was the source of his friend's worry. All the clones chuckled with him. "No." Only one said. "These are more like…psychic puppets, than true sentient Shadow Clones. I'm in direct control of everything they do. It's still me, acting and speaking, the only difference is I'm using a psychic mouthpiece to produce the words. I could certainly make them seem sentient…"

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The smirks on all the clones widened then, and they locked eyes with each other, before making a show of uniquely turning their hats around, or down over their eyes. Five pairs squared off then, and as one they said, "Time to Battle!" His team looked ready to experience that, but Connor held up a hand.

"No, it's time to descend. Though I'm sure this new trick will make you even more overpowered, you'll be able to train up everyone's stats at once, like this. First things first though…everyone who's participating, who needs their natural Attack Power boosted, come and get some Mochi."

Alex rejoined them, after recalling his clones. He arched a brow at Connor. "Mochi? Isn't that…some sort of Japanese dessert?"

"Technically yes. But this particular kind resets a Pokémon's…level of effort. Freeing you all up to raise your Attack Power to its maximum." Connor said, as he started handing out the white confections of dough with berries kneaded into it. It wasn't a super complicated recipe; one just needed the right berries.

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They were devoured in seconds, and Connor smirked proudly at the happy nomming noises from those doing the consuming. Then, they recalled everyone, and set on their way. Marinette and Adrien took a well-earned break from constant battling and took a flying taxi from their campsite to wherever they wanted to go. Adrien seemed determined to see all the famous sights in Paldea, leaving Alex and Connor to focus on training. As they landed before the steaming Fury Falls, Connor handed him a Pokéball. "Blast has learned all he can from us. He did well in Kalos. Once he grinds his Attack Power up here, he should be ready to evolve."

Alex took the ball with a smirk, glad to have him back. "And you're sure you don't want Kage back?"

Connor chuckled. "It seems your drive to be a World Champion has filled his head, and I don't think he believes my team will be able to climb to that height. Honestly…now that I've been the Kalos Champion for a while…I'm not sure I even want to."

Alex blinked at his longtime rival, and friend. He'd wanted to 'be the strongest' since they were kids. "You're sure? You'd just…give up on training?"

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Connor looked down for a long moment, then smirked. "You wish…but I know I'm not World Champion material. Sure, if I trained as hard as you and had half your stubborn determination I might make a good show of it, but…I don't think that's what I want. I don't think it's what Gren wants, either. The World Champion needs to love Battling, and to be someone the entire Trainer world can look up to. If it's you or Ash or Leon, I'm okay with that. You're all…pretty much cut from the same cloth."

Alex blinked again. "Wait, you met Leon!?"

Connor just chuckled and nodded. "After my match at Wyndon Stadium. I recognize the…bearing he had. How easily he bonds with Pokémon. Seemingly any Pokémon. Ketchum has it as well, if the legends are true. And you…" He looked at his rival turned soon to be brother-in-law. "You're the only one that my father's Arcanine likes belly rubs from. Besides my mother and father, of course. Not even Jess can get him to roll over. And it's not just him. I've noticed it since we were kids…but you don't seem to. You're just good with them."

"I just used what my Gruncle taught me." Alex said, waving away Connor's words. "You could do what I do. Anyone could. All you have to do is make your feelings obvious and true. Perhaps your…Ninja training has hampered you from doing that. My bond with Arthur probably made it easier, in my case, given what Ralts and its line use to communicate."

"Perhaps." Connor said, shaking his head. "In any case…I'd rather work with strong people, like the Scales, to maintain order in the world. So that our people can thrive in peace. I don't need a fancy robe to do that…but I'm not just dropping out, either. I want to see how we stack up against the best Trainers in the world. At least once."

Alex nodded. "In that case, we'd better get to training." He recalled all of his teammates except Po. "You're with me, young Po." He said in his epic voice, smirking as the cub's eyes went wide and shiny. "Leap with me!" He said, before sprinting for the edge of the absurdly large cliff that separated northern Paldea from Kalos. Those leaving Paldea, without a flying Pokémon, would have an easier time surfing or sailing to Kalos. But those coming down from Kalos either called a Skarmory Taxi or had their own Pokémon to fly down on. But every so often, there was a lunatic who just jumped.

Po followed behind him, and Alex adjusted his rate of descent as the land of Paldea rapidly grew before them. Po shouted something with an expression of pure joy on his furry face, and Alex smirked, mirroring his epic pose. Once they came within two hundred feet of the ground, his aura surrounded them, killing their inertia, and safely bringing them down into the bamboo forest teeming with powerful wild Pokémon.

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A Short Time Later…

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"You have got to be Mukking kidding me…" Shinji murmured to the rest of the squad over their earpieces, as he took in the sight below him, confirming what the others saw. The sky was starting to turn orange as the sun began to set, and for several hours now, both the Victory and Kalos League Champions had been hard at work training their teams. In that time, Giovanni's Pokémon Hunters had arrived to supplement the Shadow Snatchers, they'd come up with a plan, and the Champion tier distraction had been set up. Foot traffic that usually frequented this area of Paldea was redirected with the help of a Metagross one of the Rocket Executives that had accompanied their hunters had in his possession.

The problem arose, when they were finally in position, and all positions suddenly called out eyes on the target. After brief confusion, they were left with only one logical explanation: the Dragon Emperor had somehow cloned himself, and now each of his powerful Pokémon had a copy of their Trainer accompanying them as they moved through the grove taking down Bisharp and Scyther in mass quantities.

"The distraction is set, but eventually, one of the Champion ranks is going to fly over here and notice something's off." Jason said over the comm. "Figure out which one is the real one, and strike. The longer we wait, the better chance we have of getting caught."

Shinji swore colorfully again, as he cycled through targets with his long-range recon rifle. "It's useless, they're all very believable copies. When the Muk did he even learn this!? Argh…" He resolved to waiting, as he cycled through the potential targets. Thankfully, there was no shortage of cliffs and high vantage points to strike from. "Blend in, for now. Have the Rockets don their commoner disguises. They can go around catching Pokémon while we wait for the real one to appear. There has to be some drawback or limitation on this power, and it has to be a recent one. If we wait long enough, we'll find the real one's location. Until then…we hold."

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Shinji focused then on his best guess at the real Redwood, the one working alongside the chubby Kubfu beside him. The only notable difference his sharp sniper eyes saw was that this particular clone had his eyes closed rather often, while the Kubfu in question Brick Breaked his way to a higher level and higher attack power. The Lucky Egg nestled in his fur was likely doing wonders for his experience gain, and when one factored in that it was all shared, from every KO his team scored, it was clear what Redwood's goal was.

Then, as often happens, the situation changed. The chubby Kubfu and his Trainer were suddenly surrounded by a horde of Pawniard, Bisharp, and leading them from behind, was a massive Kingambit. His blades were scarred from thousands of battles, and also looked to have been broken multiple times, probably by his species natural predator in this region, the mighty Tinkaton. Alex didn't think lesser of him for that, though. Losses taught just as much as victories.

Po fell into a Dragon Style stance as he was surrounded, and as his epic voice rang out, Alex smirked. "Finally…enough goons to properly raise my Attack Power to its Ultimate height! Know that you face Po…master of the Dragon Style…fo' sho'!"

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Alex chuckled as his kung fu cub rhymed. It was hard processing almost forty visual inputs and battles simultaneously, but his brain was adapting, mostly by having his clones record what they saw for later processing. Luckily for his partners there wasn't too much of a delay in their commands. As the Kingambit traded standard battle bragging with Po, he heard Leo talking to him. The thunder cat's unmatched eyes had started scanning the area, when his own attack power reached its absolute peak. After eating the mochi, his stats were weaker overall, but now all they had to do was increase his speed, and once the special attackers had gone through similar training in Paldea's iconic Casseroya Lake, they were all going to be honing their speed. Arthur had already done this with his own stats during their trip around Unova, mostly through vitamins and facing opponents with a high attack power. Now, the rest of the A team's physical attackers were reaching comparable numbers in terms of attack strength. In the midst of his pondering, Leo's naturally high perception had noticed what he now relayed to his Trainer.

"There are strange Humans with a foul smell about them all around the valley, and they're holding strange devices…"

Alex opened his eyes through Leo's clone, and grimaced. "Snipers." He murmured. That was a word Leo knew. He looked through his Luxray's unmatched eyes and gave them their orders. "Leo. You and Shruikan will coordinate and take them out. Leave…that one by the falls with the glasses for me. He's probably the leader. Shruikan will provide aerial support once they're down."

He turned back to the situation with the Kingambit, and advised Po to challenge him one on one, in honorable combat. The mighty maned sword master of a Pokémon strode forward slowly towards Po, each of his many blades bobbing slightly as he moved. "Many of my kin have you defeated this day, warrior." He closed his eyes, inhaled, and Alex felt an all too familiar chill run up his spine as his encyclopedic knowledge of Pokémon reminded him of the somewhat notorious ability that Kingambit sometimes possessed. The supreme overlord of the bamboo forest's Pawniard line opened his eyes, and they burned with a steel-colored aura. He wasn't quite strong enough to manifest it around his body, though.

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"Brick Break, but block his attack. You've got this, Po!" The Alex with him ordered, and the thicc Kubfu nodded confidently. His attack power was all but at its peak. His level was higher than average. His fat had turned into hardened but still somewhat naturally flabby bear muscle, and he knew a plethora of moves thanks to his Trainer's Champion tier store of TMs. He knew, and more importantly believed, that he was as strong as he could be. Without evolving, anyway.

The Kowtow Cleave skirled along the Kubfu's fighting energy encased fists, and then with a downright graceful spin, the young cub swirled past the overlord's guard, right to his head with a Brick Break. The quadruple weakness took effect, and Po masterfully followed that stunning blow with a Low Kick. Once on his back, he swiftly delivered another Brick Break, and while the Kingambit struck with its blades, sinking those by his midsection into Po, the third quadruple effective hit finally caused it to faint. A stunned silence permeated the Bisharp and Pawniard around them, and then Alex moved suddenly, hurling a ball at the blue metallic head he'd picked out among the red. He gathered the item his new blue boi would one day need from the defeated Kingambit, and nodded confidently at Po as he grew even stronger and flexed.

While Po leveled up, word spread to the rest of the team, and Connor as well. Canis coordinated with Leo and Shruikan. Gren also joined in, and within ten minutes of noticing them, the two Champions were ready to strike the snipers who had encircled them. They still acted normally, though. Leo challenged other males of his species near where his targets were hidden. Canis sipped from the burning Fury Falls, eyes alight as their power entered him, and he felt his desire for a hot beverage quenched. His aura was burning, heightened, and still acting naturally, he directed that power into a series of practice Dragon Style strikes, not uncommon behavior for a fighting type.

From his perch, Shinji furrowed his brow, and then saw one of the young Pokémon, the newly evolved Seadra who was dominating the top and bottom and middle of the Fury Falls, glaring right at him, barbs flared. His eyes widened. "All posts…sound off." Silence crackled ominously over his earpiece, followed by several booms of thunder. "Muk! All Hunters, move in! They're onto us, move in now!"

"Pokémon Hunters? Really?" Came a baritone from above and behind Shinji. He recognized the voice and swore again. Psychic powers really were just absurdly unfair. A psychic donut no doubt capable of shrinking surrounded Shinji's neck with an ominous hum of power. "Hands up and move away from your rifle. Or you'll regret it."

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Shinji briefly contemplated resisting, but then he sighed, understanding they were caught. Opting to wait had given Redwood or his team enough time to notice them. That wasn't stopping the Pokémon Hunters though. Two black old-world style open roofed jeeps entered the valley from both its northwestern and southern entrances, with Pokémon Hunters bearing Team Rocket's logo hanging out of them. Alex recalled everyone but those he needed for his plan and then his psychic clones vanished after bamfing their balls back to Alex prime.

"Alright." Said the Alex standing over Shinji. "Start talking. Who are you taking this job for?"

"You don't even know who's targeting you…" Shinji cackled, and then found himself choking, his cackle turning to a pitiful gagging noise.

"I only have so many enemies…and I'm sure just being a world leader gains me more all the time. Last time I'm asking nicely…" He said, loosening the psychic choke hold. "Who. Sent. You?"

"Arceus's Prophet on Earth…his last command was to take you out…futile though that may be." Alex just sighed, almost disappointed at Shinji's words. "What, tired of facing the people whose culture you've destroyed?"

Alex looked the man in the eye, and then broke into a proper laugh. "Destroyed your…by the Light…I almost feel as though I should destroy your culture. It causes me Nothing but problems and you people are Still trying to kill me. Because ruining my childhood and invading the eastern States wasn't enough, I suppose." Shinji tried to respond but found himself choking again. Not incapable of breathing but talking was quite difficult. "Watch and learn, Assassin."

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By now the jeeps had deposited their Rockets with the Shadow Snatchers at their head. Alex and Connor's Pokémon had gathered in the low center of the valley. "Like Magikarp…in a barrel…" The bespectacled man wheezed. Alex just chuckled.

As the hunters fired at the grouped Pokémon with shoulder mounted rocket propelled nets, the earth rumbled, and Terra appeared in the middle of the group of Pokémon from beneath the earth, towering over most of them. A swarm of Razor Leaves tore apart the nets as Terra flawlessly protected his brothers. Then, from Hydrus and Gelauros who also bended their way out of the underground of the area came a pair of Ice Beams that froze the Pokémon Hunters in place on both sides, most of whom had been in mid throw.

One of the more competent hunters threw a Pokéball quick enough, a Dark Ball judging by the tolling bell sound that accompanied its opening and brought out a Tyranitar. They were a favorite choice among hunters for their temperament and their power. Seeing it pop free, Hydrus froze its Trainer, and then leaped at it with a brutal Ice Punch to the face. To its credit the Tyranitar survived the blow, but a second strike with Hydrus's other fist finished it. Just beyond the frozen Trainer behind the mountain tyrant, Cenomons came charging out of a stand of bamboo, and smashed the retreating jeep hard enough to send it spinning in the air three times, before it landed on its wheels. The driver hurled, tried to run from the totaled jeep, but found the sharp horns of Cenomons stopping him. A low rumbling growl from the titanic metal triceratops dissuaded him from running.

On the opposite end of the valley, Blaze was in his Mega Form, swooping down on the driver and his one remaining passenger. The driver saw Blaze, swore, and then threw a Dark Ball towards Blaze. Another ominous toll heralded the arrival of a Shadow Zapdos radiating an aura of darkness as it appeared, surprising everyone with its loud shriek. Lightning flashed through the sky, and dark clouds formed rapidly above the enraged thunderbird.

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From the clouds came a black scaled blur with a distinctive hum, and a focused, condensed energy ball of dragon energy instead of plasma slammed into the Shadow Zapdos, ruining its flight pattern. Blaze roared in fury not at his opponent, but at his brother, which only made Shruikan smirk at him as he arced back up into the storm clouds. Blaze had wanted to test his strength solo, but Shruikan had no intention of letting him.

In his Y strand form this time, Blaze darted in with Dragon Claw, unafraid of the powerful electric counterattack that was sure to follow. Luckily for the prideful Charizard, he was actually strong enough to send the Zapdos spinning with one Dragon Claw, and then another. Their difference in level mattered in terms of damage, but a Legendary Bird would not simply faint so easily, no matter what heights Blaze had reached.

A psychic purple flash came from its fierce eyes as the Legend halted its momentum, and then in the same movement, launched a Thunder at Blaze. He was already prepared with a mighty Thunder Punch, but the damage from the canceled attacks still hurt a bit. Alex psychically told him to Dragon Dance, and as he started, he spun out of the way of a Shadow-fueled Fury Attack, at which point the usual follow up to his Dragon Dance came from his Trainer. The Dragon Claws struck with the speed of a flying type, and as Blaze came around for another pass, a line of condensed rapid fire Dragon Pulses hammered the Zapdos, rapidly exploding one after the other against its chest, sending it hurtling towards the ground in an explosion of dirt and stone.

Shruikan roared his victory as thunder boomed in response to his cry, and Blaze turned on him, fury in his eyes. Instead, mentally through their connection, he informed his brother that they would be settling this with a match, very soon. Shruikan responded with draconic superiority and smugness, leaving their Trainer to sigh.

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As the remaining jeep fled, its steel shell fell to a rapid and rather powerful Aura Sphere from Canis, hammering the engine, and sending the occupants flying, as they were burned by the explosion. The aura hound swiftly bound them with ivy from the forest, and then spared some Life Dew so they didn't expire. Alex wanted them alive, and Canis's tail wagged as he got his Trainer's mental approval for skillfully apprehending the criminals and preserving them for justice.

In short order, a clone of Alex had successfully channeled the Light into the Zapdos, and with a Max Revive, the somewhat chastened Legendary Bird gave its thanks to Blaze and Shruikan. Being enthusiasts of electric attacks, the two had a fruitful conversation with the mighty thunderbird, and by the time he eventually departed, they'd become fast friends, with the promise to battle again someday. The bird was quite motivated to get stronger, after seeing what human Champions could turn their partners into.

Alex and Connor rounded up and partially thawed the Pokémon Hunters before they ran out of air, while Shinji was made to hang before them uncomfortably by his neck, though not enough to accidentally hang him to death. He still dangled painfully and humiliatingly before his squad. Julius was badly burned, though still alive thanks to the Lucario. Within an hour, Paldea's Officer Jenny was on scene, and thanking them for their contribution to keeping Paldea safe. Every single man and woman captured had a serious criminal record, and Alex was slightly awed that he and his team were mostly responsible for taking such hardened criminals down. Arcean Crusaders, while well armored and armed, were single minded in their zealotry, and attack style. Had the hunters not become the hunted, their nets and arsenal of Shadow Pokémon would have occupied most of the A and B teams. At least until Connor's joined the fray.

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Alex offered the Tyranitar, once cleansed, the chance to join them, but he declined, admitting that he didn't want to be the best, he just wanted to go home. Understanding that, Alex sent him there, once he knew where the creature had been caught, and it pictured the area in its mind. The other Pokémon were more mentally scarred by the Rockets, and the police took them to specialized therapists, an occupation that had become necessary after the world's governments realized just how depraved some Trainers were when it came to their Pokémon.

With the day settled and Festivus imminent, Connor departed from Alex to explore Paldea on his own, which was fine with Alex, as he had a few evolutions to handle before heading home. Firstly, they flew to the east province's Levincia City, had dinner and a brief anime showing with the city in the background of their cliffside camp, and once everyone was rested, they descended to the city. Alex bought some useful items, namely Ability Patches and he re-upped his supply of Adamant and Modest mints for those who still needed them. He got vitamins as well, though those were transferred over from Tao, from the military's supply. Even as a General, he had a limit on how many he could just take, but he came nowhere near approaching it to fill up his stash to his usual stack size of nine hundred or more.

He also realized his shoes had become a bit worn over the long years he'd traveled in them, and while their society's footwear was more durable, they did eventually succumb to entropy. Thus, he strolled into the Zapaldea store with Khan, and the curious Litten prowled around the shop, as Alex had to confirm his giant shoe size three times before the clerk got his measurements. The only thing they had in a men's eighteen was black and white, but that was exactly what Alex was after. As he broke in his fresh kicks with Khan, they headed to the nearby beach, where he sent out Kral again. When facing lower-level opponents, the young Horsea had been their water coverage, but now that he'd evolved, Kral was ready for a Dragon Scale, a rare but not uncommon item, since it only came from a Kingdra's scales, and only worked upon a Seadra for evolution.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

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While training, Kral had found a released Kingdra in the Fury Falls, the only one of his kind in that biome, and the two had battled, before becoming friends. After said battle, Kral had been given a Dragon Scale knocked loose in the fight by the old Kingdra, and now Alex promised to help him ascend. Eric had warned him to evolve his eventual Seadra somewhere wide open, as he had learned the hard way that evolving a Seadra into a dragon inside a lab was a bad idea.

With the Dragon Scale nestled among his own scales, Alex had him Water Pulse a few Palossand. He had the Seadra, long accustomed to bouncing around on land on his powerful tail, guide the ground type that would raise his experience enough for evolution towards the shallows of the beach. Then, Alex felt a change in the air as the ground typed ghost collapsed into a pile and shrank down to miniscule size. The water around Kral started to churn violently, rapidly forming into a Twister as draconic energy surged.

Nearby Wiglett and Wugtrio poked their heads out as they sensed the shift in power. A pod of nearby Finizen watched in awe, as they sensed the surge in water and dragon energy. The night lit up even brighter than Levincia as the watery cyclone shone with the light of Infinity, and then just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished, leaving only Kral behind, floating majestically, snout held high, as his evolution finished. A trumpeting roar filled the area, and the Finizen started chittering and cheering, though Alex followed maybe half of their speech, not because he didn't grok it, but because almost half was in the form of clicking and was complexly intertwined with their Pokéspeech. The more he heard, the more he was convinced it counted as a separate language.

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Alex nodded proudly at his Kingdra, as the two locked eyes. Now that he'd evolved twice, all he had to do was grow stronger, and his natural draconic heritage would make his stats skyrocket. Alex yawned, and then checked the time. After dinner and shopping and battling, it was Midnight. He let his new dragon rest within the mini pocket paradise that was his ball, and called out Khan, who was also on the verge of evolving. After taking down several Sandygast with Shadow Claw, he too shone with the light of evolution, though it wasn't quite as impressive as Kral's, the Finizen still congratulated him with their cheering. Alex was tempted to recruit one, or try to, given what they could, somehow, evolve into but he felt he had enough water power for the moment. There would be a time and a place to train a Palafin, and he couldn't bring himself to separate such an obviously happy and tight knit pod. Ideally, he needed a loner, who desired to become the best in the world. Given Palafin's absurd strength, one would undoubtedly be needed to help keep the seas of the world safe. Eventually.

They returned to their cliffside camp, and began their anime binge, with the massive stone slab Lux projected onto facing the city. That wasn't what initially caught the eyes of the crowd below though. Above the circular boardwalk that marked Levincia's center, Blaze and Shruikan started duking out their irritation with each other, with a clone of Alex nearby to psychically keep them from hurting anyone with their power. Once the bout ended in a brutal victory for Blaze, who was far more motivated, the crowds below, who had yet to go to bed, seemed to be watching the anime as well, albeit from a distance.

Leo claimed they were on to the part of the series called Shippuden now, and honestly, it was appealing to Alex far more. The protag was older and smarter, the animation had increased in quality again, the Jutsu were getting more powerful, and the plot lines were converging. He was very much hooked, and now understood why such an old series still had a cult following that was rather large, thousands of years after its creation. Leo mentioned that he had only begun his journey down the anime rabbit hole, but Alex was quite amused at how eager his thunder cat was to bring him, and the rest of their team, down into it with him.

Eventually, the showing ended, for about four hours, and then continued on until well past the sun's rise. They were making great progress episode wise, and Alex gave them all breakfast, a piece of Paldean sandwich with ingredients he'd gathered from his mother's pantry, or local stores. Arthur appeared with a Teleport after breakfast, to meet the blue Pawniard they'd caught. He had a brave nature naturally, but he'd been given a mint and some TMs already. Arthur was all too glad to take on training him himself, and Kage went as well, once the young ninja frog saw just how powerful of a fighter and master swordsman Arthur was. Alex dubbed the blue stabby boi Sir Erek, and with that, his Gallade Teleported back to Albion, and his love. Kage would only stay for a while, but Erek would stay long after he evolved into a Bisharp, to hone his skills and raise his level. At least until he was ready to challenge other groups of Bisharp with the item Alex had for him and claim his place as a Kingambit.

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Po had wanted to go to Albion as well, but Alex wanted him on hand, in case they came across a scroll that could evolve him. Ideally, he'd wanted a Water Scroll, since that style of martial arts seemed most in line with Tao's movements, while the Single Strike Urshifu seemed far more suited to something like the Tiger Style. It was as he was about to leave with Noir, that Tao suggested he visit Montenevara, for Hyper Training, for Po specifically. Tao tasked him with getting the kung fu cub to 'amazing' tier levels in every stat category, and Alex accepted the challenge. Alongside potions, he had long since collected bottle caps, as it was Connor who told him of what one could learn with enough of them. It was also the last piece of what he'd saved up during his childhood that hadn't been used yet, but for Po, there wasn't much he would not do. He was a genuinely good Pokémon, and their natures were quite alike.

Aevum was also impatient to start battling, so to him, Alex had given most of the Exp. Candy he'd found lying about on their foot bound travels. Items really were everywhere in Paldea. This boost made the young hatchling molt, revealing glossy ultramarine blue feathers. They also got in some road battling, which put the young dragon in higher spirits by the time they reached the ghost themed winter wonderland that was Montenevara. Aevum's natural power and move pool helped him start his own unbroken win streak, and he grew quickly in strength, thanks to the powerful opponents the Trainers on Glaseado Mountain tended to use. His obvious skill in battle shone most when he was pitted against ice types, and still came away victorious thanks to the power of Luster Purge or Dragon Pulse.

The Hyper Trainer and his Abomasnow were quite eager to train a Kubfu, especially for someone with a golden bottle cap. Alex made sure his main ten already had stats considered amazing, which they did, and made a note of who needed what, on the other teams. They could work on that during their Hyper Training in Selva Muerta. With his traveling companions scattered, Alex had a four-way Holocall with them, where they agreed to pause their Paldean excursion to head home for Festivus Eve Day, Festivus Eve, and then of course, Festivus Day, when they'd all be getting presents. It was Po's present from Tao and Alex, that the Original Dragon wanted to impart to him, thus, after memorizing an anchor for Montenevara, he bamfed himself home, to the Dragonspiral Tower, and the seat of the Empire's real power.

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Having seen the swamp filled ruin it started as; Alex let out the newbs who hadn't seen the tower yet and smirked at the awe on their faces. Black and white clad Scales came and went regularly on flying Pokémon, and trainees in white Gi and black pants were using the lower entrance. As they were here for Po, he stayed by Alex's side, but Aevum also wanted to be out. He smirked at Alex, zipping around excitedly with his now significantly larger body. "It looks just as impressive as it did in my past life. You really have restored the Original Dragon." He was growing, quite literally, very quickly along with his level, and was now almost adult sized. His spinning and frolicking caught people's attention, but people did a double take when they saw it was not Hikoki, but the Dragon Emperor himself with the Latios and the fluffy, slightly rotund Kubfu by his side.

The two Legend tier Pokémon flanked him as he casually strode into the tower, hands in his long white jacket's very useful, very deep pockets. There was a light murmur from the multitudes of people in the tower's entrance, as the unmistakable form of the Original Dragon in his true size spiraled down to greet his Tamer. He moved along the ceilings of the spiral structure, and thus ascended and descended quickly, without disrupting the humans he shared his home with too much.

Alex scratched under his massive jaw as Tao regarded him, and his new partners. "Aevummm." He rumbled happily, as he and the Latios gently pressed their foreheads together. "I had not thought to meet you again, my old friend…truly it feels as though the days of old have merged with the potential of the present, and the future we can create is bright indeed." He turned to Alex, then. "The B.B.A. graduates have been assembled and have begun working. The Replication Machines are coming along well, since your input. Between them and the Brain Trust, it is a matter of time before providing food for all will be a trifling accomplishment. We are ready to roll out and install the machines within hours of when they're finally perfected."

"And with the death of scarcity, follows the death of Currency." Alex said confidently.

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Tao eyed him once more, his large golden orb inches from Alex, and only slightly taller than he was. "You are sure of this path?" He rumbled in his skull. "Every single other Human in history would consolidate this technology and make an endless profit from it. Are you sure you wish to give that up?"

Alex nodded. "I could try to lie and claim that I wanted to do that to get enough money for…well, ever, but that would be a lie. The Empire is already very profitable, and as time passes, it will grow more so. Being able to feed every one of our citizens is quite literally the least we can do, as their government. My orders stand, Tao. I want them in every Nation, on every corner, easily available, and professionally programmed. Lux is ready to train the Rotom for each of them, and Galar's Rotomi are being converted over, while their computer systems will be like our, and capable of interregional transfers. The Replicator Rotoms will not refuse service to anyone who is hungry, and they can't be claimed by any one person or government. Doing that, will invoke the wrath of the Scales, and the local authorities. We can synthesize plant-based meat substitutes with only the various types of energy at our disposal, and the menu of available meals is pretty large, for a first-generation machine. Dragon Burgers will be available in every single machine, for very low material cost. And we need to keep the costs of popular dishes low too, so people don't start hurting Pokémon for their materials. We will strike a balance of quality and quantity and collapse the food and goods industries in one fell swoop." Now that he said it aloud, he figured, correctly, that his father would be Furious when he learned that he'd essentially greenlit a machine that would make their entire family business obsolete.

That was, however, his father's problem. Currency would soon not be a factor, and once that was achieved, he hoped his father could properly relax, for once in his life. It would do him good and go a long way towards extending his life expectancy. And not just his, either. Relieving the financial strain that buying daily meals put on the populace would free them up to spend on other things, and force less of them to toil for so many hours, though he fully expected the greedy Mukheads selling such products to try to raise their prices to ludicrous levels to compensate. That too, was part of the plan. Those driven by greed whose only God was currency would do exactly as they had always done, and it would, finally, decisively, bring about their ruin.

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Tao smiled at him. "Once more, I am glad it was you who fused me back together, into One. Your will shall be done, Dragon Emperor…and now that I have confirmed it, you should be the one to announce it. Tomorrow, before Festivus Eve kicks off properly, you should announce this."

Alex shook his head. "People are going to lose their Muks when the food industry collapses overnight. Also, we need to wait until we can physically distribute these, all at once, all across the world. We have the materials, now. All it will take is time."

Tao nodded. "I trust your wisdom on…how your species will react. To this day I still cannot always predict Humans. Once the machines are prepared and the proper governmental authorities notified, they will be distributed. Your Psychic Types will have to help with that, I imagine."

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Alex nodded. "I may have to train up an Abra, too. Or a Metagross. Or both. They'll be powerful additions to the team, and they'll be invaluable in distributing across the planet. Make sure the Imperium knows what's coming."

Tao eyed him again, though not as closely, as he said, "Our farms…indeed, farms across the world, will become obsolete. What then should the people do, with such large, vast, food-filled spaces?"

Alex smirked, as if Tao didn't already know his thoughts on this. "They'll be used for Pokémon. Obviously. The abused, the homeless, the weak, the injured. We'll turn them into sanctuaries, with the goal of healing and improving as many Pokémon lives as possible, and potentially either getting them competent Trainers, or releasing them back to the wild."

Tao gave him a bemused expression. "Sounds a lot like what your Professor friend in Italia is doing."

Alex nodded. "That's essentially the model. Either way, some farms will have to close, and we can use all that space for more housing, for Humans and Pokémon both. We can have Pokémon only neighborhoods, and Human houses that seamlessly meld with the natural environment, instead of trying to dominate it. There's also berry growing. They should be able to work as materials as easily as any Pokémon scale or what have you. Especially the rarer ones. We can encourage them to shift focus to berry growing, which won't require nearly as much space. And don't forget the Imperial price cap on high end goods and services, or the corporations will run rampant on the masses."

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Tao nodded. "The laws are already written, and simply waiting to be put into effect. You have done remarkably well in your position, Alex…and as a reward, I will guide you to young Po's Festivus present, that you might finally attain an Urshifu's power." Alex and Po shared a wide-eyed look, though they shifted back to Tao as he spoke into their minds, and Alex smirked as Tao adopted an epic voice, similar to his. Po, naturally, was drowning in the coolness of the moment, as the coiling Legendary Dragon of Unova, amidst his tower and his numerous followers, imparted wisdom to him. "In an island cove off the western coast of Paldea, there lives an ancient Carracosta. He is wise in my ways, and he is an old, old friend. He often spends centuries, just meditating on aspects of existence and pondering the Universe in general. In his keeping, is the Dragon Scroll. It will allow young Po, should he decipher its meaning, to ascend to the heights of an Urshifu who has mastered both my style and my philosophy. It shall turn him into…a Dragon Warrior."

Po inhaled sharply, eyes wide in awe. "Dragon Warrior…sooo coooool…"

With Alex figuring he had once again passed some sort of milestone or test in Tao's eyes, he returned to his family's home, as they were hosting Festivus Eve this year. As he evaluated his time spent over the last month, he was proud. The number of total levels gained by Noir and the others was in the high hundreds, they had more new faces than expected that promised to be quite powerful additions to their roster, and most of said roster had evolved once already. James, Noir, and Kral had already advanced, as had Khan despite his newness.

His Rowlet, Coryn, caught way back in the White Forest had also finally gotten some training in, and was now a proud, preening Dartrix. Invictus, his former Chespin, also caught in the White Forest, had gained serious levels as a Chesnaught in their most recent Paldean training excursion, which just left Garuda, his stubborn, and still violent Combusken who attacked him and his feet every time he tried getting him to train. Magnus had become a Magneton after taking on some Bird Keepers, and on his way to the ranch, Alex visited the Chargestone Caves, both to acquire crystals and examine the environment, before feeding his floating electromagnet a Rare Candy.

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In the presence of so much electric energy, Magnus ascended to his final form, and just like that, their team's electric power nearly doubled, thanks to the sheer power Magnezone possessed. Thanks to his stats, and an unnaturally modified special attack power on par with Gelauros', Magnus promised to be a force unmatched. As he strode out of the caves, Alex sent a copy of himself to the Imperial military base east of Humilau City, where he'd battled Colonel Surge. It was a good test for his clone's range. He had it acquire several empty plasma sword cases, and in an impressive show of psychic dexterity that nobody was around to witness, he inserted the gathered crystals into each sword, powering them on to make sure they worked properly. Now, if he was in danger, he could have multiple versions of himself backing him up with their own plasma swords, though whichever clone wielded Lux would probably be targeted first.

His clones seemed to have a psychic copy of his clothing, but they lacked Pokémon, and weapons. Now, he could effectively outnumber anyone that attempted to kill him, and keep safe whichever partners he gave to the clones. Once that was sorted, he Teleported himself back to the ranch.

He was about to open the door to his family home, when his ridiculously large hand paused, as it was opening from the other side. He'd been somewhat distracted, as he sent his clone even further east from the base, and northward as well. With the speed it was psychically flying at, it would reach Bostonia in minutes.

The distraction was enough to keep him from realizing who was behind the door, and as usual, the sight of his gorgeous redhead blew him away. He barely got a look at her before he grunted softly as he felt her jump onto his larger frame, but he held her there, just enjoying her smell and closeness in the moment. There wasn't even the usual lust she inspired, he was just glad to see her.

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Leo, Noir, and Khan were still house-friendly in terms of size at least. The Eousian Torracat knew how to behave indoors. His new larger claws did tend to snag on the rugs, but eventually Leo showed him how to avoid getting tangled and accidentally ripping carpeting.

The crowd this year was a much more local affair, and given his new status and the Gladstones hosting the last party, it seemed most of the town had turned out for the chance to see how their quiet neighbor was faring as an emperor.

His parents were seemingly glad to see him, so he kept tight-lipped about the imminent death of their family legacy, unwilling to spoil the mood. Good times were had, good food was a welcome change from what Alex could fashion with his own meager but improving cooking skills, and he caught up with his old school acquaintances who, unsurprisingly, considered themselves 'close personal friends' of his.

When he'd been the quiet weirdo who was too stupid to have a Pokémon, he might as well have been a pariah to these people, but now the reality of those past times was being replaced with delusion. Alex didn't really care, though. Most of his hometown peers had simply ignored him. Those he'd played Football with had also come over, and back in the day had mostly ignored his lack of a Pokémon in favor of his larger frame. Even among them he'd been third string and never really played for his school's team, but again, their past connections were exaggerated like he'd been a first string lineman.

He had an inkling as to why they were cozying up to him. Apparently, someone had leaked the rumor about the city sized horde of gold bars Caleb Pravus had stolen from his populace over the centuries. He quietly wondered just how they'd be treating him once currency was no longer a factor in their society.

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Eventually though, one of their townie guests did ruin the mood. Alex had a brief flashback to when he was smaller, and had been at the mercy of the same trio of edgy tryhards who had appointed themselves his bullies as they loudly called out his name through the main dining room. The only real difference now, was their slightly updated hairstyles, each had a variation of a fauxhawk, and an updated wardrobe of torn-on-purpose clothes. He only had to look at their shoes to accurately gauge their skill in battling. "So. The mighty 'emperor' returns. Honestly since I heard you reunited the Dragon, I haven't believed a word of the hype. I bet the Dragon wins all your Battles for you." He declared, confident in his stupidity.

Alex just took a deep breath, and shook his head. Punching his subjects was a bad look, and he didn't need any comparisons to Pravus. No matter how good it would feel, or how absurdly punchable his face was. "Sloane, Dane, and Bryce. I thought I sensed a drop in the room's average IQ. Who the Muk let you in here?"

"I did…" His mother said quietly. "They were part of the group your friends arrived with."

"Well, they're no friends of mine." He stated flatly, and loudly, as his baritone got the entire party's attention. Even if they hadn't bullied him when he was a vulnerable child, he preferred not to associate with people that full of themselves as a rule. "In fact, they made my Pokéless childhood that much worse thanks to their attempts at bullying. Their insults were as weak as they were, but they had Pokémon bound by a ball, who listened to them."

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His mother glared at them, as she finally discovered the source of all his torn, dirty clothes. But Alex was already walking towards them, eyes on fire. He locked eyes with Sloane, their doughy, greasy dark haired leader. Alex remembered him being a lot more intimidating. Now, he towered over him more than he had as a kid. Were he a more violent man, he might have contemplated how easy it would've been to psychically reduce the repugnant existence before him to pulp, but murder was the furthest thing from Alex Redwood's mind. He disliked the man, absolutely. That would never change. Some things couldn't be forgiven. But he was after something more approaching justice, in his opinion. Or a humiliating lesson, at the very least. Nothing more. True hatred, genuine hatred, he saved for the likes of Ein and Pravus, and without them around, the list of humans he despised had shrunk significantly.

"But that's ancient history, right?" Alex said, far too calm with his tone. He felt his parents in particular watching as they recognized his tone, but he continued anyway. "Lucky for us, we have a non-violent method of settling grievances in this Empire. Come, Sloane. I'm glad you and your obedient lackeys showed up. It's long past time that you and I Battled again, now that I actually have a partner. Properly."

He could see the man's desire to be anywhere else, but to what little credit he had, his eyes didn't waver. It wasn't that he didn't want to try to run, he just simply knew there was no running from a Trainer Battle, at this point. Their eyes had met, and rules were rules. He did shoot for a loophole, though. "The, uh, the…snow! The snow, Alex. It's everywhere. Very high. Been snowing a lot lately. Can't Battle in that, can we. …?"

His words became a question as he watched the much taller man smirk. "We can go out back. I'll clear us some space."

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Alex gestured, and the man glanced at his friends. They followed him out, and Alex didn't have to read their minds to guess what they were planning. Whatever plans they had melted as easily as the snow did. They watched in disbelief as the man they'd picked on for years demonstrated, without a Pokémon, that he was in an entirely different class than normal Trainers, or even normal humans, at this point. He breathed literal fire, seemingly with ease, and cleared a battlefield sized scorch mark of space for them. Then, by merely lifting his arms, he gave his family and guests literal front row seats made of stone.

He called out Terra then, unafraid of letting them know his quadruple weakness. Terra's leaves filled the air as he roared, and stunned everyone as the green flash of his aura pulsed through everything around them, and left them feeling…better? Healthier? More…natural, somehow. It was a strange, but not unpleasant feeling. The titanic earth tortoise stared down the three humans, with narrowed eyes. He, more than anyone else, had been in Alex's head enough, seen enough of his past, to recognize their faces, despite them being a bit older now. "This is my Starter. Since I'm a Champion, we'll have a Triple Battle…but I'll only be using two Pokémon, one at a time. You can use everything you have on your belts. In the interest of fairness."

Sloane sneered at him indignantly. "I don't need your Mukking handica-"

"We accept your kindness, Victory League Champion." One of the lackeys, Dane, said. Alex recalled him as being the least willing to mess with him. Most of their encounters, he'd had a look on his face, like he hated being a part of it. As they'd gotten older though, that look had changed into something darker, though from the rumors Alex had heard, his home life was tough. It didn't excuse his actions, but it did put them in perspective. Of the three, Dane was the one he disliked least, mostly because he wasn't a complete idiot, like his friends.

Sloane sent out his Dustox, and if the obedient bug showed signs of recognizing him, it didn't give anything away with its creepy, emotionless face. Dane sent out a rather plain looking Umbreon, and Bryce revealed that his rather brutal Machop was now a fully grown Machamp, at a decent level. For an average Trainer.

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"Since I'm handicapped…we shall go first. Terra! Energy Ball. Then Razor Leaf the other two." The three seemed to panic slightly as Terra formed his somewhat iconic ball of dense grass energy. By this point, people were well aware of his favoritism for pulse moves, and Earthquake. Like the Champion he was, Terra drew the energy, condensed it, and fired in under two seconds. He often acted as Alex's bed/couch during their anime binging, and Alex could sense his pride as the perfectly layered condensed energy sphere slammed into the Machamp.

Four super powerful arms caught the attack, as Bryce was too shocked to give his Machamp an order. He opened his mouth to speak eventually, but that was when the orb, at Terra's direction, exploded in the four-armed fighter's face. He went soaring up and backwards at least fifteen feet in the air, before collapsing in an unconscious heap. Bryce looked at his remaining two balls, and then his opponent's super strong starter. "I-It's a monster…" Alex heard him whisper.

Alex just shook his head, and crossed his arms as he continued to smirk and responded to Bryce's words. "Aye. A green monster. Continue, Terra." Razor Leaves joined the other leaves in the air. Some had been directed to act as seat cushions for their spectators, and now, the leaves not being sat upon all moved to Terra's command, like a leafy composer, he roared, and they changed direction towards the Umbreon and the Dustox. To their credit, the two Trainers managed to shout commands this time. Machamp had gone down in the space of maybe three seconds into the battle, and while the Umbreon had a face to show expressions, Alex assumed the Dustox was just as unnerved.

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"Silver Wind!" "Double Team, Umbreon!" A Poliwhirl joined the two as they attacked and dodged. The bug typed Silver Wind was actually the perfect counter for Razor Leaf, and the Umbreon seemed stressed, but he and his clones dodged well. The problem was Terra's ridiculous amount of leaves. Eventually, they slashed through every clone, at which point the Umbreon used Dig on his own initiative, managing to survive the attack intact. "Ice Punch!" Bryce called, once Poliwhirl appeared. It glanced nervously at its Trainer as it saw its opponent, and then charged at Terra.

Then, came their counter. "Seed Bomb." Oar shaped seeds hurtled towards the Poliwhirl, who to its credit had enough intelligence to block with his Ice Punch. It was all that kept him from fainting from the hit. At that moment, the Umbreon surfaced from his dig, and with only a shift in his eyes, Terra diverted several Seed Bombs to hammer it before it could land the Dig on him. Alex could tell Terra frowned a bit, as the sheer force of the physical and STAB boosted grass attack from the much, much higher leveled grass tortoise sent the dark fox flying back, past his Trainer, skidding into the dirt, and then the snow. Alex wasn't done though, the Dustox was still a problem.

"Poisonpowder!" Sloane called out. Before the moth could act though, Alex countered. "Don't let it attack, Terra. Bury it. Rock Slide!"

As poisonous spores started falling from the Dustox's fluttering wings, a landslide of powerful stones appeared from nowhere above it and buried it alive. Terra hadn't held back against the Pokémon that had bound up his helpless Trainer. Alex could tell it had also fainted in one hit, as Machamp and now Umbreon had seemed to. As Sloane frantically started digging his partner free, Alex intervened, if only so the Dustox didn't get hurt from the weight while it was unconscious. The three stared in awe at him as he stomped the ground, and then raised his arms. The stones floated up and then landed harmlessly behind the trio, where the rock energy that created them started to disperse, slowly.

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Poliwhirl regrouped by his Trainer, as Dane sent out his last Pokémon, and Sloane brought out number two of the three he had. It seemed Dane had a fairly well trained Gallade, while Sloane released a Beartic. That, made Alex's eyebrow raise. They were notoriously hard to train, since they had kept the same uncaring and occasionally cannibalistic tendencies that the Polar Bears they'd evolved from had possessed. That wasn't to say they'd murder a Cubchoo not related to them for no reason, but they would probably knock it out to demonstrate their dominance. As far as he knew, they preferred to, in Unova at least, go after Magikarp and Basculin for their meat. They could also be rather powerful swimmers.

It seemed that Sloane's had been caught thanks to an Ultra Ball, and likely at a high level. It was poorly trained and likely often refused to listen, but as it locked eyes with Terra, the frosty bear's eyes glinted with murder. There was a reason slow moving grassy earth tortoises didn't exactly thrive in Unova, and that was due to Beartic's natural ferocity, and the fecundity of Pokémon in general. Unova, and every territory north of them, had to deal with Beartic populations. They were typically a nuisance, and had learned to avoid humans, but that didn't stop them from rummaging through their trash for food. Every once in a while, a powerful one would rampage, but there was usually a Trainer around with a fighting or rock type that could handle it.

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Once their opponents were all called out, Alex said, "Earthquake, and then Stone Edge." Terra shifted his weight and stomped the ground, but he kept his momentum, as his other foot rose, following the massive surge of stone and earth. The Beartic, on his own initiative, Bulldozed through the powerful attack, and thanks to its level, didn't faint immediately. The Poliwhirl Hydro Pumped through part of it, and fell to a knee, but he wasn't done yet. The Gallade had Teleported away, and then back at his Trainer's command, revealing how unused to using it in battle he was. It was a good strategy, but it left his teammates open.

Terra's second foot came down with much greater force as he simply shifted his weight, and their opponents only had time to widen their eyes before the rapidly rising series of stones surged towards the Beartic, hammering him with a brutal strike that sent him flying up and back into the snow much like Umbreon. Before the weakened Poliwhirl and returned Gallade could strike back, Terra vanished into his ball. "That's enough, Terra. Flawlessly done. Canis. You're up." By his measurement, these two might finally push him over the edge, to the same level as the rest of the A Team, a goal he had been training relentlessly to reach. Alex put his hands in his pockets, as the aura hound appeared. "This Battle is yours, my friend. Strike as you see fit."

The rather chill natured Lucario nodded, fell into his stance, and smirked. His eyes burned with psychic blue aura, and then the aura hound vanished with superior agility. The next thing Alex and the small crowd saw was the flash of blue by the Poliwhirl, as Canis used a Pokémon Base swing with impressive form and his aura bone in conjunction. The swing struck the two-legged frog creature across its weak midsection, and it too went skipping across the field, before landing fainted in the snow. Canis had struck its weakest point on purpose, and it was more than enough to finish the tough polliwog.

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Canis locked eyes with the Gallade then, but to him and his Trainer's credit, they weren't backing down before such an obvious difference in power. "Let's go, Gallade! Psycho Cut! Don't let up!"

The gallant knight and the aura hound shared a nod, and then they both vanished. A massive wave of aura blew through the corral as the pair of psychic glowing arms collided with the aura bone. Canis began striking, but the Gallade was also attacking. Alex blinked, as he sensed one of the younger Redwoods waddle up next to him. He put up a Barrier, that faded from view instantly, just in case things got too intense.

Allen, or 'Little Al', since he himself was 'Big Al' to their family, murmured excitedly as he watched the battle. Alex had a bit of a shock seeing the five-year-old he'd remembered now much taller and older at eight. "They're perfectly matched! I can't even see the attacks!" He looked up at his cousin in awe.

Alex chuckled, and patted his head. "Look closer, cuz. Gallade is actually on the defensive. He hasn't been able to attack, because Canis is that much faster. He won't be able to block forever." The kiddo squinted, and then his eyes widened, as he saw that Alex was right. He glanced up at his older cousin with even wider eyes, rapidly gaining more hero worship for his relative as seeing him breathe literal fire and being able to watch moves this fast hinted at his power.

"Could you teach me how to Battle too?" He asked quietly, and Alex chuckled.

"Once you're ten…and your parents say it's okay…sure. Get a starter from Eric, and then come find me at the Dragonspiral Tower. The journey there should get you and your partner some experience, and once you arrive we can hone your skills." Alex's Uncle Ed and Aunt Gloria met his gaze as he glanced back at them, but he didn't sense disapproval from his father's brother, or his wife. They lived in town, but in their own house with their two other children, Rose and Abigail, who were the youngest of his generation of Redwoods.

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The two looked back at the battle, as the Gallade finally ran out of power for his move, sliding back from the collision of power as the aura bone met his Psycho Cut. Seeing he was out of power, Canis dismissed his weapon with a flourish, and raised his iron-hard paws. "Why's he using his punches?" Came little Al's voice. Alex just chuckled again.

"He wants the Battle to be fair. Gallade is too tired for Psycho Cut now, so he put his aura weapon away. The Battle is as good as over, though." Sloane wasn't calling out his third Pokémon for some reason, and both he and Bryce were watching the clash in awe. Alex knew it was about to end, though. Canis was, at this point, probably better than his Trainer at using the Dragon Style's furious fists. To Alex's surprise, he formed an Aura Sphere in his palm, in a manner that was quite familiar to him and his team. He sensed their amusement as they watched from within their balls.

The two combatants charged, but Alex knew it was over. Canis swirled past his guard, and hammered the condensed, spinning Aura Sphere into the Gallade's stomach at melee range. The psychic warrior's eyes went wide, as the sheer power of the aura sent him hurtling back, and spinning. He sailed over the corral's gate and connected fence, and into the deeper snow beyond it. Dane started trudging over, finding his path cleared as Canis moved enough snow to make a path for him, psychically. They shared a nod, and then Canis's eyes widened as he felt the experience from the relatively easy fight push him over the final hurdle to the peak level a Pokémon could reach. His aura flared as his body reached its absolute peak, pulsing around him, and the nearby humans. Human measurements labeled this achievement as one hundred levels, but Pokémon never stopped gaining experience. At one hundred, or past it, there simply wasn't much of a point in determining their power based on level. At that point, their stats simply stopped increasing. Every Pokémon with a serious Trainer reached that plateau eventually, and as far as Alex knew, there was no way to break past it. They still gained experience, but it no longer caused their bodies to change. That didn't mean Canis was done training though. It just meant he was ready to create his own Signature Move, something Alex intended to help all of his teammates master, eventually.

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Alex fist bumped him, as Canis made his way back inside the house, to the party, for a well-earned snack. Upon hearing his favorite food, Alex's mom had whipped him and Po up some meat buns, and Canis hoped, for Po's sake, that he hadn't eaten all of them yet. There would be some brutal training in store if he had, but the kung fu cub would probably enjoy that.

As the cold spectators went inside, murmuring about just how good their relative's little Riolu had gotten, the three losers approached Alex after retrieving their partners. "My last one is just a…baby Elekid. And honestly…" Sloane took a deep breath, and Alex's eyes widened slightly as he sensed the train of his thoughts and the shift in the equations of reality hovering around the edges of his vision. "I don't think I could handle an Electivire and my Beartic. You made it painfully obvious where my skills are…so I'm giving him to you." He said, holding out the black and gold Luxury Ball the baby Pokémon slept in. "As an apology…for what we used to do to you. Please, make him strong in ways that I can't. All I want...is for him to be the Champion I know he can be."

Alex just stared at the ball, and its occupant. Adamant natured, male, and his physical attack stat was at its peak potential already, as were speed and defense. His other stats would need eventual Hyper Training, but he promised to be a monster in battle, if raised properly. "Sloane…you do realize what you're giving up, right?"

The man winced, still holding out the ball, unable to look at it, or him, at that moment. "Just take him. He deserves a Champion Trainer…and I'm not it." His eyes burned with a resolve then, that Alex didn't know he had. "I will train my Beartic, though. Like Brycen. Then maybe one day we'll be able to match you and Fulguron."

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Alex took the ball, and the trio departed to their car in front of the house. "Fulguron." He said, quietly. The ball shook, and then opened. The Elekid within was massive, for his age, and Alex revised his opinion of his final form. He would be a hairy, electric titan, with surprising speed and a wide move pool. He looked Alex over and gave a short salute as he made a whirring noise like a motor that Alex's ears heard as a greeting. "Hello there. I'm your new Trainer."

Alex explained their goal to the young sparky Pokémon, and then left him with a pair of clones to face off against Khan while he returned to the party. Still testing his limitations, Alex had his clone in Bostonia selling off the small mountain of valuable treasures within his pack to the various stores in the city. Once they were done at the party, Alex, Connor, and Jess bamfed back to the Palace of Ideals for their nightly rituals, after depositing their teams with the other Pokémon. While Alex devoted his whole self to Jess, as he always did after they'd been apart for a while, he did split off a clone, to get some things done, before he passed out from exertion. Firstly, he called out his Swanna, and explained to her that he'd found a Trainer with an Abra way over in the Hoenn region's Dewford Town. The Trainer in question desired a Swanna for competitions, and Alex admitted that he had no immediate intentions to start competing in contests.

While a little sad, Swanna agreed it was a better fate than sitting around the ranch's pond all day preening her feathers or staying within her ball all winter. He gave her a hug before recalling her, fondly remembering how easily the little Ducklett he'd caught had evolved. When he'd learned to speak with his team, she had been among those who had no interest in battling, but they were all in agreement that this path would both be good for her in general, and significantly increase the power of their team through the trade. Alex saw the genuine love the younger female Trainer immediately had for her once she appeared on the other side, but he kept a mental tether to her, just in case she ever needed help. He just couldn't bring himself to cut away a connection completely, one of the many reasons he disliked trading. The young Japanese Trainer thanked him profusely and promised to make her a Master class beautiful Pokémon.

Alex just nodded, as did his Swanna, and then, the screen went dark. In the deepest parts of his mind, he quietly wondered how he was ever going to handle his mortal partners dying, if trading one on to a more fitting existence tore him up this much. Sure, some had been blessed by Xerneas, but many had not. He resolved to deal with the issue of mortality later, as the most logical solution would be to, near or at the end of their natural life spans, move them and their consciousness into a metallic body, so they could persist longer. But such things, even with the Empire's technology, were very much science fiction.

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Trading his Swanna had hurt, but the prize, was worth it. In the quiet of the Palace of Ideal's underground chambers, he summoned the Abra in question, and nodded. Male, fairly close to evolution, perfectly average sized, and sleeping as he floated in place effortlessly, though it seemed to not have been trained. A Modest Mint would sort his natural growth out. He gently woke the Abra up, who didn't seem to realize he'd been traded, and while initially sad, Psi (sigh), as Alex dubbed him, was eventually seemingly on board with their goals. Alex got the feeling he was too tired to really think about what was being asked of him, so he saved it for when the young Abra would become a Kadabra. Given how hard they were to find, train, and evolve, he hoped Psi would willingly join them. In terms of his team's psychic power, which had taken a serious blow now that Arthur was occupied, all he wanted to immediately train next was a Metagross, and ideally, a shiny variant. He'd always liked the idea of having one, like Chairman Stone of the Devon Corporation did.

Having enough partners to train already though, and knowing the odds of finding a shiny Beldum, the clone focused on his next task: testing the limits of how far he could venture from his body, before vanishing. He had the clone in Bostonia gather Po and Shruikan's balls and set out. Shruikan carried Po's in one claw, with a firm grip, tucked up against his scales as they shot out over the Atlantican Ocean. Just in case he vanished before they came to Paldea. The trip took several hours, and by the time they arrived in Paldea, Alex was feigning sleep back at the palace, while he focused on piloting his clone. The further it went, the more energy it took to sustain, but as he adjusted the link and psychically ran it through the lines of energy across the planet, he found the draw lessened. It would take time, but he could theoretically send them as far as necessary, so long as his main body was unoccupied and there was a psychic source to keep them tethered through.

While he did his mental gymnastics, Shruikan searched for and spotted the aforementioned sea cave that Tao's friend resided in. Alex recalled his intimidating black dragon, and instead walked in beside Po. Inside, they found a shallow pool of very clear blue green water. In the center of the pool was a very, very old Carracosta, and the longer Alex looked at him, namely his shell, the more he was convinced that he was looking at the oldest living example of the species. The oldest Relicanth alive had certain rock striations after millennia of existing in the ocean, and this Carracosta's shell was similarly old looking, though he was no geologist. If he knew Tao before he'd split, he had to be at least three hundred, though for the ancient sea turtles, that was apparently still a young age for them. Alex smirked, as he sensed Po immediately desired to battle it.

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The two approached the balancing sea turtle, who was holding himself upside down on the surface of the water with only a single tip of his arm fin. Po coughed, stood tall, not unlike his Trainer, and in a deeper, but still epic voice said, "Hello there. I am Po. I have come seeking the Dragon Scroll."

The ancient Carracosta opened one rocky, crusty eye, and glanced at Po, then, slowly, at his human partner. His lips cracked next, sending flakes of cerulean blue rock to the water under him. He was smiling, Alex realized. Then, suddenly, and with surprising speed, the ancient turtle rotated on the water into the standing upright standing position his kind used for land travel, sometimes. Usually, they had to be older to go very far ashore and not get caught by a grass type or predator. Alex felt a chill up his spine as he recognized how the turtle moved. It was exactly like Tao. Spiraling, perfectly fluid, almost unnaturally so, like air resistance simply didn't exist for him. He'd thought that was just part of his draconic heritage, but apparently true mastery of the Dragon Style allowed one to move in a different manner entirely.

The ancient Pokémon smashed off his shell then, in a loud display, as weathered rock chunks and hardened rocky scales fell away, revealing fresh layers beneath. Alex watched, impressed at just how long rock types, with experience and enough life energy perhaps, could last eons. "Such kind Auras." The turtle said, slowly and shakily moving his head as he looked at both of them. "What brings you to my humble cave?"

Po glanced at Alex, cleared his throat, and repeated, "I am Po! This is my Human, Alex. We're here to claim the Dragon Scroll, that I might become…a Dragon Warrior!"

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"Dragon Warrior…?" The Carracosta said, sounding puzzled. He stared at Po, then. "You'd have to be a Kubfu to become one, my gray, indistinct new friend." The ancient lips widened into a bigger smile, and Po chuckled awkwardly, then looked up at his Trainer for help.

Alex peered closer at the turtle and nodded. His eyes were almost completely white. He could renew the rock and skin of his body, but the fleshy parts also aged. Alex focused his power then, slowly, as he had to channel it very far, but the turtle made no move to stop him, simply smacking his lips, and keeping that smile on his weathered face. As the Heal Pulse eventually washed over the Carracosta, his eyes regained their silvery blue color, and he blinked, standing a little straighter as the cells and base components of his soft tissue, like joints and so on, were restored. It could turn out to be a temporary restoration, but given how slowly the creature decayed, Alex had likely given him quite a few more years.

"Oh my…such powerful Psychic energy…but refreshing! I feel a thousand years younger. You have my thanks, Aura Guardian. Now then…" The elderly Pokémon trailed off in his sentence as he looked between the two of them with less shaky swings of his long neck. He seemed about to ask him why they'd come, when he remembered he'd already done that. His brain's neurons were firing a little quicker too, after the Heal Pulse. "Right…the Dragon Scroll! If you are here, you must have been sent by the Original Dragon." The pair nodded in sync. "I am glad he is whole, again. Now where did I…"

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The ancient stone turtle looked around confused, as he realized that time and erosion had changed his cave quite a bit. "Oh dear…this pool used to be much deeper…" He looked down, and then looked up at the pair, and shrugged. "It seems the scroll has likely been washed out to sea."

Alex was about to turn and leave, when he paused. There was something…sly in the turtle's manner. The genuine smile now had a hint of…mischief? He groaned inwardly. Another test from another ancient recluse. The Carracosta gave an imperceptible nod, and then his eyes shifted to Po. Alex nodded again. It seemed the test was for his partner. Thus, Alex knelt to his level, though they were eye to eye at that height. He'd grown in height, as well as muscle mass, and Alex was genuinely proud. He'd put in the work to burn most of his fat, and though his love of food and late-night snacking would likely always leave him a little chubby, his extra padding had actually come in handy numerous times, namely with blocking the fighting typed energy of his opponents. For some reason, those who struck nerves or energy points with honed finesse only received a slight jiggle for their efforts, before Po brutally countered them, usually with his very Zen Headbutt.

He pondered his words carefully, not wanting to give the game away. In Po's head, though Alex had no doubt the ancient turtle could divine the essence of what he was saying, he told the young cub, "Po. I sense the Dragon Scroll is somewhere nearby. Very close. If not around the cave, then within it. You must be the one to find it. Only you can truly become the Dragon Warrior. I'm just your Trainer, and I already have an epic title. This one is all yours, bud."

That seemed to excite the cub. "Yes." He said with strong affirmation and an epic tone. "I shall find the scroll on my own…and my Legend…shall begin!" He dashed out of the cave then, and Alex simply floated in the air cross-legged, confident the young cub had what he needed move wise to succeed. He knew pretty much every TM his species could learn, and he was high enough in level to have mastered Counter. He was ready, of that, Alex was sure.

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Alex intended to actually get some sleep as he entered his trance resting state, but the Carracosta had other plans. "It just occurred to my old mind that I do not know your names."

Alex opened his eyes but didn't mind chatting with the seemingly very friendly ancient being. He got the impression he needed to use all of his titles, though, for some reason. "I'm Alex Redwood. Champion of the Victory League, Tamer of the Original Dragon, Wielder of the Light, and a direct contributing liberator of at least…four Regions." He finished, recalling Norstad, Fornia, Koria, and Albion. He didn't consider what he did with the Nexus as counting, and besides, that had been mostly Arthur who had actually made closing the Nexus work.

The Carracosta nodded his head to each of his titles. He nodded after Po, then. "And him?" His smile was genuine, and it seemed he'd forgotten the young cub's name already.

"He's…Po. He journeyed on foot all the way from Eous to Unova to seek out someone who could teach him the Dragon Style of Kung Fu. He's worked hard to be ready for evolution…and he's become a good friend."

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That, made the ancient turtle smile. "So, you know our style, mine and the Dragon's. And you believe yourself fit to teach it?"

Alex felt a familiar tingle go up his spine as he processed the turtle's tone. "Yes, I do."

He guided his real body quietly out of the palace's bedroom, pulled on his clothes, and then switched positions with his clone. He set the clone to pretending to scroll on the Pokénet in the hall outside his chamber, while Lux slept. Nox awakened, in his shadow, as he physically appeared in the ancient Carracosta's cave. He was gathering power for the upcoming World Tournament, which as a dark ghost, required long hours of infusing ghost and dark energy into his very essence, but this intrigued him. Bound as he was to his human's shadow, he'd figured out he could appear under whatever clone he desired, if it was within sight. If it was further, he needed help from Alex to reach it.

Once he switched, the Carracosta grinned. They were of a mind, it seemed. "I would know your name, ancient one." Alex said, as he formed the power for a battle-ready aura shield, one capable of tanking a hit from a creature that could one shot a tanker ship hull with a fin.

"I am the Turtle Sage, Oogway. Senior Master of the Dragon Style of Kung Fu, and the first Pokémon to wield it in a manner unlike any Human had before us." He fell smoothly into his approximation of a stance in their shared style, as Alex did the same, for all the good it would do.

Then, of course, Tao chimed in as well within his head as he locked eyes with the Carracosta. "He is the one who unlocked the synergistic relationship between Truth and Ideals. A master of both Harmony and Focus. That revelation unlocked my full potential. He is the Eldest Sage, and yes, functionally immortal."

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Alex just nodded. He had no doubts he would lose. He was fully aware the Swamp Sage had not gone all out against him but went hard enough to match his level of strength. His true power lay in his secret, custom psychic techniques, though Alex knew he saved those for the direst of situations, and never for offense. Alex put Oogway on the same level as the Mewtwo he'd been briefly and brutally instructed by.

The rocky turtle glanced behind him, and then waggled a fin in the universal gesture for 'bring it'. Alex didn't hesitate, he leapt forward as his aura surged to life, now a balanced blending of both psychic and dragon energy. Since dragon energy enhanced the other types, except fairy and ice, by dominating them and strengthening them, he'd essentially done the same thing to his shield. It was hard enough to hold off several genuine hits from Canis, which made him less paranoid about snipers, now. A Lucario's steely punch was, quite literally, comparable to a bullet, and he knew his aura hound had struck with more force than a rapidly fired projectile could maintain. A close-range shot might crack the shield, but most bullets would simply be crushed flat. Unless they exploded, too.

As he approached, Oogway's body seemed to crumble away, and Alex's eyes widened as he recognized a proper Shell Smash. With new, blinding speed Oogway spun past his guard and hit him with a heavy fin full of momentum. Alex went sailing, but psychically caught himself, not unlike a Mewtwo in freefall, which was where he'd learned the trick. His body looped in the air as he killed his inertia and landed on two feet, his shield still intact.

Deciding to utilize his newest technique, he crossed his fingers before him, and sent a multitude of clones at Oogway, who simply smiled. "Wonderful. More targets." More rocks fell away from the Kung Fu master, and if he'd been fast before, he was rapidly approaching the ludicrous speeds that shelled Pokémon could gain when they lowered their defense enough. It did tend to regrow from the move quickly after a battle, but he still had never really used it on Terra. Appreciation for the speed it could give, speed that could match a certain World Champion's electric rodent, perhaps, was beaten into him, as Oogway whirled through his clones in a blur.

Again, Alex changed tactics. His clones replenished their numbers, and began Teleporting around, finally managing to land a few hits on the ancient turtle, whose brows furrowed when they connected. Apparently, he hadn't been expecting to get hit. Three clones came at Oogway at once as the landed hit stunned him, followed by another dragon palm strike on his very lowered defenses. He stumbled back, as a clone slid along the shallow pool's floor, and hammered Oogway with a large amount of dragon energy stored in his absurdly large feet.

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He wasn't after damage, but movement. Oogway tanked the attack on his fins, but it still sent the five-foot-tall turtle with a surprisingly low bodyweight, even lower now after all the shell smashing, soaring up into the air. Alex directed his clones then, and they Teleported up to Oogway's stunned mid-air form, each unleashing a signature strike of their style be it as a kick or a punch, all at once.

Then, Alex blinked, and somehow, with only an unrecognized blur of movement and yet another Shell Smash, Oogway tore through every clone in a perfect circle above him all at once, utterly stopping his Redwood Barrage. A faint blue blur was all Alex could make out at his maxed speed, and he arced downwards before landing smoothly back on the pool's rippling surface with a single fin tip, much the way Alex and Po had first found him. He chuckled at the human's expression. "Does my mastery surprise you?"

"What…even was that!? That was no Move…not a normal one anyway." According to his clone's physical input, the strikes had been surprisingly hot, for coming from a water type.

Oogway began doing what Alex could only describe as breakdancing on the water's surface, as he deigned to explain, and powered up his next attack. Alex had a feeling it was Rapid Spin, and that it would hurt a lot with his speed and attack power raised six stages. Much of his rocky body armor was simply gone after all the smashing, and his shell was an uneven lumpy mess, but Alex knew Oogway was currently at a level of speed and attack power that would very easily defeat, if not kill him.

"What is time, but motion? What is motion, but the generation of heat? Are not heat and energy two different words for the same thing? When you comprehend that, you will understand how I moved through your clones so easily." Oogway smirked at him from his spinning position, and then vanished. Alex didn't wait, he Teleported, but he still felt the immense heat from the Rapid Spin as he reappeared. He briefly wondered if Oogway might be trying to injure or kill him, and then wondered why he would do such a thing. Then, he looked around.

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Whatever had brought a figure like the Eldest Sage to this place, the Dragon Scroll was probably the only thing this far from Paldea of any significant worth. And he and Po just marched right in and asked for it. While Oogway might have befriended the Dragon, his student was another story altogether. A competitor, in a competition Alex knew, thanks to Oranguru and Tao, had an ulterior purpose, in drawing out the world's strongest Trainer. He didn't know why they didn't just turn to Ash Ketchum for whatever hidden purpose the Sages had with the World Tournament, but he fully intended to find out for himself.

Alex pondered the turtle's words, as it watched him, expectantly. For this, he turned to the vague patterns of the universe swirling around his vision. Motion created kinetic energy. Somehow, Oogway was converting it to thermal energy, perhaps by moving so fast, the mere shifting of his mass through space caused the particles around him to move rapidly enough to generate enough heat to be damaging. Thankfully, Alex had a firm grasp on heat manipulation. His eyes widened, as the formulas led him to the answer of a long-sought issue, he'd been having with his firebending.

He moved rapidly then through the forms of the Korian Dragon Dance he'd learned from Avatar Wan, and sure enough, he felt his inner energy balance out into separately charged pools, but this time he guided the heat around him, from his body, interconverting it from the kinetic energy of his movements. As much heat as he could control was channeled through his very being, between the two separated pools of energy and enhanced with his power. Oogway's eyes widened as blue-white lightning lanced forward from Alex's fingertips in a wild, destructive blast.

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Oogway dodged gracefully, merely shifting to the side and tucking in his head under the wild arcing bolts. He looked back at Alex with a slow nod after seeing the damage. "I see now why the Dragon thinks so highly of you, enough to train you. Enough to send you here. Train hard, with the concepts you have seen here. It will…widen your pool of Moves." The old turtle let his six stage boosts go then and Alex stood up, glad that the turtle's desire to kill him had simply been intense training. Then, he noticed Po by the cove's entrance. He'd been watching the whole time.

"Holy Muk! Alex! You learned Thunderbolt!" The kung fu cub enthusiastically swore, and then cheered, and both Alex and Oogway chuckled.

"I suppose I did, Po. It's about time, really. Now all I need is to master Ice Beam, and I'll be a quarter of the way to Tao's level of manipulation." He looked back at Oogway, then. "Can we please let him read the Scroll now?"

Oogway just smiled at them. "If he can find it, certainly." He began balancing on one fin invertedly once again, and while Alex left Po to search, he examined his hand and his nerves for damage. It seemed his intense and purposeful boost to the kinetic energy produced by the dance hadn't injured him significantly. He also realized he didn't need that many movements. There was a limit to how much kinetic energy he could interconvert within his bodily energy network into heat, which manifested as a bolt of plasma after being run through his pools of positively and negatively charged energy, in perfect balance within him. Thus, the limiting factor on his Thunderbolts was how quickly he could generate body heat, and then strike.

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As Po looked around fruitlessly for the Scroll, finding only rock chunks, Alex looked at Oogway, who was smirking at them. There was nowhere to hide the scroll, though being a rock type, Oogway could likely have hidden it away in the rock somewhere. Glancing around, Alex dismissed that notion. With how much water the cove got, the stone would've eroded. Infact, the only stone that likely wouldn't erode so easily was Oogway's, and that, was when his eyes fell on the turtle's shell. Sure enough, there was a scroll shaped indentation in the rock, though as Alex noticed it, the graceful sea turtle shifted to balancing on a single rocky toe, instead of his fin.

Alex nodded in understanding. Couldn't make it too easy on Po, after all. Alex wondered where the scroll could possibly be, since Oogway's shell was properly smashed now. As Po looked to his Trainer for guidance, Alex looked upward at where his Redwood Barrage had utterly failed, and he smirked. Following his gaze, Po's eyes widened as well. Embedded in the stone making up the cove's ceiling was a scroll container made of finely carved jade, and the end that wasn't buried in stone had the carved head of a dragon on it. From what Alex could see, it seemed to resemble Tao's head. "This is your test, Po." Alex said, once more using his own epic tone. "Retrieve the Dragon Scroll."

Po growled to himself, staring up at the scroll with burning desire in his eyes. "Times like this, I wish I knew Rock Tomb." He murmured, as Oogway moved out of the way, giving Po space to make an attempt for the scroll. First, he tried simply jumping, and then extending that jump with Aerial Ace, which got him pretty high up, but not high enough to reach the stone ceiling. Next, he examined the smooth, weathered stone walls, and found them too hard to Dig through. Trying that would probably ruin the cove too, which he didn't want.

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After a solid five minutes of thinking, Po finally had a plan. He yanked on the white fur hanging down from his head and felt his power and focus surge. The only moves that would get him height were Aerial Ace, Acrobatics, and potentially Fire Punch. Aerial Ace let him essentially perform a double jump, but it was too short. Acrobatics was useful, when there was some sort of handhold to cling to, and thanks to Connor's Infernape, Ardor, he could Fire Punch hard enough to propel his relatively light body with the flames.

Looking around, he only had rocks to use, thus, he gathered the larger chunks of Oogway's smashed shell and debris from the lightning bolt, punched the stone walls of the cove, and then securely fitted the stone chunks inside. Slowly but with determination, Po punched and jammed enough stones to reach the top of the cove, at which point Alex gave him an Ether for Acrobatics, as he was running low on power. When he finally felt ready, he Bulked Up his muscles, focused his energy, and then jumped on the lower jutting stones with Aerial Ace. Once he reached those he'd painstakingly embedded in the ceiling, his Acrobatics came in handy.

He swung from one rock piece to another, before finally leaping for the Dragon Scroll. Mid leap, he realized he wasn't close enough, at which point, he held a fist forward. Flame engulfed it, and the fire energy pulled him a little bit further into the air, giving him the final boost to reach the scroll. As he grabbed it, Po cheered, but then lost his composure as it rather easily came loose and sent him hurtling towards the pool below.

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He winced as he expected a hard impact, but then Po opened his eyes after a moment, when he felt himself floating, like when his Trainer levitated his ball. Alex had caught him once again and lowered him into the water. Po stood, staring at the scroll in awe. He ran his fingers over the imperial red engraving depicting a very familiar dragon, the same one the jade ends of the scroll case depicted as well. Po looked up at Alex as he approached. "Tao has existed for many eons. I imagine he's traveled all over the world, as it suited him. He's not the only Legend to have done this, either." The elemental birds, while evidently capable of reproducing like Lugia could, also had cultural representations in ancient human cultures all over the world. Also, like Lugia, he had no doubt that those who were proper Guardians were on a level worthy of their Legendary status.

Po looked at Oogway then, and the ancient Carracosta nodded, with a warm smile. "You have recovered the Dragon Scroll. You may read from it, Po. Read it, and become…a Dragon Warrior."

Po's eyes were on fire, and he eagerly examined the case for some sort of opening mechanism. Finally, he tried poking the eye slots, which seemed to do it. The lid popped open and back, revealing the actual scroll inside. Po handed the case to Alex, and then took the scroll, opening it slowly as he held it away from him, expecting some sort of outpouring of draconic power. Then, he looked at it properly. He blinked twice, then looked up at Alex. "It's blank…"

Alex blinked as well. "What? Blank?" Po showed him, and Alex examined both sides. One had Tao as part of a Yin Yang symbol, which was the back side, and the other side was some sort of reflective gold-tinged material that shone in the dim cove.

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They both looked at Oogway then, who just smiled at them. "Look harder, young Po." The young bear did as instructed. "Do you know the meaning of the words Kung Fu?" Po thought for a moment, then wisely shook his head. He would've said 'martial arts', but in his heart he knew there was much, much more to kung fu. Oogway continued. "Achievement. Skill. Excellence of Self. One can have strong Kung Fu in cooking, tailoring, Contests, Battles, it does not matter. It applies to all aspects of your life, far beyond combat. It is mastery of oneself, and their dedication to achieving Balance in all they do."

Po stared at his reflection in the scroll. "It's my Kung Fu…" He took in his reflection now, with this new body hardened by a master Trainer, and his powerful Pokémon partners. His kung fu had become strong. He had become strong. He smirked at his reflection. As he accepted that and was about to toss the scroll away, his eyes began to glow with the light of Infinity. He saw myriad paths before him. One, led to him, as an Urshifu, blowing away an entire mountain top with only a single punch. Down another, he saw an entire forest of mighty trees fall to the relentless surging power of his strikes. Yet another path showed him on all fours, using speed and powerful single strikes in the form of punches and kicks, moving more like a tiger than a bear. But the path before him now was different from the others. It was most similar to the Water Scroll's teachings, but it went beyond that, embodying all aspects of life, like kung fu did.

He smiled as he saw his potential future down this path as both a warrior and a teacher and took that step towards the Urshifu he wanted to be. His form grew taller, his muscles grew as well. As the light faded, Alex noted his partner was still very much thicc in the body compared to other Urshifu, but now his well-trained muscles were much more obvious. The fur on and around his knees was folded down, like a Rapid Strike Urshifu, but the pointed tufts of fur on his head were standing up like a Single Strike master and colored an alternating white and black. On his chest fur, was the pattern of what vaguely looked like a dragon's head, outlined in white fur amongst the black fur, and the tuft of hair sticking up from his head was neither pointing up or folded down, but rather splayed into five somewhat serrated looking fur tufts, resembling, at least to Alex's eyes, the frond of a Leaf plant. His smirk widened. This was definitely his Urshifu, and his new fighting and dragon typing promised to be quite powerful.

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"A fine Dragon Warrior, indeed." Oogway said, quietly. "Take the scroll with you. It is long past time that I returned to my home, in Eous. It was a pleasure to meet both of you, Alex and Po."

The human and his partner shared a look, and then bowed in perfect sync. Alex spoke, then as he slid the ornate jade case into his bag. "Thank you, for instructing us with your wisdom, Oogway. If you ever need our assistance, you know who to seek out."

The Carracosta gave them a serene nod. "I do." And with that, he walked out of the cove, and then dove into the clear blue waters of Paldea's ocean. The sun was already rising over Paldea and the other regions of Eous.

Alex and Po stood at the same height now, and took in the morning. "Get some rest, Po." Alex said. "We'll be taking today off, since it's Festivus, so enjoy it. Now that you've evolved, you're finally ready for some Ultra Training."

Po arched his brow and in his deeper, but no less awesome voice said, "Ultra Training?"

Alex nodded sagely. "Training that will help you reach the same level as my other partners…and help you ascend beyond it, too. Once you achieve that level…we will begin working with the Light. You'll be able to Purge the Shadow wherever you go."

Po cracked his knuckles, grinning at the idea of facing Shadow infused enemies. His brothers had spoken of facing them in the war, but Po had not yet had the chance to take one on. "I look forward to it." With that, he returned to his ball, and Alex bamfed back to his clone, who was still idly scrolling. He rejoined Alex prime, and then he slipped quietly back into his room. Jess was still sleeping, and she resumed clinging to his larger frame as he rejoined her, and quickly fell asleep. This part of the world still had some hours to go before sunrise, and he slept heavily until it was time to awaken.