Nature was alive in the world of Pokémon. If it wasn't for the countless bug Pokémon then the grass Pokémon would be the alive part.

Like the anime depicted nature, it was one big organism that worked through collaborations between species and the forest they lived in. The forest itself was a big network of tiny lives, beating the same heartbeat.

And in the same way nature was alive in the world of Pokémon, Jubilife City was as well, but in a different way.

The city was a giant machine with every person, car and Pokémon being a small cog.

And the machine was in motion; Pokémon doing work, cars driving through, people heading towards their jobs, trains and buses, all adding to the big picture of a city that was alive and blooming.

Large skyscrapers reflected the morning sun but it was just as likely to block it in a different area, allowing the light to slip through at the gaps and painting a beautiful picture.

Wide avenues divided the large city into smaller parts, those parts were again divided by smaller ones, buildings and back alleys.

However, despite what the first glance might suggest, the city had enough space left for parks and wild areas, a chance to walk among nature.

On the Northern skyline I could see a large building that had to be the Global Trade Station, on the Eastern skyline I could see Mt. Coronet underneath the sun.

On the Western horizon the city continued to expand, though the skyscrapers were slowly being replaced by large warehouses and shipyards that were built alongside the river that ran through Jubilife City.

However, immediately after crossing the water and the small havenport the city and its skyscrapers started to pop up again, like mushrooms during fall.

All these elements combined made Jubilife one big metropolis that reminded me of cities like New York City and Tokyo.

"Jubilife City, AKA the city of joy." I spread out my arms and basked in the city’s glory. It would have sounded cooler if I wasn’t still trying to catch my breath.

The view from up the Jubilife Observatory was amazing but the staircase to the top was not.

I had considered taking the elevator (or is it a lift here?) but I wanted to be a better human in this life and decided a little exercise wouldn't be that bad.

Now, I am regretting that choice.

"Raltssss." Ralts dropped next to me to the floor, sprawled out and ready to die.

"You wanted to walk," I laughed at her.

She stuck her tongue out at me.

The Jubilife Observatory was pretty empty this morning, only an elderly couple was present and they were minding their own business.

"Want to see it too?" I asked Ralts and without waiting for an answer I lifted her up to my middle so she could peer over the small stone wall that surrounded the rooftop so stupid people wouldn't fall off the building.

Ralts' eyes widened as she saw the city in its entire glory.

We passed through it this morning and she was already impressed by the sight of that many humans and the glass buildings that reached the sky, something she had never seen before.

I promised her a better view of the city and with the assistance of Pokédex Lady we found a high skyscraper that functioned as a city hall and observatory for visitors.

My Pokémon stared with awe, her eyes practically sparkling.

I grinned too; it truly was a sight to behold.

The city was so much larger than the anime and games portrayed it to be.

Another interesting thing was the large river that split the city in two, though there were multiple bridges to help people and trains cross from one side to the other.

It made sense, almost every big city in my world had some river flow through it since a river meant transportation and business

"One day, Ralts," I said while she was still watching the skyline, "This entire city will know our names. Everyone in the world will know."

Ralts nodded eagerly, a smile plastered on her face.

"Everyone in the entire world will know about Dust, his unbeatable Ralts and her teammates."

Ralts turned around and gave me a funny look I translated to: "Seriously?"

I shrugged. "You do realize I kinda need more than one Pokémon?"

"Ralts," she sighed.

I gave her a big hug. "Don't worry, I won't leave you or something stupid. You're my main after all."

"Though talking about future teammates, I still need to get some Pokéballs." I paused, "And I need to deliver the black box with data."

I closed my eyes and visualized the games and anime, in the anime nothing important was going on in this city; or important for me.

Dawn and Jessie would enter the Jubilife City Contest and meet Zoey, but that was about everything, oh and there was the B-button league or something but they were really not in my list of priorities

In the games, you had to find three clowns to receive a free Pokétch, there was a trainer's school that gave you a potion upon completion and you found your rival inside. You meet Looker once you enter the city, but I already met him so I doubt that will happen.

There were some other minor things you could do in the city, though I doubted that talking to people would give me free stuff.

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Well, the first thing to do today was get a few Pokéballs.

"Oracle, how close is the nearest Pokémon Mart?" I asked while flipping the Pokédex open.

The map showed 16 blue dots that marked the locations of different Pokémon Marts in Jubilife City.

I whistled, 16 Poké Marts, that's a lot.

Well, considering the size of the city it made some sense I guess but still, that's a shitload of Poké Marts.

Welp, time to get some balls, pun intended.

Ralts pointed at the elevator and I agreed, I wasn't about to make that mistake twice.

As we walked through the streets of Jubilife City I saw so much interesting stuff going on.

Big billboards were advertising an upcoming battle between Cynthia, the current Champion VS a guy I had never heard of.

According to the amount of advertisements and flashy trailers it was really hype but honestly I couldn't care less because I was convinced Cynthia would win anyway, though they managed to attract Ralts' attention.

I passed a small shop that sold Cynthia Merchandise and couldn't resist buying one thing. I ended up with a black mug that had an image of Cynthia striking a pose in front of her Garchomp printed onto it.

Did I have a reason for buying it? Not really but I kinda wanted it anyway and I had money to spare so I bought it for the sake of it.

We walked past a food stall that was making waffles and I bought one for the two of us deciding it was a solid breakfast replacement.

While we were standing there, eating our waffles a small girl asked if she could pat Ralts.

Her mom gave us an apologetic smile but Ralts was okay with it so I let the girl have her moment.

After a minute of the girl hugging and patting Ralts the mother gave me a thank you and pulled her daughter away.

The girl proudly exclaimed she would catch a Ralts too once she became a Pokémon trainer.

It seemed kinda weird to me, was I supposed to be happy that she would enslave a wild Ralts?

After that weird conversation we went on our way to find the PokéMart.

I was curious how it would look but when we found it I wasn't really surprised.

It was placed in the middle of a shopping area and had a big blue roof with the Pokéball symbol on it, underneath was written: Pokémon Mart

The storefront was filled with all kinds of posters, announcing discounts on certain items, a battle between Cynthia and some random dude, a new tv show and one that encouraged people to become Pokémon trainers.

I entered the store and discovered it was very spacious inside.

A large blue counter with a man standing behind it filled the left part. Walls were stacked to the brim with shelves that colorfully displayed the items that could be bought with special baskets on the isles for discount items.

Large blue couches were placed in the middle of the room, the backs to each other so they formed a little island in the sea of consumerism together.

Computers were mounted into one wall, a guy with raven black hair was swiping away at the screen. I saw he wore a black belt with 3 Pokéballs attached to it so I assumed he was a Pokémon trainer as well.

It was a very big but neat place that perfectly combined professionalism with style and comfort.

I walked over to the shelf that held shining Pokéballs on display and stopped in front of it to study them. Ralts was a bit slower, taking the time to give everything a good look.

Next to me stood a young girl with green braided hair, she held a potion in her hand and she was having a discussion with another boy around her age.

The boy had green hair too, short and curly. He seemed rather annoyed by whatever the girl was talking about.

A woman with blond hair stood in front of the Pokédex with her back to me, in her left hand she held a Pokédex.

Giving it a quick look it seemed her Pokédex was malfunctioning and she needed help with it.

I picked up a Pokéball and weighted it in my hand, giving it a studying look.

Honestly I was just trying to look like I knew what I was doing but this Pokéball looked the same like every other Pokéballs.

Next to the shelf was a poster plastered on the wall detailing the instructions for catching Pokémon and all that other shiz.

"Ralts, what do you think of this one?" I asked as I knelt down to show Ralts the Pokéball I just picked up, "don't you think this one is perfect?"

Ralts shrugged.

Just as I was about to get more—I heard a loud bang. A sound that just rattled my bones and soul to the core.

I spun around, ready to fight or run, yet I still felt dazed.

It was disorienting, suddenly hearing a loud bang and I wasn't the only one shaken up.

Everyone in the PokéMart turned around.

In the middle of the store black smoke began to fan out. A small layer of thick black smoke spread from the center and crawled across the couch.

A flash followed. I closed my eyes in time to avoid the bright light.

When I opened them there stood a person covered in body armor on top of the blue couch. A Butterfree flew behind him.

The person was standing with his legs wide and arms crossed, sending a clear message of confidence and arrogance.

He had red hair that was a bit shorter than mine, his face mostly obscured by a domino mask that had the shape of a Butterfree but all the white parts had been painted red.

The big smirk on his face was a mix of arrogance and the knowledge he could back it up without a sweat.

He wore body armor, much like the stuff you see special forces wear, except he only had the shoulderpads and body vest to protect him. Underneath it he wore a black shirt with long sleeves, his hands were covered by white gloves.

He wore gray pants with padded kneecaps and combat boots underneath it.

Most striking was the red cape he wore on his back which was connected to his shoulderpads, it looked more like a Roman cape than a super hero cape. It wasn't overly long but still big enough to be impressive and eye-catching.

Behind him flew a Butterfree who glared at everyone in the room before flying towards the door and blocking it with its wings.

"Welcome people of Jubilife City,' the man spoke with an amused tone, "Today you all have the honor of being robbed by the number one criminal in Sinnoh."

He chuckled and I could only just stare.

Ralts grabbed my leg tight but didn't move her gaze away from the intruder.

He jumped off the couch and shot the two kids who stood near me with a grin. "So be grateful,"

The man walked towards the two kids who quivered in fear, they didn't dare to move from their spot.

He gave them a mock bow, "It isn't everyday you get robbed by Crimson after—"

He froze mid sentence and without a warning spun around, his arms outstretched and in both his hands he held something shiny.

Two bangs followed and I involuntarily closed my eyes in reflex, when I opened the I saw what he had in his hands.

In his left hand he had a golden gun while in his right hand he held a shining silver gun. Both had a small smoke trail coming out of the barrel.

A Pokéball and a Pokédex clattered to the ground.

The man who had been swiping at the pc stared wide eyed at his empty hand where he held his Pokéball a mere second ago.

On the other side of the room the woman squeaked as her Pokédex she was holding also fell to the floor.

My eyes widened as I realized what just went down.

Ralts gripped my leg tighter.

"Now," Crimson said with a disappointed tone, he lowered his two guns. "There's no need to be rude."

His gaze passed over everyone in the room, making sure to meet everyone's eyes at least once.

When he was done with it he had, once again, a wide grin on his face. "Now there's no need to play hero." He aimed one gun at the man who tried to release his Pokémon.

"Or to start calling people." He aimed his second gun at the woman.

"If we all just act like the scared people we are, everything will be fine."

He laughed out loud, then without a warning he aimed both guns at the green haired girl.

"Otherwise we all will discover what colors her insides have." Crimson chuckled. "Spoilers, it's crimson red."