Kanto Region. Pallet Town. Ketchum Household. Day.
Ash was currently deeply asleep. Today was an important day and he just so happened to be asleep during it. The day he visits the Holon Region. Unfortunately, with him being asleep, he would be running late. Pikachu had woken up before him as always and King Sombra didn't even bother to try and wake him up.
Entering the room was Delia Ketchum, the only individual that had the capability to wake Ash up completely in instances such as this. Delia crossed her arms, standing before Ash. "Ash. Ash!" She shouted but shouting wouldn't do the trick. So, there was always the go-to option.
Delia grabbed Ash by the face, lifting him up for a moment. "Ash, wake up! You're going to be late for your Holon Region visit!"
"Mmm...Holon Region..." Ash opened his eyes for a moment, facing his mother. Delia then gave Ash a swift and light chop to the head. But that chop to the head was enough to kickstart him. "Gah!" He shouted before falling over. "Mom! Why didn't you wake me up?!"
"You said you would wake yourself up. Oh, Ash. You're so good at keeping promises. Not so much when it comes to sleep." Delia sighed. "Your friends have already passed through this world and could be at the airport right now."
"Oh, man! Pikachu! We gotta go!" Ash immediately rushed to get there. He was already running late, but that wouldn't stop him from picking up the pace.
"Pikachu!"
They immediately sorted themselves out before appearing in their usual clothing. Mainly the one that Rarity had made among a few. Ash had no time to slow down as he had blasted out of the house. "Gotta go, mom! I'll be back uh...soon!"
"Nice travels!" Delia waved farewell. "Make sure to send me a picture of those Delta Pokemon, okay?!"
"I will!" Ash roared in the distance before dissipating into the horizon. He would quickly try and stop by Professor Oak's lab before heading to the airport. But he was still in a hurry either way.
Speaking of Professor Oak's lab, the Twilight Sparkle from the Human World had shown up for another day as Oak's newest assistant. She and Oak had witnessed Ash and Pikachu approaching her at great speeds. ASh quickly skidded on the floor, coming to a screeching halt before running in Oak and Twilight's general direction.
"Professor Oak! I'm not too late, am I?!"
"Oh, Ash. Your friends passed by here a while ago. Maybe an hour by now." Oak replied. "Did you oversleep again?"
"Yeah..." Ash lowered his head in disappointment. "I'm gonna be so late. They've probably gotten there before I have right now!"
"Well, that would just leave you and Pikachu to explore together and catch up. Have no fear. You can always head to Professor Pine for help when you get there and Holon is a small region." Oak explained. "So get going on."
"Right! Come on, buddy!" With some time to spare, Ash and Pikachu ran off once more, heading to the airport.
"Again? This has happened before?" said Twilight to Professor Oak.
"More than you can imagine." Oak chuckled. "He overslept and was late to join me and the other children on our Pokemon Camp Expedition and was just as late for the day the young upstart trainers of this town would get their first Pokemon. But perhaps, his lateness is what leads to new things being born. After all, if he was never late, he would've never met Pikachu. Now that would be an odd story."
"Ooh..."
"Ah. Just then, realization kicked in for Oak. A slight mistake had been made "Now that I recall...there is no plane to Holon. It's a train. My, that was my mistake!" He let out a cheeky smile before chuckling once more.
"Oh, Professor Oak..." Twilight sighed, knowing that Ash was heading to a pointless destination at the airport. To do him a favour, Twilight quickly called Ash with her Xtransceiver to alert him. But she wasn't the only Twilight. Equestria's Twilight had also used her Xtransceiver to contact him as well.
Holon Region. Settlement Foxtrot. Afternoon.
Finally. The Holon Region. After having to do some hard catching up, Ash had caught up with his friends, taking the train to Holon. The train to Holon had arrived here as Ash and the others gazed outside of the train window to bask in the view of this small yet wondrous region. The region was largely forested with a large lake that could be seen near the surrounding land.
Marshlands were also spotted to the far south, distant from other areas. Back to the lake, it was also bordered by a massive mountain range as this whole region seemed to be near the coast with so much more to see offshore.
"Oooh!" Naturally, they gawked at this sight with massive intrigue. Already, they got to experience so much but yet it was so little. "Great that you made it, Ash. Pikachu," said Fluttershy.
"Yeah...Sorry about that. Oversleeping and everything." Ash chuckled, glad that he could experience this for the first time with his friends.
"Pikachu..." The train to Holon finally came to halt as it was time for them to gander at the place. The train opened up as Ash was the first to exit with Pikachu and Rainbow Dash following afterwards. The sunlight greeted them with open arms, casting its glorious rays across the region.
"Yeah! Hey, Holon Region!" Ash cheered as he announced to the entire region with a bellowing shout. "We're finally here!"
"What's with all the yelling?" Goh asked, hopping off the train as everyone else had left.
"Just saying 'Hiya' to the Holon Region. Always gotta give someplace new a greeting." Ash explained as Pikachu nodded in approval.
"The first place we need to be at is right there! The Holon Research Tower." Twilight aimed her hoof at a tower that stood in the centre. The Holon Research Tower as it was known. Much like other Regions, that tower was the landmark and stood out from the others.
The person they were also looking for was Professor Pine, of course. This region's Pokemon Professor. Although, not someone who was here to have upstart trainers begin their Pokemon Journey due to Holon's lack of a Pokemon League.
Aside from that, once they started exploring the region by getting a move on, they witnessed how there were a plethora of scientists around in this place. But what interested them the most were the Pokemon here. Delta Pokemon usually appear as their standard species, only with type alterations. Much like other regions, they lived extensively and lively with their Trainers.
Ash, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Goh strayed away from the group a bit as they were the most interested in viewing this region for themselves. Twilight wished to stay on the beating path and head to the Research Tower which was in the far distance up north. "You know, we can go our separate ways. No shame in that. I'm more interested in that tower far over there.
"Way ahead of you. We'll catch up with you later." Ash was ready to dash off for more exploration. Same with the others. But before they could do so, the professor that they were meant to meet with had shown herself. Through the doors of the nearby laboratory, Professor Pine had arrived.
"There you are."
"All 10 of you, right here," said Professor Pine. "My, you are plentiful, aren't you?"
"Professor Pine. Right?" Twilight asked.
"Indeed, I am. Welcome to the Holon Region." She spread her arms out, figuratively and literally welcoming them with open arms. "I heard from you about Oak. Mostly you, Ash."
"Great to be here. Where's this?" Spike asked.
"Settlement Foxtrot. It's always the first place that newcomers find themselves at Holon." Pine introduced. "So, now that you're here, I'm aware that some of you have two different goals. You've already met Timia, right?"
"Mhm. But we're all mostly here to check out the Pokemon. The Delta Pokemon, we mean." Rainbow Dash nodded, flying over Pine. "We got a great taste of what they could be back at our world. Mainly Applejack."
"Battled Timia and her Delta Pokemon." Applejack raised her hoof. "Got a little close there, right, Sceptile?"
"Sceptile."
"If I'm not rushing things, we'd love to see the Delta Pokemon right now," Fluttershy interjected.
"No problem. You're all experienced trainers here, aren't you?" Pine shrugged. "Oh, but first. I'll give you all a taste of some Delta Pokemon here at my lab. Timia did tell you about the other kind, didn't she?"
"Other kind?" The 10 of them all said in unison.
"No? Well, in that case, you're in for a surprise." She winked, guiding them all to her lab. There was something special waiting for them inside. Entering the Pokemon Lab and it was about what was expected. But, every Pokemon Lab stands out in their own way, and this one had the speciality of having certain paintings and maps on the walls.
Ash and the others observed as they saw paintings of Pokemon that resembled ones they have seen before but there was something different about them. The maps also seemed to show the entirety of Holon. Having one would be nice even though Holon was fairly small in comparison to other regions.
The main room of this lab had three Pokemon Trainers currently standing in front of three Pokemon. But these weren't just average Pokemon. Or even average Delta Pokemon.
"What if I told you..." Professor Pine stopped in front of them. "That Delta Pokemon can do more than just have different types. But different appearances."
"Seriously?!" Ash and his friends were all for it. They needed to know now.
"Seriously. Take a look." Pine then moved aside, showing the Pokemon Trainers and the Pokemon that they had received. They had gained a Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle.
But they had strikingly different appearances as Delta Pokemon. For starters, Bulbasaur was now a shade of pink with its bulb still having its usual green appearance albeit darker. Charmander seemed to have a skeleton-like appearance. White bones while still managing to retain its flame on its tail, except now it was a spectral purple. It looked like Charmander's skin had been taken off. And as for Squirtle, it was darker than the rest, keeping most of its ordinary appearance with what seemed to be a ninja mask on its face plus a cape.
"Awesome!" Ash, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy rushed over, getting close to this trio of Pokemon. Ash stood in front of Charmander, Rainbow Dash in front of Squirtle and Fluttershy in front of Bulbasaur with their eyes gleaming. Their Pokedexes also had to take all of this in to know what they were all about.
"Delta Bulbasaur. The Crystal Pokemon. A result of it being born in the Holon Region and the magnetic flux it gives off. The crystal growing from its back uses its mental energy to grow. Much like its Kantonian counterpart, the crystal somehow gives off nourishment."
"Delta Charmander. The Bone Lizard Pokemon. While the flame on its tail does not appear immediately after its birth, it burns more fiercely with age. Despite the skeletal appearance, much like its Kantonian counterpart, the flame indicates a sign of health, including its intensity."
"Delta Squirtle. The Ninja Pokemon. Though its shell causes it to stand out when hiding in the shadows, it conceals itself using the cloth on its back. It does much a better job at hiding in its shell than its Kantonian counterpart when withdrawing."
"Timia didn't want to spoil you, most likely. And I can tell she made the right decision. Yes, Delta Pokemon have more than just alternate types. They have different forms as well." Pine explained. "These three were just now getting ready to leave Holon and start their journey, weren't they?"
"You bet, Professor." A young Pokemon Trainer nodded, holding Bulbasaur.
"Hold on." Twilight took a closer look at the Pokedex entries for Charmander and Bulbasaur. "Their second typings aren't Steel? I thought that was the case for every Delta Pokemon."
"Ah, that's only for those who haven't been too exposed to the Magnetic Storm in this region. Some Pokemon have it better than others, but they're incredibly rare to come by. I doubt you'll see many Delta Pokemon in your journeys."
"Magnetic Storm? What's that all about?" Goh asked.
"Well...it's mainly the weather." Pine looked into the air as everyone else did the same. The three Pokemon Trainers had then left Professor Pine's lab, off to venture far. The weather in Holon is very strange and different from other places."
"Sweet! I wanna see this!" Rainbow Dash wanted to test out this weather as her role as a pegasus. "Come on, Fluttershy! Twilight! We can get up there!"
"It's a storm, right? I think I'm safer down here." But Fluttershy opted to stay. Twilight as well. Rainbow Dash shrugged before flying out of the lab to see the weather for herself.
"Our research here in the Holon Region is mostly tailored to finding more about the Mythical Pokemon Mew." One Professor Pine spoke Mew's name, Pinkie Pie scrunched her face. Currently, Mew was with her, as always, hiding in her mane. "Many people inhabited this region just for that."
"Uh..." Pinkie Pie raised her hoof, ready to say something.
"Leave it, Pinkie. Not right now." Twilight quickly stopped her. Pinkie Pie then reversed herself before making any more actions.
"So. I believe you're all eligible to head out and discover Holon's mysteries for yourself. I'd say start at either the Holon Grasslands or the Mirage Forest. Grab a map and you'll be set." Pine would lt them off of on their own.
"I know what we're doing." Ash went for the nearest map he could find. Realistically, he and his friends could go anywhere and they wouldn't feel as lost. Holon's small size was the reason for that. Ash opened the map with his friends gathering over to gaze at them. Each of his friends had personal interests on where they wanted to start.
"We'll meet up in that settlement right there. Settlement Oscar." Twilight poked her hoof at one of the settlements. "We don't usually split up that much unless it's by accident, so this'll be fun."
"I could catch some Holon Pokemon too while I'm at it!" A giddy Goh exclaimed.
"I could pet some..." Fluttershy looked at her hooves, already imagining the array of Delta Pokemon she could pet. Every Pokemon here was essentially a Delta. Without wasting any more time, they all set off to explore the rest of the Holon Region for themselves.
And outside, Rainbow Dash was already with the clouds, trying to see the strange electromagnetic weather at work. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Rainbow Dash poked the clouds, hoping for some response, only to get nothing. She even tried stomping on the clouds to make rain come out, but it was just ordinary rain.
Rainbow Dash would have to wait for the magnetic storm to show itself as she flew over to her friends. "Nah. I can't make it happen. Bummer. So, where are we heading?"
"Twilight and Starlight are going for that research tower. We're gonna check out some of these places." Ash showed the map to her. Soon, everyone had split up with a few of them staying in groups.
Ash, Fluttershy and Applejack would go as a group with Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Pinkie Pie doing the same. Goh followed Spike with it just being those two. The region was their oyster. New Pokemon of familiar species yet unique variations were waiting to be discovered.
But they weren't the only ones curious about Delta Pokemon that had just visited. Moving from out of the shades of a tree was a certain trio. After learning about Fluttershy and her friends heading to the Holon Region soon, they followed soon after.
Team Rocket to be exact.
"Now that we're here, you know what that means?" Jessie spoke to her partners. "Imagine just what it'll be like if we catch a Delta Pokemon."
"The only thing equal to an Alpha is a Delta." James snapped his fingers. "Quite a catch!"
"The boss will love all those Delta Pokemon. I say we go for the ones that are hard to come by. Like me!" Meowth felt proud, believing that his species would be hard to find as Delta Pokemon.
"Doubt that." Jessie shrugged at Meowth's words. "Let's a keep low. This region's smaller than the others we've seen before, so word can get out faster. Size matters in moments like this."
"Only time you've agreed on that," James replied. Team Rocket were here for the Delta Pokemon curiosity as well. Any chance to capture rare Pokemon just for the sake of Giovanni's satisfaction, even though Pikachu would grant that satisfaction was up for grabs. No matter what, they will always take a chance.
But neither they nor Ash's friends were aware of what wonders were waiting for them in the Holon Region.
Holon Grasslands.
The Holon Grasslands. One of the starting areas in this region and an appropriately named grassy biome in Holon which was situated between Settlement Foxtrot and Settlement Oscar. Ash lowered his hat once the sun rays shined brighter in his direction. While looking at the map, he noticed how there were some recommendations of Pokemon that could be in the Grasslands. But Ash wanted to go in blind with this.
The group met their first Pokemon here in the grasslands as it was revealed to be an Unfezant. A male one. Unfezant flew out of a nearby tree, looking at the group before dashing off. "Fez! Unfezant!" Ash took out his Pokedex, seeing that this Unfezant was a Water-Type. Even with this alternate typing, it was still weak to Electric.
Another Delta Species came through. Jumping out of the bushes was a hive of Delta Combee. Each of them flew by as their typing had been altered to be Grass-Types only. "Combee!"
A few seconds in and two Delta Pokemon species had been spotted. Off to a great start. Ash couldn't wait to share this all with Professor Oak later. "Tile. Sceptile." Sceptile picked Applejack up before jumping to a tree. Applejack would get a higher view of the place.
"So...Which Pokemon's gonna look different from the rest?" Ash was eager to know where the Delta Pokemon that had alternate appearances would be. "Professor Pine did say they're pretty rare. Rarer than the others."
"Ain't she looking for Mew too? Shouldn't we've shown her Pinkie Pie's Mew?" Applejack asked.
"I wonder how she and the other scientists would react? Maybe Pinkie's saving it for a big moment," said Fluttershy. "Oh! What if we bring the Delta Pokemon food?" An idea sprung in her until she remembered one fatal flaw. "Oh. I didn't bring any with me...There goes that plan."
"We've got other ways of looking for Delta Pokemon, Fluttershy. You've got your wings, Audino's got those super good ears and Pikachu and I got our legs to do all the work." Ash and Pikachu ran on the spot, building up some energy as Fluttershy giggled.
"Well, I've got this. Sceptile, start swinging, ya hear?" Applejack turned to her partner as she would take a more dynamic approach.
"Sceptile!" Sceptile was on it. He sent out his vines, using them on the trees as a swinging session had occurred afterwards. Sceptile already built up great speeds as he was in his natural habitat right now.
"Hey, wait up!" Ash and Fluttershy promptly followed them once they took. Sceptile gave Applejack a rush as she held onto her hat in the high chance it flies off. While swinging and hopping from tree to tree, Sceptile had seen more of the same Pokemon but with one extra Pokemon. A Skitty.
Ash ran past Skitty, quickly using his Pokedex to scan it. This Skitty was a Fairy-Type. Fitting for this Pokemon, no doubt. They have yet to encounter any Dual-Type Delta Pokemon that would have Steel as their second typing or even alternate forms.
"Skitty? Skitty!" Skitty started pursuing them. Being such a playful Pokemon meant that anything that seemed fast or exciting was an immediate magnet for it. The Delta Skitty pursued the group promptly.
"Hello there!" Fluttershy slowed down to fly next to Skitty. She held her hooves out, allowing for Skitty to jump in. And Skitty certainly did. The Delta Skitty hopped into Fluttershy's hooves as Fluttershy couldn't help but give this Pokemon a hug.
"Ooh!" Ash jumped over a lake with Pikachu, having an impressive leaping strength as always. They had passed by a Kingler and a Dewgong that were living in the lake. The Pokedex scanned them, revealing Kingler to be an Ice-Type while Dewgong was a still Water-Type. Although, Dewgong was the first Dual-Type as it had Water as its first typing and Steel as its second.
As the group kept exploring the grasslands, with many Pokemon living here, it was inevitable for one of them to take notice. And one Pokemon did take notice. A fairly small one that was hidden within the bushes and trees. This small Pokemon then squinted its eyes, focusing on only Sceptile seemingly. Afterwards, the small figure was on the move, climbing up the trees.
The group also got to see some of the Delta Pokemon use moves to better demonstrate their typing. Two Combee were fighting over some honey with each of them wanting it desperately. A scuffle had begun with them both. They had both used moves they could never use before. Vine Whip.
Three vines emerged from their bodies, mainly from the side as they started whipping them against each other. Ash and his friends took a moment to see this scuffle between Pokemon. But their scuffle was meaningless as a female Unfezant had used Aerial Ace to come swooping and snatch the honey. "Combee?!"
"Unfezant!"
"Feels nice to just relax and look at all the Pokemon, isn't it, partner?" Applejack asked.
"Sceptile." Sceptile agreed. However, his cheery face soon turned into a serious one as he had stopped swinging. Sceptile promptly landed on one of the trees, staying there for a moment. "Sceptile!"
"Hm? What is it Sceptile?"
"Dino?" Audino was alert too. She heard a lot of sounds from the grasslands, mainly the Pokemon here. But there was one sound that was getting closer. Ash and Fluttershy promptly stopped as well.
"Did something happen?" He asked.
"Pika?"
"Sceptile..." Sceptile's eyes shifted in both directions as he was on high alert. So was Audino as she leaned in different directions to see where the sound was coming from. It went silent for a bit. But that silence was broken up once something jumped out of the bushes. A swift shadow of a small figure.
However, it wasn't swift enough to catch Sceptile off guard. Sceptile quickly placed Applejack aside before using Leaf Blade to block. The shadowy figure closed in, hitting Sceptile's blade as a mild collision had been made. Once the sun cast rays in a new direction, this mysterious figure had been revealed. It was one of Sceptile's species.
Specifically a Delta Treecko.
"Treecko!" And this Treecko which was currently keeping its arm on Sceptile's bladed arm had an alternate appearance from the traditional Treecko line. A new kind of Delta had been found.
It had a normal Treecko body shape however, it had the colours of what looked to be light nougat instead of green as it also wore a red headband and a belt. These add-ons were akin to karate and that would soon be found out by the others.
"Check out that Treecko!" Ash aimed his Pokedex.
"Delta Treecko. The Karate Gecko Pokemon. It takes up residence within dojos where it trains against humans and Pokémon alike. Similarly to its Hoennian counterpart, it is also cool, calm, and collected and never panics under any situation only it does differ from having a higher gutsy personality. This Pokemon tends to try and catch others by surprise to test their strength."
"Treecko!" Treecko then jumped back, gazing at its further alternate evolution.
"Sceptile..." Sceptile was amazed to see this Treecko. One of his own. Delta Treecko stood up tall, crossing its arms as the Pokedex certainly wasn't lying as always This Treecko was displaying a gutsy personality indeed, greater than its Hoennian counterpart.
"Tree! Treecko!"
"Aw, ain't it cute?" Applejack gushed at Delta Treecko. "I'm getting pretty nostalgic looking at ya. Reminds me of when you were small, Sceptile."
"Tile."
"Treecko!" Treecko then aimed its arms at Sceptile, pointing vigorously. Sceptile blinked for a second before pointing at himself.
"Scep?"
"I think it's here for your Sceptile, Applejack." Fluttershy leaned in. "That must be why it also jumped out of the tress like that. Going up against a similar species to it must have it excited."
"I'm getting excited here too," said Ash. "I wanna see that Treecko in action!"
"Ya could've just come to us and asked for a battle..." Applejack laughed while looking at the Normal-Fighting-Type.
"Tree!" Treecko was adamant, wanting to battle immediately. Sceptile scratched his head as he wasn't too bothered by this. He was laid-back and calm, but he could always partake in a battle at any time.
"Sceptile?" But it was up to Applejack to decide that as he looked at the farm pony.
"Hmm...Sure. Why not?" Applejack was all for it. Upon accepting this challenge, Treecko pointed north before running off in a rush. "Huh? Hey! Ain't we gonna battle?!"
"Tree! Treecko!"
"Sounds like it just wants to set the stage." Fluttershy translated. "Maybe it's one of those dojos that the Pokedex mentioned."
"Could've just battled here but...sure." AJ shrugged, going along with it anyway. Meeting this Delta Treecko, along with other Delta Pokemon proved that this was going to be a long trip. And they were all for it as the group followed the Delta Treecko to wherever they may go.
The Holon Region. Small yet it has so much to offer. The exploration in this region was only just beginning as Ash and his friends exciting new adventures in their ongoing story as the journey continues.
Chapter 696 End.