Journey through Alola

by darkmage1997

Chapter 20: Gathering! Assemble the Bandit Star Pirates!

In order to get to the Pokémon Center at the northern end of Akala Island, our heroes must first pass through a tunnel that acts as a shortcut, "Ok, the end of the tunnel is just up ahead," Will said, as they neared the end, when...

"Alola there," they saw Phyco and Soliera waiting at the exit, "I see you've been rather busy since the last we saw you. You're all bathed in more Z Power than ever," Phyco commented.

"According to our instruments, the Ultra Aura you all have is more powerful than previously recorded. I take it you have found a way to master Z Power?" Soliera asked.

"Well, we did clear through two trials today," Will replied.

"I see. Our world used to have a similar light flowing throughout it," Phyco said.

"Captain, we're running late for our meeting," Soliera informed.

"Ah yes. We shall meet again," Phyco said, as he and Soliera took their leave.

"What is it about those guys that just feels out of place?" Will wondered.

"You mean besides their fashion sense?" Lynn asked.

"Yeah, besides that," Will replied, as they exited the tunnel. Looking at the sky, they noticed it was getting rather late, as the sun was setting, "C'mon guys, it'll be dark soon," Will said, as they continued onward. They saw a large, white trailer like building with a bizarre symbol on it, "Huh, wonder what that is?" Will wondered. Just then, the door opened, and out sprang an Alolan Vulpix, looking rather excited.

"Now slow down there Vulpix," a man wearing a white uniform said, coming out of the trailer. Vulpix then noticed our heroes. it smiled brightly, and dashed over, wrestling itself into Toby's shirt.

"Hey, cut that out!" Toby laughed, as he got the Icy Vulpix out of his shirt.

"Oh, sorry about that!" the man said, "That Vulpix has been through quite the ordeal," he said.

"What kind of ordeal?" Toby asked.

"See, Vulpix here is just one of many Pokémon that are bullied by Team Skull. Up until now, it was absolutely terrified of humans. Even the workers of the Aether Foundation have trouble getting it to open up," the man said.

"'Aether Foundation'?" Will asked.

"It's an organization stationed here in Alola that helps nurse sick or injured Pokémon back to perfect health. And it's not just from the selfish actions of humans that Pokémon are protected by Aether. Some Pokémon need protection from other Pokémon as well," he explained. Vulpix only nuzzled closer to Toby, "But as scared of humans as this Vulpix was, this is the first time it ever approached a human of it's own accord," the man said.

"Maybe Vulpix just likes Toby," Luna theorized. Vulpix then batted out an empty Pokeball from Toby's backpack. it enlarged when it hit the ground. Vulpix then tapped the Pokeball, encapsulating it. This definitely caught everyone by surprise. The Pokeball rocked three times before clicking. It then teleported away.

"Uh, sorry about that," Toby said, scratching the back of his head.

"Don't worry about it. While it is the duty of Aether to return a Pokémon that is fully healed back to their natural habitat, we also try to find trainers suitable for taking care of these Pokémon. Vulpix seems to have taken a liking to you, enough to allow you to catch it," the Aether employee said, heading back inside.

"Wait, you have two Vulpix now, how are they going to tell who you're talking to?" Leni asked.

"Hmm, good question," Toby said, giving it some thought. He then got an idea, "I know! I'll call my new Vulpix 'Snowball'," Toby answered.

"Sounds appropriate," Will commented.

"Albeit a tad cliché," Lisa added.

"Hey, maybe the clichés are where inspiration comes from," Lincoln stated. Serenity saw a small, pink Pokémon with brown legs, and a striped tail walking out of the tall grass. She gasped in awe at how cute it was. She carefully walked over to it. The Pokémon looked up to see Serenity, and looked at her in curiosity.

"Rotom, who is this little cutie?" she asked.

"Roger that! Stufful, The Flailing Pokémon, a Normal and Fighting Type. When touched by someone who it is not friends with it, it flails violently. It is a very dangerous Pokémon," Rotom said.

"Now how can something this cute be dangerous?" Lola questioned, trying to pet it. However, Stufful didn't like that kind of approach, and started flailing it's arms, swatting Lola's hand back, "I stand corrected," the pageant princess stated, rubbing her hand. Serenity went to pet Stufful this time. When she did, Stufful seemed to calm down.

"Looks to me that Stufful sees Serenity as a friend," Will commented. Serenity took a Level Ball out of her bag, and used it on Stufful. After rocking three times and clicking, the Level Ball teleported away.

"Well, we should get moving," Will said, noticing the sun was almost set. The group decided to press on. They soon saw the Ultra Recon Squad, talking to a blonde man in a lab coat. He was fiddling around with his gauntlets, and had a blue streak in his hair. Will recognized him instantly. When the Recon Squad left, he turned to see the large group, led by Will.

"Ah, William, so good to see you again," the man said.

"Colress. I see you're still doing you little experiments?" Will questioned, eyeing the gauntlets Colress was wearing.

"I see you're still untrusting towards me after our last encounter," Colress commented. He then took note of the large group he was leading, "And I see you've decided to teach a newer generation about being a trainer, I see," he deduced.

"Will, do you know this guy?" Luan asked.

"Well, we're not exactly buddy-buddy, but we have battled once before," Will stated.

"Let's just say I believed in the wrong people, and I did some bad things because of them. Nowadays, I'm dedicating my science to helping people and Pokémon alike. And my studies have brought me to the Alola Region to research 'Z Moves', as they're called," Colress explained.

"So, what have you found out?" Lynn asked.

"Nothing concrete yet, but I have found out that what is important to bring out Z Power is the bond between trainers and their Pokémon. There is a similar phenomenon that has such a requirement, but I'll leave William to teach you about that," Colress said, taking his leave. With that out of the way, our heroes pressed onward. They soon saw the Pokémon Center, and not a moment too soon, as the sun had already set, and it became night time.

"Phew, we did a lot today," Lincoln commented, taking a seat on a couch.

"Well, at least we'll be taking the day off from training tomorrow to relax," Will said, as the five trainers gave Nurse Joy their Pokeballs.

"You sound like you've been busy on the Island Challenge today," Nurse Joy commented, giving Will a pair of room keys, which he gave one to Lori.

"Yeah, we cleared two trials today," Will replied.

"My goodness! It usually takes trainers one day to clear each trial," Nurse Joy commented in surprise.

"I guess you guys taking a day off would do you some good," they all saw Mallow sitting in the café area, "You guys need a day to recuperate, so I can wait another day before you guys can come and take on my trial," Mallow said. Toby, Silver Spoon, Serenity, Lola, Lana, and Lisa were all eyeing the magazines the Pokémon Center had to offer, when....

"Out of the way, losers!" some boy rudely pushed Toby out of the way.

"Sweetie Pie, are you alright?" Silver Spoon asked worriedly.

"Yeah, but who was..." Toby cut off his question, at seeing Busujima, "Oh, him," Toby said.

"I'm surprised to see you chumps all the way up here so soon!" Busujima rudely said.

"Always to the punch, eh Busujima?" they all turned to see Davis and Delila sitting on one of the couches. On either side of them, was Mako and Cletus.

"All of the Bandit Star Pirates we've encountered are here," Will said, looking at the gang of trainers.

"And there are some of us who you have yet to meet," Delila said.

"Hey you!" a little girl's voice said. Everyone saw a little girl with platinum blonde, dressed in what one could call a Magical Girl Outfit, standing before them, trying to look tough, key word being "trying", "You think you're so cute with that pink hair, and all those cute Pokémon, and that shy personality... Well, let me tell you something! I'm supposed to the cutest around here!" the girl said, getting in Serenity's face.

"Uh, well... I... uh," Serenity tried to form words, but came up with nothing. The Magical Girl cosplayer was picked up by an extremely buff boy around Luan's age. He had blonde hair, and was wearing an outfit you'd probably see in the army.

"Oh, Sergey, when did you get here?" the little girl the boy was holding asked. The boy said nothing.

"That's Sergey, and his younger sister, Susie. Sergey doesn't talk a lot, but he's a wiz at using Steel and Dragon Type Pokémon," Mako said.

"You guys let a little girl into your gang?!" Leni exclaimed, sounding disappointed.

"To tell you the truth, Susie's not an official member of our gang, but she is skilled with Normal and Fairy Types," Busujima admitted. Susie puffed up her cheeks.

"SUP DUDES?!" aloud voice yelled. Everyone saw a boy with black hair, dressed in a tropical outfit waltzing in with a girl dressed as a piolet. She had purple hair, "You dudes having a party in here or what?!" the boy exclaimed.

"Loud as ever, Chaz," Cletus commented.

"And how are you, Amy?" Delila asked.

"Fine as always," the piolet girl replied.

"These guys are Chaz and Amy. Chaz is, as you can tell, a free spirit. He demonstrates this with his Ice and Ghost Pokémon, while Amy is more level headed with her Ground and Flying Type Pokémon," Mako made the introductions.

"There are 18 different types of Pokémon. Divide them up between nine different people, and they specialize in two different types each. Are these all of the Bandit Star Pirates?" Will asked.

"Yep, all present and accounted for," Amy replied.

"You dorks are slower than molasses! Each of use have already cleared the Lush Jungle Trial!" Davis said, showing them a Green Z Crystal with a leaf symbol in the center.

"We like taking time to smell the roses," Toby countered.

"We passed roses? I didn't see any," Leni commented.

"Toby's speaking metaphorically. he means we were taking our time with our trek," Lisa clarified.

"So, have you gotten any stronger?" Busujima questioned, getting in Toby's face.

"Quite a bit actually," Toby replied, as the bell went off.

"With all this hullabaloo, your Pokémon are all fully healed," Nurse Joy said, as each Pokémon leapt at their trainers, with both Rockruff barking aggressively.

"Hey, isn't that Steenee and Torracat the Bounsweet and Litten you had Busujima?" Chaz asked.

"Yeah, but they were too weak, so I ditched them," Busujima admitted nonchalantly. Our heroes didn't really like his answer.

"And yet, I was able to help them get stronger," Toby countered.

"They can evolve as much as they want, but weaklings will always be weaklings," Busujima countered back.

"Then how about a battle?! Toby's Torracat and Steenee against two of your Pokémon!" Lynn declared.

"Wait, what?" Toby questioned.

"Well, it will be a good warm up for my Grand Trial against Olivia," Busujima commented. Lincoln, Luna, and Luan all blushed the mention of the Kahuna.

"Busujima here's the only one of us who hasn't taken the Grand Trial," Susie piped up. The bully shot the little girl an annoyed look.

"Well, I haven't even taken the Lush Jungle Trial yet," Toby commented, trying to keep this situation from escalating, which was proving difficult with Lynn's interference.

"You can do this Toby! That chump doesn't stand a chance against you!" Lynn declared.

"I'll see you on the battle field," Busujima said, heading to the battlefield outside.

"Lynn, what are you doing?!" Lori scolded.

"I'm trying to help Toby stand up to that bully!" Lynn shot back.

"Did you even consider what Toby wants?" Lincoln questioned.

"He may not like it, but he'll need to tough up his Pokémon one way or another!" Lynn shot back. She then saw Toby at the PC, "Hey, what are you doing?!" Lynn exclaimed.

"I want to train with some of the Pokémon I caught at Wela Volcano Park, so I swapped out some of my Pokémon," Toby replied, as he released his new team of Pokémon, which consisted of Charmeleon, Quilava, Torracat, Steenee, Rockruff, and Turtonator.

"Well, as long as these two are still on your team!" Lynn said, motioning towards Torracat and Steenee.

"Ok, that's enough!" Luna said, dragging the athlete away.

"You know, I was wondering if you could do me a favor real quick Toby," Cletus said.

"What kind of favor?" Toby asked.

"You wouldn't have by chance caught any extra Magby while at Wela Park, have you?" Cletus asked.

"Yeah, I have two of them. One is currently still in my storage box," Toby replied.

"Then I was wondering if you wouldn't mind trading that Magby with me?" Cletus asked.

"'Trade'?" Toby asked.

"Yes, see, I have Magmar and Magmortar, but I need a Magby to complete that evolution line, but they have been proving rather elusive every time I go to Wela Park. So, in exchange for your other Magby, I will give you this Pokémon," Cletus said, releasing a yellow Pokémon with a big, bushy tail, a mustache, and a star on it's forehead. It was also holding a spoon.

"Whoa, whose that Pokémon?!" Lana asked.

"Kadabra, the Psy Pokémon, a Psychic Type. Though it possesses strong psychic powers, it's powers are halved if it's not holding a silver spoon," Rotom said. Silver Spoon looked rather annoyed by that statement.

"I'd say go for it Toby. If you trade Magby for Kadabra, it'll evolve into an Alakazam," Will urged.

"Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt," Toby said, still sounding unsure, as he swapped out Turtonator for the Magby.

"Great, now come with me," Cletus said, leading Toby to a big machine, "Now, place Magby's Pokeball over there," he said. Toby did so. Cletus did the same with the Pokeball containing Kadabra, "Now, for the switch," Cletus said, pulling a switch. Both Pokeballs got sucked up into the machine. The silhouettes of both Pokémon appeared to be crossing over to the other side. The machine then spat out the Pokeballs. Both trainers released their new Pokémon. No sooner than Toby did, Kadabra evolved into a yellow humanoid Pokémon with a mustache and two spoons.

"Alakazam, the Psy Pokémon, a Psychic Type. It is very smart, and never forgets anything it has learned. As a result, it's brain became too heavy for it's neck to support. Alakazam uses it's psychic powers to lift it's head," Rotom said.

"I'd say that one's fitting for you Toby," Fluttershy commented.

"You think?" Toby questioned.

"You're both intellectual, for one thing," Will replied.

"Uh, yeah, this is all well and good, but do I have to remind you guys that Toby has a challenge waiting for him outside?!" Lynn reminded.

"Yeah, we hear you.... unfortunately," Lola replied, whispering the last part.

"You know, I'd like to have a two on two rematch with you as well," Cletus admitted.

"I guess I'll take you up on that," Toby replied, as everyone took to the battlefield, where Busujima was waiting.

"About time you got here!" Busujima snarled, as Toby took his place opposite of the bully.

"I was taking care of a few things," Toby replied.

"Alright dudes, I'll act as ref for this battle! It'll be a two on two match with no time limit, and substitutions may be made at any time. The battle will be over when both of either sides Pokémon cannot battle," Chaz said.

"Fine with me," Toby commented.

"Whatever," Busujima added.

"Now then, choose your Pokémon!" Chaz said.

"Here's my Pokémon! Go, Salandit!" Busujima said, sending out Salandit.

"Torracat, let's do this!" Toby said, sending out Torracat.

"BEGIN!" Chaz said.

"Salandit, use Flame Burst!" Busujima ordered. Salandit launched Flame Burst at Torracat, who tanked the attack.

"Nice defense Torracat, show them your Fury Swipes!" Toby instructed. Torracat then charged at Salandit, and began scratching the Toxic Lizard Pokémon repeatedly.

"In terms of offense, Torracat has the advantage. But we'll see what Salandit does," Will commented, as the battle raged on.

"Hey Pinky! I'm calling you out!" Susie declared, challenging Serenity, taking a spot on the other battlefield.

'What did I get dragged into?!' Serenity thought to herself, anime style tears falling from her eyes, as she took the other spot.

"The rules are like how Busujima and that other kid's battle is going! Two Pokémon each, substitutions when necessary, and it's over when both of either sides Pokémon can't battle! Now, go, Castform!" Susie said, sending out a Pokémon that could be classified as a crème puff.

"Whoa, that's a rare Pokémon she's got," Will commented.

"Castform, the Weather Pokémon, a Normal Type. Because it's ability is Forecast, it's form changes depending on the weather," Rotom said.

"G-go! Chubbykins!" Serenity said, sending out her chubby Pikachu.

"Castform, use Rain Dance!" Susie instructed. Castform then summoned a raincloud above the battlefield. When the rain began falling, it turned into a water droplet.

"So that's the Forecast Ability," Lisa commented.

"Yeah. Castform can be either a Normal Type, a Water Type, a Fire Type, or an Ice Type, based on the weather," Will explained.

"Chubbykins, u-use Thundershock!" Serenity instructed, trying to sound confident. Chubbykins did so, as it fired off the electric attack, causing major damage to Castform.

"Since it's raining, Castform is a Water Type," Will commented.

"Torracat, use Fire Fang!" Toby instructed. Torracat then used Fire Fang to deal the final blow to Salandit, knocking it out. Busujima then recalled his Pokémon.

"We need to train some more," Busujima said to the Pokeball holding Salandit. He then readied a Lure Ball, "Clamperl, go!" he said, as a clam Pokémon was released.

"Clamperl, the Bivalve Pokémon, a Water Type. Pearls that are made by this Pokémon are more than 10 times as valuable as a pearl made by a Shellder," Rotom said.

"Torracat, take a break," Toby beckoned. The Fire Cat Pokémon dashed over to it's trainer, "You did great out there. Leave the rest to Steenee," the bespectacled boy said. Torracat nodded, and curled up to go to sleep, "Now, Steenee, let's go!" Toby said, sending out Steenee.

"Clamperl, use Ice Beam!" Busujima ordered. Clamperl fired off the beam of icy energy at Steenee.

"Dodge it Steenee! Then use Magical Leaf!" Toby urged. Steenee cleverly dodged Ice Beam, and fired the Grass attack at Clamperl.

"Withdraw!" Busujima ordered. Clamperl then closed it's shell, allowing the Magical Leaf to hit and bounce off.

"That's a move?" Lori asked.

"Withdraw is a move that allows a Pokémon to increase it's defensive power by hiding in it's shell," Will explained.

"Just keep hammering away Steenee! Clamperl's shell may be tough, but it's bound to run out of stamina!" Toby encouraged. Steenee then bounced on Clamperl's shell, and started stomping the shell. Meanwhile, Serenity and Chubbykins managed to beat Castform.

"Thanks Castform you were great out there," Susie said, readying a Moon Ball, "Go, Clefairy!" Susie said, sending out a little pink Fairy Pokémon.

"How cute!" Serenity and Lola exclaimed.

"Clefairy, the Fairy Pokémon, a Fairy Type. Clefairy are believed to have originated in space, and become more active on nights of a Full Moon," Rotom said.

"Chubbykins, you did great out there. You deserve a nice long break," Serenity said, nuzzling her Pikachu, who waddled over to the side, and sat down, "B-Buneary, help me please!" Serenity said, sending in Buneary. Just then, something was happening simultaneously to both Steenee and Buneary. First and foremost, Steenee's feet began glowing pink.

"Hey, looks like Steenee is trying to learn Stomp," Will commented.

"That's literally a move that needs to be taught?" Lori asked blandly. Her attitude changed when Steenee and Buneary began to evolve. Steenee did a Sailor Moon-esque evolution, as she grew taller. Her hips became wider, and her sepals became longer. A little crown like bulb formed at the top of her head, and her legs became much longer. Buneary on the other hand went through a similar evolution. She grew taller too, her ears were much longer, and fluffier. Little cuffs of fluff appeared around her wrists, as well as what looked like boots of fluff.

"Whoa, who are those Pokémon?" Luna asked in awe.

"Tsareena, the Fruit Pokémon, a Grass Type. It's specialty is kicking with it's well developed legs. In victory, it tramples it defeat foe. Lopunny, the Long Ear Pokémon, a Normal Type. It generally dislikes fighting, but will kick with it's graceful legs if threatened," Rotom said. Tsareena's leg became enveloped in tropical energy, as it kicked Clamperl into the wall, "That was Trop Kick! Tsareena's signature attack!" Rotom exclaimed, as Clamperl's shell opened, revealing it was knocked out.

"And that's it! Clamperl can not continue! Therefore, the winner is Tsareena and Toby!" Chaz declared.

"You were amazing Tsareena!" Toby praised his newly evolved Pokémon. Tsareena blushed at her trainer's kind words. Looking over, Toby saw that Lopunny was giving Clefairy a run for it's money.

"Quick Clefairy, use Metronome!" Susie instructed. Clefairy began waving it's fingers around, before they glowed brightly. Clefairy then fired off lightning quick punch, which caused major damage to Lopunny.

"What was that?" Leni questioned.

"Metronome is a move that randomly turns into some other kind of move. It's a bit of a gamble, but it did allow Clefairy to use Mach Punch," Will explained.

"Lopunny, use Return please!" Serenity instructed. Lopunny then became surrounded by energy, and crashed into Clefairy, knocking it out.

"Return is a move that increases in power if the user is close to it's trainer. It's polar opposite is a move called Frustration," Will explained.

"I'm guessing it get's stronger the less a Pokémon likes it's trainer?" Lincoln asked. Will nodded.

"That certainly is frustrating *chuckles*, get it?" Luan joked, only to receive groans or weak chuckles.

"How were you able to make those weaklings so much stronger?" Busujima demanded, grabbing Toby by the collar of his shirt.

"Hey, I just want to make friends with my Pokémon! That's how they got stronger," Toby defended, as Luna pried Busujima off of Toby.

"This isn't over between us, nerd!" Busujima seethed, taking his leave.

"Just like a bully, using empty insults," Toby commented.

"I am most impress with your battling skills. If I may, shall I battle you next?" Cletus asked.

"Sure! This time, I'll send in Rockruff and Quilava," Toby said, releasing the aforementioned Pokémon. However, when he did, Rockruff evolved into the Midnight Form Lycanroc, "WHOA! SO cool!" Toby exclaimed.

"That's the form that likes taking attacks, right?" Lana asked.

"Indeed," Rotom replied.

"Hey Mako, mind being my training partner?" Will asked.

"You got it!" Mako said, taking his place on a separate battlefield, "Go, Octillery!" Mako said, sending out a red octopus Pokémon with yellow suckers.

"Octillery, the Jet Pokémon, a Water Type. It usually lives in caves. The ink it spits out is used in cooking," Rotom said.

"In that case, go, Makuhita!" Will said, sending out the Arm Thrust Pokémon. When he did, Makuhita evolved into Hariyama, "Sweet! I knew Makuhita was close to evolving!" Will commented, as everyone began training with one another.

Author's Note:

Team so far:
Will: Dartrix (M), Alolan Grimer (F), Hariyama (M), Cubone (M) Ash Hat Pikachu (M)(Kalos), Corphish (M)

Fluttershy: Brionne (F), Trumbeak (F), Onix (M), Smeargle (M), Crabrawler (M), Rockruff (M)

Toby: Torracat (M), Tsareena*(F), Lycanroc (Midnight Form) (F), Charmeleon (M), Quilava (F), Alakazam (M)

Serenity: Lopunny (F), Charjabug (M), Misdreavus (F), Spinda (F) Pikachu* (M)
(Chubbykins), Detective Pikachu (M)

Silver Spoon: Azumarill (F), Magneton (N/A), Lycanroc (Midday Form) (M) Ash Hat Pikachu (M)(Hoenn), Eevee (F), Clauncher (F)

In Storage or in Training:
Will: Ash Hat Pikachu(M)(Kanto Hat), Clauncher (M), Skrelp (M), Krabby (F), Growlithe (M), Slugma (M), Magby (F), Numel, (M) Litleo (M), Buizel (F)

Fluttershy: Zorua*(F), Ash Hat Pikachu (M)(Unova), Eevee x2 (1 Male, 1 Female), Buizel (M), Clauncher (M), Skrelp (F), Corphish (F), Krabby (M), Croconaw (M), Phanpy (F), Slugma (M), Growlithe (F), Magby (M), Numel (F), Litleo (F), Combusken (M)

Toby: Braixen (F), Vulpix (F), Noibat (M), Turtonator (M), Mawile (F) Ash Hat Pikachu (M) (Sinnoh), Eevee (F), Buizel (M), Clauncher (F), Skrelp (M), Corphish (M), Krabby (M), Ralts*(F), Shinx (M), Slugma (F), Growlithe (M), Magby (M), Numel (M), Litleo (F), Espeon (F), Prinplup (M)

Serenity: Eevee x2 (1 Male*, 1 Female), Mareep*(M), Buizel (F), Clauncher (M), Skrelp (F), Corphish (M), Krabby (F), Marshtomp (M), Dewott (F), Minun (F), Growlithe (M), Slugma (F), Magby (F), Numel (F), Litleo (F), Pignite (M)

Silver Spoon: Eevee (F), Buizel (M), Skrelp (F), Corphish (F), Krabby (M), Wartortle (F), Ralts (M), Plusle (F), Slugma (F), Growlithe (F), Magby (M), Numel (F), Litleo (M), Monferno (F), Butterfree* (M)

Totem Stickers So far: 39/100