I made it through Route 19 without any trouble since it was a relatively short route. I beat some wild Pokemon and got Ronin to Level 8. I saw the next town up ahead but I stopped when I heard a voice.

?:"You there, trainer!"

I looked around until I noticed a man on a plateau.

Alder:"My name is Alder! I'm a trainer with a keen interest in the world. One of my goals is to tell people about how wonderful it is to walk toward the future together with Pokemon."

He hopped off the plateau and I stared in shock. He landed with a loud thud but he didn't seem harmed in the slightest. I just stared at the freak of a man before me.

Alder:"And you are?"

I shook my head and cleared my throat.

"I'm (Y/n), up and coming trainer from Aspertia City."

He nodded and walked around me and tugged my arms and backpack. He then stood back in front of me.

Alder:"Your Oshawott is a fine-looking Pokemon!"

"How did you know I chose him?"

He just laughed and ignored my question.

Alder:"But, you're not exactly a seasoned Trainer yet..."

"That's why I said up and coming."

Alder:"True. You did say that. I'll test your mettle. Follow me!"

He went ahead into the town and I followed. He was waiting around the corner of the Pokemon Center so I went inside to quickly heal Ronin. I got done and walked out.

Alder:"Ah, it's always good to heal your Pokemon. If you look out for them then they'll look out for you. My house is just up ahead."

He started to walk again and I followed closely behind. We reached a house with a sandy field out front.

Alder:"We're here! Shall we start training?"

He then raised a brow and held his chin.

Alder:"By the way...why are you holding two Town Maps?"

I forgot I had stashed them in my pockets and chuckled.

"Well, one is for my buddy who left in a rush. His sister told me to give him one."

Alder:"Oh ho! He's the one with the Snivy, isn't he?"

"Yeah. Again, how do you know that?"

Alder:"BWAHAHA! Well he was training with his Pokemon on Route 20. Go ahead and give him the map and we'll start our training."

"Alright."

I followed the dirt path to Route 20. It was another small route and I battled a few trainers there but Hugh wasn't there. I saw a hiker blocking a set of stairs and the dirt path continued into a ranch. I shrugged and went into the ranch. I looked around and walked through an open gate of a wooden fence. Hugh saw me and walked up to me.

Hugh:"Oh! Nice! You've come here to toughen up!"

"No Hugh I-"

Hugh:"Alright! Let's see how much stronger you've become! Come at me!"

"It's only been 10 minutes since our last battle."

He didn't listen and threw out his Snivy. I sighed and threw Ronin out on the field.

Hugh:"Use Tackle!"

He hit Ronin for a bit of damage and I scowled. I used my Pokedex and saw his Snivy was Level 9.

"Alright, use Tail Whip!"

He did and lowered Snivy's defense.

Hugh:"Hmph, use Leer!"

Snivy gave Ronin the stink eye and it lowered his defense.

"Use Tail Whip again!"

Hugh frowned and used Leer again.

"Hit Snivy with a Tackle!"

Ronin:"Osha!"

He ran and tackled Snivy and dealt major damage.

"Haha yes!"

Hugh:"Shrug it off, partner! I know you're stronger than that! Use Leer again!"

Big mistake.

I made Ronin use Tackle to end things. Snivy fainted and Ronin flexed his arms? Flippers?

Ronin gained 167 exp. Ronin grew to Lv. 10.

Hugh:"Heh, you are tough. So what were you saying earlier?"

"Your sister wanted me to give you this."

I handed him one of the Town Maps.

Hugh:"Tch... She didn't have to do that... Thanks to you, too. We just left, and you've already helped me out."

"No problem man. Always happy to help a homie out."

We bumped fists.

?:"I thought it was lively around here!"

We turned and saw two Pokemon Breeders walking up to us. They had a Herdier behind them too.

?:"You were having a Pokemon battle, huh? Isn't it nice to be young!"

I shrugged softly and Hugh asked them who they were.

?:"Who am I? I'm the owner of this ranch! And this is my wife!"

Wife:"After a Pokemon battle, you should heal your Pokemon's HP, right? Here, I'll give you this!"

She handed me and Hugh a potion.

Owner:"By the way, y'all didn't happen to see a Herdier around here did y'all? We have two and they're always together and this is the first time one has wandered off. I'm a little concerned."

After hearing this, Hugh's eyes widened and his body tensed up a bit.

Hugh:"You're a little worried? Are you KIDDING me?! Your Pokemon might be lost forever!"

"Dude, not helping."

Hambo:"Whatever! Hambo! Help me look!"

He quickly rushed off.

Owner:"Why did he get so mad?"

"Beats me. Well I should help him out before he comes back and wrings my neck out."

I began to look around for the Herdier. As I walked around the grass, I encountered a Pokemon that just had to be on my team.

I gasped and began to get excited. The Riolu looked at me a little confused and possibly nervous. I sent out Ronin and the two looked at each other. The Riolu bowed and Ronin did the same.

"Okay, Ronin this is super important. Use Tackle but be sure to hold back. That Riolu is going to be our first catch!"

He saluted and hit Riolu and made sure to hold back. I tossed a Pokeball and it shook twice but he popped out. He used Foresight and I tossed another Pokeball at him. It shook three times then...

Ding!

"Yes! We caught a Riolu! I'll call ya... Anubis!"

I spoke with the owner's wife and she healed up my Pokemon. I decided to train Anubis so he could catch up with Ronin. As I continued my training, I encountered another 'Mon that would be nice to have.

Anubis bowed and Mareep spun around in a circle. I checked the dex and it showed me that this one was at Level 5. Same as when I caught Anubis not too long ago. This Mareep was female.

"Alright, Quick Attack!"

He nodded and dashed at the Mareep and kicked it. He jumped back and Mareep lowered his attack with Growl.

Nice! This is good! "Use Quick Attack again!"

He did but this time it did less damage. Mareep growled again and I smirked. I threw a Pokeball and it shook three times... Ding!

"Haha! First try! I'll call you Stormy."

I finished getting Anubis to Lv. 10 and did the same for Stormy. Ronin was at Lv. 11. I walked around and heard a bark. Hugh heard it too and ran to where I was. We continued up ahead and heard another bark. We checked deeper in the grove and I turned a corner past some trees and found the Herdier with some guy in a weird costume. The Herdier barked once it saw me.

Hugh:"Haha! You found it! I'm going to go get it's trainer!"

He ran off and the weird guy looked at me.

Grunt:"Tch... You little pest! I'm a member of a group that strikes fear into the hearts of those who stand before it: Team Plasma!"

I deadpanned as he struck a pose.

"I've literally never heard of you guys."

He then fell over in shock.

Grunt:"What?! We were the righteous group that tried to conquer Unova two years back in order to liberate Pokemon!"

"Look man, I moved here not too long ago so I don't all that much about this region and it's history. But if we're talking evil teams, we have to bring up Team Rocket. Those guys ran a casino, stole Pokemon and even had laced Rare Candies and they were on top of the market for that too!"

I crossed my arms and nodded.

"Now that, is a real evil team."

He growled and the veins on his forehead started to throb.

Grunt:"You asshole! How dare you mock the great Team Plasma!"

He threw a Pokeball at me but I caught it as he used the opportunity to escape. I opened it and inside was the TM21 Frustration. The Herdier barked happily and ran in a circle around me. Hugh and the owner came back. Hugh scolded the owner for not watching out for his Pokemon. He eventually went back to his wife as I trudged back to Alder's house.

When I got there he complimented me and my Pokemon's growth despite being gone for only a few moments. We walked inside his house and there were two kids there who perked up.

Girl:"Are we going to help him train, sir?"

Alder:"You are."

Boy:"But he looks really tough."

Alder:"That may be true but that's part of being a trainer. Besides, didn't I tell you to just enjoy battles?"

He nodded and the boy walked up to me.

Boy:"I'm ready!"

I sent out Ronin and he sent out Pansear.

"Ronin, use Water Gun!"

Ronin:"Wott!"

He puffed up his cheeks then shot out a burst of water at Pansear. He made the Pansear crash into a wall.

Boy:"Ah! Use Leer!"

Bad move kid. "Water Gun."

Ronin shot one more burst of water and knocked out the Pansear. The boy returned his Pokemon and the girl was up next. Alder healed my Pokemon. I sent out Ronin and she sent out Pansage.

I switched out to Anubis and he took a scratch attack from the green monkey.

Girl:"Use Lick!"

"Anubis! Full Counter!"

Pansage licked Anubis on the cheek and he was clearly disgusted and punched Pansage in the face. It did some damage as he wiped his cheek.

"Quick Attack!"

He nodded and kicked Pansage in the face. He ran back to his spot as Pansage used Scratch again.

"Quick Attack!"

He finished the fight with a critical hit and I smiled. I walked out his house and was stopped by some strange guy who called himself Mr. Medal. He gave me a medal box and went on his merry way. Alder came outside and gave me some final words.

Alder:"Do you know about the gym in Aspertia City?"

"Yeah but it was never open because the old gym leader retired a while back."

Alder:"Well, they just received a new one so you should head there next."

I nodded and he walked back inside.

I'll do some training first though.

Saving...
Don't turn off the power.