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[Story] Memoirs of a Dragonite: A Guide to Effective PokeMMO Alt Running


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*Author's Note: This is the written version of the video I produced of this story.  You can find the video here: https://forums.pokemmo.eu/index.php?/topic/61134-video-memoirs-of-a-dragonite-a-guide-to-effective-pokemmo-alt-runs/

 

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I am arguably the most powerful pokemon there is in PokeMMO.  Sure, I may look like Barney the Dinosaur, but I rampage like Godzilla.  There’s a reason that Tyranitar, Salamence, and Metagross all got Mega Stones when I didn’t.

 

My name is Yig.  My Master tells me that I always had good potential, even for a Dragonite, due to the impressive stats I inherited from my father.  Ironic, considering Dad was a Magikarp.  Master says I get my Lonely nature from my mother’s side, a Dratini he bought from a trainer’s market.  I say my nature came about without his help.  Forget for a moment that I’m the product of a Wal-Mart purchase and the wimpiest creature there is.  We pokemon have always been passed around like playing cards, and then left to rot when our purpose is fulfilled.  I feel no true bond with any trainer, and so I am lonely by circumstance.

 

It wasn’t always this way.  Like every pokemon, I started off with a desire to be noble and strong.  My first clear memory is of the Master placing a hat on my head, and saying it would show me the future.  At the time, we were standing just outside a pair of double-doors, and the Master already had a Dragonite following him around.  Azathoth was his name- and Azathoth was a sight to behold.  He first fought against a woman with Ice-type pokemon, and I feared for him, because I had an instinctive aversion to the cold.  But he had a fighting technique called Brick Break that annihilated every one of the woman’s pokemon in a single hit.  In fact, there were four trainers after her, and almost none of their pokemon survived the initial strike from Azathoth.  The next trainer, a big buff guy, had his entire team drowned by Surf.  The next, a spiteful old woman, got her pokemon raked apart by Dragon Claw.  And so it continued, until all five of the Elite Four surrendered.

 

I didn’t participate in any of the battles, but Master’s hat made me feel every sensation of it- every rip and tear, every charge of battle adrenaline, every savage impact.  It was like I WAS Azathoth, only the out-of-body experience stayed with me.  It was the most intense training of my life.  I went in with zero knowledge of battle, and I came out, already on the verge of evolving to my second stage.  Needless to say, my mind was blown, and I barely had time to wonder what the future would hold for me.

 

In the next part of my intensive training, Master gave me three things.  First, he swapped my magic hat for an Amulet Coin, which he looped around my neck.  Next, he wired some sort of machine to my head, and played me a simulation of a move called Waterfall.  Last, he applied another machine- Surf- the very same move that Azathoth knew.  My moveset was now Waterfall, Surf, Dragon Rage, and Slam.  And while he worked, Azathoth talked to me, and explained that I would one day be just like him.  “Whenever he goes this far for a Lonely, Brave, or Naughty Dratini, it means the Master has chosen you for a Speed Run,” he said.  “Other pokemon will participate, but you will be his most valuable companion.”

 

“That sounds incredible!” I gushed, but then paused as a thought occurred.  “But wait . . . how could I ever replace you?  Surely you’re the Master’s most valuable companion.”

 

“You will not replace me,” he replied.  “Rather, you will have a new Master.  That is the third phase of your training.”

 

“A new master?” I protested, shocked and a bit hurt.  “But . . . I just barely got to know this Master.  And his training has already given me such confidence!”

 

“This is not your decision to make, nor is any,” said Azathoth bluntly.  “Consider that Amulet Coin around your neck.  That- not the pokeball, but THAT- is the true symbol of all pokemon trainers.  They are hedonists who care only for material gain.  Yes, you will become strong, but your strength is only a means to an end: the trainer’s goods and wealth.”

 

Azathoth’s words stayed with me, long after the trade with my new trainer in Hoenn was done.  I saw firsthand how much emphasis the humans placed on goods, for along with me came at least twenty Max Repels, all of which burned my eyes to even be within proximity of.  There was an Electabuzz too, who was holding the TM Dragon Claw, just as I had held the Amulet Coin.  Our new Master was called Runner, with a couple of Roman Numerals following his name.  Electabuzz scoffed when he saw them.

 

“This guy’s got no imagination,” he explained to me, from his pokeball to mine.  “He called himself Runner last time, too, with one number lower.”

 

“You’ve been with this trainer before?” I asked, freshly astonished.

 

“This is my second run with him,” Electabuzz confirmed.  “The Runner’s changed up his looks a bit, but that’ll be the extent of it.  You’re the new Dratini, then?”

 

“Yes, I’m Yig . . . wait.  ‘New’ Dratini?”

 

Electabuzz chuckled humorlessly.  I see he’s still fond of Lovecraftian names.  The last one was named Cthulu.”

 

The feeling I’d once had of being special was almost entirely dissipated at this point.  I was simply replacing someone else.  “Sure.  I’m the new Dratini.  And I’m supposedly the most valuable member of the team.”

 

“Yeah, no need to fear, you still are,” responded Electabuzz in an annoyed voice.  “Until we part ways, the world revolves around you.”

 

It wasn’t long before I felt another presence on the team.  “Hi!” it cheeped.  “I’m Chick-Fil-A the Torchic!  Who are you guys?”

 

Electabuzz burst out laughing.  “Congratulations!” he cheered mockingly, “you are now the living butt of a human joke, designed to gain him some attention.”

 

“I’m Yig,” I said, and not knowing what else to say, blurted, “This Runner guy isn’t my real trainer.”

 

Chick-Fil-A didn’t say anything for a while after that.  Then, with all the dignity he could manage, he said, “Yeah?  Well, I get along with him just fine.  And he made ME his starter.  So you guys can just sit back and rot with your negative attitudes, and let me handle the fighting.”

 

Electabuzz just yawned.  “Yep,” he muttered nonchalantly, “that’s the plan.”

 

In spite of Chick-Fil-A’s ignorance and misplaced enmity, I couldn’t hate the guy.  His personality was honest, and he was a hard worker.  He had a talent for taking down enemy trainers quickly, yet sparing a few hit points to wild pokemon- which the Runner would then capture.  The Runner never stayed in any route for more than a couple minutes; he would catch two or three new pokemon, and be on his way.  After a while, this puzzled me, for the human never used any of his other pokemon except for Chick-Fil-A.  When I asked Electabuzz, he replied in his usual detached manner.

 

“He’s building his pokedex for when he gets to Kanto.  There’s some lab people over there who will give him free stuff for having anywhere up to fifty recorded.”

 

“That’s it?” I asked, unbelievingly.  “That’s all they’re for?!”

 

“Well, he may use one or two for the Day-Care,” he replied.  “And now and then, he’ll probably use a couple as decoys in battle.”

 

“What are decoys?”

 

“I’ll tell you later, if you haven’t seen for yourself by then.”

 

When we had gotten to a city called Rustboro, Chick-Fil-A was on the verge of collapse.  He very nearly did faint when he discovered that the first gym was a Rock-type gym, but the Runner just took him to the next grassland and fought trainers until he evolved.  The change was revolutionary, for he not only became far stronger, but also gained Double Kick, a relatively powerful move for a level sixteen pokemon.  That turned Rustboro Gym into a non-issue.  The Runner knew what he was doing, I gave him that much.  He had better, because I certainly wasn’t about to pitch in if he screwed up.

 

Very little occurred between the first gym and the second.  Chick-Fil-A took down a petty criminal who had attempted to steal an old man’s Wingull from him.  That old man proceeded to give us a lift across the ocean, since I was unwilling to Surf for the Runner.  I remarked to Electabuzz how strange I found it, that an old man could care about a creature so common and useless as a Wingull.

 

“He’s not really a human,” Electabuzz replied.  “I know he looks like one, but he’s part of another species that considers all pokemon valuable.  When you battle, you’ll see tons of trainers just like him, using creatures like Poochyena, Rattata, and Sandshrew.  Let there be no mistake- pokemon are not created equal.  When real humans have tournaments, they are broken into certain tiers of ‘usage’ because they understand this concept.”

 

From then on, I considered the trainers of all “underused” pokemon to be shortsighted and stupid.  When I told Electabuzz, he laughed and called me some German word, then welcomed me “to his club.”  I didn’t question it.

 

The second gym was almost pitch-black, but the Runner seemed to know the path, finding the gym leader instantly.  He had Fighting-type pokemon, rather than Dark-type as I was expecting, but Chick-Fil-A still held strong for the majority of the battle, even forcing the Leader to use his Super Potions early on.  However, right at the end, the enemy Makuhita beat him to within an inch of life.  I wondered what the Runner would do if Chick-Fil-A fainted, but he suddenly switched out and sent in a Lotad he’d captured earlier.  I wondered how he expected Lotad to take on a pokemon ten times its level, but the Runner simply used one of his Potions to heal Chick-Fil-A’s wounds.  Makuhita proceeded to squash Lotad like the bug he was, and Chick-Fil-A returned to squash Makuhita.

 

“The Runner really threw Lotad under the bus,” I said, feeling disgusted even though I didn’t know Lotad.

 

“Of course.  That was the decoy strategy I was talking about earlier,” said Electabuzz pointedly.  “Sacrifice an otherwise-useless pokemon to buy time for healing the useful one.  I’ve seen him do it many times before.”

 

I understood.  The Runner was a cold and calculating person, but one worthy of my grudging respect.  I still didn’t want to obey him, but there was some sort of evil human technology in pokeballs that bent pokemon to their will.  Furthermore, I suspected that each new badge gave off a kind of resonating signal, forcing the obedience of all pokemon in the badge-owner’s possession up to a certain level.  It was certainly working its magic on me by now.

 

Chick-Fil-A was mightily proud of himself.  Except for the odd Wingull or Tentacool, he found that he could handle any enemy that came his way.  “Enjoy the feeling while it lasts, because it won’t be for too much longer,” warned Electabuzz firmly.

 

“What are you talking about?” the Combusken responded.  “The Runner isn’t a trainer who waters down experience between party members.  He’s poured all of his confidence into me!”

 

“Up until now, he’s left himself no choice,” said Electabuzz in a patient voice.  “He knows I don’t have to listen to him yet, but Yig does.  And when you ARE in over your head, which will become much more common, Yig will have to bail you out.”

 

Not that I doubted myself, but I couldn’t help but ask: “And what happens on the day I’m in over my head?”

 

Electabuzz gave a humorless laugh.  “On that day, I bail YOU out.”

 

Chick-Fil-A’s confidence was finally shaken on the road between Slateport and Mauville City.  The Runner’s rival, May, challenged him to a battle he couldn’t refuse, and out came her Mashtomp, the water response to his fire.  Chick-Fil-A still managed to get in a beating, but he simply could not keep up with May’s team all on his own.  All of a sudden, I felt the shift of my pokeball, and a moment later I was called out in a blaze of light.

 

Finally, here I was, on the field.  Although this was technically my first battle, the creature opposing me was a far cry from the level sixty-something Gengars and Dragonites I’d faced as Azathoth, the Elder God.  Then again, I wasn’t a level 100 Dragonite, but I was soon to be a level 30 Dragonair, and I knew moves that I shouldn’t naturally have.  Like Azathoth before me, I decimated all remaining opponents in one hit, and May’s jaw hit the ground.

 

After the battle, Chick-Fil-A had a worried exchange with Electabuzz.  “You said you’ve been with the Runner before, right?” he asked, panicked.  “Who was his starter then?”

 

“A Torchic.  Just like you were.”

 

“And how long did he rely on him?”

 

“Up to the third badge . . . which is available in this upcoming city.”

 

I could almost feel Chick-Fil-A’s panic and frustration emanating off his pokeball.  “But why?” he demanded, as though Electabuzz had just announced the date for his execution.  “I have been nothing but faithful to him!”

 

“Of course,” said Electabuzz dryly.  “But when this adventure is over, he can’t take you with him.  You are anchored to this Runner, and when his account is picked clean and forsaken, here you will stay.”

 

I could tell that Chick-Fil-A was desperate for a comforting word, and Electabuzz’s callous realism was the exact opposite of what he sought.  “Electabuzz,” I interjected, cringing inwardly as Chick-Fil-A’s hatred turned on me, “isn’t there any other time when Chick will get another shot?”

 

“Huh?  Oh, sure,” said Electabuzz, yawning.  “When we go to Kanto, he’ll pick up where he left off after two badges.  He’ll probably even make it to his Blaziken form.  But that will only last to the fifth badge, at best.”

 

Needless to say, Chick-Fil-A was a wreck when we challenged Mauville Gym.  I think he managed to take down one or two of the gym leader’s pokemon, but then the Runner had to call me in to finish the job.  It wasn’t hard.  They were Electric-types; I was a dragon.  Chick-Fil-A had fainted, and he wasn’t revived until after it was all over.  His jealousy and bitterness for me only grew, for now all pokemon up to level 40 had to obey the Runner, and I was nowhere near that.  Therefore, the Runner now sent me out regularly for most battles, and Mauville City was certainly surrounded by active trainers.  Electabuzz still wasn’t quite to the point where he was ready to take orders yet, and Chick-Fil-A snapped at him about it.

 

“At least I had a purpose!” he grumbled.  “At least I got a nickname!  What have you done to help since this journey began?”

 

His timing couldn’t have been worse, for at that moment, the Runner called Electabuzz out to smash through some rocks, which he was obligated to do.

 

“I’m here to tie up all the loose ends, in and out of battle,” he replied matter-of-factly.  “But until further notice, I am the HM slave.  Yes- SLAVE,” he repeated for emphasis, “just as all pokemon are.  Nothing we do is for our own sakes, and we should not be proud of it.  Okay?  So stop all this moping about how the Runner’s no longer using you for his own benefit.”

 

My usefulness to the Runner had become an absolute one hundred and eighty degree revolution between the second and third badge.  His dependence upon me was well-placed, for we now encountered many ground-type and fire-type pokemon, all of which succumbed to my Waterfall attacks, and when those ran out, Surfs.  My Amulet Coin wasn’t earning all that much more than he would have gotten anyway, but compared to the trainers Chick-Fil-A had previously fought, the Runner’s wealth was increased exponentially.  After a couple dozen trainer encounters, including the profoundly-stupid Team Magma, we reached the fourth gym.  Again my type advantages proved overwhelming, and I conquered without any real challenge.  It was somewhat unnerving, considering that this was precisely how Chick-Fil-A had felt right before his fall from glory.  And now, with four badges in hand, the Runner could force Electabuzz to do his bidding.

 

“Not for long, he won’t,” growled Electabuzz, in a more serious voice than I’d heard from him so far.  “If the Runner heads to Kanto after his fifth badge, like he did last time, I won’t need to submit to him until he gets another four again.”

 

“What’s the fifth gym like?” I asked, curious.

 

“It’s a Normal-type gym.  A good place for Fighting-types to conquer.”

 

Chick-Fil-A gave a snort of contempt- or at least, he snorted as well as he could have through his beak nose.

 

“Do you think I’ll still be all right against them?” I asked again, ignoring Chick-Fil-A.  Electabuzz was quiet, but when he spoke again, there was a sly edge in his voice.

 

“Ah . . . so you’re starting to feel the drag of leveling, are you?  Starting to realize that you’re going to be a Dragonair until level fifty-five?  By forty, most pokemon are at their final stage, but not you.  Your time of feeling invincible is at an end, and it won’t come back for a long time to come.”

 

I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I said nothing.  Electabuzz eventually spoke again.  “Don’t worry your pretty head.  You can manage against the gym trainers, and if you fall against the Leader, I’ll be there to bail you out.”

 

To make a long story short, that was precisely what ended up happening.  I very nearly fainted, the Runner switched me out and let a decoy take the hit, and Electabuzz carried the battle.  He was a bitter old ogre, but he was certainly wise as well.  As he predicted, we almost took a straight path to Kanto, save for one brief side journey to the Runner’s house.

 

“Why’s he getting another Amulet Coin?” I wondered, glancing down at the one still strung around my neck.  “I’ve already got one.”

 

“That’s for Bulbasaur,” mused Electabuzz.  “Although after the second Kanto gym, it will be yours, Chick-Fil-A.”

 

“I don’t want it,” snapped the Combusken curtly.

 

“You don’t have to keep it,” Electabuzz replied.  “If things work out like last time, it’ll be around my neck before the halfway point.”

 

“I don’t want to do anything for a trainer who’s going to throw me away,” Combusken snarled again.  “I know that he’ll do what he wants to do in the end, but at least for his first two Kanto badges, I’m not doing a single thing he tells me to.”

 

The reset trip to Kanto carried plenty of déjà vu moments with it, from the beginning of Hoenn’s journey, especially in attitudes.  We three veteran pokemon mutually agreed not to help the Runner in any way until we had to.  I still considered the Master my true trainer, Chick-Fil-A was still sore about his betrayal, and Electabuzz, as per usual, didn’t give a crap.  Bulbasaur, like the pre-betrayal Torchic, was conversely enthusiastic.  He did everything the Runner wanted, whether it was capturing wild pokemon or beating enemy trainers, and he did it with such gusto that nobody had the heart to tell him that his journey began and would end in the same hour.  Not long after Ash’s original companions were Vine Whipped into submission, the Runner boxed Bulbasaur without a second thought.  He never even received a nickname.

 

In that course of time, I noticed that an odd change came over Chick-Fil-A.  He had been forced to sit out as soon as his reliability had come into question against my own.  However, now that he had witnessed a series of battles against pokemon he knew he could handle with ease, a fire was re-ignited in Chick-Fil-A.  He accepted his Amulet Coin without complaint, and proceeded to kick the snot out Gary and all the kids on Trainer Bridge.  It continued all the way to Bill’s house in the far east, and then again, all the way south to Vermillion City.  Not once did he require a stop at the pokemon center, until the kicking tour was over.  As he sat on Nurse Joy’s desk, he let out a crow of victory.

 

“YEAH!  How do you like me now, huh?”

 

The Runner responded by avoiding many of the upcoming available battles.  Chick-Fil-A was right at level 30, which meant that he would soon be overly arrogant and would no longer listen if the Runner didn’t have his third Kanto badge.  Thus, I was soon acquainted with the fourth official member of the team: Ch’ding the Farfetch’d.  Ch’ding reminded me of a ronin warrior; he wasn’t much of a talker, but he got the job done that he was sent to do.  Primarily, he was the emergency backup / decoy pokemon in defeating Gary’s S.S. Anne team.  Once the ship captain delivered Cut, and we had gotten the TMs Brick Break and Rest, Ch’ding cleared the shrubs blocking the third gym.  Odd- considering that the Pokemon Gym was a commercial enterprise, you’d think that they would be good about keeping the path in and out clear.

 

Lieutenant Surge’s pokemon were, more or less, at about the same difficulty as Wattson’s from Hoenn.  The difference was, the Runner knew I wouldn’t be of assistance, making Chick-Fil-A his best hope.  The Combusken was beaten to a sliver of health, but he won in the end.

 

Looking back on that time, I would like to think that Chick-Fil-A’s moment of redemption was enough to make up for his sorrow for most of the journey.  After all, it carried on back to the path between Cerulean City and Rock Tunnel.  Then in Rock Tunnel, the Combusken’s fighting prowess shone again, even brighter than Electabuzz’s Flash ability.  I was hardly needed, and good thing too, for I was hardly ready to continue my service to the detached and ungrateful Runner.  He had me until level 40, and then he’d need to get his fourth badge to keep me under his command.  Fortunately for him, the fourth badge was a Grass-type gym, and Chick-Fil-A could have razed that whole place to the ground, Blaziken or not.

 

Alas, poor Chick-Fil-A.  He tried so hard, and got so far, but in the end it didn’t even matter.  Just as Electabuzz had said, the Runner took his Amulet Coin and put it around the Electric pokemon’s neck, now that each of his pokemon was subservient once and for all.  Chick-Fil-A stayed on the team, as a level 36 Blaziken is always useful to have on hand in a pinch, but his part as a key player had now irrevocably passed to me.

 

There were fifteen levels between me and my Dragonite status, and that just wouldn’t do, so once again I found myself at the head of the party, facing down some laughably weak foes.  I won’t go into the details of my slow ascent, but suffice it to say, I handled the Rocket Hideout, the Pokemon Tower, and the Silph Co missions without need of assistance.  It wasn’t until right at the end of the Silph that Electabuzz had to step in and support me.  The Runner had chosen Bulbasaur, which meant that Gary had his Gary-dos, Charizard, and as always, Pidgeot.  They all perished at the crackling fists of Electabuzz’s Thunderpunch.  I hate to admit it, but I needed the help.  The same thing happened again in the fifth gym: I did well all the way up to the leader, and then his poison pokemon simply refused to die, and his attacks bit into my stamina.  Of all the battles I’ve fought since then, that one was the hardest.  That gym’s easy as pie if you’re an Alakazam, but I simply couldn’t handle it without Electabuzz.

 

Speaking of Alakazam, I sensed the Runner’s apprehension as Ch’ding flew us back to Saffron City, where the psychic gym awaited us.  I couldn’t hold up to Gary’s Alakazam, and this one was level forty-three.  I was now level fifty, but that didn’t mean I was a match.  Not yet. 

 

But then, the Runner did something that would assure my victory- and by extension, his victory- for the entire rest of the journey.  At the teleport that led to Sabrina’s room, he suddenly force-fed me Rare Candies.  I’d noticed him collecting them throughout our travels, but I never thought about actually eating the sickly-sweet things.  For those of you unfamiliar with the taste, the amount of sugar in just one Rare Candy would give an elephant diabetes.  I had to swallow five, and I was guzzling my own Surf attacks for weeks after that.  But it did the trick.  All of a sudden, my body was twisting and contorting, I was growing arms and legs, and my once-slim frame bulged out in a beer belly.  If I ever discover the god who invented evolution, I’m going burn all of his shrines to the ground.

 

On the plus side, the sudden jump from Dragonair to Dragonite now made me understand and appreciate why I had been the object of such concentrated obsession from the beginning.  I felt power surging through my limbs, such as I had not known since the brief time I shared Azathoth’s potency.  I could take on the Elite Four right now, by myself.  I might not win, but I would certainly be a worthy opponent.  As for this gym leader, Sabrina, there was no hope whatsoever that she could win now.  To pound the coffin nail in further, the Runner set to work on my attacks, replacing Waterfall with Brick Break, Secret Power with Fly, and Dragon Rage with the Dragon Claw TM that Electabuzz had been holding from the beginning.  I had a brand new body, and a brand new moveset.

 

The battle with Sabrina was over in a minute.  I don’t think I killed any of her pokemon.  I tried not to, anyway.

 

After receiving the sixth Kanto badge, we took a brief detour to the Power Plant.  Electabuzz told me that this was the place in which he had lost his freedom.  He explained that, although Pikachu was easier to capture and make Raichu, his race was stronger than any Raichu, and so his power was coveted.  We didn’t encounter any wild Electabuzz, and in surprising earnestness, he told me that he wasn’t sure how to feel.  He was happy that the Runner couldn’t enslave another one, but also saddened at the prospect that his kin were down almost to Lapras level of endangerment.

 

From there, I swam the team to Cinnibar Island, where we explored a burned-out old mansion that had supposedly once contained the legendary Mewtwo.  Yes, I began this memoir claiming that I am the strongest in PokeMMO, and I hold to that, on the grounds that Mewtwo has no practical purpose for his strength.  If being with trainers has taught me anything, it’s that a pokemon is only as strong as its usefulness allows for.  I have long since resigned myself to the idea that I am an object; indeed, no more of one than the key we came to the mansion to look for.

 

Once we had gotten the key, I thought for sure that the Runner would take me into the seventh gym.  However, of all times, he chose now to make a return trip to Hoenn.  I later figured that, having only gotten five Hoenn gym badges, he was at risk of losing my cooperation if he spent any longer in Kanto before coming back. 

 

I won’t drag out the details of the last three Hoenn gyms.  Considering all the events that happened in the middle, they took a while to get through, even with all the repels that the Runner now used regularly.  However, the result never changed.  Nobody stood a chance against me- not Winona’s Altaria, not Maxie’s Camerupt, not Liza’s Claydol, not Archie’s Sharpedo, not even Juan’s Kingdra.  Sometimes I wondered if the Runner was as bored as I was, since only I did any fighting.  However, he seemed perfectly content to rake in the cash from trainer battles, and it certainly was a lot now.

 

By the time we finally returned to Kanto, I was approaching level 70.  If Kanto pokemon had been no match for me before, they were downright pathetic ants, now.  From the seventh gym to the Sevii Islands, from the eighth gym to the end of Victory Road, my battles were all like Azathoth’s before me.  No enemy survived my first hit; they crumpled like cardboard.  Even my peers, Electabuzz and Chick-Fil-A, looked puny in my eyes.  They knew it too, and they had long since stopped talking to me.  I am lonely by nature, and I certainly felt lonely, but perhaps it was better this way.  The two did not make good companions; they were too bitter and apathetic.  Chick-Fil-A’s central role had long since passed, and all Electabuzz did was push boulders around with his Strength.  In fairness, once we reached the Indigo Plateau, he did assist in taking down one of Lance’s pokemon.  But I handled the rest.

 

The Elite Four were not as strong as they were when Azathoth had faced them in my Dratini days.  To their credit, they still provided my first and only real challenge as a Dragonite, and for that I am grateful.  I say that a Dragonite’s purpose is to fight through the Pokemon League whenever necessary, for we do it more effectively than any other sub-par pokemon.  Call me elitist, but if that’s what it takes to keep me from being thrown away like my former companions, so be it.

 

The Runner still had a little more work for me after the Elite Four, although it was really just a couple of last-minute chores.  We went through the rest of the Sevii Islands, collecting things he considered precious like the Metal Coat and the King’s Rock, and along the way I earned him at least fifty thousand more in cash.  He certainly was thorough at this point, as if he had spent his whole journey just to make it here.  But eventually, it came to an end, and there was nothing left to do.

 

The Runner went to a pokemon center and spent some time gazing greedily into all the possessions he had accumulated throughout the two-region trip.  Suddenly- lo and behold, there was my old Master, the one who had hatched me, striving into the pokecenter!  And then, as if completely forsaking his greed, the Runner began handing the Master all of his stuff.  It was the strangest thing I had ever seen: money, TMs, vitamins, high-quality potions and things not available through normal means of purchase- all of these disappeared from the Runner’s bag, and into the coffers of the Master.  Finally, he was left with nothing but pocket lint, a couple spare trinkets, and his remaining untradeable Rare Candies.  Guess whose throat those were forced down?

 

After that unpleasantness, the Runner sent the Master one last trade, in which Electabuzz and I were part.  Chick-Fil-A had his head turned to the side, but he watched us go out of the corner of his eye.  I didn’t say goodbye, because it wasn’t like we were on good terms anyway, but I did still feel sorry for him, even now.  And then we were leaving the pokemon center, while the Runner just stood there by the PC.  I never saw him again, but I’d like to think he died of cancer shortly after that.

 

Azathoth happened to be in the Master’s party, and he spoke to me from his pokeball.  “Welcome back,” he said in a cordial tone.  “And welcome into the ranks of the elite.”

 

I couldn’t believe how much change I had gone through since last I had seen him.  I had been a Dratini then, and now, I was almost his equal.  “What’s going to happen to me now?” I asked.

 

“Most likely, the Master will sell you and Electabuzz both.”

 

Looking back, I shouldn’t have been surprised and outraged, but I was.  “What?  You mean the Master STILL doesn’t want me, after all that work?”

 

He laughed, and it was a soothing laugh that calmed my anger.  “You’re not pining for my spot now, are you, Yig?  I assure you, for the right price, someone without a Dragonite will always want you.  Take heart, and consider it a complement when I say that you are worth much.”

 

And so, here I find myself on the trainer’s market, waiting for someone to call upon my help.  Perhaps I am bound for great things, such as helping trainers catch Mewtwo.  Then again, I may end up doing little more than Flying and Surfing someone around.  Either way, humans can trust me to do my job well, but I trust no one.  I’ve seen what they do, and how callously they behave.  I feel no true bond with any trainer, and so I am lonely by nature, and by circumstance.

 

 

***

 

(Coming soon: video adaptation)

Edited by Kenta147
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Thanks for your reply- runs take me about eight hours total, although I do not cover the entire game.  For instance, I don't visit the Hoenn Victory Road and Elite Four, or that area after Pacifidlog Town.  Don't get me wrong- they're worth visiting after already getting that far, but I'm simply too impatient to linger.

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Yeah I also skip all those areas in hoenn. 8 hours for both kanto and hoenn seems really fast. Maybe I just need more practice but I was under the impression hoenn alone took about 5 hours (without victory cave/ E4). Anyways, nice story, will there be a sequel?

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I don't anticipate a sequel for this particular story, since I originally wrote it to demonstrate my favorite alt running strategy.  However, if something major should happen (such as a Johto implementation), that may warrant a sequel after all, if not a new dramatization.

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