New Forum Story Idea and Recruitment

Alright, so the beginning has only changed slightly

Instead of Zayn charging in, the town elders approach the Plasma Alliance and demand that they leave

Plasma Alliance says no and threatens to demolish the whole town if they don't hand over the item

One of the elders suggest that they have a battle

If they lose they must hand over the item, clearly not strong enough to protect it

If they win, though, the Plasma Alliance must leave

A deal is done

One of the grunts step up and Zayn goes to walk forward, thinking the strongest would battle them, but instead an elder goes up

This upsets Zayn but the battle has already begun so he can't argue

The elder gets destroyed by the grunt, so the town upholds their side and hands over the item

As the Plasma Alliance leaves, though, Zayn steps up

He says that them winning wasn't actually fair because he's the strongest in the town, so until they beat him that item goes nowhere

The Plasma Alliance laughs at him, but is intrigued by his boldness

The ranked official here (I'm thinking lieutenant since that was what attacked in Lost Hope) walks up to him with a smug smirk

He asks if he's really the strongest and Zayn responds with in the world

The ranked chuckles and says that, since he's so great, the two of them will battle, but he asks what is the deal

Zayn says that if he wins then the Plasma Alliance returns the item and leaves

Ranked official asks what's in it for them and Zayn says the item, but the ranked official disagrees

He says in his eyes they already won the item

He looks around at the town and says that it's been a while since him and his group had some fun

If he wins then they destroy the town (I want him to be cruel! Plus, this would give him something to regret and a reason to get better and revenge.)

The town tries to stop Zayn, but confident in his skills he agrees without a second thought

The battle starts and Zayn and his Absol gets crushed

The Plasma Alliance then attacks the town, using their Pokémon to destroy buildings and structures

All Zayn can do is stand by and watch the consequences of his actions

The whole town screams with panic

The town elders are furious with Zayn

He just let's them rant, though, barely listening

His thoughts are way louder than them

He lost? How? He's the best, right? This is his fault!

This is when he decides he will fix it

He returns Absol and rushes into the nearby forest, determined to grow stronger and eventually rechallenge the Plasma Alliance, getting justice for his town and the item that started this back

That will be chapter one

The next chapter is a week later, and he is sitting in a Pokémon Center waiting for his team to get healed

After leaving his town he has done nothing but lose

He has caught some new Pokémon, though

A Starly, Shynx, and Bidoof

He barely managed to defeat and catch them, and even with a bigger team he still can't win

The Pokémon Center jingle chimes through the speakers, Nurse Joy calling for Zayn

He goes collects his team

As he grabs the balls, Nurse Joy asked if this was from the Gym Leader

Not knowing what that is, Zayn asks

Nurse Joy tells him that a Gym Leader is someone you battle to get a badge

There is one in this town and his name is Roark

Zayn isn't interested in the badge, but if there is a person in the town that is strong enough to be called a "leader" then they could provide some useful advice for him to get better

He thanks Nurse Joy and heads out, determined to get better

He asks around for directions and eventually makes it to the Gym, where Roark is leaving to go to the mines

Zayn stops him and asks where he can find the Gym Leader

Roark tells him that he's the Gym Leader and asks if Zayn is there to challenge him

Zayn says he just wants advice on how to become better

Roark tells him he's got to get to the mines but if Zayn comes back the next day they can talk

Zayn says okay and Roark leaves

Zayn decides to train up and goes out to battle some wild Pokémon

On his way out the town, there's a little girl who stops him

She asks if he's going out to catch some Pokémon and he says just battle

She looks a bit disappointed about this and goes quiet for a second, obviously conflicted about something

Zayn goes to walk off but she stops him, asking if he would mind catching a Bidoof

She's on vacation from Kalos and always wanted to see one

Now that she's here where they are, though, she doesn't have time to find one

Zayn pulls out his Bidoof and asks if it's this she wants to see

She gets excited and says yes

She pulls out a PokeBall and asks if he'll trade her the Bidoof for her Fennekin

Zayn doesn't see why not and agrees

The trade is done and they go their separate ways, Zayn to train and her back to her family

I don't think that's enough for a chapter, so I'll time skip to the next day, where Zayn is heading into the gym

Roark greets him and ask what Zayn needs help with

Zayn says he's been struggling to win and doesn't know why

With Roark being powerful enough to be a leader, Zayn wants to learn from him

Roark laughs and says that's just his job and that there wasn't anything dramatic to earn the title

That disappoints Zayn, but Roark tells him that he can still help, just in a battle

He tells Zayn the best way to get better is through experience

Zayn agrees to it and so they fight

So I'm thinking Chapter 2 ends there, but this next part can be included if we want

I'll have to look up Roark's team (it's been a while since I battled him) but I know Fennekin and Starly are weak against him

Maybe Shynx if any of Roark's Pokémon are part Ground or know Ground moves

Looked up his team

I've got it now

Zayn starts with Starly and uses Peck, surprised when it barely does anything

He is even more shocked when Roark one-shots him with Geodude

Roark asks if he knows his type match ups and Zayn says no, never hearing of that before

Roark tells him to check his PokeDex app quick and it will tell him them

Zayn, who doesn't have that either, is now further confused

Roark tells him to ask Nurse Joy about it after the battle

Zayn uses Fennekin, which is defeated but gets some decent damage in because it applied burn and was good at dodging

Shynx is next

It uses Bite and that's enough to defeat Geodude when combined with burn

Then, Roark sends out Onyx

Zayn commands Thunder Shock, which of coarse does nothing

Roark then uses a Ground type move, ending Shynx in one go

On his last Pokémon, Zayn starts to worry a bit

Roark tells him to calm down

If he loses here, he can try again later if he wants

That gives Zayn some comfort as he sends out Absol

Absol has the speed advantage and constantly dodges

It only gets hit twice

Once by Stealth Rock when it first comes in and another by an actual move

Both trainers are down to their last Pokémon

I want Zayn to be on the verge of losing but barely makes it out with the win

It will give him a small confident boost that is needed to keep him going

Roark congratulates Zayn on winning and gives him a badge

Zayn doesn't need it but still takes it, wearing it as a sign of what he has accomplished

He returns to the Pokémon Center and heals his team

While they are being recovered, Zayn asks about the PokeDex app

Nurse Joy requests Zayn's Rotom Phone, but where he comes from they are behind on technology and has an ordinary phone

Nurse Joy supplies him with a Rotom and downloads the app for him

She tells him that as he fills up the Dex it will inform a Professor, and if he completes the PokeDex and visits him he will give Zayn a reward

Zayn doesn't really care about that, though

He just needs it to learn about Pokémon to get better

The chapter ends with him receiving his Pokémon and leaving the Center with a newfound hope

Next chapter is him lost in the forest

He's been there for two days

He's running low on food and his only conscious Pokémon is Absol

While traveling aimlessly for a way out, he hears a nearby thud, which is followed by another, which is followed by more

Curious (and hopeful it's a person) he goes to the source of the sound, where he finds a Chimchar attacking a tree

He looks at it on his PokeDex and sees that it is much stronger than an average Chimchar and at a pretty high level (I'm thinking 12 or 13)

As he's contemplating catching it, the Chimchar notices him and attacks

Zayn avoids it and sends out Absol

They battle and Zayn wins, catching it

Zayn returns Absol and continues through the forest, finding his way out

Once out, he finds a nearby town and goes to the Pokémon Center

He hands Nurse Joy his Pokémon and she heads into the back to heal them

When she opens Chimchar's ball, though, it bursts out, furious and wild

It leaps out, trying to escape the place

Absol had already been taken out of its ball and still hasn't went down, so Zayn calls for it

Absol leaps over the counter and dashes in front of Chimchar, blocking its escape

Chimchar looks around frantically, and when no other exit is available, it launches itself at Absol

Zayn commands Absol to use Quick Attack, but the Chimchar wasn't going in for an attack

It pretty much leap frogs over Absol and makes it to the door, which automatically opens and it gets out

Zayn chases after it, Absol close behind

As they run through the town after it, they make a turn and the Chimchar is gone

Zayn looks around, including up, where he sees Chimchar climbing onto a roof out of his reach

He grumbles as he runs in the direction it looked like Chimchar was heading, not even sure if it is

Zayn and Absol run through the town, heading through alleys and streets

Zayn is on the verge of losing hope on it, but then he hears a loud screech and the commotion of a panicked crowd

He goes to the area he heard it from and there's the Chimchar, attacking random people and Pokémon

Zayn sends his Absol at it, fighting it again

The two Pokémon tie with each other in the end, both unconscious

Some people come over and help Zayn carry Absol after he puts Chimchar in his backpack (literally Chimchar, not it in a PokeBall)

They get to Nurse Joy and she heals all the Pokémon

Chimchar goes to make a run for it again, but Zayn returns it before it can

Zayn sighs heavily, knowing it is about to take a lot of hard work to train Chimchar

End of chapter

Now the next

It has been a couple days and Zayn is on Route 205 and just finished battling someone

Chimchar is on the field, happily bouncing around while the opponent's Pokémon is on the ground unconscious

You would think Zayn is happy he won, but he's actually upset

Chimchar didn't listen to him and did its own thing

It wasn't Zayn's win, just Chimchar's

This is how it always is when he uses Chimchar, though, so it's not really a surprise

He sighs as he returns Chimchar, pocketing its ball

He continues down the route and enters Eterna City (and not for a Gym Battle. I'm only doing that with Roark)

As he walks down the street, he sees a crowd of people surrounding something

He pushes through the crowd to see what's up and there's a sign

It says that there will be a tournament the next day and all is welcome to join

That sounds like the perfect way to get stronger!

Zayn is now determined to participate and is excited for tomorrow

He runs off to train, wanting to ensure his team is ready

Time skip to the next day (I don't see a point in including training unless I want something important to happen in it)

So if memory serves, by the time we reach Eterna City in the games, most Pokémon would be stage 1

So I thought in Eterna City the Pokémon would be at a lower level

They are higher than I thought, so tell me another location for these chapters, please

So what I plan to do is in the tournament, each battle one of Zayn's Pokémon will evolve (besides Absol, of coarse)

So the first one will be Fennekin (which will become Braixen)

Second Starly (Staravia)

Third is when he uses Absol

Fourth shall be Shynx (Luxio)

His last battle he actually planned on using Absol again, but Chimchar bursts out the ball instead

The ref proclaims that to be his Pokémon, and he has no choice but to use it

The other guy, who is incredibly arrogant (and a lot like how Zayn used to be) sends out a Gibble, which the guy (I'm gonna name him Jerry) tells that there's no way it could possibly lose this

The way Jerry says it, though, has an undertone of a threat

During the battle, Zayn will constantly give out commands, but Chimchar makes sure to do none of them

The Gibble tries to land hits, but Chimchar just moves around too much, jumping around and avoiding everything

As Chimchar goes in for the final strike, it glows as it evolves

The light bursts off of it right as it lands a Mach Punch (the move Monferno learns when it evolves)

This is the final hit needed to knock out the Gibble

Monferno howls proudly at its victory, the crowd cheering it on

Zayn still isn't happy because even though he got them here he didn't actually finish it

He still takes the trophy, though

As he walks out of the tournament building, he sees Jerry, who is furious with Gibble

I've already explained this part in my comment sharing Zayn's team

The chapter ends with Gibble joining the Zayn

The tournament will be multiple chapters since I have to write each battle, but that's what I got right now

So the next chapter will start with Zayn battling with Gabite (his team is at a higher level since it's been a while. I'm thinking they should be at 30) against someone who is using a Riolu

Zayn, who has been having nothing but wins, is starting to get his old confidence back

Maybe a bit too much

He beats the Riolu and has a smug smirk as he collects the girl's money, who hands it over sadly

He goes out, looking for another battle, thinking of another win

A guy comes up to him

Zayn gets ready to challenge him, but the guy speaks first

He asks if he could battle Zayn's Monferno and only the Monferno

Monferno still won't listen, but Zayn doesn't want to back down

Zayn agrees and sends it out

It howls loudly upon release, bouncing in place while it waits for a target

The guy sends out a Roserade

Zayn scoffs, knowing he has this in the bag

He commands Monferno to use Flame Wheel, but instead it runs in with Fury Swipes

The guy chuckles and says to dodge it, which Roserade does easily

He then commands Poison Jab, and Roserade lands the strike before Monferno can even react

It inflicts poisoning and knocks it back

Zayn tells it to weaken Roserade with Leer, but again he gets ignored and it charges in with Flame Wheel (oh, now it wants to use that!)

It rolls forward, covered in flames, and the guy doesn't react

Right as Monferno is about to hit, he has Roserade side-step and avoid it

He then commands a Petal Dance, which makes direct contact

Even though not very effective, it is still a powerful attack, blasting it with petals

The guy immediately follows up with Poison Jab and the Roserade hits it with a toxic fist again

It continues like this (I'll actually write it out in the story, but this is an outline so I'm just gonna move to the loss)

As Zayn sits in the Pokémon Center waiting for Monferno, he thinks about the loss

He realizes that he fell back to his old self, thinking he was better than everyone and trying to find fights

He got reminded of how weak he is, remembering the whole reason he's here

It makes him think he hasn't improved, and that he won't get stronger, and that he should just go back home if he can't improve

Then Monferno comes out, looking as depressed as he is

That's when they have the talk that I explained in the comment about his team

The chapter ends with them going for a pick-me-up treat

Right now that's all I've got

I'm working on thinking up the rest