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Tyler's Journey Through Johto

AwesomeMudkip14

Well-Known Member
This story is about the journey of Tyler as he attempts to become a top trainer in Johto and is aided by the people he meets throughout his adventure. Please write reviews about it and hopefully, i'll be able to improve anything that you think is poor in quality for future chapters. Rating-PG

This is the intro to my story: Intro 1

Chapter 1: Is That All
Chapter 2: Meet and Greet
Chapter 3: A New Friend Indeed
Chapter 4: The Masked Aurora (Part 1) (Coming Soon)

Chapter 1 - Is That All?

Finally, he had received his first Pokémon. The delightful looking creature was encapsulated in blue fur with an oversized head that gave it an awkward stance however; Tyler felt that his glistening eyes held many secrets. Almost automatically, this young trainer felt a connection with his brand new partner and even though, this might not be reciprocated by Piplup, he didn’t care. Piplup’s eyes were shining brightly with innocence and as the baby Pokémon squeaked, the fire of determination inside of his body was beginning to erupt by the fact that it had just dawned on him that his journey had officially begun.

He was so over involved with Piplup that he had completely forgotten that Professor Rowan was witnessing this event and had to shake himself out of his dreams of success and accomplishment. The stern expression on Rowan’s face showed his disapproval that Tyler hadn’t fully been concentrating on his elaborate speech and was fishing for an apology.

“This marks the beginning of your quest throughout the Sinnoh region but I must say I’m not entirely confident that you’re acting seriously about the current situation” said Professor Rowan sternly.

“Trust me, I may seem like I’m on a different planet but actually, I’m fully concentrating…on planning my route to success. With my new friend by my side, we will be able to overcome any problems that we face” replied Tyler, in a matter of fact tone.

“One last thing before you vacate my laboratory, would you like to nickname your Piplup?” questioned Rowan.

“Um…I need a name that will sum up all of its great qualities like it’s cuteness and bubbly personality for example. How about…Pippy?” said Tyler, unsure about his first suggestion. Then, Tyler gazed into Pippy’s eyes, waiting to witness his reaction to his new name.

“Pip, Piplup” squawked Pippy, his response displaying the desired result, a mixture of positivity and excitement. It continued to leap around the impeccably clean floor before slipping into a corner and smashing his head onto the metallic skirting board that ran parallel to the concrete wall. Pippy suddenly started to well up with tears and began to wail and screech, spraying the floor with glistening droplets of pain.

A twang of guilt hit Tyler as he experienced the little creature’s first moment of hurt and unfortunately, this created a segment of doubt in the back of Tyler’s mind about his skills as a trainer. Like a tumour, it would continue to grow and eventually, Tyler would succumb to this incapacitating disease.

Tyler exited the dim laboratory into the welcoming arms of the sunlight of Sandgem Town and unaware of his impending doom, he allowed this new warmth into his body as it infiltrated into his mind. It gave him a sense of hope. This was the commencing of Tyler’s adventure. A feeling of fear and excitement flooded around his bloodstream as he faced uncertainty in his future encounters.

***​

“Pippy, finish Yanma off by pecking him” shouted Tyler. This was his first actual chance at capturing a Pokémon but he was so distracted by this opportunity that he had completely forgotten how to complete his task. A white spark appeared around Piplup’s mouth before the beak fully morphed into a blinding area of glorious light. Once the move had collided with Yanma’s facial area, Tyler knew he had won the battle but as the wings on the fainted Yanma’s back started to stutter, his mind went completely blank. He froze and as he stared at the fainted insect, his hand became sweaty and clenched.

“Throw a Pokeball” screamed Ash, his mentor who was helping him achieve his first capture. He and his friends had given him advice on how to deal with everyday life within the wilderness of the Pokémon world which would greatly advance his skills for future ordeals. Also, he had regained some of the confidence which had been lost for so long.

Thankfully, this acted as a well needed wake up call. Tyler grabbed his pristine, blue backpack and attempted to retrieve the capturing device. The cool and smooth texture of the ball created an aura of hope and with this new found confidence, he chucked the Pokeball in the direction of the lifeless Yanma. A rush of adrenalin circled around his bloodstream as he anticipated the moment of capture or failure.

Success! The ball sprung open as it hit the defenceless Pokémon and the entirety of the device was displayed. A metallic look with modern and clean designs that fully catered for the inhabiting creature but these details weren’t important in Tyler’s mind. They were just part of a much bigger picture that depicted his first capture in all of its beauty and might and this finally marked the turning where Tyler would become a truly powerful trainer.

The spherical trap had caught its prey as the enemy morphed into a mountain of white light and was trapped inside its cage. It glistened as it descended to the solid earth and after a brief moment of uncertainty while the device rattled from side to side, displaying the desperate attempts of escape, the centre circle glowed to indicate capture.

Finally, the first positive sign that Tyler was one step closer to obtaining his life long goal at becoming the ultimate trainer in Sinnoh. He grabbed the ball and clenched his fingers around it to allow the triumphant feeling absorb into his body. Thanks to the people around him to support his efforts, he had now been able to overcome his reservations about the problems that he would face in his future endeavours and hopefully allow this shy and intrepid hero to further explore into the Sinnoh region.

***​


Tyler arose from his unconscious state of sleep and as he fumbled around for the light switch, he accidentally caught his Pokeballs lying on the side of the wooden dresser. They slowly rotated as they glistened in the eerie moonlight before succumbing to the eventual clash with the tiling covering a large proportion of the floor and revealing their bountiful contents.

Crying with all of its might, Yanma screeched but fortunately, hadn’t disturbed the neighbours sleeping in the room next to his and after a stern warning from his trainer, the cuddly creature reluctantly returned to its dwelling. However, Piplup wouldn’t be so easy to deal with and ended up running onto the balcony adjoined to his bedroom and tried to force its pudgy face through the frosty railings.

After prizing the Pokémon from between the bars, Tyler gazed onto the local area. It was stunning. The first few trickles of light began to pour over the horizon and started to illuminate the massive lake that was positioned behind the house. A few ripples on the water indicated that its inhabitants were stirring and beginning to wriggle free from the dark depths beneath the glistening surface. A group of stringy trees rustled as the night breathed its last breaths before falling into submission and relinquishing its title to day.

It felt like another beautiful winter’s day and he completely ignored the fact that the horizon was besmirched with a red outline, dismissing it as an old wives tale and not believing that this omen would have any relevance to him or his life.

After he had swiftly packed all of the necessary items including clothes, food and Pokeballs into a blue backpack, he vacated his room and started to run his fingers down the smooth finish of the wall so he could note where he was. Tyler finally grasped the handle on the door and pressed down to allow him to access the bathroom.

The click of the switch signalled the commencing of the flood of light that entered into the room, temporarily blinding him and as he struggled to find his footing, he stumbled and knocked over a vase in the left corner of the pristinely cleaned room. Nervously, he anticipated a flurry of movement from his parents’ room and as the sound continuously echoed throughout the hallowed rooms of the house, he froze.

Thankfully, he was safe from his parents’ wrath. Tyler opened up the window to let a cool breath of fresh air fly over his body and returned to the mirror where he saw his bristly chestnut hair waving around in the light dawn breeze. The young adventurer found this sign to be comforting and welcoming to the start of his brand new career as a trainer.

However, his preparation time was cut short by a sharp ringing sound that was cutting through the silence within the once peaceful household. Eventually, he registered the fact that this harsh sound was that of the phone downstairs and Tyler, taking two steps at a time, rushed swiftly down the carpeted staircase.

A few moments later he was facing a screen filled with the welcoming face of a nurse from the hospital in New Bark Town in the Johto region. The news that had just hit him felt like he had been left to starve in the desert, a feeling of desperation and loneliness. Separation mixed with anger. How could someone do his? WHY would someone do this?

His mother who had suddenly appeared behind Tyler asked “Are you alright, dear?”

“It’s…it’s Jimmy, he’s in hospital with a concussion to the head.” Answered Tyler, all of his emotional distraught echoed in his response.

A flood of hurt swept through Tyler’s mother as the fear for her son’s wellbeing suddenly floated to the surface of her face and a small tear was building in her right eye.

The next few minutes were a blur as he constantly pictured the image of his incapacitated sibling, lying there pathetically. His mother had ordered everyone to enter the car, shouting demands at Tyler’s father who was still in his pyjamas when he switched on the engine of the jeep-like vehicle.

The tyre screech roared around the surrounding environment, disrupting the Pokémon in the neighbouring trees and causing mayhem as they sped along the muddy track, heading towards their final destination.

His brother had stayed in Johto after Tyler’s family relocated to Sinnoh and continued his adventure, attempting to gain the title of Champion. Jimmy was known for his powerful Pokémon and unlimited capabilities when coping with difficult situations which made this incident so much more shocking. He loved his brother and know he was in a terrible amount of pain.

To the east, the sun was peaking over the skyline, still ruby red…blood red. Today was meant to mark the beginning of his Sinnoh journey as he attempted to emulate the efforts of his brother in Johto but this had been halted already. If his brother couldn’t deal with the Pokemon world then how would he?

The phrase “The more beautiful it is, the more dangerous” circulated around his head along with the other thoughts and images. The shadows of trees leapt past the window as they sped across the countryside and it was as if they were trying to hunt someone down, a criminal that was in a car in front.

Was his journey over already?
 
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AwesomeMudkip14

Well-Known Member
Chapter 2: Meet and greet

Finally, they had reached the enormous structure of concrete, New Bark Town’s hospital in the South East of Johto. Tyler didn’t have time to dawdle and ponder the local surrounding area because his mum was dragging him and shouting at her son to “get a move on”.

Up ahead was a sleek and modern building with sparkling windows that were reflecting the midday sun into the fearful faces of Tyler’s family. The doors welcomed them as they opened like a butler greeting you as you enter your grand and ornate mansion. Inside the décor was not much different, the clean white walls joined to the clean white floor with clean white robes flying past, rushing to treat the injured (they were acting like ghosts swiftly floating to terrify their next victim). All that Tyler noticed was the lack of emotion and care that was missing in this substantial place and was contrasting to the typical bright and colourful area within hospitals in Sinnoh.

In front of them stood a tall and proud man who was awaiting their arrival. He was the stereotypical doctor, crescent shaped glasses with a pale face and an expression that suggested knowledge was running through his veins. All he did was point towards the bed where his brother lay before dashing off to see to a man who had just collapsed in the hallway.

After Tyler’s mum had made a comment which he could not repeat, they slowly traipsed over to the curtain, nervous about what was awaiting them. His dad pulled back the stainless drape to reveal a mess wrapped up in blankets. Jimmy was just an emotionless, lifeless body lying there. Tyler was overwhelmed when the curtain was pulled back, by a tidal wave of emotion which he eventually succumbed to. He had to get out, get away from this mess.

Continuously pressing the elevator button, the same beeping sound repeating over and over, a dying heart beat. Swiftly deciding to run down the stairs instead of waiting, he leapt over most of the steps until fresh air finally greeted him. Tyler just wanted to get away as fast as possible and did this without even contemplating where he was going or heading.

Tears were streaming down his cheeks and an eruption of anger and fear was just waiting to escape. He was heading for an assortment of trees in the centre of this congested town however, he ran directly into someone carrying a heap of paper. After a couple of seconds of confusion and a few yelps from his victim, Tyler brushed the paper off of him and picked himself up.

Suddenly, he was confronted by a barrage of angry comments originating from the now standing man. He had a long lab coat on and was wearing glasses with brown hair protruding from the top of his forehead. His facial expressions told it all.

“Sorry…I’ll leave you alone” said Tyler, in a half hearted tone before attempting to wander off.
“Stop right there, you will help pick these up and you will go and fetch the loose pieces of paper that have blown away” shouted this very stern man.

Tyler didn’t need to be told twice and after a couple of minutes of comical attempts to catch the pieces of paper, he ran back to the man out of breath and folded over, gasping for air.

“Thank you, this is very important research that I’ve been focused on for the past 5 years and I was rushing to get it to a fax machine so I can send it to Professor Oak. Oh by the way, my name is Professor Elm.” The mystery man had finally revealed himself to Tyler but still continued to drone on. “I study Pokémon breeding or more specifically egg development and it has proved to be a success. Did you know I was credited for the discovery of Pokémon eggs?”

“Actually…” interjected Tyler.

“Of course you did everyone knows who I am. I also help trainers to begin their journey through Johto by providing them with a starter Pokémon, each one differing in type and abilities. I know I’ll show you at my lab” said Professor and without awaiting any reply from Tyler, he dragged him off to his lab.

It was only a short jog from the hospital but it seemed like a life time because the professor was still talking in a very monotonous manner. Thankfully, he was saved by the Professor’s aide who had run out to greet them.

“We’ve got that beginning trainer that Nurse Joy told us to expect so get the Pokémon ready.” Ordered Elm before further tugging on Tyler’s shirt and pushing him towards 3 Poke balls sitting on a surface beside an elaborate machine with flashing lights and levers in any place possible. Everything looked impossibly complicated within this lab so he was grateful that he would never work here.

“Do you always treat your guests with this much hospitality? So who this new trainer then?” questioned Tyler

But Elm was completely ignoring Tyler while he was messing around with one of his gadgets before walking over and grabbing one of the glimmering devices.

“Your first choice is Totodile” Elm stated. A flash of bright white light transformed into the shape of a spiky blue creature with large white teeth. “Totodile is a water Pokemon with excellent swimming abilities and masterful control of any move it performs. Also, it will act very affectionate and loyal towards it trainer and can be relied fully upon when in danger. You’ll have that threatening edge with Totodile in your arsenal.”

“Yeah that’s nice but…” Tyler tried to explain to Elm that he already was a trainer but Elm wasn’t paying any attention.
“Secondly, we have Cydaquil” announced Elm. Once again, the capsule opened up to reveal its contents. A cream and purple creature with eyes that were closed shut appeared. “Don’t be fooled by its timid nature because once it has warmed up, then watch out for its powerful flame based attacks. This is also reflected in its fiery personality aided by an abundance of determination which means that it could easily tackle any opponent.”

“Please, shut up…” pleaded Tyler.

“Finally, we have Chikorita” said Elm. This time, a cream coloured creature with a leaf protruding from the top of its head and a group of leaves round its neck like a necklace. “Don’t be deceived by its looks because this is a dangerous animal with a range of grass type attacks. But its main joy is relaxing and sunbathing with its trainer and enjoying everyday life. It is rumoured that Chikorita can heal other Pokémon and people with an aroma that emanates from its body.”

Instead of trying to stop Elm’s pointless lectures which Tyler deemed to be near impossible, he reached into the pockets of his trousers and pulled out his Pokedex. This was the lifeline he needed and it dawned on Elm that he had made a massive mistake in his assumptions.

“I am sorry” apologised Elm. “I sometimes get carried away when I’m explaining things to people but it’s only because I’m so passionate about Pokemon that it sometimes clouds my vision and I just can ramble on for hours”

“It’s alright and those lectures could come in handy someday if I battle any of these Pokémon” said Tyler, acting as though he had been listening to Elm.

“Do you already have any Pokémon?” asked Elm. Tyler decided to show him what he had captured already and a feeling of pride circulated in his body while Elm stared and examined his Pokémon. Yanma and Piplup looked nervous as Elm studied every single nook and cranny that he could before coming to a conclusion.

“These look as though they have been trained very well already but they still have a lot of power that you must unlock as a trainer and help them learn how to utilise this power during battles and confrontations” said Elm, finally speaking to Tyler in a way that he understood. “You should take your journey here in Johto, in a place full of culture and a variety of different people that you would never experience in any other region.”

This prospect was an interesting one and made Tyler rethink about wear his adventure was leading.

“That sounds like a good idea, I can try to live and fight in a completely different region to Sinnoh and plus, I can better my brother’s efforts” said Tyler.

“Who’s your brother, I might know him?” questioned Elm

“His name is Jimmy but he is ill right now. He is resting in…Oh my god, I completely forgot about him, I have to get back right now, it was good talking to you” said Tyler, waving goodbye and leaving Elm in a state of shock.

***​

Out of breath and gasping for air, he knelt beside his brother’s bed who had woken up by the time he had returned. His parents were a little annoyed that he had just run off but were relieved he was ok and was beside them now.

They heard a massive clink of metal colliding with the tiled floor and span around to witness Elm attempting to ease the devices back onto the tray without drawing too much attention before heading towards Jimmy’s bed.

“I was very sorry to hear about your injury so I decided to come and pay y respects and wish you a swift but steady recovery.” Announced Elm

“You two know each other?” interrogated Tyler.

“Yeah, I received by first Pokémon from Professor Elm a few years ago and now it has become a Typhlosion. He really helped me to become the powerful trainer that you see before you today” said Jimmy. All of the adults burst into laughter but Tyler wasn’t older enough to grasp the concept of irony.

“Professor Elm has suggested that I travel around Johto instead of Sinnoh” explained Tyler.

“That sounds good. You can stay within distance of me and now that I’m in a stable condition, I’ll be up in no time and hopefully, we will be able to battle one day when you are strong enough.” Stated Jimmy.

Tyler was now convinced and decided to stay in Johto and with the backing of his family and Elm, he could always be sure that he had people that would support him whatever decision he makes.

With an air of confidence and a swagger affecting his walking style, he strode off towards Route 28. After all of these hurdles he had to face already, he was relieved to finally say to himself that this was definitely the commencing of his journey through Johto.
 
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AwesomeMudkip14

Well-Known Member
Chapter 3: A New Friend Indeed

Tyler heaved a massive sigh of relief as he exited the hospital. He was glad to be away from that place, glad to escape his brother’s bed but most of all, glad to start his adventure. He traipsed slowly down the high street of New Bark Town and as he gawped at all of the wonderful displays behind the shop window, he felt jealous of all of the customers exiting with delectable pastries and desserts.

The brightly decorated streets of New Bark Town were supposed to be for some kind of festival however, Tyler couldn’t detect any kind of thing as he wandered towards Route 29 to the east of this built up area of Johto. Unfortunately, Tyler had completely forgotten to pack his Pokegear so had no clue as to where he would go when he reached the exit to this built up area.

Not noticing the extravagant and ornately designed structures within the immediate area, he dawdled on towards a signpost and was hoping that the mouldy green wooden post would detail the right direction. Unfortunately, the only things written on the signpost were tourist places so instead of panicking about what to do, Tyler decided to sit on a bench and zipped open his bag to reveal a packed lunch that contained a mouth watering chicken and lettuce sandwich made by his mother. He savoured his mother’s cooking with every bite until he heard someone shout his name.

Tyler jumped, dropping the sandwich during his leap and spun around to see his mother waving and carrying his Pokegear!

“How are you, honey?” questioned Susan. Ever since Jimmy’s incident, she couldn’t let go of her children and watch them grow up in a world of crime and disaster. Tyler’s lack of preparation just made her worry even more about her offspring but she couldn’t stand in his way and decided to put on a brave face to not only reassure Tyler but herself as well.

“I’ll be alright now thanks to you mum. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I didn’t have my Pokegear. Thanks.” Complimented Tyler, a wide grin sprawled across his tanned face.

“It’s alright. I’ve also got some items of clothing for you and your Piplup” said his mum. As soon as she saw this in a shop display, Susan realised that this would be ideal for his son’s Pokémon. She reached into her handbag and searched for the tiara and belt but when she pulled them out, her son’s expression wasn’t one of joy.

“That belt is awesome but I can’t put that on a male Piplup” chuckled Tyler, noting the flowery ornaments around the centre of the band.

“But your Piplup is a girl…didn’t you know that?” said Susan, who was resisting the urge to burst into laughter at her son’s ignorance.

Tyler released his Piplup from its home before surveying its features and meanwhile, his mum placed the piece of jewellery on its head. Pippy gave a squeak of approval while Tyler fitted his belt to suit his waste line before attaching both of his Pokeballs. After his mum had given him more food and a special netball (a present from his dad in a hope that he would catch a good water Pokémon), Tyler waved goodbye to his mum for the final time and ran towards the exit of New Bark Town.

***​

It was a massive relief to escape from the polluted and dirty town into the vibrant countryside where Tyler could be alone with his thoughts. Now that he was finally beginning his journey, he had a large urge to battle and train his reasonably weak team. Luckily, it didn’t take long for him to find an opponent.

“Pidgey. The little bird Pokemon. It usually hides in tall grass. Because it dislikes fighting, it protects itself by kicking up sand.” Stated his Pokedex. Tyler unclipped the Pokeball from his belt and threw it up into the air. Pippy emerged in a burst of white light and landed softly on the muddy ground.

The wild Pidgey looked up to see Piplup glaring at it, anticipating its first move.

“Pippy, Bubble” commanded Tyler. A stream of lightly blue coloured bubbles spurted from Piplup’s mouth and rushed towards Pidgey who managed to dodge a few before the bubbles hits its target. “Good shot, now use Pound” screamed Tyler, adrenalin rushing around his blood stream. Piplup’s fin glowed a bright white and swung at its foe but missed. Pidgey retaliated with a tackle that struck Pippy in the stomach and sent it flying backwards into a tree.

Piplup struggled to its feet and leapt forward with a Peck that landed squarely in the creature’s chest which turned out to be the decisive blow. It spiralled towards a pile of bushes and fainted out of view. Tyler unclipped an empty ball from his belt and ran towards the wild Pokémon, Piplup struggling to keep up with its owner’s stride.

But when he reached the crash site, a trainer was already there, clasping at a Pokeball with no sign of any Pidgey.

“Oi that was my capture” shouted Tyler, a wave of anger affecting his voice. “That was rightfully my capture so you can’t do that”.

“What are you gonna do about it!” said the young boy. He had black cropped hair and sapphire blue eyes. An annoying smirk was spread across his face and Tyler could only think o one thing to say.

“I’ll battle you for it” said Tyler, an offer to which the young trainer, called Mike, agreed to.

“Come on out, Cyndaquil” exclaimed Mike, a fire of determination raging in his eyes. A ball of light morphed into a little creature with closed eyes and a cream and black coloured coat.

“Cyndaquil. Fire mouse Pokémon. It is timid, and always curls itself up in a ball. If attacked, it flares up its back for protection.” Stated Tyler’s Pokedex. Almost instantly, Tyler had made up his mind that he was going to use Pippy and he realised that this would be a lot tougher than his previous battle with Pidgey.

“Let’s start this up with Peck” said Tyler, his hand was targeted towards his opponent and immediately, Piplup jumped into action, launching a ferocious attack that hit Cyndaquil directly in the centre of the head. A small graze appeared and the timid Pokémon was dazed by the hit before returning back to its normal status.

“Cyndaquil, Ember” shouted Mike, trying to counter the damage already done to his starter Pokémon. Cyndaquil’s flames ignited on its back, the Pokémon jumped up and began to roll in midair releasing a torrent of small fireballs in all directions. Tyler had to dodge them as well as his Piplup which caused Mike to chuckle at Tyler’s expense.

“Let’s finish this up. Pippy, Bubble” commanded Tyler. Knowing he had the advantage made his confidence levels rise rapidly and the site of the blue bubbles careering towards Cyndaquil denoting the end of the battle.

Cyndaquil flew straight into the Pokeball containing Pidgey which shot out and flew away into the distance, screeching and making angry expressions towards both Tyler and Mike.

“Now look what you’ve done” said Mike, blaming the incident entirely on Tyler. “Firstly, you harm my Cyndaquil and then, you release the Pokémon which I had worked so hard to capture”.

“But…” said Tyler, desperate to voice his opinion.

“You’re so selfish but I’ll let you off this time, because I’m a nice person and I don’t want to waste my breath on someone pointless like you!” argued Mike. His comments aggravated Tyler and he couldn’t keep himself from blurting out his true opinion.

“SHUT UP, YOU SELFISH BRAT” shouted Tyler, unable to control his temper. This prompted Mike to burst into tears and after returning his wounded Pokémon, he ran away with tears streaming down his pale face. Tyler felt a twinge of guilt but couldn’t help thinking that he deserved it.

***​

Eventually, Tyler stumbled upon a beautiful lake which played host to a wide variety of Pokémon, but Tyler didn’t have the effort to attempt to capture any of them because of the fatigue that had been caused by his previous two battles. After letting Yanma out for a little exercise, he decided to relax and observe the local wildlife.

A group of Pidgey flew over, cawing while the sun set into the horizon creating a sea of maroon flooding the sky. A sight that Tyler would’ve liked to savour but something started to cry for help in the lake. The ripples originating from the epicentre were slapping against the shore and as his Yanma was drowning, Tyler froze. His mind went blank began to appear around his scalp as he attempted to get his Pokémon to safety and resorted to jumping into the lake. However, Yanma disappeared from view and the ripples ceased. His panic levels were rising as he dipped his head underwater to search for his friend but found nothing. After several minutes of searching with no results, he came back up for air and pulled himself up onto the bank, his hand in his hands. More guilt than sadness haunted him as Tyler realised that he had just lost his first capture and best friends. The atmosphere was very melodramatic as he shouted and began to hit the tree in frustration. Meanwhile, a Mudkip was walking back to his trainer with Yanma on his back that was dripping wet.

The trainer picked up the insect and dried it off before strolling over to the crying trainer who he had watched smash up a small tree in anger. It took the young trainer a few seconds to register that his Pokémon was safe and well, thanks to this trainer.

“Thank you so much, is there anything I can do in return?” questioned Tyler, a tone of gratefulness filling every word escaping his mouth.

“Why don’t we have a two on two battle” said the mysterious. “By the way my name is Josh, pleased to meet you” called Josh, shouting from the other side of the battle field. He had blond spiky hair and brown eyes with a twinge of green. He was only a few years older than Tyler, but a few feet taller and wore a white with a mask shaped shadow being the centre piece of his garments.

After commanding Mudkip to charge onto the field, he reached into his over the shoulder bag and brought out a glistening Pokeball. Swiftly, he chucked the ball into the air to release a strange looking Pokémon with a skull for a face. Tyler brought out his Pokedex to analyse his opponent.

“Duskull. Requiem Pokémon. Making itself invisible, it silently sneaks up to prey. It has the ability to slip through thick walls” stated the machine in a monotonous tone.

Tyler only had two Pokémon so it was obvious he would choose Yanma and Pippy. This was his first ever double battle but it appeared that Josh had a few more years of experience for battles which would help him a great deal when it came to strategy.

“Let’s begin with Shadow Ball from Duskull and Water Gun from Mudkip” shouted Josh. The haunting ghost flew up and a sphere of pure darkness began to appear in front of Duskull who sent it speeding towards Yanma and Mudkip cheeks enlarged before releasing a vast torrent of water towards Pippy.

“Yanma counter with Sonicboom” commanded Tyler, his fist clenched in anticipation. Both Shadow Ball and Sonicboom collided and the vast amount of energy triggered a large explosion engulfing both sides in a plume of smoke. Tyler coughed and spluttered and attempted to see if his Pokémon had managed to survive the attack. Meanwhile, Josh was quietly confident of a victory.
 

harryheart

Well-Known Member
I can't believe I missed this! I've read the first Chapter and you're writing is amazing. I'm loving the description and the background you've delved into the story already and that we already have a secured knowledge of the character. That is an awesome skill to own and I'm hoping to see this developed a lot more in future characters!
 

Diddy

Renegade
You know, I read the first paragraph and I had one of those moments. It's like a morbid fascination, like watching a car crash, but I started reading this and didn't want to stop because it was so funny to see it go on.

Were you actually reading what you wrote? It's hilarious, I was seriously smiling the whole way through.

There was a discussion in the author's café a while back about "Purple Prose" now I'd heard the term bandied about a few times but never truly understood what it meant until they talked about it in this topic and provided a few examples. This, I can safely say, is a brilliant example of Purple Prose.


wikipedia explain it, and it's origins rather nicely.

If you read the article, then read your fic (especially the opening paragraph) you'll see what I mean.

continuing...

“Pippy, finish Yanma off by pecking him” shouted Tyler. This was his first actual chance at capturing a Pokémon but he was so distracted by this opportunity that he had completely forgotten how to complete his task. A white spark appeared around Piplup’s mouth before the beak fully morphed into a blinding area of glorious light. Once the move had collided with Yanma’s facial area, Tyler knew he had won the battle but as the wings on the fainted Yanma’s back started to stutter, his mind went completely blank. He froze and as he stared at the fainted insect, his hand became sweaty and clenched.

Your battle and capture of yanma scene.

"collided with yanma's facial area". first of all, you use the word area just before this and the repetition really upsets any kind of flow you could have been going for in that section, secondly, facial area? you could just say head, you won't get shot for using a simple word. For a trainer, this kid really doesn't like to see pokémon hurt, in any way. Yanma fainted, OH GOD WHAT HAVE I DONE! captured yay! :3 Hey Ash look what I did...

...wait a minute... BACK THAT UP!

Ash?

I can see what you're doing with the opening trailer thingy, and maybe Tyler is the actual character in that scene battling the Yanma with his piplup whilst Ash and Co. look on and you're just expounding up him as a character, but still. Where did Ash come from, what's with all the random time-skips? He receives his pokémon, then he's battling a Yanma and Ash has become his mentor, then he's at home not waking his parents up and getting a random phone call, his mother appears magically behind him and we get no details that any interaction between Tyler and phone person ever happened because he just instantly becomes saddened by the news beamed into his head by phone person/telepathic voodoo doctor guy.

If you're going to use a canon character, one as big as Ash anyway, you can't just randomly chuck him in without any explanation at all. I could understand a brief reference, say his name being mentioned on a news report about a pokémon league or something, but he's a character in the action, has a speaking role, yet has no description, no other references to make people think he was there for any moment longer than to shout "Throw a Pokéball! Dumbass"

Come to think of it, we don't get much of a description of Tyler either, I'm sure you mentioned his hair at one point, maybe his eyes, but I don't remember you telling us how he dresses or what his body type is or how tall he may be, sorry if you did but I don't really have a picture of him in my mind. By the way, using a video showing the character is cheating :p

At least Tyler has some character development, we get that he's an empathetic bleeding heart at the start but when we get to Johto (by an unknown means, they just 'get' there, did they drive the jeep across the ocean? Was Tyler's dad still in his pyjamas when they got to Johto?) anyway, we get to poor Jimmy's bedside and Tyler turns, almost instantly, into a ragemo (My newly invented word for angry emo) he then forgets all about being a ragemo and turns into a rude, d-bag kind of guy, again almost instantly, I mean-

“Please, shut up…” pleaded Tyler.

How rude.

Jimmy wakes up from his mysterious concussion. Will it have a bearing on the plot? Was it merely a device to make a plausible explanation of him having a piplup as a starter yet journeying through Johto? Only time will tell. Anyway, Jimmy wakes up, Tyler is pleased and he just leaves on his journey. oh-kay...

Did he just pack all his trainer gear in the Ocean-Crossing Magic Jeep, just in case a random town professor and licensed bio-arms dealer pokémon giver-outerer persuades him to journey through Johto? Boy, this kid really nails down some scenarios before rushing into the Magic Jeep to take a quick Ocean drive to Johto.

In those scenes with Elm, you seem to mess up your mood. You start with them being in a hospital, everyone is sad at the sight of the "mess wrapped in blankets" Tyler leaves because he's too manly to tear up in front of his parents, so ragequits Jimmy's bedside to "cool-off" on a nice walk. He, coincidentally, bumps (quite literally ho ho) into Elm. At this point you have a certain mood going, it's tense, someone's in hospital, will they make it, it's also kinda sad, because Jimmy was so young. Then we meet Elm and it totally throws it off-

Tyler didn’t need to be told twice and after a couple of minutes of comical attempts to catch the pieces of paper, he ran back to the man out of breath and folded over, gasping for air.

It just isn't a time for "comical attempts", at a bare minimum you could use tragic humour, even that can break the line. Then you have Tyler's attempts to alert Elm to the fact that he's already a trainer, but that Elm, oh shucks, he's talked himself up a head of steam and he can't stop. Silly Elm. I know you're trying to make him have that canon personality he has, but I just don't feel it's an appropriate time considering the start of the chapter.

And to come back on the character development thing I was getting at earlier, the start of chapter 3 sees no change in his current d-bag rating.

I dislike Tyler's Mum. Or Susan, or Generic Matriarchal Construct #72 as I like to think of her as. No description at all, other than Susan, so I have to picture a Susan, what do Susan's look like? The other reason I dislike her is because she's a smart-*** who dresses up animals. Grr.

“SHUT UP, YOU SELFISH BRAT” shouted Tyler, unable to control his temper.

Ooh, we're back to Ragemo.

Tyler felt a twinge of guilt but couldn’t help thinking that he deserved it.

Scratch that, he's back to d-bag, but know he thinks he has the moral high-ground.

Also, What was the point in Mike? He loses, insults Tyler, then cries and runs away? Surely there are better ways to make Tyler look like a jerk. Perhaps make him kick a Sentret or eat a baby.

A group of Pidgey flew over, cawing while the sun set into the horizon creating a sea of maroon flooding the sky. A sight that Tyler would’ve liked to savour but something started to cry for help in the lake. The ripples originating from the epicentre were slapping against the shore and as his Yanma was drowning, Tyler froze.

How did Yanma start drowning? I thought it could fly, if it couldn't why go near a lake, never mind the middle of it.

also, this paragraph is whuh?

“Why don’t we have a two on two battle” said the mysterious. “By the way my name is Josh, pleased to meet you” called Josh, shouting from the other side of the battle field. He had blond spiky hair and brown eyes with a twinge of green. He was only a few years older than Tyler, but a few feet taller and wore a white with a mask shaped shadow being the centre piece of his garments.

¬¬

That's my face when I see a "DUST CLOUD OBSCURING THE BATTLE" cliffhanger. Also, a few feet is a huge difference, I always think of "few" as about three or four, so even if Tyler was four foot nothing, then Josh would be seven, eight feet tall, which is pretty damn tall.

Overall, what I'm basically saying is.

1) Write like a normal person. Write dialogue like a normal person, not everyone is pretentious and flowery.

2) Use the fact that you should no longer be describing every obscure little thing in great detail using excessively ornate wording and channel it into describing what the readers actually care about i.e people, pokémon, places etc.

3) Don't skip everything. It's a journey fic for a reason, we're here to read the journey, not watch the highlight reel. Just because it might seem like an uneventful area of Johto, doesn't mean you have write it that way, make interesting little side-plots. You obviously watch the anime, so you've seen it being done.

4) Try to make Tyler stable. That many personalities running around one head can't be good. Not that you shouldn't give him different emotions, by all means you SHOULD be doing that, just try not to bounce between them too quickly. One minute he cares too much, the next none at all, then he's all angry, then he's all happy.

5) Put more thought into the supporting cast. If they're going to be recurring characters, or even traveling buddies, then we as readers need to know that they are important in their own right and they have separate personalities and are easily distinguished.

6) Have good reason to do something. You write a huge chunk in Elm's lab about the starters which is entirely useless, it gave him nothing a pokédex could have done just as easily. In fact the only conceivable reason I can see that it should be there is that the line of conversation eventually leads to Elm suggesting he should journey through Johto. You also seem to get hung up on random details about things which are never mentioned again, i.e the festival in New Bark Town which, considering where he's going, will never attend, so why tell us? I also never imagined New Bark Town as polluted, isn't it a small rural village?

7) Work, really Work on your battles. At the moment it sounds like you're describing the battle animations in the games rather than a real battle with real tension and drama.

I think that's it.

Well, I think that was my longest review ever. I just couldn't stop typing. Enjoy.
 

AwesomeMudkip14

Well-Known Member
I can't believe I missed this! I've read the first Chapter and you're writing is amazing. I'm loving the description and the background you've delved into the story already and that we already have a secured knowledge of the character. That is an awesome skill to own and I'm hoping to see this developed a lot more in future characters!

Cheers, it's great to know that the first review is a positive one and I couldn't have done it without your advice, hopefully, I will be able to improve on these chapters.
 
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AwesomeMudkip14

Well-Known Member
Finally, a bit of constructive critcism. Clearly, you don't like my writing style so i'll focus less on the purple prose in future chapters.

...wait a minute... BACK THAT UP!

Ash?

I'm just summing up what happened in the anime and in Sinnoh. The story wasn't based in that area so I decided not to focus on it much. Chapter one is more like a prologue, explaining the events running up to the moment he enters Johto.

How did Yanma start drowning? I thought it could fly, if it couldn't why go near a lake, never mind the middle of it.

That part will be revealed later on in the story.

Also, What was the point in Mike?

This is a brief intro to Mike who will return later in the story. He will still hold grudges against Tyler thorughout the story but I was planning on saving major character development till he is more involved with Tyler.

Write like a normal person.

Obviously, I need to reduce the amount of description but there is no definitive way of writing a story. This is quite an ambiguous comment.

Don't skip everything. It's a journey fic for a reason, we're here to read the journey, not watch the highlight reel. Just because it might seem like an uneventful area of Johto, doesn't mean you have write it that way, make interesting little side-plots. You obviously watch the anime, so you've seen it being done.

This is meant to reduce the description of pointless areas and trust me, there will be side plots created further on in the story but right now, I'm setting up the characters and developing the plot.

Try to make Tyler stable. That many personalities running around one head can't be good. Not that you shouldn't give him different emotions, by all means you SHOULD be doing that, just try not to bounce between them too quickly. One minute he cares too much, the next none at all, then he's all angry, then he's all happy.

I will tone this down abit but this is meant to display his immaturity and emotional weaknesses at this early stage of the story.

I'm kinda relieved that you didn't like the endless description. It's tiring trying to come up with a load of words to describe one object and it's just the way I've been taught to write. I thought that that was the kind of thing that the readers liked, but this purple prose thing sounds pointless.

I'm planning a major rewrite of the chapters depending on the reviews that will come in the future.

Cheers for reading and reviewing.
 
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Diddy

Renegade
I'm just summing up what happened in the anime and in Sinnoh. The story wasn't based in that area so I decided not to focus on it much. Chapter one is more like a prologue, explaining the events running up to the moment he enters Johto.

Like I said, I can understand why you did it, with the video and all, it just seemed glossed over and a scene of that importance (getting a member of his team) seemed like a time to make at least a little bit of a deal out of it.

That part will be revealed later on in the story.

What got me about the Yanma drowing scene was how out of the blue it was. They were walking about around a lake then all of a sudden, without any indication, Yanma was drowning. It took me by surprise, and not in the good way.

This is a brief intro to Mike who will return later in the story. He will still hold grudges against Tyler thorughout the story but I was planning on saving major character development till he is more involved with Tyler.

Again, I realise that it was done for a reason, but his appearance was so insubstantial. It's like you introduced him, instantly set him up to be a jerky, sore loser rival archetype and left it at that. In real life, it was probably near to five minutes he was around the main character and it seemed too little.

Obviously, I need to reduce the amount of description but there is no definitive way of writing a story. This is quite an ambiguous comment.

I wrote that review from around midnight to 2am, I was kinda tired. Maybe I was a little blunt with that one. I know everyone has a different style, what I was trying to say was, this clearly isn't a style anybody looking to do any serious writing should be writing in. It just looks immature, as if you're saying, "And you said I'd never use my thesaurus!" even if you do know a lot of fancy words, it's still out of place to be describing everything with them.

I'm kinda relieved that you didn't like the endless description. It's tiring trying to come up with a load of words to describe one object and it's just the way I've been taught to write. I thought that that was the kind of thing that the readers liked, but this purple prose thing sounds pointless.

If you don't like writing it that way, then don't. I'll admit that I was sucked into the whole using-lots-and-lots-of-fancy-words-all-the-time-to-look-good routine when I first started writing. I began to write in a way that made me feel comfortable, and people started to enjoy my writing a lot more. Don't write to please readers, write to please yourself.
 
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