He had downplayed the severity of the situation due to the newcomer that was still around. But it was a matter of great significance.

  In their monthly virtual meetings, he waited patiently as everyone went through the start of the Circuit. Not even a whole week had gone by but it was far more necessary compared to the rest of the year as it would determine how they intended to function. This was the time to discuss placements, teams and strategies for badge levels, and even retirement plans for the old. And even Type changes if that ever happened.

  Once again, Sunnyshore maintained its place at the top, requiring challengers to have at least 6 badges. Many considered Snowpoint to be in a similar position but that was a result of geography rather than the capabilities of the Gym Leader as she was still relatively early in her career.

  “The only challengers I received were rookies from my hometown. Not even the hardcore Trainers hopping regions go here this early”, the sociable Trainer stated with a sigh.

  “That’s because the cold is unbearable. Even Maylene would agree and she wears nothing just like you while everyone else is frozen solid”

  “The challenge might be too much for newcomers”, Maylene then responded with a bit of thought.

  As they discussed the cold, Byron spoke to Volkner.

  “I have to admit you are stronger but I have better defenses for being the final challenge. I can tell you’re discontent even though the Circuit just began”

  “I want a proper challenge… Not to sort through the rabble like your son has to”, he responded lackadaisically.

  “It… is a tiresome process”, Roark admitted with Gardenia nodding in agreement.

  He then continued, “But that’s the usual. There are more pressing matters… Recently, I encountered a Pokemon that Mega Evolved without any Trainer involved”

  The other conversations then ceased as Roark’s claim had caught their attention. Even the listless Volkner seemed intrigued.

  The brief moment of silence was then interrupted by Byron.

  “Gwahaha! Maybe, the Mega Pokemon ran from its Trainer”

  “That is unlikely. The Mega Aggron was encountered deep in the Mine and came from elsewhere. No Trainer would have let us detain such a powerful Pokemon without their permission”, Roark stated seriously.

  Any brevity in the meeting then dissipated as detaining a Pokemon wasn’t a casual matter and indicated that the situation had been quite severe to warrant such an action.

  “...An Aggron…”

  “C’est fantastique. Truly, it was wild Mega?”

  Roark nodded, intending on asking for more possible information as he knew many of the Gym Leaders had experience with Mega Evolution, having seen some of their aces undergo the powerful transformation.

  A voice he hadn’t expected then chimed in.

  “A Mega Evolution without a Trainer is possible. My friend Diantha has seen it happen in Lumiose… There, they call it Rogue Mega Evolution and it was the catalyst that began Professor Sycamore’s research”

  Located close by to the Pokemon Center, there was a hospital of similar size. This was not because more importance was placed on Trainers and people but because miners were more prone to harm as they didn’t have the natural defensive capabilities that most Pokemon had. A non-Flying type could often shrug off a rockslide but most people couldn’t.

  In most other situations, the Pokemon Center had greater priority as they had more to deal with and had greater importance in this world’s culture. In places without specialized hospitals, Pokemon Centers doubled down, having to treat both Pokemon and humans. Fortunately, Recovery items that worked on Pokemon also affected humans to a lesser extent so other than for debilitating illnesses, most people didn’t need to stay very long.

  Seeing the state of his clothing, Harrison had been rushed ahead for examination by the nurses which had a bit more variety as they weren’t prominently pink in white nurse uniforms.

  Undergoing an upper body X-ray, he noticed that they weren’t so hesitant in handling radiation with the nurse sauntering in and out casually as the machine emitted light. It seemed the impact of radiation wasn’t as lethal in this world or humans were just more resilient. After all, the truth was that this world had more opportunities to be harmed with creatures that could wield what was basically magic. And incidents were astonishingly minimal despite children having access to mobile flamethrowers capable of malice and mischief.

  Then again, Dragalge basically caused cancer and it was still legal in official battles. That alone spoke volumes about the resilience of every organism in this universe.

  Looking at the results and after a few more scans, the Doctor then asked, “Your sleeves were shredded while you were wearing the shirt right?”

  Harrison nodded.

  “Are you a Fighting-Type specialist?”

  Harrison shook his head.

  “Fascinating. Even people that train with their Pokemon have to be careful. But all your bruises are skin deep and don’t need any treatment”, the Doctor stated.

  He then wrote a prescription for a topical ointment that repaired the skin and handed it to Harrison.

  “You’re free to go. But you should probably get some new clothes”, he noted as the tattered sleeves were glaring especially in a hospital.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Thanks Doc. Are injuries common with Trainers?”, Harrison then decided to ask.

  “Of course. Trainers are so used to going to the Pokemon Center that they forget to check their own health which sometimes leads to a few taking long hikes despite having broken bones! Usually, it’s nothing that medicine can’t fix but they often only go here after incidents like yours”

  “I’ll keep that in mind”, he said as he headed back to the lobby. As always, nothing unusual appeared in the scans as the Adamant Orb would definitely elicit a greater shock than just slight wonder.

  Gavin and Christine were waiting there, having already completed their own checkup which wasn’t as extensive as his.

  “Guess there weren’t any problems”, Gavin stated.

  “Ralts!”, the Pokemon then exclaimed as if incredulous that there would be any problems.

  “No, just some slight bruises. That’s all”, Harrison replied while heading towards the Pharmacy section.

  They then saw a Bayleef walk by unchaperoned as it roamed the hospital. A faint scent of spice then wafted towards him, briefly bolstering his energy.

  “What a nice scent”, Christine stated as it seemed to whet her appetite.

  Harrison then stopped to hand the prescription over to the pharmacist who got distracted by his sleeves.

  “...You okay, dude? Looks like a Pokemon Slashed your arms”

  “I’m fine. If I wasn’t, a nurse would probably be here to get my meds for me”, he jested.

  The pharmacist looked him over a few times before reading the prescription slip. He then turned to look at his Aipom and said, “Can you get some of the stuff from the aisle over there? It should be in the second row”

  “Oo-ooh”, the Aipom said and ran across the top of the shelves. The little monkey then got to its destination and hung off the side as its tail hand dexterously opened the cabinet and took out a box. The Aipom then closed the cabinet and ran back on all fours with the medicine held firmly with its tail.

  The pharmacist then took the box and double-checked the label.

  He handed it over to Harrison with the instructions, “These are patches with the ointment. Put them on once at night and once in the morning. It’s also fine to use them now”

  Harrison rolled down his tattered sleeves which made the remaining fabric unravel and took out a few patches. He then swiftly applied them, noting a cooling sensation that numbed the slight sting from the bruises.

  Christine and Gavin then got some vitamins and they thanked the pharmacist before returning to the lobby.

  Instead of leaving the hospital with a clean bill of health, they then went towards the reception without a line as they were still considered outpatients.

  At the desk, Harrison asked one of the nurses, “Did a Colin get admitted recently?”

  She looked up from the computer and asked, “Are you family?”

  He then hesitated before saying, “We-uh got caught up in the same incident and I wanted to check in”

  She then stared with wide eyes in disbelief. Noting the condition of his clothing, she then relented and got up to guide them.

  As they walked through the ward, she said, “I was surprised by all the tears on your arm but now I’m more surprised that you’re even standing at all”

  “How is he right now?”, Christine then asked with a bit of guilt as they indirectly led Colin towards danger with their request.

  “...He should be awake but it will take time before he can walk again”, the nurse stated.

  It seemed that this had been one of the more serious cases, Harrison thought.

  They then went past a group of kids in patient gowns seated in the visitor’s lounge.

  “Woah!? What happened to you?”, one of them exclaimed as he passed.

  Harrison looked at the group before raising his patched arm in tattered sleeves and stated, “I uh got in a fight with an Aggron”

  One of them took out a book and began flipping through it while the others stared at each other as if to ask what an Aggron was.

  The kid with a book then stopped flipping and showed the page he was on.

  “This Pokemon?”, he asked, showing Harrison and the other children.

  “Way bigger and fiercer”, Harrison then stated as the Aggron in the book had no battle scars and had a neutral expression.

  “Wow, this thing looks wicked”

  “It might even beat Charizard”

  “Definitely not Garchomp though”, a girl wearing Umbreon styled hair clips stated with confidence.

  One of the kids just looked at Harrison’s wounds and the picture of Aggron in contemplation.

  “Did you win?”

  “...Not really. It wasn’t a fair fight for the Aggron and I barely got away”, Harrison admitted.

  His statement sparked a bit of discourse about his supposed strength as a Trainer along with what Pokemon he had. They then paused when a kid went forward.

  “Is it that dangerous outside?”, the kid asked with great concern. They looked sickly with a weak constitution.

  Harrison mulled over his journey for a bit before answering.

  “I hope not. Everybody else tells me that this doesn’t happen often and I did have a part in trying to challenge an Aggron when I don’t even have a badge”

  The kids expressed shock that he had no badges and fought something like a Charizard.

  “So, if you’re more careful than me, it shouldn’t be as bad. And if not, get good partners to watch your back whether they be people or Pokemon”

  He then left after answering a few more questions.

  Along the way, the nurse thanked him.

  “They’re very worried that they might not be able to start their journey because they get sick very often. But they’re very excited every time they watch a match on TV”

  The nurse then stopped to open a door. Harrison could only frown.

  Within what was clearly Colin’s room was a body covered head to toe in casts. Surrounding the bed were several medical devices with one being a mobile monitor for checking vitals. Most of them weren’t connected but had likely been recently used.

  Colin then seemed to stir as the sound of the door opening seemed to have alerted him. He turned his head with a limited range as the cast restricted him considerably.

  “Do I look that bad?”, he jested with a raspy throat.

  Harrison then entered and nodded in response while Gavin stood to the side stiffly. Christine just stared in shock.

  Colin then cut the tension and said, “Good thing you weren’t here earlier or all the tubes connected to me would’ve frightened you kids senseless”

  The nurse then intervened upon noticing the somber mood and said, “He’ll be fine. He just has quite a few broken bones and needs some extensive recovery. For somebody that was nearly flattened by a Steelix, this is a good situation to be in”

  His disbelief overcoming the concern, Harrison then blurted out incredulously, “You got crushed by a Steelix!?”