"Species: Mudkip
Level: 12
Ability: Torrent
Hidden Ability: Damp
Traits:
Philosopher (This Mudkip has mastered the art of awareness. It is born knowing the move Detect, which the Mudkip line cannot normally learn. After successfully using Detect, it can immediately launch a counterattack. The counterattack move is chosen to be super effective against the opponent's type, prioritises higher base power, and is guaranteed to hit.)
Thinker (This Mudkip regularly enters states of deep focus or uses Calm Mind on its own. Each time it does so, it gains a small amount of additional experience.)
Knowledge Is Power (Philosophical thinking has strengthened not only Mudkip's mind but its body as well. The power of its physical moves is greatly increased.)
Swamp Puppy (Mudkip carries an unusually rich store of Ground-type energy within its body. The power of Ground-type moves is slightly increased, and the power of mud-based moves is greatly increased. Mudkip's perception is greatly enhanced; it can sense its surrounding environment through the fin on its head and the sensory receptors along its gills, and can detect hidden objects and items in the area around it, much like a well-trained hound.)
Moves: Ancient Power (Egg Move), Mud Shot (Egg Move), Wide Guard (Egg Move), Mirror Coat (Egg Move), Sludge Bomb (Egg Move), Detect (Unique), Protect, Rock Throw, Water Gun...
Cultivation Direction: 1. Mudkip's Water-type energy is severely lacking and needs to be supplemented daily through diet and training. Once the supplementation is complete, it can develop the trait 'Hard Vortex'. Specific cultivation methods...
2..."
After carefully reading through all the cultivation information for this Mudkip, Nova had to admit that every new partner brought something unexpected with it.
The unique move alone was striking. After thinking it over, Nova decided it was not entirely unlike the event distribution Pokémon from the video games of his past life. Those special Pokémon were often handed out during limited-time events and came loaded with moves their species could not normally learn. In the real world, this was roughly equivalent to encountering a rare individual with unusual qualities.
The key difference was that in those games, unique moves on distributed Pokémon could not be passed down through breeding. If they could, experienced breeders would have found a way to spread those moves to the general population within a matter of days.
What actually surprised Nova the most, however, was the Swamp Puppy trait.
Mudkip was already a species known for its exceptional awareness. Wild Mudkip used the fin on their head and the sensory organs along their gills to read their environment, detecting danger and locating food. Nova had a vague memory from his past life of someone in a related story using a Mudkip as a kind of tracker or detector.
This particular Mudkip clearly had those capabilities developed well beyond what was typical for its species. Otherwise it would not have been worth listing as a separate trait.
Nova's current team had some clear gaps. What he needed most was a scout and a close-range support Pokémon. For now, Corviknight had been filling both of those roles, which was why it ended up on missions more often than anyone else on the team. There was simply no better option available. There were too many tasks that required a level of versatility Growlithe could not yet provide.
Mudkip would not be a perfect fit for either role on its own, but it happened to have a little of both.
The Swamp Puppy trait would give Mudkip strong close-range detection abilities, which would help take some of the workload off Corviknight. That in turn would free Growlithe to focus entirely on battling, rather than having to split its attention between offense and support.
On top of that, Mudkip could naturally learn Protect, and its unique Detect covered that role as well. Both moves could serve a defensive purpose, which would reduce the pressure on Corviknight when Nova needed cover.
There was really nothing to think about. Nova was certain. This was the one.
Where else was he going to find a Pokémon that could use Detect, use Protect, hold its own in a fight, and spend its free time lost in philosophical reflection? Even if someone placed a Gold Talent egg in front of him right now, he would not trade this Mudkip for it.
The paperwork that followed moved quickly. Nova had gone through the adoption process once before when he accompanied Aresdra to the Pokémon Factory, so the steps were familiar. The whole thing took less than half an hour. When he finally saw his Mudkip again, it had already been placed inside a Poké Ball by the factory staff, and was handed to him together with the completed adoption documents.
Because Mudkip was meant to provide close personal support, Nova did not want it travelling inside a Poké Ball the way his more combat-focused Pokémon did. After all, it could hardly protect him from inside a ball. He wanted it out and nearby, moving alongside him the way Sprigatito did.
He released it right there, and immediately found the problem.
The Mudkip was a certified Philosopher, and clearly a highly intelligent one. It certainly was not like Aresdra's Psyduck, which had a tendency to get in its own way just trying to function. But intelligence, as it turned out, does not always make for a cooperative travel companion.
The moment it was outside its Poké Ball, the world became endlessly fascinating to it. It stopped every few steps to study something, standing completely still with a focused expression, clearly running Detect on everything around it. To anyone watching, though, it did not look like a deep thinker at work. It just looked a little... blank.
Nova sighed. So this was how things were going to be.
Between Aresdra's Psyduck and this Mudkip, they had managed to put together quite a pair. One had a mind that seemed to work against itself. The other had a mind working so hard it forgot to move its legs.
Nova crouched down, scooped the motionless Mudkip off the pavement, and carried it.
If it would not walk on its own, being carried was good enough.
He had grown used to the soft, fluffy warmth of holding Sprigatito or Growlithe. Mudkip was a completely different experience. Its skin was smooth and firm, cool to the touch and with a slight give, like holding a small water-filled ball that pushed back gently when squeezed. With the summer heat of Nivan City already starting to build in June, there was actually something very pleasant about holding something so naturally cool.
Mudkip had no complaints about any of this. It settled comfortably in Nova's arms, closed its eyes, and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the arrangement.
Sprigatito, however, had several complaints. Many complaints, in fact.
As Nova's partner and constant companion, Sprigatito had a well-established claim to his shoulder. That was its place. The newly arrived Mudkip had no business taking up the space in Nova's arms. It made this view known immediately, scrambling up to perch on top of Nova's head and flicking its ribbons with pointed irritation.
Nova found himself stuck. Setting Mudkip down was not an option, because it would simply stop walking again. But holding Mudkip meant Sprigatito was going to make the rest of the journey as inconvenient as possible from its position on his head.
Was this really how things were going to go? The rising young Trainer Nova, brought to a complete standstill on the streets of Nivan City by one philosophical Mudkip and one deeply offended Sprigatito?