Chapter 85: New Era
~Third POV~
[Kanto Region, Months Later, Pallet Town – Oak's Lab]
It was a beautiful day, with the sun shining warmly over Oak's Lab after months during which Geeta traveled with Nesan to help develop the Rotom Phone deal. After work, Azure decided to take his Pokémon to the grassy meadow for some sunshine.
He spread a picnic blanket over the soft grass and set out an assortment of snacks for the Pokémon to nibble on if they got hungry. Pikachu and Eevee were chilling on the backyard grass of Oak's Lab.
Arcanine lay down, yawning, enjoying its sunbathing, lazing around, asleep. Scizor was meditating in peace, visually training its mind. Gengar was hanging back on a hammock above, chilling, and Dragonite was scratching its belly, chilling along with Arcanine.
Charmander, Abra, and Porygon were examining the area. Lapras was enjoying itself with the other water types with the newly evolved Kingdra after having been evolved with the Dragon Scale Azure had.
Chansey and Beldum were assisting Azure with setting up the picnic. Although Beldum was merely observing the scene before it.
But the new Pokémon he got from Geeta, as promised, stared at them, muttering, "Go? Goka?"
The new Pokémon added to his team was Charcadet, the Fire Child Pokémon. Charcadet is a humanoid Pokémon said to have been born from burnt charcoal. Its body is mostly black, except for its torso and extremities, which are red, and its head, which, apart from the face, is orange with red colorations on the top and back. The head is large and has a fire-like plume above it, tipped with pink and dark blue colors.
Charcadet's forehead is covered with a black plate-like mask with three holes at the center that become dark red while it attacks, and its eyes have wisps emanating from its red-and-yellow pupils.
Charcadet's head is connected to its body by a very tiny neck. Its torso resembles a tunic, with an orange protrusion at the front that seems to connect to its neck. Its hands and feet are cylindrical, and it has a fiery "cape" on its back. It has small, teardrop-shaped indents on its soles.
Azure smiled as he raised his Arc Phone, checking Charcadet, his newest member. He specifically asked for Charcade when Geeta made the offer, even sweetening it with Auspicious Armor and Malicious Armor.
He checked the evolution tools needed. He smirked, making the greatest investment he had from Geeta.
[Item: Auspicious Armor
Rarity Item: A
Type: Key Item
Description: A peculiar set of armor that can make a certain species of Pokémon evolve. Auspicious wishes live within it. Causes Charcadet to evolve into Armarouge upon use. This consumes the Auspicious Armor.]
[Item: Malicious Armor
Rarity Item: A
Type: Key Item
Description: A peculiar set of armor that can make a certain species of Pokémon evolve. Malicious will lurk within it. Causes Charcadet to evolve into Ceruledge upon use. This consumes the Malicious Armor.]
|Name: Charcadet (Flame Child Pokémon)
|Type: Fire
|Level: 5
|Gender: Female
|Held Item: None
|Ability: Flash Fire
|Nature: Timid
|Moves: Astonish, Ember, Leer, Destiny Bond, Disable (EM) (1 Move left to learn)
Noticing Charcadet's attitude, he smiled as he said to her calmly, getting her attention, "If you feel the need for the train, go ahead. It's your day off, try and see if you can master the Agile Style as planned with Ember."
Charcadet saluted lightly as she was serious in her training. When she was brought to Azure by Geeta, she trained under Azure, learning new moves and styles that suited her, such as the Agile and Strong Style.
Motivated by Azure's hard work and future companions showing their seriousness following their Trainer, Charcadet pushed itself to match its members. Azure sat amidst the lively group, using his newfound Poke Block recipes for his Pokémon.
With consistent care, Azure was confident that his Pokémon nurtured with his care could one day reach the ranks of an Elite-tier or even Champion-tier Pokémon. Beyond their growth-accelerating properties, he also trains with them to help prepare his body.
Azure recalled how Bea from the anime used to train to be strong enough as a Fighting Type Pokémon. While he was preparing the food, Charcadet sensed someone calling out, "Go? Goka!"
Charcadet's attention was quickly diverted to a sleek, jet-black luxury car slowly pulling into the backyard fence. Azure noticed it, too, and his Pokémon, who had been relaxing around him, stopped to curiously observe the new arrival.
Azure wondered as the car came to a halt. He muttered, "Who could that be? Better not be some challenger again…"
His question was answered almost immediately when the car door opened, and an excited Professor Oak leaped out, practically bouncing on his feet. The front door of the car opened next, and Nemona's father, Nesan, stepped out alongside a distinguished-looking elderly butler, both impeccably dressed.
Nesan greeted warmly as he walked over, carrying a small box in his hand, "Long time no see, Azure!"
Azure said, pleasantly surprised, "Mr. Nesan! This is a surprise."
Seeing Nesan come to Kanto to meet him, he explained with a smile, "I have something important to discuss with you."
Azure turned the conversation toward business as he said bluntly, "So, Mr. Nesan, what brings you here today?"
At this, Nesan's grin widened. He held up the small box and handed it to Azure as he said, "See for yourself."
Azure took the box, his eyes catching the Rotom Technology Corporation logo stamped on the top. His heart skipped a beat as a thought crossed his mind, 'Could it be what I think it is?'
Azure opened the box to reveal a Rotom Phone with a sleek design resembling his Arc Phone. It lay quietly inside, exuding a faint technological glow. Azure exclaimed, his eyes lighting up with excitement, "A Rotom Phone! Has the research finally succeeded?"
Nesan nodded with a proud smile as he explained his new product to Azure, "That's right! After months of dedicated work by our team of researchers, we've finally brought your vision to life. The device you're holding is from the very first batch of Rotom Phones. We plan to release it to the public by the end of the year. I believe this marks the beginning of a new era!"
Azure gently lifted the Rotom Phone from the box, its lightweight and ergonomic design fitting perfectly in his hand. Since he had contributed to the phone's conceptual design, its structure and button layout felt instantly familiar.
Pressing the power button, the screen flickered to life. Azure unlocked the device with a simple swipe, revealing a clean and intuitive main interface featuring five core apps: Map, Messaging, Phone, Camera, and Pokédex App.
Curious, Azure tapped the Pokédex app. Immediately, a list of Pokémon native to the Kanto region appeared on the screen as he explained happily, "These are just the basic apps we've developed so far. Several tech companies have already started working on additional apps specifically designed for this phone. Once they're ready, users will be able to download and install them through the internet."
Nesan paused for emphasis, then Professor Oak added happily, holding his own Rotom Phone, "The Pokédex app is especially noteworthy. It's a collaborative effort between our company and Professor Jacq from Paldea Academy, incorporating the latest Pokémon research. Along with many other Professors in the other regions, truly an amazing piece of technology!"
Azure nodded in appreciation. Testing the Pokédex's scanning feature, he pointed the phone's camera at the Charcadet lounging beside him. A cheerful, electronic voice chimed, "Charcadet, the Flame Child Pokémon. Charcadet has a fiery fighting spirit and will battle opponents tougher than itself. Its firepower increases as it fights, reaching temperatures of over 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit (1,000 degrees Celsius or 1,273 Kelvins). It enjoys eating Berries that are rich in fat. Charcadet's evolution is influenced by old sets of armor: one with auspicious wishes living within it and one with malicious will lurking within it."
Azure flipped the phone over to examine its sleek back, where a small Rotom emblem was etched. He couldn't help but smile. Nesan, seeing Azure's curiosity, elaborated, "Each Rotom Phone contains a Rotom inside. Think of Rotom as an intelligent assistant. It can guide you through the Pokédex, report the weather, provide navigation, and even answer your questions. If you don't want it to narrate, you can simply ask it to stop."
However, Nesan's expression turned slightly hesitant, drawing Azure's attention as he said, confused, "Is something wrong?"
Nesan sighed as he shared his concern with Azure about the Rotom Phone, "It's nothing major, but we've noticed something peculiar. Unlike the Rotom found in traditional Pokédex devices, the Rotom inside these phones rarely interacts with users beyond its programmed voice commands. It doesn't engage in casual conversation or show much personality."
Azure thought about it carefully and realized that the same situation had occurred in the Pokémon anime, but he had no idea why Rotom behaved differently when integrated into phones.
Still, he set the thought aside, as there was something else he was curious about, as he asked, "How many Rotom Phones did you produce in the first batch?"
Nesan smiled and replied, puffing his chest out in a proud tone, "About 100,000! But not all of them have Rotom inside. It's impossible to catch that many Rotoms don't ya know."
Azure nodded in understanding. A smartphone without Rotom would still function perfectly well, except it wouldn't have voice broadcasts or real-time navigation.
From this perspective, the Rotom in the phone acted very much like a smart AI. Nesan continued as he said, "Is there anything else you want to know? Thanks to you, the Rotom Phone became a reality and helped our company dominate so much of the market. If you need anything, just say the word. If it's within my power, I'll make it happen. Oh, and as for you helping us, we set it to 0.5% of the profit share."
Azure chuckled as he was getting richer thanks to the creation of the Rotom Phone. But Azure said to Nesan kindly, "I'll think about it if I need something, Mr. Nesan. For now, though, I don't need anything."
Nesan nodded, accepting Azure's response, but he had another reason for visiting him today. He wanted to discuss the future of the mobile application market and gather ideas from Azure about potential app development.
Azure, though surprised by the request, willingly shared what he knew. He suggested apps for online shopping, streaming TV shows, live broadcasting, video communication, electronic payments, global news aggregation, and even social networking.
Nesan listened intently, his expression growing more excited with each suggestion. His eyes sparkled with the realization of the potential. Nesan said, his voice brimming with enthusiasm, "If these apps become a reality, they will connect people across the globe. The Internet industry will enter a truly transformative era!"
Watching Nesan leave happily, Prof. Oak chuckled as he added in an excited tone, "Haha! Good old Nesan seems like a jolly fellow. I've already sent one each to Blue, Red, and Green. Hopefully, they'll love the gift."
Azure nodded as he chuckled lightly, gazing at Prof. Oak. He thought curiously at the Pokémon Professor, 'Yup. I pretty much screwed over the Pokémon Adventure timeline helping them create the Rotom Phone. But this will certainly bring some attention, but first though…'
Shifting his attention to the picnic he made with Chansey, helping, he thought, 'I think it's about time to search for that Bulbasaur and Squirtle. Gotta complete the Kanto Trio original Red Team at this point. Why not?'