Pokemon: Bounty Hunter Alex

Alex returned to the farm with his survey complete. He didn’t need a professional, not when he had the proper equipment and Rotom to handle the measurements. Together they were able to map out areas suitable for construction and areas best left untouched.

The mouth of the valley turned out to be ideal for large buildings, provided they reinforced the stream and stabilized the soil around it. The rest of the land was rich and fertile, which made it perfect for crops. That made sense considering it had supported a forest before.

In the end they split the land into 2 sections. The 2 square kilometers inside the valley would be used for all the buildings, while the remaining 4 square kilometers beyond it would be turned into a natural habitat for Pokémon.

Crops and berry trees would be planted there as well, ensuring the Pokémon would never go hungry. They would also be fed spare meat from future hunts, reinforcing their place in the local hierarchy.

To defend the area, they would wall off the northern end deep within the forest. This would prevent future Pokémon floods from trampling through unchecked. It would force them to circle around and bypass the valley. Any that climbed over it would be met with the very hostile Pokémon nest on the other side.

The pit carved out during their battle, roughly 500 meters in diameter, would be reinforced and turned into a manmade lake for Water Pokémon. They would divert the stream into it before letting it flow back into the forest, avoiding any major ecological changes.

Another pair of walls would be built along the northern edge of the 2 square kilometer zone, separating it from the 4 square kilometer Pokémon habitat. The lake, positioned between the two zones, would serve as a natural buffer. To the east and west of the lake, the walls would extend outward until they met the ridgelines of the valley, forming a secondary barrier against any Pokémon that might break through. It was a simple solution that made the area significantly safer to live in.

Rhea’s Tri-Lock Defense Network would be deployed only across the developed 2 square kilometers, while the 4 square kilometer habitat beyond would serve as the Pokémon’s battlefield. That way, they wouldn’t have to worry about anything outside their territory. They just needed to defend the secondary wall with turrets.

The safe zone would hold all the technology they would need, including a hydroponics farm and a ranch for Milk. The area was quite excessive for their current plans, but it did account for any future additions they might want, so it was an ideal setup.

"What kind of wall should we build?" Celise asked as the technical team discussed their plans.

"For the northern end, that’s over 4 kilometers of wall, so make it the easy-to-repair kind. As for the two that would separate the two areas, only the best they offer," Alex replied.

"That would cost credits."

"That’s fine. It’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed, so it would rarely get damaged. If it does, it better maintain its form and not turn into shrapnel against us."

"Expensive and pliable," Celise noted.

"What do you think, Rhea?" Alex asked.

"Since we only need to defend the safe zone, I’d need 150 turrets on the wall alone. At 10 meters apart on the two 750-meter-long walls, it would be more than enough to take down any oncoming Champion," Rhea explained while looking at her screen. "As for the rest of the area, a turret every 100 meters is more than enough."

"Double the density just in case. I don’t want to rely on long shots. That would increase the probability of missing."

"That’s almost a thousand turrets!" Rhea exclaimed. "I don’t think we have enough ammo for that many."

"Lower the ammo provided and tell Metagross to tighten his groupings. The density should compensate for the required accuracy."

"Sure thing, boss."

"How’s the sales going, Nyx?"

"Pretty good," Nyx replied. "We’ve sold about 60% of our stock of Elites and have made over 50 million credits so far."

The calculations included all the living Elite ranked Pokémon Alex had ever captured. This included the first flood they had defended against over a year ago, as well as his adventures in Johto and the recent Champion ranked nest.

"So another 20 million credits incoming?"

"More, considering the prices, but that might change. Give it a few months and we’ll see."

"What about the Elite ranked Dark types?"

"I have 12 that are absurdly cheap on the list, less than 300k credits each. Are you sure you want to buy them? We have some Dark types you could have used instead."

"They remember and still hate my guts for killing their trainers, so they’re out. As for the Pangoro couple, they seemed amenable but not overly attached. It’s better to sell them as a pair to interested breeders."

A trainer’s Pokémon still retained their feelings, so even if they were sold, bonding and training them would be difficult. Unlike those caught in the wild, which, although intelligent enough to do the same, were ultimately secured by benefits.

In Alex’s case, not all Dark types wanted to bond with him. The Pangoro couple that managed to survive the onslaught were amenable but might act out if not properly put in their place.

He noticed that it was the lonelier Dark types that bonded best with him before falling in line, like Hydreigon, Absol, Morpeko, and Houndoom.

The Pangoro couple however were more reserved, which meant their loyalties were to each other first before their leader or trainer. It explained how they had survived the battle, as they had likely stayed at the edge while pretending to contribute. It would be a problem if it happened again during a flood, so it was better to sell them as a bundle.

As for why Alex was buying up cheap Dark type Elites, he was planning on having them reign over his territory. His current home team included Absol, Morpeko, and Houndoom, who were more than enough to defend the farm but not enough to defend 4 square kilometers of land.

He would have needed a Champion to do it in one, but since he didn’t have one yet and was likely to take them with him on missions, he needed to compensate with numbers instead.

Ten highly trained Elite ranked Pokémon could easily take down a Champion due to their move pools, so they were the minimum the territory required to be defendable. On top of that, the more Elites there were, the greater the aura of the land, which would scare off any Pokémon that could get through the walls.

The only problem with his plan, however, was that he was nearing his maximum limit as a trainer in terms of keeping his sanity.

Ever since he learned how to manipulate his energies through meditation, he had been able to expand his control. Adding more bonds now would invalidate his progress and set him back further in his training, pushing the dream of meeting up with Grim the Roaring Moon further into the distant future.

Still, he needed a stronger home team, so he didn’t have a choice but to acquire more Pokémon for the sake of their territory.

"Celise, get me your total as soon as you finish looking for suppliers and builders. Rhea, feel free to use up all the cash for the turrets. Nyx, get those Pokémon for me while selling the rest," Alex said as he dismissed the meeting.

He then headed for the balcony of the mansion, where he sat cross-legged on a meditation mat and emptied his mind.

He imagined his body before focusing on his heart. He felt the energy roiling inside him, the representation of his bond with his Pokémon, and began to stir it with his intent. The energies moved slowly as they rotated around his body. Occasional specks of gold, representing his meager Aura, flashed in the dark, inky pool.

He maintained this state for hours at a time, replacing his usual afternoon sparring with Kommo-o. The improvement was gradual, but it was there. He was now at least able to rotate his energies, no matter how slow.

As long as he kept up his training, he would eventually be able to expand his capacity to form stronger bonds with more powerful Pokémon. That, in turn, would increase his own strength and allow him to reach the Champion rank without suffering the kind of personality breakdown Gravik likely experienced.

Alex was starting to understand why most Elite ranked trainers stuck to just six Pokémon instead of trying to bond with more. Beyond the obvious limitations in resources, it became clear that adding more bonds without the mental strength to handle them could lead to serious problems.

However, once a trainer reached the Champion rank, they could begin expanding their roster freely. The core bonds they had already formed would serve as an anchor, shielding their mind from the destabilizing effects of additional connections.

Alex had that advantage too, which was why he decided to add more Pokémon to the home team. The problem was, he already had too many. That was where being a reincarnator and his meditation came into play. It gave him more room than most. He was an anomaly, able to thrive where others would’ve broken.

----- 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

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