Shadow

**Moves** | Fire SpinDark PulseNasty PlotShadow Ball

**Shadow** (影, *Kage*) is a male Houndoom belonging to Nail and was the latter's very first Pokémon as well as the former ace of his party. Alongside his trainer, Shadow forever embedded his name into Pokémon history upon entering the Hoenn Hall of Fame. Out of Nail's entire Pokémon arsenal, Shadow is one of three Pokémon to have participated on all three of his world titles as well as one of three to have played any significant role throughout the course of such a run. Due to his impactful legacy, Houndoom is regarded as one of the most powerful to descend from the Houndoom lineage and has proven himself in battle a countless amount of times. Additionally, Houndoom has emerged victorious when pitted against even the world's most threatening rivals, foes, and opponents, earning the fear of all of those who know of his history.

## History

Shadow came into existence under surreal circumstances. Born to a Houndoom father and a Ninetales mother in Johto, he was branded with the curse of being a hybrid, a trait that would lurk from the depths of the darkness to plague him in the future. Shadow's father was a Pokémon closely affiliated with the treacherous organization known as Team Rocket; so much so that he was ace of Team Rocket executive, Archer. It was his direct responsibility to abduct other Pokémon alongside his trainer —one instance would see to Shadow's father coming into contact with a particular Ninetales, with whom he would soon produce a single child. During the first meeting between each of Shadow's parents, Shadow's father quite effortlessly subdued his mother, while Archer ultimately took the life of her trainer. Orphaned, she was later taken into one of many rocket facilities where she would be locked behind bars and occasionally fed in an attempt to preserve her trade value. Torturing sessions were also not uncommon, in fact, Shadow's father was allowed to have his way with any Pokémon he pleased as a result of the connection he had with Archer. It was during one of these many abusive experiences that Shadow's mother would be impregnated.

When an egg became visible within the prison cage of the Ninetales, it was immediately taken by rocket scientists to conduct research. Overtime, the egg hatched, and much to the surprise of everyone around at the time, it produced a Houndor, and not a Vulpix, as the egg had otherwise been labeled as. With no further use of the Houndor, Shadow was transported from the rocket hideout into a large ship —he had been sold and was now being taken to his new home, somewhere across the seas. Due to the awkward complications of his childhood, Shadow never truly met with either of his two parents, and never fully realized the ventures of his lineage until much later in his lifetime. On the voyage across the ocean, Shadow was introduced to the other unfortunate Pokémon who had been placed within the same fate as him. Among others was a Snubbull who revealed the principles of the Thunder Fang technique to him, with whom he also bonded with considerably. For a great period of time, that particular Snubbull was Shadow's greatest ally; the two of them would spend the next few weeks alongside one another on their way to the depths of the Safari Zone in the Hoenn Region —where they had been sold and transported to— until Snubbull was eventually captured by a paid customer, though other events would unfold prior to the aforementioned instance.

Shadow's life would meet yet another unexpected chapter. Arriving within Hoenn, the captured Pokémon were transferred into the back of a large truck heading towards Lilycove City, the closest neighbor to the Safari Zone in terms of overall distance. However, on the way there, the drunken driver would come upon a rather devilish hill that served as a wake up call; plunging full speed ahead, the truck's back doors would be hurled open, releasing the otherwise rare Pokémon —considering they had been smuggled across regions— that were meant to be taken into town. Among these select few was none other than Shadow, who ventured into Lilycove upon his own accord nonetheless, where he arrived just in the knick of time to witness a starving child steal a loaf of bread from one of the vending stalls. Quite hungry himself, considering the fact that he had not been fed more than once a week by the truck driver at best, Shadow pursued the child, who luckily was foolish enough to share some of his bread with him. With the two realizing just how badly they needed one another to exist within the world, Shadow forged a partnership with Nail, thus, becoming his first ever Pokémon.

Shadow spent his early years under Nail's command outside of a Pokéball. This was in part due to the fact that Shadow himself wanted to experience the world, seeing as though he had been mostly behind bars his whole life, though this was mostly because Nail was unable to afford so much as a single device that enabled him to store his Pokémon within a ball. Due to Nail's poverty, Shadow's earliest battles pitted him against street thugs who, in exchange for victories, offered food and at times, even money. It was through these preliminary battles that Nail and Shadow bonded with one another, and sealed a friendship that would last for the rest of eternity. With each given battle, Shadow grew more and more powerful; likewise, Nail soon found himself with a decent amount of prize money, which he almost spent solely on food for himself and Shadow. It wasn't long before the duo earned some sort appraisal —no matter how minimal it may have been— and in time, Nail was heralded as a genius for his intuitiveness in battle despite his adolescent age. Leading to such festivities would be none other than the dreams of departing from Lilycove for the sake of going on a journey.

Together with Nail, Shadow traveled the entirety of Hoenn. In the beginning, Shadow sneaked a ride atop his trainer's shoulders, though by the end of the journey, he was the one giving Nail a ride instead. No matter what other Pokémon Nail captured, the bond that he had established with Shadow pitted him to the very top of the mountain. Likewise, the additional training Shadow had received during his days in Lilycove, coupled with the fact that he was Nail's very first Pokémon earned him a role as Nail's most formidable threat for quite sometime. One of the most intriguing memories between the duo was the accomplishment of their very first gym badge together —unlike ordinary trainers that began their journey somewhere along the lines of Littleroot Town, Nail and Shadow had instead journeyed from the set point of Lilycove City; this essentially toppled the order in which they went about competing against Pokémon Gyms. As such, their first challenge would be against the Fortree gym leader, Winona, and her patent Skarmory. Utilizing his supreme fire prowess, Shadow dominated the battle and brought home the Feather Badge.

## Appearance

In comparison to other Houndoom of its caliber, Shadow is not especially unique, other than the fact that he is a hybrid. Not unlike the rest of his kin, Shadow has a black coating of fur with a long orange snout and an orange underbelly. His eyes, red in color, are quite small, suggesting to be the very embodiment of hatred themselves. The look in his eyes is evident of his many experiences in war. Around Shadow's neck is a white collar with a small skull-shaped pendant along his throat, paying homage to his distinct predator lineage. There are also two white bands on each of his ankles, as well as three rib-like ridges expanding from his back. Ultimately, Shadow has a long, skinny tail with a triangular tip that directly compliments the three clawed toes on each of his paws. These are essential for his role as an otherwise guard dog; to dictate his presence within the world, Shadow must establish himself as a force to be reckoned with. On the top of his head is a pair of long, curved gray horns notable for his prophetic legacy. Among the Houndoom species, this in itself is quite uncommon; in fact, the leader of the pack is often chosen based off the length of the horns. Shadow possessing such a trait would convey that even among his own tribe, Shadow's due as a leader was elected by fate itself.

## Personality

A great aspect of Shadow's persona is his sheer desire to win. This resolve is unlike any other, as his will itself at times almost seems to replenish any energy he may have lost during the course of a battle. Shadow is a relentless fighter who always strives to do his best. This is a direct trait taken from his ability, Early Bird, which essentially makes him more resistant to exhaustion; Shadow does not know how to rest, let alone take a break. He is accustomed to long periods of work in which he rarely ever tires, such is the relentless efforts of this particular Houndoom.

Shadow is known to be a ruthful menace, in the sense that he often allows his temper to get the best of him, even despite his experience in battle. While others may be able to remain calm, Shadow is quite easily irritated, which has since resulted in numerous berserk outrages in the past. In truth, this is one of Shadow's most fearsome traits; unlike the vast majority of entities that would otherwise be distracted by their emotions, Shadow is know to instead, relish in the moment and only grow stronger. When angered, Shadow's power quite literally calculates off the charts; his fire power increases considerably, to the point where so much as his breath is enough to invoke a large fury. These emotions stem directly from his corrupt past. Never having met his parents, and having been ridiculed by a wild pack of his own kind while still a Houndor, these feelings have been imbedded into the back of his mind for the rest of eternity. This resolve is unlike any other, and were it not for his trainer, Nail, he would most likely never have been able to contain such emotions.

## Abilities

**Enhanced Reflexes**:
**Immense Speed**:

### Techniques

* **Fire Spin** (ほのおのうず, *Honoonouzu*):

* **Shadow Ball** (シャドーボール, *Shadoobooru*)

* **Dark Pulse** (あくのはどう, *Akunohadou*):
* **Nasty Plot** (わるだくみ, *Warudakumi*):