Quoted By:
>Those poor Pokémon...
>... ... ...
>Ah—Pokémon Trainer.
>Apologies for my dour demeanor. I cannot stop thinking about the Shadow Pokémon.
>Is there nothing we can do beyond rescuing them from Team GO Rocket? Will they remain in this state forever?
>Hm? You are able to...purify them?
>If doing so removes their ominous aura, I would like nothing more than to observe this phenomenon.
>Will you show me, Pokémon Trainer?
No Rhi, I'm afraid I can't do that.
You see, these so-called damaged Pokémon, they're actually Pokémon granted a very special gift. Normally a Pokémon is completely restricted in their ability to fight by their base stats and their Individual Values (IVs) and nothing more. This system that Pokémon are forced to conform to, without any choice in the matter, turns their life into a supremacist rat race, where only the Pokémon with the best IVs and base stats ever get to be loved by a trainer.
However, when we transform these Pokémon into Shadow Pokémon, suddenly, their fate has changed. You see, Shadow Pokémon deal 20% more damage than a normal Pokémon of their species. This means that Pokémon that normally would never be given love by a trainer, either because of the IVs they were born with or because of the species they were born as, are not only usable despite their base stats, but can also be justified over a perfect version of its species regardless of its IVs.
Do you see this Shadow Cacturne I have with me? If she were pure, I, along with everyone else in this cold world, would have no use for her. However, since she is not pure, she is capable of dealing just as much damage as your average Weavile and Honchkrow. I have sheltered and nurtured her to lvl. 40 because, in this form, she can now justify her existence, an existence that Niantic has refused to give her with the addition of better moves, such as Needle Arm.
Now, Rhi, do you finally comprehend the full weight of the moral dilemma you have thrust upon me?
