Shaymin Report

Shaymin (the Gratitude Pokémon) is a legendary Grass or Grass/Flying-type Pokémon found among flowery fields across the globe. Although they might seem like nothing, Shaymin are important creatures that are essential to bringing life to barren fields and prairies and can thus be seen as the living essence of "Mother Nature". It's a good thing that they are one of the few legendaries that exist in relatively large numbers; otherwise, most of the world would probably look like a barren rock!

Shaymin are unique for their ability to produce flowering seeds from their backs; though this process is still not highly understood, it is believed that Shaymin are partially responsible for the diversity of flowering plants in the world (especially at the onset of Spring as snow melts, flowerless land is revealed and people call for the land to be rejuvenated) because of this ability. By examining the seeds and structures of flowering plants elsewhere, Shaymin are actually able to genetically reproduce those seeds at any time; in addition, they produce a potent fertilizer from their feet that allows even the most barren earth support life. In turn, flower fields that are created by Shaymin often serve as their own personal habitats, as the uncanny resemblance their backs have to flower fields enables them to hide relatively easily. Interestingly enough, Shaymin are emotionally tuned to the thoughts and vibes given off by humans, in particular feelings of gratitude (hence their title as the Gratitude Pokémon). It is believed that this is actually a learned trait and not wholly a genetic one, due in part to their connections to the Gracidea flower. In the 1400's, when Gracidea flowers became well-known from voyages of discovery, they were often times given to friends and family as a sign of gratitude. Since Shaymin are connected to this particular flower biologically, when they started to see people giving these flowers to each other for the purpose of gratitude on a common basis, they quickly picked up on the emotion; today, they still use it as an indicator of trustworthiness for humans since the tradition of the Gracidea flower continues in modern times.

The reason why Gracidea flowers are so vital to Shaymin is that they are essential for both the spreading of flower fields and seasonal migration. When Shaymin come into contact with Gracidea flowers, their cells react to the plant's pollen and mutate, transforming from their traditional Land Form into their Sky Form. While in their Land Forme, Shaymin are pure Grass-types that are evenly strong all-around; while in their Sky Forme, however, they are Grass/Flying-types with increased base Attack, Special Attack, and Speed stats and decreased base Defense and Special Defense stats. In addition, the selection of moves that the two forms can learn is slightly different, with Land Forme learning more defensive techniques (like Synthesis and Aromatherapy) and Sky Forme learning more offensive attacks (like Quick Attack, Air Slash and Leaf Storm). Furthermore, a chemical change in their brains creates a difference in personality between the two forms. While in their Land Forme, Shaymin are rather shy and are easily scared; on the other hand, while in their Sky Forme, they are quite bold, courageous, and playful. This change is a genetic response built-in to coincide with the Gracidea's blooming time, which normally occurs once every season; perhaps as a soft reminder of what the Gracidea looks like, Shaymin have a special variety of the flower growing on their own bodies, a trait referred to as "Flower Bearing". When Gracidea bloom, groups of Shaymin will transform together and migrate towards new uncharted territory; this process is referred to as "Flower Carrying" because wherever the group of Shaymin land, a new flower field will blossom. While there is no real pattern associated with their migrations, it is believed that they are attracted to areas where they sense a high degree of gratitude; as a result, this process has been responsible for creating many beautiful towns and villages across the world where people once begged the natural world to recognize their gratitude, including the famous Floaroma Town of the Sinnoh region.

It should also be noted that Shaymin possess an extremely unique attack that has made them important contributors to keeping the planet healthy: Seed Flare. Shaymin naturally have the ability to draw in toxins from the air and absorb them, concentrating them within their small bodies. Shaymin can then use an extremely complex (and relatively mysterious) metabolic process to alter these toxins in a very short period of time, converting them into harmless water vapor and impurities. The impurities are then spewed back out into the air, preserved in a state that does not allow them to interact with the environment in a way that would produce further toxins. However, the amount of metabolic energy produced in this process is unbelievably high; as a result, the energy is actually displaced from the body in the form of massive energy waves, often times producing a powerful explosion in the process. Despite their small size, the Seed Flare attack is incredibly powerful and is made even more useful by the fact that it has a 40% chance of greatly lowering the opposition's Special Defense stat if they survive the attack, making it relatively easy for Shaymin to finish a battle quickly.

Although Shaymin generally try to stay out of the light of public news as much as possible, one incident from seven years ago involving a Shaymin is worth noting: the Zero Incident. Following the events of the Alamos Town Incident, a black smoke (likely generated from the temporal and spatial disturbance created from the interaction between Palkia and Dialga) apparently began to fill portions of the Distortion World, the home-dimension of the legendary Pokémon Giratina. Infuriated, Giratina attempted to grab Dialga (as it was the one who started the fight) and destroy it within the Distortion World but was prevented from doing so when a nearby Shaymin that had been scooped up in the conflict became scared and used its Seed Flare attack, thinking that Giratina was going to eat it. Due to the bizarre mechanics of the Distortion World, this generated a portal through which Dialga was able to escape but Giratina was not, instead trapping it in a temporary time loop until the portal completely closed. That same Shaymin was later rescued by a group of young kids and asked them to take it to a nearby migration point, which was where it had originally intended to go. Shortly afterwards, however, those same children got pulled into the Distortion World by accident, and came face-to-face with Giratina as well as a scientist named Newton Graceland, who had apparently been studying Giratina for several years. After escaping with the Shaymin back into the normal world and beginning their journey towards the destined migration spot, the children were attacked by a young man named Zero. Apparently, Zero was the former assistant of Newton Graceland and had left when his mentor decided to leave Giratina alone instead of copying and potentially controlling its powers. Newton had decided against such a plan because he realized that the Distortion World and the normal world were designed to feed off of each other; if one were to be damaged in any way, both worlds would suffer. Zero, however, did not understand this and merely wished to rule the Distortion World as his own little paradise without any regards to the safety of the normal world. After capturing and using the Shaymin's fear of being 'eaten' by Giratina to open up a portal to the real world with another Seed Flare attack, Zero used his ship, a prototype device designed by his mentor, to slowly absorb Giratina's powers while simultaneously destabilizing its cellular structure. Before Giratina was completely vaporized by the energy drain, however, Newton managed to deactivate the ship; in turn, the Shaymin that had once been so afraid of Giratina used its Aromatherapy technique to restore Giratina's health. Unfortunately, Zero was not finished and used a battle-orientated 'escape pod' to journey back to the Distortion World before destroying many ice pillars in an isolated corner of the realm. This in turn caused a nearby glacier in the real world to begin moving, threatening the existence of many lives; this thankfully also awakened a nearby Regigigas who, accompanied by a fairly large herd of Mamoswine, attempted to push back the glacier. It was only after Giratina managed to destroy Zero's escape pod, however, that there was enough time for Giratina to restore the destroyed pillars, in turn halting the glacier's advance. Afterwards, the Shaymin involved in the incident flew away with a small group of Shaymin towards an unknown destination, while Giratina returned to the Distortion World and Zero was promptly arrested by the local police force.

While they might not be common enough to be easily spotted at any time of the year, it can definitely be said that Shaymin are powerful creatures that can certainly give most opponents a decent thrashing in battle, especially if they are in their Sky Forme. With the highest base stat total out of all Grass-type Pokémon (tied with Celebi and Zarude) and regardless of their rarity, it is refreshing to know that such creatures exist in the world, keeping it as clean and green as they possibly can. If you ever do manage to spot a Shaymin, make sure not to accidentally scare it; it's no exaggeration to say that these little critters are more scared of us than we are of them, a fact they will gladly prove by unleashing a Seed Flare in your face if you get too close!

Professor Wormwood