Humans are a kind of creatures living in the Pokémon world. We know them mostly well - they are, essentially, humans. The “furless bipedal apes with their clothes and machines” and all that. Truly, it would appear in the Pokémon world they would be not too different than what you can see if you look out the window.

…Except where they are.

Humans living in the Pokémon world are, and would necessarily be, fairly different in some respects to humans living in our current world. Even if it is a slow process, evolution -in the Darwinian sense- is a thing and humans have lived alongside varied sets of powerful elemental-wielding creatures for long enough a time that they would have adapted somewhat.

One thing the various Pokémon canons share, be it for actual worldbuilding or for comedic effect: Pokéworld!humans are fairly resilient to harm and fairly untiring. Though in IRL humans are considered an attrition predator, persistent explorers capable of venturing everywhere, Pokéworld!humans would likely be that amped up to eleven. Taking flamethrowers to the face, recurring lightning bolts, or the pressure of fast jets of water aimed at them. Sometimes, the human actively invites the challenge, as we know from at least the games and manga canon that jumping down into caves and canyons is no rare occurrence for young Trainers, who otherwise come out of it unharmed.

As a result of long cohabitation with Pokémon, the human body has evolved its process of maturation, reaching a more resilient body at a younger age. The human mind is adapted to make use of that too, becoming more open and less reliant on putting in only the minimum of effort when it comes to problem-solving. It is important for the society that humans and Pokémon have built together that this heightened state is attained at a younger age, as these are the differences that allow a 10-year-old child to venture off as a beginner Trainer without much more protection of their own than what they can trust their Starter with; ultimately, part of the goal behind such things as the Trainer's Journey is to give the human body and mind the time and preparation to mature.

Where do humans come from, and where do they go? Certainly, humans are not Pokémon - but at the same time neither are the many plants, trees, small animals and bugs that contribute to adorn the environment of the Pokémon world. Nothing practical is said about the origin of humans or other IRL-esque creatures in any Pokémon canon, so pretty much everything that can be said here is subject to speculation, and also subject to strong changes.

Lore-wise, the origin of humans is a subject the truths of which are lost to much more than the fogs of time. Attempt after attempt to reach deeper into the truth of the past of the Pokémon world have crashed into the insurmountable passage of time and the loss (or hiding) of information.

As per latest Suocéverse revisions, the following can be considered a condensed view of humans in the Pokémon world:

• Humans are not a creation of Arceus. (The same applies to most if not all Earth-like biodiversity)
• Humans are not Pokémon in nature, nor related to other Pokémon-like lifeforms.
• Humans are almost definitively alien in origin to the Pokémon World.
• Humans in the Pokémon world are completely disconnected from humans in other parts of the universe, if any.

What is known IU is that the human race enjoys a special position in the Pokémon World, not much unlike the privileged position of a protected species, but subject to very particular clauses knowledge of which has itself been muddled by time. Humans are the ones allowed to train and guide Pokémon, they are the ones allowed to extend and build across certain areas, and this position is supported not only by myth but also by verified accounts by certain Legendaries. Still, that position is not without its boundaries, in terms of the relationship between humans and Pokémon.

It is said that far ago in the past, Humans were brought to a warring Pokémon World by Arceus, the creator deity displeased by the lack of moderation the various creations of the Lake and Creation Trios had displayed so far. Humans were let loose in the Pokémon world as a wildcard, and eventually they threatened the continuity of both the Pokémon species and themselves. Before Arceus could come back and tell both sides to can it or else, a few humans reached a truce with the Lake Trio, and becoming thus the First Trainers they set out to stop the various threats to the Pokémon world.

Humans were allowed to inhabit and thrive in the Pokémon world as guests, provided they followed a set of rules for cohabitation. Overall these rules dictated that humans, with the tremendous destructive potential of their inventions, would not be allowed to freely roam the world and directly use its resources to further their goals; instead, they were to “walk into the tall grass” and request the aid of Pokémon, who, if they saw the humans' goals were noble, would ally with them to provide the force required to see these goals to completion. Eventually this covenant gave birth to the tradition of Pokémon Training.

TOBEDONE

• Earth-like Biodiversity
• "The Vow"