Standing still and looking around my surroundings, all I can see is darkness above, below me and all around me there is nothing but an endless darkness, even when I shout for someone to help me no sound comes out of my voice, and all I can do is cry, stand here and cry about being so damn alone. Just as I start thinking to myself, what would my father thing of me if he could see his son and heir like this, I feel a hand clamp down on my shoulder hard, spinning around quickly with fire in my eyes, stands a man with ripped clothing and covered in blood. Recognizing the familiar honey blonde hair and the bright blue eyes, all feeling leaves my face as he smiles at me, and I begin to cry even harder.
" ... Dad. Is it you ? DAD IT IS YOU ! " Running into him for a hug, I can see him physically wince in pain from me pressing into his wounds as a smile spreads across his face, pulling me away from him he places his hands on my shoulders and looks deeply into my eyes. But his smile turns into one of malice and full of evil, as he begins to walk backwards away from me his hands leaving my shoulders, still staring at me right in the eyes. Until he stops about a foot away from me.
" Dad, what are you doing ? Why are you leaving me again, why are you doing this ? " More tears fill my eyes as he seems to get further and further away from me without moving. Starting to chase after him my feet don't advance through the darkness, as if I was on a treadmill, until in the distance a light shines from his getting ever smaller body and the light begins to reach out forward towards me as I stand there still, with my eyes closed tears still running down my cheeks, outreaching my arms as the light begins to engulf me, and just as I'm about to fade into the light I open my eyes and see my father sprawled out on the floor, blood dripping form his mouth with a sword going straight through his chest with a man shrouded in shadow standing over him and his wicked cackle spreading out, until the light engulfs me completely ...
Feeling my body convulse I awake with a start, I must of looked a bit of a sight, suddenly fidgeting out of control as I wake up screaming in the middle of the forest with the sunlight streaming over my half naked body. Now standing I realise that my sleeping bag is literally stuck to my back, from all of the sweat from my dream I guess I had gotten a little sticky. With a sigh I start to pack up my things and get dressed, looking onwards through a clearing and seeing a great white building slightly in the distance.
I walk into over to a river and glance at my full length reflection below, my tanned skin, and muscled frame seem to glow in the sunlight that wrestles it way through the trees around me, as I look deeper into the water my spiky platinum blonde hair and ice blue eyes contrast the scenery around me giving me an air of coldness and ice all around me, instead of the hot and warm summers day. As I smooth my clothes down in my reflection, my three quarter length khakis offset my surroundings, with their camouflage pattern and my grey plimsolls seem to disappear in the lightly coloured grass around my feet. My beige t-shirt and denim over shirt wave in the breeze as a rush of wind speeds past me sending chills down my spine lifting them up to reveal my muscled stomach. Turning back around I grab my bag and put my black leather belt back on, which will soon hold another 5 pokemon balls on it along with the one I already have. Looking around me I turn towards the direction of the lab and begin to run.
Running for around 10 minutes I end up at the steps of the professor's pokemon lab, leaning against them as i wheeze and pant erratically, as i begin to climb the steps on my hands and knees like a dog. Entering the lab I collapse in a ball on the floor while the professor looks over at me, both amused and bewildered by my appearance at his lab laying on the floor gasping for air like a magikarp out of water. Stepping over to me and giving me a hand up, I gasp in a large amount of air and proceed to act like more of a sane person, trying to start a conversation.
" Hi Professor Greenwhich. I ran here from the forest. " Suddenly taking another violent gasp of air I take a minute to collect myself before continuing. " Sorry about all the gasping and stopping and general craziness. And I'm talking quite fast right now aren't I ? Oh listen to me I'm rambling on. Sometimes I just cant control myse... I'll just shut up now shall I ? " I stumbled out that last bit a little gloomy after making an embarrassment of myself in front of an old family friend.
With a smile across his face, the professor puts one hand on my shoulder to calm me down. " Don't worry Jakilies ... " At the sound of my full name I can feel myself cringing a little. " I'm used to these outbursts of quick talking and the who and the what and the everything you're saying really fast, haha. " With a little chuckle from me he continues on. " I take it your here after your mother gave you your first pokemon, as is tradition with you and your siblings ? How is she by the way ? I must pop round sometime soon to come and see her and your little sisters. "
And the guy says I ramble on ? I think to myself in between replying to his comments, " Errrrr yeah that's why I'm here, my bulbasaur needs to be checked over by you first to see if shes in good condition to go on my journey with you. Mum is fine, at home worried sick about me starting my pokemon journey especially after what happens to dad and Serena ... " Trailing off, we both look away for a second before I carry on. " And I'm sure mum would like that. Oh and by the way, please never call me Jakilies ever again. Or else I will have to start calling you by your nickname, won't I Uncle Lar-Lar. " With a devilish grin 'Uncle Lar-Lar' smiles back with a nod.
" Fine, Jake it is then. Now release your bulbasaur and lets get on with examining her shall we so you can make your way on to Beezed Town, shall we ? " Releasing Bulbasaur the professor gives me orders to tell her to follow simple commands, and to release her powers. " Now Bulbasaur use vine whip ! " In a flurry of motion she uses her vines to tear down a piece of equipment from the professor's wall, but not without a moan from the other researchers around the lab at the loud sound and the sudden disappearance of a rather expensive looking satellite dish.
With a worried smile I look up at the professor and put one hand behind my head and then widen my smile, as he looks down upon me and bulbasaur with a rather unimpressed look on his face. " I guess I should send the bill to your mother then ? With all your brothers and sisters coming through here with their pokemon its surprising I even have a lab left isn't it ? " Relaxing and with a nod I look back at him who in turn looks at bulbasaur and tells me to return her to her pokeball.
With a wide smile he looks at me, and hands me 5 other pokeballs with one hand and in the other is my pokedex. With an even wilder smile i snatch them all off of him with both hands and stare up at him in amazement as he begins to say, " Do your Uncle Lar-Lar proud won't you Jake ? You and your siblings have such potential, I honestly believe you could one day be as great as your father. No run along and tell your mother of the good news. " Running forward and wrapping my arms around his waist quickly I then turn around and run through the lab doors and down the steps, back into the Forest to run home.
Running home, must have taken a good half an hour or more, but it seemed as if I was running for no longer than 5 minutes. But none the less as soon as i stepped in through the front door, I collapsed in a similar fashion as what I did at the poke-lab. And unsurprised my mother didn't even so much as glance up from the baby mareep that she was nursing with a bottle. Putting the mareep back in the pen with the rest of its brothers and sisters, my mother finally glances over at me just to make sure I hadn't actually knocked myself unconscious from lack of oxygen. After a minute I regained my composure, pokeballs and pokedex still in my hands i hold them out for her to see as i stand up with a huge grin spread across my face.
A mixture of both sadness, happiness, fear and love all flashed through my mothers face all at once until she settled on happiness and ran over to give me a giant hug and kiss on the forehead, as well as congratulations on passing the test that the professor always sets up special for my siblings and the rest of our family that have ever gone to him, " Oh sweety, I'm so happy for you. I knew that bulbasaur would be the perfect choice for you as soon as I laid eyes on here, do you know what I did ? I thought to myself, 'Oooooh hello there little sweety pie, you're going to be Jake's one day aren't you, yes you are, yes you are !' ... " She continued on in this fashion for several more minutes while still keeping me trapped in her iron grip of a hug. My god can this woman ramble I think to myself, rolling my eyes.
Finally releasing me she takes a step back and smooths out her clothes, now with a sadness in her eyes. " I guess you'll want to get going straight away, won't you ? " With a nod from me, she leans forward and hugs me again, this time in a much more calm fashion, a hug that would soothe the heart of any crying child. As I can feel tears start to well in my eyes, I break the hug and hold her face in my hands, and kiss her on the forehead, and head for the front door, calling over my shoulder to say goodbye to my two youngest sisters when they get back from school.
And just like that I was gone, heading away from my house, the lab and my town into a part of the forest I rarely explored as a child, and even now didn't dare to go in, Critter Forrest awaited me and all the pokemon it withheld, one or two would soon be mine. With everything repacked into my bag, I place my pokedex in my pocket and my pokeballs on my belt, taking Bulbasaur's pokeball of my belt I release her and put it back on.
" Bulbaa " She stumbles out as she looks up at me a little nervously, yet with a happiness in her eyes. And with a smile and wink from me down to her I look back up ahead of me and the two of us begin to wander into the forest. Leaving everything I know behind me in order to go on a new journey of my own.