Talk about a writer's block. I just have not been able to focus on my other stories. So I finally started up this one, something I have wanted to write for some time now. I will alternate writing this one and TW. Enjoy.
Chapter One: Lost
She was in a world of darkness, one where she was the only inhabitant. Here everything was quiet, something she felt she should appreciate. But why prefer this silence? Was there no loneliness here?
It felt like she was there forever before the two figures appeared. They were hazy at first, hard to make out, and then her vision sharpened. The one to the left was a blue creature on all fours. Silver spikes produced from its sides and head, matching armor with a blue jewel covered its chest, and its red eyes pierced her. The one to the right was light purple and stood on its back legs. Dark lines formed odd patterns on its body while two wing-like items came from its shoulders. Though its eyes were smaller, they were also red.
She tried to speak, to ask who they were. Not a sound came from her though, as if she had forgotten how to talk, or to even form a thought. Then she realized that the dark around her was shifting, altering… the creatures were vanishing in a whirl of colors… and she was falling… falling… falling…
…And with a gasp, she sat up.
Breathing heavily and her heart pounding, the girl looked around the room she was in. White walls surrounded her, a window covered with a curtain was nearby, and a nightstand was by the bed she lay on, but there was nothing else of note. It made for a startling contrast to the darkness she had been in.
"Where… am I?" she whispered. Her throat felt dry and it was hard to make out the words, like she had not spoken for a long time. She was still trying to figure out the answer to her question when another one hit her brutally. "Who am I?"
Not a memory remained for her. She could not recall who she was, where she was, or what she was doing here. She felt panic rising and tried her best to force it away. I have to know… I can't have forgotten who I am! That's impossible…
Straining her mind desperately, she mentally heard an echo, as if from a very long distance away. Kyra…
Though unsure of where that came from, she sighed in relief. "Yes. Kyra. That's my name. I can't believe I nearly forgot that…"
The empty room offered no response, and she knew she would receive no explanations from remaining there. She hesitatingly tried to stand but nearly fell over in the process, her legs weaker than she thought possible. Quickly sitting down on the edge, she rubbed her pounding head as she softly said, "What's… happened to me?"
It took some time for her to feel confident enough to try again. She managed to stay up this time and stumbled to the window. Drawing aside the curtains, she swiftly covered her eyes with a hand as the glaring sunlight entered the room. After blinking several times, she unshielded her eyes and looked again.
Outside Kyra saw many trees in what looked like a forest. Greenery was everywhere. Rays from the sun traced shadowy patterns on the grassy ground. When she opened the window, a playful wind caressed her, the first she had felt what seemed like a long time.
"This place doesn't look familiar at all," Kyra said to herself. "Maybe… whoever owns this house would know. I don't think it's mine. Surely I would recognize my own home?"
Despite deciding she would need to look for another person, Kyra remained at the window and absorbed the sights. It felt so good to be seeing light again that she was reluctant to leave it.
Later, she would be thankful that she had not left, for otherwise she would have missed the high-pitched cry coming from the forest. Kyra froze, completely startled and unsure if she had really heard it. Another cry dispelled any disbeliefs she had.
Without thinking, Kyra vaulted out of the open window. She landed safely, being only on the first story and encountering soft soil. Then she went running towards the source of the noise.
The trip was short but difficult for her to make. The outfit she was wearing-which when she looked she found to be a white, sleeveless dress-was not good for running in, and left her arms exposed to random branches. She also lacked shoes, resulting in several sharp pains from other branches on the ground. Despite that, she kept going, determined to find who was in trouble.
She soon came to a clearing that showed her a terrible sight. A teenage boy was there, wearing a red shirt, jeans, having black hair, and with a smirk that rose to his brown eyes. Standing in front of him was a bizarre creature that Kyra had never seen the likes of. It looked like a white furball with brown arms and legs, the arms ending in boxing glove-like fists. A pig-like snout was beneath its narrowed eyes, and its triangular ears stood stiffly up.
What really caught her attention was the third being there. It looked like a small, brown puppy with a fluffy tail that had a tip of white at the end. White fur formed a collar of sorts around its neck, but it was now matted in dirt and blood, as was the rest of its body. It lay limply on the ground with its long ears drooped and its black eyes half-closed.
The boy did not seem to notice Kyra. He said to the creature before him, "Now, Primeape, finish off the stupid thing!"
"Primeape!" the creature responded, advancing towards the downed one. It watched him fearfully and managed to whimper something that sounded like, "Eevee…"
"Stop!" Kyra shouted, running towards the puppy. She lifted it and covered it with her arms.
It looked up at her in surprise, and was not the only one. "Who the hell are you supposed to be?" the boy snapped, and the Primeape appeared no happier.
"Leave the poor thing alone!" Kyra said, pressing it close to her. "What did it ever do to you?"
"It existed, that's what! Wild Poke'mon are made for us to beat up. If lucky, they faint and we move on. If not, they die. Simple as that," the boy said as if it was obvious. "And we get stronger in the process. How could you not know that?"
Kyra stared at him. "How cruel is that? You would be willing to kill someone just to get a little stronger?"
"Of course! And if you won't get out of the way, you'll be next!" The boy pointed at her. "This is your last chance. Drop it and leave, or else I won't hold back!"
Though clearly afraid, Kyra shook her head. "No. I'm not going to let you hurt it."
"Then we have no choice! Primeape, attack her! Low Kick!" the boy snarled. The Primeape ran towards Kyra and lunged.
It looked impossible for him to miss, yet he was abruptly stopped by a brown blur smashing into him. The Primeape went tumbling back as another creature landed in front of Kyra. It looked like a large bird with yellow and pink tail and head feathers. It gave a triumphant cry of, "Pidgeotto!"
"What's the meaning of this?" the boy demanded, staring behind Kyra. She turned to see a man standing there. He wore a white coat, had dark gray hair, and blue eyes that were gazing at the boy sternly.
"You would attack a human simply to get at that Pokémon? For shame! I suggest you leave at once, or we will make you," the man said. The bird seemed to be in agreement, for it flapped its wings and screeched.
"Bah! You're lucky you happened to have a flying type on you," the boy spat. "Primeape, return!" He held out a red and white ball. A red beam emerged from it to form around the Primeape. It turned into red light and vanished into the ball. "This wasn't worth my time anyway." He stomped off without looking back.
"Trainers these days…" the man said, shaking his head in disapproval. He walked over to Kyra. "Are you all right?"
"Y-yes, thank you," Kyra said shakily. She held out the puppy. "But this one is not."
The man looked at it carefully and appeared startled. "An Eevee! I never would have thought to see a wild one around these parts. They are very rare."
"Can you help it?" Kyra asked.
"Certainly. Let's return to my home. By the way, my name is Professor Cedar. What is yours?" he inquired.
"Kyra," she said before glancing at the bird.
He caught her look. "That is Elsu, a good friend of mine. He's a Pidgeotto."
"That's the third of these… creatures… I've seen so far," Kyra said. "What are they?"
Professor Cedar gave her an incredulous look. "You mean you don't know what Pokémon are?"
"Sorry, but I don't," Kyra said with a flush.
"…Well, I'll explain once we get back," Professor Cedar said. "We should take care of that Eevee first."
"Yeah…" Kyra said. She followed him out of the clearing as Elsu took flight, leaving them.
A few minutes later, they arrived at the house Kyra had left. She said in surprise, "This is your home?"
"Yes." He opened the door and let her in before entering himself. Then he led her through the hallways until they came to a room that had a metal table and several bottles, vials, and needles around. "Lay the Eevee on that table."
Kyra did so. Afterwards, the professor handed her a bottle. "If you didn't know what Pokémon are, I doubt you would recognize a Potion. Spray it onto the wounds." He turned to the Eevee and said, "This will sting a little, but it will help you heal."
A bit hesitant but wanting to help, Kyra placed a hand on the Eevee gently before spraying the Potion. The Eevee yelped several times before it was depleted, but in the end, all of the wounds closed and it appeared fully healed.
"There we go. Not too bad, was it?" Professor Cedar said.
The Eevee stood up carefully and wagged its tail at him before jumping into Kyra's arms. Though startled, she was delighted and petted the Eevee happily.
"Let me see it for a moment." Professor Cedar took the Eevee and examined it. "This is a female," he remarked, handing her back to Kyra.
"She's very cute," Kyra said. She looked a little sad as she said, "That guy called this a wild Pokémon. So that means she has to go back, right?"
The Eevee squeaked and nuzzled close to her. Professor Cedar laughed at that. "Normally, yes, but I don't think she wants to. You did save her after all, and were even willing to risk yourself for her sake. That's not something to be taken lightly."
"So… she wants to… stay with me?" Kyra asked.
"That's right. Pokémon can be caught and kept with people," Professor Cedar explained. "For instance, I caught Elsu when he was a Pidgey. He has stayed with me ever since. Most Pokémon have to be battled so they are weakened, and then they will stay inside a Poké Ball, which looks like the device that boy used. You saw it, right?"
"Yes." Kyra looked at the Eevee again. "Are they all right with living in a confined space like that?"
"Certainly. It does not hurt them at all. Some prefer to stay out more often though." Professor Cedar stroked his chin thoughtfully. "There are exceptions to what I was saying though. This is one of them. If a Pokémon is willing to join you, I would say it is a good idea to accept."
"I'd love to! Thank you, Eevee," Kyra said. The Eevee wagged her tail in response.
"You can also give Pokémon nicknames," Professor Cedar added. "Such as I did with Elsu. Would you like to call her something?"
"Um…" Kyra pondered a moment and gazed at the Eevee. "How about… Ameratsu? Ammy for short?" She yipped and licked her in response. Kyra laughed. "Okay, Ammy it is!"
"Now we should talk." Professor Cedar eyed her up and down. "Actually, before we do that, you might want to take a bath. No offense meant, but you need one."
Kyra looked down at herself to find she had acquired quite a bit of dirt and several shallow cuts from running through the forest. Completely embarrassed, she said, "I think you're right. If you don't mind…"
"This way." He brought her to a door. "I'll find some spare clothes for you. My daughter was about your age before she left, so some of hers should work."
"Thanks." Kyra hurriedly entered before she could feel more awkward.
It turned out Ammy needed a good cleaning as well, so she scrubbed the filth from her fur before taking her own bath. Ammy seemed to enjoy it. She remained still and dignified during the process, something that surprised Kyra. She had expected the Eevee to dislike it.
When she was done, Kyra found that Professor Cedar had kept to his word and left some clothes outside. She dressed in front of a mirror and looked over herself. Now she wore a more practical outfit of a pale purple shirt and dark purple skort, along with black fingerless gloves. To her relief, she recognized her black hair, which went to her shoulders in waves, and blue eyes. Unlike her lost memories, her appearance felt familiar.
Carrying Ammy, she walked through the halls until coming across the living room. A few chairs and a couch were there, as well as a television that Professor Cedar was watching. He shut it off when he saw she had entered. "There you are. How do the clothes fit?"
"Fine, thank you." Kyra sat on the chair across from him with Ammy in her lap.
"One more thing before we talk." Professor Cedar picked up a Poké Ball and handed it to her. "Use this on Ammy. That way she will officially be yours."
Kyra looked at the ball and hesitated, but Ammy did not seem to object. "Okay then… what do I do?"
"The ball has to make contact with a Pokémon to catch it. That is usually done with throwing. This time, you could probably just drop it on her," Professor Cedar suggested.
"All right." She did so. The ball opened and sucked Ammy. It shook once, and then went still.
"Sometimes Pokémon can break out if they are not weakened enough," Professor Cedar said. "You can let her out again if you want. Call her out. Throwing it would work as well, but I would prefer you didn't in here from the fear of you breaking my TV."
Kyra did so, and Ammy came out at once, saying, "Eevee!" She curled up in her lap again.
"There you have it. Pressing the button on the ball will shrink it down in size. You can attach it to your belt then." Kyra attempted to and found that it indeed did. "You can have up to six Pokémon with you at a time. If you got more than that, they would be sent to whichever professor started you on your journey. In your case, they would be sent to me."
"My journey?" Kyra asked.
"Pokémon trainers tend to go on journeys," Professor Cedar said. "They find more Pokémon to catch, trainers to battle, and challenges to overcome. It helps strengthen both the trainer and his or her Pokémon. Most trainers get a starter Pokémon from their professor, though it will not be necessary in your case thanks to Ammy."
A bit nervous now, Kyra said, "So you think I will be going on a journey too?"
"I was assuming you would. Most people your age become Pokémon trainers. Then again, you have never heard of them…" Professor Cedar mused. Looking a bit grim, he said, "I found you three days ago. You were lying a short distance from my home. Where did you come from?"
Kyra looked away. "I'm sorry. I… I don't know. My memories… all I could remember was my name…"
Professor Cedar sighed. "I am sorry to hear that. Unfortunately, I have no idea of how to help you. But if you found where you came from, maybe that would help. I will not object to you staying here if you want to, yet I think it would be best if you went on a journey to find out more about yourself."
"I see…" Kyra looked at Ammy. "What do you think?"
"Eevee!" she said, wagging her tail in response.
"I guess that's a yes. Um, do all Pokémon say their names like that?" Kyra asked.
"Yes, most do. There are very few exceptions, though I have heard of some," Professor Cedar said. His eyes darkened as he said, "Actually, there is another reason I want you to go."
"What is it?" Kyra said.
"We live on an island, one secluded from most of the world," Professor Cedar stated. "Thus we are out of contact. However, we have been hearing rumors from the continents. Apparently wild Poke'mon have been going insane lately."
"Insane?" Kyra said. Ammy's ears drooped.
"That is the best word for it. Most of the time, wild Poke'mon will leave you alone if you leave them alone. But these ones…" He shook his head. "They attack anyone they can find. These are Poke'mon that will kill if possible. It is beyond belief, yet… since you are going to the main land anyway, I was hoping you could check." He handed her a red and black device with a screen. "This is a Poké Gear. You can contact people with it and get information on Pokémon using it. My number is already in there. I would like you to keep in touch. In exchange, I will try to help you along and will keep any Pokémon that go beyond your limit of six."
"Okay. Thank you for all of your help," Kyra said, sliding it away.
Professor Cedar smiled faintly. "I am happy to do what I can. You should wait until tomorrow to leave though. You just woke up, after all."
"That sounds good," Kyra replied. "Do you have any books on Pokémon? I would like to learn more about them."
"Of course." He waved his hand at a bookshelf nearby. "There are plenty there. Feel free to read any of them."
"Thanks." Kyra set Ammy on the arm of her chair before going to scan the bookshelf. Professor Cedar left the room.
The rest of the day was spent reading up on Pokémon with Ammy. She was amazed at how many there were reported to be-at least 493-and their diversity. She tried her best to remember important factors on battling, such as strengths and weaknesses Pokémon had. It was hard to keep everything in mind though, so she was left feeling quite nervous despite all she had read.
After eating dinner with the professor, she was given a nightshirt and shown back to her bedroom. She got into bed with Ammy lying next to her on her pillow. The last thought she had before falling asleep was, What have I gotten myself into?
To be continued…