Pokemon: Zenen Region

"Pokemon, the strange and mysterious creatures that inhabit this world. Trying to count the number of different species is a futile effort, for these creatures come in an infinite number of shapes and sizes. Some soar far above the horizon, slicing through wind and weather. Others dive deep under water, swimming leagues under the crushing ocean. Some traverse the great plains and valleys, basking in the sun. While others dwell deep in the dark, uncharted caves and caverns beneath the Earth... but most live out their lives with Humans. Anywhere from a lifetime partner and friend to their next home cooked meal, Pokemon and Humans have always involved each other in their daily lives. Because of this, the two have learned to co-exist on this world and many people have become Pokemon Trainers; whose goal is to battle and capture other Pokemon in hopes of becoming a Pokemon Master. Starting as young as 15, these trainers travel across the Regions battling others and strengthening the bond between them and their Pokemon. With as many meetings and partings as there are Pokemon, many strange and fascinating stories have been made by these spirited travelers... This is how it's been for a very long time, and the story before you is just one of many you're sure to hear."

- Professor Burmis

Chapter 1

The brisk morning breeze blew across the docks with a soft spray of the river accompanying its course. The distinct smell of salt from the river married the scent of sizzling fried fish from the food courts on the large stone path before the board walks. Slowly gliding in the sky were several small white Pokemon with thin, blue stripped wings.

From their point of view, you could see the whole town, full of life and movement. The buildings were quaint wooden structures that never exceeded two stories and were closely packed together. Some of the homes had stair cases on the side and others had large brick chimneys with misty smoke rising from their breach. Between the buildings were wide streets made of stone that had a large quantity of traffic with both people and Pokemon. Shopping, talking, running, and even a battle or two drew crowds out and on the main roads.

Beyond the town was lush fields of greenery and a few singled out trees as far as the eyes could see. Back at the docks were several small fishing boats bobbing up and down in the water and tied to wooden posts. In the river, a few small boats had fishermen in them with their large straw hats and fishing rods in the air. Every once in a while you could see a Magikarp or Goldeen jump out the water.

In between the loud ruckus of the towns' people and the patient floating of the fishermen, was a boy sitting on the edge of the wide stone street. Below his dangling feet were the wooden boards of the dock. He sat still, wearing a thin hoodie that outlined his angular body. The hoodie was primarily jet-black with a scarlet red hood covering his head and face and three scarlet rings designed around the center. Below the hoodie he wore a pair of black, semi-saggy sweatpants that had one pocket on each side and one strap pocket on the back of his right thigh. The pants had two white strings with knots at the end that laid between his legs and the rest of the pants went all the way down, overlapping his black tightly strapped boots. His arms were rested on his knees and his hands were a slightly tanned white with long and skinny fingers laced between each other.

In the background behind him he could hear the yelling of a man at a food court saying, "Come and get it fresh folks! Smoked, fried, smothered, and grilled, we've got it all!"

In front of the boy a good distance away was an old fisherman sitting in his boat looking intensely into the water. Suddenly, a splash was made next to the fisherman's boat and on the surface of the water an orange Pokemon with parallel black marks on its cheeks and a yellow collar around its neck appeared.

"Did you see 'em Buizel?" The fisherman asked the Pokemon with anticipation.

The Pokemon replied with a nod and "Bwee, bweee!" before flipping back underwater. For a brief moment you could see his split tail in the air. After the Pokemon submerged again, the fisherman scrambled amongst his things and grabbed his fishing pole. Then he carefully attached a strange, dark purple and blue bait with several small spikes covering its surface to the hook. After reeling the bait in closer, he lifted his pole in the air and whipped the line out a few yards away and waited, slowly turning the handle to reel it in closer.

Several minutes of patience later, a bird Pokemon came flying over the fisherman's boat and soared close to the water. It was small with grayish-black feathers and a white markings on its face and chest. The little Starly flew quickly over the wooden docks and flapped its wings landing next to the sitting boy on the edge. With a few hops back and forth, it looked up at the boy and chirped. The boy noticed the little Pokemon and looked over at it. His face was shaded from the hood, but his eyes were sharp and he had an intense glare when he looked. However the icy blue color of his eyes stood out from the rest.

Jet-black strands of hair fell in front of his eyes, as he watched the Starly tilt it's head almost 90 degrees to the right. After a few moments of this, there was a sudden break in the usual noises. On the far left side of the dock was the largest boat in the river. It had a whole section above the deck and cabins with railing all around it. On the side of the boat, there was its name written in bright green. A metal ramp extended from the deck to the board walk. After talking to one of the other sailors, a rugged looking man in a white and blue get-up walked from the boat down to the board walk.

Once he got up the steps to the stone street, he straightened his white cap and cupped his hands around is mouth, "All aboard! All aboard! The Aquamarine is leaving in 30 minutes! All passengers heading to the Kalos Region must be signed in before we take off! All aboard!"

Slowly, a few groups of people migrated over to the man and he pointed them to the boat where two other sailors were now standing at the bottom of the ramp. The boy looked up and saw the people walking down the board walk to the boat. There were men, women, and children, all wearing different clothes and carrying different things. Most of them had a rectangular piece of paper in their hands flapping calmly in the wind.

The boy looked back at the old fisherman for a second and reached up to the top of his hood. He pulled it down revealing his long, messy black hair. It reached down his neck and barely past his shoulders. Once the breeze picked back up, it all began to blow to one side. He looked back at the boat squinting his eyes and reached in his hoodie pocket. He pulled out his own white piece of paper that was folded in half, but on the top of it you could almost make out the word "Ticket".

With a deep sigh, his eyes softened as he looked down at the folded paper. His face looked conflicted as he reached up to his neck and pulled out a small necklace with purple and blue beads on it. He held it tight as he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. With the exhale, he stood up from his spot on the edge and sunk his hands in his hoodie pockets. The little Starly was startled and quickly fluttered away from the boy's movements. Looking down at the ground the boy began to make his way toward the yelling sailor.

One year earlier…

"No seriously, I think we're lost." Her calm voice pitched up in sudden realization.

She walked holding a wrinkled map wide open in front of her. The map had a diagram of a forest with several paths and a legend on the side. Several creases forming a grid stretched across the paper. The girl holding the map was peculiar at best.

From a distance, one might mistake her for tall dark tree. But with a closer look, one would realize that the mass of darkness in front of them was actually a willowy, pale skin, teenage girl. Her body, skinny and flat-chested, had little figure and her ebony hair was cut off just at the neck with three separate crops of bangs, two on the side shaping out her face, and one in the middle, shadowing above her lilac eyes. Light freckles were dabbed above her button nose, and across her flushed cheeks. She was clad in all black clothing: laced-up combat boots, thigh-high socks, fingerless gloves, a loose tank top that exposed a bit of her bra, a high-waist pair of jean shorts that had fake-rips in the center, and a plaid jacket tied around her midriff. She also carried a black book-bag with several pockets and zippers, plus a plastic buckle that reached across her chest from each shoulder strap.

Behind the girl was three ghost-type Pokemon, two of which were hovering over each of her shoulders. The one on the left somewhat resembled of jellyfish. It had a round head with a crown shaped tuffet, along with five wavy, tentacle-like appendages. Its primarily pink body was complete with a pair of blue, oval shaped eyes with red sclera and a curled eyelash on each eye. The Pokemon had a frilled collar around its neck and it appeared to be smiling.

The ghost Pokemon on the right had a clear, spherical head containing a bluish purple flame and yellow, oval shaped eyes. On top of its head was a black covering, which resembled a lampshade and with that, a pointed spike was on top. Underneath its round head was a small, black body with another pointed spike at the bottom. Extending from its body were two long, wavy arms with no fingers.

Instead of hovering, the third Pokemon walked behind the girl on its two short, stubby feet. Its body was a dark-brown pumpkin with two triangular eyes and a half-circle mouth carved into it. Above the pumpkin body was the Pokemon's tall, slender and orange colored head. Its face only contained two yellow eyes and a small mouth, though the mouth had a pair of sharp fangs sticking out of it. Completed by its peach-colored hair, which down the sides developed limbs, the hair contained bangs which covered one eye. The top of its hair was crescent shaped, with peach-colored hair on the outside and black on the inside.

The four were traveling down a narrow dirt path in the middle of a heavy forest. The trees were large and the branches extended far from the trunk. Above them was a canopy of leaves with little beams of sunlight bursting through the greenery. Several overgrown bushes and plants either narrowed or blocked the path constantly making it difficult to traverse. Full of vibrant colors and curious wildlife, even the abundance of sounds that surrounded the girl and her Pokemon, the forest was enough to make one want to close their eyes and rest a while.

"Oh wait, maybe not."

The girl stopped and turned the map vertically as if to get a better angle, then looked up at a neighboring path she could barely make out between the trees.

"Frillish, go see if that path curves to the left up ahead."

Understanding her words, the pink floating Pokemon levitated over to the other path while making a soft humming sound. Its tentacles bounced in the air as it examined the path and noticed the distinct left curve it made. Signaling the girl to come, she quickly folded up the map into a small square and stuffed it in her pocket.

With a smile on her face she shouted, "Alright, let's go!" to her companions and ran over to the other path without a moment's delay.

Not too far from the traveling girl and her Pokemon was a small lake. Near the edge of the lake, a few yards into the trees, was a clearing where a makeshift camp was set up. In the camp was a pile of glowing embers and black sticks burning inside a ring of smooth grey rocks. Also, in the gap between two rather wide tree trunks was a brown, tightly secured rope. The rope was wrapped several times around one trunk, then stretched out to the other trunk and tied to it. Hanging on this rope was a worn down, gray book bag with several dark stains on it and only one strap remaining. It had a large light brown flap on the top with two small black buckles keeping it down, along with two velcro pockets on each side. Next to the bag was a thin black and red hoodie. It dangled on the rope with its scarlet ring design and hood all wrinkled up.

Across from the hanging items were a Pokemon and a teenage boy, both sound asleep. The Pokemon was canine in structure, mainly black fur with a long orange snout and orange underbelly. At the tip of its snout was a small black nose. Around its neck was a white, bone-like band with a small skull-shaped pendant on its throat. Two more bone-like bands wrapped around each of its ankles, as well as three rib-like ridges on its back. On top its head was a pair of thick, curved gray horns. The Pokemon lay curled in the grass with its long, skinny, triangle tipped tail by its face. Its breathing was calm and soft as its body expanded and shrank.

Lying next to it was the sleeping boy; his breaths were broken up and shaky. He laid on his back with a grey towel, which seemed to be kept in good condition, between him and the grass. His hair was long and dark as ink; tied in a loose-short ponytail, several of the wild strands reached down his neck and in front of his eyes. His head was cocked to the left and his face was long like his hair, completed by a sharp-curved chin and pointy nose.

The boy's upper body was slightly exposed by the dark blue tank top he wore that seemed to fit him perfectly. From what one could see, one would assume his body was in prime physical condition. However, his muscle-toned arms and chest were still rather slim and his angular body was very lean, rather than buff. Below his tank top was a pair of black, semi-saggy sweatpants that had a pocket on each side of them, plus one on the back. Wrapped through the loops of the pants was a black belt that had an equally black sheath strapped horizontally to it with a blade inside. The blades handle was dark-green with three metal pins down the center and was pointed toward his front. By his feet were two un-strapped and unlaced, tall black boots sitting upright.

The boy rolled to his left revealing the back of his belt. There was six round clips, three on his back left, and three on his back right. On his back right was two, small round balls with the top half colored red and the bottom half white, clipped to the belt. In the center of each ball was a small white button with a black outline reaching around the center of the ball.

All of a sudden, on the edge of the clearing, near the campfire, there was shuffling inside a patch of thick bushes. The bushes had four light green flowers with yellow stems on the inside, sticking out of it. The shuffling continued, shaking the whole bush until without warning, a small purple Pokemon with large buck teeth jumped out from the bush. Following that, another one hopped out behind the first. They both had a long, slightly curled tails and skinny whiskers; though the second one's whiskers appeared shorter.

They scurried across the camp, toward the hanging bag. With its nose steadily twitching, the first Rattata climbed up the tree and examined the bag carefully, while the other crept up to the sleeping creatures and studied them. Taking interest in the Pokemon, it slowly crawled up to its back and sniffed it for a brief moment. Unexpectedly, the large black Pokemon let out a quick sneeze causing its face to tense up, and the Rattata to jump back several feet.

Drowsily, the Pokemon raised its head and opened its mouth, letting out a whiny yawn. The inside of its mouth was black with a long pink tongue and razor sharp teeth. Breathing at a regular speed now, the large canine glanced at the boy and began to sniff. Noticing a scent, the Pokemon's head jolted around, seeing the pair of rodents trembling in fear. Slowly, the intimidating white teeth where exposed as its soft growl grew more fierce.

Ditching the bag, the two Rattatas bolted back into the bushes as the black Pokemon shot up from its spot and began barking ferociously. Immediately after, the teenage boy jumped up and instinctively pulled the knife out with his left hand, pointing it toward the barking Pokemon. The knife had two sides too it, one was an intensely sharp edge while the other had several jagged ridges. Anxiously checking his surroundings and not spotting anything, he calmed himself down with a deep breath and sheathed his blade. After seeing the growling Pokemon in a 'ready to strike' stance, he called out to it.

"Houndoom! What the hell's wrong with you?"

The growling ceased, and the tensed up Houndoom turned to the boy and started panting adorably.

"Oh, don't you make that face at me. You woke me up an hour early." He said with a deep, tranquil voice.

The boy stood up and stretched out his arms with a long groan. Scratching his messy hair, the Houndoom tramped over to the boy and looked up at him. The Pokemon stood even with his waist but the horns went up to his stomach. The boy reached down and rubbed the fur between his horns on his head.

"Well good morning to you too."

With a yawn, he walked over to the hanging bag and unbuckled the top flap. After flipping it open, the boy sunk his hand deep into the bag and rummaged through the things inside.

"You guys are gonna' love what I found yesterday." The boy said as he pulled out a rather full looking, brown paper bag.

He turned around and reached behind his waist with his right hand. With a short clicking sound, he un-clipped one of the small Pokeballs from his belt and pressed the button in the center. The ball then expanded in the boys hand to about the size of a softball. After filling the boy's hand, he tossed the ball into to the air. When the Pokeball opened, a white beam of light shot out toward the ground. Once it hit the ground, the light instantly began to take form until it was in the shape of a small Riolu. This small, blue, canine Pokémon stood up on the toes of its black, hind legs. Its upper torso was also black, but the rest of it, including the tail and arms were blue. On the back of each of its forepaws was an oval-shaped bump. It also had a black 'mask' around its dark red eyes and ears. As it stood there composed, it reached upward and tugged at a thin green scarf it wore around its neck.

After the ball closed back up in midair, it fell down and was caught by the boy again, shrunk down to its original size, and re-clipped to the back of his belt.

"Check it out guys. I found these on our way back yesterday." The boy revealed as he poured out a small river of round, pink berries out of the bag and onto the grass.

"Magost berries." He said as the two Pokemon stared at the pile with curiosity.

The Riolu quickly launched itself toward the fruits and picked one up, sinking its teeth into its fat, juicy body. The Houndoom walked up to the pile and sniffed the berries very closely, then turned his head in disgust.

"Oh come on Doom, these aren't that bad." The boy said as he dropped down in a sitting position and picked up one of the berries. The size of the berry was almost enough to fill his hand; he brought it up to his mouth and took a large bite out of it. Dark pink juice dripped heavily out of the fruit and down his chin as he chewed.

"See." He said with his mouth full, "Look even Riolu loves i-"

He stopped and began to choke after noticing the 8 green, juice stained stems laying in a pile next to the small blue Pokemon as he sunk his teeth into its ninth berry. After coughing up half a lung, the boy got his composer and opened his mouth.

"Damn Riolu, save some for the rest of us."

After watching the two chow down on the food, the Houndoom stared at the few berries that were left with conflicted feelings.

"If you didn't want this you should have eaten whatever it was you were barking at." The boy said with a smirk grin on his face.

The Houndoom growled in defeat and picked up one of the berries with his mouth. Then it turned around and slowly walked to the other side of the clearing; plopping down with its back facing the others while it nibbled on the pink fruit. The boy grinned slightly again as he pushed the hair out his eyes and bit into his food again.

After about ten minutes of casually chowing down on fruit, the Riolu gave a loud exhale and laid back with a pleased face; using the scarf to wipe his mouth.

"Alright today's the day." The boy declared as he stood up and patted the dirt off the back of his pants.

Picking up the brown bag and shoving it back in his book bag, the boy walked over to the grey towel and began to roll it up.

"Today, we're gonna' get him and finally be able get out of here."

The Houndoom turned its head to see what the boy was doing, while the Riolu's ears perked up in interest to what he was saying. He rolled it up into a cylinder and laid it down under the bag. He grabbed the hoodie off the rope and flipped it over his shoulder.

"But first... I gotta' take a leak." He said as he walked into the trees away from the clearing.