Forty-six hours at sea... may as well have made a cruise out of it.
The sea-swept breezes of Hoenn invaded my dark blonde hair as I stepped onto the docks at Slateport Harbor. I enjoyed the cruise immensely, especially through the star gate… sorry, "galaxy bridge"… into the waters of a foreign land. It happened nearly seamlessly, except for the large, round portal installed just off the coast of Vancouver Island when the Canadian government, of all nationalities, had made first contact with aliens, though to find identical humans in a far-off region of space two years ago was quite unexpected.
I had been one of the first ninety-thousand responders to the seventeenth wave of job offers from the other side of the Gate. I was one of fourteen applicants for new security guards at a business called Devon Corporation. I was a formerly licensed Guard and a recent English degree recipient without a job, and nothing on Earth had turned up any leads for the better part of the past six months. When the opportunity to depart the planet presented itself at first, one year ago while I was still attending school, my family and I had held a family meeting about it. At first, we simply called it a hoax, but when Thirsty, a good friend of ours, suddenly told us he was moving to a place called Slateport City to work on the docks, we knew it was true. Being a bit of a Pokémon nut, and in desperate need of work, I couldn't pass this up.
As the breeze ruffled my hair, I took a deep breath and smiled. My four-year-old daughter Firefly, who held my hand, looked at me nervously. I was glad we had made this decision before she entered school. It would allow her to get used to living in a new land before she had to adjust socially.
"So, this is Hoenn."
My wife, Rosebud, rolled up beside me in her power chair. The winds of Slateport caught her auburn hair and wrestled playfully on occasion.
I nodded. "Yup. Welcome to our new country."
We stepped off the ship and proceeded to the customs office, located in a building just outside the main dock. There was a tall woman in a blue police outfit. Her hair was teal and tied back in a professional ponytail. I looked around and saw literally hundreds of these stations. Ships from all over both worlds were docked here! China, Japan, Russia, America, Kanto, Johto, and even a couple small ships from Orre, Sinnoh, and beyond… each of these countries and more were represented. There were even some people gathering at another dock to be transferred to Earth.
I could only imagine what was happening at Hoenn's other major port at Lilycove.
After a few minutes of starstruck amazement, we approached our assigned desk.
"Hi! I'm Officer Jenny," she said. "Can I see your passports?"
I looked at my wife through crystal-blue eyes and she proceeded to fiddle around in her brown purse for the articles. A minute passed and she produced three identical booklets, one for each of us.
"Zytharros… Rosebud… and Firefly…" she mumbled as she checked us against provided registries. "Birth dates?"
My wife rattled off the dates.
Jenny smiled. After she checked a couple other things, she seemed satisfied. "Well, everything seems to be in order. Your bags are in that warehouse over there," she indicated a building to her left, "and your furniture is being delivered to the address on this form." She handed us a trio of small plastic sheets. "These are your identification cards. In your case, because you filled out the necessary paperwork, they also double as citizenship cards. Here's a map of Hoenn, and if you need a Pokémon, there's a Pokémon Center with some available for you to claim just down that road." She indicated a red-roofed building along the coast to her right. "Four of the Gym Leaders, two of the Elite Four, and some expert Trainers of Hoenn are available in case you need any assistance with handling Pokémon. The others, I'm afraid, are in Lilycove helping with the other waves of newcomers."
We gave our thanks and wandered in the direction of the Center. Less than a couple steps out of the lineup, we heard a name.
"Zytharros!"
My daughter and I looked around to see who was calling us. I had a suspicion because I had told him of our arrival time. I suspected he was off organizing where our stuff was going, whether in his apartment or in a storage hangar somewhere. We didn't see him until he was flying up the road and nearly at us.
Literally. On a Pidgeotto.
"Hey!" the six-foot-six, blonde-haired, green-eyed brick known as Thirsty greeted as he landed. He withdrew his Pokémon into a ball.
"How's it?" I asked as I threw open my arms.
We briefly embraced in age-old brotherly love. It had been nearly a year since the last visit, and I was super psyched to see my childhood bro again.
"Pretty good," he replied. "I landed myself a pretty nice place with the money I've been earning from my job here at the port. They pay well here."
"Where is it?" I asked, assuming that was where we were headed.
He grinned. "Actually, I want to show you your house first. You can come by and visit when you're settled."
"Wait, wait. You bought us a house?" Rosebud asked. By the tone of voice, I could pretty well guess we were both floored.
"I wish!" Thirsty exclaimed with a laugh. "Devon Corporation's providing you with a place until you get set up. The notice should have arrived last week."
Rose and I looked at each other and grimaced sheepishly. I said, "I think we may have accidentally tossed that notice, thinking it was a bill or prank."
Thirsty chuckled. "Doesn't matter."
"How did you know what Devon was doing, anyway?" Rosebud asked.
"I heard word of it as some of their employees came down to deliver a shipment down at the docks a couple weeks ago," Thirsty replied. "When I heard your name mentioned at lunch, I decided to volunteer to help you."
He was living in Slateport itself, while I had hopes to move into Petalburg and work in Rustboro until an opening came up in the local paper. I had always enjoyed Petalburg in Pokémon Ruby, a city of pristine beauty with a forest and several smaller towns nearby, so it was only natural for my aim to fall there. The other favoured locales, Fortree and Pacifidlog, would have been too hard on my wife, the former being filled with ladders and treetops, the latter requiring stable sea legs and log-walking experience, and too far away from Rustboro to allow for an easy commute without a Flying-type Pokémon. Besides, they were far too out-of-the-way to be conceivable.
A couple of Trainers were already waiting with Pokémon, loaded with our carry-ons. One was a big, burly sailor-type with two small, gray childlike humanoids carrying one box in each hand. The other was a small boy with a large, round, bipedal rock of a creature lifting a rather substantial, long box.
"Thirsty! These your friends from Canada?" the boy asked.
"Kohl, this is Zytharros, his wife Rosebud, and his daughter Firefly," Thirsty said.
The four of us exchanged various greetings. Firefly remained silent and analytic, as usual, and Thirsty simply looked on.
"Devon Company hired us to make sure you got settled in," Tyler the sailor said. "They've got you a place in Verdanturf, closer to Rustboro than Petalburg, especially with the Rusturf Tunnel shortcut."
That was a bit of a surprise. I made a note to ask my supervisor about it later.
"Before we head out, maybe we should stop by the Pokémon Center and grab you two a Pokémon each," Kohl suggested. "That way, you'll be able to go anywhere and feel safe."
We agreed. Half a minute's walk saw us passing through the doors. The place was buzzing with immigrants, socializing and selecting various Pokémon from displays, Trainers, and Nurse Joy herself. It was a grand bazaar of volunteerism.
"Tell ya what," Thirsty said. "When you get your first pocket monster, come get us. We'll wait outside."
We nodded as they left.
There were many Pokémon to choose from, and all but a few came from this part of the world. Every type was represented, and most of the species were of the local, easy-to-train variety, like Zigzagoon, Poochyena, and Wingull. A few were imports, exotic types like Vulpix and Roggenrolla. There were a couple slots for generally rare ones like Dratini and Larvitar, but those species had long been claimed. Finally, two dark-coated peddlers, one marked with a red-and-black volcano, the other with a white circle over an inverted V in a blue diamond, were offering Pokemon to trainers, but looked like they were having difficulty drumming up interest. Maybe it was how they were doing it; they were whispering, and seemed to be avoiding anything having to do with legal establishment.
Rosebud and I passed by one particular booth, advertising a series of Pokémon in round units called 'Welcome Balls'. The Pokémon that remained were on display and sitting tall and proud for all to see.
The very first Pokémon that passed our vision was a small, purple shellfish with a small, pearl-like, black head in a bowl – a Shellder. I examined it for a bit, but found no interest within myself to take it. As soon as I passed it over, a man dressed in a full tuxedo claimed it. The next one, after a space, was already being whisked away in its ball by an eager child. He laughed and ran away, babbling on about his new Scyther. An entire column of two was missing before my eyes passed over a Zigzagoon, a brown, fluffy raccoon-like animal, and a Taillow. As I was browsing, a familiar voice echoed through the crowd.
"I want this one!"
My wife had wandered off to a different table and selected – what else? – the fire horse Ponyta, from Kanto. Ponyta did not like to be touched by anyone that wasn't its trainer. However, this particular horse was warm and friendly towards Rosebud. She was freely touching and bonding with it, as if something innately told it to trust her. Many of the seasoned Trainers even warned her against being so forward, but she simply waved them aside and treated it as if it had the psychology of your standard quarter-horse.
"I know what I'm doing," she said.
I smiled. Let her be. She's got quite the equine background.
I watched her call it into a Poké Ball and roll over. "Okay. I've got mine. What are you getting?"
I continued scanning the tables. The Trainer with the Shellder, Zigzagoon, and Swellow only had one other, and that was a second Zigzagoon. The next Trainer was a Swimmer, clearly only wearing swim trunks and a Hawaiian shirt. He had many Magikarp to give away, with only one or two actually gone. The next was Trainer clad in orange with green hair, and he had a single Ball left, but no Pokémon on display. We passed over the rest of the tables, quickly being emptied of their contents by fellow immigrants, until we came back to the Trainer with the lone ball.
"What's in this one?" I asked as my eyes connected with his own blue optics.
He smiled and brushed his identically-coloured hair out of his face. "That, my friend, is a Misdreavus."
"A Misdreavus?" Rosebud asked.
The Trainer nodded. "A Misdreavus looks like a disembodied, bluish-green Medusa head with yellow and red eyes, pink tips, and a red necklace-like decoration. It's a Ghost-type Pokémon normally found in Mt. Pyre or Johto. It's a prankster."
I looked at the ball and held it in my hands. "The ball's heavier than I thought it would be."
The nameless one chuckled a bit. "You're a fan too, I take it."
I nodded frantically. "I couldn't pass this opportunity up."
"Every Pokémon fan from your world's said the same thing about Poké Balls," he said. "They're made of a complex combination of metal and circuitry, so they're bound to be heavier than expected."
I smirked and looked at the ball again. "Misdreavus…" I held the ball outwardly in the palm of my hand and nodded. "Come on out!"
The ball popped open unceremoniously.
Confusion wrote its way onto my face. "Um, Misdreavus?"
The Trainer groaned. "Misdreavus, now's not the time for your games!"
A hollow giggle echoed through our ears. The head appeared over top of the other Trainer's face. My wife and I screeched in fright, taking a couple steps back. Firefly, however, found it a laugh riot.
The Trainer knew immediately what had happened. "Misdreavus, what have I told you about appearing over my head?"
The Pokémon was killing herself laughing, right along with Firefly. I didn't last long and joined in the laughter.
"Hey! Have you moved?" the Trainer crossly asked. "Hey! Get off! What the…!"
He tried removing the Pokémon from around his head, but only wound up stretching Misdreavus and making the scene that much more comical. Just as the Ace Trainer began to seriously lose his cool, I decided to bring things back under control.
"Okay, Misdreavus, that's enough. You've made your point."
The Pokémon floated herself off his head and over to me.
"Nice to meet you, Misdreavus," I said warmly, patting its' head… body… thing.
Rosebud wasn't convinced. "I'm a little creeped out by that Pokémon, Zytharros. Are you sure you don't want something a little more… normal? Like those raccoon things or the bird?"
Firefly patted Misdreavus on the head as I smiled. "Nope. This is my Pokémon."
The Trainer nodded. "Good choice. Now, take it over to Nurse Joy so she can analyze it and transfer your currency to Poké Dollars."
"What's the current exchange rate?" I asked.
Our helpful benefactor shrugged. "I don't keep track of those things, though I think some of the other Trainers who came here earlier only noticed the lack of a decimal denoting a smaller currency."
That's probably why I'm making $200,000 a month – it's because there are no cents.
I nodded, said my thanks, and walked off with Misdreavus still floating around my head and her Poké Ball in my pocket. My wife trailed behind us, wary of my new addition. Firefly and Misdreavus were busy making faces at each other and laughing. We approached the main desk.
After the pink-haired girl behind the desk dealt with another patron, the one known as Nurse Joy made her way over to me.
"Hello! May I see your I.D. please?"
I pulled out our cards. A brief second of looking at them was all she needed.
"Thank you, Zytharros, Rosebud… little Firefly…" she said, handing them back to us. "Now, my team will check your Pokémon out."
"I'm not little," Firefly muttered.
"Nurse Joy!" a similar voice called from somewhere in the back room.
"Yes, Joy?" our nurse responded.
Three Nurse Joys appeared from behind the double doors behind the desk. "Come take a look at this!"
"Joy," our Nurse said to one of the other Joys. Somehow, they could distinguish between them, and the one on the far left stood at greater attention. "Check this guy's Pokémon out."
"Okay."
We were handed off to another Nurse and the three other Joys disappeared into the back.
I looked at Rosebud. She looked stunned.
"Did that…?" she asked.
I nodded. "Yup."
"Thay were…?"
"Yup."
"But how?"
"Beats me."
Joy Two, as I'll call her from now on to avoid further confusion, approached us then and smiled. "I do apologize. We've been quite busy since we started this. Now, you've gotten your Pokémon, right?"
We nodded.
Firefly spoke up. "I wanna Pokémon!"
Joy Two smiled. "You can have one when you're ten. That's when kids can become trainers."
"But I want one now," my daughter insisted. "Why can't I have one?"
"Have fun with your daddy's Misdreavus and mommy's–" she paused.
"Ponyta." Rosebud continued.
Joy Two echoed the name. "They might even let you borrow them for a battle one day. Then, when you turn ten, you can have your very own Pokémon."
Firefly seemed disappointed, but placated. She turned to Misdreavus and continued making funny faces.
"Sorry, Firefly, but I need to see your parents' Pokémon now," Joy Two said with a chuckle. "I have to make sure they're okay."
"Aww…" Firefly gave a disappointed look that was heart-melting. Misdreavus also gave the same expression.
The exam barely took five minutes before Misdreavus returned to making faces at Rosebud and my wife's Ponyta was back in her hands.
"Your Pokémon are fine," Joy Two said. "If you don't mind me asking, which Trainers did you get them from?"
"I got mine from a Trainer with massive red hair, a black crop top with a red flame, and a pair of blue jeans," Rosebud said.
"Ah! Flannery, the gym leader of Lavaridge City," Joy Two said. "She's a Fire-type specialist." She turned to look at me. "And you?"
"From a trainer that I never got a name from. He had green hair and a pale orange shirt."
"The typical uniform of a high-powered Pokémon trainer classified as an Ace Trainer," Joy informed. "Their battles are usually spectacular affairs because they've been training for quite a while." She smiled. "No wonder your Pokémon have no problems. They were taken care of by two very well-respected Trainers." She glared past us. Rose and I followed her bitter gaze to the guys cloaked in black. "I'm glad you avoided contact with those creeps. Their Pokémon are always showing signs of mistreatment."
"I know their colours," I said. "Team Magma and Team Aqua: Pokémon terrorists extraordinaire." The three of us brought our eyes together.
"Word of their exploits has reached your ears, even in Canada, huh?" Joy Two said.
I chuckled. "Actually, I'm kind of surprised this world exists. Before a couple years ago, most people on Earth thought Pokémon was just a video game."
"There's a corporation from Earth fighting with our governments right now," Joy said solemnly. "They're trying to claim copyright on our whole world."
"Nintendo?"
"Nintendo."
"Thought so." I laughed. "That's kind of a harsh kick in the nuts when you realize your second-biggest-selling franchise isn't even able to be copyrighted in two different worlds anymore. Their investors back home are probably reeling right now."
We shared a bit of a chuckle before cooling off. I spent a bit of time registering for the Pokémon League, just in case we decided to take a vacation in a town with a Gym at some point in the future, acquiring a Pokédex in the process. We bade farewell and exited the Center. Firefly and Misdreavus had ceased making faces with each other to focus on keeping tabs on their surroundings. Misdreavus had floated up to hover near my shoulder. Thirsty met us outside, the crisp sea breeze blowing our hair around once again. We were now, officially, citizens of Hoenn and ready to begin our new lives.