PROLOGUE – An Unexpected Catch
Seventeen-year-old Ayren Collins awakened and stretched as he looked out his window at the pre-dawn sky beginning to rise over the town of Pallet. He had set his clock so he wouldn't miss dawn. Rushing out of bed and into his clothes, Ayren ran to the kitchen and got the bait he was going to use, along with his grandfather's Old Rod, and left the house, closing the door behind him with a soft click.
The air was chilly and still, but Ayren walked as if it were as warm as day. Heading down to the shore, Ayren slipped the bait on the hook and stared out at the horizon. "Today will be the day I catch my first Pokémon and get my PokéDex from Professor Oak. Perfect, the timing is perfect," he noted, observing the weather conditions. Flinging the bait into the water with a plop, Ayren sat back and waited for a Pokémon to bite. Ayren loved Water Pokémon, and had made an agreement with Professor Oak to catch his own Pokémon, instead of going with the usual starter choices for Pokémon: Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur. As much as he liked these Pokémon, he wanted a Pokémon he could truly call his own. And then, to see the world as a true Pokémon trainer, and compete in the Pokémon League Championship next year, to become the next Kanto Champion. Four years ago, a great trainer from Pallet Town had done the same, with the same humble beginnings, and now he was Regional Champion for four years running. Ayren determined to face that trainer and become Regional Champion.
A sudden strong tug on the Old Rod broke Ayren's thoughts. Standing up and pulling with all his might, Ayren used as much strength as he could muster to pull in his catch. Maybe he'd caught a Dratini? Or maybe it was a Dewgong? The pull was strong enough to make him think so! Giving a final grunt, Ayren reeled in his catch to find… a Magikarp.
A Magikarp? A MAGIKARP had been the cause of that strong pull?! Ayren wasn't having it. Noticing that it was now past peak fishing time, Ayren began to pack up, discouraged. He wasn't going to catch anything now. Tossing the Magikarp back into the water, he began to head home.
Little did he know that the Magikarp had other plans…
Magikarp eyed the lone PokéBall that Ayren was going to use on his catch, and immediately concentrated on the PokéBall. A red light enveloped the fish, and in no time, it had claimed a place in the PokéBall JUST as Ayren noticed what it was doing, and the words rang throughout the sky in Pallet…
"NO!!!! NOT MY ONLY POKéBALL!!!!!"