Embara here. All of chapters 1-7 take place during the first season of A Journey of Three. I'll leave another author's note when the next part begins and ends. Happy reading everyone!
Frontier Stories: Episode 1
I looked up from the screen of my laptop before I gently shut it. I let out a bit of a sigh as I brought my mug of now cooled coffee forth. It was a quiet and mostly serene room which only furthered my writers block as nothing brought forth any form of inspiration. After the moment of stillness I rose to my feet and began to walk into the living room area of the cabin, which just so you know, was built just for me during my stay.
Walking, I passed one of, if not my best Pokémon ally, Fey the Espeon. The creature lay fast asleep on the couch looking peaceful. I needed the fresh air which I was soon greeted with as I passed through the back door to see the dusty ground and oasis. This was the Gible Reserve I had found for the spectacular endangered Pokémon known as Gible.
I watched a few of the creatures run across the field, a small dirt trail winding around the grounds with the distinguishable small fins that protrude from the ground. Before I had enough time to truly soak in the scene I heard the television turn on.
Sure enough as I turned around to look inside, there sat Fey switching through the channels by slapping her paw on the remote. More than likely she was looking for the news she seems to like on.
"Goood Morning Sinnoh. It is a b-e-a-utiful day outside the Western side of Mt. Coronet, but look out Veilstone City, you're going to have some late showers and there's a chance of minor flooding around the Lake Resort
In other news, the Sinnoh Pokémon League Championship has completely finished its eventful Tournament and we saw the crown given to a young budding Trainer simply known as Saibot, an upcoming star who has taken her second consecutive win in a major tournament. This afternoon she is scheduled to ascend the League tower to challenge the Elite Four and with any luck, our lovely Champion Cynthia. All for the chance of the grand prize of 1,000,000 Poke, Her name written in the stone of the Hall of Fame, and of course the ever coveted invite to the Grand World Championship in the Heart of the World, the Frontier!.."
I sighed as I turned out the screen, knowing quite well all about the recent Sinnoh League, and more than a little upset at my inability to go. That thought aside, I made my way into the small studio where I knew Kiera, my wonderful girlfriend and one of my best friends, had been busy at work on her fashion line set to premiere in six months.
Kiera is the same age as me, about six inches shorter and quite athletic. Whereas I myself am pretty much an average guy, maybe a bit tall, maybe a bit broad shouldered, and maybe my shaggy brown hair was a bit sloppy at times, but still I feel I'm pretty average. Kiera on the other hand is quite opposite, she has always had an eye for fashion and she has this weird fixation on styling her hair into different shades and variations all the time
I had met Kiera when I was 16, off on a journey with my other best friend Sam. There had been a horrible forest fire near Eterna Forest and we had found her passed out from the smoke. I had recognized her from…another event…
The world we live in…is not perfect. For as many wonderful and splendid things there are, there are as many horrendous sides. One of these horrendous sides being some of the people, particularly the extremist group known as Team Magma.
It was when Kiera was working for them that I met her. Don't get me wrong, when I discovered her passed out she had since left the group and was travelling on her own for self-discovery or something like that. All I remember is carrying her out of the burning woods and finding shelter.
Since then we've all been traveling together and have become as close as close friends could be. It wasn't actually until a couple of years ago when Kiera and I actually started going out.
She really is a marvelous person, having been offered a position as a gym leader and making a name for herself as a coordinator. She's won almost every major tournament for coordination and defeated the Unova Pokémon League.
However...ever since the end of her last coordination episode, she's been working hard on her fashion line for Trainer Apparel Incorporated. (a popular clothing line geared towards trainers, best known for their lengthy fundraisers and charitable donations towards parks, preserves, and shelters)
Since I defeated the Johto League, its Elite Four, and their Champion Lance, I've gone on to compete in the Kanto Region to which I amounted a top four finish losing out to Sam. As upsetting as losing was, it's part of life, and Sam even went on to defeat their Elite and Champion.
We've since been competing constantly in the Frontier, which is recognized as an unsafe zone even for experienced trainers. The Frontier itself is a vast region located, supposedly, in the middle of the world. Not only is it home to the strongest Pokémon, but also the strongest trainers.
Actually let me clear the Frontier up a bit, at least some of the rumors and what not. First of all, the actual qualifications are a bit different than you think, you can get in one of three ways: first you make three top eight Pokémon league appearances, second you make three top sixteen and get the go-ahead from at least one Frontier Representative, or three you get the green flag from at least four high ranking Frontier representatives. As simple as some sound, none are in any way easy.
Anyway, last month, after I emerged from one of the Frontier halls as Champion, I was offered a job by the league itself. Not only did they want me to design and construct a new project, they also wanted me to scout for up and coming trainers to invite to the Frontier, that's right, as a Frontier Rep. They needed me especially so because of their rapidly developing region. And lucky for me at the time, the added money from the new job gave me enough to begin the reserve I had wanted to make for the last five years, my dreams were becoming reality.
Oh, my name is Mica by the way. I know it looks like it would be Meek-a, but it's pronounced Mike-a. I'm twenty five years old and one of the top five ranking trainers of the world as of now. I was born and raised in Sinnoh just outside of Hearthome. Growing up it was me, my baby brother Raian, my Grandmother, and my Mom. Unfortunately, I didn't really know my dad to well, and Raian pretty much didn't know him at all. He left when I was nine, he went to help construction on what would become the Frontier, and he was killed in an accident. His name is still etched into the pillars that mark the memorial for those workers.
And of course, things never go perfectly in this world. My mother passed away in a car crash while I was away on my journey. My grandmother and my brother are the closest family I have left. Aside from them I have an uncle and a cousin, but they're always moving so I can't say I ever got to really know them well. I can't really say my brother didn't because, he's actually just begun a journey with our cousin and one of his friends.
As I carried on my train of thoughts going a hundred thoughts a minute, I reached the studio Kiera had set up on the other side of the lodge. As I stepped foot inside the room filled with fabric and drawings all over the walls.
"Wow, you made it a whopping hour and a half." I heard the familiar voice from behind a mountain of cloth near the far side of the room.
"You know me" I replied with a hint of sarcasm, "I really can't sit still for very long, even if it is writing about myself."
I chuckled a bit at the end of my sentence. I was asked to start writing a book about my travels and the things I've seen and learned since leaving my home about ten years ago and how I came to where I am today. I'm not going to lie, I've been more than a little hesitant about writing.
"I did finish the first couple of chapters though," I added, "I got the basic stuff down at least."
"Wow, busy busy beedril, huh?" Kiera asked sarcastically, "Seriously Mica, you need to organize your thoughts and get some work done. They might just give up on you if you don't speed it up, they might even hire someone else."
"Hire someone else to write my story?" I asked a bit skeptical, "Who knows my life well enough to write about it."
As I said this, she turned to me and dropped her head looking up at me with one of the most obvious looks I've seen. If expressions could talk, she was calling me a moron.
"…besides you…" I quickly corrected myself, "Whatever, how's the line coming along?"
"…as much as I want to make fun of your writers block, I'm kind of suffering the same thing," Kiera responded as she put down a piece of black fabric, "I know what I want to do, but it just doesn't seem to be coming alive right now."
"I'll tell you what" I said as I slowly placed my hands on her shoulders, giving a slow caring massage, "Why don't you take a break, go take a shower while I feed the Gible, then we can go out to town for a bit."
It took her a moment, but Kiera finally looked up at me with those large deerling-like eyes and let out a small smile.
"I knew there was a reason I keep you around." Kiera joked before giving me a small peck on the cheek with her amazingly soft lips which seemed so wonderful compared to the dirt and rock I'm used to having hit my face.
After appreciating Kiera for a moment, I went back towards the kitchen to let her finish up what she needed to. As I walked, I passed Fey again who was watching some ridiculous show about Pokémon transforming into weapons for their trainers to use.
I made no effort to rush myself as I casually walked into the large walk in fridge and began pulling out large slabs of raw meat and throwing them out. The sound of the meat hitting the kitchen floor seemed to call Fey, because within seconds I heard the familiar pitter-patter followed by the lovely creature brushing against my leg.
"No, we've had this discussion way too many times girl. This is for the guys out back. You ate not two hours ago." I said sternly looking down at the Espeon, but of course those big, puffy, sad, purple eyes dragged me in again….Damn it
I let out a sigh as I slipped a cut towards her to watch her snatch it up and trot for her corner where she would devour it.
This allowed me a moment to properly prep the meat. First was cutting the meat up so the Gible wouldn't choke. Second was pouring vitamins onto and in the meat. And last was loading the meat up into a large basket sitting on the back porch.
"A little help, if you please." I said with a bow as Fey trotted towards me. As I lifted the basket I could feel it lighten intensely, fey being the doll she is and helping with her psychic ability. The affects of this psychic lasted a decent while so that I could properly strap the basket into the small gas powered cart next to the cabin.
After firing up the ole Feraligator brand cart, I took off to the feeding grounds. It didn't take me way too long to dump half the meat into a large open plate meant to hold the Gible food. After that I spread the rest of the meat around all about to give the buggers something to do. Part of the reason I love throwing chunks onto the sand is because Gible love to travel underground…so it isn't uncommon to just randomly see a steak go under and disappear.
Behind me on the plate I could see the small creatures waddling back and forth as if in some kind of happy dance and I immediately took out my camera for a snap shot. I've had a habit of taking pictures of the Gible since we opened the place, they always seem to make me laugh and you never quite know what they're going to do.
I finished distributing the meat and headed back to the cabin. Sure enough waiting on the front porch is the alluring image of Kiera standing aside my backpack for the trip to town.
Coming with us Fey?" I asked as I grabbed the bag and threw it over my shoulder, the sound of pokeballs clanking inside quite audible.
"...esp..." The little creature sneezed in a meek tone as she shook her head as if to respond quite clearly
"Alright, well we should be back soon enough, watch the gible, and…keep an eye on Bri, she's been under the weather." I called out as I began walking, Bri of course being Kiera's garchomp, which had recently laid some eggs and was a bit under the weather.
It's just little things like that which remind me of how spectacular Pokémon are. I mean, what is a Pokémon? It's pretty simple, it's a creature that lays eggs and has an internal energy it can manipulate into 'attacks'. As simple as that is, they have such capacities for love and strength that it truly astonishes me.
Despite how spectacular Pokémon are, they have some complexities. First of all, Pokémon are all divided into types ranging from grass to dragon and everything between. Furthermore they're subdivided into one of three groups: Domestic, Unferal, and Feral. Domestic being Pokémon that have absolutely no problem with humans and in fact like them. Unferal being Pokémon which for the most part don't mind humans, but prefer to stick to themselves. And Feral being…well…the ones that don't view humans, and for the most part other Pokémon, as friends.
"Beautiful day isn't it?" Kiera asked, breaking my train of thought.
"Yeah" I replied simply as I looked around. The reserve we were leaving was north of the Resort area and north of the Main Sinnoh Region. Basically an isolated part of the country that tended to be hot and humid as opposed to the standard cold. But something about today was nice, the wind made with the salty sea air for an overall completely calming feel.
"Didn't you used to visit this part of the land?" Kiera asked just as simple as possible, as though she hadn't even given a remote thought to it
"Well…no. My family lived too far inland to really travel this far. The only one who might have was my dad, if it was a large construction project, he probably had to visit." I replied, the thought of my dad crossing my mind.
I just knew so little about him, that it saddened me greatly. My mother always said he was a good man, and I really do believe her. Everyone wants to be a lawyer, or a professional athlete, or something outlandish, but he knew what was needed and did it with a smile as a construction worker.
As I carried on in thought I couldn't help but think of my Fathers watch and my mother's locket. They were the only mementos I have of them really. My Mother had given me the locket the day I left for my journey, and she said that it was important to her, that's really all I know of it.
"SoOoO…how is your brother fairing so far?" Kiera asked noting I was in deep thought and trying to pull me back to the planet.
"Well…last I heard from him, his friend had gotten his hand bitten off by a Sandile." I replied thinking for a moment
"Is he okay at least?" Kiera asked with a stunned and utterly confused face, not a clue what to say
"Oh his friend is fine and they got away safe enough." I replied quickly trying to keep her from worrying over nothing, "I warned him to be careful. Young trainers forget way too often how dangerous Pokémon can be, I mean, even experienced trainers have problems. Remember when Sam got his toe bitten off by an Axew?"
"Yeah, I remember." Kiera replied with a little giggle, her laugh just so ridiculously cute for such a grown woman that it practically forced a smile on my face, "Sometimes you forget how dangerous some things are, but it's what makes it an adventure!"
She was right of course, as many terrifying moments as there were when we were traveling, I don't think I'd trade a single second of it for anything.
After some walking we made it to a small hill which overlooked the rolling hills of houses and a small town. The town of this area is actually a rather wealthy area. Only a select few actually can afford to live up in these parts, and even then, most just use it as a summer getaway.
Oh but don't get me wrong, there are locals. There's an old man that owns a shop in there that's lived here all his life, as well as many generations of his family. Well…at least that's what he tells me.
Continuing down the road I was abruptly surprised to get a call on my Pokenav, an old equipment mod that I really should have updated some time ago. But I just never really could get myself to replace it, I've just had it ever since I started being a trainer.
"Hey Mica! How's the weather?" the voice on the other line called out as I answered
"Hey Sam!" I replied with a smirk hearing my friends voice, "Yeah…Yeah, it's good…We're enjoying it, what about Unova?...And Business?...We sign this Saturday?! Amazing! Join Avenue is going to be a hit, I swear! What about investors?...Really?..."
I continued to listen in amazement at the news. Sam and I, when not investing in some small equipment and item shops, had been looking into building a large mall-like area that could bring all kinds of people together.
The concept for Join Avenue was born one night when we were investigating a theft rumored to be connected to Team Rocket. We had found an area between Castelia and Nimbasa that was just so overrun with crime that we wanted to make a difference. Join Avenue was the perfect plan to expand the Desert Resort areas into residences and shops. Thus creating work and homes for the people that had lost so much.
I just realized, I haven't really talked about Sam. He's just such a familiar face that I kind of forgot he isn't known to all. He's the very first guy I battled on my journey. He was a pretty laid back guy yet he was also pretty excitable. About my height, his shaggy blonde hair probably giving him some added height over me. Despite his 'surfer' look, Sam is an extraordinary trainer. He too is ranked in the top ten along with the record for the Unova bridge Challenge when he encompassed the entire region on foot in ten…freaking…days.
And of course when talking about Sam, I need to make some reference to Pidgeot. I met Sam when Pidgeot was still Pidgeotto, and it was without a doubt the fastest Pokémon I've seen.
During Sam's 'off time', we often talk business and go on certain missions involving scouting trainers and…other scenarios.
Anyway, back to what I was talking about. After sorting out a few tidbits with Sam, I hung up and continued on the hike with Kiera. It didn't take much longer before we finally made it to the Resort Diner, which in my opinion had the absolute best Roast Taurus sandwiches I've ever eaten. Manny, the creator of the sandwiches was pretty much the master of sandwiches.
The moment we walked into the Diner I could see good ole Manny right there. Just the sight of him put me in the appetite for one of those sandwiches.
"Hell-o Manny" I exclaimed as I approached the bar
"Mister Mica, a pleasure as always" He replied as he grabbed a glass and wasted no time in filling it with the delectable Miltank milk, "And a Good Morning to you Miss Kiera. I take it the both of you are just here for a little lunch break from all the Ranger Danger escapades?"
"Yeah, we just need a little break, some fresh air, and the like to get the creative stream running again." Kiera replied as Manny began pouring her a cup of her favorite Iced Tea.
"Ah, still working on that book?" He asked turning his eyes to me as he began making the sandwich before my eyes
"A-yup, though it isn't really much of a book at the moment…" I replied with a bit of a sigh as he slid the wonderful sandwich before me, "There's just so much else that I want to be doing that getting in the writing spirit is kind of difficult."
"I suppose I know what you mean." Manny replied with a hearty chuckle, "You youngsters always seem to have your hands filled with one thing or another."
The rest of the chat was typical small talk; weather, life, and all the like were frivolously discussed as we enjoyed the break. And soon enough Kiera and I finished our meal and began to leave.
But of course, with my luck being my luck, as we were leaving I felt an incredibly uneasy feeling. I didn't waste a second to listen to my surroundings. Kiera noticed immediately and raised a finger to her lips to hush everyone around us.
I slowly placed my hand to the floor, and sure enough, there was a growing tremor. I could feel the reverberations very clearly, almost as if an earthquake was approaching. Suddenly, I has greeted with a loud crash coming from outside, a clear cloud of dirt and dust being thrown into the air
"Alright then…" I sighed as I hastily made my way for the door, "Manny! Keep everyone inside!"
As Kiera and I moved forth, I saw her pull forth a tranquillizer gun from her back holster. I nodded my head as I too did the same, also making sure to grab a pokeball from my bag.
As we arrived at the location of the crash we noticed that a large swirling sinkhole had suddenly formed in the center of town. It was about twenty feet across at its longest and about ten feet deep so far. Sure enough, in the middle of the sinkhole, I was able to spot three or four very quickly moving red objects. They had large heads and long teeth.
It was really strange to find those certain creatures this from the desert portion of the land. It was a brigade of a Pokémon known as Trapinch, a bug like creature known for their large jaws and pincher-like teeth. This brigade had seemingly dug to the middle of town looking to catch some food. I was glad I grabbed my pokeball, because the tranq wasn't exactly going to be much help.
"Alright buddy, I need you to round up the Trapinch!" I called out throwing my pokeball down, unleashing a stout dark creature with a great tooth filled smile, my long time friend, Gengar.
After Gengar gave a chuckle to symbol his approval before beginning to do his thing. A dark purple glow began illuminating around his eyes and arms, which seemed to also appear around the trapinch. The little snapping creatures began floating out of the hole and into the air.
There were about seven of the snapping little critters that had made this mess. I gave Gengar a small pat on the head and began towards the hovering Pokémon. I could tell from the amount of wear on the creature's shell that they had been traveling a bit, they were likely from further up north.
I made a call into the nearest ranger office to report what had happened and to get someone down. The next little bit was a blur of helping tag the Pokémon before sending them off further up north
I really do wish that I could say nothing else happened that day…but that would be a lie. What happened next was even more unexpected to me than the trapinch. After getting back to the cabin, everything said and done, I had gone into the kitchen to put a few supplies we had purchased away, Kiera in the living room watching television with Fey…when suddenly…
"Mica! Come here!" I heard Kiera's panicked voice call out, the tone that I feared hearing because it always meant something terrible.
I ran into the room to see a very distinct image on the news. A crater from a sky view, metallic rubble and splintered wood all about it along with what looked to be a turbine.
"Just moments ago an explosion believed to be caused by a planted explosive was set off here in the valley Windworks. Citizens around Floroma Town have been evacuated to Jubilife for their safety from the hazardous area. As of now not much is known about who or why the bomb was set nor why Valley Windworks was targeted…"
"Mica…?" Kiera's voice asked, or at least I believe it's all she said, because I was so blinded with a surge of rage that I couldn't even see straight.
I knew exactly who had done this. I've seen their bombs before and I even had an idea why they would target the Windworks. Each region has their problem, from thieves to terrorist, even cults had become problematic in Unova, and Extremist groups are how I met Kiera. But out of all of them, I would never forget team Galactic.
Team Galactic is a Sinnoh centered terrorist filled crime syndicate. Galactic is known for wanting to harness the internal power of Pokémon and use it to bring the world to its knees. Their goal was horrendously simple, a start over. A blank slate for all mankind, with Galactic in control of the Pokémon. And they go about doing it with these terrible attacks.
The first time I came across those goons was when they tried setting off a bomb inside of a volcano. I didn't even realize what I was stopping at the moment, but had that bomb gone off, quite a nasty chunk of Sinnoh wouldn't be here today.
"…Mica…?" Kiera's voice finally broke through my trance
"Kiera, can you watch the reserve for a few days?" I asked abruptly as I turned around, my eyes already set on getting the job done.
"Uhh, yeah, no. I'm coming with you." Kiera retorted shaking her head in disbelief as she grabbed my arm, "There's no damn reason for you to go alone."
"There's no one else that can watch the reserve right now." I replied gently pulling her hand off of me, "I can handle this, I promise."
Kiera stood with her arms crossed for a moment. She looked halfway between yelling and crying, I didn't have a clue what to do for a few seconds.
"I know…it's dangerous. But it's my job to take care of these kind of situations." I managed to say as I gently placed my hands on her shoulders, "I'm a Pokémon Ranger for a reason."
"…take the big guys with you…please don't get yourself hurt" I heard her say as she lightly grabbed the locket around her neck, the memory of her fallen comrade at the hands of galactic filling her head. Thankfully she knows me well and she knew that I had my mind set.
"Time for a trip Fey." I said as I turned around, my mission set, myself ready to go.