Where shadows dim, and shadows mate,

In caverns deep and dark

Where old books dream of bygone days,

When they were wood and bark

Where diamonds from coal are born,

And no birds ever sing

That is the dread domain

Ruled by the Shadow King.

-Colophonius Regenschein

In the year 2193, a man dedicated to creating a childhood he never had, succeeded. With a style not unlike , he created the first of many. This man's name is Professor Archevald Oak, Samuel Oak's great-great-great grandfather. He created something invented nearly 2 centuries ago, and that was Pokémon. He created the Alpha Pokémon, Arceus. He asked for help from the God, and in return for giving life into him, Arceus agreed to give life to others.

If only he knew what was going to happen.

The sole reason Archevald created Pokémon, was that Earth and her Colonies were low on natural resources, but had access to enough to power earth for millennia. What they needed was a slave force. And Arceus gave life to millions of beings, which is just what we needed. We shipped the extras of to some empty planet on the edge of the Solar System, and toke what we needed from that. Once he realized what he had done, Arceus attempted to 'cleanse' the humans. Needlessly to say, he failed, and is most likely still floating in space.

Some humans protested the cause for slavery, and said that slavery has been outlawed for half a millennia. And some toke it to extreme measures. They burned the homes of government officials that supported the law. They killed Oak and burned his body in front of the Capitol Building, and after nearly a century of fighting, The leaders of Earth came together to repeal the act. They managed to repeal it, but barely. The final vote was 53% repeal, 47% keep. Now Pokémon are pets, but some humans like to travel with some wild ones they've caught, and battle others to boost their own Pokémon. The people who are the strongest in each region are known as Pokémon Masters, something that reminds people about the wars many years ago. The Masters of each region are the keepers of peace across the planet, and members that are incredibly strong enforce the laws. These people are known as the Elite 4. Now that you know what you need, please answer questions number 12-17 on the reverse side. Due Monday for full credit.

"Man, the teachers are piling on the work this week huh Jack?" Zach asked me. "It's almost like they want our heads to explode!"

"Hey, I'm sure they don't want that now." I replied with conviction. "If we did, they wouldn't be getting paid."

"Well that's true. Alright man, I gotta head to the tryouts. If I'm late, Coach will have my ass."

"Alright man, good luck with that."

"K, see ya later!"

As I'm walking to my next class, let me introduce myself to all you readers. My name is Jack Allen. Yeah, make fun of the kid with two first names. I've been bullied and made fun of most of my life, with my last name being so close to alien. And I'm not exactly the most likeable guy in the school, being taller than most teachers and paler than white paint, I stick out like a sore thumb. And weighing only 120 pounds at a college campus, where most looks like their made of fat, isn't good. Oh yeah, and my birthday is tomorrow. Whoopee, it's not like I do anything for it anyway. Aw well, at least I'll be able to get a full-time job soon. Now I can by my own shit! Oh, heres my next cl- huh?

I walked up to my next class to find a note on it, and some more of my buddies are crowding around it.

"Hey Erick," I ask. "What's this mean?"

Erick for future reference, is a kid around 5'10 or so, is dark skinned(but not African American) and is a vegan. He is one of those kids who have that look in there eyes, the kind where you can't tell if they blew up a car or won the lottery. He's always jittery, and looks like he is about to explode in a sugar rush.

"You didn't hear man? Mr. Perez got canned for spying on the girl's locker room. One of the parents walked by and saw him staring into the locker room, and by the looks of it, he was about to go in."

"Oh goody I love irony." I said. "So who's gonna replace the Sex Ed Teacher?"

"I dunno, but the school staff is letting us all leave early. Something about not letting any of the other teachers getting ideas."

"Aw man, that's sick." I really didn't need to here that. "Well, if that's the case, I'll go home."

"Oh yeah!" he said, snapping his fingers. "I guess this is kinda of an early birthday gift to you, huh? Well happy birthday man!"

"Thanks. See ya Monday."

"Oh wait!" he tells me. "I nearly forgot your gift!"

He rummages through his black hole of a bag, and pulls out a small box.

"Here. This is really expensive, and I had to pull some favors to get it."

He gives me the box, but noticing the absence on anything that can open it, I ask him. But he ignores me and only says.

"Only use this in a tight spot. And trust me, it's got only one use, and no return. Once its used, it will transport you."

"Transport me where?" but when I look up, he's on the other side of the hall, taking to his dad.

I walked to my car after a surprisingly good end to the day. To those of you who don't know me, I have the worst luck ever. 1 time I found a 10-dollar bill on the ground, picked it up, and got arrested because the cops thought it was counterfeit when I tried to buy a soda. Another time was, awhile back, some radio talk show host put out tickets to the midnight showing of a movie that was rated 'the best movie ever. Period.' By critics. I managed to win, but the tickets got lost in the mail. And when I called back in the radio channel, they told me that they never did something like that. The deciding factor that my luck is the worst, however, was when I was walking down the street, and some guy sprints around the corner, gives me a bag, and then runs away. About 30 seconds later, I get arrested again! I swear, my luck is like Murphy's Law: anything that can go wrong, does go wrong. Oh, heres my car. Hey, for once, its not stolen! Goody.

I hop in my truck and set down the box Erick gave me. As I drove home, I couldn't help but replay those words he told me.

"Once its used, it will transport you"

But transport me where? And where was that glint in his eyes? When he gave me it, he looked like he was at a funeral, mourning someone.

"what if he was mourning me?"

But I shook that thought out of my head quick enough. Erick might pull a prank on me from time to time, but never on my birthday. Not since I was 8, anyway.

I pulled up to a red light and looked at the box. It was a small box, about the size of a jewelry box, but looked as if it was ancient. With metal coating on it, and some small, strange words inscribed on it. Curious, I start to open it…

HONK!

Started, I didn't noticed that the light had turned green. Someone behind me must've gotten fed up at my ignorance of the light and honked. Miffed, I went forward to home. After a couple traffic jams and a brush fire at the edge of the highway, I get into my neighborhood. But before I can even think, my phones text message goes off. I look at the message, and it only gives me a short message.

GOOD LUCK

-Z

Weird. I look up to park my car, and a car comes blazing up the road and slams into my car. Once it hit, everything went slow motion. I looked to my left and saw the box, floating in the air. Only use this in a tight spot. Erick's words hit me like a ton of bricks. Without a second's hesitation, I grab the box and open it. A bright light envelops me and everything does dark.

A.N. how was that everybody? I'm going to be posting this every so often, about a chapter every day or two. Hopefully I'll get some feed back and I'll be able to incorporate something. Anyway, I'll answer something you all may be thinking. Yes, Pokemon are extinct, but what do you think that box was for? PM me answers, and stay tuned for more, Pokemon: P.A.E.