This is my first fancfic so please read w/an open mind!!
A NEW JOURNEY 1: THE BEGINING
A.J. smiled as he picked up his backpack. The sun had not quite risen above the trees, and the air still held its nighttime coolness. "C'mon Sandshrew, time to get movn'" he ordered his companion, "We've got a lot of ground to cover before we reach Pewter and the sooner we get gon', the better." A.J. had just started out on his Pokemon journey a few days ago, during which he had pretty much wandered aimlessly, getting a feel for traveling and deciding which way to go. He had decided to start with the Pewter City gym because it was one of the closest, and it was supposed to have some good training facilities, unlike Cerulean. He easily found the trail that would take him to Pewter, and fell into an easy pace with Sandshrew alongside.
It must have been about lunchtime when he reached a crossroad and was jerked out of his silence by a loud shout. "Hey! are you a Pokemon trainer?" he turned in time to see a tall, skinny boy who was holding what looked like an oversized butterfly net. A bug catcher, then.
"Yeah, I'm a trainer" A.J. replied, " Are ya ask'n for a battle?"
"You bet," was the prompt reply, "Standard rules?"
Standard rules implied all league regulations, and decided the payment of the winner. Standard fee was 100 for each Pokemon that was defeated by the victor. "Sure, 3 Pokemon sound good to you?" A.J. inquired.
"Okay, let's get started. Go Weedle!"
A.J. smiled to himself. No need to use Sandshrew on this twerp," Go Rattata!"
Rattata jumped out, battle ready, as A.J. unhooked his whip from his belt and waited for the bug catcher to make the first move.
"String shot, Weedle!" as Weedle shot out the strands of webbing, Rattata made a quick dodge and, at a crack of A.J.'s whip, leaped in on the unprotected back of the bug and sent it sprawling. Before it could right itself, Rattata delivered the knock out blow, a powerful Hyper Fang that finished the match.
The boy growled as he returned Weedle, and called out "Go Beedrill!"
Although he was sure Rattata could handle the Beedrill, A.J. called it back and brought out his own Beedrill, anticipating a challenge. This time, however, he attacked first, "Twineedle!" he yelled, cracking his whip to emphasize the order. Beedrill complied, zooming at the enemy with front stingers raised. The other Beedrill ducked, and for a moment both Pokemon spared in an equal match. Then A.J.'s Beedrill scored, knocking the other to the ground and zooming in for a final blow. It missed, though, when the other Beedrill rolled quickly to the side and gained the air again.
The bug catcher wasted no time, "Fury Attack, Beedrill!" and the two joined again, this time with A.J.'s Beedrill the fallen one. As the enemy Beedrill came in, a bit too eagerly, A.J.'s Pokemon dodged, and the Beedrill lodged his main stinger in the earth. A.J. cracked his whip once more and his Beedrill delivered a solid blow before the other could dislodge itself from the ground. It swayed, and fell, despite its trainer's pleas to get up and fight. This time A.J. thought he saw desperation in the trainer's eyes and it was confirmed when he yelled out "C'mon Caterpie!"
A.J. uttered a derisive laugh, "Is that all you can do, wimp?" he decided to cut this thing short before he wasted any more time and cracked his whip in a sharp order. Beedrill honed in, but the Caterpie whipped out of the way with a lithe twist of it's small body. A.J., shocked by even this small achievement from such a wimpy Pokemon, paused to see what the trainer would do next.
"String shot, Caterpie!" its trainer called, with slightly more confidence then he had a minute ago. Caterpie complied, and Beedrill, almost sneeringly, dodged it. It wasn't prepared, then, for the second shot that Caterpie let out, which tangled him in its sticky threads.
Now A.J. was getting angry. "Get yerself together Beedrill!" he yelled, cracking his whip closer to Beedrill than he had before,"Ain't no way that wimp is a match for you!" Beedrill struggled, but could not right itself before crashing into the ground.
"Finish it with tackle, Caterpie!" yelled the bug catcher, and Caterpie scooted in to deliver a solid hit, but despite its speed and agility, the small Pokemon didn't have enough strength to do much damage. With a great heave, Beedrill managed to free its wings from the tangle of thread and took to the air, zooming out of Caterpie's reach. Shaking off the remaining strands, it waited for A.J.'s command, which was not long in coming.
"Crack!" "Twineedle, now!" Beedrill honed in, stabbing several times at the retreating Caterpie before he managed to knock it out.
The bug catcher's shoulder's slumped, and he muttered something about getting better Pokemon as he paid A.J. and beat a hasty retreat from the crossroad. A.J. almost grinned at the poor sportsmanship of the trainer, but didn't comment. He stopped long enough for a midday snack before moving on, determined to cover more ground before night fell.
He traveled a good deal further without incident, but decided to stop in time to train a bit before turning in for the night. Rattata was the first out. "Good job, Rattata" he said, scratching it behind the ears and giving it a treat"You did me proud." Then it was Beedrill's turn.
"What were you doin' out there? That was a Pokemon battle, not a playground. You can't let down your guard and fool around. And don't think you'll get off easy because we're travln' now, I'm gonna work ya just as hard!" Beedrill buzzed slightly, and A.J.'s eye's flashed with fury. "I don't care if we both underestimated that Caterpie, the point is, it was enough to put you off your guard! There's no place on my team for Pokemon who can't stay alert! We'll both do double drills tonight, and next time we face a bug catcher, remember that looks can be deceiving!"
After a hard training session and seeing that his Pokemon were fed, A.J. ate his own meal and barely had time to appreciate the night sounds of the forest before he was fast asleep. The next morning was overcast and cool, with a promise of rain and Sandshrew decided to stay in his Pokeball. Despite being resistant to water, he still had a strong dislike of it.
A.J. was walking through a section of path that was heavily wooded when he thought he heard far-off music. He paused, listening, and followed the sound off the path and into the woods. It wasn't long before he reached a small clearing with a large rock in the center of it. Seated on the rock was a girl with a wooden flute that was the source of the music he had heard. The music was nothing remarkable, a simple melody with a primitive sound. It was simply the incongruity of his situation that struck A.J. dumb for a moment. The girl, sensing that she was being watched, stopped playing and looked up. She flushed and quickly put the flute away. "Sorry," she said "I must seem pretty weird huh? Playing that thing like some hippie freak."
"No, that's okay, I shouldn'ta snuck up on you like that" A.J. apologized, feeling his own face grow warm. Silence ensued for a minute and he asked the only thing he could think of. "So, um, are you a Pokemon trainer?"
The girl gave a dry smile "I guess you could call me that, yeah. Why, are you a trainer too?"
"Yep" and then, because it seemed the only thing to say, "Do you want a battle?"
The girl looked around, "Here?"
"Sure, why not?" asked A.J. wondering why they shouldn't battle in the clearing, "Standard rules?"
"Okay" she jumped down from the rock and started digging in her pack as he brought out Sandshrew's Pokeball.
"Go, Sandshrew!" he had brought his whip out by the time he realized that the girl had not brought out her own Pokemon. In fact, she was staring, open mouthed, at Sandshrew, who had jumped out, battle ready, and was now waiting patiently for orders from, A.J.
"A real Pokemon!" the girl looked as though she had never seen a Pokemon before. "You have a real Pokemon!"
"Yeah, being a Pokemon trainer I sometimes carry those around." he retorted dryly, but the girl didn't seem to notice his sarcasm. A real weird one, this girl.
"But, but, you can't, th- there aren't" she stuttered without taking her eyes off Sandshrew, "I mean," and then her tone changed, "You have no idea how weird this is, do you?"
"Oh, I think this is weird, don' worry about that. It's not every day you run into someone who's never seen a Pokemon before." A.J. wondered where exactly this girl was from. There weren't any insane asylums nearby that he knew of.
The girl was now kneeling on the ground. She stretched a hand out to Sandshrew, who sniffed it with idle interest. "Careful," A.J. warned "He doesn' like-" Sandshrew was now smiling, as the girl scratched him behind the ears, cooing softly. "Strangers." A.J. finished, now totally freaked. Sandshrew, while never being savage, had always resented and mistrusted human strangers. Who was this girl?
"You beautiful, amazing creature," she whispered to Sandshrew. Then looking up at A.J. she gave an almost hysterical laugh. "You can't know what this means. Do you know what I would have fought you with?" almost bitterly, she picked up a box that was lying nearby and tossed it to A.J. He opened it. Inside was a deck of cards. Taking them out he saw that some of them had pictures of Pokemon on them, while others were decorated with strange symbols and the word "Energy".
"Cards!" the girl laughed, and her eyes held something akin to madness in them. "I would have fought you in a card tournament, or a GameBoy match." He had no idea what she was talking about, but he couldn't do anything but listen now. "And here you have real Pokemon, actual, flesh and blood creatures!"
As she ranted, A.J. took a closer look at this strange apparition who had descended so suddenly upon him. She seemed about his age and short but not slender, having the compact build of a dancer or gymnast without seeming overly muscular. Her long, burnt gold hair was bound in a braid down her back and seemed to resent the confinement, straggling out wherever it could. She was wearing khaki shorts and a striped tank top in green and more khaki. But her most striking feature was her eyes. They glared out of her face with the intensity of a raptor and appeared to hold secrets in their depth . He couldn't pinpoint their exact color, they were light and seemed to have equal proportions of green, gray, and blue in them. Right now these eyes were full of either madness or maniac joy and A.J. wondered what he would do if she went totally hysterical. The usual treatment was a good slap, but having just met her, that didn't seem exactly polite. Luckily, it turned out he did not have to try such extreme measures, the girl had stopped ranting and was simply gazing at Sandshrew with an expression of rapture.
"Um, could you tell me where you're from?" A.J. inquired carefully, thinking that if the girl was an escapee from a mental home, he should try to get her back there.
She looked up at him, her gaze calculating. "You think I escaped from a loony bin, don't you? Not that I blame you, but I assure you, I'm perfectly sane." she laughed,"Crazy about Pokemon maybe, but otherwise okay."
A.J. was now the one to deliver a calculating look. "You didn't answer the question."
"Well, if I'm where I think I am then names won't tell you anything, so let's just say that I came from a place where Pokemon are an abstraction, a game, but definitely not real. I know a lot about Pokemon, all 150 odd of them, but I never expected, I mean," She broke off, looking down at Sandshrew, who was now lying contentedly at her side.
Now it was A.J.'s turn to be surprised. "You mean that where you come from, Pokemon aren't real?! How does your world operate? How--"
He broke off in midquestion as the girl laughed and explained,"We aren't totally without wildlife, don't worry. Our breed of creatures are much more varied than Pokemon, and most of them aren't trainable, so they don't have the same appeal that Pokemon do, even though they are wonderful." she beamed down at Sandshrew and went on,"'Animal trainers' just aren't the same as Pokemon trainers, though, and now I can fulfill an ambition that I figured could never become reality. Do you know of any place nearby where I could get a license?"
"A what?"
"A trainer's license, or permit, or whatever you call it, that allows me to capture and train Pokemon." She explained, frowning slightly,"I thought you had to have one to train."
A.J. shrugged,"I don't have one, and I'm doing just fine." he said," Technically every trainer is supposed to have a license and I.D., but there's no way to enforce the rules."
She looked shocked."Surely there's got to be some way to keep track of the trainers, require I.D. at Pokemon Centers, or something. Don't you have to have a license to compete in official matches, like gym matches and tournaments?"
That brought A.J. to a full stop. He had not thought about needing a license to compete at gyms. "That's a good point. For someone who's new at this, you sure know a lot about Pokemon training."
The girl gave a sly smile "You'd be surprised at how much I know."
A.J. was disturbed by the kink this stranger had thrown in his plans. "Humph. I don't supposed they have names where you come from either, do they?"
"Of course, sorry, I should have introduced myself sooner. Tera " she said, extending a hand, "And you are?"
"A.J." he answered, taking the proffered hand.
"That wouldn't be A.J., undefeated for 100 battles?" she asked with a grin.
"How the devil...." He spluttered in shock, "Are you sure you've never been here before?"
"Told you I'd surprise you." She answered with a smirk.
A.J. found himself giving an answering grin as he remarked "So, you want to become a Pokemon Trainer. If you're dead set on getting a license, the closest place is probably Pallet Town, and Professor Oak."
"What does getting a license actually involve that's got you so unwilling to have one? Tough training? Impossible test?" There was a hint of challenge in Tera's eyes that A.J. decided he didn't like in the slightest.
"There's nothing hard about it," A.J. snapped with more defensiveness than he would have preferred "It just didn't seem necessary, that's all."
"Ah, but you want to compete for badges, don't you? You'll probably need a license for that."she smirked a knowing smile, wry humor dancing in her eyes.
"There's nothing hard about getting a license," A.J. said, choosing to ignore her last remark. "Just a few tests, that's all."
"Hmm," Tera said musingly, more to herself than to A.J.,"Shouldn't take to long to get my stuff together, I could probably start out tomorrow, and then . . ." She trailed off, her eyes focusing on A.J. as she asked "Could I travel with you?"
"What!" The question took A.J. by complete surprise, and he answered automatically, "Sorry kid, but I travel alone."
"Watch who you're calling kid," She retorted,"And why can't I come with you? We're both going to the same place, and I could help you train."
"Ha!" A.J. laughed,"You could help me train? You obviously haven't heard as much about me as you claim to--I don't need any help training. And besides, what makes you think I'm going to get a license?"
"Don't be so sure of yourself." She said scornfully,"I don't care how many battles you've won, two people always train better than one, and, as I said before you're going to need a license because you want to earn badges." Belatedly, A.J. realized that she had a point. He would need a license, and if two trainers weren't necessarily better than one, it certainly wouldn't hinder his progress. Still, he was reluctant to admit that he was wrong. Who did this girl think she was, barging in on him like this?
Tera had obviously realized that yelling at him would not be a good way to convince him to let her come along, so she calmed her tone somewhat. "C'mon, A.J., it couldn't hurt. I need someone to show me around. I have no idea how to get to Pallet, and I don't know how things work around here."
Strangely, A.J. found himself not entirely averse to the idea, once it sunk in. Usually he had his Pokemon to keep him company; now that he was traveling, they had to stay inside their Pokeballs most of the time, and it was kind of boring without any one to talk to. Still . . . "You couldn't keep up with me." A.J. said hoping she would change her mind,"I set a hard pace, and I wouldn't slow down for you."
She gave him a confident smile."I'm tougher than I look. Don't worry, you won't have to wait on me."
"Well," he felt his resistance cave in,"Okay, but be warned, I'm not easy to train with."
"I'll be fine." She gave him a brilliant smile,"Thanks. I'll be here at sunrise tomorrow, ready to go. Bye!"
With that, she vanished through the trees, disappearing quickly in the heavy undergrowth. A.J. took a deep breath and leaned against a convenient tree. "Sandshrew, did that really just happen, or was I imagining things?" Sandshrew chittered exitedly, evidently delighted to know that Tera would be coming with them. "I don't know, though, maybe we should just leave now. I mean, she's obviously a crackpot. Do we really want to travel with someone like that?" Sandshrew gave a soft growl, giving his own endorsement of Tera's character and pointing out that it would be extremely dishonorable for A.J. to leave after he had told the girl he would wait.
"Okay then, I guess we wait. But we're not just going to sit around here doing nothing." he brought out his other Pokemon. "C'mon guys! We've got some training to do!"
Okay, there it is! It will get better, but that's the best I could do for now. Please, please, please review!!