The Journey Never Ends

Chapter 1: Chaos in Kanto

I need to run. I need to escape.

She was running. She was running from The Creature.

All she knew was that she had made a mistake. She hadn't believed the rumors. Glancing backwards over her shoulder, she realized that it had disappeared.

But she wasn't a fool. She kept running. The young girl didn't want to give it any opportunity to catch up.

She returned her glance forward. And saw it waiting for her.

A flash of purple light showered the dusk that had fallen over the cape. She was gone. It was gone.

I need to run. I need to escape.

She was running. The demon dog chasing her had gained ground. It was less than twenty feet away and getting closer. Her blonde hair, tied back in a pony-tail, was blown around in the wind.

The teenager caught her foot on a tree root protruding from the forest ground. As she tripped and fell, she knew that the worst was coming. All she could do now is hope for a miracle. On the ground, she curled into a fetal position, covering her body to protect it from injury during the impending attack.

Mightyena slashed at her with its powerful claws. It cut through the denim jacket she wore and tore deep into her arm , causing her to scream in pain. Though bleeding profusely, the arm had taken a blow which would have otherwise gone to the neck.

The beast continued its assault, tearing at her clothing with its powerful jaws. The loss of blood had made her weak; her vision was blurring and she couldn't move her legs.

The girl sobbed as her skin was torn open with every blow. This is it. I'm done for, she thought, tears welling in the corners of her eyes. She would never start her journey. She would never achieve her dream.

Just as she braced herself for the final hit, the voice of a young man cut through the forest.

"Thunderbolt!" he shouted, causing Mightyena to look up from its prey.

She dared not look around, but she heard the cry of a Pokémon.

"PiiikaaaaCHUUUUU!"

There was a bright yellow flash, followed by the Mightyena's weak whimper as it fainted.

The blood-soaked victim lifted her head and tried see what had happened, but she saw nothing before her world went dark.

Slowly opening her eyes for the first time, the girl stared up at a pink ceiling. As her mind began functioning again, the memories of the traumatic event that had left her so grievously wounded returned to her. For the damage the attack could have left her with, she was remarkably alright. The gash in her arm had closed up, though it would leave a scar forever, and the bite marks covering her back and legs had begun to heal over. Stretching the wounded arm, she winced from the pain.

She looked across the room. The teenaged girl lay on a soft queen-sized bed sitting in the middle of a pink wallpapered room. Other than some medical equipment sitting on a bedside table, it was just a normal Pokémon Center bedroom.

The bandages on her arm and legs appeared bright white and freshly wrapped. Whoever had brought her here had also clearly taken care of her while she was unconscious.

The girl sat for several minutes gathering her thoughts. It had been awful, but she survived. Somehow.

The brightly colored door opened and a kind-faced older man in a red polo and kakis walked in. He sat down on the edge of the bed and smiled at her.

"You're awake. Are you feeling any better?" he asked. His dark eyebrows were raised with concern.

She hesitated, and then nodded.

He reached across the covers and pulled her arm out. She flinched as he touched the bandaging.

"Good. It seems to be healing nicely." He released her and returned to his original position. "Oh dear, I am sorry. It seems I've forgotten that I'm a stranger to you. You may call me Oak."

She nodded in acknowledgement.

"Do you remember your name?"

Speaking for the first time, the blonde-haired girl answered him. "It's Allie. Allie Dogwood."

"Good. That's good. It seems like you had quite the terrifying experience."

"It was… dreadful. How long have I been asleep?" The old man could see the exhaustion and horror in her sad blue eyes.

"Two weeks. You've had a miraculous recovery. Another week and you should be able to continue on your way," he responded cheerfully.

"Thank you, Mr. Oak," Allie said wearily. Remembering the voice in the forest, she proceeded to ask, "Are you the one who saved me too?"

"No, but if you wish to speak to your hero before you leave, I'll bring him tomorrow. But you need to get a full night's rest first."

"Thank you," she whispered. Not yet being completely recovered, she closed her eyes and returned to sleep.

Oak reached across her slumbering form to pull a sheet over her body, then stood up, smiling kindly. He crossed the hall and entered the room which he was staying in. Sitting down on his bed, he thought about her.

Allie Dogwood. The name seemed familiar to him, but in his old age, his memory had grown fuzzy. Oak sighed. The future belonged to the younger generation now. It was only his job to help them grow strong enough to make a difference in a world corrupted by the older generations.

Allie Dogwood. Perhaps the name was familiar to him, but it didn't matter. The only important thing was that she was safe. He would help her in whatever way he could.

Author's Note: Well, that's it for the first chapter of my first fan fiction! Let me know what you think of it. I've got another chapter already written up, but I'd like to get some input on this one before I publish it. The next has much more dialog and plot to it; this one just sets up for it. Honestly, I expect that my chapters will be short, but frequent and many. Sooooo... hopefully you're alright with that. I'm going for a decently long story line. But that depends on if you give me feedback! And remember, it's a work in progress.

Update (7/11/11): Fixed typos and improved some of the descriptions. Also added the part at the end about Professor Oak's thoughts on her to add more depth to their characters.

Next time: Who is this mysterious man who saved Allie? (I think everyone but her already knows) Why were the girls being chased? And how does it all fit together? Chapter 2: Allie's Knight in Shining Armor!