Friends
~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~
"I've just been feeling really alone lately, you know?" Sam was hoping he could get through his mother's thick skull this time around. "I need something in my life, mom. I'm not allowed to have school friends and I don't fit in with the kids at the church. I can't keep living like this."
"Well…I guess you can have a Pokémon…"
"Really mom? You mean it this time? One all to myself?" He stared back at Jazmyn, the family's Shiny Espeon that had taken a liking to his dad more than anyone, despite the fact that she was supposed to be for him.
"Yes! Oh it'll be so exciting! We can all get new Pokémon! What kind were you thinking?" She was much too chipper. She probably saw this as another way for them to all be a little more interesting and gather a little more attention from her peers. It didn't really matter, though, if it meant he got to have his own Pokémon, finally.
"I was thinking of a Psychic type… I figure one of those would be best, since it'd be nice to have a friend that could interact with me easily…"
"Sounds good! Which one?"
"A Solosis. I know they're usually pretty expensive, but I found an ad on Craigslist where this guy's Duosion had a baby that they need to get rid of ASAP so they could make some vacation. The little guy's only about 50 bucks…"
"Okay! We'll all get Craigslist Pokémon!" She gave an excited, high-pitched yell-laugh.
That was all kind of miserable, that is, until he came home from school the next day to a baby Solosis waiting for him to fawn over.
"'Samuel Daniel Marcus: male; born April 21st, 1994; 18 years old; no previous trainer record. Registered starter Pokémon: Paxton the Solosis.' Is this information correct?" A sour-looking middle-aged woman read off Sam's information one last time.
"Yes, that's correct, Miss."
"Do you have the hundred-dollar application fee?"
"I'd like to get that wavered, please."
"Reason?"
"Homelessness." An awkward silence.
"Granted." That was far too easy. "Alright, kid, everything's in order. All you gotta do now is head over to the Salem League Office and pick up your trainer gear. You can take the 10am shuttle there if you like." He would like that. "It's free for newly registered trainers." Even better.
"Thanks a lot."
"Good luck, Kid."
~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~
The shuttle ride was less than eventful. The older man driving, Buck, was nice enough. He spent the ride telling Sam about his adventures and giving him helpful advice. "My starter was Lily, my little Poochyenna at the time. She was a bit rowdy, at first, but dark species usually are. She grew into a fine thing, though. Most loyal companion or friend I ever had. Only woman to stay in my life till death did us part, tell you what."
"I'm sorry to hear she died… how did that happen?"
"Got old. Not much else to it, really."
"Sorry…"
"Me too, son. But I just had to move on. You'll learn this soon enough, but in the trainin' world, you can't rely on people bein' there for you. The only constant is you." That was troubling, Sam didn't feel like a very constant person. "You just gotta learn to let go. That's the biggest skill you'll ever pick up."
"Huh… thanks." Sam didn't really know what to make of that, but guessed he'd have to eventually if Buck was right.
"We're finally here, kid. Go out and start your life for real now."
After receiving his gear, Sam was taught how it all worked. The training world was very automated, apparently. He received a new device called an "Omnidex" that served as a Pokedex, a phone, a music player, access to the internet, and apparently a bank for as many useless apps as its almost-endless memory could fit. He'd be sure to fill it with useless apps ASAP.
The Omnidex was basically a small tablet. It was all touch-screen and appeared simple enough while off; its only oddity was a round indent on the side where a pokeball could be plugged in to register newly caught Pokémon, see the stats of the ones already on your team, or check to see the basic information about strangers' Pokémon (such as the original trainer). It was also pretty sturdy, apparently able to survive a 50ft drop, totally waterproof, and made from materials resistant to most physical impacts and any sort of crazy attack a Pokémon could launch at it.
Along with this neat new toy, Sam was given his official Trainer's License, which would serve as his ID, digital currency, and key to Pokémon Center rooms. He was also given a Trainer's Guidebook app on the Omnidex which would be incredibly useful to be prepared for whatever dangers would lie wherever he went next. All of that, plus an initial $1000 credit on his card and a solid week's worth of Pokémon food made for a pretty fruitful trip.
Once Sam bought some more things to prepare for his journey—item capsules to reduce the space his items took, basic healing items, a few more pokeballs, a multi-tool, and a sleeping bag—he was ready to head to Keizer to begin the circuit. It was literally the nearest town to Salem, but Sam felt compelled to begin in the town where he grew up.
"Alright, Pax, there are a lot of wild Pokémon around here, but they're usually pretty tough because of how strong the trainers that come by here usually are—big city, you know. It'd be safer to hold off on training until we get to the Keizer routes where we can spend some more time before we challenge the gym. It's not like we're in any rush. Maybe we can catch another member for our team while we're at it." Pax replied with his unintelligible gurgling noises that only Sam ever seemed to understand.
That sounds fun! I can't wait till I start becoming stronger!
"Me neither! This is all just so much so fast! I can't wait to see where this is gonna go!"
You mean you don't even know why you're out here?
"Oh, come on, Pax… You don't need to be psychic to know that much…"
That joke is a bad joke!
"Harsh… Anyway: I figure I'll get some sort of magical epiphany or something while we're on this little adventure and then I'll know which way to steer this stupid life of mine."
It's always good to believe in magic. I hope we'll be okay alone.
"Don't worry so much. Once we have a circuit under our belt, a whole new range of chances will open up for us. We can make our life whatever we want."
Much of their morning was then spent on discussing possible ways that they're lives could go.
"Champion Sam Marcus of Oregon!" And some less possible ones. "Reuniman and Paxton! Mild-mannered Rich Bitch and Prissy Pokémon by day, badass crime-stoppers and do-gooders by night!" And some pretty impossible ones.
Soon enough, they reached Keizer. The town was small and kind of dingy. It was mostly populated by rock, grass, and bug species. Also lower-middle-class families. Its humble little Class 1 Gym also doubled as City Hall and was a part of the same cluster of buildings as a pathetic little library/town archive and the police station. The town also had a high school, a few little restaurants, and some local shops. It was generally very unimpressive.
"Alright, Pax. Let's do a little research on what we're looking at facing here." Sam plugged his location into his Trainer's Guidebook app and read the results:
Keizer has no major exports.
Wild Pokémon native to this town most commonly include (but are not limited to): Geodude, Roggenrola, Oddish, Seedot, Wurmple, Weedle, Venipede, Spinarak, Ratata
Uncommon Pokémon include (but are not limited to): Stunfisk, Nosepass, Hoppip, Kriketot, Paras, Ledyba, Purrloin
Rare Pokémon include (but are not limited to): Sudowoodo, Roselia, Paras, Venonat
Gym Leader: Tony Gomez "The Small Town Hero"
Gym Leader Anthony grew up in Keizer. Having attended McNary High school, worked at the family owned Roth's, and started a campaign to rid the city of vandalism before having even competed in the circuit, he was a very supported candidate for Gym Leader.
Anthony packs a powerful punch using some of his favorite local Pokémon. His battle strategy is to "follow his gut," adapting incredibly to all unexpected changes and taking risks. The best offense here is over-preparedness and a sturdy defense.
To be able to challenge the Keizer Gym, Class 1, one must simply defeat two Gym Trainers. Winning challengers will be awarded with the Iris Badge.
"Wow! This thing really does have a lot of information! Ok. Class 1 Challenges usually involve two to three Pokémon and none will be higher than level 10. I think we should go train for a while and catch a new teammate while we're home."
That sounds fun!
"I think so too! Ok. So according to the Omnidex—" Sam plugged in Pax's pokeball.
Paxton. Level 7. Known moves: Psywave, Reflect, Rollout. Status: Healthy. Percent left till level up: 95%
"Well alright then! We can hang around in one of the big parks on the WillametteRiver and train a bit. I'm sure we'll also run into some good Pokémon to add to our team!"
I'm so excited! So was Sam. This was becoming more real all the time.
Arriving to the edge of the river had been easy enough. Too easy, in fact. They didn't come across a single trainer to challenge or even a wild Pokémon that would stay in sight for more than a few seconds. That was understandable, though. A lot of the high school kids in the town were jackasses and treated the wild Pokémon like shit. They decided to just follow the river until they were in a less populated area where more wild Pokémon would be. That was a smart choice.
"Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeekikikikik i!" A shrill voice shrieked from behind Sam and Pax. Suddenly Pax took many quick blows from a barrage of tiny needle things.
"Fuck! Pax! Use Reflect!" Pax replied with his random garble. He was in battle mode now.
A little yellow bug with a horn on its head and a big, red nose stared at the pair from a distance. "Kirikirikirikiri!"
It's ready to go.
"I can see as much, why is it so pissed?"
I think it just wants to fight for fun…
"Keep it away with a Reflect while I see what's its deal is"
Right. Sam pulled out the Omnidex and scanned this random little opponent.
Weedle. Male. Level 7. Close to evolution. Trained Pokémon.
"Guess we're not catching it. Alright, then. Pax! Hit him with a Psywave!"The Psywave hit the little Weedle directly and it obviously did a decent amount of damage. The Weedle retaliated with another Poison Sting.
"God dammit, Bradley. What the fuck have I told you about battling random people without my permi—SAM!? SAM!" The voice boomed from seemingly nowhere and Sam looked around. Before he could process what was happening, he was tackled from the side. "SAM!"
"ERICA!" He couldn't believe this! One of his best friends from back home was here now, accidentally letting her Pokémon try to kill him. She was a cute girl, short and curvy with dark, blonde hair. She was dressed very practically: tough denim jeans, comfortable cotton shirt, and a nice, tough jacket. Her square-framed glasses were firmly on the bridge of her nose, and her smile securely on her face. "Are you in the circuit, too? Are you traveling with anyone? We should travel together! It's safe n' shit and we can smoke weed together again and holy shit this will be so fun!"
"Dude, yeah! I can't believe our luck! Where are you hoping to go next? I already beat Tony, have you? Our Class two challenge can be at—"
"Kirikirikirikiri!"
"Oh… I guess we should finish this battle, huh?" Erica looked at her rowdy little Weedle."
"I'm down!"
"Brad! Use String Shot and hold Solosis down!"
"Kiiiiirikirikirikiri!" The shrill little voice filled the air, then so did a shower of white, silk string. Pax was totally covered and stuck to a random tree in his attempt to shake off the stuff.
"Good! Poison Sting!" The Poison Sting hit and was all but absorbed into Pax's green membrane.
Not very effective. Not very effective. Erica's Omnidex was apparently watching the battle and giving her advice.
"Well, shit."
"Pax, Rollout!" Pax began rolling in place and completely destroyed his silky prison. The Rollout charged for a bit longer as Erica just kind of stared, then Pax launched his attack.
It's super effective! It's super effective! Weedle is unable to battle. One-hundred dollars awarded to victor.
"Well, ok! That was still fun," Erica said with a chipper voice.
"I guess! Keep that little shit in check, will you?" Sam chuckled.
"I'm sorry!" Erica smiled sheepishly as she spoke. "I'm still trying to figure this whole 'Pokémon Business' out."
"It's totally ok. I know the feeling. Hey, why was your Omnidex yelling at you that whole time?"
"Oh, I have the battle announcer app running. It's super helpful! I'm learning a lot."
"Huh, that's pretty cool! Oh, here," Sam pulled out his Omnidex, touched the screen a few times, and then Erica's beeped. "that was definitely a for-fun battle. Neither of us was prepared. I feel bad taking a victory payout."
"Cool."
AN: Today, I learned that FF doesn't like to keep my Word formatting, so I will now be writing on FF's editor instead.
sorry if the formatting is weird on this chapter. I'll probably get around to fixing it.
