Blog One: Introduction
Hello there, internet dwellers.
I figure I should start this off by introducing myself: the name's Alaska. Alaska Acevedo, to be precise. I am of a mere thirteen years of age, and I currently live in Viridian City, Kanto. I have black hair, I'm short-ish and that's all you lot need to know *glares at all you creepy perverts*
So, if you have come across this blog, you are probably wondering what this is all about. Most people don't really put 'conquer' in the title of something, unless they are plotting something diabolical like taking over the world or making sitcoms with laugh tracks.
Well, you'll be pleased to hear, I am not planning anything evil… unless you work for Silph Television Inc.
I'm getting ahead of myself here. Let me set the scene for you all…
Back in 2008, as you all should know, Kanto had a little, shall we say, giant criminal conglomerate issue on our hands. A group called Team Rocket tried to take over the region for, ya know, reasons, and pretty much trashed the place in the process. It all came to a head with a huge battle at the Indigo League, which resulted in a trio of trainers winning. How a bunch of thirteen year olds won I'm not quite sure, but they did, so there you go.
One of them was this guy called Red. Short for Edward, apparently. Anyway, since the Champion before him died during the battle, Red was given the title and he has held it ever since. The only title I've ever had is "Most Beautiful Handwriting" back in Year One, but I only had that for a few days (bloody Susan Smith!)
One of the other 'warriors', Leaf, which unfortunately isn't short for anything, is the current gym leader of Viridian City. The original leader was a guy called Giovanni who, awkwardly, turned out to be the head of Team Rocket, which, as you can imagine, which a bit of a shock for the neighbours. He got replaced by Blue, the third member of the little trio that beat Giovanni, but then he kind of died afterwards…. ANYWAY, Red and Leaf have been dating since then, and they are pretty much the power couple. They are so big they nearly got their own celebrity couple name, but 'Led' and 'Reaf' didn't really help sell magazines in the end.
This probably seems irrelevant, but bear with me!
Around the same time, the Silph Corporation, that big research and development company who most likely made the laptop or phone you're currently on, launched their own cable station as part of their rebranding post headquarters being destroyed. It has really taken off, mostly because of all the reality show franchises they started: Survivor: Mt Moon, The Amazing Evolution Race and Kanto's Next Top Breeder – don't lie, we all know you've watched one of them.
And now they have begun this new one: Indigo Dreams. The premise is that three teenagers will be given one of the three regional starter Pokémon (Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle), get entered in the Pokémon League, and then a camera crew will follow them around Kanto as they battle the gym leaders and take part in extra challenges to test their skills and win bonus prizes. They start right here in Viridian, and when they return to battle Leaf last, the trainer with the best scores from the challenges will automatically be allowed to battle Red.
Now, everyone is really excited about it. From what I can tell from , the entire world will be glued to this show. It has never been done before, and it has already been sold to Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh – even Unova, and we all know everyone hates them (soz any Unovians out there). I too boarded the hype train fairly early on as I have always wanted to go on my journey, but then one person had to go and ruin it all.
Chloe Carmichael.
Chloe is this, to put it nicely, bitch that lives down the road from me. I could go on for several pages and a couple hundred thousand words describing specifically the kind of person she is, but I'll summarise. Chloe is the type of girl who spends every single weekend throwing extravagant sleepover parties for all her friends. They paint toenails, do each other's hair, try on clothes, sing karaoke – all paid for her by her doting parents.
She sounds repugnant, doesn't she?
For the sake of honesty, the lack of invites did use to upset me deeply as a child. Chloe and I never got along for whatever reason, the way children just clash, and she made a point of excluding me at every opportunity.
I guess the clash came from being entirely different people. I am a very simple, non-materialistic girl. I do have a PokeGear, as practically everyone does, and I own some CD's and DVD's, but I don't flounce about, waving my parent's money around and acting like a Barbie doll that got brought to life. Chloe has had everything handed to her, while I took up a part time job at the local PokeMart just to earn pocket money. A part of me has always resented her for that, and Chloe has seen that in me and likely been punishing me for not falling at her feet every time she passes.
Despite our differences, I must thank Chloe. You see, when I learnt she was going to have the opportunity to potentially battle Red for the Championship, I had to ask myself: why does she get all the glory once again? Why can't someone regular, like, I don't know, me get a chance?
Five years ago, Giovanni destroyed much of Viridian. He turned the city that had shielded him into a statement of his power, a warning to all those that were going to stand in his way. He lost, the city began to recover, but it has made things harder. My mother worries about what might happen if one of her children went out on a journey, while I know that she needs my help to repair the life we used to lead. When I was ten, my parents gave me a Pidgey for my birthday. Paige, as I nicknamed her, has been my best friends ever since, but never before have I ever considered taking her on a journey.
Until now!
Chloe 'Daddy probably bribed the producer' Carmichael and her fellow stars are going to have everything handed to them: TM's, HM's, money, travel, the works. Worst of all, they are being given a starter Pokémon each. Some of the rarest Pokémon in the land, trusted to the care and judgement of Pokémon Professors (a system built on nepotism), these Pokémon have become symbols of only the mightiest trainers. Red began with a Charmander, Kris with a Chikorita, Wallace had a Mudkip – everyone thinks you can only be the very best if you get given a starter.
Paige and I are going to prove them wrong. There is a fire burning within me, and I won't stop until I prove to the world you don't need a fire breathing dragon, sword wielding otter or walking forest turtle to conquer the Championship. I'm going to win, and I'm going to do so with the help of a slightly irritating bird. What could possibly go wrong?
So, I have just eight gyms standing between me and glory! Do you think Paige and I will be able to 'conquer' Kanto? Please post your thoughts and encouragements, and some cash donations won't go astray (don't worry, I'm joking… well, not really...)
Until next time, fare-thee-well kind readers, and I hope to see some of you on our journeys.
Alaska A.
