Oh my gosh! I'm back! I never thought I would continue this story but I am determined to finish. After completing my another year of school, I have a summer free to write. I hope you all understand where I am coming from.
Well if you're new to the story welcome, I encourage you to keep up with the prologues. If you are a returning reader of mine, I'm so glad you're going on this journey with me once again. This chapter introduces our Dex holders, with a major emphasis on Rick Ly (with no point intended). I figured it'd be easier to tell each story from one character's point of view at a time, but it will be a different character each time. As we get deeper into the story, you will understand what I mean. Oh and thanks to CalzoneCannon, ThetaRex, and Aleister-Kun (if those are not your profile names anymore, please let me know) for providing me with these characters. The other submitted characters will be introduced in the following chapters.
Once again, as I always request to my readers. Please read and REVIEW. Enjoy! :)
Chapter 1
Behold the Dex Holders
With the sky clear and the sun rising just above the horizon, most people would describe it as a beautiful morning. Pallet Town residents were accustomed to this peaceful scenery. Even though it was still fairly dark, the town was already beginning to bustle with life. The fishermen had already thrown their fishing poles off the docks and into in the water, while the shopkeepers posted their signs next to their products in the marketplace. Most people who visit Pallet Town notice that despite the early starts, the citizens always shine a smile and pass cheerful greetings to all they see.
At the town's local inn, a future trainer had spent the night to prevent the hassle of having to leave his hometown early. The sunlight had filtered through a small opening between the curtains and right onto his face. He grunted in disgust and threw the pillow over his head. "Mom, I don't want to get up!" He mumbled into his pillow. It was just then he realized he wasn't at home.
He sat right up; his hair was a complete mess as he rubbed his forest-green eyes. He ran to the restroom and took his shower. Steam quickly covered the glass door of the shower and the tiled walls. With a towel wrapped around his waist, he stood in front of the mirror and wiped the mirror clear. He smiled at his slight muscular build as he flexed his muscles. Normally, he wasn't this happy, but it was a special day. Today was the day Rick Ly becomes a Pokémon Trainer.
He glanced at the clock and nearly jumped out of his towel. It was nearly nine o'clock! He ran back to his bed without his towel and opened his bag. After throwing on his jeans and plain white tee, he looked for his lucky hoodie. The rather old, black piece of outerwear was resting on the desk chair. He finished getting dressed and looked at himself in the mirror once again. He looked at his hair and tried to fix it up with little success.
Defeated by his hair, Rick ran out the door and dropped the key off at the front desk. Rick started a brisk walk towards a location known by everyone far and wide: Professor Samuel Oak's laboratory. He loved Pallet Town; his family used to vacation here every summer because it wasn't too far from their home in Viridian City. He loved it so much due to the quiet sounds and peaceful scenery, which was different from his life in the large city. He remembered his older sister would spend most of her time here at the fence that surrounded the famous professor's home. She was always fascinated by the different Pokémon he cared for and studied. So, it was no surprise when she took the first chance of becoming a trainer. She currently was travelling the Unova region after starting her journey with two years in the Kanto region.
Rick hated being in her shadows. His original goals were to travel the Sinnoh region, but his sister convinced his parents in preventing him from going into the unknown. They wouldn't have let him leave on his journey if he didn't agree to travel in the Kanto region. He wanted to be his own person and make his own legacy. He greatly admired Prof. Oak, but he feared his sister's legendary history in this region would make his own experience less exciting. Despite that feeling, he continued to the professor's laboratory.
The hopeful trainer stopped by a local farmer's stand and grabbed an apple for breakfast. After paying, the elderly farmer thanked the boy graciously and continued his work. After a few more stands, Rick noticed a clothing store with a variety of trainer gear on display. He looked at the fancy clothes in distaste. He didn't care how he looked; his hoodie and him have been through a lot. He wasn't about to give up on it for anything.
He looked at his watch and took off toward the lab so he wouldn't be late. When he got to the lab, he looked at the magnificent building. The sleek white walls and the tall windows were previously memorized in his head from pictures and books. He had learned about the different renovations of the lab and even remembered how the first laboratory looked. He took a deep breath and stepped into the cool lobby. He walked up to the reception desk and a fairly young woman smiled warmly at him. "Good morning! You must be Rick Lie, correct?"
"It's pronounced like Lee, but yes that's me!" Rick said with a slight chuckle. If he had a dime for every time someone mispronounced his last name, he wouldn't need to be trainer. He was sort of surprised though. Most people learned his last name from his sister's fame in the region.
"Oh I'm so sorry. Well, I only assumed because you're the second male Dex Holder. The first one is already here and is waiting for the Professor. Why don't I take you to the waiting area and you can meet him?" The brunette stood up from her seat and lead Rick to the waiting area. A few white couches, a coffee table with scattered magazines, and a flat-screen TV made up the waiting area. "Thanks a lot, Sally." Rick said. He had read her nametag when he entered.
The boy she mentioned was already seated on a couch. Rick looked him over quickly before extending his arm out. "Hey, what's up man?" The boy didn't react. He just sat there motionless as he read this month's edition of Pokémon Today. Rick was a little uneasy about him. The boy was almost ghost-like pale and his hair was as white as snow. The only movement he made was from his round, golden eyes that flickered across the pages.
Rick thought he seemed rather odd, not only from his silence, but his size as well. He was a tiny boy. He looked way younger than the minimum age limit of 16. He was fairly skinny and since his feet could barely touch the floor Rick guessed he was short too. Sitting there with the silent boy was awkward. How much longer is it going to take for the last Dex Holder to get here?
Just then the door opened up and a girl just slightly shorter than Rick walked up to the desk. Just as Rick did, she spoke quietly with the receptionist and was lead to the other future trainers. "The professor will be with you shortly. I just informed his team that you all have arrived." She returned to her desk.
She was fairly pretty and it made Rick a little nervous. He wasn't the best at talking to girls. He did notice that she had very dark circles under her eyes with large bags from tiredness. "Hey, my name's Rick Ly. What's yours?" She smiled at him and replied.
"Isobel. Isobel McIntyre." Her light green eyes flashed in the light. An automatic door opened and the legendary Prof. Oak walked out slowly on his cane with an assistant close by. The three expecting trainers stood up and met him right outside the door.
"Good morning trainers. I hope you all got to know each other as best as you could. My name is Professor Samuel Oak and this is my research assistant, Dr. Olivia Maple," the elderly scientist greeted the trainers. His research assistant moved her curled golden brown hair aside and bowed slightly. "Why don't we move to my lab and we can finish this process?" The rest agreed and they turned to his personal lab. Down the hallway, there were many trophies and awards inscribed to Prof. Oak. The little pale boy seemed to be the most fascinated by them as his large eyes grew even larger.
When they entered the lab, all three trainers let out a gasp of amazement. They ran to the handrail that rested on the edge of the elevated floor. They looked below at about a dozen research assistants who were busy in the room. From writing on notebooks to typing on keyboards to watching videos of previous battles, there was no one slacking off in the room. Prof. Oak and Dr. Maple chuckled as they watched their excitement. A research intern had brought up a silver tray of three Pokéballs and three smartphone-like devices.
The three soon-to-be trainers walked up to the Professor; their eyes were hypnotized by the three spheres. "As I've done every year for the past 50 years or so, I've given out these three Pokémon to three beginning trainers. Only the best of the applicants are chosen to receive these special creatures and this year the best are you three. So without further ado, I will let you select your starter Pokémon. Olivia, will you do the honors?"
Dr. Maple smiled and grabbed the one on the left. "Now trainers, I want you to meet the Grass-type starter, Bulbasaur!" She threw the ball into the air and a blue light shot to the ground. A small, green Pokémon appeared and smiled greatly at the new trainers. "Next up is the Fire-type starter, Charmander!" She threw the middle ball similarly and the orange lizard-like Pokémon appeared. It grew the flame on its tail to show its strength. "Finally, we have the Water-type starter, Squirtle!" The final ball was thrown in the air and the blue turtle-like Pokémon appeared. He smiled and spoke quite frequently as if it were introducing itself.
"Now you are allowed to choose whomever you want. You are allowed to choose the order as you please," Prof. Oak said and watched the new trainers. Rick originally wanted Squirtle, but there was a weird connection with Bulbasaur. So he picked the four-legged creature and it seemed happy with the choice. Isobel picked up Charmander and Squirtle together and walked over the pale boy. Without a word, he picked the Water Pokémon and she had Charmander. They all seemed satisfied with their choices, so they returned their attention to the Professor.
"Great! I can see you all make great teams with your chosen partner. Now, here is your Pokédex. We are constantly learning new things about Pokémon so this will keep you updated on the information we collect." Prof. Oak said as he handed them one of the smartphones. "Now, you can head to Viridian City for Trainer Registration."
"Trainer Registration?" the pale boy asked.
"Yes Alph. Trainer Registration is like a large meet and greet for all beginning trainers in Kanto region. You will register your Pokédex, select what type of trainer you want to become, and meet a lot of new trainers. From there, you can officially start your journey. Here's the downside. You will have to travel together," Prof. Oak said.
Rick immediately stopped playing with his Bulbasaur. "What? Why?"
Prof. Oak noticed their sudden aversion for traveling together. He let out a troubled sigh. "You are all young trainers with great futures ahead of you and the Pokémon world is a dangerous place. I want you all to at least travel together until you reach Viridian City. Route 1 is not the most dangerous place within the Kanto region, but traveling together will allow you to get comfortable with traveling without having to worry about being overwhelmed by the number of wild Pokémon." His vision went cloudy as he just stared into oblivion. The trainers noticed this and a look of confusion swept across their faces. Dr. Maple let out a little sound as to clear her throat while gently placing her hand on his shoulder.
He snapped out of his trance and smiled. "Please understand." He turned his back to the trainers and let out an almost inaudible comment. "Besides, fate will eventually lead you three back together anyways."
"What was that professor?" Rick asked.
"Nothing. Don't mind me. Well now that you three each own a Pokémon, why don't we have a little Pokémon battle?" The old man smiled greatly. Their faces went cold and a shadow of nervousness went through their bodies. They didn't expect to be thrown into a battle so suddenly. Rick was the first one to shake off those negative feelings. Soon enough, all three trainers had a determined look on their faces as Dr. Maple opened the back doors letting in a flood of sunlight.
"Let's begin!" She shouted.
Well, that's the first official chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it and hope you gain some more information on the characters in future chapters. I'm not entirely sure if I'm going to keep at this style of writing, only because there are so many characters and I want to be able to shine each character's personality without putting too much emphasis on one character like I did with Rick in this chapter. I will try a different style with the next group of trainers, so tell me which you prefer.
Anyways, please tell me what you think! What you liked, what you didn't like, what I should improve on, what should be changed. Anything! It really helps and I will consider all comments made. Chapter 2 should be posted before the weekend ends, but we'll see. Thank you again! Happy writing!
