Between Pallet Town and Viridian City, was a passage of land and forest that can be traversed easily with enough experience and knowledge. It was a "route" in the wild so it had some difficulty to explore and go through, so new trainers are somewhat guided until Viridian City.
Amidst the forest, a young man that looks to be at the age of 15 was sitting near the river with a Fishing Rod in hand. The boy had dark blue-ish hair, almost touching the boundaries of black, he had blue eyes which glowed with boredom.
"Hmm… It's been 3 hours and I haven't gotten a bite yet. Is this river cursed or something?" The teen sighed. He has been trying to get a Pokémon that can beat a certain gym leader but it is taking too long.
The teen's name is Gray, a trainer that came from Pallet Town where he got his Pokédex, and other miscellaneous items.
Although he came from Pallet Town, he wasn't lucky enough to be sponsored by the legendary professor, Samuel Oak. Prof. Oak was kind enough to give him extra items.
The reason for it was he scored high and Oak saw potential in him. But Oak already had sights on four trainers so he couldn't sponsor him anymore.
But that didn't matter, he already got what he needed for his journey: a Pokémon and a Pokédex/ID.
Of course, he didn't just get a Pokémon for free, he had to take a trainer assessment test for it. If a person averages okay at the test they get a trainer ID and some essential items for the journey. But if they score above average, they get the items listed before with an extra Pokémon.
He was one of the few to score above average and got a unique Pokémon from the League itself.
Sometimes the Professor chooses one or two kids to sponsor and gives out a Pokémon or two with the Pokédex.
"Hm?!"
Suddenly, a heavy yank caused Gray to lose his balance and fall into the river. He pulled himself together and he fought with the Pokémon who took the bait.
"Finally! This better be a good catch or I'll release this son of a bitch back!"
The fight was tough. It was heavy and had great strength. With Gray's age and body, he can only hold on before the Pokémon gets tired before him. He pulled and tugged but it didn't budge.
"You… just give up already!"
Gray put all his strength and weight on his feet and legs, ready to yank the Pokémon with his all.
"Hah!"
With a mighty roar, the Pokémon finally came out, Gray saw a huge silhouette behind the water. But as it fell, he finally saw the Pokémon. A huge scarlet Magikarp flails on the ground, crying its own name a few times. Gray felt his expectations drop.
"A Magikarp, really? Am I really that weak or was it that strong?"
He sighed and then threw the Magikarp away from the river, so it could not escape. Gray drew his Pokédex and scanned the Magikarp.
{Magikarp, The Fish Pokémon. In the legends, this Pokémon was able to swim up a fast waterfall, evolving after it reached the peak.
Type: Water
Ability: Swift Swim
Gender: Female
Moves:
-Tackle, Flail, Splash,}
Gray hummed in awe. He has never seen a Magikarp this bright and red. Her scales looked like they were soaked with blood. And her size is humongous. Compared to the Magikarp he had seen in his life, this one bested them in size and strength.
The Fish Pokémon just kept flailing, trying to get back into the river, only to get brought back to the ground.
"Karp! Karp! Karp!"
The cries of Magikarp annoyed Gray, so he reached into his belt and brought out one Pokéball. It had a black top that had a yellow stripe that made an upside down 'u'.
Gray then threw it at the Fish Pokémon. The Magikarp disintegrates into this green energy that sped into the ball.
The ball softly landed on the ground with a soft thud, it then started to quiver, it shook once… twice…
ting*
Three stars projected out of the ball, signifying the capture of the Fish Pokémon. He nodded with satisfaction. Gray walked forward and clipped the ball on to his belt.
"Lovely. More Pokémon means more manpower. I'm gonna stay and fish for a few more hours, just in case I miss more Pokémon like her."
After a few more hours of fishing, he caught some more Pokémon but he released them after assessing them. All of the Pokémon he caught were either weak, or normal.
The sun soon went down, as the moon replaced its place in the sky revealing the beautiful blue night and stars.
Gray sighed. The scenery was beautiful, the river reflected the moon and the night sky shone with a stunning blue. A nostalgic feeling came across him, but it was overwhelmed by fatigue.
'How long has it been? I'm tired, super tired.'
He contemplated fishing more as he wanted to push his luck. He got a lucky catch since the first Magikarp, so why not another one right? But, it was already dark so he decided to rest for the night. It was rather cold and chilly.
Gray just shook his head and set up camp near the river since he was too lazy to move away from the spot.
He started a campfire with tree branches he found earlier this morning. After a few minutes, Gray got tired and killed the campfire and slept in his small tent.
-o-
The walk to Viridian City was tough. He encountered many Pokémon along the way and fought it with only one Pokémon. He couldn't use his newly caught Magikarp since it would die after some time without water.
Along the way, a few Pokémon caught his interest so he caught it for his Pokédex extries.
"Pokédex is a good technology, now I know the habitats of Pokémon and how to increase my chance to catch them. I better thank the Professor next time."
It wasn't a boring journey for him, with all the time he had—three days was long for him— he was able to make plans for the future and set goals as to what Pokémon to catch and what places to visit.
"So… I can see these in Viridian Forest. They are also here on this route. Oh, these are here too, I need them for later."
Gray played with the Dex for a while before he heard a loud shout behind him.
"Battle me!"
A small kid pointing a Pokéball at Gray, ran up to him and shouted.
'A battle?I haven't seen a trainer in a while, it'll be good to see where he stands.' He nodded internally as he clipped one ball from his belt.
He gave a nod to the boy as they both released their Pokémon. Gray also wanted to finish this quickly so he can go to Viridian Forest as fast as he can. He doesn't want to stop at Viridian City for personal reasons.
There was a Pokémon that would take time to find so he wanted to be at Viridian Forest in three days' time.
"My name's Joey, you can call me Youngster Joey. Let's fight together, Rattata!"
The kid's Pokémon— Rattata— screeched at his opponent.
Joey's Pokémon caught the eyes of Gray. He looked at the small Pokémon and his eyes gleamed silver. A few seconds of silence he chuckled and released his own Pokémon.
He had a yellow, round-body with black stripes. His arms are bulky in proportion to the body, and he has three claws instead of fingers. And the two stripes on arms wrap all the way around.
"That's a nice Pokémon you got there Joey, don't let it get stolen and raise it properly."
"Y'know it! Rattata has been with me since I was a child, of course he's good!" Joey smiled and laughed.
The Pokémon grinned in delight. He was thrilled by the concept of fighting another Pokémon that was trained by a human, unlike wild Pokémon he had always fought.
"Kid! Kid!"
The Pokémon grinned in delight. It was thrilled by the concept of fighting another Pokémon that was trained by a human, unlike wild Pokémon he had always fought. It roared its name, throwing electricity everywhere, scaring the kid and his Pokémon.
"W-what is that?"
The boy stuttered, he had never seen that Pokémon in his life. He has been fighting new trainers that came from Pallet Town for 4 months, and he had only seen Pidgey, Rattata, Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur. Catching sight of a Pokémon he had never seen before caused him to panic.
"It's an electric-type from the Sinnoh region. His name is Elekid, I raised and hatched it myself. I'm proud of it to be honest, I didn't expect it to be this strong." Gray chuckled.
His expectations were blown out of the window when Elekid hatched. He knew it was a rare Pokémon, but rare doesn't guarantee potential and strength. However, Elekid's genetics were great. He had a great physique and length, alongside intelligence.
Elekid roared again, its fists were suddenly blanketed by raging electricity. Elekid then blitzed towards the Rattata who braced itself for impact.
Lightning danced around the battlefield, it rained down like a storm. A barrage of lightning-covered fists hailed Rattata. His reflec was fast enough to dodge most of it, but some manage to damage the purple rat. He was implied with static as he flew past trees finally stopping after a hard stop.
Rattata cried and saw Elekid in front of him. He dodged the lightning-speed punch, he then bared his teeth and bit Elekid's arms. Blood splattered everywhere, a gaping hole was left where Rattata bit him.
He jumped away from Rattata and cauterized the wound with the heat of his lightning. He roared in pain, but he was smiling. He felt the smile and knew he was enjoying the battle.
'More! More! This battle is entertaining! You are strong!'
A booming thunderclap was heard and a supersonic blast blasted everything away as a lone lightning spear sped through, aiming himself towards Rattata.
The sound generated from the shockwave pushed back Joey as he covered his ears quickly. Gray covered his ears too, but he stayed his balance and guided Elekid for the next move.
"Keep cornering your opponent, pressure him more and end it quickly!"
"Rattata, dodge!"
The boy shouted hurriedly. Rattata tried to obey his call. But before he dodged, a flash of lightning blinded him as Elekid appeared in front of him.
Elekid smiled wildly, he was sure he heard Gray— his father— say something towards him, but he was having too much fun. He never had anyone dodge his punches before so he ignored it and kept pushing.
Rattata saw another flash as he felt a burning sensation on his face. He got a fist full of raging energy. His flesh sizzled as it burned slowly and painfully.
He roared in pain, and he instinctively bit the hand of Elekid but he only felt greater pain. Elekid grinned as he amped up his electricity more and more. He removed his fist and rammed it back down. The road caved a little bit with his strength.
"That's enough! You don't kill, you only do when I order you too." Gray shouted. Elekid suddenly halted and he looked at Gray with terrified eyes.
His own eyes made contact with Gray's as he felt a cold chill run down his spine. Elekid voluntarily went back into his Pokéball.
The boy called, but his Rattata didn't answer. A few seconds later, the smoke cleared, revealing the Rattata who was knocked out, with some 2nd degree burns.
Small tears built in his eyes, Joey sobbed quietly. He had lost another battle, but this one hurted him more. He knew the pain of losing, but this hurt more because he saw his Rattata almost get killed. And the cry of pain resonated in his mind when he picked up the Pokéball.
Gray shook his head, reminding himself to discipline Elekid later on the road. Digging through his bag, he found a Heal Burn and a Potion.
"Here, have these."
"T-the money… I lost so I have to give you money…"
Joey searched for his money in his bag, and gave a few hundred Pokédollars to Gray. It was one of the few unwritten rules of Trainers. Whoever loses a Pokémon battle, they give money to the winner. It depends how much you need to give.
Gray put a hand on Joey's shaking hand and shook his head.
"Don't worry about it, just save up for your own expenses. Or maybe buy your Rattata new food. It's my fault anyways."
Joey nodded, looking down. Gray patted the kid's head and smiled.
"It was a good battle, Rattata was strong. It survived Elekid's strongest attack. It might become a strong Pokémon in the future if you train hard enough."
He then dug inside his bag again and took out a small card. He raised it and handed it to Joey. Joey's eyes widened in shock and Gray chuckled.
"W-what… wait, this is-!!"
"This is my number, add me to your Pokédex if you have one, or call me through the telephone inside the Center. I'll see you again in the future." Gray cut him off and walked past him towards Viridian City.
-o-
Back to Pallet Town…
"Professor Oak! I hope I'm not late."
A young boy shouted, rushing towards Samuel Oak's laboratory. The boy was an inspiring trainer, sponsored by the Prof. Oak. It was the day he was starting his journey. But he woke up later than he needed to.
You see, this boy has the dream of becoming a Pokémon Master, a title given to a select person. The one who trains and guides Pokémon to the top is called a Pokémon Master. A person with amazing achievements.
But it's not easy to achieve this, the only person to have the title of Pokémon Master this generation is Champion Leon, of the Galar region. Only a few people achieved this title, one of them was a legendary trainer: Red, and that was centuries ago.
"Ah, Ash, about the time you showed up. You are late, but I can assure you can have a Pokémon." The elderly professor gave a gentle smile, leading Ash to the room where he gets his own Pokémon.
The room was a sight to be told. It was filled with computers, paper, and machinery that a person would hate to work at. However, it was organized to the core. In the middle of the lab, was a giant machinery that had glass covering its center. Inside had 6 pockets that once had Pokéballs. Now there was only 3 Pokéballs
They all had the same design, red top, white bottom and button. But they had some differences, all of them had stickers that informed the person their type.
"Come, I suppose you are in a hurry to receive your Pokémon? Here."
Prof. Oak took out an ID and scanned it to the scanner near the case. The case slowly opened, taking out a Pokéball, he handed it to Ash.
"Woah… what's inside of this Professor?"
Ash asked curiously, he always wanted a Pokémon, but he doesn't know a lot about Pokémon. He was lucky. Very lucky. He didn't pass the test from the League, it was just that Prof. Oak saw something from him.
"It's a Pokémon I caught yesterday, it was chewing on some power cable causing a power outage. I was supposed to give you a Nidoran, but this Pokémon suits you."
Prof. Oak chuckled, seeing Ash's excited face. The boy touched the button and the ball opened, as a blue pixelated energy came out.
From the energy, a small chubby rodent formed. It is covered in yellow fur with two horizontal brown stripes on its back. It had two red pouches on its cheeks, and a lightning bolt shaped tail.
"Pika!"
The rodent cried, looking around the room with an intense glare. The rodent then looked up and saw Ash and Prof. Oak, as small sparks of lightning came out of its cheeks.
"Woah!"
Ash shouted, his eyes sparkling as he looked at the chubby Pokémon. He approached the Pokémon with no caution and alerted it. Prof. Oak shouted and tried to warn Ash, but it was too late as the Pikachu roared and the lab was filled with a flash of bright yellow.
"Pika… CHU!!!"
The Pokémon cried, releasing a powerful Thundershock throughout the whole room shocking both Ash and Prof. Oak.
-o-
{Elekid, the Electric Pokémon. This Pokémon generates electricity differently than other Electric-type Pokémon, using its arms as a conductor, it also loves playing in harsh weather.
Type: Electric/Fighting
Ability: Vital Spirit
Gender: Male
Moves:
-Thunder Punch, Thunder Shock, Brick Break, Thunder Wave, Low Kick,}
The Elekid smirked, posing his arms and legs, showing his 'muscles' and strength. But it saw Gray's expression and immediately got down and bowed his head.
This was his father. And he made his father angry. He was born from an egg and the first person he saw was Gray, and that left an impression on him that made Gray his father.
Gray raised him, fed him, took care of him. So he naturally thought of him as his father. He finally had the courage to look at Gray and he immediately saw Gray's eyes of disappointment.
"The thing is, you almost killed another Pokémon. Without my permission. Are you forgetting what I told you? We don't kill without a reason. You were intending to kill with bloodlust, I don't raise a killer."
Elekid's shoulder dropped. He reflected on the fight he had. And he saw himself smiling like a beast. He punched without remorse and kept fighting even when the enemy was down.
The idea of fighting an enemy who he thought was powerful, made him go berserk. He even ignored his father's orders. He was truly a failure.
Gray pulled a potion out and sprayed it on his injured arm. It was cauterized, but it was still swollen and bleeding. He wrapped it with bandages and scolded Elekid more.
After a few moments, he settled down near a shallow lake.
"Now, I want to introduce you to a new acquaintance of yours. They're a little powerful, but they will listen soon enough."
Elekid's eyes widened, a new Pokémon? Was he getting replaced? Was it because he did something bad?
"Kid! Kid!"
Gray smiled seeing Elekid jumping up. He interpreted it as him being excited to see his new companion. He took the ball out from its belt, and threw it up, releasing Magikarp to the still water.
When the scarlet carp formed, she curiously looked around, finally stopping at Gray and Elekid. It took a while but she realized that Gray was the one who lured her out and caught her.
Her eyes widened, and tried to swim away, but her body seemingly stopped. Sparks of lightning came off of her body, hurting her a bit.
She slowly looked at Gray and saw another Pokémon beside him, Elekid, who had his hand outwards. Gray smiled at Elekid, who just smirked. He turned around to face Magikarp and crouched down.
"Hello, my name's Gray, and this is Elekid. You see, I have this goal in mind, and it's to unravel the truth of this world. And for that, I need Pokémon like you. You're a Magikarp, a Pokémon that is terrorized by others because you are deemed weak. But you, you are different. And I want you."
Her eyes narrowed, he was right. As a Magikarp, In every place she goes to, some Pokémon terrorize her just because of her species, color and size.
She understands why they do it to her species, since Magikarp is one of the weakest Water-type in existence, but she doesn't understand why her own species oppress her. Is it because of her color and size?
Is it because of jealousy? Or is it because of something she doesn't know? But one thing is for sure, her own species doesn't care about her.
"I'm trying to build the perfect team, and for that, you need to take one seat. What do you say? Do you want to be released and get persecuted again? Or do you want to rise up and take the challenge with me?"
Gray pointed the ball in which he caught her in towards her, symbolizing the loyalty she needs for her to get strong.
She looked at it with disdain, that ball was the one who took her freedom away, but the offer of being the strongest ever made her hate it less.
Remembering the torment she experienced throughout her life, a raging flame lit inside, getting larger second after second.
Her rage exploded, right now, the only thing in her mind is the goal of getting stronger, and if the only way to get stronger is to be loyal to Gray, she will join.
With a final cry, she tackled the ball and returned to it, making Gray smile. It was easier than he thought. Just by using words he made it join the team.
Of course he knew it will disobey him later on, but that will only happen one time, because he has plans to make it submit.
————————————————————————
The End of Chapter 1: Gray
————————————————————————
Author's Corner:
It might have seemed confusing since the start of this fanfiction is not the usual of: Starting off at Pallet Town, Childhood, etc.
I wanted to start after he got his essential items from Oak, also, because his childhood is going to be one of the main points of his CD.
Also, this story was created a year ago, and was released on another website, but I decided to re-write it and make it better. Some changes are also made, like Elekid's typing of Electric/Fighting.
I will have changes like that in the future.