Chapter 2:
The First Battle:
Lucas and Barry were at the top of their class in battle simulations. They would casually talk about type match-ups, battle strategies and their ideal Pokemon teams. None of the other kids in class ever came close to beating them in their simulations so they spent most of their time battling each other. They assumed that they would be able to effortlessly defeat any trainer once they got Pokemon of their own.
But as the saying goes, everyone has a plan until you get hit in the face by a Starly. The Chimchar Lucas threw out from the Pokeball Barry found in a mysterious suitcase seemed more interested in smiling at Lucas than focusing on the grey and white bird speeding towards him.
'Jump!' Lucas shouted out.
The Chimchar looked behind him and screamed when he saw the Starly barreling towards him. He leapt in the air, narrowly avoiding being hit by the aggressive bird attacking him.
'Alright, use… ember?' Lucas said, hoping that the monkey knew what he was talking about.
Before the Starly could fly away the Chimchar inhaled deeply and let out a small flame that hit the bird's tail. Lucas heard the Starly cry in pain while Chimchar gave Lucas a thumbs up.
The Starly flew up and let out a loud cry that made the Chimchar cover his ears. Lucas tried to instruct his new Pokemon but Chimchar couldn't hear him. Without wasting a moment the bird dashed towards its opponent, leaving behind a white trail in the air and hit him straight in the head.
Quick attack? Lucas thought. This thing deafened that Chimchar so he couldn't hear my commands. That's smart.
Lucas saw Chimchar had a small bruise on his head. He felt his fist shaking and a frown forming on his face.
'Grab its tail,' Lucas said loudly.
Chimchar shook off his cobwebs and stretched his arms out to the Starly and grabbed a handful of its tail feathers. Lucas gave the command to use ember and Chimchar complied shooting small balls of flame all over the Starly's wings and back. The bird flailed around in Chimchar's grip and used its sharp beak to peck him on the hand.
This seemed to anger Chimchar and before Lucas could give him another command small sparks of electricity briefly surged through the monkey's fingers. Starly cried in pain once more, since it was naturally weak to electricity and it used its wing to violently strike Chimchar in the chin.
Chimchars head shot back and he let the Starly go who flew back into the forest as fast as it could. But not before staring Lucas straight in the eye. Which did intimidate the teenager.
Wow. That was intense. Lucas thought. Hoping to never see that bird again.
Lucas turned to see where Barry was and saw that he was commanding what looked like a Piplup to bombard his Starly with bubbles. The Starly that attacked Lucas flew back out in the open, and let out a cry which alerted the other Starly and the two birds to fly away to safety.
'You ok?' Lucas asked Barry whose face was covered in small scratches.
'Yep. Totally. I mean if you ignore what happened the last ten minutes. Wait, do I need a shot? What if they give me a disease or something?" Barry asked pointing to the minor injuries he sustained.
'I'm pretty sure you're not even gonna notice that in the morning,' Lucas said, trying to reassure his friend.
'Well, I'm gonna find those damn Starly and sue them if I get an infection.'
'How would you… never mind,' Lucas said while shaking his head. Barry's obsession with fining and suing everything would never end.
The Chimchar tentatively walked towards Lucas on all fours and tugged on his trousers. Lucas looked down and smiled at the Pokemon who responded with a large and childish grin on his face.
'That was awesome. The way you moved around and did all those moves was so cool. What's up with the electricity though?' Lucas said, gushing the Chimchar with his praise, making the small monkey beam with joy.
'That was thunder punch,' a powerful voice said from behind the two boys. 'Though he hasn't quite mastered the move yet.'
'Is that who I think it is?' Lucas asked rhetorically.
'Uh… I think so,' Barry replied.
The teenager went down on his knees and cupped his hands together. 'Professor Rowan, sir. I'm so sorry. We didn't mean to steal these Pokemon, I swear. But these we were attacked and we panicked and we needed to do something. We'll give them back, please don't send us to jail,' he said. Or more accurately pleaded.
Professor Rowan looked down at the teenager with an amused look. 'Stand up son, you look ridiculous.'
Barry shot back up and ran back to Lucas like a cartoon character. Piplup seemed confused by the human's behaviour and looked to Chimchar for an explanation. The monkey simply shrugged.
'You two look like you've had a rough day. I'll drive you back to my lab to make sure that you and my Pokemon aren't badly injured,' Professor Rowan said. He crouched down to be at eye level with the two Pokemon and pat them both on the head before putting them back in their Pokeballs.
Really shouldn't have had drinks with Cyrus last night, the Professor thought. He never would have left behind three, well-bred starters otherwise. Especially if he knew that two unlicenced teenagers would use them.
The teenagers saw that the professor had parked a small jeep near the entrance to the lake and followed him somewhat reluctantly. Not because they thought the elderly man meant any harm but because they were afraid that he would tell their mothers.
Each region had multiple scholars and researchers who dedicated their lives to understanding Pokemon. The most experienced and qualified scholar of that region was unofficially given the title of 'Pokemon Professor.' Even though anyone with a PhD who taught at a university could technically be called a professor.
Most Professor's had a speciality. Professor Elm of Johto focused his efforts on breeding, professor Birch from Hoenn specialised in Pokemon habitats, Professor Kukui spent his time on understanding Pokemon moves and so on. The most famous of these Professors was Professor Oak. Not for his speciality but because of how instrumental he was during the war to allow the allied powers to win.
Professor Rowan witnessed the power Oak possessed in his prime first-hand. He was certain that most modern champions would struggle to knock out a single one of Oaks team. There were times when he wondered what would have happened if a young Oak battled against Cynthia. Though he usually brushed such thoughts away. Cynthia was still a young woman who hadn't reached her own prime yet as a trainer, despite being so powerful. Any comparisons to trainers of old would have to wait for a few years.
Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh had very close economic and diplomatic ties since they were allies during the war. As a result, Professor Rowan's lab in Sandgem town was state of the art. The only lab that even compared was Oak's in Pallet town all the way in Kanto.
So it tended to greatly impress everyone who entered it for the first time. Lucas and Barry were no exception. From the whir of the machinery that seemed to come straight out of a sci-fi novel to the army of lab coat-clad scientists walking around from one room to another doing work that the two teenagers couldn't even begin to understand, it was an overwhelming experience.
Though the Professor casually led them past all the technological wonders into his own private office. In contrast to the extravagance of the labs, Professor Rowan's workplace was quite quaint. He had a small oakwood table with a laptop resting on it with a few picture frames placed alongside it.
In the corner of the room laid a miniature healing station, similar to the ones used in a Pokemon centre with a few Pokeballs resting inside. Professor Rowan sat down in his chair and placed a hand on his chin while glaring at the two young men in front of him. Lucas and Barry briefly glanced at each other, as if they were telling the other person to begin the conversation.
The silence was deafening.
'So,' Lucas began. 'Are you gonna arrest us or something?'
Professor Rowan shook his head while maintaining eye contact with the blue-eyed boy.
'Then why'd you bring us here?
After considering his response for a moment, the professor simply asked, 'What's your name son?'
'Lucas. Lucas Diamond.'
Professor Rowan's eyes widened briefly, 'Was your father called Connor by any chance?'
Lucas flinched. 'How'd you know that?'
'Hmm. I assume you're Palmer's boy?' the elder man said, ignoring Lucas.
'Yeah, I am,' Barry responded proudly. Lucas frowned. Hearing his friend's love for his father hurt sometimes. It's something he never had the luxury to experience.
'Come with me boys.'
'You have a ranch?' Barry asked, amazed at the sight of a wide-open, field that was just a few hundred meters away from the Professor's lab. The ranch was built so that Pokemon of varying habitats could live comfortably and co-exist with each other. Professor Rowan's moustache twitched in annoyance as the blond teenager kept - for lack of a better term - fanboying whenever he saw a rare or powerful Pokemon as they drove along the dirt road that cut through the ranch.
Lucas smiled. He understood exactly what Barry felt. Some of these Pokemon were things the two only ever saw in a textbook. But now he was in arms reach of fearsome creatures like Charizards, Goodra, Greninja and Dusknoir. He even saw rare, regional variants of Pokemon like an ice-type Vulpix and a fire-ground type Arcanine.
'I bought the land during the war to help heal and rehabilitate injured Pokemon. Some of their trainers passed away so I took it upon myself to take care of them. Many of these Pokemon are too dangerous to roam free in the wild,' the Professor said. As if to reinforce his statement a Salamance flew overheard, shaking the entire vehicle.
'Yeah, I can see what you mean,' Lucas said while looking at the dragon in awe. An untrained Salamance would likely lay waste to entire cities before it found a place to settle down and live. The fact that the Professor could keep so many Pokemon in one place and keep them in good health was nothing short of a miracle.
'But I did not take you, boys, here for that,' the Professor said as a fairly large log cabin came into view. He parked on the front porch and honked to warn any small Pokemon resting there to move away lest they be run over.
The door to the cabin swung open as the three exited the vehicle and Lucas was stunned by the sight of a beautiful young girl around his age with navy blue hair and dark blue eyes. He blushed as she smiled and walked toward them. Noticing this Barry playfully nudged his friend, making Lucas blush more.
'Grandpa!' the girl said excitedly before hugging the old man.
'Gently Dawn, I'm not as young as I used to be,' Professor replied with a chuckle.
'When were you ever young grandpa?' she asked jokingly.
The Professor gestured to the two teenagers behind him. 'Oh yes, these two are… '
'Lucas! I mean I'm Lucas. That's Barry. We're um… friends. No, wait. Yeah,' Lucas blurted out, completely flustered by Dawn's presence.
'Smooth,' Barry whispered sarcastically. 'Ignore him. That's how he says hello.'
Dawn looked at Lucas with some confusion. 'Oh right. Hi,' she said shaking his hand.
Professor Rowan rolled his eyes. 'Dawn, would you mind going inside and calling Ceasar. I think he'd want to meet our guests.'
Dawn nodded before taking a quick glance at Lucas and making her way back into the cabin.
Barry playfully punched Lucas on the shoulder while Professor Rowan frowned. The last thing he wanted was to get involved in some teenage drama. The sound of the door creaking open interrupted his train of thought.
Lucas and Barry expected Dawn to come out with another person. Instead, a one-armed Infernape with a large scar over his left eye stood next to her. The Infernape had a stern expression on his face that looked like it was carved in stone. He stared at the Professor expectantly and Dawn put a hand on his back to calm him down.
'Hello, Caesar. This young man is called Lucas. He's Connor's son.'
Caesar looked at Lucas sceptically. He walked over to the young man and Lucas audibly gulped. The Infernape was easily a foot taller than he was and he could see the ape's powerful muscles ripple with every step he took.
The ape stood right in front of Lucas. He started to sniff around him and closely examine his face. He placed a hand on Lucas' head and turned it around like he was some fruit at a market.
Caesar grunted and locked eyes with Lucas.
Lucas didn't flinch and returned the gaze. He had no interest in looking weak in front of such a powerful Pokemon. The Infernape line prided themselves on resilience and strength after all.
Caesar smirked and pulled Lucas in for a powerful, one-armed hug. Lucas could feel the heat from the ape's fur but it did not make him sweat. Instead, the warmth felt almost comforting.
Professor Rowan smiled. 'Caesar was your father's most trusted ally during the war.'
Lucas looked at Caesar with some level of surprise. The Infernape nodded to confirm what the Professor said, sensing Lucas' confusion.
'The Chimchar you used earlier today is Caesar's son. He was bred to be the most powerful member of his species. Hence why he already knew an egg move like Thunder Punch,' Professor Rowan continued.
He opened up the briefcase with the three Pokeballs inside of them and released the three Pokemon. From the explosion of light appeared the Chimchar and Piplup from earlier along with a Turtwig.
The Chimchar gave a happy cheer seeing his father who gave him a small nod. That was about as affectionate male Infernape usually got with their male offspring. The young monkey saw Lucas and ran towards him.
Lucas couldn't help but feel happy when the Chimchar lept on his shoulder and started hugging his neck. Even the Piplup Barry used seemed excited to see the Blond teenager again. Though the penguin simply blew a few bubbles in his face to show his affection. Which slightly annoyed Barry.
'I'm so gonna fine you,' Barry said to the Piplup. Though he seemed to be much more jovial than usual when he said it.
'I'm not sure your father would appreciate that. Especially since that Piplup over there is his Empoleon's offspring,' the Professor said.
Barry looked at Piplup who turned his head away in anger. 'Hey, little guy. Sorry, I get a little hot-headed sometimes. Why don't we start again?'
Piplup looked to the human first and then to Chimchar who gave the bird a thumbs up. Piplup - trusting his friend's judgment - extended a flipper like a human would his arm and Barry shook it gently. He was starting to like this little penguin.
The Turtwig looked at the other two young Pokemon and lowered his head in sadness. Seeing the two Pokemon he grew up with being so close to random humans he never met made him feel a bit left out.
Dawn carried the turtle in her hands and pat him on the head. 'It's ok. You're not gonna be left out. You're the cutest one here,' she said, making the turtle tear up.
Professor Rowan and Caesar saw the young Pokemon bonding with the teenagers and couldn't help but feel nostalgic. The old man remembered the day he introduced Caesar to Connor when he was a Chimchar. They bonded almost instantly. It did help that Connor gave Caesar a few berries after they met.
He wiped the tears from his eyes before the teenagers noticed and cleared his throat.
'I took the liberty of calling your school boys. They tell me that the both of you are at the top of your class in the trainer-related classes. Judging by how you handled that battle with the two Starly you seem to have a better head for Pokemon battle than most experienced trainers. Admittedly you both could use some work but that's the case for every rookie trainer, Professor Rowan said, placing his hands behind his back.
'Wait. What're you talking about?' Lucas asked.
Barry's face froze when a thought entered his head. 'No way. Holy crap. You're giving us our trainers licenses aren't you?'
Professor Rowan nodded in affirmation. 'Both of your fathers were legendary trainers in their own right. I usually have a nack for this thing and I can tell that these Pokemon have some level of attachment towards you. It is your ambition to become trainers yes?'
Lucas and Barry responded with a loud, 'Yes.'
'Do you promise to care for these creatures with the kindness and love that they deserve?'
'Yeah, why wouldn't we?' Lucas said looking at the Chimchar on his shoulder.
'Being a trainer is not easy. You have the grades necessary to get an early licence as well as the temperament but once you start I've no interest in hearing you that you quit because the work was too much,' Professor Rowan said sternly.
Barry lifted Piplup up - much to the Penguin's annoyance - and said, 'Are you kidding. That battle was way more intense and badass than the simulations in school. We'll be amazing at this.'
'No offence to you guys but grandpa. Why do you trust them with these Pokemon? We barely know them,' Dawn interjected.
'I didn't know Cynthia when I entrusted her with her Gible. But look where she is now. I know that the three of you are ready to begin your journeys.'
Caesar howled in agreement. He remembered that he didn't think much of that young, blond girl when he saw her at the tail end of the war. But the Infernape wasn't sure if he could defeat some of her more powerful Pokemon now even if he was in his prime. That was power he could respect.
'The three of us?' Dawn asked.
'Of course. You didn't think I'd leave my own granddaughter behind did you?' Professor Rowan asked.
'No. Of course not,' Dawn replied. A little unenthusiastically Lucas thought.
'Good,' Professor Rowan said, oblivious to her granddaughter's apparent disinterest. 'These Pokemon were bred to be as strong as they possibly can be for their species. All of them were born with egg moves they could not learn naturally. You can take a look for yourselves with these,' he continued as he pulled out three handheld devices from his pockets.
The three of them took them from his hands and wondered what they were.
'These are the newest model of Pokedex. I'm sure you've heard of them and even studied about them briefly in school but they aren't things we Professors casually give away. They contain information about every Pokemon known to man and can give you all the relevant biodata on any Pokemon you capture,' The professor explained.
Lucas flipped open the rectangular device and pointed it at Chimchar who lept off of his shoulder. The screen lit up and made a small beeping noise while it analysed the Pokemon in front of him.
'Chimchar, the Monkey Pokémon. Chimchar easily climbs the sheerest of walls and lives on mountain tops. When it sleeps, its flames go out.
This Chimchar knows the moves scratch, ember, thunder punch and counter.'
Ok. That's insanely cool, Lucas thought. Both marvelling at the technology in his hand and the potential power his Chimchar might have in the future.
Dawn and Barry did the same for their Pokemon and were quite surprised by their Pokemon's egg moves. Dawn's Turtwig knew the moves tackle, razor leaf, grassy terrain and superpower while Barry's Piplup knew the moves pound, bubble, feather dance and agility.
Chimchar was the only one with two offensive egg moves. Which made sense since his evolutionary line was renowned for their incredible attack stats and speed. Thunder punch would provide coverage against both flying and water types which would be useful when Chimchar evolved into a fire-fighting type and counter would be useful when he took blows in a hand-to-hand combat scenario. He could return double the physical damage he received in a fight, though that did run the risk of him getting knocked out if he was too injured.
Barry and Lucas started trying to one-up the other, going through all the potential strategies one would use to beat the other in combat. The level of technical detail, passion and creativity the two had surprised the Professor.
Looks like I made the right call with these boys, he thought.
'What will you name your new Pokemon?' Professor Rowan asked.
Barry did not waste a single second. 'Napoleon.'
The Piplup did not seem to care about the name and shrugged.
Lucas remembered a story his mother told him as a kid and looked at Chimchar.
'How about Wukong?' he asked.
The Chimchar let out a small cry and did not seem to understand the meaning of the name.
'He was this really powerful monkey god from an old story. I figured it would suit you since you and your dad are so strong,' Lucas said.
Wukong hopped up and down in excitement when Lucas explained what his name meant. He wanted to be as strong as his father one day.
'How about Franklin?' Dawn asked the Turtwig.
The green turtle opened his jaw and yawned. Dawn lifted him up and he slowly fell asleep in her arms. 'Rain check on that then,' she said softly.
Caesar looked at his son and his new trainer for one last time before retreating back into the cabin. A tear rolled down his non-scared eye as he thought about the day he lost Lucas' father. He rubbed the stub where his arm used to be and he grunted. The war took its toll on everyone. The ageing Infernape hoped that the new generation would never have to go through something that horrific ever again.
Lucas tapped his foot anxiously as Professor Rowan talked to his mother. Barry's mother jumped in joy when she heard that her son was to become a trainer so soon. She always knew her son would take after his father.
So did Johanna. But that's what worried her.
'Connor didn't want him to become a trainer,' she said. 'He told me that when I was pregnant. He wanted him to become a doctor, a lawyer or anything normal and stable. Something that wouldn't put his life at risk.'
'Johanna,' Professor Rowan said gently. 'The war is over. Times aren't as dangerous as they used to be.'
'I don't care. He's not old enough and that's final. I can't lose him too,' Johanna said, her voice cracking as she started to sob.
Lucas walked up to his mother and held her hands. 'I get why you're scared mom. I do. But I never knew dad. All I had were stories. People always told me he was this big war hero. An amazing trainer who did his best to help other people.
But they never talked about what he's like as a person. I thought that maybe if I became a trainer. If I did what he did. I'd be able to figure out what kind of guy dad was like. Maybe get close to him.'
Those words stunned both Johanna and Rowan.
'If you don't want me to do this yet then that's fine. But when I'm 18 I'll become a trainer anyways. I need to mom. I can't imagine doing anything else,' Lucas said with a solemn look.
Wukong sat on Johanna's shoulder and planted a small kiss on her cheek. It was his way of comforting the older human. Johanna placed Wukong gently on her lap like he was a human toddler. He put out his flame so as to not hurt her.
'This is Caeser's son right?' she asked.
Lucas nodded.
'Your dad was just like you when he was your age. He went through quite the pouty phase as a Monferno though,' Johanna said, which made Wukong let out a chuckle. 'Connor really loved your dad. They were like brothers in arms in a way. Especially after the war started.'
Johanna went silent. Unsure of what to do, Wukong looked back to the other two humans and Lucas raised his hand to reassure him that things were ok. She lifted Wukong up and handed him over to Lucas.
'I want you to promise me. If you get hurt or homesick or anything you run back here,' she said sternly.
'Wait. So does that mean…' Lucas asked, his question trailing off at the end.
'Yes,' she said with a sense of kind begrudgance.
Lucas placed Wukong on the ground and pulled his mother in for the biggest hug she ever received in her life. She tenderly wrapped her arms around him and held back a flood of tears.
Professor Rowan couldn't help but tear up as well. He felt like he was seeing Connor start his journey all over again. He was unable to save him but he would do whatever he could to make sure his son lived up to his legacy.
Well, that took a while. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.
