Scene 44: Poke'dex User

Kari Arc

Kari arrives in Pallet Town just after lunchtime. It's been a long time since she's been to visit. Kari runs through the small town, waving at the few people she passes. She's always loved the small, quaint feeling of the place. It only takes a few minutes to arrive at her friend's house. It's small and simple with a little garden out front. She stands on her tippy-toes to look over the fence.

It's a bit cool this February day, but normally he would be running about outside. Kari pushes open the garden gate and walks up to the door to ring the bell. There's no answer. She shrugs at Eevee, "I guess they must be on vacation somewhere." They turn to leave heading farther up the road towards Professor Oak's Lab instead.

She rings the doorbell here as well and stands waiting for an answer. Without saying a word, Kari hopes that Gary Oak isn't visiting. Professor Samuel Oak opens the door, his hands full of fresh veggies. He teeters from side to side, "Uhm… Professor..?"

Prof. Oak does a double-take, "Oh! Little Kari- is that you?" He juggles the vegetables as he holds the door open for her, explaining that he was just about to prep for dinner.

"So! What brings you to Pallet Town?" The two are sitting in the kitchen, some tofu boiling in a large pot. Kari's a bit unsure how to explain properly. She takes a deep breath, "I wanted to ask you to help me register for the Indigo League..!" The Professor stops watching the pot. He chuckles to himself, "I'm sorry, Kari. But you're just not old enough yet. It's the rules." But Kari is already digging through her backpack.

"Actually, Professor, even a child can compete as long as they have proof of parental consent and…" She shows him her small case. In the very first slot is the Viridian City's Earth Badge. Prof. Oak jumps out of his chair to see it.

"I see, I see! So you were able to beat your own father and win that badge, huh? Impressive!" Kari gulps, "Y-yup." The Professor nods his approval, "Well in that case." He removes the tofu to allow them to cool. and turns to the stairs, "I think I might have a job for you." Kari follows him.

"A job?" They reach the second floor and enter into a part of his lab. There's some machinery Kari doesn't know the names of and a couple of large computers. Prof. Oak sits at one of the screens and starts typing away. He grabs a small blue device and inserts it into one of the slots. Kari notices her own name on the screen. A cursor starts flashing.

"Oh, yes." He turns in his chair, "Kari, would you mind standing over there?" He points to a taped X on the ground. She walks over, "Here?"

"Yes. Perfect. Now, look at the camera for me."

"Huh?" She sees it.

"Now say: Chanseyyyy!" Before the flash goes off, Kari manages a crooked smile. Not her best, but it'll do. Professor Oak flips from screen to screen- he takes Kari's fingerprints, though she doesn't know what he's doing, but after a few more minutes, he finally turns to face her again. That same small blue device is in his hand.

"Kari, I'd like you to do me a favor." He offers the handheld device to her. She looks at it, confused, "What is it?"

"This device is called a Pokédex. And there's currently only 3 others like it in the world." Her eyebrows rise, "A Poke'dex?" He nods. The Professor flips it open for her, "This Pokédex will act as your Registration Card." He clicks a button and the device is suddenly speaking. It has a chipper robotic boy voice and calls itself Dex. Prof. Oak gives a chuckle, "But aside from that, the Pokédex has an even more important function. I've been working on it for a very long time." He points the device at Eevee and a picture appears. Under the picture of Eevee, there's a couple of sentences and data. Dex is reading this information out to them.

"Cooool!" Prof. Oak laughs, "Yes, I agree. 'Cool' indeed! You see, the Pokédex is a digital encyclopedia of Pokémon Data. I've collected as much data as I could of Pokémon I've seen, but as we're all aware, there are many Pokémon still yet to be discovered. And Kari…" He turns to face her, looking her directly in the eyes, "I'd like very much if you could help me to complete it." She takes a moment, "But how can I help?"

"Oh, it's very easy. You're going on a journey, aren't you?" She shrugs, "Yes?" The Prof. sits forward in his chair, "A journey of discovery to capture Poke'mon?" She raises a confused brow, "Uhm… yeah..?"

"Then you're the perfect person to help me!" He almost leaps from his chair from the excitement, "I've already got a couple of other Trainers helping me out- this Pokédex here, you see, is more of a prototype before I can possibly upgrade it with more features. I'm hoping to someday have enough data to mass produce these babies for more Trainers. Just think about it: every young boy and girl starting out on a journey will be able to have all this information at their fingertips! I tell you, it certainly would have been quite handy to have when I was a young Trainer." He laughs to himself, "Ahem, anyways… Kari… If you would, please help me to complete this Pokédex. The world of Pokémon is such a mystery to us humans, and it's been my life's work to learn all I can about them. So what do you say? Will you be one of my Pokédex Users?"

Kari wonders if she could possibly be of any help. She's only a child, after all… and it's such a large responsibility. Prof. Oak takes her hand. She looks up into his face.

"You may be young, Kari, but if you were able to win that Earth Badge and start a journey, you're ready for this I assure you." She tries for a smile, "A-alrighty then. I'll do it." She's still not sure, but this may be one of the only ways to keep up with her father's lie.

Prof. Oak gives a whoop. She's hardly listening as he goes on and on about the other Pokédex Users before her.

That night, they share a meal of tofu and noodles. Kari asks about the empty house and he tells them that they're at a summer camp. Although a bit disappointed, Kari knows that she can't wait around for them to return, "Oh. I guess I missed him then." Prof. Oak slurps up some noodles, "Don't worry, I'll let them know you stopped by! Oh, that reminds me! Maybe I ought to give a call to my grandson- it's been a while since you've seen Gary, hasn't it?" Kari sits upright, "Oh, no! It's fine..!" He's already out of his chair, "Are you sure?" Kari is nodding vigorously. Kari doesn't want to sound rude, but she's never been much of a fan for that Gary Oak…

Kari stays the night and the next morning Prof. Oak has another surprise for her. He hands her a pack of Pokéballs to begin her journey. And with a freshly packed bag of supplies and snacks, and her new Pokédex stowed away in her pocket, Kari feels more ready than ever to begin her journey!