Ah, what a beautiful day. The skies are blue sprinkled with white clouds, the grass is green, and this small place called Pallet Town is just the perfect kind of place where you can live a peaceful, normal, and quiet life.
"Ah! What time is it?!" Three voices cried out in horror.
Or... it would be if you didn't have these three teenagers in the fantastic land of Pokemon. Three teens, two boys and one girl, ran down the same road in their pajamas as they were late for their Pokemon picking. And who are these three? A trio of best friends by the name of Ash Ketchum, Trace Keen and Elaine Gladwin, three soon to be trainers who overslept. Ash was in green pajamas, Trace black, and Elaine yellow.
"Of all the days to sleep in, it had to be the big day!" Trace complained.
"We have to get our first Pokemon before it's too late!" Elaine added.
"Come on guys, book it!" Ash told them as they ran as fast as possible, booking it. Eventually getting to the top of the hill that is where the professor's laboratory is, both of the boys were bushed, not used to running such a distance in an extreme amount of time.
"Augh, my lunnnnngs." Ash wheezed.
"Why does he have to be on a hill?!" Trace growled with exhausted effort.
"Come on guys! We need to get our Pokemon!" Elaine scolded them as she ran to the door and kicked it open. "Professor, we're here for our Pokemon!" The old man turned to her, not impressed.
"So you finally decided to show up, did you? And don't kick people's doors. It's considered rude." He gently reprimanded her. Elaine slumped forward as Ash and Trace came into the lab.
"Come on, where's our Pokemon?! We're ready for them!" Trace proclaimed.
"Ready? You three look like you're ready for bed." Professor Oak jested.
"We just messed up and woke up late!" Ash defended them, and himself. "But we're ready to get our Pokemon!"
"Well, unfortunately..." He stepped aside, letting the teens see that there are three empty spots, where the Kanto starters were.
"What?!" All of the three teens gasped in dismay as they huddled around the Pokeball chamber.
"The early bird gets the worm... or in this case... the Pokemon." Oak said to them.
"There's got to be more!" Ash cried out.
"Don't you have anymore Pokemon?! Please please pleeeeease?!" All three of them were on their knees as they begged the professor with big anime teary eyes, unnerving Samuel Oak.
"Alright alright, hold your horses! Beg anymore and your eyes will pop out! If you need Pokemon that bad I've got a few more that's not typically given out!" Hearing this, the trio cheered as they jumped around hugging each other.
"We're getting Pokemon! We're getting Pokemon! We're getting Pokemon!"
"Calm down children!" Professor Oak tried to settle their moods. Bringing out three Pokemon, one with a lightning bolt, one with a heart and another with a crescent moon, he presented them to the teenagers. "Of these three, you have to choose. You can choose between a Pikachu, an Eevee and a Clefairy. What will it be?" Ash and Trace dived in and were about to nab their first Pokemon with grunts of fighting each other about who gets first pick, when they were punched into the ground with a double whammy of two fists from an annoyed Elaine into the top of their heads, stopping their immature fighting as they dropped to the ground likes two sacks of groaning potatoes.
"Sorry boys, but I believe this is where 'Ladies first' comes in. I pick Clefairy." Taking the moon signed ball on the right, Elaine summoned her first Pokemon, a small, pink, star shaped Pokemon with little wings. "Aw, aren't you a cutie then?!" She gently hugged her starter Pokemon, whom cheered her name from the affection. Since Ash always a hard head compared to most in Pallet Town, he recovered first.
"No fair Elaine! In that case, I pick Pikachu!" Letting out the electric type Mouse Pokemon, the yellow creature yawned as her tail with a notch twitched around. "Hey there Pikachu." Ash gently patted his small partner on the head, not wanting to give a bad first impression.
"Chaaa." She cooed from the delicate approach as she rubbed her head into his hand. Sniffing it, she even shook his finger, making Ash smile even more.
"Awww! That's so cute!" Elaine thought that exchange was so precious.
"Dang it, last place." Trace moaned in pain and disappointment as he stood up. "Oh well, Eevee is cool." Taking the Pokeball, he let out the normal type Evolution Pokemon, whom looked around only to see Trace as he held his hands open. "Come to your new partner!"
"Eevee!" She cried out in joy as she jumped into Trace's arms.
"Aww, it's so soft!" The young brunette chuckled.
"Well, it seems like your new Pokemon have taken a shining to all of you!" The professor laughed. "Now, here are your respective pokeballs, and a Pokedex for each of you. I designed them myself. It'll record the data of every Pokemon you capture."
"A Pokedex, huh?" Trace questioned. "We're going to catch so many!"
"For one person, I'd say a little under 900 Pokemon would be impossible." Elaine claimed. "But if we work together to catch 300 each, I know we can do it!"
"Yeah!" Ash and Trace cheered.
"If you want to help capture as much Pokemon as you can, might I suggest going to Vermillion City? That way you can participate in the World Coronation Series?"
"The WCS?!" Trace gasped. The others were shocked as well. "You mean the one where all the best trainers battle it out to see who is the ultimate Pokemon Master?!"
"Exactly. I know you three have always wanted to battle with Pokemon, and now that you have your own Pokedexes, you can catch as much Pokemon as you can and beat the best of the best. Who knows, you may even beat Leon Jordan."
"This won't be easy." Elaine gulped.
"It wouldn't be fun if it was! Let's go!" Ash declared, but before they could run off, Professor Oak stopped them.
"Now hold on, before you go to Vermillion, there's one more gift I should give to each of you." From a drawer, he gave out a yellow orb, a pink gem, and a type of lens.
"Ash, this is a light ball. It'll make your Pikachu's attacks stronger. Here's a scarf for it."
"Wow, thanks Professor." Ash nodded gratefully.
"Trace, your Eevee isn't all that good defensively for now, especially against fighting types. This eviolite should help reduce the amount of damage it takes.
"Huh, that's cool." The brunette commented.
"Elaine, this particular Clefairy is near sighted, so take these lens to make its attacks more accurate.
"Thank you Professor." The girl nodded.
"The world is big and holds endless amounts of surprise, mystery and adventure. Take care children, and most importantly, have fun."
"We will, thank you!" All of them said at once. "Bye!" They tried to leave, but the three of them got stuck in the door, and started fighting again as they tried to see who gets to take a step outside first. Their Pokemon looked at each other in worried amusement while the Professor pinched his nose with a long exasperated moan.
"How about I just drive you? I have a car so you won't have to worry about spending a month getting there."
"I call shotgun!" Trace called out, but the others objected.
"No, I want shotgun!" Ash cried out.
"Ain't no way I'm sitting next either of you in the back seat!" Elaine declared as they started getting rowdy again.
"I'll have shotgun!" A mature voice called out, to which the teens stopped fighting.
"Mom?!" Ash gasped as he saw Delia Ketchum and Mr. Mime following her. And she didn't seem amused with their antics.
"I came to deliver your lunch sweetie, but apparently you three need to learn how to share. I tell you, when it comes to the three of you you act like six year olds. You're all sixteen years old so you need to act like it!" Slowly looking at each other in annoyance before defeat, the group sighed as they got out of the door frame and collectively said,
"Sorry. We'll behave." Although that only made her laugh.
"Aww, something that I wish wouldn't change is how in sync you are with each other! It's so cute how you say things at the same time so frequently!"
"Mom!" Ash complained.
"Anyway, I get shotgun. I could certainly get some sweets from the shops and new dresses from the stores... it'll be a wonderful trip!" Delia cheered as she went to the Professor's van. All of them, human and Pokemon, got into the vehicle to get to Vermillion City much faster.
However, by the time they reached Viridian City by night time, that's when something was going terribly wrong. The Pokemon Center was fuming with black smoke, and screams could be heard from within.
"What's happening in there?!" Elaine gasped.
"I don't know, but we have to do something!" Ash jumped out of the van through the back door, to everyone's shock. Pikachu followed to protect her partner.
"Ash! Get back here right now!" His mother ordered.
"Doesn't he know there's officers around to handle these kind of situations?" Trace asked in exasperation, sweating from the ordeal.
"Well, Ash needs our help if he's going to be some kind of hero! Come on Clefairy!" Gladwin told her Pokemon as they got out too, leaving Trace behind.
"Dang it." Trace lightly cursed. Eevee looked worried.
"Trace, you need to help them." Professor Oak told him.
"What?! Professor!" Delia objected.
"Huh?! Why me?!"
Those two need all the help they can get before the police arrive, and there's nothing we can do! You need to go and make sure they don't wind up getting hurt!" The professor explained. Trace didn't want to get involved in something that was dangerous, but Eevee looked into his eyes with determination.
"Eevee!" She said and nodded. After a moment, his face hardened with resolve.
"Alright." Getting out, he and Eevee went to make sure the rest were okay.
"Professor, why-"
"They can take care of themselves Delia. They've always had each other's backs, and with their Pokemon, they have a chance of getting out of this okay." The old man told Ash's mother, but he looked grim about it and she turned to the building with extreme worry.
"Ash." Once inside, the teens covered their noses to not be knocked out by the gas. That's when they spotted two humans, and a cat.
"Who are they?!" Ash inquired.
"Don't be frightened, little boy." A woman's voice answered.
"Let us introduce ourselves." A man's voice followed up.
"To protect the world from devastation..."
"To unite all peoples within our nation..."
"To denounce the evils of truth and love..."
"To extend our reach to the stars above!" A purple haired woman and blue haired man were now visible through the smog in white and black outfits with a large purple R on their uniforms.
"Jessie."
"James."
"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!" Their beige colored cat with a gold coin on its forehead said.
"Wha?! A talking Meowth?!" Elaine gasped.
"What kind of nonsense is that?!" Tracer questioned them. "You sound more like a deranged circus troupe!" That just enraged Jessie.
"How dare you compare us to the circus! Ekans, attack!"
"Koffing, go!" Each of the Pokemon went on the offense to which they all... scattered in fright. Ash went for the left to evade being eaten by a big snake while Elaine and Trace had to getting away from the smog spewing Poison Gas Pokemon. Ash dove below where the poison type Snake Pokemon smashed through a computer and its monitor, the wires sticking out of its mouth. Pikachu however was not going to let her master get devoured, so she used Thundershock, which sent the snake flying from the surprising amount of power she had.
"Ekans?!" Jessie gasped from how powerful the attack was. Koffing also got battered around when Clefairy and Eevee protected their partners with a Pound and Tackle respectively.
"Do I have to do everything myself?" Meowth questioned as he was about to take a Scratch out of the two Pokemon, but regaining his wits, Ash told his Pokemon,
"Pikachu, use Thundershock!"
"Pikaaachuuuuuuu!" The Mouse Pokemon sent a large blast of electricity at Team Rocket causing them to scream and spasm from the insane level of energy from the electric type's attack. There was so much energy, the smog pouring from Koffing ignited and the Pokemon Center exploded.
"Ash!" Deliah screamed in horror from the sight she saw, just as Officer Jenny came to the area.
"Too late! But not for the fireworks." She remarked as she saw the building go up in flame and smoke. Soon enough, it was about daybreak, but that didn't mean it was nice and quiet.
"Aston Taylor Ketchum! Don't you ever run off into danger like that again! I have half a mind to stop your journey right here and now if this is what you're going to be doing! You could of died! I'd be heartbroken if I lost you! And what about the parents of Trace and Elaine?!" Ash, sitting on a piece of rubble, was getting a pretty severe tongue lashing while the others were talking to Officer Jenny were talking to the kids.
"So you met Team Rocket, huh?"
"Yeah. And that certainly wasn't anything I've seen." Trace shuddered. "Dealing with criminals? Talk about harrowing."
"That was pretty intense." Elaine said, considering what they just went through.
"Well, it seems like you'll have to be put into protective services. There's no telling what those three will do now that you've crossed them."
"Hold on." Professor Oak told the officer. I think they will do just fine on their own."
"Professor Oak, while I respect you're Kanto's leading professor in Pokemon, why would you let them go? Even if we didn't bring them in they still need to be charged with vigilantism and the destruction of this Pokemon Center."
"I'll pay for whatever they're being charged. I'm worried those particular Team Rocket members are too much for the police force. They're some of the greatest mechanics in the world, being able to build giant robots, along with being masters of disguise so they could just as easily slip through your defenses. But there's something else. Something I haven't told them is that these Pokemon are special. Even more than the Kanto starters." Trace and Elaine looked down at their Pokemon, whom looked back up at them. "They're somehow stronger than their average species, and with those items equipped to them, they're even better." With just these three Pokemon alone, they're about as strong as a low level gym leader already."
"Seriously?!" The two gasped. Even Delia and Ash were interrupted from that.
"Yes. With these Pokemon, I think they'll be able to protect themselves from the threats of Team Rocket. And once they learn how to battle properly and let their skills grow, there's nothing these young trainers can't do."
"You're really confident in these teenagers, are you?" Officer Jenny was still worried.
"Completely. They have the tools they need to succeed. And survive." Pondering it over, the woman sighed.
"Fine, they can go."
"Officer Jenny!" Delia called her out.
"Sorry Mrs. Ketchum, but the matter is out of our hands! Those three Team Rocket members have always been able to outsmart and out muscle us whenever they wanted something. This is the first time they've actually been stopped, and it's these kids that did that. I don't like it anymore than you do, but they're safer together out there getting stronger than anywhere we can keep them where they're sitting ducks."
"Please Mom?!" Ash begged his mother. "I'm sorry that I just ran in there, but I just felt the urge to help whatever the situation was! If there's anything I remember what Dad once said, he said to me "Do what you think is right"!" Delia gasped from him bringing up his late father. There was an unofficial rule to never bring him up. The pain was too much. But to quote one of the few times Ash remembered his dad, she could see him in her son, eyes full of determination and a will as strong as a Steelix. It took her a moment, but after a good and difficult gulp, she said,
"If... if that's what you feel like you need to do... then I guess I can't stop you. For your own safety. Just..." Stooping down to his eye level, he could she was crying. "J-just be safe Ash. I-I don't want to lose y-you. I-I can't bear to think of what w-would happen if I was told one d-day you'll never come h-home again. You're my son...and I...and I..." She couldn't continue as she hugged her son, whom was also starting to tear up from all that's been happening and all the things she said. Pikachu looked at this, wondering how Ash will respond to this.
"M-mom. I love you. I-I'm always going to love you. I promise. I-I'll be safe. I'll be careful. A-and I'll become strong. Strong enough that Team Rocket won't separate us." Watching this, Elaine was crying from how she felt if she died and left her family behind, clutching her Clefairy close. Trace tried to be stoic, but even he had signs as his jaw was clenched and his eyes moist. He petted Eevee whom looked up at him. She smiled, but still had eyes filled with concern. Once Deliah let go of her son from their hug. She sniffed her runny nose and rubbed her eyes.
"Come on, let's find somewhere to sleep." Going to the professor's van, she sat down in the passenger's seat.
"Today has certainly been..." Oak yawned in the middle of his sentence. "...a lot. And we haven't gotten one bit of sleep tonight. Let's get some shut eye." The teenagers didn't say anything as they got into the van quietly, and they went to a hotel. Nobody could sleep well.
A/N: Well, that was certainly interesting. Combining the introduction of the Let's Go games, along with both of the second episodes of the Indigo and Journey anime. Sorry if this feels rushed in pacing or the scenes don't feel as good, it's just that this is the best I could come up with in terms of starting the story. Once the ball gets rolling I think it'll turn out much better. Plus, Ash finally gets Pikachu! Or at least the female one from the game but still a freaking Pikachu! With stronger stats and a light ball to boot! Believe me, this is going to be wild. Ash will face gym leaders in the World Coronation Series new and old, along with Trace and Elaine trying it out. I bet you weren't expecting them, huh? Originally this was just going to be a Shield run with Marnie as the love interest, but some reworking how the story goes made this beginning feel better. I can't wait to hear all the reviews this will get from you, my loyal fans. This will be an interesting ride.