Chapter 1: The Journey Begins

The sun rose bright and early in Littleroot Town. The sounds of Taillow chirping and Zigzagoon scurrying about were the only sounds to be heard this early. Despite it being not even 6:30 in the morning, though, a certain brown-haired boy found himself up and out of bed. Rubbing his eyes, Eric grabbed a clean pair of clothes and hit the shower. Once done with that, he felt quite refreshed and ready to tackle anything life threw at him today. He started to make his way downstairs so he could get something to eat. When he reached the bottom of the stairwell, he flipped the light switch so he could actually see more than what was already illuminated by the rising sun. The moment he flipped the switch, however, his mom popped out from around the corner.

"Surprise!" his mom said as she seemingly came out of nowhere, startling Eric.

"Whoa!" Eric shouted in surprise. He stumbled backwards a few steps, but regained his balance. He then looked behind his mom and saw that half the town had been hiding themselves in the living room and had revealed themselves right after Eric's mom had surprised him. Eric just stared, slightly slack-jawed.

"I invited pretty much everyone we know," Eric's mom explained. "We all thought it would be fun to surprise you before you left and throw a little party".

"Wow, thanks guys. This... really means a lot to me," Eric said. "Say mom, what about food?" His mom giggled a little.

"Don't worry, I've taken care of that already," she said as she pointed at the dining room table. A nice spread of food was set at the table, including mini hot dogs, wings, and other assorted finger foods. "Go ahead, people, dig in!" The small crowd of people began charging towards the food and Eric had to dive out of the way to avoid getting trampled.

"Whoa, watch out, there, guys!" he exclaimed as he dove. He quickly got in the line that had formed for the food and grabbed a few things, then sat down before all the seats could be taken. Several people came up to him and wished him well for his journey. Some of his friends told him they were envious of him as they wanted to go on a journey too and get their own Pokemon. Eric would generally reply with "Someday soon, I'm sure. You know how quickly Professor Birch gets Pokemon". After he had finished eating, he engaged in conversation with a few other people in the room, including a few of his friends. The room had become quite noisy with all the separate conversations going on. The little party lasted for the next two hours, when finally, Eric's mom decided that it was time for Eric to get to Professor Birch's lab.

"All right, guys, it's 8:30, so Eric has to get going. The lab's on the south side of town, so it might take him a little while to get there," she announced. Everybody stopped talking immediately and turned to Eric.

:What, why's everyone looking at me?" Eric asked. "Stop it, guys, you're embarrassing me". He then got up and went over to his mom, who then dismissed everyone else. Once the last person was out the door, she shut it and went back over to Eric.

"Eric... I'm so happy for you," she began. "You're becoming a responsible young man now. I remember setting out on a journey when I was a little younger that you are now. I wasn't very serious about it, so I eventually just settled down here in Littleroot and met your father. But, you've got potential. I think you might be able to go all the way and be a top-rank trainer some day. No, as a matter of fact, I know you will. You've got dreams to chase, and I have complete confidence in you, dear. You're gonna go far".

"Alright, alright, I get it, you're embarrassing me, mom," Eric interrupted. A smile broke across his mom's face.

"Isn't that a mom's job, though?" she teased. Eric rolled his eyes in response, but his mom knew he was just messing around. She then reached into the closet and pulled out a red and black backpack specifically designed for trainers. "New backpack for you," she said. "Figured you would need something better suited for a long journey, and I thought you might like the colors". She tossed the backpack to Eric, who caught it and slung it around his shoulders.

"Thanks mom, I kinda did need a new backpack anyways," he replied. He then grabbed his new shoes, which had just been broken in recently, laced them up, then ran back upstairs to grab a few essential items he would need. He ran back downstairs fully prepared to set out. His mom gave him a smile and hugged him.

"You take care out there, ok?" she said. "I don't want to be getting phone calls saying you've gotten into some really big trouble, got that?" Eric slugged her in the arm for that.

"Mom, you know I don't get into trouble".

"Yeah, I know, but still, try not to, ok?"

"Alright, mom, I won't". They broke off the hug and Eric started for the door, noticing the time was now 8:45. "See you, mom!" he said as he opened the door.

"Good luck, son! Make me proud!" his mom called after him as he bolted out the door. She then shut the door and took a seat as she thought about all the great things Eric could accomplish as a trainer.

From the east side of town, the walk to Professor Birch's lab was about a ten to fifteen minute walk. However, Eric knew of a shortcut that shaved five minutes off of the normal time. He headed directly south onto what appeared to be a bike trail and sprinted along it. Before long, the green roof of the lab was in sight. Eric picked up the pace and arrived at the lab at 8:55. He tried to open the large, opaque glass double doors, but they were locked tight. Eric sighed and waited. Just then, from somewhere behind him, he heard someone calling his name.

"Yo, Eric!" the voice called. The voice definitely sounded male. Eric turned around and saw who it was.

"Josh, is that you?" he asked. This was his childhood friend, Joshua Anderson. He was the same age as Eric, and they had been friends for as long as they could remember.

"Yep. Man, this is awesome. I'm getting to go an an adventure with my very own Pokemon! How cool is that, dude?" Josh said as he ran up the stairs to the double doors. He appeared to be around the same height as Eric, 5'6". His hair was a lighter shade of brown than Eric's, and though short, it was quite messy. His ocean blue eyes shone with excitement.

"This is pretty cool, all right," Eric agreed, running a hand through his dark brown hair. "I've been waiting for the chance to get out of Littleroot, that's for sure".

"What's wrong with Littleroot?" Josh asked, adjusting the collar of his red and black t-shirt and then stuffing his hands in the pockets of his light blue jeans.

"It's just boring here," Eric replied. "There's never really anything to do. I've always wanted to just get away from this drab life. I don't care where I go. I'll go wherever the wind takes me, as long as I can experience some fun".

"I get it," Josh said. "I sorta feel the same way. Littleroot Town is just too small to offer a bunch of fun, so I think it would be nice to get away. I just couldn't wait to get my own Pokemon and get out there to see the world, meet some new people, challenge other trainers, and even beat some Gyms".

"Got some big goals there," Eric responded. "I think I might as well challenge the Gyms too. Who knows, maybe I could beat the Champion one day".

"Hey man, slow down. We haven't even gotten our Pokemon yet," Josh laughed. Eric chuckled a little. Josh spoke up again. "Hey, speaking of getting Pokemon, the letter we got from the professor said there were gonna be three people here to get Pokemon. Obviously, we're two of the three, but who's the last person?"

"Hmm... good question," Eric replied. He was about to think of who the third person could be when his question was answered by someone coming around the corner.

"That would be me," a feminine voice said. The two boys turned to see who said that. From around the corner came a girl of similar age to them. She had curly brown hair that reached the middle of her back, with straightened bangs hanging over her forehead. She was clad in a white off-the-shoulders shirt with billowy sleeves reaching to her elbows and black leggings that went into black knee-high boots. She ascended the stairs quickly. Up close, the boys could see she was slightly shorter than they were. She had brown eyes and her nose was small and pointed. All of her facial features were quite sharp. She was very slender and curvy, and looked very light. Eric extended his hand to her.

"Well, that answers my question," he said. "The name's Eric Knight, and this is my best friend Josh Anderson". He pointed to Josh, who nodded. The girl then shook Eric's hand.

"Nice to meet you two. My name's Katrina Aeris," she said. After shaking Eric's hand, she shook Josh's.

"Nice meeting you, Katrina," Josh said. After shaking hands, they turned to face the double doors, which were still locked despite the time reading 9:05. "Man, we're here on time, but the Professor's late. How lame is that?" Josh remarked.

"Not very convenient, that's for sure," Eric replied.

"And here we are, ready to get our Pokemon, and we've got to wait past the scheduled time," Katrina started. "I feel like every important event gets delayed or something".

"Ha, you might just be right," Josh responded. The group waited for another ten minutes before Katrina had finally had enough.

"Argh... you know what, I'm gonna smash these doors down if I have to," she fumed. She them marched up to the door and began to pound it. "Hey, is anyone even in there? Open up!" The boys just chuckled. Katrina geared up for a harder whack on the door, but just then, the door opened and Katrina had to hold up, or she would've hit the man standing there. Eric and Josh just laughed again. Katrina glared back at them and mouthed 'Not funny, guys'. She turned around and the boys settled down. The man in the doorway looked at them and then nodded. He looked fairly old, with white hair and a white beard. He wore a lab coat with a light blue shirt underneath and khaki shorts. Eric, Josh, and Katrina recognized him instantly as Professor Birch. Thirty years ago, Professor Birch would have looked much the same sans the white hair and beard that came with old age. The professor eyes the three, then spoke up.

"I assume you three are Eric Knight, Joshua Anderson, and Katrina Aeris, am I right?" he asked.

"Yep, that's us," Katrina replied. The boys nodded.

"Well then, I'm terribly sorry to have kept you waiting," Professor Birch said. His voice was somewhere between that of a young man's and a gruff old man's as it maintained some of his youthful exuberance of thirty years ago. "Come on in, you three". He stepped out of the doorway to allow the group in. They walked into the lab and the professor shut the door behind them. "This way," he beckoned to them as he led them to the back of the lab. As they followed the professor, they would occasionally turn to see an aide working on a report or some machines analyzing data. Once they reached the back of the lab, the professor stopped them.

"So, is this where you keep the Pokemon?" Josh asked.

"Yes, this is," Birch responded. He went over to a small machine in the center of the room and pressed a button. The dome covering the top of the machine opened and three Poke Balls were uncovered. The group gathered around.

"Oh, cool, the Pokemon are here!" Josh said.

"Indeed," the professor piped up. "Now, I hope you three have thought carefully on which one you'd like. Like I said in the letter, this Pokemon will be your trusted partner".

"Yeah, you're right," Katrina said. "So, which one of us is gonna pick first?"

"I don't know. Rock, Paper, Scissors on it?" Josh suggested.

"I'm game," Eric replied. Katrina just shrugged and held out her hand, ready to play.

"Ok then," Josh said. "Two losses and you're out". They started then. Round one resulted in Eric winning with scissors against both Josh and Katrina, who had chosen paper. Next, Katrina beat Eric with paper as he chose rock and tied with Josh, so it did not count as two losses for Eric. Josh then beat Katrina with rock, so Katrina was out. With one loss apiece, it was down to just Eric and Josh. They tied three times, two with scissors and once with rock, but Eric outdueled Josh in the end, trumping him with paper over rock. Eric was to go first, then Josh, then Katrina. Eric approached the machine and eyed the Poke Balls.

"I've been thinking for quite a while about which one I want. They all look cool. In the end, though, I guess I was just drawn to this one. I choose... Torchic!" He reached for the Poke Ball with a small fire symbol on it and pressed the button. The ball opened and a white light shot out. On the nearby table, an orange chick with beady black eyes, yellow feathers where wings could possibly have been if it could fly, and three yellow feathers protruding from the top of its head had emerged from the light. It gave a small sound as it hopped off of the table and into Eric's arms. "Whoa, hey there, little guy," he said to the little chick.

"So, you've selected Torchic. It's a Fire-type Pokemon," Professor Birch started. "I've always liked Torchic. They make for great companions when on long trips". Josh then stepped up to the machine and mulled over the two remaining choices.

"Hmm... both of the remaining Pokemon are really cool-looking. I guess it's just down to preference. I'm gonna go with... Treecko!" He reached for the Poke Ball with the leaf symbol on it and pressed the button. From the white light bursting from the ball came a green gecko-like Pokemon with yellow eyes that had black irises, a red belly, and a darker shade of green for its tail. It let off its cry as it stretched, then clambered onto Josh's shoulder. "Hey there, Treecko, how's it going?" Josh said to his new Pokemon. Treecko responded by letting off a small cry indicating that it was happy to finally have a trainer. Katrina then stepped up to the machine to claim the last Pokemon.

"Well, as it happens, this is the one I wanted anyways, so I guess it all worked out in the end. All right, I choose... Mudkip!" She reached for the ball with a water droplet symbol on it and pressed the button. From the light came a blue fish-like Pokemon on four legs. Its underside was a very light gray, and it had fins on its head and tail, as well as two orange gills on the sides of its face. Mudkip jumped up into Katrina's arms and let out a small cry. Katrina giggled a little. Professor Birch then cleared his throat to get their attention.

"All right, so, you have selected your Pokemon. These Pokemon are to be your trusted partners and friends. I sincerely hope you treat them well. Now, to start you off, I'm going to give you a few things. First off, here are the Poke Balls for the Pokemon you chose". He picked up the Poke Balls and gave them to the new trainers. "Secondly, here are some additional Poke Balls for catching wild Pokemon". He handed them each ten empty Poke Balls. "Next, some Potions. Potions are great for when there's no Pokemon Center nearby". He gave each trainer 5 Potions. "And finally, you each get a Pokedex. The Pokedex is a state-of-the-art Pokemon encyclopedia that fills its pages as you encounter Pokemon. This is the latest edition of it, and its features include identifying Pokemon species, relaying all known data about the species, what region it was initially discovered in, and much more, including the Pokemon's gender". He took three Pokedexes from the nearby table and gave them to the new trainers. "Now, open them up and allow them to register you as their owners". They did so. All three Pokedexes began making mechanical chirping noises as they registered the data of their new owners. Once completed, the Pokedexes booted up.

"Whoa, cool," Josh said.

"Impressive, isn't it?" the professor asked rhetorically. "Go ahead and try them on your Pokemon". They all did so, each going to their own Pokemon first. The Pokedexes came to life as they scanned the Pokemon.

"Torchic, the Chick Pokemon," a mechanical feminine voice droned. "A fire burns inside Torchic's body, so it is very warm to the touch. It can spit fireballs of up to 1800 degrees Fahrenheit. This Torchic is male, and was hatched from an egg in Littleroot Town by Professor Birch. Torchic's native region is Hoenn". Eric was thoroughly impressed with the Pokedex's capabilities. He turned to the others, who were getting data on their Pokemon.

"Treecko, the Wood Gecko Pokemon. Treecko have countless tiny spikes on their feet than enable them to climb walls and ceilings. If an opponent were to glare at a Treecko, the Treecko would glare right back without conceding an inch of ground. This Treecko is male, and was hatched from an egg in Littleroot Town by Professor Birch. Treecko's native region is Hoenn".

"Mudkip, the Mud Fish Pokemon. The fin on its head can sense the flow of water and air. Using it as a radar, Mudkip can sense what is going on around it without using its eyes. It has the power to crush rocks larger than itself despite its size. This Mudkip is male, and was hatched from an egg in Littleroot Town by Professor Birch. Mudkip's native region is Hoenn". The mechanical voices finished and the trainers scanned the other Pokemon for their Pokedex data. When they finished, they flipped the cover for the Pokedex screen down, powering it off. They then turned back to Professor Birch, awaiting what he had to say next.

"Well now, how do you like the Pokedex?" he asked.

"This thing's pretty awesome," Josh said.

"I agree; it's a pretty neat piece of technology," Eric agreed.

"No kidding. This thing's gonna be really useful," Katrina concluded. The professor nodded slowly.

"Yes, the Pokedex has proved very useful to the trainers I've handed them out to. As I said before, as you encounter more and more Pokemon, the pages of the Pokedex will fill up. Not one Pokedex in the world has been completed, though. It kinda makes me sad as a Pokemon Professor to know that it's been so long and still not one Pokedex has been completed. Oh well, I still think it'll get done eventually. One more thing. Pokemon not native to the Hoenn region have been appearing around Hoenn lately I don't know why they started showing up, but this could be a great opportunity to fill up Pokedex pages. Just thought I'd let you know since you're trainers now and you have Pokedexes".

"Pokemon from other regions?" Katrina asked.

"Yes," the professor answered. "You know we have Pokemon like Zigzagoon and Poochyena that are native to the Hoenn region. But, for instance, the other day, I ran into a Spearow, which is native to the Kanto region. I don't know how many Pokemon have come to Hoenn, but I would advise you be on the lookout for them".

"Alright then," Eric said.

"That's pretty exciting, Pokemon from other regions," Josh responded. The professor cleared his throat again.

"Alright, you three, you are finally ready to embark on your Pokemon journey. You're going to meet lots of Pokemon, possibly make a few new friends, and have a great time. I don't know if you plan to take the Pokemon League challenge, but if you do, I wish you the best of luck; the League is very challenging. I've also heard that there's a Pokemon Contest about to take place in Slateport City, so if you're interested, you might want to check it out. My daughter was heavily into Pokemon Contests when she was younger. I've heard she's now a judge for the contests, so if you ever meet her, tell her I said hi".

"Will do, professor," Josh told him. The professor nodded.

"Well, alright then. You three are ready. Go, and have a great journey! Chase your dreams wherever you go!" With that, Professor Birch dismissed the new trainers. Eric, Josh, and Katrina walked briskly out of the lab. Once they were out, Josh leaped into the air.

"Whoo! We're trainers now!" he shouted.

"Hey, man, calm down a little," Eric told him. "We still need to get out of Littleroot".

"Yeah, I guess I did get a little overexcited there, hehe," Josh said as he grinned sheepishly.

"Well, let's get going. Next stop, Oldale Town," Katrina said. The new trainers started heading north towards Route 101 to Oldale Town with their brand new Pokemon.

Well, that's that for Chapter 1. Eric gets surprised by half the town and has a little party, then goes to the lab and meets up with Josh and Katrina. Josh was submitted by pokestets23 and Katrina was submitted by Lieutenant Cerberus. Thanks to them for the characters. They will be traveling with Eric throughout the story. To those of you who submitted traveling companions who didn't get selected, don't worry; they will appear in the story as random trainers.

I'm still looking for a few OCs, obviously. The OCs I'm looking for at the moment are as follows: all eight Gym Leaders, three Elite Four members, and a few random trainers. Please submit them via PM. I would greatly appreciate getting the first three Gym Leaders in soon, as I'll probably have the gang reach Rustboro in a few chapters.

So yeah, leave a review with your thoughts on this chapter. I like getting constructive criticism.

Until next time, MasterFreezeman, signing out.