Chapter 2
Pallet Town – Depart!
Oak had always been a sucker for dramatic entrances. He stood outside his lab in Pallet Town, eyes on the horizon. He wasn't out there long, when there silhouettes appeared right on schedule. Soaring through the air, a Pidgeot, Noctowl, and a Swellow swooped into the town, landing just in front of Professor Oak. Off the backs of each, a young person jumped down, and the Pokémon quickly returned to normal size, having grown large solely for the use of fly.
"Thank you, Swellow, Pidgeot, and Noctowl. Take a good rest." With that, the Pokémon morphed into a flash of blue energy that abruptly shot into three Poké Balls in the Professor's possession. It was at this time that Damian Redwood appeared from inside the lab, carrying a small case about a foot wide and half a foot tall.
The three new trainers approached at varying speeds. Chris was in front, practically sprinting towards the aging Professor. The 16 year-old's moppy brown hair was stuffed haphazardly into his baseball cap, adorned with a stylized Pokéball. His thin frame sat inside a baggy T-shirt and jeans that looked so old and worn, one would swear the boy had already been on a Pokémon journey.
Following behind at a quick pace was Rachel. The 16 year-old girl had neatly groomed blonde hair, and wore a pressed long-sleeved blouse with dark blue jeans and bright white tennis shoes. She had a bag slung over her shoulder, full of all kinds of essentials to a journey. Her strides were quick, purposeful, and confident, and her deep green eyes reflected a tempered excitement. Her toned frame gave her a very athletic look.
Finally, behind her, was Eric. Also a blonde, the 17 year-old tone young man wore a green vest with many pockets, each seemingly filled with some kind of supply or tool. Underneath, he wore a simple black t-shirt and a pair of brown cargo slacks. His dark blue eyes were hidden behind thick framed glasses with even thicker lenses. He also wore a backpack stuffed full of supplies, leaving one to wonder just how much he expected to need.
"Finally!" Chris yelled. "My first Pokémon! Oh man, I can't wait to meet my Charmander."
"Calm down, Son," Oak said as Damian began to fumble with the case in his hands. "We're going to do this fair and square. One of your new travel companions might want Charmander…"
"It's alright, Professor," said Rachel as she approached. "We've already made up our minds what we want."
Eric nodded. "Yeah, Rachel sat us down to iron out the details. We've already made our decisions on our starters, and there aren't any conflicts."
It was at this time that Damian finally got the case open, revealing three Poké Balls, shined and looking brand new. Without even thinking, Chris grabbed the ball on the far left and threw it. "Let's go, Charmander!"
In a flash of light, a confused Bulbasaur appeared. "Bulba?" it said, befuddled that Charmander's name had been yelled out. Rachel immediately walked over to Chris and snatched the Poké Ball out of his hand, then bent down. "Hi, Bulbasaur," she said sweetly. "You and I are going on a journey together. How does that sound?" Bulbasaur responded gleefully as he took quickly to his new trainer.
"I thought the first one would be Charmander," Chris said, in a bizarre attempt to justify his mistake. "The popular one, you know?"
Eric shook his head, already imagining the wrangling he would have to do to keep this hothead in check. "They're in National Pokédex order," he said dismissively. "Bulbasaur is 001, Charmander is 004, and Squirtle is 007." Eric walked past the befuddled trainer and picked up the far right Poké Ball. "Squirtle, deploy!" In a flash of light, Eric was now getting to know his excited Squirtle.
Chris was clearly annoyed, as he wanted to meet his partner first. He reached for the final Poké Ball. "Charmander, I choose you!" he yelled, as the small flame Pokémon appeared in front of him. "Alright, Charmander!" Chris picked up the small Pokémon and began to swing him around in a circle, squealing with delight. Charmander freaked out and squirmed, clawing Chris' hand in the process. Chris yelped as he dropped the small lizard, who landed on his stomach.
"Chris! You can't be so rough with him!" Rachel scolded. "Charmander's still just a baby, and you just scared the crap out of him! And you probably gave him vertigo, to boot."
Professor Oak finally spoke up. "I'm sure that in time, Chris will learn to temper his eagerness. You'll all be with each other every step of the way, helping shape each other into what you need to become to achieve your goals. And now, the soon-to-be Professor Redwood has a gift for each of you."
From his pocket, Redwood produced three Pokédexes. They were color-coded to each trainer's starter, and the assistant handed them out. A blue one for Eric, a green one for Rachel, and the red one for Chris. "While Chris was getting his arm scratched up, I took the liberty of programming each one. Now they'll serve as your guides around the Kanto region, and will also serve as your identification if needed. Simply open it, point the sensor at a Pokémon, and press the scan button to receive information. To pull up your ID, simply press the big red button."
As Rachel and Eric tinkered with the new devices, Chris was locked in an angry staring contest with the annoyed Charmander. "You didn't have to scratch me, you know," he said, pouting a little. Charmander simply scoffed and looked away, arms folded in defiance.
"In addition to the Pokédexes, we have a few more gadgets for you. We selected them in terms of your personalities, or at least, what we could ascertain from your essays and video interviews. Rachel, you get a Pokégear, and will be in charge of keeping everyone connected with your progress. Also, it doubles as a very nice radio.
"Chris, given that you're impatient and don't…" Redwood intended to finish his sentence, but Chris was still too busy prodding at the angry Charmander to listen. With a sigh, he turned to Rachel. "This is Chris' Pokétch, a high-tech watch with several apps that help analyze the status of your Pokémon and understand them better. I get the feeling he might need it." He looked back at the boy, who was still griping at Charmander for its uncooperative nature.
Redwood shook his head before turning to Eric. "This is a PokéNav from your home region of Hoenn. It's easily the most versatile of the devices. Aside from being a phone and detailed map, it also has data on powerful trainers, tracks your Pokémon's contest conditions, and keeps track of the medals you've won in Pokémon Contests." Eric accepted the device with a bit of surprise, not aware of just how many features it had. PokéNavs were always too expensive for him to even consider owning. Holding one in his hands now was just difficult to process.
Professor Oak cleared his throat. "You're now ready to embark on your journey. Good luck, and keep us apprised of your progress." Eric and Rachel nodded and recalled their Pokémon back to their Poké Balls. Chris still wasn't paying attention.
"Thanks for everything, Professor," Eric said as the two began to head towards the northern exit out of town.
"Bye, Chris! Have fun staying here forever!" Rachel taunted. This snapped Chris out of his distracted trance. He frantically recalled his Pokémon and bolted after the other two, complaining about how no one told him they were leaving.
"Are you sure they're going to be okay, Professor?" Damian asked. "I mean, Eric and Rachel have a good grasp of what they're getting into, but…"
Oak shook his head. "Don't worry about it. One thing I've learned after all these years is that the most excited ones go the furthest, even if they lag behind the longest. Those three are going places, Damian. Believe me."
