"Is he awake yet?" Larvesta nudged his side insistently, and Kinza woke from his slumber. He sat up, and Larvesta quickly curled into his lap. The room was a stark white, and he squinted through the haze to see Magnum with three other people—all of them women.

"See? There he is," Magnum replied. The pink-haired woman walked forward and felt for his temperature, then stepped back. "It seems he's still alright, but I think he'll start catching quite a few diseases once he speaks to more people. He barely has an immune system right now. I'll get a few supplies for him and leave the rest to you two." She wrote something down on the papers she was carrying, then whisked through the room towards the door. She flicked a lever next to it, and the lights dimmed instantly. "Oh, and try to keep the lights down for now. Don't let him wander outside until I have a bigger talk with him, either."

The other two women nodded while Magnum sat annoyed at his exclusion. The second woman stepped forward close to him, picking up his hand and looking him in the eyes. Larvesta growled at her instantly, and the woman set his hand down immediately. It was just as well, since it made him a little uncomfortable. He had never been around so many people.

"I'm Officer Jenny, and I'm here to learn more about you and where you came from."

Kinza nodded warily. "I don't know much, but I'll tell you what I can."

Jenny smiled, "Good! I was worried we wouldn't get along. Magnum has said that many things happened to you, and that this is your first time on the surface since—well—since you were born. Is this true?"

"Mostly," he replied. "I know I was up here when I was a baby. We didn't go underground until my parents died. I don't remember any of it, though."

"Alright, so since the age of three or less..." Jenny scribbled that into her notebook. "I'm not going to pressure you into much more. I just need to know the names of your parents and your grandfather. That way we can learn more about who you are, and where you came from."

Kinza looked a little worried and shifted under the sheets. "I only know the name of my grandfather—Dietrich. He didn't speak about my parents much, and I never asked. It always made him cry."

Jenny nodded, "I see, I see...do you know how to spell that?"

"D-i-e-t-r-i-c-h," he replied. "That was his only name."

"German origin," said the woman behind Jenny. She seemed very pleased that he could spell.

The officer scribbled that down and continued, "Do you know any other names? Any places that your grandfather talked about?"

"Not specifically—he just called it all the outside. But, I did read a lot, from the stuff in the mines...it was boring stuff, though. Inventory, shipping logs, stuff like that. But sometimes there would be letters from people, so I know the address of the mines."

Jenny quipped, "We've already looked that up for you, don't worry." She flipped her pen around and put it and her notebook into her chest pocket. "Records going back past the Crimson Age aren't very reliable anymore—but I'll do what I can, you can count on that." She smiled, and then nodded at the final lady. She nodded back, and Jenny left the room hastily.

With just two people in the room now, Kinza could breathe a little more easily. He still wasn't used to two people, but it was better than four in a brightly lit room.

"What a hassle," Magnum complained, "Can we just skip to the point?"

The woman glared at him, then went back to ignoring him. She held out her hand and introduced herself. "My name's Professor Magnolia. You've made quite a stir in this mountain village, you know. Nothing like this has ever happened anywhere near here, and certainly not any time soon."

Kinza just nodded, unsure of how to respond.

"You seem to know quite a lot about the outside world, so I believe that your grandfather genuinely cared for you. But you certainly have more things to ask us, now that you've been here, right? We won't be prodding you with anymore questions. Just ask me whatever you like, for now."

Larvesta yawned and started to fall asleep in his lap. Kinza carefully pet its fur, and the insect seemed to tolerate that in its dozed state. "Do cities really exist?"

Magnolia laughed, "Of course! They're probably much bigger than your grandfather remembers, too."

Kinza smiled, then scoured his mind for something else. His grandfather had always been very responsive towards questions, as long as they weren't about himself or his parents. He would have to ask about things his grandfather wouldn't know. "What ended the Crimson Age? When did it end?"

"Well," the professor said, crossing her arms, "We simply arrived at a truce. We saw that the world was being destroyed, and decided victory and power were not as important as keeping our world habitable. So technically—the war is still going on. But the Crimson Age, where you would have to worry about bombs and these strange monsters attacking you and police everywhere—that passed as soon as there was a truce. We don't talk about the war anymore, because—well—some people are really sensitive to it, still. They lost someone important to the other side, so they despise anyone from that country—or maybe their family was attacked by Pokemon, so they can't stand trainers—there's just a lot of things that only time can sort through."

He recognized that word again—trainer. "What are trainers?"

Magnolia lit up at his question, "Ah! That's my specialty, you see. Magnum's, too. We're both Pokemon trainers, and I'm a Pokemon researcher as well!" Larvesta opened its eyes and glared at the professor for speaking too loudly during its nap. She covered her mouth mischieviously, "Oh! Sorry about that. Anyways...

"After the Crimson Age, there were still a lot of these monsters running around. Some of them were friendly, and trained to listen to the orders of people. Just a few years after the truce, we made a technology that could capture and hold these monsters—so now we call them Pocket Monsters, or Pokemon for short. It's all very simple, right?"

"So this Larvesta is a Pokemon? And Magnum's Lairon?"

"Correct!" chimed the professor. "Now, anyone who owns a Pokemon becomes a trainer. Some are better than others, and their Pokemon evolve and learn new attacks faster than wild Pokemon would. To make sure that these trainers stay strong enough to protect their city, we make them take a journey through the world and learn from the Gyms in each city. Lately it's become more of a sport than anything, with tournaments and Leagues popping up, but it's one that both humans and Pokemon can enjoy, and it does serve its purpose well. In little cities like this, with no Gym, it's up to professors like me to keep the peace. And, you know, I'm a very strong trainer."

"So, then, Magnum is...?"

Magnum jumped at his name, "I'm a trainer, too! I was passing by because I was training my Lairon. It was stupid of me to take just one Pokemon, though... I'm going to take on the League when we get strong enough." He grinned sheepishly.

"Am I a trainer, then?"

Professor Magnolia shook her head, "Nope! Right now you're only carrying your grandpa's Pokemon—you'll probably have a hard time controlling it in battle, and you may not be able to use it when it's most important. Because of that, I wanted to give you this one." She held out a Pokeball towards Kinza. "It's normal for professors to give newbies their first starter. You're pretty old for a beginning trainer, but not too old for the league."

Kinza tentatively took the Pokeball, then pressed the button in the center. A bright light flashed, and a dog-like Pokemon exited onto the bed. It had brown fur and a thick white mane. Larvesta instantly hissed and raised all of its torches in a display. The animal seemed confused and tilted its head, patiently waiting for the Larvesta to quiet down. Kinza scooped Larvesta into his arms to keep it from outright attacking.

"See? This is why you'll need your own Pokemon," chuckled Magnolia. She held out another machine—a small orange rectangle. "This is a Pokedex. You open it by pressing this button here—" she demonstrated "—and then you point it at a Pokemon."

Kinza pointed the Pokedex at the Pokemon at the foot of the bed. The interior buzzed, and then it read out in a masculine voice, "Eevee, the Evolution Pokemon. Its genetic code is unstable, so it can evolve in a variety of ways. There are only a few alive." He pointed it at Larvesta next, and it became still, with a haughty look on its face. "Larvesta, the Torch Pokemon. This Pokemon was believed to be born from the Sun. When it evolves, its entire body is engulfed in flames."

"Is that true?!" he blurted out to the professor.

"Oh! No, it's not. Well, maybe. Back before we did research on Pokemon, a lot of people made up stories about them. Sometimes the Pokedex isn't very graceful about delivering those old mythologies."

He sighed in disappointment.

"Anyways, Kinza...this is all leading up to a proposal. We've all decided that the best way for you to learn about this world would be to go on a journey together with your Pokemon. It'll be tough, starting out, but I'm sure you'll get used to it. We'll give you all the medicine and food you'll need for the first two cities or so, and Eevee will definitely help you." The Eevee murmured excitedly, wagging its tail, causing Larvesta to hiss again.

Nurse Joy barged through the door, carrying a pack and several bottles of water. She gave shoved them into Kinza's arms unceremoniously. "So you've talked about going on a journey, right?" she asked the professor.

Magnolia nodded.

"Good. Now, let me explain what I'm giving to you. These water bottles are important—make sure to drink one a day—they have a bunch of chemical filters that will keep your immune system strong and allow you to recover from attacks faster. And then—let's see—be sure to have three meals a day, I've packed enough for a week here—and, um—right, this is a map of the region, we're here—" she squiggled a dot on the map, and Kinza tried to make heads or tails of it while she spoke. The scale seemed far too large to be a useful map, if he was looking at it properly.

"Right! And about your Pokemon. I worked very carefully with Magnolia to give you a Pokemon that suits you. Right now your immune system is compromised—it's a little complicated, but that means you're going to get a lot more sick than someone who's lived up here their whole life. Try not to go travel too much during the day, it might be too bright for you. If you start feeling ill, just ask the Eevee to make a wish, and it will make you feel better, at least until you get to the next Pokemon Center. Oh, right, and have you nicknamed your Pokemon yet?"

Kinza carefully picked over her words as the nurse waited for a response. She spoke way too fast for him. "A...nickname?"

"Yes. A nickname will make the bond between you and your Pokemon stronger."

"Then...your nickname is Dietrich. The same as my grandfather. I'm sure he would have loved that," Kinza replied, petting Dietrich on the head. Dietrich yipped, while Larvesta squirmed in Kinza's other arm, annoyed by the fox. "Do I nickname Larvesta, too?"

"Ah, well, Magnolia—you have time to explain that, right? I'll see you later, Kinza!" she whisked out of the room as quickly as she had come.

Professor Magnolia sighed, "She's in and out like the wind. Nurses are always busy. Anyways, you don't need to give a nickname to that Pokemon. Your grandfather probably gave one to it, and it would annoy it if you call it anything else."

Larvesta huffed, and Kinza nodded understandingly, patting it on the head.

"On your journey, you can always stay at a Pokemon Center. We're here to heal up your Pokemon and clean you up from your trip."

"I don't have any money, though," he protested. He had been slightly worried about the money issue since he had woken up. His grandfather had told him plenty of things about the world being run by money. He knew he didn't have a dime.

"That's not an issue, really," laughed Magnolia. "As a trainer, you will probably pick up more cash than you know what to do with. Along with that, these Pokemon Centers are free to visit and use. You'll be perfectly fine."

"Alright..." said Kinza with relief. He was starting to feel a little worn out from the day.

"To start with, why don't you try returning your Pokemon?" suggested Magnolia.

Kinza held out Dietrich's Pokeball and Eevee transformed into a glowing light, returning back into the capsule. He then looked around for Larvesta's Pokeball. "Um...Magnum, do you know where I put his Pokeball."

Magnum swung his backpack around, digging through it, "I know I picked it up for you..." he found it and held it out to Kinza.

The Larvesta looked annoyed as Kinza tried to return it.

"Ah...is it one of those types?" sighed Magnolia. "Sometimes Pokemon absolutely hate Pokeballs, and will only walk around with their trainers."

Larvesta hissed at Magnolia and shook its head. Kinza sat in awe, since he didn't realize these creatures could actually understand humans.

"Hmm...am I wrong?" She took the Pokeball from Kinza and inspected it. "Ah, that's the reason!" She handed it back to Kinza sheepishly, "The seal on it is broken."

He looked at it more closely and could see the the part he twisted off had partially broken. He sighed, "Does that mean I need a new one?"

"Normally, yes, but there is an issue here. All of our systems recognize Larvesta as belonging to your grandfather right now—and you can't capture someone else's Pokemon."

Kinza smiled, "So no one can steal them, right?"

The professor nodded. "But, if you want to travel with Larvesta, it will have to walk with you."

The Larvesta groaned.

"I think it'll be fine. I'll carry it," he replied.


Outside, the sun had already set and lit up the sky with a violet and gold glow. Still, it was too bright for Kinza, and he squinted at what little he could see of the town. The place was filled with tiny cottages, their laundry lines slung from one home to the next over the road, their windows open to receive the night breeze—all of it was foreign to Kinza, like the town had popped out of some kind of fairy tale. The town was even covered in huge pine trees—a few days ago, he would never have believed the amount of vertical space they could take up. After a long shower, huge meal, and his first introduction to television, he wasn't entirely sure if he had the energy to make the trip. At the same time, there was no way they could start during the day.

Magnum yawned, "I have to get used to traveling at night again. This is when I normally sleep, you know."

Kinza muttered, "Sorry."

The trainer shook his head, "No, it's fine. Normally it would be a little more dangerous, but you can see in the dark, at least for now. And I'm only travelling with you until the first town—then we have to split ways."

"Only one town?" Kinza exclaimed. "What will I do after that?"

"Travel alone?" Magnum shrugged. "Or you could find someone else to travel with, it doesn't matter. You'll have your Pokemon protecting you, either way."

From atop Kinza's large backpack, Larvesta huffed.

"See? He'll be there if there's any trouble. Oh, there was one last thing I wanted to give you before we start!" He reached around into his pack again and produced five Pokeballs. "Pokemon trainers are allowed to travel in teams of six. You get more Pokemon by catching them in the wild. I'll probably be here to help you with your first catch, but in the meantime, this will be enough Pokeballs to hold you over until the first Gym."

"Thanks, Magnum." Kinza took the Pokeballs graciously, attaching them to the belt that Magnolia had given him.

Larvesta grumbled from its perch and Magnum flicked it on the nose. He hissed at him furiously, and Magnum replied with a laugh, "Don't be jealous of things he doesn't even have yet."

The insect squirmed so that he had his back facing Magnum, huffing in disapproval. Magnum crossed his arms, looking at Kinza again. "There's a lot of things you'll need to know as a trainer—but for now, you only need to worry about getting to the next city. You have a strong Pokemon and a decent trainer travelling with you, so you'll be alright. You can worry about the type of trainer that you'll become later on."

Kinza nodded.

"Alright, then. Ready to start?"

Larvesta chirped behind him, and Kinza exclaimed, "Yes!"