Sandgem Town
Sinnoh Region
Summer
Episode 2: Trouble in Sandgem Town!
Alex and Tasha quickly approached the first row of buildings that marked the entrance to Sandgem town. They turned to their left and saw the squat and brightly colored building that was the Sandgem Pokémon Lab.
Alex looked at Tasha and nodded before leading the way inside the sliding glass doors.
As he walked in the old Pokémon professor looked up and stopped working on a sophisticated piece of machinery that laid in front of his hands.
"Ah Alex. Did you find the source of the rumors?" He said before he saw Tasha standing behind the young trainer. "Oh, who's this?"
"Sorry, Professor it looks like the rumors were just that. There was a small fire that appeared out of the blue, but Tasha here managed to put out the blaze. She's a trainer like me, and um.." He trailed off not sure what to say.
"And I'm very honored to meet your Professor!" Tasha finished for him with a bright smile.
The old man's mustached lips twitched and he started to chuckle.
"Very nice to meet you too, Tasha." He replied. He then furrowed his brow and asked Alex, "What's this about a fire now?"
"A couple trees just burst into flames; Mudkip almost got burned as well. I was able to get him out of there but the trees were burned to the ground." Alex said.
"I see. Its been extremely dry around here these past few weeks so that might have played into the fire starting so suddenly." Professor Rowan harrumphed and began to furiously scribble a note into the small notepad he always carried around.
"We should probably go now.. It takes a while for him to snap out of these "note-taking" periods." Alex murmured to Tasha out of the corner of his mouth.
They turned to leave but were stopped by a shout from the Pokémon professor.
"Wait! Alex I had a task I needed you to complete." He called after the pair.
"And you, Tasha was it? Yes, you can help! Here." He handed the boy a strange machine. "This here is an electronic encyclopedia that automatically records data on any Pokémon you see or capture. I want you to take this across the region and document as many rare and unique Pokémon as you can. Now, I'm putting a lot of trust in you so please don't revert to your lackadaisical ways, ok?" Rowan said before rubbing his temples with his hands.
Alex was taken aback.
"Sir.. I don't know what to say. I won't let you down!" He said with a fierce determination.
The Professor smiled and nodded.
Alex turned and ran out of the lab into the streets of Sandgem Town, with Tasha hot on his heels.
Unknown Location
Sinnoh Region
Summer
A small squad of strange men dressed all in dark red made their way down a rocky, craggy path that led to a massive chamber lit by what seemed to be magma.
"Why is Aiden making us do this anyway?" One asked the tall man in front of the group.
"You know why.. Pokémon M is crucial to our plans. Aiden needs us to secure it. Without its raw power we don't stand a chance against Brooke and her team." The bespectacled man replied before pushing up his glasses with his index finger.
The man who had spoken first shook his head in disbelief.
"Then why isn't Aiden down here helping us?" He asked wiping off sweat from his forehead that had beaded there due to the intense heat.
"He's in negotiations with Brooke. Why are you asking so many questions?" The tall man turned and looked at the other with suspicion. "Who are you? I've never seen you before."
The man being questioned grinned.
"Looks like I've been caught out doesn't it?" He said before whipping off his uniform to reveal a light blue suit.
"Kadabra use teleport!" The newly ousted grunt yelled as he released the psychic Pokémon.
"Haunter, Mean look!" The tall man barked, releasing a monster of his own.
The man in the suit's grin vanished. He was now in hostile territory surrounded by enemies with only one Pokémon to his name.
"Time to give up. Or be annihilated. Its your choice really." The bespectacled man smirked.
Sweat dripped off the Blue suited mans face as he returned Kadabra.
"You win." He stammered.
"Time to find out just who you're working for.."
Jubilife City
Sinnoh Region
Summer
Alex and Tasha staggered into Jubilife City, filthy and exhausted.
"We probably shouldn't have battled every trainer on the way here.." Tasha said, yawning deeply.
"Well, Mudkip needed the training. Now he's really powerful." Alex replied, rubbing the back of his head with his left hand.
"I guess, so whats the plan here? Where are we headed?" Tasha inquired, before giving another huge yawn.
"Looks like you need a rest, so first stop is the Pokémon center to get some sleep." Alex laughed before leading the way to the red roofed building that soared skywards. He rented a couple beds from Nurse Joy and he and Tasha were asleep before they hit the pillows.
Well I hope you guys liked chapter 2! I enjoyed this chapter as it was a serious plot development one. Now to address some serious issues. If you send in a character via Review, I won't even be looking at them because I explicitly said PM only. I know this seems hard, but it's really a test to see if you've even looked at the story before submitting. Also, not every character can be a main companion or major rival! Side characters will be chosen from the applications. They will play important parts of the story. Finally, I'm seriously considering expanding Alex's group to four people! However the best companion applications I've received so far have been females and I don't want Alex to travel with a group of 3 women by himself, if you catch my drift. So please if you're submitting a guy, spend some time and make the character a really good one! Thanks to all who reviewed! Be back sometime this week with a new chapter.