June 1st, 1978, 1100

We headed east out of Fuchsia towards Route 15. Ellie hummed behind me, more than content to follow my lead.

The paved roads present in the city quickly gave way to dirt roads. It wasn't bad, though. They were maintained immaculately and were gentler on your feet over long distances than the hard cement the city streets were made from. The high quality deteriorated just a few miles outside Fuchsia's primary municipality.

Kiriel, in her infinite wisdom, had determined that I would follow the same route Sula did on her previous circuits, starting in a much more dangerous area of the region to supposedly promote growth.

Everything I did was supposed to promote growth, frankly. I couldn't remember a single instance in my childhood where I could do something without an ulterior purpose purely because I wanted to.

Although we had seen many trainers in the center, I knew it was nothing compared to the more urban areas in central or western Kanto. Many beginners from across the country traveled to Pallet to start their journey, as was recently the instilled tradition. The rangers kept that area clear of stronger pokémon, making it a much safer place to start than the southern part of the region.

Right where we were, coincidentally.

Route 15 was cleared of pokémon and foliage close to the city but soon devolved into a desolate forest on the way to Vermillion. It was composed of various oak and pine trees; some stood hundreds of feet high in the most isolated parts of the peninsula.

The trail was barely maintained, and only three checkpoints along the route offered lodging and a small general store if you were lucky. They were operated by the rangers, who rotated through in two-month increments.

More like they were punished in two-month increments, I thought darkly.

It was hard to believe any rangers willingly signed up to live alone and put up with a gaggle of annoying traveling teens who were suddenly let loose with unfettered hormones and something to prove. It was more likely the assigned rangers had offended someone higher up in their chain of command.

Although I understood Kiriel's intent and even agreed with it to an extent, I was still annoyed at the sheer enormity of the undertaking that would occupy our time for the next nine months. I obviously was expected to challenge Kiriel's gym last, so we were expected to run around the entire country, come back home, and then travel back through the Seafoam islands to reach the conference at the Indigo League by April, assuming we even managed all eight badges. There was every likelihood we might fail. I was no Sula, after all.

Kiriel would be elated to unleash the wrath of her eight-badge team to destroy me for as long as she could before the conference officially began. I had spent enough time with her to know the last thing on her mind was giving me even the barest millimeter of reprieve.

I was disappointed that there wasn't an easier way for Ellie and me to get around without using a ferry. Celadon and Fuchsia were supposedly working on a joint project to construct a new-fangled highway system that people could travel on via bike. However, it had been in the planning phase for years, with no indication of progress, so we were left with this desolate wilderness trek.

My reverie was interrupted as Ellie shouted out, "We're here! I can see the sign for Route 15! Have you ever been here before? I've hardly left the city because I've heard it's so dangerous. A few of my classmates have bragged about coming over here, but I like, definitely didn't believe them. They said they saw all sorts of strong pokemon. Have you been there before!?"

"Yes, yes, and yes. I've been to all of the cities in Kanto, a few in Johto, and even several in Hoenn," I confirmed. "You really need to slow down and ask one question at a time. It's hard to follow you when you flit around like that."

Ellie huffed. "Sorry. Bad habit. My dad says the same thing, but I can't help it when I'm excited! Aren't you excited?"

I nodded slowly after a moment of thought. "I am excited, yes. It's nice to get some freedom from everything at home. I've never really been off like this before."

Ellie beamed, a vibrant smile erupting across her face. "That's the attitude! We're on an exciting journey to see the world!"

Drawing upon years of experience, I resisted the urge to smile in comradery. After all, it wouldn't do to display such affection this early in our burgeoning partnership. Plus, I was still resentful of Ellie's unwitting commandeering of the pokemon I had been working towards the last few years. Affection made you an easy target for those willing to capitalize on it, and I needed more time to assess her motives. A smiling face didn't mean much if she knew how to use it properly.

I coughed awkwardly. "Anyway, about your friends' claim that they traversed this area. Route fifteen is more dangerous than some commonly traveled routes, but only if you stray too far from the road, especially along the coast. The biggest issue is that the Rangers are flippant about their duties here since most trainers are expected to be fairly strong when heading to Fuchsia. Kiriel and Blaine are widely considered to be the strongest gyms, so they rarely receive any challenges until later in the season, except for by a few veteran trainers who have their flying licenses."

I glanced at Ellie, ensuring she seemed to follow along, before continuing, "Most of the trainers we saw at the pokémon center will likely take a ferry to Pallet or Vermillion to avoid trekking through the southern peninsula."

Ellie's eyes were wide, and she appeared to absorb the information with rapt attention. "WOW! I didn't realize you had traveled so much! That's super cool! I wish my family had the money for me to do that. How are we supposed to raise our baby pokémon if all the pokémon are strong here?" she asked quizzically. "Also, don't call your mom by her first name; that's weird."

I frowned, ignoring her quip. "Hmm... That's an excellent question. I mean, I'm certain we will still see some trainers, but they'll all likely have a decent amount of experience. That, or they're stupidly trying to accelerate their growth like we are. We can probably ask if they have weaker pokémon for us to battle. Otherwise, I suspect they assumed that we would constantly battle each other. Pokémon do generally see higher growth rates in stressful situations," I reckoned. "Do you even have any battle experience? I've basically been a trainer-in-training for the last few years," I joked with a small smile.

"Nope!" Ellie beamed. "Part of the reason I accepted this idea so easily was because I assumed I could learn a lot traveling with you. The Seiichi are like, literally legendary, like your mom and sister are crazy, so I figured you can't be bad either," she explained with a chuckle.

She wasn't wrong, but I could feel myself blushing at the slight praise, even though I knew it was more about my family than me. I didn't get much praise, so it hit me hard.

To cover my embarrassment, I pulled out my two pokéballs and released their contents; Eon and Nana appeared in a beam of red light out to either side of me, vigilantly scanning the area to look for any threats.

Eon stood above my knee, halfway to my hip. Although still small, she was technically huge for her species due to the diet and training she had received from birth. She weighed in at roughly twenty kilos. Her eyes scanned the surroundings as she awaited orders.

Nana reached several inches past my waist, nearly twice the size of an average specimen. Due to the prevalence of Growlithe and Arcanine within the Seiichi clan, they had developed a very effective training regimen for the species. He was going to be a monster whenever I chose to evolve him. He was a stoic and honor-fixated pokemon.

I gave a subtle gesture paired with a low whistle, and they both disappeared to opposite sides of the path, fading seamlessly into the brush without a sound.

"What the fuck was that?!" Ellie asked in shock. "They're like little soldiers or something. That's freaky," she declared.

I shrugged nonchalantly. "That's how they've been trained. We're not known as the precision clan for nothing. The Seiichi were prevalent in the Great War and the War of Unification. Kiriel may have only been a teenager in the Great War but still served in the military. She led the Seiichi forces in the Unification and was awarded the gym for her outstanding service. Pokémon are partners, so we treat them as such. As a Seiichi, we're fundamentally trained to be in the military, and Eon and Nana are no exception. As a result, our pokémon are trained with the same diligence we would use on one of our human clan members to serve in the case of conflict."

Ellie cocked her head. "What do you mean in case of conflict? There hasn't been anything since before we were born? Seems kinda archaic to train like you guys do."

I ignored her ignorant comment, continuing on with my explanation. It wasn't my job to rectify the sheer ignorance she had displayed regarding the constant risk of violence.

"Pokémon are as smart, if not smarter, than most humans. Their job is to battle, and my family uses strict discipline to bring the most out of them. The journey to Vermillion takes nearly two weeks and is largely in the wilderness, so Eon and Nana are out scouting for danger," I clarified. "You should probably release your pokémon, too," I added.

"They have names! Why didn't you lead with that! I can't believe you introduced your pokémon without even telling me their names! After that display, I figured they would have had code names or something," she groaned.

I paused, looking at her incredulously with unimpressed eyes. "Their names are literally code. Nana's full name is Inu-Nana, meaning 'Dog-seven,' to indicate that he was the seventh pup from Kiriel's Arcanine. Eon-Ni indicates she is the second kit from my dad's breeding Eevee. But also, is that really the only thing you got out of what I just said? We're in the wilderness in a dangerous section of Kanto for two weeks, and you only pick up on their names?!" I glared at her with as much skepticism as I could muster.

Ellie huffed indignantly. "Of course not. I also heard that too! But they're so cute I couldn't help but comment."

She groaned theatrically before muttering, "It does kind of ruin it now that you told me where their names come from. If you don't think about their origin, the names themselves are pretty cute. Nana and Eon? That's adorable. Two weeks of camping is a lot, though; I don't think I've ever camped that long before. How many outfits do you even need for that? I only packed five. Is that going to be enough?" she queried.

"I only packed three," I stated smugly. "We can stop and wash clothes as necessary. Nana has perfected the heat needed to dry clothes reasonably fast without simultaneously burning them to a crisp. It took a while, but now he has a real knack for it."

"Only three?" Ellie goggled. "You're going to smell so bad! Promise me you'll wash your clothes every day! Or at least every other day," she emphasized.

I laughed out loud, feeling genuinely amused at her appalled face. "I can't promise anything, but I'll do my best. I have a feeling that after a few days in the brush, you'll hardly notice smells. Girls are not immune. If anything, Sula stank more than I did. We will be aiming for ten to fifteen miles per day. Even if the terrain isn't that rugged, it's still a lot. I bet your nose won't work between training and walking!"

Ignoring me, Ellie reached for her belt and released her pokémon. In stark contrast to Nana and Eon, her pokémon immediately crowded onto her as she started vigorously greeting them with hugs and head pats.

I physically recoiled at the pathetic display of discipline. No one from my family would be caught dead doing something like that unless they were intentionally trying to get exiled from the family.

Ellie ignored the disgusted look on my face, preferring to focus on her child-like companions. "Hi, guys! Sorry you had to be in there for so long! I promise I'll keep you out pretty much the entire time we're hiking. Unless you get tired. Or it rains. But you get it, right?"

The Totodile and Bulbasaur seemed ecstatic over her greeting, vying for her attention. They leaned in frantically for, uh, cuddles.

Totod...River, I corrected myself, appeared to admit defeat to the much faster Bulbasaur monopolizing Ellie's attention and waddled over to greet me. He looked up at me with guarded eyes. "Tot?" he quizzed.

Internally rolling my eyes at their egregious display of unprofessionalism, I knelt down to greet him, extending my hand palm up, "It's a pleasure to meet you, River. My name is Mare, and we will be traveling companions for the next year or so. I hope we can get along well."

"Dile!" he cooed happily as he sidled over to smell me, sniffing me briefly before nuzzling up against my hand with what I assumed was the reptilian equivalent of purring. It was oddly cute, although the rough texture of his flesh had nothing on Eon's luxurious fur.

Ellie observed us with amusement glinting in her eyes. "I can't believe that worked! Your old man style apparently resonated with River for whatever reason," she remarked.

Straightening up again, I corrected her. "Actually, pokémon largely respond to intent and emotionality rather than specific words, especially in greeting new people. They obviously can also understand specific words. Otherwise, they wouldn't know what moves to use during battles. For something like this, I probably could've earned the same response without even saying anything. Pokémon are amazing at sensing what you're thinking intuitively."

Ellie looked at me with newfound respect before her face slowly broke into an appreciative smile. "I guess I made the right choice after all! I didn't know any of that! If River likes you, then I guess I can rest easy that this journey will be okay after all!"

"I wouldn't go that far," I grumbled. "Let's continue for a few more hours and try to find a spot off the path to camp before it gets dark. The more dangerous pokémon hunt at night. I'd like to test your pokémon this evening to find them appropriate roles."

Hearing this, Petal growled at me, "Bulba! Saur. Bulba!" while River followed suit in his own fashion. I could tell Petal wore the pants in whatever team pecking order they had.

Ellie laughed it off, "They took offense that you apparently don't trust in their ability to defend me!"

"I don't," I responded drily. "You clearly indicated that you have next to zero experience with battling, which tells me that these two have hardly been training to get stronger. Petal, River, am I wrong? Do you legitimately think you could defend Ellie if a wild Weepinbell attacked? Could you defend her against the virulent cloud of toxic spores that could easily melt her flesh or overload her fragile nervous system? Trainers die daily from wild pokemon attacks, and your casual approach is doing you no favors."

I stared them down, knowing my dark eyes were built for glares like this. Glares were a work of art; I lacked confidence in many abilities, but I knew my glower could curdle Miltank Milk in seconds, so to say.

Both pokémon looked away, abashed, perhaps only now taking in the gravity of the situation.

This wasn't just for them either. I didn't know Ellie that well yet, but I had the distinct impression that she still thought this was some kind of game she could simply waltz through untouched.

"Look," I sighed. "I'm not saying you can't defend Ellie, but I want to understand your strengths and weaknesses. As you are, you would be trounced by all but the weakest pokemon. But it doesn't have to be that way forever. We can start training as soon as we find a safe spot to rest this evening," I assured them. I could tell my speech had hit the mark when they looked up with a newfound fire burning in their eyes.

Mollified, they ambled back towards Ellie, who kept pace as we continued heading east.

She had been silent during my monologue, and I was curious how she took the new information. I knew what I said was true, but I couldn't help but feel self-conscious for speaking so patronizingly to her pokemon.

I hoped she wasn't too offended.

We continued along like this for the next six hours, exchanging small stories and getting to know each other better along the way. Much to my relief, she declined to comment about my aggressive words of wisdom, preferring to talk about more mundane things like how hot the weather was or how much she missed her hometown of Goldenrod City.

The further we traveled, the more apparent the differences in geography became. The swathes of verdant land surrounding Fuchsia were filled with small but heavily armed farming communities. They gradually began to thin out as we moved further and further away from civilization.

Farming was an interesting topic, incidentally. Contrary to what one might think, farms were ridiculously difficult to operate due to the constant incursions of intrusive pokemon species. Most of the agricultural production came from only a few areas, one of which was Fuchsia.

One of the earliest lessons I learned was to respect farmers since they could probably kick your ass due to the constant battle they faced just to protect their crops. Some of the more well-known farms around here could do quite well at the Indigo League conference if they were so inclined!

I remembered it well; Kiriel had taken Sula and me on a tour of the territory our family managed, and Sula had made a dismissive comment regarding farmers. Something like "lazy green thumbs."

Kiriel had become irate and physically disciplined Sula until I was confident she couldn't sit down for at least a week. Sula had never said a damn thing again, which was rare for a mouthy girl like her.

The lesson stuck; don't fuck with farmers.

There had initially been a few other groups of trainers as we departed the city, but we soon stopped seeing other trainers as the day marched on.

This decrease in trainers was inversely related to the number of pokémon present, as we only started seeing wild pokémon as the trainer density decreased.

Rattata were ever present, moving in small pods as they scavenged for whatever remnants they could find. They weren't particularly good at anything, so many groups would follow in the wake of larger predators, hoping to get lucky and find some leftovers. I found them disgusting, permitting Nana and Eon to use whatever force they needed to scare the dirty pokemon away.

Pidgey chirped in the trees surrounding the poorly maintained trail, and we even saw a Venonat, but it shyly ran into the brush as soon as we saw it. None of the pokémon moved towards us due to the powerful pokémon flanking us in the surrounding brush, warding off prospective challengers. I didn't expect to run into anything substantial until at least a day or two out of Fuchsia.

Nana and Eon spent most of their time in the surrounding brush, only returning occasionally to check-in. With his acute sense of smell, Nana had taken the point position and was scouting ahead of us. Eon was much slower and lacked the acute senses Nana brought to the table. As a result, she trailed behind us to discourage any would-be scavengers.

I smiled, feeling proud that my pokémon performed as we had practiced the last few months with Sula. While we hiked, I learned that Ellie had been in Fuchsia City for less than a year and had hardly explored. She had struggled to make friends at Fuchsia High, and her dad was so busy that she mostly filled her time aimlessly watching contests from back home in Johto.

All Seiichi are schooled within the compound, clan members and simple soldiers alike. The education was top-notch, and I was afforded various experiences that no one in public school would ever have. However, the reality was that I had no concept of what public school was like, and it was making it difficult to relate to Ellie's life.

If Ellie's stories were to be believed, it sounded horrible. Groups of dramatic teens milled about in a small building, learning irrelevant skills as part of a generalized curriculum! Her Johtan heritage made it difficult for her to fit in at all, too. She told me about numerous experiences of discrimination that had only been ramping up.

Lately, the media had been fixated on some nationalist group that was pushing the message that Kanto was the superior region, with some extremist ideas about what the Indigo League should do.

The recent focus on the divisions between the regions had trickled down from the league to the cities and even into the schools. The more I listened, the more I could feel a deepening frown imprinting on my face.

"What are you thinking about? You had this smile on your face for a second before you seemed to think about something super sad," Ellie inquired. "Also, can we stop soon? This egg incubator thing is way heavier than I thought it would be," she said, gesturing to the incubator she carried in the crook of her left arm. The metal device was quite heavy, even for me. Ellie's stoicism regarding the load definitely improved my impression of her.

I took stock of our situation. We had been traveling most of the day and were damp with perspiration. Pushing ourselves further only seemed counterproductive, so I assented, "Sure. This is less than I would've liked, but it's acceptable given our late start. I'd estimate we made it ten miles or so? Nana, Eon, find an acceptable location and give a signal," I commanded.

With brief nods of confirmation, my pokémon shot off, and we sat down to wait for them. I set the incubator down, massaging the crook of my arm where the device had left deep grooves. The incubators were metal and glass capsules that used expensive technology to facilitate hatching. I didn't know its logistics, but I knew they impressed my dad, so that was good enough for me. There were different grades of incubators, but these were top-notch. If Kiriel was to be believed, the eggs would likely hatch within a few days, if not sooner.

"Are you avoiding my question? I asked you what you were thinking about," Ellie interjected.

"I was just thinking about how awful public school sounded," I deadpanned.

"Liar! Well, maybe not liar… public school deserves a sad look—at least! Just kidding. But not really. I really do hate it here, though. I miss Johto, and I miss my mom," she admitted. "But can you tell me what you were actually thinking about?"

A stream of bright stars shot up into the sky about a half mile north in three equal bursts, interrupting our conversation. "Eon found a spot; let's head that way," I said while staggering to my feet.

As we started moving into the brush, I continued, "As for what I was thinking about before the conversation became derailed, I was thinking about that stupid nationalist group that's preaching about Kanto's superiority and thinking about how ridiculous it is that it's made its way all the way into Fuchsia High. That's all. I forget their name, but I overheard my dad talking about it the last few weeks at dinner. Having toured several regions, it seems glaringly apparent that no region has superior pokémon; only differences in training and culture manifest in disparities in competition performance. And, since governance is largely dictated by power, certain areas, like Johto, suffer from less representation in the central government."

"Oh," she let slip with a surprised tone. "That was a lot deeper than what I expected. You're very formal, but I sort of like it. At least when you're talking about things warranting such a serious tone! I didn't realize you followed politics or the news at all. Nobody in my class seemed interested in looking at the other side of things, so I appreciate the thought."

"Ah!" she yelped as Nana gently brushed past her, leading us toward where the signal originated. "He's so quiet; it's really impressive for someone his size. I didn't even realize Nana was here until he bumped into me," she giggled.

"It's his way of cheering you up; you may have just met, but Nana is very sensitive to human emotions and will do little things like that if he can tell you're sad," I returned. "He also has incredibly soft fur; he'd probably let you pet him if you asked nicely," I responded with a proud chuckle.

After a few more moments of walking, we emerged into a nearly perfect clearing for a camp; it was a lovely grassy, relatively flat space, and I could even hear the sound of trickling water tickling my ears.

Eon was patiently waiting with a little grin on her furry face, looking smug at the find of what she knew was an appropriate spot for the first night on our journey.

I knelt down, brushing off her coat gently. I gave her a light pat on the forehead in praise. "Thanks, Eon, this is a great spot. Nice work!" I added, and she pushed her face into my hand fondly. We sat quietly, enjoying each other's company, as Ellie started looking for a flat spot to set up a tent. Eon purred in contentment, happy to have been of service.

"Let's set up our tents now so we can do a mock battle before it gets too dark. You know how to set one up, right?" I asked as I turned around to see Ellie looking dejectedly off into the forest with a bright line of crimson rising up her neck.

I stifled a sigh, not wanting to embarrass her this early in our working relationship. I could already tell this was going to be a trend. "It's okay, Ellie, there's no need to be self-conscious," I consoled with barely contained mirth.

Thirty minutes later, our two tiny single-person tents were set up around the small campfire Nana had started for us. "Before we eat, let's have that battle I mentioned earlier," I declared.

Hearing 'battle,' our pokémon perked up immediately, albeit with very different responses. I could tell Ellie's pokémon were apprehensive, but mine were excited to get some actual exercise.

"Ellie, let's have Eon work with River and Petal to test their limits," I suggested. "Nana, I want you to practice energy generation independently. I'd love a viable Fire Blast before we get to Celadon." Nana nodded slightly before heading off to find a secluded cove to practice.

"Okay," Ellie said reluctantly. "I'm a little nervous. I've never been in a battle before, and I don't want them to get hurt," she reluctantly shared.

"Don't worry; I'll direct Eon to test them without hurting them too badly. We're relatively far from the nearest pokémon center, so I'll be sure to limit it to damage that a potion can heal overnight," I explained. "Pokémon are a lot more resilient than you give them credit for. They're literally built for this; they have faster reflexes, more dense bone and muscle tissue, and a persistent primal drive to get stronger. If you're going to seriously go about this gym challenge, you'll have to get used to it fast," I countered.

Ellie took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Okay then, I'm going to trust you. Let's do this."