The Original One breathed alone before the universe came.
Ash didn't notice when he first woke up.
This was mostly because he thought he was still dreaming.
He was weightless and floating in a great black void when he opened his eyes. It was weird, the last time he had a dream like this it was all purple and there were floating islands. This time it was just nothing.
Oh, and he knew he was dreaming! Did that mean he could make things appear and happen? He wanted to ride a Dragonite! He screwed his eyes closed and tried to imagine the orange dragon-type Pokémon.
Nothing happened.
Well, this dream sucked.
He crossed his arms and huffed, the movement dislodging something on his shoulder he was so used to at this point it hadn't even occurred to him. Ash looked and saw an apparently sleeping Pikachu start to drift off into the void too.
The trainer yelped and made a grab for his partner before he could drift too far away. Dream or not he wasn't about to leave Pikachu floating alone in space!
With Pikachu grasped in his arms, he sighed in relief. The electric-type's eyes opened and blinked the sleep away. "Pika pi?" His ears twitched.
"Hey, Pikachu. Welcome to the most boring dream ever." Ash welcomed his friend to theoretical consciousness.
"Pi?" The electric mouse looked around them and scratched at his head. "Pi-chu."
"I'm pretty sure it's a dream at least," Ash admitted. "I can't think of what else it would be." Now that he thought about it, when did he actually go to sleep last night? They had been traveling toward Blackthorn City, he and Misty were doing some training, Brock had made lunch…
That didn't sound right. Why had Brock been making lunch instead of dinner?
Before he could pursue that line of thought, something caught his eye. A small silver and black rectangle floated through space with them. It seemed the void wasn't as empty as he had first thought.
Ash, making sure he still had an arm wrapped around Pikachu, grabbed for it, but it danced just out of his reach. With a scowl the boy kicked his legs and waved his arm, trying to get a bit closer but it just floated further away.
"Second worst dream ever." Ash declared. "At least you're here Pikachu. Are you dreaming too, or are you part of this dream?" he asked his friend.
Pikachu gave him a deadpan stare, "Pikapi."
"I mean you'd still be you if you were you in my dream." Ash tried to reason out, "but you could be dreaming that you were a part of my dream and then you'd be here too right?" He theorized.
The Pokémon just shook his head, apparently disappointed. That was fair, hey, maybe this was Pikachu's dream and Ash was just along for the ride.
He was about to suggest that when suddenly the void stopped being so dark.
Sparkles of light appeared around them, glittering and shimmering, more and more began to light up the space and then they began to move.
They blurred across the emptiness, into a great pillar of light in front of Ash and Pikachu. The light began to coalesce into something. A glowing silhouette of golden light formed before them, illuminating the darkness and shedding light on both themselves and the rectangle between them.
The form looked… strange. It was made of angles and some sort of ring surrounded it. Two dark holes that almost resembled eyes were near the top. Apart from that he couldn't make out any features to distinguish it.
"Is that… a Pokémon?" Ash whispered, more to himself than to Pikachu. The shape seemed to regard them for a moment and then reared back. There was no sound but the air around them seemed to vibrate as though it were roaring. The rectangle was surrounded by the same light as the silhouette.
Ash squinted against the shine as it flew forward, directly to him. Almost on instinct, he reached out a hand toward it.
The glowing orb hovered over his palm, not landing but not moving anymore. His hand felt warm, but not painfully so. Confused, the boy glanced at Pikachu, not expecting an explanation but curious to see what his friend thought of this.
Pikachu wasn't looking at the light in his hand though, instead, he seemed mesmerized by the thing in front of them, which to be fair was probably the most interesting of the two.
He turned his attention back to the possible Pokémon just in time to watch stars appear around it. They began circling it, more appearing as they did so. Rings began to form, going off into infinity as they began to grow brighter.
The entire void began to light up, going from black to white. It wasn't exactly comforting though, all it did was emphasize how empty it was.
As the light started to become unbearable Ash was forced to close his eyes. The warmth over his hand now spread all over him. He felt it all around and even his closed eyes did little to block out all of the light and then…
Nothing.
"Wake up!"
A shout cut through Ash's sleep like a blade. He groaned and rolled over, he didn't want to get up yet.
"Ohhh… Do wake up, won't you?" A second request for his awakening came through, this time more concerned and he decided to accommodate.
Ash blinked awake, for real this time he was certain of it. No floating in an endless void now, he was definitely laying on the ground. He looked up slowly and found himself face-to-face with three Pokémon.
"Are you alive, my boy?!" The voice asked but Ash was a bit more distracted by the three in front of him.
Cyndaquil he recognized, but it wasn't his Cyndaquil. The fur shade was slightly off and the snout was the wrong shape.
Next to Cyndaquil was another Pokémon he didn't know, but it reminded him a little bit of Hoothoot, but shorter and greener. Grass-type maybe? It didn't quite look like a bug-type at least.
The last Pokémon didn't ring any bells at all. It was blue and white with a seashell on its chest and a bright red nose. All three of them were looking at him inquisitively and it seemed rude to ignore them.
"Hi there," he greeted the three Pokémon.
"My boy?" Finally, he looked past the Pokémon and saw a man wearing a lab coat, a bow tie, and a silly hat. He snorted in amusement at his appearance.
"Oh, sorry mister, hello." Ash pushed himself to his feet. He patted himself down, he still had his clothes, and his Poké Balls on his belt, and he felt his backpack on his back…
Wait, where was Pikachu?
Alarmed, he looked around, ignoring the silly-looking man again, but he had a good reason this time!
"Pikachu!" He called and heaved a sigh of relief when he saw his yellow companion staggering up in the sand nearby. "There you are." He jogged over and Pikachu reacted as he heard his voice.
"Pika pi!" He perked up and jumped to Ash, he gave the electric mouse a quick hug and let him climb onto his usual shoulder perch.
Now then, everything seemed in order, for the moment, and he could turn his attention to the adult. The man was staring at him, now wearing a look of concern, confusion, and… excitement?
"My boy… are you sure that's safe?" He asked slowly, staring at Pikachu.
Ash shared a glance with his best friend. "Safe?"
His mouth worked before he closed it and seemed to consider something. "Well, considering how I found you… that's probably not the most dangerous thing that's happened to you today."
"Happened to me?" Ash repeated and looked around again, taking a better look at his surroundings.
It occurred to him that the sand was part of a beach, and the beach was right at the edge of what looked like an ocean. He gasped and jumped back away from the water, more in shock than anything else. "What the-?"
"Yes, you gave me quite the shock, falling from the sky like that…" the man crossed his arms and nodded. "But thank goodness you seem unharmed!"
Fell from the sky? Ash wondered at that briefly, but considering how often it happened to Team Rocket it was probably nothing to worry about. "I think so. Where am I?" He asked, looking away from the ocean and at a man-made wooden shack a bit back from the waterfront. "Is that your house mister?"
"No, that's not my house." The man quickly dismissed the question. "But this is Prelude Beach, did the shock of your fall addle your memory? Then again I can't say I recognize you…"
He inspected Ash, "I must say your clothing is… unusual. You wouldn't happen to have an acquaintance in these parts would you?"
Ash stared at him. "I don't even know where 'these parts' are…" How had he gotten in the sky to fall out of it? "You said this is Prelude Beach? Where is that compared to Blackthorn City? Or Mahogany Town?"
He ignored the imaginary voice of Misty yelling at him that even if he did know, it wouldn't help him figure out where he was. Actually, where were Misty and Brock? They didn't seem to be here and they weren't in that weird dream…
Which may not have been a dream now that he thought about it.
"Blackthorn?" The silly-looking man scratched his head. "I've never heard of a Blackthorn City, but aren't the Blackthorn a Draconid Clan from the Johto region? I think, but I'm not exactly well-read on that part of the world."
"...we're not in Johto then?" Ash double-checked, just to be safe.
"I'm afraid not. This is the Hisui region. Johto is maybe a thousand kilometers south of us I'm afraid." That was a long distance to travel while asleep…
Ash gave him a scathing look. "You didn't kidnap me did you?" It was a possibility, unlikely though, he didn't look like Team Rocket. Then again, Team Rocket didn't look like Team Rocket half the time. They were really good at disguises.
The man seemed less offended and more depressed by the question. "Do I really look like a kidnapper?" He muttered mournfully.
"Uhh, well," jeez, now Ash just felt bad. He looked to Pikachu for help but the electric-type just wagged a teasing brow at his misfortune. "No sir, sorry, it's just I have no idea how I got here."
He seemed slightly less upset once Ash apologized. "I see… You seem to be in a bit of a pickle."
"Sure looks that way." Ash agreed.
"I'd offer some directions, but I'm not sure that would help considering you seem to be leagues away from where you thought you were." The pom on his frilly hat bounced as he talked.
"So you don't know anyone here, and you don't even know where to spend the night... Well, this is a proper pickle indeed." The trainer couldn't remember the last time he heard someone use the word pickle like this, maybe Professor Oak, it sounded old-fashioned.
"Are you quite sure you'll be able to survive?" The man asked with concern and Ash puffed out his chest, filled with a mix of pride and indignation.
"Of course, I can! I've been on my journey for a bit more than a year now! I've camped out plenty of times!" Ash announced.
Eyebrow reached for the sky. "I see, but what about wild Pokémon, how will you protect yourself?"
"Wild Pokémon?" Ash hadn't been worried about wild Pokémon for a long time. They had been a bit of a problem back in Kanto and every now and then they ran into some that were looking for a fight, but they usually got left alone. "I don't get too much trouble, but I guess Pikachu could scare them off…"
"You have it all figured out then huh?" The man scratched his head and Ash gave him a bewildered look in response.
"Not at all!" Ash couldn't believe he'd even suggested that! "We have no idea what happened or how we got here or even how to get back!"
His mind switched tracks. "Actually, have you seen anyone else around here? My friends Brock and Misty?" If he had ended up here, where were they?
"I'm sorry my boy, you're the only person I've seen here today." He shook his head, to Ash's disappointment. "Still, no gentleman would abandon a person in need!"
Gentleman? Ash looked over the man's outfit again. He wore a suit under the lab coat, which matched the bow tie. The hat threw the entire look off though.
"Quill!" Oh right, the Pokémon! The confusing bits of the situation had completely distracted him.
"Row?" The green Pokémon cooed next followed by the last of the trio going "Osha-wott!"
"Oh my, I'd completely forgotten!" The self-proclaimed 'gentleman' belittled himself. "I had just caught up with these three runaway Pokémon when you tumbled out of the sky…"
"Hi, again you three!" Ash greeted the Pokémon. "I recognize Cyndaquil, but not you two." He addressed them directly.
"You've seen a Cyndaquil before?" The man asked, "Well, you did come from Johto I suppose…" He recalled.
"Yeah! Cyndaquil is one of my teammates!" Ash nodded, "here, come on out Cyndaquil!" he pulled the fire-type's Poké Ball off his belt and sent her out.
The fire mouse Pokémon lit up with fire spines after emerging. "Cynda!" She announced her arrival and stretched, the fire quickly dying out in the somewhat calm situation.
"What was-" the adult leaned in and stared at Cyndaquil's ball. "Is that a Poké Ball?"
"Yeah!" Ash nodded, "I mean, what else would it be?"
"Fascinating, it looks much different than the ones I've seen…" He straightened up and looked at Ash's Cyndaquil as she greeted the native one. "But I suppose it doesn't matter much. You recognized Cyndaquil, I suppose I should introduce the rest."
"That there is Rowlet, the grass quill Pokémon, and next to it is Oshawott, the sea otter Pokémon." He introduced. "And goodness where are my manners? My name is Laventon, I'm something of a Pokémon Professor."
"It's nice to meet you all." Ash greeted properly and realized he hadn't given his own name. "I'm Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town, and this is my partner Pikachu." he introduced.
"It's a pleasure to meet you." Laventon smiled at them. "As I mentioned, I'm a bit of a professor, that is to say, I'm a scholar seeking to deepen our understanding of Pokémon. Yes, Pokémon such as these three here wh-" He turned to see the three native Pokémon running off, leaving Ash's Cyndaquil behind to point after them.
"Oh, blast and bother."
"Maybe they didn't like you saying they belonged to you?" Ash suggested. He called his Pokémon his Pokémon of course, but they didn't belong to him, not really. He'd said goodbye to a few who had moved on after all.
He wondered how Pidgeot, Butterfree, Squirtle, and Charizard were doing…
"Well, I suppose…" The professor crossed his arms and looked thoughtful, then he turned to Ash. "I'm terribly sorry, but could you help me round them up? I beg you."
The boy nodded, "Sure, I guess I can help."
Laventon was already off after the three Pokémon, "Wait, you three! Waiiit!"
Ash shared an amused look with Pikachu and chuckled. Laventon seemed nice enough, they could lend him a bit of a hand for now. Hopefully, they'd figure out what was going on soon though. This whole day was turning out to be pretty strange.
And that was saying something.
"Huh, these Poké Balls look different than what I'm used to," Ash noted as he took the set of ten from Professor Laventon.
"Now do you understand why I reacted the way I did to yours?" He commented. "All you have to do is take aim and throw them at the Pokémon. They've scattered a bit and might be hiding though…"
"I have some experience with difficult catches," Ash remembered, a hand almost subconsciously going for Noctowl's Poké Ball. "Just throw the balls? I know some wild Pokémon will challenge you to a battle first."
"No need for fighting." Laventon shook his head. "These three aren't hostile. Just rowdy. This isn't exactly the first time they've run off…" He sulked.
"Well, are you doing anything they wouldn't like?" Ash asked, going for the root of the issue. "I've had some problems with some of my Pokémon in the past." Particularly Charizard but there had been other teething issues from time to time. Like he and Pikachu at the start.
"I haven't done any invasive tests. Just studying their reactions, eating habits, sometimes their moves but that's all!" He listed.
Ash thought. "Hmm, oh maybe that's the problem!" He slammed his fist into his palm. "Maybe they keep running off because they don't like being cooped up so much!"
Laventon considered Ash's suggestion. The pom on his hat bobbed as he tilted his head. "You may have a point there," he sighed. "I'll see what I can figure out, but could you catch them for me? I've tried before but my aim is fairly terrible."
"My throwing arm is pretty good," Ash claimed and gave his arm a quick stretch. "Cyndaquil, Pikachu, could you two help me out a bit?" He asked the two Pokémon.
He got confirmations of, "Pika!" and "Quil!" and then the three set to work.
Laventon's Cyndaquil was the closest and darted for some rock formations as soon as it spotted Ash, but this was part of the plan.
The trainer couldn't take credit for it though, it was more Pikachu's idea.
Ash crouched by one of the other rocks and listened. He heard the sounds of multiple Cyndaquil behind the rock his target had darted behind. His friend was distracting the other one, but only for a moment.
He drew back his arm and got ready to chuck the strange Poké Ball. It was weird, the locking mechanism was big and bulky, and it was made of wood and stone instead of metal. Ash didn't even know how it would catch a Pokémon.
A bang sounded as Pikachu used Thunder Bolt to blow up a rock as a scare tactic. After all, they weren't battling for the catch this time around. A Cyndaquil darted out right into the line of Ash's throw.
The ball bounced off the fire-type and Ash pumped his fist as it went into the containment device. It landed on the ground and shook the familiar three times. Rather than making a ding though, it clicked, popped, and spewed out a column of smoke.
Ash stood and tilted his head. "Smoke? Weird."
He walked over to pick up the ball. "Nice work you two!" He thanked his Pokémon for their part of the plan.
"Pika-chu!" His oldest friend cheered.
"Well done my boy!" Laventon called, still close enough to see what was happening. "Impressive work! Strange though, you don't seem frightened of Pokémon in the slightest…"
Frightened? Ash wondered at that. He'd met some frightening Pokémon before, like Gyrados, and Zapdos has been pretty scary. Charizard could look frightening too, hm. Did that fake Entei count? It hadn't been real, and Celebi had been a bit scary while under that jerk's control.
Maybe Pokémon could be a bit frightening. But he didn't put any more thought into it, instead heading towards Oshawott.
The water-type didn't seem bothered by his approach. Or at least didn't change his current behavior. It was still just running around a nearby pond without a care in the world.
Ash shared a look with his Pokémon, this one seemed easy. He waited until the running Pokémon passed close then just tossed the next Poké Ball at Oshawott and watched it go into the ball.
That had been easy.
Next, but not least, came Rowlet. The grass-type had made its way into a tree and was watching them with a skeptical eye.
The trainer was getting a few Noctowl flashbacks. He debated sending out the flying-type to see if he would be of any help here but decided against it. Ash doubted that Noctowl would appreciate being used in this situation. He would probably consider it some matter of pride and prefer to stay uninvolved.
Deciding to test the waters, Ash just threw the Poké Ball to see how Rowlet reacted.
The Pokémon saw the ball coming and immediately flapped down to a different tree branch, alright, that was to be expected, how to make this work…
"Pikachu, could you climb up the tree and chase Rowlet down? Then Cyndaquil and I might be able to corner it," he suggested after a moment of thought.
"Chu!" The electric-type darted towards the tree while the other two moved into position.
Rowlet was chased to the edge of a tree branch and hopped down, wings flapping to buffer the fall. On landing, it came face to face with Cyndaquil and quickly darted away, straight towards Ash who let another Poké Ball fly.
This one met its mark, and Rowlet seemed caught for a moment, the ball rocking twice, before bursting from the device. Ash glanced at the smoking wreck of the Poké Ball and frowned.
"You really don't want to go in the ball do you?" he asked the Pokémon, crouching down to get on its level.
"Rowl." The Pokémon stood its ground now.
"I won't make you go in if you don't want to, Pikachu doesn't like his Poké Ball either, but could you please come back with me to Professor Laventon? He's worried about you and I asked him not to keep you cooped up inside so much." Ash explained to the Pokémon.
Rowlet considered his words for a moment and Ash held his breath, half expecting to get a Peck attack to the face or some kind of grass-type attack. Fortunately, there would be no move-based slapstick this time.
"Ro-rowlet" The grass-type hooted and nodded. Ash smiled.
"Thank you Rowlet, I'll tell the Professor not to try to use a Poké Ball on you anymore," Ash promised and put the rest of the remaining balls in his bag. He stood up and stumbled as the flapping of wings threw him off balance.
"Wha?" A weight settled on his head and he straightened back up. He couldn't see past the brim of his hat but it didn't take a genius to figure out Rowlet had decided to make itself comfortable on his head.
"Alright, you can ride along, come on, let's get back to Professor Laventon and-" Ash turned back towards the man, now a bit away, and was about to start walking when he heard Pikachu call for him.
"Pika pi!" The electric-type shouted and Ash changed directions to find out what his friend needed.
Pikachu was standing near something on the ground. Whatever it was glowed and had an odd ring of light that seemed to pulse around it, a familiar shape…
Cyndaquil cautiously sniffed at whatever it was as Ash approached. A slight beeping permeated the air, getting louder the nearer he was. He bent over, careful not to dislodge Rowlet, and picked it up.
It was a weird-looking device with a black screen. Ash remembered the rectangle from the 'dream' he'd had and wondered if this was the same thing. It was in some sort of mostly white casing but it had that same ring shape surrounding it in gold.
Ash stared at the thing, filled with confusion but it suddenly vibrated and made a slightly louder beeping noise. The black screen lit up momentarily and a message appeared.
I bestow upon thee this Arc Phone and thy mission: seek out all Pokémon.
"Seek out all Pokémon?" Ash said out loud, a little bewildered. That was… a lot. There were a lot of Pokémon. He didn't even know what all of them were.
Come to think of it, he hadn't put much thought into trying to complete the Pokédex since the early days of his journey. Gary had gotten way further along than he ever had at least.
He scrunched up his face, this was getting weirder, maybe he was still dreaming after all. He gave a slight shake of his head. "I don't know what's going on anymore Pikachu." He admitted.
"Pi pika pi," Pikachu answered, a tone somewhere between teasing and comforting.
Ash put the so-called 'Arc Phone' into his jacket pocket. He'd sit down and try to figure that out later, for now, he headed to meet back up with Professor Laventon.
"You got them all!" The man was relieved, "fantastic my boy! But err… why isn't Rowlet in the ball? I think I saw it burst out but then it came with you so I wasn't sure."
"Yeah, Rowlet didn't want to stay in the ball, but Pikachu doesn't like his Poké Ball either and I thought Rowlet might be the same way, so I asked if he wanted to stay out instead," Ash explained.
Laventon stared at him. "Oh, that's… an interesting approach I suppose. If it works it works though. Are you alright with Rowlet on your head like that? What if it decides to attack?"
"Nah, Rowlet wouldn't attack me for no reason, right Rowlet?" The grass-type on his head made a trilling noise that Ash took as a confirmation. "Yeah, besides it's more comfortable for Rowlet this way. I know a lot of Pokémon don't seem to mind but some don't want to be stuck in a tiny ball I guess."
"Odd." Laventon hummed and crossed his arms as he thought. "Pokémon are strange and marvelous creatures, based on my studies, they can shrink down to minuscule size and fit in the ball as comfy as can be! Perhaps some can't shrink as small?" The explanation completely caught Ash off guard.
"Huh?!" He staggered and gaped at the man, pointing accusingly. "What do you mean Pokémon can shrink down to fit into Poké Balls?" He questioned, outraged at the suggestion.
The professor seemed completely nonplussed by Ash's reaction though. "Isn't it obvious?" He asked back. "How did you think they fit inside balls that small?"
"I- uh- huh?" Ash struggled to form words. "But-but I thought they just turned into data or energy or something and went in?" He babbled.
"Data?" It was Laventon's turn to look confused. "You mean like numbers? But I suppose they might use or shed some energy to shrink, that would explain the glow."
Ash shook his head. "No, no, I mean…" He thought of a way to explain, science had never been his strong suit. "Here!" He held up Cyndaquil's Poké Ball. "Cyndaquil return!" A red beam shot from the ball to Cyndaquil, surrounding her in its light, and she vanished back inside.
"My word!" Laventon gasped in shock and a bit of horror. "What did you just do?"
"I just returned Cyndaquil to her ball," Ash promised. "I can send her out again too, see?" He did so and then returned her again just to prove his point.
This sophisticated version of the Poké Ball left poor Professor Laventon completely boggled. Ash unfortunately wasn't much help in trying to explain it. 'Science,' apparently wasn't a good enough answer.
It did leave Ash questioning things if nothing else. Could all Pokémon shrink down to tiny sizes whenever they wanted? He'd never seen any of his Pokémon do it, and they always looked like they turned into light whenever he caught one.
But he'd always assumed that was some weird science stuff that let Pokémon do that and get transferred, so how were these Poké Balls working? They seemed all old fashioned and stuff, but older than even Sammy's Poké Ball had looked…
Something snapped into place in Ash's mind.
"Oh," he realized what had happened. Well, part of it at least. It didn't explain how he'd traveled to Hisui from Johto but it explained a few things at least.
"I'm quite relieved to have them all back." Laventon had decided to put the scientific debate with an eleven-year-old to the side for now. "You see these three are rather new to the village. They're here to help with research but they don't listen to anyone yet."
Ignorant of Ash's revelation he continued. "I'm quite impressed with how well you use Poké Balls Ash! You seem to be a natural, though it seems you have quite a bit of experience already." He noted. "It does make me wonder though, I had no idea the Johto region had reached such impressive technological heights."
"I don't think they have yet," Ash mentioned, receiving a strange look from Professor Laventon. "I mean, what I have are pretty standard Poké Balls for the future."
"...pardon?"
"I'm still just having a bit of a time trying to wrap my head around it, my boy," Laventon admitted as they walked.
Seeing as the alternative was leaving Ash to camp alone (or with his Pokémon technically), Laventon had invited Ash to come with him to Jubilife Village, the headquarters and main base of the Galaxy Expedition Team.
The Galaxy Expedition Team was an organization that had come to Hisui to both explore the region and try to build a life here. While Jubilife Village was the only proper settlement so far, they had plenty of other camps and outposts, and they had been on good terms with the native inhabitants so far.
Laventon had also suggested Ash could be a big help to the Galaxy Team, particularly the Survey Corps who interacted with and studied wild Pokémon. Ash said he would think about it, seeing as he wasn't sure what other options he had right now.
But currently, their discussion was focused on the theoretical time travel Ash suspected he had been subject to.
"I mean, I guess Sammy came to the future instead of the past, but it seemed like he got sent back alright." Ash reasoned out, "and I don't remember seeing Celebi, but I can't think of any other way this might have happened."
He frowned. "The one thing that bugs me is the travel. Sammy was in the same place he started, just fifty years in the future, I should have still been in Johto, just in the past."
"My, you seem to have thought this out," Laventon observed after a moment of processing.
"Of course I do!" Ash was pleased not to have anyone nearby to remind him how little he did that. "But it still doesn't solve anything right now."
"It does seem to just reinforce how much of a pickle you're in," Laventon agreed. "I'd like to insist that even if you don't join the Survey Corps, at least stay in Jubilife until you get your bearings. You'll probably be put to work but it's better than wandering around hoping for a solution to fall out of the sky."
"Didn't you say I fell out of the sky?" Ash checked.
"Well, I suppose…" The professor admitted cautiously. "You came out of the Time-Space Rift." He pointed towards the mountain in the distance and the cloud that hung over it.
Ash stared towards the point and realized what he had assumed was a cloud was a swirling vortex of some sort. "...that doesn't look good."
"No, it doesn't." The man agreed, "We don't even know what's causing it or why."
"I wonder if that has something to do with all this?" Ash asked rhetorically. "Oh! And I didn't mention this before, but I found this too!" Ash brought out the Arc Phone and showed it to the professor.
"Seek out all Pokémon?" Laventon read the message. "Have you had this the whole time?"
"No, Pikachu found it just after we got Rowlet. I was going to mention it but then I figured out the time travel thing…" He felt a bit sheepish about forgetting it.
"Don't fret too much my boy, it's completely understandable given your circumstances." Laventon comforted him, "still though, it does encourage my suggestion. You have a mission to seek out all Pokémon and I have the desire to have them sought! It seems almost like fate."
"Fate huh?" Ash hummed. "Maybe, I've run into some prophecies and stuff, but they never work out quite how I thought."
"I admit I don't put too much stock in it myself." The scholarly man admitted. "But sometimes things just seem to work out so perfectly that it seems as though it were meant to be that way!"
Ash smiled, he could relate to that. "I know what you mean. I can't imagine having started my journey with anyone other than Pikachu. Alright, I'll help you and the Survey Corps out, I'm not sure what else I could do." He gave his partner a rub behind the ears and earned a smile and happy noise in return.
"Splendid! I appreciate it, my boy. Also, I've noticed that you mentioned a journey a few times." Professor Laventon noted. "But you look rather young to be traveling the world on your own, do you mind explaining a bit?"
"Sure!" Ash agreed easily. "You see when you turn ten you can become a Pokémon trainer and start your journey…"
The boy continued explaining the details about being a Pokémon trainer as they walked, much to the man's delight. He was enraptured by the descriptions of the future, although he had plenty of questions Ash just didn't know the answer to, much to his embarrassment.
"I don't know how the transfer system works at all." He told him as they approached a set of gates with two men standing guard. They were wearing some rather old-fashioned garments, kimonos, sandals, and straw hats.
"That's a shame." The professor sighed mournfully. "I guess I'll just have to wait until we get around to inventing it. But it sounds like it would be incredibly useful here and in the field."
The men looked at the arrivals, their eyes briefly paused on the professor before focusing in on Ash and glaring. He felt scrutinized under their gazes but his companion stepped up.
"Thank you for your hard work protecting our settlement gentlemen." He began by praising them. "This young man here was of great assistance to me, so please forgive me for bringing him into the village for a bit!" He finished with a smile.
One of the guards looked at him with a raised eyebrow, before giving Ash and the Pokémon with him one final look. He finally nodded and the pair stood aside and allowed them to pass through.
They walked through the gates and Ash was a bit awed by what he saw.
It wasn't the most impressive town he had ever seen by far, but it had a very different feel to it. It had a new feeling; like it had just been built overnight from nothing. A lot of the buildings had an old-fashioned look to them that Ash had never seen this way before.
Most old buildings he saw were well maintained, carefully manicured over the years to keep their appearance. Others were completely ruined and barely recognizable, but these? They were brand new, just put together, and many of them weren't even painted yet.
Ash almost felt like he was walking through a history book. Professor Laventon began giving him an introductory speech as they walked through.
"Jubilife Village has come a long way thanks to the hard work of the Galaxy Expedition Team!" He spoke with pride. "This central road we're walking on is called Canala Avenue."
As they walked the dirt road Ash heard voices from the people. All of them were wearing old-fashioned kimonos and sandals like the guards, but these looked less like uniforms and more like casual wear.
Many seemed immersed in their own conversations. But some of the things he heard were unmistakably about him.
"I've never seen that child around here before."
"That's quite the outfit right there…"
"A new recruit for the Survey Corps maybe?"
"Look at those Pokémon, is that safe?"
Ash felt more than a little self-conscious. He wasn't used to being talked about like this. The closest he had come was that time on Shamouti when he had accidentally walked into that whole prophecy thing.
But that was more people celebrating him, this was them judging him. He didn't think he liked it.
"People are a bit reluctant to leave the village," Laventon continued, not noticing Ash's discomfort. "Since we know so little about the local Pokémon. Ah, that impressive building up ahead is Galaxy Hall! The headquarters for this entire outfit!"
The boy stared at the impressive structure ahead of them. It was far larger than anything else in the village, in fact, it looked like it would be far better suited to one of the modern towns and cities Ash was used to. It was made entirely out of brick and had big windows. On the front round window was a strange symbol he didn't recognize.
"Oh, botheration!" The professor stopped suddenly and Ash chuckled at his exclamation. "I need to go report that we recovered the lost Pokémon! Do you mind waiting for me at the canteen?"
"The canteen?" Ash repeated the word. It sounded vaguely familiar, maybe he'd heard it in a movie? It was some sort of place to eat if he remembered right.
"Yes the Wallflower, it's just past the bridge and a bit to the left, and I'm sorry but I will have to take Rowlet with me." He admitted and gestured at the Pokémon who had long since made himself comfortable on Ash's head.
"Alright, hang on." He carefully maneuvered his arms, so as to not disrupt Pikachu too much, and carefully picked up Rowlet. "Come on Rowlet you need to go with the professor now."
Rowlet looked at him regretfully, or maybe just the comfortable spot on his head, and was transferred from Ash's grasp to Professor Laventon's.
"I'll meet you there my boy! Stay out of trouble!" The man jogged off towards the main building. Just as Ash was about to start walking the Arc Phone beeped in his pocket.
With a frown, Ash pulled the device out and stared. It had a little icon in one corner now, that kind of resembled a map. There didn't seem to be any cursor or way to select it though…
Pikachu came to the rescue and reached out to tap the screen of the device. As soon as his paw hit the icon, it expanded and the screen was filled with a map of the local area.
"Thanks, Pikachu and wow, that's pretty cool." Ash wished his Pokédex had a map feature. It seemed like it would have been really useful. They had gotten lost in the woods so many times…
Even better, there was a little flashing point that seemed like it was across the bridge and to the left, just like the Professor described.
That was a little suspicious… But Ash had no reason to mistrust the mysterious device yet.
He realized it had been a while since he had last had anything to eat. He hoped he was right about a canteen being a place to eat, he was hungry.
It was probably not the wisest decision to start a shouting match with someone you had never met before. Especially when you were in a brand new place with very few friends.
It was a good thing no one had ever accused Ash of being wise.
After approaching the Wallflower the man running the place immediately called Ash suspicious and told him to move along. He claimed that he was serving Galaxy Team members only.
Ash, having been assaulted by whispers and comments the whole trip through the village, had been quite looking forward to eating.
Needless to say, he had not taken being told to 'move along' very well.
"I was told to come here so I did!" He claimed. "I was hoping I could eat here! But if you're the person making it then I don't know if I could stomach it!"
"How dare you!" The skinny man gasped and lurched back as though struck by the words. "My mochi is the best thing to eat in the entire Hisui region!"
"A likely story!" Ash stood his ground and shook his fist. "I bet the reason you only server Galaxy Team members is because they're too grateful to complain about your awful cooking!"
"You haven't even tried my cooking you insufferable child!" His opponent snapped.
"It's not like I've had a chance to!" Ash fired back.
"Enough!" Another voice cut in and both Ash and the canteen chef turned to face them.
A girl, maybe a few years older than Ash stood glaring at them both. Her clothes seemed much more layered than many of the other outfits he'd seen and she had her blue hair in a handkerchief. Her sleeves had the same symbol as the window of Galaxy Hall.
"Beni, stop being so confrontational to everyone!" She wagged a finger at the man. "And you!" She turned her attention to Ash. "I've never seen you around here before, but don't go picking fights!"
"He started it though!" Ash protested.
"And I'm ending it!" She nodded firmly. "Beni, make some food for the both of us. He might not be a member of the Galaxy Team but I am."
Beni muttered something about dumb kids and slunk into the building, probably where his kitchen was.
"Now then." She looked at Ash a bit more closely now. "Who are you? I've never seen anyone dressed like you before, if a Pokémon attacked yo-" She yelped as she noticed Pikachu on his shoulder. "...is that a Pikachu on your shoulder?"
"Yeah!" Ash nodded. "I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, and this is my partner Pikachu!"
"Isn't he dangerous?" The girl asked, visibly concerned.
"Of course Pikachu is dangerous!" Ash blinked. "When he wants to be that is."
"Pika!" Pikachu agreed, his cheeks sparking slightly.
"I…" She swallowed. "I see. Well, Ash, my name is Akari. I suppose if the guards let you in you must have ties to someone in the village?"
Ash nodded. "Yeah, I met Professor Laventon. I helped him wrangle his Pokémon together and he brought me back here. He said to meet him at the canteen while he reported in though."
"Of course." She sighed. "Professor Laventon is a scholar from Galar, he's brilliant but things get away from him sometimes, including his Pokémon. I worry for him."
"Then again, I'm hardly one to talk, I've had some trouble with Pokémon myself…" She admitted. "I was hit with a move called Thunder Shock not long ago, I had to take to my bed for a bit."
"Thunder Shock?" Ash stared at her and then glanced at Pikachu. How many times had Pikachu hit him with that one? He didn't do it much anymore but he'd been shocked plenty of times. Never bad enough to be bedridden though…
Akari remained unaware of Ash's experience with the move though. "But the professor… well… I do wonder how long he'll last."
"That's putting it mildly I'm afraid!" A familiar voice cut in.
"Professor!" Akari gasped, quite distraught they'd been overheard.
"But it'll be quite alright now." Laventon smiled as he walked over. "Ash here has agreed to help us with our Pokédex!"
"Wait, the Pokédex?" Ash checked he heard right even as Akari gave the professor a lidded gaze.
"Really? You plan to appoint him to the survey corps?" Akari asked. "You can't just slap a badge on whoever you like without Captain Cyllene's permission."
"Which is why he asked my permission." Another voice came in and Ash looked past Professor Laventon.
"Ah! Captain Cyllene!" Akari saluted the woman approaching. She had short, cropped blue hair and harsh features. This was emphasized by her lack of eyebrows. The woman wore a similar outfit to Akari but slightly less layered.
"I am considering allowing it, assuming the individual can contribute to the Survey Corps, that is." She stood with the group now and inspected Ash. "You may call me Cyllene, I am the captain of the Galaxy Team's Survey Corps."
Cyllene spared a glance for Laventon. "The professor had quite the ringing endorsement for you. He said you helped him secure his Pokémon when they slipped from his control. Again." Her gaze turned harsher for a moment before returning to neutrality as she returned to Ash.
"He has recommended we offer you accommodations in exchange for your ongoing labor helping the Survey Corps." She elaborated before frowning. "You look a little young though, a child really."
"Hey!" Ash protested. "I'm eleven years old now!" That was a whole year older than you needed to be to start your journey! And he'd been on his for more than that!
"Hm." She turned to Professor Laventon. "Are you sure about this?"
"Positive. The way he was with the Pokémon, he's a natural at it. His help would be invaluable."
"He does seem to have a unique way with them…" She murmured, her eyes lingering on Pikachu for a moment. "We cannot take on just any individual though, especially without knowledge of their skills or origin."
Ash would have been more than happy to start explaining how capable he was but Laventon cut in before he could say anything. "Which is why there's a test right?"
"Yes, although it's more of a trial than a test." That was a relief, Ash had a bad track record with tests. "Tomorrow we shall see if you can prove yourself worthy."
"Oho!" Professor Laventon smiled and clapped his hands together. "A most reasonable decision captain! Would you care to join us for a meal? I'm sure you have plenty of questions."
"No thank you. I prefer to eat alone. That way I can appreciate my meals without any distractions." She walked into the Wallflower without another word, although she did nod to Akari and Ash as she walked past.
"Aloof as always I see." Laventon sighed. "Well, the three of us can still sit down and have some pleasant conversation." He raised his voice. "Beni! The usual Potato Mochi if you please!"
They had to wait a few minutes but thankfully not an abysmal amount of time. As they sat down to eat Laventon treated himself to a bite of the Potato Mochi. "Delicious! Beni, you never fail to please!"
"Thank you, professor, I'm glad someone here appreciates my cooking." Ash didn't answer. He was chewing but that wasn't the reason why. The food was good. Not as good as Brock's but he still wasn't going to give that jerk Beni the satisfaction.
Beni turned away from the group and went back inside and Ash shared some of his meal with Pikachu. He knew his friend probably would have preferred Brock's specially-tailored Pokémon food but they had to make do with what they had.
"Professor Laventon, where exactly did you meet our… visitor here?" Akari asked after they had been eating for a few minutes.
"Ah! Quite a story there. Do you know that big rift in the sky? The one people call the Space-Time Rift?" Laventon asked. "Our new friend fell right through it!"
"You can't be serious."
"You didn't mention it was called that!" Ash inserted. "Now it all makes sense!"
"Didn't I?" He scratched his head. "I'm fairly certain I did tell you the name earlier."
"No you-" Pikachu whacked the back of Ash's head with his tail and the boy glanced at his friend. The electric-type nodded at him and filled him with embarrassment. "Oh, I guess you did. Sorry, but that solves things I guess."
"I'm not sure it does. But I suppose it gives you some explanation for how you got here. Though I have no idea how you could have survived a fall like that."
"I've had worse." Ash waved off his concern.
"Can we go back a second please?" Akari cut back in. "Him, small child, falling from the giant vortex of death in the sky? That's not possible."
"I'm a scientist." Laventon held his head up. "I concern myself only with observable facts. And I observed the fact he fell out of that hole in the sky."
"Do the Survey Corps really have the time to spare for enjoying a leisurely meal with this outsider?" The annoying voice of Beni cut back in. "Your captain just ordered ten portions of Potato Mochi. She's clearly stressed about the slow progress of the Pokédex."
"The Pokédex!" Ash gasped. "That's right! You said you wanted my help with the Pokédex!"
"Well yes, I did." Laventon didn't seem sure what to make of Ash's reaction. "It's what I call the collected documentation of all the Pokémon here in the Hisui region!"
"No, you don't understand!" Ash insisted and started digging around in his backpack. "Cause I have a Pokédex! I got it from Professor Oak when I started my Journey!"
"You- what?!" Laventon's excitement practically made the air vibrate as Akari's eyes just went wide and confused.
"See!" He pulled out the red device and set it on the table. He opened it and pressed a few buttons. "It only has Pokémon from Johto and Kanto, but I'm pretty sure I've seen most of them!"
Laventon snatched the device and began scrolling through the listings, giggling to himself with delight. "This is fantastic!"
Akari leveled a suspicious look at Ash. "Where did you get that?"
"I told you, Professor Oak gave it to me when I started my journey." Ash repeated, he'd held onto it ever since.
"Look at this! Footprints, height and weight ranges, little tidbits of lore, and observations! This is wonderful! Can I hold onto this tonight Ash?"
"Sure, just be careful, I don't think I have a way to change the battery now…" That was a problem actually.
Akari mouthed the word, "battery," but Laventon was off in his own little world.
"Oh, this is wonderful! I have no idea how much crossover there is between this and the Pokémon here in Hisui, but I'll cross-reference the information we have already and see what I can come up with! Thank you! Thank you so much, Ash, my boy!"
They sat around the table until after the sun had gone down. Laventon scrolled through the Pokémon listed on Ash's Pokédex, occasionally asking him about his encounters with specific Pokémon, which he was happy to share. Akari even started getting into it a bit, asking her own questions and remembering some of her encounters with Pokémon.
"That was the best meal I've had in a long time!" Laventon claimed as they stood up.
"Maybe you shouldn't be celebrating too soon professor, Ash still has to pass the test tomorrow." Akari cautioned.
"I have complete confidence in his ability to succeed." The professor asserted.
"Let's hope it's not misplaced," Cyllene noted as she approached the group again. It seemed that she had just finished eating too. She turned to Ash.
"Ash was it?" She checked. "Tonight at least we will provide you a place to sleep. You can use that quarters there." The captain gestured at a house just past Galaxy Hall. "But if you fail to pass the trial tomorrow, you shall be expelled from the village to meet your fate, perhaps your death, in the wilds."
"That's a cheery thought," Ash muttered scornfully.
Cyllene had nothing else to say though and continued on her way, not even glancing back.
"Captain Cyllene is a bit like Hisui," Akari mentioned. "In that, they're both quite harsh."
"The good captain simply puts on a stern face to keep us all safe." Laventon waved off. "Now then, Ash you should get some rest! In fact, all of us should turn in for the night."
He waved the two younger people good night and walked away, presumably to his quarters. "Good night!" He called back.
"Yes, good night!" Akari waved. They stood staring after him for a moment before Akari sighed and looked up. "A rift in the sky, people falling out of it, the world is full of mysteries I guess.
"Yeah, I've seen a lot of things I still haven't figured out yet. But that's what makes it so exciting." He smiled and leaned back, arms behind his head.
Akari chuckled. "You're a weird kid Ash. Good luck tomorrow, really."
"Thanks, have a good night!" He told her and they parted, heading for their sleeping quarters.
Ash was a bit mystified by the sleeping quarters. It was bigger than he was expecting, bigger than his bedroom at home certainly.
Right past the door was a dirt area, which quickly stepped up onto a wooden platform with some tables pushed to the side.
The whole place seemed separated into three areas, first the dirt part, then the main wood area, which had what looked like a fire pit in the middle, and then past that was a bit of wall and what looked like a sleeping futon.
He closed the door behind him as he stepped inside. The boy put two and two together and sat down on the edge of the wooden platform to take his shoes off. After that, he and Pikachu explored the space a bit more.
Nothing stuck out to him though. It was fairly basic, just had the basic commodities of life, some jars filled with water and a washbasin, a place to store dried food, and a wardrobe.
Ash set his backpack down in the bedroom space. He began unpacking his pajamas and talked to Pikachu, "this has been a weird day huh buddy?"
"Pi chu pikachu." Pikachu agreed with him as he sniffed at the futon.
"Weirder than normal I mean," Ash clarified. "I've never even heard of the Hisui region before." He admitted after a moment of thought.
"Pi?" Pikachu glanced at him inquisitively.
"I think Professor Laventon said that Johto was about a thousand kilometers south of us?" Ash remembered. "Do you think we could travel back and try to find Celebi again?"
"Pika pika…" The electric-type didn't sound enthused by the idea.
"Yeah, that probably wouldn't work." Ash shook his head. "Still, this is pretty exciting too! Seek out all Pokémon though… that's a big job."
He leaned back and hummed. "I bet Professor Oak would be really interested in that. I should tell him-"
Something clicked into place. It had been threatening to since he first realized it was just him and his Pokémon but that thought. The idea of calling Professor Oak like he normally would. Just keeping him updated on some of his stranger adventures, that was the last straw.
Pikachu picked up on the drop in mood and trod over to Ash. "Pika pi?" He pressed a paw against Ash's side.
"We're alone here aren't we Pikachu?" Ash asked quietly. "Misty and Brock aren't here, I can't call Mom or Professor Oak… we're just alone."
He sniffed. "I… I didn't even think of it earlier. We can't just call them or go somewhere to meet them. They're just not here! They're not even born yet!" His voice got higher as the panic began to set in.
"I might never see them again! The Arc Phone said to seek out all Pokémon! But it didn't say it would send us back!" Ash started hyperventilating. "Did I tell Mom I loved her last time I talked to her? Did I?" He desperately tried to recall.
"Pi!" Pikachu's shout cut into Ash's growing panic. The electric-type tackled him to the ground and stood on his chest glaring at him. "Pika pikachu pika pi!"
"I…" Ash took some deep breaths. "I'm sorry Pikachu, I didn't mean to start losing it like that."
"Pika." The electric-type rolled his eyes. Okay, maybe that wasn't the point he'd been trying to make.
He hopped off of Ash and held up a familiar object. One of his Poké Balls…
"Oh." Ash realized. "That's what you meant." He smiled softly. "We're not alone, not completely."
One by one he sent out the teammates he had with him. It wasn't everyone, and he couldn't get everyone now. They were at Professor Oak's ranch, but at least he wasn't alone, not really.
It wasn't quite the same as being able to contact his Mom, friends, or Professor Oak, but he wasn't as isolated as he'd been afraid of.
"Hey, guys." He greeted his team and immediately got tackle-hugged by Bayleef. "Ah, Bayleef!" His smile came back. "Gah, I'm sorry I left you cooped up so long!"
"Bay!" She barked. "Bay bay!" She nuzzled her face into his.
"Toto?" Totodile came over and looked at Ash. He poked Ash's cheek and pulled away a slightly damp paw. "Dile."
"Yeah, I guess I was crying just a little bit," Ash admitted, quietly. "It's just," he heaved a sigh, "it's just been a crazy day."
Phanpy trumpeted his horn and Ash pat the youngest Pokémon on the head. "Yeah, crazier than usual. Cyndaquil was there for part of it."
"Cynd!" She agreed and her fire quills briefly made an appearance. Noctowl twisted his head upside down in the way he did when he was curious about something.
"I need to get to sleep…" Ash considered. "But I guess I can tell you guys everything first. Get comfortable, it's a long story."
It's time for something new.
Ash has now found himself in the Hisui region! Separated from many of his friends and family, what adventures will he have in this new land?
I've had this idea for quite a while. Nearly since when Legends Arceus came out. But I never quite could figure out how I wanted it to go.
Recently I decided it would be late Johto Ash. After he got over himself a little bit and stopped being quite so bratty, but before he was a true veteran trainer. A good mix between the two gives us an Ash who has a bit of pridefulness but isn't quite full of himself and is more than willing to toss out some barbs and stand up for himself.
Not to mention he understands and gets along with Pokémon a bit better at this point, and understands the value of training. But it wasn't quite the final push yet.
Then a certain someone in my discord with a wolf theme and a love of dark-types (you know who you are) started playing the game for the first time and it finally pushed me that last bit to start writing.
Anyway a bit of a timeline for Ash so far, this is in between Mahogany Town and Blackthorn City, so he has seven gym badges and his whole Johto team. The only missing member is Heracross. I'm also working with the headcanon that each region/league is about six months. Maybe a bit less on the Orange Islands so Ash is eleven years old as opposed to being an eternal ten-year-old.
Now things aren't going to be an exact 1-1 for the game. Obviously, we've already seen this start to snowball. I will admit several lines from this chapter were pulled directly from the game but they've already started deviating and they will continue to. Otherwise, you could just play the game yourself.
Although you can't make your character look like Ash (I tried). I just couldn't get the right hair.
That being said I do encourage you to play the game! It's a fun game. You have it to thank for getting me writing properly again last year!
Anyway, what did you think of this story? Did you like it? What did you like? What didn't you like? Leave a review and let me know what you think!
Until next time!
Discord: discord . gg / kESdTfhAwG
~FriTik
R&R