The fog had set in thick the deeper Ash and Brock went into the forest. New Bark Town should be on the other side of it, at least that's what the dock worker had said. Yet it had been hours and still no sign of a Town of any kind. And Ash was certain that they were lost. There were no people to ask for directions, nor were there any Pokemon if Ash thought about it. Which was weird, Pokemon were literally everywhere.
The duo eventually find themselves in front of a pond, an odd glowing Pokemon standing on a formation in the middle. The Pokemon's head shot up and for a moment stared at Ash specifically, before it dashed away. Ash gave chase to it, and Brock gave chase to Ash. The Pokemon vanished, but Ash and Brock fell off a steep edge and slid down the hill. The slide led them to the outskirts of New Bark Town but to Ash and Brock's surprise.
"Do you think the Pokemon was waiting for us?" Ash joked.
"Maybe it had heard that the Orange Archipelago Champion was in town and wanted to welcome him personally" Brock played along.
Neither of them noticed a glowing blue Pokemon watching them from the top of the ledge they'd fallen off.
The Police were present at Professor Elm's Laboratory when Ash and Brock arrived. Curious the duo entered the Lab to find the Professor being scolded by Nurse Joy.
"And you two are?" a Police officer walked up to Ash and Brock having noticed them.
"I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and this is Brock from Pewter City. We came here at Professor Oak's request" Ash explained. The Professor had asked the duo to pass through New Bark Town. Why he didn't explain.
Hearing Ash, Professor Elm jumped out of his seat and rushed over to Ash and Brock with an excited look over him.
"Professor Oak told me about you! You were in the top eight in the Kanto League and are the Champion of the Orange League! I have been so excited to meet you" Professor Elm explained excitedly, much to Ash's awkwardness. The Professor would have gone to say more, but Nurse Joy pulled by aside by his ear.
"Why are the police here?" Brock asked, Ash chuckling nervously at the Pokemon Nurse and the Professor.
"There was a break-in at the Lab" the Police explained, "one of the starter Pokemon was stolen by the thief."
Ash's head snapped to the Police before he turned to the Professor fuming.
"And where were you?!"
Professor Elm shrunk slightly.
"I— I was engrossed in research when the thief came in. I— I didn't look and thought he was the trainer coming in to pick up a Pokemon today. I asked him to choose whichever Pokemon he wanted and before I could take a better look at him, he was gone with the Totodile, the Pokedex and a few Pokeballs."
Ash ran his hand over his face.
Something small and black came up to Ash and gently bumped against his leg. Ash looked down before pulling out his new Pokedex.
"Cyndaquil, the Fire Mouse Pokemon. Cyndaquil protects itself by flaring up the flames on its back. The flames are vigorous if the Pokémon is angry. However, if it is tired, the flames sputter fitfully with incomplete combustion."
"That's Cyndaquil, another starter Pokemon we offer here" Professor Elm puffed out with pride, deflating when Nurse Joy glared at him.
Ash kelt before it and smiled. Cyndaquil stood on its hind legs and bumped Ash's knee.
"Cyndaquil seems to have taken a liking to you" Professor Elm smiled.
Ash reached out and gently rubbed it on the head. Cyndaquil leaned into the touch and let out a soft whine.
"Do you have any idea what the boy looks like?" Brock asked the Police.
"We checked the cameras but all we have are backshots. It's almost like he knew where the cameras were" the Police explained, pulling out a picture of the suspect. He wore all black and had shoulder-length red hair.
The police eventually left, as did Nirsue Joy when she couldn't stay away from the centre any longer. Professor Elm sat dejected, staring at Cyndaquil who was gently nuzzling Ash's leg.
"I hope Totodile is alright" Professor Elm muttered.
Ash and Brock shared a look.
"Maybe we'll run into him on our journey, and when we do we'll give him a piece of our mind and hand him to the Police" Ash tried to cheer up the man.
Professor Elm smiled.
"I've told the Police and they'll deal with him" The Professor stood. "But I did have a reason to ask Professor Oak for you. Well, not exactly you, just someone capable."
Professor Elm rushed to the larger table, pressed a button and the wall seemed to open before him. Inside there was an egg, one both Ash and Brock recognized.
"This egg was sent to me by a Kanto Archeologist after they'd unearthed it at a dig site. I study Pokemon Eggs you see. Like where they come from and how they came to be. It's a mystery, nobody has seen a Pokemon lay an egg ever. They just appear! But anyway, I've been studying this egg ever since and so far I have seen nothing drastic in it. In my research I've found that eggs do well around other Pokemon, best with a trainer travelling with it. I was hoping you'd be able to help me with my research and travel with this egg."
Ash and Brock shared looks before they spoke between themselves. They agreed right away of course, but they spoke between them to decide who would keep the Egg. In the end, Ash and Brock both agreed that Brock was a better pick. He was a Pokemon Breeder, he'd know how to handle a Pokemon Egg with care more than Ash would.
Professor Elm was happy with the choice, more so when he learned Brock was a Gym Leader in Kanto.
With the Egg handed to Brock for safekeeping, Ash and Brock went to leave. Only for Cyndaquil to stop them. The Fire Mouse Pokemon bumped into Ash's shin again and stood up on its hind legs.
"Cyndaquil seems to like you a lot. Why don't you take her along with you" Professor Elm suggested.
Ash picked the Pokemon up and turned back to the Professor.
"Are you sure? What about the trainer that was supposed to come and pick up their Pokemon?" Ash asked.
"He came by, but he didn't want to take Cyndaquil. Said Cyndaquil wasn't cool enough" The Professor rolled his eyes. He procured Cyndaquil's Pokeball and held it out for Ash. "Cyndaquil's taken a real liking to you. Don't hurt her feelings."
Ash stared at the Pokemon, then at the Professor before he accepted the Pokeball. He gently tapped the Pokeball on Cyndaquil's head and returned her to her Pokeball.
With a new Pokemon in Ash's team and an Egg entrusted to Brock's care, the duo heads out of New Bark Town for Violet City, where the first Gym of the Johto Region was. Not too far from New Bark Town, Ash and Brock spot a trainer with her weird leaf Pokemon.
"Chikorita, the Leaf Pokemon. In battle, Chikorita waves its leaf around to keep the foe at bay. However, a sweet fragrance also wafts from the leaf, becalming the battling Pokémon and creating a cosy, friendly atmosphere all around."
A Rattata jumps out from the tall grass and the girl gets right into battle. Chikorita misses the first tackle but hits the next one and knocks out the Pokemon. The girl throws a ball at it and captures it easily.
"She probably just started her journey," Brock said and Ash nodded.
The trainer calls her Chikorita back and spots Brock and Ash. She rushed over to the duo and plucked Pikachu from Ash's shoulder.
"Where did you get one?! They are so rare here!" the girl squealed and hugged the Pokemon close. "Shock me."
"Excuse me?" Ash blinked owlishly at her.
"Shock me! I always wanted to know what being shocked by a Pikachu feels like."
Pikachu shared a look with Ash before the boy shrugged. Pikachu shocked the girl, who fell over giggling.
Casey (as the girl introduced herself as) joined Ash and Brock for lunch.
"I have a thing for yellow-striped Pokemon" Casey explained, taking a bite of her food. "I want to one day catch an Electabuzz for myself. It's the mascot of my favourite baseball Team, the Electabuzz."
Ash refrained from commenting on how bad the team was.
"We should battle" Casey said around her food. "You have Pokemon right? We should definitely battle!"
Ash was a little uncertain at first. She was clearly a starting Trainer and he was a Champion! It would be completely unfair to her if he battled her. But then he remembered that he had one Pokemon who was just as new as Casey's.
Ash accepted, much to Brock's surprise.
With lunch done, Casey and Ash got ready for battle (they helped Brock clean up first, of course. Their mothers raised them better). Casey sent out a Pidgey and Ash sent his Cyndaquil out.
Casey called for a Quick Attack and Ash called for a Tackle. The two Pokemon clashed before jumping back from one another. Ash followed it up with Ember immediately, hitting the Pidgey and knocking it out of the air. Cyndaquil tackled again and knocked the Pidgey out.
Casey called Pidgey back and sent out her new Ratatta. She called for a Tackle and Cyndaquil dodged the attack, using Ember for a critical hit from the back and knocking it out.
Casey, frustrated, calls Rattata back sent out her Chikorita. Recognition flared in Chikorita's eyes and it rushed over to greet Cyndaquil happily. The two were friends it seemed. Probably from Elm's Lab. Casey shouted for Chikorita to focus and the Pokemon pulled away with a small apologetic smile.
Both Pokemon use Tackle, sending each other skidding back. Chikorita went with Razor Leaf and Cyndaquil went with Ember. The two moves cancelled each other out and they both rushed in for another tackle. Again the two met halfway, trying to push each other back. Ash called for Cyndaquil to pull back, making Chikorita stumble forward from the sudden lack of force. Cyndaquil used Ember quickly, hitting Chikorita and knocking it out.
"For a new trainer, you fight really well" Ash called his Cyndaquil back, walking over to a dejected Casey.
"You're a new trainer too!" Casey complained.
"Actually," Ash smiled awkwardly and explained who he was and what his credentials were. Casey's jaws dropped at that.
"You mean to tell me I was battling one of the fixture's strongest teams?!"
Ash sweatdropped.