PokéMon is Not for Children (Redux)

[Dwayna DragonFire]

It has been a long time since I wrote a PokéMon fiction, and my previous one was a bit lackluster. I was inspired to write one again, with all new characters and new elements to the world. Depressed/Drunk!Oak is a reference to a joke made about the old fiction, and there will be other references along the way.

This fiction will contain scenes of gore and other mature subjects. Read at your own risk.

Chapter One

It was that time of year again. The grass had started to grow and the trees were beginning to blossom. Petals from said flower blossoms were occasionally blown off by the wind, only to dance around in the breeze. It was perhaps the most breathtaking sight the onlooking girl had ever seen, the warm spring day refreshing and new.

Light suddenly evaporated into darkness, the outside noises ceasing their repetition to make it seem all the more eerie. It was as if everything had gone silent, like all the color had drained from the world around her. The trees withered and died, the blossoms and leaves fading into nothing more than mere brambles and rot. She felt paralysed with fear, unable to move or escape from the oncoming darkness.

A soft murmur rose from the woods, which soon turned into several talking voices, until they were yelling in her ear. Her mouth opened into a scream, but there was no noise to come out of her anymore as red eyes flashed open in the darkness. The mouth of the creature pulled into a manic grin, and it advanced on her position, the maw opening with a great cackle as if to swallow her whole. Shadowy hands reached out from the darkness, coiling towards her as a soft beeping noise got louder and louder.

Green eyes fluttered open, followed by a soft gasping of air as Justice Dellacott woke from the nightmare. The beeping noise was coming from her alarm clock, which she looked at with a semblance of gratitude before switching it off. She brushed her long brown hair away from her face and pressed her hands to her forehead, the memory of the nightmare still pressing itself into her mind vividly. But there was little time to think on it, because she had somewhere to be. Still trembling, she rose from her bed and changed into regular clothes – jeans and a green t-shirt - picked up her backpack of previously packed belongings and clambered downstairs.

The two floor cabin smelled of bacon and eggs that particular morning. An older woman with greying dark hair stood thoughtful over the simmering frying pan, only perking up at the telltale sounds of footfalls from the thirteen year old. Light blue eyes glimmered with the loving smile mothers often tended to give to their children, and with one last flip of the spatula, the woman finished the batch of scrambled eggs.

“Good morning, dear,” said Zandra Dellacott, turning off the burners and coming over to press a light kiss to her daughter's forehead. “I got you a little something for your journey, but that can wait until after breakfast.” There was something in the older woman's eyes at the mention of said journey, a certain coldness that carried the weight of something long since past, but no less hurtful.

“Thanks, Mom,” replied Justice calmly, the effects of the nightmare long since faded. The girl took a plate and grabbed some bacon and eggs, plopping her backpack down for a few moments as she took a seat at the dining room table. Zandra joined her soon afterwards, and as was morning tradition, they bowed their heads and clasped their hands together in prayer.

“Oh, Arceus,” intoned the older woman, “The Original One, creator of all. We give our thanks to you for this blessing of food and drink, for it gives us life. I pray that you will watch over Justice as she begins her journey into your world and into adulthood. I pray that you still watch over Scarlet as she continues on her way. Finally, I pray that you have looked after the soul of my dearly departed Christopher, and that he is watching over us as well. Amen.”

“Amen,” Justice repeated, though more out of obligation for the morning routine than out of belief. The world of PokéMon was rife with legends about god-like creatures – backed up by ruins, carvings and other such things – but she felt like if Arceus was truly all-powerful, her father would still be alive. The two women ate in silence, the young teen finishing up quicker out of her eagerness to begin the day.

While she waited for her mother to finish her morning routine, she checked her backpack to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything. Clear storage capsules held her food and clothing, her phone was in her pants pocket, and her trainer license was in her front shirt pocket. It made her frown slightly, wondering what her mother could have possibly purchased that would further help her to be prepared. Before she could ask, another storage capsule was pushed in front of her labelled 'camping gear', as well as a small black box.

“Open it,” said Zandra, a somewhat neutral expression pulled over her face. Justice looked at her mother skeptically, but nonetheless flipped open the lid of the box, her mouth falling open slightly at its contents. Lying inside was a silver chained necklace, the pendant a golden cross-like wheel with small emerald gems at each cross point and a white circular opal in the middle.

“It's beautiful,” came the awed reply. “Thank you.” It was the symbol of Arceus, similar to the purple necklace with emeralds that Zandra wore around her neck to show her devotion for the being. Justice brought it up from its case and strung the chain around her neck, clasping it together to let the pendant dangle in the center of her upper chest. A shiver ran down her spine as she realized it somehow looked right on her, almost as if it had been made specifically to fit.

“It suits you,” mused Zandra, as if noticing the same thing. She looked as if she was about to say more on the matter, but a large thudding sound interrupted the both of them. Not long afterwards, there was a light rapping on the front door, indicating someone was there. Justice got up from her seat to answer the door, her mother following swiftly behind as she opened the door.

A red-headed woman now standing at the door, looking to be at least twenty years of age, though she was only eighteen. The long locks of hair were pushed back behind her ears, revealing large claw-like scars over her right eye, which was white with blindness. Her functional brown eye sparkled with the small smile she gave as Justice rushed up to hug her, a warm glance shot at Zandra as well. She wore a similar necklace to the one Zandra had given Justice, but the wheel-like cross was colored orange and in place of the emeralds were yellow topazes. Behind her was a gigantic, orange, dragon-like PokéMon that stood on two legs and had a burning tip to its tail.

“Hey, kiddo,” said Scarlet Dellacott, her tone somewhat gravelly but nonetheless feminine. “A little bird told me you were starting your journey today, so I thought I'd stop by to give you a little present.” With that said, the older woman pushed a small cylinder into her hands. It was a white container with a purple top, the slosh of liquid and push-down spray mechanism betraying its purpose as a Potion.

“Thanks, sis,” exclaimed Justice, her excitement clearly showing in her expression. It was her first official item as a PokéMon trainer, meaning more to her than some silly old necklace.

“Phoenix, come back and rest,” murmured the older woman, at which the Charizard dissolved into red light that syphoned into the PokéBall she had picked up from her belt. “You hurry on your way now, kiddo. Mom and I have some catching up to do.” With a purposeful look to the eldest Dellacott, Scarlet stepped inside the house, only popping out again to hand Justice her backpack before closing the door.

It was a sudden goodbye that left the girl somewhat bewildered, but there was little time left to dwell on such things. She had an appointment at the PokéMon Lab with Professor Oak, and she didn't want to be late. Luckily the laboratory was right at the edge of Pallet Town, the large building coming into view as she walked up the path towards it, the spring air adding to the experience.

The large set of stairs lead up to a building with yellow walls, a grey roof, a chimney and several windows. It had large windmill peeking out behind it, with two front doors that opened at a motion detector, leading Justice to the interior. As the doors swished closed behind her, green eyes explored a hallway with several doors; and to her immediate left, a chest of drawers and the stairway to what she presumed was the second floor.

“The research floor is upstairs,” said a masculine voice, startling her slightly. There was an older gentleman with glasses and a lab coat looking down at her with an almost knowing look, like he had seen many a person like her before. Considering that this sort of thing happened once every three months or so, she wasn't surprised.

Justice timidly nodded in thanks, feeling the weight of everything crashing down on her as she ascended the stairs upward. She heard two other male voices speaking, but they seemed to be much younger sounding than the gentleman in the hallway. As she reached the top, she looked on amazed at all the large computers and complicated machinery, making her question exactly what universe she had stepped into.

“Looks like we finally have our third member,” said one of the male voices from earlier, causing her to turn her head. The boy had dark eyes and short blonde hair that made it looked like he shaved his head recently, a grey t-shirt and brown cargo pants. He wore almost the same grin as his companion, who had longer hair than the other male but still short, black in color. The boy peered out from behind a pair of glasses with light blue eyes that contrasted the red and black checkered t-shirt he wore, but his black shorts at least complimented the outfit.

“A pretty girl, no less,” complimented the longer-haired boy, which caused Justice to blush slightly. “I suppose we should introduce ourselves. I'm Theodore and this is Daniel, but we often go by just Ted and Dan.” The shorter-haired boy nodded in acknowledgement of the nickname, both boys smiling in wait of her reply.

“Justice,” she finally spat out, reaching to shake their hands in turn. “Not a whole lot of nicknames for that, though.” She was still slightly red from the compliment, but she smiled in return and took the remaining seat in the laboratory, beside Dan. The boys both seemed to know each other quite well, so she suspected they were old friends, possibly having gone to the same school together. She was going to ask, but all conversation ceased as an older gentleman with greying hair stepped into the room, a somewhat worn look in his dark eyes despite his friendly smile. He looked at each of the younger people in turn, giving a soft sigh as he quickly smoothed his hands over the folds of his lab coat.

“Welcome, young trainers,” he stated firmly and practised, like he had said it many a time before. “I am Samuel Oak, but I'm more famously known as the PokéMon Professor. Today, you will begin a journey into the world of PokéMon, where you will form strong friendships and see things you never imagined possible. However, contrary to popular belief, on this journey you will also experience great hardship and struggle.” Something in his demeanour changed, as if he was veering off from practised speech and turning more fully into his own emotions on the subject.

“Despite many revolutionary years of rule changing, you are all still here; young, bright and naive. Two boys - barely eleven - and a young, teenage girl. But I shall not bore you with the personal memories of a tired old man. Just know that the real world is nothing like the cartoon shows, and sometimes, people die. Now come, your final test awaits.” With that, Oak turned on his heel and walked towards a machine in the center of the room, motioning for the children to follow him. The two boys exchanged glances with one another before rising from their seats together, Justice quickly following suit.

Three red and white PokéBalls laid inside the machine, each with their own symbol on the front. There was one with a flame, one with a leaf, and one with what looked to be a water droplet. From what Scarlet had told her, they represented the three starters – Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle. A monitor above the machine confirmed her suspicions, displaying information on all three of the PokéMon in turn for all of them to see.

“It used to be on a first come, first serve basis,” said Professor Oak, his tone slightly more chipper. “Now we bring in groups of three and give them personality assessments, to see which starter would match best with each trainer.” With that said, he handed out a small piece of paper and a pencil to each of the children in turn, studying their faces slightly as if trying to find something.

His eyes betrayed nothing as each of the young trainers filled out their piece of paper. Justice looked over her own and found they were easy enough questions to answer, simple personal questions that one might ask if making a new friend. She found herself looking up at the Professor and the other boys every so often, but ultimately she focused on answering the questions as honestly as possible. Dan was the first to finish, then Justice, and finally Ted. Oak skimmed over the pieces of paper in turn, looking somewhat thoughtful after each one, nodding his head after only a few short moments.

“Mister Miller,” called the Professor, at which Dan perked up. “Both you and Mister Griffiths are quite similar in some respects, which made it difficult to place you. However, you have much of your mother in you. Quirky, bold and a certain resilience that makes you a good match for Squirtle.” The boy was handed the PokéBall with a water droplet on it, as well as a belt of five empty PokéBalls and what appeared to be a chrome PokéDex.

Oak quickly demonstrated that the outer appearance could be changed via the computer screen on the inside, which Dan changed to blue with copper detailing. The PokéDex was registered to the boy via his picture and fingerprints, and the PokéBall with the water droplet was merely scanned in to register that there was indeed a Squirtle inside of it and the creature belonged to Dan. With that demonstration over with, Oak turned to the other boy, who looked both excited and frightened at the same time.

“Mister Griffiths, do calm down,” chastised the Professor, at which Ted took a few deep breaths. “I do believe you are the first of your family to come to my laboratory, so it was harder to place you. You seem to have a strange duality between energetic and relaxed, but your strong sense of loyalty and friendship ultimately places you with the Bulbasaur.” The PokéBall with the leaf design on it was handed over to Ted along with the other items, at which the boy picked the more classic red and black color scheme for his PokéDex. Finally the Professor's eyes landed on Justice, his hand already outstretched with the final PokéBall.

“So very much like your sister, Miss Dellacott,” commented Oak. “Emotional, brave and with your own desire for challenge. Phoenix may yet enjoy the company of one of his own kindred, if Charmander eventually wants to evolve.”

“We'll see, Professor,” replied Justice, a slight smile on her face as she took the PokéBall with the fire symbol. She clasped on the belt of PokéBalls as it was handed to her, putting the one with Charmander in the final slot. When she was given her PokéDex, she chose to change it green with silver detailing, which looked like a nice color combination.

“Some of you may know that the true face of the PokéMon world is,” said Oak, his expression grim as he looked from face to face again. “I feel you could all learn from one another just how much friendship means in a world like this. Take care of yourselves and your PokéMon. Good luck in the Kanto region, and good day.” With that said, the Professor turned his back on the young trainers, picking up a previously unseen beer bottle from the table before leaving them to their thoughts.

“What did he mean by that?” asked Ted, his expression filled with worry. Oak had said something about him being the first in his family to experience a PokéMon journey, so he was probably new to every aspect.

“There's a reason my mother wears long-sleeved shirts even in summer,” murmured Dan in reply, his expression somewhat dark. “She was a PokéMon trainer as well, and has the scars to show for it.”

“My sister went blind in one eye thanks to the claws of a PokéMon,” said Justice, catching the attention of both boys. “She doesn't bother to hide it, though. I think she's actually quite proud of her battle scars, as she's mentioned some on her back and chest as well.”

Ted's expression pulled into a thoughtful grimace, his hand absently touching the PokéBall with Bulbasaur inside of it. Dan reached his hand out to gently clasp the other boys shoulder, gently squeezing it to perhaps comfort his friend. The grimace pulled into a small smile at this, but the light blue eyes swiftly turned to the face of Justice, looking somewhat contemplative.

“Maybe he was right, then,” Ted murmured. “We may need all the friends we can get. What do you think, Dan? Should we invite her to come with us?”

“I'm sure neither of us would mind the company,” answered Dan, his expression changing to the large grin from earlier, causing her cheeks to become slightly red again. “But it's ultimately up to her whether or not she'd want to.”

“Of course,” affirmed Ted, mirroring Dan's grin. “Would you like to come with us on our PokéMon journey, Justice?”

Justice suddenly found it hard to answer, simply choosing to study both boys again. Though they were two years younger than she was, their faces seemed to be honest and open. From their earlier comments, it was obvious they liked her in some respect, not to mention they both probably thought she was more knowledgeable due to her age. They could probably learn a lot from one another, and she would develop strong friendships with them as they went through the trials of the PokéMon world. It seemed to be a good decision to go in a group anyways, considering everything that was said.

“Sure,” she settled on, nodding her head and smiling. “I'd love to.”

“Awesome,” exclaimed Ted, his expression jubilant again. “Let's go outside so we can meet our partners, shall we?” Both Dan and Justice nodded in reply, and they all left the laboratory together, each clutching their PokéBalls with their respective PokéMon in them.

 

[Dwayna DragonFire]

Chapter Two

“On three,” said Ted, “One... Two... THREE!” PokéBalls were thrown out the the center of the field of grass before them, each opening and releasing a red form of light that coalesced into three different living forms. Each PokéMon blinked around slightly, warily looking at one another before turning around to see the people who had released them.

“They all look pretty awesome,” admired Ted, the other two nodding their agreement. “Do you think we should test them out on one another, or...?”

“We should probably save that for actual tournaments,” answered Justice. “We're trying to make friends here, after all. Still, the potential for battling each other in the future is high, since many of said tournaments tend to run on a one-versus-one format.”

“I'm sure if we need to practice that format, we could always be friendly rivals,” said Dan, sharing another grin with Ted. “I sure won't go easy on either of you, if that's the case.”

“This trip isn't going to be easy for me, anyways,” Justice commented, gaining the attention of the two boys again. “Professor Oak was right that I'm a lot like my sister. Scarlet kind of drilled it into my head that being a PokéMon master doesn't mean collecting everything I see within eye-range. She gave herself a challenge to only capture two PokéMon per route, and I think I'm going to do the same.”

“If having more friends is a good thing, why would you do something like that?” enquired Ted, both boys looking somewhat worried and quizzical. “Doesn't having more PokéMon increase your survival rate exponentially?”

“Perhaps, at least for a little while,” replied Justice, looking extremely thoughtful. “But each trainer has a limit of six. Would I really want to fill up all of those slots with Pidgeys or Rattatas? Not to mention the fact that if I find a companion that I would rather have in my party to fill it out better; or just happen to catch another PokéMon and my belt was already full, I wouldn't get to bond as much with the ones that get 'left behind', per say.”

“That actually makes a lot of sense,” Dan mused, earning a nod from Ted as well. “Perhaps we should all follow rules like that.”

“Its decided then,” Ted exclaimed, yet another grin forming on his face. “Two PokéMon per route, and to make things more interesting, no duplicates. What that means is that if I catch a Pidgey, I can't catch another one. But if you guys wanted a Pidgey of your own, that's totally fine, as long as you only ever catch one.”

All three of them shook hands on the agreement, and returned their attentions to their three companions. The PokéMon seemed to be following the conversation with great interest, each standing in front of their respective trainers and simply turning their heads when someone new spoke. Human speech could be understood by PokéMon, and they seemed to get the gist of the conversation, seemingly satisfied with what their trainers had agreed upon.

“Even they seem happy with the decision,” said Dan, chuckling slightly. “But they may be a little bit biased. They were sort of bred to be starters, after all.”

“They still have a choice,” remarked Justice, kneeling down to be more on level with her Charmander. “As trainers, it may be our job to tell them what needs to be done, but there's no reason we can't be friends with them as well. Let's give them all a decision of their own, shall we? Whether or not to travel in their PokéBalls.”

With that said, she plucked the one with the fire symbol off of her belt, holding it out towards the Charmander tentatively as the boys followed suit with their own PokéMon. The Fire type simply shook his head, looking happily at the outside world. Squirtle seemed to be confused at the question, looking up to her trainer as if to make the decision for her. It was Bulbasaur that looked the most reluctant to stay outside, eyeballing the PokéBall more than he did his surroundings.

“I can just call on you when I need you,” Ted murmured, his sudden gentle demeanour almost contrasting his usual cheeriness. “You don't have to be out here if you don't want to.”

Bulbasaur looked at the PokéBall once more, his eyes flicking to the other PokéMon, before shaking his head and nudging Ted's leg. He seemed to be saying that he wanted to stay with Ted, to make sure his trainer was okay, regardless of his gentle nature. The boy simply smiled down at the quadruped, and each trainer returned the PokéBalls to their belts.

“Let's go then, shall we?” asked Ted, at which the other two nodded. Luckily the entrance to Route 1 wasn't that far off from Pallet Town. From all the time that was spent at the laboratory and talking, it was already afternoon, which left the sun giving off its warm rays. As they were traversing the route, they all noticed a a small body lying on the ground, which they all walked up to hesitantly.

Justice felt her eyes water as a wave of nausea as worms crawled over the bloodied and mangled corpse before their eyes. The only discernible features left on the body seemed to be some of the feathers that were still strewn in some places of the body, meaning that it had once been a bird. It was obvious that the corpse had been there for some time, which either meant that there hadn't been many people in the last while, or the ones that had passed through were particularly uncaring.

“We should probably bury the body,” murmured Dan, and although both of the others looked sickly at the thought, they nodded their agreement. They gathered together and moved some of the dirt aside bit by bit, their PokéMon adding in some effort after a few short moments of onlooking the situation. After the hole was dug, Bulbasaur was told to push the body of the bird into the hole, the two other PokéMon filling up the hole again as the Grass-type searched for a small stone to mark the grave. The three trainers stood over it, Justice absentmindedly touching her necklace, which peaked Ted's curiosity.

“Isn't that a symbol of Arceus?” he asked, causing her to be slightly surprised at his knowledge of the subject. “I was told about other religions by my parents, though they devoutly follow Mew.”

“You are correct,” answered Justice, relaxing slightly at his statement. “Archeologists in Sinnoh found ruins detailing the PokéMon, claiming it to be 'The Original One', essentially overriding the stories of all the other Legendaries. I'm not much of a believer, but my mother is, so she gave me this out of some false hope that the God of PokéMon would look out for me.”

“I'm glad I'm not the only one, then,” Ted expressed with relief, the sentiment flooding through his expression. “I don't think I would have liked it very much if I had to hear all of that sort of thing again, just with a different name and face. I've heard enough of it at home.”

“My mother isn't strict about it,” Justice responded, feeling sympathetic for the boy. “She just holds enough belief for all three of us.”

The subject was dropped as the shrill sound of a birds chirping came nearer to them. A Pidgey crowed at the group menacingly, which caused Ted to perk up considerably. He held up his hand to signal for the others to back off, and stepped forward with his Bulbasaur in tow.

“I know you're at a type disadvantage, but don't kill this thing,” Ted murmured. “I want to add a new companion to the team. Tackle this thing!”

The quadruped lurched forward, smashing itself head-first into the small body of the bird PokéMon. Furious, the Pidgey retaliated with its own Tackle, only looking slightly worse for wear. There was quite a bit of dancing around each other, and it took a bit of time before each of them were looking tired. Ted pulled an empty PokéBall from his belt and threw it at the tired Pidgey, enveloping the bird in red light before closing around it.

Ted did a small victory dance when the PokéBall clicked to confirm its catch, before putting the newly caught member of his party on his belt. He returned Bulbasaur to his PokéBall as well, complimenting the dual-type on a job well done. A thoughtful look crossed the boys face before he pulled out his PokéDex, swiftly scanning the new addition into its database. A mechanical voice iterated that the Pidgey was female, and that both of his party members needed medical attention.

“That was pretty awesome,” complimented Dan, his smile genuine. “Pidgey always was one of your favourites. It's really no surprise that it would be your first catch.”

“Thanks, Dan,” Ted replied, mirroring the other boy's smile. “I'm sure she will be a wonderful addition to the team. Might even be a Pidgeot someday.”

Passage of time seemed to go by somewhat quickly, as they all felt it was time for lunch. Justice and Dan had storage balls with food in them, but Ted wasn't prepared at all. His parents had given him enough money to last him a while, but the eleven-year-old boy had probably never gone shopping for himself before. There was a shared look of discontent amongst the entire group for this, at which they all started to think about what they were going to do for food. Before they could come to a conclusion, rustling sounds were heard all around them and they were suddenly surrounded by six furry creatures. The purple fur of the mouse-like creatures betrayed them as a group of Rattata, who looked hungry.

Four PokéMon were released from their PokéBalls to combat the large group, though Ted's were still quite worn out from the earlier battle. Each trainer gave their respective commands, the PokéMon colliding bodies with each other until all of the Rattata were unconscious, but not without cost. Ted's Bulbasaur was in critical condition and his Pidgey had fainted, leaving the other two with their own critically wounded PokéMon. It was looking like they were all going to have to head back to Pallet Town, but first they needed to do something about the unconscious PokéMon before them.

Charmander seemed to have already come to a conclusion, having listened to the earlier conversation about food. Before Justice could say anything, claws ripped into one of the small bodies, stilling any life that was left in the creature. Dan quickly threw a PokéBall at one of the darker-haired rats, gaining an almost automatic capture of the male Rattata, but by the time the mechanism stopped the small salamander had cut his way into the vital organs of the remaining mice.

Justice would have said something on the matter, but knowing glances were shared as the memory of the earlier corpse came back into their brains. In a kingdom of animals - even if they were intelligent animals - there was still a food chain. PokéMon probably ate each other all the time when they were in the wild, which meant it was a natural thing to do.

“Good job, Charmander,” she complimented instead, looking somewhat pensive. “Wild PokéMon are okay, but if it's another persons friend, we should try not to kill them. Okay?” The salamander simply tilted his head slightly, looking thoughtful, before nodding his reply and speaking to the other remaining conscious PokéMon. At first, Justice thought the Fire-type was giving the same speech to the others, since the two boys had nodded their agreement. However, there was suddenly a collective nod amongst the creatures, and they all started looking around as if searching for something.

Each PokéMon came back with some sticks, which were all piled in front of Charmander, who began to methodically sharpen the ends of a few of them. Afterwards, the group of creatures made their way over to the corpses of the Rattata still laying on the ground, Justice clasping a hand over her mouth and the two boys cringing as the fur was removed from the bodies, leaving nothing behind but meat. After this was done, the Fire-type lowered his tail on the remaining pile of sticks, creating a small campfire. Squirtle and Charmander cooked the meat, whilst Bulbasaur searched for berries and other things.

Overall the whole ordeal took thirty minutes, which the three trainers filled by discussing how smart their PokéMon were and how they all felt bad that they couldn't do more to help. When it was all finished, Charmander and Squirtle had their portions of the meal and Bulbasaur had brought back some greens from the surrounding forest. Some of said greenery was given to Squirtle and the rest piled in front of Ted, who was also given a flat stone with the remaining portions of meat on it.

Ted looked torn between disgust and pride, eventually settling on the latter as he cooled down the meat before eating some of it. Both Squirtle and Bulbasaur rubbed against their trainers legs purposefully, and when the trainers knelt down to see what the problem was, the creatures nudged the PokéBalls with the captured PokéMon inside them. The two boys exchanged looks, having to each tell their companions with a forlorn expression that while PokéMon were unconscious, the mechanism on PokéBalls locked, and there was no releasing them until they were healed again. Bulbasaur looked the most hurt by the statement, all of his hard work looking for more food gone to waste. Ted reached out as if to comfort the PokéMon, and the creature nudged against the boys outstretched hand.

“It doesn't have to go to waste,” announced Dan, gaining the attention of everyone. “My mother works at the PokéMart in Viridian City, so she got a discount on some extra storage balls, in case I needed them. We'll just portion up the stuff Bulbasaur gathered and the rest of the meat.”

There was some programming involved, but eventually the storage ball sucked up one portion of greens and the two remaining portions of meat that had been placed in front of Ted. The remainder of what Bulbasaur had gathered was eaten by the Grass-type himself, who had neglected to eat up until that point. With everything said and done, the three trainers headed back to Pallet Town, looking for the iconic red roof of the PokéMon Center.

It wasn't long before they found the large building, which had tiled flooring on the inside, some of its space taken by the sleeping bags of trainers. At the front desk there was a woman with a pink dress and white apron, who smiled in welcome at the group. Another figure was collecting some PokéBalls from the woman, before turning around and revealing a familiar scarred eye.

“Hey, kiddo,” greeted Scarlet, a grin coming over her face as she recognized her sister. “I see you followed in my footsteps with the starter. Who are your two pals?”

“Ted and Dan,” answered Justice, returning the smile and pointing at the boys in turn. “They asked me to join them at the lab, and I thought it would be a good idea. Though we've already experienced some gruesome things together.”

“I did say being a trainer wasn't easy,” replied the red-head, giving a slight chuckle. “But looking back, I think those trials made me stronger as a person. Following the same rule I do?”

“Two PokéMon per route,” exclaimed the brunette, nodding enthusiastically. “Even made a pact with these two boys about it, with no duplicates.” Scarlet simply smiled at this, moving out of the way and motioning towards the counter. Each trainer took their turns with their identification before returning their PokéMon and handing over the PokéBalls. They were each told it would be half an hour whilst their companions were healed, leaving them with some time to waste.

“I have to be off now,” said Scarlet, ruffling the hair of her younger sister slightly before giving a look to the two boys. “Take good care of her, would you?” They nodded their agreement, and the older woman left with a satisfied grin on her face. Just outside, she released the large Charizard and climbed on its back, before lifting off to go wherever it was she was off to next.

“You weren't kidding about the scar,” mused Dan, his eyebrows raised slightly. “It makes me wonder why mom hides hers.”

“I don't blame her,” Ted commented, looking positively perturbed by the whole ordeal again.

Thirty minutes was enough time to go to the PokéMart next door, leaving Ted to pick up a few storage balls with food in them. When they all went to look at the PokéMon related items, Justice was chagrined to remember just then that her older sister had given her a Potion, which would have probably saved the entire group some wasted energy. She muttered an apology to the two boys, but they seemed to be understanding since they were all a little bit in shock of the situation.

A lot of the merchandise came in kits, though you could buy things individually as well. There were those kits with five or ten of the same item, though the ones with ten normal PokéBalls also had an extra, pure white PokéBall with a red center - called a Premier Ball - that came with the package for free. There were also mixed packages of items that were often bundled together to make multiples of five hundred PokéDollars. Of course, some of the items were currently restricted to them, as they hadn't defeated any Gym leaders as of yet.

Justice bought a kit containing two Potions and four Antidotes. The clear containers with white tops had an orange-yellow liquid inside of them, which supposedly healed any ongoing poisoning that happened from a Poison-type move. Dan got a pack of five potions, and Ted got a kit with had two PokéBalls and two Potions in it.

“How are we going to make some money back, with us spending so much?” asked Ted, practical as ever. “I know there's battling other trainers, but there must be other ways.”

“There are usually computer terminals at the PokéMon Centers with jobs that other people want trainers to do,” Justice replied, looking thoughtful. “We may have just missed it on our way out.”

 

[Psycho Monkey]

This is pretty good so far Lady Dwayna. I love how Charmander took initiative in slaying those Rattata for food! The Pokemon World at its best. I'm excited to see how the crew's adventure pans out and how "real world" you make it as far as biology, physics, economy, etc.

 

[Dwayna DragonFire]

Thanks, Brian. Happy you're enjoying the story so far.

Chapter Three

After purchasing everything, the group headed back to the PokéMon Center to look for the terminal. There was a high-tech-looking box labelled 'Job Requests' on the right wall next to some vending machines, a slot on the front with a screen above it reading 'Insert PokéDex'. Justice decided to go first, watching as the high tech holographic display came up. Her picture was displayed along with Charmander, empty spots where the other five might go and other ones in the shape of Gym Badges.

“Welcome, Justice Dellacott,” said a mechanical, feminine voice. “ You have taken zero jobs so far. Please choose an option.” The screen displaying her face and PokéMon quickly minimized into the corner, whilst the screen displayed several different options. Jobs went from Easy to Hard, there was an option for placing or removing a request, and another one to check how many jobs a person had taken.

“Easy Jobs,” stated Justice, at which the screen highlighted the option before opening a list. Each request was numbered and sorted by which date they had been registered. Most of them were 'Find X for me' - where X could be berries, items, or even PokéMon.

“Berry requests look to be the easiest,” remarked Dan, looking towards Ted with a meaningful gaze. “Especially for your Bulbasaur.”

“That may be so,” Justice commented in reply. “But we're meant to do these jobs by ourselves.” Nonetheless, she picked a couple of berry collection requests and one request to find what were known as Shards, supposedly found more often in caves and dirt. I will have to do some digging for that one, she thought to herself, But it will be worth it.

She completed taking requests and retrieved her PokéDex, letting the other two take their turns. Ted seemed to take Dan's words to heart, picking a few more of the berry requests for himself. Being his quirky self, Dan picked out a couple requests to find specific PokéMon that people wanted to see. They all seemed to have their preferences, but were satisfied with the jobs they took.

“If we forget what we need to do, can we look it up again somewhere?” questioned the ever curious Ted, looking somewhat baffled. “I've already forgotten the specifics.”

“The requests have been programmed into your PokéDex,” Justice replied, a friendly smile on her face. “Just scan in whatever berries, items, or PokéMon you find and it will alert you if they match the specifications of the request.”

“Very handy things, aren't they?” remarked Dan, the large grin returning to his face. “I guess this makes our deal a bit more challenging for me, since I took some jobs with specific PokéMon in them.”

“Excuse me,” interrupted a familiar voice, which turned out to be the nurse at the front desk. “Your PokéMon are ready to go again. If you could come and collect them, please.” They took their turns presenting identification again, each obtaining their PokéBalls and releasing their PokéMon. Rattata seemed a bit overwhelmed that he was without other Rattata, so Dan returned him. Pidgey seemed a bit skittish at first, but she recognized Ted and flew up to perch on the boy's shoulder.

“Do be careful if you're going back out,” warned the nurse, looking concerned. “It will be nighttime soon, and you wouldn't want to be caught in the dark by restless PokéMon.”

With that said, the trainers bid her farewell and went on their way back to Route 1. The sun was setting as they passed through the second patch of tall grass, which left them thinking it was time to make camp. Luckily they all had their own tents, so it was just a matter of who would take watch so they weren't disturbed by wild PokéMon.

“I'll have first watch,” Ted decided, looking somewhat nervous even through his confidence. “After we have dinner, I'll start and go until ten. I'll then wake up Dan at ten, who will go until one. Justice will take over at one and go until sunrise, because Charmander can light the way until dawn.” The three companions seemed to agree on this, so they all sat down to have a meal, using up the stored portions from the previous day to help feed Justice and Dan's PokéMon.

Charmander lit a small campfire for Ted, who decided he would let his two PokéMon hunt for their own food. Bulbasaur simply ate some leaves that were around, whilst Pidgey decided to fly its way into the nearby forested area. She chirped every so often, as if to let Ted that she was doing okay, at which the boy smiled and made cooing sounds back.

There was a sudden rustling in the trees, at which Pidgey came racing back out of the forest, chirping in a more panicked manner towards Ted. It didn't take long to see why, a soft buzzing noise approaching as a large bug came out of the forest. The boy took a quick moment to capture a picture with the PokéDex, which identified the PokéMon as a female Ledyba, due to the fact that her antennae were short for her body-size.

“It's just a bug, Pidgey,” muttered Ted. “But then again, you don't have any Flying-type moves yet. I may need to call Bulbasaur in to help you, if you need it.” The Pidgey seemed to relax more noticeably at his statement, and the Grass/Poison-type decided to step in beside the Pidgey and bark his name at the Bug-type PokéMon, making it two against one.

“Tackle!” the boy exclaimed, at which both PokéMon leaped at the Ledyba. The Bug-type deftly got out of the way of the Bulbasaur, but was crashed into by the Pidgey instead. Ledyba traded blows with both PokéMon, but in the end it was no match for two on one. The two companions of Ted only looked a little bit worse for wear, and the Bug-type was unconscious. Now to make the hard decision, thought Ted, remembering how Charmander tore into the bodies of the Rattata from before. To capture or kill.

He didn't have to think long on it, as Pidgey had already started scooting itself towards the form now laying on the ground. Ted sighed softly and decided to look away as the bird tore into the body of the Bug-type, the distinct sounds of her beak snapping together making the boy feel somewhat nauseous. I guess nature is sometimes cruel that way, he pondered. I'll have to accept that sooner or later.

Luckily the rest of the night was uneventful for him, so he threw some more kindling on the fire and went to wake up Dan. At first the other boy was grumpy, but he got up to take his shift, releasing both of his PokéMon. As Ted drifted of to sleep with his PokéMon by his side, Dan sat quietly by the fire. The first couple of hours of the second shift were quiet, save for the sounds of bugs and owls. Near the last hour of his shift, however, Dan heard the grass around them rustle with life.

Two more Rattata skittered out from the darkness, looking much stronger than the ones they had encountered earlier. At first, his Rattata looked happy to see some of its kindred again, but soon found himself tumbling backwards as one of the other two Quick Attacked him. He reluctantly retaliated, but it wasn't likely he could take another blow like that.

“Let Squirtle do most of the work,” said Dan, strategies already forming in his mind. “You can back her up with some of your own Tackles.” With that said, the two PokéMon went to work on the others, eventually emerging victorious. Dan's Rattata looked critically wounded by the end, so the boy decided to use one of his five potions. With a press of the button, the boy looked on amazed as the wounds on the PokéMon's body knit themselves back together, leaving the Normal-type looking good as new.

Dan wasn't sure what to do with the unconscious Rattata, especially since he already had one of his own. Should I just leave them, or should I let them become dinner? PokéMon needed to eat at some point, and from early he saw just how high maintenance it would be to feed all of them with PokéFood.

“Shouldn't let them go to waste,” he murmured, which Squirtle seemed to understand. She had the Rattata sharpen another stick for her, and Dan turned away, not needing to see that sight again. After a while, the meat was cooked and stored in one of the many storage balls the boy had. Better start stocking up now, he thought, I'm probably going to need it.

As was planned, Justice was woken up to take the last watch. She was still a bit tired from only getting about six hours of sleep, but she figured that if she really needed it, she would have a nap later. Dan went to sleep in his tent, leaving Justice to re-kindle the fire with the help of Charmander.

Chills ran down her spine as she spotted two glowing red eyes staring out from the darkness. Her nightmare the previous day came rushing back into her mind, but instead of being narrowed, these eyes were rounded. The eyes blinked at her and tilted forty-five degrees, as if they were looking at her curiously. Suddenly, with a flutter of small wings , the female Hoothoot approached.

“Let's do this, Charmander,” said the girl, confidence lacing her tone. “Scratch attack!” The salamander willingly obliged, his talons sinking dangerously into the owls body. The Hoothoot seemed to look harder at the Charmander before crashing into his body, starting the full on fight. After a short while another couple gashes appeared on the owl's body, leaving it looking quite bloody whilst the Charmander was merely bruised. Justice caught the Hoothoot soon after, smiling at her good fortune. The girl praised her companion, deciding to let out the wounded owl straight away to heal with a Potion. The rest of the night was quiet, save for the sounds of creatures both sleeping and awake. Justice used that time to plan her next moves, which would probably consist of digging up shards.

In the early morning, the trainers all related their stories to each other, the two boys happy that the girl had gotten her second companion. They all had breakfast and set on their way again, fighting off a group of five Pidgeys in the third patch of tall grass along the route. As they rounded the corner to a long stretch of dirt path, they saw at least eight berry trees laying at the edge of the forest. The trees themselves were far smaller than the regular trees, had varying colours and shapes, some still flowering in a few places but ultimately had at least a few salvageable berries each.

Justice and Ted went to work scanning in berries and picking them if they needed to. Oran Berries grew on two pink trees, were round and blue, and known for their healing properties. On a different pink tree, purple and brown Chesto Berries grew, known for their dryness and ability to cure a PokéMon of Sleep. Most of the berries found on the route cured Status ailments or rejuvenated energy in some way.

“Technically I've already completed one of my requests,” Ted murmured, looking solemn. “But that's the one that requires twenty of anything. I'm going to need at least ten of the berries I picked for parts of the other ones.”

“That can happen,” commented Justice. “Especially with berry requests. If need be, I'm sure we could share -” Her sentiment was cut off by the sound of growling surrounding them as four grey and black fuzzy bodies swarmed around them. Poochyena were rare to see around Kanto, as they tended to hail from the Johto region, but they weren't entirely unheard of.

“Looks like Poochyena is on my list,” Dan exclaimed, peering at the 'ALERT' symbol that had appeared on the screen of his PokéDex. “Let me take care of this, guys!” Squirtle and Rattata both made primal sounds, turning the attention of the dogs onto them instead of the other trainers. It was a particularly long battle, with Squirtle spouting out streams of Bubbles at one point and Rattata doling out a Quick attack, but Dan won the fight and had caught a PokéMon required to complete one of the requests he had.

“You made sure they weren't trades, right?” enquired Ted, looking at his best friend with scrutiny. “You always told me that when PokéMon get traded, they often resent their new trainers and can take years to build up trust again.”

“I made sure,” Dan replied, a smile on his face. “Researchers will pay a lot of money to just have a look at a specimen rare to the region. I figure that's why they're the hardest requests to take in any category. But since they are rare, maybe you would want one as well?” Ted simply nodded, drawing out a PokéBall from his belt and throwing it at an unconscious Poochyena. Justice was about the speak up, but the PokéBall breaking apart merely seconds later and releasing the unconscious body proved everything her sister had taught her.

“I don't understand,” muttered Ted, looking utterly bewildered. “Shouldn't it be easier to catch them if they're unconscious?”

“They generally are, as long as you're the one who defeated them,” Justice replied, memories from earlier on in her life flooding back into her mind. “Dan defeated all of them, so he's the only one who can capture them at all, if they even wanted to go.”

“But how is that possible?” Ted asked, frowning even more than before. “Do they really choose to come with a person? And if so, how do they know who's throwing the PokéBall or not?”

“They do choose,” said Justice, looking thoughtful as both boys paid attention to her. “There is already complex programming in the PokéBalls, including a function that not many people learn about. A man named Kurt helped to invent what is known as the DNA Chip. Installed into the very back of the circular bands you see around the middles of PokéBalls, this chip absorbs your DNA in the few seconds that you palm the PokéBall before throwing it. When the creature is captured, said DNA is translated to the caught PokéMon, who will recognize it as yours regardless of status, and they will then decide whether or not they want to accept you as a guardian figure – someone who looks out for their health and well being. If they accept, you have a new companion. If not, they are released and the PokéBall breaks due to the programming overload of the capturing mechanism being rejected.”

Ted and Dan simply looked on in awe of her knowledge of the subject, and after the information was processed, the boys reluctantly accepted having to make some more meals for their PokéMon. They all continued down the path, finding five more berry trees around another bend, some of which completed one of Ted's more specific requests and on of Justice's. It had only been a few hours before they heard the distinct sounds of crunching feet accompanied by human voices.

“Well look here, bro,” said the older of the two males that approached, his grin almost manic. “Some weak looking trainers from Pallet.”

“Let's beat 'em up, then,” replied the other, glaring at Justice specifically. “And take their girl, too.”

“This girl is our friend,” exclaimed Dan, stepping in front of Justice with an arm outstretched. “We won't let you just take her, even if you beat us.”

“No one else around to stop us,” replied the older-looking brother, shrugging nonchalantly. “Might as well make this a legal match too, so we can not only beat you up, but take some of your money.” At that, he pulled out his PokéDex and opened it, pressing a button and activating a screen that said 'Match Pending'. Dan reluctantly did the same, both boys registering two out of three PokéMon.

They stepped further apart, the older brother still grinning like a crazy person. Squirtle stepped forward at Dan's command, and Rattata was also sent out from his side. The older sibling, named Anzo, threw out a Pidgey and a furry mammal known as Sentret, a Normal-type that stood on its striped tail a lot of the time, but could also stand on two legs or run around on all fours.

“Quick Attack and Bubble!” called Dan, right about the same time Anzo called “Defense Curl and Sand-Attack!” Rattata swiped the side of the Sentret before it curled up into a little ball, whilst both opposing PokéMon got pelted with bubbles. The Pidgey flapped its wings quickly in Squirtle's direction, blowing some dirt right into the Water-type's eyes.

Whilst the battle was going on, Justice pondered how such people got to be trainers in the first place. A lot of the exams are purely knowledge based, she remembered. Not everyone starts off with the PokéMon from the Laboratory, either. As soon as you have a license, you can start to capture PokéMon. The mentality might run in the entire family. I shudder to think if that is true...

After more colliding of bodies, even with a few misses on Squirtle's part, the Water-type was the only PokéMon left conscious on the field. Ted and Justice cheered for Dan, whilst Anzo looked pissed off. He nodded to his younger brother, Bernard, who beckoned Ted forward with PokéDex outstretched. The boy stepped forward to defend Justice as well, flashing her a smile as he came up against Bernard. It was going to be another two versus two match, a Rattata and Hoothoot with the younger sibling.

“Vine Whip and Tackle!” called Ted, at which Pidgey launched toward the Hoothoot whilst two vines shot out from the back of Bulbasaur to crack against the skin of the Rattata, as the creature Quick Attacked him, leaving visible welts in the rodents fur.

“Hypnosis,” Bernard commanded, at which the Hoothoot's red eyes began to glow brighter. Pidgey happened to be looking straight at the other Flying-type at the time, so she was hit full on with the Psychic-type move, falling asleep within moments. Bulbasaur kept up its assault on the Rattata, whilst the Hoothoot pummelled the other bird with its own body. It didn't take long for Pidgey to wake back up and attack again, but the damage was done. Pidgey fainted first, leaving Bulbasaur to fight the other two. The strong Vine Whip took out the Rattata and the remaining two crashed into each other, eventually ending the match in a draw.

“That leaves the both of us to double team the girl with our last PokéMon,” sneered Anzo, Bernard grinning along with the sentiment. “I doubt that this is going to take very long at all.” Justice simply glared back at the both of them, registering their double battle with her two PokéMon.

 

[Dwayna DragonFire]

Chapter Four

When Justice sent out her Charmander and released a Hoothoot of her own, the two boys suddenly looked somewhat perturbed. Nonetheless, they confidently threw out their PokéBalls, soon making it obvious why they were suddenly nervous. One of them was a Ledyba, and the other looked to be a red caterpillar-like PokéMon, known more commonly as Wurmple. The bug had two yellow stingers on its back and one on its head, making it seem that it could have a Poison-type attack.

“Ember that Wurmple,” Justice commanded, at which Charmander shot out a small flame that hit the body of the Bug-type, scorching the PokéMon badly enough for it to be in critical condition. Hoothoot followed up with a Tackle to take it out, leaving only the Ledyba conscious on their side.

“Supersonic that Charmander, Ledyba!” called Bernard, at which the Bug-type emitted the strangest sound waves Justice had ever heard. But the Fire-type moved quickly, launching another Ember at the Bug-type, which suddenly ignited. The Ledyba let out a shrill noise as it fell to the ground and burned to a crisp, its last movements the twitching in its legs.

“You killed Ledyba,” murmured Bernard, looking utterly astonished. “You bitch! I'LL KILL YOU!” The boy launched himself at Justice, but was soon screaming himself as Charmander slashed his claws down the boy's leg, leaving a set of gashes behind. Anzo rushed over to Bernard as the younger boy collapsed, tears streaming down his eyes from the pain. Both of them looked at Justice with nothing but hatred in their eyes, and even despite herself, Justice looked sympathetic.

“Accidents happen,” said Dan, whilst Ted was holding his PokéDex in hand for some reason. “It's an uncommon occurrence, but sometimes Fire attacks do ignite, causing the Burned status effect. Even if you had returned her to your PokéBall, she might have died there or been horribly scarred.”

“I don't care what you say,” Bernard snapped, his voice in agony. “That bitch killed my Ledyba. So you better watch your back, c-” He cut off his sentence as the sounds of sirens and helicopter blades neared, two of the aircrafts coming over the treetops. One had the typical symbol of a hospital, the other of the Kanto Police Department. As the helicopters touched down, Ted snapped his PokéDex shut, his reason for holding it open in the first place now clear as day.

The female police officer that stepped out from the helicopter asked what the problem was. Doctors lifted Bernard onto a stretcher and tended to his leg, whilst Anzo followed them into the other helicopter. The group of three described what had happened, from how the two brothers had harassed them down to how the Ember had suddenly ignited to kill the Ledyba.

“I see,” mused the officer, taking down notes as they talked. “Well, losses do happen sometimes. It's unfortunate for his Ledyba, but yours isn't the only complaint we've gotten about these two. At this point, I think we're going to have to suspend their licenses for a couple of months.”

“Thank you, officer,” Ted replied, the other two nodding their agreement. “We appreciate that you would do such a thing.”

“Don't mention it,” she said, giving a smile to all of them. “You helped us find them, though it may have been by coincidence. It's likely they're going to have their licenses revoked permanently at this rate, though I doubt that will stop them. In any case, good luck, and keep up the good work.”

As the helicopters pulled away, the group of three exchanged glances, Justice looking particularly worried. I have a feeling they'll be back for me, she thought to herself. Who knows if these two will be here to help me out by then. A hand grasped her right shoulder, at which she started slightly and looked up, only to find herself staring into Ted's blue eyes.

“Don't worry,” he affirmed, giving her a gentle smile. “We'll be here for you if those assholes try anything again.” Dan nodded his agreement, tentatively clapping a hand against her other shoulder to show further support.

“Thanks, guys,” Justice replied, a smile spreading over her lips. “It was certainly an eye-opening experience. Glad that we decided early on that we wouldn't fight each other like that. I think I more than proved that girls can be just as threatening as boys at training in that fight.”

“Well of course,” Dan stated, his tone matter-of-fact. “Some of the champions over the ages have been female, like the famous Leaf and Crystal. We were cheering you on just as much as you were us, if not more so, since those guys seemed to have a thing against women.”

“Yeah,” agreed Ted, the smile on his facing becoming slightly wider. “We weren't going to let them get off easy for threatening to take you. But you can certainly take care of yourself, being as awesome as you are.” She blushed at the complement, and if she wasn't imagining things, there was a slight tinge to Ted's cheeks as well. 'A pretty girl, no less,' she remembered him saying at the laboratory.


“You're both pretty awesome yourselves,” she complimented back, feeling quite cheerful. “Now, let's get back on the path, shall we?” They all went back to the dirt path, which lead up a small flight of stairs that had been carved out of the rocky ledge. Just up the stairs and around the bend there were some trees scattered around, not quite part of the forest but still obstacles in their path that they needed to avoid.

There were a couple more groups of PokéMon along the way, which left some of their companions tired. After they traversed another set of steps, Dan had to use another Potion on his Poochyena, who had taken quite a beating from a couple of Sentret. Suddenly, there was an explosion in the nearby forest, causing several PokéMon to flee, one such body crashing into Justice's leg and sending a static shock through her body.

Gold eyes peered up at her from a PokéMon that looked like a lion cub. The female Shinx had a mostly black backside, though all four of her paws were blue in color. She seemed even more frightened when she looked up to find the face of a human staring down at her, covering her face with her paws.

“I'm not going to hurt you,” Justice stated calmly, causing the Shinx to look up. “Not unless you want a fight. Maybe you would like some help instead?” The Electric-type looked unsure at first, but a glance at the Charmander beside the girl seemed to make the cat-like PokéMon realize something. Shinx nodded, racing back into the forest, Justice and the two boys following after.

The problem soon made itself apparent, a small crater in the ground with burnt ash around it. Whatever had happened looked like a Selfdestruct gone wrong, but what was more troubling to the Shinx in particular was the other set of burnt remains. Longer tufts of blue fur stuck out from the blackened face of another Shinx, obviously a relative of the one that had lead them here. Justice knelt down next to the body, pulling out her PokéDex, which beeped with zero life signs.

“I'm afraid that your friend is dead,” Justice murmured quietly, looking just as saddened at the news as the living Shinx before her. “But perhaps we can find out who did it. Let's look around for clues.” She released Hoothoot as well, telling both of her PokéMon to try to find anything out of the ordinary. The two boys decided to help as well, all of their companions keeping an eye out or using their other senses.

It was Poochyena that brought back a scrap of blue cloth, which Justice examined thoroughly. There was a blue and red pattern on it that looked like a warped DNA helix, shaped in such a way that it resembled a letter H. A shiver ran down her spine, and when she showed the scrap of cloth to the other two, the same chilled look washed over their faces.

“Team Helix,” mused Dan, his expression solemn. “Known for completing their sinister plots by whatever means necessary, especially if it involves casualties. More sinister than Team Rocket ever was, since they not only steal but manipulate DNA of PokéMon to create mutations.”

“They may very well have been testing out one such experiment, before booking it in whatever direction they went,” Justice commented, looking determined all of a sudden. “We should try to stop them wherever we can, if we can. For the greater good of everyone, especially innocent PokéMon.” At this, another static shock ran up her leg, but this one seemed to pack less of a punch. The Shinx seemed to want to come along, throwing one last glance at the corpse before looking back at Justice.


“All right, then,” replied the girl, smiling down at the PokéMon. “You can certainly come, if you want to.” Justice held out an empty PokéBall towards the Shinx, at which the lion cub pressed one of her paws on the button. The Electric-type dissolved into red light, and the PokéBall dinged automatically as the Shinx accepted her new trainer.

“I have to say, that has to be the most awesome way of capturing a PokéMon yet,” Ted exclaimed, sharing a smile with Justice. “Completely proves what you said about them making a choice, too.”

Not much was said as they finally left the forest, coming around another bend to see the top of a mostly teal building sticking out between some trees. This signified the gateway between a Route and a City, which meant that they would be able to pass through to get to Viridian. But we're only passing through Viridian City, remembered Justice. We need to go through Viridian Forest to get to Pewter City first.

After they passed through the gateway, they noticed that the city itself was much larger than Pallet Town, Mount Silver peaking up over the trees to the west. The entire group looked to it with awe and wonder, sharing a knowing glance between themselves. In going through the mountain, one would find themselves at the Indigo Plateau, making them think on the ultimate dream to become the PokéMon League Champion. It would still be quite a while before they dared hope to take on the challenges found there, especially since they hadn't even obtained their first badge.

The group went to the Viridian City PokéMon Center to heal up the wounded PokéMon in their parties, Ted needing the most attention since both of his companions were unconscious from the battle with the two brothers. While they were waiting for their friends to be taken care of, they stopped by the Job terminal and Justice decided to demonstrate how to complete a job request. She pulled up the menu of job requests she had taken, selecting the berry request that she had the ingredients for and the 'Complete Request' option for it. A panel in the side of the terminal popped out suddenly, with a storage ball resting in the center of an indent. She placed the berries into the storage ball and returned it to the indent, the panel closing shut and registering the data.

“Request Complete,” stated the slightly feminine tones of the computer, “Payment had been attributed to your account. Would you like to continue?”

Justice firmly stated that she didn't wish to continue, at which the screen returned to the main menu. She ejected her PokéDex and let the boys complete whatever requests they were able to. Ted did the same as her, only attributing the same small amount of twenty-five PokéDollars per berry. On Dan's turn, the picture of his Poochyena appeared highlighted and a screen popped up to confirm whether or not he wished to contact the request giver. After he said yes, the screen said it had connected, and the estimated arrival time would be after his PokéMon were finished being healed.

“So, Ted,” said Dan, wanting to gather his friends attention. “Do you think you're going to go back to Route One to try and make another friend, or do you just want to continue forward?”

“That's a good question,” replied Ted, looking thoughtful. “In a way, I feel like I'm a bit behind you guys. But it was like Justice said, I don't have to make as many friends as possible. I should focus myself more on the ones that I do have, like Pidgey and Bulbasaur.”

“Which brings me to another question,” commented Dan, this time turning to Justice. “You do know that Pewter Gym focuses on the Rock-type, right? You have three PokéMon who would be at a major disadvantage. What exactly are you going to do about that?”

“I don't know,” Justice admitted, though she shrugged her shoulders as if she had little concern. “Not everything is about type advantage either. I'll either have to make sure my current companions are extra strong, or I'll have to find a PokéMon that would help me in that situation. Not to mention there are ways that a person can teach their PokéMon special techniques that they wouldn't learn normally.”

“Technical Manuals, if I recall correctly,” commented Ted, causing the other two to raise their eyebrows. “I had to take the test to get my license too, you know, and I obviously passed or I wouldn't even be here. They're books written about these special techniques, and you can win them through small tournaments or get them if you have sufficient funds. They tend to be quite expensive, so I would suggest looking into the tournaments that might be happening in the near future.”

As it turned out, there was going to be a tournament for 'newbies' in Pewter City a couple of weeks from then. Either way, the group was going to have to make their way onto Route Two, and then face whatever trials Viridian Forest had in store for them. A dark forest full of poisonous bugs where you can get lost easily, thought Justice, Wonderful. The group got interrupted from their thoughts as they were told that their Pokémon were ready to go, but after they had collected their companions there was still the issue of Dan's request being completed.

“Excuse me,” said another feminine voice, a woman in a lab coat peering at the group, showing them a license that confirmed that she was a researcher. “Is one of you Daniel Miller?”

“That would be me,” Dan confirmed, pulling a PokéBall off of his belt. “I assume this is about the Poochyena?” The woman nodded and watched as the small dog was released from the PokéBall. She immediately began to take notes on her clipboard, the Dark-type watching her warily as she walked around him. A low growl emitted from his maw if she stepped too close to either him or Dan, and the Poochyena also puffed up the hair on his tail to try and look more intimidating. The researcher nervously stepped away after that, simply finishing off her notes and pulling out a card.

“May I see your PokéDex, please?” she asked, at which Dan pulled out the device and handed it over. She pressed a few buttons and held her researching license up to the PokéDex when it was asked for. 'Request Complete' flashed onto the screen before disappearing at another touch of a button, returning to the standard scanning mode.

“That actually seemed pretty simple,” muttered Dan, looking up at the woman with slight confusion on his face. “Is that really all you wanted?”

“You'll find most researchers learn from simple observation,” replied the woman, a slight smile on her face. “For instance, I can tell that though this Poochyena is young, he has already grown a little bit under your guidance, and has much more potential to do so. I wish you much luck in the future, and thank you again for your assistance.” She waved and turned on her heel, leaving the trainers to stare after her, still bewildered by the whole ordeal.

“Researchers are weird,” mused Ted, at which the other two nodded their agreement before the group decided to leave. Since Viridian City was so large, it took them a while to find the entrance to Route 2. The path was famously split in two, the eastern way lead to what was known as Diglett's Cave, so called due to the abundance of Diglett and its respective evolution.

The western path was much shorter than its eastern counterpart, probably due to the fact that there was a large forest that cut through most of it. After fighting a group of Caterpie and having some lunch, the group found themselves staring upwards at the looming canopy of Viridian Forest, the only thing separating it from the rest of civilization being a small Gateway building tucked between some trees. It looked out of place, but that was probably because it was built in as opposed to being a natural thing.

After going through the building, things got quite a bit darker due to all of the trees and the shade that overcast their current position. There were still some patches of sunlight shining through, but the Forest was mostly dark. After walking into the forest a little bit, there were several paths that diverted off from the main entrance, none of the grass or dirt betraying which paths had been used the most.

“Small wonder why people get lost in here,” mused Ted, the other two nodding their agreement. “Let's stick to the paths as much as possible, and we should end up at Pewter eventually.”

“Don't forget to keep your PokéDex close,” Dan commented, patting the pocket that held the device in question. “It has a map with GPS built in.”

“We could also follow the general maze rule as well,” replied Justice. “Follow the left wall. It may end up with us re-tracing our steps quite a bit, but if the paths eventually comes to the entrance of Pewter City, then we can -”

Her sentence was cut off as a groaning sound came from their right, as well as some scraping sounds. The group called their starters to the ready, but a human hand pulled itself up over some steps, a bloodied face coming into view. A small blue bird with cloud-like wings hopped up beside the male trainer, looking quite concerned and trying to tug him further up the stairs.

“G-get out,” stammered the trainer, coughing up blood. “Wh-while you still c-can.” With a last gasp, the male trainer collapsed dead in front of the group, the Swablu crying mournfully for its companion.

“Well,” stated Ted, looking even more disgusted than before. “That is certainly encouraging.”

 

[Psycho Monkey]

Team Helix? Using your own personal team is an interesting twist that makes your fic that much more appealing because it adds the suspense as to their motivations and what role they'll play in the overall story. Leaving off on such a cliffhanger also has me craving more. I really want to know if that man is dead because of Team Helix or if Viridian Forest is just that treacherous!

As for the scene where the trio enter Viridian City for the first time, I always pictured Mt. Silver being further into the Johto region. Any mountains visible from Viridian would surely be Victory Road, but hey, your world your geography rules right? Certainly can't complain about that.