TGW
Wordsmith Extraordinairé
- 7
- Posts
- 15
- Years
- Seen May 15, 2009
Welcome to my new story! Before I begin, allow me to give you all a bit of background.
The story takes place in a group of islands called the Clover Islands (Stem Island, the Mainland, and the four Petals). Our hero, Taven, is the youngest of three brothers, the others being Kreth and Marrok, all of which are experienced and powerful Pokemon trainers. I hope to make this a trilogy, set in chronological order.
I feed off of your criticism (good or bad) so please, please, please, please comment on it :D
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Chapter 1:
Taven stirred in his bed as the bright, late May sun poured through his window, giving his white walls and carpet a golden tint. He moaned and groaned, doing his best to throw the dark blue sheets off of his body. Scratching at his short brown hair, he shuffled his way to the bathroom and ran the shower. After brushing his teeth, he trotted downstairs and said hello to his mother, kissing her on the cheek.
"What's on the agenda for today?" she asked with an inquisitive tone.
"Eh, I don't really know," he answered, stretching his arms. He looked at the black belt that was holding his Pokémon, pinned to the wall by a nail. "I'll probably just look for some more trainers to battle." He took the belt off the wall, equipping it before making his way towards the back door.
"Wait, wait, wait!" she yelled after him.
"Yeah?" he asked, picking up his backpack and trying to inch his way out of the door.
"I need you to run an errand for me," she began. He groaned loudly and melodramatically. "As I was saying! Do you know Erin? That neighbor girl?"
Taven's face turned slightly red, so he turned away from his mother and looked out the window. "Yeah..." Although they've known each other for years, Taven and Erin haven't said too much to each other. He had always
"Well, she's just started training Pokémon, so the professor asked me to give her this bag," she pulled out a tan sack.
Taven reluctantly took the bag and hiked across his town, shuffling his feet when he got close to Erin's house. As he turned the corner, he saw a young girl laying on a chair in the yard, wearing a tube top and boyshorts. Taven's eyes and mouth were wide open, so awestruck that he didn't realize she was talking.
"Hello...? Taven?" she persisted.
"Oh... heh, sorry about that," he said sheepishly.
"So... what's up?" she asked.
"Well, you just started training, right? Professor Avery wanted to give you these," he held up the bag.
"Oh, cool! Poké Balls! Thanks, Tave!" she said.
"No problem," he said with a smile. There was a slightly awkward pause. "Hey... are you busy right now?"
"No... well, nothing important, why?" she asked.
"Follow me," Taven told her.
They walked through her front and backyard, and he took her hand to help her down a steep hill.
"You didn't have to do that you know," she told him with a false, flirtatious anger.
"Oh?" he said, smiling and flirting back.
"I can take care of myself just fine," she proclaimed.
Taven pushed on the inside of his black baseball cap, widening it before putting it on his head. A few minutes of walking lead them to a bright blue pond, filled with clear water. It was truly an oasis in the middle of miles of dark green, lush forest. The tranquility was shattered as she climbed an overhanging tree branch and dived in, splashing the water at Taven. He took off his belt and backpack and cannon balled in, splashing her.
"So, how'd you become a trainer?" he said after a period of silence as they were both swimming in the pond.
"Well, I was born on the southern tip of the Stem, pretty much lived on the beach, so I was exposed to water Pokémon all my life. My dad's a really good trainer, so I guess that that influenced me too, but I kinda use it Pokémon as an excuse to travel," she said with a laugh. "How bout you?" she asked sweetly.
"Huh..." he began, "well, I'm the last of three brothers, so it's always been competitive... and when they got into training, I did too."
"Ouch, you must've gotten you're ass kicked daily," she joked, poking him in the ribs.
"Heh, sometimes..." he said blankly, slightly distant.
"Taven! Taven!" a high voice yelled.
Taven looked up, realizing that he spaced out for a second. He looked around for Erin and saw that she was on the other side, swimming under the water.
"Taven! Where are you?" the voice yelled again, coming nearer.
He immediately realized who it was; Derek, the little black-haired neighbor boy who always bugged Taven to play with him. Derek emerged from the foliage, leaves and twigs in his long hair.
"Hey! Who's that?" he said in an unnecessarily loud voice. Erin poked her head up from under the water.
"I'm Erin," she said, walking up to the young boy. Derek eyeballed her worse than Taven did.
"AHEM. What's up?" Taven asked, forcing him to divert his eyes.
"Well," he began, pulling out a disk from his pocket, "your mom told me to give you this! I think it's a message from Kreth!"
That made Taven get up and come towards Derek.
"My brother, Kreth?" he asked.
"Well, duhhhh," Derek answered, handing him the disk.
Taven snatched it away quickly, pulling out his PokéDex and pushing the disk into the slot on the bottom. The screen popped on and Kreth appeared on it, bringing a faint smile to Taven's face. He noticed that Erin was looking over his shoulder, and it made him smile even more.
Taven's brother began to speak on the screen. "Hiya, lil' bro! You're probably wondering why I sent you a message like this instead of calling, but I felt that this was too important," Kreth cleared his throat and continued. "As you know, I am a leader in Clover Islands' most prestigious trainer's league, the Guild of Elites. However, you may not know that we are holding a Pokémon tournament this year; the prize: a membership in the Guild! I'm sure that I don't have to ask if you're in, so I'll cut to the chase: to weed out the trainers who don't belong in the first place, I've sent some of the Guild's champions all around the islands. You must find them and defeat them in a battle, which will earn you a key! You will not be allowed into our Battle Colosseum without all of these keys! I'm giving you four months to take them all and prime your Pokémon for battle; after which, the tournament will begin! So, I'll end it here and leave you to your mission. A map has been attached to this message detailing the general area of each champion. Oh, and a little hint: I'd recommend you starting your searches in the big cities, because if the champions aren't there, there's still usually a member or two who are willing to help you out. Bye bye!"
The screen flipped to a loading bar, filling up as it downloaded the map. Taven flipped it closed, dumbstruck with his mouth agape.
"Sooo, are you gonna do it?" Derek asked pesteringly.
"Of course..." he replied. There was a long pause where Taven simply stared into space. He looked at Derek suddenly. "In fact, there's no time to lose. I have everything I need with me now," he pressed a button on the side of the PokéDex, popping the disk out of the slot. He stuck his hand out to Derek. "Will you give this to my mom and ask her to play it? Tell her that I need to go now." He knew that she would understand.
"Uh... sure thing, but don't you think that that's a little irresponsible?" asked Derek, tilting his head to the side.
"Hmph. You're too smart for your age," he said, slinging the backpack over his shoulder. Taven picked up a rock and skipped it across the pond. "Make sure you do that right away, I gotta go."
"Good luck!" Derek said, bowing.
"Erin..." he began.
"Yeah?" her eyes lit up.
"I want you to have this," he ripped a red crystal from the black thread around his neck. "My brother gave it to me before he left home."
"Taven... no," Erin protested.
"I don't know how long I'm gonna be, but make sure you don't forget me," Taven commanded, putting it in her hand. He walked away wordlessly, leaving her standing there. As he walked away, he knew that he played it perfectly, he even mustered a smirk.
When Taven finally got out of the green foliage of the forest, he pulled out his PokéDex and opened the map. It showed the Clover Islands, with six areas marked in red: the center of the mainland, the bottom of the stem island, and on each of the four petal islands.
"Kreth was underexaggerating when he said 'general area,'" Taven thought to himself as he stared at the large marked areas. "I guess I'll take his advice, head for Eukira."
Eukira was the largest city of the Fourth Petal, which was the rightmost petal island and the island on which Taven lived. He pulled out a black and red Luxury Ball from his belt and pressed the golden button on the front of it. A flash of red light shot out of the button, revealing the glowing silhouette of a three-headed bird.
"Kneel, Dodrio," Taven commanded.
Dodrio got on both knees, allowing Taven to climb on her back. A cool wind began to blow through the area, pushing away the stuffy heat of the late morning. All three heads let out an inquisitive chirp in unison.
"Forward!" Taven yelled enthusiastically. Dodrio burst forward, running through light green valleys and prairies. Taven's hat nearly flew off his head multiple times, so he snatched it off and put it in his backpack pocket.
A dark figure soon came up on the horizon; Taven sped up to reach it. His heart jumped as he realized that it was a trainer. It was a thin man in a trenchcoat, long intensely red hair down his back.
"Well, well, well," Taven proclaimed.
"Hah! Don't even start it, kid. I'm not battling a snot-nosed brat, I have things to do," he said in a deep, smug, voice.
"Aww... scared you're gonna lose, hmm?" he prodded.
"Fine," he said, throwing out a ball. "Go, Noctowl!"
A large, brown owl popped out of the ball, only a few inches shorter than Taven.
Taven jumped off of his Dodrio, whispering encouraging words to each of its heads.
"Zen Headbutt!" the man commanded his owl.
The bushy feathers on Noctowl's head glowed as he flew into the air and darted towards Dodrio.
"Quick Attack!" Taven commanded.
Dodrio began sprinting towards Noctowl, kicking up grass and leaving a white trail behind her.
The two crashed head on, knocking each other backwards and onto the ground. Dodrio got back up, shaken.
"Dodrio, hit 'em with Drill Peck!" Taven screamed quickly.
Dodrio ran at Noctowl, who was still sitting down and dizzy. All three beaks began to glow and expand as she lunged at Noctowl, striking him twice in the head and once the body. Noctowl was rolled over the grass, defeated.
The man only had two Pokémon with him, meaning he was down to his last. He drew a Seviper out onto the field, a huge, dark blue snake. Taven followed his lead, swapping out Dodrio for a new Pokémon.
"Go, Gengar!" he yelled. "Use Hypnosis!"
The bulbous, purple ghost pushed his two arms forward, sending black rings out towards Seviper. Seviper's eyes became glazed and he slammed to the ground, asleep. The red haired man shivered due to the presence of the evil P
"Now, Dream Eater!"
Gengar's eyes glowed intensely red, as did the sleepy snake. With a red flash, the Seviper was launched five feet in the air. He flopped back to the ground, sharing the same fate as Noctowl.
"Damn..." the man mumbled. "Well, that was pretty amazing, kid. I could barely lay a scratch on you."
"Thank you, my name is Taven. And you are?"
"I am Sean, but I really need to get going. It was nice fighting you," he said, and hastily walked away.
Taven reswapped Gengar and Dodrio, mounting the three-headed bird once more. Thanks to Dodrio's blinding, breakneck speed, Eukira was on their horizon within four hours of Taven's departure. She sprinted down the hill instinctively, halting only when she reached the dirt path leading to the open town gate.
"Good girl," Taven said, rubbing her brown, fuzzy neck.
He dismounted Dodrio, putting his hat back on and bringing her back into the ball. He quickly walked through the wooden town gate. Taven was greeted by a bustling city full of shops, towering buildings, courtyards, merchants, businessmen, and bikers riding the streets every which way. He decided to try the PokéCenter for information, located near the entrance of city. Taven walked through the automatic, sliding metal door. Inside of the Center was a warm, quiet, healing atmosphere. A few nurses, trainers, and bystanders went about their personal business. Taven briskly walked up to a hefty, bearded man who seemed to be a Pokémon trainer.
"Hello," he said to the man quietly.
"Why hello, there, sonny!" he greeted Taven in a hearty, booming voice. "What can I do ya for?"
"I'm searching for a certain trainer, located in or near the city..." Taven answered.
"Aha! And...?" the man questioned.
"What do you know of the Guild of Elites?" Taven blurted out hastily.
"Hmm..." the man thought, stroking his beard, "not much. I hear they're rather secretive. I've seen a few groups of them, but never outside the city courtyards... Yeah, sorry, but that's really all I can tell you, son."
"That'll help," Taven said with a half-smile. "Thank you, sir," he said, bowing as he left the Center.
He reached a stall on the side of the building, that bore a sign reading 'Free Town Maps.' Taven walked up, grabbing one and sitting against the PokéCenter's side. He peered closely at the map, which showed four courtyards in the city, each near a corner. He got up and began jogging through the back streets and alleys, using the quickest routes to get to the south-east courtyard. A giant fountain stood in the middle, shooting jets of water into the air every few seconds. Around it was a cobblestone area, filled with people talking, eating, and sitting on the benches. Within seconds of surveying, Taven laid his eyes upon a group of trainers, dressed in black and speaking in a secretive whisper.
He ran up to the three, preparing to battle if necessary...
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~TGW...
The story takes place in a group of islands called the Clover Islands (Stem Island, the Mainland, and the four Petals). Our hero, Taven, is the youngest of three brothers, the others being Kreth and Marrok, all of which are experienced and powerful Pokemon trainers. I hope to make this a trilogy, set in chronological order.
I feed off of your criticism (good or bad) so please, please, please, please comment on it :D
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Chapter 1:
Taven stirred in his bed as the bright, late May sun poured through his window, giving his white walls and carpet a golden tint. He moaned and groaned, doing his best to throw the dark blue sheets off of his body. Scratching at his short brown hair, he shuffled his way to the bathroom and ran the shower. After brushing his teeth, he trotted downstairs and said hello to his mother, kissing her on the cheek.
"What's on the agenda for today?" she asked with an inquisitive tone.
"Eh, I don't really know," he answered, stretching his arms. He looked at the black belt that was holding his Pokémon, pinned to the wall by a nail. "I'll probably just look for some more trainers to battle." He took the belt off the wall, equipping it before making his way towards the back door.
"Wait, wait, wait!" she yelled after him.
"Yeah?" he asked, picking up his backpack and trying to inch his way out of the door.
"I need you to run an errand for me," she began. He groaned loudly and melodramatically. "As I was saying! Do you know Erin? That neighbor girl?"
Taven's face turned slightly red, so he turned away from his mother and looked out the window. "Yeah..." Although they've known each other for years, Taven and Erin haven't said too much to each other. He had always
"Well, she's just started training Pokémon, so the professor asked me to give her this bag," she pulled out a tan sack.
Taven reluctantly took the bag and hiked across his town, shuffling his feet when he got close to Erin's house. As he turned the corner, he saw a young girl laying on a chair in the yard, wearing a tube top and boyshorts. Taven's eyes and mouth were wide open, so awestruck that he didn't realize she was talking.
"Hello...? Taven?" she persisted.
"Oh... heh, sorry about that," he said sheepishly.
"So... what's up?" she asked.
"Well, you just started training, right? Professor Avery wanted to give you these," he held up the bag.
"Oh, cool! Poké Balls! Thanks, Tave!" she said.
"No problem," he said with a smile. There was a slightly awkward pause. "Hey... are you busy right now?"
"No... well, nothing important, why?" she asked.
"Follow me," Taven told her.
They walked through her front and backyard, and he took her hand to help her down a steep hill.
"You didn't have to do that you know," she told him with a false, flirtatious anger.
"Oh?" he said, smiling and flirting back.
"I can take care of myself just fine," she proclaimed.
Taven pushed on the inside of his black baseball cap, widening it before putting it on his head. A few minutes of walking lead them to a bright blue pond, filled with clear water. It was truly an oasis in the middle of miles of dark green, lush forest. The tranquility was shattered as she climbed an overhanging tree branch and dived in, splashing the water at Taven. He took off his belt and backpack and cannon balled in, splashing her.
"So, how'd you become a trainer?" he said after a period of silence as they were both swimming in the pond.
"Well, I was born on the southern tip of the Stem, pretty much lived on the beach, so I was exposed to water Pokémon all my life. My dad's a really good trainer, so I guess that that influenced me too, but I kinda use it Pokémon as an excuse to travel," she said with a laugh. "How bout you?" she asked sweetly.
"Huh..." he began, "well, I'm the last of three brothers, so it's always been competitive... and when they got into training, I did too."
"Ouch, you must've gotten you're ass kicked daily," she joked, poking him in the ribs.
"Heh, sometimes..." he said blankly, slightly distant.
"Taven! Taven!" a high voice yelled.
Taven looked up, realizing that he spaced out for a second. He looked around for Erin and saw that she was on the other side, swimming under the water.
"Taven! Where are you?" the voice yelled again, coming nearer.
He immediately realized who it was; Derek, the little black-haired neighbor boy who always bugged Taven to play with him. Derek emerged from the foliage, leaves and twigs in his long hair.
"Hey! Who's that?" he said in an unnecessarily loud voice. Erin poked her head up from under the water.
"I'm Erin," she said, walking up to the young boy. Derek eyeballed her worse than Taven did.
"AHEM. What's up?" Taven asked, forcing him to divert his eyes.
"Well," he began, pulling out a disk from his pocket, "your mom told me to give you this! I think it's a message from Kreth!"
That made Taven get up and come towards Derek.
"My brother, Kreth?" he asked.
"Well, duhhhh," Derek answered, handing him the disk.
Taven snatched it away quickly, pulling out his PokéDex and pushing the disk into the slot on the bottom. The screen popped on and Kreth appeared on it, bringing a faint smile to Taven's face. He noticed that Erin was looking over his shoulder, and it made him smile even more.
Taven's brother began to speak on the screen. "Hiya, lil' bro! You're probably wondering why I sent you a message like this instead of calling, but I felt that this was too important," Kreth cleared his throat and continued. "As you know, I am a leader in Clover Islands' most prestigious trainer's league, the Guild of Elites. However, you may not know that we are holding a Pokémon tournament this year; the prize: a membership in the Guild! I'm sure that I don't have to ask if you're in, so I'll cut to the chase: to weed out the trainers who don't belong in the first place, I've sent some of the Guild's champions all around the islands. You must find them and defeat them in a battle, which will earn you a key! You will not be allowed into our Battle Colosseum without all of these keys! I'm giving you four months to take them all and prime your Pokémon for battle; after which, the tournament will begin! So, I'll end it here and leave you to your mission. A map has been attached to this message detailing the general area of each champion. Oh, and a little hint: I'd recommend you starting your searches in the big cities, because if the champions aren't there, there's still usually a member or two who are willing to help you out. Bye bye!"
The screen flipped to a loading bar, filling up as it downloaded the map. Taven flipped it closed, dumbstruck with his mouth agape.
"Sooo, are you gonna do it?" Derek asked pesteringly.
"Of course..." he replied. There was a long pause where Taven simply stared into space. He looked at Derek suddenly. "In fact, there's no time to lose. I have everything I need with me now," he pressed a button on the side of the PokéDex, popping the disk out of the slot. He stuck his hand out to Derek. "Will you give this to my mom and ask her to play it? Tell her that I need to go now." He knew that she would understand.
"Uh... sure thing, but don't you think that that's a little irresponsible?" asked Derek, tilting his head to the side.
"Hmph. You're too smart for your age," he said, slinging the backpack over his shoulder. Taven picked up a rock and skipped it across the pond. "Make sure you do that right away, I gotta go."
"Good luck!" Derek said, bowing.
"Erin..." he began.
"Yeah?" her eyes lit up.
"I want you to have this," he ripped a red crystal from the black thread around his neck. "My brother gave it to me before he left home."
"Taven... no," Erin protested.
"I don't know how long I'm gonna be, but make sure you don't forget me," Taven commanded, putting it in her hand. He walked away wordlessly, leaving her standing there. As he walked away, he knew that he played it perfectly, he even mustered a smirk.
When Taven finally got out of the green foliage of the forest, he pulled out his PokéDex and opened the map. It showed the Clover Islands, with six areas marked in red: the center of the mainland, the bottom of the stem island, and on each of the four petal islands.
"Kreth was underexaggerating when he said 'general area,'" Taven thought to himself as he stared at the large marked areas. "I guess I'll take his advice, head for Eukira."
Eukira was the largest city of the Fourth Petal, which was the rightmost petal island and the island on which Taven lived. He pulled out a black and red Luxury Ball from his belt and pressed the golden button on the front of it. A flash of red light shot out of the button, revealing the glowing silhouette of a three-headed bird.
"Kneel, Dodrio," Taven commanded.
Dodrio got on both knees, allowing Taven to climb on her back. A cool wind began to blow through the area, pushing away the stuffy heat of the late morning. All three heads let out an inquisitive chirp in unison.
"Forward!" Taven yelled enthusiastically. Dodrio burst forward, running through light green valleys and prairies. Taven's hat nearly flew off his head multiple times, so he snatched it off and put it in his backpack pocket.
A dark figure soon came up on the horizon; Taven sped up to reach it. His heart jumped as he realized that it was a trainer. It was a thin man in a trenchcoat, long intensely red hair down his back.
"Well, well, well," Taven proclaimed.
"Hah! Don't even start it, kid. I'm not battling a snot-nosed brat, I have things to do," he said in a deep, smug, voice.
"Aww... scared you're gonna lose, hmm?" he prodded.
"Fine," he said, throwing out a ball. "Go, Noctowl!"
A large, brown owl popped out of the ball, only a few inches shorter than Taven.
Taven jumped off of his Dodrio, whispering encouraging words to each of its heads.
"Zen Headbutt!" the man commanded his owl.
The bushy feathers on Noctowl's head glowed as he flew into the air and darted towards Dodrio.
"Quick Attack!" Taven commanded.
Dodrio began sprinting towards Noctowl, kicking up grass and leaving a white trail behind her.
The two crashed head on, knocking each other backwards and onto the ground. Dodrio got back up, shaken.
"Dodrio, hit 'em with Drill Peck!" Taven screamed quickly.
Dodrio ran at Noctowl, who was still sitting down and dizzy. All three beaks began to glow and expand as she lunged at Noctowl, striking him twice in the head and once the body. Noctowl was rolled over the grass, defeated.
The man only had two Pokémon with him, meaning he was down to his last. He drew a Seviper out onto the field, a huge, dark blue snake. Taven followed his lead, swapping out Dodrio for a new Pokémon.
"Go, Gengar!" he yelled. "Use Hypnosis!"
The bulbous, purple ghost pushed his two arms forward, sending black rings out towards Seviper. Seviper's eyes became glazed and he slammed to the ground, asleep. The red haired man shivered due to the presence of the evil P
"Now, Dream Eater!"
Gengar's eyes glowed intensely red, as did the sleepy snake. With a red flash, the Seviper was launched five feet in the air. He flopped back to the ground, sharing the same fate as Noctowl.
"Damn..." the man mumbled. "Well, that was pretty amazing, kid. I could barely lay a scratch on you."
"Thank you, my name is Taven. And you are?"
"I am Sean, but I really need to get going. It was nice fighting you," he said, and hastily walked away.
Taven reswapped Gengar and Dodrio, mounting the three-headed bird once more. Thanks to Dodrio's blinding, breakneck speed, Eukira was on their horizon within four hours of Taven's departure. She sprinted down the hill instinctively, halting only when she reached the dirt path leading to the open town gate.
"Good girl," Taven said, rubbing her brown, fuzzy neck.
He dismounted Dodrio, putting his hat back on and bringing her back into the ball. He quickly walked through the wooden town gate. Taven was greeted by a bustling city full of shops, towering buildings, courtyards, merchants, businessmen, and bikers riding the streets every which way. He decided to try the PokéCenter for information, located near the entrance of city. Taven walked through the automatic, sliding metal door. Inside of the Center was a warm, quiet, healing atmosphere. A few nurses, trainers, and bystanders went about their personal business. Taven briskly walked up to a hefty, bearded man who seemed to be a Pokémon trainer.
"Hello," he said to the man quietly.
"Why hello, there, sonny!" he greeted Taven in a hearty, booming voice. "What can I do ya for?"
"I'm searching for a certain trainer, located in or near the city..." Taven answered.
"Aha! And...?" the man questioned.
"What do you know of the Guild of Elites?" Taven blurted out hastily.
"Hmm..." the man thought, stroking his beard, "not much. I hear they're rather secretive. I've seen a few groups of them, but never outside the city courtyards... Yeah, sorry, but that's really all I can tell you, son."
"That'll help," Taven said with a half-smile. "Thank you, sir," he said, bowing as he left the Center.
He reached a stall on the side of the building, that bore a sign reading 'Free Town Maps.' Taven walked up, grabbing one and sitting against the PokéCenter's side. He peered closely at the map, which showed four courtyards in the city, each near a corner. He got up and began jogging through the back streets and alleys, using the quickest routes to get to the south-east courtyard. A giant fountain stood in the middle, shooting jets of water into the air every few seconds. Around it was a cobblestone area, filled with people talking, eating, and sitting on the benches. Within seconds of surveying, Taven laid his eyes upon a group of trainers, dressed in black and speaking in a secretive whisper.
He ran up to the three, preparing to battle if necessary...
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~TGW...
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