[Pokémon] Creative Minds

[Silhouette]

Creative Minds
[A Tale of Discovery]

Enter – the Pokemon world! Three trainers' presence in the Kanto region results in unprecedented occurrences. Join them as they embark on their often humorous, sometimes dangerous, and always exciting journey to discover the secrets that Kanto hides under its surface...
​

Chapter Directory

[alink id="chapter1"]1: Homeward Bound[/alink id]
[alink id="chapter2"]2: Mankey's Challenge[/alink id]
[alink id="chapter3"]3: And... Action! A Cut to the Chase![/alink id]​

Author's Notes:
N/A

\/\/\/\/\/​

[a id]chapter1[/a id]Prologue

Aspertia City, Unova – the seemingly-misplaced rural city lay undisturbed for years as a quiet town common for trainers to begin their Pokemon journey in. It was to much surprise when the sleepy city became the center of attention during a major incident during this past spring.

Wait... you mean you haven't heard? The city's mayor, Adam Swane was a corrupt leader bent on the creation of the ultimate Pokemon modeled after Mew. He heard tales of the powerful Mewtwo, whose creation was considered unsuccessful because of the Pokemon's terrible outrage. But, things have blown over and, thanks to a group of young Pokemon trainers, the city was saved from the creation of a horrible monster barely worth the title of Pokemon. One person in particular, Dakota, was especially pivotal in saving the city's lockdown-state. Even if on her lonesome, she would have tackled this issue fearlessly. But thanks to the help of her numerous friends and allies, defeat was held at bay.

"You're giving me too much credit," a female's voice piped up. She stood up from the long table as the group of script-writers looked at her weirdly. She was the epitome of tomboy – a pink baseball cap that hid her long brown hair aside from a ponytail that escaped the back of the hat. An almost-too-large hoodie in which the green hue matched poorly with her jean shorts that ended at the top of her thighs. And a pair of wildly-colored high-top sneakers which she scuffed nervously as she paced the room. All eyes were on her, it seemed, and there was certainly no escape in sight. The room was pitch black with only a single, beaming light hanging over the long table. This girl's bright-blue eyes darted around the room as she heard the others' reactions.

"Nonsense! Dakota, you save this city from disaster, and save our Pokemon Trainer culture along with it! That's the plot," one voice stuttered.

"Since you save Aspertia City, you deserve to be the main hero of this story! It only makes sense this way," another, deeper voice echoed. The room was quickly filled with uproar as discontent spread throughout the room.

"Ugh, how did I get involved with this..." the girl sighed as she placed her hand loosely on the right side of her face. A look of anguish swept over her face as argument raged on around her. She couldn't help but think of how comical this situation must sound to someone listening from an outside perspective...

Chapter 1: Homeward Bound​

Tick... tock.. tick... tock...

That cursed clock couldn't move any slower, Dakota thought. These were the final moments before school let out for the entirety of the summer, and only a clock likely moving in slow-motion to stop her from doing what she did best for the next few months – nothing. Dakota stretched tiredly at her desk, unable to prevent her yawn from escaping. It's not like it mattered, study hall was always full of sleeping students.

"Man, what a weird dream. I feel like I was the star of a movie or something," Dakota thought to herself. It was certainly a weird dream to wake up to before the last day of school, and she had been tired all day because of it. Just before Dakota thought anymore of the odd dream, a high-pitched sound rang throughout the rooms and hallways of the school. In just about the biggest clamor Dakota had seen yet, students stampeded out of the school and into the bright, summer sunlight. Dakota found herself in close pursuit of the group of students. She walked with her drawstring backpack in her hands as she dug for one of her Pokeballs. Students normally weren't allowed to bring their Pokemon to school, but being the last day before summer break was a good enough excuse for Dakota to sneak them in.

"Dakota!" a boy's voice shouted from behind her. Dakota turned to see a blonde boy running toward her from inside the school. It was her best friend since she moved here to Aspertia City, Alex. Dakota noticed his appropriate attire for this day – a pair of cargo shorts and a pure-red tee shirt. Alex finally caught up to Dakota, panting heavily from the run. Dakota looked at him almost in surprise – was Alex finally taller than her? She couldn't tell by the time Alex leaned his hands on his knees to catch his breath. Dakota shook off the thought, and tossed the Pokeball she was holding into the air. In a bright flash stood the small, brown Pokemon that she called her own – Sentret. There was a 'heck yeah!' that resounded from the group of students as flash after flash of light revealed students' Pokemon. Almost immediately there were small Pokemon battles taking place on the school yard as students made their migration to their homes to prepare for the summer break.

"Gosh, I hate leaving my Pokemon cooped up in a Pokeball for hours at a time," Dakota said as Sentret climbed to her shoulder. As if on cue, Sentret stretched and yawned fittingly to her last statement. "What's up?" she asked Alex.

"Uh... Huh... Nothing," Alex panted, "I had Physical Ed last class, I'm beat..." There were cries of excitement emerging from here and there. Kids racing, Pokemon battling... it was commonplace for people to be excited about anything Pokemon here in the Unova region. Specifically, Aspertia City was a special case – most children here hadn't been on their own Pokemon journey yet. The recently-built school in the city taught kids vital knowledge about various subjects that might or might not relate to Pokemon in order to prepare them for the upcoming journey.

"Hey, who is that guy coming this way? Is he an upperclassman?" Alex asked, pointing across the parking lot of the school. By this point, much of the summer excitement was gone, along with the majority of the students. Walking toward them was a slightly older boy, maybe in his late teens. His maroon jacket flowed majestically behind him, as did the same-colored bandana he wore on his head. He pushed his pure-white hair out of the way of his bright-blue eyes as he stepped onto the sidewalk next to Dakota and Alex. Unfortunately, his other foot didn't quite make it to the sidewalk, instead tripping on the curb. The boy crashed to the ground faster than a Psyduck trying to fly.

"Are you okay –" Dakota shouted, but was quickly cut off by the boy who shot up as quickly as he fell. He dusted off his jacket and looked straight at Dakota and Alex as though nothing had happened.

"Are you Dakota Parchen?" the boy asked.

"Yeah, who's asking? You wanna fight or something?!" Alex suddenly retorted, leaning forward with his hand on his bicep in a gesture of challenge, his other fist held high. He must have felt mighty, but he looked like an imbecile to all else.

"Actually, yes. A Pokemon battle," the white-haired boy answered calmly as Dakota almost scolded Alex for being too headstrong. The two stared blankly at the boy for a few seconds. There was then a sigh from Dakota – despite Alex and Dakota being best of friends, there was a certain level of tolerance Dakota held for Alex's naivete. She couldn't deny that it made for surprisingly good intuition, though.

"Let's go!" Alex shouted confidently. His shout garnered the interest of a few of the other students standing around the schoolyard.

"Wait, I want to battle the both of you," the boy once again explained briefly.

"You mean... like a double battle?" Dakota spoke up finally. She was starting to get excited – Dakota wasn't the battling sort of person, but there was no doubt that battling would break the monotony of the school day.

"Of course!" Alex shouted. He then turned to Dakota, "Listen, I know you suck at battling. But, my strong Pokemon will be able to cover you. You just sit back and let me do the winning." Dakota's face twisted with anger just before punching Alex on the top of the head as if a part of a slapstick comedy act.

"Listen, I don't even know your name. How is this gonna work?" Dakota asked like nothing had just happened. Alex, however, twirled around in a daze from Dakota's punch. "And I don't SUCK at battling!" she shouted to Alex. He immediately broke from his trance and recoiled from Dakota's scolding.

"Oh whoops. My name is Xylous," the boy answered, holding up a hand wearing fingerless gloves. "The way this is going to work... you can both use two Pokemon, each one of you using a Pokemon. I'll use four Pokemon, and fight you. That way, it'll be four versus four," Xylous explained.

"It doesn't matter how this is gonna work, let's just take this guy down!" Alex shouted. Dakota grabbed the brim of her cap and nodded to Alex with determination. At that moment, Xylous made his way to the opposite side of the parking lot, which would clearly become the battlefield. Xylous threw two Pokeballs into the air, which expelled the Pokemon he was going to use for this battle.

Opposing the two students were two Pokemon that their single opponent had sent out. One was a large, dinosaur-like creature whose crystalline body gleamed in the sunlight. It cranked open its large bottom jaw to let out a bellow that matched the gigantic stature of this Pokemon; it was an Aggron. The other Pokemon was much smaller than the Aggron, however, its body was not unlike it in luster. The Pokemon looked like a small, yellow creature with a relatively large jaw on its head. It turned toward the two students, showing off its adorable face with its large, round eyes. This other Pokemon was a Mawile. There was a small group of students gathering around to watch this fight – most students that attended this school had only managed to capture the common Pokemon that lived in the area, and next to none of them were as intimidating as Xylous's Aggron and Mawile.

"You wanna use big Pokemon, huh? Go, Gyarados!" Alex shouted coolly as he sent out his Pokemon. In a flash of light emerged a large, serpentine creature that floated a small way off of the ground. Its body sparkled a bit before the light disappeared, revealing an unusually red-colored body. The Gyarados looked down, even upon the Aggron, its mouth agate. Aggron looked back with unwavering determination, despite Gyarados's obvious size advantage.

"I need your help, Tangela!" Dakota declared, tossing her own Pokeball. Sentret looked onto the battlefield in awe from Dakota's shoulder. Emerging from her Pokeball was the tangled mess of blue vines known as Tangela. It ran up next to Gyarados, tripping on its own red-booted feet. Its round eyes became sharply angled in an attempt of determination. It looked at the Aggron with the mean look, but the Aggron glanced back. Tangela recoiled, and found its opponent in Mawile, a much smaller and less intimidating foe.

"Kids, what are you doing!? You know there's no battling on school ground!" shouted an older voice from across the school ground. The swarm of school kids surrounding the battle instantly scattered as the teacher emerged from the school's front gate. The elderly lady glared at the three trainers and their Pokemon. Despite her age and small size, the trainers seemed to shrink into their collars as the old lady stared them down. Finally, her raspy voice was conjured again. "Just because it's the last day of school doesn't mean you kids can go battling in the school yard. It doesn't help your Pokemon are all the size of a subway train!" the lady screeched. Out of sheer terror, the trainers returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and scurried away like Rattata through the brush surrounding the schoolyard.

"Well, that was stupid. The last day of school and that old hag wouldn't even let us battle, still," Alex whined as he sat on a swing in the playground, defeat evident in his posture. Xylous, who was next to Alex, sat in a shockingly similar manner despite his gallant entrance. Xylous nodded twice in succession, his eyes angled in depression as he sighed.

Dakota angled her baseball cap to shield her eyes from the bright sunlight. Sentret jumped down from her shoulder to the ground and started playing with some of the wood chips on the playground. Dakota stood up from her perch on the top of the slide, noticing Xylous's almost humorous likeness to Alex's mood. Just as Dakota opened her mouth to say something, her feet shot out from underneath her, and she slid upside-down on the slide to the ground, landing heavily on her head with a crash.

"You were about to say?" Xylous asked in a defeated tone, much unlike that of his enthusiasm when he first challenged Dakota and Alex to a double battle. He must have been looking forward to the battle that had ended just like that.

"I was just going to say, I've never seen you around. Where are you from?" Dakota asked, blushing out of embarrassment from the fall. She could hear Alex snickering. She wasn't surprised. Dakota often thought of Alex as annoying... or worse.

"I'm from the Orre Region far south of here. I came here for your parent's request to take you to Kanto for the summer. I'm an aide of Professor Oak's, a professor from the Kanto region. It's my job to study artificial and man-made Pokemon, so I was on my way to this city anyway when I heard that a mysterious Pokemon Mewtwo would be here. Seems I was wrong," Xylous explained. Dakota raised an eyebrow. She, too, was from Kanto. Her family moved to Aspertia City of the Unova region when she was much younger.

"How come my parents never told me about this?!" Dakota exclaimed, half out of excitement and half out of awe.

"It was supposed to be a surprise for doing so well in school," Xylous explained. "But it's up to you if you want to go or not. You have some impressive looking Pokemon, I might say," Xylous added, looking at Dakota and Alex, shifting from his melancholy tone to his seemingly-usual cheery disposition.

"Hey, I just got to thinking… aren't Gyarados normally blue?" Dakota asked Alex, remembering his red Gyarados. Alex gave Dakota an overly-emphasized smile.

"Remember that golden-colored Magikarp we found when we first met?" Alex asked. Dakota recalled her vacation with her family shortly after she had moved to Aspertia City. She had no friends, and was left alone by her parents when they found friends of their own. She was fishing – she didn't know why, she hated fish – but she was. Perhaps she just wanted to seem busy, so as not to draw attention. Hoping not to catch anything, she panicked when she hooked a golden Magikarp on her fishing rod. Unable to bring herself to touching a slimy fish Pokemon, it was then when Alex and Dakota met; Alex unhooked the golden Magikarp. Despite the Magikarp being worth a lot, Alex selflessly tossed it back into the water, unable to claim the catch as his own. Since then, Dakota and Alex were inseparable, despite how they act to one another.

"So you caught it and raised it after we saw it again, huh?" Dakota asked. Alex nodded confidently.

"Well, it was nice meeting you two. I look forward to battling you in the future," Xylous said, standing up. He began to lean quite far one way, looking unsure to Alex and Dakota as to why he was leaning. It was then that he realized he was still on the swing, and he crashed to the ground in an awkward position.

"Are you o—" Dakota began to ask, but Xylous shot upward to his feet, and turned his back to Alex and Dakota.

"Am I what? An excellent trainer? Of course," Xylous sputtered nervously, as if trying to avoid the fact that he had, indeed, fallen off of the swing. He began to storm off when Dakota stopped him.

"Wait! You said we were going to Kanto?" she yelled across the clearing. The wind blew at that moment, playing with the few strands of shimmering, brown hair that weren't caught in Dakota's hat. Xylous gave her a smile through the sunlight, as if he were waiting for her to ask the whole time.

It seemed like moments passed when Dakota found herself in Mistralton City, looking at a relatively small cargo plane that rested on the runway. Its engine was roaring, ready for a good exercise.

"Climb aboard the Pelipper 1080! That's what I named her, anyway," Xylous shouted over the engine's roar as he smiled at Dakota. "Found this baby at a garage sale, she runs like new." Dakota gave Xylous a funny look.

"You found this thing at a garage sale? What kind of garage sale sells planes?!" Dakota exclaimed. Xylous stared at her with his smile gradually fading to a blank face. He shook off the question as if it didn't register in his mind. Xylous and Dakota found their way to the cockpit, where they sat in the pilot and copilot seats, respectively. Sentret nestled on Dakota's lap, weary from the day's excitement.

"It's too bad your friend Alex couldn't come along, huh?" Xylous finally spoke up once the plane lifted far into the air.

"Well, it's his own fault for getting bad grades. Maybe if he studied a bit more during the school year then he wouldn't have to go to summer school," Dakota replied. She couldn't help but feel like she was scolding Alex despite his lack of presence. There was a long, almost awkward silence before either of the two spoke up again.

Dakota began to grow tired from all of the excitement of the day. From having to go to school this morning, to the thrill of battle (albeit short), her energy was slowly dwindling. Of course, it was no easy matter to try and convince her mother to bring her Pokemon, either. Since Tangela was technically a family Pokemon, it was to be left home with her family. Thankfully, Dakota was allowed to bring Sentret.

Dakota's mind slipped to slumber as the sun fell beyond the horizon far below on the surface of the planet. She began to remember what Xylous had told her about Mewtwo earlier that day. It was then when she recalled an event earlier in her life... Maybe, Dakota thought, she had seen Mewtwo once before.

She was on her way back home from kindergarten, shortly after she moved to Aspertia City from Kanto. She saw a commotion going on in the dead-end of an alleyway. Dakota witnessed a tall, purple Pokemon with a long, slender tail. It turned to her as its sharp eyes lit up a bright blue. It had a humanoid appearance about it, Dakota assuming that it was a person at first glance. It waved its three fingers in the air, creating a bright flash, and vanishing before her eyes. It was then that she realized there was an injured Pokemon on some trash can lids. As she approached it, it seemed to be none other than a Sentret. The same Sentret that was always with her.

"Dakota! Dakota, wake up!" Xylous's voice echoed throughout Dakota's head. She slowly opened her eyes to see Xylous pointing out the front of the plane to the land far below. "It's Kanto," he explained. Dakota looked to the void of darkness below. Far beyond was a thin layer of light that glowed at the horizon, signaling the sun's imminent rise.

"I love this part," Xylous muttered. He looked back out the front of the plane, and smiled as the sun's rays shot over the region like a stampede of Tauros. The landscape far below transformed from a featureless plain of darkness to a living countryside of very diverse terrain. A tear formed at Dakota's eyes as she took in the majestic view of the region from far above. She turned to Xylous, who looked back at her with a smile.

It was the Kanto region.

Meanwhile, far above Viridian City, Kanto…

"C-can't you just land the plane and let me off?" Alex struggled to say through the helmet he was wearing. The pilot looked back to Alex, who was in a skydiving uniform.

"Sorry, kid. You paid for skydiving, not a trip," the pilot shouted.

"Crap, he's right. But the small sum of money I saved up wouldn't pay for the whole trip... and skydiving was way cheaper. Dang it! Why do I have to suck so badly at school?" Alex thought to himself.

"Get going!" the pilot grunted as he shoved Alex out the open door. Alex screamed as he free fell, barreling wildly in the air as he descended toward the town below him. Finally, after straightening out, he managed to pull the cord on his parachute, causing the chute to erupt open from behind him and cause him to almost stop in mid air. Slowly, he descended toward the town below, until a gust of wind blew him off course.

"Crap, crap, crap… I think that's Viridian Forest I'm going toward now…" Alex cursed to himself. He flailed his legs violently, but it didn't change his descent's path. Slowly, he drifted through the cold, morning air until he fell into the dense cover of the trees. Fortunately for Alex, a branch caught him before he hit the ground, suspending him in a cocoon of cords and chute.

"I... I think I'm stuck. Crap..." he sighed as a glittering drop of morning dew fell onto his nose.

 

[Silhouette]

[a id]chapter2[/a id]

Chapter 2: Mankey's Challenge
​

"Metapod," chanted a monotonous voice from above. Alex struggled to angle his head upward and see what that noise was.

"Metapod," it sounded again. After he shifted his body wildly, Alex spotted a crescent-shaped Pokemon that hung by a single strand above him. It made eye contact briefly before disregarding Alex and declaring "Metapod" again.

"Meta... Meta... Metapod?" Alex wondered out loud. He glanced to his own body which hung horizontally in the air, bound by the numerous cords and straps of the parachute.

"Heh, I'm kinda like you in a sense, Metapod. I'm all wrapped up and useless," Alex laughed. He flinched when the Metapod's droopy eyes sharpened in anger. "Eh, what's the matter, little buddy?"

Suddenly, the Metapod's body became shiny and glistening. It began to slowly descend toward Alex. Farther, farther down it descended on its silk, until...

Clunk.

"Ow! Hey, what was that for?!" Alex shouted as the Metapod dropped its hardened body slowly onto Alex's head. It then began to ascend its silk farther up until it was out of sight, leaving Alex with nothing but an aggravated "Metapod." Alex stared in wonder at what had just happened.

"That didn't help at all!" he shouted as he began to flail wildly.

Elsewhere, a plane touched down on the runway, resulting in a high-pitched squeal that endured down the entire road until the plane halted. The engine soon shut down, followed by the propellers that finally stopped spinning. With a 'kaput,' the engine released a plume of black smoke that rose into the air and dissipated out of sight. The door squealed open, and Dakota and Xylous stepped out into the fresh, Kanto air. Xylous looked to a figure standing next to the front of the plane. This figure was entirely black, skin and clothing. Upon closer inspection, Dakota noticed, the person seemed to be covered in some sort of soot…

"Puh…" the person coughed, releasing a cloud of black smoke from their mouth. Xylous walked over to the person, whose eyes finally opened.

"Professor Oak, what happened to you?" Xylous asked, inspecting the person. This person, Professor Oak, coughed a bit more.

"Your plane seems to have taken quite a disliking to me, as I came out to greet you but received a cloud of smoke instead," Professor Oak explained in an annoyed tone. He pulled out a handkerchief from the once-white lab coat he wore, bringing it to his face and wiping off the soot. Dakota could see that his face was significantly aged; he was obviously not the youngest of people. His gray hair laid rather messily on his head, adding to the fact that he was covered in soot. Dakota had to stop herself from laughing at the sight.

"Eh, heh heh…" Xylous laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head. He looked uneasily at Dakota, who shrugged. There was an awkward silence before Oak finally noticed Dakota.

"Oh, hello there! I'm Professor Oak. What's your name?" Oak asked with a cheery expression, as if forgetting that he was a mess.

"I'm Dakota," Dakota answered meekly. "I've heard a bit about you. You're really famous, aren't you?"

"Well, that's just how it goes! Tell me, are you planning on taking the Pokemon League challenge?" Professor Oak continued. Dakota looked around casually.

"Nah, I'm just here to find out more about the region. I used to live here when I was little," Dakota explained.

"Well, whatever you prefer," Professor Oak said. He then turned to Xylous. "You should come with me, I decided to get ahead on research, and I've found a few things out. Dakota can come, too. I have a surprise for her!"

"Right away, sir!" Xylous shouted hastily and unnecessarily loudly.

Professor Oak led the way through Pallet Town from the runway. The runway was located to the southernmost reach of the city. It was mostly a straight shot from there to Oak's research lab. As they walked through the lazy, plain town, Dakota noticed the mountains far off in the distance. It was then that she spotted an oddly-shaped building on the top of a rounded hill, complete with a very large windmill.

"What's that weird place?" Dakota asked as they turned to the direction that the odd building was in.

"That would happen to be my lab!" Professor Oak declared proudly. They finally made it to the base of the hill and began down a path covered by trees and the like. Oak allowed Xylous and Dakota to enter through the automatic doors after the short trek up the hill. Inside the building, Dakota immediately noticed the air conditioning, which provided relief from the long walk to the lab. People in white lab coats scurried here and there between tables and desks full of unorganized papers and tools. One assistant nearly tumbled down the raised section, where there was a giant window that let in the outside light.

"Since Steven Stone isn't here yet, I'll fill you in on the progress," Oak said, then turned to Dakota with a stern look on his face. She could see his eyes shift to Sentret. "I see Sentret and you are very close. In fact, it seems you two have been through much more than even most novice trainers. I think you're suitable for this," Oak continued, presenting a small, red machine that looked about a book's size. He handed it to her.

"What is, uh, this?" Dakota asked, opening the small machine like a book. The screen lit up vividly, showing various options. The first thing that Dakota could think of was that the machine reminded her of a Game Boy.

"That is what is known as a Pokedex. It records data on any Pokémon that you have seen or caught. I don't usually give these out for free, but seeing as how you'll be helping Xylous with his research, you're bound to see some intriguing Pokémon. Not only will it give you a deeper understanding of the Pokémon of your home region, but it'll transmit data to me as well," Oak explained. Dakota turned to Xylous, who was playing with a long metal rod that jutted out of a large machine in the center of the room. He poked it, accidentally snapping it off. Xylous flailed, juggling the rod in an attempt to catch it, but he was unsuccessful. When he looked over to Dakota and Oak, he realized that they were watching him.

"Oh, and this machine!" Professor Oak shouted suddenly. "You've reminded me, Xylous! I forgot about this!" Oak walked over to the machine where the rod had snapped off, and pressed a button. The red dome lid on the large machine twisted, then opened, revealing three Pokeballs in small indentations. Each one was marked by a small sticker; one was a water drop, one was a small leaf, and one was a little flame. Oak's mouth turned into a large smile as Dakota looked at the Pokeballs in awe. She knew what Oak was getting at: the typical choice of starter Pokemon.

At that moment, the sliding glass door opened. Instantly, Xylous's attention was diverted as he dashed to the doorway, expecting Steven. Instead, he stopped abruptly as his jaw dropped. In the doorway stood a short, brown-haired kid in dressy clothing. He gave Xylous a glare and repositioned the glasses on his face, causing them to reflect the sunlight and hide his eyes.

"Got a problem?" the kid asked snootily. Xylous nearly fell over as he leaned on the counter next to himself.

"You… you're not Steven!" Xylous screeched as he pointed at the kid.

"And you're not very smart," the kid said bluntly as he walked past Xylous.

"Hey, I'm an expert Pokemon trainer, I hope you know!" Xylous shouted.

"I know. You're Xylous of the Orre region. Like I said, you're not very smart if you think I'm Steven Stone of the Hoenn Region," the kid retaliated as he fiddled with a small machine in his hand. Dakota could read the words 'Fame Checker' on the side of his device.

"What!? But I research artificial Pokemon! How can I not be smart!" Xylous defended. The kid just kept walking until he reached Professor Oak.

"Ah, you must be Dock Sampson. You're here to start your Pokemon League journey?" Oak greeted.

"Naturally. I thought long and hard about this, and I want Bulbasaur," the kid, Dock, said. Professor Oak chuckled slightly before reaching into the machine with the Pokeballs.

"What the heck? Where'd that metal rod piece go?" Oak asked to no one in particular, scratching the back of his head in puzzlement. Xylous shrunk into his shirt collar.

While Professor Oak was busy fixing the machine, Dock looked over to Dakota.

"Who are you?" he asked, examining her. He shifted his glasses, hiding his eyes behind the reflection of the sunlight again.

"Dakota…" Dakota mumbled, feeling violated by Dock's 'examination'.

"I'm Dock, future Pokemon champion and expert Pokemon researcher!" Dock said, holding his hand out for a hand shake. Dakota laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head while Sentret stared at Dock with its ears perked. She was saved when Professor Oak spoke up.

"Ah, and it's done. Here's your Pokemon and Pokedex. Be sure to take good care, and you can contact me often to send me any Pokemon you may want to. Good luck!" Oak said, handing Dock the Pokeball with the leaf on it, a Pokedex, and five Pokeballs. Dock bowed his head toward Oak.

"Thanks a whole lot, Professor! Good bye!" Dock said excitedly as he bounced his way outside. He gave Dakota an odd smile before zooming away from the transparent, automatic doors. Dakota shrugged off the odd feeling she got from Dock, and looked to Professor Oak. He laughed a little bit before nodding to her.

"Go ahead and choose a Pokemon," Oak said, presenting the two remaining Pokeballs to Dakota. Dakota looked to Sentret, who looked back to Dakota. "If you're exploring the region, your progress might be quite helpful to me."

"I think I'm going to go with Charmander," Dakota finally said. Professor Oak handed the Pokeball with the small flame symbol on it to Dakota. At that moment, the door opened again, and this time a man stood in the doorway rather than a kid. This man had light hair with a tinge of blue, and wore a sweater vest and black dress pants. On his fingers were large, rock-like rings that reminded Dakota of the Pokemon that Xylous had, Aggron.

"Steven, you finally made it!" Xylous shouted, running over to Steven. Steven stepped away awkwardly from Xylous as he jumped up and down in excitement.

"Enough of that, Xylous. And Professor, sorry I'm late. There was a bit of an emergency at the Mossdeep Space Station that required my attention," Steven said, opening up his brief case.

"No worries, Steven. Dakota, why don't you go out back and take a look at the Pokemon in my field while we get our meeting over with?" Oak suggested. Dakota clipped the Pokeball she had just received to her belt, put the spare Pokeballs in her bag, and walked through the back exit to the tree-covered field out behind the lab.

"Charmander, come on out," Dakota commanded as she tossed the Pokeball into the air. In a flash stood the orange, reptilian Pokemon Charmander. As if ready for battle, Charmander cried a battle call as the flame on its tail flashed brilliantly. Once it finally noticed that it wasn't in battle, Charmander looked up inquisitively at Dakota.

"Char... mander?!" the Charmander squeaked.

"Hi, I'm your new trainer, Dakota. And this is Sentret, my friend. I'm glad you could join us for this journey," Dakota explained to the little Charmander. Sentret jumped from her shoulder to greet its new ally. Charmander spun around in careless happiness, and nearly struck Sentret with the flame on its tail.

"Careful there, Charmander," Dakota giggled as Sentret sighed from relief. Charmander laughed nervously.

In an instant, a shadow leaped out from a nearby patch of tall grass and bounced off of Charmander. Charmander fell over onto Sentret, creating a domino effect as Sentret fell into a small puddle behind it. Sentret got back up and shoved Charmander, unaware of the situation.

"Sentret, wait. What was that Pokemon?" Dakota said as she pointed to the Pokemon in a nearby tree branch. The whitish Pokemon dangled from the branch messily as it laughed and pointed with its lanky arms.

"Mankey, the Pig Monkey Pokemon" the Pokedex stated monotonously.

The Mankey jumped down from its branch and stood in a fighting stance, as if challenging Charmander to battle. With an attempted roar, Charmander accepted Mankey's challenge.

 

[Silhouette]

[a id]chapter3[/a id]

Chapter 3: And... Action! A Cut to the Chase​

"My goodness, what's all the noise out here?" Professor Oak questioned as he made his way to the field behind the research facility. He happened across the scene containing Dakota and Charmander facing off against the Mankey.

"Looks like Dakota is getting ready to battle one of your Pokemon, Professor Oak. Shouldn't we break it up?" Steven asked as he stepped beside Oak.

"No, this should be an interesting test of Dakota's ability..." Oak muttered with a suddenly-devious tone.

I get a bad feeling about this... Xylous thought as he redirected his attention from Oak to Dakota and Charmander.

"Charmander, don't attack that Pokemon! It's one of Professor Oak's!" Dakota shouted in a mix of frustration and desperation. Although she was unaware of Oak's presence behind her, Dakota figured it was wrong for her to go battling Pokemon in his field.

It didn't take long for Charmander to begin ignoring Dakota. Mankey began to wag its tail tauntingly at Charmander. With a 'yip', Charmander dove toward Mankey, which easily leaped overhead and jumped off of Charmander. Charmander skidded along the ground. The attack hadn't done much damage; it only seemed to enrage Charmander more.

"Hey, that was a mean trick! Charmander, don't let Mankey's taunt get to you! Use Scratch!" Dakota commanded, her once-timid tone now transformed to a confident one.

Charmander acknowledged the command with a nod and proceeded to charge toward Mankey. The Mankey performed its acrobatic technique, this time landing in front of the stumbling lizard Pokemon and firmly punching its stomach. Charmander bounced backward, more affected from this attack than the last.

"That's one nimble Pokemon," Xylous wondered out loud. "It's got power behind its attacks, too."

"Well, it was one of the Pokemon I raised myself," Oak replied with a smile. "That particular attack, Acrobatics, is incredibly powerful in this situation."

"You raised this Pokemon? Is it even safe for Dakota to be battling it?" Steven suddenly asked. There was no answer from Oak aside from his growing smirk.

Having put up with the Mankey's tricks, Dakota knew that there had to be some way to deal with such an annoying Pokemon. Strategy began to swirl within Dakota's mind. She knew Mankey was a fighting type, so it specialized in close quarter combat. "That's it!" Dakota shouted with epiphany.

"Keep your distance, Charmander! Use Ember!"

Charmander planted its feet and opened its jaw. A wave of small, sparkling flame erupted from Charmander's mouth directly toward Mankey. With a smile on her face, Dakota cheered as the flames closed in on Mankey. However, it was much too early for her to think she had won.

Forth from Mankey burst multiple clones of the pig-monkey Pokemon. The searing Ember waved right through the original Mankey (or so Dakota had thought). The Mankey clones scattered throughout the area, creating a great distress to both Charmander and its new trainer.

"Crap! Is that Double Team?" Dakota asked out loud while her eyes darted to and fro, detecting glimpses of false Mankey. Confusion was evident in Charmander's face as it struggled to keep up with all the Mankey images.

In the next instant, the Mankey images congregated in a circle around Charmander. All but the Mankey behind Charmander vanished; this last Mankey gripped Charmander tightly and launched itself and its foe into the air at an incredible speed. It happened so fast that Dakota was almost unsure as to what had happened.

"Wh-what was that?" Xylous awed.

"Of all Mankey's techniques, there is one that can, and will, knock out Charmander in one hit, guaranteed – Seismic Toss," Oak exclaimed. He rose a Pokeball into the air, which summoned a red beam directly toward the midair Mankey. The Mankey disappeared within the Pokeball, leaving only Charmander. Dakota caught Charmander in its fall, and she looked back to see what happened.

"I see you've met my Mankey, nicknamed Charlotte," Oak chuckled as he approached Dakota.

"That was your Pokemon? Sorry, I didn't mean to – " Dakota started, but Professor Oak held his hand up and Dakota stopped.

"I'm glad you got the chance to battle Charlotte. You did well, considering Mankey was one of the the Pokemon I raised myself. Come on inside, and I'll tell you everything you need to know before you begin your journey of discovering the Kanto region," Oak explained as he motioned for Dakota to follow him. They both made their way into the laboratory, followed by Steven and Xylous.

\/\/\/\/\/​

"This is Route 1, then?" Dakota asked as she surveyed the landscape. It was a relatively linear path up a steep hill with ample tree cover. As she took in the environment, she noticed nothing but grassland as far as the eye could see on either side of the path. Sentret seemed right at home as it waddled close to Dakota's heels.

"It sure is," Xylous finally answered ahead of Dakota. Despite having been here before, Xylous still admired the simplicity offered by Route 1. It didn't take long for the moment to fade, however. "Let's get going to Viridian City and meet up with Brock, like Professor Oak explained."

The trek to Viridian City was a rather short and straight shot, requiring little more than an hour's walk. Dakota didn't notice anything out of the ordinary until she reached the top of the hill. She could see Pallet Town in the distance, and the ocean for miles beyond that. To Dakota, the view was breathtaking.

The city of Viridian was much more lively than the sleepy Pallet town. The sophisticated, paved streets were hopping with people busy with their day. Young trainers were also evident in the crowd, Dakota assumed, because of the Indigo League starting but only a few days prior. Sentret crawled up Dakota and perched on her shoulder, so as not to become separated.

"Did you hear about that trainer in the Trainer House that's winning battles and taking names?" Dakota heard one trainer talking to another.

"Yeah, I heard he has a giant Pokemon that can defeat common trainers' Pokemon in single hits!" the other trainer replied.

"Is that trainer..." Dakota asked to Xylous as they walked by the conversation.

"That would be Brock. He visits here from time to time when he's training in Viridian Forest. The only other time he isn't in the Pewter City gym is when he's excavating fossils from Mount Moon," Xylous explained. Dakota faced forward as they walked, pondering this Brock character. She noted their shared interest in fossils.

It was true that Dakota was interested in fossil excavation – her ideal career was to become an archaeologist, which is what she attended school for in Aspertia City. Her true passion was uncovering fossils and whatever untold stories they might hide. She was starting to look forward to this Brock character; not only was he interested in fossils, but he was also a potent battler by the sound of it.

They came across a relatively large house on the northwestern corner of Viridian City. There was a crowd of trainers, Dakota assumed, hanging out in front of the building. The people were showing off numerous Pokemon, supporting her assumption.

"You guys, hurry up! Brock is about to win another battle!" a random trainer shouted to everyone who was outside. Immediately, the crowd of trainers, including Dakota and Xylous, filed into the house, making it seem much more cramped than it seemed outside. The room cut off halfway, overhanging the battlefield that was in the underground level of the house. Trainers crowded on the guard rail, but Dakota couldn't see past them to witness the battle.

"GROOOOAR!" boomed a heavy-sounding Pokemon from below. There was a crash which shook the house, then another bang.

"Good job, Onix! Finish strong with Rock Throw!" a voice commanded. There was a splitting crack sound, causing the crowd to recoil slightly. There was a bit of silence before the crowd roared into applaud.

Trainers began to cheer as a boy, not much older than Dakota, made his way up the stairwell. His thin eyes scanned the room as he made his way to the exit, a smirk evident on his tan-skinned face. He awkwardly brushed his messy, brown hair out of his face as trainers praised his battling prowess.

"Brock won again!"

"His Pokemon can't be beaten!"

From the crowd emerged Xylous, who Dakota didn't realize had left her side. In surprise, Dakota finally came to notice that Xylous wasn't there.

"Xylous... what are, uh... what's up?" Brock asked as he suddenly lost his smug expression.

"What do you mean, 'what's up'? I'm here 'cuz Professor Oak told us to meet up here," Xylous answered directly.

"Don't be so formal," Brock sighed, "let's go talk somewhere quieter."

"Wait, I'd like you to meet Dakota, she's going to be joining us until we head out to Pewter City," Xylous introduced as the three made their way outside the Trainer House.

"Interesting. It's nice to meet ya, Dakota. Brock's the name!" Brock exclaimed, shaking Dakota's hand.

"I'm Dakota, and this is Sentret," Dakota replied, nodding her head slightly. Sentret hopped off of Dakota's shoulder and ran to Brock's feet with a squeak.

"Sen! Tret!"

"Wow! Pleasure to meet ya, little fellow! This Sentret seems really well trained. It's different from a lot of other Sentret in that way," Brock explained as he picked up Sentret gently and handed it to Dakota.

"Anyway, there's a restaurant just down the street, so let's go talk there," Xylous said as they turned onto the sidewalk. There was an agreement amongst the clamor of the city.

\/\/\/\/\/​

"Huh? Who's that Pokemon?" a young boy asked as he pulled out a Pokedex. After he adjusted the large, round glasses on his face, he aimed the Pokedex at a relatively large, oblong-shaped thing hanging from a tree.

"I don't think I've ever seen a Pokemon like this in Viridian Forest," the boy, Dock Sampson, said to himself as he fiddled with the Pokedex. "Dang thing says there isn't a Pokemon even here..."

"Huh..? Ugh... hoozat?" a voice mumbled as the thing in the tree began to wriggle around. It shifted until a human head poked around from the side of the object. The blond-haired head blinked lazily a few times as it turned to Dock. Dock jumped back in terror until he realized that this object wasn't a Pokemon, but rather just a person tied up in a parachute that hung from a tree.

"What the heck are you doing up there?" Dock asked as he regained his composure.

"Just help me down already!!" the other boy, Alex, commanded with a raspy voice.

"Bulbasaur, help him down with Cut attack!" Dock called as he tossed a Pokeball in the air. In a flash stood a stout, frog-like Pokemon with a green bulb on its back – Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur revealed two long vines from the base of its bulb and slashed the cords that suspended Alex's body in the air. There was a crash as Alex slammed to the ground.

"What the heck was that for? Is that how you help someone in trouble?!" Alex shouted as he shot upward with a fist raised.

"What do you mean? Is that how you thank someone who just helped you?" Dock asked with a smug expression, his eyes hidden by the reflection of his glasses.

"Listen, I'll take you on you friggin' nerd," Alex growled as he reached for the lone Pokeball attached to his waist.

"Whatever you say. You're the idiot that couldn't get down from the tree," Dock retorted. Bulbasaur stepped in front of him with confidence as it faced Alex.

In a flash from Alex's Pokeball stood a brown, mole-like Pokemon with purple stripes and large, white claws – a Drilbur. The Pokemon shuffled its huge claws before bellowing into the air at nothing in particular. Drilbur then proceeded to happily dig a small hole next to Alex.

"Drilbur, now is not the time for digging holes! Get ready for battle!" Alex echoed as Drilbur completely ignored him. Drilbur placed a flower in the hole it had created. Then Drilbur looked up to Alex, glanced over to Bulbasaur, and flailed as it finally realized it was called upon for battle.

"Odd... a Pokemon native to Unova... Bulbasaur, this shouldn't take long considering his Pokemon won't even listen to him," Dock mumbled. He pointed forward, commanding "Poisonpowder!"

Bulbasaur directed the tip of its bulb toward Drilbur before releasing a plume of purple powder from it. The cloud loomed toward Drilbur slowly, giving Drilbur time to back away and allow Alex to give it a command.

"Dodge with Dig!"

Drilbur jumped a short way into the air, spun rapidly, and connected with the earth. As Drilbur spun, its body sunk into the ground until it wasn't visible. Bulbasaur ceased its Poisonpowder assault and began to look around desperately, trying to anticipate where Drilbur would appear from.

"Bulbasaur, don't move, just focus," Dock reassured. Bulbasaur nodded and closed its eyes to concentrate.

"Ha! Doing that will only make certain that Dig will hit! Do it, Drilbur," Alex laughed. The ground began to bulge rapidly underneath Bulbasaur until it burst. Drilbur emerged from underneath Bulbasaur at an incredible speed, knocking Bulbasaur upward. Bulbasaur managed to remain close to Drilbur despite the severity of the attack.

"Use Leech Seed while you're close," Dock ordered. While still in midair from the previous attack, Bulbasaur flipped upside-down, which aimed the tip of its bulb toward Drilbur. A few seeds erupted from Bulbasaur's bulb, embedding themselves within Drilbur's hide. The seeds' effect began to sap Drilbur's health and restore Bulbasaur's.

"This is bad... Drilbur, you have to end this quick! Use Metal Claw!" Alex shouted, a hint of desperation in his voice. Drilbur's claws began to glimmer as Drilbur reared them back. It took a second before Drilbur lunged forward.

"Get some distance Bulbasaur!"

Bulbasaur jumped backward just out of reach as Drilbur swiped with a miss.

"Keep up the pressure, Drilbur!"

Both trainers were feeling the stress of this close battle as Drilbur swiped again with Metal Claw. Bulbasaur kept its backward jumping, using the delay between attacks to get farther from Drilbur with each hop. Once it was a relatively safe distance from Drilbur, a vine flew forth from Bulbasaur and ensnared Drilbur by the ankles.

"Good Vine Whip attack!" Dock congratulated.

"What!? You were able to command your Pokemon to use Vine Whip without directly telling it to?" Alex asked with his jaw dropped.

"It's not that tough. I use only the smartest Pokemon, and they know what do in a jam. It increases their reaction time by a tenfold. This isn't some turn-based video game, you know," Dock explained. "Now that Drilbur is pinned down, use Poisonpowder, Bulbasaur!"

The plume of purple powder reemerged from the bulb, slowly wafting toward Drilbur. Drilbur struggled to escape, but its stubby legs weren't strong enough to break from the vine.

"Darn darn darn, what do I do! If Drilbur gets hit by that, this battle is as good as over..." Alex devised through gnashed teeth. Then, his eyes lit up. "Drilbur, use Metal Claw on that vine to escape!"

Drilbur looked up at Alex before it registered the command in its head. Another Metal Claw, this time to the vine around its legs, and Drilbur was free. Unfortunately, the cloud engulfed Drilbur, battering Drilbur with its full effect. Drilbur wheezed as it stumbled messily out of the plume. It was clear that Drilbur was feeling fatigued due to residual damage of both Leech Seed and Poisonpowder.

"Drilbur, you have to use Dig to get in close," Alex shouted desperately. Drilbur slowly leaped into the air, reenacting the Dig attack.

"Bulbasaur, coil your vine directly underneath yourself," Dock commanded. At his word, Bulbasaur coiled its vine underneath its body. In the next instant, Drilbur began to emerge from the ground where Bulbasaur had its vine place. Like a spring, Bulbasaur launched itself from Drilbur's body, keeping its vine extended. However, due to the previous Metal Claw attack directed at the vine, it kinked into a bend which allowed Drilbur's upward momentum to still strike Bulbasaur. The attack was greatly weakened by the upwardly-rising Bulbasaur, but Alex was excited with a hit nonetheless.

"As long as we keep our distance, Bulbasaur, this battle is as good as ours," Dock cheered. Bulbasaur landed and hopped backward, being sure to remain a good distance away. Drilbur landed on the ground, panting exhaustively.

"Drilbur, hang on! This battle is almost ours," Alex persuaded. Drilbur looked back to Alex with a grin, but then its face clenched with pain. Drilbur slumped over, unconscious. "Drilbur, no!"

Dock returned Bulbasaur back into its Pokeball without a word, and began on his way. Alex ran to Drilbur and cradled it in his arms.

"I'm sorry, Drilbur. You did your best," Alex comforted as he turned to Dock. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

"Yeah," Dock said as he stopped. "It's unfortunate that I had the type advantage. We'll have to battle again sometime." With an open hand in the air, Dock walked away from the clearing in the forest. Alex cursed under his breath. Of course, Drilbur was the only Pokemon he had with him. In order to trick his parents in thinking he hadn't left, he had to keep his other Pokeballs in his room back at his home in Aspertia City. He was thinking of how his parents would be reacting by now as they realized that he wasn't home. Alex shook off the thought and hurried the opposite direction of where Dock was headed; Alex made his way to Viridian City Pokemon Center.