TEEN: - Ongoing Unexpected Journey: Kanto

[Rocky Cliffs]

Yay! Chapter One! Thanks for the reviews on the Prologue, guys. All new chapters will go here now, because the Prologue is different from the main story. I consider it a complete section in itself. So, technically, it can be put in the Library!


Anyways, I can't think of anything else to say, but I'll edit if I need to say something. Oh yeah, look for chapters to be posted weekly, most of the time. I can't make guarantees or anything, but I'll do my best.

Without further ado, my labour of love!


~Rocky "I'd like to thank the Academy!" Cliffs

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Unexpected Journey
Kanto


Chapter One
Starting Off

"You shouldn't be doing this, Rocky!" Bill exclaimed nervously as he wrung his hands together. I ignored him and stepped out into the bright sunlight, squinting slightly. I made a mental note to remember to get a hat somewhere along the way.

Sandy and Charmander were close behind. "Bill, leave him alone! He can do what he wants to! You're not his boss!"

I stopped and turned around. "Bill, I have nothing here to stay for. I need that matter discharger or else I'll be stuck here forever. And as you just said not more than ten seconds ago, you won't be able to build another, so that's the only one to go for." He tried to interrupt, but I threw up my hands to stop him. "I know, I know, it's a one-in-a-million shot, I'll never get it, Team Rocket will capture or kill me as soon as I step foot inside any of their hideouts. I get all that. But if I ever wanna see my parents, my friends, my animals and my life again, it's my only choice. Besides," I said, lightening up, "This is my first real adventure, and I want to have some fun before I encounter my grisly, untimely death."

Sandy giggled, but immediately became serious. "Well, don't think you and Charmander are going alone."

Bill, who had been opening and shutting his mouth, trying to think of something to say that would influence me to stay, turned to Sandy, a look of pure horror and disbelief on his face. "Sandy, don't tell me you intend on-"

Sandy cut him off. "Bill, if Rocky even hopes to live to see next week, he's gonna need to have someone who knows something about Pokémon by his side." She walked over to me and caught my grateful look. She smiled and continued. "I'm just the girl for the job! And," she added, slinging her arm over my shoulder and leaning into me, "we make a cute couple, don't we?" She grinned and poked my ribs playfully. My face visibly reddened, while Charmander started laughing (at least, I think he was laughing).

But none of that was enough to change Bill's expression. He just stood there dumbly, not saying or doing anything, almost like a statue until Sandy sighed and said, "Oh, c'mon, Bill! I'm old enough! For gosh sakes, I'm almost 15 years old! Beginning Pokémon trainers can get their license and go on a journey at age 13! Why don't you trust me? YOU went on a journey as soon as you could! And you're not Mom or Dad! You can't tell me what to do! I'm going and that's that."

Bill almost looked defeated, but he still stood his ground. "Now you listen here, Sandy. I'm still seven years older than you and I know better. You're not going to go gallivanting around the region with some total stranger from a different world!"

I took this comment as someone trying to watch out for his sister, not someone trying to offend me.

"Mom and Dad only let you stay here with me because I swore I would protect you. If anything goes wrong, we're both in trouble!"

"Bill, be reasonable! What could possibly happen to us?!"

Bill almost choked on his words, he was talking so fast. "You just said seconds ago that you needed to go with Rocky to protect him from danger! You think I don't want that machinery back? I do! But I'm not about let you risk your life for it!"

"FINE!" Sandy yelled, cutting Bill off. "I'll stay here!" She glared at him. "Just let me go to town with Rocky to help him get the supplies he'll need to go kill himself harmlessly." She said evenly.

Boy, I'd have loved to see Bill try and object to that.

Luckily, he didn't. "Be back by five o'clock, or else." He spat out before turning around and marching back inside. Sandy turned and went the opposite way, muttering a bunch of (thankfully) unintelligible words under her breath. I stayed where I was, not knowing quite what to do. Sandy made up my mind for me, however, when she stopped, looked over her shoulder, and yelled, "Are you coming? We don't have all day!"


"So…what do we do first, Sandy?" I ventured as we trudged along through the plains. It had been a good fifteen or twenty minutes since the Bill/Sandy blowup, but there was no way of telling when Sandy would cool down. Luckily, she seemed to be over her anger.

"Well, first off we should go to Pallet Town to get you registered into the Indigo League." She paused to dodge a low branch. "Then we really need to get you some new clothes."

I turned to look back at her. "What's wrong with my clothes?"

"Just look at them!" she responded.

I looked down at my worn, baggy jeans and singed tennis shoes, as well as my long t-shirt. "There's nothing wrong with my clothes." I remarked as I stooped down to help Charmander over a fallen log.

"Just the same, we're getting you some new ones."

"Well, what about you?" I retorted. "You're wearing the same kind of clothes too."

"Hey, I'll take any excuse I can to buy new clothes."

"Girls." I sighed.

Sandy giggled. "I'm not that bad."

At least you're in a better mood. I responded mentally.


I wasn't really paying attention to where we were going; I was busy thinking about my huge undertaking. So before I knew it, we had arrived at Professor Oak's lab. "Hey, wait…why are we here?" I asked.

"We need to pick up a PokéDex from Professor Oak so we can get you registered."

"I get a PokéDex? Why?"

"All trainers get one."

"All right!"

We stepped up and knocked on the big Oak door and waited a sec until Professor Oak appeared from behind it. He welcomed us in and shut the door. "I take it Bill hasn't finished that machine yet, has he? Oh my, Rocky, what happened to your head?"

Sandy and I wasted no time in filling in Oak about last night's occurrences. Tracey came in half-way through (about the time I was explaining my fight in the dark with the woman), yawning. "Wait, what's going on? Why are you guys here?"

I looked at him. From his blue pajamas with weird little blue mouse things all over them to his scrambled up hair to his bunny-like slippers, the young man looked like he'd just woken up from a deep slumber.

"Well, good morning, sunshine. Did we disturb you?"

Tracey yawned wide again. "No, actually, I've been awake for about ten minutes now."

I couldn't really respond to that without being really sarcastic, so I instead started my story over for Tracey's benefit.

"So you see," I finished up the second time, "I'm stuck here for quite a while. So I'm chasing after Team Rocket until I get that matter discharger back."

Oak sighed deeply and rubbed his chin. He spoke slowly, as if trying to find the right words. "Well, Rocky, I wish I could say that the choice you've made will be easy, but I can't. Quite the opposite, in fact. Only one person in Team Rocket's history has ever tried to defeat them, and he nearly succeeded."

Oak broke off, a smile on his face. "Yes. Ash Ketchum. Mind you, he didn't vanquish them, obviously, but he came very close. And he's the current Pokémon Master!"

My knees buckled slightly, and I gulped. Oak took notice of this.

"See? See what you have in store for you? It's a good thing you've got Sandy with you. She'll be a very good source of knowledge for you."

I overlooked the fact she'd only be with me until the edge of town. "Yeah, I'm glad she's with me."

Sandy blushed. "Anyways, Professor, we came to get a PokéDex so Rocky can become an official Pokémon Trainer."

"Well, of course! You'll need Pokémon by your side, Rocky, if you are to get anywhere in this world. Come, follow me."

We followed Oak to the lab part of his house. He went into a small room in the back and came out with a small red device, a PokéDex.

"Here you are, Rocky. Your very own PokéDex." Oak said as the machine passed from his hands to mine.

I stood there for a moment, admiring the 'Dex. Of course, I had no idea how to work it, but it still looked marvelous. Its sleek red casing and portable size further endeared it to me. I looked up at Professor Oak.

"Thank you so much, Professor. I really appreciate this. You've done a lot for me to help me get started. How can I repay you?"

As we walked back into his living area, Oak replied, "Oh, I think I can come up with something…"

I plopped myself onto the couch and asked, "What do you have in mind?"

Oak grinned. "Ah, have I given it away already? Rocky, what I want is simple. I would like you to leave your extra Pokémon with me."

I suspiciously glanced at him. "What do you mean? I've only got one, and Charmander's staying with me!"

"No no, that's not what I mean, Rocky. See, a trainer can only carry six Pokémon at a time, for safety reasons. Whenever a trainer has a full belt of six Pokémon and captures another, the seventh Pokémon gets sent to a person designated to hold his Pokémon for him. All I'm asking is that I be your holder."

I shook his hand warmly. "Professor, I'd be honored. I'd love it, really!"

Oak smiled. "Excellent. When you're at the Poké Center becoming a registered trainer, remember to put my name down as your holder, all right?"

"Sure thing, Professor Oak."

"I hate to break this up, but we better get going, Rocky."

I glanced around for a clock, but couldn't see one, so I trusted Sandy's judgment. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Well, I can't thank you enough, Professor, but I'll sure try."

Oak stood up and called for Tracey, who quickly materialized from the other room, clad in his attire from the other day, but this time with a green headband.

"Aw! Leaving so soon?" Tracey asked.

"Unfortunately, yes. But never you fear! I will return someday." I struck a brave pose. Tracey whipped his notebook from nowhere.

"Don't move."

I didn't move for five whole minutes, after which Tracey ripped a page from his notebook and handed it to me. It was a beautifully sketched likeness of my handsome self. I cherished it immediately.

"Wow! Thanks, Tracey!"

I reached over and hugged him. It was a spur of the moment thing, really.

"Whoa! Hey! I like girls!"


Ten minutes later, we were on our way. Sandy had quickly confiscated the sketch from me, claiming she didn't want me to get a big head, but I saw her catching peeks at it. It was kind of cute, actually.

"So, where we off to now?" I wondered.

"The Poké Center, to get you registered." Came the reply.

"Okay."

We walked through Pallet, taking in the scenery. It was a small community, mostly made up of sleepy neighborhoods. We walked up to a huge domed center with a red roof and went inside, where I was fascinated once again by gadgets and Pokémon new to me. Birds flew around far above everyone's heads as many people sat in booths eating, or nestling down on one of the several couches placed in front of two roaring fireplaces and a big-screen TV, which currently had the news on. At the other end of the building, a few computers and TVs with phones attached adorned the walls. And directly in front of us, a large counter leading off to another area in the back. As we entered, a small red-haired, rosy-cheeked young woman dressed in a full nurse's uniform came out front and smiled at us. "Hello. What may I do for you today?"

Sandy gestured to me, so I stepped up. "Um, hello. I'd like to register to become a Pokémon Trainer, please."

The nurse beamed down at me. "Why, of course. Your name?"

"Rocky Cliffs."

She began typing on her computer. "Birth date?"

"December 4, 1993."

She raised an eyebrow. "Starting a little late, eh?"

I shrugged. "Better late than never."

"Address?"

I looked over at Sandy. She replied, "14671 Cherryblossom Lane, Cerulean City, Kanto."

"Starting Pokémon?"

"Charmander."

"Holder?"

"Professor Oak."

She smiled. "Ah, of course. Okay, that should be good. Now, I need you to step over here so I can take your picture."

She motioned to a white portion of the wall designated for taking pictures. I smoothed my hair as much as possible and stood against the wall.

"Smile!" Flash.

Blinking, I walked back over to Sandy. The nurse smiled. "All right, just wait a few minutes until this gets processed. You may take a seat over there and I'll call you when it's done."

I smiled. "Thank you kindly, ma'am. Your name is?"

The nurse beamed. "My name is Nurse Joy, and it's a pleasure to meet you, young man."

As I was walking over to the seating area, I could hear Nurse Joy enter the back room again, saying, "Chansey, can you bring that Poliwag to me, please?"

Sandy and I took a seat at a table and bench. A sudden thought crossed my mind. "This place is really cool, but I don't have any money. How am I supposed to pay for my license and Pokémon healing and all that?"

"Easy." Sandy replied. "You don't have to. The city's taxes cover the cost of the Poké Center."

"Excellent! So I can heal my Pokémon for free always?"

Sandy nodded, smiling at my genuine pleasure at how the system worked out.

"Well, that's good." I sighed happily. "I'm soon going to be a registered trainer, I've got my very first Pokémon already, and I'm about to embark on a wonderful quest through a world I'll be learning about along the way. I really don't know how this will turn out, but at least I've got an adventure ahead of me, right?"

"Right." Sandy agreed. She smiled and looked directly at me. "Rocky, I just know you're destined for great things."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well..." Sandy trailed off and didn't say anything. She also averted her eyes.

I caught on. "Wait, are you part of that conspiracy?"

"What? What are you talking about, Rocky?"

"Oh c'mon! Don't tell me you don't know what I'm talking about, Sandy. Two days ago, when Bill was talking about his 'secret project' and all that, he said he wasn't far from being wrong. And he also mentioned something about a legend or a myth. And then, when I said I knew nothing about Pokémon, he ran out like lightning and then acted like nothing had happened after that.

"Then I went to Oak's, and all the time we were explaining my story, he had this weird smile on his face. And then, out of nowhere, he gives me a Pokémon! Why in the world would he do that? I asked him. He said I would need it soon but he couldn't say how he knew. And now you're saying 'Oh, you're destined for great things!' You're in on it too, aren't you? What's going on? Am I part of some legend or something? C'mon, spill it."

I sat back triumphantly, amused by the guilty look on Sandy's face.

"I can't."

"Oh no you don't. Tell me."

But before Sandy could utter another word or think up an excuse, we were interrupted. "Uh, pardon me."

We both looked over at the newcomer, who was standing by our table. He was a taller boy with blond hair. "Hi, I didn't mean to interrupt or anything, but are either of you interested in a Pokémon battle? I've asked everyone else in this place, but they're all watching some stupid special on the news."

A dozen people were glued to the TV. The announcer was babbling on and on about how history might be made tonight and some stuff like that. The boy continued speaking.

"Geez, one bush rustles and people think it's a rare or new Pokémon. Personally, I don't believe any of it, but supposedly, Celebi or maybe even an undiscovered Pokémon is lurking outside somewhere in this vicinity. So everyone's stuck watching that. Me, I just want a good match before I start heading home."

I grinned and looked over at Sandy. She immediately began shaking her head and mouthing the word 'no.' Of course, I paid no attention. I jumped up and exclaimed, "Well, today's your lucky day. I'd love a Pokémon match!"

"Great. Let's go outside. By the way, I'm James."

"I'm Rocky and this is Sandy. Let's go."

We started walking outside. Before I took two steps, however, Sandy wrapped two fingers into my belt loop and I felt my pants going in two directions. I stopped and said, "I'll be right behind you."

Sandy turned me around and, between clenched teeth, said, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Sandy, I should think you'd be able to figure this out. I'm about to fight his Pokémon with mine."

Sandy looked at me as if I were stupid. She slowly replied, "Two things wrong with that, Rocky. One, you only have one Pokémon! Two, YOU'VE NEVER BEEN IN A POKÉMON BATTLE BEFORE!"

I shrugged. "I have to learn some time. Look, if I start losing, just whisper help from the side, okay?"

"I'll do no such thing." Sandy sniffed as she released her grip on me.

"Suit yourself."

I walked off, leaving Sandy to sigh deeply (for my benefit, no doubt), clutch her forehead, and follow behind.


"All right. Three on three!"

"Wait, wait, wait. That won't work." We were in a large clearing some yards away from the Poké Center. Sandy was standing a safe distance away, an apprehensive look on her face.

"Why not?" frowned James.

"Because I've only got one Pokémon."

"What?!"

"...with me! I've only got one Pokémon with me, I mean. The others are getting healed." I improvised.

"Oh, okay. Well, in that case, go! Nidoran!"

He tossed out a Poké Ball, which soon revealed a small, purple, bunny-like creature. Calling it a rabbit was a large stretch, but it did have long ears and buck-like teeth. The scary thing about it, though, was the horn atop its head.

I swallowed a lump in my throat and held my Poké Ball firmly as I called, "Go, Charmander!"

Charmander materialized and looked around confusedly before finally jumping into a fighting stance. "All right, Charmander, let's show 'em!"

"Nidoran, let's make this quick! Poison Sting!"

I freaked. While I knew nothing of the move, it certainly did not sound good. "Charmander, dodge it!" I shouted frantically.

As Nidoran jumped forward, his horn oozing a light purple substance, Charmander jumped and pushed Nidoran to the side, tipping him off balance. The bunny quickly recovered, however, and retreated a safe distance away.

"Charmander, run up and scratch it with your claws!" I was grasping for straws, but as I looked over to Sandy, she gave me a small thumbs-up, which boosted my confidence.

As Charmander ran up to attack, James called, "Nidoran, counter with a Tackle!"

Both Pokémon attacked and rebounded off one another. Charmander scored several scratches on the face, but Nidoran smashed it in the stomach, causing Charmander to fall backwards. They began circling each other. As I was trying to think of other ways for Charmander to attack, my mind went back to when I saved Bill. I had called for the Pokémon to Ember, and he had. So I tried it again. "Charmander, Ember!"

"Char!"

Charmander ran forward. Nidoran tried dodging, but Charmander swung his tail with amazing accuracy, and connected. Nidoran fell back, digging its claws into the earth. "Niii! Nidoran!" it growled.

"Quickly, Nidoran, Horn Attack!"

"Char!" Charmander exclaimed, and started backing up.

"Charmander, use your Flame...." But I was lost. I had no idea if I was even close.

"Thrower! Thower!" Sandy whispered urgently to me.

"…thrower! Flamethrower, Charmander!"

Nidoran's powerful horn rammed into Charmander. Charmander went flying back, opening his mouth as he went. As he landed, a powerful flame shot from his mouth and engulfed Nidoran. It wasn't for long, though. Charmander quickly stopped and gasped for breath.

It was enough, however. Nidoran gave a small cough and fell over.

"Dang it! Nidoran, return!"

The Pokémon went back into its Poké Ball.

Charmander ran over to me, glee on his face. I grabbed him in a hug. "Great job, Charmander! You were excellent!"

"Char! Charmander mander!" he proudly stated.
I finished hugging Charmander and stood up, only to be nearly smothered by Sandy, who had run over immediately to hug me as well. I was a little surprised, but I quickly eased into the hug. "Great job, Rocky." she whispered into my ear.

"Whoa, whoa, what's all this for? I know I'm good, but I didn't think I was that good." James interrupted us.

Sandy gave a small embarrassed cough and stepped away from me. I had a response ready, however. "Yeah, I know, this might seem like overkill, but I've been having a bad streak of luck lately."

"Yeah, I know how that is." James ran a hand through his hair and smiled. He extended his hand. "Great job, Rocky. You fought well."

I shook his hand. "Thank you, James. You did very well yourself."
James turned to Sandy. "How about a match with you? I need a chance to redeem myself."

"Well, I don't know..." Sandy stuttered. "We really should be going."

"Aw, you're just afraid 'cuz I'm a hard act to follow." I teased.

Sandy glared at me, and then responded in a steely tone. "Let's go, James."

They stepped into position.

"Four on four sound good to you?"

"Yes! Go, Squirtle!"

Wow, I thought. She doesn't bandy words, that's for sure.

"Go, Spearow!"

A blue turtle and an evil sparrow (well, maybe it wasn't evil, but I was biased) appeared and stared at each other.

"Squirt squirt squirtle!" the turtle called over to the Spearow menacingly. Its voice seemed kind of strained, but I figured that was its normal voice.

"Rooow! Spearow!" it called back.

"Squirtle, Water Gun!"

"Spearow, Gust!"

The two orders came simultaneously.

The Squirtle pulled its head back into its shell and then suddenly popped it back out, propelling the water coming from its mouth forcefully. The Spearow was flapping its wings, creating a gust of wind to throw at the Squirtle. The water from the turtle got caught in the gust and sprayed everywhere. Some of it hit the Spearow, but most of it went flying elsewhere. I covered my head, Charmander covered his tail, and the two battling trainers ignored it. The water distracted the Spearow enough for the Gust to fail.

"Spearow, make it fast! Drill Peck!"

Sandy seemed taken aback, but quickly recovered. "Squirtle, secret attack, now!"

The Spearow's beak started glowing, at the same time as Squirtle's head began glowing as well. Both trainers gritted their teeth as Squirtle and Spearow launched themselves at each other. There was a sickening sound as the two collided, and both fell to the ground, senseless.

As James recalled his Pokémon, he shouted, "Very impressive. I didn't think Squirtles could learn Skull Bash before evolution."

"And I didn't think Spearows could learn Drill Peck before evolution either. It seems as though we've underestimated each other."

"Yes, we have. Let's make this round better, okay?"

"You got it! Go! Totodile!"

I was in constant awe. Her crocodile whipped his Nidoran (a blue one this time; I reminded myself to ask Sandy about that) and was ready for seconds. Unfortunately, his next Pokémon, a Bellsprout, took care of her Totodile with ease.

"Totodile, return!" she said as she threw her Poké Ball onto her clip-on belt and grabbed another. "Go, Mudkip!"

A cute little Pokémon appeared. It was blue and had orange fin-like appendages on its cheeks. That was all I got to see of it before Sandy shouted, “Mudkip, Dig!"

The Pokémon squealed, "Kip!" and started digging underground at a rapid speed. I was highly impressed.

"Aagh! Bellsprout, ground yourself!"

The weed Pokémon planted itself firmly.

Mudkip appeared from the ground powerfully and uprooted Bellsprout. It flew through the air, crying, "Beeeellll!" It was returned to its Poké Ball before hitting the ground.

"One left!" taunted Sandy.

I looked over at Charmander, who was entranced. "She's good."

"Chaaar." he agreed, not taking his eyes off the scene.

"Go, Machop!"

Sandy's triumphant face quickly fell away as a small, mega-muscled Pokémon jumped into battle. "Machop, Seismic Toss!"

"Mudkip, Dig again!"

"Kiip!"

But before it could, Machop had grabbed its cheek fins and started swinging it around. "Maaaaachop! Chop! Chop!" it cried after each revolution.

"Mudkip, try a Water Gun!"

Mudkip sprayed water, but none of it hit Machop.

"Now, Machop!"

Machop nodded grimly, then jumped high into the air, and threw Mudkip down. As if that wasn't enough, he then landed on top of it.

"Kiiip..." it groaned before fainting.

Sandy silently returned Mudkip.

"One left!" taunted James.

I crossed my fingers. C'mon Sandy...

She gripped her last Poké Ball and smiled. "Get ready to lose! Go, Cygnaut!"

James blanched.

"How'd you get a Pokémon from the Aqua Ocean?"

"Birthday." Sandy smiled.

"All right then. You still won't win."

"We'll see about that!"

"Machop, Low Kick!"

Sandy almost laughed. "Cygnaut, you know what to do."

The small blue duckling quacked knowingly and put his small wings in front of himself.

Machop came running towards Cygnaut and then began sliding with its left leg in front of it. The small duck simply pushed his wings forward and deflected Machop's attack, amazingly enough. Machop got propelled backwards, but it kept its balance.

"Cygnaut, let's make this swift. Swift!"

Cygnaut replied, "Naut!" and flapped its wings. Small stars began appearing in front of it and hurling themselves towards Machop. It dodged bravely, but a few stars sliced into its shoulder and left leg. It grunted, but stayed standing.

"Machop! Use your Karate Chop! Don't miss!"

"Cygnaut, Wing Attack!"

James audibly groaned.

The two Pokémon attacked, and Cygnaut came out on top. It stood upon Machop, dancing around and around.

"Machop, return!"

Cygnaut gracefully flew off Machop's back and landed near Sandy. She hugged her Pokémon, a wide grin on her face.
I ran over and stuck out my hand. "Good job, Sandy."

She giggled, and said, "Silly Rocky." before pulling me into another hug.

This was simply incredible. Call me a fool, but I was falling for her, and FAST. She was beautiful, smart, sweet, affectionate, and could handle her Pokémon with precision and control. I tightly hugged her back, saying, "Great job, Sandy. You rocked."

Sandy smiled, ruffled my hair, and whispered, "Thank you."

"Ahem."

This time, I gave an embarrassed cough. James was smiling at the two of us. "May I shake your hand, Sandy?"

Sandy grinned and shook James' hand. "Good job. You have strong Pokémon and you use them well."

"Obviously not well enough, but thank you. You're incredible yourself. You looking to be a water expert?"

"I'd like to be, yes. I'm planning on being a Pokémon Scientist somewhere on the Orange Archipelago or the Ivory Isle."

"Well, good luck to you."

"Thank you."

"Thanks for the matches, guys. How about we go heal our Pokémon now?"

"Good idea." I stated. Charmander nodded emphatically. I patted his head.


"There you are. I was hoping you hadn't left already."

"Nope, I'm still here. We were just having a Pokémon battle. Can you heal our Pokémon please?"

Nurse Joy smiled. "Of course. I'll be just a minute."

She somehow took all ten of our Poké Balls with one hand and placed them in a nearby machine. As they began glowing, Nurse Joy turned back to me. "So, now that I've got you processed, I'll need your PokéDex so I can download the Pokémon League data you'll need."

As I handed over my PokéDex, she gave me some helpful advice. "Remember, at every town you get to, remember to use the Updater machine. That way, any new data given by the Pokémon League, such as trainers' Pokémon, badges received by people, and so on, will be downloaded to your PokéDex."

"Sweet!"

"And whenever you catch new Pokémon, remember to take them to the nearest Poké Center to get them registered under your name."

James stared at me. "You're just now becoming a trainer?!"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Yeah."

James shook my hand energetically. "A pleasure losing to you! How many matches have you had?"

"You were my first."

"I must say, that was a great showing for your first battle! Are you taking the League Challenge?"

I nodded.

"Wow! So am I! Maybe we'll see each other again sometime, eh?"

I grinned. "I'm sure we will."

Nurse Joy handed us our Pokémon. "There you are!" she beamed down at us.

"Thanks."

"Yeah, thanks."

"Thank you."

"Well, I better get going. I'll see you around, Rocky! Bye Sandy!"

"I look forward to our next meeting!" I said.

"Bye!"

After James had left, Nurse Joy handed me my PokéDex back.

"Here you are!"

"Thank you, Nurse Joy."

"It's my pleasure! Have a nice day!"

I pocketed the PokéDex and Sandy and I stepped outside into the bright sun.

"And now, the Poké Mart!"

Sandy giggled. "It's not that exciting."

As we walked, I asked Sandy about her Pokémon. She explained to me that she had received all four for her 13th birthday.

"Yeah, I was about to ask how you had caught those Pokémon without traveling."

"Well, my four water Pokémon are the official four water starters that the League recognizes. I was very lucky to get them. It was a planned surprise from my parents and uncles and aunts."

"And they're so powerful!" I exclaimed. "Your Pokémon, I mean, not your uncles and aunts. They must be, seeing as you've had them for two years."

Sandy smiled dreamily. "And what a two years it's been. I can't imagine life without my four friends."

We stepped up to a large building, this one with a blue roof. "Ah, the local Poké Mart."

"I'll need you to help me choose what I need."

"But of course!" Sandy looped her arm into mine and pulled me inside.

As soon as I entered the Mart, I was amazed. So I took off, almost leaving Sandy. The store had quite a selection of items. We walked around, taking everything in. Sandy was a great help, showing me exactly what I'd need for the journey.

After we were almost done, I remembered something. Something important. I grabbed Sandy's shoulders. "I have no money."

"You think I forgot about that?" she asked as she pulled a large wad of purple bills from her pocket. My jaw went slack.

"How'd you get all that money?!"

"I've been saving up for just such an occasion."

I did a small dance of joy.


10 minutes later, we emerged from the store, two huge bags in our arms and new clothes on our bodies. "Okay," Sandy said, "Let's check to make sure we got everything we need."

"Right." I said. "Here, Charmander, you can help too." I told the little lizard, who had been jumping around my legs excitedly, accidentally torching a few nearby daises in the process. I had let him out just a few seconds before.

"Let's see, Poké Chow for Charmander and any other Pokémon I get, a backpack to store everything in, some sort of watch thingie for I don't know what-"

"That's a watch, map, compass, calculator, and radio all in one, Rocky."

I did a double take. "Whoa. Maybe that's why it cost so much."

"Exactly. But don't be all happy yet, it's only a watch and map. You need to buy the other expansion cards."

I looked at it. "You've gotta be kidding me! Well, anyways, we've got that, a cool-looking hat, a first aid kit, with plenty of Band-Aids, some food for us, some water too, and some special Grandma's Home-Baked Double Chunk Chocolate Chip cookies I couldn't resist."

"That should be everything." Sandy said.

"Good." I grinned. "This is gonna be fun, you know that?" I told her as I slipped on the hat.

Sandy grinned back. "Yeah. But we better get a move on if we're gonna get to Viridian by nightfall."

"All right! Hey…we?"

"Of course. Did you actually think I'd stay back and let you have all the fun?" She looked at me as if I was stupid for not knowing this.

I stopped. "Oh no you don't. Bill will kill me if he finds out I let you do this! As much as I want a human companion - no offense, Charmander - I don't think you can come with me!"

Sandy looked at me and brushed some hair back from her face. I was nearly struck dumb with her beautiness. "Well, I guess it's up to you, Rocky. After all, it is your journey. I'll be happy with whatever you choose."

Aw man, I hate making decisions like these. I should say, "Go home." But what I really want to say is, "Screw Bill" and let her come. She's not under my jurisdiction anyways. And I think I like her. Hmmm….I didn't put up much of an argument for the "Go home" side.

I set my jaw. "Ah, screw Bill. Let's go."

Sandy broke into a relieved grin and threw her arms around me. "Oh thank you, Rocky! This is great!"

My face immediately reddened, but I gave the thumbs up to Charmander, who was smiling in that "You know you like it" way that only good friends can do.

"Pokémon of the world, watch out!" I yelled. "Here comes Rocky Cliffs! Let's go, Charmander!" I beckoned to him and started walking determinedly towards Viridian City.

"Uh, Rocky!" Sandy called. "Come back. You're going the wrong way."

"Heh. I knew that."


After Sandy had instructed me on the PokéGear's uses (for now, watch and map) and we had stuffed everything into my backpack, we were ready to go. We headed off towards Viridian. Soon, we were out of Pallet Town. I walked along the dirt path, breathing in the fresh morning air. "Ahhhh! This is a great day to be out, eh, Charmander?"

Charmander waved his little fiery tail around. "Charmander! Mander char!"

I wish I could understand the Pokémon language, I thought.

We soon came across a small sign. It read:


Route 1: Pallet Town to Viridian City


"So, my unexpected journey begins." I said. "All right."

--------------------

Unexpected Journey

 

[DGE]

Am I da first to review? Skwee! I'm glad to see chapter one so soon! A subtle reminder to haul myself back to my own computer and write.. ehehe.

I believe it's a rule to post continuing chapters in the original thread, though.

Much cuteness and sweetness still, and everything seems to be going in Rocky's favor this chapter. Did I have a flake moment, or is Cygnaut of the #500+ range? I don't recall hearing about one of those before. ^^; Go future water master Sandy, I say. That's always my choice for starter.

25-year-old Tracey in Marill pajamas. At last, he's older than I am! *pant pant*

24-year-old Noelle: Hey! Put your eyes back in their sockets!
P-Z: But... look at him! I don't know HOW Marill pajamas make him more attractive, but they do!
24-year-old Noelle: I gave him those pajamas for his birthday! He wears them for me and me alone! *whips out blindfold*

Yeah. Good luck with chapter two!

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Nice! Um...perhaps divide the sections up with *** rather than with double-spacing, it seems a bit jumpy at first otherwise.

That's...really the only thing I can think of...

 

[Jukain]

Very good. :-D I'd certainly like to know more about Cygnaut as well as the other two starters from that region, but I guess there's no time for that. I'd certainly like a Water type swan.:-D

 

[Fig]

"I believe it's a rule to post continuing chapters in the original thread, though."

Pika-Zukin's quite right. BAsically, unless this is a series rather than one large fic (IE, a Unexpected Journey : Kanto of 10 chapters, then another story of 10 chapters in Johto, etc), all parts should be posted in the same topic.

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

Wow! Comments already! *cracks knuckles* Let's get down to business, then.

Pika-Zukin (may I call you Zukin?): Yes! Write! Soon! ... Like I said earlier, the Prologue I consider a small story in and of itself. So that's why I posted this new thread. Plus, as you'll notice, I've subtitled this book, "Kanto." Hmmm....I wonder why? ;-)

The sweetness and cuteness will abound throughout the story, but it will be offset soon as Rocky encounters Team Rocket. It won't be all fun and games then. No sir!

Yes, Cygnaut is one of my made-up Pokémon, one of the 189 I diligently created, along with a good friend of mine, Oddish Leaves. They'll be in the story as much as the Nintendo Pokémon, although you won't see them as much in Kanto or Johto, since most of them reside elsewhere in the world.

And yes, they were Marill pajamas. But can you guess the bunny slippers?


Blackjack: I'll remember to do that. Thanks for the idea. And was your not being able to think of anything else a good thing or a bad thing?


Jukain: You'll see the new Pokémon, all in due time. :-D


Damian: There are different parts to this story. It's like your fic where you have different threads for the different books. Don't worry! I'm not a rule-breaker! Quite the opposite, in fact!


Thank you for the comments, guys!


~Rocky *enforces some rules* Cliffs

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Originally posted by Rocky Cliffs
Blackjack: I'll remember to do that. Thanks for the idea. And was your not being able to think of anything else a good thing or a bad thing?

Neither. Just a thing.

Say, you said in the other thread that you read my fics but hadn't reviewed them...*resists urge to review-whore, instead just coughs meaningfully*

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

*gets the hint and goes to review and comment meaningfully*


~Rocky "I can take a hint!" Cliffs

 

[Seadra Reef]

*sits and waits for Chapter 2* Need I say more?

 

[DGE]

Pika-Zukin (may I call you Zukin?): Yes! Write! Soon! ... Like I said earlier, the Prologue I consider a small story in and of itself. So that's why I posted this new thread. Plus, as you'll notice, I've subtitled this book, "Kanto." Hmmm....I wonder why?

I'm far too amused. Sure, go for it! I didn't notice until after I signed up that there were so many Pika-somethings around here, else I would've picked something else. So I see about the arrangement of stories... just making sure you don't get beat by those scary mods. ^_~

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Aww, am I really that scary?

*realizes that Rocky hasn't done what he said he'd do* *prods him*

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

I know, I know, I'm sory, I've been extremely sick the past few days. Yesterday I sat down to ease my mind and touch up Chapter Two, and I must have written and deleted the same sentences twenty times. I eventually gave up. I'll go reply to Obsession now.


~Rocky "Achoo!" Cliffs

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

New chapter

Chapter Two is up.

Okay, here's the scoop. This chapter might seem weird, so I tried to make it believable as possible. Everything in this chapter happens for a reason, so please don't think I just started going all slapstick on you guys. Also, if the writing seems a little choppier during the second half of the chapter, that's because it's supposed to. I tried to make the writing fit what was happening at the time, and Rocky goes through a lot in this chapter, so at the end, it's kind of choppy writing, which I've tried to avoid up until now. If it doesn't work, just tell me.

Phew! Okay, now that that whole disclaimer's aside, here's the chapter! Thanks for reading, guys.

Oh, and once again, a LONG chapter. Almost as long as the Prologue.


~Rocky :008: Cliffs


----------------------------------


Unexpected Journey
Kanto


Chapter Two
On My Own


"Rocky, I've been wondering something."

"Yes?" I asked her.

"How did you know what to do when that Sneasel was attacking Bill? You didn't know any Pokémon attacks, yet you knew exactly what to do."

"Beats me." I shrugged my shoulders helplessly. "I just didn't want Bill to get hurt, so I did it. But now that I think about it, it does seem weird."

"Mander." My Pokémon agreed.

My mind was elsewhere, however, so I changed the subject. "So Sandy, how are you going to train me and teach me the ways of Pokémon?" I asked.

"It's funny you mention that, Rocky. I had just been thinking about that myself. What I figured I'd do was let you go through Route 1 by yourself to see how you'd cope."

My curiosity quickly changed to horror. "You mean you're gonna make me go through that route all by myself?!"

Sandy sighed and shook her head. "I'll be right behind you, Rocky. And don't forget that you've got Charmander too!"

"Charmander!" it cried, upset I had forgotten about it.

"Sorry Charmander, old buddy. Uh, exactly how dangerous are the Pokémon in Route 1?" I asked.

"There's only a few Rattata and Pidgey, with the occasional Mankey and Spearow. Don't worry, they're harmless, just as long as you don't throw rocks at them." She said directly towards me. I shied back a bit.

"Hey, how was I supposed to know?"

Sandy smiled and playfully pushed me. "I know, I was just teasing you. Well, how about it? Would you like to try and survive Route 1 by yourself?"

I contemplated it for a minute before deciding. "If Charmander says yes, I say yes."

We both looked down at Charmander, who promptly sat down and tapped a finger on his chin, as though thinking. He looked up at us. "Char! Mander char char mander charmander!"

I looked over at Sandy, who gave me a blank look in return. "I guess we'll take that as a yes." She said.

"Okay then. Let's do it, Charmander!" We hi-fived. Charmander jumped up and started walking forward. I had to grab the non-fiery part of his tail to stop him. "Whoa, hold on there, pal. Just a second." I looked up at Sandy. "How are we gonna do this?"

"I'll stay here for an hour while you go through Route 1. After the hour is up, I'll walk through the forest to collect your remains to carry to Viridian."

"Not funny." I said stone-facedly to the giggling girl beside me. "So Charmander and I go now and you come through a hour later behind us?"

"That's the plan." Sandy agreed.

"Okay. See ya in Viridian, Sandy. C'mon, Charmander!" I said to it, who was already several paces ahead of me.

*****

Charmander and I had been walking for about fifteen minutes and we were just leaving the dirt path connected to Pallet. I checked the map on my PokéGear and Viridian was about five miles away if I went on foot, which, obviously, was my only choice. Not used to walking this much in one day, however, my feet began complaining. Then my stomach joined in too, so I said, "Hey Charmander, let's stop for a minute, ok?"

"Char!"

Sitting down on a nearby stump, I unzipped my backpack and pulled out the first-aid kit and a sandwich we had gotten at the deli inside the Poké Mart. Charmander plopped down beside me. I threw him a sandwich and grabbed a handkerchief. For being the beginning of September, it was very warm, so I wanted something to mop up my sweat with. After, I started in on my peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I hadn't had any breakfast and I was very hungry, so I finished it fairly quickly. Charmander was still busy with his sandwich. The peanut butter seemed to be sticking his mouth shut. I chuckled and pulled my PokéBelt (seriously, did everything related to Pokémon have to have the word Poké in front of it?) out of the backpack, and firmly clipped it onto my waist. On the left side, there were six slots my empty Poké Balls could fit in (once shrunk). And on the right, six slots for my current Pokémon team.

After fastening the Belt on, I took my PokéDex out of my pocket and flipped it open.

Before I had time to utter two words, it turned itself on and said, "Hello, Rocky Cliffs. I am your new PokéDex. You may call me Dex if you wish. Welcome to the wonderful world of Pokémon."

The picture of me taken at the Poké Center flashed on the screen. "I need to double-check your information to make sure that it is correct. Is the following information accurate? Rocky Cliffs, date of birth December 4, 1993, blue eyes, brown hair, address 14671 Cherryblossom Lane, Cerulean City, Kanto, starting Pokémon Charmander, and holder Professor Samuel Oak."

I blinked. "Yeah, that's all good and correct."

"Excellent." The tinny voice replied. "Now that your data has been secured, you will need to utilize the nearest Updater machine so that I may transmit your data as being correct and complete. You will then be assigned a Pokémon Trainer number. After that, you will go to the nearest Poké Center and receive your official Pokémon Trainer's License. Do you understand what I have just told you?"

"Yes, I got it all."

"Very good. I look forward to helping you achieve your goals, whatever they might be, Rocky Cliffs. Is there anything else I may help you with at the present time?"

"Actually, yes, Mr. PokéDex."

"Dex will do just fine, Rocky."

"Gotcha, Dex," I corrected, pointing it at Charmander, "Mind telling me Charmander's attacks and what they do?"

"Certainly, Rocky. Currently, this Charmander knows Tackle, Scratch, Growl, Ember, Flamethrower and Tail Whip. The Tackle attack is self-explanatory, I assume." I nodded. "Scratch is too. Growl is a move that unnerves your opponent and makes them think twice about attacking. Tackle, Scratch and Growl are all Normal-type moves, as well as Tail Whip, which startles your opponent and lowers their defense.

"Ember, however," the tinny voice of Dex continued, "is a Fire-type move, like Flamethrower. Ember works differently for Charmanders than other Pokémon. While Embers are shot out of other Fire Pokémons' mouths, Charmanders and their evolutionary line use their tail-fire to severely burn the enemy. And Flamethrower is just a pure blast of fire from its mouth."

"That's one attack I'm familiar with. Thanks, Dex."

I turned off Dex and slipped it back into my backpack. I took the pack off my shoulders and slung it a few feet away. I lay down on the ground, shut my eyes and mumbled, "Wake me up in five minutes, Charmander." But no less than 20 seconds later, I felt a tapping on my hat. I opened my eyes and saw that it was Charmander. "What is it?"

"Char." He pointed to a small rustling bush.

"Aha. Thanks, Charmander. Let me take it from here, 'k? I'll call ya if I need backup."

Charmander nodded and stepped aside as I carefully picked up a rock (forgetting Sandy's warning and my previous ordeal) and lightly tossed it in, ready for anything. I expected some huge ferocious Pokémon to pop out. But only a bird did. It fluttered to the ground, cautiously watching me. I stood still, admiring the bird. It was a blend of brown and beige, with a pink beak and talons. It had black edging around its eyes, and three tail feathers, which ruffled in the wind. It looked to be no more than a foot tall, and it couldn’t have weighed more than six or seven pounds. It was cute. I decided to beat it up and capture it.

After a few seconds, the bird looked away and started pecking the ground. I slowly reached into my backpack, pulled out Dex, opened it up and turned it on. Immediately, the bird's picture appeared on the screen. Dex started speaking. "Pidgey. A common sight in the forests and woods. It hates to fight, so it flaps its wings at ground level to kick up blinding sand so it may safely escape."

"Thanks." I whispered and was startled to hear a quiet, "You're welcome, Rocky." in return. I quietly put Dex into my pocket for future use. The Pidgey had almost completely turned away from us by now. I peeked over at Charmander. He was watching the Pidgey intently. "Psst...Hey! Charmander! Go use your uh…Ember attack."

"Charmander!" He ran for the Pidgey, swinging his tail. The Pidgey heard Charmander. It looked up just in time to get knocked back.

"Charmander, Growl!" I yelled.

"Char..."

It started using its Growl attack. But the Pidgey just ignored it and started kicking up sand towards Charmander. "No!" I yelled as it hit Charmander right in the face.

I ran to Charmander as the Pidgey flew away. I pulled the handkerchief out of my back pocket and started rubbing the dust out of Charmander's eyes when I heard someone laughing. I spun around. A tall male was standing a short distance back, snickering jeeringly. I hurriedly jumped up and eyed him. He looked to be about six feet tall. He was wearing a pitch black shirt, ripped near the bottom, and faded black jeans. His jet black hair was swept into his face, nearly covering his eyes. He looked about 2 years older and a great deal stronger than me. I mean, his muscles were showing through the shirt. I started deciding whether to be very, very polite and run away very, very quickly, or yell at him. I was still contemplating when my mouth decided for me. It just opened right up and out came, "What's so funny?"

The young man abruptly stopped laughing and practically bore holes through my head, the way he was staring at me. I felt weak in the knees. He snarled, "You are! You couldn't even catch a measly little Pidgey! Could that be because your Charmander is so weak, or could it be because you're just a bad trainer?"

The insult stung. Already too far into this conversation to back out without losing my dignity, I put on my meanest face and tried snarling back at him. "Look, just go away, ok?"

I'm afraid I didn't sound too convincing because he didn't leave. In fact, he did exactly what I didn't want him to do. He walked over to me, grabbed my shirt and stared down at me in the scariest manner possible. I decided that I never should've said anything. I gulped and, to prevent certain death, smiled. "Heh heh. Just kidding!" Charmander, who had been watching this whole scene, sighed at my cowardice.

The stranger slowly released his grip on me. I was about face to neck with him. He was still looking very mean (or was that just his normal expression?), so I continued smiling and stuck out my hand. I could always regain my dignity later. It was time to act sweet. "Hi! I'm Rocky. Rocky Cliffs. And who might you be?"

He just looked at me, and then started walking away. I would live to see another day.

I guess he had a sudden change of heart because he turned back around and pointed at me. "My name is Brad, and I'll definitely be seeing you around, loser." I didn't have the heart to tell him that he goofed up my name.

After he was gone, I melted into a puddle on the ground. Charmander walked over to me and pat my head. I sat up. "Fat lot of good you were!" I snorted. "You should’ve roasted him where he stood."

Charmander only shrugged and went off to finish his sandwich.

*****

After a few minutes of necessary ego building, we were ready to journey on to Viridian City. Charmander and I continued to walk, doing so peacefully for nearly ten minutes. "Gosh," I said, scoping out my PokéGear, "Sandy should be starting to-"

I was interrupted by sounds of scuffling nearby. I could hear yelling coming from past some bushes on the right. Succumbing to my adventurous self, I yelled, "C'mon, Charmander! Let's see what's happening!" Charmander followed after me as I pushed my way through the bushes. I got scraped a couple of times, so I backed out and had Charmander use its Flamethrower attack. The bush literally melted as I ran through to another clearing and stopped, taking in the following scene.

A kid who looked about my age, maybe younger, was yelling battle moves as a small shrew-like Pokémon tried attacking a Pidgey. I would've jumped in to help, but I knew how tough Pidgeys could be, so I just stayed out of it. Charmander, I could tell, was itching to jump in and join the battle, but I gently restrained him.

The trainer seemed to be having a rough time. Whatever move the boy would call out for his Pokémon to execute, the Pidgey would easily dodge, after which it would perform a devastating counter-attack. He looked to be fighting a losing battle.

The trainer's dark green eyes flashed ferociously as he shouted, "Sandshrew! Can you still fight?"

"Saaand." it muttered, before nodding its head.

"Good, try your Scratch, but jump so you can reach it."

I spoke to Charmander. "We should get going. We probably won't be of any use here. C'mon." Charmander whined, but began to follow.

A sudden shout from the trainer made me turn back around. Apparently, the Sandshrew had distracted the Pidgey with Scratch long enough to powerfully Tackle it, for the Pidgey was hurtling towards me. I didn't have enough time to react, so I just stood there and let the squawking Pidgey smack into my face. What made it worse was how the Pidgey quickly used its sharp talons to push off my face and break into an awkward flight.

I'm sure I would've kept my good humor after that except for the fact that a Poké Ball was also flying towards my bruised face. I assumed that it was meant for the Pidgey, but it obviously would not make contact with its intended target. I whimpered.

The flying projectile connected with my head (which now felt like one great lump of pain), smacking me dead on in my left eye.

I fell back onto the cold, hard earth, shouting, "Oh sweet mother of rrrgghh!"

Two sets of feet ran up to me as I continued writhing about in pain, desperately trying to avoid screaming expletives. Charmander immediately knelt down beside me, speaking in his native language, trying to soothe me, I believe.

The trainer, however, only stopped long enough to grab his Poké Ball before he and his shrew ran into the woods behind me, undoubtedly chasing the Pidgey.

"Sorry!" the young lad called over his shoulder.

Blinking back tears, I grunted, "Quite an arm you have there."

I dimly heard him shout, "Thanks!" before he ran out of earshot.

With Charmander's help, I sat up. My eye stung like crazy, my vision was blurred, and I could feel a headache coming on, but other than that, I was fine. Luckily, my eye wasn't swelling shut, although I knew instinctively it would shortly turn into an ugly color of purple/dark gray.

"Charmander mander?"

"I'm okay. Really, I am."

To prove my point, I struggled to my feet. "See? I'll be all right."

"Chaaar." It said, smiling.

I groaned and rubbed my eye. "At least I can still see. Kind of rude of that kid to just run off, eh?"

Charmander nodded, and hugged my legs to make me feel better. I couldn't help but smile, and I bent down and hugged him back. Suddenly, I realized something. In the haste to continue on my journey, I had left my backpack by the stump I was sitting on earlier! "Oh geez." I complained. "Will I ever get a break?"

*****

A few minutes later, after some quick running, Charmander and I got back to the spot where my backpack had been to find it still there. The only difference was that a purple twitching butt was now sticking out of it. I was not very pleased to see it. I swiftly pulled out Dex and pointed it towards the purple behind as I quietly walked towards the backpack. The butt appeared on the screen attached to a purple rat with long buck teeth and a purple tail. Its red eyes stared off the screen at me. I gave a little shiver. Dex started speaking. "Rattata. This Pokémon can run swiftly and has a ferocious bite. Surprisingly, it lives peacefully with Pidgey. Rattata are also known for going through unwary traveler's backpacks in search of food."

"So. Unwary traveler, am I? I'll show you. I'll just catch this Rattata!" I promised Dex. "Charmander, use your Flame-"

Dex coughed politely. I looked down at it. "Yes?"

"A word of advice, if I may, Rocky?"

"Uh, sure."

"I would advise strongly against using your Charmander to attack that Rattata. It is currently situated inside your backpack, and I fear for the backpack's safety should a battle ensue. You may be able to catch the Rattata simply by throwing a Poké Ball."

"Seriously? I thought I had to weaken it first."

"Weakening a Pokémon before throwing a Ball at it is the common practice, but it is not necessary. Weakening it increases the chances of catching the Pokémon, but I stand by my suggestion of not using Charmander."

I shrugged. "I guess you would know these things better than I would, Dex. I'll try it."

"I wish you the best of luck, Rocky." So saying this, it promptly shut off.

I put it away and checked the backpack. The Rattata was still there. I whispered to Charmander, "Did you hear all that?"

Charmander nodded disappointedly, kicking the ground with his foot. I decided to make it up to him. "Listen, I'd have you attack this Rattata but I don't want my backpack to burst into flames 'cuz I got important stuff in it. So how about this: If you stay out of the way for me this time, we'll go hunt down a Pidgey, okay?"

Charmander immediately perked up, eager at the chance to exact some kind of revenge (even if it wasn't at the same Pidgey), and then began doing ‘the wave’ all by itself, silently cheering me on. I chuckled and shook my head, then prepared for business.

I crept closer to the backpack, an extra Poké Ball in hand, then paused, for the mouse had stopped moving around. It was now or never. I gripped the empty Ball tightly, hoping to soon change its status. The Rattata emerged, cookie crumbs all over its face. It had gotten Grandma's Home-Baked Double Chunk Chocolate Chip Cookies! Now it was war. "Eat this, you purple rat!" I yelled as I spun the Poké Ball off my fingertips and watched as it spiraled towards the wide-eyed Rattata.

The Poké Ball flew towards the Rattata, struck it hard, and fell back. The Rattata let out along, high-pitched squeal as it turned into a beam of red energy and flew into the Poké Ball. The Ball landed and started shaking violently for several seconds.

Wow, I thought. What a tough Rattata.

But it wasn't tough enough. After a few more tense seconds, the light went out in the center of the Poké Ball and it ceased its shaking. I stared in shock for a moment, then began jumping up and down. "I caught my very first Pokémon! Oh yeah!" I turned and high-fived Charmander.

I started dancing with joy but was immediately silenced by a Poké Ball in my stomach. "I didn't know Poké Balls fly back to their trainer. That's cool." I coughed as I lay on the ground.

A few minutes later, we were on our way once again. With Charmander at my side and a new Pokémon on my belt, I was as happy as could be. It more than made up for my throbbing eye. The only disappointment was that the Rattata had eaten my cookies.

To stay true to my bargain, we were hunting down a Pidgey right now, and we weren't having much luck. I figured they were all roosting somewhere, since it was very hot out. Charmander and I did spot a group of them flying high above us, so I quickly shouted for Charmander to torch them out of the sky as we ran behind them. He failed miserably. I could hear the Pidgeys laughing at me as they continued their flight, leaving us behind.

A half-hour had gone by, and we still hadn't found one feather of a Pidgey, and I was getting disgusted. It was nearly 5:30 and we needed to start heading to Viridian. I was set on getting there before Sandy so I could prove to her that I was a competent Pokémon trainer.

Thinking about Sandy made me wonder what Sandy's expression would be when I showed her my new Rattata. "Boy, Sandy'll be surprised when she finds out I actually caught a Pokémon, eh Charmander?"

Charmander nodded vigorously and kept searching. I left him to his task and began fiddling with my PokéGear. I was trying to find out where we were in relation to Viridian when I walked headlong into a sign. "Oof!" I said as I collapsed on the ground again. I looked up. The sign read:

Viridian City
2 miles
------------>

Apparently, we had covered some ground quickly and without my noticing. We couldn't go too much farther west before we would be going off-track. "Well, Charmander," I grunted, rubbing my stomach and standing, "I'm starting to lose hope. Maybe we should just head to Viridian. Barring anything unforeseen, we should get there before nightfall. Well, that's what I was planning for originally, but…oh, never mind."

A rustling of the bushes nearby broke my train of thought. Whipping my head around to face the shrubbery, I urgently whispered, "Charmander, now's our chance!"

Charmander immediately jumped into a fighting stance, and yelled, "Char...charmander!" at the bush, enticing the Pokémon to come out and battle.

I fingered another empty Ball on my belt, wishing desperately that this Pidgey would not try and fly away like the first one. But Charmander and I were both surprised when a Pidgey did not appear. Unfortunately, 2 or 3 Rattatas popped out instead. They stared at us, and then squeaked in unison that high-pitched squeal that my Rattata had done earlier, which definitely unnerved me. I quickly pulled out Dex to ask if it knew why they squealed, but I got no further than pulling it out of my pocket when about 50 or so more Rattatas appeared out of the underbrush. I started sweating.

It certainly did not calm me down any when I saw a brown, furry rat leap to the front of the pack. It was at least three times as tall as the Rattatas, and it stood on its hind legs, something the smaller rats could not do.

There was an eerie silence as we all stared at each other. Fumbling with the buttons, I quickly turned on Dex and pointed him towards this new threat. A picture of the rat appeared on the screen as Dex calmly stated, "Raticate. The evolved form of Rattata."

"Uh oh."

Dex began to say more but got cut off by the Raticate's sudden move towards us. It started towards Charmander and I, and it looked angry. "Rati raticate!"

"Uh...Charmander, you think we should run?...Charmander?"

I took my eyes off the Raticate and looked around. Charmander was running as fast as his little legs would take him, his fiery tail swinging behind him as he toddled off into the brush.

I turned back around. The Raticate lunged. With the reflexes of a cat, I nimbly jumped sideways and ran after Charmander, shouting, "Wait for me!" Good thing my legs obeyed, seeing as how they had suddenly turned to putty in the last few seconds.

Charmander and I raced through the underbrush as we sought to escape the rampaging squad of Rattatas and their Raticate leader. Thinking quickly, I yelled to Dex, "Dex, what's going on?! Why did those Rattatas all gang up on me?"

"Because your Rattata called for them, Rocky."

"What? How?!"

"Do you remember how your Rattata shrieked just before being captured in its Poké Ball?"

I nodded. It continued. "What that was was a call, a summons. Rattata live in small colonies, and they always watch out for each other. You have most likely run into its colony. But even if you haven't, you should always remember that whenever you see one Rattata someplace, it is certain that over forty more are close nearby."

"Wonderful. Thanks for mentioning that earlier!"

"Raaaaat! Cate raticate!"

Throwing a look backwards, I caught a glimpse of the Raticate and his minions hot on our heels.

"So, Dex, is that Raticate just one of the colony's Rattata, only evolved?"

"Unfortunately, no, Rocky. Shall I give you info on Raticate?"

"Yes, please! Just hurry!"

As Dex gave me the lowdown, I grabbed Charmander and hoisted him onto my shoulders. "Just hold on, Charmander!"

Charmander hugged me around the neck tightly and gratefully nuzzled his face into the back of my neck. I could feel him breathing heavily.

"Raticate, the evolved form of Rattata. The whiskers on their face help them to maintain their balance. Raticates are known for leading groups of Rattatas. They can easily become very vicious and chase any unwary travelers who catch one of the Rattatas they lead. It will continue to chase the traveler until he or she releases the captured Rattata."

"There you go with that unwary traveler thing again! So let me get this straight," I yelled as I continued to run, "I caught a Rattata from that group and now that Raticate wants it back?"

"That seems to be the situation, Rocky."

"There's no way I'm giving up this Rattata! One last question! Are Raticates dangerous or am I running for no reason?"

"Raticates can be extremely dangerous. You should try and escape it."

I turned off Dex, threw him and the Ball containing Rattata into my vest pocket, and maintained my run.

I looked back again to see the Raticate closing in on me. That was all the motivation I needed to put on an extra burst of speed. I desperately thought of a course of action. Charmander wouldn't be able to attack with his fire without letting go of me, so that was out. I considered climbing a tree, but I discarded the idea, solely because I couldn't climb trees. I finally resigned and figured I would be running all the way to Viridian, where I could easily find someone to help me. I was puffing like The Big Bad Wolf, but I willed myself to keep running. I pushed all sorts of buttons on my PokéGear to find out which way Viridian was, but just as I was figuring that out, Charmander pointed forwards. "Char charmander mander char!"

I had no idea what he meant by that, but I sure knew what he was pointing at. Fate had decided to put a ravine in our path. How inconvenient. I desperately looked to the left and right, but there was thick foliage on either side that I wouldn't have been able to penetrate before being caught. We had no choice (unless you count releasing my Rattata a choice, and I sure wasn't going to do that) but to jump. "Charmander, we're going to jump! It doesn't look that wide, so we should make it! And if we can jump it, we’ll be free from the Rattatas!" Charmander nodded and got ready.

I held my breath, hoped, and leaped, soaring through the air. It took me no time at all to realize that I wasn't going make it to the other side. So as I flew through the air, I took Charmander off my shoulders and yelled, "You can make it!" as I threw him towards the other side. And not a moment too soon. Gravity grabbed me and pulled me down the ravine as I heard Charmander's yell become farther and farther away.

I shut my eyes as I fell into the ravine. I most certainly did not want to see the ground screaming towards me.

This is really going to hurt. I hope I survive. I thought.

But instead of the hard ground I was waiting to plummet into, I felt water. Surprised, I opened my eyes as my body hit the cold surface. Not a very watertight (ha ha) plan, seeing as I can't see underwater. To make it worse, the water irritated my left eye. My lungs gasped for air as the current quickly pulled me forward. I managed to get my head above the water and take a deep breath of air, but it was quickly knocked back out of my burning lungs because a small strip of land came and bashed into my body. But at least I was safe. I opened my eyes and realized that I was on a small island in the middle of the river, which flowed around it and continued on down its course further downstream.

That's about all I saw before I started to black out, which I really didn't want to do. What with Charmander missing up on the ground above somewhere and a horde of Rattatas and their angry leader thirsting for my blood, blacking out was the last thing I wanted to do.

I pushed myself up onto my forearms and shook my head to keep myself awake. Water flicked off the ends of my hair. I reached up and felt my head, but my hat wasn’t on. Struggling onto my knees, I surveyed the scene around me, but no hat. I had lost it in the river. Punching the sand, I slowly tried to stand, but wobbled and fell over. My body was not in good condition.

“Hey! Are you all right?”

Rapidly approaching footsteps made me look up. A young brown-haired girl ran towards me. Wow. Talk about being pretty. This girl was a knockout. Her knotted T-shirt and cutoff jeans really looked nice on her. At last, the day was looking up.

She ran over to me, a look of concern on her face. “Are you okay? What happened to you?”

I coughed. “I fell down the ravine.”

She helped me to my feet as she stared at me. I noticed her shocked look and was about to reply when a large noise emanated from somewhere behind me. I turned around to see the oncoming noise and saw familiar faces. Excellent! My good buddies, the Rattatas and the Raticate, had decided to follow me down the ravine and swim after me. I had to hand it to them, they were persistent.

I would’ve loved to stay and chat with this beautiful young girl, but I had some more running to do. So I begged her pardon. “Hey, it was fun chatting with you, but I’ve really got to run. See ya later!” I checked out my opportunities and surveyed the scene with my eagle eyes.

Ahead of me, river full of Rattatas and Raticate chasing me for captured Rattata. Behind me, more fast-flowing river. Beside me, pretty young girl. Above me, Charmander and land on which I needed to get to.

After taking in the whole scene, I saw that the ravine had footholds and handholds near the spot where I fell down. I smiled. I had found a way out. Now all I had to do was swim past the Rattatas and their leader, climb the ravine wall, find Charmander, and beatfeet it to Viridian City. Resting my hurt body somewhere in the midst of that wouldn’t hurt either.

Now, climbing the ravine would be difficult, but doable. Finding Charmander wouldn’t be all that hard either. Running to Viridian City would be the easiest part. The only major problem that lay up ahead was getting past the horde of rats. I couldn’t quickly come up with a solution, so I just decided to run past them with my superior speed and agility.

Being the arrogant fool that I am, I decided to show off for the chick beside me before I met certain death. “Hey babe, watch this.”

I got no further than two feet before I started inhaling sand. I quickly arose to see that I had tripped on a fishing rod. Wow. I had impressed myself. I never thought I could embarrass myself trying to show off for a girl as much as I had done now. I picked up the fishing pole as a brilliant plan began formulating in my head. Perhaps I could save face and look cool after all. I decided to try. I looked at the confused girl, flashed a grin, winked and began to run towards the Rattatas, waving the fishing pole all the way. It took me a few seconds to realize that the rod was the girl’s. I realized it just after I heard her hurling insults in my direction. “Hey, you thief! Bring that back! That’s mine! You better give that back right now!”

Oh good. I had succeeded in getting her attention. Luckily, she didn’t dare come and try to get her rod back for fear of the Rattatas. What she didn’t know was that they were only interested in me.

To help her feel better, I looked back as I was plowing through the Rattatas to shout back, “Hey, don’t worry. I’m just...AAAGHHH!” As I was trying to comfort the girl I had recently met, the Raticate had seen its chance and tackled me head on.

I swallowed at least a gallon of water as I felt small furry bodies beside me, clawing at me. I was finally able to shake off the Rattatas and jump up only to be sharply bitten on the arm by about a thousand more Rattatas who wouldn’t let go. I quickly knocked them all on the head with the fishing pole as I kept running.

The Raticate shouted, “Cate!” and leaped for me again. I swung around and saw teeth and fur. Frantically, I swung the rod at the Raticate, connecting. The Raticate flew off to the side. The Rattatas stopped chasing me and began to flock around their leader. I ran.

Soon I was waist deep in water. Pole in teeth, I swam as fast as I could to the ledge. The girl’s voice got farther away but the Pokémon noises were still close behind. The Raticate had recovered quickly. The current started pushing me back, but I fought it with as much strength as I could muster. I finally caught onto the hard rock and lifted myself up. Okay. The first part of my plan had been narrow, but it worked. I looked back to see how close the pack of Rattatas was. They were just a little too close for comfort. So I climbed twice as fast. Of course, that did nothing to relieve the pain of my wounded arm, which had recently started bleeding due to the numerous Rattata bites.

I finally climbed up to upper ground as I fell in a heap. I looked over and saw Charmander on the other side, looking anxiously at me. I smiled and waved to show him that I was all right. But just then, as I was basking my glory of having escaped the horde of Rattatas and their evil leader, I heard scuffling noises. I peeked down over the ledge to see them all running up a rocky walkway on the ledge. I kicked myself for not seeing the nature-made path from the top of the ravine to the bottom. I hurriedly jumped up and looked around. There was no way to cross the ravine except to jump and we all know how I failed the first time. But there was no other option. I grabbed the fishing pole (which had cracked after I smacked it into the Raticate) and ran towards the gaping ravine. I jumped once again, with my arms outstretched.

I managed to grab hold of the other side, but just barely. I quickly released the pole so I could get a better grip. The pole fell down, hit a protruding rock, and broke into two, before hitting the water and being carried away.

I pulled myself up and fell down onto the ground as Charmander hugged me.

“Charmander mander mander!”

“I’m glad to see you.”

I slowly stood up, shaking my head. “This day is one for the books.”

By this time, the Rattatas and the Raticate had gotten to the top, so Charmander and I made faces at them. “Nyah nyah! You can’t get us now! Ha ha! We’re safe! And I’ve got your Rattata!”

Obviously I didn’t know when to shut up, for the Raticate pointed towards me and the other Rattatas easily jumped the ravine. I freaked and ran. Charmander and I crashed through the underbrush, screaming all the way. “Aaaahhhh!”

“Chaaarrrr!”

Thinking quickly, I pushed more buttons on my PokéGear to try to see where Viridian was so we could run for safety, but the water had short-circuited it. I found this out after being shocked trying to work it. I kept on running, hoping my inner compass would lead me.

I looked back. “Raticate!” it said, right behind me.

After another 2 minutes, I had had enough. There was no way I was gonna run from that Raticate and its Rattata cohorts any longer. But before I put my foot down, I had to come up with a game plan. I racked my brain, searching for any information about Raticates that Dex had given me. The only thing I could think of was that they chased unwary travelers.....Suddenly I remembered something of great importance. They lose their balance if their whiskers are cut off! Now, I was prepared.

I stopped dead in my tracks and whipped around, facing the Raticate. It stopped, surprised. Charmander stopped also, confused. Now was my chance. “Charmander, quickly! Scratch its whiskers off!” Charmander raced forward, waving his claws madly.

The Raticate couldn’t respond in time. It obviously had not thought we would be stupid enough to try battling it. In a few short seconds, Raticate’s whiskers were in a pile on the forest floor. Yes! “Charmander, Flamethrower attack, now!”

“Char....man….der!” it yelled, roasting the Raticate. By this time, all the Rattatas had fallen back, afraid. The Raticate just stood there, burnt and dazed. Obviously it had gotten tired from running. But it quickly came to and, without any warning, slammed itself into Charmander hard. “Char!” it cried out in surprise as it fell back.

And that’s where it made its big mistake. There was no way I was going to let that stupid Raticate get away with that. Before I could stop myself, I had launched towards the Raticate and kicked it into the nearest tree. It slumped down, unmoving. All the Rattatas crowded around it as I fell to the ground holding my foot. Sharp pains shot up my foot into my leg.

I speedily unhooked another empty Poké Ball from my belt and managed to stand up long enough to throw the Poké Ball with as much strength as I could muster before falling down again. The Rattatas all squeaked and ran for cover as the Poké Ball enveloped the Raticate. It shook a few times and stopped.

I had finally caught the Raticate that had been chasing me through the whole forest. But of course, it had come at a cost. Namely, my whole body felt like it had been hit by a semi. But at least I was safe now.....or was I? The Rattatas were all staring at me. I was afraid I would have to fight all of them.

But they all just squeaked and ran away.

But why? I just caught their leader! Oh. That’s exactly the reason they ran away. Because none of them were as powerful as the Raticate, and I had caught it pretty easily. So they all got scared and ran away. Yep, I’m pretty safe now.

*****

I sat up, blinking sleep away. I looked over at Charmander, who was playing quietly.

Taking my time, I bandaged my left arm and my right ankle, thinking about the past two hours. It almost seemed unbelievable. “Geez, if this were made a story, nobody would buy a word of this.”

Charmander smiled at me.

I yawned. “At least that little nap helped me somewhat. I’m still aching, Charmander. This journey is not going to be easy.”

A quick look at my PokéGear revealed it still dysfunctional, so I judged by the setting sun that it was much later than I had first thought.

“C’mon, Charmander. I slept a lot longer than I wanted to. We’ve gotta get going.”

We started heading towards Viridian again. After a few minutes of uninterrupted, peaceful travel, we came upon a Pidgey.

The Pidgey was a few feet away, pecking the ground in search of food. Charmander got this wild look in his eyes and I knew I wouldn’t be able to stop him. “Watch out, Charmander. You’re still bruised from that Raticate. Just give it your best shot, ok?”

Charmander nodded. “Charmander!”

“Ok, Charmander, when you get close enough, do an Ember to catch it off guard!” I yelled as Charmander walked up to the Pidgey.

The Pidgey looked up and immediately was on the defensive. Charmander swung his tail into Pidgey, burning it. I thought about what move to call out next and decided on another fire move, because of Charmander’s wounded arm. “Good job, Charmander! Do your Flamethrower!”

“Man....derrrrrr!”

Fire shot out of its mouth, but the Pidgey flew out of the way. By this time, the Pidgey had gained its senses. It came spinning towards Charmander, knocking him back. But Charmander quickly recovered and at my command, swung its tail for another Ember. Pidgey dodged again and ran towards Charmander. All of a sudden, fire came out of the Pidgey’s tail. It was doing....an Ember attack?! “Watch out, Charmander! It’s doing some freaky Ember thingie!” I warned. But the Pidgey burned Charmander. He was not happy. Being harmed by a duplicate attack couldn’t have been fun.

Charmander suddenly ran forward towards the Pidgey. Quickly, I called out a command. “Charmander, just attack it!” His tail flame jumped in size as he ferociously attacked the Pidgey.

“Charmander! Char...mander! Mander char!” He kept yelling.

The battered Pidgey was not happy. “Pidgey!” it squawked.

Quickly, I unhooked a Poké Ball and prepared it. “Whenever you’re finished, Charmander!”

Charmander stopped beating on the Pidgey and looked up at me. “Char....” it said, disappointed.

I threw the Poké Ball with a nice spin to it. A few seconds later, I owned the Pidgey. I congratulated Charmander on a job well done. “Hey, nice work, Charmander.”

Several hundred yards later, a sign ahead of us proclaimed that Viridian City scenic overlook and path to the city were right ahead. “All right! Let’s go, Charmander. We’ve gotta get there before night falls.”

“Char.” It agreed.

As we walked ahead, I began to relax and enjoy the rest of the walk. Coming upon a the scenic overlook, I looked down and saw the city of Viridan, large and busy. I stood on the edge of the cliff, admiring the view and looking for a the path down the cliff when I heard shouting behind me. It sounded kind of familiar, but not really. After a second, it became discernible, sadly. I turned around to see the fishing girl.

By the look on her face, the tone of her voice, and the two broken halves of her fishing pole in her hands, I could tell that she was in a mood to talk. “Hold your horses! Where do you think you’re going?” she said, running towards us. “You’re not going anywhere! Come here now! You’re gonna pay for this, jerk!”

I knew running wasn’t an option, so I stood up and confronted her. “Look,” I began before she could hurl more insults in my direction, “I did what I did to avoid severe pain and suffering, and if you’re expecting to me to apologize, you’re wrong.” She started to protest, but I raised my hand to silence her and continued. “I am, however, sorry that I had to damage your property in the process. Therefore, I am more than willing to pay for your losses. Should this cover the cost?” I asked, pulling out some money that Sandy had foolishly given me earlier at the Poké Mart.

She stopped, letting her jaw hang open. She had expected a large battle, no doubt. But I didn’t even try. I knew she was right and I was in the wrong. Besides, it was Sandy’s money. No skin off my nose.

“Uh…why…uh…yes…” she spluttered. “Yes, yes, that will be…fine.”

“Good. Once again, I’m sorry I broke your fishing pole.” I was tempted to see how much of the money I could stuff in her open mouth, but I didn’t want to reverse my good fortune, so I placed it softly in her hand. “I’d really love to stay and chat, but Charmander here and I need to be getting on our way. Have a nice day.”

The real reason for my quick departure was to get out of there before she recovered from her shock of my politeness. Then she’d start asking questions and possibly getting mad again and it just wasn’t worth it, even if she was cute. So I jumped up and turned to make my hasty getaway when all I felt was air beneath my foot. I lurched forward and fell. Only I didn’t fall onto the ground. I fell into the abyss of space. 500 feet below me lay the ground and Viridian City. I was as good as dead. I could hear a frantic, “Charmander!” from above and I knew at once that I had fallen off the scenic overlook ledge. Stupid, stupid thing to do!
Why wasn’t there a fence to stop me from falling?! Darn! At least Charmander will survive.
I looked at the ground rushing up awfully fast and did the only thing that came to mind: blacked out. At least you can’t feel the pain of death that way.
---------------------------------

Unexpected Journey

 

[Seadra Reef]

*stands and applauds* Excellent, as usual. Lots of action, which was great, I loved it! The ending seemed a bit random, but oh well, definately keeps you hooked. XD Keep up the kickass writing, Rocky!

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Being chased by angry critters, running across a random girl, breaking something of hers...We've all heard it before, but you made it something new, and for that I commend you.

Rocky has hidden power issues. Interesting to see that.

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

Geez, how fast do you guys READ?!


~Rocky :010: Cliffs

 

[Jukain]

Golly. That was fantastic. A classic cliffhanger to boot. You are incredibly good at this. I wish my fillers were this good. On that note, I have stopped posting my fic again due to lack of readers. The more fantastic fics I read, the more I realize my own shortcomings. I don't really know how to improve myself, either, because that's simply the way I think. Then again, comparing myself to such talent should not by any means be done, but it just make it seem that everyone is better than me at this. Sorry for that, I just wanted to say it.

 

[Seadra Reef]

Originally posted by Jukain
I don't really know how to improve myself, either, because that's simply the way I think.

Best ways to improve writing skills:
- Read other people's work. High quality, of course.
- Experiment with different styles, find which works best for you.
- Keep writing and write plenty.

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

Jukain, don't worry about the lack of readers. The site isn't even open yet. I myself only have four readers: you, Seadra, Zukin and Blackjack.

If you really want tips on how to write and all that, go here:

Advice for Aspiring Authors - An Old Rant Revived


Oh, and as a quick announcement, Chapter Three may take about a week to write, since it'll be brand-new material. See, the Prologue and Chapters One and Two I had written three years ago, and I was just now fixing them and changing them a bit. So, since now I have to start writing completely new material, it might take a while longer. Just to let you all know.


~Rocky :011: Cliffs

 

[Jukain]

Thanks. I know of that stuff. I always get like that. Really, I have some readers, it's just that they don't reply, they told me so themselves. You are your own worst critic. It happened to me when I did oekaki, too.