The Creator: Chapter One

Pidgey.

Not the best pokémon built for flying in this world; despite its typing, its long-distance flying abilities were rather lackluster. It exhausts itself easily, mostly due to the way Pidgeys are built; not because of their size, but because of how they formed and altered through generations of different Pidgeys, Pidgeottos and Pidgeots.

The occurance of such a thing is inevitable. Nothing stays the same in this world. Everything will forever continue to change, despite how much the inhabitants of this world disagree.

A lone, smaller than average Pidgey could be seen roaming over the outer parts of Viridian City. An average soul might not ponder much about a small Pidgey taking to the skies, especially in these parts of the world where they were so common you could close your eyes and see one.

But this small Pidgey had a destination; a goal, so to speak, with its flight over Viridian City, now nearing Route 1. This same Pidgey travelled this very route once every ten years, missing a few days or weeks here and there between the decades, but that isn't the point, and made sure to carefully observe its surroundings every time.

The lone bird continued to fly towards its destination, mostly in silence as to not attract any attention. It would rather not have some new trainer attempt to catch it, but who would capture a newly hatched one anyways? The more mature group of Pidgeots knew who said Pidgey was, or at least had a vague idea of it. It could always be seen around these parts at this time of year. Few ever saw it, but those who did witnessed something incredible.

At least by their standards.

For the small Pidgey itself, it wasn't much. It didn't really get why the inhabitants of Route 1 would fuss so much over it. No other route did it when he visited, so why did this one?

There were many suitable answers to said question, but there were a few that would render most anyone speechless. It was a tale going through generations of Pidgeots that once every ten years, a small lone Pidgey, no bigger than a freshly-hatched one, would always fly over this route. And the lucky ones who could see it land would not be met with the feathery body of their kind, but instead with the clothed body of a human boy. Wild speculations about who it was were always a hot topic among the birds themselves, so much that there had always been days or weeks where all of the Viridian birds gathered to look for the elusive Pidgey and share their tales and theories about who or what the human boy could be.

It was a special event in a way for the inhabitants of Route 1, and now it would happen again.

The small Pidgey could see a massive number of Pidgeys, Pidgeottos and Pidgeots in a small grassy clearing ahead.

Why were there so many gathered in one place? Why gather here, of all places? Perhaps they, too, had heard the tales. Even so, the small bird could sense their frustrations; their hopeful wanting. Had a disagreement decided to sprout between the habitants of Route 1?

It couldn't very well let that slide, now could it?

The small Pidgey descended towards the grassy patch. As it neared the clearing, several of the older Pidgeots turned their heads towards the odd wind shift in the air. Their gaze met with the newborn-sized bird, and they urged their young to look upwards. The birds all held their breath with excitement at the sight. With graceful movements of its small wings, the Pidgey landed in the center of the ring made up of the Pidgey evolution line. And just as it hit the ground, a bright light started to erupt from within the small Pidgey's body.

A form of evolution was taking place, though its colors were shifting rapidly, almost like a rainbow of sorts. The air around the clearing got heavy, as if a smothering presence settled over the clearing. The wind started going around the area in rapid speeds: trees were on the verge of falling, and leaves were flying around and distorting the vision of the inhabitants of Route 1. It created a dance of colors around the clearing, a rapid mixture of brown, green, and orange. The small Pidgey's body was changing slowly, and glowed so brightly that a few of the birds had to look away to not be momentarily blinded.

The Pidgey grew much larger than it had originally been. Its wings became longer and slimmer; so slim you couldn't see the feathers that had been present. Its small beak flattened as its head and upper body grew several times larger, and its small legs became thicker and longer. The colors flashed even brighter as the creature stood up. Every pokémon in the area stood still, eyes widening as far as they could.

As the creature fully stood, still and proud, the light started to lower in intensity. The leaves floated softly to the ground and the trees stood still, some on the verge of falling. But the Pidgey evolution line looked as if they had been hit with a Thunderbolt; their feathers were pointing to all sorts of places but they didn't care. All they could care about right now was the figure behind the rapidly-fading light.

There stood a boy, a human boy no older then his mid-teens with his plain clothing and his disheavled raven hair. The boy stretched his arms over his head, trying to restore feeling to the heavy limbs.

"Phew!" the boy laughed out lightly. "Those wings aren't really made for long flights. Should I try to change that?" he asked to no one in particular, stroking his chin in thought. I could try to change their wingspans by adjusting their bone structures, but that would take a few generations. Not to mention, I'd have to change their evolutions as well. Could I balance it in some way? Most of the times he flew like this, the boy always took the form of the native regions flying type. The Kanto region's being the Pidgey evolution line.

But soon his mind caught up to him. Pidgey... it was a familiar thought about said creature that pestered him. Had he forgot something involving Pidgeys?

The boy looked up from his thoughts, finding a circle of no less than fifty members of the Pidgey line surrounding the clearing he had landed in, all of them looking up at him with wide eyes. The human boy smiled; how had he almost forgotten the entire reason he landed here? Maybe age was finally taking its toll on him, though that wasn't very likely. After all, why would it start now?

He looked across the circle of birds; some looked on warily, while others gazed up in amazement. (He wasn't sure which he preferred at the moment.) He extended a friendly hand and asked, "Could your flock leader come forward?"

The birds went into a small frenzy. "Get the elder, get the elder!" they chirped. The flutter of wings silenced their excitement as a small group of Pidgeottos took off to find the elder Pidgeot. As he waited for their return, the remaining birds continued to look up at him, though their initial amazement was slowly fading into curiousity. Several other pokémon had joined them now; he could see a few brave Caterpies and Rattatas on the edges of the clearing.

Eventually the sound of wings beating steady in the air came to his ears. It was a rather pleasant sound; you could tell just by following the sound that it belonged to a very old and powerful Pidgeot. It was like a heart, steadily and soothingly beating without losing its rhythm. The boy brought his attention to the sky above the now-leaning trees. His gaze met with the large figure, which seemed to speed up as it spotted the clearing. This Pidgeot wasn't one to waste time. That was good, at least so the boy thought; it didn't really matter, seeing how he had all of the time in the world, but waiting around all day could get tiring rather quickly.

With great elegance, the powerful bird eventually landed inside of the grassy clearing, rustling the leaves to life once more. The boy set his gaze on the old bird, a small smile present on his face. It was truly a magnificent creature, and no doubt equally as lethal in combat. Its sharpened claws and lengthy wingspan was sure to make even the bravest of hearts cold with fear.

The Pidgeot shifted around on its small feet, digging its claws into the ground slightly as it had landed, checking his own stability. Seeming satisfied, the bird raised its wings clear above its head and cawed, "Who summoned me here?"

A few younger Pidgeots and Pidgeottos shifted on their small feet, while the younger Pidgeys made sure to stand behind the safety of their older brethren. It didn't take long, though, for the response to flow smoothly into the air of the clearing. "My apologies if I upset you with my request, elder."

The elder Pidgeot turned its head ever so slowly towards the familiar raven-colored hair matched with the ever-so-plain human clothes confirmed the Pidgeot's suspicion. "It is a surprise to be summoned by you, human,"the elder Pidgeot started, eyeing the boy with a small grin on its beak. "It has been a long time since our last meeting." The boy simply smiled in return, waiting for the inevitable question on everyone's mind. "What brings you here?"

The boy looked around the clearing, eyeing each and every pokémon in his presence before replying, "I saw everyone gathered here and thought I'd say hello. Any particular reason for this gathering?"

"I think you know," the great bird responded. It gestured with its wing to a group of young Pidgeys, who shied away as the focus suddenly turned to them. "The young ones are always eager to attend our yearly tradition out here in the woods, but since they're too young to make the trip themselves, the elders escort them out." The Pidgeot then turned back to the human before it. "The tradition comes from a special legend. Have you heard of it, human?"

The boy smiled. "Do you mean the one about the Pidgey?"

The Pidgeot nodded. "Should one see it land, they will not be met with the feathery body of our kind, but by the clothed body of a human boy."

"That's the one," the boy answered with a cheery smile. "Quite an unusual tale, if I do say so myself."

"I've seen you here once before, human, back when I was but a hatchling," the great bird informed him. The bird stepped forward, as if to examine the boy closer. "But in all of the times you've been here, our kin has never had the chance to ask the one question we've been so curious to unravel."

"And that would be?"

"Who are you?"

The excitement peaked from every creature in the clearing. The boy smiled gently as he pondered his answer. He thought over his options, trying to choose the most rewarding one. After giving it some thought, he finally found his answer, "Who do you think I am, elder?"

The elder's sharp eyes gazed around the clearing, thinking about his answer thorougly. "Well, surely you must be someone of great importance to have the abilities you've shown us. I don't mean to come across as rude, but they're...unusual for a pokemon. Especially unusual for one capable of human speech."

"Rest easy, elder. You cannot come across as rude given the friendly atmosphere I've been welcomed into here."

The boy knelt down, trying to ease the bird's worries with an encouraging smile. "May I answer your question with another question, elder?" The Pidgeot nodded his consent. With a careful hand, as if he were holding a child, the boy scooped up a small handful of dirt. Presenting it to the great bird, the boy's soft inquiry flowed smoothly across the eerily quiet clearing. "What am I holding, elder?"

All of the pokémon present in the clearing stared at his hands, obviously puzzled by the strange behaviour of the human boy. Who in their right mind would pick up a fist of dirt and present it to the respected elder? Was there some sort of hidden symbolism, or was it just a trick question? What did it have to do with the boy's origins?

The Pidgeot elder also pondered, but the more he thought, he eventually realised what answer the boy was looking for. "You're holding the earth."

"Correct. Now, who are the ones that created the earth?"

"The legendaries." All creatures, both human and pokémon alike, knew the stories of the legendary pokémon. There was the God Pokémon, Arceus, who created the land; and his children, the purest forms of the elements that built the world alongside him. The ground was carved by the claws of Groudon. The sea wove its way to the shore by the fins of Kyogre. The sky was shaped around Lord Rayquaza's majestic form. Dialga ruled over time, while Palkia controlled space, and the lake guardians gifted knowledge, emotion, and willpower to Mew and all its offspring.

"That's right."

The Pidgeot looked at the boy, waiting for the next part of their conversation. Surely, he wasn't implying...? No, it couldn't be. The legendaries were highly against visitors; they rarely showed themselves, and that had proven true over thousands of years. But no answer to his question game; the boy simply sat quietly and smiled.

If the boy wouldn't give him an answer, the elder bird would have to push for it himself. The great Pidgeot didn't know how this... obsession with the answer had sprouted inside his mind. Perhaps it had started when he was but a hatchling and first saw the small Pidgey descend in a ray of light, the hypnotic colours of it's transformation. "Are you one of them?"

The boy raised a brow with a bemused smirk. "Is that what you believe, elder?"

"Are you?"

The boy met the powerful bird's gaze unflinchingly. He couldn't deny the bird answers any longer. He considered his answer for a few moments, then said, "Close your eyes, all of you." All of the pokémon present obeyed without question: the Caterpies, the Rattatas, the Pidgeys, and even the elder Pidgeot. As if they had already known what to do...

A small breeze ran through the clearing as the air around them once again got heavy, and just for a split second, they had all heard it. The Pidgeot's eyes shot open in shock, then darted around in an attempt to spot the human boy in plain clothing. But around him was nothing, nothing but his grand forest and his own kin.

A small leaf rustled away into the sky. Every set of eyes in the clearing followed its flight upward, thinking about what they had all just heard. It was one word, barely audible as if it had been whispered by the wind:

Yes.

Route 1 had always been a beautiful place, filled with trees sporting leaves of all kinds of colors. Those same leaves littered the ground he walked on like an ever-changing carpet, crunching with every step he took.

He usually took things a little bit slower in his journey around this part of the world. Each of the world's regions were beautiful in their own ways, of course, but he couldn't help but be more attached to Kanto than the others. Johto was too forested, while Kalos was too mountainous, and Sinnoh was too far buried under cold and ice. Hoenn was too far fragmented by the ocean, while Unova was too compacted and grew dense with human population. But life of all kinds thrived in Kanto, from pokémon to humans to even the greenery that surrounded him. Its population was happy in their simplistic worlds; they wanted for little, and enjoyed every wonder that nature gave them.

When was the last time he had enjoyed himself, he had to wonder? He couldn't even remember.

It hadn't been long since he left the Pidgeot's parts of the grand forest. They might have ruled the larger parts of Route 1, but they didn't own everything. Out further, he saw a mischief of Rattata, closely following their vigilant Raticate mother. There weren't any clear threats in the area, but the mother had every right to be wary. In the wild, predators thrived upon the weak and unaware.

The strongest survive, so to speak, but wasn't that how it was supposed to be? Motivation to protect yourself and others, wanting to protect your kin from harm's way, sacrificing yourself if it meant your loved ones could see another sunrise. Perhaps the humans should change their phrase from "only the strong survive" to "only those who put others before themselves show true strength." Then again, humans had never been a fan of long sentences with meaningful content. Their current fad was research and trying to cram everything there was to know about human- and Pokékind into data and electronic directories.

In all his years, he had never witnessed a researcher in action. Perhaps he would take the time to find out. The town up ahead was known for its research center, and the professor living within it. Even if the old facility was rather...lacking, it remained the jewel of the town. As he approached, he could see the top of the Oak Corral peeking out above the trees from its place atop the hills. It truly was the watchful eye over Pallet, always in view for the whole town to look at with affection.

"Just like a Rattata's mother, huh?" the boy mused to himself, gazing up as the new view of the facility greeted him.

He could see the tall grass that separated Pallet from Route 1 now, just waiting to reveal the quiet town to any adventure-hungry youngster...or perhaps it showed the citizens of Pallet a vast world with endless possibilities when they went through it? Either way, it was a gateway. A gate between two different worlds.

Within arm's reach of the tall grass, he slowly ventured through. His eyes landed on the quiet town of Pallet, taking it in. He took a step or two forward, entering the spectacular haven of—

"Stop right there, young man!"

A hand swung out and gave his right arm a hard tug. The boy stumbled back and fell to the ground. Staring down at him was the irritated visage of an aged man, who shook his head back and forth and grumbled in annoyance. "You youngsters never learn, do you?"

It was a rhetorical question, or so he hoped. The fall hadn't hurt at all, but being human had its downsides and being disoriented was apparently one of them. He watched the aged man sigh and extend a hand to help him. "Get up, you'll get dirty laying on the ground like that."

The boy accepted the man's hand and lifted himself up. As he dusted off his clothes, he asked, "Did I do something wrong, sir?"

"Did you do something wrong?" the man asked, almost in shock. "Pah, you youngsters don't even bother to learn the rules of this region before waltzing into life, do you?" The man shook his head, clearly annoyed at such an obvious break of rules. Although the boy didn't really know what kind of law this was, this man was strict to enforce this "law" so seriously.

Putting up an almost tired expression, one that clearly showed his old age, the man said, "Don't think I didn't see you try to sneak through the tall grass into Route 1 without a pokémon to protect you!" The old man put a palm to his forehead, shaking his head tiredly. "You don't have a pokémon, do you, son?"

He didn't know how to answer the old man. Sure, he could conjure a pokémon, but humans carried theirs in specialised capture-contraptions that he wouldn't know how to make. No, tricking the old man would be too difficult. He'd have to talk his way out of it, "Sir, there was no nee-" he started.

"Do you have a pokémon?" he asked again. The old man's facial expressions left no room for arguments, as if he had seen this lie a thousand of times in his life. Perhaps he had?

With a sigh of his own, realizing he couldn't and probably shouldn't have lied to the old man, he murmured a quick "No" in the man's direction.

The old man's face brightened considerably, and he gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. "See? Not that hard to tell the truth, young man."

The boy could only shrug. This gave the aged man a chance to size him up, which prompted a second question. "How old are you, son?"

He hadn't really thought much about how he would answer such a question. Humans were the only ones who took such care in counting the passage of years. He always took the form of the same human boy, still going through one of the human maturing stages. What year did that start? Twenty seemed too old, but eleven seemed too young. Something in between, then?

"Uh.. I'm 15 years old, sir," he answered as seriously as possible. He looked the aged man straight in the eyes, trying to convey just how serious he was. Perhaps it was working? He honestly had no clue.

The man seemed to stare intently for what felt like quite a few minutes, until he broke out in the biggest grin the boy had seen and would probably ever see. "15 years old without a pokémon?" the man asked, almost in shock and.. happiness? Was it something he said?

"That's... correct," the boy answered hesitantly.

The man's eyes were shining with giddiness and excitement, so much that the boy had to look away. That is, until he felt a sharp tug in his right arm, almost dragging him away from their previous spot.

"Boy, that will not do! We are fixing that right now, young man!" the old man said passionately, leading him away from the apparently dangerous grass pathway.

Shocked and speechless, the boy wordlessly followed as the old man dragged him towards the Oak Corral in the distance. He didn't know what was happening. But then again, hadn't he always deep down wanted to socialize with humans?

Well, now I can.

As they were nearing the entrance to the grand research facility, he couldn't help but wonder what was in store for him right now. An old man had suddenly dragged him away towards the large structure, as giddy as a Haunter who just found its new plaything. And the old man wanted to "fix" him somehow? He didn't have a good feeling about this.

As they neared the entrance, the old man skipped a few steps ahead and opened the door, ushering the boy inside. "Come inside, young man. I can assure you it'll be worth your while," the man said with a small smile on his face.

Once inside, the boy couldn't help but look around in awe. This was nothing like he had expected the research facility to look like on the inside. He had expected something more pristine, like a medical center or a laboratory, but the Corral had a more intimate feel to it. Shelves upon shelves of books lined the walls; the titles on their spines covered all sorts of topics concerning pokémon genetics and evolution theories and the like. Boxes and spilled piles of papers covered the floors. It appeared as though the facility hadn't been cleaned in at least a week, but he could appreciate the disheveled look. It showed that the professor who owned the building was a busy man, and one who cared very deeply about his studies. And about his pokémon, the boy noted with a smile, as he saw a group of the elemental creatures playing happily in the yard outside the window.

A hand patted his shoulder. He turned around to find the old man making his way further into the facility. By now, the man had grabbed a white coat that fell past his knees and pulled it on. "Come this way, son."

He followed the old man into an office which, in addition to the books and reports, also sported a number of electronic devices. "My name is Professor Oak," the old man finally introduced.

Deciding it was best to stick to formalities, the young boy answered, "Pleased to meet you, Professor."

The old mans lips curved upwards in a small smile as he responded, "The pleasure's all mine, young man. Now then, what's your name?"

The young boy froze. His past socializations with humans were so few and far between that no one had ever asked him for a name. The thought of needing to come up with one had never crossed his mind. How was he supposed to answer? The boy held back a frustrated sigh as he searched the room for inspiration. It wasn't like the old man would judge him for having some sort of random name, right?

He almost settled for 'Mug,' until his eyes fell upon an old ashtray. It was brilliant, the old professor would never see it through. "The name's Ashtr-"

"Ash, did you say?" Or Ash, this old man...

The boy gave a hesitant nod. Ash was as good of a name as anything else, he supposed. If the professor's smile was any indication, he seemed to believe it just fine. "So, Ash, have you ever wanted a pokémon? Most start training when they're ten. I'm the one responsible for giving them their starter pokémon."

The boy nodded his understanding at the last part of Oak's sentence. He knew children would come to research facilities to be handed captured pokémon. They called it 'training,' and the humans seemed to enjoy it, though he never understood why.

Apparently, the professor misunderstood his nod as an answer to his question. "Oh, so you are interested in becoming a trainer!"

The boy (now named Ash, he supposed), tried to interrupt and reason with the old man. "Professor, wait, I-"

"No, no, it's not a problem at all," the old professor assured. "Every young man deserves the chance to become a pokémon trainer, so you may as well start now!" He moved to one of the large machines in the back, turning the screen on and messing with the array of keys mounted next to it. "Give me just a second here..."

Ash watched the professor work with curious eyes, trying to work through his own confusion. Did he really just accidentally agree to be a trainer? To run around Kanto capturing wild pokémon and...whatever else trainers did? He didn't even know what the title entailed. What did trainers do? Where was he supposed to go after this? Was he even going to go through with this?

"Aha!" was heard and Ash's eyes immediately darted to the professor. The old man turned to face the boy and finally explained, "You see, my boy, I usually have plenty of pokémon here to give out to new trainers, but I had a group come in earlier today and take all of the ones I had prepared. It won't be a traditional starter, but let me assure you, it can be just as powerful if you raise it properly."

The boy tilted his head in confusion at the last part, ignoring the fact that he was about to receive a pokémon. Sure, he knew that different pokémon were different in terms of strength or agility, but the idea of raising them into powerful beings was a foriegn concept. Could they be trained to withstand their weaknesses and improve on their individual strengths? It was an interesting theory; maybe becoming a trainer could answer some of his own questions.

After a moment, he noticed the Professor was looking at him for agreement to his passionate statement. The boy could only dumbly nod his head at whatever wisdom the old man was spouting about this trainer job. "Good, I'm glad you agree." The old man's mood changed as he stepped away from the computer. "It's good to see you're excited. I'm actually lucky you came along. I have a special job that needs doing, and I think you're a perfect fit for it."

"Special job, Professor?" Ash asked, not letting his confusion and very slight worry slip into his voice.

"You see, I've developed something called a Pokédex. It has the capability to record the information of every Pokémon known to date: its moves, its typing, its gender differences, its evolutionary tree, even the kinds of food it likes." Ash couldn't help but be impressed; the tool sounded incredibly useful. "The problem is, I need a trainer to go out and help me finish my database. The world is full of pokémon that live all over the place, and..." The professor paused with a melancholy sigh. "Well, I'm a little too old to do all of that running around. I asked my grandson, but he's busy in Viridian City with his obligations to the local gym. And I can't exactly trust any ten-year-old who wanders in with such an important task."

Ash didn't know how to respond. His gut instinct was to reject, but there was a desperate look in the professor's eyes, as if he were afraid of that rejection. He could have easily taken the professor's machine out into a private clearing and conjured one of every species, but he felt that wouldn't do the professor's request any justice. The old man didn't seem like the type that was blindly hungry for knowledge; he genuinely wanted him to have a wonderful experience on his trainer's journey. It was almost heartbreaking to think of. The professor probably would have loved to take the adventure for himself, but he had lived his life and now needed to ask someone younger to take it up in his place.

If one of the Pidgey or Rattata on Route 1 had shown him those eyes of desperation, he would have stopped in a heartbeat. He had never been good to the humans of the world, even though they needed him just as much as any pokémon did. This was his chance to change things.

"Alright, I'll do it," he conceded with a sigh.

"Wonderful!" The professor hit one final button on his keyboard. With a loud surging noise and a flash of light, a red-and-white sphere dropped into a special area built into the electronic device's side. He picked up the sphere and brought it over. "This is a pokéball," the professor explained. "Trainers use these to capture and store their pokémon. This is a new one I just caught a few days ago. It might still be a little...wild, but I'm sure you two will learn to get along in no time."

He pressed the white button on the sphere's face, causing it to pop open. A white beam of light burst forth from the sphere's containment, jumping to the ground and taking the form of a small mouse pokémon. As the white light began to fade, the figure took on a proper electric yellow color, with bright red cheeks and nervous brown eyes. Its pointed ears and thunderbolt-shaped tail all twitched wildly as it tried to absorb its new surroundings.

That is, before it took in the sight of the old professor and its mood went from afraid to furious. "Stop it! You know how much I hate being in that ball!" it spoke, shaking a tiny yellow fist at the old man as if it were trying to pick a fight.

Oak simply looked on in amusement, blissfully unaware that he had just been threatened. "He's a feisty one, as I'm sure you can tell." Ash nodded in agreement; clearly, the little Pikachu had a temper.

Pikachu instantly looked towards Ash, as if just now noticing there was another human in the room. Their eyes met. Ash tried to look back with a face of acceptance, while Pikachu just looked unimpressed. At least, until he figured out what was going on.

Pikachu looked back and forth between the two human males before asking the professor, "You're really gonna give me to this idiot?", gesturing towards Ash with his paw in disbelief. Ash was amused by the statement, but didn't show it. This little creature had no idea what was coming for him, did it?

The Professor took the question as if Pikachu was curious as to who this other person was and responded with ease. "Pikachu, meet your new trainer."

The small Pokémon looked to Ash again, sizing him up before sighing. "I'd rather it be this guy than some kiddo who would try to snuggle with me any chance he gets," the Pikachu said in defeat, thinking back on all the people in this facility that cuddled him as soon as he had gotten captured.

They had tasted the thunder and their tongues got burned off. He was at least satisfied with that.

"It looks like he likes you, Ash!" the professor said happily.

"Right." Ash bit back a nervous chuckle; 'like' might have been too strong of a word. "So what else do I need? Where should I go first?"

"Your first stop should probably be Pewter City. That's where you'll find your first gym challenge in the Indigo League. I would advice you avoid my grandson for some time, he's quite tough on novice trainers. Challenging gym leaders to battles are how trainers show off how much their pokémon have grown. Along the way, you and Pikachu can practice battling against some of the wild pokémon, and you can catch some of them to add to your party."

Ash nodded, taking in the information. He looked over at the little yellow mouse, who seemed to be tuning them out. Is this really how the humans interacted with pokémon? By forcing them to fight each other? And that somehow helped them grow and become stronger? The whole idea was odd, even a little uncomfortable...but he still felt an obligation to try it and see if there was any merit to this whole 'trainer' thing.

The professor handed Ash five shrunken pokéballs, as well as a sleek red contraption that he could only assume was the 'Pokédex', all of which the young boy slipped into his pants pockets. "I can't help you much past that, but I'll always be here if you need me. I know taking on this responsibility seems like a lot, but just do your best."

"Don't worry, professor, I'll make sure the job gets done," Ash assured him.

The professor then turned to Pikachu, pulling out the pokéball that the yellow mouse had just been released from. Pikachu tensed up at the sight of the sphere, and Ash could clearly see the fear and discomfort in his face. Before Oak could send him back into the pokéball, Ash lifted a hand to stop him. "Uh...actually, Professor, are you allowed to have pokémon outside of their pokéballs?"

"Of course, but why do you ask?"

"I just...think Pikachu might be happier walking around with me," the young boy lied. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Pikachu breathe a huge sigh of relief.

"Well, who am I to argue with that?" Professor Oak handed Ash Pikachu's pokéball and smiled. "Well then, that's all I have for you. Best of luck on your journey, Ash." There was a sincerity in the old man's voice that he could appreciate; he genuinely wanted him to have a great time on his adventure, and probably wished the same on all of the trainers who passed through his doors.

"Thank you, Professor." Ash crouched down in front of the small rodent, who was looking up curiously albeit very displeasingly at him, and asked, "You ready to go, Pikachu?" with a kind smile on his face.

The small rodent looked around the lab before turning to Ash and gave a small nod. Anything was better than this place, in his opinion.

Ash stood up and walked towards the exit of the building, but not before saying his goodbyes to the aged professor, which were returned in kind. Pikachu lazily walked next to him on his way out, not even stopping to acknowledge any of the rooms they passed on the way out.

Ash sighed as he returned to the streets of Pallet. This would be a long day.

A very long day.

They had been walking in silence for the better part of an hour now.

Not a word had been spoken between the two, and it was starting to bother Ash. He hadn't expected the rodent to be cheerful with his current situation, given his reaction inside of the research facility, but he had at least expected the Pokémon to talk to him.

Wasn't that what Pokémon usually did with humans? Talked to them?

It was what he observed when these "trainers" had originally started appearing, though he had not searched deeper as most seemed to get along with each other. There was no need to intervene when everything was peaceful.

Then it hit him.

He sighed when he realized why the pokémon hadn't spoken to him at all. A normal human wouldn't understand anything the little creature said. Why would the pokémon even attempt to talk in such a situation?

He tried to think of how to introduce the situation. Would it be too suspicious if he commented on what the Pikachu had said in the lab? He certainly couldn't come right out and say, "Hey, I'm your new trainer and I can totally understand you like no other human can!" What if he started randomly talking to Pikachu in an attempt to lighten the mood? He would know by twitches in the rodent's ears if he were listening or not. If he were going to do this trainer thing seriously, he had to at least set up a base relationship between himself and his pokémon. But how did you start a relationship between two individuals who initially wanted nothing to do with each other?

He let out a sigh, closing his eyes for a brief moment.

He honestly had no idea.

Then there was the question of revealing himself or not to the pokémon. Could he honestly do that? Would it have even mattered? It would probably matter to his pokémon. Being deceived like that would hurt anyone. What if they were attacked by someone with ill intent? Would he protect him if they were trying to harm his Pikachu? Of course, even now he would protect the little creature if something like that came up. But if it came up, would the little critter feel deceived if he hadn't told him? This was way too confusing.

Honesty would go a long way in any basic friendship, so shouldn't he be just that? Honest? Would that be enough to remove this invisible wall they had between them right now?

It had to be done. He had to tell Pikachu the truth.

Looking at the small creature walking next to him, he quickly figured out the words to say. "You know, it's not nice to call people idiots," he said with a small smile.

Pikachu's ears perked up, and the yellow mouse snorted. "Ha! You're all idiots, stupid trainer kids," he said quickly in retort, shaking his small head...

Then Pikachu stopped dead in his tracks and just stared at him.

Ash, noticing his newfound companion's lack of moving forward, immediately stopped and turned around to face the small creature. Pikachu looked up at him as if he had just grown two heads. Perhaps he should have done so to make all of this easier? But he quickly dismissed the thought; there was no time for games now.

The small creature took a few unsteady steps towards him, standing just in front of him before looking up at him with wide eyes and asking, "How do you know what I said?"

Ash looked down on the small elemental creature, seeing all of the curiousity, nervousness, and fear hiding in his eyes. It hurt him a bit that the little mouse was afraid of him. He wanted to ease his new companion's worries; he only wanted the best for the little Pikachu, as he did with all pokémon.

"I can understand you," Ash told him, making sure the creature knew the obvious.

The creature looked at him with a newfound interest for a second, before his eyes returned to their hesitant form. "I can see that," Pikachu started, looking straight up into Ash's eyes before asking, "But how?"

The Pikachu's form was tense, he noticed, as if it was ready to run at any opportunity. He had to salvage this quick with something that would probably keep the Pokémon interested.

"I am not human," Ash said, not knowing how to phrase it differently to the smaller creature.

He saw the Pikachu process his words, its eyes widening in shock before once again looking at him with hesitant but curious eyes. "Then.. what are you? Who are you?"

Ash looked away from the Pikachu for a second, thinking it over briefly. Now would be the time to show the small creature his true appearance. Hopefully, the revelation would allow Pikachu to accept him as his new trainer for the rest of their journey together.

There was no turning back now. His pokémon would be the first to witness it.

His true form.

The world tinted itself light blue for a moment. The sound of the wind rushing through the greenery stopped itself completely. The movement of the bushes and the chattering of Pidgey, Rattata and all other occupants of the forest stilled. All that could be heard was a simple melody weaving its way into the whispering winds of their tranquil surrounding forest. Its soothing sound, much like a flute, imbued itself into the surrounding greenery, giving it an almost ethereal glow that built and built up into a beautiful crescendo. The lights became blinding, and soon all Pikachu could see was white. All he could hear was the melody echoing around him, as if its tones were forming a protective cocoon around him. Despite being momentarily blind, depite not hearing anything but the mysterious music, he felt safe for some reason.

And for a split second, he felt a large presense crash over the entire forest before it vanished completely.

The blinding light and the music eventually started to fade slowly, its melody coming to an end. The small yellow rodent opened one eye carefully, and then another, trying to keep his keep his cool amongst all the disorientated things that were happening.

Everything was still. Leaves of all kinds of colors were stuck in the air, as if time itself had frozen.

'That's because time is frozen,' a voice spoke behind him. Pikachu nearly twisted his neck to turn and look at the speaker commenting on his thoughts.

An equine pokémon appeared behind him, with a soft coat of pristine white fur. His majestic mane and tail flowed freely behind him, even though the Route 1 breeze had frozen alongside the leaves. A bejeweled golden wheel sat around his midsection, further building up his powerful silhouette. Even with his magnitude, though, the creature walked lightly, with shining golden hooves that moved silently across the noisy forest floor. He said nothing further; he just looked down at the little yellow mouse, with a smolder in his green-red eyes that nearly pierced through his soul.

The creature's name appeared in Pikachu's head, as if his raw instincts knew who he was in the presence of. This was the Alpha Pokémon, the Original One.

Arceus.

And he had just called the Original One an idiot, right to his face.

A feeling that could only be described as dread and pure fear settled in his stomach at the revelation. He had insulted a god, the god. Arceus only kept his stare trained on him, not moving an inch. The Alpha Pokémon was probably thinking of how to punish him or whatever he now would do.

'You seem to think of me as cruel, Pikachu,' said a voice in his mind; the same voice that had called to him just moments ago. Terrified as he was, he completely missed the slight amusement in the voice.

'I-I..' Pikachu tried to answer but found that he couldn't get a single word out. He was utterly terrified of what was about to happen.

'Ease your worries, I mean you no harm.' The god's words washed over him with so much concern and protectiveness that his earlier outbursts of complete and utter fear seemed irrelevant. But no.. this had to be a trick. He had insulted him. 'I assure you, my friend, that I am honest in my words. I have no desire to punish you.'

"But I insulted you!" Pikachu finally found the courage to say. "I-I'm sorry, is there any way I can make it up to you?"

The God Pokémon took a few steps forward and craned his neck down to better look at the little mouse still on the ground. 'Your apology is accepted. However, since you seem so intent on making it up to me...'

Pikachu just stared dumbly up at the creature he had heard stories of as a hatchling. Instantly, his mind jumped to the worst-case scenarios, and he started mentally preparing for a trip to a mythical torture chamber for bad guys.

Instead Arceus knelt down, almost down to Pikachu's level, with the light of amusement behind his green-red eyes. 'Would you allow me to train you as a human; as my pokémon companion on this journey?'

It took a minute or two for the electric rodent to fully grasp the question. Those two simple words echoed over and over again in his head: my pokémon. He had almost never accepted the idea before; all of the other trainers he had seen were young, and with their youth came stupidity and irresponsibility that he found completely intolerable. Because of that frustration, most trainers only looked at him as a nuisance. They wanted friendlier pokémon, like the special starters hand-bred by the Professor. No one ever looked at the bitter Pikachu who couldn't even stand being in a pokéball and said, "I want that one!"

But here he was. The Alpha Pokémon himself had just asked him to be his pokémon - even after Pikachu had accidentally insulted him.

The little mouse hesitantly stepped forward. Once he was close enough, he reached forward, grabbing the Original One's leg in a tight hug. "I'll do my best," he accepted, smiling for the first time in what felt like ages. "Anything for my new trainer!"

Arceus angled his head to peer down at the electric mouse. A feeling of fondness was building up inside of him. He rarely appeared to any other pokémon, and certainly never in his true form. And yet, despite his hesitation, Pikachu had accepted the revelation whole-heartedly, and agreed to be his partner anyway. He always wanted the best for the world and all its creatures, but now more than ever, he felt a special kind of need to protect this Pikachu and ensure its happiness and well-being.

Was this the feeling the old man wanted him to experience? The feeling of having a friend no matter what? Of being accepted for who you are?

Arceus gave the Electric-type a little nudge.

'Friends?' the Original One questioned him.

The Pikachu's face lit up into one of the brightest smiles he had ever had the pleasure of seeing.

'Friends!'

This is the beta'd version of The Creator's first chapter, courtesy of the ever-patient Lady Mayflower /u/826624/.