Chapter 1

The Journey Begins!

Beginnings always seem to be the most difficult part of anything. Adjusting to changes in life is something that people usually do not enjoy. For a young man about to receive his Pokémon Trainer license, change was nothing new to him.

He was a teenage boy of average height and weight. There was nothing average about his hair length for his gender, as his long brown hair was touching the top of his back. He had bland brown eyes, a feature about himself that he never really enjoyed; however he knew that you had to be happy about your looks. He was wearing a pair of blue jeans, solid black shoes, and a tee-shirt. Over the shirt was a black zip-up hoodie that he had worn on many occasions before. On his back was a nice dark green backpack that his mother had bought for him at an outdoor store. In the backpack was just about everything he would need, minus his wallet, which he kept in his pocket for security.

Ron had been born in Saffron City, the largest city in the Kanto Region. Due to family problems, he and his mother moved from Saffron City, first to Cinnabar Island, then to Pallet Town, and finally to Pewter City. Within the course of six years, a young Ron was forced to move to different places and attend different schools four different times. The fact that he would be traveling as a Pokémon Trainer almost meant nothing to him, as he had done so many times before.

The Kanto League requires that new Pokémon Trainers must be at least 14 years of age, pass a physical examination to prove they are healthy enough to travel, and pass a written exam to determine whether or not they are prepared to last on their own for months on end. It wasn't much of a problem for Ron to fulfill these requirements, and only weeks after his 14th birthday he was traveling to Viridian City, where new trainers are registered for the Kanto League competition.

The Viridian City atmosphere was one that Ron found to be boring. Since he spent about eight years of his life in the biggest city in the entire region, Ron got tired of smaller city and town atmosphere. Either way, he knew that if he wanted to compete in any league, he would have to deal with less than desirable locations. It was not long before he came across a large building, the official Pokémon League headquarters of Viridian City. Ron had never been inside this building before, but his sister, who became a Pokémon Trainer two years before he did, got her license here.

He went through the sliding doors and into a large lobby. There were plenty of people sitting around, waiting for assistance. Ron, on the other hand, was allowed to go to a special desk where new trainers would be given their registration information. Only one other person was waiting in line to be helped. He was a boy that appeared to be around the same age as Ron. He was also wearing a pair of blue jeans, but his shoes were brown and instead of a hoodie, he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt. The shirt was black with a dark blue line going around the shirt about two thirds of the way up. This boy was also wearing a dark blue beanie on his head.

Ron tapped the boy on the shoulder, at this point he turned around. At first he seemed surprised that someone would be trying to make small talk with him, but after seeing Ron's smile he eased up a bit. He introduced himself.

"Hey…uh…my name's Max. I'm from Pallet Town and as you can see, I'm just about to become a Pokémon Trainer. It's all very overwhelming."

Reaching out his hand to shake, Ron also introduced himself to Max. As he did so, he couldn't help but notice that this boy was quite nervous talking to other people. Ron had once been like that, but he gradually got over it as he got older and began meeting new people on a daily basis.

"My name's Ron. I was born in Saffron City, but after years of traveling, my mother and I landed in Pewter City. I'm about to become a trainer as well. I'm pretty pumped up about it actually."

Just as he said this, a very conservatively dressed lady arrived behind the counter. She addressed Max quite politely, and after he explained why he was here, she asked him to follow her to the back room. Noticing Ron, she gestured for him to come along as well, as it would be easy to register two people at once.

They were led to a small room in the back which contained many computer screens and a small black table with paperwork scattered across the surface. She asked the boys their names, and once they were given, she reached to the top of a large pile of papers on the desk. She handed one of the papers to Ron, and the other to Max. Ron read over the paper, checking to make sure all of his personal information was correct. After confirming what was written, he handed the paper back to the lady. Max did the same.

The lady said, "Well boys, it seems as though everything is in order. Since the Pokedex is no longer the standard Pokémon Trainer ID, we issue out license cards with all of your information on it. Those cards will be issued to you in a few minutes, but first we need to determine which Pokémon will be given to each of you."

This was what Ron had been waiting for. He wasn't sure what Pokémon he would choose, but he knew that there were four standard Pokémon for beginner trainers. Those four Pokémon were Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, and Pikachu. Years ago, Pikachu had not been a choice, however due to its popularity; it had become a staple in the selection batch of starter Pokémon. It was indeed Pikachu that Ron preferred.

Each of the boys was handed a card with images of the four different starters on it. They were to take a pen and fill out the circle next to the image of the Pokémon that they would start their journey with. Ron marked the circle next to Pikachu, while Max marked the circle next to Charmander. After filling out their choices, the cards were run through a machine which scanned the circles, much like they would on a standardized test.

Once the computer was finished analyzing the data, two Pokeballs rolled down a small slide and into a bucket. One of the Pokeballs was marked with a lightning bolt, while the other was marked with a flame. The lady reached for the two Pokeballs, handing the lightning one to Ron and the fire one to Max. They were then led back to the main lobby, where their Trainer IDs were waiting for them.

In Ron's opinion, the ID card was pretty boring. It had a picture of himself that he had submitted to the Pokémon League office, along with his basic information, including full name, address, height, and weight. All he cared about was what the card allowed him to do, which was to train Pokémon for gym battles and eventually the Kanto League Championship. Next to the ID cards were two boxes. Each one of them contained five Pokeballs, which Ron and Max could use to catch new Pokémon to train. Ron put his in his backpack, while Max did the same with the ones that he received.

Making their way outside, Ron turned to Max. He then asked if he would like to travel with Ron, since the two of them were both beginner trainers. Max shrugged his shoulders, then admitted that he could use the company since he wasn't used to living on his own or anything like that. As then walked towards the Viridian Forest, a small bird flew past the two of them. The Pokémon in question had feathers of bright red on its wings and of a brown for the rest of its body.

Ron wondered why a Pokémon would be flying around the city. He figured that Pokémon had just the same rights as humans, and either way this particular part of town was a lot less like a city, since it was on the outskirts.

Max said to Ron, "That Pokémon is Spearow. It's a small flying type Pokémon that attacks with its sharp beak and talons. Pikachu should be more than a match for it. Trying to catch this Pokémon would be an awesome first test for you!"

Ron reached for the Pokeball at his belt that contained Pikachu, sending the Pokémon into the fray for the first time. Pikachu was a small yellow electric rodent. It had bright red cheeks that it drew its electric power from. It was no surprise that this was one of the most popular Pokémon ever.

Upon noticed the Pokémon Trainer opposing the Pokémon they had been pursuing, a large amount of the people left, realizing that the problem would be dealt with and that their possessions would most likely show up. However, a few remained to watch and see what happened.

Pikachu looked a bit confused, as it first looked at Spearow, then turned around to see Ron. Something about Ron reassured the small rodent that everything would be okay, but as the two were having a bit of a moment, the Spearow found an opportunity to attack, lunging its beak at the small Pokémon, knocking it down and causing a lot of pain.

"You can't let Spearow get a cheap shot like that! Give it a taste of your Thundershock attack and see how it likes that."

Pikachu nodded, reaching its stubby paws up to its bright red cheeks. Sparks began to fly from the body of this small Pokémon as Ron began to wonder where it stored all this energy. Pokémon were mysterious creatures, and that was one of the main reasons he had become a trainer. The blue- and white-colored energy sprang from the body of Ron's Pikachu, elevating until it scored a direct hit on Spearow.

An angry Spearow spread its wings and began to dive at Pikachu, who was somewhat recovering from attacking for the first time in its life. The bird's wings began to glow with a strange white energy unlike anything Ron had seen before. Max, however, noticed what it was almost right away.

"That's a pretty rare attack called Steel Wing. I take it this Spearow must have inherited it from its parents, which isn't good for Pikachu right now. This could be one helluva catch for you Ron!"

Ron shouted out for Pikachu to avoid the attack. Responding to the situation just in time, Pikachu managed to sidestep the attack in time for Spearow to harmlessly fly past the rodent. It was time for a counterattack with the only attack Ron could think of at the time.

"Give it a Thundershock once more!"

The attack had more of an effect on the already tired Spearow. It attempted to fly back into the air to strike again, but to no avail. It was now or never for Ron and this capture. Reaching for a Pokeball from his backpack, he hurled the small capsule at Spearow and hoped for the best.

Once inside the Pokeball, the weakened Spearow made one last attempt to escape. The Pokeball shook back and forth furiously for a few moments before all movement ceased. Spearow had been caught!

With Pokeball in hand, Ron stood victoriously. This was the first day of his Pokémon Trainer career, and there was no way he believed he could top this feeling…unless he won a championship of course.

After recalling his Pikachu back to its Pokeball, Ron and Max made their way into the mysterious Viridian Forest. They could see a figure up ahead, but they weren't exactly sure who…or what it was.