Post by radiohead97 on Feb 8, 2015 3:33:48 GMT -6
Chapter 1
When you think about the day you got your very first Pokemon, there are certain things you remember. What you saw. What you heard. What you smelled. What you felt. What you ate. What the weather was. What was on TV. I can’t remember any of these things, sadly, since time hasn’t been so kind to my mentality. A lot of things have been on my mind lately, but no thought has lingered in my head as much as this one; I’ve come a long way since day one in Pallet Town.
As I mentioned before, time has worn me down a lot, so my memory may be a little foggy in some parts, like little details and what not, and extremely vivid in others, like important battles and all the Pokemon I encountered on my journeys through the different regions. They all hold special places in my heart. I felt a connection to every place I went to, and grew sad every time I left that place. I have two regrets in life. Unova and Kalos. I never got the chance to see them, and I never will. It brings me great hope that my son will someday visit these places and tell me about his journeys.
But for now, let’s start in the beginning. With that day in Pallet Town…
I was ten years old, and it was the day after my birthday. I couldn’t sleep the previous night because I was so excited to finally start my journey. My mom knocked on my door and opened it without waiting for a response, like she always does. She was surprised to see me already dressed to go.
“Ready for your big day, mister Pokemon trainer?”
“I was born ready!” I replied, in my innocent, enthusiastic ten-year-old voice.
“Professor Oak’s waiting for you next door.” She said. I bolted downstairs with my backpack in tote and entered his Pokemon lab. The only person in there, aside from the assistants, was the one downside to this day. This was also the day Bret Oak, Professor Oak’s grandson and my longtime rival, started his journey. I haven’t even gotten a Pokemon and I already have someone to compete with.
“S’up loser. If you’re looking for grandpa, he’s not here!”
“I can see that, Bret… any idea where he is?”
“Beats me. It’s not my day to watch him.”
I sighed and walked out of the lab. Maybe he was in Route 1 doing some field research. I know that there are some scientists who figure the best way to get results for something is to go out and actually gather the information. As soon as I set foot into the grass, a voice stops me.
“Hey!”
I turn around to see none other than Professor Oak, as evidenced by his white lab coat.
“You can’t go out there, are you crazy? There are tons of wild Pokemon out there just waiting to attack you. Come with me.” Despite me knowing the way there, he insisted that I follow him back to the lab, where Bret was still waiting.
“There you are, gramps! Where were you?”
“That’s none of your business, Bret.” He looked to the two of us. “Doug, Bret, today is a big day for you two. On this table are three Pokemon, perfect for starting on your journey. In my day, I had a lot of Pokemon, but now I’m left with three. So I decided I’ll leave two of them with you two. And since Doug has been waiting patiently, I’ll let him choose first.”
He let out the three starter Pokemon available to beginner trainers in the Kanto region. The three Pokemon are; Bulbasaur, the Grass type, Charmander, the Fire type, and Squirtle, the Water type. They all looked like they had the potential to be strong Pokemon. I’ll be honest and say that it was hard to choose between the three. Something about the Charmander rubbed me the wrong way, however. It seemed kind of cocky. I figured Bret would want that one. Finally, I made my choice. “I choose Bulbasaur, Professor.”
“Excellent choice! They’re easy to raise. Perfect for a beginner like yourself.” I smiled, and it seemed like Bulbasaur smiled with me.
“If that’s the case, then I choose Charmander!” Bret said, as he snatched Charmander’s poke ball. He looked at me and grinned.
“Hey Doug, let’s battle! Right here! Right now!” I looked to Bulbasaur and he nodded in agreement. And just like that, I was involved in my first ever Pokemon battle. I wish I could tell you that the future looked bright for me and Bulbasaur, but our first fight ended with our first loss. I didn’t blame Bulbasaur, to be fair. All he knew was Tackle. Nobody was at fault, except for Bret. “Oh yeah, I knew I made the right choice with this one, gramps.” He mocked. “Thanks a lot.” He took half of the stuff on the table and ran out.
“Later losers!” He called. Bulbasaur looked a little saddened by this, but some encouragement and a head rub were all it took to make him feel better.
“Don’t mind him,” Professor Oak said, “Between you and me, he’s a spoiled brat. Now here are some Poke balls and a Pokedex to record data on your travels. Now, you want to take on the Pokemon League, am I correct?”
“Yes.”
“Well, in order to do that, you need to travel around the region and challenge gyms. Each gym gets tougher than the last one, so be sure to train whatever Pokemon you catch including Bulbasaur here.”
“Can I name him, Professor?”
“Of course. What do you want to name him?”
“I’ll name him Jon, if that’s alright.”
“Whatever you wish, Doug. As I was saying, once you get eight badges from eight different gyms, you can finally challenge the Pokemon League.”
“Awesome! Where’s the first gym?”
“The closest one is in Viridian City, but if I may make a suggestion, I would save that gym for last. The one in Pewter City is the one beginner trainers usually go for, so I would start there.”
“Sounds good to me. Ready Jon?”
“Bulba!” He replied.
We left the lab soon after, as well as Pallet Town. Everything was being left behind me and while I’ll admit I was anticipating this day for a long time, I never expected it to be so bittersweet. I was leaving my home, after all, so I guess it was normal. But something told me that from that day on, nothing would be the same.
When you think about the day you got your very first Pokemon, there are certain things you remember. What you saw. What you heard. What you smelled. What you felt. What you ate. What the weather was. What was on TV. I can’t remember any of these things, sadly, since time hasn’t been so kind to my mentality. A lot of things have been on my mind lately, but no thought has lingered in my head as much as this one; I’ve come a long way since day one in Pallet Town.
As I mentioned before, time has worn me down a lot, so my memory may be a little foggy in some parts, like little details and what not, and extremely vivid in others, like important battles and all the Pokemon I encountered on my journeys through the different regions. They all hold special places in my heart. I felt a connection to every place I went to, and grew sad every time I left that place. I have two regrets in life. Unova and Kalos. I never got the chance to see them, and I never will. It brings me great hope that my son will someday visit these places and tell me about his journeys.
But for now, let’s start in the beginning. With that day in Pallet Town…
I was ten years old, and it was the day after my birthday. I couldn’t sleep the previous night because I was so excited to finally start my journey. My mom knocked on my door and opened it without waiting for a response, like she always does. She was surprised to see me already dressed to go.
“Ready for your big day, mister Pokemon trainer?”
“I was born ready!” I replied, in my innocent, enthusiastic ten-year-old voice.
“Professor Oak’s waiting for you next door.” She said. I bolted downstairs with my backpack in tote and entered his Pokemon lab. The only person in there, aside from the assistants, was the one downside to this day. This was also the day Bret Oak, Professor Oak’s grandson and my longtime rival, started his journey. I haven’t even gotten a Pokemon and I already have someone to compete with.
“S’up loser. If you’re looking for grandpa, he’s not here!”
“I can see that, Bret… any idea where he is?”
“Beats me. It’s not my day to watch him.”
I sighed and walked out of the lab. Maybe he was in Route 1 doing some field research. I know that there are some scientists who figure the best way to get results for something is to go out and actually gather the information. As soon as I set foot into the grass, a voice stops me.
“Hey!”
I turn around to see none other than Professor Oak, as evidenced by his white lab coat.
“You can’t go out there, are you crazy? There are tons of wild Pokemon out there just waiting to attack you. Come with me.” Despite me knowing the way there, he insisted that I follow him back to the lab, where Bret was still waiting.
“There you are, gramps! Where were you?”
“That’s none of your business, Bret.” He looked to the two of us. “Doug, Bret, today is a big day for you two. On this table are three Pokemon, perfect for starting on your journey. In my day, I had a lot of Pokemon, but now I’m left with three. So I decided I’ll leave two of them with you two. And since Doug has been waiting patiently, I’ll let him choose first.”
He let out the three starter Pokemon available to beginner trainers in the Kanto region. The three Pokemon are; Bulbasaur, the Grass type, Charmander, the Fire type, and Squirtle, the Water type. They all looked like they had the potential to be strong Pokemon. I’ll be honest and say that it was hard to choose between the three. Something about the Charmander rubbed me the wrong way, however. It seemed kind of cocky. I figured Bret would want that one. Finally, I made my choice. “I choose Bulbasaur, Professor.”
“Excellent choice! They’re easy to raise. Perfect for a beginner like yourself.” I smiled, and it seemed like Bulbasaur smiled with me.
“If that’s the case, then I choose Charmander!” Bret said, as he snatched Charmander’s poke ball. He looked at me and grinned.
“Hey Doug, let’s battle! Right here! Right now!” I looked to Bulbasaur and he nodded in agreement. And just like that, I was involved in my first ever Pokemon battle. I wish I could tell you that the future looked bright for me and Bulbasaur, but our first fight ended with our first loss. I didn’t blame Bulbasaur, to be fair. All he knew was Tackle. Nobody was at fault, except for Bret. “Oh yeah, I knew I made the right choice with this one, gramps.” He mocked. “Thanks a lot.” He took half of the stuff on the table and ran out.
“Later losers!” He called. Bulbasaur looked a little saddened by this, but some encouragement and a head rub were all it took to make him feel better.
“Don’t mind him,” Professor Oak said, “Between you and me, he’s a spoiled brat. Now here are some Poke balls and a Pokedex to record data on your travels. Now, you want to take on the Pokemon League, am I correct?”
“Yes.”
“Well, in order to do that, you need to travel around the region and challenge gyms. Each gym gets tougher than the last one, so be sure to train whatever Pokemon you catch including Bulbasaur here.”
“Can I name him, Professor?”
“Of course. What do you want to name him?”
“I’ll name him Jon, if that’s alright.”
“Whatever you wish, Doug. As I was saying, once you get eight badges from eight different gyms, you can finally challenge the Pokemon League.”
“Awesome! Where’s the first gym?”
“The closest one is in Viridian City, but if I may make a suggestion, I would save that gym for last. The one in Pewter City is the one beginner trainers usually go for, so I would start there.”
“Sounds good to me. Ready Jon?”
“Bulba!” He replied.
We left the lab soon after, as well as Pallet Town. Everything was being left behind me and while I’ll admit I was anticipating this day for a long time, I never expected it to be so bittersweet. I was leaving my home, after all, so I guess it was normal. But something told me that from that day on, nothing would be the same.
