Disclaimer – I don’t own Pokémon or any of its concepts.

I do – however – own all original characters and the concept of poképhobia.

***

Prologue – The Orange War

	“UGH!”

	Professor Oak was thrown hard into the wall, jostling several beakers from the 
shelves above him.  Most shattered onto the floor, littering the once-pristine tiles with 
broken glass and chemicals that mixed together among the mess; some caused plumes of 
smoke to erupt into the air.

	“What—what do you want with me!?”  A trickle of blood ran down the corner of 
the professor’s mouth as he came to his feet, his lab coat torn to shreds from the absol’s 
crescent horn.  A mysterious figure stood behind the pokémon, completely veiled in 
black and carrying a katana blade.  The warrior didn’t say a word, only walked past the 
menacing canine and drew the sword.  Professor Oak cowered in fear and darted to the 
side behind a table, but a flash of red and subsequent white prevented any escape as a 
gengar took shape, its frightening and maniacal glare forcing the professor back toward 
the assassin.  Instantly, the mysterious figure grabbed Oak by his shirt and shoved him 
into the wall with startling force.  The sword came up to the professor’s neck, pinching 
his skin.

	“Please!  Please don’t kill me!”  The professor panicked, and made a grab for the 
assailant’s wrist.  A flick later, the edge of the sword dug into Oak’s neck, a spurt of 
blood spraying onto the murderer’s covered face.  Oak fell to the floor and clutched his 
own neck in a vain attempt to save his own life.  Having seen this, the assassin quickly 
plunged the katana deep into the professor’s chest.  Blood soaked the professor’s white 
shirt as he looked up into his killer’s eyes.  They were violet and bore no emotions, save 
for a hint of mournfulness.

	As the assassin recalled the absol and gengar and turned to exit the laboratory, 
Professor Oak collapsed on the floor, the dull thud finalizing the deed.  The lights of the 
hilltop building switched off, leaving a great emptiness in Pallet Town, briefly interrupted 
by a flash of white.  Next to a pidgeot, the killer looked up into the sky and muttered 
something nearly inaudible before climbing onto its back and taking off into the night.

	“Forgive me.”

---

	Victory Road became the most active part of the Indigo League in a matter of 
days after Professor Oak’s death.  A number of prominent trainers and gym leaders 
convened to determine the course of Kanto now that there was a great possibility for war.

	“The question is which of the surrounding areas has cause to murder Professor 
Oak?  Do any of them have motives at all?”  Erika, the gym leader of Celadon City, stood 
before a congress of trainers from across the region.  A podium was set before a 
semicircular table where six other gym leaders sat.  All were dressed in ceremonial robes 
depicting their particular preference in training pokémon.  Erika, herself, was dressed in 
formal dark green robes that modestly covered her from head to toe, while other leaders 
such as Misty and Sabrina opted for a more risqué fashion.  Beyond their bench was a 
smaller, elevated table which seated the Elite Four, the ultimate authority in the region of 
Kanto.  Erika opened up the discussion to the trainers present, and two trainers 
approached smaller podiums below the stage, ready to start a debate.  The doors to the 
auditorium suddenly swung open, and a single woman walked through them dressed in 
bright red robes as she marched between aisles of seated trainers before making her way 
on the stage and approached the table of the Elite Four, her voice raspy from lack of 
breath, but with an air of elegance.

	“Pardon my delay.  I bring dire news from Cinnabar Island.  Blaine has died from 
old age, and I am here as his representative.”  The young woman removed her hood out 
of respect for the Elite Four, the locks of dark brown tumbling from their confines.  Her 
face was tanned from several years on the exotic island, and the robes accentuated her 
slender, athletic frame.  She couldn’t have been a day over 19.  Her apparent youth was 
something welcome among a group of aged leaders.  Lance stood from his position and 
spoke in a microphone after hearing the news.  He expected this moment to come; Blaine 
had been in critical condition for the past week now and it was good his suffering was 
finally over.

	“Fellow trainers.  I am afraid to announce that Cinnabar Island’s gym leader, 
Blaine, has passed away.”  There was a unanimous wave of shocked gasps followed 
quickly by murmurs and whispers, prompting Lance to continue.  “In his stead, his 
granddaughter Diana represents the jurisdiction of Cinnabar Island.”  Diana turned to 
present herself to the crowd, readily accepted by a majority of trainers for her familiarity 
with Cinnabar’s old leader.  “Diana, take your seat among the gym leaders.”  Bowing to 
Lance again, she took the vacant seat between Sabrina and Gary, the latter offering only a 
malicious glare as welcome to the gym leader’s bench.

	The debate continued for days, swinging back and forth between war with the 
Johto region and war with the Orange Archipelago.  The final argument came to two 
young women.  One wore the black robes of a former league champion while another 
wore the gray robes of a high-finishing participant.  The woman in black spoke first.  “I 
think one thing is pretty obvious.  No matter what we decide, the region of Kanto is going 
to want to see action from this council.  We have already been here far too long, and no 
doubt unrest is beginning to stir in the towns.  We need to take action now, and I believe 
the best course, both from a political standpoint and from a standpoint of least resistance 
is to declare war on the Archipelago.  Their defenses are meager compared to an attack 
we could mount, and an all-out war would at the least appease the people from taking 
action against their own government.”  The aggressive position of the black-robed 
woman utterly stunned the other out of giving a rebuttal, and the arguments were 
finalized.  Now, a decision had to be reached by the Elite Four.

	“A land war with Johto would be far less effective from a military standpoint than 
island-hopping the Orange Archipelago!”  Lieutenant Surge was furious.  It had been 
three days since the Indigo Council had adjourned and the Elite Four still hadn’t reached 
a decision.  “We need to act now!  Do you know what the people are doing right now?  
They’re calling for a coup d’etat!”

	It had come as little surprise to anyone except Diana, the newest member of the 
Indigo League’s elite ranks.  She flinched in her chair at the thought of fighting a civil 
war so soon after being accepted by the people.

	“And what do you propose we do?  Send our armies to kill off thousands of 
potential innocents in a foreign land?”  Despite the outburst, Lance the dragon master 
was practically unphased.  He was the highest authority among the League, and was well 
used to Lieutenant Surge’s demands for military prowess by now.  Standing up from his 
chair, he confronted the lieutenant, his wild, red hair standing on end as if his crimson 
cloak continued up past his neck.

	“Would you rather have thousands of innocents killed here?”  Surge’s fist 
pounded hard onto the table again, startling everyone to an upright position.  “I won’t 
stand by and sacrifice civilians to each other because we can’t come to an agreement!  If 
you won’t condone a war against the Orange Islands, then I’m going without your 
consent!”  As angry and unreasonable as Surge appeared, Lance knew he had a point.  
Small riots were already turning up in several of the cities, and it was only a matter of 
time before the people united against them if they didn’t do anything.

	“All right.  We’ll get everything in order.  Prepare to launch a pre-emptive attack 
on Tangerine Island.  We’re gonna want some foothold before we start island-hopping so 
we don’t have to withdraw all the way back here.”  Lance turned to the rest of the Elite 
Four, finding none to object, and Surge smiled for the first time since the meeting began.  
“Then, it’s settled.”  Lance never liked resorting to violence, but he couldn’t ignore 
Kanto’s desperate situation.

	“We’re going to war.”