CHAPTER 2
THE JOURNEY STARTS

I thought about what was supposed to lie ahead of me, and finally came to a conclusion: I was going.  In late May, I invited Kamon over to discuss with him what I was about to do.  He believed that I was crazy.
'Dude, you're crazy,' he said.
'Why, Kamon?' I asked.  'Don't you want to get back out there…to adventure again?'
'No.'
'I thought you, of all people, would be behind me on this.'
'Not this time, Drew,' he said.  I got a little angry.  So far, not one person has been on my side.
'Look, Kamon,' I said, 'I don't care what you say, I'm still going out there.  And I'm gonna win.  Just you watch.'
'Whatever you say.  But I have a gym to take care of, remember?  I couldn't leave even if I wanted to.'
'That's not what you said when you left here three years ago.  I believed that you went into denial, and then decided to try the whole training thing again,' I responded.
Kamon didn't say anything for a minute, sighed, and said, 'Something like that, yes.'
'Well, then, why don't you go this time?' I asked again.
'Because I don't want to, all right?  And that's the end of it, okay?'

* * *

But, of course, I knew it wasn't going to be the end of it.  I didn't want to go into an unknown land by myself.  I knew Kanto already, and Johto wasn't exactly a hard place to navigate through, but this place was different.
I had gotten a digital map and was looking at Gehta.  It was over a mountain range, called the Zenith Mountains.  Gehta itself was mountainous, but the center, apparently where the Center Stadium was located, was completely flat.  A river ran down from a northern mountain, and flowed into a lake.  Besides that there weren't too many other noticeable features.
There were eight cities, six with gyms, one for registration, but also a rather commercial city, and then one more which basically featured the Center Stadium.  Much like Indigo Plateau.
The land was foreign to me, and I wasn't about to go there alone.  Not that I was afraid; I'm not really afraid of anything, except maybe heights.  I had to get Kamon to go with me.  If I was going to venture north, I was going to need a partner to help me.

* * *

I came to Kamon's house a week later.  I had only one mission:  to make him come with me.
'So, what'ya want now?' he asked me.  'Have you given up on going to Gehta already?'
I grinned.  Not a happy grin, or a grin that you would grin when you laugh.  Of course, it wasn't an evil grin.  It was just a grin.  'No, I haven't,' I said.  I sipped some water that Kamon had handed me.  'And you know what?'
'What?'
'You're going with me.'
'No, I'm not, and I don't want to hear any more about it.  I'm not leaving.  And that's final.  I'm through with training,' he said, rather sternly.
My grin faded.  'Look, I don't want to go there alone.  I didn't mind Kanto and Johto, but Gehta is different.  It is the size of Johto, but it is going to be a lot tougher this time.  Even if you don't want to battle at all, I would still like it if you journeyed with me,' I said.  Kamon stared at me for a second, and then looked out the window.
I looked out too; there were to blue birds perched on a branch.  After a few seconds, they flew away.
Kamon sighed.  'I dunno, Drew.  I'm gonna have to think about it.  Anyway, it's getting late.  I'm gonna get some sleep.  Goodnight, Drew.'
'See ya, Kamon,' I said.  After I walked outside, I muttered to myself, 'Good, Kamon, sleep on it…'  I hoped that night that Kamon would think about it and decide to come with me.  This was it, too.  If he decided not to, I was going to leave without him the next day.  Time was running out for him to decide, and for me to get started.

* * *

Early in the morning of June 5th, my doorbell rang.  I was in boxers and had no shirt on.  I slipped on a white tee shirt, and checked the clock.  It was 5: 45 in the morning.
I went to the front door and opened it.  Kamon was standing there.
'You're not ready,' he said to me.
'What the hell are you talking about?' I demanded, yawning.
'Well, if you want to get to Gehta and over the mountain range by September, you're gonna have to wake up bright and early and leave as soon as possible.'
I immediately took that as a 'yes' to whether or not he was going to leave with me.  Kamon already had his backpack packed.
'I'll go get my, um…' I started.
'Backpack,' Kamon finished for me.
'Right.  Excuse me, for I'm not used to waking up at quarter-to-six every day.'  I ran to my room and picked my backpack, and got dressed into my old outfit:  Baggy black pants tucked into boots, and a sleeveless navy blue shirt,  I slipped in my contacts and headed out the door.  I looked at the time on my Pokégear; it was 6: 07 on June 5th.  I would remember this time for the rest of my life.