Chapter One
Will Finch

I lay against the back of the barn house, my eyes closed. I’m supposed to be doing chores to be honest, but I can’t really be bothered. It was a nice day and my last day for a while in Blackcurrent Town because tomorrow I would be starting my journey. I had to wait four extra years, since the stupid government raised the Pokemon training age to 13 and I had to work for another year until my little brother could help on the farm. I could hear the faint chirping of the Pidgey outside and the idle shuffling of the Miltank, Mareep and Tauros inside the barn. Man, I loved the country side but at the same time I couldn’t wait to be away from it. Not that I wanted to live in the stinky, horrible city I just wanted to travel and see more.
”’Di…Di? Are you awake?” a voice said. I opened one eye. One of my friends, Karen, was crouched over me, calling my nickname.
”No, Kary, I’m not,” I said sarcastically, opening my eyes and sitting up, “What d’ya want Kary? Can’t yer see I’m busy?”
Karen laughed and leant back, her blonde curls bouncing around her round head. I stood up and sighed. That was Karen for you. No appreciation for when people were trying to do something important. Well, ok, I wasn’t exactly milking a Miltank or feeding the Doduo but I could have been doing some damn important thinking just there!
“Have ya seen Jamie by any chance, Trudi?” she asked, addressing me by my full name. I rolled my eyes. Karen had had a crush on Jamie for ages now. I should know, I read her diary. It’s one of the only books I’ll read apart from the ones I’m forced to read at school. Karen Stone and James Redwood, they were complete opposites. Karen was a big-boned girl of around 15 (one year older than me) with curly blonde hair and a muscular, tanned build. James, on the other hand, was a small, skinny thing with a face as white as death. Honestly, we all kept trying to shove food down his throat for like a year. We all thought he was anorexic or something. Turns out it was just genetic, we had made the poor guy sick rather than make him better. He had laughed about it, he was a good guy that way and Karen couldn’t forgive anybody for anything. She still hadn’t forgiven me for putting a bag of Grimer goo in her school bag that one time. How was I supposed to know she got an allergic reaction just from the smell of it? I’m not a scientist.
”Come with me ter the tree, will ya? ‘Rek and Jamie might be at there,” she said. I yawned and stretched, scratching my head absently and flattening my shoulder-length blue-black hair. I picked up my glasses off the floor (I had been having a nap earlier) and put them on. Karen stopped using Double Team and was actually given more form than a weird blur of colour as I put them on. Sure, everything looked amber but hey, the amber tint looked cool on me. Or at least I think it did.
”Alright, I’ll come. Not like I have a choice in the matta’ anyway,” I grumbled and followed her. It was around midday and quite sunny. Being late as it was summer that actually was a bit surprising. The autumn showers had started to come early this month. I hated the rain, though, so I was glad of it. And glad we weren’t berry farmers because then no matter what I wouldn’t get away from watering the crops. The Pokemon just grazed in the field on sunny days, so I could get away with not doing anything. A few Pokemon were right grumpy sods and just stayed in the barn all day though. We walked out the Jet farm, which was our family name, and continued down the hillside then right, to the bridge. Across the bridge we’d go down another hill down to the Tree. Maybe I should take this minute to explain about the Tree. It is, as you might have guessed, a tree but its ultra weird since it’s just grown in the middle of nowhere with no other plants or grass around its base. My mam says that it was grown by ancient grass Pokemon whose spirits now haunt the tree, but I don’t buy any of that mumbo-jumbo. It is what it is, a tree. The Tree was currently, to my utmost horror, teeming with squealing little’uns. I started to walk away. I couldn’t go anywhere near those little kids anymore. They latched onto me like tiny leeches demanding Pokemon, or phone calls or for me to take them with me on my journey. Usually I tell them to go shove their heads down a toilet but not when Big Steve is around. Big Steve is this absolutely enormous guy. He was seriously huge. And he was overprotective of the little’uns, which always seem to be related to him somehow or another. I like to think I could take him on, but to be honest he would stand on me and use me as a footstool. It’s stupid to be overprotective of the little runts, though I can hardly call them runts. I’m the same height as them, but I’m older than them. I’m sure that mentally, I’m taller as well. Hey, it makes sense to me. Karen grabbed me by the back of my shirt and pulled me back.
“Oh come on. I’m not swimming through a swarm o’ little’uns just to see Jamie ‘nd Rek. They could be anywhere else anyway,” I whine. Karen paid no attention and proceeded across the bridge. I sighed. I was really opinionated but nobody ever seemed to listen to a word I said anyway. I scuttled after her quickly; Karen had a very wide stride, and walked alongside her as we shoved our way to the tree. Next to the tree stood a smirking, blue-eyed boy with a Growlithe standing in front of him and a pokeball clasped in his right hand. The crowd of little’uns oohed and aahed as the Growlithe spat out a tongue of flames from its mouth. I rolled my eyes. Whoopeedeedoo, great light show. My old family Growlithe can do that. This guy was obviously a stupid show-off city-goer. The Growlithe snarled at a little’un who dared venture closer and the kid stepped back with an excited squeal. I rolled my eyes again. It was a bit sad really. The kids back in Goldenrod would have been bored to death by this little show.

See, I was born in Goldenrod and I got moved here when I was around six so this stuff doesn’t impress me in the least. A round of furious applause followed as the Growlithe performed a ‘death-defying’ and ‘thrilling’ Flame Wheel attack before being returned to his pokeball. The trainer sent out another Pokemon, this one a Wartortle. She wasn’t as much as a show-off as the stupid city-goer or his Growlithe.
“See this, kids, this is a Wartortle. And see all those fluffy tails she has? Well, the more she has the healthier she is. And she’s very healthy, see?” the boy said, obviously lapping up all the attention like a dehydrated Poochyena put in front of water. I folded my arms and rolled my eyes as the little’uns lurched forward, as if in union, to pet the Wartortle’s head and stroke her tail. The Pokemon herself didn’t seem to mind. However, it didn’t take them long to grow bored of the Wartortle’s calm personality and passive appreciation of the attention she was getting. He returned her to her pokeball.
”Come on, you have to have more than that!” a voice barked from the crowds, belonging to a rather annoyed little’un. The boy smiled in a way that would be described as charming but just made me want to kick his face and make that nose more squashed than it already was.
“I’m sorry, kids,” he said. The little’uns moved closer, demanding that he make the Pokemon battle each other. I rolled my eyes again and waved as I saw Rek and Jamie walking towards me. Well what do you know, Karen was actually right.
“Man, did you see it when he let that Eevee out? It didn’t exactly look happy about having its tail nearly pulled off,” Jamie said, in almost perfect English as always. Rek rolled his eyes and folded his arms across his chest. Hmph. When I’d become a trainer, I’d catch an Eevee and then breed them, selling off the eggs for loads at a time. I mean, it couldn’t be that hard to find an Eevee. Most of the trainers on TV had them, news report and cartoon and she’d seen loads of trainers come through Blackcurrent Town with them. Then again not many trainers came to Blackcurrent Town; it was tucked far in the north-west corner of Nache.
“I don’t like kids like ‘im Jamie, they don’t do anything but show off and make us look like total morons,” he muttered darkly. I mumbled and nodded in agreement, glancing back at the boy with a smirk as he saw he looked quite sick of all the little’uns’ childish demands and requests. Ha, serves him right for being such a show-off. Bloody city-goers.
"I don’t know, Derek. He is just entertaining the kids,” Jamie responded thoughtfully. Karen agreed loudly and I rolled my eye for like millionth time today. It was a good job that Jamie was as thick as a post about actual, meaningful issues like this because everybody else knew Karen’s crush. Jamie was just bothered about education and books and crap like that that nobody really cared about.
”Entertaining the kids my arse, Jamie. He’s just out there ‘cos he can’t get any proper compliments from actual trainers, so he’s just compliment-fishin’ to make himsel' look better,” I retorted sharply, loud enough for him to hear. The others shook their head in despair. I was known for being rude, obnoxious and willing to pick a fight. I just liked to say things how they were and somehow that made me rude? It’s not my fault people are such a bunch of narrow-minded idiots. Nobody seemed able to accept simple opinions and facts.
”I’m sorry kids but I want to get to this nice farm near here to get a new Pokemon. The Jet Family Farm. Does anybody know where it is?” he yelled. I folded my arms and looked away. What was I supposed to do? Jump about on the spot, waving my hands in the air like a lunatic screaming ‘Yes, Mr. Fantastic-Wonderful-Skilled-Handsome Trainer that Likes to Show Off, I’ll take you to my home and let you rip us off and buy Pokemon from us!’

Yeah right. Get real. “Trudi Jet’s here! She’ll take you!” Karen screamed beside me, pointing at me. Oh great. I might as well hold a big neon sign saying ‘Jet Family Farm Tour Guide Here’. The boy pushed his way through the crowd, grinning and walked towards me.

”Will Finch,” he introduced himself, holding out his hand. As I didn’t shake it, he timidly retracted it and we just stared for a while. A match of wills, really. If I just refused to do anything, he would get bored and walk off.
”Just take him to the farm, for goodness sakes, Trudi,” Jamie blurted out in an exasperated voice after a few minutes of awkward silence. I sighed and turned around, gesturing for him to follow and walked towards my farm. I walked quickly ahead, pleased that he had to run to keep up with me. Stupid city-goers, they were always so out of shape from lying on the sofa all day eating crisps. Any city-goer should be forced to start a Pokemon journey, just to beat the reality of life into them. He was trying to make conversation on the way up, but I ignored him quite bluntly and he gave up. I walked into my house and he ran up to meet me, panting.
“Mam, there’s this weirdo trainer here!” I yelled up the stairs. He went slightly pink in the face and I smirked, pleased I had managed to get on his nerves. My mother walked down the stairs, giving me a stern look with her cold grey eyes. Name-calling strangers not allowed? No? I’ll shut up then. My Mom was one of those people nobody ever dared to cross. She would make a brilliant, if scarily strict, teacher since she seems to be able to make a group of children fall silent when she wants them to be silent. A talent I would long to have inherited.
“Good day, ma’am,” he said, extending his hand. She wordlessly shook it. What a suck-up, “My name is Will Finch and I am a travelling trainer aspiring to be involved in the Nache Pokemon League” I mouthed what he was saying behind his back, tilting my head from side to side mockingly, “I’m here to purchase a Mareep, since my team is faltering due to the fact I do not have an electric Pokemon which would be essential in my team’s composition.”
”Alright, I’ve got some Mareep. And I’m sorry about my daughter. She’s just being a brat,” my mom said. I bristled slightly, I was being a brat? What about him? “Trudi, come with us to help.”
Help with what? Following you about? I thought to myself. I thought better of saying it and followed them about obediently like a lost puppy. We entered the barn and Will took a pokedex out of his pocket and began shoving it at the Mareep, checking their statistics on screen. The process was somewhat annoying and insulting. He just moved from one Mareep to the next, deeming them unworthy of his esteemed greatness. Well if none of our Pokemon were good enough for you why were you here?
“Perfect!” he blurted out, “She’s level fifteen, female and in great shape. I’ll take her. How much do you want for her?”
“Moom!” I whined instantly, “That’s Volt! She’s my starter Pokemon for tomorrow! He can’t have her!”
”Hush, I do know that. Stop being such a complainer,” Mom said instantly, “I’m sorry dear but she’s right. You can’t have her.”
”Ha!” I blurted out without thinking.
“Trudi Davis Jet! Mind your manners!” my mother retorted quickly and loudly. I tutted and rolled my eyes.
“Well, I’d be willing to do a trade,” he said in a quiet voice. I looked up. Well this was interesting. A trade for what, I wonder? I put my hands on my hips and look him square in the eyes, so I could see if he was lying or not.
“Well,” he sighed, “You see I have a Torchic, level 15 as well but we don’t get along very well. I’d be willing to trade him for…Volt.”
A Torchic! Well wouldn’t that be something! I could start with a rare fire Pokemon and evolve it into a powerful, kicking, flame-breathing, fighting machine! What was it that it evolved into? Blaziken? Or something like that. Either way, I knew what they evolved into and I would be quite happy to own one.
“Now you’re talkin’ my language. Hell yeah, I’ll trade fer a Torchic!” I said. I took a pokeball from my jean pocket and Volt was absorbed into the ball in a beam of red light. He carefully removed a pokeball from his belt as my mom twittered away about something in the background. I handed him Volt and he handed me my new Torchic.
”Great!” he said. Maybe I had judged him a little too quickly. I mean, he couldn’t be all bad if he was willing to compensate for the loss, “Ok, can you point me in the direction of Seapoint Town now?”
I nodded and guided him out to the border of our farm. He was probably off to get his first trainer badge. I pointed to the south.
“Follow the coast southwards and you’ll meet it. You’ll pass Seashell Village, Flickercity and Tabulacity on the way. That’s the easiest route. The quicker would just be to walk from here to Seashell Village, and then to Slatetown and then straight to Seapoint Town,” I explained. He smiled and nodded, taking all the information in before he left with a wave. “Thank you! I hope you and Torchic get along well!” he said.
”Same for you and Volt,” I replied with a slight wave before I went to put my new Torchic’s pokeball on the shelf. Tomorrow I’d start my journey! With a rare Hoenn Pokemon, no less!

Will rolled the pokeball in his eyes, smirking down at it. His Wartortle (his first Pokemon) tottered along side him with a look of utter disapproval etched on her pale blue face. Her brown eyes were narrowed and she was looking in a way that said, clearly, she wanted to say something. Will smiled and dropped the pokeball onto the ground. The pokeball split in half and a sheep-like Pokemon materialized. Her pale yellow fleece crackled with static electricity as she hit the ground and her blue face looked about in confusion, her tail dropped to express the fact she was uncomfortable here. She looked up at Will and, startled, jumped back and released a small electric shock which simply bounced harmlessly off the ground. Will sighed and shook his head, returning Volt to the pokeball. Pokemon tended to be slightly rebellious upon capture until they got to know him. Volt would be really confused about the entire thing. Wasn’t his fault the Trudi girl was that gullible. Currently all his team didn’t quite trust him apart from Wartortle, but she was smart and had too much sense for her own good. While he liked to live on and beyond the edge, she liked the safety within the boundaries.
”Do you really think it’s wise?” she asked suddenly. Will looked down on her, raising an eyebrow in slight confusion. What was she talking about?
“Think what’s wise?” he replied. Wartortle sighed and gestured to the pokeball he was rolling between the palms of his hands.
“That. Conning people like that. I don’t think it will end well,” she pointed out. Will rolled his eyes.
“Sure it’s a bit dangerous but I never get caught. Anyway, what’s life without a little danger, huh?” he asked, smiling. Wartortle opened her mouth to reply but shut it when she saw the glint in her trainer’s eyes. She knew Will well and they were close friends and she knew that once he wanted to do something there was no stopping him. She sighed.

It was going to be one long journey.

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