Any and all battles that someone takes part in whether against an NPC trainer, Gym Leader or PVP, will be listed below.

---

After the day long ferry ride, the travelers seemed to be more than happy to set foot on solid ground. Family members embraced each other for the first time in months and friends ran around ecstatically at the joy of seeing each other again. After a minute or so, all of the passengers had left the port, save one. A young man with messy hair and tired eyes stood on top of the plank bridging the ferry and the pier, looking around in confusion. He remained still until he heard the noise of the ferry's horn, snapping him out of his trance. He jumped in place and quickly strutted past the gate.

As morning approached noon, Wye arrived to the gate of the Oak Institute. He made his way through to the receptionist. "Um... Hi," he said with a childish grin, curling his ID card in between his fingers impatiently. "I'm here for the starter programme!" He presented his ID with a quick movement. "Wye Gérard!"

---

The sun beamed down over Pallet Town, a warming day for the beginning of many trainers new journeys. Sully was one of the new trainers, hit rather heavy clothing was slowly cooking him alive. He removed his headband and scarf, placing them into the rucksack on his back. He looked around the main courtyard of the Oak Institute while moving towards its entrance. A large bronze statue stood towering in the middle of the courtyard, the figure all to recognisable to Sully. The statue was of a young Ash Ketchum with his trusty Pikachu atop his shoulder. The young man approached closer till it was in touching distance so that he could read the plaque beneath. 'Ash Ketchum, the Pallet Town native showed the world that caring for your Pokemon is the best training you can give them.' The word's came across a bit cliche and caused Sully to cringe inside, but he knew that they rang true. Why would a pokemon ever fight for you if you didn't treat it right?

Sully took a deep breath and walked past the statue to the main entrance, tapping it on the leg as a sign of respect for the former pokemon master. The entrance to the Institute was a simple affair, automatic glass doors sliding to the side as Sully approached. The first thing he noticed when entering the large building was the smell, it was so clean but Sully supposed it needed to be. He approached the counter to see another prospective trainer. He was aroud Sully's age and his hair was bit messy, but Sully didn't judge. His rather grim childhood showed him that you can't judge anyone just by their outward appearance.

"Wye Gérard!" Sully caught his name just as he moved into ear shot. The receptionist took the identification from Wye before handing it back. She looked up to see Sully and smiled, before speaking in a soft voice. "Are you here for the midday starter programme too?" Sully nodded, reaching into his pocket to pull out his ID. He handed it over, pulling his hand back as he felt the touch of the receptionists hand on his. Part of the reason he was doing this was to stop that sort of thing happening, he was so withdrawn and distant that he would try anything to come out of his shell. This to him was a chance to improve himself. He hoped building companionship with pokemon would allow him to become the person he wanted to be.

The receptionist smiled at Sully once more and handed back his ID. "Right then gentleman we are still waiting for another two people to turn up, please go to the room over there signed waiting room. There are refreshments and some entertainment such as a television and stereo available. Good luck on your journey." Sully turned to the direction she pointed before looking back, "Thank you miss," he said. He forced the courteous reply out, intimidated by the attractiveness of the woman but he did a good job of hiding it. He took a deep breath before turning to the person next to him. "I think I caught your name...Wye was it? My name is Sully." He awaited an answer. He could feel the anxiety creeping over him slowly but he had no idea how long he was going to be in the room with him for, so like a plaster he decided to just get it over with.

---

Alex woke up, both excited and a little nervous. He was heading straight for Pallet Town to begin the first step of what could be the rest of his life. He looked outside, it was going to be a hot day. Getting his usual attire out of his wardrobe, he couldn't help but to rush ahead to get everything on, swiping his journal as he did. Both his parents were waiting downstairs, wanting to give a proper goodbye to their son before he left. If Alex went any faster down the stairs, he'd probably be tumbling down. His mother was ready to head to the pokemon centre just before saying goodbye, while his father had dressed in his Ranger's uniform. "Good morning, son." His father greeted with a big smile. "Are you ready to go?" His mother asked. She had already prepared his backpack for him, including the field kit she had made for Alex.

"Yep! I'm ready!" He proclaimed excitedly. The mother and son embraced each other for one last time, at least for a very long time. "Be safe, Alex. And be the best person you can be." She said as parting advice with a tear in her eye. Alex hugged his mom a second time, as a way of reassurance. He slung the backpack onto his shoulder and turned to his dad. "Pallet Town is far, I'll take you there." His father offered. He kissed his wife then he and his son left the house. The family had befriended a Honchkrow that had nested on their roof. Alex's Dad utilised his Capture Styler to enlist the pokemon temporarily. Both mounting the bird pokemon, they flew off for Pallet Town

It didn't take long with the help of the Honchkrow, and soon enough they were outside the Oak institute. Alex got down and looked back at his father, who smiled proudly and waved him goodbye before taking off, back into the sky. The young man gazed upon the magnificent institution. There would be so much information about pokemon here! Alex walked towards the entrance, seeing the statue of the famous Ash Ketchum. He ran up and leapt past it as high as he could, brushing his hand against the statue's arm. It was proving really difficult to hold in his excitement and energy. Walking through the doors, Alex approached the receptionist who asked if he was here for the starter programme. With a smile, he displayed his ID card. "Yep, that's me!"

Alex was told to wait with the others who had just arrived before him. Walking into the room, he saw a slightly older guy clad in black and another future trainer with curly-ish hair and seemed to like orange as his personal color. Alex smiled at the two, grinning almost from the build-up. "Hey!" He greeted merrily.

---

Wye turned to the young man who arrived at the reception right after him. He offered the stranger a wide grin as he took back his ID. Once they were in the room, he heard the young man introduce himself. "Yup! Nice to meet you Sully," he said gleefully. He looked around the room quickly, before sinking into a couch with a sigh of relief. He looked up at Sully with "This is an amazing place, huh? A place this big, for studying and preserving pokémon... Oh, I'm just shivering with excitement! All the work that's done here... It'd be nice to work here at some point. I wonder--" He stopped suddenly, freezing in place. He turned to Sully with a sheepish grin. "Hehe... Sorry, I'm just rambling," he said apologetically.

"Hey!"

As the doors opened to the room, another soon-to-be trainer arrived. "Oh, only one more left! Then we get our partnerssss~!" Wye mused as he jumped up to his feet. He turned to the newcomer and smiled. "Hay is for Mudbrays!" he said jokingly before immediately regretting it. "Ah, sorry... It sounded funnier in my head. Anyway! I'm Wye. Nice to meet you!"

---

"This is an amazing place, huh? A place this big, for studying and preserving pokémon... Oh, I'm just shivering with excitement! All the work that's done here... It'd be nice to work here at some point. I wonder--". The other trainer paused for a moment before continuing. "Hehe... Sorry, I'm just rambling." Before Sully could tell him that it was no problem a voice came from behind him in the doorway. "Hey," another trainer walked in, younger in appearance than himself, probably around the age of sixteen. If first appearances were anything to go by this person was clearly a positive personality.

Wye immediatelly approached the new guy introducing himself, Sully took the chance to dig into the small buffet that had been put on for them. There wasn't anything cooked, but whoever had made the ham sandwiches had snuck some mayonnaise into them. Sully savoured the taste, something that reminded him of more positive memories growing up. Once Wye had finished his introduction Sully turned, and spoke, "Hey there, my names Sully. What's yours?"

---

"Shit shit shit crap shit. I'm definitely going to be late." Shane muttered to himself, glancing impatiently from the window of the cab he was riding in to the time displayed on the dashboard. Pouring every ounce of psychic power he wished he possessed, he willed it to slow down just a few more minutes. Unfortunately, the clock ticked ever onward, inexorably moving closer to noon. Eventually, the cab came to a screeching halt before the building. Paying the driver as hastily as he could, he caught one last glimpse of the clock before the cab pulled away.

12:01. He was late.

That was it, his life was probably ruined. He missed the deadline and all the Pokemon would be gone and he would be left out in the street with nothing to show for his trouble. But no, that was crazy, right? It wasn't like some super strict iron-clad deadline, was it? People were late to everything all the time. He was just being neurotic. His nerves were taking control of his imagination and running wild on their own crazy adventure. Putting a hand to the door, he firmly pushed.

Locked.

Everything was ruined forever, his dreams were crushed and he might as well wander off to the noble profession of the food service industry. That was when he felt the iron hand of fate firmly clutch his shoulder. "Scuse me young sir, but this building is strictly off limits to the general public." The iron hand of fate on Shane's shoulder was accompanied by an authoritative voice. Both hand (a perfectly normal hand come to think of it) and voice apparently belonged to someone dressed in a rather official looking outfit emblazoned with the words 'Maintenance Staff'. The man continued before Shane could stammer out a quick apology. "If you're here for the new Pokemon, you'll have to head on over there." With that, he aimed a thumb towards another building that was part of the complex. One that bore clear signs indicating what entrance new trainers were supposed use. Of course.

Muttering something completely unintelligible, he hurried off to the proper entrance. It was fortunately neither locked nor barred, which any reasonable person could have expected. Marching straight up to the front reception counter, he started to stammer out a quick apology for his tardiness. The receptionist said nothing, but gave him a small smile and an outstretched hand. Shane fumbled through his wallet briefly before handing over his ID. Over the course of roughly six hours she just stared at the card, still saying nothing, while Shane stood stock still and barely even let himself breathe. Still holding her silence, she handed the card back. On the brink of devastation at the cruel twist of events, Shane caught a glimpse at his ID card and realized exactly what the problem was.

Also maintaining the present silence, Shane shoved the Silph Co. gift card into his pocket and fished out his actual ID. This time he triple checked to make sure he had the right card. By this point, the receptionist had a rather bemused smirk on her face. With that taken care of, he found himself being redirected to another room and wished luck on his journey. A few muttered apologies and some thank-yous later and he found himself entering the waiting room, where the other three trainers had almost certainly been waiting on him for hours. Dodging around the new trainer standing just inside the entryway he moved quietly off to find a chair and wait, avoiding eye contact by staring straight at the ground as he went and trying not to eavesdrop on their conversations.

---

Alex smiled at the two in the room. He really didn't wanna laugh at the mudbray joke, but he was a sucker for incredibly bad puns. Regardless, he continued to smile. "Oh, hey, Sully. Nice to meet you. I'm Alex." He replied with a beaming grin. It was nice knowing that other trainers would also be starting at the same time. Part of him was slightly worried that he could be the only one today. Regardless, it was still nice to know. He looked at the guy who originally made the joke as part of his own greeting. "Nice to meet you as well, Wye!" He responded with equal enthusiasm. Wye did bring up a good point though. "Huh, yeah. You're right. I wonder where he cou-" Alex was about to ask rhetorically until the last trainer slunked past him.

Guess that accounts for everyone. He sat by the spectacled newcomer and offered his hand out with a smile. [color=a36209]"Hey man, I'm Alex!"

---

No sooner had Shane entered the room, that Professor Oak entered from a door at the back. She entered gracefully, tucking a tuft of her bright blonde hair behind her ear. The stereotype of dumb blondes was way off with Arianna, she was taken seriously in all corners of the world, one of the foremost experts on Pokemon. She wore a white lab coat and held in her hand a clip board. She smiled at everyone and then began to speak.

"Hello everyone, i'm Professor Oak but you guys can called me Arianna." She took a pause to allow the group to say hello before continuing. "You're obviously all here to start what will hopefully be a fun adventure. Each person has their own reason for becoming a trainer but each person needs to make sure it is for the right reasons. Pokemon are not just mindless animals, they have feelings and are very intelligent. If you treat them right then there is no limit to what you and they can achieve." Her face become stern very quickly, "It goes without saying, but i'll say it anyway, nobody at this institute accepts any sort of abuse towards pokemon. As such you will be required to keep regular contact with us. Pokecentres are also linked to our systems so we will be able to pick up on any signs of abuse." Her smile quickly returned and Oak began to turn towards the door she came through, "Anyway, looking at you all I can't see that being an issue. Come with me and i'll explain everything."

She continued walking and talking, whether or not the group kept up, Sully had to break into a steady jog to catch up with her. The left wall of the corridor she led them down was a continuous pane of glass revealing a large open plain flanked by various different terrains. It was the perfect place for any type of pokemon. Sully tried to spot whatever pokemon he could but the sheer size of the area meant that the majority were specks in the distance. He could make out a few different silhouettes in the air and a Miltank that was close to the glass, but that was it.

"Along with the pokemon we will provide you with, you are going to be given a Pokedex. The latest model will tell you the name of a pokemon, it's typing and can even tell you what it's personality is like. In addition to the pokemon related functions, it operates as a phone with all modern technology such as incorporated camera, internet access and such. We do expect you to keep regular contact with us just so we can make sure everything is ok." By time the last word came from her mouth they had reached the end of the corridor, passing through a doorway into a small laboratory. "We do appreciate people keeping in touch, it's the best way that people can say thank you to us. I mean if you need any help with anything there are institute buildings in each major town and city so we are never too far away. More than anything though, it's always nice to hear of people knocking some of these cocky gym leaders down a few pegs." Oak let out a little giggle to herself before stopping in front of a table. Sat atop it was a plastic tray, four polished pokeballs rested on a velvet cushion. Next to it was a stack of four red pokedexes.

"So then gentleman this is it. On this tray is four pokeballs, each containing what I would hope to be a friend for life. They are all vastly different types of pokemon but they all have alot of love to give. In the office earlier we randomly drew names from a hat to see the order the pokemon would be chosen." Oak glanced down at her list, studying the name order. "Right then, when it's your turn to collect your pokemon take a pokedex and then make your choice from one of the pokeballs. So, the order is as follows: Wye you're our lucky number one; Alex you're number two; Shane you're number three and Sully you're number four. I hope you are all happy with your choices." The smiled stretched across her face as she looked at Shane, ready to note down his choice on the board in front of her.

---

As the doors opened once more, Wye turned with excitement, a quiet, high-pitched screech escaping his pursed lips. As far as pokémon researchers went, Professor Oak was a celebrity among celebrities. The starstruck young boy followed her closely as they all walked out.

The group entered the laboratory where there were four pokéballs standing on a tray. His face lit up once more as he heard he got to pick first. "I know who I'll pick," he said to himself with a wide grin. He walked over to the tray and without hesitation, reached for the pokéball marked Torchic. "As two Hoennites, I'm sure Torchic and I'll get along well!" He pressed his finger on the button and the fire starter sprung out of the pokeball with a battle cry. Wye bent his knees to level with his new partner. "Hey there," he said with a smile. "I'm looking forward to working with you. Let's gather some valuable data!" The Torchic let out a small blaze with a committed look on his face.

Wye let his hand down for the Torchic to climb up, and stood up straight. "Hm... What should your name be?" he asked. In response, he got a suggestion in the sound of another cry. "Squeek? Hm... Cid! Do you like that?" The Torchic contemplated for a moment before letting out a cry of approval.

---

Alex smiled as Professor Oak walked into the room. He listened intently to every word she said, but just couldn't wait to get to pick his pokemon. The young man walked just behind her all the way to the laboratory. He watched Wye step up, getting the first pick of the bunch. Seemed he chose Torchic, a very good fire type starter. Alex smiled as he and his new ally returned to the group.

Alex then stepped forth, taking a Pokedex and then turning his gaze onto the remaining three. He smirked as he saw the name of his chosen starter. He picked up the ball and immediately thumbed the button, letting the Piplup out. The penguin pokemon hopped about for a moment before turning to her new Trainer. Alex smiled and bent down, holding his hand up for a high five. Soon enough, Piplup's flipper had slapped against Alex's hand and they both returned to the group. Immediately, he sat next to his new friend and got out his notebook. Piplup looked at all the pictures and notes Alex had written over the years until it came to an empty page. Alex immediately started to scribble with a pencil, sketching Piplup onto the paper.

---

---

No sooner had Shane taken his seat then he noticed one of the other prospective trainers had followed him and offered a cheerful introduction. Momentarily at a loss for normal words to respond with, Shane focused on the proffered hand and returned a tentative shake. He opened his mouth to make some sort of reply- perhaps even to give his name in return, yet was saved from having to do basic human interaction by the arrival of the Professor shortly after him.

Shane listened silently as Professor Arianna went through reciting her basic new trainer script, giving appropriately agreeable nods whenever they seemed called for. At the mention of each of them getting a brand new Pokedex as well as a Pokemon, Shane's hand unconsciously went to his pants pocket where his ancient, battered, second-hand Pokedex currently resided. While it did have some degree of sentimental value, electronics also tended to age extremely poorly just as they advanced with explosive speed, to the point where things were almost already obsolete from the day you bought them. It probably was time for a real update, especially if he was going to be a serious trainer. Well, serious enough- he still couldn't help but grimace at the mention of fighting gym leaders.

With her speech concluded, the Professor gave the floor to the trainers to pick their own Pokemon. Shane, having stood up in order to follow along at the back of the group, now stood around shuffling his feet nervously as the first two trainers went forth and received their own starters. Finally his turn, he reached the front of the room with a few tentative steps. Not wanting to keep everyone else waiting while he made his decision and nervous about the prospect of everyone watching him, he grabbed the closest Pokeball within reach without even looking at what was inside. Breathing a huge sigh of relief as he retreated back to the periphery of the group, he decided to see exactly who his new partner was.

"Oh, geez." He said, being somehow taken aback by the sudden appearance of the entity within the Pokeball, despite having known exactly what was going to happen when he pressed that button. For some reason it just seemed somewhat different when he was the one doing it. "Mine is... Mine's dead." He said slowly, as the strange little ghost creature with its single glowing red eye looked back at him. "But in a good way! I think?" He finished rather lamely, not really wanting the Professor to think he was ungrateful or for his new companion to think he disliked the choice he had made.

---

---

The others had all taken their pokemon and all that remained was for Sully to take his. He started to move his thumb from finger to finger on his right hand, the nervous reaction he had spent a long time trying to leave behind. It wasn't so much that he was worried about the pokemon he was going to receive, but about what it represented. He was starting a new chapter in his life, a life that was within his control and away from everything he had suffered through growing up. He took several steps forward while the others attention was focussed firmly on their own pokemon. He stopped at the table and looked at the polished pokeball resting in front of him.

I guess this is it... He thought to himself. He nervously reached for the pokeball in front of him, picked it up tentatively not wanting to break it. He knew they were tough devices, the whole point of them was to throw them so there was no need to be so soft touched with it. The button that faced him needed to be pressed, it would symbolise the end of his old life and the start of his new one. He closed his eyes and firmly pressed it.

There was brief flash of light as the pokeball opened, followed by a darting beam of light that moved to the floor. From it emerged his new pokemon. Sully knelt down and looked it in the eye upclose, the tusked pokemon tilting it's head to match Sully's. It let out a soft cry before leaping at Sully, wrapping it's arms around his neck. He could feel it's tusk pressing against his neck but it did not matter, in that brief moment Sully knew what unconditional love was. His family had shown him barely any growing up but this pokemon had shown infinitely more in mere seconds. Sully wiped away a stray tear on his cheek, sniffing deeply before gently pushing the pokemon off.

It stared up at him smiling, tugging on the leg of his trousers. "Hey there...my names Sully." He could hide his own smile from stretching from across his face as the pokemon spoke back. He had never thought about naming his pokemon up to this point and even though he had heard Wye name his Torchic, he didn't think naming his pokemon was right for him. So Axew are you ready to go on an adventure?" The pokemon started to leap up and down with excitement before posing in what Sully could only assume was it's fighting stances. It began to throw several punches as Sully looked on laughing.

"Right then it seems that my work is done here gentleman." Professor Oak spoke in her soft voice but it was still enough to make Sully turn sharply. "From what I can see you four do not know each other but from my understanding these journeys are no fun alone. Maybe you should all consider setting out together." Sully looked back at his Axew as a wave of nerves washed over him. He had intended on building friendships with his pokemon before looking to any humans, but he knew the professor was right. He stood up and turned to face the group putting his hand out in front of him. "I came here intending on leaving alone with my pokemon, the thought of other people just didn't cross my mind." Sully stuttered slightly as he spoke with the nerves getting the best of him, that was until Axew grabbed hold of his leg. Sully looked down at the wide eyed pokemon and smiled. "The professor is right though. Adventures should be shared and i'd be honoured to go on one with all of you." From his leg Axew let go and stepped forward, copying Sully's pose, reaching it's little hand out towards the other pokemon. "So what do you say?"

---

---

Wye attached the empty pokeball onto his magnetic belt as Cid sat on his shoulder comfortably. The Torchic's face had grown less stern and more relaxed. He and Wye shared a look upon the professor's suggestion before they both stared down thoughtfully. Wye looked up after a moment with a smile and nodded. "That sounds like a good idea! The more people we are with, the more pokémon we can study," he said gleefully as Cid leapt down in front of the Axew. He raised his foot to place it on the hand but lost his balance and fell on his back. Wye swiftly knelt and grabbed the Torchic. "Awh. You're pretty clumsy, huh?" Cid gave a glare to Wye before pouting and turning away.

"How about you two?" he asked to the other two new-trainers. "Are you guys coming along?"

---

As the group began to get to know each other another scientist entered and immediately rushed over to the Professor, his heavy breathing and rushed entrance grabbing the groups attention. He whispered to Oak, occassional words louder than intended from his rushed breathing. A look of disappointed began to emerge on Arianna's face and a sigh soon followed. She turned to the group spoke, her voice forlorn. "Unfortunately Shane and Alex, we have issues with your application forms and parental permission slips. As you are both under eighteen we need written consent to prove that your parents are willing to let you go on your adventure." The jaws of the two boys dropped and Sully could understand their obvious disappointment. "This isn't to say that you can't go on your adventure, we just need written confirmation from your parents." Sully tried not to look at their expressions too much, he hated to see people upset, having what he considered too much empathy for others. "We have some accomodation here that you can stay in till your parents arrive. Now please, follow Professor Hawkins here and he'll get you settled." As the pair left the room Sully and even Axew waved them goodbye and as soon as they had met, they had gone.

Arianna turned to Sully and Wye, her smile once again returning to her face. "It would appear that for the time being atleast, you two will be going it alone. I wish you the best of luck but please if you could be on your way, I need to deal with this situation." She nodded and waved as she followed the other two boys out of the room. Sully and Wye quickly followed her instructions and left the building, finding themselves outside and at the start of their adventure.

"I cannot believe that happened. They've made all this effort to be stopped by a parental permission slip." Sully looked down at Axew as he scouted the surrounding area, most likely the first time he had been outside of the Institute's grounds. "I guess that just leaves me and you though. Shall we get going?"

---

Shane watched silently as the final member of their cohort picked the last of the Pokemon that had been set out for the new trainers. He felt his eyebrows shoot up in surprise at the creature that popped out of the final Pokeball. He knew a thing or two about a number of Pokemon, having watched a fair share of league tournaments, not to mention reading up a good number of Pokedex entries online. He knew this Pokemon, or rather- he knew what it evolved into. It was the creature he had jokingly referred to as "Hax-'R-Us" due to how utterly badass it always seemed to be on the big screen. It was somewhat shocking and almost a little alarming to see a freakin' dragon being given out to newbie trainers. He had really been expecting something closer to the more traditional starting Pokemon that the first two trainers had received.

As might be expected from a teenage boy who might have had his very own dragon but had ended up with a floating eyeball in a bed-sheet due to picking randomly, Shane felt a distinct pang of jealousy. This feeling was almost immediately drowned out by an even greater feeling of guilt. Here he was, being given a Pokemon and fancy new Pokedex for free and all he could do was think of how much cooler other people's Pokemon were? There was more to it than that. Watching the reactions the other trainers had at first sight of their own Pokemon had stood in stark contrast to the relatively ambivalent reaction Shane had given. It wasn't that he wasn't thrilled (he was ecstatic), it was just that- blah. There were no good words to describe what he was feeling at the moment, though it was clear that he should probably make more of an effort to be friendly towards his new partner. After all, they were probably fairly eager to be out and about in the world with a new trainer. Looking up to where his unnamed Duskull still floated in the air, he waited until it's single red-eyed gaze settled on him. He tried his best at giving the new Pokemon a friendly grin, though after a moment of silent contemplation the ghost Pokemon simply rolled that one eye in an exaggeratedly impressive arc before resuming not paying any attention to Shane. It figured. To be fair, there was no reason why any Pokemon should be that enthused to be stuck with a trainer like him.

With everyone all set and ready with their new Pokemon, there was some brief discussion about grouping up with one another to head out as a sort of team prompted by the professor. If he was a little less socially awkward, he might have let out a gigantic sigh of relief at the suggestion. The thought of trucking it through the wilderness all by himself was honestly quite terrifying, even if the alternative was wandering around with people he barely knew. He had just opened his mouth to reply to the invitations when another scientist arrived to have a brief word with the professor.

Of course, Shane had been 100% convinced there would be some sort of random problem dropped into his lap out of nowhere to somehow ruin everything forever. Sure enough, before he knew what exactly was happening, he was being ushered off by another professor, his unnamed Duskull lazily floating along behind them. "I- err, excuse me." He managed to stammer out after the initial shock had worn off and the reality of the situation began to weigh in. "I really couldn't tell you where my parents are at the moment, or even what region since they move around so much. B-but I could call them up if I needed to. Couldn't they so some sort of e-signature or something?" It seemed ridiculous for him to get this far, only to be stopped at the final hurdle by a bit of minor bureaucracy. He would have assumed the lab was advanced enough that they had transitioned at least that far technology-wise, though you never knew when you'd run across that one professor who clung to a near-obsolete age of technology and insisted on having everything done by hand. Though, hang on a second, wasn't there some other ancient technology older people tended to gravitate towards? "Oh, right. Could they, err, fax you some forms or something?"

---

Wye seemed a bit hesitant at the gate, looking back for a moment. He turned to Sully before offering a smile and a nod. "Sure, let's go," he said, glancing at Cid on his shoulder. "I do hope we get to see them again, at some point. They both seemed pretty nice." The torchic jumped off Cid's shoulder and started running into the forest without looking back. "Oh--Cid! Wait up!" Thankfully, the short legged pokémon stopped and turned to the trainers before letting out a cry. "Ah... He's eager!" Wye picked up a fast pace to match Cid into the forest.

---

As Shane uttered the words fax machine the professor leading him smirked, much to the annoyance of Arianna. "I'm glad you find this situation funny. After we have helped this young man out I want to see you in my office." The smirk on his face quickly turned to a look of horror before returning his focus to the clipboard in front of him. "So we have Alex out of Cerulean City aged 16," the young lad next to Shane nodding, "and Shane Michaels from Vermillion aged 19." Shane stopped dead in his tracks, causing the others to turn and look at him. "That isn't me...my name is Shane Matthews and i'm 17." A vein began to bulge on the temple of Professor Oak as the other labcoat wearing individual hung his head low. "It seems there has been a clerical error." Arianna's eyes filled with a red hot rage that even her polite smile could not hide. "Please forgive me, i'll just make a quick phone call."

Arianna pulled a phone from her pocket and moved away from ear shot. She paced back and forth for a minute before putting her phone away. "Well it is good news for you Shane, your documents are all in order. I truely am sorry for the inconvenience as i'm sure my colleague is." Her colleague was bowing for forgiveness frantically, clearly Oak was capable of giving a telling off a drill sergeant would be jealous of. "If you are quick you might be able to catch the others." Shane quickly said his goodbyes before making his way outside.

---

Sully watched as his new companions Torchic sprinted off towards the nearby forest, the small creature was clearly inquisitive. As for his Axew, he wasn't far behind the other pokemon, not wanting to be outdone by something smaller than himself. Sully let out a laugh , the positivity and energy of the two pokemon was infectious. "Ah...He's eager!" Wye said as he chased after Cid.
"I think these two could be a handful..." Sully spoke with a grin stretched across his face. He began to move to catch the others but was stopped by a voice from behind him.

"Hey...hey...wait..." From behind him came one of the other trainers who had gone with Oak. He frantically sprinted with his Duskull in tow, floating effortlessly along. Sully waved and turned to Wye. "Hey Wye, it looks like Shane is going to be coming with us." As Shane reached the others, he explained what had happened and the guys joked about it briefly. As the laughter dropped off the reality of their situation set in, they were about to set out on a journey that could well take over the rest of their lives. Whatever they were going to face from this point on, they would face with their pokemon and with each other. "Right then, Pewter City here we come." The group and their pokemon heading towards route 1, beginning their adventure.

---

Thank Arceus the problem seemed to be minor. He didn't know how much more of this emotional roller-coaster his poor heart could possibly take. For a moment, he had been convinced he was doomed to be wrapped in red tape all the way into his adult life on account of the professor and her assistants. He knew tangentially through his parents more than enough about the nightmare "that damn bureaucracy" could put you through- the same form-riddled rigamarole full of arbitrary hoops someone needed to jump through every time you wanted to open a new dig site or begin excavating near some ancient ruins. Fortunately, it seemed this lab had their business on point and took it little more than a phone call to sort out what had ended up being a minor clerical error.

He couldn't help feeling a little displeased to be heading out without the final trainer. What was the name he had introduced himself as? Alex? Either way, he had been so nice and friendly to Shane right out of nowhere and now it seemed like he might be getting stuck behind while Shane was getting back on track quickly enough. Hopefully that guy would also end up getting some sort of minor error cleared up and be able to join them on the road before too much longer. Thanking the lab people profusely, he rushed off to catch up with the other two trainers.

At least, he tried to...

That damn spooky spook Pokemon of his apparently didn't give the slightest shit about how much of a hurry they were in if they wanted to not get left behind. Nothing he said seemed to be able to prompt even a little bit more speed out of the Pokemon either. At most, he would get one of those overly-dramatic eye-rolls (when the Duskull even deigned to acknowledge him at all) as the Duskull continued to drift along at the same leisurely pace all the way out the front doors of the lab. By the time they did get outside, one of the trainers- the one with the Torchic, had apparently already booked it off in the direction of the forest. Fortunately, the second guy had not seen fit to follow suit and sprint off on his own adventure. Gesticulating wildly, Shane called out to the second trainer and his baby Hax-'R-Us. Managing to catch their attention, he soon afterwards managed to regroup with the pair of them before they all three headed off towards Pewter City. By some grand miracle, he had actually managed to make it through acquiring his own Pokemon, Pokedex and traveling companions with not one of them having died in the process. Well, except for his ghost-Pokemon I suppose, but that hardly counted.

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