I am Max, A 14 year old boy who had totally normal life. Until, I somehow am stuck in a fictional world... The world of Pokemon.
Why? How? I don't know... And what will happen next... Who knows.
"Sigh, Talk about Irony," He muttered, exhaling.
Leaning against a tree, he tilted his head back, his gaze fixed on the sky above, staring at the clouds drifting lazily.
"Damn he's late," he muttered again, closing his eyes with mild frustration.
It had been almost an hour since he left his house, and now he stood at the edge of Pallet Town. Route 1 just few steps away, its winding dirt path, the flowing grass patch calling out to him with promises of wild adventures.
His thoughts drifts back to yesterday, the conversation he had with Professor Oak when he first met his Charmander.
"So! Max, what are your plans now?"
"Plans?... I guess I will take on the indigo cup."
Well, that almost concluded the conversation excluding other trival topics.
Surprisingly, it seems Prof. Oak is really fond of the "Max" of this world, almost like a proud Uncle. No wonder he stepped forward and offered to help for almost everything, including the registration for the Indigo cup.
Yet, Despite having Charmander, Max was missing out on the other tools necessary to begin his adventure as a trainer. That's precisely why he is waiting for the Professional to deliver those essentials.
....
"Hey, Max!"
The familiar voice from behind breaks his thoughts, Max lifted his gaze to see the professor walking towards him at ehat seemed to be snail's pace.
Another ten minutes had passed since his last whining, but it seems the Professor had finally arrived.
"Professor, you're late, " Max said flatly, crossing his arms in almost annoyed manner.
"I know, I know. Sorry about that!" Oak replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with an apologetic grin.
"Anyway, how's Charmander doing?" the professor asked, his tone shifting to one of genuine interest. His love for Pokemon shon through his words.
Seriously, it ain't Professor Oak if none of his conversation contains something about either pokemon or pokedex.
"It's doing fine. Don't worry," Max said, reaching for the pokeball on his belt. "It was just taking a little nap in it's ball."
With a casual toss, the pokeball leap into the air, snapping open its mouth with the burst of light.
Char... Charmander~
The small fire lizard emerged from the light, its flame tipped tail burning brightly, full of life. The empty pokeball dropped back down, and Max caught it effortlessly with one hand.
Char!
Charmander chirped, looking at Max with wide, happy smile.
Professor Oak crouched slightly, his eyes lighted up as his gaze fell to Charmander. "Ah, good! Charmander looks happier, she seems to enjoy spending time with you,"
"Do you want to giver her a nickname?"
Charmander glanced between Max and Professor, tilting its head curiously.
Max after thinking for a while shakes his head in a no, he was never good coming up with nicknames for Pokemons, and he kinda liked the default name pokemon were given.
"Alright, Professor, you brought the rest of the stuffs, right?" Max asked, reverting the conversation back to topic.
"Of course!" Professor Oak said as he straightened up, pulling out a small package out of his bag. "Here you go Max: one pokedex, five pokeballs, some potions and stats heals to start your journey. Consider it my way of saying good luck!"
"And you don't need to worry about filling the Pokedex. Red already completed it when he was out on his journey 3 years ago."
Max took the items, although the Professor seems to went a little overboard.
He inspected the pokedex which was sleek, red, and surprisingly lighter. The pokeballs gleamed in sunlight, each one holding the potential for new teammates.
And rest were some sprays of paralyz heal, Antidote and potions.
"Thanks, Professor," Max said, slipping those items in his bag.
"Remember, Max," Oak added, his expression more serious now. "This world of pokemon may be full of excitement, but it also has many dangers. Always be prepared and take care of your Pokemon. True strength comes from the love and bond you share with your pokemon. It's through that trust that every great trainer finds their way to sucess."
Max nodded, glancing at Charmander, who was now playfully swishing its tail back and forth.
"Got it," Max replied, his voice steady.
Oak gave him a firm nod, then smiled warmly. "Well then, I won't keep you any longer. Go on, Max—your journey awaits!"
Taking a deep breath, Max looked down at Charmander. "Alright, buddy. Let's do this."
Charmander's eyes sparkled with excitement, and it let out a cheerful cry.
And with his first step onto Route 01, Max's journey truly began.
Professor Oak stayed there for bit before eventually turning back. All of it reminded him of 3 years back. When his own grandson had ventured into his very own adventure, Wait, come to think of it... What was his name again?
******
Route 01,
The pathway connecting Pallet Town with Viridian City was a landmark of nostalgia for Max. Known as the first route introuded in pokemon games, it had always been linear map filled with low level pidgeys and Ratatas making it breeze for players.
However, walking along this route in real life was completely different experience.
The same route he had memorized through countless walkthrough of Pokemon Red, Fire red and even the Let's Go games. He'd always thought navigating it would be easy as he had memorized the whole map of kanto like back of his hand.
Well, he couldn't have been more wrong.
The scale of the world was nothing like the confined tiles of his games. The route stretched far and wide in every direction, with sprawling greenery, tall grass that swayed in gentle blow of wind and the subtle sound of pokemons living in the habitat freely. It felt alive.
What was once a simple stretch of grass and few tiles now felt like an actual wilderness.
And the pokemon.
In games, he'd merely encounters low levels Ratata and pidgeys. Here, he saw Sandshrews burrowing into the earth, Ekans slithering along tree roots, and Oddishes waddling near patches of flowers.
It was then it hit him, there were pokemon which can move mountains, shape land and seas, move continents and even create blackholes. How is the ecosystem even sustaining itself?
A rustle broke him out of his thoughts.
Pidgey!!!
A small, brown bird fluttered down from a tree, pecking at the ground for food. It wad the most familiar sight in the gen 1 games, snd yet seeing a pidgey in real life was oddly captivating.
Max crouched behind a bush, trying to move closer without startling it.
"Never thought I'd be catching pidgeys," He muttered to himself.
He had never cared much for regional birds in the games. They were underwhelming and quickly replaceable. Even now, with Charmander on his team which would later gain flying type, he thought, Do I really need a Pidgey?
That reminds him of his... Well two unhappy shiny encounter with pidgies. One of the encounter being a level 3 shiny pidgey way early in game, in fact so early to even have access to pokeballs.
He encountered a shiny pidgey yet again—another save file— after the gane ended, and in between his post game quest at sevisevii islands, and guess what, the shiny pidgey broke the ultraball he threw and whirlwinded it's way out. So maybe he does have bad memories with them.
But flying types were useful for scouting and traveling, and he wasn't sure how long it would take for Charmander to evolve into Charizard. And it wasn't just a collection of pixels, it was actual living. For the first time, he genuinely felt desire to catch it.
"Go, pokeball!"
He threw it with all the confidence he could muster.
The ball sailed through the air... and landed a good foot away from the Pidgey, bouncing harmlessly on the ground.
Max's face flushed in embarrassment. They made it look so easy in the anime.
Thank Arceus his Charmander was in its ball and didn't witness that disaster. The last thing he wanted was for his starter to lose respect for him and end up with a rebellious streak like Ash's Charizard.
The Pidgey turned toward him, its head tilted in curiosity. For a moment, it seemed like the bird was mocking him. Max felt a twitch of frustration, reaching for Charmander's Poké Ball. He'd planned to weaken the Pidgey first before attempting another capture, but his strategy was already in shambles.
The Pidgey flapped its wings lightly and hopped over to the Pokéball, inspecting it with its beak.
"H-Hey! Stop that!" Max stammered, waving his arms.
Ignoring him, the Pidgey accidentally pressed the button in the center of the ball. It opened with a flash of light, sucking the bird inside.
The ball landed on the ground, shook once... and clicked. A burst of stars signaled a critical capture.
Max froze, staring at the ball in disbelief.
"Did... Did I just catch a Pidgey?"
He picked up the Poké Ball, turning it over in his hand. A mixture of confusion and triumph washed over him.
"Well... that's one way to do it, I guess,"
As he stood there, the absurdity of the moment finally hit him, and a small smile crept onto his face. This world, for all its differences, had its fair share of surprises.