As I walked through the town, the sights and sounds of Pallet Town surrounded me. People were happily playing with their Pokémon, a peaceful scene, but something felt different. It was almost like I had stepped into a living, breathing world, not just the pixelated one I remembered from the games.
Some trainers had their Growlithe, a few were walking with their Pidgey, while a group of Rattata ran down the street, clutching a loaf of bread in their mouths, being chased by an angry baker waving his hands frantically. The whole thing looked like something straight out of a slapstick comedy, and for a second, I almost forgot the strange reality I was in.
But then, the nagging thought came back to me: Kanto. Everyone had the original 151 Pokémon, just like in the game.
No Things Like Miraidon,Kingambit and Zacian. Just normal Pokemon There was something nostalgic about seeing them all, but it also made me wonder—was I really the only one player? Or was I just another player in a game?
As I kept walking, I couldn't help but feel out of place. Everyone seemed to know what they were doing. I, on the other hand, had no idea what I was supposed to do next. The world felt vast, but I was still tethered to that nagging promise I had made.
My stomach twisted. Be the Champion of all regions whether I liked it or not. And I needed a starter Pokémon to begin my journey.
But where was the professor's lab? The map showed only two houses and a familiar building. I glanced around again, trying to make sense of the sprawling town. I spotted an woman around her 30s in a lab coat with glasses on her,covering her brown eyes, with her pixie style brown hair standing near a large building up ahead, Carrying some Boxes with a Bulbasaur beside her.
I ran up to her, quickly taking some of the boxes from her hands.
"Hey, can I help, Madam?" I asked.
She smiled, clearly appreciative.
"I'd be delighted, young man. By the way, who are you? It's my first time seeing you here."
(Does that mean the owner of this body is unknown to others as well?)
I thought to myself before answering.
"Ah, I'm Alex Carter. I'm from Sinnoh, just moved here," I said, clearly lying through my teeth.
"Oh, you must be the kid Old Man Rowan sent to me," she said, her tone suggesting she knew something I didn't.
"Ah yes! Rowan sended me here and you, Madam, who are you?" I asked, trying to keep the conversation flowing.
"Sir Rowan didn't tell me anything about a beautiful woman like you being in Kanto."
She smiled, clearly amused by my comment. "Oh, what a charming young man you are. I'm Professor Cherry, one of the last students of Professor Oak and the one of the top Proffesors of this lab," she said, standing a little straighter with pride.
"Wait, where is Professor Oak then,is he still the owner of this Lab?" I asked, genuinely surprised. Oak was the original professor in this world.
She sighed, rolling her eyes. "Ah, he went to Alola, to visit his cousin. But after staying there for a while, he just retired completely and left everything to us," she said, her voice tinged with annoyance.
"I swear, he could have at least left us some proper instructions before vanishing off to some tropical island.But yeah,Professor Alina and us managed his absence and turned this small village with just two houses into a magnificent town,"
She said proudly, her chest puffed out with pride. Not awere by the fact that she made me question whether the Small Map was showing the Pallet Town or not.
"Oh, and Rowan mentioned you were getting a starter Pokémon from me,"she said, her tone shifting to one of excitement.
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," I said, trying to mask my own excitement,but still wondering who was Alina?
"Ow, come on!" she teased, motioning for me to follow her into a room inside the lab. "You can put the boxes here," she added, gesturing toward a table before unceremoniously dropping her own stack of boxes onto the floor with a playful grin.
"Seriously?" I muttered, carefully setting my boxes down.
"Relax, they're sturdier than they look," she chuckled. "Now, let's not waste any more time. Follow me."
She led me to a large glass case at the center of the room, which contained three Poké Balls. My heart raced as I realized what was about to happen.
I stood there, staring at the glass case, my mind racing as I anticipated choosing my starter Pokémon.
Charmander, the Fire Lizard.
Squirtle, the Water Turtle.
Or Bulbasaur, the Grass Frog.
The choice seemed obvious—I had already decided on Bulbasaur in my head since It would make navigating Kanto so much easier.
Just as I was about to speak up, the professor interrupted my thoughts.
"Hey, by the way," she said, hesitating slightly. "Do not get mad at me when I say this, but… these aren't exactly the partner Pokémon you might expect, okay?"
I froze, confusion washing over me. "What do you mean, Mada—"
Before I could finish, the Poké Balls inside the glass case suddenly opened on their own. A brilliant light burst forth from each one, illuminating the room in dazzling flashes. I instinctively shielded my eyes, squinting as the light began to take shape.
When the glow subsided, I lowered my arm and stared in disbelief. Standing before me were not the familiar Charmander, Squirtle, or Bulbasaur. Instead, three entirely different Pokémon were staring back at me.
In front of me stood three unexpected Pokémon:
A Tusk Pokémon, Axew, with a metallic sheen that made its usual green-gray scales look like polished steel.
A Feeling Pokémon, Ralts, whose normally serene demeanor was replaced by a gloomy aura. Its purple hue and translucent appearance made me suspicous of whether it was okey or not.
Lastly, there was a Bounsweet, but unlike the usual cheerful, pink Grass-type, this one had brown and orange tones, radiating an oddly fierce Orange (Fruit one) like presence.
I stared at them, completely baffled. "Professor, shouldn't there be a Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander? You know, the usual starters?"
The professor chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of her head. "Ah, yeah, about that… I'm conducting research on Pokémon that have adapted to their environments in unusual ways. These three are part of that research."
She gestured toward Axew first. "Take this Axew, for example. It's developed a Steel-typing from eating every metal it has seen. Don't ask me how—believe me, I'm just as confused as you are."
I glanced at the small dragon. It stood proudly, gnawing on what looked like a piece of scrap metal from its pokeball,it did not looked very smart.....
The professor then pointed to Ralts. "This little one, though… it's a bit of a tragic case. It gained a Ghost-typing after witnessing its loved ones being killed in front of it by a Mightyena in Hoenn. It lost its Psychic abilities and typing as a result."
I winced. "Professor, that's… really sad, you know."
She sighed. "I know, but life moves on, doesn't it?" She then gestured to the Bounsweet. "And this Bounsweet here… well, she gained a Fighting-type, but I honestly have no clue how. Some trainer who taked her as a pet thinking it was a shiny leaved it here while crying. She said, it broke everything in her house along with her finger."
I looked at the Bounsweet, who was hopping around and throwing headbutts into the air. She looked oddly determined for such a small Pokémon.
"So, these are your choices," the professor said, folding her arms. "They might not be what you expected, but I promise you, they're special in their own way."
I stared at the three Pokémon in front of me, trying to decide. My first Pokémon was going to be one of these misfits. But which one?