Subject: [PW!] Mark's Journey Begins Date: 06 Apr 1999 00:00:00 GMT From: ig88sw82@aol.com (Ig88sw82) Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon "Why do I always have to be late for EVERYTHING?" Mark scowled to himself as he ran down the old dirt road towards Professor Oak's lab. He hoped he would be able to choose a good Pokémon, especially after hearing the stories of kids getting stuck with Pikachu as a starting Pokémon. That was not going to happen to me, he decided. After a few minutes of running, Mark reached his destination. The double-doors to the laboratory automatically slid open as he approached. After a few Pokémon masters had sprung from the normally dull town of Pallet a few years ago, it suddenly had a prominent place on the map. And since Oak had gotten them started (one of them was his grandson), money was pouring in to finance the starting of more trainers. Because the more trainers, the more publicity. Not that Mark cared about any of these things as he approached the receptionist at the front desk. "Excuse me,ma'am," he politely addressed her, "where can I talk to Professor Oak about starting my training?" Hey, anything to get going, he thought. "Straight down the hall and to the left, kid." "Whatever." Mark was already down the hall and to the left yelling back to her by the time she finished her sentence. He then was thoroughly amazed by the next thing he saw. In a large amphitheatre there were rows apon rows apon rows of booths. In these booths Mark could clearly see trays of various Pokéballs, probably the large variety of choices for the beginning trainers. Signs were posted around the booths with labels for the different monster types: Grass-types in the far left, Fire in the lower right, Fighting in the back, and so on. For the most part, all the kids were being ushered to the rows of chairs in the center, so Mark followed. As the lights dimmed, a bright spotlight centered on the stage, and Professor Oak was clearly visible. With microphone in hand, he began to speak: "Greetings, future trainers. Today, you begin one of the most important journies of your young lives. There will be good experiences, and there will be bad ones as well. You will make new friends, and will probably get a few rivals. But remember, through all of your trials and tribulations, your main objectives: seek out and catch all Pokémon you find. Pit your creatures against others to increase their experience. Collect 8 badges, and move on to the Pokémon League. But also remember this: treat your Pokémon with the love and respect they deserve, and you will grow to be the greatest trainers of all time!" At this, all the young trainers stood up and cheered, not really knowing what they would be in for. "At this time, feel free to choose your Pokémon, but choose wisely. You can't catch anything without a Pokémon of your own. Good luck to you all!" After which the Professor stepped off the stage. Suddenly, the crowd was in pandemonium. All the trainers were scrambling to various booths of choice, eager to get the best ones before anyone else. Mark was in a hurry, too, the Pikachu nightmares still fresh in his mind. He wanted something with a good balance of defense, speed, special attacks, and other stuff he had been studying for the past week. As a final decision, he had decided that Magnemite would be a good choice. Dashing over to the Electric table, Mark nearly ran into a few trainers, already admiring their Charmanders and Poliwags and Weedles. Finally reaching the booth, he quickly reached for the last Magnemite ball. "I'll take that, thank you!" An exceptionally rude young girl snatched the Magnemite from the tray, just as his hand was inches away. "Hey," Mark yelled, so that he could be heard over the crowds, "That's mine!" "Looks like slow and steady doesn't win the race this time, kid! Smell ya later!" And the girl vanished into the crowd. This really upset Mark, not just because she took his Pokémon, but he hadn't thought of a back-up choice. "Do you have any Magnemite left?" he pleaded the consessionist. "Sorry, no. We do, however, have plenty of Pikachu to choose from." But Mark would not have any of that particular Pokémon, and swiftly left the table. Feeling quite lost, Mark wandered over to the grass table. "Got any good stuff left?" "Lets see here," the man looked through his table. "Fresh out of Bulbasaur, no Tangela... We have some Bellsprout, Oddish, and Exeggute." "That's it?" Bellsprout and Oddish were average Pokémon, not bad in battles, but Exeggute was just weak in his opinion. Although only found in certain areas, it wasn't worth starting with. And none of them started with any good attacks. But as he tried other tables, he got similar and worse results. The Fire table was cleaned out, as well as the small Psychic booth (why people got so excited over Abra was beyond him). So he wandered back to the Grass booth and picked up a ball without really looking at the name. After receiving his Pokéballs and PokéDex, his mood improved slightly. "Lets see what I got. Go, PokéBall!" Mark threw his ball through the air. A burst of colorful energy shot out and the Pokémon appeared. "Oddish," Dexter blandly stated. "During the day, this weed Pokémon keeps its face buried in the ground. At night, it wanders around sowing its seeds." "Well, Oddish," Mark proclaimed, "Lets get started on our little adventure." ----- That was long. Oh well. Oh yeah: -Mr. Satoshi is not related at all to Ash Ketchem. I stuck that in to see if anyone would notice. He probably won't be in the story anymore. -I'll be constantly sticking in little puns from the game and the show. Someone tell me if I'm doing this right.