Something's Wrong!

It was a warm, sunny day in New Haven. Storm Chaser, a nickname he got from his childlike obsession with following storm clouds, stepped out of bed into the light of the bright new dawn, ready to begin his daily routine. Wake up, get dressed, brush brown hair, eat breakfast, check the weather for any interesting developments, do some dishes, clean up the transporter pad, then sit down for a nice mug of coffee; he liked it black, unlike most. This was his morning routine for as long as he could remember. It was simple, just the way he liked things. Being that this was the year 2025, most things were simple and easy. Practically everything was automated, save for a few human designs.

Storm himself was rather puny, only 5'8" in a society that has continuously grown taller and taller throughout the generations. His simple patch of hair on his chin served as the only signs of his age, 25, aside from the rather large bags lying under his iridescent ruby eyes. He was rather skinny and lanky, though it paled in comparison to how most people were. Giant floating potatoes is what most of society has been turned into, thanks in part to fast food.

Gamers, however, always managed to avoid the fat, save for a few exceptions. Some say it's because of the calorie burning, brain turning, sweat building hand motions necessary to play games these days. Others claim that they are addicted to the games, and thus don't eat. One crazy theory states that, "Video Games are full of subconscious messages, telling out children to do heinous acts, sins against god, and to worship Satan. They cut their bodies and rip the fat from themselves in reverence to their dark gods."

His incredibly high metabolism allowed him to eat without concern, but that didn't mean he didn't enjoy certain foods over others. Ramen, a simple Asian cuisine he had dined on during his college years was his main source of nutrition. Cheap, easy to make, and always sold in bulk, it was the ideal food! At least to him, anyway.

After briefly checking his watch, he saw that he was running late, and began freaking out. "Crap! I'm late! Oh man, now i'm probably going to get stuck with a late copy! Argh!" He shouted, throwing on his shoes, and fedora, before stepping onto the transporter pad and hastily keying in coordinates. Now most days, waking up late wouldn't mean much to Storm, as he his job doesn't require him to do ANYTHING, and thus, had infinite free time. However, today was special. Today was the day that Nintendo released it's new system, the PS-I, upon the public.

-----

The PS-I, or Playstation Intro-neural, was a new piece of technology that integrated the user's own neural inputs directly into the system. This way, the user would actually become a part of the game, and could shape it in infinite ways. The major, and only, launch title for the system is known simply as "Pokemon". No color, metal, jewel, or letter. Just "Pokemon".

From what little details that have been leaked, you and a select few players nearby are each set into your own session of Pokemon, on a newly discovered continent. You play together, or against each other, and all vie for the title of Pokemon Master. There are several way to accomplish this, but the most direct is to become the Pokemon League Champion. That's all that is known so far.

-----

"Phew, heh, heh." Storm sighed, jogging up the street from the transporter to the nearby store. As he grabbed his slot in line, a man in black appeared behind him, and closed off the velvet rope to signal that there would be no more places in this line. The PS-I is a very expensive and lucrative piece of hardware, only 3000 were produced. Swallowing, Storm sighed, a little with relief, a little with terror. Thank god, I just made it.

"Man, the lag was hell today." One person farther up the line said.

"Yeah, I almost didn't make it through the transporter in time!" A female not far from Storm replied.

"Yo, I heard that some dude lost an arm thanks to all the back-up in the systems," some guy near the front raved. "I even heard there was a server crash in one of the larger cities!" He continued. And all this for one simple game.

"Excuse me! If I could have everyone's attention!" Some very official looking guy at the front of the line was waving his hands, motioning for everyone to calm down. "EXCUSE ME!" He shouted one last time. Everyone finally shut up, as it dawned on them that this guy was the manager of the store. Tensing with excitement, the line slowly began moving forward, as people ran off, screaming in joy with their systems in hand.

-----

It took a few hours to get the system, and even more time to set it up, but Storm was content that he had done everything correctly. With a nod to his handiwork, the male sat down, relaxed, and began reading the instructions on how to enter the game. There was no disc, no download, just the body suit and helmet device that connected you in. The instructions were ridiculously short, as he read them aloud, "'Step One: Put on the suit and helmet, and lay down on your bed.' Sounds easy enough. 'Step Two: Push the button on the side of the helmet.' Wow, is that really all there is to it?" He pondered aloud, but then shrugged, and threw on the suit and hat. Laying down on his bed, Storm pushed the button, and prepared to enter. A sharp pain erupted at the base of his next, but before he could do anything, he blacked out.

-----

White. Endless white was all he could see. Storm wasn't sure if he was actually seeing anything to begin with. Suddenly, a man appeared in front of him. He seemed eerily familiar to Storm, but before he could do go any farther, the man spoke.

"Hello, my name is Shigeru Miyamoto. Welcome to Pokemon."

Storm was taken aback. "What?! But, that's not possible!" He yelled back, confused. You see, Miyamoto had died several years back, due to 'un-foreseen circumstances.' Everyone had mourned the loss of one of gaming history's most iconic people.

"Hello Storm Chaser, or should I say, Soren. I'll be your guide to the world of Pokemon. Follow me." Miyamoto continued, unfazed by Storm's sudden outburst. As the man turned, the while plain suddenly disappeared, and a world of colors and textures greeted them. Storm was now even more confused as to how this...thing knew who he was, especially his real name!

"Now wait a minute!" the bewildered 25 year-old shouted, taking a step toward the impression of Miyamoto.

Miyamoto continued talking, as if nothing had been said. "This is Neo Bay, where you will begin, along with your comrades. Each of you will choose a starting pokemon, and journey throughout the Caldera and Kirant Region. A grand journey awaits you, so I shall take my leave, for now." Miyamoto then turned toward Storm, bearing the creepiest smile on earth. At that, everything went white again. Storm suddenly felt his consciousness slipping away, as everything then faded to black.

-----

With a start, Storm Chaser awoke, confused and dazed. He was sweating like crazy, and trembling. He tried to remember last night, but nothing came to him. Looking about, he was oddly relieved to find that he was in his room. Staggering to get up, he went to wash his face with some cold water. "Bah!" He exclaimed as the cold water rushed down his face. Righting himself, and gaining his bearings, Storm finally noticed that it was morning. Checking his watch told him it was 8:00 AM, the next day. With a sigh, and a headache, he made his way downstairs to make himself a pot of coffee to take his Tylenol with. Though some things were missing or out of place, he was too tired to notice.

His lazy mindset told him to just not bother trying to remember last night, and instead to just go about his business. With a nod to himself, Storm stretched, and relaxed on his couch with his coffee mug. Checking the weather, as per the usual, he found that once again, it was a Sunny Day, with no signs of clouds. Too bad. We could use some rain here in Neo Bay. Wait...Neo Bay? But...I....

Suddenly, last night came back to him in a series of fast moving scenes, like out of a movie. Rushing outside to make sure it wasn't a dream, Storm was shocked to find that the city of New Haven was gone, replaced with a tiny town. Bewildered, Storm stumbled about, unsure of what to do, or how to swallow all of the information around him. Just as he turned to run back inside his house, he slammed right into the door of another's house. knocked on his ass, Storm sat there for a minute rubbing his still aching head. A girl answered the door, confused at first.

"Why are you in your underwear?" Was the first thing to come out of the girl's mouth.

"Huh?" Storm replied, looking down. Surprised to see that he was indeed lacking pants, he immediately covered himself with his hands. "Dammit, I forgot to do all of my morning routine. Man, everything has been so messed up since I miraculously wound up here." Storm sighed inwardly, before stepping up.

"Miraculously? What are you talking about?" the female replied, one brow raised. "Look, as one player to another, I'd suggest getting with the program. I don't want my unchangeable party to have to have two idiots."

Storm now felt more confused than ever. "Party, what party? What program are you...Oh shit! This is the game!" Sudden clarity hitting like a brick, Storm finally remembered that he had put on the PS-I last night before all the confusion hit. Standing up, Storm brought some confidence to his eyes as he began to comprehend everything that had happened. "Man, they weren't kidding when they said this game would be immersive."

With a "hmph", the female smirked, before snarkily replying, "Well duh! Now hurry up already, we have to get to the boat so we can get our starters. That other dumbass in our party left beforehand, saying something about being too powerful to need partners. At least one of us is smart enough to get with the program. Now go get dressed, I'll meet you at the boat in 10 minutes." She remarked, shooing Storm away. As he stumbled back to his house, careful to keep his boxers covered, the girl shouted again, "And don't be late!" before slamming her door shut.

Running upstairs to his 'bedroom,' Storm tore the place apart, looking for his pants. "They've gotta be here somewhere. You can't just LOSE a pair of pants like this!" After about 5 minutes of searching, he finally found them downstairs, on the couch. Practically jumping into them, Storm tightened the belt, and headed for the door. As he opened it, something caught on his belt, falling to the ground. A small red and white ball rolled around, before opening and releasing its inventory. A small yellow and red lion cub looked up, before racing around the house. Storm attempted to chase after it, but it was too quick. After a few minutes of chasing, he finally remembered that this was a Pokemon game. All he had to do was grab its ball and tell it to return. Easy enough.

Scooping up the pokeball, he waited until just the right moment, before yelling "Return!" The cub was caught in mid-air, before becoming a stream of red light that entered the ball. Nodding to himself, Storm reattached the ball to his belt, and ran off in the direction of the boat.

-----

As he neared the water's edge, Storm noticed that something was off. There was a dock here, but no boat! Looking around for the girl, and the boat, Storm ran back toward town. Just before he made it, a masked man with a strange looking top hat and cape appeared in front of him.

"What the hell?!" Storm exclaimed, stopping in his tracks. "Who the hell are you?" he asked his opposite, who stood there, refined and reposed.

"I, am The Marvelous Lester, Magician of sorts, and Hacker Extraordinaire! I'm the soon to be ruler of this game world. And after I conquer this session, I shall consume all the others! All of your minds shall belong to me. But for now, I'll be content with taking out you." At that, the masked villain shot a bright beam out of his staff, aimed directly at Storm. Bracing for the worst, the beam engulfed him.

"What?!" Lester shouted, shocked to find Storm there, still bracing for the beam that had already passed through him. "That's not possible! My virus should have initiated the kick-out code in your helmet! Why didn't it work?!" Finally realizing that nothing had happened, Storm opened his eyes, and unbraced himself.

"What the heck was that?" Storm questioned, confused once more. He readied himself for another blast, just in-case, but something tingled at the base of his neck. For a second there, he felt a bit detached, as if everything was far away, but then he came back down to earth.

"There must be something wrong with your code. I can't just eliminate your game self like I did the girl." Lester accused, gritting his teeth. With a deep breath, the hacker plucked a ball from behind his back, and threw it. Out popped a small, light blue dolphin. It swam through the air as if it were water. Something felt off about it, however, there was this look in its eyes. "Guess I'll have to do things the hard way," Lester began readying himself to do battle. "I'll beat out your pokemon, and then wipe you from the game by hand!"

Storm only stood there in shock, unsure of what to do. Suddenly, the lion cub popped out of it's ball, and charged at the floating mammal, claws extended. "Uh, right!" Storm started, beginning to remember how pokemon battles worked. "Try and claw its underside!" he finished, unable to remember what the pokemon or attack was called. The celsinge, interpreting it's trainer's command, dashed forward in the blink of an eye, attempting to claw the water mammal.

OOC: Sorry about the long post. I just started writing, and this whole thing kinda just spawned in my mind as I went along. Still, I think it has some merit.

Anyway, TL;DR: Just check the last paragraph to find that Celsinge used Scratch against Echoise.

By the time Celsinge was ready to attack, Echoise was already flying through the air. He hit Celsinge head-on, slamming the cub down in a tackle.
:celsinge: [Male] 21/25

Echoise tried to roll out of Celsinge's reach, but Celsinge's paw was faster. Lashing out, it scratched a gash into Echoise's side before the two Pokemon separated.
:echoise: [Male] 20/25

"All right, that was good!" Storm shouted, a little irked that that dolphin had managed to attack first. I don't know how it's floating through the air, but it must be giving it some kind of speed advantage. It would probably be much slower if it was still on the ground.

"Mwahahaha! You see now that I, the Magnificent and Marvelous Lester, am superior! I shall defeat you, and then rule all!" The masked man made a grand-standing pose, before issuing his next order with a flick of the wrist. Lester's shit-eating grin told Storm everything he needed to know about this guy.

"Man, you just don't know when to shut up, do you?" Storm retorted, taking the grin off of the masked man's face. "Ok, little dude," Storm continued, looking down at his new friend and partner. "I don't quite know your name, but you're faster than that porpoise, I know it! So when it dives you, try jumping to the side, and clawing it into the ground!" With a nod to his trainer, the celsinge leaps into the fray.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, you over-grown child!" Lester lashed out.

OOC: Oh my. It finally happened. The fabled 4 damage scratch. You now have an actual possibility of losing this fight. How exciting!

Once again, Echoise sprang forward with uncanny speed. Celsinge had learned from the previous attempt though, and dodged to the side. However, Echoise was just too fast! Its snout clipped Celsinge's ribs, and that was enough for the rest of its body to slam broadside onto the poor lion cub.

:celsinge: [Male] 17/25

Celsinge, limping from its opponent's attack, landed a few blows but with less ferocity than before.

:echoise: [Male] 16/25

"Mwahaha, you see, my hacks easily beat your silly little Celsinge. Go forth, Echoise. Remove this scum from my sight, so that all may bask in my presence and bow before their new leader!" Lester laughed more and more, even though Storm could somehow tell that he was still in the lead.

"So, your name is Celsinge, eh little guy? Well, that's kinda boring, in a way." Storm though aloud, taking a second to ponder a better name for his slightly injured friend. "I know! I'll call you Dashie instead, cause I know you're much faster than that damn fish!" At that, a certain spark lit inside both of their eyes. Dashie shook off his injuries, and readied himself for the next attack, feeling more confident.

"Hmph! You pitiful fool! You really think giving him some stupid nickname will help in a situation like this? Hah!" Lester laughed haughtily, once more donning that grin; the kind of grin that makes you want to punch his teeth in. "Echoise, destroy them." He flicked his wrist once more, almost like it was controlling the pokemon.

"Ok Dashie, this time, instead of dodging, I want you to try and brace yourself." Dashie looked toward his trainer, a little confused. Storm looked down at his partner once more. Looking into each others eyes, Storm reassured Dashie that it would be alright. With a nod to each other, Celsinge braced for impact. " Alright! here it comes! Brace yourself Dashie! Anticipate its movements, catch it before it can make contact, and send it crashing into the ground! Dig those claws in as deep as you possible can! I believe in you!"

Dashie dug in its heels, bracing itself to resist the momentum of the oncoming blow. Echoise, however, smiled a smug smile which was surely learned from its grinning master and wagged its behind at the lion cub. Dashie rushed up towards the Echoise, who was so busy taunting him that he let Dashie come up and simply hit him with his claws. Ouch! The Echoise was getting quite wounded, Dashie also seemed more vulnerable than usual...

:celsinge: [Male] 17/25 [-1 Defense]
:echoise: [Male] 12/25

"Oh my, seems you're going to need to work on your facial expressions, Lester!" Storm teased, feeling better after that last hit. "It seems your pokemon is learning some bad habits from you!" He continued, smiling at his own joke. Dashie growled in addition, smirking up at his trainer.

Lester gritted his teeth some more, before regaining his composure. "Please, as if I, the Marvelous and Magnificent Lester could possibly command something so simple without, much like myself, greater complexity than you could never hope to comprehend!" With a sly smile, Lester stuck another pose, before twisting his wrist in a new way.

"Heh, you sure talk alot. Guess I'll just have to shut you up myself." Storm retorted. He felt a little on edge at Lester's comment about it seeming so simple. That move did something to Dashie, but he wasn't quire sure what. Well, whatever it is, we're just gonna have to power through it. Dashie stood next to Storm, awaiting the next attack. The cub kept fidgeting, as if eager to get out there and in that dolphin's face some more. "Alright Dashie, let's push our advantage! His fish is looking pretty worn out now, so let's go for the finishing blow! Claw its eyes out!" Before he had even finished, Dashie was already well on his way toward the enemy.

Seizing the opportunity, Echoise dashed to the side, getting a great vantage point, and then dashed forward! Slam! It hit Dashie's soft underbelly, hurting him greatly. Clearly upset, Dashie lashed out with his claws, dealing nearly just as much damage.

:celsinge: [Male] 11/25 [-1 Defense]
:echoise: [Male] 7/25

"Urk!" Storm couldn't help but grit his teeth at seeing how hard that Echoise had hit. Why is this thing so damn tanky? For a starter, it sure has some defense. There must be some way to pierce that (lack of) blubber.

"Hah! Can't you see it's futile!" Lester started, assured of his victory. "There is nothing you can do! This creature was specifically picked and modified to destroy all who oppose it. There is nothing you can do to stop me now!" At that, maniacal laughter ensued from both trainer and pokemon.

I got it! Storm smiled at his partner, who still managed to nod back. "Ok, you asked for it Lester. Dashie, brace for impact! Afterward, run in circles around that dolphin until it's dizzy! Once you're in position, strike it down with your fierce claws! I know you can do it!" Storm closed his eyes, and evened out his breathing. This is it, it all comes down to this. If I don't critically wound it here, there's no way I'll survive to see tomorrow. It's now or never. All I can do is pray. Syncing up with his pokemon, Storm felt more confident than ever.

I have a surprise for you this time, you hacking bastard. The minute that fish begins racing toward Dashie, I'll activate my last ditch plan. This rock should knock it off course enough to totally miss Dashie. If not, it should at least reduce the damage enough for me to eke out a win. I'm not the only one counting on this win. "Dashie, we're not the only ones who need this win. Everyone in all the games across the world are counting on us! We have to stop this madman right here, right now!" With a cry filled with fury, both trainer and pokemon entered full synchronization. Dashie roared as loud as he possible could, waiting for the inevitable attack to hit.

The furious foes leaped into action, as the echoise slammed forward to take out Dashie. Not yet, not yet....NOW! At just a few feet until impact, Storm kicked up a medium size stone, and roundhouse kicked it toward the flying porpoise. This is it! If this doesn't work....No, this will work. It has to.

OOC: For your roleplaying I let you roll for Critical, but the dice gods do not love you.

Echoise rocketed forward, spurred on by its continued success in landing strong hits on Dashie. WHAM! There was another 6 damage, hit spot on. Dashie retaliated weakly, and although it sensed that the Echoise was more wounded, the situation was getting dire.

:celsinge: [Male] 5/25 [-1 Defense]
:echoise: [Male] 3/25

OOC: The DIce gods have never loved me, I'm afraid.

Storm gritted his teeth more, the fire never leaving his eyes. Dashie was barely holding on at this rate, but that Echoise isn't faring much better. Lester smiled confidently, seeing how little Dashie had left in him. Echoise continued to taunt them both, but it was looking pretty ragged itself. One more hit would take both of them out.

One more hit like that, and we're done for! And now they're onto my plan. It all comes down to this last attack. It's faster, so it will more than likely hit first. But if Dashie can survive the hit...Argh! Why does he have to be so much faster?! I know Dashie can move faster than that, I've seen it first hand! There must be something stopping him from using his full potential...Of course! I'm onto you now, you bastard.

Suddenly, a strange glow lit both creature's eyes. Dashie's fire grew much more intense, as if some internal source had just had Gasoline poured on it. The foe's Echoise, meanwhile, managed to craft a small wave of water for it to ride upon. Sensing that they were on their last legs, both pokemon had busted out their full potential, ready for one last bout, where only would would be left standing. With a silent nod to the cub, Storm was ready. No words need be spoken between the two. Both knew how this was going to go down, and both knew the only way to win.

"Alright Dashie, now strike forth with the fury of the gods!" Storm chanted, preparing himself for one final gambit to free his pokemon of the invisible chains that bound him. As the two began to eternal foes began to race toward one another, one on a wave of malice, and the other leaving a blazing trail of hope. Lester was so focused on the final clash, he failed to notice Storm's plan beginning once more.

Another rock, this one slightly smaller, flew into the air above Storm's head, placed there by his left foot. Storm then turned, focusing on the rock, his foot, and Lester's position. With one fluid motion, Storm turned, leapt into the air, and backflip kicked the rock with his right foot headed toward the final clash.. Having already noticed the secondary assault, the water mammal dodged the rock with ease, a sly smirk placed upon it's face. However, the rock wasn't intended to strike the dolphin. It was instead flung straight at it's trainer.

Only able to react at the last possible second, Lester put his hands up to block the rock before it could damage his precious face. His scepter was knocked out of his hand, and shattered on the ground next to him, finally releasing the grip on both Echoise and Dashie. The dolphin was surprised by this sudden change, and was thrown out of position. Staying true to his course, Dashie bared down on the fish, ready to end this.

I'm counting on you, Dashie.

Lester spun around in panic, arms in front of his face and looking away from the battle. "Echoise, do whatever it takes! Just do something!" Echoise, though, had never fought a battle before this one, and without its trainer's guidance, all it could do was to do whatever first came to mind. It thought back to that last time when it had grinned and taunted Dashie and how much success that had brought it, and how proud that had made Lester. Wearily, it brought its tail around once more and waggled it, looking expectantly at his master.

All it did, however, was make Dashie even more focused. Giving up all pretense of defense, the lion cub charged forward, flinging itself at the porpoise with purpose. It raised a paw and extended its claws, bringing it down diagonally onto the wagging backside of its fishy foe. Echoise who had all this time been looking at his master, twisted and looked at the large gash in its behind, let out one faint, weak cry, and then passed out.

:celsinge: [Male] 5/25 [-2 Defense]
:echoise: [Male] 0/25

Storm had won the rival battle! Dashie seemed to have learned from the experience, and Storm pocketed a cool 100P.

You may now proceed to Route 49, or buy items from the Topaz Bazaar (just mention it on this topic)

Lester looked scared stiff at the sight of his broken staff. He didn't even seem to notice his defeated pokemon, lying on the ground in front of him. "What?! No! Damn you, you little brat! That staff was my ticket out of this game! Now I'm stuck here until I can fix the code! Argh!" With that, he threw down his hat in disgust. It was such an amazing throw that the hat had gained a level from it! It was now level 2! It's dapper-ness and wear-ability had increased by 2! It's Health had increased by 3!

"Hmph. Some villain. C'mon Dashie, you did great! Time for you to rest up," Storm spoke, glad he had managed to eke out that victory. The lion cub finally laid down to rest its eyes, before downloading back into its pokeball. "You're out of pokemon, and ways to defend yourself, Lester. You're all washed up. Give up while you still can, and leave this game in peace."

"You arrogant fool! With my scepter in shambles, I can't leave! I, The Marvelous and Magnificent Lester, have been defeated by this child!" Lester was bemoaning his defeat, still maintaining his arrogant attitude. "This can't, and won't go unpunished. This, I swear!" At that, a flash of light engulfed the mysterious, self-centered man, blinding Storm for a moment. When it had finally died down, Storm found that the masked man had vanished, leaving no evidence of his presence, aside from a small device commonly found in Pokemon games.

"Is that....a Pokedex? He must have dropped it by accident as he made his escape." the male though aloud, walking over to where Lester had just been, and crouching to pick up the hand-held device. "I suppose it could be useful, especially considering I know next to nothing about this Region." With a determined look in his eye, Storm checked the map on his pokedex, and proceeded toward Route 49.

OOC: I'm a buy some stuff from the bazzar. Hope you guys have enjoyed my roleplay thus far! I'm really taking a liking to it.

Perhaps we can be the hero this world, and all the others, needs after all!