The Hunt Begins (Starting)

[Cole Anderson]

Cole adjusted his pack as he looked at the large building. James had directed him here so the boy could get started on his life as a survivor. The old man's parting words were encouraging and soppy at the same time. James had rambled on and on about how this was is first big step and the world was a harsh place. Cole took the words to heart, but he wasn't worried. He trained for years and felt he was ready to explore this untamed world.

"I hope you weren't bs'ing me, old man," Cole mumbled as he walked into the building. His hands were tucked into his parka pockets as he gaped at the interior. It was so different from New Pallet. He spun in a little circle as he further examined the building. He bumped into a counter as he walked backwards. He turned around and saw a receptionist behind the counter.

"Hello!" Cole said, giving a cheery wave and a smile. "I was told I needed to come see..." he paused as he checked the name scribbled on his hand in pen, "Anita Nguyen."

Cole pronounced the name "Na-goo-yen" and knew he probably butchered it. He smiled sheepishly, "Sorry if I mispronounced that." 

[EssGee]

The receptionist didn't cringe so much as give him a look that suggested he must be wondering what planet this guy was from. Anita Nguyen was-- If he'd misspelled her name that would be one thing, but hadn't everyone heard of the glorious ambassador? (Naturally, there was absolutely no chance that the teen's perception on the matter might be skewed by hearing her name hundreds of times daily himself, given his job.)

Upon regaining his composure, though, the young man cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses. "Yes, right, you're..." Looking at the next appointment on his list, he suddenly did a double-take at the newcomer. ..Mary Johnson? What did this guy think he was trying to pul-- ..oh. Oh he just. Looked at the wrong appointment slot. "...Cole Anderson," the receptionist mumbled, face flushing rather suddenly. "Yes. Just.. down that hall and.." the directions got a little muffled after that, as he was turning away and beginning to hide his face behind a hand, but it was enough for Cole to get the general idea.

The receptionist waved him along, and after only one slight misstep-- he hadn't quite heard 'left' or 'right' side of the hall, and felt pretty confident that what looked like a janitor's closet was not the good Ambassador's office-- he found the correct door.

Upon opening it, he saw a plump, middle-aged woman scribbling some paperwork and muttering to herself. For that brief moment, she seemed fairly docile, absorbed in whatever it was she was working on. After a few more seconds, a pleased "Ah~" escaped her and a few more scribbles marked a stopping point in that project. As her eyes rose to meet Cole's, however, they became gravely serious, as if she were thoroughly examining and judging him.

"Apologies for that," she said as she stood, tone more amiable than her expression would suggest. "There's been interest lately in cultivating more of the land surrounding Port City for eventual farming, but to see if that's feasible we need logistics for more irrigation and desalination and--" She stopped short and gave a somewhat embarrassed laugh, her expression softening slightly, though remaining rather professional-looking. "Sorry, I shouldn't bore you with the details. At any rate, Cole, right? Let's see about getting you a Pokemon."

Opening her desk drawer, she pulled out five PokeBalls she had prepared some time between receiving Cole's application and now. One by one, she released them for Cole to meet.



"First up is Kelcleon. It isn't the strongest Pokemon, especially in lacking the ability to evolve, but I thought you as a hunter might appreciate its stealth." As if demonstrating her point, the Kecleon faded from sight.. mostly. "Of course, it can't do anything about that zigzag, but that's a rather smaller thing to hide. Also, I hear you're something of an amateur merchant, and these little guys seem to be associated with profit for some reason. Couldn't imagine where that correlation came from though." Forever a Mystery. As a side note, this Kecleon seemed a good foot or so smaller than usual.

"At any rate, next is Cottonnee. This particular one has the Prankster ability, which I thought you might like. It's also more formidable a foe than it might appear; don't underestimate it.

"Then there's Pumpkaboo, who lacks quite such an appropriate ability, but still shares your love of a good trick." Her tone seemed to subtly indicate she was less appreciative of tricks herself. "Aside from the mirth characteristic of its species, it's got a fair bit of general Ghost-type goodness as well." The word 'goodness' seemed slightly caustic, though overall her air remained professional. As far as Pumpkaboo went, this one would probably grade about a Large.

"On the more-and-less practical sides, we have Horsea. Quercus was fortunate enough to find us one with the Sniper ability to compliment your own sharp-shooting." The Horsea sat in a rather odd position, seeming to barely hold itself upright. "Of course, it's not exactly super mobile on land, and might need help getting into good sniping positions. Also practice shooting, because that isn't exactly how that ability works, but I digress. When it does get a good shot, though, it tends to do well, and if you ever need to do hunting in or around water you might be glad to have such a partner.

"Finally, there's Electrike. It's a good thing you noted your distaste for a certain other Pokemon in your application, because Poochyena's wonderful nose might have been my first pick for a scent tracker. I considered Houndour as well, but thought it might seem too close. Electrike is still high on the list of most bloodhound-like Pokemon, though." ...Shit. How old was this kid again? Would he know what a bloodhound was? Little moments like this reminded Anita that comparisons to old-world animals would soon be a defunct way of describing Pokemon- maybe not within her lifetime, but probably not long thereafter. The only outward reflection of this thought was a slight outward pause before continuing at the same pace, however. "It could prove very helpful for tracking your prey, and as a bonus above the others I'd considered, there is a fairly good chance it will be big enough to ride when it evolves. On average, they're right at that cusp: probably nothing you'd want to push too hard or for too long, but perfectly capable here and there. If you're lucky enough that it grows a bit bigger than average, though, it could prove as reliable as a Gogoat."

Wow. Anita was feeling more long-winded than usual today. Nearly as chatty as Quercus! Clearly she was just feeling a bit wound-up, and it certainly had nothing to do with any omnipotent creature getting out a month's worth of rolepla-what? Wow that was a weird thought she just had, why would she even think something like that. She needed to get out of the office more.

"Feel free to get to know them better if your heart isn't already set on one," she told him.

[Cole Anderson]

Cole shifted uncomfortably as the Ambassador began to study him. He hadn't even begun and it felt like she was already judging him.

"Good morning, Ambassador," Cole said, not wanting to mispronounce her name in front of her. It wouldn't be very good if he pissed off the person who decided what his life would turn out like. He calmed himself as the Pokémon were released. He listened to each description, nodding at some parts and "hmm"ing at others. He rubbed his left arm at the mention of Mightyena. "Yeah, good," he responded with a slight shudder. After she finished, Cole walked closer to the Pokémon and crouched to look at them better. He began to mentally cross them out.

While a good jokester would be fun, I need a good hunting partner, Cole thought. He'd found a situation on which to think seriously, so he crossed out Cottennee and Pumpkaboo in his head. The fun could come later. Cole studied he rest of the Pokémon. The Horsea was having trouble even staying upright and the Ambassador said the ability Sniper didn't make it a sniper. He crossed Horsea off and studied the remaining two. Kecleon: Stealthy, but not a tracker. Cole could sacrifice the possible wealth by the hope that the meat and hides would become more valuable as more settlements were established. Electrike: Possibly a good tracker, quadruped, possibly fast. Cole scratched the Electric type's head. He made his choice.

"I choose Electrike," he stated. He paused for a moment, "What's a bloodhound?"

[EssGee]

Damn. "..It's.. an earth thing. Nevermind." Since she'd explained well enough that it could track, she felt explaining the comparison would just be redundant. In the meantime, the Electrike seemed pleasantly surprised. "But that's a wonderful-"

She stopped dead. In perhaps the most flustered moment in which any starting trainer had ever seen her, Anita hit her forehead hard enough that her glasses nearly flew off her face. When in a few moments she attempted to recompose herself, her skin there was visibly slightly darker. "Forgive me," she said, sounding like she was ready to punch herself. "You too, Electrike. I'm so sorry."

Without immediate explanation, she turned and began digging through some papers on the counter against the wall. "It was here.." she mumbled. Among the things she was moving aside seemed to be quite a number of charts, graphs, lengthy documents (some stapled together with a thickness that rivaled some books), and many hand-scrawled memos. "HERE," she exasperated.

Turning around, looking rather more stressed than a moment ago and very slightly disheveled, she forced a very fake smile at Cole. "I'm so sorry," she repeated. "It's.. been a few weeks since anyone's come in for a Pokemon, honestly. My mind's been elsewhere and I almost forgot.. But this is a vital part of my job, too, and I wouldn't be doing it correctly if I didn't also offer you this."

With a short sigh, she held >a medium-sized pamphlet< out to Cole. "In there you'll find a number of other, more standard starter options the Professor keeps on hand; I think he just restocked, too, so all of them should be currently available. Where the five options I presented you were based on the information you submitted, and might not get along with a rather different type of trainer than yourself without that trainer having a good deal of experience, all these species are known for being highly adaptable to almost any type of trainer even at the novice level." Of course there had been exceptions, but across the species in general that was true. "Just.. leaf through it. If you find one you might want more than Electrike, let me know and I'll send for it for you to meet. If you still definitely want Electrike most, that's great. As I said, I just wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't have you look; I meant to do that when I first showed you them."

Electrike seemed a bit confused, but not overly disappointed. It simply waited, curious what the young man would do.

The other four, on the other hand... Cottonnee and Pumpkaboo seemed to have started teasing Horsea, who seemed to be growing more furious by the moment. Suddenly noticing them, the Ambassador scrambled for their PokeBalls to recall them. Why couldn't he have taken one of the trouble-makers off her hands..? ...Wait. Where was Kecleon? Ugh.

[Cole Anderson]

Cole blinked in surprise as the Ambassador smacked herself in the head and quickly rifled through her desk. He could see that she was flustered and wondered if he'd had come at a bad time. He scratched the Electrike some more as he waited for whatever she wanted to show him. When she finally turned back to face him and hand him the pamphlet, Cole tentatively took it from her. It was kind of terrifying to see someone go from calm to something akin to a hurricane in mere seconds. He leafed through it, studying each Pokémon briefly before closing it again.

"Thank you, Ambassador, but I think I'll stick with Electrike," Cole stated. He patted the electric-type on the head as he flicked his eyes around the room. The other Pokémon were starting to squabble. It further validated his choice of Electrike. He noticed Kecleon was missing, could see the distinct stripe moving next to the wall. He pointed at it.

"You may want to stop that..." Cole said. He returned his attention to Electrike for a moment before lookin back at the Ambassador, "What were Earth animals like? Could you catch and train them like Pokémon?"

[EssGee]

"Oh good," she sighed at the decision. She'd have felt awful for Electrike if her mistake had gotten its hopes up only to dash them. As Cole pointed out the stripe, her own eyes set on it. "Gotcha," she grumbled, recalling Kecleon; as the laser hit it, its invisible form was silhouetted in bright red just long enough to see it making a dramatic pose at being caught. Silly little Kecleon.

"Hm? ...Ah, not quite," came the somewhat sullen nostalgic reply. "Catching them was.. sort of like catching a Feral, most of the time. You might tame it eventually, but captivity-bred, truly domestic animals were preferred. And some you could train, but more... sit. Stay. Fetch." Unseen by the ambassador, the Electrike actually did sit when she said, and looked around a little confused at 'fetch'. Notably, the creature seemed a little bit timid in nature, and performed these actions not to show off but rather to avoid disappointment- not that that part would have been particularly obvious just by observing.

"Some we believed were at least as smart as us, who could solve complex puzzles and even create art- and I don't mean the kind that looks like a toddler's fingerpainting, I mean clear figures and backgrounds. Most were far less bright, though. And they didn't have any sort of special powers. It was as though they were all pure Normal types with minimal movepools and no more than half the strength of any given Pokemon. They could be very affectionate though. Some were popular pets, like dogs- a term you might still hear applied to things like Growlithe, Houndour, Snubbull, and your Electrike. Poochyena as well, although that one's technically not quite accurate.." Now was clearly the time and place to be pedantic. "As well as cats- which you could compare to Meowth, Skitty, Glameow, Purrloin, and perhaps Espurr.

"Many of the animals we kept, though, were for food. Given the choice between eating a powerful, intelligent, valuable, and rare-in-the-wild Tauros or one of its common, weaker, dumber cousins, I don't think anyone really batted an eye- unless they were against eating meat in general, of course. At any rate, there's a reason you may notice a lot of older citizens eat a bit less meat on average than the younger generation, and why Corka, being probably the best parallel to old world animals, is the most popular source of meat. In the old world, eating Pokemon was in most places considered heinous. Granted, a few decades will do wonders for breaking a habit like that, but many have had trouble quite entirely shaking the mentality.." There were certainly exceptions. A few grizzled old Survivors especially, Cole's mentor among them, had clearly adapted quite well. It occasionally made Anita wonder what kinds of monsters they may have been seen as if they'd been born a hundred years sooner. Perspective and context were so important like that.

Here she became a little more downtrodden. "Seems Mi-aro didn't agree with our animal friends, though. We tried bringing what we could with us, but most of those that weren't eaten by Ferals died of malnutrition, not taking to the vegetation here. There are still a few around if you know where to look, but they're very carefully protected and studied in hopes of keeping them alive long enough to one day repopulate their species."

She paused to reflect for a few moments, then gave an embarrassed laugh. "Look at me, rambling like an old lady. Sorry for answering with a history lesson like that; I assure you your experience here is not typical."

Back in her primary desk, she pulled out an electronic device, a small cloth sack, and a medium-sized box (which incidentally seemed bigger inside than outside). "Take these. Your X-Gear, or more specifically the Holo Chip it comes with, will help you keep in touch and updated on major news, although we're not entirely clear on how far the signal reaches outside civilization. It's a fair way, don't you worry, but if you venture too far into the unknown you might lose signal for a while, so be aware. At any rate, the Emissary is pre-registered, so don't hesitate to call if you need anything and either I or one of my assistants will do our best to help. And then these-" she pushed the sack toward him, "are three PokéBalls to help get you started."

Her attention turned now to the box. "I've heard you're rather handy with that bow, so I pulled a few strings-" the pause between words was just a half second longer than usual as a small grin cracked, seeming she realized her own unintentional pun "-to get you this, assuming you won't turn down free ammunition." A Quiver, rather fancier than Cole's and containing a 50-pack of Arrows, was removed from the box and slid over next to the X-Gear and PokéBalls. Whether Cole knew it or not, most trainers who received arrows from one of the three trainer sponsors got five free with their quivers.

Directing him toward the box, she stated, "Take any five other things, as well." Inside the box, Cole would find: a Small Net, a Fishing Pole, a 50ft Rope, a Compass, a Potion, a Tool Bag, a Full Heal, a Pocket Knife, a Crowbar, and a Canteen.

[Cole Anderson]

Cole listened to the Ambassador tell stories of the old world, entranced. It seemed so strange and different from Mi-aro. Animals that were tamed and domesticated for the purpose of food and it was taboo for Pokémon to be hunted. Animals that were like Pokémon and apparently their descriptions , but existed for entirely different purposes. He chuckled a little as he finally understood the saying, "It's raining cats and dogs."

"It's fine," Cole said, "It's nice to hear about Earth. Hearing what we did in the past motivates me for what we could do in the future. Still a shame what happened to the animals. Though I guess it makes it easier for me to eat Pokémon since I didn't experience any of that."

Cole picked up the X-Gear and studied it. He turned it around and around in his hand before smiling at the Ambassador, "I guess we'll never find out until we get there, right? That'll be my first mission: Find this thing's range and tell you." He laughed as he grabbed the sack of Pokéballs from the table and stowed them in his back pack. He turned back to see the quiver and arrows and froze. He gently took it from her hands and held it for a moment. Slowly, Cole pulled out the old quiver and held it before softly setting it on the ground. He hoped James wouldn't get mad over giving up the quiver in favor of a new one. Cole would keep it at his parents' house at the very least. He placed the new quiver into the holder on his pack, lightly brushing his fingers over it. He faced the Ambassador and finally stood up straight. 

"Thank you, Ambassador," he said quietly.  He studied the remaining items in front of him, hovering his hand over them as he decided. He first selected the Tool Bag, followed by the compass, then the canteen, then the pocket knife. He held the crowbar for a moment.

"What could I use this for?" he asked before choosing it anyway. He heard it was a versatile tool, but was still curious as to its particular purposes. He stowed everything away in his pack and lashed the canteen to its side with a bit of string. He hoisted it back onto his back and crouched back down next to the Electrike. 

"What's next?" Cole asked when a thought came to his mind. He smiled, "Do I get to nickname Electrike? My parents told me that that was what they did on Earth."

[EssGee]

"Ah-- well, that would be quite a mission," she explained in response to his comment as he looked over the other items. His thanks fell about here, and she slipped in a "You're quite welcome," before continuing. "You see, we're still not entirely sure of all the particulars of transmissions via Port Energy. You might find the verge of its range in one direction only to find it changes drastically not far off, whether due to rises or declines in elevation, or- Well, we know we've found small 'nodes' of energy on Mi-aro before, and a lot of our researchers believe there could be whole mines worth out there somewhere. With that in mind, some further theorize that these hotspots of energy could interact with Port Energy in positive or negative ways- we're not sure which or if there could be instances of each. ...And I'm sounding like the professor again, aren't I." It had been a long, long week.

She'd been so wrapped up in science that she entirely missed his question about the crowbar. She heard the one about Electrike though. "..Well, yes, of course. What would stop you?

"There's no special paperwork or anything to be done there, if that was your concern. When you catch a Pokemon it's electronically tagged; the ball transmits a faint signal that can be picked up by either your X-Gear or special equipment both in Port City and New Pallet. If you're not in town, your X-Gear, with its greater range, will send that information to us either immediately or as soon as you get in range. And if your X-Gear is broken-- please try not to break it-- after getting that data but before it's received on our end, the data will be registered directly from the PokeBall the first time it interacts with any number of things, from the scanners at the Trainers's Inns to the storage system. What I'm trying to say though is that every Pokemon captured has a sort of virtual serial number in our systems so even trainers who choose not to name their Pokemon and keep multiples of a species can always be sure to get the one they're after.

"So when it does come to naming, you just.. start using the name, heh. A few Pokemon are picky, but most at least among those approved for Starters tend to accept whatever. If you want to make it super official, I believe there's a setting somewhere in your X-Gear where you can make note of it, but that's entirely optional." That was it. She was entirely, thoroughly convinced she had switched brains with Quercus for the day. It was simply the only logical explanation.

Still, her curiosity was piqued now. "You have a name in mind?"

{OOC: You may also choose Electrike's gender and ability. Personality-wise, I tried to imply it as being some degree of timid, though inquisitive and eager to please; you can apply those traits and expand upon/add to them as you see fit. :3}

[Cole Anderson]

Cole tried his best to listen to the Ambassador's explanation for the distance of the X-Gear. His mind slowly was lost upon the scientific mumbo-jumbo and he stared blankly at the woman. When she asked if she sounded like a professor, he nodded. "A little bit. You kind of lost me with that explanation, but what I can gather is: Extending the range is too complicated a mission right now."

He smiled brightly in response to his question about the nickname and, once again, tried to listen to the Ambassador's explanation for Pokémon data storage and retrieval. Once again, she lost him. He didn't say anything this time and nodded in response. The blank look was back on his face, though. He began to study Electrike, trying to glean a nickname from what it looked like. It had what looked like a lightning bolt on its face. Bolt, Volt, and Jolt were all to easy, so Cole factored in its personality. Timid and shy, but eager to do well and be big. An idea began to form in his head.

"I'll call him," Cole started, "Static. Because the smallest and shyest things can have the biggest effect. Like a static shock." Cole felt pretty proud of himself for that one. He strapped the X-Gear onto his wrist and fiddled around with the buttons until he somehow managed to locate the nickname app. He punched in Static for Electrike and closed the gear. He smiled at Static. 

"Welcome to the team, Static," he said. "You and me are going to see the world together. Hope you're ready for the challenge!"

- Static has joined the party! -

[EssGee]

"That sounds like an excellent name," the Ambassador commented. "I'm sure you two will be wonderful together." She went over her mental checklist once more then. He had a Pokemon, an X-Gear, some PokeBalls, and his share of charity items.. "It looks like you're all set, so I won't keep you any longer." Which was a rather nicer way of saying she needed to get back to work. As she showed Cole and Static the door, she called after them, "Good luck out there!"

---

(Sorry about the wait; I had something in mind for Static but was too tired to reply that night, and... now I seem to have lost the thought, whoops. Ah well.

You may now begin RP either in town or on Route 1.)