Pokemon Regression

Chapter 1: The Tutorial Begins

I took a deep breath, making sure my eyes weren't deceiving me. Slowly pulling, tugging, poking and pinching myself to make sure the boy in the mirror was really me. Every move I made was mirrored by the reflection.

"How on earth..." I muttered to myself.

Almost as if in response, a strange box materialised in front of me like a window in a video game, filled with text.

[Your second chance has been granted.]

I blinked in disbelief, staring for a few moments at the text displayed in front of me. I reached out to touch it, but my hand passed right through, as if it were just empty air. A few moments later, it suddenly disappeared, only to rematerialise with new text.

[The tutorial will begin shortly.]

"Are you talking to me...?" I asked quietly, but the box did not respond, only vanishing a few moments later.

Groggily, I walked back out of the Bathroom, and almost collided head first with a woman waiting outside.

"There you are Cyan! I've been calling all morning, why weren't you responding?"

I stared up at the figure in front of me, and tears began to well up in my eyes.

My mother...

"W-wah!? Cyan, are you alright? Did something happen?!"

My mother began to panic at sight of my tears, but I hardly cared. Without another thought, I reached out and hugged her. She was still for a moment, before gently returning my embrace.

"I don't know what happened, but it's okay now. Momma's here..."

My mother had always been a kind woman. She was like that all the way up to her death. I hadn't seen her face in well over ten years, and yet the sight of her alive and well was instantly recognisable.

"Weren't you looking forward to today? It's your first day of Pokemon Training, remember?"

I froze in her arms. Today was the first day? That meant it was around February, when I was 11 years old. It would only be a few years before Pallet town was destroyed in a stampede of wild Pokemon. Only a small handful survived by fighting their way out, led by Red the Hero.

I happened to be away when it happened, which is why I was safe. My mother hadn't been so lucky.

I'd always wanted to ask Red about what happened, but I never got the chance to get close to him before he died. In the end, all I knew about that day was the media reports that reached Johto.

Just as I was thinking about all of this, my gaze drifted to my side, where another window had opened.

[Move to Oak's Lab to begin the Tutorial Quest]

...Right, I remember what happens today.

I slowly pulled myself away from my mother, who was still looking at me with concern. I smiled sweetly at her, trying not to stoke her fears any further. "I'm okay now."

She nodded gently, and we separated.

Today is the day I made the first of many mis-steps that led to my death. This time, I won't make the same mistake.

Every few years in early February Professor Oak would take every kid of age and teach them how to catch their partner. It's possible to catch Pokemon later, but the first Pokemon you catch will be an inseparable partner for the rest of your life.

One of the most famous superstitions among the barracks was that your partner Pokemon was a sign of how successful you'd be later in life.

Lance's Dratini. Cynthia's Gible. Diantha's Ralts. Even Red's Charmander, they all caught exceptionally rare Pokemon as their partners, and grew to be exceptional trainers.