Out Of The Ashes (A Pokémon Fanfiction) ~on Hold

Chapter 4: An Unexpected Starter

Chapter 4: An Unexpected Starter

"Now, I have quite a few types of Pokemon to offer as a starter," Oak began as he unlocked the door to his lab attachment. He had a small fenced-in pen behind his house where he allowed the Pokemon to romp on nice days, but they had to pass through the lab to reach it. Today he had released all of them into the yard so Ash could see them and make his selection. "Electric, flying, normal, fighting, water, fire, grass, and more. It's really a matter of personal preference, but remember, the Pokemon must choose to travel with you as well!"

"Got it," Ash replied, slipping through the doorway after the Professor.

"Oh, and remember-hmm?" He stopped abruptly. Ash barely saved himself from running into his back. Confused, he strained to see around the man's stout frame. Oak's attention had been arrested by something to his left. The sounds of cracking and something like crinkling paper filled the room.

"What? So soon?" Oak exclaimed, and he rushed forward, his labcoat flapping comically behind him. Ash's curiosity was piqued, and he ran as well.

Underneath the strong yellow light of the special hatching lamp, one of the Eggs had rolled out of its place in its pillow and was now wobbling energetically, heading straight for the edge of the table and a perilous drop. Ash darted forward and dove, arms outstretched, heart in his throat. Newly hatched Pokemon were notoriously fragile for the first few hours after emerging from their protective shells. In the middle of hatching, a fall like that could possibly kill it. He slid on the linoleum floor like a Seel and made it just in time-the Egg fell right into his upturned palms with surprising weight. Ash hissed in pain as it crushed his fingers but kept them curled them bracingly underneath the rapidly cracking shell.

"My goodness! Watch, Ash! This is a rare opportunity!" The Professor stooped beside him, his own enthusiasm boosted. He grinned like a child as he whipped a magnifying glass out of his pocket and held it closely to one squinted eye.

Large fragments of deceptively-thin shell bulged and cracked. The Egg itself was large and patterned with silver and black blotches, and quite warm to the touch. Ash's mouth fell open in wonder as he felt something squirming actively inside, its weight shifting over his palms.

A tiny silver limb suddenly pierced through the flimsy shell. It wiggled weakly before withdrawing. Ash glanced up at the Professor.

"Should we help it?"

"No, let it be. It must climb out by itself. This is its first act of exercising its body. Breaking the shell for it would only weaken it in the long run."

Another large fragment suddenly fell away, then another, and suddenly the whole construct collapsed into pieces. Insulating and nourishing fluid soaked Ash's hands. He wrinkled his nose but kept silent. A small silver and gray body squirmed in the debris, emitting tiny grunts that reverberated through Ash's fingers.

"Wow," the Professor exclaimed, obviously impressed. "An Aron. Quite a rare Pokemon, especially in Kanto."

"Aron?" Ash questioned, having never heard of or seen an Aron before. He flicked his fingers lightly, brushing them over the smooth wet surface of the Pokemon's skin. Its body was hard to the touch, seemingly covered in gleaming silver plates. The metal was organically warm. A strange feeling came over Ash; it was undeniably an eye-opening experience to hold such a new and vulnerable life form cupped in his very hands.

"A rock/steel type. Their final evolution is Aggron, a very powerful Pokemon... after they've had time to properly mature, of course."

"Whoa," Ash said quietly. The Aron managed to roll over from its side, finding its stubby feet and tripping over the gaps between Ash's fingers. He withdrew them with a small bit of difficulty and gingerly slipped the baby Pokemon onto the floor, standing amid the shell pieces. "What gender is it?"

They checked. The Aron squealed in discomfort.

It was a male.

The Pokemon gave a small, weak cry. The noise he made was like rocks grinding over one another, though much higher-pitched due to his infancy. He took a stumbling step forward, nearly faceplanting twice. Ash's hands hovered anxiously on either side of the tiny body, ready to catch should he fall. A plaintive note could be heard in each trembling call.

"He's hungry," Oak noted. "Aron and their line feed on metal and iron ore, which is why they sometimes cause trouble to bridges and train tracks. Here..." he stood up, searching the lab for anything expendable and metal. Ash saw a wrench perched on a nearby workbench and clambered up to his knees to grab it. He offered it silently to the small Pokemon.

"Here you go, little guy," he murmured. The Aron's piercingly blue eyes swiveled in their deep sockets and his head cocked inquisitively as he locked onto the presented metal. He seemed unsure for a moment before stretching out his stubby neck and taking hold of the instrument with steel jaws. A tiny shower of sparks skidded from his mouth as he crunched down, slicing through the metal as cleanly as a warm knife through butter. Ash laughed in amazement. The bite was swallowed easily and the Aron made quick work of the rest of the wrench. Then he craned his head back as far as he could and gave a rough, rocky sort of growl, one that Ash assumed to be a purr, the laser-like eyes now focused somewhat blearily on Ash's face. He tottered forward and affectionately bumped his head against Ash's bent kneecap. His curved head felt just as solid as steel, though Ash could feel his small limbs trembling from the exertion of breaking out of the Egg.

"Oops," Professor Oak muttered sheepishly, returning to Ash's side.

"What?" Ash asked suspiciously.

Oak laughed nervously and buried his hands in the pockets of his pristine labcoat. "Well, as I am not the foremost expert on Eggs like my colleague, Professor Elm, I may have forgotten a few details about the hatching process."

"Such as...?" Ash demanded. The Aron bumped his head against Ash's leg again and rested his dense weight atop of Ash's sneaker. His armor sparkled smoothly under the halogen hatching bulb.

"Well, baby Pokemon often imprint on the first thing to tend to them. It's why Pokemon breeders can raise Pokemon almost as easily as the hatchling's natural mother. And I suspect Aron here may have imprinted on you."

"Oh," Ash said. He couldn't think of much else to say. The situation was almost bizarre.

"If you want, I can have one of my aides take over from here. Aron will be unhappy at being parted from you, but he'll grow out of his neonatal phase soon enough."

"No," Ash protested. A sudden resolve hardened in his eyes. He trailed the backs of his fingers along Aron's smooth flank, tracing the circular dent in its side. "I want this one as my starter. If that's all right?"

"Hmm." Oak cupped his chin. "Elm said that Pokemon needed to take it easy for a few days after hatching. The stress of changing locations during a journey might be a bit much. But as long as you give him a day or two to get used to his body, I don't see why not. Though I will say that most of the starter Pokemon I've picked out for new trainers, while young, are still much more developed than such an infantile one."

Ash whooped. "Yes!" Aroused by his outcry, the Aron opened his jaws and let out a tiny, heartbreakingly adorable roar, mimicking his new trainer. Ash and Oak devolved into peals of laughter. Still chuckling, Oak eventually stood up and dusted his hands on his pants.

"Well, I guess I better go and return all the Pokemon in the pen. I'll give you two a few minutes to get accustomed to each other."

"Okay," Ash said, his attention captured by the life form wandering around his feet. Oak made his way out of the room while Ash stared inquisitively down at his Pokemon. His Pokemon. It was unbelievable to even think those words in reference to the Aron. Ash had waited for this day for so long.

****************************************************************************

Find out what happens in the next chapter as the journey continues!