The Bond

Chapter One: Kalos, and a new beginning!

Ash, a sixteen-year-old Pokémon trainer, stepped off the plane from the Kanto region. After tensions between him and his friends, even his beloved Pikachu, he was ready for a fresh start. Pumped and ready for action, he was excited to explore his sixth region. When Ash reached the bottom of the stairs for the plane, he shouted out, "Hello Kalos!"

After departing his plane, Ash went to get his luggage. Upon picking up his backpack, the Kantonian boy decided to travel around Lumiose City, where he had landed in the Kalos region. Taking his first adventure in a new land, Ash thought, 'What do I wanna look at first?'

Seeing an ice cream stand, Ash thought, 'I am feeling a little hungry right now, and it would be nice to have a treat.' Smiling, Ash headed over to the stand. Waiting in line, he took the time to look around and study his surroundings. Standing on a street in the city, Ash was surrounded by a multitude of shops and a variety of people and Pokémon. Continuing to study his surroundings, Ash noticed a beautiful park that was nearby. When he had gotten his ice cream, the young trainer headed over to the park and sat down on a bench.

After he had finished his ice cream, Ash stood up and said, "Now I have to find a Pokémon lab to get a Pokémon." He started racing around the city once more, only to run into someone... hard.

"Ow! Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there." Ash rubbed his head and stood up to offer a hand to the blond boy he had ran into. The new guy seemed to be around Ash's age and was quickly saying, "No, really it's my fault. I wasn't paying any attention at all."

Noticing the Pokeball belt Ash had, the blond boy said, "Oh, are you a Pokémon trainer? Wanna have a battle?"

Ash clenched a fist and held it in front of him in a motivated stance, and almost shouted, "Oh yeah! A battle would be great! But... I don't have any Pokémon right now. Is there a Pokémon lab I could go to?"

"Yeah, Professor Sycamore runs a Pokémon lab near here. Want me to take you there?"

Ash rubbed the back of his neck and said, "Sure, thanks! You're a big help."

As they were talking, the two boys heard a scream coming from Prism Tower. Turning to look, they saw a trainer slide out of the base of the tower and crash into the ground. The blond boy said, "Oh no... the gym here only accepts trainers with four or more badges. A robot installed a defense system and can open a trapdoor and shoot trainers out if they don't have enough badges."

Ash pondered that for a moment before shaking off his thoughts. "My name's Ash, what's yours?"

"Clemont, and tha--"

"Clemont! Where'd you go?" A little blonde girl came running towards them, not looking in front of her only to crash into Ash. "Oof, sorry mister, have you seen my brother? Blond, blue shirt, large backpack?"

Clemont cleared his throat, which prompted the little girl to turn around and say, "Clemont! Why'd you run off like that! Usually you're the responsible one." She pouted as she said this, only to turn around once more and say, "Hello, my name is Bonnie, and this is my brother Clemont!"

Ash said, "I know, Clemont was about to take me to the Pokémon lab to get my first Pokémon for the Kalos region."

Ash, Bonnie, and Clemont raced into the city to head towards the Pokémon Lab when Ash saw what looked like a trainer abusing his Pokémon. When he saw that, Ash ran over and said, "Hey! What do you think you're doing!"

The trainer stopped kicking his Pokémon as he turned to the trainer that had challenged him so blatantly and said, "Keep out of it, it's not your business!" Turning back to his Pokémon, the trainer thought he had scared Ash off. However, Ash grabbed his arm and spun him around, not willing to see a Pokémon be hurt for no reason. In a nearby tree, a mysterious and small figure was watching the confrontation, noticing Ash's concern for Pokémon and feeling like there was something about Ash that the figure should know. He felt an energy radiating from the boy, something he hadn't ever felt before.

The trainer turned around and viciously threw a punch at Ash with all his strength. For Ash, it felt like time slowed down as a mysterious energy rushed through his veins. Dodging the punch, the other trainer was thrown off balance. Ash then stepped back and held his fists in front of him, ready for anything. The trainer turned towards his Pokémon, a Luxio, and said, "Use thunder fang!" Ash braced for impact as a mysterious figure jumped out and took the hit. Wondering what had happened, Ash opened his eyes to see a water Pokémon laying on the ground. Worried for the Pokémon's safety, Ash raced over to the unfamiliar Pokémon and cradled it in his arms. Meanwhile, Clemont released his Pokémon, a Bunnelby. "Bunnelby, use Mud Shot!" Clemont quickly attacked while the other trainer was distracted, giving them time to run.

Ash said, "Can you take me to the nearest Pokémon Center?"

Bonnie said, "The Pokémon Center is too far, but we could take you to Professor Sycamore's lab instead?"

Ash nodded, so Bonnie began running to show the way, with Ash quickly following behind her. Clemont followed the other two in the direction of Sycamore Labs. The small Pokémon looked up at Ash with eyes barely open to see Ash completely focused on getting him help, and felt like this was the trainer he was meant to be with.