[Pokémon/Generation Zero] - Neo Genesis of Next

[H-Man]

‘Generation’.

A silly way of describing the events of a given time period, when applied to this. One year, two years, three years at most, is all that passes between generations of heroes. The same feats performed in such a short span of time: a heroic journey through one region, the defeat of a villainous group, the conquering of a Championship title. The same quests, the same adventures, over and over and over and…

So many events are the same. So many things, repeated over and over. So many reasons can exist for such: the adventures of Chosen Ones, the growing threat level in the cosmic scale, the revelations of the cosmology as we know it. So many explanations that are used to explain this repetition away.

But it wouldn’t always be like this.

It wouldn’t always have been like this.

What could have happened, before Ash Ketchum set off from Pallet Town? Before there were Chosen Ones? Before the idea of children journeying and being legally considered adults became the standard to be followed?

If any ‘Generation’ fits this story, it is this one. The ‘Zero Generation’, before the heroes we all know would come to be. That does not mean there are no heroes or villains, or that the story is exclusively about a simplistic adventure. Far from it.

But the basic module – the one you’ve seen told a thousand times now – is not told here. This is not a story of Chosen Ones who are destined to save the world. This is a story of children who, by making a choice, create a new history to their world.

This is the Neo Genesis of Next.

Enjoy.

Neo Genesis of Next
-Prologue: Days of Peaceful Kindness-
By the author​

Thick, white clouds blanketed the sky, so far above the ground; the sunlight was filtered through such a thick cover that, even as the sun approached its apex over the land, there was still a distinct gray feeling to the day, mixed with the cold breeze that blew through the town. Tall roofs and long roads were covered in snow, adding further to the impression; those who dared to walk about seemed to be freezing, what with their pale faces despite the thick outfits and the constant smoke that came out of their mouths.

All in all, it was a common day at the end of winter. The town of New Bark was usually white at this time of the year, with so cold a weather that the snow simply would not go away without human interference – and at this point, with the average snowfalls the year had heralded, this had been as white as they ever got. Not many people liked to go out like this, unless they had to.

“Okay! Let’s get on with the plan!”

Dark, leafless trees covered in snow and planted side-by-side were no longer attractions at a local park, where winter had done quite a lot of damage during this dry period. The frozen lake they neared had dozens of scratches on its surface, indicating how often it was used for skating during this winter, but the faint lines meant it had been a while since its last use for this purpose. There weren’t any footprints visible on the snow for most of the park, other than a set leading towards a corner of the park most people hadn’t gone to yet.

Lying on the snow, a young boy was pushing it with his arms and legs, spreading it off his general position and sinking closer to it. His thick, red jacket was clashing very much against the snow, making him even more noticeable than before, though his black hair had actually meshed with the white well enough to keep his head less obvious. A regular set of pants and shoes complimented his look, along with red and black gloves. By his side, a small and round brown critter was doing his best to push snow, using his small paws and long, raccoon-like tail to move it.

“Okay, I think we have enough!” the boy said, before stopping his limbs. “Now remember, Tenny, follow the pattern I set up!”

“Yes, yes!” came the response, in a high-pitched voice, before pushing the snow onto the boy’s leg. While he grunted from the sudden sensation, that was all he did, while the snow continued to be piled upon his lower half.

“…what are you doing?” a voice said, and the boy looked up. Serving as his shade was another, taller boy, who was possibly overdressed with how thick his blue outfit looked. His face was barely visible, beyond the large glasses that hid his eyes completely.

“Look! A giant blue snowman!” he joked, pointing a finger, and the creature began to squeal in laughter. The tall boy didn’t smile.

“Hahaha. Very funny. You get three noses for that one.” With that, he crossed his arms. “Seriously, what are you doing?”

“Well, isn’t it obvious?”

“Indulge me.” The dry response was cold like the weather, as well.

“We’re making a snow angel out of me!” the boy told his friend, who proceeded to look him over.

“…that’s why he’s burying you alive?”

“It’s not like that!” he said. “I’m just the mold!”

“You’re the mold for a snow angel,” the older boy repeated. “Couldn’t you just do like everyone else, though?”

“Where’s the fun in that? Anyone can just make a shape on the ground!” the boy complained. “I wanted to make a real-looking angel!”

“But how would you get out of it without messing up?”

At that point, Tenny and the boy looked at each other, trying to think of an answer. The other boy crossed his arms, waiting for a while, until he eventually received his answer. “…I guess I couldn’t, huh…”

“You probably couldn’t, yeah.”

“…I know, Al!” the boy suddenly said, happily. “Why don’t you help us make a snow angel?”

“Yes, yes!” Tenny added. “Al is so good at making snow things!”

“I don’t like snow that much, Andy…” Al groaned, before rubbing his forehead, covered with a bandanna. “Besides, your mom ordered me to tell you about getting home soon.”

“Mom said that?” the boy blinked, before looking at Tenny. “But it’s so early!”

“Well, if you want to stay there and turn into a big red snowman, go right ahead!” was the response, before he offered him a hand. “Otherwise…”

“I’m going, I’m going!” Andy grasped the hand, and was pulled up by his friend, scattering the snow over him, Tenny running away from the falling bits. Once he was up, he pushed the last of the snow off himself. “What is it she wants?”

“You could ask her yourself…” Al replied, before releasing him. He watched as the boy and his pet ran off, Tenny somehow gliding through the air despite being shaped like a wheel, quite possibly due to his thick raccoon tail.

“KI! KI!” a sharp sound came from the distance. As he turned towards it, Al saw a small blue eyeless bat fly in his direction, emitting squeals to locate its target. He raised an arm in a pole-like manner, in the bat’s general direction, and smiled as the critter proceeded to fly at him. The landing was soft as usual, and the blue-wearing boy smiled at him.

“Hungry already, Morris?” he asked, and the bat nodded.

“No food! No food! Sunlight scares it!” the boy was told, and began to laugh. “What is it? What is it?”

“N-nothing, just… ‘sunlight scares it’…” he managed to let out, and the bat flapped his wings rapidly.

“It does it does! It does it does!” Morris snapped back, sharply. “Sunlight scares food! Sunlight scares food!”

“Okay, okay, if you say so…” Al told him, patiently. “Calm down, now. I guess I’ll have to feed you today…”

“No! No!” the bat suddenly yelped. “Not that! Not that!”

“Look, I know it doesn’t taste as crunchy as your bugs, but at least it’s good for you!”

“Not that! Not that!”

Al sighed. “You’re not going to eat that even if I eat my own nasty food?” Morris stopped his flapping, head turned towards him. “I’m thinking today’s lunch will be pretty bad… there’s probably going to be broccoli or something, there…”

There was a moment of silence. “…promise?” the blue bat asked.

“If it means you’ll eat today…” There was a clear disgust in the boy’s face, if only from the way his mouth curled up. He still faced his own pet, serious. “Yes, I promise.”

After a few moments, the bat nodded. “…will eat! Will eat!”

“Alright… we should get going, then,” Al said, and the bat took off, flying around him. “Can’t wait to swallow that whole…”

“Chew up! Chew up!” Morris told him.

“And taste that longer than I need to? As if!”

%)​

Andy quickly opened the door to his house, trying not to slip from the iced porch. “Mooooom! What is it?” he asked, Tenny hanging onto his coat as well as he could.

“Andy!” a female voice replied, from the kitchen. “Hurry up already! We have to talk about the next few weeks!”

The boy didn’t take much time to get there, his pet loosening his grip midway to land on the floor safely. He started to pant, for a moment. “…talk, right? What about?”

“Well…” the tall woman began to say, before frowning. “You were in the snow again, weren’t you?”

“…well, maybe…” Andy admitted, just as Tenny wandered into the kitchen. His yellow smile slowly weakened, as she didn’t smile. “…I’ll clean it all up.”

“That’s the least you should be doing, yes,” she told him, before crossing her arms. “Anyway… I trust you remember who will be coming to visit us, correct?”

“Visit?” he blinked twice, before looking at Tenny. The critter just shook his head, slightly, and he turned back. “Not really, mom. I mean, sure, you’ve been stockpiling and all, but I was pretty sure that was because it’s winter and you don’t want us to starve.”

“That’s a good guess, but it’s not why I’ve done it.” The woman tapped one finger against her arm, for a couple of seconds. “Your cousin is coming from Goldenrod to visit us, and I expect you to be on your best behavior.”

“Cousin–wait, you mean Mel?” Andy had to repeat. “Whoa… I thought she was going to cram school or something!”

“Well, apparently she convinced her parents that she didn’t need to go to school during the winter holidays, but my brother felt it was better for her to spend some time away from the big city as well. Thus, they’re sending her here.” Dropping that matter-of-fact tone, she frowned. “Of course, your cousin is a very refined girl. Given how little she’s come to visit us in the last few years, I am sure she would much rather stay at home and do things like go to the mall or hang out with her friends…”

Andy’s blank look made her trail off. “…er, nevermind. Listen, Andy. Your cousin isn’t really like either of us. So please keep that in mind; she’s probably not going to be very happy while she’s here. She may even say some hurtful things… but she doesn’t really mean it. Do you understand?”

“I… think so, mom,” he admitted, before taking off his thick shoes. “When is she arriving?”

“Within fifteen minutes,” she said, making him drop one of the shoes; Tenny barely avoided it, running out of the room with a scared look on his face. “So if you don’t mind, please clean up the floor already?”

“R-right…” the boy said, a bit awkwardly. “I’ll go and… get some cleaning materials already…”

“And one more thing…” she added, just as he had turned around. “If she wants to do anything to Tenny, let her. Even if it hurts him.” That made the boy pause in his tracks, and he turned to face her, shocked.

“What?! L-let her hurt Tenny? But, but Tenny’s my-” he begged, but her gaze – her full expression – was enough to make him stop.

“…listen, Andy… your cousin doesn’t know a think about Pokémon. She’ll probably make a mistake or two. We… have to make this the best experience ever for her, okay?” she said, her eyes focused on his. Tenny had climbed back on the boy, latching onto his jacket, but he was staring at Andy with worry. “That’s an order, Andy.”

“…fine. If that’s all…” he said, grabbing his fallen shoe again. “I’ll just put these in my room, then.”

“You do that, dear.” With that, she let him leave the kitchen, the boy rapidly running up the stairs to his room.

“…your cousin will… hurt me?” Tenny asked, as the door opened. “But… but why?”

“I don’t know. Something about how she’s never taken care of Pokémon before… some kind of nonsense like that,” Andy told him, as the Pokémon suddenly hopped towards the bed, floating down gently and landing on his tail. “I don’t get why mom can’t just tell her not to touch you. I mean, it’s not like she touches you either.”

“Well, she should tell your cousin that!” the round critter replied, frowning. “I don’t want to get hurt! Not like this!”

“I know how you feel, pal… but what mom says goes.” With a sigh, he walked towards his wardrobe, where all his shoes were. His room was rather orderly, making it easy for him to find things, but it was mostly an enforced order; his toys and treasures, most of them hand-made, were placed right next to the walls, rather than inside the open box where they normally were supposed to be. Tenny approached one side of the bed, where wooden grips were placed, and started to climb up.

“Can we play more in the snow later?” he asked, before jumping towards his perch on the ceiling; the brief glide was a practiced one, at this point. His tail latched onto the grip and tightened, leaving him upside-down for a few moments.

“Maybe… but I guess I’ll be busy showing off the rest of New Bark to Mel. Things changed a lot since the last time, after all.” Andy finished setting up his shoes. “Keep an eye out, will you?”

“Sure thing, sure thing!” Tenny said, waving him off. “Have fun, Andy!”

%)​

The bus arrived at the station with a loud noise, as its chained tires skidded through the ice. It was one of the most modern designs, long and big and very bright to look at even in this gray morning period, but it unfortunately also had a nasty trail of gray coming out of the escape valve.

As the bus doors opened, with a nasty noise, many grown men and women came out, dressed very appropriately for the cold. Along with them, however, a young girl came out, her bright orange hair very visible among all the grayish and brown clothes the other passengers were wearing, tied in two ponytails and yet still leaving enough space for a ribbon on the back. So was her pink coat, which had been designed with a skirt attached, contrasting with her slightly long dark pants. As she got out of the bus, she looked around for a couple of seconds, before seeing Andy and his mother near one of the benches.

“Auntie!” she said, happily, before running towards the grown woman and giving her one big hug. “I’m so glad to see you!”

“It’s nice to meet you too, Mel,” the woman said, before indicating her son. “Do you remember Andy?”

“Of course I do!” she said, hugging him as well. “How have you been, cuz?”

“I’m doing fine, Mel!” the boy said, his breathing kind of cut off; for someone so young, her grip was tight. “You’re still short, aren’t you?”

“Andy!” his mother warned him, but the girl just giggled a bit, and let go of him.

“It’s not like you grew much either, cuz!” she said, laughing to herself. “You’re big but dad’s still bigger than you!”

Andy just blew some hot air, watching the smoke in front of him. “Well, we’re still young… c’mon, let’s go!”

“Go?” Mel blinked, surprised. “Go where?”

“See the rest of town! There’s still lots of time ‘til you have to come back, right? So let’s go see the town!” the boy explained, smiling as he did so, but his mother crossed his arms.

“I know you’re happy to meet your cousin, Andy, but it’s time for lunch. I’m sure your cousin is very hungry right now” she began, only to be interrupted by the little girl.

“Actually, auntie, I’m not very hungry right now! Mom and dad gave me a boxed lunch to eat while at the bus!” she said, not noticing the woman wasn’t very pleased at hearing that. “Could I go see a bit of the town with cuz, pleese?”

She didn’t seem too happy to hear that, but simply nodded in acceptance. “Alright, as you want… but Andy, you two had better not take too long, alright?”

“Sure thing, mom!” was all he had to say, smiling. Mel looked back at the bus, then.

“Ah! My bag’s still there!” she said, and Andy’s mother simply gave her a smile.

“Don’t worry, your auntie will pick it up,” she said, before looking at Andy seriously. “I’m serious, Andy; you two had better come back soon!”

“Got it, mom!” Andy said, before taking Mel by the hand. “C’mon, Mel, let’s go!”

As the two children left, the young woman sighed. “I swear, I really wish I didn’t have to spoil that girl as much as her parents do…” she muttered, before talking to the bus driver.