Ch 5. 16 years old

A few years had passed and Ares had become sixteen years old today.

It was the age on which children could finally begin their journey. It was first decided to be at the age of ten, but the deaths toll of unprepared kids had made the pokemon league decide otherwise. At the age of sixteen, most youngsters would be more grownup, making them think more with their heads than do something dangerous out of a bout of curiosity.

If the trainers were from a trainer family, they would also have a pokemon partner since young, upping their chance at survival immensely.

This fact also counted for Ares, as his Riolu had already evolved a few years ago, only making their bond stronger than ever.

The last couple of years had been interesting to say the least. Ares and Riolu, now Lucario, had strenghtened their bond and had both trained a lot in the usage of aura.

Mew had traveled around a lot and had with the help of Celebi found a lot of books pertaining about aura. By now Ares's whole room had been filled with books about aura guardians and how to use aura. Professor Oak found the books to be interesting and had asked a few colleagues of him if they had come across some of these books. If they hadn't they would promise him they would send the books whenever they found some. Like that, Ares's room had quickly become filled with them, all of them already read.

The things he had learned about aura were astonishing and he had to admit he still wasn't able to use them all. He could use aura in many ways, conjuring it into a ball, shield or strenghtening his body. He was also able to get a feeling for what others were thinking or what the felt. The more he learned about aura, the more he realised he was far from learning everything. There was even a book that mentioned about merging aura with psychic powers, which was more difficult than it would seem. Unfortunately the book didn't go further in on that particular subject, not even mentioning how to acquire said psychic powers.

It was note worthy to mention that most of the aura users mentioned in the books were able to use minimal amounts of psychic powers.

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Waking up early in the morning, Ares was greeted by Lucario and Mew, who were both happily congratulating him for becoming sixteen years old. Smiling at the cheerfull duo, Ares quickly got dressed, Lucario handing him the piece of clothing he forgot to grab.

Mew was just staring from the bed at the well coördinated display.

Coming down the stairs, Ares was greeted by not only professor Oak, but also by Gary, Ash and Gary's sister Daisy.

""""Happy birthday!""""

Ares was startled at the sudden cheeriness, as Ash and Gary, now fourteen years old each, immediately came forward. The were both rushing forward, eagerly pushing decorated boxes towards him. They patiently waited, the latter smirking as he couldn't wait for Ares to open the presents and see the look on his face.

"Open my present first."

"He should open mine first, Ashy-boy. It will be a lot more helpfull than yours."

Gary and Ash were still arguing like always. Ares just laughed it off as he accepted both presents. Lucario took one of them, as Ares opened the gifts from Ash and Delia first. Inside it was a brand new clothing set. Written on a small yet brightly coloured card were the kind words of Ash's mom.

'Dear Ares,

Happy birthday. As you will be traveling around a lot, I prepared your traveling clothes and a traveling bag. The bag should be big enough to fit most of your stuff and have spare space.

P.s. (It's a spatial storage bag! Don't tell the others though, as it is quite expensive!)

Enjoy your travels and stay safe.

Delia.'

Ares put the note to the side and took a better look at the clothes he received.

Inside the package was a red jacket with white sleeves and red cuffs. There was also a white shirt with diamond pattern going from the neckline downward till the chest. The jeans were black with multiple pockets on the side with a silver chain hanging from the side to the back. The backpack was cream coloured. Last but not least were a pair of firm black sneakers with some kind of button to the side. When he pressed it, small wheels were revealed.

(A/N: The outfit, but slightly less medieval looking. Picture in the comments section.)

"Wow, thanks Ash. Thank your mom for me too."

"Ehehe~" Ash scratched his head in embarrassment, nodding his head.

"Now open mine." Gary said as he eyes the present Lucario held in his hands.

Not waiting for Ares to answer, Lucario unwrapped the little box. Inside it was a pitch black phone with small EarPods to the side. As soon as Ares touched it, the phone came to life as the eyes of a rotom were visible in the background. The phone zoomed around in the air as it greeted Ares in happiness.

[Hello Ares. I am your new Rotom phone. I have been updated to help you on your journey.]

Smiling at the Rotom, the phone went back to his hand.

"I asked my dad to buy it for you. I already put our phone number in it so you can call us any time." Gary said with a smug smile on his face. The Rotom phone was hard to get, as it was only well used in Galar, but luckily his grandpa had enough connection to get one.

Not knowing what to say, Ares smiled and thanked Gary from the bottom of his heart.

Happy to have been thanked, Gary smiled even wider as he lazily put his hands behind his head.

"Now, now Gary. This was a present from all of us."

Professor Oak said as he chided Gary.

After changing into his newly received clothes, the only thing Ares added was a black scarf. He wrapped it around his neck, partially hiding his lower face or to be more precise; his protruding fangs.

Content with how he looked, Ares had packed all of the things he needed for his journey, including his gifts. He had also received a gift from Mew early in the morning. It was a small dagger like pendant with a fibrant blue stone in the centre. Acording to Mew, it helped control and enhance his aura. Ares glanced appreciatively towards Mew and put on the pendant as he went back towards group, who were waiting for him to come back.

"Come with me, Ares. It's time to get yourself your starter Pokémon. You already have Lucario, but consider this a gift from me so to say." professor Oak said with a smile on his face. The Pokemon he had gotten for Ares was a bit different, but he hoped he liked it.

Not intending to wait, professor Oak already walked away, not waiting to see if Ares was following or not. Hurrying after professor Oak, Ares stuck close as he didn't know where professor Oak was going.

Leading Ares further inside the lab, on a tray was a single pokeball.

"There weren't any of the official starters left, but I think you will like this Pokémon just as much. I put a lot of thought into which pokemon would be the best for you right now. You already have Lucario by your side who is well trained. I think it is for the best to start your journey with a new one as well."

Professor Oak handed Ares the pokeball.

Not waiting for the rest to ask, Ares called out the Pokémon. A blue light came out of the pokeball and shaped itself into Ares's starter Pokémon.

What came out was a small brown quadruple Pokémon. It had a cream colored fluffy collar. Its bushy tail was the same dark brown as its body, except for the cream colored tips. Its long pointy ears twitched from time to time as it looked intently at Ares.

"This Pokémon is called Eevee. It is rarely found in the wild and has many possible evolutions. It is primarily thought to be caused by its unstable genetics."

As professor Oak began to ramble on about the specifics, Ares crouched down and took the Eevee in his arms. Eevee looked up at him, not really knowing what to think of it.

Smiling down at Eevee, Ares began to gently scratch behind his ears, earning a content rub against his chest.

"I am fortunate to receive such a great Pokémon, professor." Ares said, interupting professor Oak's lecture.

"That's good. Now, it is time for you to start your journey. You should have everything you need. Take this as well."

Professor Oak handed Ares a couple of empty poke balls and a bright red device.

"This is called a pokédex. It records the Pokémon you have seen and caught. To make it easier, I connected it to your Rotom phone, as it tends to fly around on its own as well. Should you not have the time yourself, Rotom would surely be a nice helper. Now enjoy your journey. Do contact us every now and then, we look forward to hear about the adventures you will surely experience."

Being rushed out of the lab towards the road, Ares smiled wryly at the entourage that was waving at him. He returned Eevee to his pokeball and put it in his belt.

"Well, I will contact you soon professor."

With Lucario walking beside him and an invisible Mew on his shoulder, Ares made his way towards Viridian forest, on his way to the first gym in Pewter city. He just needed to pass by Viridian city. Viridian forest should grow a bit away from Pallet town straight towards Pewter city.

While Viridian city might be closer, starting with the most difficult gym in the region wasn't his intention.

Clicking the buttons on his shoes, the small wheels came out and provided him with a lot of speed. Ares moved forward on a fast pace, with Lucario enjoying the travel speed as he was running beside him, easily keeping up. Moving at an incredibly fast pace, Ares could already see the Viridian forest in the distance. Once there, Ares would train with his pokemon to ready themselves for the gym battle.

He was older now, so he had to prepare himself for what the wild had to offer.