First Win

I smoothly emerged out of the dense forest that surrounded Celadon City, the gentle thrum of the jet-black hoverboard beneath my feet reverberating through the air as it propelled me forward.

A handful of Celadon City residents stared at me cautiously as I shot out from nowhere, my body shifting back and forth as I navigated the area.

I remember the Head Developer of Pokemon World stating that the hardest part of making Pokemon World was trying to make each area feel realistic. In the main games, the population of every interactable character didn't exceed five thousand, and the actual structure of the various regions weren't conducive to supporting large populations.

One of the major revisions that was made was a general increase in the technology level, an advancement in a variety of areas making rural life seem far more plausible. 

Emerging straight out of the forest, I was greeted by wide, well-maintained roads that were utilized by cyclists and other hoverboard users, a string of quaint green trees separating the road from the pavement.

As I surged forward, I was faintly able to catch pedestrians flowing in and out of small shops, a handful able to spot me, each of them alarmed.

I only had a faint idea of how to use a hoverboard, my leg muscles apparently used to operating one, allowing me to swerve around the Celadon City Department Store with ease.

Unlike the mainline Pokemon Games, the cities within the regions of Pokemon World were well connected through a maze of underground tunnels. This allowed civilians and workers to easily get around without the threat of stumbling into a wild Pokémon.

I put pressure on my left leg, leaning forward on my hoverboard, swiftly approaching the entrance to the Celadon Underground Tunnel. There was a simple system where civilians could use an app on their phone to pay for access to the tunnel, a single security guard kept on standby.

I slowly approached the entrance of the tunnel, the security guard immediately alarmed at my presence.

"Hey—"

I slammed my right leg on the back end of the hoverboard and completely took off, skating above the barricades and zooming straight into the underground tunnel, turning into the tunnel that would take me to Cerulean City.

My heart pounded in my chest as I rushed ahead, a strange thrill that I had never experienced before filling my psyche. The wind blew harshly against my body as I accelerated, reaching the top speed of the hoverboard. 

I swerved left, dodging a Pokémon Trainer who was riding a Rapidash, the lady on the back cursing me out as I flew past her. Ahead I spotted another trainer who had a whole cart attached to his Dodrio, the sound of thumping against the ground only getting louder as they approached.

I swerved right in the nick of time, a droplet of sweat hitting the ground as I finally breathed a sigh of relief, a clear open stretch ahead of me.

"Pidgeotto! Use Gust!"

My heart sank to the pit of my stomach as I turned around, seeing the glasses-wearing brown-haired security guard race after me on a hoverboard of his own, an angry-looking bird perched on his arm, quickly flying into the air.

Pidgeotto flapped its wings with genuine aggression, a harsh wind wave blowing over my body. I wobbled terribly, my hoverboard swerving back and forth along the full width of the corridor.

If it were any tighter, I would have definitely fallen.

"Get back here, you punk! You think you can just get away with not paying!?"

"Go home, bro! It's not worth it! Just let me go!" I shouted back.

"As if! Do you think they'll let me keep my job if I let brats like you go? I have a family to feed!"

I made a mental note of the security guard, promising to pay him back when I became a big-shot Pokémon Trainer.

I had flicked through Jay's banking information on his phone, his account only having 15₽ in it, a rather pitiful sum that could only buy a few loaves of bread.

"Pidgeotto, use Quick Attack!"

I turned my head, just able to catch the winged menace leap off the security guard, the recoil knocking him back while the bird soared towards me, a column of air surrounding it as the gap between us rapidly dwindled.

I immediately reached into my backpack, grabbing the Pokéball which housed my only Pokémon.

"Raticate! Wait a sec and Headbutt!" I blurted out as fast as I could.

The brown fat rat stood firmly on my arm, staring down the approaching Pidgeotto with courage that even caught me off guard. Its beady eyes watched it, waiting a split second for it to get close before it surged forward with reckless abandon.

A loud sound echoed through the air as the Pidgeotto and Raticate collided, the recoil knocking Raticate back into my waiting arms while the bird dropped out of the air, forced to land down on the ground.

It wasn't quite fainted, but it was in pretty rough shape, clearly the more damaged of the two.

"Dag nabbit!"

The security guard cursed loudly as he came to a halt, attending to his downed Pokémon, a sight that caused me to grin from ear to ear.

"Good boy!" I said loudly, showering Raticate with affection.

"Ti! Ti! Ti!"

It purred gently, smiling faintly before I pressed a button on its Pokéball, a stream of red energy retrieving it.

'That was intense'

I felt as though I was having a heart attack, although that was probably just the extreme upper limit of the heart rate of this body, all my senses finally coming down as I let out a heavy breath.

I guess that counts as my first victory.

My smile stretched wider as I floated up the other end of the tunnel, blasting through the checkpoint a second time.

The security guard this time wasn't as prepared, the lady caught off guard as I blasted through the doors, already into the city by the time she had reached her hoverboard.

'Cerulean Cave is now one step closer'