Prelude

""Finally!""

A chorus of cheers came from the four kids in the lab and Peter had the decency to flush in embarrassment at having held them up for so long. The professor chuckled with a pleased smile and retrieved the drowsy Pikachu before the other three Pokéballs could be snatched away.

Red, Blue, and Leaf, each took their desired Pokémon before releasing them from their balls, filling the lab with the happy cheers of man and mon alike. Ned even joined in and released his Mudkip to meet Peter's Eevee, inadvertently causing both Leaf and Blue's Squirtle to rush over, one squealing at its cuteness and the other stepping up in challenge.

"Now now," Oak slightly raised his voice. "Before you all run off to cause trouble, I need to register you with the League and hand out your Pokédex's."

Blue saw his grandfather's overly smug demeanor as he subtly glanced at the two new boys and sighed. Red and Leaf knew what was coming and felt embarrassed on his behalf as well.

Like expected, Peter tilted his head in confusion and asked, "Professor Oak, what's a Pokédex?"

Ned already had one of his own and was about to explain it to his friend, before he was cut off by Blue answering in his stead, "They're an encyclopedia of every known Pokémon in the world, just scan any of them and their data will be read aloud. It can even detect things like Nature, EV's, IV's, favorite food, and Egg Moves, after you catch them."

Blue glanced over at his grandfather's slightly sulking appearance and continued in a flat tone, "Gramps invented them, he's very proud."

*cough* "Thank you Blue," Oak said rather sheepishly, only regaining his prior bearing upon seeing the awed reactions of the two newcomers. "Some things he failed to mention however, is that your Pokédex will serve as both a mobile bank account and your identification as a trainer of Kanto's Indigo League. These newer versions are even Rotom-compatible, allowing for numerous additional features should you ever acquire the Pokémon on your journey."

Oak retrieved four Pokédex's from a drawer and handed one to each trainer after linking them with the register on his main computer. He then took Ned's and updated it for the Kanto region as well before continuing, "Remember that while you can always send your extra Pokémon to me through the Pokédex, you can only retrieve them from official Pokémon centers, League rules I'm afraid."

All five of the trainers immediately scanned their new partners, causing a cacophony of robotic voices to fill the air and earning another chuckle from Oak, "Now then, your all set. Best of luck on your adventures, I expect I'll often hear great things about each of you in the future."

Free to head their separate ways, the trio from Pallet Town departed after saying their farewells while Ned eyed Peter with a heated gaze. They both heard Blue challenge Red to a battle just moments ago and were eager to have one of their own.

"Well Peter," the animated chubby boy taunted, "do you think your Eevee could ever hope to match up to my Mudkip?"

"Kip!" The little Pokémon cried out while puffing out it's chest from atop its trainer's shoulder.

Peter glanced over at his best friend before looking down and locking eyes with the new partner held in his arms. He could see excitement, trepidation, and a little fear in Eevee's gaze. But what outshone them all, was determination.

Boy and Pokémon both looked up and met their foe's challenge with one of their own, ""Bring it on!/Ee-vah!""

•••••••••••

Oreburgh City Gym, Sinnoh Region

•••••••••••

Tony Stark would never admit it out loud, but he was having fun. Apart from that one incident where the little brat took Chimchar before he could get his hands on it, he could honestly say that this game was just the break he needed after all that chaos with Vanko a few months ago.

That didn't mean he forgot his initial purpose in steaming this game however, a fact that he ruthlessly expressed when he was forced to find the leader of this gym and drag them back to their workplace just to get his first badge. How that hyper little shit got it before he even arrived in this town, was something that would forever elude him.

"Roark, I've come to battle," the billionaire announced as he stepped into the arena lined with rocks on all sides.

"Mr. Stark," the redheaded gym leader said with an annoyed sigh. "A pleasure to see you once again."

"I'm sure it is," Tony snarked as he pulled out the Luxury Ball he'd switched his Pokémon into the first chance he got. "How do we do this? I've only got the one so no two-v-two's for me."

Roark tossed out a standard Pokéball, ignoring the insufferable man's look of disdain, and explained as a Geodude appeared in a flash of red light, "I have three Pokémon reserved for first-time gym challengers. Defeat them all and I will grant you the Coal Badge."

"blatant product placement," Tony whispered under his breath, just loud enough for his viewers to hear. "Alright, come on out Prinplup. Wash this rock away."

Tony had quickly learned the basic rock/paper/scissors rules of battling in this world and after some hints from Jarvis' watching a few different streams, he fully exploited his type advantage in the last cave to power level his starter Pokémon.

Iron Man could never lose in a battle, so Tony Stark wouldn't allow his Pokémon to do so either.

Soon, a referee dressed in the standard white and black stripes, walked up to the side of the arena. With practiced ease, he had both contestants link their Pokédex to the gym's database, before announcing the start of the match with no delay, "Begin!"

[Prinplup: Lvl.18 vs Geodude: Lvl.15]

An image of both Pokémon and some basic information about their battle history, showed up on a floating hologram near the roof of the gym.

Tony smirked upon seeing his clear advantage and folded his hands behind his back. He briefly reveled in the surprised gaze of the man who had the honor of becoming his first stepping stone in this new world, before leisurely stating, "Prinplup, Bubblebeam."