Chapter 5: A new quest begins!

"So when do I start?" Kai asked, looking at the professor.

"Actually, right now?" Elm asked, shrugging his shoulders as he asked the question.

"By my calculations, it should take around a week for you to get there, and another to return," Elm said, quickly doing the math in his head.

"Really, a whole two weeks?" Lyra asked.

"That's right, now that I think about it you will certainly need some provisions for the journey," Elm said as he rubbed his chin.

"Here, this should cover your expenses as well as payment for your help," Elm said as he pulled his wallet out from his back pocket, flicking through the contents inside before handing over the money.

"There, 7000PK$ should cover everything." Professor Elm said with a smile.

Kai couldn't believe it, there he was worrying about getting his hands on 500PK$ never mind 7000!

"Thank you, professor I won't let you down," Kai said, putting the money into his pocket safe.

"I can believe that." The professor then said, putting his hands on his hips.

"That reminds me, Lyra. You had better go and see your mother before she gets even more worried. She called me up before to see where you had gone off to." Elm said, having forgotten to tell her.

"When I told her you were helping me track down a thief she... Well, she wasn't best pleased." The professor said, scratching his head with a nervous smile.

"Oh no..." Lyra said, rubbing the back of her head, knowing how her mum liked to worry.

"Ok, well I had better get back to my research. I will send the location of the meeting to your Pokegear, Kai." Elm said, taking his out and texting them over to him in an instant.

Kai nodded as he checked it on his own, bringing up the map with the GPS function on it right away.

"Ok, safe travels Kai, make sure you and Sandshrew take care of one another." The professor then said, bidding both of them fair well.

With that both Kai and Lyra took their leave, heading out of the front door and towards the street.

"Hey, I have an idea... Just let me ring my mum real quick to let her know we are ok." Lyra said, seeming excited.

Kai nodded and watched her pull her Pokegear out before she made the call.

Kai decided to leave her to it, taking his own Pokegear to pull up the map function again, seeing just how far he would have to travel.

Man, it's really that far... In the game it took about five minutes to get to that point. Kai thought, looking up towards the sky.

This world filled with Pokemon... It's like a dream come true. He thought.

The sun was just past the midday point now and it was nice and hot, clearly being summertime at the moment, with Kai feeling the gental breeze run through his hair.

"I'm done, sorry about that." Lyra then said, snapping him out of his thoughts as she skipped around him.

"So, mum says hi." She said first before placing her hands behind her back looking a little sheepish.

"But, I'm afraid she said I can't go with you to meet the professor's friend." She said with a gloomy expression.

Kai had thought as much, but at the same time, he kind of wanted to do this by himself before gaining any travelling companions.

"That's ok, Lyra. I will be safe on my own. Besides, I have Sandshrew now!" Kai said, pointing his thumb at himself feeling confident.

Lyra laughed, walking over to the edge of the pavement so she could look into the distance.

"Tell you what, I will help you get everything you need before you set off. That way I won't have to worry about you." She said, this time sticking her thumb up at him.

Kai laughed before agreeing.

"Sounds good to me, Lyra."

"So where to first?" He then asked.

"Follow me." She said, turning around to lead the way.

"We are going shopping!"

Sometime later...

Lyra had shown Kai to the local shopping district where they would be able to find all of the supplies that he would need for his trip.

Lyra had made a list for him while walking there, telling him that the first thing he would need was a good bag to carry everything in. Next would be a sleeping bag or small tent so that could camp outside if need be.

Her knowledge of the world was extremely useful for Kai, seeing how he didn't know or think about half of this stuff. One thing he didn't know was that Pokemon centres would not only heal your Pokemon for free, but they would also offer free accommodation for up to two nights to all Pokemon trainers with a trainer card.

Lyra had taken Kai to look at bags first, eventually finding one that wouldn't break the bank too much, setting him back 2000PK$. Kai had decided to get both a tent and sleeping bag, just in case the weather took a turn, setting him back another 2000PK$ and leaving him with 3000.

"Next how about a change of clothing... And of course, you will need plenty of food for you and Sandshrew." She said, continuing down the list she had made in her head for him.

Kai really was glad to have her with him, knowing he would have never thought about any of this.

With that, Kai got another change of clothing, including some socks, underwear, and a pair of black jeans with a grey t-shirt that had a Pokeball logo in the middle of the chest. He also got another pair of shoes, seeing a pair of nice brown boots that were on offer, knowing they would come in handy for any rough terrain.

Kai had even found a cap that he had taken a liking to, seeing that it was black with a red trim around the edge, seeing that it matched his other clothing nicely.

All that was left was to get his own food and some Pokemon food for Sandshrew, following Lyra to the food shop.

It was rather large considering they were still in Newbark town, somewhere Kai had only ever perceived to be a tiny little village with nothing in it.

"Here, this Pokemon food is more for ground-type Pokemon like Sandshrew," Lyra said, taking a box of it from one of the shelves.

Kai was impressed by the amount of things they had here. All of the food was categorized into typing, with the cheaper options at the bottom. There was also a mix of one food match all, with treats and other things for different types of Pokemon.

It's almost like a pet shop... Kai thought, taking in the sights it had to offer.

Kai checked how much money he had left, seeing that he only had 1200PK$ left, knowing he still needed 500 to register for the Pokemon league.

Kai could see the price tag on the shelves and decided to go for the medium-range food that said it was all Pokemon friendly, costing only 500PK$ giving a two-week supply.

"That should be enough to last for the whole trip," Lyra said, not complaining about his choice.

"Yeah," Kai said as they headed over to the till to pay for the food before Kai placed it into his backpack, amazed that he had somehow been able to fit everything into it, apart from the sleeping bag which he had rolled up and strapped to the bottom of his backpack for convenience.

All in all, Kai had managed to finish shopping and still came out with 700PK$ left.

"Now that we have everything you need, all that is left is to get you registered for the league," Lyra said, feeling happy that they had been able to get so much.

"Yeah. Let's do it." Kai said as he finished packing the last of the food he had bought for himself, squashing it all into his bag, realizing it was not as convenient as in the game.

Thankfully the bag wasn't all that heavy once he placed it on his back, feeling the straps did a good job of distributing the weight evenly.

"Onwards to the Pokemon centre!" Kai then said, pointing in the direction he thought it was, only to have Lyra laugh at him as it was the other way.

"Goodness me, are you really going to be alright by yourself?" She asked in a joking manner.

"Hey, I made it this far didn't I?" Kai said, knowing that he hadn't actually done anything by himself so far, getting by with help from Lyra or just dumb luck.

"How you managed that I will never know," Lyra said laughing before she set off walking.

Kai laughed to himself, knowing she was right but quickly brushed it off.

"This way back to the Pokemon centre." She then said, getting him to follow her.

Soon enough the two of them arrived back at the Pokemon centre, seeing that it was much quieter now that it was getting late in the afternoon.

"So how do I register?" Kai asked, taking a look around.

"This way," Lyra said, heading over to speak to Nurse Joy.

"Hello again, Lyra. Don't tell me you need your Pokemon healing again already?" Nurse Joy asked, getting stern with her.

"No, no," Lyra said, waving her arms at her.

"Actually, we came to register Kai here for the Pokemon league." Lyra quickly said, changing the subject.

"Ah, in that case, I am more than happy to help." Nurse Joy said, quickly changing her mood.

Man, this one is a little strange... Kai thought.

"Please fill out this form. Once you are done, head over to the counter over there to have your picture taken. Chansey here will see to it." Nurse Joy said, stepping to the side to reveal a Chansey that was standing next to her.

"Chansey!" The Pokemon said, seeming overly happy.

"Hey look, a Chansey," Kai said, getting excited because it was the first time he had seen one here, only to see Lyra give him a strange look.

"Haven't you seen one before?" She asked, putting one hand on her hip.

"O-Of course I have. I just like them is all." Kai said, crossing his arms as he got defensive.

Kai quickly took the paper and a pen before heading over to a desk so that he could fill out the paperwork. Thankfully it was in English, making it easy for him to understand and complete the form. Even if he had had to lie a little on it.

Once he was done, Kai headed over to the counter as Nurse Joy had instructed and handed the paperwork to Chansey.

"Chan-Chansey." The Pokemon said before pointing to the wall for Kai to go and stand by the line.

Kai got the gist of it seeing that there was a camera set up facing the wall.

Kai stood on the white footprints on the floor and looked into the camera, waiting for Chansey to take the picture. Something he had never expected would happen to him in his life.

The camera flashed and Chansey nodded before pointing for him to head back over to Nurse Joy, singing its name over and over as it trotted off to do something else.

Kai didn't think about it too much and walked back over to Nurse Joy and Lyra who were still chatting.

"That was fast," Lyra said, smiling at him.

"Yes, let me just bring up your information now..." Nurse Joy said, typing his name into the system.

"Ah, here it is." She said, seeing that Chansey had already scanned it into the computer.

"So, Kai. Age 12 from Goldenrod City, is that right?" She asked, looking at him to confirm it.

"That's right," Kai said, hoping she wouldn't ask any more questions.

"Perfect, that's all gone through for you. That will be a charge of 500PK$ She then said.

Kai nodded, taking out the money he had left and handing over 500.

"Perfect. Just one moment while we print off your trainer card." Nurse Joy said.

"You did it, Kai, now you can challenge the gyms and earn badges!" Lyra said getting excited.

Kai nodded, also feeling excited that his journey was really about to begin.

"Thank you for waiting, here you are." Nurse Joy then said, handing Kai his own trainer card with his pictures and details on it.

Wow... Look at that. Kai thought as he examined it, seeing that it kind of looked like a driver's license before he turned it over.

On the back, it also had the details of Kai's current Pokemon, allowing him to see Sandshrew's level and current moves.

No way... Kai thought, taking a closer look.

Sandshrew, level 8. Moves: Scratch. Dig. Rollout. Defence curl. Poison sting. Sand attack.

Kai studied the information carefully before looking back up.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." He said, realizing he was being rude.

"It's no problem, you have a nice day now, and good luck." She said with a bright smile.

Kai nodded before walking off with Lyra, heading over to one of the tables and chairs so that he could pick his backpack back up.

"Lyra, can I ask you a question?" Kai asked, taking a moment as he set his backpack down again.

"Of course Kai, what is it?" She asked.

"I have some questions about my Pokemon's level, and the moves it has learned..." Kai said, feeling like a complete amateur.

"Sure, what about it?" Lyra said, not seeming to care.

"I was just wondering why they are displayed on the back of my trainer card is all."

Lyra nodded, also thinking about it.

"It's so you can keep track of that sort of thing if you don't have a Pokedex yet," Lyra said.

"You see, Nurse Joy can scan your Pokemon so you can see that kind of information. They will also update your trainer card for you each time you visit the Pokemon Centre." Lyra also explained.

"I see. And how do you get a Pokedex?" Kai asked out of interest.

"Well, you buy one silly." She said.

"Geez Kai, do you know anything?" She asked again teasing him.

"Hey, I know some things," Kai said, getting another laugh out of her.

"I do have just one last request though, Lyra," Kai said once they had both stopped laughing, getting a little more serious.

"Sure, what is it, Kai?" She asked.

"I want to have a Pokemon battle with you," Kai said, looking her in the eye to see her reaction.

"You're on," Lyra said, accepting his challenge in a heartbeat.

With that said, both of them headed out of the Pokemon Centre to the small park around the corner. Lyra said that it had a Pokemon battle area and that it would be a safe place for them to test their skills close to the Pokemon centre.

From what Kai had seen and experienced so far, Pokemon battles here where it was real, were much different than simply playing a game. Yes, there were still type and move advantages, levels and experience, but the Pokemon themselves were alive and had a will of their own. Proving that they could become and do so much more.

"I hope you are ready, Kai. I won't hold back." Lyra said, taking out her Pokeball.

"Same to you, Lyra," Kai said, doing the same.

"Go, Marill!"

"Let's do this, Sandshrew!" They each yelled, throwing their Pokeballs into the middle of the pitch.

Both Marill and Sandshrew appeared from the bright light before the Pokeballs returned to Kai and Lyra, each of them ready to start the match, with their Pokemon feeling the same way.

"I hope you don't mind if we take ladies first!" Lyra yelled, making the first move.

"Go Marill, use water gun!"

Kai knew that in the game, this Marill's water gun would do massive damage, given that it was a special attack and Sandshrews special defence was rather lacking. However, this wasn't a game anymore. This was real.

"Dodge it with dig, Sandshrew!" Kai yelled, watching as Sandshrew quickly burrowed its way underground and avoided the water gun.

"We won't be that easy, Kai. Marill use bounce!" Marill used its tail to bounce off of the ground before soaring into the air, taking the high ground, with Lyra playing a smart move.

Kai knew he had no choice but to act, knowing that Sandshrew couldn't stay underground for much longer.

"Sandshrew break out and use rapid spin!"

Sandshrew burst from underground, curling into a ball as it spun into the air with great speed.

"There, use water gun again Marill!" Lyra shouted, knowing her Marill had the height advantage as it was still in the air.

"Sandshrew dodge it and use sand attack!" Kai shouted.

Sandshrew unrolled its body and dashed to the side, seeming faster than before, using its claw to kick up dust and dirt from the ground, throwing it towards Marill to distract its vision.

"Maril get back!" Lyra yelled, watching as some of the dirt got into its eyes, causing it to wince a little.

"Sandshrew, don't let up, use poison sting!" Marill, counter it with water gun!" Lyra shouted, knowing that her Marill was weak to poison-type attacks.

However, thanks to the dirt in Marills eyes, it couldn't quite get its attack on target, giving Sandshrew a free attack with its poison sting, knocking Marill to the ground.

"Let's finish this, Sandshrew! Use poison sting again!"

"Oh no, Marill use bubblebeam!" Lyra yelled in an act of desperation, not having any choice.

"Marill fired its bubblebeam, proving that it had a wider range than water gun, this time catching Sandshrew with the attack.

"No, Sandshrew!" Kai yelled as he watched the bubbles burst before Sandshrew flew through the air and hit the ground, sliding next to Kai's feet.

"Sandshrew, are you ok?" Kai asked, worried about the little guy.

"Shrew..." Sandshrew said, having taken heavy damage from the water attack being super effective.

"Sand...Sandshrew!" Sandshrew said as it got back up, showing that it could keep fighting.

"That sure is one tough Sandshrew," Lyra said impressed by its attitude.

"But we aren't finished yet either, Marill use bubblebeam again!"

Kai knew that if Sandshrew took another hit from that bubblebeam it was over for him, doing the only thing he could for now.

"Sandshrew, dodge it and use sand attack again!"

Sandshrew used its increase in speed from the rapid spin and tossed more dirt at Marill, hitting in the face again to cover its eyes.

"Mai!" Marill yelled as the dirt in its eyes stung, forcing it to start rubbing them.

"This is our chance Sandshrew, use poison sting again!" Kai yelled, taking full advantage of the situation.

"No, Marill don't let it get close!" Lyra yelled, watching as Sandshrew charged forwards with its right-hand glowing purple.

Marill fired another bubblebeam, but it was no use. Thanks to the dirt in its eyes, Marill couldn't see properly and Sandshrew was able to get close enough to strike it again, jabbing its poison claw into the middle of Marills body.

"Rill!" Marill yelled in pain before it hit the ground hard, not being able to get back up.

"We did it!" Kai yelled, rushing over to his Sandshrew who was now panting hard.

"Sandshrew, you really did it!" Kai yelled again, picking his Sandshrew up in his hands and spinning him around in victory.

"Shrew, shrew!" Sandshrew yelled in happiness, also celebrating with Kai.

"Return Marill. You did great." Lyra said, putting her Pokeball away as she looked over to Kai and Sandshrew.

"Looks like I have nothing left to teach you." She said, feeling happy for him and Sandshrew.

Kai smiled and put Sandshrew down, seeing as he was rather heavy.

"Thank you for everything, Lyra," Kai said, extending his hand to her.

Lyra looked at him funny but laughed it off after a second before she nodded and took his hand, shaking it like an adult would.

"Make sure you are safe on your journey. And don't forget to come and see us when you get back!" Lyra said after a moment taking a step backward.

"I will," Kai said before looking down at his Sandshrew.

"Well buddy, are you ready to hit the road?"

"Shrew! Sandshrew yelled, jumping up onto Kai's shoulder.

"H-Hey, watch it will ya, your heavier than you look!" Kai yelped, realizing he was not as strong now he was a kid again.

"Take care, Lyra. We will see you soon." Kai then said, knowing it was time to get going.

"Yeah," Lyra said, nodding her head.

With that, the two of them parted ways, with Lyra heading back to the Pokemon centre before heading home and Kai heading back towards the road that led out of Newbark town.

Now, my real adventure begins... Kai thought, reaching the top of the hill that overlooked Newbark town, taking one last look at it before he turned his back on it.

"Come on Sandshrew, let's go." He finally said, having decided to keep his Pokemon out of its Pokeball for the time being, something Sandshrew didn't mind at all.

"Shrew!"

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Alright, going to end this chapter here! I hope you are enjoying the story so far.

Lets see if anyone can guess what Kai's next Pokemon will be, let me know in the comments!