The office was very normal. It was like one of the student resource offices from his campus. There were some differences. Notably, the Geodude carried a stack of paper across the office.
David had to blink and pinch himself as he saw the Pokemon. From the back it was just a rough hewn boulder, craggy and gray and not at all at home in the office. Then an arm would stretch out and he could see its eyes as it shifted side to side in order to move across the office. As he watched, the Pokemon placed the stack down by a Caterpie.
The Caterpie was freaky in its own way. For one, it was far too big. The Pokemon’s shiny green exoskeleton head was close in size to a melon. David would have thought it a giant cuddly toy if not for the way it moved. Its movements were.. twitchy. A red antenna of some kind shifted back and forth while little cream limbs on the Pokemon’s belly twitched.
The Caterpie warbled something to the Geodude, noting the latest addition to the mountain of paper surrounding it. White strings burst out of the Caterpie and a sheet of paper was raised to its large beady eyes before being sorted into piles around it.
“NEEEXt.” A voice called out.
David glanced away from the Pokemon to see someone leaving one of two booths in the office, and the only booth that was manned. David glanced around but there was no one else waiting. He stepped into the booth and sat down in the chair. A glass screen separated him from the person behind the desk.
“Hello, could I please have your TL number and home branch name?” The woman behind the desk asked, giving David a cursory glance with a friendly smile before looking back at the clunky computer on her desk.
“I don’t have one,” David said. He didn’t know what a TL number was, but he had nothing.
Heat rose to his face. Hopefully this would go better than the Pokecenter had. The woman behind the desk gave off the aura of a teacher with her shiny knit sweater, and frazzled brown hair. David was in no mood to be scolded.
“Can you tell me your name and home branch?” She asked, closing something on her computer and scrolling to open something else up. “I should be able to find it from that.”
“My name is David Smith and I don’t have a home branch,” David said softly. These questions were really driving home how little he had. His phone and wallet were gone. His apartment was gone. His friends and family were gone. Everyone he’d ever known was gone.
Something in his response caused the woman to pause and she looked up and a little closer at David, spotting the stains on his clothes and maybe something in his face.
“Oh.” The woman set her keyboard aside and gave him her full attention. ”My name is Beth. There are a few things I need to know before I can figure out how we can help you alright?”
“Alright,” David replied, choking up a bit.
Beth spent the next few minutes patiently going through a list of questions that covered everything from David’s education to hometown and allergies. David grew more at ease as Beth didn’t push when he couldn’t answer. She seemed to know the forms off by heart, asking questions rapidly and only taking the time to jot down his responses. He was unable to answer far too many questions but aside from a sympathetic smile, Beth continued on.
The final question was the hardest.
“What do you want to do? You aren’t in a great state but you’ve made the first step by coming here. There are several things the League can help with, but you will need to commit.”
This was easy enough to answer. David wanted Pokemon and strong enough Pokemon to find and fight Legendaries. Not that, he knew what else he could do.
“I want to become a Pokemon trainer”
Beth nodded at him before turning and calling out to the nest of paperwork that David had seen a Caterpie in earlier.
“Fuzzy, could I have a copy of Form LR3 and the standard test?”
A shrill “Piiiii” was heard before the sound of shuffling of papers and then a thump rang out. The Geodude from earlier came by the desk and handed over a small booklet and a sheet of paper with a grunt of “Geo” before turning away.
“Thank you Geodude,” Beth said. She turned to address David. “Now your best option is to sign up for the League Recovery program. It was created after the war and while it fell out of favor about a decade ago, it has been started up again due to recent rises in criminal activity.”
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‘War?’ David thought. All he could remember of a war in Pokemon was something about an Electric type gym leader. While the games had historical lore, it was mostly about Legendary Pokemon. He was glad for that seeing as he needed to find them. He couldn’t remember reading anything about historical events in the world.
Criminal activity was another story though. Crime was central to all of the games. Was he here for the start of Team Rocket?
“The program will provide you with a Pokemon based on your STATs and a probationary trainer’s license. The license will give you enough time to prepare and make a gym challenge. You will also receive what used to be standard issue military kit.” Beth continued before clarifying upon seeing David’s confusion. “STATs are the Standard Trainer Assessment Tests and don’t worry, you won’t receive a Venomoth ridden kit. The kit is based on the old kits but with less war propaganda.”
Beth gave a quick look around the room before whispering to David. “The old kit was the main reason why the program was shut down. You can see why. Twitchy trainers finding what looked like Johto military camps in Kanto after the war… and vice versa of course. It was bad for the unity agreement.”
David was reeling from the information. Military? And more importantly, Kanto? David was fairly sure that was the first Pokemon region or game. Which meant he was in the Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander region. Good. Familiar territory. The region where Ash’s journey began. Or was it Red? Why did he remember two different characters?
To prevent himself from spiraling off track, David latched onto the only familiar part of what she said. Tests. As nerve racking as he usually found them, the idea of standardized tests gave him comfort. Here was normality. David had been studying for standardized tests for years.
“What’s in the standard.. The STATs you called them?” David asked.
Beth gave him a smile before replying. “It’s been a while since I took mine but don’t worry, it’s a good system. Each test contains a random selection of questions about basic Pokemon biology, Pokemon care, outdoor education and regional Pokemon data. You will have an hour to complete the test and you can do so in any League Administrative Office.”
David racked his brain, trying to remember anything he could about types and Kanto Pokemon. From what he had seen on the street, Pokemon biology was not like what was in the games. His only hope was that types were the same. He remembered all the types.
Well, he couldn’t remember forgetting any.
‘Oh god I’m screwed.’
“Can I study for it? Is there a library around here?” David questioned. A few hours with some textbooks should jog his memory. He had dedicated more hours to Pokemon than he had to math during his childhood. He could still do math. Once he got a book and was able to practice, David would be ready for any question. A library would also give him a chance to find out more about the war and any other changes from the games.
Beth gave him a guilty look.
“Yes you can and there is a library in the city but access is only for licensed trainers or paying members. Unless you own the study materials or have someone to teach you, there isn’t any way of preparing.” Beth sighed before continuing. “And that’s for the best. You are assigned Pokemon options that you will be capable of handling and caring for. Rote learning would put you and the Pokemon in danger. Learning alongside a Pokemon is the tried and tested way. Besides, the lack of your background information has disqualified you from the Region Key Starter Lotto.”
This caused a sinking feeling in David’s gut. He hadn’t seen a single Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle or any of their evolutions on the street. But it was hard to think that he was here, in this world and yet wouldn’t have what he spent his childhood dreaming of.
Beth read him like a book and she gave him a warm smile.
“Listen it might not seem like much but people have achieved great things out of this program. There have been several Veteran and Ace trainers sitting in your same shoes right now. And who knows.” Her smile turned to a grin. “You may be lucky enough to get your very own Fuzzy. One of the common 11.”
A shrill “Caaa-ter-Piiiiiii-e” rang out at this from the nest of paper in the corner.
David couldn’t help but smile back at Beth. Her help was proving invaluable. So what if he wouldn’t get a regional starter? There were plenty of strong Pokemon out there.
“Okay. Where do I take the test?” He asked.
David was directed over to a desk in the opposite corner of the room from the paper nest and given a pen. He wasn’t sure if he was placed away from the counters for quiet and privacy or for the smell of his clothes, but it didn’t seem like anyone was worried about him cheating.
-.-
59 minutes later David was flicking his pen back and forth as he nervously read through his paper for the last time. As Beth had said, the tests were good quality. The questions were multiple choice, clear and easily understood. A short paragraph on the front of the booklet credited Professor Oak for the questions which gave David an overwhelming sense of comfort. Maybe this world wasn’t so different after all.
David’s only issue was the subject matter of the questions. Recommended berry to carbohydrate ratios for Pokemon food? Brushing frequency required for Pokemon fur upkeep? Survival priorities in an emergency?
At least it was multiple choice so David could make guesses.
On the other hand the Pokemon typing and evolution questions were much easier than he expected. In fact the type and evolution questions were so easy it made him wonder. As he closed the book and passed it to the Geodude which had been waiting by his arm, he had a startling revelation. The Pokedex. He hadn’t seen one yet. If he was in Kanto and team Rocket was just getting started, maybe Professor Oak was still developing it.
“David,” Beth called from behind him. “This should be marked in 10 minutes if you want to go for a walk.”
His legs were a bit cramped actually. He could try asking someone about the Pokedex. It was such an essential thing that anyone with a Pokemon would know about it.
David got up and with a distracted wave to Beth, made his way outside.