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Jason Creight awoke to the sight of a dark sky overhead.

He checked his watch. It was 8:30 in the morning.

"Looks like rain," he muttered, as he sat up. He found himself in dense foliage on a small, deserted island. Beyond the foliage, as it had been for many weeks now, Gyarados lay on the shoreline, looking out to sea. What for, Jason didn't know. To him, it just seemed as if Gyarados were wandering aimlessly through the waters of the world. It had become less and less confident about where it was going during the past weeks, and Jason had begun to wonder if they were ever going to find another human being out here.

He scratched his itching bare chest. His shirt had been torn to shreds in a particularly vicious encounter with a flotilla of Tentacool, led by an amazingly high-level Tentacruel. With only Hyper Beam to defend them with, Gyarados had had a tough time forcing them away, and during the battle, Jason had fallen into the water. He lost his shoes and socks in that same encounter, leaving him with only his watch, belt, and khaki shorts.

This isn't how it was supposed to be, he thought to himself miserably. I thought Gyarados would help me find a new life, not ravage the old one further.

Suddenly, Gyarados began roaring.

Jason's head snapped up and his eyes darted toward not Gyarados, but rather, the sea.

He had long since come to the conclusion that Gyarados was trying to find its way based on the mental maps of other friendly Pokémon. Friendlies were hard to find, since most wild Pokémon were jealous of captured ones. Hope began to surge within Jason's veins. Maybe we won't be stuck here at sea for the rest of our lives after all, he thought.

Jason had no idea where they were going. He'd thought he was going to scour the Orange Islands after the incident at the marina, not be taken this far away from it. But Gyarados had insisted he ride. And so he rode.

He and Gyarados had survived for nearly three months on wild fruits and vegetables. He'd had his twelfth birthday on the lam; it seemed to him that it would probably be the most memorable of them all. He was gaining more and more muscle, as he had to wrestle with some Pokémon to get what he needed to survive. When he wrestled them, his thoughts would momentarily shift to that horrific memory of Daniel with his whip. But then, he would push the thoughts away and concentrate.

Still, he thought, I have to make sure I'll never be anything like Daniel.

Then again, how tough can that be?

Gyarados shifted its head around and did a growl-roar towards Jason that Jason had come to know as its call to him. Jason scrambled out of the bushes and up to Gyarados, as a bolt of lightning flashed.

"Have we found our way now?" Jason asked, just as the thunder rolled across the sky.

Gyarados nodded vigorously, and had a jubilant expression on its face.

"From the look on your face, I take it we're close to our destination," said Jason.

It nodded again. Then it tossed its head in the direction of its back.

"You're a bit eager today. Are we that close?"

It nodded impatiently, then tossed its head towards its back again.

"Okay..." Jason muttered uncertainly. He mounted Gyarados.

It pushed off with a surge of power and ferocity that Jason had not felt in it since the first time he had ridden it. At that time, it had been as eager to leave the Orange Islands as he was. He could barely hold onto it then, and he could barely hold onto it now.

More lightning flashed overhead, and this time, Jason noticed it. "Hope there's no trouble going on up there," he muttered. He knew that it was 50- 50 between a real storm and one or several Pokémon conjuring one. Stray bolts could be disastrous; he'd seen the effects of lightning on other water Pokémon, as much as he'd worked with them.

Gyarados shook its head, which was both a sign that it had heard him, as well as a confirmation that the storm had come naturally.

Driving rain began pouring down on them, reducing Jason's visibility to zero. It was so dark, save for when the lightning flashed, that he couldn't even see his hand in front of his face. He knew, though, that Gyarados was pushing hard against shat rain, and in a straight line. He expected that, since when Gyarados or any other water Pokémon knew where they were going, and what direction they had to go in to get there, they would use their "internal compasses" to ensure they were moving in a straight line. Jason didn't pretend to know how it worked; he knew only that it did.

Of course, since Gyarados obviously didn't know the exact location of their destination, it couldn't go in a straight line towards that destination. So the compass wasn't a factor until it found friendlies to ask.

More and more lightning flashed across the black sky. Jason didn't know how long he'd been mounted on Gyarados; it seemed like an eternity, though he figured from that kind of estimate, it had only been a few minutes. Gyarados was so slippery and the rain so brutal that he didn't dare loosen his hold to hit the light on his watch. He just held on tighter and pressed the side of his head against Gyarados' back.

When will it be over? he wondered, on the verge of despair. Now even Mother Nature herself doesn't want us going where we're going! I wish Gyarados could use Hyper Beam to light the way, but it can't do it anymore since that incident with the Tentacool!

Abruptly, Jason was viciously thrown from Gyarados' back. He sailed through the rain-filled air...

And landed in sand.

He skidded six feet, then came to a stop.

He looked up, though he couldn't see anything. He felt around.

"Gyarados!" he screamed.

It roared in response. It was very near, but neither of them could see the other.

Then lightning flashed again. Jason spotted Gyarados' head about three feet away. He crawled over to it and curled into a ball, waiting for the storm to pass.

***

Jason had to force his eyes open, even though the glaring light beyond his eyelids made him not want to. Someone was shaking his shoulder.

"Hey, kid!" a voice shouted into his ear.

It was still raining. Jason could feel it pelting him, though he was becoming more and more numb to it. He looked up and saw a man with brown hair sloppily palmed to one side. He had a shock of gray on either temple, and he was wearing a red shirt and black pants.

Jason saw that the light was coming from a pair of headlights, mounted on the front of a jeep painted in camo colors.

"Hey!" the man shouted again. "You okay?"

Jason looked up at the man again. He nodded wearily. "I think so!"

"Come on, let's get you inside!"

And then Jason realized that Gyarados wasn't next to him. "Where's Gyarados?"

"Long story! I'll tell you about it on the way!" the man answered.

Jason was in no condition to disagree. The man's strong hands slipped under Jason's arms and helped him to his feet. The soaked duo ran to the jeep and got inside.

"So..." Jason wheezed, "where's Gyarados?"

"Your Gyarados is at my lab," the man answered, as they drove off. "Somehow, it made mental contact with a Drowzee I'm studying there and Drowzee guided me to where you were. Drowzee's already teleported itself and Gyarados back to the lab. Do you have a capture ball for your Gyarados?"

Jason shook his head. "No, I don't."

"So it's wild?"

"It's a long story, but Gyarados is tame."

"Care to share that story?" the man asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Not really."

The man shrugged. "Makes no difference to me. I assume you're not from around here."

"No, I'm not." Jason turned to look at the man. "I hope it's not inconvenient, but I came here with no money and nothing to eat. If you could spare some food, I would much appreciate it."

"No problem," the man answered. "By the way, my name is Sam."

"Mine's Jason."

"Well, pleasure to meet you, Jason."

***

The jeep came to a stop inside a garage attached to a large white building. Jason could only assume that it was Sam's lab. The garage was cluttered, and barely had enough space to hold the jeep. Still, Sam managed.

When Jason tried to get out of the jeep, he ended up tumbling to the ground. Sam ran around the jeep and picked Jason up, saying, "Whoa, there, Jason. You need rest to rebuild your strength."

"No, I need food to do that," Jason answered. "I'll rest once I have something to eat." He turned to face Sam. "And I also want to see Gyarados."

"Fine, we'll go see Gyarados after you eat and rest."

"But--"

"No, Jason, no buts about it." Sam's tone brooked no argument, his gaze steely. "You can eat, and then I want you to rest. Then you can see Gyarados for as long as you want. But I will not allow you to do that before you rest."

Jason sighed. "Fine."

"Now, put your arm around my waist, and we'll go to the mess."

***

As Jason helped himself to another serving of fruit salad, rice, and tofu, Sam stared at him in amazement. "Have you been on the lam or something?"

"In a word, none of your business," Jason answered.

"That's four words," Sam replied, with a look of amusement.

"Details, details," Jason muttered around a mouthful of rice.

"I'm just amazed at how much tofu you're eating. I can't stand the stuff."

Jason grinned.

After Jason was finally finished with his food, Sam donned a white lab coat and guided Jason to the guest bedroom. Jason asked, "So where am I?"

"At my lab, of course. In Pallet Town."

"Pallet Town?" Jason's eyes flashed to the name tag on Sam's lab coat.

Professor Samuel Oak

Head Researcher

Jason looked back up at Sam. "You're Professor Oak?"

Sam laughed. "Well, of course I am. You didn't notice the name tag?"

"You told me your name, I didn't think I needed to look at it." Suddenly, Jason began to wonder if Sam was seeing him as petty and smart-alecky. He knew very well who Professor Samuel Oak was; he was one of the world's top frontier researchers on Pokémon. He'd made countless discoveries about Pokémon behavior and evolution, and he was the idol of every Pokémon trainer Jason had ever met.

Sam sighed. "It's nice to meet someone who gets a chance to find out who you really are, someone who doesn't know you for your title. I'm just a simple researcher, nothing more than that." Just as Jason opened his mouth to argue, Sam raised his finger. "Ah-Ah. None of that. I may be world- famous, but that doesn't make me any more than I am. I'm only a researcher. And I'm a human being, not a god. Don't ever say otherwise, and ignore anyone else who says otherwise. It's all Grimer sludge."

As Jason laid down on the bed, Sam said, "We'll continue this conversation after you get some sleep. You'll need it. And you'll also need some new clothes. I'll go ask my assistants if they can lend some." He grinned. "But in the meantime, you've got a remarkable build for someone your age."

***

Jason's sleep was blissfully dreamless. At least, he didn't remember dreaming during that sleep, and that was fine with him. When he awoke, he found that Sam had apparently turned out the light on his way out. Jason fumbled around, and found a lamp on the bedside table. The switch was on the cord; he had to squint as soon as he turned it on. The paint job didn't help; the room was white, just like the rest of the building.

He spotted a fresh change of clothes right next to the lamp. He put them on gratefully, then wondered where he should go. He decided he'd best find Sam so he could see Gyarados.

He left the room and headed down the hallway, not really sure of where he was going. Luckily, there was an assistant heading in the opposite direction.

"Excuse me," said Jason. "Where can I find Professor Oak?"

"Go all the way to the end of this hall, turn right, and it'll be the third door on the left."

"Thanks." Jason walked on.

When he entered the room indicated, he found it had the proportions of a gymnasium. Inside were several specimens of Pokémon in large glass cases. The cases lined either wall; it looked somewhat like a zoo. All of them seemed to be injured in some form. A faint smell of antiseptics and disinfectants wafted out the door, a smell Jason noticed immediately.

Jason saw Gyarados inside one of the glass cases. It was sleeping fitfully; its tail was lashing all over the place, and its face was contorted by conflicting emotions. Sam was standing in front of that case. Jason strode up to him.

"Even when it's asleep, its power is frightening," Jason commented.

Sam glanced at Jason, then turned back to Gyarados. "Yes, it is. But it should be fully rested shortly. We've already treated it for any injuries. It had muscle strain and some bruising. Of course, I'd expect that from as much hard-core swimming as it was doing."

He turned to Jason. "It might have been worse if you had insisted it do more."

Jason laughed from the grim amusement more than anything else. "Like I could force Gyarados to do anything. It could have returned to its family if it had wanted. It could have left me in the lurch."

"But Pokémon gain a connection to the humans they remain in prolonged contact with. You could conceivably have insisted Gyarados continue day and night, and I'm sure it would have done so."

"I didn't want to push it. It had to go at its own pace. Sometimes I insisted, but only when I knew it could go a little further. For example, we might be heading to a small island for the night. Let's say I saw a larger island on the horizon. I might ask Gyarados to go to the larger island instead. Then, we'd sleep a little more than usual. It's a give- and-take situation there."

"Exactly. And that tells me that you have all the appropriate character traits and positive aspects of a Pokémon trainer."

Jason was surprised. He'd thought about being a trainer from time to time, but had never given the prospect considerable, serious thought. If he ever did think of himself as a future trainer, he'd give himself the "hero trainer" look in his mind. All the best Pokémon, all the money... The good stuff that everyone goes for and almost no one gets.

Sam grinned. "You weren't expecting that from me, were you?"

"Actually, I wasn't expecting that from anyone in particular," Jason answered.

"Well, think about it," Sam replied. "You don't even need to wait until next year. You can get your Pokémon license anytime you want, assuming you're over ten years old. And you sure look older than ten to me."

"I'm twelve," Jason confirmed.

"And you don't need to wait until next year to get a starter Pokémon, either. You already have your Gyarados. All you need are capture balls. As a professor with starter Pokémon to be given away, I'm required to provide five Poké balls and a Pokémon journal. Under normal circumstances, I'd have to give the starter Pokémon and its Poké ball to you as well, but you already have your own starter, and it doesn't have a capture ball. I could only give you the five." Sam paused. "Of course, that's only if you want them. Either that, or you can keep wandering the world, still looking for a new life."

"What do you know about that?" Jason asked, beginning to fear that Sam somehow knew what had happened to him.

Sam grinned mysteriously. "More, I think, than you want me to. But destroyed marinas have nothing to do with me. You had your reasons."

"What makes you think I had anything to do with it?"

"Gyarados' only attack is Hyper Beam, and it's at too low a level to have learned it naturally. It had to learn it from a TM. You're the one traveling with it, so you must be the one who taught Hyper Beam to it. I think we both know the rest."

"If you don't know why Gyarados and I did what we did, then I think one of us doesn't know all the rest. So now that you know, what do you plan to do about it? Turn me over to Officer Jenny?"

"No. The good officer will have to figure it out for herself."

A great flash of lightning crackled outside, and thunder rolled overhead. A few moments later, Jason heard the door open, and a soaked and distraught young woman with a toddler in her arms rushed in.

"Professor!" she cried out. "The tree in our backyard was knocked over onto our house!"

Sam's face became filled with deep concern. "Are you all right?"

She nodded, tears streaming down her face. "I just hope it's not a total loss! We have so many memories in that house!"

"That reminds me," said Sam, "I'd better check on Gary. I need to make sure he's all right. At least he's here, where he's safe." Sam turned to Jason. "Why don't you talk to Mrs. Ketchum, Jason? Telling her about the Orange Islands might take her mind off her house."

He raced through the door and down the hall.

Jason wasn't sure how to introduce himself to a crying woman. He finally approached her and said, "Why don't you come on over and have a seat next to my Gyarados?"

She sniffed. "You're very kind. What's your name?"

"Jason," he answered. "And who's the tiny tot here?"

"Oh, this is my son, Ash," she answered. "The same name as the type of that tree." She bounced Ash up and down on her knee. The boy was dressed in a blue shirt and red overalls. He had a mop of black hair, drenched like the rest of him. He had one finger in his mouth, and he was drooling.

Jason sat on his ankles and looked into Ash's eyes. "Hi, Ash. How are you?"

Ash gurgled.

Jason laughed. "I see all's well with you." He looked up at Ash's mother. "How old is he?"

"He'll be four in a couple months."

"Cool. I just had my twelfth birthday. Wasn't the best, but at least I had it."

"Well, I'm glad to hear it," responded Mrs. Ketchum. "Are you a trainer?"

Jason chuckled ruefully. "Not really. I come from the Orange Islands. I came here on my Gyarados. I'm looking for something a little different."

"I think you'll find that Kanto is pretty different from the Orange Islands," she responded. "I'd like to go there someday. It sounds like a great vacation spot."

"Well, what about your son? Is he interested in Pokémon?"

Mrs. Ketchum snorted. "I think Pokémon was his first word."

As if on cue, Ash bounced up and down vehemently on his mother's knee, chanting, "Pokémon! Pokémon! Pokémon!"

"Ah," said Jason. Belatedly, he realized that he hadn't checked his watch since the last leg of his journey to Pallet Town. He looked at it; it said 5:19 in the evening. He looked up at Mrs. Ketchum. "I hope nothing bad has happened to Sam."

"Professor Oak? Oh, nothing bad happens to him. He might be reckless sometimes, but he always comes out of situations without a scratch. Besides, his grandson is here in the building. So maybe he's just staying with him for a while."

"How old is his grandson?"

"The same age as Ash. They've been rivals since they first hit the atmosphere." She leaned close to Jason. "Now, don't tell this to Professor Oak, but I think Gary acts like a snob, even for his age. He's overconfident. He's hurt himself because of that. That's why I let Ash rival him; so that Gary has a chance to be humbled once in a while."

Jason scoffed. "I had a brother who probably would have gotten along great with Gary."

"Had a brother?"

Jason looked down at the floor. "Not anymore, I don't."

Mrs. Ketchum's eyes softened, but she didn't say anything. Perhaps she didn't know how to take it; she could have taken it to mean that Jason had either truly lost his brother, or just disowned him.

"So have you come here to start training?" she asked.

Jason was silent for a couple moments, then finally responded, "I don't know. Sam offered the chance to me, but I don't know if I should take it."

"Well, I should know from my husband's example that training isn't easy, but it is rewarding," she replied. "I never saw such happiness in him as when he was with me, his son, and his Pokémon."

Jason saw a sadness in her eyes as she said this; he chose not to ask her where her husband was. He didn't think it was quite fair for him to be gone when he had a son to raise; on the other hand, he had no idea as to the man's whereabouts. For all Jason knew, he could be long gone.

Her gaze became stronger. "You should at least give it a try, Jason. You could be a role model for my son."

***

The next morning, Sam handed Jason five Poké balls and a Pokémon journal. Then he shook Jason's hand.

Jason felt something between his hand and the professor's. When their hands parted, Jason saw that Sam had just handed him five thousand credits.

"Use it well, Jason. You can pay me back on your return," said Sam. "Good luck on your journey."

Jason nodded gravely. "I won't let you down."

"Make sure you don't."

Jason approached Gyarados, which had been released from its case and was watching all that was happening. Jason looked up into its eyes. "You planned this all along, didn't you? You knew that Professor Oak was here, and you knew that I could be persuaded to become a trainer."

It nodded, a glint of mischief sparking in its eyes.

"Well," Jason said, "it worked. Poké ball, go!" With that, he hit the enlarger button on his first Poké ball and threw it at Gyarados. It hit his target dead-on and opened up. Gyarados transformed into a neon bolt of energy, which then leaped in. The specialized mirrors within the ball held Gyarados' energy form in place, keeping it from solidifying.

Jason then put the four empty balls into his left pants pocket and Gyarados' ball in his right one. He walked up to Mrs. Ketchum and Ash. He bent down to look into Ash's eyes one last time. "Now I have to be a role model for you. You remember me, okay? I might not see you again."

"Okay," said the toddler, clearly not fully comprehending what Jason was saying.

Jason smiled. He didn't especially mind that Ash might not remember him; he knew he would remember Ash.

He looked up at Mrs. Ketchum. "You've got a good boy here, Mrs. Ketchum. Make sure that you keep him that way."

She returned his smile. "I'll do what I can."

"That's all I can ask for."

Then Jason left the lab and headed for the horizon.

"I have a lot to do," he mused. "But I can do it."

Jason Creight walked on.