Prologue

Musical Intro

Greetings! Glad to meet you!

My name is Finn Cambridge and I welcome you to the world of Pokemon!

People affectionately refer to me as a Pokemon Master!

...

No Really!

I am being 100 percent serious here!

*Ahem*

Anyway, this world is inhabited far and wide by creatures called Pokemon...

What?

You've heard this intro before?

Like, a million times?

Huh. I guess I was not as original as I thought. 

You'll have to forgive me, it has been a lifetime since I last played a Pokemon game. Real Pokemon are so much better than their pixeled sprite versions...

What's that? You think I am insane?

...Well, you might be right...but that doesn't change the fact that I have lived the entirety of this new life of mine in a world filled with real Pokemon!

When I say real, I mean REAL. Real scales, real fur, real elemental attacks, real potions, real teams of baddies. Everything.

From what I can understand, this world seems to have taken all of the Pokemon games, anime, and manga and smushed them together into a reality that tries to make some semblance of sense. 

To be honest, I am not really sure how it works, but it does...and it is magical. Praise Arceus. 

Hmm? How did I get here and how can you get here too?

Pshhh! As if! Get your own Pokemon world, nerds! This one is all mine! Mwahahaha!

*Cough* Sorry about that.

But as for how I got here...well that is quite the story indeed. 

Don't worry, I'll walk you through it all! So, sit back, relax, and settle in because this is gonna be a long one. 

This is how my world of dreams and adventures with Pokemon unfolded...

* | * | *

A 4 legged creature stands in a dark space with a black void surrounding it on all sides. The only light in the space comes from a softly glowing pool beneath the creature's feet. Its black and white head is tilted slightly as it leans over the pool, pondering deeply what it sees. If one were to look at the still water, however, they would only see the reflection of the same creature staring back.

"Hmm... This should not be. How did this lost soul get here, I wonder?" A voice that encompasses all of space and time echos in the void. The creature stares down into the pool of clear liquid, its head twisting the other way in contemplation. Unseen to anyone else, the water projects the image of a hospital and the proceedings of a human child's birth. 

"Watcher," The voice calls a command, "I have a task for you and your kind. See after the child and report to me on any irregularities."

"Mew..." A new voice echoes from somewhere beyond the void.

"Indeed. I believe this could be a sign of great change, but will it be for the better or worse? Only time will tell. Still...his memories are quite interesting..."

* | * | *

'Huh? What happened? Where am I? And...why am I crying like...like a...'

Two giants stared down at me. I could only see hazy outlines, for some reason, but a few things stood out. One was a pretty woman with magenta hair done in a long braid down her left side and brilliant sapphire eyes. She wore a hospital gown and was smiling down at me with tears glistening in the corners of her eyes. The other was a tall man with cerulean hair parted like a 90's pop singer and emerald eyes that shown with intelligence. He wore a button-down yellow shirt, sky blue tie, and khaki pants. ...He was also a sobbing mess as he looked down at me and the woman...

"Cute kid," A giant cat said moving his large paws up to the bedside and licking the woman's face to clear the tears streaming down her cheek.

I blink rapidly.

My vision slowly clears somewhat and the haziness comes into focus enough for me to realize that I was not going insane. 

That cat just spoke.

'Wait...isn't that a...Persian? Like...the Pokémon?' I think as the haziness returns and the world starts spinning.

"James...we did it. We have done our best and finally achieved something truly wonderful. And he is more valuable than a silly Pikachu!" The woman says, staring up at the man above me with love in her eyes.

*Hic* "He is so beautiful!" The man responds as he quickly wipes his tears and snot onto his shirt's sleeve. "I am so proud of you Jessica. I love you so much! Welcome to the world, Finn Cambridge!" The man says leaning down and kissing the woman's forehead.

'No, not a man and woman...' I think as the realization of my situation dawned on me past the spinning room and confusing circumstances.

I am a baby and my parents are Jessie and James from Team Rocket!?!

I then pass into blissful unconsciousness...

* | * | *

Yeah, so....this is how I found out I was reborn into a Pokémon world. My name is...was Max Frazier. Who was I? On Earth, I was no one of any importance, just your average 18-year-old college student. Max Frazier - Yes like the old TV show...I got that a lot growing up, and you think I would have watched an episode or something to get what the hype was about, but nope. Too late for that now, I guess...

Getting off-topic, as I was saying, I was an 18-year-old college nobody who had a very generic life. A middle-class mom and dad, a loving family, a couple of girlfriends here and there (I WAS NOT A VIRGIN!), and, overall, nothing that would set me up as protagonist material. I mean, I loved reading Isekai stories and manga, but it was all fake, ya know? Like, who can honestly expect to fall asleep drunk and wake up in another world? No Gods to give me cheats, no blackness or whiteness surrounding a floating soul version of me, just one second I was sleeping next to my newest girlfriend after a particularly fun rave, and the next I was being born.

What the fuck, am I right?

But as my past and who I was before is now long behind me and not all that interesting, I will get to the important part. My greatest weakness and guilty pleasure: Pokémon. As a child, I collected all the cards and played and owned all the games. My dad bought me my first card pack. He used to collect the cards with me and play the Pokemon games just to spend time with his son. He was really dope and I miss him a lot...

Anyway, I was in love with everything that Pokémon was! Animals you can create friendships with and battle throughout the world...as a child, that is like the rarest of candies! I ate up all that I could and as I got older, I still kept up with the games and story. I dropped the anime after the Johto arc, as it was a bit too corny for the teenager me, but I still read the manga off and on for a long time. I loved everything that was Pokémon, even its uselessly complex story. 

I would ask why that matters for dramatics, but anyone with a brain could tell where I am going with this. Imagine my joy when I found that the new place I was born into was a Pokémon world! It was...honestly, less than you would think. See...as a child, I loved Pokémon as a way to get away from the real world. Wish fulfillment if you will. But now that I found myself living in it...I got a bit worried. Kicking a 10-year-old out of the house to travel the world alone...not in a game or anime...I mean, that is a death sentence! How many children die every year from starvation or dehydration out in the forests or mountains!?! Luckily, it seems that this world had taken the premise of Pokémon and made it into something workable.

For instance, instead of setting out in the world at 10, kids would go to school until 16 and then set off on the highly supervised Jr. League Route. With all the signs pointing you the right way, rest stops every couple of miles, and even Pokemon Rangers that patrolled the routes nightly looking for lost kids, it was as safe as it could be!

Though..."Kids" is not the right word for it. See, once you hit 16 you are an adult in this world. That might seem simple, but it actually was a result of the world mashing together Pokemon themes and trying to make it work. 16-year-olds weren't just treated as adults, they were adults. They had the bodies, minds, and emotions of an 18-year-old. For some reason, I am guessing to keep the theme of kids going out into the world at a young age, the world seems to have reduced the period of adolescence by 2 years for children so that they mature completely at 16 years old. Now, babies weren't born at 2 years old already, mind you, it just took less time for kids to grow. It was a bit odd, to be sure, but it was normal here, so I just gotta go with it.

There were tons of other changes as well, but we can cover those as they appear, the most important thing was that I was here. In a real Pokemon world! A safe Pokemon world and one I had always dreamed of as a child! I am 5 right now, 7 in growth and maturity, and only recently got back some of my past life memories, hence this reflection. My parents are not aware that I am...special, and I doubt they will ever notice. They are a little too dense for that...sweet and loving, but really not the brightest bulbs. 

Okay, enough reflecting. It is time for me to start this new life!

My name is Finn Cambridge, son of Jessie & James Cambridge of Pallet City in Kanto, and this is my journey to become a Pokemon Master!