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Rising Storm: Book One

Discussion in 'Literature Library' started by Jack Storm 448, Nov 22, 2014.

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  1. Jack Storm 448

    Joined:
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    Chapter 1:
    A prologue, of sorts.


    My dear Frodo...

    Pardon me, wrong story.

    This is the tale of Jack Storm, a Pokémon master; and more, but we'll get to that later. For now I think it best to start at the beginning; in a forest, in the Sinnoh region.

    It was not big enough, or close enough to a human city to be named by them, but to the Pokémon who lived there it was known as Greenwood. It was a little cliché, but who's going to fault them?

    More specifically, our story begins in a little cave inhabited by a small family of Lucario; Mother, Father, and a little Riolu pup named Jason. They lived a happy life there with the other forest Pokémon. Not a carefree life, but a happy life. Until one summer day...

    "Dear, I'm going to get some food for dinner," called the male Lucario, "I'll be back in a while."

    "Okay," called his mate, coming out of the cave to see him off, "Just make sure you're back by sundown, and try not to get into too much trouble."

    Father Lucario grinned, as much as he could with a snout, and said under his breath, "Yes, mother."

    "I beg your pardon?" the Mother Lucario said, pretending to be offended; the effect was ruined by the smile on her face.

    "Nothing, nothing at all," Father Lucario replied with mock innocence.

    Mother Lucario laughed at her mate's boyish antics, and planted a quick Lucario-style kiss on his cheek.

    "I thought you were going to get dinner," she said, giving him a playful shove towards the woods, "Get going, you idiot."

    Father Lucario's grin grew, and he gave her a mock bow, "Right away, ma'm."

    Thus saying, he went out into the forest, passing by several forest Pokémon on the way to his favorite foraging grounds. When he arrived he quickly took stock of the available food, then he gathered enough for himself and his mate (young Jason had not been weaned yet) and bundled it all up in a basket of long grass.

    After living in Greenwood for several years, he knew his way around pretty well; he knew the tricks of the trade too, such as how to tell which berries were ripe. But he could still remember his first year in the wild; when he fell head over heels for Mother Lucario, his trainer decided that for Father Lucario to be happy, he had to be free.

    That first year in the wild was the hardest thing Father Lucario had ever gone through, especially the winter, but the forest Pokémon were nothing but kind to him and his new mate. They persevered, and in time life became easier; eventually, Greenwood began to feel like home.

    Of course, even though he now lived in the wild, Father Lucario still retained a lot from his years as a trainer's Pokémon; he could read and write as well as any human, and he could even speak English fairly well. Most Pokémon he knew never bothered to learn to read, write, or speak English, and most trainers never bother to teach them; but as Father Lucario proved, it was not impossible.

    Once he'd collected enough food for dinner, Father Lucario headed back to the cave that he and his mate called home; knowing that he had plenty of time before sundown, he decided to take the 'scenic' route home.

    Turning off the beaten path, he passed close to the lake at the centre of the forest. It was usually a peaceful and serene place, where he often went to relax; emphasis on usually.

    As he stepped into the clearing then, he saw three Poochyena stalking something. Feeling like having a little fun, and wanting to help whatever they were stalking, he put down his bundle and stepped out into the open.

    It was not a good day for the Poochyena; Father Lucario gave them a proper whipping, and sent them packing. After chasing the perpetrators away, he got his first look at what they had found; it was a human baby! Following this discovery, Father Lucario engaged in a brief but heated mental discussion with himself.

    "A human baby? How did it get here?" asked one part of his mind.

    "More importantly, what do I do with it? Should I just leave it here?" asked another.

    "No! Of course not; those Poochyena would be back as soon as I leave." exclaimed the first.

    "But then what do I do with it?" he took a closer look.

    In reality, the baby was a him, and couldn't have been more than a few months old.

    "About the same age as Jason," he thought.

    The baby was wrapped in swathes of cobalt-blue cloth, that felt amazingly soft and warm; unlike anything Father Lucario had ever seen. The baby's head was covered with pale yellow fuzz, but what really caught Father Lucario's attention were the electric blue eyes staring back at him. As soon as he made eye contact, the baby started to coo and reach for him.

    "He doesn't seem frightened by me at all. I wonder..."

    "Don't be ridiculous. I can't keep it, it's a human!"

    "What does that matter, we're all God's creatures. Besides, if I don't take him with me, he'll die out here."

    The father Lucario picked the baby up and rested it in the crook of his arm, where it soon fell asleep.

    "Well that settles it," he said out loud, "he hasn't got anyone else, so we'll just have to take care of him ourselves."

    Carrying the baby in the crook of his arm, Father Lucario walked home at a sedate pace; trying not to wake the child sleeping in his arms. In his preoccupied state, he barely remembering to pick up the bundle of food on the way.

    When he got home, Mother Lucario was just coming out to look for him, fearing that he had run into trouble; she could never have guessed what had actually taken place. Her joy at seeing him safe and sound, was soon replaced by confusion at the blue bundle he was carrying so carefully.

    "What have you got there?" she asked, with her paws on her hips, "Not another human knick-knack, I hope."

    Ever since they'd settled down in Greenwood, Father Lucario had taken to 'borrowing' things from the human town just ten minutes walk from the edge of the forest. He only took things that no one wanted anymore; things they were going to throw away, or had already. Still, Mother Lucario didn't approve of the practice.

    "You could call it that," he replied, showing her the contents of the bundle, "but I get the feeling you'll want to keep this one."

    Mother Lucario gasped in surprise, "A human baby? Where on Earth did you find that?"

    He gave her the ten second version, finishing with, "...he hasn't got anyone else, and we can't just leave him to die; I know it seems strange, even impossible for us to raise a human child, but I believe that God will work it all out for good."

    Just then, the baby began to cry, and Mother Lucario's kind heart went out to it. She took the baby into her own arms and gently rocked it back and forth. This action dislodged a small golden disk from the bundle of fabric. Father Lucario stooped down and picked it up; it was about two inches in diameter, had a picture of a lightning bolt on one side, and two words on the other.

    "Jack Storm," he read.

    Mother Lucario stroked the baby's face, "Then that's what we'll call him; Jack Storm."
    As the years went by, Jack Storm grew up side by side with his Pokémon brother, Jason. Training, learning, and growing in faith and body. In fact, he grew and matured surprisingly quickly; almost as quickly as his brother. His foster parents found that within two months, Jack could already walk on two legs, and a month after that he could run and play tag with the other Pokémon. A full year after Jack had joined the family, he was four feet tall, and he and Jason started training in combat; a necessity for wild Pokémon.

    They usually trained against their other friends, but they often sparred against each other as well. The two brothers were not evenly matched, however. Jason had the abilities and instincts of a Riolu, and so could beat Jack every time they sparred. By this point though, Jack was the mental equivalent of a ten-year old, and he learned with startling ease. He started copying his opponents' movements and techniques, and began winning increasingly often. Then, three and a half months into their training...

    "I'm going to wipe the battlefield with you this time Jack," shouted Clayton, the young Mankey against whom he was sparring; he was a good friend to have, but had trouble keeping his temper under control sometimes.

    "We'll see," replied Jack in his cool, calm, and collected manner which tended to aggravate the opposition.

    It worked.

    "Argg!" exclaimed the Mankey as he charged at Jack with Tackle.

    Jack just stood and waited... then gracefully sidestepped the attack, at the same time tripping his opponent who landed face first in the dirt. The crowd of young Pokémon surrounding them cheered. Clayton got back up and faced Jack, who began to taunt him.

    "Is that all you've got? My mother hits harder than you."

    This was, of course, completely true, but it still had the desired effect.

    "Yargg!"

    This time Jack's opponent went in with Dynamicpunch. Not the smartest move, because it focusses more on power than accuracy, and is therefore easier to dodge; which Jack promptly did. Clayton then engaged in Close Combat, which Jack avoided once more; albeit, with some difficulty.

    "He's good," Jack thought to himself, "I'm not sure I could take him if he wasn't so angry. I'd better step it up a notch."

    Jack would never say this out loud, of course; instead he said, "Ha! if that's all you can do, then I'm twice the Pokémon you are."

    "Argg; stand still and fight. You can't even use any moves!"

    "Oh really," said Jack under his breath; out loud he said, "Come and get me then, or is the Mankey a little Torchick?"

    "YAAARRRGGGG!"

    "Oh sorry, did I make you mad?"
    Mankey charged at Jack, all caution thrown to the wind. Once again Jack let him get closer, but this time the boy's eyes momentarily turned a pure golden color.

    To the complete astonishment of all in the clearing, Jack executed a flawless Counter attack by grabbing the Mankey's right wrist with his left hand, and yanking the off-balance Pokémon into his right hand; which just so happened to be curled into a fist at the time. Clayton was out for the count.

    A shocked silence ensued... followed by tentative clapping, which turned into applause that spread though the crowd like wildfire. The referee, a young Machop, confirmed it.

    "Clayton is unable to battle. Jack Storm is the winner."

    Later that night, after a party thrown in Jack's honor, Jason confronted Jack about his new found power.

    "Youmeanthatyou'vbeenabletousemovesforawhilenowandyoudidn'ttellme?!"

    Jack tactfully waited for his brother to vent, before replying, "Yes."

    The young Riolu stared at him for a second in stunned silence before replying with a very small, "oh."

    Jason gained a thoughtful look, and after a moment's reflection said, "Alright; but the next time, you have to tell me about it. Okay?"

    "I promise," replied Jack, yawning, "Now, let's get some sleep."

    "Sounds good," Jason said, curling up on a bed of straw, "Good night, Jack."

    "Good night, Jason."

    Chapter 2:
    The adventure begins; Part 1.


    Now that his origins have been established, we can move on to a turning point in Jack's life.

    It had now been exactly ten years since Jack Storm joined the lucario family. Jason had evolved into a Lucario, but they still always ended up in a stalemate when they sparred. What's more, Jack had seemingly no limit to the number of moves he could remember.

    So far, he knew fighting, psychic, normal, and for some reason electric type moves. Presently he knew Counter, Agility, Mach Punch, Psychic, and Thunderbolt. He had trained in aura use as well, although he couldn't use Aura Sphere yet. But I digress; back to the story we go.

    Early on a summer morning, Jack awoke and rubbed his eyes. He got up and found that his family were nowhere to be seen. He shrugged and put on has favorite blue robes. These were the same ones that he had been found in ten years ago, and they had fit him for four years now; they resembled closely the uniforms that humans wore for martial arts, and were loose-fitting and didn't restrict his movement.

    They also didn't seem to wear out or fade no matter how much he wore them; he just washed them, and they came right back for more. It was a good thing too. Before that he had to wear clothes made from leaves, fur, and skins (don't ask.) After donning his curious apparel, Jack went to the lake to freshen up for the day, taking with him a small satchel.

    The walk to the lake was relatively uneventful. Once there he stripped down to his loincloth and took a bath. Then he took a bone comb out of the satchel and tried (and failed) to groom his unruly golden hair into submission. He soon gave up, got dressed, and sat on the bank of the lake thinking, as he had done every day for the last two weeks.

    He thought about the life he had here; peaceful, even monotonous at times. It was a good life, but sometimes he felt like he was ment to do more. He had found himself going on long walks more and more often, and on each occasion he walked a little further. Sometimes he even went so far that he left the forest behind. In fact, he and Jason had recently been making frequent trips to the human town near the edge of the forest. He thought long and hard about his tendency to wander, before deciding to put it on the back burner; so to speak.

    Jack took a leather-bound book out of his satchel. He had found both objects some years earlier, in the human town not too far from the forest. Jack sat down under an old oak tree, and began to read; reading was one of the things that his adoptive parents had gone to great lengths to teach him, and he had learned fairly well. Although he still didn't know why they thought that he needed to be able to read.

    "Acts chapter three. Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour..."

    And the ninth hour is also when Jack stopped reading and went home.

    As he stepped into the cave the first thing he noticed was that it was dark; darker than usual. The next thing he noticed was a delicious smell coming from deeper inside the cave. He'd been trained to recognise smells on, well... smell; but this one was new to him. It was like... He just couldn't place it, but it definitely smelled sweet.

    Jack ventured deeper into the cave, and it got even darker. Then he smelled something else, a smell he did recognise, and he heard soft breathing. Something clicked in his mind. he had read about something like this; something about...

    "Surprise!"

    A torch flared, and in the new light he saw his family and all of his friends standing around him. Mother Lucario walked up to him, carrying a large berry-cake that had obviously come from the human town. But Jack didn't have time to think about that, as Jason rushed up and gave him a big hug; of course, minding the spike on his chest.

    "Happy Birthday, Jack," Jason said, and everyone else parroted it in unison.

    "Happy Birthday, Jack."

    After that, the party was a blur. Jack remembered playing some games with his friends, eating cake, (which tasted delicious, although he had no idea how his parents had gotten their paws on it), and receiving gifts of many kinds; including berries, various books, and a somewhat worn backpack from his parents. This last gift intrigued him; why would his parents give him a backpack? He decided to confront them about it first thing in the morning.
    "Why did you get me a backpack?"

    It was too early in the morning for him to be tactful.

    His father turned to him with an understanding smile on his face, "We've known for a while that you've been thinking about leaving the nest, and we wanted to give you something to help you on your journey. In fact, the party yesterday was really as much a farewell party as a birthday party."

    Jack was somewhat taken aback, "How did you know?"

    "You've been taking a lot of long walks recently. And besides, it was pretty obvious from your aura."

    Jack mentally smacked his forehead.

    His mother came up to him and gave him a hug (minding the spike), "It's normal for a young man your age to go out into the world, whether Pokémon or human. We've been expecting this for years."

    "I'm not sure yet whether I actually want to leave," Jack replied, escaping the hug. "I'll have to at least think about it some more."

    Father put his paw on Jack's shoulder and said softly, "Whatever you decide, remember that we love you and want you to be happy."

    For the first time since he could remember, Jack's eyes began to water just a little.

    "Thank you."
    That night, Jack lay in his bed of straw, and thought long and hard..

    "What do I really want do with my life? What does my future hold? ...THAT'S IT!"

    Jack sat up with a new revelation, "Only God knows what's going to happen, so I'll ask him what to do."

    Jack lay back down, and prayed long into the night. And it seemed to him that, after a while, God began to speak to him as well; not with words, but with a new certainty of what he was going to do. In the morning, he told his parents what he had decided.

    "I'm leaving today."

    Chapter 3:
    The adventure begins; Part 2.
    The rest of the morning was spent telling the other inhabitants of the forest, packing what he wanted to take with him, and deciding where exactly he would go.

    "The town will be my first stop. I'll get some more supplies, and plot the rest of my course from there."

    That was the easy part.

    Jack left at noon, and his friends gathered at the edge of the forest to see him off; Jason carried his bags along the way. If Jack had taken a closer look, he would have noticed an extra sack, that he had not packed; he was, however, too busy thinking about other things. When they reached the edge, he stopped and turned to hug his mother and father.

    "I'll be back," Jack said with tears in his eyes, "I promise."

    After a moment, he turned to his brother who then gave him all the supplies; except one bag.

    "What are you doing with that?" Jack asked; he realized what was happening a second before Jason said it.

    "I'm coming with you of course."

    Jack stared at him with mixed disbelief, gratitude, and most of all, objection; Jason stared back, with ironclad resolution, and an unspoken challenge to deny him. After a few seconds Jack realized that this was a battle he would never win. The disbelief and objection disappeared, and he embraced his brother, who was a little stunned at first but soon returned the hug.

    "You don't think I'd let you go traipsing all over the known world without me, did you?" Jason said with a grin; or as close to one as he could manage with a snout.

    Jack put his arm around his brother's shoulder, "I wouldn't dream of it."

    To the sound much cheering and well wishing, the two brothers stepped out of the forest together. As they headed out toward the human town, they turned and waved one last time. After that, they didn't look back again.
    It took them about half an hour to get to the town. By this time they had seen enough grassy, wide open plains to satisfy them for a lifetime. Once in the town they first looked for a source of information, which they found in the library. Jack was very glad that his parents had made sure he learned English, and that he was already somewhat familiar with the lay of the land.

    After a little research, they found that the town was called Sandgem, and it resided in the region the humans called Sinnoh. They also found that, by some amazing coincidence, there was a professor there that could start them on their journey. They hastened to his laboratory, eager to get their journey underway.

    As they walked through the doorway of the building designated as Professor Rowan's Laboratory, a little bell rang to announce their presence.

    "Oh, hello there," said the young man at the desk; he had sandy blond hair, and looked about 18 by human standards. "You must be a trainer."

    "Oh no," Jack hastily corrected the man.

    He had heard about trainers before; nasty people who caught Pokémon in little devices, and forced them to battle each other. (Not that they wouldn't anyway, but it was the principle of the thing!)

    "Believe me, I'm no trainer," Jack said with conviction.

    "Well then, come with me; is this Lucario is with you?"

    "Yes, he's with me, but..."

    "Good, then bring him too; the professor will see you immediately. Right this way."

    Jack and Jason looked at each other and shrugged; they'd come here to see the professor, and this man was taking them to the professor. They followed the man down a hallway and into a large room filled with electronic equipment. On a table in the middle, sat three strange-looking spheres; the top half of them was red, but the bottom was white, and there was a button on one side.

    An older man in a lab coat turned away from a monitor, and addressed the man who had led them here.

    "Ah, Rogers. What's the news?"

    "This boy wants to become a trainer; he's already got a starter."

    "Excellent," the professor said, then he addressed Jack. "Come over here, lad."

    Jack and Jason were both somewhat shocked at the misunderstanding, but they didn't see what else they could do other than play along. So they stepped forward into the middle of the room.

    "My name is Professor Rowan," the professor said. "What's yours?"

    "Jack Storm, sir, and this is Jason."

    Rowan seemed quite pleased at this.

    "He has a name already, does he? That's good; I can see that the two of you are very close to one another."

    Jack plucked up a little courage at this, and said, "we're like brothers sir."

    "Yes, well. I assume he has a Pokéball then?"

    Jack vaguely remembered something about Pokéballs, but he couldn't quite recall what they were for.

    "No sir, I don't think so."

    "Well then, here," The professor said, picking up a tray and handing it to Jack.

    The tray had six of those strange orbs on it, as well as some other things he couldn't describe; although most of them seemed to be electronic.

    Jack picked up one of the balls, "What do I do with it?"

    "Just tap your Lucario with it. Go on."

    Cautiously, Jack did as he said. Now, you and I know exactly what's going to happen, but Jack had no idea. So, when Jason disappeared with a flash of light into the ball, Jack was so startled that he dropped it. The ball rocked a few times, then stopped. Jack was horrified, but no one noticed; all eyes were on the ball.

    "Good job," said Rowan. "Now he's officially yours."

    Jack managed to stammer, "H-how do I g-get him back out?"

    "Just press the button on the front."

    Jack dived for the ball, and jabbed his finger at the lifesaving button. The ball opened and Jason reappeared, looking rather shaken. Jack released his breath when he saw that his brother was unharmed. Then, realizing that the Professor was looking at him funny, he stood back up and regained his composure.

    "Thank you Professor, but I really just wanted to ask which way I should go first on my journey."

    "Oh yes, of course... Well, I think the first place you should go is Oreburgh City; that's where the nearest, and easiest gym is. I'll point it out to you."

    The professor brought up a map of Sinnoh on a monitor, and pointed out Oreburgh city; he also took the time to show them a few other places of interest, but Jack only payed attention subconsciously; his conscious mind was too concerned with getting out of there. So, when Professor Rowan seemed to have pointed out half the map, Jack made a brake for freedom.

    "Thank you sir; it was nice meeting you, and your directions were really useful, but I have somewhere I need to be in five minutes. Goodbye sir."

    Jack collected the rest of the things from the tray, and exited the building, trying to appear calm. As soon as he got outside, however, he and Jason broke into a flat-out sprint, eager to get away from that place. When Sandgem town had faded from sight, they set their course for Oreburgh City. The adventure had begun.
     
  2. Jack Storm 448

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    These are the first few chapters of a story I'm writing on Fanfiction.net; if you like it, please give me some feedback, and I'll post more chapters here. Or, you could also go read it on Fanfiction.net. Either way, I hope you like it.
     
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