7Hey, just putting this on here since drawing a comic sounds like it would be too much of an undertaking, even if I didn't have fanfictions to work on. So instead, it's going to be a Storylocke. However, I'm obligated to warn those who've never read a Nuzlocke before that it is not for the faint of heart.
EDIT: Silly me. I forgot the rules:
1. Only catch 1 Pokemon per area.
- I consider the desert on Route 112 to be a separate area.
2. If a Pokemon faints, they are dead and must be released.
3. Nickname all Pokemon.
4. No legendaries.
- Rayquaza must be caught for story purposes, but may not be used.
EDIT 2: After much deliberation, I decided to combine this prologue with the first chapter and make it the new first chapter.
With that said, let's get on with the story.
Chapter 1: Moving Day
In the Hoenn region, Taillow chirped overhead while the sun shone on the tropical land. The Pokémon moved around through the trees surrounding a path. One of the Tiny Raccoon Pokémon's ears perked up and the wildlife momentarily hid in the foliage as a moving truck thundered down the road. They looked down the road curiously as the rumbling of the tires faded into the distance.
Inside the back of the moving truck, a figure sat among the tied down boxes with the glowing screens of a portable game player barely illuminating their features. The methodical sound of buttons clicking filled the room with a slightly menacing battle tune sounding from the speakers.
"C'mon…!" a hopeful male voice said. "Just one more Metal Slash…! Dagnabbit!"
The sound of rushing feet played before a zing indicated the end of the battle. The teen tapped the top screen against his forehead in frustration.
"Curse you Metal Dugtrios!" he muttered angrily. "You and your tauntingly high speed and fleeing tendencies! You are the bane of this gaming experience!"
The gamer sighed and rolled his eyes, "Oh well. I only need a few more levels 'cross the board until I can take the boss. A few rounds of Hunter Metangs and Kabu-tides should have me squared away."
After the screen cleared, his avatar wandered the screen with the rest of the team following behind. The character representing him, a Kirlia, led his companions wandering in circles, looking for the next encounter. Each of the characters had their own outfits tailored to fit with various armaments as well.
In this game, type didn't necessarily matter as much as the weapons and armor each Pokémon warrior carried. His Sableye thief, for example, got evasion boosts from certain shoes, but couldn't resist Normal and Fighting-type attacks like in real life.
'Boy, I bet any actual Sableye that heard about that nerf would be ticked off,' he idly thought as another battle triggered.
However, before he could pick any commands, the moving van came to a stop nearly pushing him off the box he sat upon. Closing the game player to put it in sleep mode, the teen stood up, stretching a bit in the limited space and adopting a mischievous smile in the shadows as the lock to the rear hatch clunked.
As it opened and sunlight poured in, he covered his eyes with the arm holding his game and said "Hisssss!" pronouncing the word instead of actually hissing.
"Alright, get out of there, Dracula," a mirthful voice chuckled. "The movers need to do their work and I need to go get groceries from Oldale a short hike away. Once you oversee the moving, make sure to say hi to the neighbors!"
"Alright, alright, mom," the teen laughed back as he jumped out. Once he landed on the grass, he narrowed his eyes as he adjusted to the brightness and the light revealed his attire.
His ensemble seemed entirely monochromatic, the various articles some shade of gray or black. He wore a gray shirt with charcoal colored pants and a silver rain coat with black on the lower back and in a stripe along the sleeves. The tennis shoes on his feet matched the jacket's color scheme, silver with black patterns. His hair was brown and wavy, but cut reasonably short to keep it from getting in his eyes or sticking out.
Two Machoke had already begun unloading the boxes en masse, barely being able to fit the stacks they held in each arm through the doorway by walking sideways. Shrugging, he walked in and opened his dual screen game again before looking around at the bustling activity from the two Pokémon.
"Hm."
As one of the Machoke started walking back out to get more boxes, the teen tapped him on the shoulder. The Superpower Pokémon turned with a questioning "Ma?"
"Excuse me," he said politely, knowing that trained Pokémon could understand humans due to the Poké Balls' translation matrix at work. "Where's a good spot where nothing's going to go? I'd like to have somewhere to wait."
The Pokémon seemed surprised at the question, but held a finger to the side of his face as he thought about the plans he'd received from his Trainer. Snapping his fingers, he pointed at a spot on the far wall perpendicular to the door's own, a little ways away from the corner.
The gamer walked over and leaned against the wall, intent on keeping half an eye on the two movers while continuing to grind for the next boss.
"Thanks."
An hour passed as the two Fighting-types unpacked everything with great speed and put it all away. In that time, the gamer had managed to take down a Metal Dugtrio in his game with a critical hit to get ahead of schedule and began fighting the boss, a giant shiny Ariados with a skull for a head and a bone exoskeleton complete with scythe claws dubbed the Aria of the Dead.
"One more Fly Swat from Yami and a high tension Multifist from Ricky…!" A massive crash sounded from the game's speakers and the teen pumped a fist, "Yes! Scratch one more boss!"
As the game wound down and a cutscene played out, he glanced up and noticed that the two Machoke finished unpacking the last box. He closed the device and walked up to them.
"Thank you for your help," he said, holding out his hand.
One of the Machoke shook it as both nodded then proceeded to leave. After looking around the house, the teen remembered that his mom had said to greet the neighbors. Shrugging, he walked towards the door. As he passed a mirror, he paused as he looked at himself.
"Should I…? Yeah, I should probably leave it as a surprise," he said with a smile before taking out a case of contacts from his jacket pocket.
He spent the next half hour walking around and introducing himself to the admittedly small population of Littleroot Town, some of whom were visiting from Oldale. He also walked over to the neighboring (read: only other) house, but the woman there told him that her husband and daughter were out.
"Regardless," he replied, "my name's AJ. It's nice to meet you and I wish for the best relations between your and my mom's household."
The woman blinked, "Wow. That's the most formal greeting I've ever heard."
"Sorry, I don't get out much," he apologized. "In any case, I'll see if I can go help my mom with groceries, she should be due back soon."
AJ didn't get two steps from the house after closing the door before a little girl cried out "Help!"
"Hm?!" He ran to the edge of town and saw the girl standing by the path. "What happened?"
She pointed shakily outside, "Professor Birch is being attacked by a wild Pokémon!"
"Professor…? Never mind. You go home; I've got this," the teen reassured her.
After she left, AJ took a deep breath and took off at a run into the route connecting Littleroot with the neighboring town of Oldale. It didn't take long for him to find the professor. A middle-aged man in a lab coat and shorts being chased by a Poochyena was pretty hard to miss. Professor Birch was screaming, but it only further aggravated the Pokémon.
Rolling his eyes at the ridiculous scene, he walked over and stepped into the Poochyena's path already knowing what to do. The Bite Pokémon stopped with a growl and the teen just stuck his hands into his pocket and greeted him.
"Hey." Then AJ slipped into a different language, repeating altering tones and combinations of the same two syllables over and over again, translating into, "[Why are you attacking this Human?]"
The Poochyena blinked in surprise and Birch said, "Why do you keep repeating 'human'?"
"Shh. [Did this one do something to offend you?]"
At length, the surprise wore off and Poochyena answered, "[He stepped on my tail.]"
"[Would you feel better if I got him to apologize?]"
"Wait… Are you talking with that Pokémon?"
The Dark-type thought about it and answered, "[If he's sincere about it, I guess I could find a new spot to nap in—one with less Humans.]"
"Hey, Professor," AJ said, getting the man's attention. "They want you to apologize for stepping on their tail."
"You're negotiating with a wild Pokémon," Birch pointed out incredulously.
AJ shrugged, "No skin off my nose if you offend Poochyena further."
"Er, I'm sorry for disturbing you," the professor apologized with a slight bow of his head.
Poochyena smirked and barked once in a rough tone.
"They want you to bow lower."
"What?" Birch asked, standing straighter to look at the teen. "You have to be making that-"
"Grrrrr!"
"I'm very, very sorry," he added, bowing low at the waist.
The Poochyena smirked and walked off with a swagger in their step. Professor Birch sighed in relief before standing up straight again to address his savior.
"Well… thanks, I guess. But who are you? I haven't seen you around here before."
The teen shrugged, "That's because I just moved here today with my mom. Name's AJ."
"Just moved here? Ah!" Birch nodded. "You must be Norman's boy, then. He said you'd be coming today. In any case, you speak to Pokémon? He didn't mention that."
A nod answered his question, "Yes I can, and I imagine he wouldn't."
"Perhaps you can help me with a bit of a problem child, if you'll come with me back to the lab?" the professor requested.
AJ shrugged again, "Eh, why not?"
Once back to the lab, the large building in front of AJ's own residence, Professor Birch took out a Poké Ball.
"This Pokémon has refused to listen to any Trainer that tries commanding him," he explained. "I've tried working with him, but he doesn't listen to me either. No matter who he goes with, they always return him in a matter of days."
He opened the ball and a Treecko came out in a flash of energy. Once he formed, he looked up at AJ with an apathetic gaze. AJ stared back before dropping to one knee in front of the Pokémon and looking him in the eye.
"Hey," he greeted. "[I heard that you took issue with your last Trainers. Can you tell me why?]"
The Grass-type's eyes widened at the shift in language, and AJ continued while tilting his head with a smile, "[As you can see, I'm not like other Humans. I just want to understand.]"
Professor Birch watched with a fascinated gaze as the Treecko responded, "[They always gave me names. I picked a name for myself and I answer to no other.]"
"[What did you name yourself after?]"
The Pokémon smiled, "[I am like a leaf. I inhabit the trees and run on the wind.]"
"Leif?" AJ asked. "Would that name make you happy?" Treecko nodded, and AJ looked up at Birch. "There you have it. He didn't like whatever nicknames the other Trainers gave him. He'll answer to Leif and nothing else."
"That was it, all along?" the professor asked incredulously.
"A-yup."
Professor Birch looked between Leif, who looked at him over his shoulder, and AJ, who stood up. "He seems to like you. Why don't you just take him with you? I doubt he'd find anyone else that… understood him as well as you."
"Hmm," the teen contemplated before looking down to Leif, "That alright with you?"
Leif nodded without a moment's hesitation and AJ held out his hand for the Treecko to climb up on his shoulder. Once the Grass-type found his perch, AJ smiled, "Looks like we have a deal, then. Welcome aboard, Leif."
This is different than it was before, but I hope you all enjoyed the first real chapter to this Nuzlocke.
In any case, see you when I see you.
-AJ203