Once Bella disappeared from sight, Slate and April sat down and looked out across the water. Slate sighed.

“What’s the matter?” April asked.

“Oh, nothing. It’s just been an eventful morning. I feel like this is the first opportunity we’ve had to relax!” Slate replied.

“I know what you mean,” said April. “I never expected my first day as a Trainer to be like this. Still, I’m looking forward to getting registration out of the way. How about we get lunch afterwards? There’s a nice café in Hazell Town that sells these great jelly-filled donuts!”

“Mmm, that sounds good. Jelly-filled are my favorite!” Slate commented. He smiled, glad to have found some common ground with the girl. “So, what sort of starter Pokémon does the lab offer?”

“I know the ones my mom used to give to new Trainers when she ran the lab, but those were hard to come by, so she used to breed them specially. Now that Silph Co. are running the place, I expect they will have changed things.”

Just then, Slate was distracted by a loud splash. When he looked around to observe the disturbance in the water, there were only large ripples. “Whoa, what was that?” he asked excitedly.

“That’s the other reason the ferry is so important. There are some strong Pokémon living in the sea around Almony Island, so it’s not safe to swim across or even sail in small boats.”

“Maybe it was a Gyarados!” Slate speculated.

“A Gara-what?” April quizzed him.

Slate restrained himself. He realized he was about to adopt the derisive expression of amazement that April used whenever he showed a lack of knowledge about Nuteran Pokémon. “It’s a big, scary-looking Water-Type in Kanto,” he explained. “Do you know much about Kantonian Pokémon?”

“I know some. We don’t get any here, though.”

“None at all?”

“None from any external regions. Not in the wild at least, and as you’ve learned, their Poké Balls don’t work if they’re brought here in them. It’s odd because it would be natural for foreign Pokémon to migrate here, but they just don’t for some reason. It’s another of the mysteries my mom is studying.”

“Weird,” Slate remarked.

A bark from the Cryote drew Slate’s attention. It was leaning on the railing with its front paws and looking towards the front of the ferry with its tongue sticking out. Slate traced its gaze and realized they were approaching the mainland. “We’re arriving!” he said.

As the ferry docked and cars rolled off, Slate, April and the Cryote disembarked with the other standing passengers. The dock on this side of the ferry route was not directly in town. Trees and bushes lined both sides of a long, wide road, where there was already a line of cars on one side, queuing for the ferry back to Almony.

Slate could hear the rustling sounds of hidden wild Pokémon as they passed. However, with all the cars and pedestrians around, it didn’t seem likely that they would leave the safety of the undergrowth to make an appearance.

After a five-minute walk, the trees on either side of the road were replaced with buildings. They had arrived in Hazell Town.

“Well, this is home,” April explained. “It’s not that big, but everyone passes through the crossroads in the center of town at some point to get around Nutera. Obviously, this road leads to the ferry; the left route goes towards the port town, Macadam City; the right turn leads to Pistachion City and beyond; and the north route heads off into farmland.”

As they strolled towards the center of town and the crossroads April had pointed out, Slate noted that the little independent shops weren’t all that different to those on Almony. However, he soon spotted a school, a supermarket, and the unmistakable red roof of a Pokémon Center, all of which, the island lacked.

Once they reached the crossroads, Slate asked, “Whereabouts did you live?”

April looked glum for a moment, and Slate regretted asking about the home the Larches were forced to flee from. “Over that way,” she said, pointing to the north-west, which looked more residential. “But we’re heading this way.”

They crossed the road to the north-west corner, where the buildings looked more office-like in appearance. They continued all the way north to the edge of town, where a three-storied white building sat. Over its doors, were the words ‘Hazell Town Laboratory’ and an abstract yellow ‘S’ shape—the Silph Co. logo—which Slate saw April frown at.

Slate’s attention was drawn to a poster on the wall beside the glass entry doors. Its design was divided into four colored sections–green, blue, orange, and yellow—with a silhouetted shape and a label over each. The poster was titled, ‘Which Will You Choose?’ and the four labels read, ‘Budazzle,’ ‘Platykid,’ ‘Acria,’ ‘Sercuit.’

“These must be the starter Pokémon!” Slate asserted. “Looks like there’s an Electric-Type in the mix.”

“Four starters?” April commented disapprovingly. “That will throw off the Type balance.”

Despite her attitude, Slate suspected April was as excited by the prospect of selecting a starter as he was, but simply said, “After you then,” and held the door open.

He was surprised and a little disappointed to find an ordinary-looking, empty reception area inside. Perhaps it was because of the word ‘Laboratory’, but he had expected to see long tables full of chemistry beakers and glass phials all pouring into each other via long tubes, or else, lots of interesting-looking machines and equipment, like those Professor Larch’s kitchen was cluttered with.

“Oh!” April expelled, stopping in her tracks. “Put your Pokédex in your bag, quick!”

Slate recalled the plan with regards to using the Professor’s Pokédexes, instead of the ones Silph gave them. So, he stowed his in the front pocket of his bag just before a suited female receptionist appeared from the back. She took a seat behind a desk that cordoned off the waiting area from the rest of the lab, and said, “Good afternoon. Can I help you?”

“Yes,” April answered, stepping up to the desk, “We’re here to complete our Trainer registration.”

“Wonderful! Can I take your name?” the young woman asked, turning towards a computer screen.

Slate smiled, distracted by the Cryote bouncing on the comfy-looking waiting area sofas.

“April Larchmont,” she replied.

Confused by this, Slate repeated without thinking, “Larchm—ouch!”

“Oops, sorry!” she said after stamping on Slate’s foot.

“Ah, here you are!” the receptionist announced. Then, using a key attached to her uniform by a stretchy wire, she unlocked a drawer and retrieved a red Pokédex. As she did this, April surreptitiously whispered to Slate.

“I don’t want them to link me to my mom!”

As he waited for feeling to return to his toe, Slate couldn’t help noticing the device was an older model. It certainly wasn’t Rotom-powered. He watched as the lady inserted it like a cartridge into a device on the desk. A bulb lit up on its end, and the woman returned to her seat.

After some clicking and typing, she said, “Okay, all done, Miss Larchmont! Your Trainer-ID is now active and has been loaded into your new Pokédex. As well as providing you with a full range of Pokémon data, your device will allow you to register Poké Balls with your Trainer-ID and will keep a record of your official battle activities, so you can earn Poké Dollars. Just make sure the camera isn’t obstructed.”

“Thank you,” said April as she accepted the device.

“Welcome to the Pokémon League!” The lady said cheerily, then turned her attention to Slate. “Now for you, young man. Name?”

“Slate Davy,” he stated.

Soon, the woman had finished his registration, and handed him his Pokédex. “Okay, Mr. Davy, you’re all set! Welcome to the Pokémon League!

“Thank you,” Slate said. This was followed by an uncomfortable silence.

“Was there something else I could help you with?” the lady asked.

Slate and April exchanged looks of confusion.

“Well, yes, what about our starter Pokémon?” Slate asked with a nervous laugh.

“Oh,” the lady responded. “I’m afraid we don’t have any at the moment.”

“You don’t have any?” Slate despaired.

“Excuse me?” April piped up defiantly. “Our mothers made this booking weeks ago, and starters were included with the package they purchased. What kind of operation is Silph running here?”

“I’m very sorry, Miss,” the receptionist apologized, looking as scared of April as Slate now was. She turned to her computer again. “I didn’t see anything about starters on your booking records.”

April folded her arms and scowled. Slate thought it best to let her deal with the situation, so he went and sat next to the Cryote, which was looking concerned by April’s outburst. “Remind me never to get on her bad side,” he muttered quietly to the pup.

“Ah, I see the problem,” the receptionist told April, tuning her monitor around so she could see it. “We seem to be having a procurement issue. Once we distributed our last four Pokémon, we processed partial refunds on all current bookings that required starters. The payment may not have gone through yet, but your records were amended, and a communication should have been sent.”

“What does this mean?” Slate asked from his seat.

“It means we’re not getting starter Pokémon,” April snapped. “The previous management never would have allowed this!”

“I’m very sorry for the inconvenience! Let me see what I can do,” the lady offered, returning to her computer once again. “As a token of apology, I’d like to offer you each another of our package options, credit in the amount of ₽500. That would be enough for a Silph Ball each. How does that sound?”

“Fine,” April responded sulkily.

***

After getting their Pokédexes credited, Slate and April left the building, Slate feeling deflated while April was infuriated. She led them to the local Poké Mart, complaining the entire way about how much better her mother had run things when she oversaw the lab.

Slate looked down at the Cryote by his side. “At least we’ve got you and Rodenki,” he said before turning to April, “Think of the other Trainers who are going to have to catch their first Pokémon without any help. Why do you think they ran out of starters anyway?”

“Incompetence I expect,” she answered imperiously. “Either than or…”

“Or what?”

“Or perhaps something’s up? If Silph and Team Shade are connected, maybe it’s part of some kind of plan?”

Slate considered this as they entered the Poké Mart, but he suspected April’s bias against the lab’s new owners was clouding her judgment.

“Would you look at these prices!” she blurted out. “They’ve gone up again! What are Silph playing at?”

“Good thing we’re registered now and can pay in Poké Dollars,” Slate remarked, observing a ‘Silph Co. Collection’ advertisement, which featured the selection of different balls that April had told him about the previous day. It also included their color corresponding Silph Potion, Super Potion, Hyper Potion and Max Potion.

“Good thing our moms can afford the registration fees, you mean,” April replied. “Besides, even the Poké Dollar price is inflated. Standard Poké Balls cost ₽200 in other regions but Silph Balls are ₽500! Silph Co. are turning Pokémon Training into an exclusive activity for the privileged. Something’s got to be done…”

Slate and April handed their Pokédexes over to the cashier. One after the other, the large man inserted them into a device like the one at the lab, which allowed them each to pay for, and register their Trainer-IDs with, a shiny new purple and gray Silph Ball.

Outside the shop, Slate held out his new capsule and asked the Cryote eagerly, “Want to make it official, Boy?” The Cryote barked and wagged its tail enthusiastically. Slate touched the empty ball’s data ring to the top of the pup’s head, scanning its DNA. Upon recognizing a Pokémon, the ball opened, absorbed the sampled Cryote’s particles, and clamped shut.

Slate felt the ball vibrating in his hand while the data ring glowed intermittently. Then, it ceased moving and the light flashed brightly once before disappearing. It was official. Slate had caught his very first Pokémon.

He felt a wave of relief wash over him. Irrational though it may be with April for company, he no longer felt alone. In addition, he didn’t have to worry about another Trainer trying to catch the coveted Shiny Pokémon that he had befriended anymore. Thieves like Team Shade would surely still attempt to steal it given the chance, but the Cryote was his now. His partner Pokémon.