Pokémon: Ancient Scarlet

Good Morning Paldea!

Hello there!

...?

Can you hear me? Are my words reaching you?

W-Who are you?

I am a friend. The one who offered you a helping hand in the dark. It's time, child. Time for your journey to finally begin.

What do you mean?

I mean it's time for you to wake up. Literally. The Challenge awaits you, and I'm eager to see just what you're capable of.

Challenge? I don't...wait. I think I recognize your voice. You're the one who-

Rise and shine!

A brown-haired boy with amber-colored eyes jolted upright with a startled yelp and nearly toppled out of his chair, panting slightly. The teen then realized where he was and let out a sigh of relief. He was in his room, he was safe, and...why did that dream seem so weird to him?

The teen could hardly remember the details, save for a voice that mentioned a challenge? It was a familiar voice, one that the teen knew that he had spoken to once before. But why was this voice in his dreams? He assumed the last time had been a hallucination. Weird.

The boy then coughed a few times before rubbing his eyes and then stretching with a grimace as his bones yelled at him in protest. He then became aware of the fact that a voice was speaking throughout the room.

"We, the faculty and staff at Naranja Academy, can't wait to welcome you with open arms." Spoke a cultured but warm voice through a podcast that the teen had left on. Blearily he tapped the pause button, having already heard the rest of the man's monologue so many times he could practically rehearse it from memory.

"Milo! Breakfast is going to be ready soon! Come on down, would you?" a female voice from downstairs called for the teen. The teen known as Milo pushed back the magazine he had been reading about Naranja Academy and stood up, stretching again before deciding to head downstairs, glancing around the loft that was his new room.

It was a warmly lit and spacious area with various Pokémon stickers adorning the closet, a brand new TV and the latest model of the Switch OLED hooked into the wall already and various other things that Milo had finished setting up earlier that week. The boy stifled a yawn and walked downstairs, spotting several of the paintings that his mother had made years ago.

Milo got to the first floor, stopping as he spotted a fat Skwovet loitering at the bottom of the stairs before scampering off towards the kitchen with an enthusiastic, "Muncha!"

Considering the delicious smell of bacon, Milo didn't blame the Pokémon one bit and followed it into the kitchen. He spotted his mother washing her hands in the sink, with two steaming hot omelets sitting on two nearby plates.

"Good morning, Milagro! " Mom said brightly, walking over to her son with a wide smile. "Oh! Already in your uniform and everything! Looking sharp, Milo."

"I don't think there was any doubt about that. So, Omega Omelets for breakfast, huh?" Milo remarked, grabbing the two plates and helping set the table for his mother, who grinned thoughtfully.

"Well, it is your first day at your new school, after all. I'm so excited for you!" Mom gushed, with Milo shrugging in response, trying to downplay how pumped he actually was for this next step in his life.

"Gotta dress for success. I've got everything packed, item-capsuled up and I'm ready to roll." Milo said with an eager grin. It was then that Mom's smile faltered, replaced with some concern.