On one of the first voyages across the ocean were two trainers, almost identical, both with scruffy brown hair, a red and white hat, simple, casual clothing. Their only difference lied in one of the youths having startlingly pink eyes.

They stood on the deck, leaning on the guardrail, the spray flying up on a momentary wave and catching the air in a moment of glittering beauty in the sunlight. The sea was calm, the boat almost constantly level. They leaned on the rail, a foot apart, staring at the wake the boat left behind as they traveled.

"Can you just imagine it, Red?" The pink-eyed boy smiled to himself, his eyes focusing at a point just beyond the surface of the ocean. "A whole continent...a whole new world...all these new things to be discovered..."

"Just like when we first started years ago, Radic." Red smiled to himself, enjoying the cool air, the knowledge of moving, of doing something. "It's like starting over again."

Red looked at him and Radic smiled to himself. "Did you deposit all your money?"

Red nodded. "You?"

Radic nodded in response. Red sighed happily again as he returned his stare to the ocean. "All my Pokémon are stored back in the computer at Kanto..."

Radic cocked his head slightly. "I can't get rid of Accident, you know about the promise..." Red nodded again as Radic continued. "He's here, in my team...but their Pokéballs are locked."

Red nodded and smiled, turning towards his almost identical compatriot. "Right. We're starting fresh and new."

Radic heard Red shift and turned in his direction to respond. "Ignorant and untrained."

Red smiled again, holding out his hand so it brushed against Radic's fingers. "And we're going to restart everything, just like when we first began."

"Right." Radic took Red's hand and shook it steadily. "And we become rivals again."

Red smirked to himself, although he knew the other boy couldn't see it. "And I'll still beat you."

Radic smiled to himself, feeling a new burst of confidence, a new sense of self as he stood on the ship, erasing his past and his belongings to start completely new in a world he knew nothing about. He didn't have to be the loser Radic anymore. He could remake himself, he could become what he wanted to be. Deep in his heart, he knew that he had always longed for the competition that once made their relationship so dynamic. He had wanted to fight Red again, wanted to compete against him, motivate himself against his progress. Their relationship was going back to its rudimentary first stage, unevolving as it were, and in a way it made him happy.

He was going to remake himself, and this time he wasn't going to lose.

"We'll see about that."

The thought of a new world was almost too exciting to bear.

Without his Pokémon to guide him, Radic had problems navigating by himself, considering his disability. Normally he would have had one of his Pokémon out to help him, but the six Pokéballs stored in his bag were locked, not to be opened unless he was back on Kanto properly. He knew that when he ordered to have them sealed. He had explained the situation to his team, and although they had been sympathetic, they also seemed a bit resentful that Radic would be storing them away like this. He found it hard to explain the rivalry concept to them, especially Accident, so he eventually just locked them away and tried to clear his conscience.

Although he couldn't tell, when he set out, it was night. The darkness did not affect him or his progress any, and although he had spent the meager savings he had been given by the Professor to help start him off on preparing himself, buying potions and Pokéballs, he still felt kind of uneasy. He had been excited and thrilled by the prospect of a completely new world on the boat, but once he was out in the darkness, in this new world, he began to feel slight tinges of fear.

He was so fixated on his previous team that he completely forgot about his new Pokémon. Chiding himself for being so forgetful and neglectful, he summoned the Cyndaquil out of his Pokéball. Dmoxinil, as Radic had called him, chirped at him happily, the heat that flared from the small Pokémon extremely helpful in figuring out where he was.

"Can you please guide me?" Radic knelt and reached out for where he thought the fire type was sitting, but was rewarded with air. Finally Dmoxinil walked into his reach, and Radic rubbed his head. "I can't see..."

"Quil!"

The Cyndaquil agreed to be his guide, and the two of them began wandering the forests, Radic totally unaware of what he would find. He sighed as he felt a slight tinge of regret. He would never be able to see his new Pokémon...never be able to see this new world he heard so much about...

But he wasn't going to let that stop him. He tightened his fist with resolution. No, he wasn't going to sit and complain! This was the old Radic, the Radic that fought with fire in his eyes, and he wasn't going to give up just because he couldn't see!

He smiled at the thought. He had never really been very assertive, but it was fun to pretend he had been. Now he had the chance to change his image, so he was going to make the most of it.

He could hear an owl hooting nearby. He instinctivily turned his head, then reminded himself that he couldn't see. He sighed.

"Dmoxinil, can you see anything?"

The Cyndaquil was silent for a while, a slight heat near his leg reminding him of his presence, then there was a flare of heat. Fortunately it didn't have any adverse affect on his pants.

"Cynda!"

"Hooooot!" The owl sounded very nearby now, and Radic wished more then anything he could see. The sound of the owl was compelling in a frightening way, and although he naturally felt scared, underneath it he could feel the desire to get closer to the Pokémon, or at least see it.

"Where is it, Dmoxinil?"

"Cynda cynda..."

"Alright..." Radic clenched his fists. This was his first Pokémon battle in this new continent with new Pokémon! He was going to win. "Tackle it, Dmoxinil!"

"Hoothoot!" The owl noise came again. The owl Pokémon...Dmoxinil had called it a Hoothoot. Sounded right...he waited and heard the sound of the fire type's body colliding against a feathery one.

He wasn't prepared for the feathery bundle to strike him in the chest.

Startled, he stumbled backwards and finally, unable to keep his balance, fell over, trying to keep the Hoothoot still on his chest. He could feel it's scrabbling claws and flapping wings, confused and frantically trying to escape.

"Woah woah, calm down!" He was almost positive the bird wouldn't listen to him, but he felt better saying something.

With a jolt, he sensed something enter his mind for just a moment, trying to threaten him or make him back off. Along with the psychic intrusion came a mental picture of the assailant, carried along with its thoughts.

The small bird stood on its one leg, wings flared, frightened but still determined to scare off its opponent. Around its two large eyes a black mask, a band that ran all the way around its head, could be seen, and its pudgy body was ruffled from the battle that was raging in the physical world.

A feeling that Radic had not felt in years suddenly came over him at the briefest glimpse of the Pokémon. He knew it as soon as he felt it. This had to be one of them, one of the Pokémon that would become one of his friends, a Pokémon he knew he belonged with. It was one of the chosen, one of the special types that spoke to him, called to him. He hadn't felt this way about a Pokémon since he had caught Takachan what felt like ages ago, and now that it surged back to the surface, that Feeling that had guided his original decisions back so long ago, he reacted without thinking, reaching out for the bird Pokémon, not wanting to lose it.

The Hoothoot fluttered out of his grasp, hooting defensively. It was angry and confused, and with good reason.

"Cynda!" He could hear the Cyndaquil near him call to him, and he tried to keep his voice under control.

"Tackle it again, Dmoxinil! But be careful!"

He could tell by the confused sound that came from the Pokémon that he didn't understand what he meant, but it didn't matter. He waited until he heard the sound of bodies colliding again, then he reached into his bag, feeling until he came across a Pokéball.

He hadn't thought of this when he bought the set. How was he supposed to aim? His mind quickly thought of a solution, or at least, something that would serve him for the time being...

"Dmoxinil, knock it down and pin it!"

"Cynda!" The Cyndaquil made an enthusiastic reply, and Radic could hear more hooting and more sounds of battle. "Cynda!"

He rushed over to where he had heard the fire type last, reaching down with the Pokéball towards where he hoped the Hoothoot would be. He was rewarded by the sound of the Pokéball opening, a rush of energy filling it. He waited, keeping his hand on the ball, for the three dinging noises that accompanied true capture. His Cyndaquil backed away, watching curiously.

The ball rocked violently in his hands, but finally silenced. Radic felt a surge of joy run through him. He had caught his first new Pokémon! Not only that, but one of the chosen ones, one of the special ones! He released the Hoothoot immediately, who fluttered around him in confusion.

"Hoot!"

"Shhh, calm down." Radic kneeled and tried to keep his voice calm. The Hoothoot was slightly hysterical, but eventually he could hear it silence and heard it twitch in the grass in front of him. "I'm sorry for attacking you like that."

The Hoothoot's confusion was painfully obvious.

"It's...hard to explain...but I have this very strong feeling inside...I just know we're going to get along. Please forgive me for acting the way I did though." Radic bowed his head in what he hoped was a reconciliatory gesture. "I hope you won't hold it against me."

The Hoothoot was utterly confused. Never had anyone apologized for attacking it! And never had any trainer he had heard of apologized or spoke to their Pokémon in this way! He didn't know what to think. Although originally he had been angry at the boy for attacking and capturing him, he now thought that maybe it wouldn't be so bad. The boy seemed nice enough, not to mention the fact that he was blind, which immediately lowered the potential threat...

He probed the boys mind once again to find the mental image of the boy appear before him, almost identical to what he was standing in front of in reality, only his eyes were a green-brown. He smiled as he saw the Hoothoot, holding out his arm.

"I'm so glad that I still have my sight in my mind. Maybe you can help me..." He smiled slightly. "Help me 'see' what goes on around me...My name is Radic."

The Hoothoot hopped onto the offered limb, finding the boys polite, kind nature appealing.

"I guess you can call me Poe."