Gary's entrance sent the comment feed into a frenzy.
[Wow, this kid is SO punchable!]
[Look at that showoff pose, that smug expression, and he even brought his own cheering squad. Honestly, he feels more like the main character.]
[That hairstyle of his... quite the unique sense of style.]
[The main character getting roasted the second he steps out the door feels weirdly familiar, but also kind of different. Somehow the trash talk almost feels warm, especially the part where Gary reminds him he'll miss out if he doesn't hurry up.]
[Not gonna lie though, the guy is kind of good-looking.]
Ash clenched his fists, but as Gary's car disappeared down the road, all he could do was sigh and let it go.
"Dang it. I've got to try harder!"
He broke into a run, heading toward the white building at the top of town: Professor Oak's laboratory.
The lab doors were wide open. Ash came barreling through them and nearly knocked over an old man in a white coat.
"Professor Oak!"
The professor adjusted his glasses and looked at the panting, sweat-soaked boy with a patient smile. "Ash, you finally made it. We've all been waiting for you."
"Sorry, I overslept..." Ash scratched the back of his head.
Professor Oak shook his head and turned toward the lab bench. "Come on, then. The starter Pokemon are right over here."
Ash took a deep breath and walked over, practically buzzing with excitement.
Three red-and-white Poke Balls sat on the bench.
"These are... Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle..." Ash murmured, reaching straight for the one in the middle. "I choose you, Charmander!"
The ball popped open. Nothing came out.
"Huh?"
"Well, the thing is... Charmander was taken by another trainer about five minutes ago."
Ash turned to Squirtle's ball next. Same result. Gary had already grabbed that one too.
"Fine, there's still Bulbasaur!"
He took another deep breath and grabbed the last ball. When it opened, there was nothing but air.
His hand froze in midair. He was starting to understand.
Professor Oak let out a slow sigh, an awkward smile creeping onto his face. "Well, Ash... the truth is..."
"They're all gone."
The words hit like a thunderbolt. Ash went completely rigid, staring at the empty pedestals.
"Wh... what?!"
"All of them?"
Professor Oak scratched his head. "As you know, we had quite a few new trainers this year. Gary came early and took Squirtle, a girl picked up Charmander, and someone else grabbed Bulbasaur. Right now, there's only one left."
As he spoke, silhouettes of the three Pokemon appeared behind him, each crossed out with a big red X.
The comment feed lit up.
[Wait, there's only one left? What kind of start is this?]
[Gary is shameless. He took all the good ones and left the main character with what, exactly?]
[To be fair, all three of those Pokemon looked pretty great. The one with the bulb on its back is Bulbasaur? Looks dependable. The one with the flame tail is Charmander? Definitely the coolest-looking one.]
[Yeah, I'd pick Charmander too. The main character's in trouble now. Bet he's stuck with whatever reject is left.]
[Streamer, if you could choose, which one would you pick?]
Demon King glanced at the comments and thought for a moment.
"If it were me, definitely Charmander," he said into the mic, something genuinely appreciative in his voice. "It just looks powerful. Its evolutions are probably in the Charizard line, right? Way too cool."
The moment the words left his mouth, he paused.
How long had it even been? A few minutes, and he was already debating starter picks?
And judging by the comment section, everyone had completely sunk into the show. Not a single person was still griping about the low production quality or the missing intro.
This anime actually had something going for it.
On screen, Ash looked crushed but still reached for the last remaining Poke Ball.
"Whatever's inside, I want it!"
He pressed the button. A burst of white light flashed across the bench.
A small yellow creature with long ears and a lightning bolt-shaped tail appeared on the table. Chubby, round little body. Bright, beady eyes. Two small red circles on its cheeks, like little dimples.
"Pika?"
It tilted its head and let out a short, clear cry.
The comment feed instantly flooded with some variation of the word "cute."
[Holy crap, it's SO adorable!]
[What even is this thing? A mouse? How is a mouse this ridiculously cute?]
[Those little red cheeks, I just want to squeeze them. Whoever designed this is a genius.]
[Pikachu? Is that its name? It rolls off the tongue surprisingly well.]
Ash was just as captivated. He reached out excitedly, hand extended.
"Pikachu, I'm Ash. Starting today, we're partners!"
Pikachu's reaction was not what anyone expected.
It hopped backward, crossed its tiny arms over its chest, turned its head sharply to the side, and fixed Ash with an expression of pure disdain.
"Pika-pi."
The comment section lost it.
[HAHAHA! This little thing has SUCH an attitude!]
[The contempt is real. Look at that face. That is a solid "don't touch me" if I've ever seen one.]
[I'd make the same face honestly. You wake up and there's some random stranger grinning at you like an idiot.]
[The personality on this thing is something else. It's not just a cute little pet. Full tsundere energy, through the roof.]
Professor Oak wiped the sweat from his forehead. "When I say it's special, I really mean it. This Pikachu has a rather unusual personality. It doesn't warm up to people easily."
Ash wasn't ready to give up. He grabbed a small compact device from the table and scanned it over Pikachu.
"Pokedex, activate."
A mechanical voice rang out as data filled the screen.
"Mouse Pokemon, Pikachu. An Electric-type Pokemon. It has small electric sacs on either side of its face. When threatened, it discharges electricity."
The viewers were caught off guard all over again.
[Wait, what is that thing? Some kind of scanner?]
[It can just... analyze any Pokemon instantly? That's insane. If I had something like that, I'd ace my biology class.]
[Hold on, forget the gadget. The important part is that it can generate electricity. That little thing can actually zap people?]
[It looks so harmless, and then you find out it's basically a live wire. I like it even more now.]
On screen, Ash clearly hadn't taken the "electric discharge" part seriously at all. He just wanted to get Pikachu home.
He scooped Pikachu up and tried to drag it along with him.
"Come on, don't give me that look. Let's go, we're going on a journey!"
Pikachu struggled with everything it had. The electric pouches on its cheeks began sparking with dangerous little flickers.
"Pikachu!"
Ash was still grinning, completely oblivious to what was about to happen.
A blinding yellow bolt erupted the next second and swallowed him whole.
Zzzzt.
The screen went white. When the picture came back, Ash was charred black, hair standing straight up, wisps of smoke curling off him as he collapsed to the floor with stars in his eyes. Right alongside him, Professor Oak, who had simply failed to step back far enough, had gone down too.
The comment feed completely lost it. The screen filled wall to wall with strings of laughter and people claiming they were dead.
[HAHAHAHAHAHA]
[I am actually deceased. This killed me.]
[He really can shock people! And it looked painful just to watch!]
[Is the main character okay? He looks like charcoal at this point.]
[Pikachu did NOT hesitate. Not even for a second. HAHAHA!]
[Streamer, this anime is something else. The main character is going to have a rough time, I can already tell.]
Demon King laughed so hard he nearly spat out the cola he'd just sipped. He wiped his mouth and stared at the two scorched figures on screen, smoke still rising off their hair. Whatever unease he'd felt earlier was completely gone.
Sure, the animation quality wasn't great. Sure, there was no intro. Sure, the production team was clearly working on a shoestring budget. But the writing? The writing was actually kind of fun.
Meanwhile, Ash shook the soot out of his hair, picked up the Poke Ball, and aimed it at Pikachu.
A red beam shot out, but Pikachu didn't get drawn in like a normal Pokemon would. It leapt nimbly to the side and dodged it clean.
"Huh?!"
"Pikachu, why won't you go in?!"
Ash was completely baffled.
Pikachu, for its part, looked absolutely opposed to the idea. It shook its head so fast it was practically a blur and batted the ball away with one tiny paw, staring pointedly in the opposite direction with stubborn defiance written all over its face.
Ash tried reasoning with it and got nowhere. His eyes darted around the room and landed on something. He dug a pair of thick yellow rubber gloves out of his bag, the kind that looked like they belonged on a plumber, pulled them on, and rubbed his hands together with enormous confidence.
"Heh. You can't shock me now!"
He lunged at Pikachu, arms wide open.
"Pika!"
Pikachu's eyes sharpened. Just as Ash's hands were about to make contact, the electric pouches on its cheeks unleashed a ferocious burst.
Zzzzt!
Blinding light swallowed Ash whole.
"AAAAAH!"
He let out a scream that could have woken the dead, convulsed midair, and dropped to the ground as a charred silhouette. Professor Oak, who had tried to step back and simply hadn't stepped back far enough, took the residual current squarely and toppled backward in perfect rigid defeat, smoking and wide-eyed.
The comment section detonated.
[HAHAHAHA! Professor Oak is having the WORST day! Zero enemies defeated, massive self-damage, and one innocent bystander taken out in the crossfire!]
[Those rubber gloves must've come from a bargain bin. What was the point if they don't even work?!]
[Pikachu: You want to grab me? Zap. And I'll take the old man down with you for good measure.]
[Is this main character... kind of dumb? Like, rubber gloves on your hands don't stop electricity from hitting the rest of your body??]
Demon King sat in front of his monitor watching the two scorched figures on screen, laughing quietly to himself.
He had to admit, he found Ash kind of charming. Dopey as he was, there was something oddly relatable about him. Like looking at a younger version of himself.
The smarts, though. That definitely needed some work.
The scene shifted. After several more failed attempts, Ash had clearly given up on forcing Pikachu into the ball.
Somehow, he had produced a thick rope, tied one end around Pikachu's neck, grabbed the other end himself, and was literally dragging the Pokemon forward on a leash.
Pikachu followed along with a face full of protest, all four tiny legs scrabbling against the floor, gouging two long drag marks into the lab's polished surface as it was hauled toward the exit.
"Pika..."
The sound it made was loaded with grievance. Its feelings on the matter could not have been clearer.
The comment section imploded.
[HAHAHAHA! Is he... walking Pikachu?!]
[The whiplash is real. One minute he's talking about partnership and bonds, the next he's literally walking it on a leash like a dog.]
[Pikachu: DON'T. TOUCH. ME.]
[This main character is genuinely something else...]
And so Ash dragged Pikachu out through the lab's front door.
Outside, his mother Delia stood dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief, and the residents of Pallet Town had lined both sides of the path to wave them off.
"Take care on the road, Ash!"
"You're going to become a Pokemon Master, I just know it!"
Professor Oak, who had been blasted into charcoal not twenty minutes ago, had managed to pull himself together enough to stand at the doorway. His face was still streaked with ash, but he smiled and waved all the same.
Amid the warm send-off from the whole town, Ash set off, glancing back every few steps, rope still in hand.
The sun over Pallet Town was brilliant that morning. A gentle breeze moved through the green grass, carrying the clean scent of earth and leaves. For Ash, though, this beautiful morning was anything but peaceful.
He trudged forward under an enormous yellow backpack, one hand holding that rope, the other end still tied to a grumpy electric mouse who was making the whole thing as difficult as possible.
At some point, Ash seemed to realize just how resistant Pikachu really was. He stopped walking and turned around, scratching his head with a helpless sigh.
"Pikachu, can't you just come into the ball quietly? It'd make things a lot easier for both of us."
He unclipped a Poke Ball from his belt and held it out, making his case.
"Look, it's really comfortable in here. It's like a little home."
Pikachu glanced at the ball. Then it immediately turned its head away and covered its eyes with both tiny paws in a show of absolute, emphatic refusal.
Ash sighed and put the ball away. This Pikachu had made up its mind.
"Alright, Pikachu. If you don't want to go in, you don't have to."
"But even so, we're still partners. Okay?"
The comment section went quiet for a beat.
Demon King blinked.
This guy.
He's actually got a pretty good heart, hasn't he?