I float in a kaleidoscopic void, a dizzying array of colors flowing like waves around me, my form once again that of my dream self. There are few changes this time, besides my hair being a teeny bit longer. I curl up my legs to my chest, my mind filled with a fuzzy mist that refuses to dissipate.
My last few days bounce around the depths of my brain, nearly incomprehensible to parse. A flash of Evangeline sitting with her legs crossed up on the rooftop. The glares from the three who opposed us. The terrifying meadow engulfing us as gleeful giggles make my bones tremble.
The black shadow figure warps into existence above me. It’s voice seems to echo from everywhere around us.
“Well, isn’t this curious?” The figure says, its eyes glowing an ominous glow, “You had yourself purified. Who are you, little mortal?”
I open my mouth in an attempt to respond, but as always it is no use. The figure releases a slow, unnerving laugh at my futile actions.
“Right, I forget that humans do not have true forms in the dream world.” A sudden crack appears in the world, which makes the Pokemon grimace. “This is why I don’t like intrusions, it messes with the fabric of this world. If you have a way to get rid of my nightmares, it becomes more difficult to deal with. What to do about this…”
With a sigh, the darkness taps its chin for a few moments, before below it's widened eyes, a crooked grin filled with viciously pointed red teeth appears.
“Well, that’s a potential solution,” It mutters, before it reveals:
“I can just make it so that you are supposed to be here.”
The monster begins to grow, in a few moments going from a few feet taller than me to something that could only be described as a colossus. Ever so slowly, it’s hand comes to rest far above me, and a faint trickle of darkness begins to fall down upon me. It lasts but for a few moments, but that’s apparently all that it needs, as my form quickly condenses into a glob of darkness.
“Speak, mortal. What is your name?” It asks, its voice alluring me to answer.
“Morgan Brandt.” My voice is faint, a mere ripple in the sea of dreams.
“I am going to ask you a set of questions, Morgan Brandt, and I need you to answer them sincerely.” The monster commands, a small trickle of rain falling upon me once again, but doesn’t stop when he once again speaks. “You have a bigger, maybe stronger Pokemon you don’t know bearing down upon you. What do you do?”
My form shifts, becoming a bit smaller. “I would utilize my resources to gain an advantage, so that I can disengage without violence.”
“A strategist with a gentle streak, hm?” The pokemon quietly mulls. “You are left in the center of controversy as your previously questionable actions are brought into light. What do you do?”
“I run, but keep close watch for pursuit before striking back.” My form shifts again, becoming a bit more defined.
“Oh, that was a bit specific. Must be close to reality, how fortunately unfortunate for you, we’ll get a much more accurate result now.” The monster’s hand curls a bit, intensifying the rain into a shower. “Where do you run? How do you stay safe?”
“Towards the horizon.” I sleepily state, before continuing, “I rely upon my friends, yet commit more unforgivable wrongs along the way.”
“For one who has supposedly performed evil, you have much guilt.” The shadow thinks for a moment, then raises its other hand, revealing two illusory, faceless figures. “The one on the right is your longest companion, while the one on the left is your closest one. Choose which one to save.”
“Both,” I immediately state, “There are no other potential answers.”
“Hah! How arrogant.” The figures disappear, only to be replaced with three others. “Your enemies have accidentally encountered you in your flight. You must choose one, or all three to eliminate for your future safety. One has lied to you, one has betrayed your trust, and one has openly opposed you.”
“The one who lied.” I answer, my form once again shifting. “The other two are too vague to immediately understand, while the one who lied was directly malicious.”
The shadow nods as all the figures disappear. “Wise, if perhaps a bit forgiving. While on the run, you’re forced to choose between a short route fraught with immense danger, or a much longer journey that has the potential to slowly drown you and your companions out. Which do you choose?”
“I’d make a new trail.” My voice has grown stronger, more material.
The monster shakes its head. “Blind arrogance once again. Though, I guess it could be construed for bravery from a certain perspective. “You are presented with an ultimatum by a companion. Either commit evil once again for the greater good, or ruin your relationship in the process of redemption.”
“Evil. Black and white are just gray when overlapped.”
“I think I like you, mortal. Your choices nearly mirror what I would have chosen when I was young.” The giant grins once again, a dark fog flowing down upon me from its maw. “Your companion is faced with certain death if you do not act, but you will almost certainly die if you do. Do you take that risk?”
“Without hesitating,” I declare.
The monster frowns, clicking its tongue. “And there is the difference. A shame, I thought I had met a kindred spirit. Becoming a martyr is simply not worth losing your life.”
The titan begins to retract its hand, but freezes. “Oh yes, the last question. Are you a boy, a girl, or neither?”
“A girl.” I say, and then, the world flips.
A deep happiness at my words swirling within me.
“Wha-!?”
I awaken with a gasp of panic, breathing in the familiar scent of subterranean environments. I’m entirely submerged in a hole, and while warm, it’s incredibly claustrophobic. I flail around for a bit, but then my instincts kick in and I wiggle until the sun begins to shine into my eyes. I stretch my legs as the smell of morning dew enters my nostrils, doing a little shake to get the dirt off of me once I am out of the ground.
I’m in a… admittedly very strange place, despite the odd inherent comfort I feel about it. It’s some kind of mix of woodlands and valley, but the thin trees are absolutely massive, sparse branches peeking out from their side as they stretch into the sky. Small piles of snow are gathered across the ground everywhere I look, a small urge to jump into them within my mind.
My ear twitches as I hear a small stream in the near distance, and with my mouth feeling so fuzzy from just waking up, I decide to go take a drink. It takes a few minutes, but I eventually arrive. I begin lapping up the water, ignoring the wary eyes of the Pokemon around me.
Once done wetting my throat, I decide to take a little run, as my muscles are screaming at me for my inactivity, along with a rippling unceasing energy in my core. The wind flows around me as I sprint, my hair fluttering in the wind as a deep contentment fills me, the valley around me barely shifting in the distance as I just keep going.
Then, a scent appears in my nose, and my mouth begins to water. I dip into the shadows of the trees, moving to a position where I can spot a group of Cubchoo snacking on a bush of berries. I lick my lips, a plan forming in my mind.
I get as close as possibly without startling them, then begin. Imagining back to the dream, where my form had been constantly shifting, I begin to re-enact it, but on a smaller scale. A magenta sheen passes over me, and I am now a small bear myself. Adopting a timid stance, I step out of the tree, wringing my hands together.
“Um…” I mutter, getting their attention, “M-May I have some too?”
The bears look at each other, nod, then grin at me. One steps forward, gesturing for me to come close.
“Of course!” It offers me a small berry, which I take. “What’s your name, miss?”
“I u-uh,” I stutter, unsure if I should answer truthfully, “I-I’m Brandt!”
“Nice to meet yah’, Brandt. I’m Silverpaw!” The bear happily turns, grabbing another berry and popping it into its mouth. “Help yourself! More than enough to go around.”
I grin joyfully, rushing forward to start eating as much as I can. I get through about five berries before one of the bears tilts its head, then its eyes go wide.
“Uh guys… I might be going crazy but,” It mutters before pointing at me, “Doesn’t she have a really big tail?”
I turn my head, and just like the cub says, I do in fact, have a beautiful bushy black tail. I brush it off, speeding up my eating. Silverpaws eyebrow raises, then his eyes go wide when something seems to click. He rushes at me, and with a berry still in my mouth I leap back a few feet.
“I’ve heard of this from Momma!” The bear growls, its small claws glowing with power as it says:
“She’s a Zorua!”
I snort, waving my paw as I finish the fruit in my mouth.
“No, I’m not,” I say, amused, “I’m a hum-”
Then I pause, and a deep unease flows over me as reality clicks.
I uh, I was a Zorua right now, wasn’t I?
My mind begins to process the last half hour, and I barely manage to sidestep a swipe, getting nicked by the attack, losing my form as a result.
My eyes wide in confusion, I raise a paw, seeing my small crimson paws. I peek behind me, seeing that I now truly am a Zorua. I have black and red fur, large floofy tail, and everything else that being a Zorua entails. I reach up, tapping my gigantic ears with my paw, shivering at the small shock that sends through my body.
I leap out of the way of another attack, grimacing as I begin to think of ways to get out of this. I run up to one of the trees, then gather a bit of that untamed energy in me to power a huge jump, which I use to get atop a branch. I snicker as the bears fruitlessly attempt to climb the tree, then gather more power to leap to another distant branch. Now relatively safe, I traverse the forest until the bears are long gone, then very slowly descend until I am safely on the ground.
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I take a sigh of relief; The descent from high places is always worse for my psyche than the ascent. I sploot on the grass, letting my body relax after such an intense moment. It was strange, the feeling of having four legs. It was similar to normal in some ways, the front legs begin closer to my brain and therefore easier to use, but yet without the dexterity of hands I was so used to.
I begin to think back to the dream, and it slowly clicks. I was still in the dream! A bit of anxiety rises in my heart at the knowledge of how my normal form within dreams mirrored my situation in reality, but it wasn’t something I could afford to worry about right now. There were simply far too many unknowns at the moment. I needed to figure out where I was, first.
I stand up, newly resolved, then begin to head to a small hill I could see in the distance. I channel my energy through my body as I run, finding my speed increases dramatically when it fills my muscles. I stick to the shadows of trees when I can, dashing from one to the other as I cautiously eye the pokemon around me.
At least a portion are wild, definitely, such as a Fearow I see screeching at anything that approaches. On the other hand, I catch sight of a few remarkably intelligent Pokemon that display distinctly human-like activities, like a Kecleon running a small stand with a bunch of surprisingly well made items.
I don’t stop to chat though, and I soon arrive at the hill. Upon my approach, I’m a bit surprised to see a set of seemingly man- or well, pokemon made ruins built into the hillside. I approach the dark gray bricks slowly, running my paw over the surface. Moss and dust covers it when I pull it back, and I grimace as I hastily rub my foot against the ground to get it off. I understand Cappuccino’s obsession a bit more now, I think.
After a few minutes of tracing the outside of the ruins, I find an entrance and step inside. Almost immediately, the world shifts around me into an odd narrow passageway, small floating lights popping into existence to light the way. When I turn to nope out of the situation, the door is gone. I breathe in through my teeth, knowing I had gotten myself trapped.
I begin to move through the seemingly infinite, twisting maze of passages, occasionally slipping into the darkness to hide whenever a wild pokemon stumbles through aimlessly. Eventually, I enter a small connecting room, where a set of strange, otherworldly stairs descends into the floor, seemingly with no bottom. I take a glance around at this uncomfortably liminal space, where the concept of ends does not seem to exist.
Taking a deep breath, I take my first steps down the stairs, only to find myself in another small empty room, with only a single exit. I continue my exploration, staying as safe as I can the whole while. I descend several more staircases, which all just seem to lead to more mazes every single time. I decide to rest when my stomach begins to rumble, splooting down in the darkness beside a staircase. I eat a big apple I had picked up along the way as I watch the residents of this place roam.
Unfortunately, I don’t get to rest for long, when the sweet scent of my food apparently catches another Pokemon’s attention.
A Poochyena suddenly leaps at me, barely giving me time to stumble out of the way with my apple in my mouth. I growl, which is returned by the small hound, apparently wanting the food I had rightfully earned myself. We circle each other, and I begin to gather energy in my paws, hoping that I could pull off at least a simple attack.
Then the Poochyena goes flying as a Riolu with a gray bandana slams its fist into the dog’s side. I blink as the dog that had been threatening me dissolves into a fine mist somehow. I sigh in relief, quickly finishing my meal in a few large bites as two pokemon approach me with a smile.
“Hey, you’re a Zorua, right?” The Riolu asks, messing with the cloth around his neck, “What brings you into a mystery dungeon like this?”
I gulp down a huge bite, then toss the apple core away. “I didn’t know what this place was and stepped inside. I’ve been wandering around for hours.”
“Ah! So you’re a lost Pokemon!” Peeking out from behind the Riolu, an Eevee wearing a silver ribbon on her neck with a similar design to the bandana grins at me. “Well, you’re in luck, miss! We’re the Silver Rescue Team!”
I blink, tilting my head as I ask:
“What’s a rescue team, exactly?”
The two Pokemon nearly fall down, looking down at me in shock.
“You… aren’t from around here are you?” The Riolu mutters, looking at his partner.
I nod, and the Eevee brightens, leaping around to get a good look at me.
“Well, that makes things more interesting!” After her quick inspection, she trots over to the Riolu, clearing her throat and raising her head proudly. “I’m Eevee and this is Riolu! We’re members of a rescue team dedicated to saving Pokemon lost in mystery dungeons, like you are! We, uh, also make a point to save Pokemon on the surface as well.”
I tilt my head a bit farther. “Why are your names the same as your species?”
Riolu and Eevee both awkwardly look at the walls, before Eevee sighs. “Okay, so, we’re the only ones like us in this area, and we don’t have a name in the waking world, so we just… use what we are as our names.”
Riolu hisses, poking the Eevee in the shoulder. “You know we’re not supposed to talk about this being the dream world! What if the older pokemon heard you?”
Eevee giggles, running to hide behind me. “It’s fine, this one seems nice!”
Riolu shakes his head, putting a hand on his hip while looking at us..
“Look, we’ll get you out of the dungeon, you’ll just have to join us for now,” He says, looking at the stairs, “We don’t have long to go, I think. You have a name, or are you just gonna go by Zorua?”
I bite my lip, taking a moment to think while peeking at the Eevee behind me. These two seemed really nice, so it wouldn’t really harm me to share, but if I was wrong somehow…
“Zorua is fine.” I mutter, stretching as I stand up. “Shall we go?”
“Onward!” Eevee cheers, then immediately rushes forward down the stairs. Me and Riolu share a look, then follow right behind the hyper active pup.
Not much is said as we roam around the next few floors, but I have to admit that the two were quite good at this whole thing. Instead of hiding to avoid the wild Pokemon, they would utilize their strength to brutally banish them from the place themselves. We continue down three more floors, until we end up on the edge of a huge, ominously empty amphitheater.
“Whooa!” Eevee rushes forward, descending towards the main stage. “I wonder why this was built!”
Riolu rushes after her, a worried look as he scans the area. I immediately begin to realize something is wrong as well, a strange haze beginning to collect over where we had just been standing. We are basically corralled into the center of the room, only for a thick glob of fog to appear, slowly moving towards us. When it dissipates, it reveals a grinning Galarian Slowking, its hands behind its back. “Ohohoho! You’ve fallen into my trap, Silver team!”
“What is the meaning of this, Slowking?!” Riolu slams his foot down, growling. “You’re the one that led us here, why do this?!”
“You’ve ruined my plans twice already! I won’t let you ruin my goals!” The Slowking raises a finger, ripping a rock out of the ground. “I’ll destroy you here and now!”
The rescue team jumps into motion and I decide to help as well. This Slowking seems sketchy at best, evil at worst. I’d probably be doing the world a favor by beating him down.
“See, I don’t get it,” Eevee mutters as she summons a set of stars and rams it into our opponent, “I don’t even know what plans you’re talking about.”
Slowking grunts in frustration, pointing his finger at Riolu before launching him across the room, “Remember mirror lake, the winding woods?! Those were all me!”
“Uhhh…” Eevee tilts her head, looking at me. “No? Doesn't ring a bell.”
I shrug, not really having context myself, then rush forward while gathering energy in my paws. I whack at the Pokemon, only for it to do almost nothing. He gives me a strange look, then snickers as he launches a quickly approaching Riolu at Eevee. They go tumbling, and I begin to panic.
I know the energy I have is what Pokemon use to attack, but how do they convert it into that level of power? My mind shoots to Eve, who always seemed to gather her energy at the primary points of power in her body. Then it clicks when I think about Eve’s gem; The fear goop, that was type energy!
Knowing what to do now, I begin to condense the energy in my heart, sending my negative emotions into it. It shifts into that disgusting sticky syrup, but I know that I can actually use it myself now. My claws shoot out when I shift the dark energy to them, and when the Slowking is about to perform another attack, I swipe out at his face. He screeches and stumbles backwards, clutching his face with his hands, three distinct scratches across his eyes.
“I thought you were weak, so I left you alone.” He raises his fist, an orange energy gathering around it. “Turns out that was a mistake.”
“No, Zorua!” Riolu yells, doing his best to stop what was about to happen. “That’s Drain Punch! You have to dodge!”
I try to open my mouth to respond, but I find myself held down by an invisible force. Before I can do anything like trying to break out, the fist slams into my head. I go flying as Eevee screams, and I slam into the wall. A deep pain fills my whole body, and the last thing I see before I lose consciousness is the Rescue team battling away as best they can against their foe, anger in their eyes.
Then, I wake up again.
Groggy as all hell, I sniffle as I look down at the baby Vulpix on my chest, snoozing the morning away. I raise my hand up, clenching then opening my fist a few times. Eve looks at me with a smile, sending me affection then picks up Tinder and hugs the fox close.
I send her my appreciation, stumbling as I stand up to take a shower. My time as a Zorua, that strange strange dream, plays on repeat in my head as I flip the shower on. I don’t wait for it to heat up before stepping into the stream, considering the water is already warmer than I was honestly used to.
Really though, what the fuck was that dream?
It was… so real. I had all my faculties, feelings, thoughts. Just in the body of a tiny illusion fox instead of my own. The way I had been interrogated didn’t help, especially since it seems to be how the monster changed me. Was this just… how things were going to be when I dreamed now?
I stand there in the flowing water for a while, just appreciating the humanity I have. I hadn’t really realized how nice having thumbs was until I couldn’t carry an apple without keeping it in my mouth. I can also tell that my senses were definitely enhanced while in that form, but… it was so much more pleasant having what I had here. It got far too much at times, when I was in that ‘mystery dungeon’.
Eventually, my fingers start wrinkling, and I reluctantly flip the shower off. I quickly change into a simple outfit after drying off- I really needed a second set of traveling clothes- but pause when I pull the Eevee shirt on. The Eevee and Riolu in the dream… I hope they’re okay. They seemed like good people, uh, I mean Pokemon.
This was really confusing…
I step out of the bathroom and walk downstairs, finding Sofie sitting on the couch tapping away at her phone. Cider sits on her lap, Chamomile directly in front of the window, and Cappuccino frantically dusting the entire place. Sofie notices my entrance, looking back at me with a smile that makes my heart skip.
“Hey, good morning Clumsy!” Sofie rapidly pats beside her on the couch. “How’d you sleep?”
I plop down, leaning my head on her shoulder as I sigh. “Maybe too well.”
Sofie hums in curiosity, “Dream stuff again?”
I pause, tilting my head to look at my friend’s face.
“How do you even know about that?” I wring my hands a bit, a bit of anxiety rising at a few different errant thoughts.
Sofie snorts, poking me in my cheek. “Don’t worry, Clumsy, I’m not watching you sleep or anything. You were having those nightmares on the road, plus you’re always a bit dazed whenever you wake up.”
I breathe in relief, then rest my head on her shoulder again. “Mhm, you got it. I dreamt I was a Zorua. It was so… I don’t even know how to describe it in a way that does it justice. I was truly, one hundred percent a Pokemon for what felt like an entire day.”
Sofie puts her hand on and then taps her fingers against my thigh in thought, sending pleasant shivers up my spine. She leans in close, whispering into my ear. “What was it like? Tell me about what you experienced, Clumsy.”
My face heats up at the feeling of her breath on my skin, but I nod. “So, for context, since you noticed already, I have lucid dreams, uh, a lot. Ever since I left Paldea, actually. That isn’t really the point though, what I wanna talk about started when I fell asleep on that bench with you in Santalune.”
I breathe in, a bit of darkness gathering in my heart at the memory of that first encounter. “Within that dream, I encountered this… shadow monster. It dragged me into a nightmare, which seemed to continue the next time I fell asleep.”
“Hmm…” Sofie leans her head against mine. “Sounds like the boogeyman they speak of in Sinnoh. Darkrai, I think his name was?”
I blink, then give a small giggle. “Figures you’d know the name of something that’s been harassing me for a few days. I should have talked about this sooner.”
“I’m pretty reliable, y'know, little miss,” Sofie jokes, then states “Talking is how we resolve stuff like this. Don’t be afraid to talk to me about anything okay?”
“Mhm,” Is all I manage to respond as a deep, well, affection begins to fill my heart, taking a moment to savor it before I realize what I am doing and stutter out, “A-Anyways, apparently the Florges we encounter cleansed whatever he did to me, so when he showed up last night he found me not in a nightmare. He started interrogating me, then… then changed my normal dream form to a Zorua.”
Sofie sighs, reaching up to scratch my head. “And then?”
As the sensation of her hand roaming across my scalp begins, I literally whine in delight. My face becomes a furnace, my head pulling back to find Sofie with a lopsided grin on her face.
“Does it feel that good, Clumsy?” Sofie giggles, then continues the scratches.
“I-I-I…” I fail to find words, then shiver as I say, “Y-Yes, but-but that wasn’t on purposeeee…”
Sofie snickers pulling my head into hers. “It’s okay, Morgan. Probably just after effects of the dream or something.”
I nod, biting my lip as I resist the urge to scream in embarrassment. At that point, Eve and Tinder come downstairs, the little fox zooming into my large shirt. She fidgets around until she is sticking her head out of the hole beneath mine. Eve giggles, spreading her contentment at the current situation to us. I sigh, scratching my little sister’s head.
“It was just… Sofie, whenever I was in a dream before, I didn’t have feelings. The only sense that worked was my eyes.” I look at Chamomile, the plant happily sitting in the sunlight. “I had guessed that Pokemon could feel from how they acted in dreams, but after he turned me…”
“You could actually feel?” Sofie breathes in, wrapping her arm around my shoulder. “I can see why it bothered you so much now.”
I nod, enjoying the weight of my friend on me. “If it was real… I now understand implicitly how Pokemon battle. I understood the ones I talked with and could have conversations with them as well. I also have a few different concerns about how it all works, but I can’t confirm them without going back there.”
Sofie pats my shoulder, leaning down to look at my face. “So, other than it being really strange, does anything about what happened really matter that much at the moment?”
I think, then give a small smile as two pokemon flash into my mind.
“Not really,” I whisper, then look in her eyes as I say:
“But I have a new idea for what we could do with the team, if we decided on making one.”