Blurring

At first, it was dark. But, dark as you were at first, you soon gave way to light. You try to process what is going on, but you can’t keep track of the time when you don’t know how it starts and ends. A graying light distorted, constantly dimming and brightening without a semblance of order as it gives no aid to your slipping focus. How long have you been in this state, where consciousness is nothing but a fleeting hope?

Turning

You desperately try to move, but you feel no control over your being as it moves through this obscure space. It almost feels like falling, but you couldn’t tell the difference between up and down. The constant change in orientation makes you dizzy for only a moment as you try to think of anything. It’s hopeless as you are only an observer within the vessel you are born with, drifting with almost no input from its occupant.

Rushing

In primal instinct, you try to partake in a standard bodily function, lungs expanding on autopilot to find some normalcy. First, the lungs fill, then they burn. You almost didn’t feel it as you were distracted by the auditory and visual noise. Now the throat burns, making you cough as your body tries to expel what it took in for survival. Finally, you stopped your rasping as the blurring intensified. It must have taken more energy than you are willing to part with, as now you feel so tired.

Fading

You stare into the hazy expanse, your mind looking for anything to hold on to. The refracting light soon caught your attention, like a beacon to home in on. You see a window showing an existence that you couldn’t mentally process at the moment. Were you up there, living a reality that has been taken for granted? That question haunts you as the darkness around you moves in, dimming the light one more time.

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Pain, is all I felt at this moment. My muscles feel like they are on fire, while my bones feel like they have been pulverized by a sledgehammer. It’s like I woke up, went through several marathons in the morning, went along with the marine corp for boot camp exercises in the afternoon, then suddenly I said “more please” in the middle of the night as I scaled the Grand Canyon without equipment. All in all, not a great time. And it certainly didn’t help that I couldn’t breathe! Wait…

*Cough-ack!* *Hugh!* *Hack!* I wheezed and hastily breathed like a smoker who had taken a bad hit. I have to forcibly open my eyes and sit up due to the coughing fit as the aches rack my body. Thankfully I didn’t get to cough bad enough to throw up. After taking life-giving air for my own benefit, I decided to gauge my surroundings, and what I saw was confusing. It was a forest in the middle of the night, with the familiar sounds of crickets serenading the grove like it’s open mic night on a Saturday. With treetops covering only two-thirds of the sparkling expanse of the night sky, like wooden skyscrapers unmoving in this natural canvas. What is so strange about this is that despite the night's muted tones, the ground and sky look… more colorful.

By the feeling of stiffness and, well… dirt, it seems that I slept on a mound that leads to one of these large trees. And when I say large, I mean ‘holy crap, that's large.’ I could have mistaken this place for a redwood forest if not for the oak leaves swaying in the dim full moonlight. Even the bushes are huge; what type of forest I woke up in? Thankfully this forest doesn't look tropical. If I had to face big cats, they would practically end me because I don’t think they will respect social distancing if they get a free meal out of it.

I tried to put my hand on my leg to support myself due to a lack of energy, but I knew something about this was wrong at that moment. The first part is the ‘leg’; when I try to put my hand on my thigh, I feel like I’m touching my ankle. I’m laying my legs flat, so either my arms are abnormally long, or my legs are unusually short. The second thing is that my ‘hand’ feels very weird. My leg feels like two fingers and a thumb are pressing it, and I can’t feel any other finger besides those three. The last thing that made my mind go to a complete stop was that I felt my ‘leg,’ with my so-called ‘hand,’ is very plush. And no, I’m not talking about the fatty type of plush; I’m talking about the whole ‘I’m holding a stuffed animal’ type of plush. I felt silky fur.

I closed my eyes and breathed in, trying not to look at the cause of these discrepancies, which may cause a mental breakdown. As the distracting crickets called, which I could have sworn were louder when I tried to focus, I lifted my hand in front of my face while I tried to mentally prepare myself for the impossible. I opened my eyes and what greeted me was not my hand but a dark three-clawed one that looked like it belonged on a muppet rather than an animal. And behind that is two dark two-clawed feet under a plush body.

I tried desperately not to panic, as panicking may lead to dumb decisions that worsen the situation. I did as anyone would do to probe this insanity even further. I move my thumb to touch my… last finger. They connected, and I could feel a claw at the end of the 'finger.' “What the-” I caught myself as I noticed even my voice was different, as if I sounded like an adult mimicking a young child’s pitch and doing it very well. Although there is another sound layered under it that I didn’t quite catch. Not only do I sound different, but the jaw that moves with the voice is also different. I felt with my tongue that my jaw has more canines than frontals. What the heck even am I!? And would the crickets quiet down already!?

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‘I need a reflection.’ I thought to myself, as that would make this situation any better. What next? Am I going to have wings or something? I start by standing up despite my body screaming to lay down and nod off, but I can’t just sit in the open. What if something or someone sees me? I got up only after a few attempts, but it was a problem due to my body shape. ‘Why is my head big? Am I an infant?’ My thought wasn’t too far off because I almost fell down the first time, and I had to waddle to move forward. Yes, I do mean waddle like a dang penguin. Probably because my legs look like they are wearing baggy pants and the fact that they somehow feel back heavy, I wouldn’t call walking in this body a cakewalk.

After grumbling about short legs, I soon felt like I had an epiphany. I looked at all the surrounding trees and bushes, and I realized that they were not big but that I was small. ‘So these are normal oaks.’ I thought, but it was not much of a shocker if you think about it. If I changed anatomically, then changing size shouldn’t be that far of a stretch, but it is still terrifying that I might be smaller than an actual human. Hopefully, a hunter does not mistake me as an animal or ‘thing’ before shooting me. I do have feelings, and I rather not be served on a spit roast after I die.

My distant staring was interrupted by a sound that I almost missed. I thought I heard the moving of a water source. I swivel my head toward the direction of the noise, but I only see tall grass a few inches taller than me that leads to fewer trees. ‘That looks ominous.’ I pointed to myself as my instincts told me entering it would help me hide, or I would get caught by something hiding there if I entered. That brings up a point that a clearing may attract birds of prey, and just because I can’t see them, it doesn't mean they won’t see the moving grass. Despite my conflicting thoughts and fears, I decided to enter. I should be okay if I don’t make too much of a ruckus. Now, to find the source of that noise.

It was strange, being next to grass taller than you, but that feeling soon passed as I walked deeper into the field. “Ti!” *Spash!* That was the third time I tripped when entering here; the first was when I tripped over a well-hidden rock under the grass, the second is when some of the grass caught my foot, making it a natural tripwire, the one currently is that I slipped on a mud puddle and fell into it. So now I’m covered in soggy dirt. ‘Get up. You can do this.’ I comforted myself as I lifted my head, with a mud-covered face looking ahead. Then, with teary eyes, I felt relieved when the grass started thinning down the grassy path. I soon get my hands, claws? With what I will call ‘hands,’ I pushed deeper into the mud to push myself back up and continued forward.

I soon pushed the grass away, revealing a small pond in the middle of a clearing. It looks almost serine, with the full moon in the overhang reflecting on the water's surface. When I got closer to this place, the crickets got noticeably louder, and a few fireflies lingered around. Their light couldn’t compare to the pale light flooding the area like the moon was challenging the sun for its dominion. I thought it was my imagination before, but I noticed now the colors I’m seeing are way more impactful than usual. I wouldn’t say it’s fake, more like it seems alive and vibrant. Checking for other forms, I slowly walked to the pond, minding I must avoid the deep parts at all costs. I got used to what I call ‘the toddler gait,’ which is better than waddling, I suppose, as I was completing my destination.

Finally, I can see what I look like after all that time. Although it is not a mirror, I have limited options because I don’t think this body came with clothes… or anything. Under the pale light, I looked upon my form for the first time. I froze, not because I heard anything or because I looked hideous. In fact, I look rather cute, like a dirty puppy. No, because I look like something very familiar. A round head with big ears shaped like a ‘V’ with pale blue eyes staring back in the reflection. I lifted my arm, seeing the creamy coat of fur and orange hands stained with mud done the same. I walk closer, with the reflection doing the same with poofy legs, and are those wings attached to my lower back!? No, no way… there is no way I.

“Victini-iii!” I lost focus on my balance and fell back into the mud. This humiliating joke is starting to get old. I couldn’t keep my mind on my dirty appearance right now because of a more glaring question. How. How did I become a pokémon!? I remember Pokémon very well since my college friends were die-hard fans while I am what they call 'a filthy casual' as I only watched some of the anime, a few movies, and played Diamond and Black. But aren’t pokémon just fictional creatures? Clearly, they are real since I'm a goddamn Legendary! Will there be other pokémon around here!?

The universe graciously answered my panicked addled thoughts when my large ears picked up rustling from the grass two o-clock from me across the pond. With my now theorized, better-than-before vision, I saw a form move from cover into the clearing. It looks like a deer with a flower on its head, a small one compared to humans, but compared to me, it’s two times taller than my dinky height! Now it cautiously pranced forward, searching the surroundings as if it was at risk of being attacked. I held still, but that was unnecessary due to the fact the weird deer was careless, not looking a little lower in its search. Soon it relaxed its posture and finally lowered its head to quench its thirst. I couldn't believe it hadn't seen or heard me before, as that fall was not subtle. Maybe the deer is young and inexperienced?

As I look at this deer and its strange floral headdress, my mind finally clicks as to why its appearance is so familiar. It’s a Deerling, like the one in Pokémon Black. Still, the deer pokémon looks like DreamWorks partnered up with 'big daddy' Nintendo and tried to animate it as realistically as possible with somewhat unrealistic proportions in some places like the eyes, and it is right in front of me. So it was no surprise that my mind practically short-circuited at the sight of this thing. “Uhhh…” Thanks to my genius instincts, I gave myself away when gaping at the not-a-fantasy Deerling. Suddenly, the Deerling acted like it gained its keen hearing as the plant deer froze in place and slowly looked up, staring at my prone slack-jawed-like-a-moron form.

“AH! Predator!” It shouted as it bolted into the grass and trees, never even looking back at me, a small pokémon who was more shocked than hungry. “It talked.” I affirmed to myself, but there was more to it than just 'talking like a human.' What's more apparent is that I heard under the shout of the Deerling sounded like 'LING! Deer!' like it was in the anime. When I looked back on the times I talked, the same thing happened to me as well. Like when I said, 'It talked.' under that is the slight whisper of 'Ti Victi.' almost like I’m speaking my own weird language or dialect, and I understand it. What? How does that make ANY SENSE!?

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?” I shouted to the air with a high pitch as the crickets gave no comment.