"Ungh..."
I woke up with a sour taste in my mouth. My head ached, and my memories of the previous night had all but deserted me.
A bottle of rum on the table beside me held some clues. Then I realized something. Two somethings, in fact:
One. I wasn't an alcoholic.
Two. I had no idea where I was.
I leaped out of bed. I was already fully clothed, which surprised me. On the table was a note. I picked it up.
"Dear Spencer,
Congratulations on deciding to participate. You have been fully prepared for your journey. Please note a few things:
1. Your memory is missing. That is because you volunteered to join the simulation. Once complete, your amnesia will be cured.
2. In order to complete the simulation, you must take part in what is known as the Pokemon League Challenge. You will explore the area, train Pokemon, and compete against eight Gym Leaders. Once you have defeated all eight Gyms, you will be obliged to compete in the Elite Four. Upon defeating said group, the simulation will be complete.
3. You can only catch the first Pokemon you see in each area(However, due to its borders, Pinwheel Forest counts as two separate areas).
4. Your Pokemon can and WILL die over the course of the simulation. Be sure to keep them healthy and strong. If your team completely fails and you have no reserves, you will be pulled from the simulation immediately. The trauma of removal may kill you-or at best, horribly cripple you. So don't fail.
5. To further challenge your skills, you may only purchase basic items. All stronger items must be trashed or sold as soon as possible.
6. We will know if you break the rules. So don't, unless you have a death wish. Here is a demonstration."
As soon as I read it, I looked up. A loud crash shook the room, and the roof was forcibly removed by something. As it flew off, I continued reading, convinced of their powers. Whoever THEY were.
"7. Do not mention to ANY of the programs that this is a simulation.
8. Failure to comply with the above rules will result in removal from the simulation, which, as stated in Article 4, may kill or cripple you.
Good luck. You may now choose a Pokemon."
As if on cue, the note vanished. In its place was a gift-wrapped box. I unwrapped and opened the box. Inside rested three red and white. I gazed at them, mulling over the situation.
What was a Pokemon? Why on earth had I joined such a crazy thing voluntarily? Was I currently wrapped in stasis, lying somewhere? Or was I just insane, babbling to myself in a mental ward? I only knew one thing for sure. This was madness.
I picked up a ball.
The box disappeared.
I tossed the ball. A green snake-like thing popped out. It looked around and noticed me.
Suddenly, voices chimed out from over my shoulder.
"Gaaah!" I screamed, turning while trying to run forward, which resulted in me falling on my ass.
"Oh, Spencer. What a silly thing to do!"
A girl in a green beret-like thing giggled at me. Next to her stood a nerdy-looking fellow with a crisp jacket and glasses. His hair went all over the place. They looked normal, but when I looked closely, all of the colors on their bodies seemed to be made from pixels. As I looked around the room, it became clear that everything was 64-bit.
"And you are?" I inquired, trying to sound cool but sounding scared.
"Oh. You must've hurt your head or something. Remember? I'm Bianca, and this is Cheren. We're your best friends."
As she said this, she and Cheren leered at me. I scrambled to my feet. Meanwhile, Cheren and Bianca were talking. They turned and said in unison:"Let's battle!"
" Uh, I don't know how to battle," I stalled.
"C'mon Spencer, of course you do. How else did you throw that Pokeball so expertly?" Bianca pointed out.
In all honesty, I was aiming to throw it out the open ceiling and make a break for it. But it opened up and a green snake thing appeared.
"So, let's battle!" exclaimed Bianca. She threw her ball and a funny little creature appeared. It was like a sea otter, but with a blue coloration, a clown-like nose and a shell on its belly. It also had little platypus feet and a tail. I stared at it.
The snake turned and hissed, "Well? Come on, Trainer," in a smooth voice.
I stared at it in shock. That snake had just talked. Upon further examination, it was like a plant had fused with the thing- all in 64-bit. I was now ready to admit that I was bonkers.
The otter bellowed, "Bring it, Savio!"
My eye twitched.
The snake, whose name was apparently Savio, replied, "Sorry, Oskar, don't want to humiliate you."
It turned again. "Dammit, give me a command!"
I shrugged helplessly.
The snake's beady eyes rolled. It snorted, "Useless," and glared at the otter. The otter, Oskar, took a step back. As it retreated, Savio launched itself at it, knocking Oskar into the wall. It picked itself up and gave Savio his own medicine. I watched, shocked, as the two creatures blitzed themselves into each other. What was more shocking was that Cheren and Bianca were cheering the two on.
Savio slammed Oskar into the wall again, and Oskar collapsed. Bianca pulled out her 'Pokeball'. With a flash of red light, Oskar disappeared. Bianca put the ball away. She eyed me, asking, "Well? Aren't you going to return your Snivy?"
"Um, it said its name was Savio," I pointed out, as I copied her motions to place Savio in his ball.
Bianca giggled. "Oh Spencer, Pokemon don't talk!"
"But-"
"Pokemon don't talk, right Cheren?" She turned to the nerd. He nodded. "Looks like your bump to the head was more serious than we thought. And so is the damage to the room!"
I looked around. The room was in shambles. The TV was cracked, the desk shattered, several indents in the wall vied for attention, and little pawprints were everywhere.
"Uh-oh!"
"Bianca, couldn't you and Spencer have been a little more careful?"
"Sorry," Bianca pouted. Then she brightened. "Hey, why don't you and Spencer battle? With your knowledge, you can do better than me!
Cheren seemed to like the idea. "But first," he said, "I should heal your Pokemon."
Cheren took our Pokeballs and sprayed a fine mist from a bottle onto them. "There," he said. "That should do it."
Cheren took out his Pokeball. I took a look around and retrieved mine.
Cheren's Pokemon appeared. It was relatively normal, except for its jack-o-lantern-esque color scheme and the little ball on the end of its tail.
"Savio," grunted the pig.
"Terrence," lisped Savio. They attacked.
Savio made short work of the pig. A few tackles and it was down for the count. I was horrified and amazed by these cockfights, but the others acted like it was no big deal.
"Okay, we better apologize to your mom for this room," Cheren pointed out.
I followed them downstairs to see an unfamiliar woman. She acted as if she knew us all really well. When we explained the room, she just shrugged it off and sent us outside to meet some famous professor.
Bianca headed straight, while I followed Cheren to a small laboratory in the corner of the four-house town. When we reached, Cheren simply blocked the door, asking me to check on Bianca. I tried to get around, but he was like a wall. Finally, I was forced to take the path Bianca took. I ended up outside her house. I knocked on the door, which swung open. I stepped in and watched as Bianca confronted her father. The two were at odds over something. Some kind of journey.
When Bianca saw me, she lowered her hat in embarrassment. "It was nothing, Spencer. Let's go."
I followed her back to the lab where Cheren waited. When he saw us, he ushered us in.
Inside stood a older woman who was surprisingly hot for her age. She exclaimed, "Bianca, Spencer, Cheren, you're here! Good! My name is-"
"Professor Juniper," Cheren interrupted.
"Not bad," Juniper nodded. "Now, I've called you here for a very special reason."
"The Pokedex, right?" Cheren asked.
"My, my! You are quite well read! But for formalities' sake, let me explain."
Juniper showed us a red and black PDA. "This is a Pokedex. It's a high-tech encyclopedia. When you catch a Pokemon, it automatically updates data on that Pokemon. That's why I called you here. I want to ask you to go out and catch all of the Pokemon in the Unova Region for me. What do you say?"
"Yes!" Cheren and Bianca enthusiastically said, drowning me out.
"Great! Meet me at Route 1!" said the professor. "But first, let me see your Pokemon."
She carefully examined the three creatures, and her face lit up. "I heard you already battled with them. Maybe that's why they seem to trust you."
"Doubtful," I heard the three Pokemon say in unison.
"How about nicknaming them?" asked Juniper. Cheren and Bianca nodded.
"Spencer?"
"Uh, sure."
"I swear, if you don't name me Savio, I will kill you!" the snake hissed.
Five minutes later, the newly christened snake curled around my neck threateningly. "All right. Let's do this."
When I discovered the entrance to Route 1, Cheren and Bianca forced me to take a large single step with them.
We stepped out onto a field of trees and grass. Every blade and leaf was a perfect copy of the blade and leaf next to them.
Juniper stood waiting.
"All right, you're here. Let me show you how to catch Pokemon."
Juniper stepped into the grass. Suddenly, the world flashed white, and went black.
When my sight returned, Juniper was facing a packrat with hypnotic eyes. She threw a Pokeball, and a cute little grey mouse appeared.
"Pound!" Juniper ordered. The rabbit laid a karate chop onto the packrat, which growled threateningly. The rabbut karate chopped it again. Then Juniper returned it to her Pokeball. She pulled out another Pokeball and threw it at the packrat. The ball swallowed up the packrat and shook thrice. Then it clicked shut.
"And that is how you catch a Pokemon!"
Cheren and Bianca clapped appreciatively. The professor had us draw closer. She then thrust Pokeballs and a Pokedex into our hands.
"I'm counting on you!" the professor called, walking down the path.
"Hey, I have an idea!" exclaimed Bianca
"Stomp on it before it gets away!" Cheren said.
"No, really. Let's try to catch as many Pokemon as possible. Whoever has the most wins!"
"Okay," said Cheren. "It sounds good, and will fill up the Dex."
The two walked off.
I took a tentative step into the grass, and the world flashed black.
Hello Internet!
My name is ARandomDay. Some of you may have already read my previous tale, Experiment 505.
This fanfiction is also being posted on the Nuzlocke Forum as "Into the Matrix". Updates will be posted earlier and more frequently there, so if you have an account, check it out.
Read and review. Criticism welcomed.
ARandomDay out. Peace!