The PPhilia Club

A Unova Region Tale

Chapter 1: The Case of Zoe Arewell

Part 1: Tumbling Into the Spotlight

"Hey did you hear? There's a rumor going all around Unova about a strange secret society of Pokemon trainers. They say that in every major city, there's a place where Trainers and Pokemon become one. I'm not sure what that means, but I do know what the symbol looks like. Reliable sources say that there's an emblem of some kind that sits to the side of any door that leads into a PPC facility. Its in the shape of a heart shaped poke ball with the letters PPC on it. All I've learned is that the place is incredibly tight lipped and rather disturbing. There was recently an anonymous individual that even said they had been in a PPC facility. It's hard to believe they're legit or not since they didn't say anything about what goes on inside. All he said was what he saw changed his life forever. If I were any of you, I'd stay away; they say once you step into that world, there is no going back to the normal life we all have…God what a lame post, is this guys serious?" Zoe Arewell scoffed at the online message that appeared on her frequented forum.

Zoe wasn't exactly normal for a girl. She mostly sat around at home all day, ditching Pokemon training classes that she was forcibly enrolled in so she could stay at home and look up areas to visit that people strongly advise against. Her book shelves were lined with books of mythology and conspiracies surrounding the legendary Pokemon of all regions of the world. Her looks followed suit with her hobbies. She was clearly a nerd in appearance: Her hair was brunette and parted at the top of her forehead, her hair flew all the way down to her shoulders, widening her face. Her hazel eyes had bags beneath them with her eyes lids at a constant sleepy appearance giving off a clear "I don't care" demeanor. In short, Zoe was an insomniac who had too much time on her hands. She wasn't a bad girl by any means; she's done a lot of good for people, especially online. Zoe groaned as she rolled onto her back, disappointed that the post she had been waiting on for the last 48 hours went completely nowhere. After a short pause, she immediately flopped back over onto her stomach to continue clicking around, as she had done every night for the past month.

The forum that she not only frequented, but was more of a member of, was called "Secrets of Unova". Within its pages were all sorts of rumors and news about the underground hang outs all around the Unova region. Ranging from tourist attractions, hidden gems of locations, and all the way to private get together spots among delinquents, theorists, and those who wish to look into the unknown or the taboo, all within the world of Pokemon and to which ever struck their fancy. Recently however, there have been cases of areas being brought up that had people both in awe and in terror with its descriptions. At first it could only be found at the furthest corners of the Pokenet, but recently it has been brought to the surface within the casual confines of knowledge. The one in question recently became popular after being posted for the last week or so. They call it the PPC. Its supposedly a secret society of Pokemon collectors that set up charity and events and have things called PRs or Poke Rooms established in their buildings. Its rumored that they are view able online but only if referred to by a PPC member and the only way to meet them was honestly by chance, or so that's what they say. Zoe shrugged her shoulders in protest as she read on about the PPC, hoping that she could come across some kind of juicy information that would make her long nights of hunting crap down feel justified.

"As fraudulent as this all sounds, I must say it does spark the curiosity in me...well what's life without a little fun. It's boring and hellish, that's what it is. So I guess I'll keep searching until I pass out again..." she silently spoke to herself. Giving her hand joints a good cracking and stretching out wide on her bed, she decided it would wise be to grab some snacks and a drink before she goes on another one of her infamous site hunting binges. Interestingly enough, she wasn't always into these kinds of these things. She had lived a fairly normal life, having fun, playing with Pokemon, etc. But as she grew a little older, those things began to grow more and more bland to her until they were almost intolerable.

So, as of 4 months ago, she had changed from that fun loving child, into this sleepless, self proclaimed scholar of the occult. Before she was fairly naive, and kind of a boring person who simply did as she was told. However, after she discovered "The Secrets of Unova", all of that changed in the blink of an eye. Grabbing her favorite, Honey Butterfree chips, she trounced back into her little domain of power, shutting and locking her door behind her as she always did to maintain her own little sense of comfort and safety. Returning her fingers to her keyboard, she began her crusade as if she was searching for the holy grail. She began an online quest, hopping forum to forum on every inch of the Pokenet to try and find answers about the newly discovered, yet barely known PPC. Her face was lit up with wonder and a smile was curled across her lips with excitement and determination with every click of her mouse. Before, searching the Pokenet was mostly from boredom; just finding something funny to read and then shutting it down just like that. But now, it had become her lord and savior from all this lame and boring, as well as becoming her second home where she could be herself without the harsh judgment of others.

Hours and hours passed before any progress was made at all. All of her momentum and motivation of wonder and excitement began to turn into that of frustration and mental agony as she found herself in a perpetual loop of "he said this, she said that" that literally ran her in circles across several forum. At first she was just going to see if there was any information about a PPC location in Virbank City, but the more or less she found, she learned that she just had to find anything she could get her hands on. Even the tiniest bit of helpful information would make all of her efforts worth it. Zoe began glaring at her computer screen in contempt as site after site mindlessly babbled on with rumor filled non-sense. Checking back on TSOU page, there were more responses to the original post about the PPC. Slowly reading them one at a time, she saw messages from familiar names line up vertically on the screen. She prayed to Arceus before returning her gaze back to her screen.

"I think this whole PPC thing is just something stupid the OP made up to get attention" -Snorwrath

"I'm not so sure about that, I've heard of the PPC before and not just on this forum. Maybe there's more truth to it than we think?" -Pikaclue

"Srsly guys, this is stupid lol" -GrimerGirl

"Maybe if some of actually went around looking we might uncover something" -MewDude

"Good luck with that, you'd be better off finding a girlfriend" -PwnEdge

"Dude I have a girlfriend" -MewDude

"I call BS, prove it bruh" -ProBro

"Wow...seriously? Can't we be mature about this?" -GrimerGirl

"Shut up, let us talk," -ProBro

"So are you guys done fighting? Because you look like idiots" -Pikaclue

"Says the guys with a dumb name like Pikaclue" -Snorwrath

Zoe patiently read down the entire list of posts; her level of regret slowly increased as the conversation thread progressed onward, the less and less it had to do with the topic at hand, slowly enraging her to a strong boiling point. Scrolling down further, she prayed that she would find better results. She really tried to have faith in the civility of a forum about secret societies, but that faith would only be tested to the point of snapping in half.

"So yeah guys, I think this PPC stuff is totally bogus as well," -GrimerGirl

"Says the one person whose trying to be female," -Snorwrath

"Hey shut up! Don't be a jerk" -GrimerGirl

"Heh...you people" -Qualter

"You got a problem dude?" -ProBro

"Nope, only an idea of how ignorant you all are" -Qualter

"Bruh...the hell is your problem?" - ProBro

"It sounds like you may know something. Is there anything you can tell us about the PPC?" -Pikeclue

The end of the chat box ended, meaning that she would need to hit the next button on the screen if she wished to see more. She stared at the screen, her heart slowly gaining another shard of hope as she lowered her cursor to it. Shaking at the thought that something may actually happen on the next page, she quickly spammed the next button, clicking it anxiously to get to the results of this argument.

"What the heck is the PPC?" -Qualter

"Tell me you're kidding me, PLEASE tell me you're kidding me" -Snorwrath

"Oh...I think I clicked on the wrong forum...sorry everyone!" -Qualter

"What an idiot" -PwnEdge

"So yeah, about the pics of your GF MewDude, show us what you've got," -ProBro

"Screw you..." -MewDude

"UGH! IDIOTS!" Zoe roared angrily as she threw her back onto the bed in defeat yet again as she had every other night for the past week. Just when she thought that the maturity of the board was about to shift and offer up a taste of truth, it was nothing more than a ridiculous ruse that left her nothing but salty. As many times as forums and things had done this to her, which by her count was more than enough to make any person lose their minds, she still never saw it coming, which led to many angry rants in the middle of each thread. The idiocy this time was so strong that she didn't even want to post anything, but that wasn't about to stop her. All the frustration and anguish of her hopes being dashed immediately flowed from her fingers like a faucet, raining it all down upon everyone. She furiously put her keys to her keyboard and let her words rip like a bay blade.

"Are you guys kidding me? This is a thread about a secret society, actually not just a thread, a SITE DEDICATED TO THESE THREADS! Are you seriously going to pick at each other like a bunch of freakin' grade schoolers?! Some of us go to these threads for information on things, and here you all are taking a giant dump on it's purpose. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ALL OF YOU?!" -EeveelutionLeader

"You mad bro?" -ProBro

"..." -EeveelutionLeader

Zoe dropped her head in defeat, smashing her forehead right into her keyboard. In that moment she didn't want to do anything but let her computer beep obnoxiously from the fact that she was holding keys down. It was the audio representation of her hopes flat lining as if they were hooked up to a heart monitor. Slowly she removed her head, rubbing her forehead from the actual pain that she felt on the inside of her head. Sighing heavily, she shook her head and was ready to close up shop.

"I guess no one really gives a shit anymore…" Zoe grumbled, wiping the slowly forming tears out of her eyes. Yet again, it was another night chocked full of idiots, desperation, and disappointment. Zoe sighed again and went to turn her poor computer off, allowing it to sleep away the awful things that it had unfortunately blessed her with on this crappy night. As she was closing it, she noticed that her screen had became a chat window with a video stream. Like the whole screen of her laptop was nothing but a video stream. Taking a good glance at it, it was abundantly clear that she was no longer on the forum thread, but on a completely different kind of site altogether. She wiped her eyes firmly to make sure she wasn't just imagining the fact that she quite possibly had a magical forehead that could answer her prayers.

At the very top of the page, in the URL, it read "PPC-VC-1923-PR12" which at first glance seemed like a bunch of non-sense. It mostly confused her because it wasn't a URL or anything that remotely came close to something that would appear in its place. Her eyes swiftly analyzed the page, taking in all the random colors of the decor that sat before the streaming camera, wherever that may be. Her looking was then cut short as a strange occurrence took place, it seemed that some life was about to show itself on the stream. Suddenly, a light scratching noise came over her speakers, followed by a visual coming up on video stream screen.

It was staring at some curtains, the kind you see at a play performance before the show began. She quickly reached for her glasses to get a better look as the chat grew quite lively. All of the messages followed a similar guideline; it was if they were taking a roll call, followed by numbers that seemed like IDs for each account. She couldn't believe the amount of people that were viewing this stream, it had to easily exceed thirty people, which for a live stream was unheard of for something like this. As the last one called off, a user by the name of Velvet 9215 messaged her user name. She jumped in surprised as the window randomly opened; it was as if someone performed a hack on her computer in real time, which left her in a shocked stupor as she read the text.

"User QHEWQ, please state an ID number or I will be forced to ban your I.P. Address. This is a private room that only specially invited guests may attend. If you are some sort of hacker or anything of the sort, I suggest you leave immediately," the message read in blood red type. She stared for a moment in disbelief, as if she were having a straight up out of body experience. In a panic, Zoe allowed her shaking hands to type out an ID that looked similar to several of the ones above. Waiting nervously, she clenched her hands tightly, praying to Arceus as she took a deep breath. A simple ding sounded as the response was placed upon the screen. It made a strange dinging noise, kind of like the ones you'd hear upon an elevator reaching its floor.

"Welcome QHEWQ 28174, this must be your first time attending this auction. Seeing that you aren't a registered member yet means this is an invitation. May I ask who your referral was?" the text came off a bit less strict, but still very menacing at the same time. Like a hacker trying to crack a vault, she began to sweat nervously, doing everything she could to keep her hands steady. Her thoughts felt like a bunch of monkeys fighting over a bucket of marbles. With a quick, hefty sigh she was ready to try her best.

"Well I've gone this far, I might as well see how far I can take this...heh, its kind of like that old story I was read to as a kid. What was it called again...? Meh, doesn't matter, LET'S DO THIS!" she psyched herself up, steadying herself. She took a deep breath and looked at the names above. Maybe if she could pick the right name she might just luck out. She then noticed that one of the names clearly stuck out from the others. It was like she had just seen it but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Qualter 3194 referred me," she typed without great hesitation. Suddenly, almost instantaneously, a private chat window with the name Qualter 3194 read across the top of the window.

"State your appearance, age and gender. I don't remember referring anyone to tonight's auction." Zoe felt as if the words on the screen were choking her by her throat, leaving her at whits end as a cold sweat drenched over her body. She figured there was no hiding it at this point. She quickly typed out her actual appearance and gender, but botched her age to read 21 just in case, seeing that if they found out a 16 year old going on 17 she'd immediately be cut off. The message 'Qualter is typing" sat at the bottom of the chat box, causing her poor heart to pound loudly in her chest. Faster and faster her heart pounded, with every second waiting felt like an eternity.

"I think I remember you now. Did we meet at Roxie's bands gig on friday?" Qualter asked. A forceful release of her breath pushed through her lips as she went to steady her breathing. She might've found the foot hold she needed to stay afloat in this chat room.

"I feel like I'm digging deeper and deeper into a dark hole that I may not get out of…what should I do…" Zoe proceeded, her panic colliding with curiosity as she panned on her decision. Seeing that she had already magically bs'd and lied herself into it all so far, that sweat inducing paranoia that just had her by the throat was now turn into…excitement. Like a sick sense of excitement that almost made her laugh with anticipation, if not excitement; Without hesitation she typed out 'yep I'm that girl' into the box.

"I'm glad you decided to join us, you were a bit hesitant at the concert," Qualter replied. It seemed she was going to have to press her luck again as she lied through her teeth at the casual chatting that took over the adrenaline pulsing one.

"Well, you didn't really explain what the PPC was to me so of course I was a bit hesitant," Zoe replied. She slapped her hand to her forehead, realizing that she had written out something that had a 50% chance of blowing up in her face. She started cursing herself as she awaited the reply; it was taking longer than the past reply, which made her a bit uneasy.

"That's half the fun. That's why I picked you, because I had a feeling you'd be curious enough to want to find out," Qualter said, it was if he was snickering behind his words before his private chat window closed. Breathing heavily, Zoe shook her in disbelief that her plan was actually working.

"Yes I'm the one that invited her, sorry it just slipped my mind. You may go on Velvet," Qualter stated in confidence. With a large sigh of relief Zoe found herself falling back onto her bed. She gazed up at her ceiling which felt as if it were shaking with every beat of her heart. Never before had she felt this kind of rush, especially from a computer screen. She took joy in how her heart raced as she awaited the next step, if there was one anyway. Suddenly, instead of the ping sounds from the chat window, a voice could be heard coming over her speakers. With that signal Zoe raised back up to take a gander at what was taking place.

"Welcome PPC Members to our Twelfth Poke Room Auction of the evening! For those new to this auction, the rules are simple: Upon visual of the item, you will be informed of its traits and specialties. The window for bidding will be open as soon as a tone comes over your speakers, which will be the sound of a ringing bell. Stay vigilant and happy bidding everyone!" the voice rang with a glorious tone behind his words. As exciting as this all was, it was still a bit...unnerving. It was as if, he had a little…too much enthusiasm, as if something wasn't quite right. Zoe shrugged it off these feelings without any hesitation, it was waaaay too late to get cold feet now. She knew now that she was in too deep, so she merely watched to see where the hole went. With anticipation, she glared at the screen. She could feel her heart beat in her throat as she watched carefully, completely in the dark about what was about to grace her computer screen. Slowly the curtain rose, revealing the "item" for bid. Zoe's face grew into a slight state of confusion as the item came into view.

On the screen was a Gardevoir. It was standing on the stage by itself, its small arms latched together in front of her as if she were being arrested by an officer. Unlike any Gardevoir she had seen, its eyes were not shining with life, nor did that have any real feeling of life in them. Rather, they glazed over in a sense of defeat, and also a sense of submission. As the voice began to describe it, Zoe's stomach began to churn in disgust. It wasn't just a description of the Pokemon itself, no, it was far more descriptive than just that. It was a list of various sexual activities or kinks that it has shown "promise" in with its abilities. The list of things that she "specialized" in seemed to go on for minutes as he read them all off. Zoe barely found the strength stare without feeling completely sick. Before she had a chance to recover, the bell sprung to life, popping up the bid window.

As the tone went off, Zoe found herself ready to cough up into her trashcan. She did everything in her power to shake it off, and return her eyes to the madness of it all. Bids began to fly all over the chat, numbers starting at P10,000 and rapidly shot up as if people were breaking their necks to win her bid. She stared and shook, sweat now drenching her body as she stared at the grotesque display.

"Do people...really do these kinds of things with Pokemon...?" Zoe asked herself with genuine curiosity. Thinking that it would be suspicious if she didn't throw in a single bid, she decided to throw in the only amount that she could think of off the top of her head. It was the amount of all the money she had stashed away in her room in case of an emergency. Ironically enough, it was about to come into use. As her bid lit up all other bids stopped dead in their tracks. She felt her heart stop in her chest and her eyes stare wildly at her screen as a private chat window from Qualter popped up before her.

"Hey, guess what? I told the others to let you win this bid since its your first time, so get excited!" Qualter typed with great joy. Zoe's face grew incredibly pale and her cold sweats were turned into a cold shower. As the window closed, she stared at her P65,410 bid. All she could see on her screen was the count down for completion and tears that formed in Gardevoir's dead eyes steadily increasing. Zoe's eyes stared as if catatonic as the time counted down; it was like an out of body experience had shocked her system to the maximum degree. As the shout out for the sale was final, her chat window was flooded with endless "Congratulations on winning!" messages. The very last thing she saw before she shut her laptop in horror was Gardevoir's eyes looking dead into the camera with the curtains slowly descending over her figure until it was gone. With a slam, her laptop crashed shut and she quickly dove onto the rest of her bed, immediately hiding herself beneath her covers, terrified beyond all belief. She never imagined that things like this truly existed, but deep down she knew she only had herself to blame.

"That didn't just happen, that didn't just happen, that didn't just happen, THAT DIDN'T JUST HAPPEN!" Zoe cried, clenching her head tightly as she tried to convince herself that it was all just an awful dream that she was trying to awaken from. Suddenly, on her wrist communicator, a messaged popped up. Her communicator had magically synched up with her laptop, disallowing her to escape from her twisted nightmare. It was a message from Velvet, listing off the location she would have to go to collect her "item" that she had one. She quickly tore her communicator off her wrist, throwing it to the floor with a scream as she trembled in place. All that she could do from there was to shake uncontrollably, tears welling up in her eyes.

She soon realized what the PPC was capable of; Horrible, sadistic things that no normal person she view and experience. Her body froze for a moment, as if something had just short circuited in her brain. Pausing for a moment…to her surprise…deep down, she found a sick sense of anticipation well up inside her. It was as if a part of her wasn't scared of what happened, it felt like…she wanted it to happen. It was a part of herself that she felt shame for, especially as it screamed out with joy. It proclaimed that the ultimate rush had come over her. Zoe clenched her chest tightly to try and kill those fillings, her eyes drowning her pillow.

"What have I done…" she cracked up, her voice caught with the gasps of crying and shame. The rest of her night all she could think about was if she should really go through with it, or should she run away and ignore it. There was no rest for her that evening as she stared at her blank wall, the eyes of that Gardevoir burning themselves into her mind and soul.

To Be Continued...