We sat in the main lobby: several of the staffed scientists and I.
"Watch this," a young man said, picking up the phone from behind the front desk. He smashed it to the ground, proceeding to stomp on it, pick it up, and throw it down again. It was shattered to pieces.
"Now, look behind the desk."
I did as instructed and found that the phone was back in its original place and condition.
"What's going on?" I asked, looking back to the floor. But the broken phone was nowhere to be seen.
"It regenerated just like that," another scientist remarked.
"But how?"
"We don't know how or why," said the gentleman that smashed the phone. "All we know is that's not normal and we have nothing to do with it. We aren't in reality anymore. Each of us touched the tablet and read the word written there in those strange characters and each of us wound up here and we don't know how to get out…"
"I told you guys, we should investigate," someone called from a hallway.
"Oh, it's Yame again," mumbled a man sitting nearby. "That janitor needs to learn his place."
"We need to get to the bottom of this. We need to go outside."
"Look, Yame, we've put it to a vote 4 times. We're not going anywhere with you. It's best to stay here until someone on the outside can figure this out and help us escape."
"I've decided if you guys won't come with me, I'm going alone," said the boy, passing through the crowd of scientists.
"Don't be suicidal, kid! What are you trying to prove?" another man called after him.
"That we can save ourselves! We don't need to wait around for someone else to get trapped in here!" He turned back. "We can do this…" A fire burned deep in his eyes, his heart set on figuring out this mystery, even if it meant facing the dangers of outdoors.
"Whatever, kid." All the men grumbled and dispersed, going back to trying to figure things out for themselves in the lab rooms.
"Fine, I'll go alone," he smirked, pushing on the tinted exit door.
"Wait," I called after. "I can help."
"Hm?" his eyes found me in the large room. He seemed surprised.
"My Pokémon were brought here with me," I said motioning toward my belt lined with Poke'balls. "Maybe we can help you."
He grinned. "The more the merrier."
When he forced open the front door, the violent storm outside became evident. Thunder filled our ears and lightning filled the sky.
"No one's been out here yet?" I asked.
"Everyone's been too afraid. They saw the storm and thought it would be best to wait until someone else came along to set us all free. Judging by how many people are stuck here, you can tell how that's going to work out."
We trudged on through the heavy rainfall. Outside looked normal: the ladders and tools for excavation were strewn about, but the surrounding forest was all too quiet. "I guess no Pokémon have been here before," I said.
"Of course not," said Yame. "They couldn't speak the word written on the tablet."
As we walked down the trail, eyes squinted in attempt to shield them from the rain, we saw a figure coming down the path toward us.
"Get off the road," Yame warned, pulling me into the forest.
"Binkusu no sake wo, todoke ni yuku yo," the figure sang. It was a boy wearing a large raincoat and boots. He couldn't have been over 12 years old.
I squirmed, realizing Yame was kneeling on my hand. The bush rustled. "Quiet!" shushed Yame. In an instant, the boy was upon us. We looked up, afraid, but we saw in his eyes a deep sadness and fear.
"Are you okay?" I asked, feeling as though I should be afraid, but knowing the passion behind his eyes was real. He was overcome by tears and he fell to his knees before me. He rolled forward, his face falling on my shoulder, and he began to sob.