Chapter 3

I do not know how or when, but I actually slept ever since the assault from that human. When I woke up, I was in a strange environment. It was a room closed-off from the outside. The sun did not brighten the room yet, but I had lain on a strange, bouncy bed. There was a square hole in the wall with a perpendicular pattern made up of rods within its width. I spotted a larger hole on the opposite wall almost shut by a piece of wood that just fits the hole, as wide and tall as the wall itself. I received another shock to see the wood opening the gateway through the wall. What was even stranger was that a red arm with dark claws pointed at me and twitched twice toward the door. I knew it must have been some sort of Pokémon, so I followed its body language.

When I entered through the strange hole, I nearly cried out to see that same human who attacked me, sleeping, thankfully. Claw hands muffled my cry until I calmed down. I turned to see the creature: an orange, handsome lizard, to best describe. He took my arm and guided me to a location away from the sleeping human.

The lizard spoke softly, "Before you say anything, I know you must be confused. Speak low, and I'll answer your questions. My name is Charmander. You're in a Pokémon Center, a hospital to heal Pokémon, like the wounds you acquired last night."

That explains why I felt stronger when I was in that darkness. Speaking of which, I asked him, "Why did I teleport into an area of complete darkness and no way out?"

Charmander replied, "You must have been caught in a Pokéball. It is a device trainers use to capture Pokémon. It's hard to break out, but if you don't break the ball soon after you get trapped, it's impossible to get out without your trainer-"

"What is a 'trainer'?"

"To put simply, it's a human who catches Pokémon to use them for battle."

"Why?" I demanded. It made no sense why humans would enslave Pokémon to fight our own kind.

"Even I don't know why. It must be some sort of tradition. What I do know is that different trainers treat their captured Pokémon differently. I must say you're as lucky as I am to meet up with such a careless trainer."

I took a minute to get all of this into my head. I feel like I swam from my home into a world of savagery and cruel respect. Sure, I see some humans sail across the seas near my island, but they never attempted, I doubt they even thought, to capture me. I wondered what he meant by "different trainers."

"By the way," Charmander continued. "What is a Squirtle doing in a city by himself?"

I said, "I wanted to leave my home and explore the unknown world beyond my habitat."

"Ah, every Pokémon's dream. In fact, that is what we have in common with Trainers."

I raised an eyebrow at that fact. Humans go on... adventures? "Now it makes sense," I mumbled.

Charmander soon eyed the light streaking through the upper hole in the wall. "Follow me," he ordered. "Time is short."

"Can you help me escape?"

"That won't be for now. I'll talk to you later." Again, he grabbed my arm and pulled me into the room I had first awakened. He pulled down a wire of circular gadgets that he told me were 'Pokéballs.'

Charmander had more to say. "You can rest while you are in a Pokéball, while you see nothing but darkness, but be ready at anytime for when he calls you out."

I wanted to ask why he would call me out, but it was too late. He pressed a button that was on the borderline of the red and white color of this strange capsule. I feel the shrinking process again, and darkness once again surrounds me. I felt a little calmer knowing where I am, but I don't know what's going to happen to me. To find out, I had to wait. Sleep, in fact, is what I must catch up on.