AN: A bit random, but I've never been a huge fan of Rap. However though, I really enjoyed Kendrick Lamar's most recent album. I was planning on just spitting out some songs that I liked every once and a while on here. I guess then that I should say that my favorite song off the album is Mirror. Eh, I just thought it'd be nice to mention something I've liked recently. Anyways though, hope you enjoy this new chapter.
What does it feel like, when you are stabbed in the skull?
Espir was certain that he had heard science programs talk about the brain not having any nerves to feel itself, otherwise it would always feel like it's rubbing up on the skull. He had no clue how true or false that fact was, or if he had simply misremembered it.
The pain he felt as he opened his eyes was what he would imagine a dagger to the brain would feel like if it did have feeling up there. He felt as if his brain was falling apart while trying to knit itself together at the same time. He could feel the wind rubbing against the exposed parts of his brain. But there were no exposed parts of his brain. He was just delirious with pain and shock and feeling once again.
He tried to shake the muddiness out of his mind. He'd never gotten ridiculously drunk, if at all, but he could imagine that this was what people talked about with bad hangovers. Events were drip-feeding themselves into his memory, but they didn't make sense and were happening all at once. He must be remembering some fever dream he'd had when asleep.
How long had he been asleep? Was it forever? No. That didn't sound right. A couple hours didn't sound quite right either. He put a hand to his head to steady the spinning and he saw the wispy limb. The ghostly appendage. The arm that he now owned.
Everything hit him at once yet again. His wish. His extended dream. Him waking up as a Pokémon, but also staying undying under the rubble. Souls falling through the space between spaces. He could remember his life. No wonder he couldn't picture what had happened before he woke up. He was only a soul. He was made for generating memories. But now he could. His new form has its own mind, but it's also his mind. His new mind was making and storing the memories from when he first awoke, and now that he had the memories from his previous mind, he could remember his past life.
That was right. He had died. No. Not exactly. He had gone to sleep and died in his dream. Such a fantasy that it wasn't a dream at all, but an illusion cast by some cruel or incompetent god.
Espir had been called Marshadow for the past few days. He would need to change that somehow. Could he speak normally now? He'd best not test it with anyone but Alexis. He doubted Piplup would understand a thing of what he could explain, even if Piplup technically understood the words. This must have been an unprecedented circumstance, but then again, he saw the souls dropping from other points in nowhere. Maybe this was what it felt like to reincarnate.
How could he tell his parents though? No. That was silly. There was no talking to them anymore. He was dead in their world. He hadn't been, no, he had been sleeping and then assumed to be in a coma. Surely, now, they would think he was dead. What would they diagnose him with? Sleeping too hard? And how would his family be taking it? His wonderful family. They didn't deserve any of this. He knew that there was this being screwing around between realities. He needed to get in contact with it. He needed to get back to his family.
How could he? He had died and fallen through nothingness, through shatters and cracks in existence. He would need to find one of those cracks and keep on jumping until he found the right one to take him home. Simple.
He was a ghost now, it wasn't like he could simply die of old age. He would just keep on travelling until he found his family again, or until he found that foolish being that did this to him.
Mew.
That's what she called herself when she showed up to his suffering form. Espir would find her. Espir would make her suffer alright. His anger disregarding reasonable thought.
But, first things first, he needed to find his companions in this world. He now had his mission for his own life, but he needed allies and Alexis' party was the only group of beings that he knew well enough to trust even a little.
He could see that it was still bright out. He looked around from his hiding spot in the shadows and couldn't see the Team Cosmic members anywhere. He would have to worry about that later. Considering the things they had attempted in his last interactions with them, he wouldn't be surprised if similar issues arose from this version of them.
Trying to order his memories into some sort of cohesion, Espir remembered that he had left Alexis at the museum. It would be best to return there to find her before she began to worry about him and went looking in places that might be too dangerous.
Espir retraced his steps, keeping close to the walls and hugging the shadows, as he made his way back to the museum. There were a lot of people milling around outside of it. Either the crowd had formed due to what had gone on inside, or the museum attendees had been evacuated following the attack.
Espir searched the crowd, unable to stick to the shadows at this point, for any sign of Alexis. He spotted her off to one side, nervously tapping one foot and holding her elbow in her other hand; a universal sign of discomfort. Espir moved up through the crowd, weaving between the legs of concerned citizens, until he reached Alexis and tapped her knee with a ghostly hand.
Alexis looked down and had to keep herself from crying out in happiness. Espir felt the rush of emotions as Alexis' worry was rapidly replaced with a soothing calm. She had her Marshadow back. Or so she thought.
"Are you okay Marsh?" Alexis asked, squatting down so that she wasn't bending over him, to look him in the eyes, "where did you go?"
"To chase those Team Cosmic scumbags," Espir said, but from the vacant expression Alexis was giving him, she wasn't understanding him.
"Could you please try to not run off like that again?" Alexis said, "I was really worried. I care about you, buddy."
Espir sighed and nodded so that Alexis could tell he had understood her and for her to understand his response. He would need to figure out a better way of communicating with this person. He had way too much to try and explain to her. What if he were to be forced to use hand signs and yes or no answers only? He needed a better method. He would have to wrack his brain to figure out different kinds of communication between humans and Pokémon in the games he had played, back when he was a human; perhaps, an answer lay somewhere deep in his memory.
"Let's get out of here," Alexis said, "I think that's been enough excitement. We need to be getting ready for the gym battle anyway."
As soon as Espir was reminded of the gym battle he was riddled with worry once again. He couldn't get past just how brutal the attempt had been for him as the trainer. Now, he was going to be attempting it as one of the Pokémon due to be sacrificed to the sadistic living lumps of rock. He would just have to hope that Piplup could take care of business for him.
Alexis and Espir returned to the bed and breakfast, so that they could speak to the rest of the Pokémon before the hopeful battle.
Piplup immediately knew something was off.
"What's up with you?" he asked.
"Nothing," Espir said, "don't worry about it."
"Is it something to not worry about, or is it nothing," Piplup said, continuing to pry.
"I'll explain later," Espir said, "can you just focus on the task at hand?"
"Someone's a little feistier than normal," Piplup scoffed, but kept the rest of his thoughts to himself.
"It's good to see the two of you getting along," Alexis smiled, "now. Let's see if we can manage to get this gym badge before the end of the day. How does that sound, gang?"
All the Pokémon showed their support for the trainer. Espir was less enthusiastic than he could possibly pretend to be, but he needed Alexis at her best. If the gym leader was anything like when he had fought the guy, they were in for a near deadly beating.
"I don't know what you look so worried about," Alexis laughed, seeing Espir's expression, "it's only the first gym leader and you guys are strong. We can do this."
Espir only hoped she was right.
...
...
...
The gym was the same as Espir remembered it. Rock walls climbing high into the darkness, with a near mountain of chiseled stone rising up in the center of the chamber. High up at the top, waited Roark; the gym leader.
"I'll have to put you into the Pokéball," Alexis said to Espir as they walked in, "just to make sure there is no confusion over which Pokémon are competing."
Espir hated the idea, but it wasn't like he was in a position to argue. Alexis could do it whether he liked it or not. At least this meant he wouldn't have to interact with Roark and the rock Pokémon unless Piplup went down. Perhaps the little bird could pull it off and he wouldn't have to deal with this nightmarish building at all. The more Espir thought about it, the better being inside the Pokéball sounded - for this instance alone.
"Don't you worry," Alexis said, as she pulled the Pokéball off of her belt and raised it at Espir, the red light flashing and engulfing him, "we're more than a match for this guy."
Alexis climbed up the rocky terrain to reach the platform atop it, deep in the darkness above everything else in the gym. She had been trying to use bravado to stay confident. Fake it till you make it. It wasn't working. She wanted her Pokémon to believe in her at least, but she was worried. She had very little battle experience herself and didn't want to let them down or to embarrass herself.
The platform, so distant from everything else, felt almost vertigo inducing. It didn't matter. It couldn't matter. What would Alexis say to justify giving up due to a little dizziness? She had to push on. She couldn't waste these wonderful Pokémon. They had the ability to do great things, she just knew it.
"Hey, trainer," a friendly voice called out from across the platform as Roark noticed a new arrival, "come to take on the Oreburgh Gym then?"
"Indeed I-"
"Take your time. We are a little high up, so that reaction is only natural."
"Thank you," Alexis said weakly. She was unsteady on her feet and had, out of curiosity, looked down and off the edge of the platform. She was so dizzy she could barely look across the platform at Roark. She had to get it together or he wouldn't allow her to compete.
"I've… I've come to challenge the gym leader for the badge," Alexis said.
"That sounds wonderful!" Roark said, his grin beaming across his face, "whenever you're ready, we can get this thing started. My name is Roark by the way, what can I call you?"
"Oh, sorry, Alexis."
"Well then, oh, sorry, Alexis, I'm pleased to meet you and wish you the best in the coming battle."
He's trying to help me feel better by being funny, Alexis thought. She appreciated the sentiment, but the nerves and the height had definitely shaken her. Hopefully, she could get into the Pokémon battle and just get lost in the action.
"Are you ready?" Roark asked, as Alexis slowly walked over to her spot and plucked a Pokéball off her belt.
"I've been waiting for this for a very, very long time," Alexis said, nodding to Roark question.
"Then, if you're certain, let us being the Oreburgh Gym challenge!" Roark said, shouting out the last part. His voice echoed down through the huge rock chamber.
Now there was no turning back. Not until one person or the other had failed.
Alexis shifted the Pokéball in her hand, the sweat from her nerves was causing it to slip slightly. She found the button and waited for Roark to show that he was ready to proceed as well.
They raised their Pokéballs high, pressed the buttons that released the clasps and let out their respective starting Pokémon.
The battle had begun.
