Yep, an early update! I was in a good mood this morning, so I figured I might as well put this up now.

I would love if you guys checked out my new story, TNT, as well. It's obviously on my profile. I hope you all enjoy the 14th chapter of Otherside!

VICTOR CHELAN, 20* - FIRST PERSON

Zapo had been correct about my injury; or rather, about my new heavenly constitution. Had the fall occurred on Earth, I would have been paralyzed for life at a minimum.

By the time I went to sleep that night, my neck was only slightly sore; it wasn't excruciatingly painful like it had been in the moment. Although it still bothered me a bit, drifting off wasn't difficult after such a hard day's work.

My last thoughts before my mind briefly went blank were, If I'm supposed to experience insomnia, it certainly hasn't happened yet! That certainly helped give me more peace of mind.

As Murphy's Law states, however, my newfound peace of mind didn't last very long. Shortly after I closed my eyes, I entered one of the most horrifying dreams of my life.

It didn't start out that way, though. That's part of what made the dream so terrifying; the knowledge that something can start out perfectly fine, all sunshine and rainbows, and then turn into a nightmare that you won't forget until long after you wake up, maybe never.

In the dream, I found myself with a bird's-eye view of a magnificent city in the sky. It was spread out between the summits of a series of snow-capped mountains. Despite the snow and mist beneath me, the city didn't feel cold at all, as though it had its own climate control.

The city consisted mostly of large homes with expansive gardens. Even though the mountains were covered in snow, the gardens were lush and green, with flowers blooming in a veritable rainbow of colors. Standalone cobblestone streets surrounded by fences connected the homes and businesses together.

High above, the sky was gold. And I don't mean that the sun was rising or setting; no, the sky was completely gold, save for a rainbow in the distance and a few clouds here and there.

The invisible force that was holding me in the air suddenly let me down slowly, like a rock climber being belayed off of a wall. Eventually, my feet touched the ground, and I was able to get a street view of the city.

I stood at what appeared to be the outskirts of town. There was a sign nearby, next to a blindingly white snowfield, that labelled the town as SKY GARDEN, POPULATION 3,238.

Okay, so perhaps this isn't such a massive city after all. Indeed, for an Earthly city, that's rather pitiful. But I feel like Amanda mentioned this place...didn't something really bad happen here?

Looking around at the Sky Garden, it was hard to believe that anything unpleasant could ever occur in this seeming utopia. It was almost like I'd imagine heaven would look.

But wait, aren't I already in heaven, in my own body? This is just a dream, and if that's the case, I'm getting ripped off here!

For the first time, I noticed the people and Pokemon walking about the city streets. There was an Incineroar about ten yards away, currently talking with a female Lucario about gardening or something of that nature. Everything seemed rather happy-go-lucky; they were smiling and even laughing with one another.

There was no doubt in my mind: This, the Sky Garden, was paradise. Perhaps the afterlife worked like it did in some ancient mythology, where if you were reborn three times and achieved heaven each time, you'd get an even better afterlife. If so...perhaps that's what I'd have to do in order to get here.

But would it be worth the risk? Both Earthly life and the afterlife on Alola are games of calculated risk, after all; what chances do you take, and which are too perilous to gamble on?

However, I didn't find out what the criteria for entering the Sky Garden was, for in the distance, I heard a horrible sound.

HHHRRRRRNNN.

It was an extremely loud horn, very low in pitch. There are a number of unflattering similes I could use to describe it, but let's leave it at that for now.

To me, the horn would seem to be a cause for concern. At a minimum, it would be a reason to pay attention; perhaps it heralded an important announcement.

But the citizens of the Sky Garden didn't seem to notice the horn; at least, they didn't care very much about it. They kept on talking with one another, eating at various sidewalk cafés, and simply having a wonderful morning.

HHHRRRRNNN!

The instrument sounded again, but this time at a much higher volume. This was saying something; even if it was just a dream, my eardrums were fit to burst.

And so, it seemed, were everybody else's. The residents finally turned their attention to the sky, from which what appeared to be a black cloud was descending towards the city.

No, wait...there were several of the clouds, and they were in a striped pattern, not unlike those of hornets. That would have been scary enough as is, but as they came towards the Sky Garden, I heard some of the residents start screaming.

If the residents of this place, which seemed as perfect as a place could possibly be, were terrified of these clouds, then I was petrified, to use a stronger word.

This is only a dream, I kept telling myself. Eventually I'm going to wake up in my bed on Paradise Island, and I'll be perfectly fine.

That didn't help me calm down; at least, not as much as I would have liked. The black clouds approached the street, and it wasn't long before I heard a buzzing noise coming from them.

It was much like the buzzing that comes from bees or hornets, which would have been bad enough. However, these weren't insects; as they got closer and started to disperse, I saw that they were angels.

Of course, I use the word "angel" in a very loose sense. They only looked like angels, what with their vaguely humanoid, dark-colored bodies, and black wings. Each of them carried either a bow or sword.

"It's them, it's the Windborn!" a blonde woman in a pink dress yelled in fright. Her face blanched, and she looked like she might faint.

Windborn? That word itself had no effect on me, since I'd never heard it before. It was clear based on context, however, that it held the power to streak fear into the hearts of those who had it all.

The Incineroar who had been talking with the Lucario lady about gardening suddenly turned to face the dark angels. For such a large, tough Pokemon, he sure appeared horrified at the calamity that was befalling his city.

"If you guys attack the Sky Garden," Incineroar boomed, "there's going to be hell to pay!"

It was sadly no longer a matter of "if", but rather "when", for the first Windborn angels had reached the street. One of them was doing battle with an Aegislash; the two were crossing swords with one another.

None of the combatants, whether they be townspeople or Windborn, seemed to notice me. Perhaps that was because I was only there in spirit, or maybe these events had occurred in the past and I was only witnessing them now.

Nonetheless, it was hard to notice everything at once. Within less than a minute, various townspeople were doing battle with the dark angels, but I was simply focusing on one or two skirmishes.

The Aegislash and the Windborn fought for about a minute, but it was soon clear who had the upper hand. If offense was the best defense, the angel was clearly winning, for Aegislash had to spend all his energy parrying attacks with his shield, rather than delivering attacks of his own.

Try as he might, the Aegislash couldn't preserve his shield forever, and it soon fell to pieces at his feet.

Aegislash seemed to figure out, right then and there, that he couldn't fight anymore; he would have to run. But he couldn't outrun the Windborn.

Seconds after Aegislash turned to escape, the Windborn reached out with his sword, which was much longer than one someone two feet tall should have been able to carry. It took only one slash of the Windborn's sword for the Aegislash to "die."

Now, "die" might be the wrong word; after all, the creatures living in the Sky Garden were already deceased. However, the second that Pokemon was hit with the sword, Aegislash's entire body suddenly turned into golden dust.

It takes one sword slash to reduce a Pokemon, an immortal Pokemon no less, to confetti. That's crazy!

The golden dust was scattered on the winds, being blown to a variety of different destinations. I could only stand there in disbelief and horror as I watched the other skirmishes unfold around me.

The good news is, I didn't have to watch the battle of the Sky Garden for very long. I didn't see any more Pokemon or humans dissolved into dust, but there was also bad news.

As soon as the scene changed, I found myself in a familiar large cavern.

It had been some time since I'd seen it in my dreams, but I would have recognized it no matter what. How could I not when the stench was simply so powerful?

I found myself gagging; it smelled even worse than last time, if that were even possible. My eyes watered so much I could barely see.

"Yesss, Victor Chelan. Welcome back to my domain."

My heart began thumping so loudly that I could barely hear the booming voice that reverberated around the entire cavern. Even so, I knew this was the same voice from my first nightmare on Paradise Island.

I remembered that dream well. I'd fallen into that pit, thankfully not in real life, but it was still an intensely vivid experience. I might not have recalled the voice's exact words, but more important was the memory of how those words had made me feel.

This dream only lasted for a minute or two; thankfully, I didn't have to spend very much time in the cavern. Even so, it felt as though it lasted much longer, what with the putrid winds and the cackling of the disembodied voice.

Eventually, I opened my eyes again, finding myself still in my bed on Paradise Island. Breathing heavily, I tried to reassure myself that it had only been a figment of my subconscious.

Of course it is happening inside your head, Victor, but why should that mean that it is not real?

I shook my head. I couldn't worry about that right now, not when I had other things to do. Judging by the angle of the sun, it was probably at least six or seven; I'd slept later than I usually did.

Getting out of bed, I made my way downstairs. I didn't even brush my teeth or get out of my pajamas, for I was too inattentive to think about doing such simple parts of my typical morning routine.

Once in the living room, I realized my mistake. Eventually I would have to prepare for the day in order to go to my assignment, but I felt too lazy to return to my bedroom before checking Pillowtalk.

As I was typing my name into the app's search bar, I heard the sound of soft footsteps behind me. There was no need to look back, for I only shared this home with one other individual, and I liked to think I knew her well by now.

By the way...can we have kids here? How does starting a family work when you're immortal, anyway? No, bad brain, I can't think about that!

"Checking Pillowtalk now, are we, Victor?" Amanda asked playfully, snapping me right out of my reverie.

I turned to face the Braixen lady. "What else am I supposed to do?" I responded somewhat annoyedly. "That's where we find out what we need to do today, so it's rather neglectful of our duties to not check it."

"I've got no argument against that" Amanda said simply, shrugging as she sat down on the couch. I myself was seated right in front of the computer, and turned around again to finish the process of clicking on my name.

"Carpet hanging" I uttered blankly. "That's my assignment for today."

"That one's brutal, especially when it's really hot. But I think you'll have the endurance to do it; you'd be surprised at what your immortal body is capable of."

I snorted. "Oh, believe me, I know all too well." I briefly filled her in on my fall from the mango tree yesterday.

"It's quite the adjustment when you realize that you can survive much more here than you can in your first life" Amanda responded. "You'll get used to it eventually, but I'm still sorry that happened."

"It's fine. Anyway, there's something else I should tell you about."

Over the last few minutes, I'd been quickly warming myself up to the idea of spilling the beans regarding my nightmare. For some reason, I felt like it was something Amanda needed to know. At a minimum, it was important to show that I trusted her.

"What's that?" the Braixen lady asked me. She spoke softly and smiled sadly, a combination that made me feel like she expected sad news.

I had gone past the point of no return; whether I wanted to or not, I would be telling her what I'd witnessed. There was no going back.

"Last night, I had a dream about a city called the Sky Garden." I spoke slowly, trying out each word as though they were planks on a rickety bridge. With every word, I felt like I was taking one step closer to a huge cliff.

Suddenly, Amanda gasped, as though I'd just admitted to cheating on her. Although there had been no such betrayal on my part, my soulmate still radiated a sense that she felt violated. Her red-orange eyes glinted with a certain flame, but it wasn't one of anger.

It was one of fear.

"What about that place?" she managed to choke out weakly. "What happened in the Sky Garden?"

Based on her body language and tone of voice, it seemed as though Amanda knew of the Sky Garden as well. Whether this came as a result of a dream or something else, I didn't ask.

I answered her question, feeling as I did so that I sounded ridiculous. With every word I uttered, I figured I looked more and more like a clown. Not a funny circus clown either - just an idiot who's lost his mind.

"These angelic beings were attacking," I said. "Some of the Sky Garden's residents fought back against them. I saw several get hit by the swords, and they dissolved into this golden dust."

Amanda's fur was already a pale yellow, but it started to become even more so. Nearly all of the color was leaving her face.

"What were those angels called?" the Braixen asked, sounding as though she were trying to be kind; on the inside, though, I "knew" she felt dismayed and pissed off.

Anyway, it seemed like a bit of an odd question, but I answered it anyway. "One of the townspeople, or towns-Pokemon, whatever it was - they referred to them as the Windborn. Read into that what you will."

Amanda clenched her fists and began hyperventilating. I sprang into action, ready to catch her in case she ended up fainting.

This didn't happen. After a period of time that couldn't have been more than fifteen seconds, my soulmate seemed to gather herself again. When she had come to her senses, she narrowed her eyes.

"That is extremely bad news, Victor Chelan. Trouble in the sky...that fits with what I heard in my dream!"

"What dream?" I asked, grasping at the revelation she'd just made without realizing it.

Amanda clamped her paw over her mouth. "I think I said too much. The point is, constant vigilance is probably a good idea from here on out. There's no question in my mind: This isn't paradise."

As the Braixen turned around to head into the kitchen and prepare breakfast, I thought about what she had just asserted.

This isn't paradise.

In a way, she was right. Technically this place was Paradise with a capital P, since that's what it was called. But they always tell you to show, not tell, when describing something. In this instance, we were told that our tropical isle was paradise, but that's not what we were shown.

More than that, I knew now, without a shadow of a doubt, that Amanda was keeping something from me. The exact nature of her secret was something I wasn't privy to, but it had to really be eating at her if she considered the Windborn to be such horrible news.

None of this was to cheapen what happened in the Sky Garden; indeed, I had witnessed the full horrors of it for myself. In a matter of minutes, paradise had been lost, to put it one way.

I shook my head as I went up to my bedroom to prepare for my assignment. I didn't even look at Amanda as I did so; I just couldn't face her, knowing that I'd gone too far when asking her questions. It would be very hard to look at my soulmate without wondering what she didn't want me to know.

Late in the afternoon, I found myself hanging up my last rug in front of the carpet shop in the Bikal Flea Market. It was a difficult job just like Amanda had said; sweat was running down my neck, the bridge of my nose, everywhere. There wasn't a single part of my body that wasn't soaked.

In addition, even though I'd been allotted a thirty-minute lunch break, that hadn't been enough time to buy as much food as necessary to completely satisfy my hunger pangs. A panini and muffin just wasn't enough to make me stop feeling hungry.

I might not have any trouble sleeping, but the medicine is inducing quite possibly two nightmares. One of them is a WAKING nightmare, of me being so ravenous while tying up carpets.

"Okay, Victor Chelan, nice work" the store's owner told me as I was tying the final knot. Even though the knots were complex and specific, and even though my fingers were sweaty and slippery, I'd gotten the hang of this.

"Thanks" I replied breathlessly, wiping some of the perspiration off my face. Most of my concentration, however, remained squarely trained on this project.

The owner of the carpet shop, a middle-aged Archen named Archie, smiled at the sight of the dozens of multicolored rugs hanging from beams beneath the store's ceiling. "You have met your quota and are free to go" the Archen told me happily.

I could have hugged him at that moment; even though the job was tough, he had treated me well that day. In the interest of treating him the same way, however, I didn't embrace Archie, not wanting to get my sweat all over him.

Making a mental note to head to the bank tomorrow to collect my weekly stipend, I left the carpet shop and began exploring the narrow streets of Enil Edam.

This part of the capital city was a little less upscale (although that wasn't saying very much), and the buildings weren't quite as colorful. That being said, the smells coming from a variety of flowers all mingled together to create a luscious scent; I could nearly taste the flowers.

What do flowers taste like, anyway? I never ate one on Earth, I was too scared that they might be poisonous.

I don't know what I was looking for, other than an excuse not to go back to Palm Drive right away. While I didn't hate Amanda by any means, it was quite frankly a little insulting to have an important secret be kept from me. If we ate dinner together that evening, it was going to be awkward.

At one point, I took a left turn onto a square I recognized from my very first day here: Forza Park, where I'd gone to Orientation last week.

Once again, I marveled at the fact that it had only been about a week since my new life had begun. It was absolutely mind-boggling how so much had happened during that time; I felt almost like a very old man.

And yet, I'm never going to grow old. That's a hard pill to swallow; aging is a part of life, and now I'm going to live forever without experiencing it.

There was an Orientation session going on right then and there, only it was being hosted by a Lauren instead of a Samuel; the latter of whom, of course, was better known as Professor Oak.

That's really weird. I thought he was present at every Orientation meeting. What could he be absent for, and why is it more important than welcoming new faces to Paradise Island?

I was too far away to hear what Lauren was saying, but I didn't need to hear it. I still remembered well enough what I'd been told about the afterlife. What was more, the "new recruits", as it were, were in for a rude awakening if they thought everything here was going to be perfect.

The sun was low enough in the sky that long shadows had been cast across the park. It was considerably cooler than it had been earlier in the afternoon; in a few hours, night would fall, and thus another day in paradise, of which an infinite number spread out before me, would have concluded.

I really hope I don't have another nightmare like that. How many can my sanity take?

Perhaps my mind was just as resilient as my body was now. But it did not seem that way.

Most people like to think of heaven as a place where all their worries will go away, where you'll no longer be mired in what can feel like constant emotional turmoil. But that wasn't the case for me; if anything, my afterlife was even more complicated than had been my first life.

I took a seat at the base of a clock tower that was adjacent to the square. As I did so, I heard my stomach growl and saw a handful of Pidgey fly away from me rapidly, as though they thought I meant them harm.

Come on, guys, you know I wouldn't hurt a Caterpie. In the end, I'm just like you, trying to get through this existence as best I can. To borrow a saying, I'm on my way to the promised land, and I'm just figuring out a way to cross the river.

And yet...what, exactly, was this "promised land?" In other words: What did I want?

It's easy enough to feel dissatisfied with your life, or afterlife. It can be much harder to think of a solution, one that will make you happy again. One that could make Paradise Island a real paradise.

As my stomach made its familiar growling noise, demanding food, I placed my head in my hands and shook it from side to side.

PROFESSOR SAMUEL OAK, 54* - THIRD PERSON

Professor Oak felt as though he were watching a train wreck in slow motion. Such an event was tragic, yes, but it typically occurred quickly, without much time to think about what was actually happening until the locomotive had completely gone off the rails.

As he recalled the opening statements from that morning, he also remembered looking directly into the eyes of Sarah Mariner. He might have been told not to do that, not to humanize her any more than necessary, but he just hadn't been able to help himself.

Her face had been one of absolute terror. Even if she were guilty of such a heinous act (which the professor still had serious doubts about), Oak couldn't help but feel a trace amount of sympathy for her.

Of course, if it turned out that she was in fact innocent, his sympathy for Mrs. Mariner would greatly increase. While he sat in his designated chair and watched his fellow Heaven Renders take notes, he thought about just how much he felt like a captive here.

There couldn't be any equivalence between someone forced to be a juror and the person actually standing trial for an alleged crime, but Professor Oak just couldn't stop feeling sorry for himself.

Stop it, he chastised himself silently. Your plight is nothing like hers.

He was very happy when he and the other jurors were granted a reprieve from the trial. This came in the form of Chief Justice McCastle announcing that it was time for lunch, and that they would return to the trial in an hour.

The Sky Garden's courthouse held a dining room a ways away from the courtroom in which Mrs. Mariner was being tried. As Oak walked through the atrium, he saw a familiar Torchic on a leash, only this time said Pokemon was chained in handcuffs as well.

The professor was well aware that this could only mean one thing: Torchic's trial was over, and a guilty verdict had been reached. The Fire type would not be heading home with its owner; instead, it was bound for prison.

How sad, Oak thought blankly. There wasn't too much emotion behind that thought, though; he was more focused on his particular trial. A Heaven Render had to be emotionally tough, because the job entailed seeing a lot of depressing cases. You didn't have to grow numb to them; rather, you simply needed to process what was happening, but then move beyond it.

Once in the dining room, the professor met up with the other Heaven Renders at the buffet. Since they were all immortal, they could eat pretty much whatever they wanted without fear of gaining weight, and the tables were lined with some of the most delicious foods one can imagine.

There won't be that many things I'll miss once I'm no longer on the High Court, but the food's definitely an exception.

Oak wordlessly got in line behind Claire Conakry and began serving himself chicken parmesan, pasta, and salad. However, it's important to note that wordless was a requirement here.

The Heaven Renders weren't permitted to speak to each other outside the courtroom until it was time to deliberate on a verdict. This rule was ostensibly in place to make sure the spectators didn't miss anything, as well as to prevent bias among the jurors themselves.

Today, this rule was perfectly fine with Samuel Oak. He wasn't really in the mood for talking, having not spoken a word since the trial began. He was more than content to simply indulge in one of the few parts of this job that he actually enjoyed.

As he ate, he couldn't help but repeatedly picture Mrs. Mariner's face. The poor woman would still be bound to the defendant's chair, if other cases were any indication; someone accused of such a crime would surely be considered a flight risk.

But where would she go? Nowhere! She doesn't know her way around the Sky Garden, let alone the whole planet of Nexus! She's new to this place!

The chicken parmesan was objectively excellent; it felt as though every bite melted in his mouth, and the sauce was mixed to perfection. It might have come from a buffet, but it still tasted very fresh. And yet, it was difficult to enjoy the food, as preoccupied as he was.

After twenty minutes or so, the professor had eaten all he could, but there was still more than half an hour before the trial would continue. Within seconds, he knew that these minutes were going to feel interminable, since he had nothing to do.

At this point, going back into the courtroom will be relieving. It's better than just sitting here and waiting for more testimonies. Hell, I wonder if I could head there now.

Professor Oak wasn't sure if he was allowed to announce his departure from the dining room, but he decided that he'd rather be safe than sorry. He did not say a word, instead simply walking across the room and back into the atrium.

Although the courthouse was generally a fairly drafty building (it wasn't very well insulated despite its sheer size), it felt hot that afternoon. For a moment, the professor wondered if he had eaten too much; nausea could certainly have that effect on someone.

The atrium was nearly deserted, so perhaps he was simply unnerved at the sight of only a couple people walking around in such a big, open space. But that couldn't have been it.

"Samuel Oak?"

A familiar voice called out the professor's name; judging from the direction of the voice, it had come from Oak's right.

Professor Oak turned his head to find that Matt McCastle was looking at him rather disapprovingly. McCastle's eyebrows were raised, and his mouth was contorted in a slight frown.

"Uh...hello, Chief Justice McCastle" the professor said, trying not to sound too worried. He didn't want the Chief thinking something was suspicious, nor did he want to make himself worry more when he had no reason to.

"I notice that you're not in the dining room with the other Heaven Renders. Is there any particular reason for that?"

Professor Oak shook his head, perhaps a little too vigorously. "No, sir, there isn't. I just finished eating, and we're not allowed to talk to one another, so I figured I might go for a walk."

"Uh-huh", McCastle replied, nodding despite his tone suggesting skepticism. "Well, I'm not going to stop you from doing whatever you want to do, so long as it's within the rules. Just remember that we don't make a habit of taking kindly towards rule-breakers, least of all when they're in positions of power."

"I understand," the professor replied, taking deep breaths. "I have to set a good example for everyone else."

As this conversation had been taking place, Professor Oak's heartbeat had sped up to no small degree. He wasn't much of a runner, but he could imagine that running a hundred-meter dash was somewhat like this.

"Indeed you do" the Chief Justice told him. "Now, I'll be getting some lunch myself. This afternoon's going to be important; we're hoping we can secure a conviction."

Oak could feel his face flush, as though he were embarrassed about something. In reality, he felt a certain urgency that immortal beings rarely experienced; why would anything be urgent when you had an unlimited amount of time to do whatever you needed to?

"Uh...I gotta go," Professor Oak told Chief Justice McCastle. He clutched his stomach as though he felt nauseous and/or in desperate need of a toilet.

In a way, he did feel sick to his stomach once he'd heard the Chief's words. He half-staggered, half-sprinted to the nearest bathroom and locked himself inside one of the stalls.

It was only once he was safely in the stall that he began to think.

We're hoping we can secure a conviction.

It seemed to him that McCastle had it backwards. The head of any jury, to the extent that a jury could have a "leader", wasn't supposed to be actively looking for a conviction. No matter how lopsided the case was, jurors were supposed to keep an open mind before the evidence was laid out on the table.

With that in mind, the fact that the Chief Justice of the highest court in any land was starting out with a bias, not even pretending to be impartial, was simply a disgrace.

After standing over the toilet for several minutes, feeling as though he might vomit, Professor Oak came to a startling conclusion. It wasn't what he wanted to believe, but he was compelled to believe it, simply because no alternative made sense.

McCastle must be afraid of something. I don't know what it is, and part of me is afraid to find out. But somehow, he must be heavily invested in this remaining an unfair trial.

VICTOR CHELAN, 20* - FIRST PERSON

Night had fallen by the time I left Enil Edam. After I'd arrived in Forza Square, I'd sat at the base of the clock tower for...some period of time. I didn't really care about hours and minutes.

At some point the sun had gone down, and I was left on the tower's front steps. One thing that struck me was that nobody seemed to have noticed the tall, broad-shouldered young man all but sobbing at the edge of the square.

I wasn't looking for sympathy, so I really shouldn't be complaining about that, I had told myself at the time.

Half past seven and I was eating dinner at Eatsa Pizza. The place smelled incredible even when I was working there, but my enjoyment of the various scents had been tempered by the knowledge that I couldn't eat any of the delicious food. That was not the case this time.

Was it cold to have left Amanda at home to cook for herself, to desert my soulmate? Perhaps it was, but I was confident that she understood. It was nothing personal, I just needed some time to myself that evening.

There was a pair of Weavile at a table at the other side of the restaurant. As they ate, they were laughing and joking with each other, on one occasion telling one so "hilarious" that the other Weavile choked on a piece of pepperoni. Fortunately, the situation didn't get out of hand; the Weavile was able to swallow it within seconds.

One thing they did not laugh at was the sight of me. I must have appeared rather dejected as I sat at the counter turning my tears into root beer. Every so often, one of the Weavile would point at me; they were probably wondering what manner of horrific event I had gone through.

Had I been through a war? Had I lost a loved one, or, more accurately, had my loved one not made it to paradise? It seemed as though the pair of Weavile would never grow tired of speculating.

The Torkoal manning the pizza parlor that evening walked up to me when I was about halfway through my Alolan calzone. (Yes, pineapple on pizza is one of the best things to ever exist. Fight me.)

"Do you want more root beer? Or do you want real beer?" Torkoal asked me, no doubt seeing my sorry state. Tears were forming in my eyes, and I sniffled slightly, while still trying to maintain my composure in front of these strangers.

"Root beer is fine, thanks" I replied, handing my empty glass to Torkoal for him to refill.

As Torkoal returned with another tall glass of the brown stuff, I thought more about Amanda. Hopefully she would forgive me for mentally prying into her personal life.

As far as I know, Braixen can't read minds. She'll never have to know unless I tell her, and I'm not going to tell her.

That's one of the reasons I resisted ordering a beer, not that this was difficult. I had never liked alcohol on Earth. Even here, I didn't want to anesthetize myself from my emotions; it was better to face things as they actually were rather than how I wished they would be.

After paying my bill, I swiftly departed from the restaurant and found my way back to the city gates.

I realized then that this would be my first time making the journey at night, without the aid of a vehicle. Hopefully I didn't run into any Wild Pokemon or other creatures that could make my afterlife miserable. Just because I couldn't die here didn't mean that jumpscares didn't have an effect on me.

As soon as I was through the gate, I waved good-bye to the city of Enil Edam and started heading home.

Yes, Archie is an unoriginal name for an Archen. Sue me; I'm not the best with names for filler characters. But, as some eagerly say, I don't own the rights to Pokemon and have never claimed to, so if you're going to sue me, just do it for my uncreative naming of that character.