Everything had settled down for Vincent as he sat in his room, solely focused on the blissful and peaceful silence that remained dominant within this space. Switching out of his more 'formal business attire', he switched into a pair of shorts and a black t-shirt that Nurse Joy had left him.
He knew that eventually he would have to go out and get new pairs of clothes, but he could take what he could get for the time being and that's all he needed until the opportunity could present itself.
For now, while his thoughts raced, he sat down on his bed and stared down at the page of his journal with the assistance of fading sunlight dimming by the second, he focused and just wrote whatever he was thinking, despite his mind feeling as though it had cracked in half from a headache that creeped up to the top of his forehead.
"A little learning is a dangerous thing. Drink deep or taste not the Pierian Spring."
Nikolai Belinski introduced me to that 1711 Alexander Pope quote last summer during Black Ops 4's Alpha Omega opening cutscene.
I never read the entirety of Pope's 'Essay on Criticism' but that one line I was introduced to? I think about that now more than ever.
I've learned something…and now I don't think I can unlearn it. I feel like I've barely scratched the surface of this 'Pierian Spring' and yet I can't stop feeling like I'm Alice tumbling down too far into a rabbit hole of despair. So, if that was REALLY me on that television screen, then who are the friends Julia told me about? One way or another I must find him before he, or I, get himself/myself hurt, I DON'T KNOW.
I pray that this is all a ruse and that it's just another Vincent who has nothing to do with me and just so happens to look like me when I was younger…if that can be the case then that could make my life a little easier, however, something tells me that I have a long and difficult journey ahead of me and it doesn't care if I'm ready for it or not.
Clamping the pages shut as he tossed the journal on top of his backpack, he stood up to check one final thing before laying down to close his eyes. He had to make sure that his cell phone was being charged up and making sure it was still working, which was favorable in this case since the phone appeared to be functioning normally.
As he finally lay down to relax and allowed a state of sleep to wash over him, he lay there getting under the covers, staring up at the ceiling, wondering if and when giving Officer Jenny his number so that she may forward it to somebody else for work would pay off, if ever.
He didn't have time, nor did he have the mental state to ponder on the possibilities of the future, so he surrendered himself and finally closed his eyes to rest for that day despite it being a little early.
Sleep & emptiness. It sure feels nice to just lay there in my own bed and just drift away for a bit as all I can 'see' is darkness. I…wait, a second. Am I dreaming?
Right, I'm getting up like I'm supposed to. Another day in 'paradise', that is if you don't mind the pandemic spreading a virus without a vaccine yet, people going crazy over wearing masks, and the consistent amount of negative energy and depression spread across your world. Yep… 'paradise.'
So, what's there to do while in paradise? Maybe boot up a game on the PlayStation 4 or Nintendo Switch? Kill time by browsing YouTube or Twitter? Or maybe…get some writing or editing done?
Now hold on a second…before I can even get to all of that, why is it so damn quiet? I'm even in my housecoat and opening up the window- why is it so damn dark?!
I mean, those clouds…they're dark. Maybe it's going to rain today. I guess it's best not to dwell on it now. I still got another day to kill before I continue waiting for the green light to go back to a payed job.
Right, so I get some clean clothes out, preferably a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, and I'm walking to the bathroom to realize that my younger brother and my dog aren't there, sleeping in his room.
It is what it is.
So I guess it's best if I grabbed a shower, which I did. All the water works, the electricity is fine, and I can carry on with my day. But then I get the urge to go out and get some snacks because I know I'd like to continue watching some more Pokémon anime content for a good ol' nostalgia trip, preferably consisting of Advanced Battle and potentially Battle Frontier.
It's not a far walk but I realize just…there's NOBODY. Nobody is outside, which I guess is fair, but it feels so empty and devoid of any life. It's like I'm inside an Evil Within or Resident Evil scenario or something. Meh, it's whatever.
…
Okay, MAYBE the convenience store where I pick up quick drinks or chips to munch on while binge watching stuff being empty is a bad sign. No customers, no one attending the cash register. Hell, no response when I'm calling out to anyone who would take my money so I can take my snacks.
Persistently, I felt nervous while throwing a twenty-dollar bill on the cash register's desk and just leave the store with what I grabbed, expecting them to keep the change.
Ten minutes later, I walk back to the house and the clouds start to rumble with thunder and lightning. So, it IS going to rain…but what happened next just shocked me.
I was at a loss for words.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
A massive beam of energy just strikes the house from the sky and it just comes apart at the seems as I stand there helpless and unable to stop it as the shockwaves spread throughout the neighbourhood causing car alarms to go absolutely nuts.
I'd expect to hear people shouting, freaking out, or the sounds of police or fire truck sirens.
All I hear is…some kind of roar? A cry? It was coming from the sky as its decibels climbed higher and roared louder than any of the car alarms around me. Then I understand in a few moments as I see a Pokémon flying high in the sky…a Pokémon I'm all too familiar with.
"Rayquaza?! The hell did I do?! Wait, wait, wait, you're not even real!"
And just like that…I go flying at the power of what I assume is a Hyper Beam or something and I crash.
The momentum Vincent felt in his sleep was cataclysmic and nearly felt real to the point where he'd felt like he'd impacted from a fall. The reality of the situation, however, was that he was still in that same bed in that Pokémon Center and was completely safe.
He had to sit up for a moment to clear his head, letting his legs slide over to the side of the bed as he lifted up the covers.
"Just a dream…" He croaked. "Just a dream."
Quickly turning on a nearby light, he decided to quickly relieve his stress with his notebook and wrote down a few scribbled words that came to mind as he let out a big sigh.
Blown to Kingdom Come by a Rayquaza. Not that I tried to fuck with nature in the past, but why did I have to come up with that in my mind? I doubt that's what exactly happened, and I doubt that's how I got in this world in the first place…but it's still fucked up that I dreamt that. Maybe this is payback for catching and loving Rayquaza while playing Pokémon Emerald back in the day? Or maybe my own head is still fighting itself between the real world and the Pokémon world…
Still feeling a bit dazed, Vincent pressed the notebook against his forehead and sighed, not before jumping at the sight of his phone ringing.
Recovering his focus, he picked up his cell and slid the green phone icon that flashed on the screen and pressed his phone against the side of his ear.
"Hello?" He spoke firmly as he overcame the fatigue.
"Yes, hi! Hello? Is this Vincent that I'm reaching out to at the end of this line?"
Vincent leaned in as he pressed his elbow against his knee. "That's me!"
"Splendid! Word of mouth says you're looking for a little bit of work, eh, Vincent?"
"Yeah, anything will do at this point just to get started for...something. Who am I speaking to if I may ask?" He replied.
"The name's Nathaniel! I sorta run things around here at Rustboro Press. You want some work with us? Well, I'm your guy! Now listen, I know it's a bit late at the moment and I've woken you up a bit early, which I'm really sorry about, but our good friend Officer Jenny insisted that I'd give you a try. Says you've talked about writing and editing really briefly."
"No, no, don't worry about it too much. Nine at night isn't that late for me, in my opinion. And yeah, we did talk about that. Sometimes at home I'd put together small videos for fun talking about topics, analyzing what I can, writing on certain things and what I can think about. The whole nine yards."
"Splendid, my friend! Say, would you mind coming up to Rustboro City tomorrow afternoon? I'd love to have you on, and we've been needing an extra set of hands for quite sometime!"
"Absolutely! I'd love to! What time?"
"Anytime before three will be fine."
"Alright, Nathaniel. I'll see you tomorrow!"
"That's the spirit, Vincent! Call me Nate by the way! Can I call you Vince? Vinny?"
"I'm cool with whatever, Nate."
"Alright, see you soon!"
"Huh…" Vincent remarked as he put his phone down. "That was really easy…what, no competition? Hm. Oh well." He then shrugged. "Best not to bite the hand that feeds me." He groaned as he plopped his head back on his pillow. "I guess we're going to Rustboro tomorrow…"