The energy of the world flowed like a river. Beautiful and deadly, art normally unseen.
Danger.
TELEPORT.
It ebbed and flowed, filled with many purposes, causing lost cause. Lost direction. It could guide a traveler or lead them astray.
Danger.
TELEPORT.
She was small. She was too small.
Dan...DANGER!
TELEPORT.
For others, life was easier. Less risky. Some even found other young ones to gather with, the group offering safety and shelter.
Danger.
TELEPORT.
She had that once, before her growth slowed. Four of them had shelter from the river of life, and tried to grow together, dreams guiding their journey.
...
But they grew stronger. Their mind smarter. Even dreaming, they could defend, attack, retreat, and gather food for the short hours they could stay awake. Together the group flourished. They became more powerful, more flexible, a force of thoughts and ideas.
...Danger.
TELEPORT.
She did not.
...
They had eventually left her behind, and with their more powerful range and fine control, she could not follow. Her dreams had darkened with loneliness and solitude.
Danger.
TELEPORT.
It took much energy to feel the unseen world. Much power to drift between space and time. And she was so small.
Danger.
TELE...
TELEPORT.
Was she being hunted? Was she just unlucky? Or was she so weak, no where was really without danger? So small, even innocent things were too risky to sleep near.
...
Worse, her range was so... so restricted. Yet even unable to feel much of the world as she slumbered, her mind could feel the raw, furious Danger. Tired, hungry, and so scared, she again searched for safety. And again. And...
DANGER!
TELEPORT.
If she woke, her limited time would tick away. Risking the loss of her abilities until she could safely sleep again. For it took so, so long to recover from losing the dream.
...
If she did not wake, she may not survive.
...
DANGER!
TE...
...
DANGER! DANGER! DANGER!
TELEPORT!
Even in slumber, she felt her heart beat so fast. The air was heavy and unforgiving, her body too hot in this cold air.
DANGER! DANGER! DANnnn...
Safe.
TELEPORT to SAFE.
She did not celebrate at finding shelter, for she was too tired. She did not sing with joy at safety, for her mind was weak. She did not hope for better times, for her soul drifted away in slumber.
In blue flames and strange fur, she remembered such strange dreams.
~~~Broken Adventure~~~
Adam paused. "Anita."
The girl walking beside him had been staring into the dark, and was a bit caught off guard. "WHAT!? I uh. I mean, what? Are we close to the Pokécenter?"
Adam slowly shook his head. "No, I'd say another 10 minutes or so until we reach that town."
She sighed. "That should be fine, Pidgey could handle several more hours in stasis like this. If she was poisoned I'm not sure what I would do."
He cautiously continued walking. "Right, good to hear she's alright for now. Anyway, can I ask you a quick question?"
She blinked towards the night, looking at Adam had destroyed her night vision again, making it hard to see into the surrounding dark forest. His blue night light impression was a bit annoying, although she was grateful for the light source. "I guess, though you should help keep an eye out for danger. Route 116 is mostly safe but since Poochyena tend to roam around it isn't impossible to run into their evolved forms. A Mightyena pack could really mess up our day."
Adam smiled. "I think I could handle it. But seriously, I may have an issue."
She frowned. "Alright, what's up?"
He pointed. "Is there something on my head?"
She paused her glare into the dark and slowly turned. "Huh. Yeah."
Adam continued to walk on the expanding path. "Right, had a feeling a few moments ago. Said to myself, 'Adam, your neck shouldn't feel that amount of weight'. Now, I don't want to be a bother, but could you... describe it?"
She watched the blue wires of his hair float in the misty flames... as they floated around the sleeping form of an Abra. A tiny one. "I honestly don't think I've SEEN an Abra that tiny."
Adam blinked. "Oh. Well, as long as it doesn't bite me or something. Might have freaked out a bit if it had fangs or whatever."
Anita tried to get closer, but her walking companion was unreasonably tall. She was young and all, but he had to be like six feet tall or something. That is too tall. "Yeah, it is an Abra, though I think it is only like a bit over a foot and a half tall or something. About half a meter tall, not much bigger."
She continued walking on the path as she pulled out her Pokédex (WAY not top of the line model... sigh.) and gave the tiny thing a scan. "Yeah, that Abra is tiny... It's a girl, and only a foot and nine inches tall, weighs about thirteen pounds. That is really pushing the small side of the recorded scale."
She flinched as one of Adam's limb things shot her Pokédex with red and green beams, but nothing seemed to happen. So whatever. "Huh. I've never heard of one just... riding someone like this. Especially a wild one. And she looks... pretty worn out."
Adam hummed. "Well, I don't mind giving the poor thing a ride. My most recent girlfriend insisted on using me as conveyance for a week or so, compared to that situation this little thing weighs nothing!" One of his limbs seemed to be examining the creature. "Huh... she's a bit adorable. Look at her tiny feet."
She blinked. "Yeah, I never got to see one up close before. They can sense danger even while asleep and can teleport all over the place, so unless you meet a trainer lucky enough you may never get a chance like this."
Adam hummed as a hologram of his own head floated in front of him, to the surprise of his young walking companion. "It's like a little fox, but with tiny cute shoulder pads. And little yellow foot gloves."
He grinned. "That's it, I'm going to keep her. Do you have any Pokéballs I could borrow?"
She shrugged. "Barely have anything, it was why I was so in danger when I got lost. Had lost a lot of supplies when I got chased by Team Rocket." And hadn't THAT been terrifying. They were adults after all, and she was just a kid. She shouldn't have to put up with crap like that.
Adam hummed. "Yeah, and I want to make this little cutie a custom ball anyway, I'm sure I can do better than whatever is common around here. Maybe have a tiny picture of her head on the thing."
Anita blinked. Well, if the magic forest man says so, why not? "What will you name her? Or will you stay with the species name for now?" She and Pidgey still argued about what HER nickname should be, as some Pokémon were picky.
He paused... and sighed. "I probably won't get to pick. My wives really wanted to be involved in the naming process, and I am sometimes more than a little out voted. Also, I occasionally have... issues... coming up with non-terrible names."
Oh the terrible superhero names he had agonized over before Variance was picked.
The comfortable walk was a bit interrupted a few seconds later. "Wait, what do you mean 'Wives'!?"
~~~Broken Adventure~~~
Nurse Joy looked up at the sound of the door opening. It was late, but healthcare could be required at any hour, and she gave a wide smile while sending signals for Chancy to prepare for a possible emergency.
Most situations could be handled thanks to the automated recovery tool station near the counter, as the Pokémon in their balls could stay in stasis while the machine fixes their issues... but someone coming in THIS late at night?
It may be something more serious.
Her thoughts hit a bit of a bump though when a young girl entered the facility with a sexy hunk of a giant muscle man... whose head was currently on fire.
Said man seemed... perfectly happy with the situation. And there seemed to be a sleeping Abra slowly cooking away in the flames, snoring happily.
Her slack jawed surprise may have been less than professional.
The girl offered up a Pokéball. "Can you heal my Pidgey!?"
Nurse Joy accepted the offered normalcy with automatic motions, her mind still focusing on the small Pokémon cook-off occurring on this man's scalp.
She ignored the machine, as no alerts meant everything on THAT front was going fine. "Sir... are you alright?"
His blue eyes seemed to sparkle (Or... were they on fire too!?) as he grinned. "Why yes! Thank you for asking. Oh, but I have picked up a bit of a hitchhiker, this little girl on my head showed up on our way here and I am a bit worried about how stressed out she seems."
Nurse instincts flared, and she felt more centered. "Are you saying that is a WILD Abra?"
He shrugged. "Well, not caught certainly. Considering she just sleeps there I wouldn't say 'wild', exactly. Don't worry, once I am sure she is healthy I plan on taking care of the little thing."
Well... that was good news. Up to a point. "I'm sorry, but if it is not caught then I can't really do much to help. I'm honestly shocked it hasn't Teleported away already, if I try to get close she will likely escape."
The man waved a hand. "No problem, I can lock down basic teleportation locally without much issue for a few minutes. Just give her a quick checkup, please."
...What?
~~~Broken Adventure~~~
Adam kept one hand on Abra's head as Nurse Joy gave the little thing a checkup. Because when he tried to hand her over, she just vanished back to his head again. Apparently Adam blocking Teleportation acted more like a shell dome of restriction rather than a fog of refusal.
That aside, his little friend was very accommodating. Even after she got the shot, which thankfully didn't need a needle, she stayed calm. And asleep. He would have to buy some of these potions later for examination, once there were fewer witnesses. No reason to freak out the nice nurse further with his extra limbs.
Nurse Joy smiled. "Oh! How well behaved. That should handle the dehydration and partially handle her malnutrition, but I think some enhanced Pokéblocks would ensure she has no further issues."
Seeing his confusion, she explained. "Most brands of Pokéblocks are meant as a candy, made from blended Berries. The enhanced ones are exposed to magical and psychic Pokémon attack residue, which can be nutritional to some species such as Psychic Pokémon, like Abra."
She held out a hand and Chancy passed over a bag with instructions on it. "Some Abra's already know Dream Eater, and all of them can use such energies to reduce mental strain."
Adam hummed. "Any care instructions?"
The nurse nodded. "Abra in general need to sleep AT LEAST 18 hours a day, and even that is a bit risky. A healthy Abra will wake in increments between 6 and 13 minutes, for a total of less than 3 hours over the course of a day. In this little one's case, I suggest letting her rest uninterrupted until she naturally wakes up. It may be more than a day or so, considering how exhausted she seems."
The inter-dimensional visitor blinked, before looking down at the curled up Abra. The behavior seemed awfully Baku-like.
Her cute little snores made him smile though. Ah well, the girls should love her.
As Nurse Joy walked back to her station behind the counter, Adam took some time to look around the clinic.
Unlike in the example video games, this was clearly a large facility. During day shift, over twenty Nurses could operate at the same time, there was a computer lab rather than a single machine, and the entire facility was SEVERAL floors tall. It would be neat to explore the place!
His thoughts were disrupted when Anita returned with her Pokéball in hand, joining him in the waiting area and slumping into the softer-than-it-looked couch. "I contacted my Trainer School instructor, since they've all gone home already. She will handle calling off Officer Jenny, since they informed them I hadn't checked in after leaving on my trip."
Adam hummed. "I'll be honest, I thought those Pokédex could call people. And had map functions and stuff."
She pouted at her own device. "Yeah, the experimental ones and the super expensive versions have all kinds of stuff. A few even have expanded storage. You can fit a bike in there! They don't even NEED a backpack like the rest of us!"
Anita sighed. "However, my parents spent a bunch to sent me to Pokémon Trainer School here in Rustboro City, and said I would have to make do with this basic version until I graduate. I normally call home and check in via Pokécenters, Stores, and Gyms that I pass by."
Shaking her head, she pointed. "Anyway, Pokécenter's have free rooms for people like us stuck out so late at night, and I had to abandon my camping gear when escaping Team Rocket... so yeah, I'll be up there for tonight."
Seeing his expression, she shrugged. "The school tries to teach us how to act like real Trainers. So camping outside, while not required, offers extra credit and stuff. And since I met some friends and had to fight against Team Rocket in the past, I've been trying to become a top Duelist... one day."
She hugged her Pokéball. "Pidgey and I were just... surprised, when a few Team Rocket grunts showed up to try and 'teach us a lesson' for freeing some of their Pokémon victims back then. And without Ash or Max or my classmates, I was outmatched. Or at least, out numbered."
Adam hummed. "Well... I have very few things on my to-do list. Would you mind if I stuck around a bit? I will need to find something worth selling, and use that buy a Pokéball or two, but other than that I have no plans."
Something relaxed in her stance. Apparently she had not been handling her near disaster as well as she was trying to pretend. "Yeah, not sure I would do so well alone right now. Most of our class is still out, as we were tasked with going on a journey as 'homework'. Honestly, I wish I hadn't tried to take such a long path to prove myself... I could have stayed near the City like some of my friends."
He chuckled. "Well, thankfully things worked out. And don't worry, if we run into any issues..." Blue light flashed over his eyes. "I'm sure we can handle it. Now, which way to the guest rooms?"
~~~Broken Adventure~~~
Children were handled oddly in this Realm, Adam mused.
First of all, they were considered independent at VERY young ages. Sometimes less than 10 years old and they could wander the world full of magical monsters.
Thankfully, these same monsters had VERY different instincts. Heck, some human kids were not only protected but RAISED by wild Pokémon, oddly enough.
That said, a huge man wandering around with a little girl didn't even raise eyebrows. He supposed that since all the children owned monsters with lethal skills, well... that would make a bit of a difference in this regard. Then again, maybe it was a feature of the Realm itself, or its deity level guardians.
Because kids were... empowered here. Large falls off cliffs? Barely a few scratches. Massive electrification? Some skin would flake to ash, but afterwards it only looked like a light sunburn. And children seemed to have regenerative powers of some level, even without using 'Potions' or healing abilities from Pokémon. Broken limbs healed over weeks rather than months.
Adam's Construction beam modified the new backpack some more. Needed to be more rigid than this, like a pot almost.
Point was, a tall stranger offering to help a young girl to explore the woods had been greeted with great gratitude and no concern.
On one hand, he DID have no other intentions, except maybe some vague parental instincts to not leave her alone when possibly hunted by the local mafia.
On the other hand, HIS Realm had creeps and weirdos. So he sort of EXPECTED the whole comedic misunderstanding situation that... never really developed.
The stone foam was covered with reformed wood pulp, creating a layer of cushion on the inside and outside while 'cloth' was layered on top. This backpack would be slightly odd shaped, but even a gun would need serious firepower to damage it.
He began inscribing Glyphs on the inside, to filter and purify air and any energies nearby, to stay at a specified temperature, to deflect wind and rain.
Entering this Realm, the memories he got were... odd. More historical, less focused on a single person (Other than 'Trainer X', of which there were a few.) Anyone could do interesting things here, and there wasn't a single plot line that drove reality like in some spaces. More open ended, in a way.
Oh, there were still stories. Several, going on at the same time in separated 'Regions'. This one was the Hoenn Region, for what it was worth. He wasn't super concerned, but just in case he had sent CD all the details shoved into his brain and was mostly ignoring Simmy and Sammy live streaming his journey so far. At least one massive difference from the available research was obvious: Pokémon could learn any number of moves, as long as they trained enough. None of this 'Only four at a time' stuff, though if you tried to teach them a ton of abilities the ones least use would rapidly fall in quality and effectiveness.
Also? Magic AND Psychics existed in this Realm. And the Psychics could interact with Ghosts, and around them blue floating flames were commonly seen. And said Psychics were also notoriously odd, both in dress and actions, according to the local internet.
So that was likely why Anita had just ACCEPTED a dude with flaming wires for hair and multiple bone limbs showing up out of nowhere to help.
Man this Realm was weird.
With a satisfied hum, he checked the backpack. "Right, now for you to try out your new home, Abra!"
His hand bathed in blue flames of magic, he gently lifted Abra from his head (Again) and slowly lowered her into the new equipment.
It was a tight fit, but that was on purpose. What research he had done downstairs in the lab implied that the Abra species in general LOVED tight, confined hide away locations. Escape was trivial for their species and restricted areas meant safe areas. Finding them inside logs, cracks in cliffs, or even inside crawl spaces in homes was not impossible, if you were lucky enough to even notice them before they teleported away.
She wiggled a bit in his hands... then twisted into the barrel shaped backpack, only her triangular head and fox-like ears exposed.
...Was she purring?
D'Aw. That was adorable.
Resting the flames on her head, he mentally reached out with 'Harmony'.
She was a weak leaf on a grand tree, finally floating free. The lost seashell on a corrupted beach, floating away into the vast unknown. She had run from Danger, had found Safe, and now bathed in guardian light.
She was home.
Adam smiled softly, and held her new nest in his arms as he lay back in bed for some rest.
For having found a new friend, he had been quite lucky.
And he could feel her agree.
