Gotta catch 'em all.

 

I make my way around the dried and sparse savannah trees.

 

A heart so true. 

 

Everywhere I looked, I saw sparse vegetation, the most prominent being a bush-like thing.

 

(Gotta catch 'em all)

 

Tilting my head left and right to catch sight of the elusive Beast.

 

Our courage will pull us through.

 

Yet, no matter where I looked, I did not find the black and white Beast in question.

 

You teach me and I'll teach you

 

Once I had enough of this fruitless search, I did the smart thing. I climbed the trees like the monkey that I am. If I did not find it, another tree was the goal until it happened.

 

Pokemon!

 

I saw it. I saw the true goal of this expedition, the Great Beast with black and white fur.

 

Gotta catch 'em all

 

Nestled between two bushes, the black and white furry Beast gnawed on something. 

 

Maybe it's chewing on bubble gum? That or I am an idiot for wanting to see it happen.

 

Making my way down the tree, I inched closer to its position. 

 

I wanted to avoid another chase scene, but here was the Honey Badger’s territory, whatever this Anomaly was in truth, and I was the infiltrator. Every few meters, I would glance around and commit the already trodden path into memory just in case it was needed.

 

Once I was angled correctly to observe the beast in its natural glory, I saw my theory come true. 

 

The Honey Badger was chewing on something long. Straining my eyes for a bit, I noticed a slightly reflective shine on that something long. It took a second, but I recognized that it was something long. 

 

It was scaly, and its noodle shape identified it as a snake. I could not see what kind, but whatever kind it was, now it was but a meal for this Great Beast.

 

Happiness rushed from my heart as I watched it eat in serenity. A smile rose on my face as Its cute head bobbed left and right as it bit into flash. It tore apart skin and flesh and chewed on snake meat. 

 

That it was just lying there on its chest with its lower body splayed about as it did only reinforced its cuteness. 

 

For a few moments, that was all I did, watch it. No other thought came to me but one. 

 

God, I want to pat it so damn much. But I can't. 

 

The captivating feeling of it being right there and yet so far away bothered me a lot. But I knew if I approached it any closer, there was no denying the fact that it would chase me down just like last time. 

 

What should I do? How do I tame a Honey Badger if I can't even get close to it? Actually, how do you even catch a Pokemon?

 

Pokemon. Pokemon? What is a Pokemon in the first place?

 

Instantly I got the notion of an animal that fights battles and… and somehow evolves thanks to it.

 

Battle? Does this mean I have to get close and fight it head-on? But… those teeth will shred me to death if I am not careful. There must be another way like… like… friend, friendship? 

 

Yes, that's it. With friendship, I will tame this Honey Badger. But doesn't friendship work by getting friendly with somebody? That means I still have to get close without getting shredded into pieces.

 

Instantly my number one goal came into existence. 

 

Get closer without getting torn apart? Alright, I will find a way, but what about after? How do we become friends in the first place? Hmm, friends? Friends? Friends?

 

Wait a second, didn't Ma say that the best way to catch and hold a partner for life is through their stomach? Yes, that's it, Food.  With food, we will become the best of friends. With food even approaching it will be easier, and then I can tame the Honey Badger. 

 

Done with imagining the future. one problem remained. How to catch it? The memory related to Pokemon told me of a Great capturing tool, but all I got from the recollection was a blurry picture of a ball split into red at the top and white at the bottom.

 

But, this is a Dream, so it should work anyway. If I wish it hard enough, right? 

 

With that conclusion, my focus shifted to my right hand and imagined a red and white ball. 

 

Waiting for it for a few moments, I neither saw nor felt anything happen. Tilting my head left and right, I concentrated harder and imagined it even harder.

 

Once again, I felt and saw nothing. 

 

Enraged that my own Dream wasn't following my own whims, I cried out loud. 

 

“I want a Pokeball!” 

 

Puffing a bit when nothing happened again, I considered how to tame a Honey Badger without a Pokeball, yet, at the exact moment that the thought rang out in my mind, a shiver ran down my spine.

 

Grrrrrr.

 

A growling or rattling sound came as my mind finally caught up to everything. 

 

Shit, I fucked up again? My mind said as my eyes looked at the sound's origin. 

 

There the Honey Badger was growling at me. That part was easy to hear and see, but unlike last time, my mind was still in pondering mode, and it just had to point out that the sounds it made were weird.

 

To me, it sounded more like a Khrya - ya - ya - ya. 

 

The first part was deep, but the ones after gained a sort of pitch as it came out, only for its growling/rattling to start from the beginning after it took a breath.

 

When its tone finally reached something, I saw and heard it charge towards me. 

 

Luckily despite my mind being in pondering mode, my body knew what to do when an angry beast started chasing me. 

 

To my body, it did not matter that the beast barely reached my knees. 

 

It just kept screaming RUN. RUN, YOU FOOL!

 

So I ran and ran. The Honey Badger kept declaring its intent to shred me.

 

With my running away path memorized, I ran out of that anomaly by another dive. Unlike the last one, this one, I performed much better. I was able to do a shoulder roll with a smooth motion, only to stand up in an urgent manner and once more run for my life.

 

Once I was sufficiently far enough from the Anomaly, I felt the Anomaly regain its activity. It did not last for long and entered another low-powered mode. 

 

Having learned my lesson, I did not enter inside right away. No, I took this time to consider what I should be doing inside. When I did, I noticed something different instantly. Recalling what I did when I was inside the Anomaly, I could picture every single moment spent inside the Anomaly. 

That should not be strange, but it was that clarity that told me that there was something wrong. Once again, I entered another pondering mode, and after pondering for a bit, I tried an experiment.

 

Looking to my right hand, I envisioned a Pokeball appearing on it, and voila, it emerged. 

 

Only how it came about was the weird part, not that it appeared. Somehow I saw my hand go transparent for a tiny bit and the Pokeball emerged from it. 

 

Weird, but when Dream mechanics say it will happen that way, it happened that way. 

 

This experiment only showed me what my mind figured out. The Anomaly was preventing me from making a Pokeball. 

 

I was not sure what the hidden rules of that stage had, but somehow this one made sense. Still, that left me with only one option. I had to study the stage before attempting to tame the beast.

 

Leaving the low-powered anomaly at doing whatever it was doing inside a beast brain, I made six balls plus a belt to hold them all around my waist.

 

Done, I waited a bit more for the Anomaly to do its thing before attempting another entrance. By its side, I placed my hand on the Anomaly. With ease acquired from doing tests, I entered the Anomaly.

 

Similar to the previous times when I entered, everything around me began to shift in weird colors and shapes before a definitive form settled for this stage. A savannah appeared again, but it was different from the previous times that I entered, 

 

I wonder why a new stage appears every time? Is it just for the looks, or is there more to it?

 

Shaking away that train of thought, I began touching my belt only to realize that the belt and the Pokeballs had vanished. 

 

Tilting my head for a second time, I realized another thing.

 

Why am I naked? Was I naked the last time as well? How come I did not notice my dangly bits dangling?

 

Puffing a bit at the Dream logic, I tried to envision having clothes on my body, only for a similar scenario to happen. A vague image came, but for some reason, I could not picture it clearly as I wanted.

 

Nodding and shaking my head at the rules of the stage, I observed the savannah and the blinding sun in the sky. Not having any other choice, I just shrugged my shoulders. 

 

“When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. Commando, it is, then.“

 

Having learned my lesson that I first had to figure out the rules of the stage I was in, I began exploring the savannah with the intent of studying it. Along the way, I started touching everything, the trees, the bushes, the ground, the stones, the air? And everything else that I could get my fingers on.

 

Nothing truly felt special as far as I could tell. I found no hidden areas nor any hidden treasures. No hidden enemies were found either, in fact, I found no enemies at all. There was no life aside from the vegetation as far as I saw. 

 

To be sure, I climbed the highest tree that I could find. From it, I began observing as much as possible, and no matter where I looked, there were no animals in any of the directions. But I did notice something else. 

 

In the distance, I saw enormous trees, bushes, and rooks. The fact was, everything was huge out there. 

 

Noticing that peculiarity, I began my stroll towards those enormous trees. So I walked and walked and walked, but no matter how much time I spent on it, somehow I was not reaching the giant trees. 

 

Unsure if this was another hidden Dream mechanic, I climbed another tree to look around. That was when I noticed another thing. The trees in the distance still looked huge, but the scene around me showed me a few familiar things. 

 

Some of the trees I had seen in the distance the first time had the same shape as I looked at them now, only they looked smaller. Big when I compared them to myself, but nowhere as big as they looked had appeared.

 

On a hunch, I looked back on that path I used to come here and gazed at the trees on it. Carefully sifting through my memory as much as possible, I notice it. Everything on the path that I traded on had a typical size, but when I gazed at the surroundings of the path, everything started growing in size. 

 

I could barely notice the difference the closer it was, but the more distant something was, the bigger it became. Not fully understanding why that was so, I filed that observation for later and made my way back from whence I came. 

 

On the way, I began touching things again. Some I tried to sample stuff on my tongue. That was when I noticed another peculiarity.

 

Most of what I tried to taste had been the occasional flower and leaves from the trees. Most of what I tried had little flavor, but the fascinating thing was that the things with the least flavors were the leaves and not the flowers. 

 

In truth, the lower something was to the ground, the more flavor it had. Granted, it tasted like green stuff, but that was another observation added to the list.

 

Continuing my trek on the path I used not long ago, I came upon a friend of mine, the Honey Badger. 

 

It was sniffing out the path that I had traversed. Once our eyes locked onto each other, another growling/rattling sound came out of its mouth. 

 

“Look, I just want us to be friends. There is no need for aggression, is there?” I spoke out loud, but similar to the first time our paths crossed, my words began to enrage it even more. 

 

More Khrya -ya - ya - ya sent my way, and I began running to the right in hopes to evade it. 

 

On another chase, I drifted around a couple of trees. The intent was to loop around them, find my way back to the path I had been on, and exit the Anomaly once again. 

 

When I did it, a familiar beast stood in my way. 

 

How did it appear in front of me? I wondered for a second, but my momentum was already at full throttle. There was no stopping, as stopping meant being shredded to bits, so I did the manliest thing I remembered ever doing in this Dream of mine, and real-life, presumably. 

 

I jumped over the Great Beast with black and white fur, only for my mind to remind me of something at the peak of my jump. 

 

Honey Badgers liked to go for the balls of larger prey. 

 

For that one, single moment, shivers traveled up my spine as my dangly bits felt strangely closer to it than they should have been. 

 

The moment itself felt like it went on forever, but it did have an end. 

 

Once I was back on safe ground, an additional spring in my steps gave me the extra juice to run faster.

I had no idea what its own impression was, but the definitive growl only encouraged me not to look back and just run for my life. A few moments later, I did a perfect dive and shoulder roll to dissipate my momentum, only to run away from the waking anomaly. 

 

*

 

After that, everything became a routine. 

 

I entered the anomaly. 

 

I searched for clues on everything that bothered me, only for the Honey Badger to find me again. 

 

With another goose chase, I found the exit. After that, I entered again, and the Beast somehow sniffed me out on a tree as I observed the surroundings. 

 

That was when I found out an interesting fact. While Honey Badgers are not and never will be as good at climbing as we monkeys are, those claws were not just for looking good. 

 

If the Beast is angry enough and if it is determined enough to chase me to Hell and back, it will climb the damn tree and the tree branch on which I had stood.

 

Luckily for me, I was smart enough to switch to a tree branch that was lower to the ground but far enough away from it so that I could jump down and run for the exit.

 

After that, my window of exploration began to shorten. After each iteration, the Beast somehow began sniffing me out sooner and sooner. 

 

Once it took but a few minutes, I took the sign for what it was. I stopped entering the Anomaly and found myself a good place for rest in this root-like maze that was the brain of the Beast that had eaten me.

 

There I rooted myself in a manner and began remembering every little thing that stood out to me in my pondering mode. 

 

The first was the vegetation enlargement of everything but the path I had already walked and my immediate surroundings. 

 

The second was the vegetation itself. The lower something was to the ground, the more flavor it contained.

 

The third was the structuring that happens when I enter the Anomaly.

 

The fourth was where the Anomaly itself resided.

 

The fifth was where I personally found myself.

 

It was all so obvious that it should have come to me at the first opportune moment. 

 

Frankly said, now I feel stupid because of it. I am in a Dream. In this Dream, I am dreaming of being a Dreamwalker, and the Anomaly is something like a Soul or Consciousness of the Honey Badger that ate me. 

 

When the Honey Badger wakes up, I can't do anything to it in my current shape, even if I tried. But when it sleeps, the Anomaly enters into a low-powered mode. This low-powered mode generates a scenario for the Badger. 

 

Therefore whenever I enter the Anomaly, I am actually entering the Honey Badger's Dream. 

 

Therefore I became a Dreamwalker in this Dream of mine.  

 

The logic was sound, so that is what it became. Only what does a Dreamwalker do? 

 

Actually, what is a Dreamwalker in the first place?

 

A Dreamwalker is a being that traverses Dreams. 

 

Duh, that one is obvious. Come, Dream of mine, tell me the details. I want the juicy stuff.

 

A Dreamwalker is a being that traverses Dreams. 

 

Popped into my head again. Frowning for a few moments, I change the angle of questioning, 

 

What Are Dreams?

 

At its core, a Dream is a generated fake Reality to hide and protect the Truth that is Life in Creation, thus Dreams are a subconscious defense mechanism of one’s Consciousness.

 

Huh, now this is interesting. 

 

Every essential word brought along an explanation, so a lot of stuff got dumped into my mind. 

 

As for where it came from? I cared not, I was in a Dream, after all.

 

What does it hide? I questioned this Dream of mine.

 

All Life is temporary, thus the Truth is too heavy for a new consciousness. 

 

Therefore Dreams hide the fact that one's Consciousness is but a fleeting blip of self-conscious layered thought made out of Chaos. 

 

Said Truth is hidden until such a time that it can determine the Truth of its own temporary existence.

 

Ugh, Dream, don't spit out such heavy stuff. Ok? Shaking my head away from it, I ask the next question.

 

What does it protect? 

 

To prolong one's temporary existence, one’s Consciousness has no choice but to take Life from Life. 

 

Therefore a Dream is a defensive mechanism to protect one's Consciousness from the possibility when hiding is no longer an option.

 

Huh? That does explain a few things. Particularly about a particular Honey Badger's instinct in tearing me to shreds. 

 

So I am a temporary existence currently? To prolong my existence I would need to consume that Honey Badger somehow. But what if I don't want to do that? What if I want us to become friends? 

 

There must be a way to become friends with it. There always is, is that not how the saying goes? 

 

This time no information popped into my head, but what did pop up was my own interpretation of everything that I encountered so far, and it delivered me a kind of truth. 

 

We can't become friends, especially not if the Honey Badger thinks of me as an enemy. However, I feel that all my encounters with it, and all the encounters that we will have in the future, have already determined a set path for us.

 

Soooo, If I am to break away from its current set behavior, I have to change my approach drastically. 

 

Thinking about my options, I only came up with one resolution.

 

*

Time passed as I tested out the solution. 

 

With it, I recognized that the chances of success increased by huge margins.

 

A bit later, I was before the Anomaly again. Soon after, I entered the Dream of the Beast. 

 

Once the surroundings settled and a savannah appeared, I began my deceptive intent.

 

This part was the one that brought me the most unknowns, but somehow I had this feeling that it would work. 

 

Casting out my Dream sense, I announced my Intent. It became the bridge and translator of my Intent as I shifted this Dreamwalker body of mine. 

 

First came the arms and legs. 

 

The hands and feet changed shape. All over them, black fur began to grow and real Claws erupted from my human fingernails.

 

I had tested it out a bit, but with the guide from the Dream, it became much easier to achieve the right joint shape. Placing my arms on the ground, I felt the change shift slowly from the arms and legs to the spine, to my chest, and finally to my head. 

 

Even though my head became that of a Honey Badger, I felt nothing special, as if my Dream body had no problem adapting to anything I wanted it to be. 

 

Done with the head, I felt a tiny stubby tail at the end of my spine. 

 

When the transformation finished, I retrieved my Dream sense. 

 

Dropping down my Honey Badger body on the ground, I pretended to sleep, just like I had seen it do a few times, and soon the Beast would come. 

 

Unlike the Me in human shape that it hated, this one would not anger it as much. 

 

At least, I hoped it would not, for a simple reason. I could not allow myself to be underneath it in rank.

 

And if there is one thing that I am sure of, it is that Reality had to nerf Honey Badgers with diminutive size. 

 

Otherwise, they would be dominating these lands and not lions.

 

Then, a few moments later, I heard it.