My long, slender, yellow-furred ears lifted up, but I only heard the sound of loneliness. The forest teemed with lively buzzing and the noises of distant Pokemon, but never have I ever felt so alone.

 

Once again, I stood by myself. Only my holographic blue status screen kept me company in this strange yet somewhat familiar world. ‘Familiar,’ since Pokemon held a special place in my heart. Only ‘somewhat,’ since my beloved childhood memories did not ever recall Pokemon eating each other.

 

To be honest, a small grin permanently etched onto my face, slightly pushing up the two small red spots on my cheeks like dimples. I was ecstatic to be in the body of one of my favorite Pokémon. Yet, at the same time, I worried, horrified at the unknown dangers of this new world. And I was right to be concerned.

 

Suddenly, my long ears twitched and shot up vertically, detecting that I was no longer alone.

 

A powerful gust of wind picked up dust and hurled it my way. Immediately closing my eyes, I lifted my cute, short, stubby arms and blocked my face.

 

“Pidgeotto!”

 

I don’t know if that Pidgey I scared away early told an older brother or sister or something, but its next evolutionary stage came diving at me from the air along the dirt path. I think it used sand attack; such an annoying move! It got sand in my eyes, and I tried to rub it away.

 

“Not again! I didn’t even move! And I’m not even in the grass! How can wild Pokémon just show up like this?! That’s not how it’s supposed to work!”

 

“Pidge-Otto!” The mid-stage Pokemon screeched, pulling back its wings before flapping wildly and sending a huge twisting tornado my way.

 

“Oh, shit!”

 

I looked down at my blue screen. “Skills! Skills! Um… I hope this works like in the game!”

 

Thinking away the screen, I lowered my front body, and my paws touched the ground. My claws pressed and dug into the earth as I braced myself for an attack. Narrowing my eyes at the faint fading silhouette behind the raging tornado of the perpetrator, who launched two surprise attacks at me, I retaliated.

 

“Quick attack!”

 

I launched off from my spot. Dirt and pebbles kicked off the ground and shot away in the opposite direction as I sped off. I dashed, flashing and zigzagging like lightning towards the dang bird that dared to attack me. But damn, I was fast! Whirling tornado? What spinning tornado? I zipped past that thing like nothing!

 

The swirling dust storm came straight at me, taking up half of the dirt road. But it only moved quickly in a straight line. I moved. A slight push from all four of my extremities nearly launched me to the opposite side of the dirt path and into the shrubs, lining the other side of the road. I had to immediately kick off the ground, redirecting my momentum in the other direction towards Pidgeotto, but I already bypassed the tornado attack that zoomed down to where I once was.

 

The bird Pokémon’s eyes widened in surprise at my sudden quick appearance. I smirked, dashing with a trail of light in my rush forward. I moved so fast that the bird could not react in time. Leaping off the floor, my body’s natural instinct was to tackle the dang bird. But not me! I spun in the air, launching a kick with all my forward momentum right in the bosom where it would hurt.

 

A sharp snap rippled from the area of my blow.

 

“Pidgeotto!” The bird Pokemon wailed as it shot down and crashed into the earth. A slight thud was heard before a screech of pain echoed out of the damaged Pokemon. “Geooottooo.”

 

I landed on all fours, ready to finish off my opponent. Jolts of electricity sparked from my cheeks, wanting to shoot off and fry my attacker.

 

“Thundersh-!”

 

But I stopped.

 

The sparks from my impending attack ceased. I saw the fear in Pidgeotto’s eyes before it suddenly puked out its guts. I must have kicked its gizzard pretty hard; some blood mixed in with the vomit. The bird Pokemon struggled to get up. Every move seemed to cause it pain.

 

“The snap from earlier! Oh, no! Did I break a bone?”

 

Pidgeotto tried to get away. Right now would be a perfect time to throw a Pokeball, but alas. I was a Pokemon that could only be captured, but I wondered if I could catch other Pokémon, too. I wasn’t just any normal Pokemon, after all. I shook my thoughts away as my slender ears swung back and forth and refocused on the matter at hand.

 

I rushed forward to help Pidgeotto, but a blood-curdling scream screeched out of the frightened Pokemon.

 

“PIGDGEOTTOOOOO!”

 

“Hey, hey. It’s okay! I’m not gonna attack you!” Even though you attacked me first! I could have had some fried chicken, but lucky for you I’m vegetarian and don’t eat Pokemon!

 

Pidgeotto pushed up from the ground and tried to run away, but it shrieked in pain and used one of its wings to hold its front chest while the other tried to keep it from collapsing. Despite all that, it desperately crawled with all it had, trying to run away. It wanted to live, and I completely understood.

 

I called out my status screen again, and the blue holographic window appeared before me. I focused on the skills area and selected the ‘Pokemon Language’ skill.

 

Pokémon Language - Passive - Switch to speaking and understanding all Pokémon! To activate the skill, speak like Pokémon! Switch back by speaking human!

 

“Huh. What a weird skill. Speak Pokemon? Like, Pika, Pikachu?”

 

Suddenly, something strange happened. I was certain, Pigeotto was saying ‘Pidgeotto.’ However, now it was in a speech that I could fully understand.

 

“Stay away from me! Don’t kill me! I’m boney! You won’t get much out of my meatless body!”

 

“Hey, it’s ok. Calm down. I won’t eat you. I’m vegan.”

 

“I’m sorry! Please don’t eat me! I’m too young to die!”

 

“Bro! I said I wouldn’t eat you!”

 

The bird Pokémon momentarily went silent.

 

“You swear to Arceus?” Pidgeotto asked, but in a threatening kind of way.

 

I looked at the bird Pokémon, not knowing that there were also religious types. “Uh, yeah, sure, I swear.”

 

I wondered if I cursed at Arceus, would he appear? Would he send me home? Or maybe he might eat me. But that gave me a good idea. I wanted to go back to my human body. If I couldn’t return home, maybe I could stay here as a human Pokemon trainer! Arceus was real in this world, so maybe the Pokémon god could help me!

 

“Ugh,” Pidgeotto staggered from the pain but relented and collapsed to the ground. Maybe after giving it my word, the bird Pokemon no longer struggled to escape despite its painful injury.

 

“I’m doomed. I think a couple of my ribs broke. I can’t fly like this. Zigzaggoons or Arboks will eat me at night. Maybe I should allow myself to get captured by the humans instead.”

 

I felt kind of bad. The injuries were Pidgeotto’s own doing, albeit I contributed to it. But none of it would have transpired if he didn’t attack me first. Still, I liked Pidgeotto as a Pokemon.

 

“Hey, I’ll help you out, but you have to swear to Arceus that you won’t try to attack or eat me.”

 

“You would do that? For me? From a Pikachu? Our kind never really got along. Why would you help me?”

 

“Right, Pikachu.” I forgot that I’m a Pikachu now. “Don’t get me wrong, you did this to yourself. But I don’t feel good leaving you to die or be eaten. I don’t want to be eaten either.”

 

It nodded its head. The will to live replaced its worried eyes. “I swear to Arceus that I won’t do you any harm, Pikachu. Please help me.”

 

“Of course! You can call me Sax. Do you have a name?”

 

“A name? Only humans do that. Are you actually a captured but released Pokémon?”

 

I learned something new, but I didn’t know how to respond. Scratching the back of my head with my fuzzy yellow hand, I said, “Kinda? I guess you can think of it that way?” But it was more like I became a Pokemon, and that’s why I have a name.

 

The battle was over.

 

A sudden breeze swept past my face, and I momentarily winced, partially shutting my eyes. However, squinting them open again, the rays of the blistering summer sun once again reminded me that we still stood on the open dirt road.

 

My bright yellow fur coat was like a beacon, and the brown stripes on my back was like a target. Our position was too vulnerable, and I didn’t want any more Pokémon or trainers sprinting at me for a surprise attack or hurling metal balls at my head again. We needed to skedaddle and fast.

 

I looked at Pidgeotto and wished I was a psychic type right now. Moving the injured bird would not be easy. I don’t know if sudden movement would actually worsen his condition. What if the broken bone cut his lung and caused internal bleeding?

 

“Do you know the moves, rest or roost?” It was unlikely, but I asked just in case.

 

Pidgeotto shook his head. I didn’t have any healing skills either. I offered my help, but now I didn’t even know how to do so. Suddenly, a certain stash of blue Oran Berries came into mind.

 

“Eureka! That’s it! Hmmm, but will it work? Will healing HP heal broken bones, too?”

 

Pidgeotto tilted his head. I looked at my test subject with an evil grin. Pidgeotto fidgeted with an anxious fluster.

 

“You swore!”

 

“I’m not going to eat you. Relax. I have a safe place where you can stay to heal, but getting you up there in this state will not be easy. I need to find some stuff to help get you up there and move you there too. Hmmm... Ah!”

 

Pidgeotto flinched from my sudden burst of a good idea but grunted in pain. “Don’t scare me like that!”

 

I scratched the back of my head. “Hehe, sorry.”

 

“So what is it? What were you thinking of?”

 

A devious grin stretched across my face. “He. He. He. Where can I find some sturdy vines and leaves?”

 

“You lied to me!”

 

I rolled my eyes. “When did I do that? I just need to find some vines and leaves.”

 

“You’re going to tie me up and roast me alive!”

 

I deadpan looked at the freaked-out bird that feared death by dissolving in my stomach. It was time to reveal my plan.

 

“Hold your feathers before they all fall off from you stressing out. You obviously can’t move. I need to build a makeshift sleigh to pull you to and then also up to my home. I have some Oran Berries there that will help you recover.”

 

Pidgeotto blushed from embarrassment and looked away. “You should have just said so, Sax.”

 

“And miss all the fun? No. Haha!”

 

The bird grumbled back, “Whatever! Help me into the bush over there. You’ll find what you’re looking for deeper in the forest by the local spring. Just head straight that way,” Pidgeotto said, pointing in the direction I came from.

 

I looked in the general direction but felt it was too vague. “What if I get lost?”

 

“It’s not that much further. You’ll also know by the increased humidity. Just mark your path there so you know how to get back.”

 

“Ok…”

 

“Please return before dusk. I won’t be able to defend myself in this condition.”

 

“No worries! You can count on me!”

 

Pidgeotto smiled and said, “Alight, here. Come help me up, and move me into the bush before you go.”

 

I nodded and went over. The bird Pokémon wrapped its wing over my shoulder, taking a deep breath before standing up. He let out a deep grunt and trembled getting up. We slowly moved to the edge of the dirt path and to the center of the bush nearby.

 

“I’ll be right back. Keep quiet and hold on, Pidgeotto.”

 

He nodded, and I dashed and hopped up and over the shrubbery again. The sun was still high in the sky, beaming down its hot rays that boiled the humid air and created a mirage-like effect. Once my feet touched the ground, I immediately raced away.

 

Many thoughts filled my mind. Since my reincarnation as a Pikachu, I ran away from my new existence to seek help from humans, wanting to return to my human form. But ironically, I now ran away from them while helping an enemy Pokemon that attacked me.

 

However, lost in my thoughts and not fully paying attention, my tail, damaged from that Squirtle’s bite, snagged along the foliage and extended branches. Somewhat in a careless run, every little touch and poke to my tail stung, but I finally halted all movement after running deep into the forest. Pidgeotto was right; the air was heavy and moist as I came across a natural pool of crystal clear water.

 

Slightly tired from the running, I took a break before collecting the needed vines and leaves to haul Pidgeotto to my crevice of a home in the tree. I moved closer to the crisp, clean water and lowered my head for a sip when, suddenly, a thick mist flooded the surroundings. Startled, I shuffled back. Sounds of droplets falling on the surface of calm water echoed from the natural spring, and a pair of glowing blue eyes looked at me through the mist.

 

“OMG! Suicune!” I yelled out but hurriedly covered my mouth with my paws.

 

“I sensed a disturbance in nature. Is it you?”