Dream Interview

As Alex set into a deeper sleep, a strange little voice came to him, echoing out from a far-off dream. It reached out to him with an open hand, tempting him to take it. It whispered, dragging out from within a deep desire, and promising him something that he desired. He took it, but not exactly voluntarily. Something was wrong.

[Now playing: Rundgang Um Die Transzendentale Saule Der Singularitat - Burzum]

"Huh?"

There was a man in front of him. His lips opened to greet Alex with a cooling voice.

"Welcome. Thank you, otherworlder, for accepting this brief summoning."

"I wouldn't say that I accepted-", Alex looked down at his feet and gave an "Ugh". This was a dream, after all, but that still didn't alleviate the damages done to his shoes.

"Please, take a minute to step out of the mud. I sincerely apologize for this. However, it should come right off."

"Should."

"It will. Follow me, I think this would be better done sitting down."

The two walked forward to a pristine, quartz table, with two chairs, also made of quarts, lined with gold. The table was completely empty. How strange.

There was something in his eyes. Something that Alex couldn't quite put his finger on. It felt as if the strange man could see right into the deepest parts of his soul. Something was wrong.

The two sat down slowly. The man took a moment to stretch, before continuing on with his mad game.

"Thank you again, for accepting this brief invitation. For now, you may think of this as a dream. I will be asking you some questions. Why? It is simply my role to ask. For your benefit."

"For my benefit?"

"Yes. Now, let's begin."

"Is this a joke?"

"State your name and occupation."

"I am Victor Adelaine and I am simply a man seeking strength and riches."

"Where do you call home? What is 'home' to you?"

"The region of Unova. I could say my penthouse in Black City, but I'm not there too often."

"How close are you to your family? What does that word mean to you?"

"I don't have much of a family. My mother's dead... I rarely see my dad. I don't care much for 'family'. To me, it is simply that one group of people in your life that will never leave you, no matter what you do to them. To what does it mean to you my definition of 'family', anyways?"

"From your standpoint, what are your strengths and weaknesses? As a trainer, or as a person."

"That's none of your business."

"Have you ever been in love? What happened?"

"No. Well, I've been quite attracted to a certain blonde and a certain blue-haired, but I wouldn't consider a desire to engage in the conjugal act to really be 'love'. I'm sure most people wouldn't, either."

"Lastly, in your opinion, what is the most evil thing any human being could do?"

"I don't believe in this thing you people call 'evil', but if I had to say... it would be to commit an 'evil' with no purpose."

As their conversation flowed, it felt like time was warping. Their words, their lips, and every movement around them was just getting faster and faster. Alex was quite disconcerted by the ordeal, but the man looked as if this was just another day for him, which only added to the suspense. Suddenly, it all stopped. It was like a Revavroom crashing into its opponent at full speed.

Alex stared at him vacuously. A moment of silence passed. The strange man's lips began to move again. Nothing was real, and certainly nothing was of Alex's choice.

"I see. So you have decided to stay a little longer? Very well. Then in exchange, allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Raphael Cervantes. I summoned you here, in exchange for something you desired. You will wake up, and find whatever object you sought in the palm of your hand. That, I shall guarantee."

What an odd name.

"I suppose you must be tired from answering my questions, so allow me to tell you a tale instead. It is about this place you find yourself in."

Alex patiently listened. He dared not open his mouth, lest Dialga begin to sh-t himself again.

"This is Caliz, the very heart of Furia. We currently sit in the lowest depths in the entire region. This specific location, surrounded in black mud and bereft of life, is a grave. A grave for three."

"A grave?"

"You see, there were once five children. They all belonged to the same village, but were of different families. One of them was a little girl, daughter of village chief. She was kind and accepting of others, yet she was also very naïve.
There was also a god. Long ago, it is said that this god had created Furia. It parted the seas, brought forth the land, sparked the embers of new life and called for the wind to spread it all across our homeland. It is then that the little girl's village was founded.
Yet the god had tired from the act of creation, and thus fell to slumber. It entrusted to the village chief a sacred treasure in it's own likeness. That treasure was said to be able to reawaken the god and restore it's power. And yet it is said that the god would never awaken again."

"Five children descended here, to the god's resting place. The four other children had convinced the little girl to take the treasure in secret, hoping to reawaken their deity. Children are innocent, after all."

A moment of silence passed. The man croaked out, "Too much so."

"After all, it was not their plan to start with. Children are so very easy to deceive, especially by their own scheming parents.”

“Five children descended with the treasure, and four were thrown out. The little girl clutched onto the treasure so tightly, yet she had already been caught in the trap. She held and held and held even as the adults tried to tear it away."

"In the scuffle, the treasure shattered into four. From the god's sleeping form split off the waters, the land, the flames and the wind. The destruction wrought forth that day still scars the land even now, and the memory of the tragedy are buried deep within the heart of all Furians."

"That little girl never made it out. In the cataclysm, she had been buried here alone. She cursed the world and its people with all her heart as she died. She cursed the children who deceived her. She cursed the adults who stole from her. But more than anything, the little girl cursed herself."

Alex blurted out, “Well, that’s dark.”

“An unpleasant story, you say? Ah. I remember an old friend saying the same to me once before.”

“Twenty years ago, I had compiled this story together with her. We spent a long time gathering information, examining local stories, and filling in the blanks through speculation.”

“How brutal the passing of time can be.”

The man leaned forward.

“So tell me, What does Furia look like to you, as an outsider?”

“I thought we were done with the questions. I will say that it is a very strange place. Frankly, I’ll never visit.”

“Well, to me, it is a collection of mistakes. Sins that have long since piled up so high that they blot out the sun. A history so drenched in blood and filth that it must be written anew. My old friend spent her life attempting to cleanse this place, bit by bit. She was a saint beyond all measure. Stronger than any other! And yet!”

“And yet?”, Alex asked, somewhat annoyed.

“And yet. Even she met her end here in this accursed place. I'm sure that even in her final moments she looked towards the future."

What future did he speak of?

[Music Fades Out]

"I can't accept it. I refuse to accept it.”

"Why no-"

“Enough. I tire of this farce and you have already served your purpose. Now, there is one final duty for you to perform.”

“The only farce here is you”, Alex muttered under his breath.

“Four years ago, two of the strongest trainers in this region fought here. During the battle, it seems that the beast sealed below began to awaken. It is that curse, the wretched corpse of a dead god, that took Arete from this world.”

Time was blurring again. Alex knew he shouldn’t have opened his mouth.

The man's glare into the sky suddenly turned to him.

“I intend to correct that mistake. Starting with you, otherworlder. The beast, through its mud, seeks a new form. Through its mud, it has already crawled through your memories and found a more fitting shape. Turn around. I'm sure you're more familiar with that creature than I.”

Time passed back to its natural state. There was no crash this time. Alex's patience was growing thin.

[Now Playing: Obeisant - Cryptopsy]

The squelching of the mud struck Alex’s ear. He reached for his gun as he looked behind himself and noticed the creature emerging. Squirming and convulsing, it seemed to resemble that malevolent purple peach that he had always wanted to have for himself.

"Oh, and even though this is a dream, perhaps you shouldn't be so incredibly honest about what you truly are."

Alex meant to look back at him, but he just couldn't take his eyes away from the contorting, swirling, abrasive murk.

"You are, however, smart enough to hide who you are - your name. I don't think anyone would want all of those things attached to their name."

“I’LL F-CKING-“

As he quickly turned to face the man, with his gun in hand, the man had disappeared.

The blob of mud was beginning to take form. The shell opened to reveal the mastermind inside. Its formation was accelerating. So, Alex did the only thing he could. He fired upon it. Little effect. It was as if the bullets went completely inert the moment they made contact with the being. He could witness them being lodged into the mud, before being swallowed by it. The creature was now fully formed. It had then struck Alex as to why his gun didn't have any effect.

"Wait, this is just like Terastalization-"

He reached for his pockets, but there were no Pokballs. "Sh-t", he whispered to himself. Alex quickly surveyed the area, looking for cover. In the midst of his search, he noticed a single Pokeball lying directly upright on the table. Such should be impossible for a sphere, but this was probably the most normal thing that had happened so far. The table was surrounded by a hazy fog. He quickly grabbed it. It was a Net Ball.

Alex ran behind the nearest tree, directly across from him. He reloaded his gun and tapped the button of the Net Ball. Out emerged a Kingdra. Was it his? Or was the man simply testing him with a Pokemon he had no command over? No matter.

"H-HYDRO PUMP!"

[YOU'VE ALWAYS TAKEN SUCH GREAT CARE OF ME]

The Dragon Pokemon noticed the approaching creature. A jet of water instinctually gushed forth from its mouth. It knew that this was a threat and that it had to be eliminated. The mud was struck, but it did not appear to take super effective damage.

[IS THERE ANY WAY YOU CAN GET THIS DONE?]

"Cha...CHA-CHA!"

Muddy chains burst forth from the two sides of the open shell of the creature. They lunged forth at great speed towards Kingdra and Alex. A few missed, but one struck Kingdra directly on the forehad. It recoiled, but more in disgust than pain. Alex took cover behind the tree, making himself horizontal, with the muddy peach out of sight for a moment. Another chain of mud struck directly at the tree, splashing mud in front and behind Alex, who was facing westward.

[THE B-TCH DOESN'T STOP, THE B-TCH DOESN'T STOP]

More chains went flying at the two. Alex called out to Kingdra to unleash Dragon Pulse. A dark purple beam was let out and collided with one of the chains, diffusing mud coming at Kingdra's face into all directions. A bit of mud got onto Alex's black pants. As Dragon Pulse ended, Alex took the smattering of mud on his pants rather personally and leaned out to mag dump into the mud imitation. Little damaging effect was achieved again, but it did redirect the creature's attention.

[HE’S F-CKING RELENTLESS, CONSTANTLY ATTACKING]

Some more chains were fired from the creature’s shell. Except they weren’t chains. A flurry of mud gobs, resembling donuts, came flying at Alex. He dashed to the tree across from him, notably smaller, but the tree he was at a moment prior didn’t look like it would hold. He gave two gulps, the first in fear, the second to prime his vocals. He knew that it wouldn’t intimidate the beast, but at least Kingdra would be able to hear him under the layers of bullshit going on. He looked out for an opening in the mud peach’s attack pattern.

[IT’S SIMPLY EXHAUSTING, NEVER ENDING ASSAULT]

“DRACO… METEOR!”

Kingdra screeched and looked to the sky, backing away from the earthen beast while pointing its nozzle directly at the imitation. It’s eyes moved forward as if they were guiding the comet down at its target. The meteor and its fragments crashed down on  the beast, deforming it, but it still persisted in its onslaught.

[I’VE GOT TO GET AWAY FROM THIS, I’VE TRIED EVERYTHING]

In a sense, Kingdra and its for were quite evenly matched. Their states were both very balanced, and they had some strong moves in their arsenal. It seemed, however, that the monster still had that sky high Defense that its inspiration was known for.

The beast persisted. It let out a “CHAAAAAA”. That cursed man must be great at crafting nightmares, as such damage would have felled most otherworldly creatures by now.

[BUT NOTHING SEEMS TO WORK, I’M TRAPPED IN THIS MANMADE HELL]

It changed its tactics. It stopped for a brief moment and charged up a much larger blob of mud, with a dark purple mist surrounding it, and then launched it at lighting speed at Kingdra. Switching back to his normal voice, Alex yelled out, “It’s Shadow Ball, dodge it!”, just a smidge too late. Kingdra moved back, with the glob landing near the right side of its tail, and was knocked back into a nearby tree. It groaned in pain upon impact. “Hydro Pump, again!”

In his head, Alex heard the cooling voice again. “You’re doing good.”

[ANOTHER MESSAGE, ANOTHER THREAT]

“Rat bastard”, Alex said to himself. Kingdra let loose another jet of water, but this time it missed by just a little. Alex reloaded his gun.

[ANOTHER NOTIFICATION, ANOTHER INCESSANT SWARM]

“I heard that.”

Unfazed, Alex fired upon the creature again as it charged up another Shadow Ball. It dropped the projectile and was blown back a bit, absorbing the impact.

[SPIRALING, AROUND THIS HOPELESS VOID]

Streams of mud gushed forth from the two pieces of the shell, coating Kingdra in mud. It looked very unwell. “It’s Toxic!” Alex cried out. Kingdra looked back at him slowly.

How fitting for the man to pick the Subjugation Pokémon as Alex’s opponent.

[I COULD DISCONNECT. BUT WHAT FUN WOULD THAT BE]

“WAVE CRASH!”

The pool of mud that the imitation was hovering above was stripped of its water, becoming solid ground; the water was forming into a stream that flowed towards Kingdra. It leapt from its cover and became surrounded by water, before surging forward, a large wave in tow, and smashing into the mud creature with all of its might.

[JUST ANOTHER HOPELESS DAY]

Water splashed everywhere as both Pokemon were thrown back from the impact and gave out oddly human sounding cries. Alex was splattered with both water and wet mud, although his beautiful face was thankfully fully intact. Was the creature gone?

It wasn’t. It was certainly bruised from the impact, but it still looked ready to go. Alex primed his screech. He let it out.

“I CAN DO THIS ALL NIGHT, B-TCH!”

From his rear, the cold voice called out to him again, saying, "That will be all, thank you. Though our time together was brief, may you enjoy the gift."

Dialga was sh-tting himself again. Time and the rest of the dream world was fading away.

In something resembling a sing-song, the fading voice called out, "May you use it wisely."

Alex quickly turned himself around.

[BLEH]

“Huh?”

[Music Stops Abruptly]

Alex woke up very suddenly. He looked around his room. Nothing was off.

Something had to be off.

Alex looked around himself again and noticed the purple peach shell lying next to him, sleeping. He gave an “AH!” and then looked to his right to see if there were any other surprises. There was a Master Ball on the side table, sitting next to the stand holding his team’s Pokeballs.

“Just what the hell was that?”, Alex said, to no one in particular.