Chapter 10 - Breaking the Mold

Derrick swallowed heavily, trying to look anywhere in the static Pallet Town that he could other than into Red's eyes. The gaze continued to bore into his soul, just like the eyes of the boy in his recent nightmares. He hadn't answered Red's question.

God, did you hear my question? I asked if I was born here.

"Yes...!" the Derrick snapped, a bit more angrily than he would have preferred. "That's your mother in the living room here, your rival is out collecting badges and trying to beat you to the Pokemon League, and he's lived next door to you all this time. Professor Oak has had this adventure planned for you for--"

You're lying to me! Derrick flinched outright at the remark. Red had never raised his voice before. He was so used to it being static and almost monotonous, just like the landscape in which they both stood. Where was I really born?

"You were born here, Red," Derrick pressed, his finger shooting out from a balled fist and pointing firmly to the floor of Red's home. "This - Pallet Town - is your home. You were raised in this very house."

Then why do I not remember anything beyond the day that I got my first Pokemon? Why does my own mother not show any kindness or care for me when I visit her!? Why have I never seen any of these wild Pokemon before and have to use this device to identify them? Red reached into his bag and whipped out his Pokedex, brandishing it toward his companion, his knuckles white as he gripped it hard. Derrick finally brought his eyes to the trainer, surprised to see an almost sad expression on his face, his eyes to the floor. Why does it seem like my life started on that day?

Derrick couldn't take it anymore. He wished more than ever that the nausea would return, everything blurring before his eyes before he returned to reality instead of this insane dream, if it even was a dream. He pinched himself sharply, letting out small yelps of pain as he pushed through, trying to wake himself up in any way that he could. As he did, he could see Red raise his eyes to see what he was doing, and the gaze turned feral. He dug into his belt loops for a Pokeball, tossing it in the middle of the house and with a flash of light, a Victreebell came into view.

Victreebell, subdue him, Red commanded the grass Pokemon. The Victreebell let out a screech, slender vines stretching out from its body and wrapping around Derrick's body. The vines held firm, despite Derrick's panicked wiggling about in the attempt to get free. Red approached him, almost menacingly, and brought his usually static eyes close to Derrick's.

You're not leaving me again, God, the trainer hissed. You're going to answer my questions - truthfully! I know you're hiding something, and I won't let you get away without telling me the truth. Derrick could hardly breath in the creature's hold, his panic rising by the moment. He finally nodded rapidly in agreement, hoping that would decrease the pressure of the Victreebell's vines. And it did. He took a deep breath, softly panting as its hold on him loosened enough for him to comfortably rest in the tendrils.

"I warn you, though," Derrick responded, his heart pounding in his chest as he chose his words carefully. "I don't feel like it is right for you to know the truth...you may not like what you hear."

At this point...any sort of closure is better than being in the dark a moment longer. Derrick watched as Red took a seat at the table that his mother sat at, summoning his Victreebell to carry Derrick over to another seat so he could explain everything. The trainer's eyes looked sullen, languid almost. For the first time in Derrick's life, it occurred to him that perhaps Red had a soul - maybe not a dynamic soul like what he had, but a soul nonetheless. It was going to kill him to explain everything, but he knew that if he made one slip, the Victreebell's tendrils may very well squeeze the life out of him. He heaved a deep breath.

"Your life is a game," Derrick spoke softly, seeing the trainer's eyebrows furrow immediately. "Everything that we've seen here is a game, and you are the star...you did honestly grow up here, but...you were never meant to have any manifested existence until the day that you got your first Pokemon...just like you said. The people that you speak to here have programmed words to say, and will never say anything that they're not meant to...they're all here to support you on your journey."

So...I'm the only actually living person in this place...? Red asked, his voice like that of a child. Derrick gave a shaky nod of the head. God...why would you make a world like this?

"Th-That's another thing," he added, swallowing hard again. He felt like he was giving a public speech with the way his voice trembled. "I'm...not God. I simply control your game from a device...your real Gods live in a place where there are many of the same game...and other people do the same thing to a copy of  you." This left the trainer speechless. In the already silent environment of Pallet Town, the silence was almost as painful as the vines wrapped around Derrick's torso. He watched Red sulk motionless for what seemed like hours until the trainer suddenly gestured toward the Victreebell. The vine's suddenly left Derrick's body, and Red stood abruptly from his seat, drawing the Pokemon back into its Pokeball and making his way toward the door.

Nobody controls me...he growled, his voice barely audible as he stepped outside. Derrick followed, watching Red summon another Pokemon - his Pidgeot - and climb on top of its back.

"What are you doing!?" Derrick called out over the Pidgeot's powerful wings beginning to flap.

Nobody controls me, God, came the same monotonous reply that he was used to. I control myself. With that, the Pidgeot took flight, easily soaring high above Derrick, despite his attempt to grab hold of the creature, and it flew off, in the direction of Cinnabar island. Derrick immediately resumed pinching himself to wake himself up. He needed control of the game again! He dashed back into Red's house, and froze. The trainer had been in such a hurry to leave that he forgot his bag. Derrick picked it up, rustling though its contents - Super Potions, Antidotes, TMS...wait.

"Yes...!" Derrick hissed excitedly, opening the TM case and finding Red's Hidden Machine for Fly. He could catch up to him, if only he had a Pokemon himself that could Fly. He tapped the HM against his head rapidly, trying to think. His thinking led him to exit the house once again, and he looked up into the sky, seeing Red's Pidgeot as only a small dot on the horizon. "How can I catch a Pokemon...?" he asked himself, scanning all of Pallet Town. He couldn't just wrestle a Pokemon with his bare hands. He needed one that was already caught. Then his eyes drifted to Professor Oak's Laboratory.

Pokemon W2 - Storytime

So excited, man!

Yes, I'm still alive, and yes I'm still playing Pokemon White 2. I just needed to get an old friend of mine up do date as far as levels are concerned. Here we go:

Luz (Chandelure) - L43
Cesar (Serperior) - L43
Corro (Crobat) - L43
Ross (Ampharos) - L44
Eris (Krookodile) - L45

By the way, POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT. 

Anyway, I had been backtracking like a mofo through Route 13 to level up Ross up to his final evolution form. I was about halfway trough the process before I realized that I could use my Lucky Egg to speed things along. It's been a while, m'kay? ; w ; I'm juggling FireRed and an Emerald Nuzlocke aside from this run-through.

But why, you might ask, am I on Route 13? Well, y'see, I'm at the part of the game where I'm reminded quite a bit of the aspect that half of the map is frozen solid, and thus is not accessible. After you defeat Skyla in Mistralton City and earn your flying-type badge, that's pretty much as far as you can go. I ended up having to use one of her planes to fly to a place called Lentimas Town. I'm not even gonna lie, it looked like something out of Arabian Nights.

Bulbapedia's

Using this town as a segue, you're able to then traverse Reversal Mountain. What's cool about Reversal Mountain, depending on the game you get, is that the inside will look different in Black 2 and in White 2. According to Bulbapedia, the interior for White 2 is lava-like with a hot color scheme, with Black 2's cave been cold color schemed. The creators even put different trainers in the different games. 

Not bad, Game Freak. Not bad.

Thus, you are now back up to par with where I am. The cave ended up leading me to the opposite side of the map, in Undella Town. It surprised me at first because that's where you usually end up in after you've beaten the Elite Four in Black/White. It had some strong Pokemon and trainers, good for level grinding, and I ended up in Lacunosa Town, where I last saved my game. You get a little history lesson about how the town's name came to be. I won't tell it, though, because it was actually not that bad to read about.

So there. I'll also be uploading a new chapter next week for Glitchy Red Retold. I've been making a point to write more often.

Also, go make yourself some banana bread. I did...tastes delicious, too, if only I hadn't spilled the vanilla extract in the bowl...

-Churl