Chapter no.5

My entire life, I had never seen anything but war zones, trenches, minefields, or other places that had been generally torn asunder by the ravages of war. On the other hand, this was a completely different story. The green grass continued on for what seemed like miles, and in the distance, I could make out what appeared to be ash falling from the sky in a slow, grey cloud. The beginnings of a large mountain could be seen off to the far right, and further to the north of where I was standing was a significant river that wound its way through and around the grassy meadows.

When I turned around, I saw the small bundle of clothes that had been placed on top of the dresser for the very first time. I awoke to find a plain white t-shirt, black bottoms, and a note saying that Jennifer had left them out for me and that I could find her in the kitchen. The note explained that Jennifer had left the items out for me because she knew I would need them.

After hastily getting dressed, I couldn't help but wonder: where exactly was the kitchen? She didn't think to provide me with such a minute piece of information because, it seemed, everything had already been broken down for her. It was eerily similar to the time that I was living in at the moment; once again, someone knew more than they were letting on, and I was involved in some way, despite being forced to trust them blindly.

Because there was no other option available to me, I opened the door and proceeded down the stairs. If she wasn't who she claimed to be, or if she was planning to kill me in some way, I would always be able to fight my way out of any situation and get away if I needed to. Even though it would have been wonderful to begin again in this previous setting, a portion of me was sceptical that this would actually be possible.

Following the faint sounds of Jennifer's humming led me eventually to the location of the kitchen. Her home was expansive, had open spaces throughout, and was lovely in every way. It caused me to ponder the amount of money this woman had to her name, as well as the means by which she had accumulated such a sum, assuming that this was the case.

Jennifer said to me as I entered the room, "Finally awake I see," and my eyes immediately began scanning every surface and corner for potential dangers. Next to her was a miniature purple cat with a curled-up tail, and both of them were looking out the window together with their owner. I halted for a moment to give some thought to the glameow; the creature had at least six pressure points that could easily disable it, and the spiralled tail was both its strongest weapon and its weakest point. When curled up, the tail could pack a powerful punch; however, when stretched out, it could cause the creature enough stress to distract it long enough for you to deliver the finishing blow.

However, this Pokémon was entirely different from every other example of its species that I had seen in the past. I was accustomed to a glameow that was extremely wild and dishevelled and would hiss and attack whenever it saw a human for the first time. This one was quite content to sit next to Jennifer, and it rubbed its face against her arm while making a sound like a repetitive humming that I had never heard before.

Jennifer introduced Whiskers, her housecat, to the pokémon as she scratched behind its ears and said, "Meet Whiskers." Again, it made that peculiar sound, and it appeared to be smiling at the same time. I watched the Pokémon warily as it seemed to smile, expecting it to attack. It wasn't unheard of for the creatures to first beguile their prey in some way before pouncing on them, thereby catching them completely off guard.

"I'm afraid that at some point, dear, you're going to actually have to get familiar with Pokémon," said Professor Sycamore. When Jennifer saw me eyeing the creature with suspicion, she let out a hearty laugh. "Unfortunately, there is not enough time to enlist you as a soldier, so you will need to find a way to blend in with the crowd. You are going to need to become a trainer if you want to actually put a stop to this future that you have planned for yourself."

I was rendered speechless for a brief moment as my eyes widened in shock. Was it going to be necessary for me to instruct these creatures? Should I place my faith in these wild animals and hope that they won't turn on me? Although it is true that Pokémon can be used to commit murder, if I were forced to carry out a murderous act, I would much rather do so with a gun in my hands than with a poké ball. When I brought these concerns to Jennifer's attention, she surprised me by not doing more than letting out another small laugh while simultaneously shaking her head.

"If you're lucky, you won't have to kill anyone; all you have to do is prevent them from taking the road that will end in everyone's damnation." When she said that, my eyes widened, and I noticed that she had a whimsical smile on her face. "You did hear that correctly. Few individuals are responsible for what takes place, though the exact number escapes me. There may be as few as two or as many as ten of them. You, on the other hand, are the one who is responsible for putting a stop to them."

When I felt my breath getting stuck in my throat, I nervously swallowed my saliva. "But why would it be me?" I questioned feebly while experiencing the beginnings of a nervous sweat on my head.

She gently placed her hand on my shoulder and whispered, "Because, dear." as she did so. "Celebi chose you. You are aware that there are times when taking a nonviolent approach can produce better results than resorting to force, right? This is the circumstance that we find ourselves in." As I felt the chill of something being placed in my hand, a wistful smile crossed her face. "You are going to need to acquire the skill of adaptability, and the best way to do that is to go out into the world and train a Pokémon at the same time. Put what you've learned to use to help mould and transform the world around you. I will spend some time teaching you what I can, but ultimately, it is going to be your experiences with these little guys that will help you achieve your destiny. I will spend some time teaching you what I can."

As I looked at the crimson and white sphere in my hand, I could feel the influence of her words pressing down on me. Either I could alter the future by exerting effort and reshaping it in a different way, or I could do nothing and let it continue as it has been. At least, that was the impression I got from what she said to me.

She explained that if I could tame these wild animals, it would help me fulfil my destiny. The only issue was that it was never meant to be my destiny in the first place; I was merely the most suitable alternative that was readily available.

And as we will all eventually realise, alternatives will never live up to the full potential of the option that was originally considered.