Chapter Text
There was me, living in my parents’ basement. Dim white lighting deep red walls, my desk had a computer which was hooked up to my Nintendo Switch 2. Today was the day to finally punch through. I had modified a game to let me talk to it and interact with its inner world through an avatar, a Shell. So... yeah... time to get started and just... boot it.
Eventually, I booted the game. It was part of the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series, quite niche for what it was. The title screen was out of the way, and now I was in-game. The camera swept down, falling from the sky, to a beach.
There was a Turtwig hanging about with a Galarian Zigzagoon. Zigzagoon marched forward in zigzags while the Turtwig followed behind, looking at the houses and the boardwalk. The houses weren't in the typical style; they looked alot like real houses.
"Are you sure you want to make this your home base? this place gives me the creeps!" said Turtwig. "We should go home!" Turtwig looked back and forth.
"I ain't losing to no pretty kitty, toots. I said I'd find a place for my gang and this place is looking mighty fine." Zigzagoon replied. "Don't you dare try to stop me, capiche?" they said. They walked toward one of the houses, a big one at that, and vanished in its shadow.
"Oh dear, I couldn't stop him..." Turtwig paced on the sand, leaving little impressions of their feet going back and forth. Adorable. They paced back and forth before shaking their head. "I have to go after him, places like these aren't safe." They started to walk toward the building's shadow.
Now, usually I would think there was no interaction allowed, but in this specific instance, it worked differently; I just had to speak into the microphone.
"Hello?" I said. My avatar, my Shell, appeared onscreen from the water. It was an Oshawott, a short, stubby water type, that was a mild surprise.
The Turtwig looked shocked in their dialogue box portrait. "Woah! Where in the world did you come from?" said Turtwig.
"That's not important." I said. "Your friend went into that Mystery Dungeon, right? We need to get him out of there before something bad happens." I pressed A, and my Shell pointed toward the building.
"Mystery Dungeon? Oh, you mean the buildings that have been appearing! I see what you mean." Turtwig looked toward the looming building. "Yes, let's go get him out! 'When in doubt, do it yourself.' That's my motto... will you help me? I don't like the idea of going in there alone."
"Of course, let's rescue that Zigzagoon," I said. Together, Turtwig and my Shell walked inside the building's shadow.
Inside, there was wooden flooring, and the furniture was scrambled. I couldn't make out if some pieces were actually a chair or a table through the screen. Again, something felt tilted and out of balance, doubly so now that the game was inside the Mystery Dungeon. I should just close it to make that feeling go away. I should just close it.
Close it.
I was having fun, though, plus I'd promised Turtwig that I'd get their friend out. I wouldn't leave a friend behind. Why did my head ache? I didn't know; maybe it was because I had been staring at a screen for five minutes. That was something that happened when you stare at screens, and eventually you just need a break just to... never mind.
I navigated my Shell around the building, stepping through long, unending hallways.
"It's even weirder inside than it was outside." Turtwig muttered to themself.
"Yeah, these places all share the same template, just smushing the rooms and hallways around a bit, maybe changing the aesthetic. There should be a set of stairs somewhere..." I replied while leading Turtwig and my Shell around the place. That was when we ran into trouble.
An elongated Seel with thin flippers flopped into our path with half-dead eyes... How could I tell from outside the screen? They were filled with milky white.
"Oh! Do you live here...?" Turtwig asked. "Have you seen my friend? He's Zigzagoon, black and white? about as tall as me. A little bit fluffier."
The Seel headbutted Shell. "It's not aware, look at its eyes! We need to fight back!"
Turtwig swallowed, then after my Shell had tackled the Seel, sent a shower of razor leaves toward it. Seel fainted, and the hallway was clear; we were free to move on.
Turtwig stared at the spot where we had knocked out Seel. "Do you think Seel will be okay?"
"That Seel's either an illusion created by this place, or already driven mad, we've got to be quick if we don't want to end up the same way." I walked my Shell through the hallway, thankfully the next room had the stairs.
"Right... These are the stairs then?" Turtwig said after a long, silent walk. Usually, the partner knew all sorts of stuff and was eager to share with the player. Had I just gotten unlucky? I had done something to this game; maybe there was something about it that messed it up?
"Right, should lead deeper inside." I said. We went up the stairs.
Upstairs, we found a room that looked normal compared to how warped the rest of this building had looked. Zigzagoon wandered back and forth, pawing at the sliding glass door to the outside. "This place is big freaky, I don't want to stay here no more!" Zigzagoon wailed.
Turtwig and my Shell entered the room. "We're here to get you out." Turtwig said. "Uh... I just realized that I don't know what kind of pokemon you are... how are we getting out anyway?"
"Shell, that's my name. See that sliding glass door?" I said.
"Yeah! I tried that and it don't work. Your voice sounds funny by the way... all sorta crunchy." said Zigzagoon.
I wished I could make Shell facepalm. I settled for hitting my forehead with my palm outside the... game. *Slap*
"I didn't think mouths could make that noise." Zigzagoon muttered.
"Open the latch." I said.
"Latch? What's that?" asked Turtwig.
I marched my Shell over toward the sliding glass door and pressed A. He quickly undid the latch and forced the sliding door open.
"Oh. I see what you mean! C'mon Zigzagoon, Shell, let's get out of here!" Together we walked outside.
We walked for quite a while until we stood on a grassy hill.
"That was quite an adventure, wasn't it? Thank you," said Turtwig, who turned to my Shell. "I'm Turtwig, I'm a girl."
"I'll say, I'll be happy if I never go there again," said Zigzagoon, ignoring the fact that he hadn't been spoken to. "I'll find another place for me and the boys to hang out, yeah?" He said. "Still gotta show Glameow that I can hold a gang togetha'."
"So... what will you do, Shell? I'm going to go home and take a nap." Turtwig said.
Usually, the partner would have invited someone into joining a rescue team or some other effort by now. "I'm going to keep helping people who wander into those Mystery Dungeons... do you want to help?"
Turtwig's portrait looked shocked. "Me? Oh uh, of course I would! Just let me get home first. I know that lots of Pokemon have gone missing lately, and I'm eager to help, any way I can."
My Shell stared blankly at the horizon. "Good. I'll walk you home then." I said.
This had been fun. I walked my Shell alongside Turtwig to her home. I put my Nintendo Switch 2 in sleep mode and rubbed my head. Now I could take care of this headache...
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The game is closed, but my headache just does not go away.
"Dinner!" That was Mom's voice, calling from upstairs.
I walked up there and saw my plate sitting on the table. The food on it doesn't matter; it'll just help me get through the day. It's just food. It's not particularly appetizing. Mom and Dad don't know what real food looks like. They love this stuff, though.
I heard Mom's voice from the kitchen. "I don't know why you spend your life down there, wouldn't you like to have real friends?" I can hear her washing dishes. I ignore her. She wouldn't understand. It's real enough. I don't want friends if they're going to be fake with me. I know the game won't be fake with me because... it won't be. I just know that it won't be.
"Honey, he'll be ready when he's ready." Dad's voice comes from the kitchen. Mom and Dad were playing good cop, and bad cop again; they hadn't even noticed that they'd switched roles today. They want me to get a job so bad, I just wasn't interested.
A few dishes clink against each other. Mom has to be doing dishes; she has to be. "I know, but..." Mom says back, their voices are getting quieter. The sound of dishes being done stops as I eat my food. They're both just trying to get me off the couch and outside.
My plate is empty now. All of that gruel is gone.
My head hurts. The food isn't helping. "I'll get a job someday, promise." I yell.
I'm done with my food, so I bring my plate to the kitchen. Mom and Dad aren't there. They must have gone to the bedroom, or the living room, or somewhere. Yeah, that's why they aren't here. The sink is clean, and there aren't any dirty dishes.
I curl up on the couch in the living room and close my eyes.
'I promised. I still have to keep that promise. That thought keeps running through my mind. I must have a fever or something because my head feels like it's full of glue, and moving feels like walking through tight rubber bands.
'Wake up, c'mon you can't let IT get you like this! Don't listen to them... they're IT. IT doesn't have your best interests in mind.' I still feel like I'm walking through glue, rubber bands, and coarse sand.
'Please, don't let IT get to you!' I shift on the couch. I just can't get to sleep; it feels like there's a bone digging into my stomach, causing it to wobble and just tilt in a way it isn't supposed to. Eventually, I open my eyes.
Mom and Dad aren't around. Of course, they aren't around; they're never around. They're never there for me to need them. I'm fine.
I walk downstairs to my safe space, where nobody can get me, not even Mom or Dad, and I boot up the game. It's nighttime in the game, and I'm content to watch the stars above Turtwig's house.
That headache's coming back.
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My theme