Body Swap Contest - Crossing Worlds Part 1

Part 1

    Aaah!                                       

    Just a little longer… I can't fall…

    No, no…. the rain… it's too powerful….

    It's all lost….

    Please… no…

-----

    Ughh…

     His eyes fluttered open to the sight of vibrant sunlight shining down, nearly blinding him as they adjusted to the new light. The place smelled strongly of dew, probably of rain some time before. The sound of creatures skittering and chirping rang in the air, as well as the rustling of leaves.

     "Oh… ugh, sunlight…" Adrian groaned, nudging his head away from the blinding light. "It's too bright,…" he muttered, as he weakly raised his arms to his face to shield him from the intense sunshine.
      Suddenly, Adrian noticed something a little off.

      "Huh?" He put his arms closer to his eyes, examining it a little further. "Wait, what…?" As his vision gradually cleared up, he'd realized something –

      "AAH!"

     Adrian suddenly shot upwards, and gazed at his stubby arms – which were now a shade of olive green and covered in scales, and his hand had been replaced by claws.

      "No… NO!" he panicked, and quickly moved them around to other parts of his body. "This can't be – what else is there?"

     He glanced down to see that his entire body ad been covered in the same green scales in his arms, not to mention that it had drastically shrunk as well. Looking up, the forest seemed to be much, much bigger and menacing in his smaller state, and his heart accelerated with panic.

     "Oh god…" Adrian muttered under his breath, disoriented by the oddities and a inhuman yet young sounding voice.

      "But… what could've happened…?" he wondered out loud, staggering upwards only to fall over on his new feet. He groaned, and tried to rise again, this time taking a careful step as he stood up. This feels really weird… Adrian noted, and slowly struggled to walk forwards, before he heard a splash. Adrian looked down and noticed his feet in the water – and his new body.

      "Whoa!" Adrian stumbled backwards, but caught himself before he could lose his balance and fall over. He stopped in place, then taking a deep breath, he slowly inched towards the puddle to confirm what he had seen.

      Adrian gulped, freezing at the sight of his new image. He certainly wasn't human anymore – according the small size, red eyes and green scales all over his body.

     He stared at the refection in horror, before slowly reaching upwards to feel a large fin sticking out of this head – and his reflection doing the same. Adrian turned his head around to further examine the strange tusks sticking out of his gums, and grabbed them and felt them as well before doing the same with a new tail.

     He stood still in shock, taking deep breaths trying to grasp the entire situation. He muttered, "Somehow… I've become an Axew…"

     "But that's impossible! Pokémon don't exist!" he talked to himself. He tried pinching himself with his hard claws. "I'm dreaming, or hallucinating… this isn't happening!"

      Didn't work. No matter what Adrian tried, he couldn't get himself to get away from this new, cruel reality.

      "What? Why?" he muttered, his head spinning. "I can't – no way – how am I a Pokemon?! Pokemon don’t exist – within the possible realm, at least – but still!”

      "Okay," Adrian muttered to himself, trying not to panic any further. He sighed. "Well, it looks like I'm in the middle of… pretty much nowhere…" Looking around, the forest didn't seem like the same forest that he was… when? Yesterday? A few days ago? Any way, he couldn't put his finger on exactly why he felt this way.

      "I wonder where exactly I am." Adrian began to wander around the unfamiliar woods. "A few miles away? The PMD world? Heh, if this was the PMD world then someone would've come over to see me..." He chuckled at his own joke – but then stopped. He shook his head – he shouldn't be fooling around in this situation.

     "Anyways, could there be a town nearby?" he wondered, and gazed around the forest. "Maybe I could try finding it – no, that'd be nearly impossible like this."

      "Pokémon or not, if I'm in the middle of nowhere, I should start surviving." Adrian said. "Make shelter and find food."

      He looked around the forest, and nodded, and stepped down the maze of trees.

    … Urgh…. What happened?
    Oliver's eyes slowly creaked open, his head dizzy from being in an unconscious state for so long. A huge ceiling light shone into his eyes, blinding him and causing him to shut them again.

    Eventually, he began to squint into his surroundings – apparently, he was in a building of some sorts. The sharp smell of cleaner took him by surprise, as well as beeping of machines and the sound of chatter in what seemed to be outside the room he was in.

     What is this? Oliver wondered, glancing around the hospital room. Where am I?

     Hmmm… oh right, it must be some sort of joke, he thought, maybe a really clever illusion that Trevor made… after all, everything seems blurry… He pondered on that, when his thought was suddenly interrupted by something that his eyes caught.

     "… Huh?" Oliver spun around, turning his head around to notice what he'd seen. "What was that – AAH!"

     Oliver jolted in shock, and looked down to his new body – covered in bandages, hospital wear and his blanket must've been a human body – because his hands were not the one's he'd been raised living with.

     "AAAH! What's that?!" he screamed, raising his pale human arms up to his head. Spinning his head wildly, he glanced around to more of what's he'd been told looked like a human – an elongated torso and limbs, devoid of any scales. Suddenly a jolt of pain made Oliver look at his left arm, which was covered in a cast.

      "NO WAY!" Oliver's head was spinning wildly from the revelation. "Okay, this seems way to good for Trevor's abilities – maybe he got someone else to – "

      "ADRIAN!" a voice suddenly shouted, followed by the pattering of feet coming down a hallway beside him.

      Oh no…. Oliver thought… still dizzy from shock.

      The door burst open, and several figures spilled into the room – humans, Oliver realized after trying to see them with his blurry eyes. A pair of middle-aged humans, apparently a couple, were followed by three human children – two teenage boys and a small girl.

        "Adrian!" shouted the middle-aged woman, rushing towards Oliver and hugging and kissing him. "Oh honey…. I was so worried! I'd thought you'd never wake up, but now – "

       "Wait, what's going on….?" He asked, disoriented by the strangers treating with such affection. Could they be acting? Oliver's head spun wildly to the humans, all with looks of anticipation.

       "We were hiking and you fell off the cliff during the storm, remember, Adrian?" explained what seemed to be the woman's husband. "You became unconscious and we had to call the ambulance."

      "Thank goodness your arm was it, but you were in a coma for several days," went one of the human boys – a loser-ish kind of person with a funny glass thingamabobber on his face, Oliver thought. "We were really worried, and thought that – "

      "Hold up," Oliver interrupted, dazed by all this strange information. He didn't remember doing something called 'hiking', let alone these people. And who was 'Adrian' anyways? Why were they calling him that? He was beginning to be doubtful that this was indeed a joke – but then again, what else could it be?

      Oliver cracked a smile, and said, "… what is this? A joke?"

       As soon as the words came out of Oliver's mouth, the humans froze. They quickly glanced at each other, even more worried than before.

      Soon, the other human boy, a hooligan kinda person with flaming red hair, asked him, "… Yer kidding, right? You don't joke."

      "I don't know you guys are." Oliver shook his head. "And… who's Adrian?' he added.

       The humans simply stared at him in confusion, silent.

        "Oh dear…" the mother muttered, "Adrian… what happened?"

       "I think he might be… amnesic..." concluded the father.

       "We need to get the doctor," she said, and the father nodded. "His brain might've been affected by that fall." The father promptly left the room, leaving only the mother and the human children.

        The trio of children came up to Oliver, now upon closer inspection carried get-well gifts. "Brother…" went the young girl, "Do you remember who we are? I'm your sister Mandie, don't you remember?"

       "No…" Oliver told Mandie, but then cracked a smile. "But I heard that sisters are a pain in the – "

      "Hey!"

      "Whoops, just kidding then."

      "… you never kid, Adrian…" Mandie wondered, a little puzzled.

      "Welp, a little joke here and there never hurt," Oliver sighed.

     "Hey, Adrian," went the hooligan, "So if you forgot us kiddos, I'm ya pal Roger, and da loser over there is Harold – "

      "Don't say that…" Harold whimpered.

     "I agree, he looks like – never mind." Oliver stopped himself before he could continue – who was this Adrian? He sure wasn't fun, that was for sure.

      "Well, Adrian, what do you remember?" asked Mandie.

     "I… well…" he couldn't say that he was a Pokéuman or anything of the sort, or Arceus-knows-who would happen. But what could he say? Was it better to just let them think that this boy named Adrian lost his memory? Or could he tell the truth – only part of it?

      "Well, I was a Pokémon living in a secret village when I was wandering around when I fell down a cliff and became a human!"

     The three stared at him like he was crazy.

     "You high on something, Adrian?" Rodger grunted.

     "…. Just kidding. But I don't really remember anything."

     "Um, Adrian… are you sure…?" Harold asked him, a little dazed at the sudden joke.

      "… Well, I remember falling down a cliff in a storm," Oliver went, scratching his head only to feel some limp human hair. "… but I don't remember you guys."

      "That's really sad…"

      "Well, I'm honest! I'm just you know…" Oliver nervously smiled, "… er, lost my memories! Yeah, lost my memories." Apparently that what was what the people seemed to be thinking, but Oliver was still very, very confused himself.

      "Anyways," Mandie continued, dropping the objects in front of Oliver, "I was hoping you'd like these get-well gifts, but considering that you've lost your memory, well…"

       Oliver picked up the first thing he noticed – a card. He opened it up, but found that he couldn't read what was on it – it was too blurry.

      "Oh, right Adrian." Mandie remembered, and reached for something next to Oliver. "Here, " she said, holding up a strange glass object. "Your glasses."

      "Glasses?" Oliver wondered. What are those?

      "Here you go," Mandie reached forwards and rested the metal parts of the contraption on his new ears, and Oliver's vision suddenly became much sharper – he could see the children's faces even clearer.

     "Whoa…" Oliver muttered to himself, but then noticed the kids looking at him suspiciously.

    "Oh, right. The card. " He glanced down to the now-readable card, and took a look at the picture next to it – a Joltik in the middle, gazing up into sky.

      "Get well soon," Oliver read, "To my little Joltik brother." He smiled a bit, before turning upwards to glance at some more cards, as well a couple of mini plush dolls, including Poke Ball and Joltik plush.

     "Well, Adrian, you liked Joltiks and Galvantulas,…. Don't you remember that?" Mandie mentioned as Oliver sifted through the array of spider-themed gifts.

     "Joltiks, huh?" he said, grabbing a tiny Joltik plush and examining it. "Not exactly. Sorry."

      "Looks like ya remembered what dem spiders are," Roger grunted, watching his pal looking through his gifts and try to recall his memories. "Good to know you remembered Pokémon."

     "I guess so." Oliver smiled. Oh, if only they knew.

     "Here's your Pokémon games," Harold added, putting a small fabric bag in front of Oliver. After a little fiddling with his new hands, Oliver opened it, and saw a 3DSXL as well as several Pokémon games inside the bag.

     "We had to stop Roger from raiding your games, though." Mandie explained as Oliver examined the 3DS and its functions. At home, he'd had an old Nintendo DS to play Pokémon video games with, so he'd had some experience.  "Thank goodness they're still fine and your hacks haven't been messed up by this guy."

      Hacks? Oliver opened the lid, waking the device from sleep mode, and glanced at a game he was well familiar with. However, when opening the file, he noticed that there were many things that were altered – from fake Pokémon species to hacked towns and moves.

      "Yer confused, aren't you?" Roger said, noticing Oliver's puzzled expression. "That's all yer masterpieces. Your works."

      "Adri – I mean, I did this?"

      "Yes," Harold answered. "You were a genius, doing all of this! But then again, you're a genius at everything…"

      "'Genius', huh?" Oliver wondered to himself, processing information about the boy named ‘Adrian’.

      Just then, the door opened once more, and the couple form earlier came into the room.

     “Adrian, the doctor wants to check on you.” The mother came up towards Oliver’s bed, as worried as ever. "It's simply a check-up on your brain as well as your injuries from the fall. He'll see if you're alright."

      The words were a bit confusing to Oliver. "… Okay, then. I guess… I'll come with you, then."

      Oliver lifted the blankets away from his body and turned around, slowly placing his human feet on the ground. He slowly lifted his body to stand up, and raised his arms to balance himself on his new feet. He took a cautious step forwards and shook, before taking another and another. Oliver sighed in relief, and continued to pace towards the door, where the couple was waiting for him.

     "Let's go."

     The parents walked outside and headed in a certain direction, leading Oliver to follow them down the long hallway. As Oliver walked, his eyes caught something, and turned his head around to see a reflective wall, like a mirror.

      Oliver froze, gazing at his new reflection and gazed into the wall. His eyes were drawn towards the face, and the blue eyes in the mirror stared back right at him. He then reached and touched the thin frame of the face, then the red-brown spots that adorned the pale flesh. Oliver patted the top of his head of yellow-white hair, and stroked the limp strands.

       He put his hand down, and stopped to wonder for a moment.

       What had happened? Why am I here? Who are these guys – heck, why are they calling me 'Adrian'? I know I'm Oliver, but… I don't get everything – how did this happen?

      This makes no sense… I'm so confused. But… I guess I just have to follow along…

      Oliver sighed, then turned around and continued walking down the corridor.

      "There, that should be it."

       Adrian sighed, and stood next to the fire he'd just lit for his campsite. He glanced upwards to the night sky, and the full moon and the starts the twinkled along with it.

      "I guess I should make a shelter," he muttered to himself, but then yawned. His heavy eyelids fell, peeping just enough to see the flickering light of the warm flame. A cold breeze swept and brushed Adrian's face, giving him the shivers.

      "I didn't know that it could get this cold even in the summer," Adrian noted to himself, and turned around to look for some possible supplies. Looking around, he wondered about how he could construct a suitable shelter in a place like this, with no tarps, no metal scraps, no anything to help him survive in this untamed place.

      Just then, Adrian's eyes caught something, and he turned around to see somewhere suitable to sleep for the night – two low branches, hanging just above his height nearby.

       "Perfect," he noted, making the way towards the area. "I could easily stick some branches and large leaves over."

        Adrian nodded, and got to work right away. He scoured the nearby area, picking up some twigs thick and thin for his shelter.

      As he was collecting materials, Adrian couldn't help but wonder about his abilities. Hm… as an Axew,… does this mean I can use moves and such? Probably yes…

      Placing a bundle of twigs on the ground near the shelter, Adrian then turned around and faced a sturdy-looking oak, and then pondered again.

      "So, how would a Pokémon be able to know a move?" he wondered to himself, glancing at his test target in front of him. "Would they know it by instinct, or know to use a move otherwise?"

      "We'll have to see for ourselves, then."

       Adrian glared at the tree, and tried waiting for some sort of instinct to overcome him. Nothing came.

      I wonder if there needs to be a real reason, or an active threat for moves to be leaned…

       This time, Adrian stared at the target, imagining the grossest, most hideous monster he could ever conceive of. He visualized that the monster, the treat was reaching his claws out to tear him apart, and….

      "HAH!" Adrian yelled, and dashed forwards and leaped into the air. Something clicked in his mind, and felt a warm, powerful sensation in his hands, and slashed the tree trunk with his claws.

      KRRRSH!

      Huff… huff…

     Adrian fell towards the ground on his feet, and breathed as he glanced up towards the tree trunk. Deep gashes imprinted themselves in the bark, impressing him with how deep these powerful marks were.

     Pokémon can do a lot, huh? he observed. It must be true that the really have more physical potential than normal creatures.

     Adrian tried recalling the same sensation as before, and suddenly noticing his claws glowing, growing larger and sturdier than normal.

     No wonder. Moves are amplified versions of actions in normal animalistic combat, aren't they?

     He tried Scratching the tree trunk again with his super powered claws, making yet another set of marks on the tree right under the ones made earlier.

     So, Adrian wondered, figuring how the move worked. Perhaps when in combat the user's energy could be channeled to temporary growth of the claws, or energy amplifies the impact of the attack. Or…

      Now curious, Adrian started making theory after theory in his head, occupying his mind as he continued propping the twigs up against the found branches. His mind wandered into the mysterious world of Pokémon as he continued collecting materials, stopping occasionally to try something out – a new move or so.

      "There, that could be it."

      Placing a large leaf on the makeshift roof, Adrian stepped back and admired his work. Sure, it wasn't a mansion, but the grass roof, leaning twigs and hanging branches were enough for the primitive shelter.

      "Okay, then." Adrian yawned, reaching his arms out. His eyelids grew heavy, exhausted from the hectic day.

       "I think I should go to sleep now." He glanced around to make sure there were no threats, then stepped under the room and laid down on a pile of leaves, curling up and trying to get comfortable.

       Another breeze swept inside the shelter, and Adrian shivered, grabbing a nearby leaf and covering him in protection. He sighed, gazing at the fire a few feet away, and closed his eyelids.

      So crazy… what a weird world, wherever I am… there's so much to be learned and figured out… but I'm still a Pokemon… how is this all possible? Maybe something will…

      Zzzz….

     "Adrian, we're home."

     Oliver was interrupted looking at the high moon in the sky, and gazed around in the small machine – a 'car', they called it. The family opened the doors and scrambled out of the contraption, grabbing things form the back of the car before rushing towards the human house. Hesitantly, Oliver followed along, stepping out and on a concrete floor outdoors. He looked up, and examined at an odd brick house.

    He sighed. He might've run away from his family, but… why did he feel a longing to be home?

     "Adrian!" came Mandie's voice, and Oliver snapped into attention. He looked down, and noticed her on a platform in front of a door – a main entrance, apparently. "Come on."

     Oliver followed along, and up onto the platform and stepped into the door. As the family scurried along different areas of the building, he observed his surroundings – what seemed to be a living room and a kitchen at the and of the hallway.

     Man, humans have weird tastes, Oliver thought, continuing to walk down the hallway into the brightly-lit kitchen. He looked to see the mother reaching down into a worn-out fridge, seemingly looking around. She got back up with a plate in her hands, and closed the fridge door.

     "Oh, Adrian," she noticed, and walked over to the table Oliver was next to. "There you are." Mom uncovered the plastic on the plate, revealing some squares of brown cake.

     "Adrian, have some brownies," she said, picking up a piece. "They are your favourite, remember? We made some for when you came back from your coma."

     Brownies? Oliver wondered, and picked up one of the squares himself and examined it. He'd heard of that before, but didn't really get to try many human treats. Nevertheless, he placed it in his mouth to find something surprisingly sweet and yummy.

      "They're good." Oliver noted, and took another bite. It was as good as many Pokeumans described it was.

      "See?" Mom said, smiling, and munched on the cake. "You like them. I hope that helped you with your memory a bit."

     "Not really…" he admitted, eating and finishing the square "Unless they've got some magic ingredient to cure all of this."

     Mom smiled. "Adrian," she added, continuing to eat the brownie. "I guess it's kinda nice how you've gotten a little more… carefree. I think it may have to do with how you've forgotten your past self… but it worries me."

    "Oh come on," Oliver mentioned, "It's going to be fine."

     "Glad to hear you've become a bit more optimistic as well." She placed the last morsel in the mouth as well, and stood up. "Adrian, you can have some more tomorrow. It's not good to have too much sugar before bed." Mom covered the plate of brownies with the plastic, and went and placed the plate back in the refrigerator. "Come on, I"ll guide you to your bedroom."

      Oliver nodded, and followed the mother down the hall and up a wooden, rusty flight of stairs. He walked down another, smaller hallway with more doors, until he stopped at one door, and entered.

     "Your bedroom." Mom smiled, guiding Oliver into the room.

    Oliver was struck my surprise when he stepped in. The room was neat, plain and tidy, with papers and little trinkets organized in neat little shelves and drawers. Frames of what seemed to be certificates and awards hung on the light blue walls. In amazement, he walked over to one corner to a large, wooden desk with many papers, covered in handwriting and formulas even Oliver couldn't understand.

    "I'll leave you to settle down," Mom said, "But you should get ready to go to bed."

    Oliver nodded as Mom continued down the hallway behind him, then turned around and decided to examine further.

    He picked up a sheet of paper with complex mathematical problems listed on them, and even more complex formulas and answers written beneath each one, each one receiving a bright red checkmark. On top of the paper read Rutherford Institution of Academics, Summer 2oxx. Homework Sheet.

      Oliver raised an eyebrow, impressed, and put it down. Institution? Pft. Some sort of torture place?

     He looked up to some shelves with strange trinkets and machines, and picked up one of them – a simple walking robot. He looked around and found a switch, and tried to turn it on with only one free hand to do so. Eventually, he flicked it, and watched the legs come to life. Surprised, he set it down on the table to watch it crawl across the table.

        This dude does all kinds of crazy stuff… Oliver thought, and noticed a black spiral-bound book in a corner. Curious, he opened it up and found many sketches, both intricate and rough of many ideas for robotics or other science-y things. However, many Pokémon sketches were present in the collection of sketches, from ideas for Fakemon and cities to simple drawings of Pokémon characters and trainers. There seemed to be a surplus of Joltik and Galvantula drawings in the spiral-bound book as well.

      “So, he draws as well, huh?” Oliver concluded, closing the sketch book in his hands. “I guess it’s more than obvious how much he likes these elespiders.”

      He put the sketchbook down, and turned around and took a seat on the bed – a little too dense for his tastes, and the bedsheets were hard and heavy.

    I guess this is my new home, then, Oliver wondered, and looked up into an open window with the evening breeze passing into the room, and brushing his face. He sighed. Somehow I’ve wound up in a human family… and even now, I don’t even know what’s going on… Is this really a joke? Or something real?

      Oliver laid back on the dense bed, and gazed up into the ceiling for a few moments.