Pokémon Sabattical

[Mr.RMA]

How does one even begin to explain the inexplicable?

It's a genuine question; I certainly don't have the answer. Earnestly, I don't expect anyone else to have it either, much as I wish someone could tell me. Perhaps there isn't a concrete answer at all, but I suppose the only way to find the truth is to go back to where all this really started... the moment I decided to set off on my own and find myself a future... a future that's eluded me for so long, and all entirely through my own fault... a future that, with how things have developed, might be all too brief for yours truly...

But whatever the future has in store, surreal as it appears, it's one of my own choice.

Sabbatical – Part 1

Holdaway... that's my family name. It's been passed down for many a generation, going back to well before my ancestors sailed from the Crown Tundra and settled in Unova. They say it stems from the term “Hold Away,” namely, to set off on one's own, which, yeah, that seems apt enough for that side of my family. The Holdaways have always had something of a wanderlust, and I'm hardly any different in that regard. We've had adventurers of all sorts; explorers, hikers, a vagrant or two, and ah... yeah a few trainers of course... but so few of us have really dipped our toes in the metaphorical career pool that is Pokemon Research. Really, it seems kind of baffling in retrospect. The Holdaways aren't just a bunch of morons... for the most part, at least... We usually don't discuss Great-Uncle Waldrop for instance... Yet none of us ever bothered to take on the field of research involving the very creatures that make our world as special as it is? Well, guess someone always has to be the first, and that's really where my story here begins, as a traveling aide, fresh out of the academy and eager to learn directly from distinguished professors the world over. I wanted to trailblaze that path as my own, to look at myself and say with confidence that I was Corey Holdaway, Pokemon researcher.

Getting around in this big world of ours isn't always the easiest thing, as anyone who's journeyed beyond their home region would likely be so inclined to tell you. It's especially difficult if you don't have a team to help you out, be they human or Pokemon or some combination of the two. Back when I was starting out, I'd just have to get lucky and hope I'd find a research vessel willing to take on an extra crewman for a short while. Thankfully, I had a few connections even back then, what with my family having moved around a lot (I tell you, that old Holdaway wanderlust is legit). Unovan born and raised I may be, I spent my adolescence in Kanto and received my higher education in Hoenn. At the time it was kinda stressful, all the moving around after only a few years in any one place, but I learned to see the perks, seeing different parts of this wondrous planet and its inhabitants, and frankly, moving all the way to Kanto back then was exactly what I needed at the time anyways, but I won't get into that. It's another personal matter for another day. The important thing to note here is that I did have a few friends and associates out there to reach out to in order to traverse the regions and take on new temp jobs, and I can't imagine I would've gotten as far as I have, for whatever that's worth, without that extra bit of help.

Now, to guess what you may in fact be thinking up to this point, “that's all well and good, but how does this all lead up to your present situation?” To which I will assure you, this is all leading somewhere, trust me, I just need to give you the proper context, alright? Still, I get it, there's only so much backstory I can get into before it turns into a rambling expository mess, huh? Well, alright, let's move on ahead a bit, say about a month ago, that should be right... it was my last day as a temp for the esteemed Professor Birch, a stint I still look back on with pride, much as I wasn't able to appreciate it enough while it was all happening. Such is usually the case with anything in life I imagine.

As I finished packing my things and saying my goodbyes to everyone, one of my now former cohorts, another researcher by the name of Reid, invited me to go get some drinks as a sort of farewell celebration. I didn't really have any plans at the time so I took him up on the offer and we went to a small pub up in Odale.

I was surprised there was any sort of place of leisure in a town as small and unassuming as Odale, but I suppose even with a relatively simple and out of the way life, people have to socialize in some fashion. It certainly wasn't anything glamorous, this tavern. Mostly it just consisted of a bar and a few stools with a smattering of different liquors along the shelves in the back. That being said, it was rather nice for what it was, a cosy little establishment.

“So, got any plans for the future?” my associate questioned me as we started our first round of drinks.

“Plans? Eh... I guess nothing really comes to mind,” I'd said in reply. “I mean, I could probably seek out another lab to work at for a bit, but...”

“Well, hey, it's not my place to say what you should do or anything, but, you've been at this whole lab-aide thing for a while now, right? Have you considered taking that next step and applying for a professorship?” he asked, to which I could only sigh and proceed to gulp down the rest of my drink, quickly asking the bartender for another.

“...I've been thinking about that for a good long while now... but I just don't know how to do it! I mean... A good professor has a field of study that they specialize in, and they have proof that they possess expert knowledge of that subject... I'm no expert in anything.”

“Ah, come on, Corey, you're selling yourself short. Everyone always says you're reliable. Hell, Birch never had anything bad to say about you the entire time you were under his employment!”

“Yeah... Birch had little to say about me at all though, you realize...” I was rather quick to retort on that one. Didn't want to even fathom the idea that I'd let that accomplishment swell me with undeserved pride. “And that's the issue. Sure I'm not one to screw things up, I do my job and I do it right, but, that's really all I am... It's all I've been, a cog in a machine... and cogs don't get noticed or adored when they work, they just continue to exist, doing what they've been doing, ticking and cranking along... is that all I've got to offer?”

Reid seemed unsure how to respond to that, and a silence loomed over the two of us for a while. I was tempted to get another drink, but I could feel the exasperation brewing within me... I don't make for a very pleasant conversationalist when I'm intoxicated, so I held off.

“I need to figure out something that can help me stand out... but what if that something just doesn't exist? Maybe I was never meant for anything beyond just being some diligent no-name assistant...”

Pretty sure another silence came about after that, but eventually, Reid spoke up again.

“Well, y'know, there's an old saying, if you think you can do it, or if you think you can't, either way, you're right. You have plenty of capability, Corey, you're a hard worker, you're knowledgeable in all sorts of topics regarding Pokemon, and I'm sure if you put your mind to making one of those subjects your specialty, you'd have a damn good shot at success... but that's only gonna happen if you put your mind to it, pal. Nothing's gonna change for the better if you don't believe it yourself.”

With that he gave me a pat on the shoulder and insisted he'd pay for the drinks, as this was supposed to be in my honor after all, and we both went off on our separate ways. I thought about what he had to say, how things wouldn't improve for me if I didn't have the faith or confidence that it would. It's all true, of course it is, but I can't exactly help that I've had so much of my self-confidence drained. Can't exactly change what happened to me in my formative years after all, and... I mean I still can't bring myself to dwell on it, but that moment in the past just keeps haunting me to this very day. Still... I knew at the time as I quietly shuffled my way out of that pub that I had to change my attitude somehow. I couldn't let myself live my entire life that way, as just another cog in the machine, never amounting to anything great. There had to be something I could do...

 

[Mr.RMA]

Part 2

Without any employment to speak of, I had plenty of time to hit the books and do my own research. There were so many things about Pokemon that we humans still couldn't fully comprehend, surely one of those many mysteries would spark a flame of inspiration within me. I mean... you'd think as much, yeah? Especially with that particularly idealistic perspective? Well... can't say it turned out that way for real. Quite the opposite situation, as a matter of fact. Every subject I looked up, I already knew from experience that another highly prolific researcher had made the topic their own.

Pokemon and their various relationships and interactions with humans? One of the many subjects in which the legendary Professor Oak simply had no equal; Pokemon reproduction? There was no surpassing Elm's work; Pokemon habitats? I knew personally that Birch couldn't be beat there; Evolution? Rowan; History? Juniper; their specific moves and abilities? Kukui! And none of that even scrapes the iceberg that is all the regional abnormalities like mega evolution and dynamax... It just seemed like everything remotely interesting had already been taken...

I don't know how many days or weeks or, hell, maybe even months I spent poring over every scrap of information I could find in hopes that something would just snap, but at some point I just had to accept I was getting nowhere. I may have been able to get by comfortably with my savings up to that point, but it was only a matter of time before I ran out, and then what? Back to aide work? The very thought felt about as crushing as blatantly admitting defeat and giving up for good... Needless to say this was quite the low point for me. I hardly ate, barely spoke to anyone, and I only ever slept when fatigue overwhelmed me into unconsciousness. I'd felt like a failure before, but never once had it felt so reprehensibly unshakable. It seemed all my doubts and fears were well-warranted...

By all accounts, with the mindset I was in, I should've called it quits, but I didn't account for what desperation would do to my thought process. I knew if I went back to my life of temp work, that would be it, there'd be no more chances, so I had to make this last attempt count, lest I forever dwell upon the could've's and should've's for eternity. I'd been spending all this time considering the most concrete sciences of Pokemon, but there were other paths yet to tread... the mysteries shrouded in myth and legend, old tales from ancient times, undocumented beyond the stories passed down by broken relics or by word of mouth, ever so slightly manipulated with each new storyteller.Yes, there were plenty of these all over the world still... Some were certainly covered by prolific archeologists, no doubt, but not every legend was something that could be dug up from the ground.

As I changed my course of studies, gathering up as much info on the various mythologies of the regions I was most familiar with, one specific example seemed to stand out above the others... Amongst Hoenn's more well-established legends, involving a certain trio that can shift the continents, raise the oceans and command the winds, not to mention a pair of mysterious illusionary dragons, there was another topic of discussion amongst those who'd claimed to witness entire islands along the surrounding seas to appear and disappear without explanation. Only one of these islands had ever explicitly been both found and researched, though it ultimately produced little more than a band of Wynauts and a few admittedly rare berries. Yet for all the disappointment that particular “Mirage Island” brought, the others seemed far more intriguing... Passing sailors have claimed to catch glimpses of what appeared to be portals floating above landmasses that just as quickly vanished in a fog, never to reappear, and others have claimed to hear the sounds of great and terrible creatures whose cries harkened to the legendary monsters of other regions. Though no one could ever find real, undeniable proof, there was far too much hearsay for it to all be complete bunk... and it was indeed this logic that I clung to as I decided, by hell or high water, I was going to find one of these disappearing islands... I'd uncover the truth behind them, and surely that would be the springboard I'd need to finally prove my worthiness of Professorship.

Perhaps you've heard of the phrase, “easier said than done.” More than likely you've used said phrase yourself at least a couple of times in your life. Well, if there was ever a feat that perfectly encapsulated such a saying, this latest quest of mine was a pretty major contender. There were only a handful of people who claimed to have seen these islands to begin with, and a number of those people had managed to go missing soon after, with nary a hint as to where they could've ended up. To most rational people, this alone would've been a big red flag, a warning that this endeavor just wasn't worth the trouble, but you have to understand that by this point, my rationality was in dwindling supply.

I tracked down one of the people still accounted for, a woman who once worked on a fishing barge that conducted much of its business north of Mossdeep, though her passion lied mostly in swimming. She went by the name of Tisha; she never divulged her family name, if she could even remember it... Seems ludicrous, especially in a place like Hoenn where family names are quite important, but that just goes to show the sort of condition she was in when I paid her a visit. She'd opened the door before I could even finish knocking, clearly having waited for me from the moment I'd called ahead. She was supposedly around my age, but judging from the wrinkles along her face, the discoloration of her frazzled hair, and the sunken-in condition of her eyes, something had caused her to age rather... ungracefully.

“Please... come in...” she murmured, guiding me into her house, or rather... one large empty space with a bed on one corner and a fridge and washing machine on the other. The rest of the surrounding area was little more than one big open room, like an enlarged studio apartment. A quiet series of gentle piano pieces played from a radio at her bedside as she pulled out a couple of folding seats from beneath her bed and set them up right in the middle of her domicile, motioning for me to sit at one as she took the other. Seemed she didn't have much reason to sit down besides these rare occasions where she had company...


“You wished to speak to me about what I saw?” she asked. I began to nod and she was quick follow this up with a single word. “Why?”

When I attempted to explain my desire to research these mysterious islands and record their phenomena for more extensive study, she looked at me as if I'd had a Nihilego planted on my head.

“No... ARE YOU CRAZY?!” she suddenly shouted, reaching at my shoulders and staring wide-eyed into what felt like my very soul.

“Don't you think it's worth learning more about? I mean, you were one of the people who first brought it up,” I tried to reason whilst struggling to remain calm in the face of this... unexpected outburst.

“All I ever did was try to explain what happened to me... I never asked for anyone else to go through all that... I'd have to be some kind of monster...” She slowly released me from her grip and slunk back into her chair, lightly clutching her chest and taking deep breaths.

“Are you... gonna be okay?” I asked, obviously a bit concerned, and she merely gave me a waving gesture as if this was a completely mundane occurrence by her standards.

“Listen... I invited you here because I wanted to stop you from... doing something you can't take back. Those islands... whatever the hell they are... you just don't know what could be lurking on any of them...”

“Tisha... what did you see?” I couldn't help but ask despite her warnings, but what she answered with, I'll admit, it did manage to give me pause, if briefly...

“That's the worst part of all this, Mr. Holdaway... I can't remember. I can't remember anything about what I saw. All I recall is washing up on that island, seeing some kind of portal begin to open with a flash... and then, next thing I knew, I was laying on my back in the sand, staring up at the cloudy sky, feeling all my sanity just up and vanish in an instant... I could feel the weight of countless mental scars, but I knew nothing about how I got them to begin with... and now... well now you see how I live... Can't even go to sleep if there are too many places for things to hide and... watch me...” She seemed trapped in that state of nearly bursting into tears, never quite going over the edge, but having stray droplets trickle down her cheeks from her bloodshot eyes.

“Mr. Holdaway... please, this isn't worth seeing for yourself. You see what... what things are like for me now, and they say I'm one of the lucky ones... on account of the fact that I'm even still here at all... You need to let this go, for your own sake, just let this go...”

Looking at her pitiful state made it difficult to respond when I knew I was going to reject her plea. She was only looking to prevent someone else from suffering the same breakdown she'd had, and yet here I was, ready to completely toss that concern aside for my own curiosities.

“I'm sorry... I can't.” I cast my gaze down at the floor as I spoke, unable to continue to look her in the eyes. “I can't just leave this mystery alone without at least an attempt to solve it... They say islands like the one you came across are strewn all over the region. If they have anything remotely like what you saw, how many more innocent souls are going to suffer from the consequences? If risking my own well-being can give us a better understanding of this phenomena, then, to me, it's worth a try.” A little more of a noble reason than just trying to keep my career prospects afloat, but in my defense, I did genuinely believe everything I said... In retrospect perhaps that's just a sign of how foolish I really was.

“You’re not going to stop then… Fine, but I wash my hands of this.” She finally said, relenting, but looking all the more weary for it. I was feeling pretty guilty, pressing someone who’d been through such a wringer, but I really was desperate for this knowledge.

“So as you’ve likely heard, our barge ran into some trouble north of Mossdeep. We got a little too close to a heavy storm, but what really threw us off was that this storm seemed so… contained. Clear weather in every other direction except that one spot. By the time we realized we’d gotten too close, the ship was tossing and turning like a damn rollercoaster. Honestly it’s a miracle I was the only one thrown overboard. I struggled to stay above the waves, to get the attention of the rest of the crew, but I couldn't see where the barge had even gone, and before I knew it, I was being tossed onto a shoreline. I hadn't expected land, none of us did, this was supposed to be completely open ocean... It was as if this island was summoned by the very storm surrounding it...” She shut her eyes tightly, rubbing at her temples as she neared the part of the story that obviously brought the most stress with it.

“As I picked myself up and tried to catch my breath, I thought I could hear a faint giggling sound for a moment. It wasn't human, but it had an almost child-like glee to it... or mischief maybe... and that's when... well, I... I've explained the rest already.” Indeed, she had, and I decided to spare her from having to recount that part a second time.

“Alright... I think that's all I need to hear. Thank you very much, Tisha, I know it can't be easy to talk about all of this...”

She then gave me a sharp glare.

“...You have no idea, Mr. Holdaway... but you will.”

 

[Mr.RMA]

Part 3


Tisha's warnings were sticking with me well after our conversation, and they very much felt like a last chance to turn back, before I hit a true point of no return. Such was the fate of those who'd come across these islands and returned to tell the tale... or whatever fractured remains of a tale they could even recount from their shattered memories of the ordeal. Was that worth exploring further? Could I not stick to uncovering a somewhat less troubling mystery? No, evidently I couldn't, because despite such clear signs of looming peril, I pressed forward in my investigations.

Now I knew for sure what I was looking for, and where to find it... a strangely contained storm off the northern coast of Mossdeep. A day would come when it'd appear again, I was certain of it, and so I kept an eye on weather satellites monitoring the area, waiting for a small blip of a storm to appear in just the right spot.

I can't tell you just how long I waited, at some point I stopped keeping track. All I can say is that by the end, just so I wouldn't become destitute, I was living out in a tent off the coast of Lilycove eating the cheapest ramen I could find in the shop, my clothes had gotten stained with seawater and I longed for a day when it didn't feel like I was head-to-toe covered in sand. I'd broken off contact with everyone completely by this point, my focus entirely on finding this vanishing island when it would inevitably pop up again. It was obsession now, I'll admit it openly. I was so close to uncovering something that few had ever witnessed, and somehow I'd convinced myself that I would somehow be the exception to all those who'd lost their minds facing down whatever awaited in those shrouded lands... and perhaps that was proof enough my sanity was decaying already.

Every day I'd constantly check my C-Gear, the one bit of tech I kept with me, only to check for any signs of weather changes in that one spot... and day after day it was the same... Nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing... but despite all this lack of progress, eventually my patience did in fact pay off. The day came when finally a small dot blipped on the C-Gear's radar, a dot that inferred heavy storms. There was my ticket... without a moment to lose I tore down my campsite, tossed out everything but my necessary supplies, and went to go find myself a boat.

Being in a port city, it didn't take long for me to find someone willing to lease a boat, and the man stood by his product, even as I told him of my intentions to take the vessel into dangerous waters.

“That's your risk, sir, but I assure you, any misfortune you might suffer out there will have nothing to do with my product.” Frankly that's the best I could have expected to hear from an honest merchant of any sort. Once I had the boat, I wasted no time in my preparations to set sail. I was fortunate, I had plenty of experience on a number of different boats, among them solo vessels like the one I'd acquired, though even with that experience, I knew it was frequently suggested that one had a frequent contact of some kind before braving the dangers of the open water alone... I probably should have sought someone out for that role, but at the time, I guess I couldn't really think of anyone... no one who would plead for me to reconsider this whole ordeal at least. Still, I at least had to let someone know...

With the little supplies I had packed, and my boat ready to set sail at a moment's notice, I set my C-Gear to contact my father...

“Corey, boy, that you?” I heard him as he picked up my call in an instant. I figured he wouldn't have wasted any time, with just how long it had been since I'd last called either of my folks. I remember smiling a little at his voice... I guess the familiar sound of family was something I'd missed more than I had cared to admit, even to myself.

“Yeah... hey Dad, sorry I've been kinda off-the-radar for a while,” I said.

“That's alright, son, so long as you're doing okay!” Even in old age my father's gruff voice was as energetic as ever. Farley Holdaway, the world traveler, a fearsome trainer in his youth and a tenacious hiker who traversed the regions across the globe in his later years... It amused me sometimes just how differently we turned out, apart from that similar love of travel of course.
“So, what's up? Just called to say hello?” He asked, and I found myself suddenly hesitant. Despite his nature, my father still knew an overly risky idea when he heard it... Still, I'd already gotten this far...

“Ah, not really, no... Dad, I just wanted to ah... to let you know I'm about to go on a sailing expedition of sorts. A lone one... See, I'm over in Lilycove right now, y'know, in Hoenn... There's an isolated thunderstorm located just northeast of here out in the open water, and I'm going to go investigate it up close.”

“A thunderstorm? On your own? Corey, hold the phone, kid... You sure that's a very smart thing to do by yourself? At least tell me you've got some kind of Pokemon to help-”

“No. Dad, no Pokemon... You know how I feel about that...” I had to catch myself from sounding too harsh at that moment... Pokemon companions have been a... touchy subject for me...

“Corey... Listen, I know you're always gonna have those memories but... that was years ago, boy... This isn't training anyways, this is just a matter of safety! It's dangerous out there without some kind of Pokemon, you know that!”

“I can't do it anymore... I can't, Dad, if another Pokemon... if anyone were to suffer like that again on my account I don't know what I'd do with myself, okay? I can't... I have to do this alone... and I'm not changing my mind... I just wanted to let you know what I'm doing.”

“Wait, Corey, let's talk this over for a moment!...” I'm certain my father had more to say, but that's about all I'd managed to process.

“I love you, tell Mom the same, okay? Bye...” At that I hung up without hearing another word... I knew the longer I listened to my father's pleas the more I'd risk getting cold feet and letting my rationality pull me away. At that moment I just couldn't bear that to happen. This was my make-or-break. Either I pushed forward into the dangers of the unknown, or I allowed myself to live the life of some unnoticed no-name, drifting without any real purpose or drive to my existence. That was a risk I wasn't going to take with others to suffer along with me, not my fellow humans, and certainly not any Pokemon... never again any Pokemon... One had been one too many...

As I sailed out to the distant, cloudy horizon, briefly looking back to see Lilycove slowly vanish behind me, I took a deep breath of the salty air, taking a moment to readjust to the sensation of sailing, something I hadn't done for a time, despite my past experiences. I had a complicated sort of feeling about water... especially massive bodies of it, the ocean being the biggest of them all... It was a gigantic source of life, yet it could easily lead to one's death. We had the technology to explore the stars above us, yet the oceanic depths were so great that we've yet to see a fraction of it in its entirety. Our world has remained a great mystery, and down beneath the waves held perhaps the biggest question marks still to uncover. I watched as various tentacool swam beneath my vessel, paying me little mind so long as I didn't interrupt their aimless floating about... Vicious creatures when they got angry, but really they were only a threat if one was stupid enough to swim around their usual haunts recklessly...

As I proceeded further, I started to see the faint shadows of much larger sea-faring beasts further down in the depths... Almost certainly wailmer... those silly ball whales... Occasionally I felt my boat get rocked by a burst of seawater as the creatures surfaced for air, naturally aiming to startle me as they enjoyed such spectacles. Of course, they were hardly malevolent, merely playful types. They reminded me of another playful water Pokemon I'd known a long time ago... and instantly I found myself trapped in rather bittersweet feelings of nostalgia that only got more and more bitter the longer I dwelled on them. Like I said, my feelings for the water were complicated.

As I got closer to the storm, the number of Pokemon swimming below me began to dwindle, drastically so once I began to feel the first droplets of rain. Seemed even these naturally gifted swimmers were giving this area a wide-berth to be on the safer side... I could only imagine what they were thinking, seeing a sole human approaching such a site... Probably some variation of “what an idiot.”

They'd have been right to think so, as I was just about to learn.

There really wasn't any gradual easing into the storm. One moment there was a small shower... the next, I found myself being tossed around by wave after crashing wave as thunder crackled loudly and bright flashes of lightning served as the only source of light in the midst of a never-ending wall of precipitation. The boat held firm, as the merchant had promised, but I was struggling to keep ahold of it. I only had fleeting moments to breathe before the entire vessel was dragged underwater by the merciless tide.

In those precious periods of time where I was above water, I desperately looked for any semblance of an island, but to my horror, I couldn't see anything at all... There was just no looking past all the rain pouring down at the rate of a raging waterfall. It was all more than enough for me to really start coming to terms with the notion that I was probably about to drown...

One of the last things I remember at that point was a final wave hitting me and I found myself finally being launched overboard. No solid ground beneath me, nothing to grip, I was truly awash in this deadly maelstrom. I tried to struggle, vain as it seemed, and as I began to feel my last semblance of breath give way... Sand.

Sand, and more importantly, air.

I was coughing up seawater for a while, but despite that unpleasantness, I couldn't have been happier to feel land beneath me, even as the storm continued to rage all around. The island... I'd found it after all. I crawled forward, toward what appeared to be a mass of vegetation, the closest thing I'd likely get to a makeshift shelter, and I laid back, still working on the whole business of catching my breath. I began to wonder if this was all going to be some tragic case of irony... I'd finally found one of these mythical vanishing islands, yet I'd now be stranded here, either doomed to disappear when the landmass itself did, or stay put and tread water in hopes someone would find me before my watery grave could be properly prepared.

I was far too tired to remember certain details of Tisha's story... until they began to play out for me. There was the sound of mischievous, inhuman giggling... Furthermore... I definitely thought I heard a voice...

“Well looky looky... a new playmate!”

For a moment I could've just chalked that up to my tired mind playing tricks with me, but it sounded too real...

“W-what's that? Who's there!?” I called out with what voice I'd recovered.

What I saw then was what I could only perceive to be some kind of golden ring... and within the space in which it had surrounded, I saw a plethora of colors that seemed to be dancing around some kind of cosmic void, and with it came... a feeling that is all too difficult to describe in words...

Perhaps you've had to get a filling or a root canal. You know the feeling you get as the local anesthetic numbs your mouth and the dentist begins to drill into the enamel, all the way down toward the root? You can feel only a shaking pressure, but you know that what's happening should be hurting like hell. You wait for the excruciating agony to all come at you in one horrible instant, but it never does. That's the closest I can get to explaining how this sensation felt, as my consciousness seemed to be torn away from my body and pulled toward this ring-shaped portal...

I floated about in a truly dream-like state for... some degree of time. Seconds, hours, days, my perception was all but gone, it may as well have been entire centuries and I wouldn't have been able to tell. All I could put together was the faint sound of someone calling out... I didn't get all the words, but it seemed they were calling out for help... and in my subconscious state of mind I seemed to instinctively respond...

“Yes... I'll help you...”

~~~

And so I ask again, how does one explain the inexplicable? How do I rationalize nearly drowning off in some storm in the middle of nowhere in the name of some desperate last attempt at career advancement, only to find myself floating along this void, formless, as if I were trapped in a dream... What even awaits me when I wake up? I suppose that's the primary question above all else... and I wonder if I'm ready for the answer... if I'm ready to see just what my choices have brought me...

~~~

Corey's story continues in Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Heartache
Due to certain issues that I will not elaborate on for the sake of courtesy, Corey is no longer a part of the Heartache campaign. I will nonetheless keep this story posted, as I am proud of the work I put in and I don't want to have it go to waste. I do plan to have Corey partake in more adventures in the future, so keep an eye open if you enjoyed this work.

 

[K_S]

hi here for the blitz
Chapter 1

Another hard hitting question intro. Seems to be a theme today. This lads gpt a case of cold feet by the sound of it amd breaks off enough the beaten path to do something about it... Only to find mortal peril i guess?

Makes for an interesting hook to say the least.

Nice tying the family name to ancestorial history to modern then to personal life choices. You can see how holdaways history has left a mark on tje man with just following that little train of thought.

Its like the family is in perpetual hero jourmey mode... Or at least mon joirmey mode. Luckily the mon worlds a good fot for restlessness and people needing long hikes.

Also ties in well with his career really. I mean i know he thinks its breakaway but hands on mon research is no desk job.

Also by being the first in research he's breaking in the paths for further holdaways to follow suit and wander off into other research adjacent pastures...

Love how his past boils down rattling off the map. And then pointing out how he channeled his social butterfly to make connections that helped build up to bigger connections... To get easy access to the far corners of the world.

Except hes like one hundred times more self abasing about it.

His rambles make me think of wheatly from portal. Not as long or mood swingy, but god does the man ramble. Its hilarious.

Corys like "i over think and am a morse drunk and am waffling so hard over lofe choices.

Reids nice about it and gives kind advice... But I think hes regretting taking mr holdaway ouit for drinks.

As in note to self, ask what type of drunk they are and get a them a farewell cupcake if they amswer mauldin.

 

[K_S]

Chapter 2 blitz review

Back for mr. Ramlbes part two, and i am guessing this is where the title starts to drop. As in the actual sabatical begins since chapter one seemed a "last day of work" vibe to be honest.

Amd we hit the brick wall of "how am i going to stand out? When each region has a specialist who literally deals with that game/regions unique mecanic. I mean you could try to see the effects of say trying z moves in johto, terraforming in galar, and traumatize tje poor residemts of hoeen by dynamaxing a goldeen and saying its kygores second coming...

But beyond that everythings kinda covered.

Maybe natures? Proving ivs and evs?

Beimg abducted by an evil team for naforious purposes?

And thus existiental crisis dovetsils into depression poor science guy.

Hm thats an interesting angle. But doggong at legends tends to lead to teams... This could be bad but it'll be curiois to see what he finds.

With an opeming like "easier said then done" you gotta admit thats a bad sign. Worse still is the fact he's chasing a mobile bermuda triaglnglr phenom. I hope he has a few good flying type mon and strong swimmers like a pair of lapras...

Trisha sounds like she's been through the wringer. She seems like a living breathing "do not do this sign but holdaway is gunna go through this regardless... He's very much do or die via his midlife crisis.

I mean he's ignoring premature aging and being violently shook by someone too sick to really be doing that... This be the stuff Team admins are made of.

Him playing the altrism "we can put up warning signs at the very least" is probsbly the only thing keeping her from kicking him out. Doubt its sincere...

Yep he's lying to this poor womam, himself, everyone... Poor Tish had it rough... And from the descriptor i suspect hoopla. If thats the case this poor man is in for a heck of a time.

 

[K_S]

Part 3
Blitz review

Well at least hes not totally plowing in fully stupid. Only partially stupid.

Nice to see hes found the turn back sign and dickering a tiny bit. Still sorta Tish had lied to him.

Wonder why she didn't.

And you can see the utter self destruction in play. Obsession is an understatment... I'm surprised no ones staged an intervention for him but i guess he never forged those types of bonds.

He had funds to lease a boat? I'm surprised anyone would to a crazed scrawny ramen smelling hobo, but he's off to do the worst case of stormchasers ever.

Winces, last call and testiment anyone? Well at least someone knows where he kinda is? Even if by accident.

Kinda wonder at the mon incident
Especially for a researcher. Because that reaction screams trauma. Glad how warm the father is and how sharp he is to try to yank his son out ofntje lioms mouth with just the barest of jints. Shame joldaway doesnt listen. The viewing of the mon amd thier dance through thier eco system as he'd blazing past to storm chase was a nice nod and drops hints of his previous damage.

And by losing his boat he lost his ticket out. That... Hasn't sunk in yet, has it. And by tone and discription i think my hunch of hoopla was right.

Yeah this is gunna go so bad...

Even his altrism is likely to be used against him. The fact that his captor was like "new toy!" Before he hears the calls for help makes me think holdaway bumped into the big bad...

Ah so i didn't see tjis was part of a defunce series per complicated reason... Hopefully my review didnt kick anything up?

 

[Mr.RMA]

Ah so i didn't see this was part of a defunce series per complicated reason... Hopefully my review didnt kick anything up?

No worries! It's like I said, I'm proud of the work that I put in for this short story, so despite the fact that the campaign it's connected to didn't go the way I'd hoped, it's still a work I'm glad others have the chance to read.

I'm glad my hints over which Pokemon was responsible for all these goings-on was clear, though hopefully it doesn't come across as too on the nose! The concept is based on the various islands that pop up in Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby, though naturally with the portals pulling people in instead of bringing a bunch of legendaries out. Hoopa's "games" are certainly dangerous ones, but it has motives beyond shallow fun. Think of this one as a sort of Q from Star Trek. If I get around to writing future stories, that will hopefully become clearer.

In any case, thanks for your reviews! I appreciate getting feedback, especially considering I so rarely get it from others.

 

[K_S]

as you post more i'll keep an eye out. Its an interesting premiss amd the fact the protag kinda did it to himself is fitting and adds to its alure.