The overwhelming darkness surrounding me felt like a soothing refuge, offering relief from the intense pain that had suddenly taken over me descent.
Slowly, from the depths of unconsciousness, a subtle, rhythmic thrumming began to resonate within me, a gentle, pervasive pulse that permeated every fiber of my being. No longer was I sprawled on unforgiving, hard ground; instead, I lay cradled on something remarkably soft and warm, and the once-agonizing pain had receded to a dull, persistent ache. It was a sensation so profound and unexpected that for a moment, I questioned if I was still alive. The rhythmic pulse felt almost electric, a low-frequency hum that seemed to be mending the fractured pieces of my body. It was an alien feeling, yet in my state of vulnerability, it was also a profound comfort.
With immense effort, my eyelids, heavy and resistant, slowly yielded. My vision, initially a blurry and unfocused swirl of shapes and colors, gradually began to coalesce. Two luminous sets of eyes, an arresting, vivid electric blue, were fixed intently upon me. They belonged to a pair of creatures of unparalleled beauty, unlike anything I had ever witnessed. My mind, still sluggish, struggled to make sense of the sight. Was this heaven? A hallucination brought on by the fall? A new nightmare?
One of them was undeniably a Zeraora, just as I had recalled from the vivid memories of the film. The Pokémon stood approximately five and a half feet tall, with a commanding and elegant presence. Its tall, lithe figure was complemented by sleek fur sporting a vivid yellow paired with deep black. Its forearms and feet were adorned with glowing blue pads that pulsed with an ethereal energy, the source of the subtle thrumming I had felt. Every movement it made was imbued with a fluid grace, an effortless dance of power and agility. As it observed me, its expression was one of profound calm and gentle concern, a silent testament to its protective nature. The sheer size of it, so much larger than its depiction on screen, left me speechless.
The second creature was considerably smaller, its diminutive stature barely reaching the adult's waist. Its proportions were softer, more delicate, unmistakably childlike. It was a younger Zeraora, a mere child, its wide, innocent eyes reflecting a burgeoning curiosity, a nascent spark of wonder within their sapphire depths. The bond between them was unmistakable: a mother and her offspring. The smaller one took a timid step forward, its ears twitching with an inquisitive air.
I watched, utterly captivated, as the adult Zeraora slowly, deliberately, extended a lithe paw. Nestled within its grasp was a small, glistening berry, plump and inviting. At the sight of it, my stomach, still in the throes of recovery from the violent transmigration, rumbled with an almost embarrassing ferocity. It was a clear signal that the pain had vanished, replaced by an insistent, gnawing hunger. The berry, to my eyes, bore a striking resemblance to a common apple, yet its peel was a vibrant, almost iridescent reddish-orange colour that promised sweetness. The Zeraora emitted a soft, melodic sound—
"Zera ora"
—a gentle, almost purring hum, as if to offer reassurance and encouragement.
For a fleeting moment, I hesitated, a remnant of caution lingering within me.
But the lingering pain and debilitating nausea had completely dissipated, supplanted by an overwhelming sensation of profound warmth and an acute hunger that demanded satisfaction. Without further delay, I snatched the berry and took a cautious bite. The explosion of flavor that followed was unlike anything I had ever experienced—a harmonious blend of the familiar and the utterly novel. It was a curious yet delightful fusion, a cross between the crisp, refreshing sweetness of a juicy apple and the warm, comforting richness of a freshly baked honey bun. With each bite, a comforting warmth spread outwards from my core, mending the last lingering vestiges of my aches and discomfort.
The two Pokémon observed me with an unwavering intensity, the mother Zeraora's electric blue eyes gleaming with a quiet, profound intelligence. They began to communicate with each other, a captivating symphony of chimes and soft, resonant roars that, despite my inability to comprehend their precise meaning, somehow conveyed a clear sense of understanding and connection.
"Zera ora," the adult intoned, a low, rumbling sound that vibrated with an underlying power.
"Zera zera zera ora," the child replied in a higher, more playful pitch, its small paw gesturing animatedly, as if illustrating a point.
"Oraaa," the mother rumbled back, the sound a low, steady comfort, a reassuring counterpoint to the child's excited chirps.
It was in this moment, listening to their aural language, that I felt a glimmer of hope. Maybe, just maybe, I could learn to understand this new world.
I finally tore my gaze away from the captivating Pokémon and took in my surroundings for the first time. The soft, makeshift bed upon which I lay was a carefully arranged mound of dry, fragrant leaves and plush, yielding moss—a testament to the Zeraora's unexpected care and ingenuity.
The building itself was an enigma, a blend of the strange and the modern, clearly abandoned yet remarkably intact. The walls were made of a strange, smooth metal, and wires, long since disconnected, snaked across the ceiling. Above a heavily rusted metal door, a faded symbol was barely discernible: a stylized bolt of lightning accompanying a single, unreadable word, its script long since succumbed to the ravages of time and the elements.
It was unmistakably a maintenance building, a relic of some past electrical enterprise. It was the last thing I would have expected to find in the middle of a forest, a strange scar on an otherwise wild landscape.
For now, I was safe. Yet, I found myself in an unfamiliar, abandoned structure, under the watchful eyes of two mythical Pokémon who had, against all odds, discovered me. The lingering warmth in my belly, a direct result of their unexpected kindness, served as a tangible reminder of their benevolent actions. But the profound mystery of my current location, and the uncertain path that lay ahead, was just beginning to unfold.