Welcome Home

Everyone’s heard of the Poke-Walker, you know, the device you got when you pre-ordered Heart Gold or Soul Silver. Well I pre-ordered the game like the nerd I am, and when I got it, I was quite excited. I named my Character Crys, after the manga’s Crystal, and chose a Cyndaquil named Battler as my starter. I played my game a lot over the course of a month, and soon beat the Elite Four. After I had beaten them, I decided to focus on catching a lot more Pokemon and completing the Pokedex. I soon found myself in a battle with a level 20 Larvitar on Mount Silver, and using a few great balls, was able to catch it. Since I loved to give nicknames to my Pokemon I named her Rina. I went to put her in my team, since I loved Tyranitar and wanted to train it, when I got an idea. I knew that the Poke-Walker was supposed to raise a Pokémon’s level by one, and also raise their friendship with your character, and I thought it was cute, so I put Rina in there.

I like taking walks around town, so for a while I brought my poke-walker with me, and trained Rina, and raised her friendship with Crys. After a while, I got bored with Heart Gold, and moved on to other games I wanted to play, my poke-walker was also forgotten. One day, I decided I wanted to pick up my Heart Gold, but couldn’t find it anywhere, or any of my games for that matter. It turns out my delinquent cousin had sold them to buy his own games. My aunt was nice enough to buy me a new copy of Soul Silver, and a copy of Harvest Moon DS, so I shrugged it off somewhat.

I started playing Soul Silver, and eventually beat that too, but I remembered that I still had my old poke-walker. One day I looked around to see if I could connect it to SS, but found out I couldn’t connect it to other games. I somehow felt bad for my Larvitar, but eventually forgot, leaving my poke-walker on my computer desk unused.

I went to the mall one day with some friends a few months later, and we all decided to go to GameStop. I hadn’t spent any money, but I decided to buy a game. Now I had always collected both of the Pokemon games that came out somehow, so when I saw a used copy of Heart Gold on the shelf, I bought it. Later that night, I decided to see what the original owner had done, so I turned the game on, and this is where things got strange.

The player had all 8 badges, over 100 hours of play, and their name was Crys. Thinking it a coincidence, I started the game and looked at her team. One pokemon caught my eye, a Typholsion named battler. I felt a bit happy, I had somehow beaten all odds, and ended up with my stolen game. I turned the game off and went to bed, thinking everything totally normal.

A few dyas later I was on my computer, when the old poke-walker I had caught my eye, I remembered I still had Rina in there, after all these months. I turned on my DS and decided to connect my old poke-alker, so I could make training her my top priority. I connect and was greeted with a “Welcome home” screen for her, she was back on my team. I opened the party screen, and something about Rina was odd, her sprite had an odd color too it, and no level came up. I also noticed that she had an item, I took it from her and it was “sad mail.” I decided to see what was up, and opened her stats menu.

I dropped my DS when I saw it. She didn’t even look like a Larvitar anymore, huge black holes where eyes should have been, you could see bones through what little pale green skin or scales, she had left. What freaked me out the most was her mouth, which was twisted into the vilest grin I’ve ever seen before. Her nature had changed too, it read “lonely.” I could barely bring myself to look at it anymore. “Kids games shouldn’t be like this, what did they do..” I whispered to myself as I clicked to see her moves. No moves were available for her; instead “Rina is too weak to learn any moves” was scrawled across that menu in red lettering. I quickly closed out of that menu, and noticed Rina was holding yet another item. I took that too, it was called “hate mail.”

It may have been my morbid curiosity, but I opened my items screen and clicked the “sad mail.” What it read still haunts me to this day.

“I’ve been so lonely, I don’t know where I am.” “Please take me home.” “I’m so tired, so hungry, its been so long…” “Please take me home.” “I’m sorry I’m not strong enough.” “Please, please, take me home.”

I was frightened, but brought myself to read the “hate mail” as well. “You still havnt rescued me.” “I’m very hungry, I had to eat him..” “You’ll regret leaving me alone” “here’s a gif for you”

I clicked out of the mail, and went into my party, sure enough Rina was holding another item. I clicked to take the item from her, and it only read “???gift???”

I clicked out of the mail, and went into my party, sure enough Rina was holding another item. I clicked to take the item from her, and it only read “???gift???” I quickly opened up my items screen and located the “gift” what I saw horrified me. This “gift” was the head of one of the Zigzagoon I had caught in my poke-walker. The head was mangled and drenched it what looked like blood. Its ears where chewed off, and its eyes were nothing but sockets drpping blood. Like Rina, this Zigzagoon also had a vile grin plastered to its face, as if mocking me.

I rapidly clicked the “B button” trying desperately to close the horrid picture. I remembered that there were still two other ZIGZAGOON, as I hadn’t yet had time to nickname them, that I had caught. Once the screen went away I walked over to the PC, after switching the demonic and cannibalistic Larvitar known as Rina into a different position in my party. When I checked “BILL’s PC” I noticed that it was already on the box the ZIGZAGOON would be in, however; I shrugged that off as a fluke - thinking I must have been looking at that box last. I scrolled over to the ‘first’ ZIGZAGOON, which I assume is actually the second one - seeing as Rina ate one of them, and clicked it’s menu. What greeted me… Sent a shiver down my spine, “ZIGZAGOON is scared!” was the message that popped up, “She wants you to get rid of that DEMON.” was the second one.

”Demon?” I thought, then - as I clicked once more - there was a piercing yowl that came from my DS Lites’ speakers (which I had turned the volume almost off) and made me drop the Handheld to the floor. Thinking about it… ‘Yowl’ really isn’t the right word… Nor is any word used to describe a sound normally… However, it wasn’t the sound you’d normally hear from a Pokemon.

Then I realized what it sounded like… A dying animal, or… “Oh god…” I whispered to myself as I scrolled over to my party, once the menu was down my mouth dropped. I was so scared by what I was greeted with… It was… Saddening and nauseating all at once. There, on his back no less, was my Typhloshion, My beloved Battler, who I’d trained from a Cyndaquil, lying in - what looked like - a pool of his own blood. On Rina’s sprite there was some blood as well, around the small black lining of her mouth. “Y-you asshole! Why did you do that?!” I screamed at the screen, tears forming in my eyes, “Battler was your friend! He helped you in battle, s-so why-“

Then I saw the little capsule by Rina’s sprite that indicated she was holding something (obviously an Item of some sort) and I clicked he, taking the item away. The message about what went into Cry’s bag haunts me “Battler’s Heart was placed in the bag”. Then, right before I closed the menu, she was holding another item, this time it was mail, “Apology Mail” to be precise, as I sighed and took it from her I realized her vile grin had faded.

The first thing I did was exit the PC, “Screw checking on those Zigzagoon…” I said to myself as I went to read the newest mail from Rina, not before checking the ‘Ballter’s Heart’ item first. Which sounds morbid in and of itself… But, as I read the description of the item, tears streamed like rivers down my cheeks… It said “The heart of a TYPHLOSHION who was treated with care and attention from the first day of a young trainer’s journey. Trainer’s with such pureness in they’re hearts are well deserving of the honor of WALKING with they’re Pokemon.” I thought it was odd how “walking” was in all caps, but I didn’t care… All I cared about was the fact that this was from the little Pokemon I’d started with all those months ago. With one last glance at the description I scrolled away and read Rina’s mail.

“I didn’t mean to hurt him…” “I was so hungry…” “Why did he get attention?” “Why do they call me ‘DEMON’?” “Mommy… I love you…” “I’m sorry…”

I cringed, “Mommy… I love you…” I reread that line lord knows how many times before I realized… I’d screamed at a baby Pokemon. She was starving, she didn’t deserve that no matter what she did… How could she know any better? Then I whispered something, “I…forgive you…” I realized I was crying once more, not for Battler only this time… But for Rina as well. As I that realization hit me, I sighed and scrolled over to look at Rina, she was crying, I placed my one finger over where her stats should have been, and rocked with my DS Lite firm in my one palm. My mouth opened to let out a small whisper, “Welcome home… My Rina…”