PokePastas (Pokemon Pastas)

PMD: Explorers Of Death V2 Part 1

(This one blew my mind sort of. Especially the ending. Mwahahaha!! XD)

It was one of those normal Friday evenings. My dad and I were at the mall, strolling around and gazing at the vast collection of stores. I was gleefully munching on a frosted cookie I had convinced him to buy for me by saying how much I loved him and I would only ask this one time. I still don't see how he hadn't already caught onto my not-so-hidden pattern.

After several minutes of aimless wandering, I finally found a store that caught my attention. GameStop. I squealed as much as when a little child gets a new puppy. Before even asking for permission, I raced into the store. My father regretfully followed me in.

I ran to and fro, carefully examining every game up for sale. Most of them I either already had, or they seemed tasteless and dull. I groaned, and was just about to give up hope when my eye caught a game I hadn't noticed before. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of the Sky. My spirits soared as I greedily snatched the game from the shelf and sprinted back towards my dad.

A flicker of horror passed over his face when he looked at the price tag as I presented the game to him. At first he said he wouldn't buy it for me, but I gave him the puppy eyes and lied to him that I had wanted this game for a very long time. Eventually he gave in, just as I knew he would.

I grinned wildly as my dad bought the game. I giggled like a child whose had way to much sugar as I clutched my new Nintendo DS game. I skipped and hopped all the way to the car, then suddenly cursed under my breath when I realized my DS was at home. A little crestfallen, but not enough to completely dampen my mood, I opened the game case and read the instruction manual.

By the time we pulled into the driveway I had every word of the manual engraved into my skull. I flung the car door open, narrowly missing impact with my dad's head, and dashed into my room. I knocked over countless items as I searched for my beloved DS. Once I found it nestled under a pile of papers and unread magazines, I gingerly held it in my hands as if it were some holy item given to me to save the world.

After a split moment I hastily popped my new game into the DS without second thought. I leaped onto my bed and impatiently waited for the game to load. I irritatedly sighed as the seconds ticked by with only a black screen on my DS. I immaturely shook my DS, willing it to work faster.

My breath caught in my throat as the screen suddenly burst into life. The intro had started playing. I gawked at the detail and pixilated beauty that was this masterpiece. Once the beginning animation was over, I still took a moment to gaze at the artwork of the title screen. I was very easily impressed.

Once I had finally finished savoring over every small detail, I selected "New Game", which was the only option available. It took me straight to the personality quiz, which I had been expecting. It asked for my gender, and I chose female, since biologically I was a girl. Then the questions rolled in.

I wanted to be a Vulpix. I needed to be a Vulpix. I was a total and absolute Vulpix obsessed freak just like many other Pokemon fan girls. I had been longing for a long time to finally have a Pokemon game where I could play as a Vulpix, or more so I had been longing for said goal since I had read that you could be a Vulpix in the instruction manual, but that was still a long time for me. Regardless the motive or reasoning behind it, I was going to be a Vulpix, and I wouldn't accept any other.

I answered the questions honestly, or believed I had answered them honestly anyways. The questions seemed never ending. One came in after another, slowly whittling away at my already near run out patience. Just as I thought I couldn't take it anymore, the survey was over. I held my breath, waiting to see what I turned out to be. I hoped and prayed with all of my heart I would be a Vulpix, even though I obviously was one, but every possible bit of help counts. The results came in...

I was a Squirtle.

"Yuck!! A Squirtle?!" Without the slightest bit of hesitation, I reset my DS. I quickly skipped through the intro and title screen, not stopping to admire the art. I instead went straight back to the personality quiz. I answered honestly again, believing that there was some sort of mistake the first time. I just had to be a Vulpix, there was no way I could be anything else. The results came in once more...

I was still a Squirtle.

"There has to be some malfunction in this game or something..." I spoke as though I knew everything, despite how I had only recently learned what the word malfunction even meant. I reset my DS once more, and skipped straight to the personality quiz. I'll just answer everything randomly this time. Let's see if I get a Squirtle then... I grinned like a maniac, thinking this plan was fool proof. I didn't even care about getting a Vulpix any more, I just wanted something different. Getting an Eevee or something would have been nice. I answered randomly, without hardly even looking at the questions, and the results came in for the third time...

Squirtle.

"Forget this!!" I shut off my DS and pouted. It wasn't fair, I finally had a dream game where I could play as my dream Pokemon, but no, "I have to be that ugly, horrible, stupid turtle." I still wasn't going to give up though. I was going to be a Vulpix no matter what. I sat for a moment, thinking about my possible options. That was when it hit me.

"Oh yeah! God, I'm such an idiot." I exclaimed to myself. I raced into the computer room, knocking over more items as I did so. Thankfully the computer was already turned on, I didn't have enough patience to sit through and start it up. I opened the internet, went to the address bar, and typed in humanity's best virtual friend, "Google.com".

"Alright, how to get Vulpix in Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky..." I said aloud to no one in particular. "Enter!" I shouted once I had finally finished typing. I quickly remembered to press the enter key as I did so. I clicked on the first search result. Answer the questions with these answers and you'll get Vulpix as your starter. I sighed in relief as I read the answer to my problems.

I ran back to my room to retrieve my DS, but I was stopped short, "Honey, me and your father are going back to town because someone forgot to get something." My mom called to me from the kitchen. "I said I was sorry-" I heard my dad start to protest but he was cut short, "Will you be alright by yourself for an hour or two?" My mom asked to me. "Yeah sure I'll be fine." I called back and went into my room, DS the only thing on my mind.

"Alright, we'll see you in a little while." I heard the door shut as they left, but I didn't pay any attention. At that moment an asteroid could have collided with Earth and I wouldn't have noticed. I was too focused on answering the questions accordingly to what the internet said and finally getting my Vulpix.

Once I was finished answering the survey, my heart stopped beating for a moment. I waited to see what would happen. I waited. And waited. And waited. Moments turned into seconds, and even into a solid minute. I was starting to get worried that I may have actually somehow broken the game.

I nearly leaped out of my skin when static suddenly burst onto the screen. But as soon as it was there, it was gone. Replacing it was the marvelous icon of a Vulpix. "Yes, yes!!" I shouted victoriously into the air. The call summoned my little Dachshund into the room, barking her heart out. "Oh, Lilly, this is so awesome isn't it?" She yipped in responce, which I took as a yes.

As I walked back to my bed room, the game led me to the next screen where I got to choose my partner. I already knew exactley which one I was going to choose. I selected a male Shinx as I leaped back onto my bed with Lilly jumping up alongside. I named him Shadow, in honor of my beloved Shadow the Luxray on my Pokemon Diamond.

The screen went to black. I squealed thinking of what this game was going to be like. I had no idea what was going to happen. I had gone distincly out of my way to avoid spoilers on the plot and story line. For once I wanted to be surprised and not have any clue what was going to occur while I played.

And I sure as hell was.

The screen stayed black for a few minutes. Then the static came back. "Stupid old DS, I'm going to have to get my dad to get me a new one soon..." After only a few seconds, the static was gone and the game started up. I squealed as the scene started to load.

It was sunset, and my Vulpix was lying on a beach. I didn't think much of it, but my breath suddenly caught in my throat. She was lying in a small pool of blood that was gradually growing larger. When I looked a little closer it looked like she had plenty of bruises and scratches.

I didn't know how to react for a moment. I just kept staring at the screen in shock. I suddenly blurted out, "Yes! Pokemon is going up to the next level!" Ignoring the obvious red flags, I immediately got excited and hyped up. I couldn't wait to see what the rest of the game was going to be like.

A minute passed. I had thought the game was in a cut scene, but apparently it wasn't. I pressed the A button to see if it would trigger anything. Nothing happened. I mashed on more buttons but it still remained the same. I angrily sighed, my patience about to snap.

Suddenly a Shinx started to slowly creep onto the screen, which I assumed was Shadow. Something was very strange about his sprite though. Instead of blue and black, his colors were white and dark grey. "Whoa... our partners get to be a special color!" Blindly accepting that fact, I waited to see what would happen.

A text box appeared for Shadow, "I swear I heard it around here somewhere... No, no, it was just nothing..." He then noticed my Vulpix and appeared shocked, then ran over towards her. It stayed that way for a few moments. Well, what is Shadow going to do..? I pondered to myself.

Suddenly electricity started to spark from Shadow. Another text box appeared for him, "Kill her and make us right, kill her and make us right, kill her and make us right..." He kept repeating the same line over and over to himself as the electrcity grew brighter. Death and blood in a Pokemon game..? I thought to myself, ...Alright!

Suddenly Shadow stopped charging his attack, and shook his head. A text box appeared once more, "No, I can't kill her... There has to be another way... Kill her and this will all be over with... But I can't... Kill her..." He shook his head once more, and started to drag my Vulpix off screen, leaving a trail of blood behind, as it faded to black.

Once the screen had loaded again, much faster than it had been doing, my Vulpix was alone in a dark cave. A camp fire was in front of her, the only thing lighting the desolate room. She slowly stood up and stretched, but then winced in pain and fell back to the floor, shivering.

Shadow walked into the room and walked over towards my Vulpix. He became shocked once he realized she was awake. A text box appeared for him, "Lie down, don't move, don't speak, don't make any sound, breathe as quietly as possible, be absolutely still, or you and me will both regret it. I said stop moving." My Vulpix immediately stopped shivering. Well, Shadow is sure mean. I thought. "I-I'm sorry... Just please don't move... Please... Make us right..." He shook his head. "...Tell me your name. Quietly whisper your name to me. Now. Please be someone else, be someone else, be someone else..."

A screen came up where I could type in my name. "Finally..." I muttered to myself. I typed in the name Myra. I felt proud of myself for thinking of that name all by myself, even though I had probably heard it from somewhere else before. But I didn't really care. I selected enter and the screen faded to black once more. Static suddenly burst back onto the screen. It stayed a little longer than it had before. ...Yep, defiantley getting a new DS. It finally went away, and opened back to the cave.

Myra tilted her head towards Shadow and slowly whispered her name to him. He leaped backwards, shocked, "Myr-" He quickly stopped and regained control of himself, and shook his head. "I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up..." It looked like the icon next to his text box had a tear on it. He stood there and just stared at Myra for a few moments.

She suddenly opened her mouth as if about to speak, but Shadow slammed his paw down on her muzzle. "I told you don't talk." Myra started shivering, as if she was going to cry. "Stop moving, please, she'll hear you... Stop!" He shot a bolt of electricity at Myra, barely missing her. She became as still as a stone.

He watched her for a minute, as if to see if she would move again, and then sat down. His sprite seemed on the verge of crying, "Listen to me... If you want to live, then listen... Make us right..." He suddenly stood up, "She heard." His icon looked worried, then changed to slight relief, "She doesn't know you're here, but she's suspicious... Stay here. I must talk to her." He walked away, but just as he was about to disapear off screen, he turned around, "You better not move while I'm gone." He then exited the cave, which left my character all alone.

I was afraid to press any buttons, afraid that I might accidentally make Myra move. I was scared that something really bad might happen. Shadow had seemed pretty serious about her not doing anything. I got really bored after a few minutes when nothing happened. I assumed that I was supposed to do something, but I didn't know what I could do without moving. I then figured that I had to press the start button, since it was the only thing I could do without moving.

I selected the items option. I wanted to see if my Vulpix got to start out with anything. She had one item. Chains. I selected the info on them, "You found these chains wrapped tightly around your neck. You don't remember how you got them but you can't take them off." It couldn't do anything, so I exited out of it. I looked at all of the other start menu options but none of them held anything of interest.

Once I exited out of the menu and was back in the cave, Myra closed her eyes and looked as if she was asleep. The screen slowly faded to black. I waited for something to happen, but nothing did. A text box suddenly appeared with no icon next to it. "???: Greetings, love." Confused, I pressed the A button, "???: H-Hey... Y-you seem to be in a g-good mood..." "???: Quite. And you know very well why." "???: ..!! I do?!" I assumed that this was a conversation between two people, although I had no idea what they were talking about at all.

"???: Don't be daft, you know very well why.
???: N-No I don't-
???: She's here! Can't you sense her presence..?
???: O-Oh yeah! T-That... Yes, I've sensed her-
???: You have been active lately.
???: Uhh... Yeah...
???: I'm waiting love.
???: Uhm... I-I thought I had found her, bu-
???: She got away from you, didn't she?
???: ..?! Oh, uhm, yeah, I tried to chase her but she got away...
???: It's alright, at least we know she's around here somewhere.
???: Yeah, I'll get her next time...
???: ...Something troubles you.
???: What..? Why do you think that..?
???: Love, it's alright that she got away, I'm honestly not mad. Just be sure to kill her soon. Slaughter her. Show that rat no mercy for stealing our life.
???: I-I will... I will.
???: This is just marvelous. We'll finally be able to live normally, like we were supposed to be...
???: Y-Yeah...
???: ...She's here.
???: Huh? Yeah, we know she's here-
???: She's in the Dungeon.
???: What?! ...S-She is... Th-that ignorant little-
???: L-Love...
???: What is it?
???: D-Don't let her find me... K-Kill her... Please...
???: I will-
???: Kill her and make us right... Please...
???: ...I will. I promise.
???: Thank you... love...
???: ...Love...
???: What?
???: Nothing, just thinking... I must go now...
???: Take care, don't get yourself murdered...
???: I won't... love... love..."

The last text box disapeared, and the screen faded to Myra, except she was standing in the middle of a dungeon. She was standing up, so I walked a step forward, then backwards. Nothing happened. "Alright, finally! I get to actually move!!" Lilly yipped beside me at my sudden remark. I brushed her fur with my hand, calming her down, "It's alright, I'm getting to move! It's a miracle, isn't it?" She barked once more and laid her head down, tired.

I turned my attention back to the game, and started walking around. After a few moments, I started noticing the odd atmosphere about the dungeon. First off, there was no music. Second, the dungeon walls and floor were chalk white with a faint pink tint. I walked around for a while and finally found the stairs.

When I got to the next floor, the pink tint had become slightly darker. After taking a couple of steps, I saw a blood stain on the floor, next to a skull. "Yes!" I whispered to myself, happy that the game was going to continue to have a dark theme to it. After coming across a few more skulls and blood stains I found the stairs.

I went to the next floor. The pink hue had become slightly darker again. When I walked around I found even more skulls and blood stains than before. But what slightly shocked me was that in one corner of a room I found a metal table, with chains and handcuffs on it. In another room was more torture equipment. I was getting a bit uneasy, thinking this may be a bit too much for a Pokemon game. Despite that, I continued onward to the next floor.