"Huh... Pikachu?"
The man's sleepy voice echoed through the master's bedroom.
For several seconds, neither human nor Pokémon moved.
The Pikachu sitting on his chest stared directly into his eyes.
The man stared back.
Pikachu blinked.
The man blinked.
Pikachu tilted her head.
The man slowly reached out and poked one of Pikachu's cheeks.
Squish.
"..."
Pikachu's cheeks puffed up.
"Pika!"
She immediately released a tiny spark.
"Whoa!"
The man jerked his hand away and nearly fell off the bed.
"Electric!"
Pikachu crossed her little arms and looked offended.
"Pika pika!"
[Don't poke my cheeks without permission!]
The man stared at her.
"...You can talk?"
"Pika?"
[Of course I can talk.]
The man froze.
His eyes widened.
He looked around the room.
Then back at Pikachu.
Then around the room again.
Finally, he pinched his own cheek.
"Ouch."
He pinched harder.
"OW!"
Pikachu looked concerned.
"Pika?"
[Master? Are you alright?]
"Okay."
The man sat down on the edge of the bed.
"Okay..."
He took a deep breath.
"I am either dreaming..."
He looked at Pikachu.
"...or I'm in the Pokémon world."
Pikachu nodded enthusiastically.
"Pikachu!"
[Correct!]
The man immediately fell backward onto the bed.
"..."
Pikachu watched him.
"..."
The man covered his face with both hands.
"This is bad."
"Pika?"
[Bad?]
"This is very bad."
He sat up again.
"Wait."
His eyes suddenly sharpened.
"Pokémon."
He looked at Pikachu.
"Talking Pokémon."
He looked around the enormous room.
"Modern mansion."
He walked toward the balcony.
His eyes widened.
Outside was an enormous garden.
Beyond the garden was a forest.
Beyond the forest...
An ocean.
A gigantic ocean stretching toward the horizon.
And scattered throughout the landscape were Pokémon.
A group of Bulbasaur were watering plants.
A Venusaur was sleeping underneath a giant tree.
Several Pidgey flew overhead.
A Dragonite carried something toward the coastline.
Near the mansion entrance, a massive Golurk stood motionless like a stone guardian.
The man slowly turned around.
"...Where am I?"
"Pika!"
[Home!]
"That's not helpful."
Pikachu hopped onto his shoulder.
"Pikachu."
[You are home now, Master.]
The man's expression became complicated.
"Master?"
"Pika!"
She nodded.
The man pointed toward himself.
"Me?"
"Pikachu!"
[Yes! You!]
"Why?"
Pikachu stared at him as if the answer was obvious.
"You know what?"
The man sighed.
"I don't think I'm going to get an answer anytime soon."
Suddenly—
BOOM!
The mansion shook.
The man nearly fell over.
"What the hell was that?!"
Pikachu immediately jumped onto the floor.
Her expression became serious.
"Pika!"
[Intruders!]
"Intruders?"
Another explosion sounded from outside.
BOOM!
The windows rattled.
The man hurried toward the balcony.
Below, several Pokémon were running toward the mansion.
A group of Blastoise stood near the entrance, water cannons aimed toward the sky.
A few Charizard had taken flight.
The Golurk guarding the entrance raised both arms.
And beyond the forest...
The man saw several helicopters.
"Helicopters?"
He stared.
There were at least five.
Each one carried a large emblem.
A red-and-white sphere.
The Pokémon League.
The man's expression became strange.
"Wait..."
He remembered reading Pokémon fanfiction.
A mysterious island.
A mansion.
Pokémon protecting it.
A League unable to enter.
And now...
He was apparently the owner.
"This is going to be troublesome."
Pikachu nodded.
"Pika pika."
[Very troublesome.]
The man looked at her.
"You understand me?"
Pikachu nodded.
"Pikachu."
[Of course.]
"Then I have another question."
He pointed toward the helicopters.
"Why are they attacking us?"
Pikachu sighed.
"Pika..."
[They've been trying to investigate this island for years.]
"Years?"
[Yes.]
"Why?"
Pikachu pointed toward the computer on the desk.
The man walked toward it.
The monitor automatically turned on.
A map appeared.
It showed an enormous world map.
Several regions were marked.
Kanto.
Johto.
Hoenn.
Sinnoh.
Unova.
Kalos.
Alola.
Galar.
Paldea.
Lental.
Orange Islands.
And numerous smaller islands.
The man stared.
"This is..."
He recognized it immediately.
The world map he'd seen countless times while reading Pokémon stories.
But there was something strange.
A small island was located between several regions.
Four regions seemed particularly close.
Hoenn.
Johto.
Alola.
And the Orange Islands.
A red marker flashed over it.
DIMENSIONAL ISLAND
The man stared at the words.
"Dimensional Island?"
Pikachu nodded.
"Pika."
[That's what humans call it.]
"Humans?"
[The League gave it that name.]
The man rubbed his forehead.
"Okay."
He pointed at the screen.
"Why am I here?"
Pikachu's ears lowered.
"Pika..."
[We don't know.]
"What?"
[The mansion appeared before you did.]
She pointed toward another section of the screen.
A historical timeline appeared.
YEAR 1 — ISLAND APPEARED
YEAR 3 — FIRST HUMAN EXPEDITION
YEAR 5 — FIRST POKÉMON ARRIVALS
YEAR 8 — MANSION DISCOVERED
YEAR 12 — MANSION COMPLETED
YEAR 17 — CURRENT YEAR
The man stared.
"Seventeen years?"
Pikachu nodded.
"Pikapi."
[We've been waiting for seventeen years.]
The man's mouth twitched.
"...For me?"
"Pikachu."
[Yes.]
He became silent.
Seventeen years.
The mansion had existed for seventeen years.
The Pokémon had been waiting for someone.
For him.
"Who built this place?"
Pikachu shook her head.
"No idea?"
"Pika."
[We don't know.]
"Who appointed you?"
Pikachu pointed at herself proudly.
"Pikachu!"
[I appointed myself.]
"..."
The man stared at her.
"You appointed yourself?"
"Pika!"
[Someone had to manage everything.]
He couldn't help but laugh.
"Fair enough."
Suddenly, another explosion shook the mansion.
BOOOOM!
The man looked outside.
A flock of Wingull scattered.
One of the helicopters had fired a projectile.
The projectile struck an invisible barrier surrounding the island.
A massive wave of energy spread across the sky.
The missile disappeared.
The helicopter immediately backed away.
The man's expression hardened.
"They're actually attacking?"
Pikachu nodded.
"Pika."
[They have done so before.]
"How many times?"
Pikachu held up both paws.
Then hesitated.
Then held them up again.
"...You don't have enough fingers."
"Pika."
[Exactly.]
The man sighed.
"So they've been attacking this island for seventeen years."
"Pikachu."
[Trying to force their way inside.]
"And the Pokémon here?"
[Protect the island.]
He looked at the Pokémon outside.
Thousands of Pokémon were gathering.
Not just common Pokémon.
He spotted several extremely powerful species.
Metagross.
Tyranitar.
Salamence.
Dragonite.
Garchomp.
Lucario.
Greninja.
Zoroark.
Even several legendary Pokémon could be seen deeper within the island.
The man's jaw dropped.
"Those are..."
Pikachu smiled.
"Pika."
[They're our friends.]
The man stared.
Then something clicked.
"Wait."
He looked at Pikachu.
"How many Pokémon live here?"
Pikachu pointed toward the computer.
A number appeared.
POKÉMON POPULATION: 12,487
The man's eyes widened.
"TWELVE THOUSAND?!"
"Pika!"
[And that's only the Pokémon currently registered.]
"There's more?!"
"Pikachu."
[Many don't want to be registered.]
The man slowly sat down.
This was ridiculous.
He had gone to sleep in his bedroom.
Now he was apparently the master of a mysterious island inhabited by over twelve thousand Pokémon.
And a Pokémon League was attacking them.
He stared at his hands.
"...Did I get transported into one of those fanfics?"
Pikachu tilted her head.
"Pika?"
[Fan...fic?]
"Never mind."
The man stood.
"Do we have any weapons?"
Pikachu shook her head.
"Pika."
[No.]
"Defensive systems?"
[Yes.]
"How strong?"
Pikachu smiled.
"Pika pika."
[You should see for yourself.]
Outside the Mansion
The League helicopters continued hovering around the island.
Inside one of them, a man wearing a dark uniform stared at the island.
"Status?"
"Barrier remains active, Commander!"
"Any casualties?"
"None."
"Then continue."
The pilot hesitated.
"Commander, we've already attempted this several times."
"And?"
"We have never breached the barrier."
The commander frowned.
"Today is different."
"Why?"
The commander looked toward the mansion.
"Because the energy reading changed."
The pilot looked at the scanner.
"What?"
"The island's energy output increased by nearly three hundred percent."
"Could it be an attack?"
"No."
The commander narrowed his eyes.
"It's a person."
"A person?"
"Something appeared inside the mansion."
The entire helicopter fell silent.
For seventeen years, the mansion had remained empty.
Pokémon lived there.
Pokémon maintained it.
But no human had ever been accepted as its master.
Until today.
"Send the report to the League."
"Yes, sir."
"And prepare the capture team."
The pilot hesitated.
"Capture team?"
"We're going inside."
Back at the Mansion
The man followed Pikachu downstairs.
As soon as he entered the main hall, dozens of Pokémon stopped what they were doing.
Everyone stared at him.
A Chansey dropped a tray.
A Mr. Mime froze.
A Machoke stopped carrying a box.
Several Eevee peeked from behind a couch.
Then—
One Pokémon approached.
A Blissey.
She slowly walked toward him.
Her eyes were filled with tears.
"Blissey..."
She hugged him.
The man stiffened.
"Uh..."
Blissey began crying.
"Blissss..."
Pikachu smiled.
[She's happy.]
The man awkwardly patted Blissey's head.
"It's okay."
Another Pokémon approached.
Then another.
Then another.
Within seconds, the entire hall was filled with Pokémon.
Some cried.
Some cheered.
Some simply stared.
A Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder.
An Eevee hugged his leg.
A Riolu grabbed his hand.
The man looked around.
For the first time in his life...
He didn't feel alone.
He smiled.
"...I guess I'm home."
The mansion suddenly became silent.
Then—
"Pika!"
"Blissey!"
"Riolu!"
"Eevee!"
The Pokémon erupted into celebration.
Outside, Pokémon began cheering as well.
The sound traveled throughout the island.
The man couldn't help laughing.
Then Pikachu suddenly jumped onto his head.
"Pika pika!"
[Master has finally returned!]
"Returned?"
The man looked at her.
"What do you mean returned?"
Pikachu froze.
Her ears lowered.
"...Pika."
[We don't know.]
The man frowned.
"What?"
[The mansion recognizes you.]
She pointed toward the ceiling.
A strange symbol appeared above them.
The symbol looked like a combination of a Poké Ball and an unknown ancient glyph.
The entire mansion began glowing.
A voice suddenly echoed through the hall.
"Master authentication confirmed."
The man's eyes widened.
"What?"
"Dimensional Island Administrator identified."
"Primary authority transferred."
"Welcome home, Administrator."
The man stared.
Pikachu stared.
Every Pokémon stared.
Then another message appeared.
"WARNING."
"Dimensional instability detected."
"Multiple spatial tears approaching."
"Estimated arrival: 72 hours."
The man slowly looked at Pikachu.
"...What does that mean?"
Pikachu's expression became serious.
"Pika..."
[It means...]
The mansion shook.
Far away, lightning flashed across a clear sky.
Pikachu looked toward the ocean.
[Something is coming.]
The man swallowed.
"How bad?"
Pikachu looked back at him.
"Pikachu."
[Very.]
A massive roar suddenly echoed from somewhere beyond the island.
ROOOOOOOAR!
Every Pokémon in the mansion froze.
Even the strongest Pokémon outside turned toward the sea.
The man stared through the window.
Far beyond the horizon...
The ocean was splitting apart.
A gigantic rift was opening in the sky.
And something was moving inside it.
The man sighed.
"I've been here for less than an hour."
He looked at Pikachu.
"And already the apocalypse is coming."
Pikachu smiled awkwardly.
"Pika."
[Welcome home, Master.]
The man covered his face.
"...I should've stayed asleep."