Voices cut through the swamp's hush—urgent, approaching. Erick tensed, scooping Mudkip up and grabbing a jagged stick from the mud. Figures emerged from the mist: men and women in green uniforms, faces lined with fatigue, and an older man in a white coat, gray hair tousled. Erick froze. Professor Oak—unmistakable, a figure from the games, now flesh and blood.
"—not just a storm," a Ranger muttered, nudging a charred plank. "Something hit this place hard."
"It was a bird," Erick called, voice rough as he stood, Mudkip cradled close. "Huge, electric. Wings like lightning. It tore everything apart." Zapdos, he thought, but kept it locked away, gauging their reactions.
The older man approached, concern etching his features. "Electric? Rare for Hoenn. Are you alright, lad? What's your name?"
"Erick," he said, claiming it over Kaito's echo. "I'm fine. This is my Mudkip."
"I'm Samuel Oak," the man replied, eyeing Mudkip briefly before meeting Erick's gaze. "A researcher. These Rangers and I were tracking disturbances when we found this. You're the only one left."
Erick swallowed, the reality sinking in. "Yeah. Everyone else… dead."
Oak's hand landed on his shoulder, firm and warm. "Come with us. My lab's in Pallet Town, Kanto. You need shelter, and we need to understand this."
Erick glanced at the ruins—Kaito's life, now ash and silence. Nothing remained but Mudkip and a chance he couldn't waste. He followed the Rangers to a helicopter beyond the trees, its rotors slicing the damp air. Climbing in, Mudkip nestled against him, the chopper rose, lifting them above Hoenn's scarred expanse.
The landscape shrank below—charred swamp yielding to patches of green, a shift from loss to faint hope. Erick stared out, mind churning. Zapdos—he'd known it the instant those memories struck, but he'd hold it close for now, unsure who might wield such knowledge here. Oak seemed steady, a potential guide, but this world demanded caution.
Oak shifted beside him, voice low beneath the rotor's hum. "You're handling this better than most could," he said. "That kind of ruin… it stays with you."
Erick met his eyes, sensing a quiet strength. "No choice. It's done. I'm still here."
Oak nodded, a shadow crossing his face. "I know that feeling. I've seen what legendary birds can do—lived it. Years ago, I lost my children to one. Moltres." His voice cracked faintly. "We were researching in Johto. It struck without warning—fire everywhere. I couldn't save them."
Erick stiffened. Moltres—another Gen 1 legend, a fiery specter here, not just a game sprite. "That's awful," he said, voice low. "I'm sorry."
"Thank you," Oak murmured. "It's a wound that doesn't heal, but you keep going. For those still here." He glanced at Mudkip, then back. "That bird you saw… electric?"
"Yeah," Erick said, measured. "Big, wild. Like a storm with wings." Zapdos, he thought, but stayed silent.
Oak's brow creased. "Might be Zapdos. Not native to Hoenn, but legendaries roam where they please. If so, you're lucky to be breathing."
"Lucky," Erick repeated, the word bitter. He tightened his grip on Mudkip, its calm grounding him. Oak's pain echoed his own—not the crash, but the village, Kaito's kin, now his to carry. A silent thread linked them.
The chopper droned on, hours blurring as Hoenn gave way to Kanto's softer hills. Erick watched the shift outside, ruin yielding to peace, a lifeline pulling him forward. He leaned back, Mudkip's weight steadying him, and reflected. This world was a mystery—dark, unforgiving, but his now. "I'll learn it," he whispered to himself, resolve hardening. "How it works, what it takes. I'll grow strong enough to survive here—and thrive in this new chance."
The helicopter touched down in Pallet Town as dusk settled. Erick stepped out, boots sinking into soft earth, and trailed Oak to a sprawling lab, its worn walls whispering of hidden depths. Inside, the air was warm, tinged with ink and steel. Oak gestured to a cot in a side room. "Sleep here tonight. Tomorrow, we'll talk—figure out what's next."
Erick set Mudkip on the cot, the Pokémon curling up with a quiet ease. He sank beside it, exhaustion crashing in. The lab hummed softly around them, a haven after the chaos. Zapdos lingered in his mind, a riddle to chase, but not now. Tonight, he'd rest, gather himself, and brace for whatever this world threw next.