Pokémon Dimensions

Sync

Nurse Joy stared blankly at the floor, deep in thought.

"We can't use the emergency release mechanism... and prying it open is out of the question... maybe if..."

"Does any of your pokémon know an electric-type move?" Nurse Joy asked.

"No," the boy replied.

"No... no, I don't believe Ralts is able to learn an electric-type move," Naomi added after some thought.

"Hmm..." Nurse Joy stared at the ground, looking disappointed.

Matthew began brainstorming.

"I may not be able to use an electric-type move, but maybe I can do something else..."

Matthew's eyes began to dart around the room, looking for anything that could be of use. Not seeing anything particularly useful, he sighed in disappointment. Then, he had an idea.

Matthew began to use psychic powers on the doors and attempted to pull them open. The doors showed resistance at first, but eventually, the opening mechanism triggered, and the doors retracted into the wall.

Naomi squealed in delight.

"Ralts, you did it! You're amazing!"

Matthew covered his face in embarrassment because he wasn't ready for the sudden attention.

"Alright, I should get going. Thanks, Nurse Joy! You two take care now," Naomi said.

"You too!" Nurse Joy replied.

Naomi picked up Matthew and continued down the path past the Pokémon Center. Once they had walked a good distance away, Naomi pulled out her phone and opened the town map.

"Alright, where are we... oh! We're almost to Santalune City! That's where we need to go. Alright, Ralts, get back in your pokéball," Naomi said.

Naomi held out Matthew's pokéball and pressed the button in the center, which released a red beam of light torwards Matthew. Panicked, Matthew rolled out of the way.

"No, silly, you're supposed to let it touch you," Naomi said jokingly.

Naomi pressed the button a second time, and again, Matthew dodged it.

"Come on, Ralts, playtime is over, now get back in the ball," Naomi said, starting to sound frustrated.

"Oh no. I don't like this. What if I never get out? What if I get stuck in there? What if she forgets about me?"

Matthew's brain flooded with bad scenarios.

"Oh, I get it now. You're not used to being in a pokéball yet, are you? Don't worry, it's not going to hurt, and you'll be completely conscious through the whole thing," Naomi assured.

Matthew thought for a moment and then braced himself.

"Ready? One... two... three!"

Naomi pressed the button again, and this time Matthew didn't move. His body was sucked into the pokéball and everything went dark.

A moment later, Matthew woke up in a spherical space only twice as big as him. The interior was illuminated with a white light. Matthew reached out to touch it, and the surface was warm.

"So this is what it's like inside a Pokéball... I must've not been inside long enough to experience this last time."

The warmth was relaxing, and Matthew quickly fell asleep.

Some time later, Matthew awoke to Naomi screaming and fast footsteps.

"Is she running from something? What's going on out there?"

Matthew was suddenly released from his cozy enclosure, and when he opened his eyes, he was staring down 5 Ariados all poised to attack. Hiding behind Matthew, Naomi was trembling.

"S-save me... do s-something..." Naomi pleaded.

Without the guidance of his trainer, Matthew stood there motionless, unsure of what to do.

"N-no. I can't rely on others all the time if I'm going to beat the gym leaders. I need to take action, Ralts needs me!" Naomi thought.

One Ariados dashed toward Matthew with a Poison Jab ready.

"Ralts! Quick, use Teleport to get behind it!" Naomi commanded.

Matthew obeyed and teleported behind the Ariados.

"Now, use Confusion!" Naomi commanded.

As quickly as the words left Naomi's mouth, Matthew released a burst of psychic energy and sent the Ariados flying into a tree, knocking it out instantly. Another Ariados burst forth toward Matthew, and he was so stunned by its sudden burst of speed that he couldn't react fast enough.

"Ralts, dodge!" Naomi screamed. As if on instinct, Matthew quickly dodged out of the way without a second thought.

"Is this what it means to be in sync with your trainer?" Matthew thought.

"Ralts, use Confusion again!" Naomi shouted.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Matthew quickly blasted the closest Ariados with Confusion and sent it flying into another one behind it, knocking them both out.

The remaining two Ariados, realizing they bit off more than they could chew, turned tail and fled into some distant foiliage.

Naomi, filled with relief and excitement, scooped up Matthew and pulled him into a hug.

"You did it, Ralts! You did it! You were amazing!" Naomi praised.

Matthew tried his best to cover his face in embarrassment, but this time, he couldn't because his arms were pinned to his sides in the hug. He instead blushed, and after Naomi poked fun at him for a bit, they both continued their journey to Santalune City.