Julian woke up slowly, fighting his way out of unconsciousness like he was swimming through thick mud.
Everything was dark. Not just normal dark—really dark. The kind of absolute blackness that pressed in on you from all sides, making it hard to breathe, making your chest feel tight.
For a horrible moment, panic seized him completely.
Am I dead? Is this what death is? Just... nothing? Forever?
His lips trembled. When he tried to speak, his voice came out as a dry, cracked whisper. "Is this hell?"
The words echoed slightly in the enclosed space, which only made things worse. He felt like he was floating in a void, untethered from everything.
But then—wait. The system. He could still feel it. That familiar presence in the back of his mind, the interface he could pull up if he concentrated.
Julian's racing thoughts stumbled. Hold on. If I'm dead, why is the system still here?
That didn't make sense. Unless...
He tried moving his fingers experimentally. They responded. He could feel them flexing, could feel the rough texture of dirt beneath his palms. His body felt warm, solid, real.
I'm alive. Holy crap, I'm actually alive.
The realization hit him like a bucket of cold water, and suddenly everything clicked into place.
"The burrow," Julian muttered, his voice still rough. "I'm in the burrow. That's why it's dark. The entrance is blocked."
Relief washed over him, so intense it almost made him dizzy. But right on its heels came confusion.
Because he'd been dying. He remembered that clearly. The poison spreading through his system, his vision going blurry, consciousness slipping away. He'd been absolutely certain he was done for.
So why did he feel... fine? Better than fine, actually. Energized.
"What the hell happened?" Julian whispered, eyes staring into the darkness. He tried to remember the moments before he'd passed out.
There had been pain. Overwhelming poison. The certainty of death. And then... something else. A surge of something from deep inside him. Not panic—something stronger than that. A raw, desperate need to survive.
And with it, energy. Strange energy that had felt warm and powerful and completely foreign.
That's what healed me. That energy. But what was it? Where did it come from?
Julian closed his eyes—not that it made much difference in the pitch black—and tried to sense what was going on inside his body.
At first, there was nothing. Just the normal feeling of being alive—heartbeat, breathing, blood moving through veins. Nothing unusual.
Maybe I imagined it. Maybe it was just adrenaline or something, and I got really lucky with the poison?
But even as the thought formed, Julian knew it was wrong. What had happened was way beyond luck.
He was about to give up when—there.
Just for a split second, he felt it. A flicker of something moving through him, like a shooting star glimpsed from the corner of your eye. The energy was still there, somewhere deep inside, just dormant.
It felt ancient, somehow. Powerful. And underneath everything else was this sense of vitality, like pure concentrated life force.
The brief contact with it made Julian feel inexplicably peaceful. Calm. Safe.
Okay. So it's real. Now... can I control it?
Carefully, hesitantly, Julian reached for that energy with his mind. He had no idea what he was doing, but he tried anyway—visualizing it, willing it to respond.
To his shock, it actually worked.
The energy stirred, then began to move. Slowly at first, then with more confidence, it circulated through his body. It followed his mental commands like an obedient Pokemon, flowing wherever he directed it.
And everywhere it went, Julian felt good. The lingering exhaustion from the near-death experience melted away. The stiffness in his muscles disappeared. Even the dull ache in his chest—something he'd lived with for so long he'd stopped noticing it—vanished completely.
"So that's what saved me," Julian breathed. His heart was pounding, but not from fear this time. From excitement. From possibilities he couldn't even begin to process. "Is this... is this another cheat? Did I just unlock some kind of power?"
He had no idea where it came from or what its limits were. But it had pulled him back from death, and that was enough for now.
Julian sat there in the darkness for a moment, just letting the reality sink in. He'd survived. Against all odds, after making the stupidest mistake of his life, he'd actually—
His eyes snapped open.
"Sandshrew!"
The name tore out of his throat, sharp with sudden panic. How could he have forgotten? Sandshrew had been hurt too—badly hurt, way worse than Julian.
Oh god, please let him be okay.
Julian's hands scrambled frantically in the darkness, searching for his backpack. His fingers finally found the familiar canvas material and he yanked it toward him, nearly dumping the contents everywhere as he ripped open the zipper.
Where was it, where was it—
His fingers closed around the flashlight. He flicked it on.
Light flooded the small burrow, harsh and bright after the absolute darkness. Julian's eyes watered, but he ignored it, sweeping the beam around desperately.
There.
Sandshrew lay curled up against the far wall, maybe six feet away.
Julian's heart dropped.
His partner looked terrible. Sandshrew's normally smooth tan fur was matted with dried blood in ugly dark patches. The wounds from the Beedrill stingers covered his body—shoulders, back, sides, everywhere. Some of them were still oozing slightly.
Sandshrew's chest rose and fell rapidly, his breathing labored and uneven. With each inhale, his whole body trembled from the effort. His eyes were squeezed shut, his face—if you could call it that—twisted in pain even in unconsciousness.
"No. No no no..." Julian crawled over, his own body forgotten. His hands hovered over Sandshrew, afraid to touch him and cause more pain. His vision blurred as tears welled up. "This is my fault. God, Sandshrew, I'm so sorry. I was greedy and stupid and I did this to you."
His voice cracked on the last words.
Julian forced himself to take a shaky breath and think. Panicking wouldn't help. He needed to figure out what to do.
Okay. Assess the situation. We're deep in Viridian Forest, outer ring. Most wild Pokemon here are around level 20, nothing too crazy, but...
But that was when Sandshrew was healthy and protecting him. The system's scanning ability had let them avoid the really dangerous Pokemon, and Sandshrew had handled everything else.
Now? Sandshrew was unconscious and critically wounded. And Julian was just a human with no real combat ability. The wild Pokemon out there would tear him apart.
I can't leave him here and go for help. I'd never make it.
But staying wasn't an option either. Sandshrew's wounds needed proper treatment—actual medical care, not the basic first aid Julian could provide. Every minute they stayed in this hole, Sandshrew got closer to dying.
Julian felt his chest tighten with self-loathing.
He'd lived in this world for years now, but most of that time had been in safe cities. He'd underestimated how dangerous the wilderness actually was. The system had made everything too easy at first, letting him avoid threats, letting him get complacent.
And then he'd gotten greedy. Seen the Beedrill hive and thought, just this once, just a quick grab, and look where that had gotten them.
If I hadn't awakened that power, I'd be dead right now. We both would be.
The thought made him shudder. They'd gotten incredibly, impossibly lucky.
If—when—we get out of here, I'm never being that reckless again. Never.
Julian looked down at his backpack, at the supplies he'd brought. He had some healing items—basic Potions he'd made himself, a few Antidotes (fat lot of good they did him now), some bandages.
The Potions might help, but they were low-grade. Good enough for minor injuries, scratches from battles, that sort of thing. For injuries this severe? They'd barely make a dent. Maybe buy Sandshrew a few more hours at best.
"What do I do?" Julian muttered, running his hands through his hair hard enough to hurt. He started pacing in the tiny space—three steps one way, turn, three steps back. His shoes scraped against the dirt floor. Sweat dripped down his forehead despite the cool underground air. "Come on, think. There has to be something."
His eyes kept going back to Sandshrew's unconscious form.
And then—an idea. A crazy idea, but at this point, what choice did he have?
"The energy," Julian whispered. "My new power. It healed me. Maybe..."
He stared at Sandshrew, his heart pounding.
Does it only work on me? Or can I use it on others? On Pokemon?
He had absolutely no idea. The power was brand new; he barely understood it himself. Trying to use it on Sandshrew could do nothing. Or it could make things worse somehow.
But what was the alternative? Watch Sandshrew slowly die in front of him?
Julian clenched his fists, jaw tight with determination.
"Screw it. We're out of options anyway."
He moved closer to Sandshrew and carefully, gently placed his hands on his partner's injured body. Sandshrew's skin felt hot to the touch—probably fighting an infection from the poison.
Okay. The energy. I could feel it inside me before. I made it move. So maybe I can... push it out? Direct it into Sandshrew?
Julian closed his eyes and reached for that mysterious power again.
It responded immediately, flowing toward his awareness like it had been waiting. The warmth filled him, that same ancient, vital energy.
Now comes the hard part. Please work. Please.
Julian concentrated, visualizing the energy moving down his arms, through his hands, into Sandshrew. He imagined it flowing like water, like electricity, like light—anything that might help him direct it.
For a long moment, nothing happened.
Then his hands started to glow.
Julian's eyes snapped open in shock. A soft golden light emanated from his palms, exactly where they touched Sandshrew's body. The light spread slowly, carefully, seeping into the wounds and matted fur.
Holy crap. It's working. It's actually working!
Julian held his breath, afraid to move, afraid to break whatever was happening. The energy continued to flow from him into Sandshrew, carrying that sense of life and healing with it.
He could only hope it was enough.
Show Some Supports By Giving Powerstones
Next BONUS CHAPTER at 100 powerstones