Trainer Andrew ♂, Day 48: Horizons

I woke up in a cold sweat, my body aching, patches of hair missing, and dried blood all over my clothes.  Those Metapods had beaten me savagely throughout the night, probably stopping when it seemed that I had died.  My body felt broken.  Worse though, they had wrecked my spirit.  These hallowed halls of wooden torment thrashed me within an inch of my life, and now I could see no light at the end of the tunnel.  Surely, I thought, it is my lot to die here, bleeding into the grass.  All the faces of those I knew flashed before me.  My friends, my family… my lovers; all swarmed before my eyes as I awaited the sweet release of death to take me away. 

Just then, a voice sounded that echoed throughout the forest, stirring me from my drifting haze. 

“ANDREW!”  The voice spoke in a deep bass which melted in the ears like warm honey.  “Turn your eyes to me.”

Peering around the dark woods, I couldn’t find a living soul.  Even the smallest Weedles were nowhere to be seen.  I surmised that my mind was only playing tricks on me, a product of being starved and dehydrated for days on end. 

“Look up!”  It boomed again, and I heaved my body over to face the sky.  There, drawn out upon the black canvas of midnight in a million shimmering stars were two large eyes and great, Cheshire smile.  I gasped when I saw the thing, my breath literally taken away before it.  The shape in the sky introduced itself, “Andrew, I am your spirit Pokémon, the very projection of your true self in pokémon form.”

I asked the face what figure was my soul; what shape was it that, when a mirror was held up, reflected back all of my true intentions, my emotions, my being? 

“I am the noblest of pokémon: the long tail pokémon Aipom.”

My mind tried to piece this together.  An Aipom?  That’s the reflection of my soul?  What I am deep down?  An Aipom, with the grabbing tail and everything?  Not an Ambipom even?

“Yes!” The voice rocked my core with its strength.  “You, Andrew, are an Aipom.”

I silently cursed under my breath and bid the thing to carry on.  Clearly it could read my thoughts, it being an extension of myself. 

“Andrew,” it continued “you have strayed from your path, your true self.  Look at you, covered in blood and earth, scared by a few measly shells!”  Before I could begin about the destructive attributes of Metapods, the Aipom cut me off.  “Three days now you have been in this forest, but I am here to tell you that your journey needn’t end here, you will make it out of this place alive.  But, before you do, you must accept yourself.”

I nodded before that manifestation of my inner mind splayed out across the sky.  “You are a pokémon trainer.  Why have you abandoned this?”  My gaze fell down as I glanced at the poke balls hanging from my belt, alone and unused.  A wave of guilt gripped my stomach.  “It is your destiny.  One day, you will be known as the greatest trainer who ever lived!”

My thought escaped me again.  Unlikely.  I can’t live up to the Cool Trainer name. 

“That, Andrew, is because you are not a Cool Trainer.”

The urge to shout out at the glowing face gripped me tight.  Not a Cool Trainer?  Of course I’m a Cool Trainer!

“No.  There is more to you.  But you must find that on your own.  I can only show you the path, you must walk down it alone.  Also, do not let the weight of your past hamper your journey.  Carry the load, but do not be crushed beneath it.  Everyone can start anew, and it is up to you to never fall into the evils you previously allowed.” 

I understand.  Tears began to form in my eyes, though not ones of sadness.  These were of hope, of happiness; these tears were the pouring over of my soul in exaltation at realizing the fire within me. 

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.  Go Andrew, Lickitung is waiting.”  And with that, the stars all scattered back across the sky, illuminating the shadows of the forest.  I thanked the Aipom within me silently, gracing the stillness with a gentle prayer.

There it was, right before me!  A tunnel of light beaming out to me, its white heat wrapping tight around my body and holding me in the sweet rapture of glory as I limped towards it.  And then, as I came out of the forest, before me was my goal: Viridian City. 

Beware world, I am Trainer Andrew ♂, and I AM AN AIPOM!

VICTORY,
Trainer Andrew ♂

P.S.  Just discovered some powder on my upper lip.  I must have relapsed without realizing.  It won’t happen again.