In a haze, Luke felt himself "floating" once again. But this time, it was different. He sensed a distinct restraint, as if something was wrapping around him, holding him tight and keeping him immobile.
Luke forced his eyes open, but all he could see was a void. No, that wasn't quite right in this environment, he couldn't even be certain that his eyes were truly open.
A deep sense of unease crept over him. He began struggling, thrashing and straining, until he finally realized what was holding him back.
Water.
It was as if he had been thrown into the deep ocean; every movement resisted by some unseen force. But why was he in water?
Before Luke could figure it out, a blinding light tore through the darkness, causing his vision to vanish once again. In a daze, he glimpsed several figures stepping before him. They tilted their heads upward, looking at him, as if in conversation. Yet though they were less than a meter away, he couldn't hear a single word.
He tried to lunge forward, straining to catch what they were saying, when suddenly a sensation of weightlessness pulled him into a void.
Thud!
His body collided with the floor tiles. The sudden pain snapped his hazy awareness into clarity, sharpening his perception of the world around him.
A piercing alarm, red lights flooding the room if not for the bracelet still on his right wrist, Luke would have wondered if he had been transported again. Struggling to his feet, he realized some sticky substance had clung to his body.
The goo had no odor and was evaporating at a visible rate, turning into wisps of white vapor. Had he not noticed it, it would have vanished entirely within seconds, leaving no trace.
Luke reached out to touch the remnants, but felt nothing but air. When he withdrew his hand to confirm, the sticky residue had already dissipated, leaving only drifting tendrils of vapor.
"What on earth…"
A chill ran down his spine as he stared at the disappearing substance. He touched his bracelet, and the familiar orange jacket reappeared. Finally transformed, Luke felt a sliver of confidence return.
Flames flickered to life in his palms. Sweeping his gaze across the room, he saw nothing besides a massive white oval structure. The front hatch of the white object stood open, like a space pod. Luke pieced together why he had fallen earlier.
But if he had fallen from something that resembled a pod, where was he now? Was he still in the Pokémon world?
After searching the room with no results, he approached a closed door. Before he could steel himself, the door without a handle opened automatically to reveal the outside world.
No blood, no monsters. Just an ordinary corridor. The only unusual detail: under the red emergency lights, the exit signs glowed a dim yellow.
Luke tapped the floor tile in front of the door, hesitated for a moment, then decided to follow the direction indicated by the exit signs.
Rustle.
He had barely taken a few steps when he heard a noise. Already on edge, Luke froze, listening intently.
"Heeheehee…"
This time, in addition to the previous rustling, he heard a faint, intermittent, eerie laugh. Perhaps it was because Luke noticed it, but the laughter grew sharper, clearer, and more distinct.
"Heeheehee…"
The fragmented laugh echoed repeatedly, and on its sixth iteration, Luke finally pinpointed its source.
His heartbeat quickened. Hands trembling, caught between fear and rage, Luke slammed a fist into the wall, igniting his entire body in roaring flames. He charged toward the sound.
"Score! Score… aahhh!!"
At the far end of the corridor, a mischievous little fox holding a burlap sack was about to open the next room when a flaming human smashed through the wall in front of it. Never expecting such a monster in the Human Center, the fox let out a sharp, panicked scream.
"What's wrong? What's wrong? Did you see something…?"
The fox's scream quickly drew attention. A thieving cat, who had once crossed paths with Luke, rushed to assist but froze at the sight of the blazing human. Unlike the paralyzed fox, the cat immediately understood the situation. Snatching the fox by the back of its neck, it turned and ran without hesitation.
Whoosh.
But even the cat couldn't outrun the flames. Before it could leave the corridor, a wall of fire blocked its path.
Cornered, the cat glanced back at the advancing fire-wreathed human, forcing an awkward smile.
"Uh… sir, may I ask what's going on?"
The gaze!
Although the cat didn't dare meet Luke's fiery eyes directly, it could feel a piercing stare fixed on it. Fighting its instinct to bristle, the cat kept its eyes on Luke's feet and tried to appear submissive.
"…Where is this place?"
Looking down at the cat he had encountered before, Luke suppressed the urge to attack. He knew that extracting information from these Pokémon was more important than venting his anger.
"This is the Human Center, sir."
Hearing the reply, the cat hesitated. Initially, it had assumed Luke had come to hinder them, but now it seemed this strange being who didn't even resemble any known Pokémon was unaware of the situation.
Human Center?
Luke mentally substituted "human" with "Pokémon" and finally understood why he had awakened here. The white pod he had seen when he regained consciousness was likely this world's method of restoring humans.
So the situation now was…
Before he could think further, a flash of white light erupted beside him. Alert, Luke swung his arm, stopping a sudden claw just centimeters from his throat.
"Nice work, Granbull!"
Before Luke could react further, the Granbull struck. The thieving cat shed its disguise and lunged at Luke. Its left paw extended, claws stretching half a meter under the white light, aiming for Luke's lower body.
Facing the approaching cat while grappling with Granbull, Luke furrowed his brow and unleashed the flames enveloping his body.
Boom!
Blazing fireballs erupted in front of him, forcing both Granbull and the cat back, while scorching the terrified little fox awake. Without the flames to hide behind, Luke's true form was exposed to all three Pokémon.
"Ah, it's you!"
The little fox, just getting to its feet, screamed again at the sight of the human before it.