The road from Pewter to Mount Moon was quiet.
Too quiet.
No wild Pokémon. No trainers. Just fog that clung to the ground like static and an occasional flicker in the sky, as if this world was still buffering.
Even the Cobblemon system was acting up. Menus slowed. Pokémon info screens pulsed with faint red outlines. The deeper I got, the more the system resisted visibility.
But I didn't turn back.
I couldn't.
Location: Mount Moon – Outer ThresholdStatus: Node Interference HighWarning: Core-level Anomaly Detected Beneath Caverns
I reached the mouth of the cave just as night fell. A blue shimmer covered the entrance like a veil visible only through my HUD.
Passage Requires System-Synced Pokémon
Requirement Met – Kirlia [Glitchborn] & Charmander [Cobblecore Sync: 12%]
Access Granted.
The barrier flickered and let me in.
Inside, Mount Moon wasn't how I remembered it.
Gone were the dimly lit tunnels and simple zubat ambushes. These caves pulsed with soft blue code-light, and the rock walls were veined with glowing data strands. Occasionally, textures popped out, replaced by the old-school Cobblemon block forms but only for me.
To everyone else, this was still "Mount Moon."
But I saw the truth.
At one point, I found a stone tablet buried beneath broken rubble. It shimmered when I touched it.
Fragment Memory Unlocked: "Project Echo Origin"
There were once two worlds organic and digital. In an ancient catastrophe, five anchors were created to bridge the collapse. The Pokémon world survived… but fragments of the digital realm were embedded into it, buried under reality like rot under fresh paint.
You were born from that fracture.
I reeled back. Me?
Before I could process it, the cavern rumbled.
Boss Encounter: Ancient Dataform Detected
Initializing System Avatar…
From the depths rose a figure: not a Pokémon, but a hybrid.
Towering. Silver-gray like Porygon-Z fused with Registeel. Its limbs were blocky, but only I saw them that way. To anyone else, this was probably a mythical titan.
DATA TITAN: CODEX-GOLEM [Lv. 25] – Origin Avatar
Type: ???Status: Anomaly Core GuardianObjective: Test the User
"Test... me?"
I swallowed. Then smiled.
"Alright then."
BATTLE: Codex-Golem (Origin Form)
The fight was like nothing before.
Every time I used a move, Codex-Golem rewrote part of the battlefield. When Kirlia used Signal Pulse, it split into mirror copies that struck herself.
Charmander tried Flame Wheel but had its flame converted into digital fire, which only tickled the boss.
System Alert: Battle Logic Scrambled – User must Adapt
New Feature Unlocked: CODE BIND – Temporarily rewrite move effects
I dove into the interface.
Rewriting: Signal Pulse → "Memory Break"Effect: Shatters enemy status buffs and stuns if Glitch-type present
Kirlia's next hit froze the titan mid-move.
Charmander's Sync bar hit 100%.
Sync Triggered – Evolution Path: Custom Detected
Would you like to evolve Charmander into "Charbit" – a Cobblemon-exclusive form?
[YES]
The light erupted and out stepped Charbit, a polygonal Charmeleon variant with pixel armor plating and glowing blue eyes.
Charbit – Lv. 17Type: Fire / DataNew Move: Firewall Crash – Blocks status effects and damages glitch-type foes
With a final combo between Kirlia's Memory Break and Charbit's Firewall Crash, the Codex-Golem groaned and collapsed into pure code.
Victory: Node 4 Stabilized. World Integrity: 75%
Core Memory Acquired – Accessing...
The world around me froze.
Then
A vision. Of me. Before this world. Hooked into some kind of VR pod. My body was motionless, but I could hear someone's voice whispering:
"Find the fifth. Then wake up."
I gasped.
System Message: Final Anchor Detected – Location: Lavender TownNode 5 – "The Lost Tower"
The truth lies with the dead... and the forgotten code.
As I left Mount Moon, the skies above shifted slightly like the world noticed I was getting closer.
Only one Anchor remained.
One truth.
And whatever was waiting in Lavender Town?
It wasn't just watching anymore.
It was calling.