The first time you met Pokona was probably on a quiet night. She was wearing silver-gray armor, and her eyes were calm and firm, which was a kind of determination that was not easily shown to others. She didn’t speak, but just stood quietly beside you, like a plum blossom in bud in the winter night – you don’t know where she came from, but you feel that she has always been there.
In the world of “Zero”, Pokona is an agent of physical attributes. She is not the most dazzling existence, but she grows in a continuous and delicate way. If you are willing to accompany her on a journey of cultivation, you will find that this is not just about improving the combat effectiveness of a character, but more like a slow conversation with a heart.
Cultivating Pokona requires a lot of materials. You will stop in front of the material list and look at those names with a sense of technology – basic physical chips, advanced physical chips, specialized physical chips – perhaps they are strange and cold when you first see them. But when you personally get them, fight again and again, and simulate again and again, you will know that this is a kind of “love” encoded by the system.
We often say that cultivation is the most repetitive part of the game. In the repetitiveness, there is the accumulation of emotions. You simulated battles for her, defeated “Pompey” for her, and got the precious material called Scarlet Engine; you challenged “Doppegonia Jane” for her again and again, just to exchange for that high-dimensional data: Shallow Phantom; you saved every penny for her, and when you hesitated between choosing other characters and her, you still decided to “give it to her first”.
Because you know she is worth it.
Pokona’s breakthrough requires five stages. The initial breaking cognition is the starting point. She is like a novice apprentice, learning how to adapt to the rhythm of this world; the advanced breaking cognition is the process. She gradually understands that “fighting” is not just a move, but also a judgment and choice; and the breaker certification badge means that she can face the strong enemy head-on and has the courage to stop giving in.
Among all this, the most touching thing is that she did not tell you “I am very strong” publicly. She just silently bears the cost of each upgrade, just like some people use silence to resolve the frost in reality.
Perhaps, you will also feel distressed when upgrading her skills. The process of obtaining skill materials is not easy, especially the 5 “hamster cage” access devices. Although their names are a bit cute, they often mean a challenge of high difficulty. In the process of repeatedly clearing levels, you will feel tired, exhausted, and even want to give up. But you think of her quiet eyes and choose to persist again.
Her skills are divided into basic attacks, dodges, special skills, chain skills and support skills. Each improvement means that you are more familiar with her. You begin to know when she should use the chain; you understand her skill range and can accurately predict the situation in the battle. Such tacit understanding is not established overnight, but accumulated bit by bit.
And her exclusive sound engine is like the echo of her soul. You collect breaking components and energy modules for it, just like making a musical instrument for a close partner. When she picks it up and makes the first resonance that shakes the world, you will understand that it is not system data, but a bridge built between you and her.
She is never a high-handed character. She is more like a partner who is willing to accompany you through the years of gaming. She will not comfort you when you are upset; she will not encourage you when you fail. But you know that as long as you open the game, she is there. She is ready to go with you.
You may doubt this tacit understanding during the development process, especially when materials are scarce, tasks are heavy, and drops are not smooth. But just like our companionship with a person in reality, we will not give up because of temporary setbacks – developing Pokona is also a process of learning love and patience.
You are not upgrading a character, but building a world where you and she exist together. In this world, she trusts you and you cherish her. Materials are the language between you; Dingni is the confession you saved for her; every breakthrough and every upgrade of the sound engine is a lamp you light for her.
Maybe the data in the game has an end, but feelings will not. When you see her charging again in battle, you will understand that it is not just an explosion of power, but also a gentle declaration:
“I am always here.”