Chapter 1

I put my paw up to the stone tablet. It was here, clear as day. There was a human girl of teenage age with purple hair, slowly turning into a shinx. She battled legendary after legendary with two powerful pokemon at her side. She was fearless, elegant, and powerful. There was nothing that could stop her. The only thing that seemed able to challenge her was a bloody red snowflake that had already knocked away her diamond armor and eliminated her friends until she was only and powerless. It was then her human form returned and she and the mighty foe battled.

There was no doubt, this purple-haired woman was me. I had been trapped in the body of a shinx to carry out a prophecy long since told in the pokemon world. The pokemon around me saw the prophecy and began to bow, one by one, row after row, until the whole clearing was filled with bowing pokemon. I looked to them, tears in my eyes. Yet none of them consoled me. And why should they? I was the hero, the savior of the pokemon world. This world was going to die unless someone protected it.

And that someone was me.

Zakuro, the human in shinx form.

Bright lights started flashing. A storm in the background started rumbling, shaking the earth beneath my feet. I was knocked into the air by a strong gust of wind, stopped only when the warm and familiar hand of someone grabbed mine. I tightened my grip on them, but the rain made our hands slippery. We began to slip.

"Don't let go!" he shouted. "Please! I can't lose you like this! Please, Zakuro, please don't let go!" I held onto him tighter. I had to keep holding on. This couldn't be happening. This can't be the end.

Our grip had just become firm when a bolt of lightning struck between us. Our hands separated and I was pulled into a dark void. A scream escaped me. The last thing I remember was a bright light before being knocked unconscious.

Ngh… It was hot. The sun was beating down on me without mercy. It was like I had been placed in a big oven. It was annoying. Sweat was beginning to drip down my sides. There was a breeze, though. It was cool and calm, enough to keep the temperature manageable. Leaves, I could hear them rustling. Butterfrees were singing nearby. Beedrills buzzed past me. A flock of pidoves passed overhead, chirping in conversation. It was so peaceful.

I tried to open my eyes. Nothing. I was stuck lying here until I was able to move. It wasn't that bad. The grass was soft, the air sweet, and the pokemon distant. There was no chance of being attacked by them. Everything was calm, I doubted any of them would be up for a battle with me.

Wait, what pokemon did I have again?

…

What? I couldn't remember? That couldn't be right. What kind of trainer forgets what pokemon they have? But how many were there? Was there a full team? Just one? My mind drew a blank. What in the world?

Wait. What was I doing here? Where am I? What happened?

…

A bright light, a storm, and someone calling my name. Who was it? They were… their name was… oh no. Had I been hit too hard on the head?

There was no memory of mine at all!

Calm down. Calm down. Who was I? Zakuro. My name is Zakuro. Ok, that's a start. What am I? I'm a girl, about eighteen. My hair… my hair color is… um… nevermind. Next question. Where am I from?

…

Ok, so now I was starting to panic.

Don't panic, don't panic. Let's just take a second to breathe. Maybe sitting and thinking will jog my memory. Maybe I hit my head on something. Maybe I was dreaming. Maybe it was all just a dream. That was comforting. A dream. I'd wake up and everything would be fine. I'd be back at home-

"Hey," someone whispered. I felt a poke in my side. Did they just poke me with a furry stick? No, that felt like a paw. Weird… I thought it just spoke- "Are you alright? You've been lying there for a while."

"Ngh…" I mumbled. My body was coming to. Slowly, ever so slowly, my eyes began to open. The sun was blinding. Tears started welling from the sight. The person that had been talking to me leaned above me, blocking the sun temporarily.

What an oddly shaped head. It looked like they had cat ears and some sort of funky ear hair. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was a fennekin. But that's impossible. Well, it was until my sight cleared and it became obvious that the person above me was indeed a pokemon: a fennekin. Well, it's good to know I at least remembered what pokemon were.

"You alright?" the fennekin spoke. "You look pale."

I froze. Then I shot right up onto my feet.

"Waaah!" I shouted. The fennekin looked startled and backed away, holding up a paw for me to calm down. My head was racing. A talking pokemon? Why? How? My eyes darted around the area.

A forest. I was in a forest. That was to be expected, it's what I had heard before. But… how did I get here? More importantly, why was there a talking pokemon? She looked startled, afraid even. I relaxed slightly.

"Calm down, girl," she whispered. "Nothing gonna hurt you here, ok? You must've fainted or something."

Right, that must've been it. I fainted. Seems right. My memory will come back soon then. Right? Please?

"Here." The fennekin held up an oran berry that she plucked from a nearby bush. "This should help you for now, if you lost any health." She approached me slowly, as if I was going to attack her. When she was close enough, she set the berry in front of me. Slowly, I reached down and picked it up.

Wow, if I didn't know any better, it looked as if my hands had become paws.

Both my hands.

And my feet.

…?

"You look sort of dirty," the fennekin whispered. "C'mon, there's a puddle over here. You can wash up." A puddle. not my ideal sort of bathing, but it would have to do. I started following her. Sooner or later I'd be back in a city of some sort. Then I can get someone to see if they know who I am. Maybe-

I looked down at the puddle the fire pokemon had lead me to.

Huh?

I blinked, looked right and left, then paled.

Oh sweet Arceus.

I was a shinx. I had turned into a pokemon.

"Waaah!" I shouted again, rearing up on my back legs and immediately falling into another puddle, which I squirmed hard to free myself from. I had lost all sense of direction in my sudden surprise that I found myself stuck on my back, the water lapping at my sides. My eyes turned to swirls and the world started spinning around me.

A dream.

That's what this was.

I was in a dream.

Please, just be a dream.

The same fennekin that had lead me to the puddle leaned over me again.

"I wouldn't recommend cleaning yourself that way," she said, "but I guess electric pokemon have a different way of going about things, I guess." I sat up right away and landed on all fours.

"You gotta help me!" I exclaimed. Wow, that was my voice? It wasn't what I remembered. "I'm lost. One moment there was… then… I was…" The fennekin tilted her head, not following. I hit my head on the dirt and covered my ears. Tears started welling up in my eyes. "I can't even remember how I got here…"

"Hey there," she said, nudging me with her warm paw. "It's alright. I'll help you find your way back."

"You… you don't understand," I whispered. "I can't remember anything. I can't remember what happened." Fennekin nudged me to my feet again. She was smiling softly.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," she assured. "Don't worry. Now, did you have any friends of yours that you remember?" I paused.

"N-no… I'm… I'm a human." Now Fennekin looked utterly confused. She circled me, taking in every part of my body to see if there was any irregularity, any clues to see if I was bluffing or not. Now I looked like an idiot. This pokemon wasn't going to believe me. "I-I swear. I was a human a moment ago! It's crazy I know, but-"

"I believe you," the fennekin said.

"Huh?" She smiled warmly.

"Don't worry 'bout it, girl. I know you're telling the truth." There was a pause. "You don't seem like the kind of person who would lie. I saw you fall from the sky a moment ago. Nobody else did, but I did. It's a miracle you didn't fully faint from it, actually. you must be pretty tough."

…

This… this pokemon believed me.

I fell from the sky?

I… I can't remember anything.

"I suppose a proper introduction is needed." She bowed her head. "I'm Zyla. It's a weird name, I know, but my parents wanted it to be unique." Looking to me with a brilliant smile, "What's your name?"

"Zakuro," I answered, relieved I still remember that. "I'm Zakuro." It felt good to say it. Thank goodness I still remembered that much.

"Well, Zakuro, nice to meet you." Zyla looked me up and down. "Human, you say? That must be… unusual. So you don't remember anything? Not even where you came from or how you got here?"

"No…" I whispered. "Nothing…"

"Hmm." There was a pause. "Well, I guess there's no harm in checking around, is there?"

"Checking around?"

"Yeah! There's a little town up ahead. I was just heading there now, there's this cool guild I wanna join." I had no idea what a guild was, but I nodded anyway. "If you'd like, we can go check it out together. The pokemon from there have been all around the land. If there's any sort of lore regarding people turning into pokemon, I'm sure they'll know something."

"D-don't tell them it refers to me, ok?" I asked.

"Hm?" How do I explain this?

"It sounds crazy, you know… a human turning into a pokemon… I wasn't even sure if I wanted to tell it to you…"

"Oh!" Zyla said in sudden realization. "Of course! I won't mention it. We'll find a roundabout way of findin' out. Trust me, I'm pretty good with words." She turned her back on me only to look over her shoulder. "You comin' Zakuro?"

…

What other choices did I have? I could sit here and try to regain my memory, or I could follow Zyla and ask around. The answer was obvious, but I wanted to know where I came from. What happened to me. Why I had transformed. There wasn't any real answer, was there? There was no use in sitting around like I had been. I had to follow Zyla.

So I stepped up to her, adjusting to walking on all fours, and followed her through the woods. When she wasn't looking, I stared up to the sky I had supposedly fallen from. If there was someone who knew about what happened to me, help me find them. Please.

I wanted to know.

Why had this happened to me?

Zakuro Fell From The Sky!

Zakuro Fainted!

Zyla Added Zakuro To Her Team!

Zakuro Is Confused!

Saving Game…

Game Saved!