A/N: I decided to revamp the story... Don't reboot? Well, why don't you take a guess at what I did…
Please do not start a debate in your reviews about the capitalization of the term 'Pokémon' and the Pokémon itself. There is no 'right way' of capitalising or not capitalising these terms. And please, do not scrutinize these terms too much in the first place.
And because someone who I shan't name has requested, I will add the fucking prologue in front of the fucking first chapter, and de-capitalise all the fucking words like Pokémon, Pikachu and Charizard. What's that? The words Pokémon and Pikachu are capitalised? OH GOSH, AREN'T I SORRY THAT THOSE WORDS ARE IN MICROSOFT WORD'S BLOODY BUILT-IN DICTIONARY, AND THAT WORD HAS DECIDED THAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO BE FUCKING CAPITALISED.
And in my defence, a prologue is a separate introduction from the first chapter, and as such does not need to tell you much about the story. So I'll say it right here: if you don't want to read a bunch of shit that really does not contribute much to the story, THEN DON'T FUCKING READ THE FUCKING PROLOGUE.
And this really is quite embarrassing that I can't think of any other profanities to increase the variety used. Well, sorry.
Prologue
I was born in a quiet, calm hilltop. A hilltop is what we called it, but honestly it was more like a giant meadow in the sky. Hilltop Meadow is what it was called. Warm weather all year round, beautiful flowers, lush plants… it was all we could have ever asked for. A paradise for Pokémon, if you will. Especially grass Pokémon. As one would expect, many grass Pokémon lived in this grassy paradise. It was far away from the reaches of the humans; they were no longer a threat. Food was plentiful, and as such, a much larger threat was overlooked.
Hilltop Meadow was often called "the land of peace," and for a very good reason, too. All forms of battling were forbidden, even that which is called "child's play," which is otherwise known as "practice battling" or "play battling." As such, one can expect that the vast majority of the Pokémon living in Hilltop Meadow have minimal experience. This is true. After all, there was no sense of danger, and no need to protect oneself.
I rolled over and sat up. The Bellossom were dancing happily in the sun. I, on the other hand, preferred the shade which the trees had to offer. There weren't many trees in Hilltop Meadow, that was true, but the few trees which did grow in Hilltop Meadow grew very big and strong. In boredom, I rolled over again, this time looking straight up. The tree was bustling with countless bird Pokémon, all chittering to each other. Some were singing, and others were gossiping. I sighed; I was disinterested in their talk, and they were loud.
Jerking up in response to a loud scream I had heard, I found a commonplace scene. The Cottonee in the fields had been startled, and had produced large amounts of cotton in self-defence. I didn't need to see what had transpired to know; it had already happened so many times before. Some of the young Pokémon were playing; battling each other in what they hoped was secrecy. It isn't called "play battling" without a reason. They had been doing quite well until one had startled a nearby Cottonee, starting up a chain reaction of cotton-producing-self-defence. I watched as the young Pokémon were being scolded for battling. Had I been like that before? I couldn't remember, and I couldn't be bothered. That did not matter.
Turning away, I left the shade of the large tree as I headed towards Bethesda. Bethesda was a large pond with healing properties akin to that of the legendary Lake of Life. The trees here grew the largest, and the birds here were quiet. Bethesda seemed to give off a magical aura, calming everyone around it. This was my favourite area – cool and serene. On the other side, there was another area that was calm and relatively quiet. It was the sand baths, though I found that place too hot for my liking.
Resting my head on my paws, pillowed by my fur collar, I recalled my naïve childhood.
"Charla? Could you be the mighty Charla?" I asked in awe. The Pokémon in question was large, covered in orange scales. Dark green velvet was stretched across on the underside of her Golbat-like wings, and the tip of her tail burned an intense fire. A large vertical scar ran from her right eye, down her slender neck, and curved towards the middle of her belly.
The draconic Pokémon laughed before turning to face me. "Yes, I am Charla. Do you need anything?" Though her appearance was frightening, her warm smile and gentle words were encouraging.
"Why are Humans bad?"
Her expression immediately became one of irritation. "They ditch you for being weak and lie. They mistreat you and leave you to die." She spread her wings, flapping them twice before settling again. I was certain I saw her expression convert into one of sadness mixed with betrayal, before returning to one of irascibility. "They leave deep scars not only mentally but also physically."
I had instantaneously assumed that Charla was always a wild Pokémon who got her scars in intense, serious battling; big battle scars that show how much she's been through. When I understood that she was instead betrayed by a trusted human, it made me frightened. The fear must have shown on my face, because Charla laughed. She simply laughed a hearty laugh, as if she had not seen something so funny in a long time. She laughed like it was all nothing.
I refocused the topic. "Please elaborate." I knew the request was not welcomed, but I was a curious Pokémon, and I had to know.
Her face immediately turned grave. "Many humans mistreat Pokémon. But do not feel that hope is lost," she said as her face began to light up again. She smiled warmly as she spoke, but looked sternly with fierce eyes. "When concerning humans, take all warily; doubt everything and assume nothing." She finished off with another hearty laugh, which faded to a chuckle before she flew off. A mysterious and light-hearted Pokémon she was, and serious when she had to be. I was curious, and so I followed her.
Charla was eating Pecha Berries. Even with her back to me, she knew I was there. "A long time ago, humans and Pokémon lived on separate parts of the world. But one day, human travellers sailed to our land in great big ships. They bestowed upon us intelligence, and we in return bestowed upon them the means of survival and power through our service.
"This story doesn't have a happy ending. When the humans came upon weapons to arm themselves, they smote Pokémon in fear. Those who had grown dependent on the humans were betrayed, and in their ignorance, the Pokémon stayed by the sides of the humans until they were slain by the very humans they trusted.
"This meadow is a sanctuary, a haven away from humans. They will not find us here. There are other sanctuaries around the world. I live in Characific Valley. Like all sanctuaries, Hilltop Meadow is protected by nature. The climb is so treacherous that the humans cannot even hope to make it alive…"
I woke up with a start. Had I fallen asleep? What time was it? Leaving the Bethesda, I noted that the sun was setting, and the bird Pokémon all roosted. They had finally shut up, save for the few Hoothoot and the lonely Noctowl.
I thought about what Charla had said. It was such a long time ago; she told me when I was two moon cycles old, and now I'm 180 moon cycles old. I had always believed her, I still do. There's no doubt that Hilltop Meadow is a safe place. But I knew that somewhere in my mind, that if the humans did make their way up, we would not be able to protect ourselves. I had asked the elders about this, but they had simply dismissed me, saying the same thing. "Hilltop Meadow is a safe place. No danger shall befall us here."
Sometimes I feel really dark, but it's an undeniable fact that there have been cases of Pokémon fighting Pokémon. There are Pokémon who would rather follow the command of a human than listen to the rest of us. I thought about Charla – there was a time where she would do anything the human wanted, wasn't there? Perhaps the humans cannot make their way up, but Pokémon definitely can. After all, Charla did. And I'm sure she would be strong enough to carry a human.
At that thought, I shook. But I couldn't shake the feeling off. My mind kept probing deeper. I want to be the strongest grass type Pokémon. Why? Because I want to protect my friends. Protect them from what? From danger. Humans can't get up here, you know they can't. No, you don't know that.
My mind was spinning as I debated with myself. Statements were thrown back and forth, but there was no evidence. No evidence for either side. Charla's words echoed in my mind. "Be wary; doubt everything and assume nothing." Doubt that the humans can get up? Doubt that the humans cannot get up? It didn't make sense. Do not assume that Hilltop Meadow will be safe. Do not assume that it won't be safe. Just take it as it is. Be wary and prepare for anything.
Chapter 1: Evacuation
I am an early riser; I wake up when the sun's rays peek over the horizon. I am usually gone by the time you can see the sun itself. But these guys were even earlier than me. They had already reached our high-up, hard-to-reach sanctuary, Hilltop Meadow, when I had only just woken. I was confused, for one of the Pokémon was like none I had ever seen. True, even in my age, I hadn't seen a large variety of Pokémon, just the usuals. And I could only see the silhouette of the three new arrivals. But their shapes were weird. The anatomy was just so… bizarre. I couldn't understand it.
Of the three, there was one that odder than the others. It was taller, perhaps a sign of dominance. But that did not explain the position of its wings – right at the bottom. I thought that it would have an awkward sense of balance as it centre weight would be quite far from its wings. I was so wrapped up in confusion, that I didn't further analyse it, or the others.
As the flying Pokémon neared, I suddenly understood that it was not a single body. I felt stupid; surely I would have understood that fact if I had bothered observing the other shapes. I sprinted off to Tammy for comfort. While it wasn't necessarily bad, I couldn't assess the threat that they posed. The Tangrowth was wise. Surely she could suggest something.
"What's wrong, young one? And so early, too," Tammy mumbled.
I probably wasn't doing much better, blurting everything out at once. "New Pokémon! Bird Pokémon! Carry Pokémon! Like Gallade, not Gallade."
"Calm down, calm down," Tammy hushed.
I drew Tammy's attention to the flying Pokémon, who were considerably close and no longer silhouettes. It was then that I could see the lead Pokémon was blue, with large white feathers decorating its face. There was another unusual bird Pokémon, a reddish-orange one with a grey underside and black tipped wings. The other one was a Honchkrow – an uncommon Pokémon to see so high up, but not one that hadn't been before.
No longer bothered by what they were, my mind wandered to why they were here. Looking to Tammy for support, I realised that she wasn't there anymore.
Tammy had rushed to the elders to discuss something. I couldn't bother them. It seemed like an urgent matter, and I could do nothing to help.
"Evacuation! We're going to evacuate the area! This is not a drill, I repeat, this is not a drill." The Alakazam's words were transmitted telepathically, and woke all those sleeping. His words were repeated over and over, piercing our thoughts until that was all we could think of. There were many questions raised by the half-asleep Pokémon.
"Why are we evacuating?"
The question was answered when there were shouts coming from the Gallade-like figure. The new Pokémon attacked without warning. The blue one hovered there, carrying the Gallade-like figure as the red bird Pokémon set fire to the trees. Even the Honchkrow used a fire attack. I didn't know that Honchkrow could use fire. The fire spread fast, but the panic spread faster, as the red Pokémon and the Honchkrow continued attacking.
"Humans!"
Piercing screams filled the air which was already thick with fear and panic. The young Oddish around me started crying, obviously upset by the loud noise. Other Pokémon were running around, scared, screaming, disrupting everyone else. These annoying sounds were playing over and over again. The same sounds were being screamed by several different Pokémon. Sounds that I should have known, that I should have understood. Sounds that I should have easily recognised, but didn't.
I made my way to Bethesda, the pool of healing, desperate to get out of the hell hole. The usually tranquil air around Bethesda was full of smoke, the trees around burning. I could still sense the panic and the fear of the other Pokémon. I didn't fully understand the extent of the issue at hand, but I knew it was worrying. But somehow, I just didn't care.
Even from Bethesda, I heard the unfazed words of the telepathically communicated message. "Please remain level-headed. This is an evacuation. Please leave the area immediately."
As if leaving here would be easy! If leaving was so easy, than so would getting here. I wasn't satisfied with his simple orders, telling everyone what to do with no one actually listening. I soaked my head in the pond, washing away uncertainties. The sanctuary was turning into hell; havoc ran wild. Pokémon were attacking each other. The Pokémon who lived in Hilltop Meadow their entire lives have minimal experience, and minimal endurance. They were all pushed past their limits.
"Please remain level-headed. This is an evacuation. Please leave the area immediately." The Alakazam's words continued to slice through the air.
"As if there's an easy way out," I scoffed out loud, feeling the urge to vocalise my thought to no one in particular. But of course, there was. There was another Pokémon which loved the serene atmosphere of the Bethesda as much as I did. The only other Pokémon present, the Excadrill, had woken up, being disrupted by the smoke in the air.
"You can't say I didn't try," I muttered, walking up to him. "I was hoping you would help us out?"
The Excadrill only glared at me in response.
"Oh come on, if you don't do anything, you'll be stuck too!" I practically yelled at him.
"What do you want me to do?" he asked. In my one hundred and eighty moon cycles, I had never seen this Excadrill talk. Actually, he was the only Excadrill I had seen, and he was always curled up. It was the first time I saw him in full. And he was much more intimidating than he was is his curled up state.
"Dig. Dig a curved hole all the way to the bottom of this mountain. Is that even possible?"
The Excadrill smirked. "There's nothing these claws can't dig through," he said proudly, tapping his claws. "What do you want it for?"
I smiled. He seemed to be a relatively nice guy. "A way out of this hell hole for the other Pokémon. The humans are here."
The Excadrill immediately got to work on digging a hole, but not before giving me a cynical look. And boy was he good at digging. In mere seconds, he had disappeared into a deep hole that appeared almost instantly. The Excadrill was doing his part. I should be doing mine.
"Please remain level-headed. This is an evacuation. Please leave the area immediately."
At that point, I almost shouted 'eureka'. The fastest way for everyone to hear the message is for the old Alakazam to telepathically tell them! But really, what the hell has he been doing, just relaying the same message over and over again?
Running out of the enclosure of Bethesda, I headed towards the elder. I ran as fast as my paws would carry me, faster than I've ever run. I saw Tammy in the middle of a crowd, trying to calm them down. But that's no use, Tammy. They need a way out. We need a way out.
I passed by some Charizard, who were unaffected by the fire, but a bit disturbed by the tension. What the hell where they doing, just sitting around? I felt like everyone was useless, or just adding to the stress. Well, the Excadrill was cool.
Upon reaching the elder, I told him what had happened. How the Excadrill was making a way out, where it was, everything. He asked me what I wanted him to do with the information. I glared at the elder and thought that it should have been obvious.
"Tell all the children to go first. Everyone else comes after that."
After a while of processing, and what I understood as sorting, the Alakazam began relaying a new message. "All young ones to the escape route! All young ones to the escape route! It's by the Bethesda!"
With that, disorder amplified. Everyone suddenly wanted to get out at once, pushing and shoving. They didn't care what order, as long as they got out. It was a horror to watch as some would push the little ones backwards just so they could move forwards. Young ones were screaming for their mothers, older ones just hoping to save themselves.
At that point, I felt like everything fell on me. I could have been selfish and just run with the Excadrill, but I felt an urge to help everyone else. I didn't understand it; I didn't care for them. And the useless Alakazam – how was he even elder? He's so stupid! And useless!
The Charizard were pacing, ready to fly away at any moment. But they didn't, even though they could have so long ago. They must have felt the same urge to help as I did. I hoped that they did.
"Charizard! You're strong. Please, help the other Pokémon! They need your help. All of them."
"What's the deal?"
Deal? Does it want something in return? I must have been quite easy to read at that moment.
"Naw," another one said. "He meant 'What's the problem?' Like, 'What's the sit?'" Leaning closer, she whispered, "That's short for situation." The third Charizard rolled its eyes.
"Aren't you paying attention?" anger filled my mind. How can they all be so oblivious? "Everyone's gone out of control, frightened, because this... this haven is turning into hell! And all you can do is sit around and wait? Wait for the humans to come and kill us all?" my voice was shaky, and I was trembling. I just realised what I had done. Nothing small goes up to something big and throws threats without anything to back them up with. I had made the Charizard angry.
In a small voice, I continued. "Please guide the others. They are too scared of the fire to think properly."
"She's right." The third Charizard spoke up. "We can't not do anything. We have to power to help, and so we must."
Flashback:
"There are good Pokémon, and there are bad Pokémon. But there are others – Pokémon who don't care and can be easily persuaded, and Pokémon who just don't care. Now..." she sighed, "listen carefully – if you have the power to do something that you know is right, then you must do it."
"She is the one," a Charizard said to the others. Then she turned to face me again. "Rough introductions here! I'm Charmaine, and this here is Blackburn," she pointed to the first Charizard, who was presumably the leader. "This is Encanto," she motioned towards the next Charizard," and this is Candle the Charmander and Charcoal the shiny Charmeleon."
"Encanto, at your service," he said with a Spanish accent. Where he picked that one up from, I didn't know, do not know, and probably will never know.
"So the problem now lies in how we will guide the others. Please explain," the one who introduced herself as Charmaine said.
"An Excadrill is digging a hole. It's meant to cater for most Pokémon, and I'm pretty sure they can fit if they go one by one. However," I paused. "Everyone's trying to go at once and it's just a huge catastrophe." I hesitated before continuing, "It seems that the humans are trapping Pokémon in the round balls they're carrying. We've never seen them before. We can't fight them like this."
"There's nothing we can do for those caught. We can only hope to get the rest out before they get caught, too." Blackburn replied. He had a rough scar running across his muzzle, giving it a lighter shade of orange. On his belly was a cross-shaped scar. A scar he may have gotten from a brawl, or perhaps from the humans. I deemed the second option more likely.
"So all we have to do is make sure everyone goes into the hole? Sounds pretty easy," Charmaine casually laughed, but there was no humour in her voice.
The Charizard set off to organise the other Pokémon. They were certainly intimidating, being larger. They were also fire types, which meant that the grass Pokémon would automatically regard them with caution.
There were other Pokémon, some too large, and others too old. I pleaded the elder to teleport them straight away. He asked me where to. I said anywhere else that was safe. He said that there wasn't anywhere else that was safe, and that we were done fore as soon as the humans came. I asked him why he called an evacuation in the first place. He said that it was only because Tammy asked him to. I realised that our conversation wasn't going anywhere, so I asked him to take them to the woods, or any place else without an abundance of humans. He finally agreed, and all those who hadn't moved since the beginning were whisked away.
I wondered how the Charizard were faring. Avoiding the area controlled by the humans, I ran back to the Bethesda. The hole there was much larger, and most of the Pokémon were gone. The last few were grateful that it was finally their turn, and meekly jumped into the tunnel, avoiding eye contact with the Charizard.
"It was faster with a wider hole," Charmaine commented.
"So the digging Pokémon were allowed to go first on the conditions that they widen the hole." Blackburn explained. "Candle made sure of that. She's down there, as well."
"We shall take our leave now, young one!" Encanto sung in his sing-song Spanish accent.
"Could you cover it first, somehow?" I asked, as the Charizard prepared to leave.
"A boulder would be too obvious," Charmaine observed. "A tree wouldn't really do, either. They're all on fire."
"Then, how about a low-growing shrub, like the ones over there?" I asked hopefully. As the fire had swept over the trees, only the top were burning. The fire still hadn't spread downwards, thank Arceus, but it was still there.
Blackburn looked at me with a look of scepticism, before uprooting the said plant and dumping it into the hole. "We'll leave, now."
"I bid you farewell, young one!"
"Good bye!"
I thanked them as I strove to find my own way out. I instinctively dove into the plants from where the uprooted shrub originally grew when I heard weird sounds. They seemed to be talking, but they weren't Pokémon talking. I figured that they must have been the humans.
My eyes teared up as they stung from the smoke. I had to move away, and soon. It was dangerous; if I stayed too long, I could die there. If not because of the humans, then surely because of the smoke.
"How come there isn't a single Pokémon in this beautiful meadow? Oh look, a Pecha berry! I'm hungry," and strange voice said.
I wriggled my way forwards enough to see what must have been called the humans. They looked harmless; they possessed neither claws nor fangs.
"Quit it!" A second one spoke up. "You were the one who scared them off with the fire!"
"Hahaha, if they ran off because of some fire, then they're too weak to please the boss," the first one replied.
"Humans," an unfamiliar voice growled from behind me. I instantly whipped my head around to see a discoloured Charmeleon standing behind me. Its golden scales were somewhat familiar – I wouldn't forget such a lovely and rare shade. But the Pokémon was not one I knew.
"It's dangerous here. Let's go."
And though I did not know who it was, it did make sense. And so, in my desperation, I put all my faith in it, and blindly followed it. After all, there was nowhere else for me to be.
And blindly follow it I did. I followed it through uncharted areas of the meadow – the dangerous parts. And I followed it right off the cliff.