Darkness. That was all he saw. Pure darkness, complete in both mind and essence. He was vaguely aware of something. The breeze? Perhaps, but it felt wonderful, calming, gentle…
He could see something. Something rising from the darkness ahead. Coming closer, getting bigger. As it enveloped him whole, he could see. A myriad of blues and blacks swirled about him, taking their places, towering above him. 'Why is everything a blur?' And just as he thought this, the darkness faded in once more.
Darkness surrounded him, as he listened to, and felt the gentle breeze. It was warm, and something made him feel at ease, in perfect peace, never wanting to leave. A snap to his left caught his attention, possibly a stick, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not budge. His blurred mind struggled to think, as his heartbeat quickened.
Thump tha-thump tha-thump, the sound of something quickly approaching. "Hey! Are you ok?" A voice sounded to his left. 'What was it?' A pause, as the warm breeze swept over him. "What to do…" The voice muttered, worry was evident, but the voice was gentle, serene, but still worried.
Something poked him. As colors of yellow and blue spun in front of him, closing in on him, he questioned himself, 'What is it? What's touching me?'
As he opened his eyes, he let the colors come to a stop, and focus. He was poked again, and groaned. The voice gasped, withdrawing quickly. With the colors focusing, he could finally see where he was. Struggling to pick up his head, he viewed his surroundings. Massive pillars of brown, topped with green surrounded him, whistling, rushing with the breeze. He was on something soft, something green and gentle, like the voice had been. And as he looked ahead, he saw it drop off, sloping downwards. As his eyes widened in awe, he watched as a massive expanse of gold swept, curving with the breeze. As his mind caught up, he realized what he was looking at. The prairie below stood tall and proud against the wind, returning to their positions as it died down. The breeze was cool, as he noticed the towering trees now shading him, the sun having left him in their care, away from the heat. Across the plains, mountains rose, being rather close, if he could gauge correctly.
As he stared at the view, he changed his gaze to look for the source of the voice. To his right were bushes, as were behind him. As he looked left however, his vision was obscured by brown. He blinked, confused as to what it was. "Hello." It spoke. "Are you ok? I was worried you were dead." It blinked at him, gazing at him with its kind, youthful brown eyes. He could feel his face change, giving the brown thing a questioning look.
It paused, but seemed to catch on. "Ah. I'm Natalie." She waited for him to rise, weariness apparent upon his form. "What's your name?" She asked kindly.
He blinked at her, as he tried to recall. "Uh, I… think it's Kaden." At this, she giggled, covering her mouth with a paw. His ears went back, hurt by her perceived insult. She noticed this, and withdrew her paw, bringing it back to the ground, and smiled at him. "Sorry. It's just a funny name, that's all." His ears flattened more so, and her smiled faded. "Sorry." She said, as she realized the insult and hurt she had inflicted. Her ears, now crooked, added to the apology, as she diverted her gaze from him, and upon the open prairie.
The summer wind rustled her fur, Kaden noticed, as he replaced his insulted thoughts with curiosity. She had long ears, and was covered in brown fur. Her body had evident curves beneath the soft fur, and a bushy, well kept tail. Around her neck, however, was a mane of white, hanging there in the air. And, as the summer wind blew past them, he was entranced by her fur drifting with the wind, every bit as gentle and calm as its owner. As he opened him mouth to ask a question, he realized she had been watching him, and quickly diverted his gaze, causing her to giggle once more.
As he looked across the prairie, he soon looked back at her, and asked his question. "What are you?" This caught her off guard, as she stood there, shocked at his question. Confusion was worn into his face, as his ears slanted at different angles. Stuttering, she tried to bring her head back on track. Finally, she did so, and in a calm, kind, but confused manner, responded. "I'm an eevee… like you. How do you not know what you are?"
Now it was his turn to be caught off guard, as he looked himself over. Sure enough, brown fur, a bushy tail, and a silky white mane. 'That would explain why I had trouble getting up.' He continued to examine his form, pulling his paws through his fur. He did not respond, but instead continued to explore his body, turning his head every which way, feeling his ears move, his tail, his fur in the wind, and his paws. The ground felt strange, as his pads pushed into the dirt. Flexing his paws, he could see the tips of many sharp, white claws, and amused himself with bringing them in and out.
Natalie was growing tired of this, and brought her paw upon his ear, batting it to catch his attention. "Come on now. You're boring me." She spoke playfully. "How about we run around and play?" She got in a pose to pounce, but moved towards the edge of the hill. "Last one down is a rotten eggsecute!" She yelled as she bolted down the hill happily. Startled by her willingness to play, he pursued on wobbly legs. He had no clue how to walk, much less run, on four legs, but stumbled down the hill towards her. Her offer still standing, he was determined to catch up, and soon had figured out his leg muscles, and soon had a pattern going.
Natalie was in the golden grass, watching his progress down the hill. He had started off horribly, as if he was just learning how to walk. She felt bad for leaving him behind like that in his condition, and started towards him, stopping as she saw him correct himself, now running down the hill with clumsy maneuvering. She smiled as he reached the golden grass, leaping in with all his might.
Ducking down, Natalie began to sneak towards her target. With quiet paws, and a barrage of noise from Kaden, she dropped to the ground, carefully navigating through the grass, noting the gusts of wind, and his position. Laying her ears flat against her head, she prepared her body to pounce upon her unsuspecting prey. "Natalie?" He called. No response would come from her, as to reveal her location. "Natalie?" He called again, receiving no response, he called, panic in his voice, "Natalie! Natalie!? Nata-" His cry of surprise shattered his need for worry, as he was pinned on the ground, Natalie standing above him. "Gotcha!" she smiled wryly.
His ears were to the sides, the look of abandonment and fear upon his face. Noticing this, Natalie pulled off, allowing him to get back up. Recovering from his fall, Kaden picked himself up, shaking debris from his fur. He kept his body low, however, feeling the momentary loneliness during her disappearance. The playful mood gone, Natalie's ears drooped. "So… where are you from? I haven't seen you around before…" She asked, sitting herself upon the ground.
Surrounded by golden grass, Kaden kept his head low, the panic still leaving him. Sitting himself down in turn, he looked off to the side, staring at nowhere in particular. "I don't know…" He said hesitantly.
"Family? Friends? Do you have a place to stay?" She asked, pressuring him with questions. His ears drooping lower, he bowed his head in sorrowful defeat. "I… I don't know…" Natalie's eyes widened. 'Had he lost his memories? How horrible!' She thought as she tried to comprehend what it would be like to not remember anything but one's name. Looking up at the sky, she marked the sun's position in her mind. "How about we go to town? I can show you around, and you can stay at my place…" She offered.
Raising his head a bit, his gloomy eyes thanked her, while he was on the verge of tears. As they stood up and began to walk through the grass, Natalie leading the way, she started telling him about the town and their activities, in a hope of cheering him up.
"And here we are, Silver Spring Village." They stood before the town, as Kaden, his sorrow drowned in awe at the sight of the town, eyed every detail, curious as to what each thing did. Following Natalie, Kaden lost himself to the endless list of stores and occupants of the town. It was overwhelming for him, seeing so many new creatures, and objects. Some things he recognized, like specific berries and foods.
As they passed through the town square, Kaden could see a vast building built into the small mountain bordering the town. Windows plastered the side, while the white walls of the structure merged into the very mountain itself. Natalie, catching his staring at the structure, chimed in, "That's the Guild. They are organized peacekeepers. They protect us, and explore new areas across the region. They are really strong, and well supported. Their funding is massive. There are similar Guilds set up across the region. The network of Guilds coexist, though there are some feuds between some of them. Each one has a leader, and their own set of rules. This one accepts newcomers, but can be strict. I've only been in there a few times, as my parents were members. It's really amazing inside…" She drifted off, reflecting upon the wonders of the internal structure. Kaden simply stood in awe of such a concept. Teams traveling across the region, exploring new areas… it was mind boggling.
A bat to the ear brought his attention to Natalie, as she signaled for him to follow. "Come one, I'll take you to my place." A smile across her face. 'She seems happy…' Kaden thought, as he was led to the edge of town. Taking a path off the road, he followed her into the forest. He was still having trouble walking, but had gotten the gist of it. Several creatures in town had seen his limping to unused legs, perhaps thinking it a physical disorder, or a badly healed injury. None the less, he had gotten a lot of staring, and was glad he was away from town. Turning his eyes to the trees, he saw strange green and yellow worms walking up trees, and the occasional purple rat run through the grass or root. It had been getting dark, when they reached her home. A den, carefully carved beneath a vast boulder. The area around it was trimmed and lacking of trees. Following the eevee in, he saw nothing but darkness. But this changed as she brought a torch to him, standing against a stone-carved wall, and slipping the torch into a square hole. A standing segment of wall lined the den, above their reach. Kaden jumped back, startled as he saw the fire burst to life, running along the wall itself. "It's oil." She said, putting the torch back in its allotted spot, "When I put the torch into the slot, the oil that has accumulated lights, bringing the fire to light the rest. Don't worry though, it's too high to burn yourself on. My father came up with the idea." She became reflective, a smile upon her face. "You would have liked him. He came up with so many neat ideas." She sighed happily, before heading down the tunnel once more.
Warily, Kaden followed, giving a careful, untrusting glare to the fire running along the upper wall. Going down the tunnel, Kaden examined the walls. They were smooth, very well carved and maintained, and the fire lit the hall, despite its design. As he reached the end of the hall, he heard the sound of another line of fire being lit. Here, it was a circular room, as well carved as the hallway had been. A sound of stone against stone was heard, as Kaden spied Natalie pulling a cord. As the stone was lifted, the fire rushed through, shooting into another room out of sight.
Natalie smiled, leading him into the next lit room. This room was friendly to the eyes, with a painting of an eevee, umbreon, and a vaporeon, likely her family. Accompanying the painting were pillows, set across the room in a circle. With an intricate rug beneath them, they crossed the room, pulling a corded stone to light the next room.
Kaden had the opportunity of viewing the next room's lighting, and watched the fire run along the room. It seemed endless, running the length of the black room, before ramming into a corner and shooting off in another direction. As the fire grew in their tracks, the room lit up, slowly warming the air with the multitude of flaming tracks. A vast hall stood before them, with a sturdy stone table set firmly in the middle, equaling the vastness of the room.
Here, intricate patterns were carved into the walls, having no particular design. The table itself was carefully carved, showing the layout of the region in great detail. With the ends of the table being vast oceans, the middle was a series of forests, towns, and what was labeled as Mystery Dungeons.
He hadn't noticed Natalie's disappearance, until she walked in, holding a tray in her mouth. Upon this tray sat berries. Setting it down, she got up on a bench, and sat beside Kaden. "It's a map of the region. It shows all the towns, and geographical features imaginable. It even shows the locations of Mystery Dungeons, though it hasn't been updated since it was made. Essentially, it's a giant map. My parents' teams would have dinner while they planned their missions." She sighed briefly, before continuing, "My daddy had this entire place built as a base for his team. My mother's too, once the two teams merged. But after they died…" She seemed saddened, as was logical when talking about the death of family, "the teams left, leaving it all to me. It used to be full of laughter and happiness… I… don't get many visitors anymore, so I have no need for the table… but if you want to stay here, there's more than enough room and supplies for you." She had impaled a claw into a Lum berry, sticking it into her mouth as she recalled memories, waiting for Kaden's answer.
Following suit, Kaden impaled a berry and ate it. It was a sweet berry, the sugar noticeable in its meat and juices. He had nowhere to go, nothing to do, he had no clue who his family was. But, if he were to find out, he would begin by having a home. "Yes. I'd be happy to stay with you." He smiled weakly, as she turned her head, oddly stunned, by the obvious answer, turning her head back towards the platter, she gently smiled. "Thank you." The vast hall remained dim, but bright enough to see. Despite the light, it was easy to tell that Natalie was lonely, as the place showed the lack of upkeep and visitors for what appeared to be ages.
The platter had been cleared, and put away, and the two discussed the town, although Kaden essentially listened to Natalie's rambling of adventure and stories her parents would tell her; stories of taking out crime lords and saving villagers, escort missions and priceless artifacts. Kaden listened, intrigued by the tales, entranced as he visualized different members of the teams as they went through their missions or spent time in the base they now occupied.
Enthralled by the tales of wondrous adventure, Kaden cut in. "Natalie?" After a few attempts, he finally got her to end the storytelling. He was nervous as he began. "Natalie? What… What would you say to forming a Rescue Team?"
She looked up, eyes wide open, star-struck by the question. "R-really?" Her mouth was agape, as she stared at him. His smile grew if only slightly, as he continued, "From what you tell me, you are really excited by it. So, why only be able to tell the stories of others, when you can tell stories of your own adventures?" His smile widened. There was the slightest bit of unease in his voice. But as she stared at him, her mouth open, she returned to her look of peaceful thanks, and accepted. "Yes. That would be great." A smile crept across her face, but was interrupted by the howling of the wind through the tunnel. Leaping off the bench faster than Kaden could blink, Natalie bolted down the hallway, towards the entrance.
A loud boom, drawn out and slow, echoed through the hallways and into the room. Startled by the sudden noise, he fell off the bench and onto the floor. Cowering under the lip of the table, he looked all around for whatever threat it may be been from. Finding nothing, he curled up tightly, his eyes forced shut, wishing his fears away.
Left alone in the vast room, Kaden had curled up, pulling as close as possible to himself. With the fire cutting through the darkness, he felt alone, and wished that Natalie would return.
He tried not to focus on the vast, empty room, and the shadows strewn everywhere. He could imagine it though, creatures within the shadows, like he had seen earlier in the town. He couldn't keep his mind off them, as it wandered freely into nightmarish forms and possible ends for him. He pulled himself ever tighter, trying with all his might to make the images go away.
Hearing her voice caused his ears to perk up. "Hey," She whispered in his ear, "You awake?" He looked up at her worriedly. "If you're that tired, I'll show you to your room." She smiled kindly, as she left to light a shadowed hallway across the room. He followed quietly, not speaking a word as he kept close to her.
Being around her was comforting to him, compared to the loneliness he had just felt. It may have only been a short time, but it had felt longer to him. Looking behind him, he could still see the shadows mocking him in the other room. They followed him through this hallway as well, scarring the walls with their flickering essence, causing him to tense up, imagining strange, shadowy hands reach out to grab him, to draw him into their shadowy forms.
Natalie stopped, "Here we are." Pushing a door open, and pulling a cord to allow the same fire to flow into the room. It was bland. A cube-shaped room, with a bed of straw in the corner, with hooks carved into the walls, empty bags hung there, along with some candles set up around the room's carved ledges. The air was stranger, with the smell of avian permeating it.
Stepping carefully into the room, he looked around. It evidently held a bird in its time, but appeared to have been transformed for other purposes, if the ledges of medicine were any clue. Putting a paw on the bed, he withdrew it quickly. It was strange to the touch, as he put his paw upon it again. It was similar to the grass they had been in earlier, but dry, and messy, as if it hadn't been organized after a long time.
Climbing into the yellowed bed, he sought for a comfortable position. Finally settling down, Natalie called his attention, "If there is anything you need, I'm right across the hall" She smiled, closing the door behind her. Suddenly, stones were all dropped on the edges of the room, squashing the flames, and plunging him into darkness.
Pure darkness was something new to him, as he stared, wide-eyed at the unseen room. Ears folding back, his heart raced. What if the monsters would get him? What would he do? How could he fight? He was vulnerable. These thoughts shot through his mind, leading him to standing up, and quickly making his way across the room.
The feeling of face and rock don't mix well, he realized, as he collided with the door. The door didn't budge. It did not allow him access to the hallway. With a paw to his face, and fear on his mind, he blindly searched the door. Scratching in between the wall and door failed, as he soon realized the existence of a grip carved into the door. Pulling on the edge of the grip, he slid the door open if just a bit.
'It's light!' He realized, as he forced the gap wider. The hallway was still lit, the flames peeking through the slits of the fallen stone blocks. Moving quickly to the other side, he nervously looked down the dim hallways, and nudged Natalie's door open.
She was in the corner, her ears perked up, an eye open to see what the intrusion was. Picking up her head as she recognized the eevee that crouched in the doorway, and asked, "What's wrong?"
At this, Kaden dropped his head lower, his ears now dipped to the ground, "I'm… scared." He muttered.
She caught this, and shifted a bit, patting a part of the bed. "Well then, why don't you sleep here tonight?" Watching him slink over carefully, the tiniest line of light seeping through the door, she repositioned herself better, letting him slip in with her.
Now, stomach to his back, she laid a paw upon his curled up form, easing his tension. He burrowed his back into her more, begging to be comforted as he dropped to sleep. Laying her head behind his, she smiled faintly, in remembrance, of all those nights long gone, where she would sleep with her family, the warmth shared between them all, and the sense of protection she had felt. Closing her eyes, she drifted to sleep.