"Let's do our best out there team!"

"Yes ma'am!"

To a random passerby, morning announcements within the Expedition Society sounded the same as an average day. The Chief of the society spoke about what was going on and everyone responded. However, for those who were actually in the building, there was a massive difference. Instead of Ampharos giving the announcements, the Chief's job was instead replaced with their head of communications, Dedenne. And their second in command, Mawile, was also gone. But the crew kept on as normal, and with morning announcements done, most of the society left to their daily activities. Only the three youngest members, Light, Fennix, and Lilac, along with those whose jobs were inside the building were left.

Light stayed behind when everyone else left to specifically talk to Dedenne. "So, hear anything from the Chief lately?"

"Sorry, nothing," Dedenne apologized. "He's got Mawile with him, though, so I'm sure he's fine."

The pikachu turned his attention next towards Lilac, the Society's navigator. "What about you, Espurr? Have you heard anything?"

Lilac shook her head. "If I had, I'd tell you. Unfortunately, the Chief is on the far western edge of the Sand Continent. He's well beyond my range. Even with these things." Lilac placed her right paw on the blue headphones with an antenna she wore over her large ears, an extender for her strong Psychic abilities. "If you're really worried, we could always take a trip to the Sand Continent. I'm sure I could sense him from Sahra Town. But the Chief is probably fine. And he's got Mawile with him, too."

Fennix yawned, the fennekin stretching her forpaws across the ground. "Come on, Light, do you really have to worry that much? And I thought you were just a worrywart around me!"

Light rubbed the back of his head with his left paw. "I-I mean, it has been a week. So you can't entirely blame me for being worried about them."

"Half of which was probably just sailing to that location." However, Lilac smiled and chuckled a bit. "Do you really want me to check? Because I can?"

Light shook his head. "You've got your own job you need to worry about. Besides, you guys are right. The Chief and Mawile can take care of themselves. This is going to unsettle me for a while, but I'll get over it eventually. We've got our own job to do as well, and we can't shirk our work just because I'm a little nervous. I'll be fine."

Fennix leaped to Light's side. "Finally! Let's get to work, then! I've been going stir crazy just sitting here!"

"And you won't go stir crazy on Lapras?" Light snarked with a large smile on his face. "We're heading to the Air Continent today, remember? We've got a couple hours ride today. So I hope you don't mind waiting around."

"Ugg…really?" Fennix groaned, her head lowered towards the ground. "Can't we go somewhere on the Water Continent today?"

Light shook his head and adjusted his bag. "Nope. You know we already have a mission we promised to do. At least we aren't going too far today. The Air Continent is the shortest ride possible. Sorry Fennix, that's how things are."

Fennix rolled her eyes. "Fine. Let's hurry up, then! I want to be off Lapras and on the Air Continent as soon as possible."

Without waiting for Light to follow her, Fennix dashed off and out of the building. The pikachu chuckled as he watched her run off. After taking a moment to adjust his green-stripped scarf, Light waved at Lilac and Dedenne before running off on four paws to follow after her.

"Geez, those two," Dedenne mumbled as soon as they were gone. "Who would have thought two kids like them would be some of our best teammates."

"Light certainly is a… 'worrywart,'" Lilac admitted. "And Fennix is as impulsive as usual. I suppose those two balance each other out, though. Fennix helps him take more risks and Light keeps her from running off too far."

"You gotta wonder. They were apparently once a human and a Mew back in the ancient past. Do you think the two acted the same even back then? Since the two of them go back so far?"

Lilac looked away from Dedenne for a second, her right paw rubbing across the right side of her face, just below her covered ears. Her eyes were momentarily lowered to the ground and she couldn't prevent a soft sigh from escaping her lips. However, she soon shook her head to get rid of all the thoughts swirling around in her head.

"It's certainly something to wonder, but I doubt we'll ever know," Lilac eventually responded, facing Dedenne once again. "Fennix has no memories of it at all while Light only has a vague feeling or two. Neither of them really know much about the past. Only Mr. Carracosta really knows anything, and even then, I doubt even he can tell us everything."

"Augustus Carracosta Reminiscor," Dedenne mumbled wistfully. "If you would've told me that Carracosta was descended from one of Mew's allies before, I wouldn't have believed you. Double that he had so much info on Mew and Light's old adventures. I would have just assumed that Fennix was boasting, as usual. It happened only a couple of months ago, but it's still odd to think about even now. I guess a bunch of surprises came out of that sleepy town."

Lilac nodded. "A human, a Mew, a Pokémon who turned other Pokémon to stone, and the descendent of one of Mew's old allies. And…" Lilac looked away for a second and spoke softly, "the daughter of two criminals." She shook her head and went back to her normal voice. "It is sort of odd that such a small town has such a variety. Next thing we'll learn is that Principal Simipour is a Voice of Life."

"What do you think attracts so many strange Pokémon to such a small town?"

Lilac looked to the west side of the building wistfully. "Maybe it's because it's such a small town. It's easier to avoid being noticed by the world at large. Sure, we all know each other by face, but we don't necessarily know each other's secrets. So you can hide behind familiarity in a world far away from livelier towns like here. Fennix never liked how cut off from the rest of the world it was, but it does have its advantages."

"I suppose so. Though I personally can't imagine living in Serene Village, even if it was to hide away. I've lived in Lively Town all my life."

"Yeah, I guess you would say that," Lilac responded with a smile.

With everything said that needed to be said, Lilac nodded towards Dedenne before she closed her eyes and extended her mind to focus on everyone that had a signal from an Expedition Gadget. Technically, she was supposed to mainly focus on Light and Fennix while she got used to her duty as a navigator, but her curiosity always drove her to quietly check on everyone else as well. After all, Light and Fennix were on Lapras in the middle of the sea at this point. There was nothing really to focus on for them, and they could always contact her if they really needed her with a simple telepathic shout. So the espurr focused on Buizel, Bunnelby, and Archen.

However, while she was lost in her thoughts, Dedenne's cheeks started sparking with an electronic signal. Lilac didn't notice anything right away, but she eventually felt the static electricity mess with her fur, causing the left ends to stick up a little. Then, she heard Dedenne's voice.

"Oh, Chief! I can hear you loud and clear! We were just talking about you, actually!"

"Chief?!" Lilac's eyes flew open and she quickly swung her head towards Dedenne. Dedenne, as if sensing Lilac's wish, send her signal to the Psychic-type's Expedition Gadget, producing a small buzzing sound from it. Lilac quickly took the call and repeated her previous exclamation.

"Hello little Espurr!" the Expedition Society's Chief, Ampharos, called from the other side. "It sounds like you're doing well."

"Well, do spend most of my time in the building," Lilac shrugged. "Only thing I'm in danger of is mentally straining myself. What about you? It's been a week, and Light was beginning to get a little worried about you this morning."

"Sorry, but we had nothing to report," Mawile explained. "For reasons we'll explain later, we've been taking things very slowly. And we did take a while to get there in the first place. But we have some information now."

"Now back to why we called. Are Light and Fennix still there at the building, or have they left already?"

Lilac chuckled. "Bad timing, Chief. They left for the Air Continent already. Their mission shouldn't take them too long, though. A sailor over there contacted us, asking to trade some items for information on a possibly uncharted island in the Sea of Wonders. The meeting place is in Baram Town and it shouldn't take long for the two to get the info and sail back. I'd expect them back around the mid-afternoon or early evening."

"If this is important, we can call them back," Dedenne chimed in next.

"No, no, no, that's quite alright, Dedenne. We musn't ignore Light and Fennix's map making duties, and they'll be back soon enough anyways. We'll just halt our investigation for a bit until then."

"'Investigation'," Lilac repeated Ampharos's words. It didn't take her too long to realize what sort of investigation their Chief was conducting that would need Light and Fennix's help. It was an immediate thought, helped by the fact that she and Dedenne were just previously talking about the subject. "Did you find some information about the ancient past with Mew?"

"Indeed, we did!" The thought of Ampharos posing after his speech, despite the fact that they weren't able to see each other, entered Lilac's mind and she found some amusement from it. "As for the details, I wish to give those to Light and Fennix first and foremost when they return."

Dedenne nodded, another action made despite the lack of visual communication. "Alright, Chief. I'll contact you as soon as Light and Fennix come back from their mission. Until then, try and sleep, you two. How late at night is it over there?"

"Quite late, thanks," Mawile stated tiredly. "We'll make contact in the morning for us, afternoon for you, then."

"Then sleep, you two!" Dedenne commanded. "We'll contact you two later."

As Lilac suggested, Light and Fennix returned back to Lively Town by the late afternoon, when the sun was a little more than forty-five degrees in the eastern horizon. Light and Fennix both hopped off Lapras quickly when they docked and the two of them stretched their limbs out wide to relieve some of the cramps from traveling so much. Light felt surprisingly tired for how little they did, a sentiment he soon learned that his partner shared.

"Geez, two trips on Lapras in one day," Fennix groaned. "Can we never do this again? I swear, I've seen more than enough sea to last an entire lifetime today."

Light shrugged, naturally less bothered by it than his friend. "Better get used to it. We've got the info for the Sea of Wonders. We're probably heading there tomorrow. Which means more sailing."

"Yeah, but that also means map making and exploring too. So at least we have something interesting."

The two were done stretching and were making their way away from the harbor and off towards the. "Our jobs can't be going from excitement to excitement each day. Sometimes we have to do some boring stuff. Just remember, tomorrow will be better. That's what I do to get myself through it."

"But complaining is more fun," Fennix whined in a joking manner.

"For you maybe," Light snarked back. "But Espurr and I have to hear it from you."

"And that does get tedious at times, admittedly." Lilac's voice suddenly chimed in Light and Fennix's head. "But that's beside the point. Welcome back to Lively Town, you two!"

"Thanks Lilac," Light telepathically responded. "Anything interesting happen today while we were gone? Or was it a typical day?"

"Same old, same old basically. Nothing too new. However, the Chief actually contacted us this morning, a few minutes after you guys left. He was looking for you. You guys should've stuck around for a few minutes before leaving. Oops."

Light smiled and chuckled at the thought while Fennix responded. "Hey, sorry we have a job to do! What did he need us for anyways?"

"He didn't tell us, since he was waiting for you. But we know that he's investigating something. And if he's investigating something and needs your help, well… there are few things I can imagine it being."

"Our pasts!" Light and Fennix blurted out at the same time, their gazes instantly on each other.

"He also told us to contact him when you get back. So hurry on over if you want more information!"

"We're on it!" Fennix immediately blitzed offalmost as she was speaking, leaving Light in the dust as usual. The pikachu rolled his eyes before quickly lowering himself onto his four paws to run after her. It was only a few seconds later when they both ran into the main hall where Lilac and Dedenne were waiting.

"So, what super-secret mission does the Chief want?" Fennix asked quickly, her recent running not keeping her from running her mouth.

"'Super-secret mission?'" Dedenne repeated, her eyes rolling. "Someone's got high expectations. Anyways, I'll contact him now and we'll see what he has to say."

So Dedenne closed her eyes and yellow sparks of electricity began forming from her whiskers in constant pulses. She kept her eyes closed, doing that for a second, before a buzzing noise came from Light's, Fennix's, and Lilac's respective Expedition Gadgets. Light pulled his out of his scarf and clicked on the center to listen to the caller.

"Hello, Light, Fennix!" Ampharos's melodic voice came from all around the room thanks to the many communication devices that were playing his voice.

"Hi, Chief," both Light and Fennix responded in tandem.

"So, I hear that you need us for something?" Light asked. "Also, is Mawile there, too?"

"I am, though I'm a little tired," Mawile's voice finally came, and just from her weary tone Light could tell. "We've been busy for a while and it's not easy to sleep in the current situation. Not that the Chief would anyways."

Light chucked at the statement. Since the pikachu had been working for the Expedition Society he learned one very important thing about Ampharos. Things such as "a healthy amount of sleep" didn't seem to apply to him at all. Their doctor was often seen mumbling about how he overworks himself. Light even wondered whether Ampharos's staggering around unfamiliar areas had something to do with his typical lack of sleep.

"Are things really that hectic around there?" Light asked.

"In a sense," Mawile answered. "Chief, if you would?"

"As a reminder, we have been taking a trip to the western edges of the Sand Continent. We heard rumors of ruins back there, thousands of years old. Naturally, we wanted to move before treasure hunters and outlaws poured over the place, which was why we suddenly left without so much of an explanation other than the area."

Light nodded understandingly. "Makes sense. If word reached our ears, then I can't imagine how many bandits and looters have already went into the ruins looking for whatever they can."

"We thought the same. However, when we came close, we learned a few disturbing facts. First off, that the exact location of the ruins itself wasn't that well known among the locals. We found it strange for such a well-known rumor to have such a vague location. Then we learned exactly why. Many treasure hunters had already beat us to the ruins. None of them have returned."

"What?!" Everyone in the room all called out in pure shock at the same time.

Nobody managed to say anything else, so Ampharos continued. "As such, we've been taking our research of the ruins very slowly. Disappearing is not very high on my list of things to do. And we discovered some footprint-shaped text written in the ancient language carved into one of the walls."

"The ancient language," Light repeated. "Yep, I know why you called us here, then. This definitely has something to do with our pasts, doesn't it?"

"You, specifically, Light," Ampharos answered. "After all, the text told us the name of the ruins. In the ancient past, they were once called the Tomb of Light."

Silence came over the room for a few seconds as everyone took in the words Ampharos said, mostly thanks to the absurdity of them. Everyone's eyes glazed over to Light, as if somehow to make sure he was still there. Light felt his face warm up a little of having everyone gaze at him.

"Sorry guys, I never told you, but I've been dead all this time. I'm actually a ghost," Light joked, a wide smile on his face.

The reactions were immediate. Fennix scooted backwards as far away as possible, until her tail was backed into the wall at the entrance to the guild, a look of pure horror on her face. Meanwhile, Lilac looked at Light with an inquisitive gaze, as if she wanted to dissect him. Light couldn't help but let out a chuckle as he looked between the two.

"I'm kidding, you two. Honestly, if I was actually a ghost, I think we would have known a long time ago. Probably around the moment where Fennix first lit my tail on fire. Or the other times."

Fennix slowly walked back towards the rest of the group. "W-well maybe I was just checking to make sure you weren't a ghost."

Nobody in the room believed her obvious lie, and Lilac sighed and rolled her eyes. "I doubt it's talking about the Light we know. It's probably is something symbolic, like light as in the actual concept of light."

"Unfortunately, while I hate to contradict you, that is incorrect," Ampharos interrupted. "It is indeed Light as in our friend Light."

Everyone looked back towards their gadgets.

"How do you know?" Light asked.

"Because the ancient language itself makes a distinction." Mawile's tired voice came next. "In the ancient language, light as a concept and Light, the ally of Mew, are two different and distinct words that have different symbols associated with them. Light the concept of brightness is known as 'lumis' and is where we get words like 'luminous water.' Light, the ally of Mew, has no exact word in the Ancient Language. However, the concept is best described as 'the human who stood up against Dark Matter.' As you can imagine, once I see the rune for Light, it's hard to mistake it for anything else. This Tomb of Light is unmistakably referring to our Light."

"B-but…that's impossible!" Fennix blurted. "Light's right here! He isn't dead! So why is there a tomb for him? Aren't tombs for dead people?"

"We're not entirely sure either," Ampharos said. "But there is one Pokémon who might know why. That's why we have a task for you, Team Rebirth. We ourselves will continue investigating these ruins, but while we're doing that we want you two to return to Serene Village. Perhaps your father, Fennix, might know why such a tomb was built or for what purpose. We may also have you two join us here afterwards."

Fennix smiled widely at the mention of her father. "Yeah, you're right! Pops'll know all about whatever this weird tomb thing is! Come on, Light! Let's go!"

Light rolled his eyes and chuckled. "We'll go after we eat something. I'm pretty hungry and I'll bet you are too." The pikachu focused back on the gadget. "We'll get right on that, Chief! Once we talk to Carracosta, we'll tell you what he knows."

"Thanks you. Espurr, since Serene Village is also your home town, you may join Light and Fennix if you would like. We may also need your navigation skills for exploring the ruins, especially if it's as dangerous as the locals seem to suggest it is."

"I'll do that," Lilac said. "Sounds like it'll be interesting. Plus, it could be fun traveling around with a ghost."

"Seriously, that's not funny!" Fennix quivered.

Light chuckled before making his way towards the mess hall. Lilac followed soon after with an Fennix trailing behind. "So, any bets as to what's in that tomb?" Light asked while they walked.

"I betcha it's something cool involving our past lives," Fennix said before she rushed towards Light's side. "Maybe we hid some super cool secret treasure before we came to this world, or something."

"And we decided it wouldn't be useful against Dark Matter?" Light asked. "Otherwise, wouldn't we just give those items to Carracosta's ancestor so they could give it to us along with the Harmony Scarves?"

"And what do you think it is?"

Light shrugged. "Honestly, I'm not entirely sure. The fact that it's a tomb of all things is kinda weird. But I kinda doubt we'll find any sort of treasure there. Information on the past, probably, but I'm not expecting any treasure."

Fennix scoffed. "Spoil sport."

The two continued debating on what connection to their past the tomb could possibly give, all while completely unaware of the Pokemon trailing behind them, unable to join the conversation at all.

AN: Hello readers and welcome to my newest fanfic. This one took me a while, since I was planning on doing another story next, but put that on hold/potentially scrapped it after deciding I didn't like where it was going. So I'm doing this story instead. I've been enjoying writing this story more anyways, and it's always nice to delve back into the past lore that I expanded from Super.

I can't say how frequently this will be updated. School is in session, like with everyone else, and I don't have as many backlog chapters as I would like. Still, I'll try and not leave month long gaps between chapters or anything.

With that being said, however, I'll see you all later with the next chapter.

Beta read by TheGoldCrow