A young sneasel sits at attention, wide awake as the other children have drifted on to sleep, entranced by his elder's stories. Stories of a great bird, with wings of black and red, the ender of lives. A deity that grants them favor in the afterlife.
The sneasel looks up to the night sky before puffing out his chest, and proudly declares that one day, he's going to be the one to find their god.
The elder gives him a warm chuckle and reminds him that he needs to sleep if he wants to grow strong enough to find them.
...
A bidoof settles down to bed next to her younger brother. He asks their dad for a story in a chipper tone. Just one more, please?
Their father huffs but settles down in the straw to share the legends of the mountain. Of the great beast that slumbers there. The mountain mover, continent tower, protector of the small.
The big sister rolls her eyes and declares that those legends are for babies, that no one believes them anymore. But her brother's eyes are full of stars. Her father insists the story is true, that one day, the king will reawaken, and that when he does, he'll protect them all from the coming calamity.
…
A proud ninetales rests with his mate, murmuring the stories his father used to tell him. Of a deity far to the north. A dragon that had lost its purpose. Of a dragon that was as empty inside as the people that followed it, that blew icy winds from the mountain tops and froze their hearts, so they might be strong enough to survive.
His mate tells him what a horribly sad story it is, and he gives her a grunt of agreement. He hopes that they're only tall tales.
…
A bisharp stands in a clearing, the pelt of a slain mamoswine draped over her shoulders. She speaks to her fellow pokemon of the teachings of their deity, of the life-giver. Of their importance. For if the forest were to quit providing life to the prey mon, then surely, they would perish as well.
She raises a hand into the air and asks for their deity's blessing.
…
A litten takes his place in front of the sacred stones, sitting down between the two for his vigil and closing his eyes as he recalls the inscriptions.
We give thanks to the Sun Devourer. We give thanks to the Moon Bringer. We ask for their blessings and we pray for their safe returns.
He raises his head and lets out a mournful cry.
A/N: Important notes to take into account for this story are as follows:
-This is based loosely on the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon universe, but the dungeons will not be a major focus in the story.
-There are no humans in this story, nor any knowledge about humans unlike the main games
-Rating and warnings subject to change as although I know this story is going to have dark portions, I am not yet certain how graphic these sections will be. That said, I will warning for content as needed, but I don't expect it to go beyond a T rating at this point in time.
As for more general information...
This work has been several years in the making, brainstorming it on and off with my girlfriend. It went through plans of possibly being a comic, then possibly a visual novel, before deciding that I would be best to write it as a fanfic. But only recently have I figured out how I want it to end. Some parts have been very dark in the planning stages, and have been toned back. That said, there will be character death later in the story.
If it is not obvious from the from the summary and prologue, many of the pokemon in this series view legendary pokemon as gods, and as a result, there will be religious connotations in parts of the story, and may be the driving force for some characters, but is not the sole focus of the story either.
One other thing I want to touch on is that there are very few truly evil characters in this story, but there are many morally grey characters that do terrible things, that may or may not go through a redemption arc in the story. I am of the belief that almost anyone can change to be a better person if they want to, and that is going to be a major part of this work.