Just something that's been sitting in my mind for a while. A new spin on the PMD series!
I don't own Pokemon.
"I wasn't always this way."
"You weren't?"
"No. Believe it or not, I was once just like you."
"Really? How?"
"Just like you, I was searching for who I was, what I was meant to be, what I was meant to do. Wandering, lost, I had no clue what destiny wanted me to be. It wasn't always straight and narrow, the way it seems to be now."
"But, I know who I am."
"Do you?"
"Yeah. I'm not lost or wandering. I'm just...taking a different route."
The sun crept bright and shining over the horizon in the far distance, slowly spreading fingers of dawn light to the edges of a rocky world.
Shadows grew where the sunlight shone over the boulders that jutted from the surface, breaking the flood of light as it appeared.
But the area was silent, even in the face of the coming sun. The endless crag was empty and quiet, belying what activity existed beneath the dark brown surface.
"Ryu! All of our supplies are in order!" a Totodile named Kione said to his partner, a Charmander.
Ryu nodded at him and took one of the bags that Kione was carrying. They were red with an orange ember marking on the flaps, and actually light and near-empty.
"We've packed light to keep us unencumbered for the chase, Ryu." a young-looking Snivy told him as he took up his own pack.
"Good thinking Tyler." Ryu nodded at him.
"Team Magma Storm! Report in!" a voice called over to them.
Ryu, Kione, and Tyler looked around to see a Riolu leaning against the wall of the cavern called simply "The Base."
"Daniel, sir! All of our supplies are in order and we are ready to apprehend Derby!" Ryu told him as he and his team walked over.
"Yes alright, and I see you are packing light. Might I ask how long this little endeavor shall carry on?" Daniel asked him.
"Approximately two days. That providing there is no change in weather patterns or population as we were informed by Team Ingrain." Tyler said, holding out a piece of paper.
"Team Ingrain is rarely wrong, so I say you may go along!" Daniel said, stamping the page with his seal, a star.
"Yes sir. We will be back with the criminal in custody as soon as possible." Ryu said as he and his team darted up the ladder that led to the surface world.
"Arceus-speed, my good Ryu. May good luck forever be with you!" Daniel called after him.
"Daniel, did Team Magma Storm already leave?" a voice behind the Riolu asked. He turned around to see a pair of long brown ears and, looking down, saw the deep brown eyes of an Eevee.
"Yes ma'am, Syro! They just left, doncha know?" Daniel said.
"I don't know. That's why I asked you! And don't call me 'ma'am'. Syro is fine." Syro replied.
"Syro! Syro! We have a problem with Terminal 4-B!" a Shinx shouted as he ran across towards her. Syro jumped back as he was tackled by a Pikachu, pushing them both to the floor.
"I told you, Techno! I can fix it!" the Pikachu shouted at him.
"Last time you fixed something, Watt, we were knee-deep in blown-up wires for three days!" Techno shot back.
"That's only because of your shotty wiring! If you just let me look at how you fix these things, we wouldn't be having issues!" Watt exclaimed.
Syro rolled her eyes as the two technicians went back to work, arguing and forgetting what they were going to say to her. How they wound up partners, she didn't know.
"Yes...now, have you received any news from Air Squad yet?" she asked, turning back to Daniel.
"No not yet, but they'll be back, I'll even bet! Dusty's feisty and eager to fly, so she'll be back in the blink of an eye!" Daniel said confidently.
"They've been gone for two days now. It normally doesn't take Air Squad this long to do a simple recon mission." Syro said worriedly.
"Shall I send Ground Squad out and about? Who knows, maybe they'll come around." Daniel said.
"No." Syro sighed, "Give Ground Squad some time to recover from their last mission. I guess we'll just have to sit and wait for Air Squad to get back."
She fell quiet as she looked around the cave. Pokemon dashed all over the place, preparing for missions, fixing broken computers, readying supplies...all in a day's work at the Explorers Society. The treasure hunting team, Team Water Pledge, was about to leave for a new mission while Team Ingrain, the exploration team, was relaxing after a long week in a far-off forest. The Tech Crew, Watt and Techno, had settled their dispute and were fiddling with the malfunctioning computer.
And they weren't in sight, but she knew that the Ground Squad Reconnaissance team was resting as well. Everything was as it should be...so why did she feel so wary?
"Everything's going smoothly..." she murmured.
"Ah my friend, but in you I sense, waves of malcontent...now tell me, would you care to vent?" Daniel asked her.
"Everything is going great. Better than I could hope for..." Syro started.
"But...?" Daniel prompted.
"But I can't shake this feeling that something really bad is about to happen. It's like...all of this quietude and easy living...is just like the calm before a terrible storm. Like a shadow's hanging over the Base, just waiting to spring on us when we least expect it." she said.
"Ah...the common case of nervous nerves and wary swerves. On the edge and on the alert, that is how you work." her partner said, nodding.
"I know it's silly to worry about this sort of thing. But still." Syro sighed as she walked to the entrance ladder and looked up, "Something's about to happen. Something big. Something bad."
