Prologue

"When is Daddy coming back?" the young absol asked, bundling between the tribe elder's paws. He shivered, pressing close to her because of the cold air which always seemed to be present in her cave. Through the screen of her fur, he could see a few older absol stacking tinder in the center of their camp.

For a while, Galeforce, or simply Gale, looked down at him, blinking eyes of red so dark they looked black. The cub's answer was the distant dripping which echoed back to them from deep within the cave, farther back than he'd ever gone. "We don't know," she finally said.

"My Daddy's a hero, you know," he said. "I bet he'll give those humans a kick and a slice and he'll be back tomorrow!" He emphasized his point with a jab of his paw. Gale caught his horn before he could shear off any of her fur.

Paw steps approached the cave. "Evernight!" called the cub's mother, Soulflame. He froze, already associating his full name with being in trouble. Bounding in, she spotted him and softened her tone. "Ever, baby. Come here."

To Gale, she asked, "How is he taking it?"

"He doesn't understand yet," the elder said. "Give him some time."

"Will you tell us a story before we go?" Ever asked, turning big, pleading eyes toward the tribe elder.

"Of course."

"A small one," his mother murmured, her tail rapping against the stone floor.

"Of course," Gale repeated. "Now Ever, there's a story your father always wanted me to tell you, but I thought it was better to save it until you were older."

"Really?" he squeaked.

"Really. And I think the time has come that you heard it. It's a story of inheritance. Your inheritance," she tapped him on the nose with one claw. "When your father was young, he found an item of great worth. He called it the Skysword."

With a groan, Gale got to her paws and led him to the mouth of her cave, where there was loosely-gathered sand. She drew her claw through it, first drawing a rectangle vertically, then another horizontally on top of it. Then she connected it to two perpendicular lines, each a tail-length long, and brought them together to make a point.

"This is a sword," she said. "It's a human tool, sharp as the horn on your very head."

"What was it for?" he asked.

"Early… pokemon battles," she said. "Your father found one, but it was a very special one. Most swords are made of metal, but this one was made of the very sky itself. A great being created the hilt from clouds and the blade from stardust. Once formed, it shined as if it were a tiny sun itself. Now, you might wonder what your father did with such a sword."

Ever nodded enthusiastically. "You see, the Skysword was imbued with power. With a swipe, it could remake one's destiny. It was meant to only be wielded by the greatest of heroes. Your father was the first one to ever find its hiding spot. And he left it there."

"But, why?" he gasped.

"Because your father didn't want to change his destiny. He already had everything he wanted. So, he left it there and told few of its existence, keeping it a secret for the next generation to find. He once said to me that he wanted you to find it, but only when the time is right."

"Where is it?"

"Ahh, now that's a secret," she teased. "Promise you won't tell anyone if I tell you?"

"I do!"

She leaned forward, "He found it where the sky touches the earth."

Glancing up, she noticed Soul glaring daggers at her. "How about you run along and play with the other cubs, Ever?"

He was gone at her mere suggestion, leaving the two older absol alone. "That has to be the craziest thing I have ever heard," Soul said scathingly. "Have you not seen the tribe? Our numbers thin, our cubs few! The last thing we need is for one to go off looking for some… 'Skysword!'"

"Of course, Soul," she said. "But let him have some hope to hold on to. You know as well as I. His father will be a pokemon battler for the rest of his days."

"Some return," Soul said, though there was a tremor of uncertainty in her tone.

"Only the old and unwell."

The younger female bobbed her head reluctantly.

"We'll never forget Snow," Gale said. "For now, mourn. But remember, Ever will need a father figure and you should have a mate to warm your nest."

"Right," Soul said, with a quiet sigh. "The tribe needs Ever. I know he'll grow up strong, just like his father."

"With any luck, one day he'll lead us to a better place. Away from the humans."

"A hero."

Gale nodded. "Plant the seed and watch the tree grow. Great thing about young ones."

Soul blinked at her, confused, "Are you calling my son a tree?"

"In a way."

They both froze as a young voice called. "Let's climb that hill before dark!" The only hill in question they could climb was steep and rocky, not a fit place to be as the sun sank below the horizon.

"Cubs," Soul said, shaking her head. She got to her paws and nuzzled the older absol briefly. "Good night, elder."

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, I merely write fanfiction of it because I am a fan. I also don't own the cover art :) Assume I own nothing!

A/N: Hello folks, welcome to my little pet project. Progress on my novel is pretty sad right now so I'm trying to get the creative juices flowing with a side story.

Skysword is a fable. As such, it is going to be pretty clean. Not much blood and death, prey notwithstanding. This whole story is technically being told to a group of young absol by a bonfire (as you will see in chapter 1.) I've always wanted to write a story that took a closer look at absol culture since playing Sapphire. Let me share with you a couple Pokedex entries of this enigmatic species: "Rumored to sense disasters with its horn, it became a target. It fled deep into the mountains." & "It appears from deep in the mountains to warn people about upcoming disasters it has sensed with its horn."

When reading this, there's one thing that seems odd. Why do absol come back to warn people of disaster when they are so hunted? So that will be explained here, in due time.

I have high hopes that you as a reader will enjoy it as much as I liked writing it!