Greetings, and many great hellos! This is the gate that leads into the world of Pokemon!

Nah, just pulling your wings (if you have any, that is)! This is the start of my newest fanfiction, featuring grand adventures, mysterious treasures, a plot to destroy the world (maybe), and brand new species of Pokemon!

Now, as usual, I have a few things to say before we start our adventure…

One, this fanfic was heavily inspired by Coli Chibi's "Explorers of Prehistory", so thank you for that!

Second, I do not own Pokemon. Damnit.

Third… ah, I'll tell you later! For now, hold onto your seats as we go for a wild ride into the world of Pokemon!

-.-.-.-.-.

The sun was rising slowly into the still morning air, casting its light upon the valley.

A mist was rising over the forest, and nary a breeze stirred the leaves on the trees.

Nothing moved, nothing made a sound.

All was perfect.

Until, that is, two shadowy figures flashed across the tops of the trees, causing a sharp wind to rustle the branches just beneath them. Anyone who would have glared up at them, annoyed for causing such a sudden ruckus, would have seen three similar figures chasing them.

Said figures let out shrill caws that split the peaceful morning. The two fleeing Pokemon increased the strength and speed of their flaps, trying not to let themselves be caught. But the hostiles behind them were gaining quickly.

"Faster, Elf, faster!" yelled the larger one. "We have to escape! We have to tell the Guardians!" He flapped harder, wings barely making a sound as he did so. The little one was left tumbling in his wake as she tried to keep up.

"Barn!" she squeaked as a sudden gust of wind smacked her back a few feet. "My wings are tired! I have to rest!" Barn shook his feathery head frantically as he stroked harder than ever, trying not to feel the strain in his wings. "We can keep flying – or we can rest, and be caught by them!"

He jerked his head quickly behind him, indicating their pursuers. A furious Honchkrow streaked after them, flanked by two fearsome-looking Pidgeotto. The Honchkrow cawed again, her voice harsh and loud, breaking the silent morning like thin ice. Her Pidgeotto lackeys kept pace with her, just as eager to tear the fleeing pair apart.

Barn and Elf managed to keep away from them, but it wasn't easy. Being a pair of owl Pokemon – Noctowl and Hoothoot, respectively – their eyes weren't as accustomed to seeing in daylight as their pursuers' were. And now, they were flying into the rising sun, already squinting in order to block out as much light as possible.

But it seemed that despite her size and her preoccupation with the wind, the little Hoothoot was thinking ahead. "Quick, Barn!" she trilled. "Into the trees! We can lose them there!"

Barn nodded and followed his friend down below the treeline. Not only was it darker down here, but their wings were more accustomed to flying in forests than out in the open. Not to mention that the combination of obscuring leaves and branches as well as their silent wingbeats would serve them well in evading the enemy and avoiding detection.

Almost instantly, Barn's sharp ears picked up the thunderous flaps of the three bird Pokemon behind them, punctuated by the harsh sounds of branches breaking and leaves rustling. His hearing was so great that he could even hear the air rushing through their feathers.

And then he heard another sound, a voice that crashed in his sensitive ears. "Faster, you idiots!" the Honchkrow screeched in anger. "We can't let those fledglings escape!" The Pidgeottoes replied in their low growls as they tore through the forest alongside her.

Barn quickly ducked under a branch, only to swerve upwards to avoid another. Elf seemed to find a new energy within her, weaving through the branches like a flying Bug Pokemon and suddenly passing him. He redoubled his efforts, following the minute Hoothoot as they flew wildly through the ever-thickening forest.

But despite their foes' obvious deficiencies, Barn suddenly caught sight of them crash through that last tree and into his sightline. He gave a hoot of fear as the adrenalin coursed through him. "Get back here!" the leader cawed again. "Maybe if you surrender we will spare your lives!"

Dream on, you addle-brained, idiotic excuse for a Flying-type! The words roared in Barn's head as he suddenly stopped and clutched at a stray branch. Pulling the branch back in his talons, he waited for the trio to get in range, and then released the branch, sending it snapping forward.

The Honchkrow was struck, smack-dab in the beak. She howled in pain and was smacked backwards, plowing into the Pidgeotto and causing them all to spiral out of control. Barn heard the muffled *thud* as they hit the ground, probably painfully. And then he heard no more from them.

Nevertheless, he flew on, leading Elf on a winding path in case they resumed the chase again. A minute flew by (pardon the pun) without any sign of the Honchkrow or her lackeys, and Barn knew in his heart that they could finally rest and relax.

A huge sycamore tree was coming up ahead. Circling the trunk, they found a good-sized hollow on the shadowy side, and immediately flew into it. "This will make a good hiding place until we can fly again," panted Elf, collapsing onto the wooden floor.

Barn was indeed tired as well, but they needed this time to think. The valley had no towns or villages anywhere – it was a wild place, inhabited only by wild Pokemon, appropriately. But these two young Flying-types, who had barely left their nests and knew only the ways of the forest, had to fly out of their safe, cozy valley and into the wide world beyond.

"Where do you think we should go?" Elf asked worriedly, breaths growing slower and shallower as her fatigue gradually faded. "Your family has books, what do you know about the world outside our valley?"

The Noctowl's brow creased and his head rotated slowly as he thought. It seemed to help him make hard decisions and figure out escape plans when his head was moving.

"I've heard that, on the west side of the valley, over those mountains, is a coast. And on that coast is a town. We can go there and try to find out about the Guardians and where to go to find them," he explained, a tad uncertainly.

Elf flinched. "A town?" she repeated incredulously. "We're wild Pokemon! We don't belong in a town, we belong where there are trees and grass and little rodent Pokemon to hunt!"

Barn shrugged his feathery shoulders. "I didn't say we were staying," he told his friend. "And it's the best place to find out about the Guardians." He desperately wanted to convince Elf to go with him and warn the Guardians about the evil that was hidden away in this valley. But would such Pokemon, rumored to be so noble and civilized, be willing to stop the evil?

"It's really quiet out there," Elf remarked, sticking her head – or what looked like her head, it was hard to tell – out of the small hollow. "You think they've given up?" she asked. Barn shrugged again, tilting his head until his feathery tufts were touching his chest. "If we head over the west mountains, we'll bypass their fort entirely," he said decisively, flipping his head back up. "Come on, Elf, we can make it before noon if we fly now."

The little Hoothoot nodded, hopping up to the edge of the hollow. She spread her tiny wings and flapped furiously in a takeoff.

Barn followed a minute later. Squeezing through the hollow's entrance, he spread his wings and lifted into flight without making a sound. To any onlooker, it would have seemed that he had just melted out from the tree and flown off like a Ghost Pokemon.

The two friends headed for the western mountains, looking to exit the valley – the peaceful, tranquil valley that they had lived in all their lives, but would be destroyed if the Guardians were not warned.

-.-.-.-.-.

This is just the prologue, so sorry if you were expecting a longer chapter.

But there are many questions to be asked! Who are Barn and Elf, and from what did they escape? Why does the Honchkrow want to get her claws on them? And who are the Guardians, and where are they?

Those are questions for another time ('cause I'm still trying to figure out the answers). Right now…

…I need you to help me! I need OCs for this fanfic! What, you thought I'd be doing all the work? Not this time!

What is the name, gender, species, personality (optional), past (optional), or whatever accessories they wear (optional)? Give me your ideas, and I'll be sure to thank you for them!

(Note: I will be accepting Legendary Pokemon as OCs, but only the shrimpy ones like Jirachi and Celebi. Darkrai's good too, I guess, but that's it. However, heed this warning – if I get more than one request for a certain Legendary, only one will actually get said Legendary, and the other(s) will have their species switched. So it's wise to have a back-up plan.)

This fanfic isn't going anywhere until I get at least a few more ideas, so give me some characters to use!

See you!