Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, Pokémon, and it's characters are the property of Nintendo, Game Freak, Satoshi Tajiri, and The Pokémon Company International. This fanfiction is a compilation of various events that have transpired in the worlds these companies and people have made, and as such, they are responsible for the basis of all things in this work of literature. Please support the official creations and their creators.
Chapter Two: Encouragement
Thunder cracked and lightning flashed in the tunnel of time that was thrusting them into infinity itself. The human male and his entrusted partner clung to the wooden raft that they had both pushed into the Passage of Time, with them on it. They held onto it for dear life. The sound of the vortex was so powerful it was near defining. The partner squeezed his eyes shut.
"H-Hold on! We gotta hold on!" He screamed to the human. The human sat next to him, clinging to the sail pole with terror as they plummeted into the vast blue stream of geometric lights and unholy sounds of mechanical madness, despite no mechanics being involved.
A 'gust' of wind was heard from somewhere nearby within the midst of the charged extraspatial air around them. They saw a shadow form from the corner of their eye.
"...bl-blast! We've been caught!" The partner shouted as the shadow began to form a powerful sphere of dark aura within it's thin 'arms'. It hurled it at the duo.
"N-No!" The human screamed as he dove before the blast, taking full brunt of it. He rolled off the side of the raft, and clung to it, his chest glowing where the blast hit him, and smoked.
"Ah! No! H-Hold on!" The partner screamed to the human as he tried to take his hand.
"I... I can't... dr-drifting... I..." The human was growing weaker and unconcious.
"N-No! No!" The partner sobbed as he feebly grasped for the human's shirt.
And with that, the human fell unconcious, and slipped from the raft, and was sent tumbling into the void of time, his body smoking and slowly glowing more and more violently.
"...Hrm..." The Eevee paced back and forth before the guild. She felt her heart rate increase slowly as she thought more and more about stepping onto the Sentry Grate.
She eyed it. Many times, she has stepped over it, only to be frightened away by a booming voice calling her name from below.
"N-No! I refuse to be paralyzed by this any longer!" She stood up, timidly, attempting to keep a strong posture. "This is it! Today... today is the day I will be brave!" She slowly walked forward, over the grate, with false pride.
"Pokémon detected, Pokémon detected!" Called a squeaky voice from below.
"Who's foot print, who's foot print?" Another, huskier voice boomed back.
"The foot print is Eevee's! The Foot print is Eevee's!" said the squeaky voice!
"Yeeeek!" Eevee yelped and leaped back. "Th-that scared me!" She panted, sitting down on the ground. "I... I thought I could do it, but..." She looked down at her chest, where a pendant hung. There was a chunk of rock on it, with an worn, yet ornate pattern. "M-My... personal treasure... I thought it'd inspire me... but... no... I'm still just a coward..." She stood up and began to turn away, walking slowly, and precariously down the stairs with a heavy heart.
There was some shuffling nearby. Two Pokémon appeared from the bush. A Zubat and a Koffing.
"'Ey, Zubat! Did'ja getta load'a that?!" The Koffing puffed.
"Yeh bet I did, Koffing!" Zubat squeaked excitedly.
"That was somthin' good, right?"
"Yeh! It looked like some kinda treasure! D'ya know what that means?" The two of them began to giggle.
"We'll be swimmin' in cash if we pawned it off!" Koffing exclaimed. "Shall we give 'er chase?"
"That we shall, partner! Keheheh!"
"Fwohoho..." And with a short chortle, the duo of thieves made their way to tail Eevee.
Beach at Dusk – Explorers of Sky OST
The bubbles soared over the shores, catching the light of the setting sun. The Krabby laughed as they blasted off the spheres of blown seafoam, dazzled, even after many years of doing it, at the magnificent display.
The water slid over the shores, with a soft wave, and a gentle breeze. Eevee slowly walked down the slope, her head hung, and ears drooping. The waves sloshed over her feet quietly, and quickly dragged back out to the greater blue. She turned and looked out over the ocean.
"W-Wow! Th...this is beautiful!" She exclaimed, watching the bubbles sail across the water, and drift away, myriads of prismatic light reflecting out of the iridescent bubbles, and casting a faint rainbow glow over the beach. The majestic sight captivated the Evolution Pokémon. "...n-no matter how many times I see this, it's so beautiful... it helps... make me happier."
She sighed. But did she feel happy? Was she truly happy right now, after seeing this sight? She didn't know. Her heart still felt so heavy.
"...rrrnng..."A groan came from somewhere to her left. What was that? Eevee turned to see something lying in the sand nearby.
"...wh-what's... going on there...?" Eevee cautiously stepped closer to the something. The something quickly looked like a someone, and that someone looked as if they had just washed up on shore. "Wh-whaa! S-Someone's collapsed on the beach!" She rushed to their side. "E-Excuse me! Please! Wake up!" She stared at the Pokémon. "C-Come on, wake up!" She shook them.
"Raahhh!" The Pokémon lurched forward, startled by the sudden quaking. Eevee sighed. They were alive.
"You're finally awake. Thank goodness!" She exclaimed.
"...wh...what? Where... where am I...?" The Pokémon looked around quickly.
"Y-You were so... frozen. It was like you were paralyzed... D-Do you know how you ended up here?" She looked inquisitively at them.
"I... don't know... I... remember being on a raft of some kind... and... I fell off."
"Oh... s-so... you might have amnesia. Do you remember your name?"
"My name...? Uh... no. I don't remember my name." They looked puzzled.
"Oh... Well, you have a blue scarf around your neck. Do you remember it?" They looked down at it, and their eyes widened.
"...I... I..." They stampered, looking down.
"What? Do you remember something-"
"I'm a TORCHIC!?" They screamed. They looked around frantically, hopping mad, and panicking at their now one-foot-four-inches self. "Oh my God, oh my God! Why... why am I a Torchic?! What the Hell is going on here?!"
"Wh-what? What's wrong? Aren't you normally a Torchic?" She said quickly, obviously startled.
"What? No! I'm supposed to be a human!" There was a stark silence. A human? They were supposed to be a human?
"A... human? But... you look like a normal Torchic... t-to me, that is. I might be hallucinating..."
"I'm a human! I swear, I'm a human! I don't know why I'm a Torchic!"
"Well... I... I dunno... I'm s-sorry, I wish I could he-AH!" She was knocked over, the pendant around her neck falling into the sand.
"Whoa-ho! So sorry, didn't see ya there, lassie!" The Koffing huffed mischievously. Eevee was paralyzed in the sand, in fear. Her eyes wide with terror, her chest tightening, and her heart rate increasing.
"Say!" He opened his mouth and shrilly squeaked in the direction of the pendant. "That sounds valuable! Do you mind if we... take it?!" The Zubat swooped down and snatched it out of the sand.
Team Skull – Explorers of Sky OST
"...n-no! My treasure!" Eevee cried.
"Treasure, you say! Zubes, we were right, this thing IS valuable!" Koffing chortled. "C'mon, let's beat it so we can sell this hunk of rock- OW" The human Torchic ha leaped up, and began to peck the Koffing, ramming it's beak into the porous purple smog orb's side.
"Give that back! That's not yours!" The Torchic yelled, constantly jumping up and pecking Koffing.
"Ah! Let's skedaddle!" Zubat yelled, knocking the Torchic aside, and allowing themselves to escape to the nearby Beach Cave.
Torchic sat up, and shook the sand out of it's down. What was that for? "Y-You! Eevee! We have to go after them!"
But Eevee was not listening. She was trembling, her mouth quivering, and eyes watering. She was crying. Or, having a nervous breakdown.
"Are... are you alright?" Torchic asked. "Look, I want to help you get your... thing back! C'mon!" She moved her eyes to him.
"...y-you... you'll help me?" She asked, quietly.
"Of course I'll help you! I'm not just going to sit by and let those thieves take your stuff like that!" Come on, let's go get it back." They held held out a talon to Eevee to take. She stared at it for a moment, before lifting a paw, and lifting herself up, shaking the sand off of her. She nodded.
The two turned to the cave. Eevee felt herself gulp unconciously. But she refused to run away. The only direction she was was forward.
In the Depths of the Pits – Explorers of Sky OST
"Whaddya MEAN this is as far as we can go?!" Zubat screeched.
"I'm tellin' ya, Zubes, this is the end of the dungeon! We have to go back!" Koffing huffed.
"Go back? GO BACK!? I'm not goin' back! We gotta go forward! The authorities are probably on our tails by now, and we got no where to go!"
"Well, why didn't ya run up the hill to Treasure Town? We coulda been long gone! But no. You had tah go into a cave. A cave! Did it not... uh... what' the word..."
"Register?"
"Register! In your mind, that we may meet a dead end?"
"Of course it did! It's all part of my plan!"
"Oh ho, really? That's a first. What's ya plan, Zubes?"
"Okay... we wait here... and when the cops come... we AMBUSH them! Hah? HAH?"
"Ambushing the Magnezone Squad. Righ'. Tell me another joke, you might make me explode."
"I'll give ya a joke upside the head! Oh wait, ya nothin' but!" Ahahaha!"
"That ain't cool, Zubes."
A shifting was heard nearby. A shuffling of sand. And a voice.
"Heyyy!" Came a shrill call.
"Eh?" Both Zubat and Koffing turned their heads to face behind them.
Heroes of Hoenn
"Who do you think you are, taking what's not yours?! Give back that pendant!" Torchic yelled, looking up at the two floating Poison-types.
"Oh ho! Lookie here, Zubes, we got ourselves a hero!" Koffing joked.
"Oh, nooo~!" Zubat mocked. "I hope she doesn't peck our eyes out!" Zubat laughed.
Torchic quickly became livid, scrunching it's face up in anger. With a battle cry, he leaped at the Zubat, and knocked him to the ground, pecking him. The Torchic, not being used to it's new body, had walked awkwardly throughout the entire dungeon. But now, they simply jumped.
"Wha-hey! Ow! Quit that!" Zubat protested.
"I!" Torchic began to speak through pecks. "Am! Not! A! Girl!" He drilled his beak into the Zubat's face, Zubat yelping.
"I'll save ya, Zubes!" Koffing flew over, and knocked Torchic over, off of Zubat.
"Keh! Thanks, Koffers!" They then turned to Eevee. "Eh? Whassa matter? Not gonna help your buddy?" Koffing lifted Torchic by the scruff with his mouth. "Not gonna even get your treasure back! Hah! Looks like you're not the only chicken here!"
"Argh, let me go! You bastards!" Torchic struggled.
"Whoa-ho! This one's got a mouth, Zubes!" Koffing said through clenched teeth.
"So what's it gonna be, sweetie? Ya gonna come take us out? Save the day? Stop being a coward?"
"...I... I..." Eevee looked as if she were about to cry. She sniffed.
"Aww, lookie here, we got a spicy chicken wing, and a CRYBABY! You two are so under-class! You're both disappointments as Pokémon!"
Eevee stopped crying, looking up at the Zubat as he and his partner laughed. She slowly began flashing back.
"Useless! A disgrace! You're nothing but a wimp!" The Umbreon yelled.
"B-But dad... please... I'm n-not! I promise I'll be a good Eevee, and help mom! I promise-"
"Stop making promises you'll never keep! You know what you are? You're a disappointment! An utter..."
"A failure." Zubat said with resolution. "A total washout! I bet that Wigglytuff Guild kicked you out for being so useless-AGH!" Eevee had knocked Zubat down into the sand with a Tackle attack. She landed in front of them, huffing angrily.
"I... I..." She began to cry, and shake. "I am not a failure!"She screamed, lunging herself at the Zubat, and beginning to do what Torchic did- with much more force, with tears, and throat-burning screams.
"Ahh! Help! Geroff me!" Zubat screamed at his second onslaught.
"Nah, dude, you totally brought that one on yourself. Foah ho ho." Koffing laughed, letting Torchic fall out of his mouth.
"Ahh!"Zubat cried, desperately trying to get free of Eevee's attack.
"E-Eevee! Stop!" Torchic pulled her off of him, as she sobbed, flailing, trying to get to the Zubat.
"Eagh! You punks are gonna give me a concussion! Here! Take your stupid necklace back, you creeps! We won't forget this!" Zubat slung the necklace off of his neck and into the sand below. "Let's skit, bro!"
"Oh ho, righ' behind ya, Zubes." The two of them fled, Koffing laughing at his partner's misfortune. Torchic watched them leave, with a sigh. He turned to Eevee, who was panting, trying to calm down.
"Hey, it's okay. You're gonna be okay. Shh." Torchic tried to reassure her.
"H-H-He... He called me... a..." Eevee hyperventilated. She stiffled another cry.
Torchic turned around and picked up the pendant with his beak. "Hey, see? Here's you're treasure. It's okay!" Eevee looked up, her eyes misty from the crying, her breathing hard.
"...T-Torchic... thank you... w-without you, I... w-would have lost it..."
"It's not just me, you did just fine in that battle! I think you'll grow up to be big and strong, someday!"
She snapped her eyes up.
"...wh-what did you say?"
"I... I said I think you'll get stronger, and one day, you'll be very strong... wh-wait, are you going to cry again?" Eevee was indeed crying again. "Wh-what's wrong?"
"That... that was..." Eevee gasped through her tears. She looked at him, crying, yet smiling brightly. "That was the first time... I've ever been complimented."
"...T-Torchic, thank you. Thank you so much for helping me." Eevee said, as they walked back out onto the beach.
"I'm glad I could help!" Torchic said happily. He smiled the best his beak would allow.
"Uhm... h-here is what they stole." She designated her pendant. "This... this is my Relic Fragment. It's my good luck charm. I always keep it with me. Uhm... just looking at it... it makes me think about old stories from the past... it's so... so... exhilarating... it's so mystical... the origins of this fragment are completely unknown... I wonder what civilization inscribed it...?" She looked up, seeing the Torchic's dazed expression. "O-Oh, sorry! I... I drone on a lot about stories of the past..."
"It's okay." Torchic said, exasperated. "Uhm, you're quite the scholar. Are you, uhm, an archaeologist?"
"...no. I'm... I want to... I want to start an exploration team. I want to go all over the world, exploring uncharted lands, and finding lost treasures..." She looked serene when she said this, but her expression quickly changed. "But... I'm... a coward. I'm weak. I can't get the nerve up to even go to the Wigglytuff Guild and apply to become an E-Explorer..."
"...the... Guild..." Torchic looked as if he were unfamilar with it.
"...uh, w-will you do something for me?" Eevee asked.
"Something? A request? Uh, what?"
"W-Will... will you..." She walked forward and fell to the ground, bowing in front of Torchic. "Will you make an Exploration Team with me?!" She blurted out.
"Wh-what!?" He looked taken aback. She knew her request was sudden, but nonetheless, couldn't help but ask.
"Please! You give me strength! You give me the strength I need to do this! I would feel so much easier if I went there with someone!" She then slowed down. "...I'm sorry... I sh-shouldn't make decisions for you. It's your choice... I'm sor-"
"Yes."
"...I... b-beg your pardon?"
"Yes." Torchic repeated. I will make an Exploration Team with you."
"...r-really? You're... you're not trying to prank me, are you?"
"What? No, why would I do that? That's cruel! I don't have anything to do. I just washed up on the shores of a beach without any recollection of how I got there, so, I don't know what else I can do. You're my only friend right now, and friends have to stick together, right?"
"..." Eevee was trembling.
"E-Eevee?" Torchic cautiously asked, just before she ran to him and hugged him.
"...fr-friends... I have... a fr-friend..." She sobbed into his orange down.
Torchic sighed. But he knew this was the right thing to do.
And something inside of Eevee told her something.
It was destiny.
