There are a couple things that could be said about a mystery dungeon such as Serenity Pocket. Compared to its peers, it was a rather quiet dungeon. Nestled deep as a small pocket inside Serenity Forest, the dungeon serves as a place where a novice can get their first taste of what a mystery dungeon is like without having to worry about most of the dangers associated them.That said, it was still a place of danger for those who underestimated it. It was certainly not an ideal place for one to find themselves in. For one unassuming human however, it would be the shattering of peace and stagnancy as they rise into their new role in this strange yet familiar world. For however many things may change, the more they stay the same.

(******)

The inhabitants of Serenity Forest stirred as the morning sun crept over the horizon. As light lanced through the fog of night, some began to wake for the day to come. Others still fell into a deep sleep, ready for when night would come again. Regardless of who called it home, it was business as usual all in the forest.

All that is, save for one.

A young man stirred as the morning rays fell upon his face. His eyes twitched as the sun shined upon them, causing him to shift in an attempt to ward off the day for a little longer. A leaf fell forward, securing some protection against the harsh rays.

"For God sake, can't the sun just let me sleep a little longer?" He shivered as a crisp breeze blew into him.

"Why is the AC on so low?" He grumbled, pulling at his blankets.

A mild annoyance set in as his hands found no purchase on his covers. More immediate to his concerns was the fact his body was feeling sore in all the wrong ways, further compounded by the numb unresponsiveness in his hands. He tried to wiggle the fingers on his right hand, finding that he still felt nothing from them. With his attempts at sleep ruined, the man cracked open his eyes. He winced, shutting them on instinct as the light hit him head on.

"Must've overslept if the sun's already out. But why the hell does everything feel so off ri-"

His trail of thought vanished as his vision cleared. He blinked. He blinked again. Then one more for good measure.

"The hell?"

The first thing that became apparent was his vision was obscured by something in front his eyes. The other was the fact he was not in his bed or bedroom for that matter. What greeted him was the sights of billowing trees with the floor around him carpeted by forest debris and grass. A few meters in front was a small stream that was flowing nearby, moving so slowly that he didn't notice until now. Whatever drowsiness he felt before was gone, his mind rearing at the unfamiliar environment.

"Okay, what the hell is going-" The man made to stand, only to freeze once again as his brain processed the fact there was indeed a snout in front of his eyes. A part of him wondered why it took him so long to notice it, but the rest was more preoccupied about the state of the rest his body. Without looking, the man tried flexing one of his hands again. Nothing happened. A sense of dread began to creep into his mind as he tried the same with the left. Again, nothing happened. The man took a deep breath, forcing his growing panic into the back of his mind.

"Fuck's sakes Coryn. Get a grip and just look at it." Steeling himself, he released his breath and looked downward. To his credit, he managed to avoid flinching when he saw the leaves embedded around his neck. The tip of a much larger leaf fell into his cone of vision, becoming conscious of a light but noticeable pull on his scalp. Coryn suppressed the urge to swear.

"Calm, remain calm. It's just one hell of a lucid dream Coryn. Relax." His eyes fell further down his body as he righted himself up to a sitting position, taking note of the fact his arms no longer existed nor had hands to speak of in a form he was familiar with He tried to ignore the fact that the rest of his body felt off as he glanced at where they should have been. His sight was greeted by two green stumps that ended in three toes, the middle of each being much more elongated than than the others. Also of note was the fact these limbs were long and beefy. He pulled one up, giving it an experimental flex as he worked it around. To his astonishment, the limb was surprisingly flexible, though not to the degree that his arm was as a human. He repeated the process with the other limb as he flexed it before pushing both down into the ground, marveling at the sensitivity he felt as his "forefeet" crushed against the dead leaves beneath them. His toes flexed a little, feeling the foliage curl around them.

"So no hands. Shit. But of no consequence in a dream. Just enjoy the novelty while it lasts. It's a wonder the dream hasn't ended yet, so take your time. This'll be a good experience to record once you wake up." He smirked, raking one of his feet against the ground as he pulled in some of the loose foliage around him, marveling at their sensitivity as his toes took in the texture of the dead leaves and grass clipping against them. He gave them another wiggle. Stiff as hell, but he did feel something at least. He gave each limb one more flex before turning his gaze back to his leaves. His neck twisted to a surprising degree as he took in each one.

"Huh. That's neat. Must be fun party trick. Fun." He chuckled, prodding each leaf in turn. In total there were eight rooted around his neck, each hiding a bud underneath which he found were sensitive to the touch.

His vision drifted down to his body's midsection. His skin had a tannish green quality to it, with the muscle in his back well articulated and defined when flexed. Moving down further to his hind legs, he found they were similar to those in the front, save for the joints which resembled that of a modern quadruped. Coryn stood up slowly, careful to keep his balance as he tested his movement. He gave each leg a careful swing before sitting back down, unable to stop himself from cracking a smile.

"This is so awesome. Definitely ranks as one of my better dreams." His eyes then fell on his tail. During the brief moment he stood up, he found its weight considerable. It was long, probably at around thirty to thirty five inches if he had to guess. But then again, this was probably par the course for saurians. An idea popped into his head as he stood up a bit, eyeing a branch that was close by. Angling his body so his tail faced it, he willed his tail to move. A shiver ran down his spine as his tail wrapped around the branch until it was enclosed. Another shiver ran down his spine as he took in the course texture of the branch's bark, marveling at how sensitive his tail was to tactile sensation. He lifted the branch into the air and swung it around with a good degree of precision and accuracy. This time Coryn could not suppress the full blown smile he had on his face.

"Okay, this makes up for the fact I have no hands anymore. This tail is awesome." It wasn't a hand, but it was very dexterous all things considered. The fact his tail had both heft and girth in equal measure meant he could probably use it as a weapon if push came to shove. Coryn gavea a quick glance at his environment, spotting a lone tree close to him. Pulling back a few steps, Coryn angled his body before pivoting, sending the projectile into the air. His smile faded as he saw the branch go wide of his intended target by several meters, tumbling to the ground before coming to a stop.

"Oh. I guess this is gonna be more difficult than I thought. Oh well, can't win them all. I still got an honest to god tail! It's been a good dream so far all things considered. More realistic than I expected though. I wonder if..." Out of curiosity, Coryn bent down to see his underside. He blinked, seeing a distinct shape settled between his legs.

"Oh. So this body has a sheath. How… Interesting." He paused, glancing around him as he became all too aware of the fact he stood stark naked for all intents and purposes. Coryn breathed a sigh of relief as he confirmed no one was around. Sure, he was a bayleef. That much could not be denied. But it was sure as hell going to be an awkward encounter if he ran into any other denizens in this dream. It might be just that, but still it was going to be something to get over. Needless to say, it was something to be avoided for now if possible. Casting his gaze away before his thoughts dropped further into something unwholesome, he stood up and stretched his limbs. He sighed as his bones gave a satisfying pop before looking towards the stream.

"Might as well head on over to see what I look like. I swear if I end up seeing a human face after all this..." He shook his head before taking a step. Then another. Then another. And another, until he paced several steps around him. He couldn't shake the feeling something was off about this dream. It was almost unnerving at how realistic it was, his body feeling a dissonance of alieness and familiarity. More than one would expect of a dream of this caliber. Moreover he did not feel the slightest bit uncomfortable in this new form. Every gesture felt well practiced and familiar, that he had always been like this. It wasn't that the body was jarring. It was the fact it wasn't that caused him to pause.

"Shake it off Coryn. Don't let this spoil your dream. It'll probably be the only lucid dream like this you'll be getting for a loooong time. Treasure it while you still can." He moved forward towards the river at a walking pace, conscious of how much his tail was working to balance him. While he could probably make do without it, the thought felt… Unthinkable to him. It'd be like losing one of his arms. Another thing he noticed was the way the sun beat down on his body. It felt different, a soothing balm to his soul as his body took in the rays. He felt more energetic than usual, to the point it could be called pleasurable. It was an odd detail to have in a dream, but it was here nonetheless.

As he trekked toward the river, he also could not help but noticed the momentum he was building just by walking. He looked to be both a big and heavy thing as one would expect just by looking at his body, but it was another thing entirely to know it just by being in this body. Just by walking Coryn could feel the power this body had, waiting to be unleashed on any unsuspecting foe. Another odd detail to be added to the pile. Then there was the fact that despite all of this lucidity, Coryn had not once felt the urge of waking up. There was no looming urge that threatened to pull him out of this dream. It just did not exist, period. Then there was the sheer consistency in detail of it all. Even lucid dreams had details that were off about them that gave them away for what they were. Yet he was still to find a detail out of place besides his body. Despite his attempts, his unease continued to gnaw at the back of his mind as he came up to the foot of the stream. He shook his head.

"C'mon Coryn. Give it a rest. A dream is just that. A dream. Though wouldn't it be something if this were all real?"

"Perhaps it isn't"

"Like hell it is. This will probably end soon. It's nice being a bayleef for the sheer novelty of it if nothing else. But that's all it is going to be-"Any further thoughts Coryn had were silenced as a hot white pain tore through his left foreleg. Coryn screeched as he went tumbling to the ground just short of the stream.

"Fuck! Fucking hell!" Coryn hissed as his leg pulsated in a throbbing ache, clutching it close to him as his eyes shut. Instincts took over as Coryn slowed his breathing, waiting for the pain to subside as he waited for the pain to dim. A few moments passed as he slowly opened his eyes, his breathing returning to a more normal pace.

"Fuck me, what the hell was that?" Using his good leg, Coryn pushed himself up while he twisted the other to get a good look on what he stepped on. A cold ran down his spine as he saw something had punctured the skin, leaving a sizable wound behind. Whatever did it was nowhere to be seen.

Glancing behind him, Coryn saw that a sharp branch protruding upward glistened in the sunlight with red liquid running down it. He looked back at his foot, seeing blood leak from the small wound to drip on the ground as dread began to build within his stomach.

"That actually hurt. It actually hurt." He shook his head in disbelief, only to hiss as his foot brushed against some stray grass. The human turned bayleef clenched his teeth as he begun to hobble over the remaining few inches to the stream.

"Keep in control. Fear is the mind killer. Get that wound washed. Panic will do nothing but get you killed. Focus." These were the mantras Coryn chanted as he made inch by in closer and closer to the river, focusing on the fact he had to get his wound cleaned. If his thoughts strayed…

He stumbled as his brushed up against a loose branch, tumbling to the ground once again. A whimper left his throat as Coryn dragged himself the last few inches to the stream's edge and dipped his foreleg into it. Red blood leaked downstream as Coryn waited for the pain to abate, clenching his jaw as he forced down any more noise from his maw. It was during these moments that he had to face the facts as he looked around him.

"This isn't a dream. Fuck. Not a fucking dream at all. Fucking great. Now what?"

"Keeping calm for one. You've established that this is in fact not a dream. Now you have to plan what you do from here. To do otherwise is to invite death. You will not find any answers in your current state. Get your bearings and find somewhere safe to bunker down in. This stream has a good flow to it, so that means you got a clean source of water. Probably. Since you're a bayleef, it probably means you can munch down on the greenery here. Though it'd probably won't taste very good. Still, better than starving to death. If nothing else, you can follow the stream. Where there are streams, there are rivers. Where there is a river, there is civilization. Right now you need to focus on patching yourself up and getting somewhere safe. God knows that you aren't alone in this forest. So solve your immediate priorities first, then suffer your panic attack in peace. Or don't and die here."

"Noted." He growled, shuddering as his leg flashed in pain.

"Hey, at least you have your mind intact. Or at least it seems that way." Coryn bit down another whimper as the pain began to intensify. Gritting his teeth, the bayleef lifted his limb out of the water to look at his injury.

He blinked. He blinked again. Yet his eyes did not lie.

"The hell?"

A scab had formed on what was once an open wound. He winced as before his very eyes it began to shrink. Seconds passed until nothing was left except for a light scar tissue that revealed that there was ever a wound there. The pain had disappeared, leaving but a light throb where moments before was unbearable agony. A few moments passed as Coryn processed what had happened. With great trepidation, Coryn applied pressure to his foot. To his shock, no signals of pain were returned. It was just normal. The bayleef blinked again, part of his mind rebelling at the fact of what was right in front of him.

"Im-impossible." He tapped the point of injury, finding nothing other than a little soreness.

"Apparently not." Shaking his head, he prodded again to no avail. He stared at it for a moment, flexing the joint a few more times and dragging it across the dirt as he tested the scab, pressing it against a couple of protruding stones and sticks. Though still tender, no pain was felt no matter how hard he poked and prodded at the scab with the various objects in his immediate surroundings.

"How did that just happen?"

"Looks like your body has an accelerated healing factor to it. Very handy, wouldn't you say? Just be thankful that your body even has that ability, or else you would be dealing with the possibility of infection and crippled movement for who knows how long. Probably gonna be sore for a while, but it sure as hell beats getting sick. Who knows? It's probably going to be the least strangest thing you'll find while you are here. Better get used to it chap." Trembling, Coryn forced himself up and tested his foot one more time to make sure there was no pain. When none came, he sighed. Ignoring the pit forming in his stomach, he looked over into the pond's reflection. A sudden exhale left him as his stomach fluttered, taking a step back on reflex before pacing back over to the edge.

The visage was both alien and familiar. Animal yet human. Despite the foreign nature of the face, it was somehow one he distinctly recognized as his own and no other. He knew this to be the face of an intelligent, thinking creature. As if someone transplanted his human visage and morphed it to that of a bayleef's. Surreal as it was, the face was still his. Coryn took a step back, his nostrils flaring as he took in a deep breath and released it before peering back at his reflection. Eyes red as roses stared back at him with a mix of trepidation, wonder and curiosity. His lips pulled back in a frown as he took in a closer look at himself. His skin was covered in leathery scales which glistened in the bright sun. A leaf rooted to his forehead hung over to the side as it wafted in a gentle breeze, Coryn feeling every current as it was caressed by the wind. A cute muzzle stood elongated in front of him under his eyes. There but unobtrusive, allowing for full binocular vision. He opened his mouth, revealing a cavity of mostly flat molars along with a few incisors inbetween. Within stood a very sizable tongue.

That was a surprise, but maybe the herbivores of this world also consumed meat on a semi regular basis to supplement their diet. An adaptation for lean times when resources were scarce. His mouth shut. All in all, it was a very human face. He might even have the gall to call it cute if he were a narcissist. Maybe even adorable. Coryn took a step back and sat down.

"Okay, now what?" He mumbled to his reflection. He looked around. Besides the stream, there was nothing but trees, trees, more trees, and finally more trees. Plus some shrubbery and other foliage. Put simply, the only useful point of navigation was the stream besides him. If he were physically capable, he would be cupping his face right now.

"Wonderful. Stuck in a body that's not my own in a forest I have no reference but this river to navigate with only my wits to go on. What the hell do I do now?"

"Think this through. You'll figure it out." Coryn took in another deep breath of fresh air before sighing, drawing in on the sun's tender rays beating down his back for comfort. It was more than pleasant enough to his mind. If not for the current circumstances, he would have taken his time to enjoy it. As it was, it stood as a balm to both his soul and mind as he racked his brain for answers. He glanced at his reflection once more, noting the subtle grooves on his leaf. If he had to guess, they probably held some very sharp leaves tucked inside the membranes. God knows how many it held or how to use them though.

He thought for a moment before making up his mind.

"You know what? Fuck it. Let's see what this body can do." Off in the distance he spied a lone, solitary tree. It stood there in defiance to its neighbors around it. A large target suitable for his purposes. His eyes narrowed as he took up a stance.

"This will do." Coryn took position as he considered how to use razor leaf. Whatever dragged him off to this world had the courtesy of at least giving him the ability to use his body without being a complete tottering imbecile. Perhaps that extended to using his move set.

"Only one way to find out," He muttered. Coryn concentrated on his leaf, willing for it to do something. He jolted as something popped from his leaf. Glancing down at the river revealed thin leaflets protruding from a few spots on his leaf. He gave each an experimental spasm, noticing he could close off individual sections at will if he wished it.

"Well, I guess these are the leaves. Now what?" He considered the question for a moment before throwing his head back, the muscles in his leaf loosening.

"Here goes nothing." With that, he threw his leaf forward. The leaves let loose from their sockets, whistling through the air. Coryn was just only able to see the projectiles as they sailed on forth. The moment he saw their trajectory however, his heart spirits fell as they veered off course and planted into the dirt. To add insult to injury, the lone leaf that did come close deflected off the bark. The leaf fell into the underbrush, leaving but a gash on his target.

Coryn was of two minds. On one hand, he was able to use the move. On the other, his missed a stationary target with all but one of his leaves. Unless they were in relatively close range, anything beyond ten to fifteen feet in front of him was going to be a crap shoot. If nothing else, he could at least use the move for its shotgun like effects. Provided of course he had leaves to spare.

"At least I can still use it." He muttered to himself. He had to admit, it was exhilarating to actually use the move. Less so on missing with it, but he could actually use it for something if nothing else. Maybe he could even use the big leaf to cut stuff with it. In order to use it to its full potential however, he would need to practice. Who knew how long that would take to get good with it. Then there were his other tools to consider. He could probably try ramming the tree, but that probably needed no introduction. Then there were his vines and tail. He had options. But it was likely just with anything else he needed to practice in order to be effective with them. Coryn shook his head.

"One step at a time. Focus. Get razor leaf down first. If that fails, move on. I mean, this shouldn't be that hard. Right?"

Five minutes passed before Coryn let out a scream as his set of razor leaves missed their mark. Out of the twenty five sets he used, only three hit managed to hit their mark. The rest were scattered all over the underbrush.

"Are you fucking kidding me!? God, how hard can it be to hit a stationary target that is right there!?"

"Apparently very hard. Relax. It isn't gonna do you any good to stress out over this. You'll probably need to practice before you nail that move. At least it'll make a good close range scattershot. Why not try something else?" The bayleef let out a frustrated huff as he leaned against a nearby tree. He was thankful nothing had shown up in the meantime to surprise him. But that would only last for so long before something decided to get the drop on him. He had managed to learn how to control the individual buds on his leaf to conserve ammo. His progress on his aim was disappointing. While some of the misses did have one or two leafs hit their mark, the rest scattered as wasted projectiles. At this point he could only guess as to how much he had left. He could certainly feel the lack of weight from the leaves loosed. Without any means of replenishing them, Coryn would need to converse the rest till the time came which would allow for a resupply.

"Okay then. Perhaps I need to focus on something else. This stress isn't gonna do me any good." He said, tapping his chin in thought. Coryn blinked, looking down to see two vines hovering in front of him.

"Wait. What?"

Tracing the vines revealed the two on his right close to his chin had deployed from beneath his leaves without him even noticing it. It was then he noticed an uncoiling sensation around his neck. He blinked once again as he moved the vines of his own will, dragging them across his body.

The buds as it turned out were very sensitive. Practically fingers for all intents and purposes. Out of a thought, he tried opening one of the buds. He jumped a little as the bud unfolded to reveal individual ancilia. He moved it to grasp one of the other vine, moving it around as he took in the individual sensations from each ancilia. They weren't fingers, but a good enough substitute either way. Coryn relaxed, allowing the vines to retract back into his neck. He shivered. It was something he didn't even notice until it was just there. What did that say for how much his mind had changed to allow for that? He shook his head. Questions for later.

"Well that was neat. Weird, but neat. Perhaps I can make use of this." The vines were thick, with the buds being about an inch in diameter. If nothing else they would leave a welt upon impact. To say nothing for what else they could be used for, like wielding a weapon. Coryn had half a mind to practice with them, but with what? Sure, he could use them by themselves. But the bayleef wanted to see if he could augment them with something that had a little more punch. Spying a relatively straight tree branch to his right, Coryn willed his vines to grasp it. He jolted as his vines took hold of the branch and dragged it up to his face. Another surprise was he was able to actually lift it. The branch had a bit of heft to it, but he did not feel as if though he were straining to lift it. That would probably change if he were to try something heavier, but at least it was something. He noticed he was able to feel a similar tactile sensation as he did with his tail. This form was versatile if nothing else. Wrapping the vine tight around the branch, Coryn eyed the tree that dared to defy him so far. Narrowing his eyes, the bayleef pulled back and let loose the branch. The limb tumbled through the air before smacking the tree with a satisfying thwack. He couldn't help but grin as it tumbled to the ground, feeling a measure of pride rise up within him.

"Score." Looking closer, he saw he managed to nick the tree. It wasn't much, but at least he wasn't defenseless at range anymore. Provided he had ammo on hand and something to carry them with. Hell, he could probably augment his melee options with them if he were so inclined. Something to consider for later. His thoughts turned to another "move" he could try.

"Well, tackle shouldn't be too hard. Just charge a target and leverage my body weight against it using momentum to my advantage. How hard could this be?" He grinned, setting his sights on the tree. One sore shoulder later and Coryn was of a different opinion.

"Ow..." He said, rubbing his shoulder. "Note to self, angle your body to minimize injury to self. Ow." Coryn noticed his healing factor had kicked in the moment he made impact with the tree. The scrapes he got from it had already healed, and the soreness in his shoulder was going away. All things considered, it was a useful thing to have. Though it could easily become a detriment if anything became trapped inside his body. Otherwise it was simply remarkable at how quick his body was to heal, not to mention durable. A glance revealed it to have been partially uprooted from its spot, causing the tree to lean to its side. Then again, it wasn't that impressive considering the relatively small size of the tree. But hey, it took some doing to smash a tree in the first place. Also of note were the blue berries that had dropped the moment he impacted the tree. If the pictures were accurate, these were probably oran berries. Coryn snatch one up and sniffed. The berry smelled sweet, but otherwise nothing remarkable otherwise. Though it did hold firm in his grasp. It was at that moment his stomach growled.

Looking between himself and the berry, Coryn shrugged.

"What the hell. Might as well see what it taste like." With that, Coryn sank his teeth into it. His eyes widen as the sweet taste of blueberries and honeyed apples hit his tastebuds. Coryn chewed slow as he could as the taste enraptured him. This continued on for a few moments before he swallowed. Another bite, the process repeated. Soon nothing was left as he licked the last few juices from his buds. His body felt reinvigorated like nothing he had before. Like he took a wallop in the energy department.

"Holy shit, this stuff packs quite a punch." It was a temporary boost to be sure, but hell if it didn't do his body good. He wondered if the healing effects were as advertised, but at least it did something.

"Maybe things won't be so bad here after all." He mulled, chomping down on another delectable berry. He looked around, a slight frown finding its way to his face.

"Although if I don't find my way out of here soon… If I don't find a way back..." His grip slackened as the reality of the situation began to drive itself into his mind.

"Don't. Now is not the time. All you can do right now is survive. You can't go back if you die here. Find a place to lay low in, then figure out your game plan. Something must have brought you here if the games are any indication. Perhaps there could be more afoot here than you realize."

"But what if I don't have a way to get back? What if I am stuck here forever?"

"It is what it is. Not much you can do about it. Maybe you are a clone of the original Coryn who is safely tucked away in bed and waking up as you speak." His head dipped as a feeling of melancholy swept through him.

"That's fucking depressing."

"Again, it is what it is. At least that way you won't have to worry about your folks. Maybe if you die here it'll bring your memories to the original. Or not. Either way you don't know, and dwelling on it ain't gonna fix shit until you have a moment of safety. Life is gonna be tough here. None of the amenities that you are used to are present, and if Pokemon exist here you're gonna be in for a load of trouble if they're hostile. And if this is anything like the games, you've been dragged here to save the world. Assuming that is a thing of course. Either that or someone did so for shits and giggles. But hey, you got your mind and memories intact. More or less anyway. Again, all you can do is survive and try to adapt to the shit you are in. Besides, you're a Pokemon! One of your favorites no less. At least you aren't a garbador or a muk. Now that would suck." He shivered, wrinkling his nose at the thought.

"Yeah… It would."

"Try to keep your spirits up old chap. It won't do to dwell on dark thoughts at the moment. Adapt and overcome and hopefully you'll find your light at the end of the tunnel." Upon that thought, Coryn pulled his head back up and took in a deep breath before exhaling before looking about his surroundings.

"Hopefully. Now wha-" A branch snapped to his right. Coryn whirled, taking a defense stance as adrenaline rushed through his body. He froze, his mind stopping at the sight.

"Holy shit..." He whispered. A blue mudfish stood looking up at him in shock. Black dew orbs shined as mudkip looked onward. Below its feet stood a broken tree branch. The bayleef blinked as the mudkip stood rooted to the ground, petrified in a display of fear. Coryn's mind whirled as it fought for a response. Here was a live Pokemon in the flesh! What the hell was he supposed to do?

"Maybe go say hi. The thing hasn't attack you yet, so the worst that can happen is it tries to bite your kneecaps off. Stop staring and say hi. It might even know a way out of here." Coryn blinked as he focused on the matter at hand.

"Baby steps. Just say hello and see what happens"

"Um… Can I help you little one?" He winced.

"Smooth. But you could always do worse."

The mudkip jolted but otherwise remained in the same spot. For a moment Coryn thought it didn't hear him until he heard a mumble from it.

"I'm sorry, could you say that again?"

"… Could you help me find my mom? I'm lost." Just like that, whatever hope that the bayleef had fostered faded as his stomach sunk.

"Well… Shit."

(**^**)

End Note

It has been three long years.

From first conceptualization, to getting off my damned ass to write and proofread this bloody thing, three years it has taken to finally put this story to form. I am happy to give you the first working part of the beginning prologue to this story. And hopefully, a good reading experience. Considering this work will be my first true to form addition to this fandom, I hope you as the reader find something good to take away from it. If not, I am happy to receive constructive criticism to the contrary on areas where I may need improvement. Such as the nature of an aspiring writer myself, I have little doubt I will need such in the coming times as I progress along with this story. If nothing else though, I hope my venture proves to be a productive one in the end.

All that said, the next couple of parts will come in shortly to pace things out a bit, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

In any case, welcome to the start of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Heralds of Change.