Nerves. Everyone has them. If you don't…you're probably insane. At least, that's what this Pachirisu would tell you.
Inside the main lobby of Pokestar Studios, the small rodent was anxiously swinging his tiny feet and tapping his fingers together. Next to him was a Rhydon, who was just quietly reading a newspaper. How was this Rhydon not nervous?! The Pachirisu just had to talk to him or he was going to explode!
"So…you from around here?" The Electric-type asked the rhino.
The Rhydon just gave him a look, clearly not wanting to be bothered. The Pachirisu chuckled nervously in response, "Yeah, dumb question."
The Ground/Rock-type turned back to his newspaper, and silence fell upon the lobby once more…which didn't last long.
"Soooo, what are ya here for? I'm here because I applied to host a reality tv show. In case you couldn't tell, I'm kinda nervous, haha. Are you nervous? Because it's totally okay to be nervous-"
"No," The Rhydon gruffly responded, not eyeing the significantly smaller Pokemon.
The Pachirisu seemed shocked by his response, before answering with feigned confidence, "Pssh, yeah, imagine being nervous, am I right, haha! I don't even know why I was nervous, hahaha! Man, I am laughing way too much right now-"
"Steven," The Pachirisu couldn't help but flinch once he heard his name being called by a Watchog, the lady who was prodding him to come over with her hands. It was time.
"Welp, that's me!" The rodent chirped with false confidence, hopping from his seat and walking away, "Wish me luck! Not that I need it, hahaha," he chuckled, before completely dropping his facade and whimpering to himself, "I definitely need it."
The Rhydon watched Steven go with a purely uninterested look on his face, before muttering, "...He is going to crack," as he buried his head into his newspaper once again.
"Right this way," The Watchog that Steven was following directed. As the two of them walked down the halls, the EleSquirrel Pokemon felt his nerves kicking in once again…although they never really left, he just wanted to pretend they were gone. He just didn't understand how people could live so…carefree and nonchalant! Actual robots, he swore.
"Alright, here we are," The Watchog said once they stopped at a door, snapping the squirrel out of his thoughts. The sign on the door read, "Darin Rock, reality tv supervisor."
"Good luck," The weasel said, before leaving Steven alone. The Pachirisu audibly gulped, before skittishly reaching out to knock.
"Come in!" He flinched a bit as he heard a gruff, booming voice from the door before he was even able to knock.
Slowly opening the door, he saw a large rock with four hands, this being a Graveler. The Rock Pokemon smiled at the small rodent, "Ah, Steven is it? Come in."
The Pachirisu blinked, "...Yeppers! That's me!" He responded, the words coming out way louder than he wanted them to.
Darin the Graveler chuckled, "Have a seat, young lad."
Steven was actually in his early thirties, but he didn't respond to that. Walking into the office, he hopped onto the chair in front of Darin's desk, trying his best to adjust himself considering how much larger the chair was in his body.
"I'm Darin, which I'm sure you saw out there, but you can just call me Rock," The Graveler said with a smile, reaching out his arm.
Unfortunately, Steven's puny arms couldn't reach Darin's no matter how hard he tried. Even leaning forward didn't help as much as it almost made him fall from his seat.
"Let's…move on from that," Rock said sheepishly, before pulling out a sheet of paper from his drawer, "So, looking at your application, you said you wanted to host a reality show that goes back to an old-fashioned summer camp?"
"Well, yeah!" Steven answered with a big grin, "I used to love going to summer camp as a kid! The friendships, the fresh air, the activities, it was all so fun!" He chirped, before pausing for a moment and gaining an awkward look, "You probably think I'm a total nerd."
"Oho, not at all," Rock chuckled, "So, after reviewing your application, I've decided to approve of-"
"Oh, well that sucks," Steven said with a dejected look on his face, hopping out of his seat and beginning to walk away, "Guess I'll just cry myself to sle-wait, can you repeat that?"
Rock chuckled again, "You're approved champ."
"...Really?!" Steven couldn't believe it! The squirrel was now smiling from ear to ear; he actually did it! He ran up to Rock, taking the Graveler aback slightly, "Thank you so much! I really can't thank you enough!"
"Don't mention it," Rock replied, offering a handshake once again, which was actually successful this time…at least until he squoze Steven's tiny arm a little too much, causing the Pachirisu to squeak in pain.
"...Maybe we should refrain from the handshakes."
Clenching his teeth, Steven shook his arm in an attempt to release the pain, before rubbing it a bit, "So, you have any ideas for where I could host?" He asked, his voice still somewhat squeaky.
Rock hummed, going into a thinking pose, "I think I know just the place…"
After about a twenty minute drive, the two of them found themselves out in the middle of the forest. Specifically, the Entree forest, as they stood in front of a sign that read, "Camp Entree", though the words were somewhat difficult to make out due to how worn out the sign looked. There was also a piece of paper on the ground beside them, which neither of them noticed. Rock smiled at the sign, but Steven looked a bit more skeptical.
"You sure about this place?" Steven asked warily.
"Of course," Rock assured, grinning down at the squirrel, "Let me show you around."
As they began entering, however, the wind blew the sheet of paper that was on the ground, causing it to be flipped, revealing a message that read, "DO NOT ENTER." A mysterious figure peered above the note…and growled.
Once they entered, Steven looked around. They had passed by some cabins, a pond, the welcome center, a lake on the other side, and a few more cabins. Everything seemed like a normal camp until they walked towards…a mansion? What was a mansion doing in a summer camp?
Much to the Pachirisu's surprise, Rock handed him some keys, "All yours. It'll be good for you to stay here so you can keep a closer eye to what goes on around here."
"Wait, really?" Steven questioned in shock as Rock nodded in response, "Wow…thanks, really. I think I actually like this place."
"Don't mention it," Rock replied, "Well, I'll be heading out. Good luck on those applications, 'cause you'll be getting a lot."
Steven's face fell, "Hoo boy…that'll be fun. Can I ride back with you to get my bags?"
"Sure!"
With that, the two of them left the camp…
Blissfully unaware of the pair of red eyes lurking inside that mansion, slowly approaching the window.
"So…a reality tv show on my territory, huh?" The figure spoke as they watched the Pachirisu and Graveler leave, "Guess I'll have to show them who they're dealing with…" they said, letting out a lowly, ominous chuckle.
I just wrote this entire prologue out in one sitting. Honestly, it took a lot longer than it should have for what's only 1k words. I've honestly been stuck on what to do writing wise all year. My motivation has been on and off and I've constantly changed my mind because of how many ideas I have. But my goal was to release something this year, and damnit, I was going to do that. So, here you go. Hope you enjoyed this glimpse of what's to come.
Edit as of 2/11 - The first episode will be coming soon. Decided to add a little something extra~