A/N: Yay, Chapter 1!

See the bottom A/N for info on cameos!

A couple of things to say here. One is that the story will be always be told from Shadon's POV in first person unless otherwise mentioned, and if so, it will usually be in selective third person - meaning third person, except the narrator is limited to what one character can see, like first person. This is so you don't mix them up. =P

And I apologize, but this chapter doesn't differ all that much from the plotline of Sky, but the next chapter - and the three chapters following it - will diverge more.

Finally, thanks to Darkraiprincess for the first review! ^^ I appreciate it.

EDIT: Just to let you know, there's NO PlayerxPartner in this fic. It's friendship-only. I have my reasons. I added LucarioxUmbreon after playing Sky. =3

See disclaimer in prologue, yadda yadda yadda. Let Chapter I begin!

Chapter I – Sunset Beach

Where… where am I…? ………This place…the ocean…? …I can't…can't hold on… Urgh…

***
Kylos' POV (see first a/n)

The young Turtwig paced back and forth, pondering what he should do. "Okay. This is it." He inhaled sharply, setting a determined look on his face. "All I have to do is step on the grate. Then I'll be in. I'll be able to train with the guild, and form an exploration team," he muttered to himself.

"Well… I can't make an exploration team by myself. B-but that's okay. The Lucario Guild is the largest guild in the world. Someone'll want to join me." But he knew he was only trying to convince himself. He didn't really know. Can't have second thoughts now, he decided, and took a trembling step onto the grate.

Immediately, a voice from below shouted, "WHOSE FOOTPRINT?! WHOSE FOOTPRINT?!"

"Yaaaaah!" the Turtwig cried.

"THE FOOTPRINT IS TURTWIG'S! THE FOOTPRINT IS- what? Where'd it go?"

The Grass turtle had fled as fast as his feet could carry him, the leaves on his head whipping in the wind. He stumbled clumsily and almost tripped over his own feet in his haste, down the rocky stairway that led to the guild, until he finally stopped at the crossroads, panting.

Once he had caught his breath, he sighed, shaking his head. "I can't do it today either. Yesterday I thought I'd get the courage to try again. I prepared all day for this. But I can't. I'm such a coward…" the Turtwig said miserably.

As he turned toward Treasure Town, about to head home to Sharpedo Bluff, he saw the sun setting just above the trees, bathing the surrounding cliffs and forest in a red-orange glow, and tingeing the clouds above with magenta.

Immediately his heart lifted a bit. It was nearing dusk, and the Krabby at Sunset Beach would be blowing bubbles. What's the harm? I don't have anything better to do. The Turtwig headed down Forest Path to the beach, ignorant of the destiny he was about to walk into.

***

"Hello?"

"…"

"Um, hello?"

"……"

"Are you okay?"

"…"

"…Oh, whoa! You're unconscious! No wonder…"

"Wake up, please! Come on, wake up! …WAKE UP! - Eep! Don't hurt me!"

Urrgh…go away…leave me alone… I had given a half-hearted swipe at whatever was making the noise, and was now drifting off again… until the noisy thing jostled me with a flat… hand? foot? I couldn't tell.

"Wha'dyou want?" I managed groggily.

"Oh, thank Mew, you're okay! I was really getting worried there," the voice sighed.

I blinked open my eyes slowly, then brushed off the sand. The funny thing was, my hands seemed kind of small, and my body felt weird. I ignored this for now and looked around for the voice, but all I saw was a Turtwig.

"What's your name? I'm Kyloquercha, but everyone always calls me Kylos. Good to meet you!"

I was so startled, I didn't notice the fact that he was about the same size as me, when normally I should have been towering over any Turtwig. Even ones that…

"Y-you…you… YOU TALK?!?!?!?!?!" I shrieked, mouth agape and eyes wide.

He cocked his head to one side, making the leaves on his twig bounce in the same direction. "You're talking too. What's wrong?"

"AAAAAAAAAAHH!!!!!!! A TALKING TURTWIG???" I screamed, and promptly turned a hundred and eighty degrees, then took off like a bullet in the opposite direction. Then I realized I was running on four legs…

Trembling, I gingerly lifted my hand, if I still had one, off of the warm golden sand and held it in front of my face. It was not a hand anymore. It was a smooth blue paw. "Oh, no. This is not happening. This is not happening," I gasped.

Drawing in a sharp breath, I took tentative steps toward the ocean to my left. When the waves lapped rhythmically against my paws, I closed my eyes, leaned my head over the water, and then opened them.

There, staring back at me with my own mortified expression was the face of a Mudkip. Brown eyes, orange gills, a tall headfin, a wide mouth, and a light underside could not be mistaken. I didn't know why there was a large, crescent-moon-shaped scar on my forehead, since that wasn't a characteristic of a Mudkip. But one thing was clear.

"I've…I've turned into a Mudkip… I'M A POKEMON!!!!!" I exclaimed in horror.

The Turtwig – Kylos – had apparently walked up beside me. "Uh, so am I. What's so bad about that?"

"Did you miss the 'turned into' part? I'm a human!"

"Ohhhhhh."

I flopped down on the sand in a silence that held for ten seconds…thirty seconds…a minute…

"Er… what's a human?"

"It's what I used to be before I-" I stopped dead. What had happened before? "Before I…um…" I thought hard, trying to recall what had passed. Okay, scratch that. Let's try and remember where I used to live. Nothing came up. What was my favorite food? I drew a blank. Who were my friends? I still couldn't think of anything. My mind flooded with panic.

"Oh, snap," I, well, snapped. "I can't remember anything!"

"What do you mean?"

"I think I have amnesia or something!"

"How did that happen?"

"How am I supposed to remember if I have amnesia?!" I growled, exasperated.

"Oh. Right."

"Sorry," I sighed. "I didn't mean to get upset at you."

"That's okay. But you really can't remember anything at all? Not even…"

"Nothing. Well, no, that's not entirely true. I used to be a human. I know what Pokemon are and what they look like. And I know how to speak this tongue."

"Hmm. And you don't know how you got that strange scar?" he puzzled.

I shook my head.

"Or what this stone is?"

"St-? Oh, I see it." There was a black stone half-buried in the sand before me.

I brushed off the tiny pieces of yellow rock and pulled the larger black one out. The oval-ish stone was of a medium size and as jet-black as a starless night sky. I could barely hold it in one paw, though I could easily do so with two. It had a smooth and rounded top and bottom, though the edges were worn and jagged.

But the strangest part were the markings adorning it. On the top was a red engraving in the shape of a circle with three lines protruding from it. I flipped it over, and on the back was a blue wave-like inscription.

"Is that yours?" Kylos queried.

"I'm not sure."

"Oh yeah." He shook his head briskly as if to clear it. "Anyway, I never got your name. Can you remember that, at least?" I tapped the rock pensively as I tried to do so, but to no avail. Just as I was about to give up, I managed to remember.

"I'm Shadon." I feebly attempted to curl the edges of my mouth into a grim smile. Luckily, he did not seem put off by the odd gesture and merely nodded.

I put the stone down beside me and lay down, crossing my paws and resting my head on them, wondering how to break the awkward silence. The good news was, I didn't have to. Someone else did.

Swift as the wind, a Sneasel leaped down from somewhere and snatched the black rock with two hooked white claws, then sprang away just as fast and landed behind us.

Immediately we whirled around and saw not only the Sneasel, but a fierce-looking Charmeleon. "Hey!" Kylos said angrily. "Give that back!"

"As if we'd let you! Heh heh heh!" the Sneasel sneered in a feminine voice. She tossed the stone between her paws.

"Wh-what?!" the Turtwig blinked.

"We're Team ShadowBlaze!" the Charmeleon growled. "Don't you forget it!" And with that, he slashed Kylos across his beak with sharp claws, extracting a yelp in response, then turned and retreated hastily toward a nearby cave.

"Are you okay?" I gasped.

"Aagh… yeah, I'm fine. Though that Team ShadowBlaze is something else!" he said vehemently. "Let's go after them and get your rock back, Shadon!"

I shifted from one paw to the other nervously. "I don't know. They seem dangerous to me. Do you think we have a chance at defeating them?"

"We have to try! Come on!" he called, and began pursuing their tracks to the cave.

"All right, all right! I'm coming!" I grumbled, and chased after the three of them.

A/N: Yeah, not that great, I know. EDIT: And I know you're probably thinking, "Well, this is the same thing as Time/Darkness/Sky with a few things changed around!" One: it's supposed to be similar to Time/Darkness/Sky. Two: Rest assured it will get more unique than this. I've replaced the entire first and second missions with different scenarios, added a third mission, and changed the entire plot from Treeshroud Forest to the Hidden Land, for example. And more Pokemon die than just Grovyle and (temporarily) the player...

But this is important!!! - I WILL NOW BE TAKING CAMEO TEAMS!!!!!!!!! If you would like your Exploration team (sorry, no Rescue teams) - whether in-game or fictional - to be mentioned in the story (as one of the famous Master Rank teams that has graduated from the Lucario Guild - you don't actually have to be Master Rank though), please review with your: TEAM NAME, LEADER, and up to TWO IMPORTANT MEMBERS. I'm only taking THREE, first come, first serve! And if no one reviews I'll just make them up.

And to all reviewers - I don't mind criticism, so long as it's constructive. Meaning it will help me improve. Meaning no flames. =P Other than that, I'd like it if you could point out some grammatical mistakes or a weak portion in the plot, so I can fix it before I continue the story. Thank you!!

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