Chapitre 1- At the Gates
A sudden gush of wind blew across the fields as a lone figure ascended a small row of hills neatly formed in the middle of the light green plain; the long blades of grass all around him danced at the whim of the breeze. He closed his eyes gently, feeling the cool air tickle his face and preventing the bright rays of sunlight from blinding him. Placing a paw on his brow, he lazily opened one of his eyes. With a shade over his eyes, he scanned the surroundings now as he was at the highest hill of the field. Directly in front of him lay the very place he had been looking for. The small creature was an Eevee; a petite Pokemon with a brown pelt and a lighter beige ruff of fur wrapped warmly around his neck. And the place he had been searching for was a rather large and strangely built fortress known as the Charms Explorer's Guild. And indeed, for a young Evolution Pokemon such as he, the Guild was unlike any other guild he had ever seen.
The structure was built directly into the bottom of a mountain, and bulged out like a smooth yellow dome. From it, several long and narrow green spires jutted out in an organized row. Tiny dotted holes were lined neatly at the upper hemisphere of the building; and at the very top, a peculiar object stood proudly sticking out. It looked like a gigantic green leaf, with a purposely rounded cut made into its side that somehow made then entire guild seem strangely familiar. At its base, a large wooden gate connected it with the road and stood tall and proud, and the entire place was surrounded by trees and shrubs growing around the area, with the long dirt road clearing a path towards the grassy plains where the Eevee stood. This Guild seemed more like an impenetrable fortress than a place for Pokemon to commune. In fact, the elders at the nearby village were rather worried as to why they built such an intimidating construct, fearing that it might be some sort of military base or asylum of some kind. The Guildmaster had addressed the situation, claiming that no one these days would know of such things, to the point that the younger residents would even wonder what the words 'military' or 'asylum' would mean. This eventually lead to the elders ranting about the good old days when there was more action and adventure everywhere, and how they never had to look for trouble seeing as it would always find them. Lost in their memories, the Guildmaster promptly left their council, knowing that he had magnificently dodged a rather nasty setback.
The Building was by no means an intimidating one, and that was just its purpose. The Charms Explorer's Guild had recently gained region-wide acclaim for the efforts of its Explorer and Rescue Teams during these peculiar and slightly troubling times. Several areas all over the region were beginning to change. Strange forces seemed to alter them constantly, further warping the mapped paths and opening new ones. Worse still, these strange changes are beginning to take their toll on the environment. Pokemon who once lived in these areas began to suffer from the stress of the abrupt alterations to their lifestyles. They became moody and aggressive towards travelers who attempted to enter these areas, only to find that there would be no way out and that the paths continued to spiral towards a dead end in the deepest portions of the area. These areas now altered by strange forces have been labeled by the public as 'Mystery Dungeons.'
Under normal circumstances, these Mystery Dungeons are to be avoided by any and all travelers. Warnings have been issued, and the Dungeons are monitored closely in hopes of discovering just what is causing them to behave so strangely, and if there is any way to stop them. Still, there are those few ignorant souls who dismiss the regulations as talk to scare the public (even if there is a severe lack of any figure that would want to scare the public in the first place.) Perhaps it is a quest for adventure and the chance to do something with their lives that draws these Pokemon into the gaping maws of Dungeons. Perhaps they are in pursuit of the treasures that can only be found with their mysterious walls. Whatever the reason, many have stressed their want to reopen these areas in favor of exploration. Those entrusted with the Law founded by the Pokemon were responsible for upholding the it, and keeping those who abided by it safe from any form of danger, even their own foolishness. That, however, is easier said than done, for while they had the power, they sorely lacked the numbers; and many were beginning to gather at their headquarters to issue complaints. After several hours without a response, they tried again, and expressed their suggestions this time via forceful entry and the eventual unconsciousness of three law enforcers. Safely out of reach, the most esteemed leaders of the Law had begun to contemplate what they should do. This then lead to their own interpretation of the good old days where trouble apparently never tried to find them, and that the olden days were so dull and peaceful. It was clear that the enforcer's noble leaders did not get along very well with the village elders.
Seeing the ruthless tenacity of the public they swore to protect, the council decided to modify the laws, realizing there was no point in staking your life over foolish young Pokemon who gladly wanted to go out on an adventure and eventually injure themselves and others in some manner. Thus, the Mystery Dungeons were now opened and ready to be explored by anyone. With the alterations to the rules however, compensations were required. These compensations being the sole reason why this one little brown Eevee was now approaching the Charms Gates.
Only upon actually standing at the foot of the fortress gates did the young Eevee realize just how vastly huge the Guild was. The doors, upon closer inspection, were not only made of wood, but had intricate carvings all over them. Designs and symbols that looped, curled, and intertwined rather gracefully. And while he admired this finely crafted barricade, he began to realize that it was in fact a barricade, and that it was at the moment keeping him out of the Fortress he had hoped to enter. The question now was how exactly was he supposed to do that? As he looked around for a small opening or even a hole to peep through, he placed a paw lightly on the wooden threshold he had been so amazed of only minutes ago. As he did, a sharp yell caught his attention and promptly caused him to leap slightly and plaster himself against the gates in shock.
He looked around wildly, trying to find the source of that strange noise. It seemed to be a prolonged scream of terror, and by its sound he could judge it was fairly far away, possibly even inside the Guild. Soon it slowly faded away and there was silence for a while. The Eevee felt his heart's pounding subside as he became puzzled over what that was all about. Then suddenly, he heard a second voice, this time quite clearly speaking. He looked wildly around again and then realized he hadn't looked upward. Sure enough, directly above him, atop one of the green spires, a silhouette of a creature with a single long and pointy ear could be seen. A paw or limb of some sort was waving madly from it.
"BE GONE WITH YOU! AND COME BACK PERHAPS WHEN YOU'VE FOUND YOUR BRAIN, OR PICKED UP ONE AT LEAST TWO SIZES LARGER THAN YOUR HEAD!" The tan colored creature shrieked furiously. Its green paws were coiled into a fist of sorts and were shaking madly towards the direction in which the scream had been catapulted off to, along with the Pokemon who owned it. The catapult in question stood right beside him, its springs unwound and its contents now hurdling through the sky at an alarming velocity. Where those contents landed was of little importance to the catapult, or the Pokemon who had launched it. "Honestly," he groaned. "It's Pokemon like those that keep getting perfectly normal Pokemon stuck in those miserable dungeons." Miles below him, the Eevee gawked, not realizing what had just happened, but fairly confused and horrified at what he saw. The Pokemon atop the spire sighed, and was about to return inside when he noticed a small brown speck at the bottom of the fortress. He looked down on it, but could only make out that it was not actually a brown speck, but a brown and beige speck. The color scheme alone allowed him to surmise that like him, it was a member of the Eevee family of Pokemon. "You there!" he called down to it. The Eevee blinked back, still confused. "What business do you have at Charms?" the Leafeon asked.
The Eevee remained silent for a long while, and then it stuttered. "I...I'm..." of course from their distance, it couldn't be heard, and so he steeled his courage and shouted back. "I'd like to join this Guild, sir!"
This time a long silence came from the Leafeon. It only added to his frustration at the moment. How convenient that just as he had jettizoned the latest attempt at being a Guild member, a new one arrives. He glanced at the catapult next to him, and considered winding it up again. But as he did, another voice called from behind him.
"Stel, there you are!" said a green Pokemon as it dashed over to the Leafeon. This Pokemon stood on two legs, its claws orange in color. His head had a peculiar shape to it, with a green cap-like structure sitting comfortably on top of it. "I was wondering where you went with that recruit," he was saying, but as he did, he noticed the catapult next to Stellarwind, and that it had been launched. "Oh." he finished after a brief pause.
"Ruko, good of you to join me," Stel said, completely ignoring the mental image the Breloom was now forming in his head. "As it just so happens, I need your help with something." The Breloom looked pensively at his fellow Grass type, and Stel chuckled at this. "Look down there," he told Ruko as he pointed to the bottom of the balcony. Ruko obliged, and as he did he noticed the same brown and beige speck that Stellarwind was speaking to.
"Is that a client?" The Breloom asked.
"No, he is seeking membership," the Leafeon growled.
"Ah," Ruko replied matter-of-factly. "You'd better just let me handle this then," he told him.
Stellarwind nodded to this with some satisfaction. He stalked towards the staircase from which they had entered. As he did, he suddenly thought of something. Leaning over the balcony's rafters, he called back down to the Eevee. "You, boy!" The Eevee looked nervously upwards towards the Leafeon. "Have you any coconuts?" he called down. Ruko stifled a chuckle as he heard this.
"Um...n-no. I don't think so," the Eevee replied weakly. Stellarwind, a little disappointed at this, gave him a sigh.
"Ah well, that's a shame," he told him. "If you bang them together they make a nice trotting sound." With that, the Leafeon made his way towards the staircase. He had left the Eevee quite puzzled, and that felt somewhat enjoyable. The little Evolution Pokemon's ears twitched in bewilderment and then looked back at the Breloom.
Ruko was snickering under his breath at Stellarwind's comment, but now noticed the confused little Pokemon below him. "Uhhhh....I'd rather not waste my breath here," Ruko called down to him. Just come in once the front gate opens and look for Database," he instructed. The Eevee blinked back at him. "He handles the Member Registration. Hard to miss," Ruko explained. Without another word, the mushroom Pokemon followed Stellarwind towards the staircase and out of sight.
For a long deafening amount of silence, the Eevee stood there. He had thought that he had gone mad by now. But there was no such luxury for him. He will have to go mad the same way everyone else had at the Guild, with well-placed effort and dedication to the cause. He did not know it now, but this little Pokemon may very well be destined for something more grand than he could ever think possible. The gates grunted loudly, a heavy dragging sound could be heard from them. Gears churning from somewhere groaned loudly and chains jingled as the doors opened slowly and steadily. They heaved with every effort and the sounds of their toil were loud, but had gone by unnoticed by the many Pokemon that littered the Charms main entrance.
Special thanks to Pheonix, who took time and effort to help me with corrections and generally make this fic even more awesome. Pheo, thou hath my thanks
A sudden gush of wind blew across the fields as a lone figure ascended a small row of hills neatly formed in the middle of the light green plain; the long blades of grass all around him danced at the whim of the breeze. He closed his eyes gently, feeling the cool air tickle his face and preventing the bright rays of sunlight from blinding him. Placing a paw on his brow, he lazily opened one of his eyes. With a shade over his eyes, he scanned the surroundings now as he was at the highest hill of the field. Directly in front of him lay the very place he had been looking for. The small creature was an Eevee; a petite Pokemon with a brown pelt and a lighter beige ruff of fur wrapped warmly around his neck. And the place he had been searching for was a rather large and strangely built fortress known as the Charms Explorer's Guild. And indeed, for a young Evolution Pokemon such as he, the Guild was unlike any other guild he had ever seen.
The structure was built directly into the bottom of a mountain, and bulged out like a smooth yellow dome. From it, several long and narrow green spires jutted out in an organized row. Tiny dotted holes were lined neatly at the upper hemisphere of the building; and at the very top, a peculiar object stood proudly sticking out. It looked like a gigantic green leaf, with a purposely rounded cut made into its side that somehow made then entire guild seem strangely familiar. At its base, a large wooden gate connected it with the road and stood tall and proud, and the entire place was surrounded by trees and shrubs growing around the area, with the long dirt road clearing a path towards the grassy plains where the Eevee stood. This Guild seemed more like an impenetrable fortress than a place for Pokemon to commune. In fact, the elders at the nearby village were rather worried as to why they built such an intimidating construct, fearing that it might be some sort of military base or asylum of some kind. The Guildmaster had addressed the situation, claiming that no one these days would know of such things, to the point that the younger residents would even wonder what the words 'military' or 'asylum' would mean. This eventually lead to the elders ranting about the good old days when there was more action and adventure everywhere, and how they never had to look for trouble seeing as it would always find them. Lost in their memories, the Guildmaster promptly left their council, knowing that he had magnificently dodged a rather nasty setback.
The Building was by no means an intimidating one, and that was just its purpose. The Charms Explorer's Guild had recently gained region-wide acclaim for the efforts of its Explorer and Rescue Teams during these peculiar and slightly troubling times. Several areas all over the region were beginning to change. Strange forces seemed to alter them constantly, further warping the mapped paths and opening new ones. Worse still, these strange changes are beginning to take their toll on the environment. Pokemon who once lived in these areas began to suffer from the stress of the abrupt alterations to their lifestyles. They became moody and aggressive towards travelers who attempted to enter these areas, only to find that there would be no way out and that the paths continued to spiral towards a dead end in the deepest portions of the area. These areas now altered by strange forces have been labeled by the public as 'Mystery Dungeons.'
Under normal circumstances, these Mystery Dungeons are to be avoided by any and all travelers. Warnings have been issued, and the Dungeons are monitored closely in hopes of discovering just what is causing them to behave so strangely, and if there is any way to stop them. Still, there are those few ignorant souls who dismiss the regulations as talk to scare the public (even if there is a severe lack of any figure that would want to scare the public in the first place.) Perhaps it is a quest for adventure and the chance to do something with their lives that draws these Pokemon into the gaping maws of Dungeons. Perhaps they are in pursuit of the treasures that can only be found with their mysterious walls. Whatever the reason, many have stressed their want to reopen these areas in favor of exploration. Those entrusted with the Law founded by the Pokemon were responsible for upholding the it, and keeping those who abided by it safe from any form of danger, even their own foolishness. That, however, is easier said than done, for while they had the power, they sorely lacked the numbers; and many were beginning to gather at their headquarters to issue complaints. After several hours without a response, they tried again, and expressed their suggestions this time via forceful entry and the eventual unconsciousness of three law enforcers. Safely out of reach, the most esteemed leaders of the Law had begun to contemplate what they should do. This then lead to their own interpretation of the good old days where trouble apparently never tried to find them, and that the olden days were so dull and peaceful. It was clear that the enforcer's noble leaders did not get along very well with the village elders.
Seeing the ruthless tenacity of the public they swore to protect, the council decided to modify the laws, realizing there was no point in staking your life over foolish young Pokemon who gladly wanted to go out on an adventure and eventually injure themselves and others in some manner. Thus, the Mystery Dungeons were now opened and ready to be explored by anyone. With the alterations to the rules however, compensations were required. These compensations being the sole reason why this one little brown Eevee was now approaching the Charms Gates.
Only upon actually standing at the foot of the fortress gates did the young Eevee realize just how vastly huge the Guild was. The doors, upon closer inspection, were not only made of wood, but had intricate carvings all over them. Designs and symbols that looped, curled, and intertwined rather gracefully. And while he admired this finely crafted barricade, he began to realize that it was in fact a barricade, and that it was at the moment keeping him out of the Fortress he had hoped to enter. The question now was how exactly was he supposed to do that? As he looked around for a small opening or even a hole to peep through, he placed a paw lightly on the wooden threshold he had been so amazed of only minutes ago. As he did, a sharp yell caught his attention and promptly caused him to leap slightly and plaster himself against the gates in shock.
He looked around wildly, trying to find the source of that strange noise. It seemed to be a prolonged scream of terror, and by its sound he could judge it was fairly far away, possibly even inside the Guild. Soon it slowly faded away and there was silence for a while. The Eevee felt his heart's pounding subside as he became puzzled over what that was all about. Then suddenly, he heard a second voice, this time quite clearly speaking. He looked wildly around again and then realized he hadn't looked upward. Sure enough, directly above him, atop one of the green spires, a silhouette of a creature with a single long and pointy ear could be seen. A paw or limb of some sort was waving madly from it.
"BE GONE WITH YOU! AND COME BACK PERHAPS WHEN YOU'VE FOUND YOUR BRAIN, OR PICKED UP ONE AT LEAST TWO SIZES LARGER THAN YOUR HEAD!" The tan colored creature shrieked furiously. Its green paws were coiled into a fist of sorts and were shaking madly towards the direction in which the scream had been catapulted off to, along with the Pokemon who owned it. The catapult in question stood right beside him, its springs unwound and its contents now hurdling through the sky at an alarming velocity. Where those contents landed was of little importance to the catapult, or the Pokemon who had launched it. "Honestly," he groaned. "It's Pokemon like those that keep getting perfectly normal Pokemon stuck in those miserable dungeons." Miles below him, the Eevee gawked, not realizing what had just happened, but fairly confused and horrified at what he saw. The Pokemon atop the spire sighed, and was about to return inside when he noticed a small brown speck at the bottom of the fortress. He looked down on it, but could only make out that it was not actually a brown speck, but a brown and beige speck. The color scheme alone allowed him to surmise that like him, it was a member of the Eevee family of Pokemon. "You there!" he called down to it. The Eevee blinked back, still confused. "What business do you have at Charms?" the Leafeon asked.
The Eevee remained silent for a long while, and then it stuttered. "I...I'm..." of course from their distance, it couldn't be heard, and so he steeled his courage and shouted back. "I'd like to join this Guild, sir!"
This time a long silence came from the Leafeon. It only added to his frustration at the moment. How convenient that just as he had jettizoned the latest attempt at being a Guild member, a new one arrives. He glanced at the catapult next to him, and considered winding it up again. But as he did, another voice called from behind him.
"Stel, there you are!" said a green Pokemon as it dashed over to the Leafeon. This Pokemon stood on two legs, its claws orange in color. His head had a peculiar shape to it, with a green cap-like structure sitting comfortably on top of it. "I was wondering where you went with that recruit," he was saying, but as he did, he noticed the catapult next to Stellarwind, and that it had been launched. "Oh." he finished after a brief pause.
"Ruko, good of you to join me," Stel said, completely ignoring the mental image the Breloom was now forming in his head. "As it just so happens, I need your help with something." The Breloom looked pensively at his fellow Grass type, and Stel chuckled at this. "Look down there," he told Ruko as he pointed to the bottom of the balcony. Ruko obliged, and as he did he noticed the same brown and beige speck that Stellarwind was speaking to.
"Is that a client?" The Breloom asked.
"No, he is seeking membership," the Leafeon growled.
"Ah," Ruko replied matter-of-factly. "You'd better just let me handle this then," he told him.
Stellarwind nodded to this with some satisfaction. He stalked towards the staircase from which they had entered. As he did, he suddenly thought of something. Leaning over the balcony's rafters, he called back down to the Eevee. "You, boy!" The Eevee looked nervously upwards towards the Leafeon. "Have you any coconuts?" he called down. Ruko stifled a chuckle as he heard this.
"Um...n-no. I don't think so," the Eevee replied weakly. Stellarwind, a little disappointed at this, gave him a sigh.
"Ah well, that's a shame," he told him. "If you bang them together they make a nice trotting sound." With that, the Leafeon made his way towards the staircase. He had left the Eevee quite puzzled, and that felt somewhat enjoyable. The little Evolution Pokemon's ears twitched in bewilderment and then looked back at the Breloom.
Ruko was snickering under his breath at Stellarwind's comment, but now noticed the confused little Pokemon below him. "Uhhhh....I'd rather not waste my breath here," Ruko called down to him. Just come in once the front gate opens and look for Database," he instructed. The Eevee blinked back at him. "He handles the Member Registration. Hard to miss," Ruko explained. Without another word, the mushroom Pokemon followed Stellarwind towards the staircase and out of sight.
For a long deafening amount of silence, the Eevee stood there. He had thought that he had gone mad by now. But there was no such luxury for him. He will have to go mad the same way everyone else had at the Guild, with well-placed effort and dedication to the cause. He did not know it now, but this little Pokemon may very well be destined for something more grand than he could ever think possible. The gates grunted loudly, a heavy dragging sound could be heard from them. Gears churning from somewhere groaned loudly and chains jingled as the doors opened slowly and steadily. They heaved with every effort and the sounds of their toil were loud, but had gone by unnoticed by the many Pokemon that littered the Charms main entrance.
Special thanks to Pheonix, who took time and effort to help me with corrections and generally make this fic even more awesome. Pheo, thou hath my thanks
