The large water type slowly approached the edge, a small grassy clearing greeted them while the massive forest loomed overhead. Fearik looked around the clearing, "Th-This is the Hidden Land..."
Grovyle sighed before turning to Aura, "We finally made it..." Aura smiled as she moved to embrace her partner, 'We're here...' Lapras nodded, "Please... Look ahead..."
Aura and Grovyle turned...
Far in the distance, over a low mountain range... Loomed a hovering tower... "Is that... Perhaps..." Grovyle began, Lapras nodded, "Yes. That is Temporal Tower."
Aura moved a pace forward, 'That's where Dialga is...' She murmured, Grovyle nodded, "That's where we need to go... That's where the Time Gears needed to be taken..."
Fearik frowned, "But... Isn't it... Isn't it floating? How are we supposed to get up there?" Lapras smiled, "You must take the Rainbow Stoneship." Grovyle turned to the water type, "Rainbow Stoneship?"
Lapras nodded, "Beyond the forest, there is the entrance of the Old Ruins... There you will find an ancient, mythical vessel, the Rainbow Stoneship. It will take you to Temporal Tower."
Fearik nodded, "T-Thank you Lapras!" The water type nodded, "This is the extent of what I can do for you. From here, you're on your own..."
Grovyle nodded, "We understand..." He turned to the other three, "Are you all ready?"
Aura smiled.
'I've been ready... For a long time now...'
<>
The Hidden Land was like nothing Aura had ever seen before... Beautiful was the first thing that came to mind as she looked throughout the groves of trees and bushels.
The air was sweet with the scent of flowers and everything about the plateau was pure... Undisturbed...
Peaceful...
Save of course for the inhabitants.
The Pokemon who called the Hidden Land their home were ruthlessly strong, they struck first, aimed to kill and never backed down.
The only thing Aura could compare the Pokemon of Hidden Land to were the Pokemon of the paralyzed future, scared and desperate... Built to survive no matter the cost.
Aura and Grovyle had been raised in the future, although Aura had no recollection of her life before awaking on the beach, her instincts and the drive to survive in such harsh environments were still etched into her veins.
Each attack thrown at the small group was met with matched brutality, no mercy was given and thus, no mercy received. The Pokemon of the Hidden Land were out for blood.
Luckily, Aura and Grovyle were not above shedding their own...
<>
"How are you two doing?" Grovyle asked slowly as he gently pressed an Oran berry to a nasty wound Aura had acquired across her shoulder, the Riolu hissed at the sting of the berry, shying away from the bite of the acidic burn while the damaged flesh began to regenerate.
Fearik and Cyndriss remained silent for a while before Cyndriss replied with a quiet, "We're still alive..." Grovyle nodded slowly, "Well... That's better then nothing..."
Fearik sighed, "How much further?" Aura smiled through a toothy grit of pain, 'To Temporal Tower... Or a waypoint?' Fearik shrugged, "Either or..." Aura nodded before closing her eyes only to snap at the grass type beside her as Grovyle once again pressed the Oran berry against the open wound.
'Do you mind?' The Riolu hissed curtly, gold eyes flickered with amusement as Grovyle raised his hands in mock surrender, Aura rolled her eyes playfully before shoving the grass type's shoulder.
'Shut up...' Grovyle huffed, "I didn't say anything." Aura closed her eyes, turning away from the grass type in feigned irritation. After a small bout of silence Aura turned to her water and fire type companions.
'There's a waypoint just beyond the ridge... Temporal Tower's not much further afterwards... Do you think you two can make it, or should we stop here for the night?'
Fearik and Cyndriss shook their heads as they rose, "No... We'll be fine." Aura watched her two companions silently before nodding.
'Alright...'
<><><>
The waypoint looked eerily similar to... Well, any other waypoint the three, now four, had ever encountered. Save for the fact that the stone idol appeared as though it was built hardly a day ago...
It was pristine, no moss or lichen clung to the smooth exterior and no cracks defied the stone...
Grovyle and Aura settled in the clearing soon after they arrived, Cyndriss and Fearik however spent a good while eying the Kangaskhan statue.
"It won't bite you." Grovyle drawled eventually from his position on an overhanging branch, Fearik and Cyndriss turned to the grass type, "But... Don't you think it's a bit... Off?" Grovyle nodded.
"The flow of time is different here... Temporal Tower and by extension the Hidden Land are sealed away in a rift of time, hidden between the gap of a single moment..." Gold eyes turned to the sky.
Grovyle sighed as he relaxed in the low hanging sunlight, "That's really the only way I can explain it... Time is different here, some things change, some things don't... You just have to accept it..."
Cyndriss looked to the statue, "I don't like it here..." Grovyle huffed wryly, "Neither do I... But we don't have much further to go..." Grovyle looked to the path leading deeper into the forest.
"According to Lapras, the ruins lie just beyond this dungeon... That's where we should find the Rainbow Stoneship. If we fine the Rainbow Stoneship, we'll take it to Temporal Tower." Aura looked up to her grass type companion from her seat beneath the tree.
'Once we're at Temporal Tower, all we have to do is repair the Time Gears, right?' Grovyle nodded slowly, a forgone look crossed his face.
"That's right... Then... We can go home..."
The grass type looked away before anyone could catch the tears threatening to fall...
YOU ARE READING
PKMMD EoS Draft 1
AdventureThis is a rough draft of a Pokémon Mystery Dungeon story I have been working on for over a year, think of it as a skeleton, it has the bones, but no muscles or anything. I intend to add more details in the future, but this is just to get the story o...
