Explorers of Origin: A Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Fanfiction, Volume 1

Chapter 15: Into a War-Torn City

Until the end of time, one should live as one chooses.

Now arrived at the southern security checkpoint of Koruno City, the team meets two Kommo-o officers who begin to approach them to check for documentation. Upon realizing that Espeon is among the four Pokémon in the group, they remember a message that they were tasked to pass to her.

"It's been a while, huh, boys?"

"It certainly has, Your Majesty. We heard from Mayor Noctowl; the Amartoloí have become more and more aggressive over the years. The city here's increased its security to help keep the civilians away from harm."

"That's good to hear, especially with the randomness of their spawning tactics. Any word from City Hall?"

"They called over the UPF to deploy some of their troops here. As you said, we don't know the Amartoloí's exact spawn patterns, so City Hall got General Chesnaught, Admiral Blastoise, and General Salamence to send recons to watch over from the skyscrapers."

"I see."

"Ah, we almost forgot to ask: who are those new friends behind you?"

"Oh, those three? Well, I first met these two kids back at Neo Treasure, and soon after we met this Gardevoir inside the Cave of Mystic while making our way here. They're a wonderful bunch."

Both Mawile and Gardevoir greet the Kommo-o guards with a simple wave and grin, while Pikachu takes one glance at them before turning away. The two look at each other for two seconds, nod in agreement, and revert their focus to Espeon to continue their discussion.

"They seem like it, all right. A good mix of optimism and caution."

"Especially for the two younger Pokémon behind you."

"That's to be expected of two polar opposites. But there's not a thing to worry, boys. I'm positive they, as well as Gardevoir, are as friendly as they get."

"The UPF's a reliable bunch, too, so your crew can rest easy."

"What the hell is the UPF?"

"That's the acronym for the continent's military service, the United Pokémon Forces. There's three divisions within it: the Neró for water-based troops, the land-based Gi̱, and the sky-patrolling Aéras."

"Why those weird Greek words?"

"We get that interesting question quite a bit, actually. Want to fill him on that, Tare?"

"Sure thing, Vice. Let's walk them into the city first, though. We don't want to be causing them unintentional trouble with any ill-minded folks."

"You're right. Your Majesty, have you and your group follow us. We'll escort you inside."

"Fine by me!"

The officers take the team through the security checkpoint and into the tech-heavy Koruno City, known especially across the continent for its countless breakthrough innovations in response to climate change. Greenhouses, solar panels, and clean water tube systems are commonplace as the group studies every detail available to their lines of sight.

Tare, the younger of the Kommo-o security duo, proceeds to describe the reasoning behind the three division names that the United Pokémon Forces' generals had come up with.

"As Vice told you earlier, the Neró, Gi̱, and Aéras make up the three divisions of the UPF. From what I heard from our department chief, the three generals wanted to assign short code names that make it easy for soldiers and civilians to understand, while still giving them a sense of importance. General Chesnaught, who leads the Gi̱, happened to come across a spare Greek dictionary lying on the floor one day and flipped through the pages for the hell of it. He later shared this to his comrades Blastoise and Salamence, suggesting to read over the terms written on that book."