POKEMON MYSTERY DUNGEON: THE SAGA OF TEAM SUPERNOVA!

Welcome to Pokemon Aus24's official Pokemon Fan-Fic written, created and owned by the talented FocusPresenceEndurance. Below is the introduction and prologue to the story and every so often I will update with a new chapter.

Chapters 1-3 Here
Chapters 4-6 Here
Chapters 7-9 Here
Chapters 10-12 Here
Chapters 13-15 Here
Chapters 16-18 Here


~Chapter 4

Team Supernova’s First Mission! First Battle… Success?

“So, Growlithe,” Totodile asked, attempting a conversation. “How did your sister get lost in the first place?” Joined by their client, Team Supernova was now making their way along a small dirt path that led towards the dungeon Silent Chasm. Gathering information would be important if they wanted to know just what they were facing.

The young Growlithe gazed regretfully towards the dirt. “We were walking along this path when we came upon the chasm.” He explained, “She’s a little on the adventurous side, my sister. She was curious about how deep the crevice was. I warned her not to get too close, but I didn’t try to stop her from walking to the very edge. Then…” he paused a moment, closing his eyes.

“Then…?” Torchic repeated.

“She… she… sniff…" Growlithe continued, fighting back a tear, “She was kidnapped!”

“What!?” Exclaimed Totodile.

“Kidnapped!?” Torchic chirped.

“Who would do a thing like that!?” Tristan asked incredulously, “Did you see the Pokemon that did it?”

“No… it went too fast, it was only a blur to me.” The young orange and black dog admitted, “though it did curse me for being a fire Pokemon, and I think that is why it captured her. But… sniff… sniff… what’s so wrong with being a fire Pokemon!? She didn’t do anything wrong!! Why her!?” The young Growlithe began to sob bitter tears.

“There, there Growlithe, don’t worry,” reassured Totodile, patting the distraught Growlithe on the back, “You have Team Supernova working on your side, after all. We’ll save your sister!”

“Is that a good thing?” Growlithe asked uncertainly, “I mean… I’ve never heard of you guys.”

“Well, no… we’re not well known yet…” Totodile answered, discouraged. He felt as if he were attacked by the comment, as if their abilities were being doubted. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t rescue.”

Torchic whispered aside to her teammates, “C’mon Totodile. Weren’t you the one who was so excited about going on our first mission? You can’t let these things get to you. We’ve only started, remember, you can’t blame people for not knowing.”

“Wait,” Growlithe interrupted suddenly, “This is only your first mission!?”

Torchic spun around in an instant. “Hang on, you heard that!?”

“Y’know…” Growlithe continued apprehensively, “I appreciate your trouble, but… I think I want another rescue team.”

“W… w… w… w… Wait!!” Totodile replied, panicking, “No! We… We can do the mission! You can depend on us, I swear!”

“I’m sorry,” the dog replied guiltily, “I just won’t feel comfortable knowing that my sister is in the hands of someone who has no experience with rescuing. I care for her so much. Please understand.”

“Well…” Torchic said, thinking quickly, her eyes fell on Tristan, “Some of us do have experience with rescuing! Tristan here has rescued before. Right, Tristan?”

“Oh!” Tristan said, caught offguard, “Yeah, sure. It was nothing.”

“And my parents were on a famous rescue team too! Team Flash Flood, you must have heard of them.” Totodile added, “Your sister will be in good hands, you can count on it.”

“Well,” Growlithe replied reluctantly, “I… I still have a bad felling about this. But I… I’ll try to believe in you.”

“You won’t regret it,” Totodile answered. He turned to his team and whispered, “Phew! Dodged a bullet seed there.”

Finally, the group came upon the chasm. Instantly they could see what had gotten the Growlithe’s younger sister so interested. A thick shroud of fog blanketed the levels below, steadily growing thicker and thicker the further down they looked. The bottom was all but hidden from view, causing even them to become curious about how deep it was. “So this is Silent Chasm…” Totodile said with a gulp.

“Sure looks deep,” Torchic added nervously.

“Well,” Tristan began, wondering why Torchic and Totodile were just standing there, “no time to waste right? Let’s move.”

“Please bring my sister back safely!” Growlithe begged, “She’s all I have left!”

“Where are your parents?” Torchic asked.

Growlithe answered this question with silence. If he had spoken it would have sounded something like: “It’s only us two. Our parents are gone.” Silence, however, was all that was needed to get the message across.

“I see,” Tristan said, being the first to break the silence, “don’t worry, you can definitely count on us. We’ll make sure your sister comes back. I’ll make sure.”

The young Growlithe looked up “Th… thank you.” He said appreciatively.

“A Pokemon shouldn’t have to be alone,” Tristan answered.

Something about this made the young dog’s eyes water again. Tristan wondered what he said that had moved his client so much. “This… this place is too dangerous for me,” Growlithe finished, “but I’ll be waiting in the village. I’ll… I’ll be counting on you.”

“Sounds good,” replied Totodile.

“We’ll be back before you know it!” Torchic said with reassurance.

With that, the team departed as Growlithe turned and made his way back to the village. According to Growlithe, his sister was most likely to be found at the very bottom on the tenth floor. As the team progressed through the dungeon, it was clear that the rain this place had been getting in the recent months was taking a toll on the cave, making it less and less stable than it once was. On occasion, pieces of the moist earth would break free from the chasm wall, and fall into the unseen, foggy depths below. The fog must also have been able to muffle sound. They would never be able to hear those pieces of earth actually hit the bottom.

“You know, that was a really nice thing you said to Growlithe back there,” Totodile complimented as they walked.

“It was nothing, really,” Tristan replied quickly. He always felt awkward taking a compliment. He felt as if he were being put on the spot. Or that he didn’t deserve it.

“No,” Torchic urged, “what you said back there I think made Growlithe feel much better about this. Didn’t you see how confident in us he was after you said that.”

“I was just doing what anyone else would have done."

Totodile chuckled slightly. “Really Tristan, you’re too modest. There’s no reason not to take credit for your nice gesture.”

“I guess I’m just the modest type of person then. Nothing wrong with that, is there?” Tristan asked, growing irritated.

“No, no, there’s nothing wrong with that at all,” replied Torchic. “Anyway, I’ve been thinking,” she started, diverting to a more comfortable subject, “You still say you’re a human, right?”

“Yes…”

“Well. I was wondering, do you remember anything from when you were a human? Maybe you can remember something that might have caused you to become a Pokemon?”

This was a good question. Tristan marveled at how he hadn't thought of doing this on his own yet. As he walked he tried to think hard about his memories of being a human. But nothing came to him. The last thing he could remember was waking up in Tiny Woods. No wonder why he hadn't thought of doing this until now. “I don’t remember a thing,” he admitted.

“Nothing!?” she asked.

“No, nothing.” Tristan tried again to remember, but to no avail, “It's as if it’s been erased from my mind.”

Totodile whispered aside to Torchic, “That’s exactly what the leader of Team Blue said when he was asked that question. He didn’t remember a thing either.”

“What was that?” Tristan asked.

“Oh, nothing, nothing.” Totodile answered, “Why don’t we just concentrate on our mission now. I think that would be best.”

“Sure thing,” though Tristan could tell that Totodile wasn’t telling him something.

Five levels down in the dungeon the team came upon yet another of the many rooms, and the fog was getting thicker. So far, luck had been with them, they had not yet confronted any Pokemon. There were another five floors to go until they would reach the bottom. Would their luck hold out? “You hear something?” Tristan asked, proceeding across the room to another set of descending stairs.

“Yeah.” replied Totodile looking straight ahead, “We’ve got a few friends!” As the fog thinned between them and the stairs, four Pokemon appeared in their way, identified by Totodile as Yanma, Houndour, Spinarak, and Trapinch. None of them seemed to have the intention of letting Team Supernova through. These Pokemon seemed angry for the team’s intrusion on their territory. Their mood was reflected by the dismal weather and the unexpected arrival of Tristan, Torchic and Totodile. Totodile stepped forward defiantly, stating, “Alright, no panicking! We can do this! Right, team!?”

Both Tristan and Torchic nodded in response.

“I’m going in!” Totodile announced to the others, turning to their opponents, “Our first fight… we need to make this count!” He began the fight with a charge towards the Houndour, brandishing his claws. He hit with a powerful scratch attack, causing the enemy Houndour to fall back. Torchic, wasting no time, was the next to attack. With one super effective peck, she completely knocked out the Yanma that was hovering next where Totodile was now standing. Angered, the other Pokemon still able to fight came in for the attack.

Tristan had hesitated at first, not knowing exactly what to do. But then he noticed that the Trapinch was sneaking up behind Totodile, opening its large jaws for a powerful Bite attack. But Totodile, still distracted by Houndour, hadn’t noticed. “Totodile! Behind you!” yelled Tristan, as he grabbed for his bone. With deliberate force, he hurled it at the Trapinch using Bonemerang. The bone hit its mark, with enough force to send the Tripinch tumbling back. “Bull’s eye!!” Tristan exclaimed triumphantly, “Oh…”. The bone ricocheted off the Trapinch and was sent spinning into the air. A moment later he could see where the bone would land. “Crap!”

“WATER– !!” Totodile shouted in mid-attack. But he was cut off as Tristan’s out-of-control Bonemerang hit him squarely on the toe. “YOUCH!!!!” he cried in pain, “OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!!!” The result was Totodile hopping around the room on one foot while shooting water gun in any and every direction, hitting both friend and foe.

“AAAHH!” Torchic cried, after being blasted in the back of the head with water, “YOU KNOW I HATE GETTING WET!!! STOP IT, TOTODILE!!!” She received another blast of water directly to the face, “CUT IT OUT!!!” No matter how loud she managed to scream her voice never managed to reach her blue teammate’s ears. Fed up and frustrated, she cried out, “FLAMETHROWER!!!!!” The entire room was immediately engulfed in flames causing everyone who hadn’t already fainted from Totodile’s water gun to become scorched by Torchic’s flames. Silence followed.

A minute later, three of the figures rose from the dungeon floor. Totodile, Torchic, and Tristan stood up in the now silent room as the smoke cleared. Torchic was the first to speak, “WHAT’S THE MATTER WITH YOU, TOTODILE!? WHAT THE HECK WERE YOU THINKING SPRAYING WATER-GUN ALL OVER THE PLACE LIKE THAT!?”

Totodile, equally flustered, responded, “WELL, I WOULDN’T HAVE DONE IT IF TRISTAN HADN’T HIT ME IN THE FOOT WITH HIS ATTACK!! WHERE EXACTLY WERE YOU AIMING!?”

Both Trotodile and Torchic’s gaze were now fixed on Tristan, who took a big gulp. “Aw, man.” He thought, “No point in yelling if it’s my fault...” He began to wave his hands frantically “Hey guys, come on, we won the battle right? We shouldn’t be arguing. And… and… we can’t waste this kind of time since Growlithe is waiting for us right?”

“Well… I guess,” Totodile admitted, “I probably shouldn’t have jumped into the fray like anyway.”

“… I probably shouldn’t have lost my temper, either,” Torchic added.

“What we need is a plan!” Totodile stated, clapping his hands together, “Some kind of strategy so we don’t end up attacking each other!”

“Yeah!” Torchic agreed. “But before we continue,” she reached into the team toolbox which Totodile had been carrying, “we should each have an Oran berry.”

“Oran berry?” Tristan asked.

“It restores your health,” Totodile explained, popping one in his mouth and handing one to Tristan, “replenishes all your energy, it’s really handy to have around when you’re traveling.”

“Gotcha,” Tristan replied as the three of them ate their berries. He felt a surge of energy just as Totodile had said. “Alright, lets think of a plan while we make our way to the tenth floor.”

“Fine by me!” replied Totodile.

“Enough wasting time," Torchic urged impatiently, "lets move!”

And so, Team Supernova carried on with their mission through Silent Chasm in search of Growlithe’s missing sister. Their first battle, successful, yet definitely not something to be admired. What lay ahead of them was just as hard to see as it was to see through the dense and musty fog. But, taking their time to work out a new battle plan, they felt more and more confident with each step they took. They were sure that the next battle would have fewer mishaps.

“Heh,” Totodile said as chuckled to himself, “Hey, Torchic!”

“Yeah?”

Giggling, he continued, “I guess that’s what you call friendly fire, eh!?”

Simultaneously, as if by instinct both Tristan and Torchic fell flat on their faces, letting out a painful groan.

“H… hey! What!? It was funny, wasn’t it!? Wasn’t it!?”

To be continued…



~Chapter 5

The Missing Sibling! A Look at the Bigger Picture.

“Looks like Growlithe's sister isn't on this floor either,” Tristan said with a sigh. By now, Team Supernova had traveled nine floors into the Dungeon, Silent Chasm. So far, there was no sign of their objective. The air down here was damp and musty and the thick fog made it hard to see very far. Sometimes, they would almost miss the stairway leading to the next level. There was no wind to blow the stale air away and the chasm could have used the fresh breeze. There was a thin film of water on every bare wall and rock they could see as well as all over the floor giving everything a slight reflective sheen and making it slick and easy to slip on. The thing that accompanied them wherever they went was the constant sound of dripping water.

“Guess not,” Torchic agreed, slowly shaking her head.

“Alright!” Totodile exclaimed. Both Tristan and Torchic turned to see what had caused such a spark of excitement in their teammate. “Well, now that we know everywhere she isn’t, we also know exactly where she is right?”

“The kidnapper will also be there,” Tristan reminded.

“And we’ll be ready for it!” responded Totodile, confidently, “Isn’t that right, Torchic?”

“Well, I think so," she replied, "What with our failproof strategy, we shouldn’t be worried.”

“Yes, it sounds failproof when we talk about it, but how do we know it will actually work during a real battle,” Tristan said, not trying to be condescending rather realistic.

Totodile gave an optimistic grin as he said, “Well then, we’ll just have to see when we get there. Hey, there are the stairs now!” They were just about to exit another bare and empty room when Totodile had glanced back and noticed the faint image of another set of stairs. The team approached the last set of stairs, ready to descend to the final floor. “Almost missed that one.”

“Hey, what’s this?” Tristan asked, picking a peculiar rock that had been lying next to the stairs.

“Hm? Oh!” Totodile exclaimed, “you found a Gravlerock!”

“Gravlerock?”

“Yep,” answered Torchic. “Throw it at an enemy and it can do quite a bit of damage. You should hold onto that.”

“Why me?”

“Well,” explained Totodile, “You’re a Cubone. If there’s anyone to rely on throwing something, it should be you. You will get plenty of practice with that bone. Just be sure not to hit me again next time though, alright?”

“Heh,” Tristan chuckled, tossing the rock up and down before storing it away, “Sure, thanks.” The team descended the stairs and landed on to the final floor of the dungeon. This floor was particularly musty and damp, but other than that it looked as plain and bare as all the other floors. Most of the ground here, though, was already submerged under water; sometimes being meters deep, with only a few places to actually walk. It was obvious that this much rain was not natural in a place like this. “One more rainfall…” Tristan thought, “and this place will seriously flood.”

“I really hate this place,” Tristan heard Torchic utter under her breath, “Its too wet.”

“Hello!?” Totodile yelled out into the fog.

“Growlithe! Are you there!?” Torchic called. There was no answer.

“Hey guys,” Tristan whispered, pointing to the right where another small tunnel exited the room, “I hear something that way.”

Following Tristan’s lead, the team walked towards the source of the sound. It was made out to be crying, and whimpering. They continued to walk until they entered another room. Upon entering their eyes fell upon the silhouette of a small dog figure on the other end, lying on the ground with its head down.

“Hey! That’s her!” stated Totodile.

“Growlithe!” Torchic shouted. “Over here!”

Growlithe looked up from where she had been crying, seeing the three Pokemon approach. She was considerably smaller than her older brother, and had a small pink ribbon in her hair. Her fur was ruffled, like she had been treated roughly, and her eyes were red with tears. There was a frightened look spread across her face. “Wh… who are you?”

“We’re Team Supernova!” proclaimed Totodile confidently, “and we’re here to rescue you!”

“A… a rescue team? A rescue team has come… to save me?” she asked, somewhat flattered. “But… I’ve never heard of you guys before.”

“This our first mission…” murmured Totodile, slightly discouraged. How many times would he have to hear this from his clients.

“Oh, no! No, I’m sorry! P… please! It’s okay,” Growlithe replied quickly, trying to pacify Totodile, “I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m very grateful you came to rescue me."

”Anyway,” Tristan continued, “your brother sent us.”

“Brother…” she whispered to herself quietly, “Thank you, brother..."

“Where’s the Pokemon that captured you?” Torchic asked.

“I… I don’t know where it went…" she answered apologetically, “sorry.”

“That’s alright,” replied Totodile, his spirits beginning to return, “let's just get out of here before it comes back.”

The team was just about to turn to leave the room when a voice from behind them sounded, making everyone freeze. “Who are you? And where are you going with my prisoner?”

“Huh?" Torchic was first to turn to see the source of this new voice, “Don’t look now,” she cried, “But I think we have our kidnapper!!” The rest of the team turned back to see large a yellow and black hornet creature hovering between them ad the exit. It stared directly at them through its large red eyes and pointed one spear- like hand towards them. It had seemingly appeared out of nowhere from the musty atmosphere, but now that it was so close, the low buzzing sound of its wings could be heard clearly.

“What Pokemon is that?” Tristan whispered in Totodile’s ear.

“It’s name is Beedrill,” Totodile answered, “They’re known for being territorial, so we’d better watch out.”

“And what business does a rescue team have with me?” Beedrill interrogated coldly.

“You know exactly why we’re here!” Totodile responded angrily.

“No, I don’t." Beedrill calmly replied, “As far as I’m concerned, I did nothing wrong.”

“What are you talking about!?” Torchic exclaimed, “you kidnapped an innocent Growlithe!!”

“Hmmm…” the bug muttered as his eyes fell on Torchic, “another disgusting fire Pokemon. You have no idea how much I loath and resent fire Pokemon.”

“What did we do?” yelled Torchic, taken aback, “Are you saying we’re the ones doing something wrong!”

Beedrill gave a cold stare, pointing directly at her as he answered, “This world will end because of monsters like you.”

“And how did you come to that conclusion!?” Tristan challenged.

“Are you really that blind?” continued Beedrill.

“What’s there to be blind to!?” Totodile asked.

“Haven’t you seen the unnatural amount of rain that has fallen in recent months!?” Beedrill shouted, aggravated with Team Supernova’s ignorance, “Weather patterns around the world are changing and are growing steadily worse with each passing day. I know this because I feel the climate changing in my antennae. The earth’s temperature is rising rapidly. Torrential rain and floods hit the coast, as well; droughts and famines devastate the continent inland. Just look around you! This very cave, my home is not meant to deal with this kind of weather. And if this lasts, it won’t be long before it collapses entirely! That is why I am doing nothing wrong!! Because I’m trying to stop it the best way I know how!!!”

“HOW!?” screamed Torchic, “By picking on fire Pokemon!?”

“If it was that simple, it would have started ages ago!” Tristan burst out in exasperation, “But it didn’t! So how could you say it’s their fault!?”

“SILENCE!!!” Beedrill’s voice boomed, echoing throughout the cave as he lost his patience, “I will not tolerate your ignorance anymore!!"

“NO!” Totodile shouted defiantly, “You can’t silence us! And we’ll be taking Growlithe back with us, too!”

“I won’t allow it!!" Beedrill snarled, trembling with rage, “And now that you’ve angered me, I won’t allow anyone to leave!! You will all die here!!”

Totodile quickly huddled his team together to whisper, “Okay. It’s a bug Pokemon. That means that you, Torchic, can really do some damage with your peck and flame-thrower!”

“I’m on it!”

He turned to Tristan to tell him his part of the plan, “Tristan. It's our job to back her up and assist in making her move as powerful as possible! That way, we’re also not getting in Torchic’s way."

“I know, I was there when we talked about this,” Tristan reminded him. It had not been long since they discussed this strategy.

“Just get going!” Totodile barked back.

“Alright! Alright!”

“This is it team!” Totodile shouted as the team parted. Tristan positioned himself to Beedrill’s left, Tododile to his right and Torchic directly in front of him. Growlithe watched on from a safe distance. “We’re not screwing this one up! LET’S GO!!!”

Tristan and Totodile were the first to charge, confusing Beedrill at first as he tried to decide whom would attack first. Torchic took advantage of his state of panic, and began to charge with the attack of her own. Tristan came up right next to Beedrill, using Tail Whip, a move he had just recently discovered that could lower his opponent’s defense. Totodile came up on the other side using Leer, making Beedrill even more susceptible to taking damage. Finally, Torchic charged from the front leaping into the air and diving for Beedrill as she cried “PECK!!!” The bug Pokemon turned just in time to see the attack coming.

“AGILITY!!!” The Beedrill called, and easily evaded the attack, causing Torchic of soar right past him. She landed hard on the slippery ground, causing her to slide before coming to a wet stop. Both Tristan and Totodile immediately rushed to Torchic’s side, making sure she wasn’t hurt. Taking advantage of this window of opportunity, Beedrill continued with his attack, pointing towards them with his spear-like pincers and shouting, “PIN MISSLE!!!” With Torchic back on her feet, the three members of Team Supernova looked back, only to be rained upon by a barrage of dagger sized pins, this time causing all three of them to fall to the damp ground. “How sad,” Beedrill chuckled.

“Oh no!!” Growlithe cried as she watched on helplessly, the team had landed not far from where she was. "This can't be happening!"

“No! Not yet!!” Tristan growled being the first to rise to his feet. This was nothing compared to his battle with Spearow. He’d have to work much harder this time around. The team was scratched, bruised and there were a few shallow cuts. But they were far from being defeated.

“Yeah… we’re just getting started!” defied Torchic valiantly.

“Time for plan B!” proclaimed Totodile, “Tristan! This time, Torchic and I will have your back! You go in for the attack!”

“Got it!”

This time, Torchic and Totodile were the first to charge. Totodile rushed in from the right catching Beedrill off guard with a fierce and intimidating Scary Face, slowing the bug significantly. Torchic came from the left arriving at a patch of mud. She kicked up the mud directly towards Beedrill’s eyes with surprising accuracy. Her intent was to do Sand Attack, which instead resulted in something similar to Mud Slap. Blinded, the bug writhed in pain.

“Can’t miss now!” Tristan thought as he came in for the attack, “He’s much weaker, I shouldn’t have any trouble this time.”

His vision restored, Beedrill hurriedly glanced around the bare room to see where his opponents had gone. “The blue one… the red one… where’s the othe-” During that instant he glanced down to see Tristan leaping up headfirst beneath him. The next moment they had collided, Tristan’s skull hitting his body with such force that it caused him to arc through the air, hitting the ground with a thud.

“That was great, Tristan!” Totodile congratulated with a thumbs up, “Keep it up!”

“It was nothing,” Tristan replied modestly, “Anyone could’ve done it.”

“Back to the battle now!” Torchic cried, bringing them back to their senses. The enemy was rising again to his feet.

“That’s it,” The hornet growled, becoming airborne once more, trying to repress his rage, “NOW YOU’VE DONE IT!!! I WILL MAKE SURE YOU ALL SPEND YOUR LAST MOMENTS SUFFERING THE HORROR OF PAIN AND AGONY!!!”

“Time to finish this!” Totodile cried, “Regroup! We’re going to do that SPECIAL move!!”

The team exchanged familiar looks; Trochic and Tristan nodded co-operatively.

The three assembled in a triangular formation in the center of the room. Tristan in the rear, Torchic and Totodile in the front, to the left and right. Tristan drew his bone and whipped it through the air towards their enemy with Bonemerang. It passed between his two comrades who were preparing attacks of their own. Totodile and Torchic were the next to attack, using Water Gun and Flame-thrower with all the effort they could muster. Tristan, Totodile and Torchic all called out in unison as the attacks merged to become one, “BLAZING-VAPOUR-BONE!!!!!”

Thrust forward with the additional power, the soaking, blazing projectile shot towards Beedrill. Seeing it approach was truly a sight to behold, but one that Beedrill would have never wanted to see. The attack held true to its target, until it was mere feet away from their opponent. Just before the attack hit, Beedrill shifted to the side, allowing the bone to soar right by. “HA!” he laughed triumphantly, “You missed!!! Looks like your secret attack failed you!!!”

“Oh, no!!” cried Growlithe, covering her eyes with her paws, “I can’t watch! We’re done for!!”

“My turn, now!” he claimed, “I knew this move would come in handy one day!! VACUUM CU–!!“ Beedrill was cut off in mid attack when he was struck by something from behind. Bonemerang had returned, with even greater force than before. In a burst of flames and vapour, Beedrill was sent spinning directly towards the ground, thanks to the downward spin Tristan had given it. He tumbled and rolled all the way to the chasm wall at the other end of the room where the force of the impact was so strong, it knocked him out cold.

Silence followed. All eyes were on the unconscious Beedrill. Totodile’s trembling voice was the first to break the silence. “We… we… we won. WE WON!! TEAM SUPERNOVA’S FIRST MISSION IS A SUCCESS!!!”

“We showed that Beedrill what we’re made of!” exclaimed Torchic, leaping up and down with excitement. “He’ll be sorry he ever faced us!”

“You guys were so amazing!!” Growlithe cheered running up to them. “I never doubted you for a second!”

“Alright, then. Let’s return Growlithe back to her brother, then.” spoke Tristan, bringing the team back to the mission, “We don’t want to be around when Beedrill wakes up again.” Torchic and Totodile put serious faces on again and agreed; though the excitement of all three of them still managed to shine through. This moment, Tristan realized he had made the right decision in joining Team Supernova. For this moment, the feeling of accomplishment, the feeling of overcoming a difficult task was what it was all about. “I’m definitely gonna get used to this,” he thought happily, gazing fondly at his two new friends.

And so, with their first mission successfully completed, Team Supernova left the damp and stale Silent Chasm behind with Growlithe in tow, and arrived at Pokemon Square that evening. There, her brother was waiting for her. Their return to the village wasn’t spectacular. No welcome back, no celebration. But the team knew that as they kept rescuing, one day it just might happen. One day, they would be acknowledged as a great and inspiring rescue team. What they didn’t realize was that one day; they would become one of the greatest rescue teams in the entire world.

“Thank you so much for saving my little sister,” Growlithe said gratefully. The Pokemon Square was peaceful that evening. Every so often a rescue team would walk by chatting amongst themselves, or a store owner in the village would close shop. The setting sun dyed the entire sky a brilliant orange. “Please, I know it's not much, but take this.” He came up to Tristan, and handed over one hundred poke. The team knew that in doing so, he was making a great sacrifice, “It's all I can pay you. I hope it’s enough.”

“Please,” Totodile replied, feeling a pang of guilt, “you don’t have to pay that much. We can take fifty poke. Isn’t that right, Torchic?”

“Yeah,” Torchic agreed, “You pay however much you want. Please don’t break your back for it, though."

“Wait, big brother. I also have this,” offered the little sister, coming up beside her brother and showing it to him.

“But... that’s your favourite scarf… Mother gave that to you.”

“I know that, but they saved my life. It would mean nothing if I had died back there.”

“… very well.” Said the older brother, coming to his conclusion, “Please accept fifty poke, and this scarf as payment, and thank you so much. I never should have doubted you, we owe you so much.”

“We’re just glad you guys are back together, it was nothing, really,” Tristan answered.

The siblings soon departed to return to their home, where they would be together again. As Tristan watched them leave, he heard Totodile's voice in his ear from behind. “Modest.”

“SO WHAT!?”

“Hehe, you're so modest it’s funny!” laughed Totodile.

“Really," commented Torchic, laughing along with Totodile, "another response could have been 'you're welcome’. You don’t need to recycle the same line over and over again.”

“Grrrr… That’s just the way I am!”

“We know, we know,” Totodile giggled, finally calming down, “and we wouldn’t have you any other way…”



~Chapter 6

Special delivery! Making an Impression!

“Hm?… This dream again…” For the second time Tristan found himself in vacant and empty space, filled only by a green haze. It always felt calm and peaceful here, but it also greatly confused Tristan. “…Why do I keep having these dreams… ?” A faint and dim feminine voice was emanating from somewhere but, despite his best efforts, Tristan couldn’t find its source. “That voice again…" he thought straining his ears, “Wait! I think I hear what it’s saying!”

Drifting into his ears, the mysterious and extremely faint voice said “… find him…”

“Find him? Find who?”

“… You must… … …with him…”

“I can’t understand what you’re trying to tell me! What are you saying!?” The voice drifted away again, until Tristan could no longer understand it. “Hey!” he exclaimed, “Wait! Who am I supposed to find!?” Tristan awoke suddenly to the bright sun shining in his eyes. “Man! What’s with these dreams?” he thought while stumbling off of the straw bed and onto the stone floor. “If only it were a little louder, I’m sure I would’ve heard it.” He grabbed an apple from the bowl on the wooden table, then grabbed their toolbox as he left the team base; it was starting to become a routine of his.

Outside it was a warm and humid, perhaps a little too warm and humid for so early in the morning. The sky was a brilliant blue, with clouds that had the texture of cotton, a sign that more rain might be on the way. It had been two days since their mission to Silent Chasm. Torchic had convinced Totodile that it would be in their best interest to take a couple days to rest and manage supplies. Today they would be off again on another mission. Tristan couldn’t help but feel a little excited himself, remembering how well the last mission turned out. He walked to the end of the stone path, and was about to take the dirt road to the village when he noticed the flap to their mailbox was up. “Mail?” he thought as he opened the mailbox, pulling out the single letter inside. It was a piece a beige parchment that had been folded twice and closed with a Pelliper shaped seal. To his surprise, it was a mission. Tristan opened and read the letter, “I, like, need you to help me, like, find Tyrogue. Client: Meditite, Objective: Escort me to Tyrogue, Place: Uproar Forest Basement Floor 10, Difficulty: C.” He stopped reading there and folded the paper up again, tucking it under his arm. “Totodile will definitely want to see this. This is a big step in his goal of being a part of a well known rescue team.”

The moment after he thought this, he noticed Totodile and Torchic coming into view along the path, heading his way. “Hey, Tristan!” Totodile yelled over with a large wave, “How’s it going?”

“Not too bad,” replied Tristan instinctively. He waited a moment for them until they were both standing in front of him, ready to depart for the village. “Oh yeah, we got mail.”

“Mail? What kind of mail!?” asked Torchic excitedly.

“A mission.”

Tristan curiously turned to see Totodile's face, wondering how he’d react. It was a sight to behold. His eyes were wide and sparkling with delight. His mouth was hanging wide open in the largest smile he’d ever seen, enough so that every tooth was visible. His hands were clasped tightly together over his heart. “A… a mission?” he asked with a trembling voice, “S… s… someone requested us especially… for a mission?”

“Looks that way,” Tristan answered, handing the paper over to him.

“Wow!" he exclaimed, holding it as if it were a priceless antique, “This is a really big step in our dream of being a well known rescue team!”

“I thought you’d say something like that,” Tristan replied with a grin.

“Well then. This is unexpected. But no time to waste!” Torchic stated, “Lets go get ready for our second mission. We should stop by at the village to get supplies.”

“Sure thing,” Tristan replied.

“Oh yeah!” started Totodile excitedly as they left the team base. The path to the village wandered amongst the trees of a small forest. Occasionally, other paths joined it; as well they would pass by bases of other rescue teams. Some of the bases were similar to their own, simple while still serving their purpose. Others were massive and designed to impress any Pokemon walking by. “I heard that team ACT got back from their mission last night. Maybe we can catch them before they leave!”

“Now that’s a rescue team to look up to,” said Torchic.

“So what’s so special about team ACT anyway,” Tristan asked accidentally, “and who’s in it?”

“ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?” blasted Tododile and Torchic simultaneously.

Tristan sighed, “keeping in mind that this is my fourth day in this world please…”

“Ahem,” Totodile cleared his throat and began to lecture, “Team ACT: A for Alakazam, C for Charizard, and T for Tyranitar. These are the three Pokemon that make this team one of the strongest, toughest, and smartest teams in the world today.”

“Besides Team Blue that is,” Torchic added with a wink.

“If that weren’t enough,” continued Totodile, “Alakazam is said to have an IQ of 5000. Charizard has a flame-thrower so powerful it can melt mountains. And Tyranitar’s armour is so tough that it can withstand almost anything. They’re gold rank, and definitely deserve that title after overcoming the many challenges and obstacles that they have.” Totodile took a moment to catch his breath, “So, now do you understand?”

“Yeah, thanks for the lesson,” replied Tristan sarcastically.

“I hope you paid attention,” he advised, “There will be a pop quiz on this tomorrow.”

“It’s not a pop quiz if you tell him!” Torchic whispered aside to him annoyed.

“Oh! Right… just forget all about what I said then.”

Moments later, they exited the forest, the view of the village spreading out before them. After crossing the small wooden bridge they set off for their first order of business, which was to buy items at the Kecleon Shop.

“Thank you for shopping! It was a pleasure doing business with you!” Kecleon sang, storing his money away. Kecleon was a chameleon-like creature, standing on two legs. He was mostly coloured green with the exception of the yellow jagged crests on the top of his head, as well as yellow rings circling his small black eyes. He also had a red-coloured zigzag band around his waist and a long curled up tail. Totodile quickly grabbed their purchased items from the table; four Oran Berries, three Pecha Berries, and some more Gravelerock and handed them to Tristan to put in the toolbox. The shop was a small booth enclosed by low brick walls. Behind it was a small yard, and adjoining it was a dome shaped house, which was obviously where Kecleon slept. The shop was simple and was no more than it needed to be. “Please,” Kecleon continued, “Come by any time you need supplies Team… um… team…”

“Team Supernova…” Totodile answered sadly. Just like that, Totodile’s excitement for the next mission had seemingly vanished.

“Yeah, that’s it, come back any time you need to Team Supernova,” Kecleon corrected himself. He said to himself as the team began to walk away “I’ll definitely remember that name next time.”

“I would have made the same mistake brother,” his brother, and co-owner of the store sympathized next to him. This other Pokemon, instead of being green like his sibling, was purple, with green crests instead.

“Brother!” the green Kecleon exclaimed.

“Oh, brother!” the purple one cried back.

Team Supernova now made their way to the Pokemon Square. Again the square was quite empty from all the teams out on missions. Totodile was dragging his feet along as they walked, his head hanging low. “Don’t worry, Totodile. One day everyone will know our names!” Torchic tried to say supportively. “Isn’t that right, Tristan?”

“Hm?" Tristan asked, “Oh. Yeah, sure.”

“Way to make Totodile feel better,” Torchic replied, irritated.

“Hey,” Tristan commented, looking ahead as they came to the square, “that’s team ACT, right? They might be coming this way.”

Totodile sprung back to life, looking around frantically as he exclaimed, “WHAT!? They… they… they’re coming!?” He turned to Tristan and Torchic, “Guys! We really need to make a good impression on them! We want to prove to them that we have the potential to become a great rescue team! Plus, they’ll be a really strong ally.”

“Alright, alright,” answered Tristan, though he felt this was being blown out of proportion.

“Please try to be a little more serious,” Torchic asked.

“Yeah, yeah, of course I will!”

Meanwhile, not too far behind Team Supernova, another rescue team was returning from a mission of their own, also making their way to the Pokemon Square. “Man, that was almost too easy!” Machop boasted confidently. Team Supreme was now crossing the bridge to enter the village.

“Ooh ooh, ah ah! Too bad we got a skimpy reward, though,” Aipom complained, reaching into their toolbox to look at the gummi again. He didn’t even like that flavour.

“I know, I would have thought a C-ranked mission would pay better than this,” agreed Machop. His eyes wandered ahead towards the square, until they met a very interesting sight. “Hey guys, look what we’ve got here.”

“Ooh ooh, ah ah! It’s Team Supernova.”

A wide grin spread across Machop's face, “Its not just Team Supernova. Team ACT’s there too! Hmmmmm… Hehehehehe, I just got a brilliant idea!”

“You’re up to no good, aren’t you?” Misdreavus asked, hovering down to head level to look him in the face. “Ooh, I was right! You are up to no good! Sometimes you can be so evil! Let me in on it, too! What do you want us to do?”

“Hehehe, just follow my lead!”

Team ACT had just left the Felicity Bank, and was now about to depart for their next mission. Like everyone else, they were concerned with the number of missions that had sprung up in the recent months. “I’m still surprised that not a single team we’ve met knows what’s causing this mayhem.” commented Charizard. He was a large orange Pokemon with blue wings and a long neck. Portruding from the back of his head were two horns, and there was a flame that lit the tip of his tail. “I mean, you would have thought someone could figure out what’s going on by now.”

“I agree,” Tyranitar replied. This Pokemon was slightly larger than Charizard and was green instead, with skin that looked as tough as stone. He had two rows of spikes running down his back, as well as on the end of his tail. He had triangular-shaped holes on his legs, shoulders and back, and a layer of blue skin beneath that stretched across his chest. “This brings back memories of the falling star incident. Nobody knows a thing, it’s starting to worry me.”

“All we can do as of now is carry on with the rescuing,” Alakazam explained, trying to calm his two teammates. Alakazam was the smallest and slimmest member of the team, though, despite this he was also the leader. He had a primarily gold body, with brown on his upper body, knees, and forearms. He had a long mustache and was accompanied by two silver spoons that hovered beside him as he levitated along in meditation. “The answer will never show itself if we try to look for it. Only when we need it most will it reveal itself.”

“We must be pretty close to needing the answer now…” Charizard commented.

A young voice called from ahead. “Hey! Team ACT! Team ACT!”

“Hm?” muttered Alakazam as he opened his eyes. Before them were three Pokemon, all much smaller than they were. There was a Totodile and a Torchic, who both seemed to be very excited, and a Cubone who didn’t even look that interested.

“Wow!” Totodile exclaimed, “It’s so great to finally meet a true rescue team!” He was trying hard to suppress all the excitement which was building inside him, “You’re like heroes to me! I mean us!”

“Yeah!” joined Torchic; “You’re what inspired us to become a rescue team in the first place!”

Tristan was confused, “But I thought Team Blue-”

“AH!” Totodile interrupted, whipping around to Tristan. The next second Tristan realized that Totodile had pulled him aside, holding his mouth shut. “Reputation, Tristan!” he whispered angrily, “Reputation!” Tristan rolled his eyes, but nodded in response. Totodile let go and they both turned back to Team ACT.

Tyranitar was the first to speak. “Hmmm… I don’t believe I’ve seen your faces before. Ah, you must be a new rescue team, then?”

“You bet!” Totodile exclaimed, “We’re Team Super–“

“Well, well, well!” came a voice from behind. Totodile froze completely as he recognized the voice. “If it isn’t the team that stole our mission from us, team Super-nothing!” Team Supreme came up from behind, and up beside Team Supernova. Machop continued, “Of course, we got the reward we deserved in the end, but still.”

Charizard shook his head disapprovingly, “Tsk, tsk, tsk… stealing a mission from another rescue team.”

“Rescue teams are supposed to work together to save as many people as they can,” lectured Alakazam, seeming disappointed himself, “not to try to steal from one another.”

Totodile was speechless. He couldn’t believe that he had been just told off by one of the rescue teams he respected and admired most. He stumbled over his words as he tried to explain, “No! B… b… b… but wait!”

Angered, Tristan came to Totodile’s defense, turning to Team Supreme and shouting, “Hey! We didn’t steal your mission! You’re the ones who stole our reward!”

Misdreavus frowned, with tears welling in her eyes “But… we shared a little bit of the reward with you, didn’t we? And we forgave you as long as you wouldn’t cause us anymore trouble.”

“You disappoint me… Team… Super-nothing was it?” Tyranitar scolded, unimpressed with what he was hearing, “You were wrong in the first place for stealing their mission. They forgave you, and even gave you a little of their reward. Now you’re still yelling at them and trying to make them look bad?”

“No! That’s not it!” cried Torchic desperately. She turned, pointing accusingly at Team Supreme, “You! Stop making lies about us! And our name is team is Team Supernova!”

“Ooh ooh, ah ah! It’s sad.” Aipom said wiping a tear, “we only wanted to be friends with you guys.”

“Its okay,” Charizard said kindly to comfort Team Supreme. “There’s no need to waste your time with those guys. They aren’t worth it.”

“Guys, we’ve got to go,” Tyranitar mentioned. “That Nidoqueen could be in danger, even as we speak.”

“Yes,” agreed Alakazam as they began to walk again, “we’ve waited here too long.” He brushed passed Tristan, taking a few steps. He then paused suddenly, “Hm!?”

“What is it?” asked Charizard.

“I… I thought… for a second… is Team Blue back from their mission?”

“No, not yet,” answered Tyranitar, confused by this question.

“That’s odd. I thought for sure that I sensed his presence…” Alakazam thought aloud. He shook his head and waved it off, “Leave it, it’s nothing.”

Team ACT passed between the two minor teams which parted for them as they set off for their mission. Charizard’s laugh could be heard trailing off into the distance. “Seriously Alakazam, sometimes you jump at the slightest things. You probably sensed a tree falling in the forest, and nobody but you knew it!”

Totodile still stood frozen in shock. What had just happened? He didn’t want to even think about it.

Machop laughed triumphantly, “Ha hahaha! That was way too easy!”

“YOU!!!” Totodile shouted angrily.

“How could you!?” cried Torchic.

Machop grinned broadly and turned to face them, “Oh, I’m sorry. Did I interfere with something?”

“You know full well what you did!!!” Tristan hollered

“First you steal Tristan’s reward!” Torchic accused, “And now you make look like thieves in front of Team ACT!! How miserable do we have to be until you’re satisfied!?”

“Ooh ooh, ah ah! Did we do that!?” asked Aipom innocently, putting his hands behind his back and rocking on his feet while gazing up.

“You’ll be sorry for this!!” Tristan threatened.

“If I ever see you guys again, you’ll literally be cooked meat!” Torchic added fiercely.

“Just… leave it you guys,” Totodile spoke with surprising calmness.

“But Totodile…” Torchic and Tristan began.

“We… we’re above this,” he said, lifting his head, “We’re not going to sink to their level by trying to get revenge. That’s not what our team stands for.”

“Meh,” Machop said with a shrug, “say watcha want. Team ACT favours us now, and soon enough, so will Team Blue!” He turned to his team. “Let’s move, team! We need to get our next mission from the bulletin. Hopefully it won’t be an E-rated mission like the baby teams do!”

“Heh,” snickered Totodile, “you mean you haven’t been requested for a mission yet?”

Machop turned. “What do you mean?”

“Looks like you didn’t if you’re heading to the bulletin board,” Totodile said, waving their mission in the air, “But we were sent a mission in the mail. Imagine, someone requesting us for a mission instead of you.”

“WHAT!?” Machop exclaimed in with utter shock, “How did you get mailed a mission!?”

Torchic gave a smug look, and said, “I guess we’re just a little more popular than you.”

“But!!… Grrrrr….” Aggrevated, he turned to his team. “DIDN’T I SAY WE WERE LEAVING!? WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!? MOVE IT!!”

“Okay, okay, we’re going,” Misdreavus said, offended that Machop had turned his anger on them.

Finally, Machop stormed off, followed closely by Misdreavus and Aipom. “Ooh ooh, ah ah! Watch who you yell at, Machop!!”

Team Supernova quickly finished their business in the village, stopping by at Kangaskhan storage to retrieve and drop off items. As well they stopped by to drop off their extra Poke at the Felicity Bank. For the second time, the village disappeared into the distance behind them as they headed for their second mission. Still aggrevated by the encounter with Team Supreme, Totodile stomped ahead of the rest of the group, “Those guys, Team Supreme, really bug me!”

“They sure do!” agreed Torchic, trying to keep up.

“We’ll show them,” reassured Tristan, “they’ll get what’s theirs!”

Torchic took a deep breath and sighed, “So… let’s see the mission, Tristan.”

Tristan reached into the toolbox and handed the envelope over to her. “Here you go.”

“Let’s see… Client: Meditite, Objective: Escort me to Tyrogue. An escort mission this time, I’ve heard bad things about these if the client is an idiot. Place: Uproar Forest Basement Floor 10, Difficulty: C, Reward: … 500 POKE!?”

“Are you kidding me!?” exclaimed Totodile.

“Oh… I forgot to check the reward,” Tristan mentioned.

“Figures,” Torchic answered, “That’s just like you.”



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