Nameless

It was a beautiful day for an adventure.

An Eevee skipped by the roaring and powerful river Merces, her chestnut fur swaying in the watery breeze that sprung up from the stream’s depths.  Merces flowed alongside the elegant capital of the nation Tenija where a large stone citadel rose from the thick forest. The castle stood tall and proud, the pride and treasure of all of the citizens of the grand country.

But the Eevee had no intention of playing around the castle, for it bored her. Her day was proceeding slowly; she hadn't done a single exciting thing, aside from eavesdropping and hearing her father shouting furiously.  She hated all of the arguing her father did as of late, so in her mind, she deemed that it did not count. She let out a dissatisfied sigh, ready to end the day and return to the castle early.  Nothing was catching her attention.

Until she saw it.

A Riolu drifted through the rushing water, its blue and black fur swirling in time with the current; the Pokemon clearly wasn't moving and could've possibly been dead.

"Awesome!" She called excitedly, sprinting towards the river, "Don't worry, I'll save you!"

She leapt into the stream and paddled over to the limp frame. The Eevee then grabbed the Riolu’s arm in her mouth and hauled him over to the nearby bank, struggling against the pulling water and the weight of the Pokemon. Unbeknownst to her, the poor Riolu’s head bobbed in and out of the water multiple times as she pulled her catch inland. When she got to shore, she laid him out flat against the muddy earth to examine him.

She put an ear against his chest, seeing if there was a heartbeat. She blinked, and hearing a soft thumping sound, the Eevee smiled. However, his breathing was short and gargled. She looked around nervously.

"Ok ok! You just...you gotta do that one thing. What was...oh yeah!" She leapt into the air and fell right on his chest.

The Riolu immediately began coughing and turned onto his side, spraying a large quantities of water from his water-logged body.

After a few minutes of choking and spluttering, he lay still and groaned, "Uuuuugh....what happened?"

The Eevee stared at the Riolu excitedly, her eyes shining almost ecstatically.

"Ooooh! Do you have amnesia!?" she asked both loudly and hopefully.

"Ummm....yes." He said, nodding.

"Oh my gosh, that makes you so cool!" she said, hopping out of pure excitement.

"Who are you…and where am I?" the Riolu asked, unamused.

"You're in Tenija! The greatest nation in the world! I'm Calla!" She leaned in close, maybe a little too close.

"What's your name?" she asked, her eyes as wide as the pebbles that lined the riverbed.

"Umm..." the Riolu seemed to be thinking as he pushed her back a few inches.  "It's....Marcus," he muttered, standing up and drying himself off.

The Eevee gave him a puzzled look.

"But...if you have amnesia, doesn't that mean you should forget your name?" she asked.

"....just how many people have you met with amnesia?" the Riolu asked skeptically.

"Well, none." she replied, a little embarrassed.

Marcus just stared at her for a few silent seconds, maintaining his skeptical expression. "Then how would you know how it's supposed to work-" He began.

"Ok ok, fine!" she interrupted with a huge grin on her face, “I guess everything checks out."

"Good...now just where in Tenija am I?" He asked, looking around in the direction opposite of the castle.

"You're in the capitol, Tenija Castle!" She pointed right behind him, "Duh!”

His eyes went wide for a moment for a few moments in shock, but Marcus quickly regained his composure.

"Right, uhh....the capitol. Well, you know...I just have amnesia, so I didn't...Oh you know, I should probably go...some other way," he stammered, slightly nervous at this new information.

"Wait!" Aren't you hungry or something?" Calla questioned innocently.

His stomach growled as to echo her thoughts.

"Aha! Thought so! Come on, we can worry about going on a quest for your memories after we eat," she smiled, beginning to hop towards the castle.

He wanted to be as far away from the castle as possible, but he felt like he hadn't eaten for days. It was actually becoming quite painful for him, so, allowing his stomach taking over, he followed the overly cheerful little Eevee.

"Thanks uhh...what is it again?" he questioned, slightly ashamed of his forgetfulness.

"It's Calla, Marcus. You have a terrible memory!" She laughed.

"...is that supposed to be some kind of amnesia joke?" he frowned, following behind sullenly.

Calla...Calla....where have I heard that name? Ah well, maybe it's just common, he thought to himself.

The Riolu lost himself in his thoughts for a few moments as the two journeyed to the bastion ahead.  Calla bounced happily in front leading him to the front gates of the intimidating structure, but then, a brilliant idea popped into Marcus’s head.

"Umm....hey, let's play a game,” Marcus stated, smiling mischievously.

She stopped dead in her tracks and whipped around joyfully.

           "A game!? What kind of game?" she inquired, pulling her face directly in front of his, too close to comfort for the Riolu.

After pushing her back again, he explained his plan.

"Let's pretend....that we're spies. Ok? And...we have to get into the kitchen and get the food, without any of the guards spotting us. Doesn't that sound fun?" He asked, hopefully.

"Fun?" she echoed skeptically.  Her face contorted in confusion for a few moments, and then broke out into pure joy

"Only the funnest ever!" she laughed, "Oh! And I know where a secret entrance is that nobody else knows about!"

Marcus grinned, "You're already doing great! Lead the way, secret agent Calla."

"You got it!" she yelled, and the Eevee slumped low and began to move stealthily through the forest surrounding the river, hiding behind every object nearby even when there wasn't another soul around.  Marcus mimicked her moments to a certain extent to ensure the success of their “mission”.  After traveling through a thin wooded area, the pair eventually reached the wall of the castle; they were hidden from the guards at the main gate by a wall of lush, green bushes.

"Alright, where's the entrance?" he questioned, looking around worriedly.

"Here, let me show you." She closed her eyes and sung a haunting melody into a crevice in the wall. A square tunnel, large enough for the two of them to easily fit through, opened up at the sound of the secret notes.

"See, told you....Marcus?" she turned to look at her spy buddy triumphantly.

However, Marcus let out a loud snore; he was lying flat on the ground, lulled to sleep by the simple tune.

"Heh heh. Woops," she giggled innocently, forgetting the power of the music.

Calla sprung onto the sleeping Riolu’s chest once more in order to break the spell of the song.  Marcus jumped as four brown paws landed directly on top of his slowly heaving chest.

"Oh, good, you're awake,” the Eevee smiled, hopping off.

"Uuuugh, what happened this time?" muttered Marcus, getting up on his feet and dusting himself off.

"Well, I accidentally put you to sleep. I had to use Sing to open the secret tunnel." she explained, her tone apologetic.

The Riolu just yawned, "How exactly do you know about this secret entrance to the castle anyways?" he wondered.

Calla smiled playfully, "Well a princess should know how to get around her own castle."

Marcus went wide-eyed. "Princess!?"

In that moment, Marcus immediately remembered why he knew Calla’s name.

"Yeah, but I don't want you to treat me different or anything, ok?" the Eevee glared at him seriously.

"...Noted," he nodded, "Now then...shall we continue? I'm starving."

Yeah, of course! Follow me! Oh....but we'll need to be careful. The Colonel is on guard today." she muttered as she walked into the tunnel.

"Colonel?" Marcus asked, following behind her.