L: After the discovery of a strange planet that was nearly entirely water, a treecko was sent in a spaceship to investigate... And, he ended up crashing. After managing to get out of the crashed ship, he sits at its top which is thankfully just above the surface, and sigh as he looks out at the seemingly endless ocean and tries to think of what to do next...

G: meanwhile, in the mysterious ocean, there's an Oshawott swimming about without much care in the world. As a native, he's used to being down here... but he could feel his lungs start to burn rather badly! "Mm..."

Quickly, he swims up to the top, wanting to get a breath before it's too late, and he gasps water... until he hits his head on something and gets dazed for a few moments before swimming and surfacing with a deep gasp. "GH... HHAAAHHH... haaah... hah..."

L: The treecko jumps a little in surprise at the sudden surfacing. An oshawott, here? ...No, they had to be something else that just happened to look like one.

As unlikely as it definitely was that they'd happen to speak the same language as him, the treecko decided to at least try to talk. "Um... Hello? Can you understand me?"

G: The Oshawott wasn't aware of what he hit, or what he was next to. Currently, he's too busy breathing from his long dive...

But his ears would perk lightly before looking up. "O-Oh, hello! Um... What happened here?" He asks as he notices the big, strange machine in front of him... Because most of it is submerged, he can't make out what it's for from the surface, but he didn't want to leave the Treecko.

L: "It's, um..." The treecko takes a moment to consider whether it'd be okay to reveal he's from another planet... And figures it'd be found out eventually anyway. "It's my spaceship. I'm from another planet, and crashed here. So, I'm kind of just stuck here for now... Hopefully it's just for now, at least."

G: "Hm... Guess that explains why you're relaxing up here..." He nods lightly. "Well, at least if you're here, I could take you to a place to stay, for the time being... Um, can you at least swim?"

L: "I can swim decently well, yeah. Probably not well enough that I'd be able to live here on my own, but I can at least hold my breath a few minutes."

G: "Well, I'll try to help as best as I can. Maybe you'll manage to last longer after some practice, if we can't fix this ship?"

L: "I'm sure I'll get better quick from living here, it's probably gonna be a while... But anyway, where do you have in mind for me to stay?"

G: "Well, I can take you to my home, for the time being. I'm a pretty quick swimmer, so you can hold onto me, if you'd like."

L: "Alright, that works." The treecko gets into the water, swimming on the surface. "Something kind of funny, by the way... You look EXACTLY like something on my world called an oshawott."

G: "An Oshawott? I mean... It is what I am." He would say. "Can't say I know why that happened. I mean, you look like a Treecko on my world, although I can't say I've seen one, recently..." He swims for a bit before taking slow, deep breaths to prepare...

L: "Woah, that's weird... Wonder how things between our planets happened to end up so similar like that..." The treecko follows them, knowing to get some deep breaths himself while he gets ready, hoping it won't be too much of a dive.

G: Soon, the Oshawott dives down and quickly swims toward the bottom of the ocean, keeping an eye on the Treecko to make sure he's doing OK during this dive.

L: The treecko holds onto them, holding his breath as well. He's got his cheeks puffed up, and is clearly a little bit nervous about the depth, likely not having gone far underwater in the past.

G: The Oshawott's cheeks weren't too puffed, thanks to his training in the depths. With a smile, he would comfort the Treecko as best as he could as they went down into the depths. The place seems rather empty, besides the fish swimming about...

L: The treecko tries to calm himself by looking around the unfamiliar environment. It still doesn't seem all that far off from Earth, and he doesn't exactly know enough about fish to say whether the ones here can also be found there, but taking in the new planet's sights is at least helping him calm down a little.

G: The Oshawott's swimming rather quickly, at least. But it looks like he's swam far from home. Or it's just hard to see how far they have to go underwater... Wait, the Oshawott did seem desperate to breathe when he surfaced, so can they even make it back?

L: That thought does occur to the treecko, that the oshawott's home might be pretty far underwater... He hopes that they had just gotten sidetracked and taken it slow, and not that they'd been going straight up and still only barely made it. He's not sure he'd be able to get to the depth that they can...

G: The Oshawott thought that they could make it, in his mind... Although he might need to push his limits if he wanted to make it. It's mainly Treecko he's worried for, continuing to swim.

L: The two go deeper and deeper... The treecko is at least able to handle the water pressure, at least for now, though he can feel a need to breathe growing in his chest, as a bit of strain begins to make itself known.

G: Checking in on the Treecko, he would notice the all too familiar signs that he needed air. At this rate, he's not sure if they can make it to an air pocket in time... but maybe they'll be within range of the city that they won't be out for too long...

Unless the Treecko's willing to drown early, of course.

L: Certainly not being up for drowning if he can avoid it, the treecko does his best to keep holding his breath. While he's still looking around, he's mostly hoping to find some kind of air source at this point.

G: There were rocks and small caves on this path, but they were ignored by the Oshawott. He knew there wasn't any air in them from previous explorations. "I'm going as fast as I can, I think we can make it..." The Oshawott tries to reassure the Treecko...

L: "Mmhm..." The treecko's not really sure they're right, but he doesn't have much option but to trust them right now. He might not be able to surface on his own at this point... Trying to ignore his nervousness, he focuses on holding his breath, covering his mouth to help keep his air in.

G: The surface... Well, now that he remembers, they could always turn up and swim up. At least, until they reach the last stretch into the city... The tunnels there have no air to grab, although they aren't too long. "Um... If we need to go back up, we can, if you want."

L: The treecko thinks for a moment... And shakes his head, figuring he and the oshawott are already close and may as well keep going. Surely he'll be able to last for long enough to get to wherever they're going...

G: still no signs of any town to go into. "Um... Maybe we're about... a quarter of the way back? Just hang in there..."

L: "Mmhm..." The treecko's strain is gradually increasing, and little grunts can be heard from him now as his chest heaves.

G: The Oshawott's worry grew, especially since he can hear and feel those signs of needing air. He didn't feel any need to breathe, yet, so he's willing to help... He pushes Treecko away for a bit before flipping around and pulling him along once more.

L: He's surprised for a moment at the change in orientation, but the treecko doesn't mind it. What he certainly does mind is the lack of air, his struggles making him gradually lose a little more air.

G: He gives a simple nod to try and calm down the Treecko, hoping he could hold on for a bit longer before he gives air. The Oshawott wanted to extend his breathholding a little longer.

L: The treecko is at least starting to get the feeling the oshawott's going to help once he's nearly out of breath, so he calms just a little. Still, it's clear he's getting pretty low on breath.

G: It might be time to finally help...

The Oshawott quickly pulls in the Treecko into an air kiss. Despite how suddenly he had to do this, he could still swim at a decent pace, but he made sure not to waste too much air as they shared the kiss. "Mm... mm..."

L: The treecko pauses for a moment in confusion, trying to figure out what the oshawott is doing... Then, remembering that he's heard of people doing this underwater, he carefully inhales from them.

G: He tries to give enough air to sustain the Treecko, but not too much to hurt his own. Once done, he pulls away and smiles. Although he could feel a tightness in his chest as he kept swimming...

L: Feeling a lot better, the treecko gives the oshawott a thumbs up before focusing back on the swim. He tries to help by paddling some, though relative to the oshawott's normal speed it's not doing much.

G: OK... At this rate, he thinks they'll soon reach the halfway point... Though he knows that his chest tightening means the rest of the swim will be tougher.

L: Hoping the oshawott is still doing fine, the treecko focuses on what's ahead. Surely there'll be a better air source than the oshawott at some point... Until then, he tries to make his air last as long as possible.

G: The Oshawott made sure he's going quickly, past halfway, then to 3/4... Suddenly he starts whimpering rather loudly. His chest hurts a lot.

L: The treecko's straining again at this point, trying his best to help speed up the duo. Hearing the oshawott's struggling, his fear begins to quickly build up, worrying they might not make it before they inhale...

G: It'll be too much to share air at this point and still make it, so he ignores the Treecko's needy lungs! "Mmgbl... Mmf..." As he swam, there's some kind of cave coming into view!

L: Glad that there's at least something different after all this time, the treecko covers his mouth again as bubbles leak out. Unaware the oshawott doesn't plan on giving him air again, he's able to still try to keep calm.

G: Just a bit more... Although he really has to push himself if he plans on having dry lungs. He's already given air and has less than when he surfaced near the Treecko, and it's not looking likely.

L: As the treecko's lungs start to burn a little, he figures he should probably ask for more air, still thinking he might get some. He taps on the oshawott and gestures to his mouth. "Mmm?"

G: The Oshawott ignores the Treecko. He must've used too much air during this swim, otherwise he would probably answer him. Still, he does react with a whimper before he quickened his pace through the water.

L: The treecko quickly realizes what's happening. Whining a little, he does his best to keep his mouth covered while helping speed up the oshawott, worrying they both might run out of breath.

G: The Treecko's help wasn't much, but the Oshawott appreciates it. "Mm." He weakly smiles, his chest heaving some more as air leaves him at a quicker pace! Soon, he puts a paw against his own mouth! He knows the exit is getting close! he can't give in!

L: Before much longer, the treecko has both hands to his mouth, struggling as he gets close to running out of breath. He's certainly regretting not surfacing before going straight for whatever this is...

G: Same for the Oshawott. He thought he could take it, and while he enjoys holding his breath like this... Well, it still hurts a lot when he drowns. "Mm! Mm! Mmgbl!!!" More air left the otter, suddenly slowing and shaking desperately! There's a light barely visible... but he can't swim when his body wanted to stop the breathing!

L: As they slow, the treecko tries harder to keep the two moving, before he can't focus on that any more. He tightly shuts his eyes as he starts frantically kicking, trying to hold on just a little longer. "MMGH! MMMBLRBULBMLM!"

G: The Oshawott kept trying to swim, for now. Despite his paws holding back the gasps, his entire body hurts so much! But the light is closing  in! They're making progress!

L: But, the treecko can't quite keep holding his breath long enough. He exhales a huge amount of bubbles, starting to choke and gasp as he inhales water!

G: "BLBLBL!" The Oshawott lets out a worried whimper as he quickly grabs onto the Treecko before swimming onward...

That is, until suddenly, he takes a deep gasp of water, too! His grip tightens on the Treecko before he holds his own neck, coughing and squirming painfully!

L: The treecko grabs at his neck while frantically paddling with his other hand, his bubbles stopping as only water is left in his lungs. He's not even sure what he's trying to swim toward, but he knows it must be better than drowning.

G: "Glk!" The Oshawott helps as best as he could, whimpering and gurgling each stroke through the water to the light! Strangely, though, he's still rather decent at swimming, despite drowning...

L: As much as he keeps trying to swim, the treecko's beginning to slow down. "GLGKL! G-GGK! Hllurhlgl, urglrk..." His choking calms to slow breathing, and he's starting to have to focus more on staying awake than anything else...

G: "Mgbl!!! blblbl! Mm..." The Oshawott's swimming slowed, now. He pushed himself a lot, and now he's exhausted. Slowed. The light still feels far, despite it clearly growing as they kept going.

L: Before much longer, the treecko goes limp, still weakly breathing water. All he can do is keep himself awake, and he can barely even do that any more, blearily looking ahead for any sort of hope.

G: Before the Oshawott lost consciousness, he could see... some kind of figure in the light. At least they know they're here... "...blbl... bl..."

L: The treecko just barely manages to notice them as well... Before he fully passes out, hoping he's going to be waking up eventually...

G: Soon they would eventually wake up somewhere... Some kind of room, lying on some beds...

Oshawott coughs heavily as he wakes. strangely, nobody was trying to revive them, just checking in on them.

L: The treecko goes into a coughing fit as well, slowly recovering as he manages to gasp between his coughs. His lungs are sore, but he's glad to at least be alive...

G: "Hah... Y-You OK...?" The Oshawott asks as he kept on breathing deeply. "I didn't... want you to drown... but I guess I should say... I think it's safe for you to drown here. Any lasting pain?"

L: "C-could've told me before... W-wouldn't have believed you though..." The treecko coughs a few more times. "Ch-chest is sore, but that's it..."

G: "I didn't... know if it would work..."

As the Oshawott gets up, a Cinderace would head over to the Treecko for a quick lookover. "sorry, I just wanted to make sure you were OK. I don't recognize you, and I've seen other divers here a lot of times..." He said with a chuckle.

L: "R-right, not really from here... I'm from a different planet. Th-things have been kind of a lot different from where I'm from... B-but apparently kind of similar, too..."

G: The Cinderace blinks in surprise. "Really? Can't say I fully believe you, but... well, like I said, this is your first time here..."

The Oshawott gets up and heads to the Treecko. "I-I did see his ship... at least. I believe him."

L: "It's not all that far from here, I might be able to give directions to it... I crashed onto this planet, and I'm pretty much stuck here until it's fixed. If it ever is..."

G: "Should be fine if I didn't, admittedly. Don't know the first thing about those, anyway." The Cinderace said with a laugh. "But if you need help with swimming, well... we're all good at it."

L: "Thinking I'm gonna take a break from swimming for now... Really don't want to risk drowning twice in one day. We're lucky we even survived that first one."

G: "You know, that's... actually fair, if you're not used to swimming." The Cinderace would say.

Although the Oshawott chuckles... "Guess we're too used to that threat to realize others will have trouble with it... although some of us definitely drown more than once a day... Maybe 2 or 3 or... Well..."

L: "Jeez, that many times? Hopefully it goes better for me..." The treecko gets up out of the bed. "I'll definitely have to learn to swim better at some point."

G: "Let's see... I think we have a Treecko that could help, if you want the same species to help." The Cinderace said. "If they want to, of course."

L: "I guess that'd be nice, being trained by someone that's the same species. Well, one that looks like mine at least, I doubt it's truly the same. It's surreal how this planet has such similar Pokemon to the one I'm from..."

G: "I have to wonder why that's the case..." The Oshawott asks as he tilted his head. "In any case, I could probably go grab them for you-"

"Actually, maybe you should stay. Since you're really the only one the Treecko's familiar with, maybe I can go instead." The Cinderace offered.

L: "Yeah, I'd kind of like to stay with you for now, oshawott guy. You're the first person I met here, and you definitely know a lot more about this planet than I do."

G: "In that case, I'll leave you two, for now. About time I went for another swim, anyway." The Cinderace chuckles as he enters the water after some deep breaths.

L: After a moment of silence, the treecko turns to the oshawott. "Hang on, I don't think anyone revived us... How are we okay after drowning?"

G: "Well... the waters are strangely magical. Like, we still can't breathe it properly, but it seems to sustain us when we drown. So much so that our bodies can even tell when to start coughing up water when met with air. We can be drowned for days and still be alive..."

L: "Woah... I guess that'll be the second major difference of this planet. It'd be cool if there was a way to give that effect to my home planet too, people would be pretty happy about that."

G: "Well, I'm not sure how it came to be... Maybe the water does other things, but can't really say what changes when you drown in the water. I guess you're good to indicate the changes."

L: "I'm sure there's someone that's done some research into why it's like that. I definitely don't mind it being a thing, but... I'd prefer not to have to rely on it again."

G: "I'll help to make sure you don't. But you'll... probably have to get used to it, anyway..." The Oshawott tries to reassure... even with that comment.

L: The treecko sighs. "Yeah, I might be here a really long time... At least I'd probably get really good at holding my breath eventually."

G: "Oh, absolutely... I hope, anyway. Hard to maybe keep up with... Well, there's many here with half an hour breathholds... maybe more...

L: "W-wait, that long!? That must be a side effect of the water here, allowing for that sort of thing... Back on my planet, it's almost exclusively legendary Pokemon that can manage breath holds that long."

G: "I guess so. Mine... Well, I guess I also am around that half an hour, if that swim before was any indication. Thought I could hit an hour, honestly..."

L: "I suppose I'm gonna have to put a lot of focus into training then... Even beyond staying safe, having a really long breath hold would be pretty nice."

G: "Well, if you say it's the water, maybe that drowning activated you to be better at diving. And not having to surface as often is great, honestly."

L: "Hopefully it's already helping me out, yeah. Don't want to have to drown a bunch to start getting way better like you guys..."

G: "We'll have to see. For now, I'm gonna head back. I'll meet up with you later, OK?"

L: "Alright, that's fine. Gonna wait here until that cinderace gets back with the treecko they mentioned."

G: "Alright, then." With that, with a deep breath, the Oshawott would head underwater.

L: After watching them go, the treecko sits on the bed he'd woken up in, waiting for the cinderace to return with the other treecko.

G: After a while, the Cinderace would surface with a deep gasp, now with a Treecko by his side.

L: "Ah, there you two are!" The first treecko gets up again, heading over to the two. "Hope it wasn't too much trouble to get here."

G: "Oh, it wasn't!" The new Treecko said. "I'm just surprised to see another one after so long. Even if it is... from another world, apparently..."

L: "Yeah, it's still weird, there just keeps being more similarities between our planets... Anyway, that cinderace told me you'd be able to help me learn to swim better."

G: "I can't imagine how that would work, but... Well, I can help you as best as I can." The Treecko smiles as they head up to the one on the bed.

L: "Better than nothing, I suppose. I've honestly kind of slacked on learning... I'm decent at least, but that's clearly not going to be enough for this planet."

G: "Well, I'll have to see what your current skills are, first, if we're going to help you get better. When you're ready, let's head back into the water."

L: "Right, yeah, gotta test me first. I'm pretty much ready to go. I thought my lungs would be kind of sore, but that went away pretty quick."

G: "Drowning doesn't stick for long. So don't worry about it happening." The other Treecko smiles and laughs. "Take it from me, I've lost track of how many times I drowned."

L: "I guess that's sort of reassuring... Hopefully I'm not going to end up losing count too, I don't want to have to drown that many times."

G: "Well, I'll make sure you don't." Soon, the Treecko will lead his fellow gecko into the water.

L: The first treecko hops in, keeping himself on the surface for the moment. "So, are we doing this here, or somewhere else?"

G: "Let's head out of here, at least. Start swimming and getting used to it."

L: "Alright, sure. Just not too far from anywhere we can get air, I don't want to end up drowning again. At least not so soon."

G: "Of course! There's a few we can get nearby, so this should be a good spot."

She gives a smile and nod before diving underwater with a breath.

L: The male treecko nods back, and quickly gasps down a breath before joining the female underwater, ready to follow her.

G: She guides the male Treecko to a decent place in the city near air. It's not crowded, but there are other swimmers about.

L: He takes in the sights, trying to familiarize himself with this strange place he's likely going to be in for a fairly long time.

G: "Are you feeling alright, so far?" The female Treecko asks, keeping an eye as they swam around the area.

L: The male treecko is clearly very much surprised to hear her talking so clearly. "...Mmhm." He nods, unsure if he'd be able to talk clearly himself.

G: Well... The water's mysterious. Maybe that's how she's able to talk. For now, she gives a nod in response, glad that he's doing well so far...

L: Knowing how strange this world's water is, the male treecko gives it a shot. "...Can I..." He pauses in shock for a moment. "O-okay, I guess I can talk down here!"

G: She gives a chuckle. "Guess you normally can't, can you? Guess I'm so used to it, myself..."

L: "Only aquatic people can do this where I'm from... Man, I've always wanted to be able to talk underwater!"

G: "Really? Well, glad you're able to realize your dream, now! Hopefully you'll be able to stay longer with your aquatic friends when you do."

L: "And I hope I'm still able to do this once I'm back on my home planet, it'd suck to lose this."

G: "Well... If we can manage to let you fly out, then it will absolutely be fun." She twirls a little as she swam a few circles around the male Treecko.

L: The male treecko happily joins in, partly to practice his swimming. He's starting to show a need for air, but he knows that to get better at breath holding he has to push himself.

G: She's been underwater long enough to tell that the male Treecko needs air, but she also knew not to take him up, yet. Plus, pushing yourself isn't uncommon in this place, so best get used to it.

L: He tries to keep calm, knowing he's nearly guaranteed to be able to safely reach air this time. Still, little grunts can be heard from him, and his chest is occasionally heaving.

G: She smiles and tries to reassure him. Although after so long without air, she does let out a tiny grunt behind her smile.

L: He smiles a little as well, despite starting to get a little nervous. With his prior drowning having not been very long ago, he doesn't really want to risk pushing himself...

G: At least he's pushing himself, she thinks to herself. If she didn't know, she would think he's already used to this. Her lungs did grow more needy with time, now with a pull visible in her chest.

L: Soon, the male treecko starts looking around for air, wanting to avoid having to scramble for a place to breathe once he badly needs to.

G: There were air pockets. Close by and decently sized, also signed for people to quickly grab when they absolutely need it.

L: He goes over to one of the air pockets, but doesn't go into it yet. With air now so close, he's more confident about continuing to hold his breath.

G: She would follow him to the air pocket, though stayed under with him. She could still stay longer than him, so of course she wants to stay down.

L: Despite his increasing strain, he stays put. A few bubbles occasionally spurt from his nostrils, before he pinches them shut, trying to keep going as long as possible.

G: "If you need to go... th-then go. I don't want you t-too badly hurt, OK?" The female Treecko reassures with a smile.

L: "Y-yep... J-just a bit longer..." The male treecko nods, then closes his eyes. He's sometimes letting out little whines now, but he knows he's going to have to get used to pushing himself like this.

G: She gave a cute smile, bubbles leaving her at a slightly faster pace than before. She would even hold her chest as heaves began, though still not as bad as the training male.

L: He soon covers his mouth for a moment, before quickly swimming for the air pocket to finally catch his breath, bubbles trailing behind him.

G: She did stay under for a bit, but decided to be playful... She grabs her ankle and lightly tugs against it, though not enough to actually drag him down.

L: "Mm!" He looks down in confusion and a bit of fear... But, seeing that she's clearly not trying to drown him and is just making a joke, he smiles a little before continuing upward.

G: She gives a little bubbly giggle... before suddenly swimming up to the surface quickly as another heave made her realize how long she's been under for!

L: The male treecko breaks the surface of the air pocket with a gasp, panting to catch his breath. "Th-think that might've... Already been longer..."

G: The female Treecko surfaces just by his side, taking in deep gasps, though not as badly as her partner. "You did pretty great, I'd say..."

L: "Th-thanks... Gotta do what I can to get better, so I don't have another incident like with that oshawott earlier..."

G: "Well, at least air is more common around here than out there. Although you could always swim up to the surface outside the caves..."

L: "I probably wouldn't be able to make that trip on my own... But I don't think I'm too far off from doing that, so I should be able to explore better soon."

G: "Hm... Do you know how long you were able to hold your breath before? If what you said is true, then yeah. I can understand why you had trouble even getting here..."

L: "My best before I got here was just under 5 minutes. I probably went past that when I drowned earlier... Wish I could've known how long it was."

G: "Well... I can say it's been longer than 5 minutes for that dive, I will say that. You improved by... I'd say quite a bit, actually."

L: "Oh wow, I'm already that much better!? That's awesome, I'm gonna have a really long breath hold in no time!"

G: "Well with that... Shall we head down for another swim?" She asks with a smile, offering her paw to him.

L: "Yep, let's keep going. I'll see if I can do even better..." He holds her paw, smiling back.

G: "Alright. Together, then?" She asks, preparing deep breaths for the dive down...

L: "Sounds good. Certainly better than being alone." He starts deeply breathing as well. While he doesn't know the significance of that, he figures the female treecko knows what she's doing.

G: She doesn't have anything specific in mind. But swimming with him is rather fun to do, and she wants to help... She dives down with him when ready, taking a deep gasp.

L: He gasps down one last breath before diving once again. He's noticeably more confident this time, since he's already improved so much.

G: She gives a little smile as she sinks to the bottom, preparing to land on the sea floor for a bit of a walk.

L: Following her down and believing he recognizes what she's doing, the male treecko settles onto the bottom next to her, ready to get going.

G: She tries her best to get her paws to stick to the floor, although it's not easy. It's rather soft due to being underwater, but she manages.

L: With that, he starts slowly walking along the bottom. It's a bit awkward, since he needs to push against the resistance of the water, though he's doing alright.

G: It's still calming to walk along the bottom. It's not something she does all the time, but it's a good way to look around. See others swimming, like a Dragonair bubbling away calmly, a Buneary swimming around despite their red cheeks, a Buizel seemingly practicing holding their breath...

L: Looking around at all of them, the male treecko is finally beginning to get over the surprise of seeing Pokemon on this planet. This place reminds him of the underwater towns he'd heard of... He's glad he'll be able to easily fit in once he's gotten a better breath hold.

G: "So how are you feeling? Enjoy the sights?" She asks as she lets out a few bubbles. "There's a lot more to see around here, way more to see than you can in a single day. Or a single breath."

L: "This is a surprisingly nice place for being underwater... Honestly, even if my ship gets fixed soon, I think I'm actually gonna stick around for a while."

G: "I'm glad you will, honestly! It's nice to swim with you, especially since you're already suck a quick learner on diving!"

L: "No better way to learn than needing it to be able to survive, right? I bet I'm gonna get a pretty impressive record if I keep at it long enough."

G: "Well, that's true. I'm sure your record will be high enough to see what you have in the depths of your world, too. It'll be exciting, I'll bet."

L: "Wonder how famous I'm gonna get for finding all this, and how much I'll be able to help discover back on my own world... My friends are gonna be pretty jealous of how long I can hold my breath, for sure."

G: As she chuckles, she would hold her paw against her chest. It barely feels like it burns, but the signs are there... And she knows they'll only grow over time.

L: He feels about the same, but knowing that there'll be air nearby pretty much no matter where he goes, he's perfectly okay with continuing on for now.

G: Quickly, she would push along the bottom and start swimming, looking back to the male Treecko with a cute little teasing bubble.

L: He smiles, and hops off the bottom to follow her. He lets a few bubbles loose as he does, both in response to her doing so and to ease his lungs a little.

G: She kept on playfully swimming around town, dodging some buildings and objects and other breathholders without much of a care in the world. Didn't even keep track of time. Or the air leaving her lungs.

L: Gradually, the male treecko's worries fade away pretty much entirely as he swims around the town with his guide, forgetting about his need to breathe.

G: throughout the tour, though, her swimming would clearly turn into a struggle. Despite how much she didn't want to, her body needed to breathe. "Mmfgh... H-How's the tour, so far?" She would ask, as a way to distract herself from her growing breathlessness.

L: He's straining some as well, and while he's trying to ignore it, it's starting to not work so well. "I-it's been fun... Mmh..." He pauses for a moment, covering his mouth, before continuing to follow.

G: She could tell it might be time to go get some air... Although despite there being some nearby, she would ignore them and continue. Maybe a little longer of a swim would be fine... "Mm... Gm..."

L: Figuring he can wait a while longer too, he decides to just keep the swim going, fine with having it also be some practice. He does take note of nearby air pockets as he swims though, just in case.

G: Now the question is how much longer should they choose to go for? Too far and they'll end up drowning, and... well, she may be used to it, but still.

L: Regardless of the fact that he's actually beginning to enjoy pushing himself, as a burning starts up in the male treecko's lungs, he figures it's probably about time to get air. After a quick look around for the nearest air pocket, he starts swimming for it.

G: Despite wanting to tease him again, she decides not to. Maybe some time later, they could push themselves to the absolute limit together... It can be fun to do that....

A heave reminds her to go to the air pocket, again, making her swim once again.

L: He'd probably be up for pushing his limit at some point... But for now, he wants air, and surfaces into the pocket with a gasp, panting to try to catch his breath.

G: The female Treecko finally surfaces next to him with a deep gasp. "Ghahh!!! Hah... hah..."

L: "Th-that was definitely... A-an even better breath hold..." The male treecko smiles, proud of how much he's improving with each dive.

G: She gives a smile, surprised by how much he's improving... Could she even improve this quickly after landing here, if she was in his situation? "Very... impressive. I think we're very close to each other, now..."

L: "This is so weird, I'm improving by minutes each time... The water here must be doing this. Maybe it's because I'm not from here...?"

G: "Maybe? I'm not sure how it would do that much more to you... Let's go for another dive. This time, maybe we should go until one of us is... well, completely out."

L: "...You know what? Let's do it. I want to see how far this can take me. I might even be able to stay under longer than you at this point!"

G: "Let's try it, then!" Once more, she prepares for a long, breathless dive into the calm waters.

L: Smiling, he starts preparing as well, wondering how long he's going to be able to hold his breath this time and hoping his rapid improvement will continue.

G: Calmly, she would take enough deep breaths to fill her lungs for the long dive... then quickly sink down below the air pocket.

L: Just a moment after, he holds his breath as well and lets himself sink down to join her once again. Despite how intense he knows this dive is eventually going to get, he's clearly not nervous.

G: She's still surprised by how much he changed, and not even in terms of holding his breath. Already so confident that he's willing to push himself to the absolute limit without guaranteeing breathing air before it's too late... It's definitely more fun, this way, though.

L: If he were asked, he wouldn't really be able to explain why his mindset has already changed so much. He could only assume it had to do with being able to hold his breath so much longer than before.

Regardless, he smiles, ready to follow his dive partner's lead on where to swim to, if anywhere.

G: Really, her swimming is rather aimless. She's simply swimming in random directions she thinks would be fun to go down for a long swim.

L: Not really having any idea where to go himself, the male treecko just wanders around with her, passing the time while waiting to start straining.

G: Soon sitting on a bench, she would smile to the male Treecko while bubbles left. Just in time, she could feel her lungs tightening for breath...

L: He sits next to her on that bench, smiling back as he feels about the same as her. Despite that feeling, he's able to relax for now.

G: Same with her. She's simply kicking on the bench lightly, keeping herself calm as the time passes. "...mgbl..."

L: The male treecko looks around while he waits, watching all the other divers going about their day and all the bubbles coming up from each of them.

G: Quite a few leave the swimmers around. Some seem desperate to breathe, swimming for air... while others are deep blue and avoiding grabbing a breath. Kind of like how the two geckos are going to do...

L: Glad to know it's not strange for someone to be pushing themselves, he smiles a little. His own need for air is making itself more and more known to him, but he's far from wanting to give up.

G: She glances over to the male Treecko, paw against her chest started to heave. Guess it's about that time for her, but she promised. She would keep going.

L: Occasional grunting can be heard from him now, as the bubbles leaving him begin to slowly get more frequent. He looks over at her, making sure she's still okay.

G: She's still alright, nodding with a tiny smile behind her paw as she kept holding her breath. Then another heave distracted her. She needs to breathe really badly, now.

L: While he's getting the feeling he might be doing a little better than her, he's not really sure. Even so, he holds his nose so he doesn't lose as many bubbles, wanting to last longer than his partner if possible.

G: She's still somewhat calm, managing to ignore her dire needs for air for a tiny bit longer. But her cheeks are also turning blue, and she looks like she's about to break off into a sprint for air!

L: He hasn't quite started going blue yet, so he's once again improved. Still, his cheeks are purple, and now he's covering his mouth with his other hand, resisting the urge to just give up and rush for an air pocket.

G: The need to breathe is getting to be too much for her! She looks to the male Treecko with a cute expression of desperation... and also a mix of surprise by how easily she's being beaten...

L: He smiles a little despite his strain, and tries to watch her before he tightly shuts his eyes in strain, whining a bit as he struggles to stay put.

G: Soon, she lets out another pained whimper before suddenly taking a gasp of water, holding her neck and struggling desperately! "GBLBLBL!!!"

L: The male treecko almost doesn't notice, but he looks at her in concern, his eyes going wide. Putting aside his desire to keep pushing himself, he grabs her and starts swimming her toward the nearest air pocket, bubbles streaming loose since he's just about out of breath too.

G: She grabs the male Treecko back out of surprise, helping swim back as fast as she could while she could still move! Her swimming is still rather panicky and needy for air...

L: Starting to regret not having gotten closer to an air pocket, he swims as fast as he can too, and soon involuntarily gasps down water! He coughs it up before gasping again, drowning while doing his best to keep swimming.

G: She kept gulping and swimming, regretting being so far away from air pockets... as nice as it was to sit together. Her swimming slows as she weakens from breathing water.

L: He's still going strong, partly from having started drowning later than her. He tries to stop himself from continuing to desperately inhale water, and actually manages to briefly hold his breath again, but goes right back to sucking in more water after.

G: As she kept swimming, her breathing slowed down over time. "hh... glk... Gbl... hh..."

She didn't see it, but nearby someone is swimming near them...

L: The male is too concerned with swimming and staying awake to notice them either, though he's gradually slowing down. "Ghiihh, huuhh...Hic-grglk..."

G: As she finally blacks out...

...she would wake up after a while in the air pocket, alongside the male Treecko... and a Buizel.

L: The male treecko sighs in relief, having recovered while she was unconscious. "Good, you're okay... Oh, right, people here wake up fine after drowning, forgot about that... Are you feeling okay?"

G: "H... Hah... Yeah, I am... Just glad... we made it, at least... somehow..." The female Treecko said with a light chuckle.

L: "I can't believe how much better I'm getting, I think I even managed to hold off passing out for longer than before..."

G: "Well... I couldn't tell..." She said with a gasp.

"You did last a while, though... Maybe not enough without my assistance, but it was good." The Buizel decided to speak up.

L: "To tell the truth, I don't really remember much past where I felt like I was going to pass out... But I guess I'm even getting better at enduring drowning!"

G: "It's a hard skill to get used to, I'll say." She chuckles a little. "I'm not used to it, and even water types tend to pass out too early, but you managing to get a handle on it so quickly..."

L: "This just seems kind of weird at this point, I'm getting the feeling that no one else has improved this fast... Not that I mind it, it's pretty great to not really have to worry any more."

G: The Buizel wonders. "Well, it took... maybe a few months for me to get to that level of enduring water. But that's for someone who's built for water... How long did it take you?" He asks while tilting his head.

The female Treecko hesitates to answer for the male, though. "...um..."

L: "I only just started improving like this not long ago... Like, an hour. If that. And that was my second ever drowning."

G: "Wait, really!?" The Buizel said in surprise. "That's... Well, it's amazing!"

"Well... yeah, it is!" The female Treecko said as she paddled around a bit, diving underwater every so often to swim around the two.

L: "No clue why it's happening. Maybe some expert on the water here could figure it out... My current theory, though, is that it's because I'm not from this planet. Crash landed here in my ship earlier. I'm thinking the water would have this effect on others from where I'm from too."

G: "Hm... Not from this planet? That makes it more mysterious as to how you're so adapted to it." The Buizel said, wondering to himself. "...part of me does want to check out that ship..." He said to himself, trying not to let the Treecko hear.

...though the female Treecko surfaced just as he said it, causing her to chuckle. "Guess you have someone who wants to go to space..." This caused the Buizel to swim away and out of the pocket out of some embarassment.

L: "Ah, there he goes... If I see him again, I definitely need to tell him I'm okay with showing him the ship..." He sighs a little, adjusting to float on his back.

G: She chuckles. "Sorry. I didn't expect him to be so jumpy at that... I doubt he's gone too far, at least, and if he did... Well, he's gotta need air, eventually..."

L: "I suppose so... Might be going to a different pocket though." He thought for a few seconds. "Since it's probably gonna be a while before my ship is fixed, maybe I ought to see what sort of jobs I can do with such a long breath hold..."

G: "Well, there are plenty. Some in town, some involve exploring outside... This isn't the only city, either. This is a huge world."

L: "Figured there'd be more cities. Someone out there has to be able to fix my ship... In the meantime, I think I'm gonna look into becoming an explorer. Not sure the improvement of my breath holding is slowing down, so I'll probably do pretty well. Plus, I want to see more of this planet."

G: "Well, in that case... I think I can lead you to an exploring job, if you don't want to go alone. I'm not sure if my progress will ever catch up at the rate you're going, though, so I might have to stay back."

L: "Sounds good to me. I guess were probably going to be splitting up for a while though, yeah... But we can meet up again later, I've appreciated you showing me around here."

G: "Of course! Let me know when you want to meet up, again! Well, when we see each other, at least." She chuckles a little.

L: "I'll sure we'll happen across each other again at some point, it might be a while before I move to another town. Once all this is taken care of, I'd be fine with bringing you to visit my planet if you want."

G: "That sounds pretty fun! I'd absolutely would join in on seeing what your world is like. Especially with how much water you say there is. Let me know if you need help with that, OK?"

L: "There isn't quite as much water there as there is here, but there's still plenty of exploring we could do. I bet by the time I can take you there I'd be able to give you air a few times on one dive!"

G: "Really? I'll be excited to see that happen, honestly." The female Treecko chuckles. "Follow me, then. I'll lead you to where you can start working."

L: "Alright, let's get going. I'll see if I can get there in one breath..." The male treecko takes a deep gasp, before diving once again.

G: The female Treecko takes a few gasps before diving underwater, ready to lead the male over.

L: The male treecko had been standing on the bottom while he waited for her, and hops up to swim once she dives, prepared to get going.

G: She leads the way, nodding to the male Treecko as they reach the explorer's building. A pretty decently-sized place near the edge of the town, which is natural.

L: After taking in the sight of it, he turns to her. "Guess this is probably goodbye for now, huh?"

G: "Yeah. Hope you have fun with whatever you do during your adventures!"

L: "See you later. Hopefully you don't drown too many more times." Waving goodbye, the male treecko starts swimming to the building to see if he can get a job there.

G: She waves back to him before she swims off on her own.