MATURE: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Guardians of Balance

[StolenMadWolf]

Heya, it's taken a little while, though life's been a touch crazy the past 2 weeks and with things set to get a bit crowded in the imminent horizon, I decided to get in a quick and dirty bump to not leave you hanging too much on our review exchange.

So in light of that, I’ll be picking right up where I left off with:

Chapter III



Something about the way the middle sentence is worked in feels a bit abrupt. Maybe it'd flow a bit nicer with some sort of added transition like...



Some food for thought, anyways.



Rattata: "Buddy, what exactly have you been drinking?"

Sam: "Probably something stronger than I'd care to admit given that I don't exactly remember a lot of anything before last night." ^^;



Sam: "B-But I'm 25... that's not super young... is it?" ._.;



Oh, I see that evolutions are inherently age-tied in this setting, huh? Filing that one away for the future.



Sam, pretty sure you're digging yourself in deeper in live-time right now.



I just realized it, but both "At your age?" and "Really?" are ambiguous as to if the Pidgey is saying all of this or if the Rattata cut in at any point. It might make sense to drop in some reminders of who's saying what.



Sam: "Buddy, my drink nuked my memories, alright?" >_>;
Pidgey: "Still quite the feat of yours there." o<o



Sam: "... All of that just sounded completely unbelievable, didn't it?" ._.;
Rattata: "You said it, not me, pal."



I kinda wonder if there ought to have been more focus on Sam's state of mind here or somewhere just before here where we get to see how he's reacting here? Like is he panicking right now? Is he breathing a sigh of relief? Is he in "I-It's just a little airborne! It's still good! It's still good!" territory?



Wait, "track"? Are there trains in this setting? Or was that supposed to be a "trail"?



Sam: "Seriously, how do you manage that when you're a rat? Your own hearing is supposed to be really sensitive!" >.<
Rattata: "The implication is that I know that you can hear me and I don't care that you do."

I'm... just gonna assume that that's not an epithet for Rescue/Exploration Teams in this setting.

Though I see that in canonworld in this story, times of crisis coincide with canonical "no evolution without fancy workarounds" mechanics.



Sam, what are you doing...?

Rattata + Pidgey:

Sam: "... I'm. Uh... a late evolver?" ^^;



Oh, so that's what seeds look like in this setting, huh?

Well that got really dark really fast. Guess 'hunter' might really be a term for Rescue/Exploration Teams after all.



Ah yes, not even 4000 words into this story and the customary opening arc has gone completely off the rails. There's that fake out opening I called happening last time. Here I thought we were also going to get some tour through a bucolic village, but nope, just casually bumping into a pair of outlaws chilling with a dead body.

I kinda wonder if it could've been foreshadowed a bit more by Sam noticing something consistently off earlier like a weird smell or something like that, though.



IMO, a little emphasis could make that line a bit more expressive.

Sam: "I... really don't like where this conversation is going right now."

Sam: "... That's not a denial!"

Pidgey: "Yes? And? It's the law of the jungle, kid. Someone's gotta lose in it."



Rattata: "Should've played dumb, kid. We might've let you off if you did."
Sam: "... Is it too late to start? Since I'm definitely feeling dumb right now..."

Sam: "... Wait, do I even know how to fight properly right now?" ._.;
Rattata + Pidgey:

Sam: "... Oh my god, this is going to be such a disaster."

Sam: "Oh come on! Seriously?!"

Swampert: "Well, kid? Do you feel lucky?"
Sam: "... No. Not at all."

Yeah, I figured. :V



Sam:

Pidgey + Rattata:

Rattata: "You really are a genius, you know that, kid?"



IMO, this bit would've worked a bit better to show Sam getting encroached on a bit more before he comes to this conclusion, both to show that moment of blind panic at first / Swampert and the gang getting their giggles at Sam's epic fail at threatening them, and that sinking realization that "yeah, if I don't get out of here, I'm gonna die".

It might have also made sense to expand the paragraph right before this block to play up the whole "AAAAH! WHY CAN'T I INTO FIRE?!"-ness of it since Sam is in a really bad place at the moment.



Live look at Sam right now:

Sam: "Boy do I hope that that guy doesn't know Earthquake... or something like Surf for that matter."

And jumping right into the next chapter as well since that one was a bit short:

Chapter IV



Sam, have you read an Aloladex entry in your life before? ^^;



Then this is going to be a really short story barring someone coming in to bail your sorry bum (or I guess sorry bun) out.



Wait, does Sam have any cover at the moment? Or else how has he not been summarily sniped by a water attack right about now?



Sam: "... Right, I'm a rabbit right now. Probably should've tried my luck trying to dig." >_>;



The Pidgey is just going to casually knock Sam out of the tree in about 5 seconds, isn't he?



Wait, just how thick are those tree boughs such that Pidgey can instantly lose visuals of a bunny bouncing around from limb to limb anyways?

Swampert: "And you're not just chucking Gusts at the tree branches to try and blow him out why?" >_>;
Pidgey: "... Didn't get that far yet? Though if he managed to get up there, wouldn't the kid's grip be a bit strong for that?" ^v^;



Sam: "Thank the great good lord that this guy doesn't know Earthquake."

- Beat moment -
Sam: "He... doesn't know Earthquake... r-right?"

I was actually not expecting Sam to get off like that. Guess he really did score a lucky roll with that Swampert not having a great moveset there, since something like an EQ would've likely shaken him out of the tree... and out of the story considering what those three were getting ready to do to him.

Sam: "Why am I still here and not legging it to get far, far away from this place right now?"

Sam: "M-Maybe they didn't hear it?"

Sam: "Ah... er... hi there... Let's just pretend we never saw each other and part ways here."

Rattata: "Remember that rats have good hearing, kid."

Sam: "But I saw you leave! How the hell did you-?!"

Pidgey: "Kid, if you're too dumb to see through a feint, you were never going to last on this island anyways." >v>;
Sam: "Oh yay, me."

Ah, yeah. That would definitely be a decent tip-off. Though IMO this particular paragraph would work a bit better were it broken up into pieces kinda as suggested.



A few odds-and-ends suggestions for rephrasings here. Went a bit out on a limb on some of these, so not sure if they're fitting with what your intention was.

Sam: "Well that was a short story." X_X
- Sam looks back at the chapter text -
Sam: "Wait, wha-? There's another scene? So you mean I'm not dead yet-?"



A nitpick, but while 'ichor' is technically correct here in usage, in terms of vibe, it's usually more the preserve of 'alien blood' and as such, sticking to 'blood' is probably the best call here, since... yeah. Sam's a bit more red all over right now.



Pidgey: "... Boss, why didn't you do something like cut his throat to make sure he was dead earlier?" >v>;
Swampert: "... Meh, he looked dead enough and I don't like getting my hands dirty. Plus it's not like he's going to stay alive for much longer."



Oh so that's why Swampert didn't just cut Sam's throat and call it a day. Guy must be pretty confident of his ability to keep his underlings in line considering his offer, though.



Ah yes, putting that M rating to work nice and quick, I see.

Sam:

Swampert: "Kid, if you're done with your theatrics, you can give me an answer about if you'd like to live past the next 30 seconds or not. I don't have all damn day."

Sam: "There's a mass grave with at least four corpses in it! Like hell you try and avoid that!"

Swampert: "And just how many do you think would be in there if we didn't try and avoid killing 'em?"

Sam:

Rattata: "... I think that's a 'kill me now', boss."



This part got me more than I was expecting it to. It's a good character-establishing moment for Sam where even if he's scared and has his back against a wall, there's just some things he's not willing to do. Or at least not right now, anyways.



Swampert: "Story's over for ya, kid. Hope you had a good run."



And here is the moment where the plot throws Sam a bone. Along with what I presume will be a buddy we see a lot more of in the future.



Blaziken: "... You know, now that you mention it, I guess I should've provided a couple more hints that I was hanging around, huh?"

Sam: "Look, I'm sure that some readers are going to moan about this being a Deus Ex Machina, but I'll take what I can get right now!"

5 words spoken seconds from disaster.



Your paragraph abruptly cuts off there. I can't tell if that's supposed to just be "colour." or if there were supposed to be more sentences afterwards.

I was honestly a little surprised that the Rattata was still (kinda) in one piece after that strike.



Swampert: "I-I call hax." X.X
Blaziken: "Leveling advantages, learn to love 'em, pal." o<o



Sam: "I'm sorry, but how did you manage to do that to a Swampert? As a Blaziken?!" ;
Blaziken: "I mean, it helps when you've got the equivalent of a 30-level advantage on Outlaw scum like them."

Scyther: "Uh... yeah, I'm pretty sure we can skip the trial for these three."

Gallade: "Don't you mean for 'these two'? Since I'm pretty sure that Pidgey's in low earth orbit right now."



Well, somebody's lacking a survival instinct there. Lemme pull out the appropriate gif for this moment:

Sam: "I sure hope my leg didn't get broken from getting thrown around earlier, otherwise. Uh... this is gonna smart later."

Whelp the gif was indeed accurate, even if I was wrong about who would make it accurate. Though I see Sam can fight to an extent in his present state.



Blaziken: "A little warning would've been nice there!" >v>;
Sam: "Yeah, yeah. Look, I'm barely lucid right now, so let me have my moment, okay?" >_>;



Sam's going to keel over right after this, isn't he?

Sam: "I have no idea how I did that, b-but I actually attacked for once!" ^^;



Yeah, figured that'd happen.
- Meanwhile back in the clearing -
Scyther: -pokes at Sam - "Hey, kid? You alright there?"
Gallade: "Dude, he's splattered in blood and passed out. What do you think?" >_>;
Blaziken: "Well he's definitely going to give a nurse a handful. But hey, you did good, kid. Rest up a bit until the next chapter."

Alright, onto the final thoughts:

You see, I knew that you were going for a fakeout opening with how much of a contrast there was between the prologue and the seemingly by-the-numbers Chapters 1 + 2. Boy did you deliver on that front, even if it came a lot sooner than I was expecting. While I probably should've known better from the posted rating, I did get caught a little off-guard by some of the stuff brought up, but I think that it leans in well with the overall dynamic you built up between the Prologue up to this point, since it very firmly establishes that even if this is the world of the games, that we're not in Kansas anymore. I thought that the handling of Sam's characterization was also a pretty strong point, since we get to have a decent handle on just who he is as a person by the end of this fourth chapter.

As for critiques, it's mostly what it says on the tin for the writeup, including the little odds-and-ends wording tweaks that I won't dwell on since you mentioned you were already hunting those down. For general weaknesses, I thought you had more room to show off description, especially for the stuff going on in Sam's head, since there were a number of bits where I kinda figured things were going a certain way for him, but it was mostly conjecture since the text didn't formally support it. I kinda thought that the arrival of Blaziken and his team ought to have been foreshadowed a bit more. Like every protagonist is entitled to a couple lucky breaks that potentially get into Deus Ex Machina territory, especially early on in a story where it can be tied into the premise that "things are happening because of strokes of fate", but in general more foreshadowing for such moments when possible reduces the amount of people who will have their suspension of disbelief broken.

I kinda think that Chapters 2+3 could have easily been taped together in one update, and it'd have allowed for avoiding the "one fully standalone chapter of 'wait, why's this feel like a normal story'" dynamic of Chapter 2, but eh. I'll respect your choices as an author.

Though altogether, I thought that this batch of chapters was pretty good @StolenMadWolf . And I'm pretty sure this is the part of the story where we get a better view of what on earth to properly expect from things going forward. From where we've gone in the span of 5 chapters total, I can tell that this story is going to go places, and probably pretty quickly.

But that'll be a journey for another day. One that I'll be looking forward to getting to when things are a bit less crazy, since hey. You know how to write a good hook. ^^;

Already sent it through on Discord, but thanks for sending through that feedback! I appreciate it! The chapters were initially quite short because I started writing GoB very casually, so the length does start going up as I started getting more committed to it.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, a bit crunched on time and energy tonight, but coming back to this with a quick and dirty review of…

Chapter V

Hmm… you have been with him for a while. He's alive, I can assure you of that and no, he's not brain dead. He is in capable hands.

Well. As close as can be to hands anyway.

Oh, so the Disembodied Voice of this story isn't a singular entity, huh? Since this seems like they're conversing with another party.

So he is human. Or rather he used to be before he was turned into this Scorbunny. If he is here… then something terrible must be on the horizon. It can't be a mere coincidence.

Though considering the batting average of when humans show up in canonworld... yeah, humans do seem to have a habit of coming around right when a disaster is about to happen.

Is that why you are here? To look over him? To witness this dark event? Or perhaps you are just drawn to this Pokemon.

To this human...

???:

...

…I must withdraw, lest my presence gets sensed. You don't get too close either.

But do keep an eye on him will you?

Oh well that's not ominous and creepy-sounding at all there.

"Hello? Can you hear me?"

H-Hi?

"You can? Great! Listen… I don't have much time…"

... Wait, is this the same Disembodied Voice as the one in the last scene or a different one? Since something about its tenor feels very different.

"Oh no… listen to me! You need to save…"

What? I… I can't hear you…

"Please! All of this… it needs saving…"

Save… save what… I can't…

"…Sam!"

Wait, this is that one conversation Sam was having before fading out in Chapter 1, wasn't it?

Sam's eyes fluttered open, That voice… where…

His vision blurred for a moment, then cleared to reveal the wooden ceiling above him. A gentle warmth pulsed across his body, almost like waves running up alongside him. H-Huh? Am… am I dead?

Sam: "I mean, I can see a wooden ceiling above me, so I'm pretty sure I'm alive?" ^^;

He slowly raised his hands up, only instead to see those white rabbit paws drift into view instead. I… I'm still a Scorbunny.

Moaning softly, he began to push himself upright, soaking in that pink… wait, what?

Sam: "Wait, I'm soaking in what now?" ._.;

He looked round himself to find himself on a fluffy bed, his body glowing a soft pink that throbbed and pulsed every second. Every pulse warmed him up… strengthening him.

Ah, Heal Pulse, I presume.

Standing alongside the bed was what looked like a white horse, only it also possessed a massive mane coloured… cyan and pink? So fluffy it was it almost looked like candy floss. And it had a violet horn too that stretched a good way out of its head. Blue eyes were focused on him as the pink energy flowed around them too. A Unicorn? Wait a minute… it looks like a Rapidash but… I thought it was half on fire… wait… a variant… I think it's a variant.

... Actually, now that I think about it, but what is the story about the distribution of Galarian Pokémon around wherever in Pokéworld Sam got yeeted to? Maybe it's just a coincidence, but a Galarian starter and then a Galarian Form...?

Sam: "Uh... hi there?" .-.

Blinking once, the pink light faded away from the Rapidash and just a second after that, he looked down to find the pink pulse vanishing into the ether around him. He immediately patted his chest and his head, finding that his ribs no longer ached and he couldn't feel the sticky warmth that was blood on his skull. They… healed me? I'm alive? So…

Wait, but shouldn't he still feel blood left behind on his fur right now since closing a wound wouldn't do anything about blood that's already left his body?

He turned to face the Rapidash, that warmth still pulsing inside him despite the power fading away and flashed a friendly grin. "Hey… thanks for-"

The Rapidash's eyes flashed, "What did you think this all was, a free get out of jail service!?"

Sam: "Wh-Wha-? B-But I didn't do anything wrong!" O_O;

The warmth immediately vanished as Sam slid away from the horse Pokémon, eyes widening. "W-what? I was just saying tha-"

The horse merely rolled their eyes, "Hmph! Kids these days, thinking they can run off into the wilderness and try and be heroes." She snorted in a raspy voice, "Pah! They think twice once they've had a few bones broken and are left hanging from a tree! Or wrapped in some bug's web! Heal Pulses aren't as easy as some idiots say they are!"

... Lovely personality there from that healer. /s

"O-Oi!" Sam snapped, initial shock fading away as he narrowed his eyes, "I'm not a kid!"

Puffing, the Rapidash raised a hoof and jabbed him in the chest. Not enough to hurt, but he still winced and recoiled from the strike. "I don't care if you are two or thirty, you're still only a little Scorbunny! Thinking you could play ball with a Swampert? Did you know just how much blood I had to clean up from that!? You're lucky I wasn't there, or I might have jus-!"

Sam: "Look, I was literally trying to run away from him, okay-?!" >_>;
Rapidash: "That's still no excuse!" >:|

"Rebecca!"

The Rapidash, Rebecca, jerked her head to one side, revealing the wooden room beyond. A clinic to the look of it, judging by what seemed to be medical cabinets loaded with berries and glass jars.

The Blaziken was leaning against a desk in the room, arms crossed with his head tilted to one side. A single brow was raised, "I think he's got the point."

Sam: "So... uh... who are you again? Since I don't think you introduced yourself before I keeled over." ^^;

Sighing, Rebecca turned back to face him. "Just don't go running off out there too soon, I don't need to be collecting bits of you out of a fissure."

Sam: "... That happens around here?"

Rebecca: "Do you think I'd be warning you if it didn't?"

With an irritated flick of her mane, she marched away and through another doorway.

Sam let out a puff of air, unclenching his little paws. "Geez… talk about bedside manners."

Sam: "Please tell me that that's not normal here."

Blaziken: "Don't mind her, it's just job stress. Things have been kinda unsettled as of late."

The fire bird had watched the horse leave, but his head now swivelled back towards him. "She's just stressed." He explained, narrowing his cool eyes. "Rebecca didn't even want to be a nurse, but the last one went off to the mainland."

Lol, I was joking with that cutaway gag. Even if the mention of the "last one" is a bit

for this community considering how they have murderous Outlaws just prowling the boonies.

Tilting his own head, Sam could only frown. "Why do it then?"

"Because no one is as good as her with healing moves… and she did volunteer."

[ ]

"Oh… okay… that kinda makes sense..."

Okay, so for whatever reason, not as many bits have been standing out to me as places to drop in more description in this chapter, but this one feels like one of them.

"She isn't trying to punish you if that's what you are worried about. In fact she's more worried than angry." The Blaziken pushed himself off the table, towering over the Scorbunny. "How are you feeling?"

Blaziken: "I mean, your head fur's kinda matted in dried blood right now, but you are feeling better, right?" ^v^;
Sam: "I was before you mentioned that."

Sam rubbed the back of his head, still trying to feel for a scar or a mark… but there was nothing. "Better than new… I guess?"

The bigger fire type approached, arms still crossed, "I didn't catch your name."

He responded instantly, "Sam."

"Rex." The Blaziken introduced himself, returning a nod, "Alright Sam, what were you doing out in the middle of Little Forest with a team of criminals?"

But does he speak with a British accent and go diving for odds and ends to make a living? :V

"Whoa hey!" Sam barked, flinching, "I had nothing to do with those guys! That Swampert was about to kill me! Just like he did with…"

Eyes widening, he scrambled back up to his feet even as his head started to spin from the movement. "What about the other guys! Those other Pokémon they attacked, you can use that Heal Pulse thingy and-"

Rex: "Sam. They're dead. You literally acknowledged that yourself in the first paragraph."

Sam: "... You're sure that they weren't just left for dead, and-?"

Rex: "No, they're just dead dead."

"They're gone." Rex interrupted him, his tone chilling. "They were long dead before we got there."

"B-But…"

Yeah, I figured. Though I could've sworn that those Outlaws flatly told Sam that everyone in that pit was already dead, so I'm not fully sure if this response from him really follows.

He couldn't say another word though. He saw them lying there with all that blood and broken bone. He doubted anyone was going to come back from that, no matter what they were. He plopped back down onto the bed, hands squeezing together.

"I-I don't know who everyone was there… one minute I was just walking through the woods the next…" Sighing, he shook his head. "Look, I'm not a murderer I just… walked into it all."

I mean, they can in some settings, anyways. If obviously not this one.

Though I'd recommend hacking Sam's dialogue off from the rest of this paragraph and making him sound a bit more shaken / unsettled in his dialogue by doing something like having him stammer at some point.

"You saw the bandits kill those Pokémon?"

"No… I arrived too late. I just thought they were guys arguing before I saw…" he clamped his mouth shut, flicking his gaze away.

Rex didn't reply at first, but he could see a grey hand reach over and lean into the bed's cover.

"You're safe now. Understand?"

Yeah, after how the entire opening arc was "bog-standard opening goes horribly off the rails", I don't believe that for a second. Though I'd put Rex's last bit of dialogue in its own paragraph.

Hesitating, Sam slowly nodded before finally fixing his gaze back on the Blaziken, the chill in his eyes now gone. "But what were you doing out there anyway? You aren't on any records."

[ ]

"Oh, in the woods? I was-"

Another bit that would benefit from some body language from Sam, though they keep records of the Pokémon that live in this area?

He stopped himself short, his buckteeth dig into his lip. What could he say? He doubted the 'I got lost and hungover' story would hold. Ugh! What can I say? That I just woke up in the middle of a forest thinking I was human and yet I've been turned into a Scorbunny? He'll think I'm mad!

Talk about being genre blind there, since... yeah. I would presume that wouldn't be a reflexive reaction like that in a setting that's a fork of PMD canonworld.

Sam could sense his foot tapping away, Come on mate, think… there has to be something I can say…

"I-I…"

"Go on."

I can already tell that that's going to be a recurring thing for him as a character in this story. Though it's a cute touch.

The Scorbunny's mouth hung ajar, a word on the tip of his tongue… before he finally closed it and shook his head. "I don't remember."

"Hmm?" Rex tilted his head over, beak clicking. "You remember nothing?"

Sam:

Rex: "You don't need to be that emphatic. (Though still, amnesia cases like yours aren't exactly common...)" >v>;

"Yeah… I just found myself wondering those woods… maybe I got hit on the back of the head or got affected by some move…"

"Like a Confuse Ray?"

"Yeah… I don't know. Could be?" shaking his head, Sam rose back upto his feet. "Maybe it'll come back to me, but all I've been drawing are blanks."

Come on... Come on… don't try and dig deeper… please…

Cue Rex promptly interrogating Sam for the next hour.

Rex looked down on him, a claw on one hand scratching just underneath his chin, as if processing what information Sam could give.

Then, at last, he nodded. "Fair enough. I believe you. Just make sure you keep a low profile, understood?"

"Y-Yes sir." Sam replied, relaxing a touch.

... Rex either knows or suspects that Sam's a human, doesn't he? Since I can see that "low profile" comment.

"Stretch your legs for a moment, then when you're ready come on outside. I'll show you around town."

With that, Rex pulled away from the bed and turned to depart. [ And then Sam reacted ]

"W-Wait!" Sam exclaimed, reaching after him, catching the Blaziken's attention. "Thanks… for helping me back there."

Would recommend cutting this bit up and extending the middle a bit.

The bigger Mon glanced back, "Just doing a day's work, but you're welcome. I'll just be outside."

He watched him walk on out, and slumped back onto the bed, gazing up at the ceiling. It wasn't an ideal story, just flat out saying he didn't know how he got to that Forest, but it wasn't exactly a lie either. No point in confusing people with more human… err… stuff…

Which is probably wise given that, uh... somebody is out there looking for Sam right now. And I'm not convinced that it'll be a good thing if they cross paths.

Sam rubbed the back of his head, trying to still work out where the original wound was from the tree. Nothing. That Healing Pulse must have just been that good.

Sam: "... I'm just gonna assume that Rebecca cleaned me up given that I'm not feeling dried blood on it right now." ^^;

I'm going to have to tell someone eventually. Sam mused, slowly lowering himself to the ground. But let's get a lay of the land first. I know I'm in… what, some kind of Pokémon world? The more I know about the place, the better. And hey, maybe I can learn something about myself in the meantime.

Brushing himself down, the former human took in a breath, steadied himself… and strolled out of the room.

Whelp, time to get our first glimpse at civilization-

Well… here goes nothing.

…

Where the hell's the exit?

Snerk. Well, next time, anyways. Though I kinda wonder if this punchline would've worked better if we saw where Sam walked out into, e.x. if it's a hallway lined with a bunch of random doors or something like that and he's stuck on choice paralysis.

Alright, onto the summary:

It's a bit of a breather chapter, but honestly, considering how much things have escalated between the start and Chapter 4, it was probably a necessary one. It also gave some subtle hints at the current state of affairs in the chunk of world that Sam wound up in along with hints towards things that you seem to be building up for the future, which I'm sure are going to be quite the fireworks show when they roll in.

As for things that I felt were weaknesses. I think that the main issue was that there were a few points where I felt things were a bit underdescribed, mostly in relation to Sam's reactions, thought process, and body language. Like it wasn't massively so, but it did make a few bits feel a bit harder to visualize than needed to be.

But altogether it was still a fun chapter, and a nice palette cleanser on a night where I was otherwise kinda lacking in time and energy. Good work @StolenMadWolf , and I'll be looking forward to squaring away the rest of our review exchange in the near future. ^^

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, forgot to crosspost this earlier, but better late than never, right? Anyhow, coming back to this story with a quick and dirty review of…

Chapter V

Hmm… you have been with him for a while. He's alive, I can assure you of that and no, he's not brain dead. He is in capable hands.

Well. As close as can be to hands anyway.

Oh, so the Disembodied Voice of this story isn't a singular entity, huh? Since this seems like they're conversing with another party.

So he is human. Or rather he used to be before he was turned into this Scorbunny. If he is here… then something terrible must be on the horizon. It can't be a mere coincidence.

Though considering the batting average of when humans show up in canonworld... yeah, humans do seem to have a habit of coming around right when a disaster is about to happen.

Is that why you are here? To look over him? To witness this dark event? Or perhaps you are just drawn to this Pokemon.

To this human...

???:

...

…I must withdraw, lest my presence gets sensed. You don't get too close either.

But do keep an eye on him will you?

Oh well that's not ominous and creepy-sounding at all there.

"Hello? Can you hear me?"

H-Hi?

"You can? Great! Listen… I don't have much time…"

... Wait, is this the same Disembodied Voice as the one in the last scene or a different one? Since something about its tenor feels very different.

"Oh no… listen to me! You need to save…"

What? I… I can't hear you…

"Please! All of this… it needs saving…"

Save… save what… I can't…

"…Sam!"

Wait, this is that one conversation Sam was having before fading out in Chapter 1, wasn't it?

Sam's eyes fluttered open, That voice… where…

His vision blurred for a moment, then cleared to reveal the wooden ceiling above him. A gentle warmth pulsed across his body, almost like waves running up alongside him. H-Huh? Am… am I dead?

Sam: "I mean, I can see a wooden ceiling above me, so I'm pretty sure I'm alive?" ^^;

He slowly raised his hands up, only instead to see those white rabbit paws drift into view instead. I… I'm still a Scorbunny.

Moaning softly, he began to push himself upright, soaking in that pink… wait, what?

Sam: "Wait, I'm soaking in what now?" ._.;

He looked round himself to find himself on a fluffy bed, his body glowing a soft pink that throbbed and pulsed every second. Every pulse warmed him up… strengthening him.

Ah, Heal Pulse, I presume.

Standing alongside the bed was what looked like a white horse, only it also possessed a massive mane coloured… cyan and pink? So fluffy it was it almost looked like candy floss. And it had a violet horn too that stretched a good way out of its head. Blue eyes were focused on him as the pink energy flowed around them too. A Unicorn? Wait a minute… it looks like a Rapidash but… I thought it was half on fire… wait… a variant… I think it's a variant.

... Actually, now that I think about it, but what is the story about the distribution of Galarian Pokémon around wherever in Pokéworld Sam got yeeted to? Maybe it's just a coincidence, but a Galarian starter and then a Galarian Form...?

Sam: "Uh... hi there?" .-.

Blinking once, the pink light faded away from the Rapidash and just a second after that, he looked down to find the pink pulse vanishing into the ether around him. He immediately patted his chest and his head, finding that his ribs no longer ached and he couldn't feel the sticky warmth that was blood on his skull. They… healed me? I'm alive? So…

Wait, but shouldn't he still feel blood left behind on his fur right now since closing a wound wouldn't do anything about blood that's already left his body?

He turned to face the Rapidash, that warmth still pulsing inside him despite the power fading away and flashed a friendly grin. "Hey… thanks for-"

The Rapidash's eyes flashed, "What did you think this all was, a free get out of jail service!?"

Sam: "Wh-Wha-? B-But I didn't do anything wrong!" O_O;

The warmth immediately vanished as Sam slid away from the horse Pokémon, eyes widening. "W-what? I was just saying tha-"

The horse merely rolled their eyes, "Hmph! Kids these days, thinking they can run off into the wilderness and try and be heroes." She snorted in a raspy voice, "Pah! They think twice once they've had a few bones broken and are left hanging from a tree! Or wrapped in some bug's web! Heal Pulses aren't as easy as some idiots say they are!"

... Lovely personality there from that healer. /s

"O-Oi!" Sam snapped, initial shock fading away as he narrowed his eyes, "I'm not a kid!"

Puffing, the Rapidash raised a hoof and jabbed him in the chest. Not enough to hurt, but he still winced and recoiled from the strike. "I don't care if you are two or thirty, you're still only a little Scorbunny! Thinking you could play ball with a Swampert? Did you know just how much blood I had to clean up from that!? You're lucky I wasn't there, or I might have jus-!"

Sam: "Look, I was literally trying to run away from him, okay-?!" >_>;
Rapidash: "That's still no excuse!" >:|

"Rebecca!"

The Rapidash, Rebecca, jerked her head to one side, revealing the wooden room beyond. A clinic to the look of it, judging by what seemed to be medical cabinets loaded with berries and glass jars.

The Blaziken was leaning against a desk in the room, arms crossed with his head tilted to one side. A single brow was raised, "I think he's got the point."

Sam: "So... uh... who are you again? Since I don't think you introduced yourself before I keeled over." ^^;

Sighing, Rebecca turned back to face him. "Just don't go running off out there too soon, I don't need to be collecting bits of you out of a fissure."

Sam: "... That happens around here?"

Rebecca: "Do you think I'd be warning you if it didn't?"

With an irritated flick of her mane, she marched away and through another doorway.

Sam let out a puff of air, unclenching his little paws. "Geez… talk about bedside manners."

Sam: "Please tell me that that's not normal here."

Blaziken: "Don't mind her, it's just job stress. Things have been kinda unsettled as of late."

The fire bird had watched the horse leave, but his head now swivelled back towards him. "She's just stressed." He explained, narrowing his cool eyes. "Rebecca didn't even want to be a nurse, but the last one went off to the mainland."

Lol, I was joking with that cutaway gag. Even if the mention of the "last one" is a bit

for this community considering how they have murderous Outlaws just prowling the boonies.

Tilting his own head, Sam could only frown. "Why do it then?"

"Because no one is as good as her with healing moves… and she did volunteer."

[ ]

"Oh… okay… that kinda makes sense..."

Okay, so for whatever reason, not as many bits have been standing out to me as places to drop in more description in this chapter, but this one feels like one of them.

"She isn't trying to punish you if that's what you are worried about. In fact she's more worried than angry." The Blaziken pushed himself off the table, towering over the Scorbunny. "How are you feeling?"

Blaziken: "I mean, your head fur's kinda matted in dried blood right now, but you are feeling better, right?" ^v^;
Sam: "I was before you mentioned that."

Sam rubbed the back of his head, still trying to feel for a scar or a mark… but there was nothing. "Better than new… I guess?"

The bigger fire type approached, arms still crossed, "I didn't catch your name."

He responded instantly, "Sam."

"Rex." The Blaziken introduced himself, returning a nod, "Alright Sam, what were you doing out in the middle of Little Forest with a team of criminals?"

But does he speak with a British accent and go diving for odds and ends to make a living? :V

"Whoa hey!" Sam barked, flinching, "I had nothing to do with those guys! That Swampert was about to kill me! Just like he did with…"

Eyes widening, he scrambled back up to his feet even as his head started to spin from the movement. "What about the other guys! Those other Pokémon they attacked, you can use that Heal Pulse thingy and-"

Rex: "Sam. They're dead. You literally acknowledged that yourself in the first paragraph."

Sam: "... You're sure that they weren't just left for dead, and-?"

Rex: "No, they're just dead dead."

"They're gone." Rex interrupted him, his tone chilling. "They were long dead before we got there."

"B-But…"

Yeah, I figured. Though I could've sworn that those Outlaws flatly told Sam that everyone in that pit was already dead, so I'm not fully sure if this response from him really follows.

He couldn't say another word though. He saw them lying there with all that blood and broken bone. He doubted anyone was going to come back from that, no matter what they were. He plopped back down onto the bed, hands squeezing together.

"I-I don't know who everyone was there… one minute I was just walking through the woods the next…" Sighing, he shook his head. "Look, I'm not a murderer I just… walked into it all."

I mean, they can in some settings, anyways. If obviously not this one.

Though I'd recommend hacking Sam's dialogue off from the rest of this paragraph and making him sound a bit more shaken / unsettled in his dialogue by doing something like having him stammer at some point.

"You saw the bandits kill those Pokémon?"

"No… I arrived too late. I just thought they were guys arguing before I saw…" he clamped his mouth shut, flicking his gaze away.

Rex didn't reply at first, but he could see a grey hand reach over and lean into the bed's cover.

"You're safe now. Understand?"

Yeah, after how the entire opening arc was "bog-standard opening goes horribly off the rails", I don't believe that for a second. Though I'd put Rex's last bit of dialogue in its own paragraph.

Hesitating, Sam slowly nodded before finally fixing his gaze back on the Blaziken, the chill in his eyes now gone. "But what were you doing out there anyway? You aren't on any records."

[ ]

"Oh, in the woods? I was-"

Another bit that would benefit from some body language from Sam, though they keep records of the Pokémon that live in this area?

He stopped himself short, his buckteeth dig into his lip. What could he say? He doubted the 'I got lost and hungover' story would hold. Ugh! What can I say? That I just woke up in the middle of a forest thinking I was human and yet I've been turned into a Scorbunny? He'll think I'm mad!

Talk about being genre blind there, since... yeah. I would presume that wouldn't be a reflexive reaction like that in a setting that's a fork of PMD canonworld.

Sam could sense his foot tapping away, Come on mate, think… there has to be something I can say…

"I-I…"

"Go on."

I can already tell that that's going to be a recurring thing for him as a character in this story. Though it's a cute touch.

The Scorbunny's mouth hung ajar, a word on the tip of his tongue… before he finally closed it and shook his head. "I don't remember."

"Hmm?" Rex tilted his head over, beak clicking. "You remember nothing?"

Sam:

Rex: "You don't need to be that emphatic. (Though still, amnesia cases like yours aren't exactly common...)" >v>;

"Yeah… I just found myself wondering those woods… maybe I got hit on the back of the head or got affected by some move…"

"Like a Confuse Ray?"

"Yeah… I don't know. Could be?" shaking his head, Sam rose back upto his feet. "Maybe it'll come back to me, but all I've been drawing are blanks."

Come on... Come on… don't try and dig deeper… please…

Cue Rex promptly interrogating Sam for the next hour.

Rex looked down on him, a claw on one hand scratching just underneath his chin, as if processing what information Sam could give.

Then, at last, he nodded. "Fair enough. I believe you. Just make sure you keep a low profile, understood?"

"Y-Yes sir." Sam replied, relaxing a touch.

... Rex either knows or suspects that Sam's a human, doesn't he? Since I can see that "low profile" comment.

"Stretch your legs for a moment, then when you're ready come on outside. I'll show you around town."

With that, Rex pulled away from the bed and turned to depart. [ And then Sam reacted ]

"W-Wait!" Sam exclaimed, reaching after him, catching the Blaziken's attention. "Thanks… for helping me back there."

Would recommend cutting this bit up and extending the middle a bit.

The bigger Mon glanced back, "Just doing a day's work, but you're welcome. I'll just be outside."

He watched him walk on out, and slumped back onto the bed, gazing up at the ceiling. It wasn't an ideal story, just flat out saying he didn't know how he got to that Forest, but it wasn't exactly a lie either. No point in confusing people with more human… err… stuff…

Which is probably wise given that, uh... somebody is out there looking for Sam right now. And I'm not convinced that it'll be a good thing if they cross paths.

Sam rubbed the back of his head, trying to still work out where the original wound was from the tree. Nothing. That Healing Pulse must have just been that good.

Sam: "... I'm just gonna assume that Rebecca cleaned me up given that I'm not feeling dried blood on it right now." ^^;

I'm going to have to tell someone eventually. Sam mused, slowly lowering himself to the ground. But let's get a lay of the land first. I know I'm in… what, some kind of Pokémon world? The more I know about the place, the better. And hey, maybe I can learn something about myself in the meantime.

Brushing himself down, the former human took in a breath, steadied himself… and strolled out of the room.

Whelp, time to get our first glimpse at civilization-

Well… here goes nothing.

…

Where the hell's the exit?

Snerk. Well, next time, anyways. Though I kinda wonder if this punchline would've worked better if we saw where Sam walked out into, e.x. if it's a hallway lined with a bunch of random doors or something like that and he's stuck on choice paralysis.

Alright, onto the summary:

It's a bit of a breather chapter, but honestly, considering how much things have escalated between the start and Chapter 4, it was probably a necessary one. It also gave some subtle hints at the current state of affairs in the chunk of world that Sam wound up in along with hints towards things that you seem to be building up for the future, which I'm sure are going to be quite the fireworks show when they roll in.

As for things that I felt were weaknesses. I think that the main issue was that there were a few points where I felt things were a bit underdescribed, mostly in relation to Sam's reactions, thought process, and body language. Like it wasn't massively so, but it did make a few bits feel a bit harder to visualize than needed to be.

But altogether it was still a fun chapter, and a nice palette cleanser on a night where I was otherwise kinda lacking in time and energy. Good work @StolenMadWolf , and I'll be looking forward to squaring away the rest of our review exchange in the near future. ^^

 

[StolenMadWolf]

Spoiler: Author's Note

Well, apologies for the delay on this chapter. Life has been very busy in the last few weeks for me, and this chapter was tricky to write. But either way, I hope you enjoy it as we push on into this new episode!

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER II - ANOTHER HAPPY RESCUE​

"Hurry up! This place is falling apart!"

The eight Pokémon rushed through the rocky chasm, the ground quivering beneath their feet as they ran. Most of them looked no older than teenagers, with even the more evolved members looking on the smaller side. Stone clicked and cracked as little rocks tumbled down the sheer walls that surrounded them on all side. At the head of the group, a Furfrou, white fur caked with dirt and dust, clambered up onto a large boulder that blocked the narrow path ahead.

"E-Elliot!" cried out a Chespin towards the middle of the gathered Pokémon, leaning against the rocky wall as she panted. "I-We can't keep- running like this…"

The Furfrou glanced back, quietly hissing as the Chespin, "We can't keep taking breaks Claire! The walls are getting more unstable by the minute!"

He leaned over, letting his long ear dip down for a panicking Scatterbug to climb up. "And those aftershocks aren't getting much better either!"

Claire groaned as she stumbled over to the boulder. "But no one here- is as active as you!"

Wincing, she hopped up onto the boulder, peering past the bigger canine to try and get a better view down the fissure, "Ugh… we'll be going on forever! The path back there was-"

"It was falling apart! You saw it went for Xander trying to get up it with the rocks breaking loose, how would you handle getting up it? Forget about me getting up it either."

The Furfrou didn't look back at the Chespin as she visibly slumped, trying to get a read of the path ahead. "If we just keep going, at the very least we'll be safer until someone from the Guild helps us!"

"That's if anyone shows up!" Claire reminded him.

"You heard what the others said, they'd get in touch with the guild if anyone got into trouble. We're not that far from town anyway."

As the last Pokémon, an injured Nidorian, came over the rock, a loud crack rumbled through the fissure, and all seven other Pokémon couldn't stop their gasps or whimpers from escaping. Elliot froze in place only for a moment, eyes widening before he bit his lip. "Come on! We can't waste an-"

He turned round to find the others gone, crying out as they struggled to force their way through the gap. "W-Wait!" Elliot shouted, "Not all at once!"

Hopping down, he set off after them, but his fellow teens were now in a complete panic. Eyes wide, crying out as they rushed on ahead, forcing the Furfrou to widen his stride to catch back up, only to slow down just as suddenly as they hurried through a tight gap within the fissure, forcing the bigger canine to slow down. He growled, cursing his size as he stooped down and squeezed himself through and adding yet another layer of dirt into his coat. He never really cared about his looks like others of his species did, but he wished he had had it trimmed anyway.

Minutes passed, and he finally rounded another corner in the rocky chasm to find the seven Pokémon in a larger clearing, backs turned to him. Panting, Edward stomped one foot down on the ground. "What the hell were you thinking!" he snapped, struggling to restrain himself. "Are you trying to get yourselves hurt-"

Claire spun round towards him, nostrils flaring up. "Shut up Elliot! Your plan was fracking hopeless!"

The canine blinked, freezing on the spot. "H-Huh?"

Grinding her teeth, the Chespin stabbed a finger in the direction that the others were facing, all of whom were frozen in place… and eyes fixed on the steep, craggy wall that rose for dozens of metres above their heads towards open sky – and freedom.

And impossible for them to climb.

Elliot shivered, sliding one foot back as he looked towards the others again. With the exception of Claire, all of them were quivering on the spot, wincing from their wounds or just staring up at the insurmountable obstacle. It was all too clear to the Furfrou that fear was starting to plague them once more. None of them asked to be here. There were just strolling along the river, making their way towards one of the small gullies on the island as part of a casual day out. Then out of nowhere, the ground tore itself open beneath them and swallowed them all whole.

Even he had to admit he was terrified, gulping as he glanced back the way they came, back deeper into the fissure. It took them long enough to get to a dead end, to go back now, where the fissure was looking less and less stable…

"W-W-We're doomed…" whispered the Scatterbug, eyes going wide enough that the canine thought they were going to pop out.

The Nidoran's chest rapidly started rising and falling, paws clutched tightly together as she fell back down into a sitting position. "S-Someone will come for us… right?"

A loud, deep crack rang out, loud enough for the Furfrou to flinch, wincing as his ears throbbed in response. Beneath him, tiny pebbles bounced off the ground, faintly clicking as they did so.

That got everyone's attention again, a Chingling spinning around with a visible leap in the air. "D-D-D-Did anyone else hear that!?"

"We all did." Elliot replied, glancing back down the fissure again. That wasn't an earthquake. That was something else. As if a section of wall was giving way. When the fissure had torn open the earth near them, they had been walking directly alongside that river. He took the lack of water as a good sign that they weren't going to get flooded, but if the walls were cracking…

They were going to get very, very wet. And not everyone could swim, nevermind deal with what would effectively be a tsunami.

With no escape.

It was then, and finally then that Elliot felt himself shiver, the fear now sinking its teeth into his heart. He couldn't open his mouth again, both out of terror and out of some last-ditch necessity. If he tried to speak now, whatever feeble words that came out would only terrify everyone else. Even Claire, the only other member of their group keeping some semblance of cool was starting to quickly shake her head, mumbling under her breath and she slowly took a few steps backwards.

"S-Someone's gotta come… they'll save us…" the Nidoran started to sob, "T-They have to…"

One by one, the group began to crack. Some started to panic once more, hurrying around the wall, looking for a way out. Others crumbled, breaking down into tears. Claire was frozen on the spot. Unmoving as she stared down the fissure.

Elliot willed himself to move. To shout out. To get the group back to attention. But the Furfrou's body wouldn't obey him, not heeding his will or desires. Had it given up before his mind had?

A-Are we going to get out of here alive?

The ground quaked again, rocks clicking as they shook themselves loose and sliding down the cliff. His fellow Pokémon cried out in surprise, struggling to keep their footing. Another, sharper crack over his shoulder was joined by a surprised yelp. Only then did his body finally obey him, and the canine turned to find Claire down on her hands and knees, eyes squeezed shut. "C-Claire!" he shouted, stumbling over and moving to try and help lift her up with one paw. "Are you alright!?"

The Chespin groaned, grasping the back of her head with one hand. His eyes following the movement, he found a darkened patch of skin at the back of her skull… and winced at the sight of the big rock on the ground next to her. Damn… good job she has that shell, but how bad is sh-

"Hey! Calm down! We're here to help!"

His heart missed a beat. W-Wha?

"Guys!" that voice shouted again, different from the others. Louder. Clearer. "Back up from the wall, I'm coming down to you!"

Teary eyes blinking, the Pokémon closest to the wall picked themselves up and backed away… just as a rope rolled down the wall, wooden rungs tied to it and bashing into the wall with a click. Elliot couldn't help but stare at the rope – no, the ladder that had come out of nowhere. He looked up the fissure cliff again, the sun poking over the top and shining down into his eyes. He winced, the bright light burning into his retinas.

As he blinked, vision filled with splotches, a small figure scrambled down the rope and touched down before them. Beneath him, the ground ceased quaking, and his ears detected the faint gasp of one of his companions.

The blotches faded away, revealing at the bottom of the ladder, one hand holding the rope and the other on his hip, was a white and red rabbit.

"Everyone okay down here?" he asked, a brief flash of concern across his face as he scanned the group with orange eyes.

"Y-Yeah." Elliot replied, gulping as he regained his composure. "At least I think we are. Who are you?"

The Scorbunny tipped an invisible hat from atop his head, a big smile forming. "I'm Sam, from Team Audacity! We got word at the guild that a fissure opened here, we're here to get you out!"

Alright. Sam figured to himself mentally, Keep that smile up. Get these guys to calm down.

He let go of the rope and stepped closer to the gathered Pokémon. From the briefing, he knew these guys hadn't been down in the fissure for more than a few hours, but at the same time, it wasn't difficult to work out how shaken up these guys were. His heart thumped that little bit harder, knowing that feeling off falling onto a seemingly bottomless pit to his seeming doom, then working out how to get out of that hell.

He resisted the urge to shiver, even after all this time, the memory of Broken Wood still plagued him.

Not that he was going to let them see that.

"Alright, we're Rescuers, we're trained for stuff like this and we're going to get you out of here. My partner is at the top of the ladder. I know it's not perfect, but it's the best we've got at short notice." He flashed an even bigger smile to reassure them, "This place looks stable enough anyway, so lighten up. We'll get you out of here in no time at all-"

The smile vanished as the ground shuddered beneath his feet, the Scorbunny struggling to maintain his balance as his feet slide across the ground. Around him, the young Pokémon were whimpered and cried out in fright. Gritting his teeth, Sam grabbed hold of the rope ladder, steadying himself as the quake ceased to the clatter of falling stones. Right… I can already hear Alice shouting at me to hurry up.

Narrowing his eyes, he stepped away from the ladder and waved a hand towards it. "Okay, introductions for later, up we go everyone!"

Sluggishly, some of the Pokémon began to move towards the ladder, leaving others to stare blankly at their rescuer and the means of escape.

It didn't take long for that to change though. Sam could literally see the light in their eyes brighten, the realisation of what was happening dawned on them. One by one, the assembled Pokémon scrambled forward, trying to rush the ladder. Stumbling back, Sam quickly got himself in front of the ladder as they started piling into each other. "One at a time!" he shouted, "Smallest and fastest first!"

It took a solid thirty seconds of gradually louder shouting for the Scorbunny to calm them down enough for them to heed his words, and soon enough, the Pokémon best able to climb the rope ladder began their ascent. Namely the bugs and those with actual hands, whilst the others who struggled more followed more slowly after them.

When they emerged on a ledge part way up the fissure wall, they would a similarly sized rabbit waiting for them, standing alongside a large boulder that the top of the rope was wrapped around was a brown and cream coloured rabbit. A Buneary.

The Scatterbug was the first to appear, only for their eyes to narrow at the sight of the rabbit. "Y-You? What are yo – hey!"

Alice rolled her eyes as she pulled the bug-type up onto the ledge, "It's my job." She said with a hint of sarcasm, "Follow the slope up." She jabbed a finger up a rocky slope leading up to the top of the fissure and, seemingly, out. "Watch your step."

The Buneary took it all in her stride, catching a few more looks as she helped the others up onto the ledge. She nodded in reply to the thanks she received, and steeled her heart to the confused looks from those who did not thank her. Her 'reputation' preceded her even now, but it rolled off her shoulders as easily as she could shake off a coat. She had to.

Back below, Sam grunted as he helped lift one of the larger Pokémon up onto the ladder. He almost wished this place would somehow transform into a Mystery Dungeon, at least they could use their badges to teleport all these guys out. He tapped one foot at the thought, biting his tongue. It was a dumb thought, he knew. A Dungeon would make this entire situation worse.

Still… would make leaving the place easy…

He turned to face what appeared to be the last person to rescue, the white furred but dirty looking Furfrou. "Alright, ready to get going?" Sam asked, one hand placed on his hip.

The canine visibly slumped his head down with a faint sigh, trembling as he stepped forward towards the ladder. "I… thanks. Things were getting a bit tense down here. We really thought no one was coming."

Elliot visibly gulped, and Sam could easily tell that the guy just sounded tired. As if he was glad for someone to take the weight off his shoulders. "Not a problem at all." Sam reassured him, stepping up to the dog's side. "We signed up to help guys like you out."

"Yeah." He replied, "If it wasn't for Claire I would hav-".

His eyes bulged, darting around him and up the ladder again. "W-Wait, did Claire go up?"

Sam frowned, hand slipping away as his body stiffened. "Claire?"

"A Chespin!" He explained, "She was right with us a second ago-"

Catching the curse on his lips, he spun round towards the cliff. "Alice! Is there a Chespin up there!?"

A brown rabbit head poked over the edge of the ledge. "No! You're the one supposed to be talking things out!"

"It's not that easy when everyone's panicking!" Sam shouted back, snapping his head back towards the clearing. Damn it, why would someone wander off now!

"There she is!"

His eyes locked onto the Chespin, stumbling deeper into the fissure, her moaning easily reaching Sam's ears. Elliot growled, "A rock hit her head… was it a Gravelrock?!"

So she's delirious! Sam started to jog forward, only to slide to a halt as he spun round towards the dog, "Elliot, I'll get her! You head up the ladder!"

Elliot visibly recoiled back, "B-But-"

The ground jerked sharply to the side, dragging their feet with it. Sam cried out, struggling to stay upright. A low, loud rumble rolled over him like a wave. Crouching down, Sam planted a hand down against the rock, gnashing his teeth as he held himself steady. Ahead of him, Claire didn't even manage that, toppling forward face first into the ground.

Something boomed, loud enough for Sam to instinctively reach to pull his ears down. On cue, a dark crack shot across the ground between them, the terrain jerking wildly left and right on the opposite side of that tear in the earth.

A crack that was gradually widening.

As the shaking weakened, the Scorbunny glanced over his shoulder back at Elliot, the white-furred canine managing to stay on all four feet. "Up the ladder." He ordered him, his tone direct and sharp, working to remove all the emotion out of his voice. "Now. I'll go and get her."

Elliot's mouth dropped open, jaw moving as he tried to find another counter argument. But Sam narrowed his eyes at the canine, focusing them straight on Elliot's own.

That finally got the message across, and with a final glance at the Chespin pushing herself up to her knees, the Furfrou started to slowly and awkwardly clamber up the ladder, wrapping his legs round the rungs to do so.

Sam was already stepping towards the Chespin as he shouted again, "Alice! I'm getting the last one! Make sure everyone else gets up!"

Rabbit ears were certainly a blessing now as he started running, the Buneary's voice reaching down from above. "Damn it! Be careful! Another quake and we'll be getting another fissure!"

Focused on the Chespin, Sam broke into a sprint, rapidly beginning to close the gap on the grass-type. The ground started to quake again, rumbling around him. Don't collapse on me now don't collapse on me now-

Ahead of him, Claire was shaking her head, moaning as she lifted it back up. "W-What… huh? Where-"

A painful roar shot down his ears, rock erupting from the ground and shoving Claire into the air on a spire. "W-What the hell!?" Claire screamed as the pillar rose above Sam.

Are you kidding me!? Sam cursed, more jagged rocks erupting from the ground ahead of him. He didn't slow down, booting himself up into the air to land on one such rock, then onward to a second. Okay, one at a time!

He landed on the third, the Chespin's screams still ringing in his ears. "Just stay still!" he bellowed, "I'm coming!"

Sam reeled his legs in, ready to leap up towards the new, larger outcrop, but then quake hit again, something snapping directly in front and below him. Immediately with a yelp, Sam stumbled back, waving his arms to keep his balance. The pillar beneath him toppled back away from the main outcrop and jerked to a halt. Once again, Sam was forced to slam his fist into the ground to try and stabilise himself. Screw waiting for a second fissure! We're about to have six of them!

Getting a short running start, Sam leapt across to another pillar, feeling heat rush over his body from below. Feet gripping into the outcrop, Sam glanced back, catching the faint orange glow of magma coming from below. He stiffened, limbs clamming up as he gulped. God… why does it have to be heights and magma?

Shaking his head, Sam felt the quake slowly cease, the ground beneath him no longer shaking. So swallowing his fear, he booted himself up into the air once more and found himself touching down on the main pillar.

Sat down – not from choice given the fact she was wincing – was Claire, the Chespin spitting at the ground. "I thought my shell stopped concussions!?"

"Gravelrocks hurt." Sam quipped, jogging over and reaching down to help her up. "We can work it out later. Right now we need to get you out."

Shakily, the Chespin lifted her hand to take his, and the Scorbunny pulled her onto her feet. The exist should be easy enough. Jump down broken earth bit by bit, and avoid falling into the lava.

No pressure. Sam mused.

That was the boom came. A low, deep boom that echoed through the fissure. Sam winced, not quite hearing it for once as much as he was feeling it beat on his chest as if it were a drum.

"W-W-W-W-What the hell was that!?" Claire uttered, head swivelling around.

Sam's ears twitched in one direction. Not downwards, but deeper in.

Deeper into the fissure.

Back where the Pokémon had came from.

He just caught Alice's shout. "Sam! Get the hell out of there!"

Flinching, Sam spun back round. From here, he could see Alice waving her arms wildly at him whilst the others were scrambling up the rocky wall. He was higher up now, enough that he had the easier time seeing them all now.

Enough to see the sheer panic spread across her face.

"What is it!?" Sam shouted back, cupping his hands. "We're coming out now!"

He nearly leapt back when her reply came. "No you idiot! Incoming!"

Alice would never panic like this… that means-

His training took over, the Scorbunny grabbing hold of the grass-type's arm. "H-Hey!" Claire cursed as she stumbled after him towards the edge. "Slow down!"

"We have to go. Now!"

Just as they reached the edge, the low rumble slowly began to rise. The Scorbunny froze, ears flicking back towards the rest of the fissure. A rumble that was getting louder.

Stiffly, he turned to look back down the winding canyon, the rumble becoming a roar.

The rocky path greeted him.

Then the wall of white water erupted into view, rushing forward – and more importantly – above them.

Towards them.

Oh fuck me!

The water surged forward, punching through the fissure at lightning speed. He barely registered Claire's terrified scream. Shitshitshit! We won't make it to the rope in time! We need another escape route – and fast!

The Scorbunny spun round on the spot, searching for anything, another rock outcrop, a tree, anything!

Heart pounding, he desperately scoured the fissure sides, Come on come on – there!

Another ledge erupted from the fissure wall on one side of the canyon, closer to them than the original access point but with no easy means of ascent. It'll do!

He tightened his grip on the Chespin's arm, "Run!" he shouted, ignoring her protests as he broke into a sprint, half dragging the panicking Chespin with him, rapidly closing on the edge.

Eyes fixed on the edge of their outcrop and their target; Sam didn't even look over at the surging column of water. "Get ready to jump!" he barked.

"Jump!? B-"

"Now!"

Toes just touching the edge, Sam kicked himself into the air, taking Claire with him, the roar of the wave now deafening. "Hold on!" he shouted, letting his emotion feed in, feeling that flame burn in his chest as he urged them to rush forward.

The world seemed to blur as the Quick Attack fired off, and in the blink of an eye, they were racing towards the outcrop.

The very edge of it.

Sam grunted as his gut hit the edge, one hand reaching forward to desperately grab hold of anything. It slid back, his body pulling it down as Claire's weight yanked down his other arm. His fingers caught something rocky and solid with a jolt, bringing them to a halt as pain surged through his shoulder. Crying out as the knife sunk into his muscles, he gritted his teeth as the water thundered beneath him, before the almighty slam exploded, stabbing away at his eardrums. "Hold on!" He gritted, "I'm going to pull you up, grab hold of something solid!"

Below, he could just make out Claire's response, "E-E-E-Okay!"

Growling, Sam tightened his grip on whatever he grabbed onto, resisting the pain surging through his limbs as he pulled up the Chespin, mentally begging for her to get a grip onto the rock. He felt his arm lift, and the weight abruptly fade away. "Erk! I've got something!" Claire shouted, just barely louder than the rush of water.

His arm now free, he quickly threw it over the edge of the outcrop, his fingers finding another rocky hold and tightening. "I'll help you up! Just hang on!"

Gritting his teeth, Sam flung himself up onto the platform, before lying down to lean back over the edge. Claire was hanging on to the very edge by the tips of her fingers. Not even waiting to hear any comment, the Scorbunny leaned over and grabbed hold of the Chespin's arms. "I've got you, push with your feet!"

Groaning, Sam yanked the arms back, nearly stumbling backwards as Claire pushed herself up and over the top. The pair collapsed to the floor with a thud, the Chespin panting with her face against the rock. Gulping his own breath of air, Sam didn't wait to catch his breath back. Instead, he pushed himself back up to his feet, slowly stepping towards the edge. "What… did we… do… to deserve this…" Claire groaned.

"Nothing at all." Sam replied, peering down from their perch. The water was no longer rushing through, but small waves were still crashing against the walls of the fissure and the outcrop that Sam and Claire had stood on – nevermind the bottom – was now completely underwater. "You just got unlucky."

Crickey… any later and we would have smashed against all the rocks… wait!

He spun around towards their entry point, where they fitted the makeshift ladder at the bottom of the slope. But instead of finding the anchor there… he only found water.

Trembling, Sam turned his gaze upwards, begging that Alice and the others had got clear of the wave. They had the head start for sure.

His eyes drifted further and further until his heart soared. He spotted them all scattered amongst the boulders of the slope – a slope that had a lot more of them than he recalled seeing.

A brown rabbit that could only be Alice was balancing atop one of the taller rocks, hands cupped round her mouth. "You're crazy! You know that!"

Stifling a chuckle, Sam shook his head with a thin smirk before cupping his own hands to shout back. "Hey! It worked alright! Everyone okay over there!"

"We're fine! Nearly got hit by a few boulders but Rock Smash helped! What about you!"

Sam looked up towards the cliff over his shoulder. Claire had rolled over onto her back, still shaken from the near escape at the bottom of the cliff. And indeed, it was one heck of a cliff. It was practically shear, rising well above his head – at least twelve metres - with appeared to only be a few foot and hand holds in the surface. Off to his right, the trunk of a tree hung against the cliffside, only its roots holding the thing in place.

It was too high for them to jump up to the top with a Quick Attack to power them up, and the tree… definitely didn't look ideal.

He turned back to Alice, "We're okay! But we might need a bit of help to get out!"

"We've got some spare rope outside of the fissure! I'll make my way round to you!"

Sam opened his mouth to reply, only to feel the ground quake beneath him again. More tiny pebbles tumbled down from above. On cue, Claire sprung into a sitting position, eyes darting left and right as if searching for those rocks. Body stiffening, the Scorbunny, turned back towards Alice. "You might want to hurry!"

I'm not sure how long this outcrop is gonna last! Not that I want Claire here to know that!

Even from this distance, he could make out Alice's nod as she hopped her way up the hill, calling for the other Pokémon to make their way further up the slope. Sam stepped away from the edge and made his way towards the wall. Yeah, he would have to worry about the rocks tumbling down, but at least he would be able to grab a hold straight away their platform collapsed. "Come on over here." Sam told Claire, "It's a bit safer over here."

"And if I get hit in the head again?" Claire moaned as she got up and skulked over.

"Well, I'll just stop you wondering off." Sam replied, "And if it's any consolation, I've been hit in the head too many times in the past." He flashed a smirk, "And here I am, no worse for wear."

The Chespin's face screwed up, "You've not got a few screws loose?"

"No more than anyone else at the guild."

Huh, save for Perry of course. He's completely nuts.

The area shuddered once again, the Scorbunny pushing himself further against the wall. Just gotta hope Alice gets here sooner rather than later.

He watched as Alice and the rescued Pokémon summited the slope and emerged from the fissure proper, sighing with relief at the sight. At least those they had rescued would be getting out of danger.

Another few minutes passed, the ground gently quaking every so often again before Alice's head remerged above them, eyes narrowed. "Holding up alright?"

"For now." Sam called out, looking back up at the Buneary. "Do you think the spare rope will reach?"

"Only one way to find out. I'll save the smaller bundle just in case."

Her head disappeared from view, and within a few seconds, another rope, lacking the rungs of the original, now submerged one, was flung down the cliff face. Sam clenched his fists, hoping that the rope could reach them, it would make things easier for sure-

The rope stopped short, the tip gently swaying four metres above them. Alice's head promptly remerged, scowling at the rope. "That's the best I can do. I don't have any other good anchors close by."

"It'll do." Sam reassured her, stepping away from the wall and crouching down to cup his hands together. Instinct and training was already kicking in as he firmly looked over to Claire. "I'll give you a boost."

The Chespin gulped, eyes fixed on the rope directly above her. "D-Do you think that will work?"

"Between me and you jumping? Easy."

"And what about you?" she questioned, shivering as her gaze turned down on him.

Sam flashed a smirk, "I can make that jump. Besides, it's the job."

The ground shivered underfoot once more, and that seemed to be the final push that the grass type needed. Shaking her body loose, she placed one foot into his cupped hands, the Scorbunny stiffening himself to take the weight. "On three." Sam declared, shuffling on the spot. "Ready?"

Nervously looking up, she nodded.

"Alright." He said, "One. Two… Three!"

He pushed her foot upwards, the Chespin flying up into the air above him. One, two, three metres…

Her hands grabbed hold of the rope.

The colossal crack nearly deafened him, annihilating his smile as the ground fell away beneath him, only for his feet to slam back down again.

Hard.

Barking out in pain, he barely noticed his feet slide out beneath him. What actually jarred him back into reality was when his chin hit the rock, cutting his cry short. His hands grasped for anything, literally anything, wrapping around another rock and stopping his fall with another painful jolt.

"Sam!" Alice shouted, her voice ringing in her ears.

Gritting his teeth as his fingers cried out in protest, the Scorbunny snapped his head back up to find that the entire outcrop had collapsed. Enough that as he forced himself back up to his feet, he was finding himself standing on a shaking slope. "I'm alright!" He looked up towards the rope, Claire looking down at with wide eyes as she dangled from the rope. "Claire! Just keep climbing up! I'll be right behind you!"

Very quickly nodding back, she started to struggle her way up the rope, clearly not used to trying to shuffle up one. Okay! Just give her a minute, then I can get up as well and-

The aftershock came rumbling in, hard and fast, more debris tumbling down the cliff as Sam struggled to stay on his feet. The outcrop shook even hard, the tip dropping down further, ready to snap at any moment.

Above him, Claire cried out, sliding back down the rope a few inches as she climbed. Above her, Alice's eyes were wide enough to explode. "Sam! Get out of there!"

Damn it! If I jump now, I could throw Claire off the rope! Then she'd be definitely be screwed! But if I don't get off soon, I'm not gonna be swimming out of here! I need another way out of fast!

"Alice! Get that second rope ready!" he barked, steadying himself as best he could.

"How's th- shit! Hang on!" Alice drifted out of view, and Claire seemed to rise faster, the rope being pulled up too.

Two birds with one stone… Sam realised, the shaking intensifying underfoot, Alice must be having someone pull Claire up whilst setting up the last rope!

"Alice! Hurry!" he shouted.

A low grunt rolled forth from the top of the outcrop, now hanging more and more by a thread. Shit! We might not have any time! I need another way out and fast!

Sam snapped his gaze around, trying to work out the way out. He looked down towards the water, still a white torrent as it smashed against the sides of the fissure. Still no way out that way. What about the cliff itself? He looked up, struggling to find any good holds. Even if he could jump for one, he didn't have any idea if he could hold on for long. That left…

The Scorbunny turned to find himself staring at the hanging tree. No way, that's not going to hold much better than the cliff! Still… if I could reach it…

Claire disappeared from view as Alice remerged, "I'm going to throw this rope down now!"

Sam swept his foot back, feeling the sound of the cracking rocks, the outcrop starting to dip once again.

He made his decision. "No time! Go for the tree!"

"Sam! Don't be an i-"

Too late, the fire-type breaking into a sprint and leaping into the air just as something boomed over his shoulder – the outcrop finally failing and falling free. He just heard the splash as he reached the height of his leap, Here goes!

He willed himself forward, feeling the rush of air as he surged ahead, hoping he hadn't guessed wro-

The world reblinked into view, the Scorbunny flying out of the Quick Attack and straight towards the tree. Eyes widening, Sam cried out as he snapped his arms out. Come o-

His white hands screamed as they dug into the wood, shoulders screaming as his body was flung back against the bark with a crack. Groaning, he blinked, glancing back towards the water. The rocky outcrop was already gone, just an irregular collection of ripples in the water from where it fell.

"Sam you fucking idiot!"

His head jerked back up to find Alice sprinting along the edge, carrying a coil of rope in her grasp. "Can you stop pulling stunts like that!?" she snapped, eyes burning.

"Again! It worked!" Sam countered, reaching out with one hand towards another handhold, "Just gotta climb this ol' gi-"

The tree let out a horrible creak as his fingers slipped into the hold.

Something snapped, and the tree dropped. Sam's fingers tightened, eyes widening for the fall. Only for the tree to jerk to halt, something else snapping above him. "Oh come on!" he roared, racing up the trunk, the sounds of snapping roots still ringing in his ears.

"Sam!" Alice shouted, "I'm coming!"

"Anytime would do!" Sam snapped, the tree jolting as the last bits of support broke free, falling further every time. Each second, he climbed higher. Every other second, he dropped another bit, forcing him to go faster.

Another second, and he was near the top. The straining and breaking roots just in sight, past a single, thick branch. One! Last! Jump!

The last roots snapped, the tree beginning it's fall as he kicked himself up for the branch.

His hands wrapped round it.

Only to break free in his hands.

Sam could only scream as he began to fall. Back into the fissure.

Back to his death.

Alice dove over the edge, a brown shape that shot towards him. His hands shot forward, reaching-

Sam jerked to a halt, white and brown hands wrapped round each other as he bounced against the cliff face. "Got you!" Alice grunted with a hiss of pain, teeth grinding together as the heavy splash rang out below.

He blinked, his brain catching up with reality. They were hanging there alongside the fissure wall, held only by the brown rope wrapped around her waist.

"That's twice." She uttered, managing to pull a thin smirk.

Sam nearly choked on the curse. "What, when was the first time!?"

Alice rolled her eyes, "From the last time I had to save you from falling?"

"That was two weeks ago!"

Putting aside the trip down memory lane, it was a somewhat frustrating effort to climb back up again, involving no small amount of fiddling as they worked to get Sam onto the rope proper before together, they pulled themselves up little by little until with a final moan of effort, the two clambered over the edge and out of the crack.

The Scorbunny stumbled away from the edge, bending over and panting away to himself, unable to utter any words.

"H-How did you even do that!?"

Still panting, he lifted his head up to find the rescued Pokémon assembled before them, gathered around a small, jagged rock with a very loosely secured rope hoop. As if it was thrown over at the last second. Elliot stood at the head of the group, a look of pure bewilderment as he glanced between Claire, sat down against the boulder with her own stunned expression, and the two Rescuers. "That was… I don't know what to say…"

Gulping in a fresh new breath, Sam flashed a grin as he waved at them, "Don't… worry... about it." he managed to breath out, "Just… another happy rescue!"

To his left, Alice began to chuckle, and blinking, he turned to face her. The Buneary had straightened up, a coiled-up ear twitching as she flashed a borderline evil smirk at him. That was, of course, if he didn't know better.

And in that moment, he realised his mistake.

Eyes widening, Sam began to raise his hands up, "Come on Alice… that just came out, okay?"

"Oh really?" she purred, grin widening. "Sounds like a joke about your so-called heroics. And nearly getting yourself killed for it."

"Improvising!" Sam countered, heart beginning to beat. "I was improvising! Look, I know the promise we made. And it's just one quip! I think we've earned it!"

"Err… promise?" Elliot stuttered, "What promise?"

Alice rolled her eyes, springing forward towards the fire rabbit, and before Sam could leap away, she already had one hand on his chest fluff. "Just a promise not to joke too much about rescues so quickly afterwards. Especially when he deliberately tries to do heroic stunts."

The Scorbunny had to bite down on his tongue at that. Okay, he had to admit it. He did probably subconsciously think the different risky tricks he pulled was pretty cool looking. But it was necessary too! And it was not like they had much choice!

"I will admit they were kinda epic…" he uttered.

"Then it's my turn to keep the promise." Alice chuckled, "It goes both ways. You get to drive me crazy when I go too far with your… ahem… dares. I get to punch you if it happens with you. One to the face, we agreed."

He almost wished they never made that agreement. Then again, it did go both ways. If she had punched someone again, it would be him breathing down her neck, not that he would be punching her. It would be more mundane… annoying as all heck to her, but mundane. And there were times he deserved a punch in the face. Still…

He sharply shook his head, "Okay!" Sam barked in surrender, "But given the circumstances… err…" he clicked his tongue, trying to work out the right words.

"Go on…"

Sam chewed on his lip, "Maybe… punch me in the arm instead? I mean, some of those stunts were kinda… you know… needed?"

The Buneary thought about that for a moment, eyes looking up to the sky. "Hmm… well, the flood was a bit unexpected…"

Sam flashed a weak grin, "Great? So… can we go for that then?"

Alice seemed to think about that for a moment longer, then merely shrugged with a widening smirk.

"Nah. I like my way better."

Eyes widening, Sam tried to pull away. "Cra-!"

He didn't get to finish the curse as Alice's coiled ear flew straight into his face.

 

[StolenMadWolf]

Spoiler: Author's Note

Right, after a long delay. GoB is back again after a delay. I had some big art projects to complete and alot of real life stuff to sort out. But Chapter 2.3 is now complete! Not a massive amount of stuff happening this time, but it does help set the stage a bit for future chapters down the line... and a bit of a small wham for one character. Again, sorry for the wait and I hope you enjoy the new chapter!

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON​

GUARDIANS OF BALANCE​

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER III - THIS IS A LOT TO TAKE IN​

"Oh by Arceus! Thank heavens you are alright!" exclaimed the Maractus, visibly shaking their body side to side as she stepped towards one of the gathered teens with their arms widening. Only for her intended target to immediately shy away and quickly reassure her they were okay. That being said, Sam imagined that it was more because they didn't want to get stung by the spines scattered across her body than anything else.

Not that Sam himself particularly caring at this point, water dripping down his face and soaking into his fur, courtesy of the drenched cold towel he pressed against the bruise left behind from Alice's punch, still throbbing away. Shit… hit harder why not?

Then again, they did agree on it. He would just have to catch her back later.

Just without a punch.

The sun was slowly coming down over Robinswood, coating the town in an orange light. And yet, the town was still abuzz with activity, the chitchat a constant background noise for Sam's ears to pick up. The clang and bang of the shops occasionally broke through the chapter, as items were made and deals with sorted out.

Team Audacity and the rescued teens didn't waste any time getting back home once they checked over any injuries, all of which had thankfully been minor. Now they stood under the massive Guildtree that stood at the centre of the town, its massive girth blocking out a significant portion of the sky and yet, Sam couldn't help but feel the tension flow out of him each time he saw it.

Sam glanced over towards his partner. Alice had her arms crossed with a scowl on her face. She had to have seen the Maractus try and embrace one of the teens at least six times now, and it was clear her patience was beginning to run out.

Resisting the urge to chuckle at the Buneary, Sam merely turned back towards the sentient cactus and with his mouth covered, let out a quiet cough. Only then did she finally turn round to face the Rescuers proper. "Pardon my manners!" she exclaimed, hurrying towards them. "I must offer my most gracious thank you for rescuing my students!"

Flashing a grin, Sam flicked the towel off his head and placed it over his shoulder, struggling not to wince as the bruise continued to throb. "It's our job. Besides, we couldn't leave anyone in danger."

"I'm surprised you didn't realise they had wandered off until the quake hit." Alice noted with a severe lack of humour.

"I was multitasking!" she replied loudly, "I had a lot of stuff to prepare."

Elliot stood further forward, rolling his eyes less in annoyance and more as if he was bored. "Miss Catrina was trying to cook mago cakes."

Catrina laughed, not quite looking back towards the Furfrou, "M-Multitasking Elliot. I was multitasking."

In the corner of his eye, he could tell by the twitching ear that Alice wasn't impressed with that response.

"Anyway, I have already given the guild's share of the reward." Catrina explained, "Here is yours."

Rewards. There was something about it that didn't sit quite right on him. He couldn't shake the feeling that a simple thanks would be enough for him rather than someone giving away their money. Sure, if they were diving into a dungeon to retrieve something when it was just their lives at stake, then he would like a bit of Poke to pocket. But for rescues? Not so much.

Even though many of his fellow guildmates assured him that it was as much a thanks as just the words, and an old tradition. Apparently anyway.

Still left him with a cold pit in his stomach as Catrina handed over a hefty looking pouch over to Alice, the Buneary narrowing her eyes as she handled the weight. As if she could tell how much was in it as if she was a set of scales. Without much of a reaction, she slipped it away into her satchel. Must be the right amount then.

"We're glad to help out." Sam chipped in, "Probably not a good idea to go back there anytime soon, at least until the guild can make sure it's safe."

The cactus opened her mouth to reply, but Elliot beat her to the punch. "Trust us, we have zero plans to go anywhere near that river." He said with an exhausted smile.

Claire was stood next to him with a narrowed set of eyes, a wet towel of her own resting atop her head. "I'm good for not going through earthquake zones for another couple of years."

Teenagers. Sam chuckled mentally as the grass-type's mouth soundlessly open and close, Don't want their teacher or elder to get the last laugh. I don't think they'll end up in any trouble at least.

"Then that is… excellent then!" Catrina celebrated, spinning back towards the rescuers, her face relaxing to show her goofy smile once more. "In the meantime, we shall depart. Thank you once again for your aid rescuers!"

She stepped forward, arms widening as she got ready to drag the rabbits into an embrace. Sam's eyes widened, his foot sliding back as Alice snapped one hand up, "We don't need hugs!" she quickly stressed with a faint quiver.

Luckily, the cactus didn't seem to notice their distress, instead offering a small bow to them before she finally shuffled back towards the gathered teens, quickly requesting them to follow her back to their homes.

Much to their very audible grumbling as they started to scatter before her.

Leaving the rescued to 'rescue' themselves from their elder, Sam and Alice slowly made their way back across the square towards the Guildtree's entrance. "What an idiot."

Sighing, the Scorbunny rolled his eyes towards the sky, prepared for what tirade was about to come forth, "Go on then, what was idiotic about the folks we were helping this time?"

Alice let out a hefty groan as they crossed the central bridge in the town square. "The kids are certainly old enough to be on their own. But that damn cactus should have kept a better eye on them, or at least had some means of knowing where they were going or reaching them. Instead, she spent her time cooking without noticing them going anywhere."

"And she didn't have the means to quickly contact them." Sam replied, "At least she did get in touch with the guild as quickly as she did."

Now the Buneary growled, "She only noticed after the fissure opened up and caused a small earthquake. She could have gone and checked on them at any time. And then she tried to play down her own stupidity!"

Come on Alice. Calm down, or I'll be calling on my half of the promise.

He narrowed one eye as he glanced around them, searching for any sign that someone was listening. But everyone seemed too occupied to look their way. "Might want to be careful with what you say around here." He quietly stressed.

"She's still an idiot. That area was marked as a risky location, why even go there?"

"It was a last-minute update."

"Not good enough! She should have checked the board before leaving! Or had some back up plan!" her hands visibly shuddered as they approached the entrance to the tree. "Instead, she was probably too busy thinking about stuffing herself, damn plant."

"Hey!" came a deeper voice just behind them. "That's a bit shitty."

Sam froze on the spot, recognising the voice immediately. Crap. Seems like the promise is coming through about-

Alice spun round, eyes red, "Excuse me then you green cu… crap."

Now.

Her words trailed off into the curse almost like some kind of broken record player (whatever that was to the Scorbunny's mind.). Rolling his eyes in bemusement, Sam turned to meet the new arrivals.

Standing behind them were three Pokémon, a Bulbasaur at their front, a Noibat and a rather nervous looking Morpeko at his flanks, brandishing green scarves and armbands similar to the blue bands that Sam and Alice wore. Each one embroidered with a white emblem showing a pair of wings, a leaf, and a lightning bolt.

The Bulbasaur dipped his head forward, red eyes narrowing a little bit. "You know I'm part-plant right?"

Alice blinked once, as if realising what kind of mess she had just got herself into, before narrowing her eyes again and crossing her arms. "I wasn't talking about you. I was meaning some idiot."

The reptile flashed a toothy smirk, "And wasn't that what you called me last week?"

"That was because you forgot your pecha berries again." She growled, before shrugging, "Then there was five weeks ago…"

His face suddenly went black, eyes widening with a flicker of fear. The other two Pokémon glanced over at him, a flicker of confusion evident in their eyes.

Welp, better break this up before one of them does anything stupid.

Sam stepped forward, placing one hand down onto Alice's shoulder with a subtle squeeze. "Okay Alice, dial back the grumpy will you?"

Alice visibly flinched, ready to snap something back. But she couldn't even get out the faintest letter as she looked towards Sam's face, the Scorbunny keeping a relaxed, expressing, focusing his gaze on her with a twitch of his ear.

With that look, Alice sighed softly and turned back towards the others, unwrapping her arms as Sam spoke once more. "And to be fair Bruce, you did kinda over rely on some of your moves. She has a point."

That snapped Bruce out of his stupor, his eyes focusing onto the Scorbunny. "Err… yeah, you're both right."

"Told you that before." Alice mused with a thin smirk, "Maybe we can go for the ceasefire?"

Bruce blinked a couple of times, before flashing a similar smirk, "Alright, I can go with that."

"Brilliant!" exclaimed the Noibat, clapping her little hands together. "About time you to started getting along!"

"We are not Nia." Alice and Bruce said together, voices deadpan. Sam couldn't stop the chuckle erupting from his chest, coughing to cover it up. Bruce had never fully liked Alice, and she didn't mince her words with him. But since the trials at Broken Wood, the two had kinda agreed to disagree and tried to work together. Somehow, they kinda got it working.

The Noibat Nia was the complete opposite to Bruce regarding Alice. In fact, it was Nia who had first got Alice roped in with the trials. As for the Morpeko, Dan, well…

He shuffled on the spot, eyes flicking between the rescuers. "Maybe you shouldn't push it too far Nia. They can get kinda… scary when they don't listen."

"You know me buddy!" Nia cheered, hugging the electric-type tight with her wings, the poor guy squirming in her embrace. "Gotta keep trying until we drop right?"

"I-I'd rather not drop at all!"

His grin widening, Bruce turned towards the Scorbunny. "You look like you've busy. What kind of mess did you get into?"

Head throbbing at the words, Sam rubbed his forehead, wincing hard enough for his jaw to hurt. "Fissure opened up near the western river." He explained, "Had a lot of teens to rescue. What about you guys?"

Bruce's smile flickered just a touch. "Team Seekers is still doing a lot of good! We've just… err…" he groaned as he stomped the floor, shaking his head. "Just had to collect something important from one of the smaller dungeons. On the beach?"

"Let me guess." Sam chuckled, "It was a ribbon or berry right?"

"H-Hey!" Bruce bellowed, jaw clenching tight. "We're not getting the same jobs you do! You got the Bronze Rank ahead of us! Once we turn this job in, we'll be onto Normal Rank!"

Another weird thing that had occurred between Team Audacity – Sam and Alice's Team – and Team Seekers. As both a reward and a 'punishment' for their actions, Sam and Alice were inducted two ranks ahead of their fellow recruits. Said actions involving racing after the Swampert known as Greg on an impromptu rescue mission. Greg had broken out of the guild's prison and kidnapped the little kid, Kyle. With the help of Team Spirit – which included Kyle's dad Jack – Sam and Alice were able to rescue him, and take down Greg with a few kicks, ice covered ear punches and naturally, a few fireballs down his mouth.

Sam's fist automatically started to clench as he dove back through the memories. The only reason why Greg was able to get out of the prison in the first place was due to Aidan.

His old partner.

"And it wasn't anything like that either!" Nia added. "Our client wanted to pick up an Evolution Crystal."

Evolution Crystal… what? Sam felt his brow scrunch up, what was that supposed to even be?

"You're kidding me right?" Alice asked, a blank gaze aimed at the bat. "Are you sure you heard them right?"

Releasing her grip from the quivering Morpeko, Nia reached into a satchel clipped onto her side and pulled out a brown-grey rock, or rather, the rocky coating surrounding a brilliantly pink crystal that shone from within. "See?" Nia explained, holding it up for everyone to clearly see.

Alice blinked with a deepening frown, "Someone can't be that dumb to think that the evolution crystals still work?"

"I-Its what they asked for though." Dan quietly whimpered.

Foot tapping away and with the confusion clutching at his chest, Sam slowly lifted his arm up. "Err… amnesia kicking in again. What the heck is an evolution crystal?"

That earned him four different glances, ranging from amusement from Alice to complete bewilderment from Bruce.

"It is in the name Sam." The Buneary said with a smirk.

A brief chill settled over Sam's shoulders, his own turn to stare blankly at her as his mind processed it. A second passed, and the realisation had kicked him hard enough in the gut for Sam to let out a heavy moan. "Holy crap."

"Maybe Sam needs to go back to school again!" Bruce laughed, hard enough that his eyes were squeezed shut.

Dan seemed to shrink, even as he giggled to himself, "L-Like a kid again!"

"Shit! Stop it!" Sam barked, face resting within his palm, as much to hide his smile as much as his embarrassment. Damn it, I can be really thick huh?

"…you little damn wi-agh!"

Sam's heart missed a beat, the smile vanishing immediately as the memory surged back up to the surface. The memory from that night, after Sam and the then-recruits had escaped what was left of the Broken Wood mystery dungeon and the mythical Pokémon Volcanion. Aidan had brought him out of town, revealing himself to have been a smuggler. He claimed that he was providing a service, trying to bring Sam round to help him out. He had been so convincing that he was trying to do some good, that whilst the fire-type wouldn't help with the actual smuggling, he would support him.

Until the Froakie tripped up and revealed he was complicit to murder.

Something so dark and horrific, after nearly getting killed himself, was something the Scorbunny couldn't allow Aidan to get away with.

He could remember it all now, Alice, having followed the pair, had just jumped in and saved his life when the Froakie attacked him with a Water Pulse. But that was when Aidan had took the gloves off. From the moment he first met Aidan, the water-type had been suffering from countless headaches. It had been something that had troubled the Scorbunny, and yet, he didn't realise that they were hiding something else.

The headaches had returned with a vengeance, and finally pushed too far, Aidan transformed – evolved – into Frogadier. If it wasn't for the arrival of the rest of the guild, Aidan would have killed Sam and Alice there and then.

So why was he thinking of Aidan now? The evolution? How did-

The Rattata quivered, "Look, you know how no one's evolving again…"

"Sam?" Alice asked, head drifting in front of him with a set of narrowed eyes. "Snap out of it."

Blinking as the lump formed in his throat, Sam leaned back a touch. "Sorry." He coughed, "I was just thinking… I heard from someone that Pokémon have stopped evolving before. But Aidan evolved right in front of us, didn't he?"

Alice's eyes widened for a couple of seconds, as if the implications had just started to yank her back before they narrowed once more. "Yeah… he did."

Bruce frowned, eyes clouding over. "Wait, he did?"

"Yeah." Sam explained, tapping his foot, "He evolved into Frogadier right in front of us. Those headaches he had? That was, like, a sign he was nearly ready to evolve or something."

Holding up the stone, Nia tilted her head curiously. "Huh, maybe we can all evolve again."

Her eyes began to sparkle, "Oh yeah!" she shouted, her voice quivering to the point that Sam immediately started reaching for his ears to pull them down. "Maybe I can become a Noivern! A dragon bat! That'd be awesome!"

"Volume Nia." Came a new voice.

Approaching from the square was another pair of Pokémon. Team Active. Taking point was a Skiddo that Sam immediately recognised as Edward. Out of the recruits that got through the trials, he was easily the smartest one of the bunch, at least from Sam could see. He recalled Perry once calling the guy a walking encyclopaedia, and he didn't think the bird was wrong.

"And as for evolution, it's kinda yes and no." Edward explained as he approached. "It's not impossible to evolve, just very difficult. Headaches are a pretty good sign that someone is getting close to evolving nowadays in theory."

Pulling up alongside the new grass-type was a purple bug, a Skorupi – Denver. He was the one Sam knew the least about, other than he was a close friend to the Skiddo. He looked up at Edward. "First I've heard of that."

Edward clicked a hoof in response, "Yeah. One of the main theories why evolution is so difficult isn't that Pokémon can't evolve. More like the energy used in evolution isn't getting through enough."

Sam let go of his ears, letting them spring back up with a faint boing. "What, like a bottleneck?"

The goat nodded smoothly, as if savouring the comment. "That would be a good analogy, aye. Those evolution crystals might not be useful now, but at some point down the line, areas which are particularly potent with evolution energy can let some Pokémon evolve."

Nia's wings drooped comically before them. "Aaawwww… I guess I'll have to wait along with everyone else."

With her arms crossed, Alice flashed a smirk, "I wouldn't worry too much on it Nia, besides, you'll probably evolve well before most of these boys will."

Now it was the four guys turn to spin round on a rabbit, with Bruce's mouth dropping open far enough towards the floor that Sam couldn't stop himself from bursting out into laughter. "Well, holy crap!"

"O-Oh shut up!" Bruce blurted out, "I'm just as good as Nia here!"

Sam leaned next to Alice, struggling to cut his laughter short. "Yeah… heck of a thing to say to your partner."

A small smile spreading, Alice leaned in herself, not looking towards him. "Would you like another punch in the face?"

The sharp pulse rushed through his head, and the Scorbunny barely was able to transform the wince into a smile. "No thanks!" he replied, his voice tightening as if wounded.

Nia did a little hop, "Well, I did do a lot of the work last time…"

"Nia…" Bruce groaned.

"E-Err… guys?" Dan started, his paw digits sliding together.

The bat beamed cheekily, lips curling upwards. "And I did get the better score in the dojo…"

"Girl power for you." Alice smirked.

"G-Guys…"

Sam laughed nervously, head dipping down, "Come on Bruce, they're just screwing with you."

"I can agree on that one." Edward admitted.

"Especially with the witch." Denver hissed, clearly flicking his eyes over the Buneary.

Something that she noticed, as the Buneary snapped round towards the bug, paws tightening into fists whilst her coiled ear twitched. "How about you say that to my face!" she barked.

Denver yelped, legs quivering as he scurried backwards a few inches. His heart starting to race, Sam swiftly clamped on hand down onto her shoulder. "Alice, don't let him get to you."

Bruce's head drifted between the purple bug and the brown rabbit, "Yeah… that was a bit too far."

"No shit!" Alice growled, waving her fist at the spooked Denver "I'll give him-"

"STOP FIGHTING!"

The anger and rage was blown away in an instant, Alice ceasing to shake under his hand. Sam's head spun round to find Dan shivering on the spot, a faint flicker of solid red coming from his eyes.

Freezing on the spot, Sam's body tightened up, ready for the Hangry Morpeko to come out. The memory of the crazy form of Dan chowing down on his arm still fresh in his mind.

He released a heavy sigh as Dan shook his head, the rodent's eyes reopening to reveal their normal colour. Nia sank in front of them, hands grasped together in front of her. "D-Dan… sorry. We-"

Dan shook his head again, pointing a finger towards the sky. "Look!"

Frowning, Sam followed the finger towards the orange sky and onwards towards a dark blot. A dark blot that was drifting closer towards them… and increasingly quickly.

The blot split into two, one on top of the other. Then they began to come into focus. Two large, metallic wings beated away as it approached. It wasn't just the wings either, the entire body was covered in dark metal feathers. A Skamory like Emrys? No, it was too big. A Corviknight.

The avian knight slowly drifted downwards into the town square, several of the Pokémon present there or around the stores started to bring their gazes upwards towards the giant bird coming in, carrying a large basket in it's claws.

Sam blinked, mouth dropping at the sheer size of the raven/raptor, "I thought the Corviknight worked at the Post Office up top."

"They do." Edward replied, giving a quick shake of his head as if to make sure he wasn't seeing things. "The Corviknight often come in to carry heavy packages, but why would one be coming down here?"

Alice narrowed her eyes, lips twitching. "Something's wrong."

"More like the circumstances are unusual." Came the much older, more authoritative voice from behind them. The seven Rescuers would turn to find the tall, red and yellow avian standing behind them with his cool blue eyes.

Sam's eyes widened as a good chunk of the groups straightened up around him, "Guildmaster!" they shouted in alarm.

The Blaziken Rex returned the younger Pokémon a small smile, "Relax. This isn't the army."

A few sighs of relief rolled over Sam's shoulders. As far as the rest of the group was concerned, Rex was their boss. The experienced and wise leader of the Robinswood Rescue Guild. But that level of authority didn't seem to bother Sam. He had spoken to Rex enough times over such a short period of time it never really came to him. Not with the amount of support Rex had shown him and Alice in the past.

Alice didn't seem that fazed either, tilting her head at the fire-type. "Guildmaster, what's going on?"

Rex's smile vanished, his eyes drifting across the gathered group, as if trying to work out how best to reply. Sam could almost see the gears turning in his head before he finally spoke, "One of our outposts pulled someone out of the ocean. She was a crewmate on a ship that appears to have been attacked by pirates."

H-Huh? Pirates? What wo- oh. Right, if we had bandits like Greg in an island chain, then pirates totally makes sense. The Scorbunny felt his brow tighten as he reflected on the information, "Are pirate attacks that common?"

"Common enough to be a problem." Rex replied, eyes lifting back up to the incoming arrival. The Corviknight beated it's wings harder as a small cloud began to approach, a pair of Pokémon approaching from the edge of the square. Sam nearly shivered at the sight of the Rapidash Rebecca trotting her way towards the bird. The ever-grouchy nurse had her eyes fixed on the basket, either ready to start shouting as much as she was going to treat anyone.

With a final thud, the basket touched down on the ground, followed shortly after by the Corviknight themselves. Bruce shivered at the sight, "Never liked the sea…" he grumbled, "I thought the pirates were just some kind of joke."

Nia frowned, "I wouldn't write it off – hey! Guildmaster!"

The Noibat stumbled after the Guildmaster, who was already beginning to move towards the basket himself. "Can we have a look?"

Rex let out a small huff, clearly more amused than annoyed, "I appreciate your enthusiasm Nia, but it would be best not to crowd out Rebecca."

Fair enough. Sam figured, It'd be a good idea not to piss off the grumpy horse.

He cast his eyes across the three teams once again, gears seeming to turn once more before his eyes settled onto Sam and Alice. "Team Audacity. If you'd like to come with me?"

The two rabbits shared a glance – trying their best to ignore the looks of the other gathered Rescuers. It wasn't the first time Rex had pulled them to one side, but this was the first time he had did something like that in front of anyone else.

Alice merely shrugged back at Sam, and feeling satisfied, he began to walk after Rex, "Don't worry about it guys." He said with a thumbs up, "We'll be back in a minute."

The two rabbits pulled up alongside the much taller Blaziken as they strode towards the landing site. Sam waited until they were mostly out of earshot before he finally looked up towards the Guildmaster. "So… what's the unofficial story then Rex?" Sam asked, keeping his voice down.

Rex flicked his eyes down towards him, "This crew member was onboard a ship called the Daywalker."

"Daywalker?" Alice asked quietly.

"A forty-metre ship." Rex explained, "Mainly used for transporting cargo… and occasionally prisoners."

The guildmaster let out a heavy sigh, "Including Greg."

Sam nearly stopped in his tracks, if it wasn't for Alice's hand slapping him in the back to keep him marching forward. He felt his fist tighten up immediately, even as his body kept itself moving. "Do you think it was planned?" Sam growled.

"We don't know for sure." Rex admitted, "It could just be coincidence, but that's why I had the survivor brought here."

"Forty metres…" Alice mused, "Sounds pretty big."

"The biggest one yet."

"Then, maybe Aidan got involved?"

Sam shook his head, willing his shaking arm to stop moving. "I doubt it. Aidan threw Greg out to the wolves to cover his own ass."

Rex nodded, "I concur. Besides, smugglers rarely have access to the ships themselves."

They reached the basket just as one of the attendant Pokémon unlatched a door on the side and pulled it open to reveal a bird just that little bit bigger than either rabbit. She were covered in black and white feathers, save for a red band round their neck, as well as a very pointy yet bright orange beak. A Trumbeak. She was laid out on her side, chest softly rising and falling with her eyes closed.

Rex turned towards the Corviknight as Rebecca leaned in closer to have a look at the tropical bird. "So, anything you managed to find out at the outpost Clovis?"

The Corviknight straightened himself up. Sam had to take a moment to steady himself, as the metal raven was even bigger than Rex was, his black and red eyes looking down at the fire-type. "Her name is Kaliani, she's from the Grass Continent." He stated in a rather posh, borderline upper-class tone that seemed strange for such a big Pokémon. "She was working up in the masts when the pirates hit. Tried to warn her crewmates but she was struck by some kind of electric attack."

"Bloody powerful one to boot." Rebecca noted grimly, eyes scanning the bird as her horn softly glowed. "She's got electric burns all across her body."

Clovis tilted his head, "The Pokémon at the outpost caught her mentioning something about a rod."

"Lightning Rod." Rebecca replied, "The attack could have caught her working on it. Metal and water are nasty conductors."

She hissed softly as she glanced back over at the Guildmaster. "You made a good call in bringing her back here. She'll need a lot of work."

"How long until you reckon she is conscious again?" Rex asked, a talon scratching his chin.

"I can't say until she's in the clinic."

"Then do what you need to then."

Nodding, Rebecca leaned back from the basket and barked orders to her assistant, who slowly and carefully began to lift the sleeping bird out. Sam felt his skin clump up as he got a better glimpse at Kaliani, seeing the darkened, singed patches of feathers that covered her body. He recalled his fight with Zeke back in Broken Wood, and the sheer power of electric type moves.

Geez… could my Electro Ball do anything like that done the line? What about the rest of my moves? He felt a shiver run down his spine, I've been lucky so far, but what if the dice rolled that badly, I could have accidently killed someone.

He caught a flash of his fight with the insane Zeke, his Ember slamming into his gut and throwing him across the room-

Sam shook his head, watching the assistant carry her away with Rebecca carefully inspecting her as they went. Clovis turned back towards the Guildmaster, "I best prepare my own report, I'll leave the basket just in case the guild wishes to investigate." He bowed his head, before with a massive whump of his wings began to rise into the air.

"Pirates freeing Greg would be bad enough." Alice noted, "And with a big ship being lost too. But Rex…" she looked up at the Blaziken with narrowed eyes, "I've got a feeling there is more to it than that."

He pulled a sad smile at her. "More for political reasons sadly. You both know of how Robinswood is as much a colony as it is a native town?"

Sam nodded towards him, rubbing the back of his head, "I've tried to read a bit into it. All five continents made an agreement along with the town itself right? And there's like a pseudo… Cold War or something going on between them all right? The Eastern Continents up against the Western ones right?"

"I hope it's not a Cold War." Alice admitted, shivering a touch on the spot before frowning, "Not that I've ever heard of a cold war."

Rex quietly coughed, "Either way, you are correct. When the islands of the Sea of Wonders began to rise out of the ocean, the continents nearly entered a free-for-all in the name of a landgrab. Especially between Air and Sand Continents. When Water Continent tried to put forward a deal for joint exploration, most of the continents laughed it off."

"Most of them?" Sam questioned.

"Water Continent may be neutral, but Air Continent has always had pretty good relations with them, so the two continents happily launched joint expeditions. Once that started making rapid progress, it wasn't long until the other Continents realised that they were missing out and signed in. But that is besides the point."

The Blaziken crossed his arms, "Robinswood in it's current state exists on the whims of the Continents, and whilst places like Air and Water would like nothing more than to keep it in said state, the others will be looking for any opportunity to gain more power or to cut their support."

Sam's frown deepened, "But Grass is an ally to Air right?"

"It is. But Grass may well act against it if it thinks it's own interests are at risk. Air is the strongest Continent, but it's not strong enough to force another to bend a lot of time, never mind the political capital loss of turning on it's ally. And right now, representatives of all five continents are on their way to 'assess' Robinswood."

Sam let out a faint ahh as the whole picture came to the front of his mind. The Continents held the strings, and if there was something they didn't like…

"Then a surge in pirate attacks on top of everything else might not send the best impressions right?"

Rex bowed his head without any air of humour, "Exactly. Which is why we need to get to the bottom of this and keep on top of everything until they arrive and not a second before they leave, otherwise it can affect not just the Guild, but everyone on the islands. So far, only Esper and myself know the full extent of this pirate attack, so I trust you two can stay quiet on this until we complete our initial investigation?"

The two rabbits swiftly nodded back, "Sure thing Rex." Sam said, sharply nodding back at him. "You can count on us."

"Seconded." Alice replied.

Cool blue eyes scanned over the pair, as if searching deeper within them to confirm they had received the message. Sam rested the urge to falter and tear his gaze away. A part of him was terrified that Rex was somehow able to see through his façade. Towards the fact that he was once a human being.

But that wariness faded away as the guildmaster uncrossed his arms. "Excellent. Well, I won't keep you any further. I need to get to work on the endless pile of paperwork that seems to grace my desk as of late."

He turned away, looking back towards the Guildtree. "Take care you two."

As the much taller Pokémon strode away, Sam let himself exhale, his body wavering on the spot.

"Well… shit." Alice grunted, "How did we wander into politics?"

Sam snorted as he turned round, looking back towards their fellow guildmates. "Ask me again when we get through the ribbing we'll receive from them lot. They'll want to know what is happening."

Alice stiffened at the sight, "Damn it… Nia will be begging me right?"

With a smirk, Sam rubbed his hands together. "Definitely."

The seed that had been planted before Rex had first appeared was now beginning to sprout, and his now gently throbbing forehead was only serving to remind him of what had occurred. He leaned in closer, the smirk widening, "Meanwhile… I'm calling dibs on my half of the promise."

The Buneary stopped dead in her tracks, her coiled ear visibly dropping to the side like it had suddenly been paralysed.

It sprung back up with shocking speed, teeth grinding against each other. "Come the fuck on!" she snapped, "Denver started it!"

"Yeah, Denver was a jerk, but we agreed you would try and act a bit nicer to everyone or at least ignore the idiots. And even if he wasn't, you did nearly bite Bruce's head off again." Sam gently elbowed her side, "Come on, you get to punch me when I jump off the deep end, you know what happens when you do the same."

Alice stomped the ground, fists clenched, "Fuck!" she barked, shaking heavily. "Well, damn it. Just… please don't have me do your shift down under the tree again. I swear the smell followed me for half a week…"

Hell, I am so glad that I managed to cop out of that! Makes the punches definitely worth it sometimes. He placed his hands behind his head, savouring the moment way too much. "You'll be glad to know I don't have any shift now. But… hmm… let me think…"

What could I ask of her? Well, I can't ask for something particularly stupid or invasive obviously. Maybe something mundane. Maybe join her on one of her training excursions – aha!

"Tomorrow you go on your early morning training right?" he asked.

Alice's eyes widened in shock, "No, no! Absolutely not!"

"Come on!" Sam protested, "You always go to do that this time of week! It might help us both improve!"

She spun back round on him, raising a finger up to counter him. "Oh, you are not pulling that one on me!"

"Hey." He countered, twitching one of his ears as he adapted a more serious tone, "Compared to under the tree and your punches, this is pretty tame. You earned that much for saving my life."

The Scorbunny shrugged, "Again."

The brown furred Pokémon's ears quivered so fast, Sam was half sure they were about to fly off across the square, but with a final hiss, Alice spun away. "Fu-fine! You win. 5:30am, we get up then."

And hook, line and sinker! Sam mentally cheered as he sharply fist bumped the air, soaking the small victory he had. A tiny one to be sure, he could have got away with more, they did make that promise to deliberately make sure they didn't go off the deep end, but even so… why did Alice resist so much on that?

He didn't get much of a chance to think of that though, as Bruce's voice shattered his thought pattern, "Hey you two! Are you coming or not! I've got my hands on some new gummis to throw in at Spindas! I bet they've got one hell of a kick!"

Letting out a quiet sigh, Alice managed to force out her own smirk, taking a step back and waving her arm forward. "After you, rabbit boy."

The thought finally fading away, Sam struggled to control the laugh as he led the way towards the gathered Rescuers. "As long as we don't get drunk off them, sounds good to me!" he exclaimed.

Alice thumped him in the back as the assembled Pokémon made their way into the tree. "You can't you idiot." She teased him, ears relaxing.

*****

​

You observed the seven young Pokémon enter the tree from atop a stack of small crates in the square, invisible to any that looked your way. It had been a while since you started watching Sam and yet… there was something that you couldn't really shake off. Something tied to your very presence here.

No… it wasn't Sam's current state, he was well enough. It was something else. More about yourself.

A dark cloud materialised alongside you, the surrounding Pokémon not responding to its presence.

And the only entity that sees -and knows - you.

Greetings, Observer. It declared, Do you ever stop watching Sam?

The shadow chuckled as it settled down next to you. Sorry. A stupid question. I only tease. Although… it is perhaps not that stupid a question. There must have been someone else you have watched over the past few weeks? Alice perhaps?

You pondered on that for a moment… it was true that Sam was the primary focus of your efforts. But it hadn't stopped you from observing some of the other Pokémon. Bruce, Edward and Perry came to mind. You couldn't quite explain how you could or why, but you felt like you had to at least get a better lay of the land. But Sam himself… the reasons seemed obvious and yet…

You shivered at the thought. Or at least, a part of you did.

Ahh… I'm beginning to understand. The shadow observed, You may be focusing mainly on Sam here but the truth is, you don't know why don't you?

Shifting position, the shadow drifted to your opposite side, Not to dissimilar to Sam himself. Or any other humans that came to this world. It would not be the first time someone has been an observer of a sort. A Pokémon Spirit from the Air Continent comes to mind, but you... you are something else. Something more central to these events. To those that Sam is tied too. Alice as well. And even the one who lies in the clinic.

The shadow quivered itself, Questions, and yet no answers. It is not so satisfying to be on the receiving end of a grand conspiracy, but I digress. I have a feeling that an opportunity for more answers will be coming soon.

Slowly, it began to rise to the sky. I will be at the ready as always, no matter how far I am. As for yourself Observer, I would keep Sam close. The fate of the world may depend on it.

In an instant, the dark cloud shot up into the sky and out of sight, leaving the gathered Pokémon non-the-wiser.

You slowly rose, and followed the Rescuers inside.

*****

​

The sea of colours was dim in his vision, shifting between the reds, blues, greens and the other dozen or so colours that seemed to fade in and out of existence. It seemed endless, stretching as far as the eye could see in all directions. A soft, rhythmic sound rolled all around, as if trying to make the sensation more peaceful.

He couldn't feel his body. In fact, he felt a strange nothingness where it should have been.

A faint white star flickered in the middle of the sea. Rapidly. Weakly. As if begging to get his attention.

What… what do you want from me? He groaned, Can't you speak up or just… show me something? Please, what am I doing here!

The star faded away, and with it, the colours of the sea.

Why… why am I a Pokémon?

"Sam. Wake up."

The Scorbunny moaned as his eyes flickered open to find the darkened dorm room opened out before him, a furred hand giving him a firm shake. "Come on." Alice told him, "This was your idea after all. Those gummis were definitely not alcoholic."

"Yeah yeah…" Sam mumbled, rubbing his eyes as he pushed himself up right. Their dorm was a fair bit bigger than the barracks room that Sam had crashed in when he first arrived. It had enough room for two free-standing storage spaces, a few cupboards and drawers, as well as a sizeable chest by the entrance. A set of curtains in one of the walls were pulled apart, revealing a grey, poorly lit sky. Clouds were probably not helping matters.

Alice stepped off his bed, a serious expression fitted to her face, "Better leave the jacket here." She said, "Though don't forget to bring the water."

Letting out a chuckle, Sam leaned over and picked up a bottle of water he had left on the bedside drawers. "Don't worry, I'm not that thick."

He let out a sigh though, as he rose to his feet. It had not been the first time he had dreams like that. It was the first thing he could ever truly remember. That star, that voice trying to speak to him. Asking him to help.

To 'save' something. But what, he didn't know. The events of his first few days at Robinswood drove that dream into the back of his mind… until he had the dream of that battle. A battle with a burning castle, death, the battle of the electric feline and the dark simian. The collapse of an entire island into the ocean.

Whilst that dream didn't return, he did have to put up with the colourful sea again, and that star. So close, and yet so far out of reach.

Alice's frown deepened as she took a step forward, "Another dream?" she asked.

A deeper sigh coming out, he didn't tell her the full details, especially the fact that he was a former human and his dreams may well be tied with that. He didn't want to throw that mess at anyone, never mind see what the result was. But Alice wasn't stupid. She was smart enough to know something was up. So he did the next best thing.

"Yeah." He replied, "Still just some weird mess that doesn't make much sense." He thumped the side of his leg, "Really starting to annoy me now."

A half truth. It wasn't perfect, but it would serve Sam's purposes until he could find the right time to explain things. Or rather, work out the best way to do so.

I'm gonna have to admit the fact that I'm a human eventually… but… how? And what if I lose everyone in the process?

He shook his head, brushing the fur at the top of his head back and placing his paws on his hips. "Well, let's not get bogged down with that." He said with the warmest smile he could manage, "What's the plan then? You go for a jog, or head to some secret grove to train?"

The Buneary crossed her arms, her lips twitching upwards a touch. "Nope. We're going to jog up to one of the gyms higher up in the tree."

His head flinched back, "Huh?"

She jabbed a finger upwards, "No one is up there this early. We've got them all to ourselves."

Okay, that kinda makes sense. Why find something out of the way when you can just sneak in somewhere that was already on hand?

Hopping over to the door, Alice didn't even look back, "Time for the warm up."

Sam stepped after her, "Wait, what wa-hey!"

Alice was already hopping away at a near unreal speed, the Scorbunny sprinting after her through the door. The tree itself was near silent and devoid of activity, the corridors were empty and whilst there was enough light creeping in threw the windows to help guide the way, it was a little bit more on the darker end.

Not that the Buneary was holding back from going full throttle. She boinged through the corridors without slowing down, so much that Sam running at full chant was barely enough to keep pace. He panted, his muscles beginning to ache and his lungs starting to burn as he chased her on a path leading up the tree. Geez, I knew Alice was fast, but – holy shit this is something else!

He winced as he skidded across the wooden floor, nearly crying out as he struggled not to bounce of one of the walls. "Alice!" he hissed, struggling to burst back into range of the still mobile rabbit, "How much more of this are we doing!?"

Sam barely caught her smirk as she rounded the next corner, "We're just getting started. Not much further though."

Groaning, the Scorbunny pushed himself faster.

When Alice finally skidded to a halt by a pair of double doors, he was about ready to keel over, managing to catch his hands on his knees as he struggled to draw in breath. "Had enough yet?" Alice asked teasingly.

Without looking up at her, he swallowed a lungful of air and casually waved a weak paw back up at her. "I… I'm… I'm good…"

A satisfied huff rolled past his ears, lazily followed by the sound of the doors creaking open. "Come on then, we better head in."

With a final gulp of air, Sam straightened himself back up and followed her in, doors swinging gently shut behind him.

The gym, as Alice had put it, only had about two thirds of itself in the tree. The rest was actually built onto a covered balcony that hung out of the trunk. Wooden pillars supported the ceiling that was easily over eight metres above his head. It wasn't ideal for every Pokémon out there, but the really big ones were going to have a hard time getting up the tree anyway. At the centre of the room was what almost looked like the markings for some kind of sports court, a large white box outline that stretched for most of the length, split in half in the middle by a single line and a pair of circles.

Well… this is certainly striking. Sam mused.

Alice moved off to one side of the room, where admist what appeared to be training equipment was a large pile of cushions. The Buneary plopped herself onto one of them, "Make the most of the break, he should be here soon."

Sam sighed with relief, "I definitely will." He admitted, walking closer towards the edge of the court markings. "I don't know if that is your idea for a warm up everyday but it's definitely not m-"

Ears stiffening, he spun towards Alice, "Wait a minute. He? You've been training with someone else?"

Alice gazed towards the floor, refusing to even glance at the fire rabbit. "It's not what you think."

Wait… what would I think it would be? Another partner? An old friend? Damn, what would it be? Wait, maybe…

He turned round towards her, rubbing the back of his head. "Look, if I'm… getting in the way of something… like… a date or something… I can slip away now and-"

"Oh, Arceus no!" Alice retched, visibly recoiling on her cushion, "Just… eww, thanks for putting that image into my head."

Sam shuddered, raising his hands up reassuringly, "Okay okay, sorry. Just having a guess, I'm wondering who it'd be."

That was when the doors groaned once more, swinging open to Sam's side. "Apologies for the delay Alice, I just had another round of… oh."

He stiffened immediately. That authoritative voice, only more relaxed than before. It was one he knew all too well. No… you've gotta to be kidding me. Alice's had help from…

Turning on the ball of his foot towards the source, he found standing at the slowly closing doors was a very familiar looking red and yellow avian Pokémon.

Rex's eyes widened as he seemed to process what he was seeing, his beak slightly ajar. "Ah." He finally breathed out, "This is new."

Sam let his mouth drop, "Crap."

 

[StolenMadWolf]

Spoiler: Author's Note

Howdy, sorry again for the delay in getting this chapter out. Alot of stuff has been happening over the last few weeks, both on a personal level and with my current career plans, which are starting to become alot more important in the next few weeks. But GoB is still very much on. I hope this chapter offers something a bit different than normal. Enjoy.

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER IV - A TASTE OF POWER... AND CONFUSION​

The clinic was quiet that morning, given there wasn't that many Pokémon staying inside. Indeed, a cursory look at the medical register would reveal only three Pokémon currently in there. The first was a Sneasel who had got injured on a previous rescue mission, currently resting up before he was released that evening. The second was the most recent arrival to the clinic, a young Trumbeak that got flown in yesterday, still out cold in her bed but in a better state than she had arrived in.

The final patient was behind a locked door, on the orders of doctor Rebecca. The Rapidash may have been the main medical authority for Robinwood, but despite doing so much, she still needed assistants.

The Chingling was one such assistant, hopping up to unlock the door with a swift twist of a key. Gently ringing, the yellow bell wandered on into the room. "Good morning Mr Zeke!" she cried out happily, moving to close the door behind her.

On the other side of the small room, positioned on a clean bed was a green canine, his chest slowly rising and falling. An Electrike.

The Chingling floated up onto the bed. Zeke had been found in Broken Wood by trainee recruits. Before that Mystery Dungeon collapsed anyway.

"Don't mind me Mr Zeke! I just need to make sure that you're still all comfortable here!" she started looking over the electric-type's body, making sure there was no sores or bruises across the body. Then she could start setting up the drinking fluid. The poor Electrike had been unconscious for five weeks, but despite Doctor Rebecca's efforts, she hadn't been able to rouse him. Was the strain of being in a Mystery Dungeon and missing his team for so long a factor?

Well, the Chingling was only a nurse. She was only around to help the good doctor. Finding no problems with Zeke's body. She began to move towards his head, reaching for a clear bottle of water at the side of the bed. "Okay Mr Zeke." She cheerfully said, "Time for your drink!" She placed one hand over his mouth.

In that moment, the Electrike's eyes snapped open.

The Chingling screamed.

---

Sam stood rooted to the ground; his eyes locked onto the guildmaster standing at the entrance to the gym. He could just make out Alice at the edge of his vision, positioned on her large cushion with her arms crossed, and yet, he couldn't make out her expression.

Hell! He cursed internally, Why did it have to be Rex!? How did Alice even get to do training with him! When did it happen!? Crap! What did I stumble into?! I-

"You can calm your foot down Sam." Rex chuckled.

The Scorbunny blinked, registering the bemused smirk forming across the avian Pokémon's face. Then came the platter from below, the rabbit looking down to find his right foot tapping wildly against the floor. "Crap." He managed to utter again, forcing himself to stop and nearly cursing for the third time. "S-Sorry guildmaster! I wasn't doing anything weird, I was just wanting to try some training out and… err…"

The words faded away, only to be replaced with a deeper chuckle from the guildmaster. "Relax Sam. If anything, I'm glad you managed to convince Alice to let you join in."

Scowling, the Buneary spun around on the Blaziken. "You can't be saying you're okay with this! Unc-unbelievable!"

Alice seems just as surprised as I am. Sam thought, before sharply shaking his head. "Okay, b-back up one minute!" he managed to stutter out, "When did my partner end up on some private training with the Guildmaster of all people!?"

Alice's gaze snapped between the two fire types, but the Blaziken merely raised his hand for calm, "I know Alice's guardian well, and given her circumstances, I agreed to help keep up her training regimen. Nothing more, nothing less."

Sam frowned; he knew of Alice's past too. How she had lost her parents, been driven out of her home and rescued by a friend of said parents. In the five weeks he had known Alice, he had never actually met her uncle. Always busy, according to her.

Still, he felt a small warmth in his chest. Alice had been through so much crap throughout her life, it was good to see someone other than her uncle was also watching out for her.

"A-Alright then." Sam finished, shaking himself loose. "So, what kind of training do you do here? It can't be just running around doing push ups right?"

He dreaded the prospect, Alice's 'warm-up' was bad enough. The main event sounded like a living hell.

This time, Alice began to smirk, as if she was just realising there was an opportunity to exploit. "Combat." She said, a little devilish spark in her eye, "Combat training.".

The dread only amplified in Sam's very core, his eyes drifting back towards Rex. "Combat? You're not talking about… sparing right?"

Cracking her paws together, Alice's grin only widened. "Yep."

Sam flicked a digit between them, still not quite able to process the scene in front of him. "And that involves… you two sparring… right?"

"Right." Alice replied pridefully.

Well crap.

He gave the floor a light stamp, so it turned out Alice's training was not only sparring, it was sparring the much larger, much more experienced Rex. What remained of the warmth in his chest was all gone, the prospect of sparring Rex sending a chill running through his spine.

The Buneary rolled her eyes, pushing herself off the cushion. "Don't start freaking out on me. The old man doesn't have us walk away with any broken bones."

Phew… Sam thought, once more trying to shake himself warm again. But then the words finally clicked, the Scorbunny cocking his head at the realisation. "Wait. Old man?"

Sam fought the urge to smile as Alice blinked blankly at his response, the blush swiftly spreading across her cheeks. With a tiny gasp, she tore her gaze aside, trying her best to hide her face from the Scorbunny.

Didn't think Alice could ever blush. Actually, she looks kinda cute…

He immediately slammed the thought down, the cringe burning enough to make Sam flinch. NOPE. NOPE. DO NOT GO THERE.

"Hmm…"

Thankful for the distraction, Sam turned his gaze back towards the guildmaster. The Blaziken had turned away from the two younger Pokémon, his beak resting on his fingers and eyes closed in thought. Sam tried to ponder what gears were turning in his head now.

But Rex didn't hold that pose for that much longer though, opening his eyes and looking across the group again. "How about Sam and myself spar first?"

Sam felt the verbal punch hit him in the gut. Crap.

Alice spun back round again, the blush vanishing in favour of a slack face, "Wait, guildmaster. I don't think that's a good idea…" she questioned, "At least let us spar first so Sam gets an idea of how it works. It's supposed to be our session after all."

"Y-Yeah." Sam managed to stutter out, "I don't want to throw a wrench in your plans."

Rex merely smiled, "It will be fine. Besides, sometimes it's better to simply get stuck in rather than sit back and worry too much over it."

Sam's mouth opened just in time with Alice's, ready to protest, but the Blaziken merely strode past them, headed towards the balcony-side of the gym. "Go ahead Sam, take position on the other side of the battle court. Alice, can you please turn on the safeties?"

The Scorbunny silently mouthed at the air as Rex slipped past, unable to even squeak a word out. He caught Alice shaking her head, muttering something under her breath before hopping off in the direction of one of the pillars. Knowing all too well that the Blaziken's mind was made up, Sam let out a heavy sigh, and made his way to his half of the so-called battle court.

He positioned himself at the centre of the door-side half of the court, watching as Rex stood with his back turned to him, rolling his shoulders and legs as if to lightly warm himself up. The memory rushed back to the surface. He had seen Rex in action once. Against Greg – the first time the former human had come across him.

Sam remembered closing his eyes, ready to accept his death by Hydro Pump. Only for Rex to jump in, cut the attack off, then proceed to easily beat Greg into unconsciousness within a matter of seconds. Hand to hand.

And after seeing the state of the Trumbeak Kaliani, nevermind nearly blowing out Greg's mouth himself… Sam knew how much damage any Pokémon, Rex especially, could do.

And that, secretly, terrified him.

Rex turned towards him, rubbing his hands together. A low hum rose up around the two for a moment, the air even shimmering before the balcony, before that hum faded away. Alice hopped back round the edge of one of the pillars, brushing her hands off. Whatever she had done, the effects were already seeming to fade away.

"Alright Sam." Rex started, dragging one foot back as he settled into a combat stance. "I want you to try and knock me down. As hard as you can with your moves."

Sam blinked, hesitating before sweeping his foot back. "Err… are you sure Rex?"

Rex chuckled in response, "Don't worry Sam. I can take it."

"You might want these Sam." Alice added, lifting out a bag and tossing the contents across the battle court, pebbles, to be precise.

Well, at least using Ember will be easier.

Sam stepped forward, placing his foot over the top of one of the pebbles. He locked his eyes onto Rex, willing the fire in his chest to ignite. Okay, I only need to knock him over. I've probably got a speed edge… so… here goes.

He sprung to one side, rolling to another pebble and booted it towards the Blaziken. The pebble ignited instantly, the fireball easily flying across the room towards its target.

Rex stepped aside, the Ember sailing past and towards the balcony. But to Sam's surprise, the fireball bounced harmlessly of thin air and flopping back to the ground. The Scorbunny could only freeze as a faint blue crackle ran through the air before vanishing out of existence.

"We don't want to accidently burn down the tree now don't we?" Rex asked rhetorically, resettling onto the same spot he was originally standing on. He narrowed his eyes, "Come on. Try and knock me over. One Ember isn't going to cut it."

The fire intensified in his chest, the fear of damaging the gym dissipating as the Scorbunny gritted his teeth. "Alright then, you asked for it."

He booted another Ember away at the Blaziken, bouncing away immediately to another position to fire off another. Then another. Sam focused on spamming out Ember after Ember, hoping his opponent out on sheer speed.

It didn't even faze Rex, the avian stepping, rolling and ducking each of the incoming fireballs. Sam panted, firing off even more Embers, even feinting his kicks from time to time, but nothing was working.

Finally, one Ember shot towards Rex, a grin forming across the Scorbunny's face. He's not got no chance to dodge that!

One clawed hand snapped out, the fireball striking the palm with a brief flash of yellow light. And yet, Rex didn't even flinch, the flame burning in his grasp, flickering as it struggled to push on further.

Sam's grin vanished as the Blaziken pulled his hand back in, still holding the Ember in his hand, icy eyes narrowing as he inspected it.

Then snapping his fingers shut, the Ember sizzled out of existence with a puff of smoke, and when his hand opened up again, a blackened pebble fell to the floor.

"Good effort." Rex admitted, starting to stride towards the Scorbunny with his eyes narrowing further. "But I think you're holding back."

Sam slid one foot back, linking his lips. Okay... Spam didn't work. Gonna need to work a different tactic and-

Rex shot upwards into the air, fire erupting from his feet as he dove down towards him. "So show me your worst!"

Eyes widening, instinct took over, the Quick Attack flinging the Scorbunny forward. As he reappeared, his head snapped round just in time to see Rex's flaming foot slam into the ground with a catastrophic boom, the floor quivering beneath his feet.

"Rex!" Alice barked from the edge of the court, taking a step back from the impact. "This is overkill!"

"Yeah!" Sam snapped, "I thought this was supposed to be a spar!"

"Nonsense!" Rex exclaimed, spinning back towards the Scorbunny. "This is a spar! As we did in the old days! And I'm STILL WAITING!"

He charged towards him again, his fists brightening as he got within range. Adrealine rushing through his body, Sam sprung upwards, trying to throw himself clear of the Blaziken.

A bright white fist slammed into his gut hard, the air rushing out his lungs as he was flung skyward. The room spun around him, only for something else to strike against his back, flooding said lungs back with air as he flew downwards.

The yelp echoed throughout the room, the pain surging through every part of Sam's body as he faceplanted with a crack. The pain vanished, his mind going dark… and then the agony came rushing back, stirring the Scorbunny with a gasp.

"-le! Stop it! This is fucking insane!"

"I need to see what he is capable of."

Sam groaned, fighting the pain rolling through his body. His vision was blurry as still on his knees, he glanced over his shoulder to find the Blaziken slowly approaching him, the balcony somehow at his back again. Alice was off to one side, already taking a step forward towards the guildmaster.

"NO!" Rex barked, with an unparalleled force in his tone that got caused the angry Buneary to recoil backwards. And for the first time since Sam had met her, fear dominated her eyes.

Rex's eyes never left the Scorbunny, eyes so cold that it smothered the fire he had willed up just moments before. "And this is the effort of the amnesiac Pokémon who defeated a bandit." He spat, menacingly stepping closer toward him. "The Pokémon who has come out of nowhere, the one who should be amongst the best, holds back. Perhaps that is why he was beaten so badly."

Growling, Sam's fist slammed into the floor as he pushed himself back up, his entire body still throbbing. "Shut up…" he seethed, turning to face the Blaziken head on. "I tried to fight."

"And yet, you didn't even fight Volcanion." Rex hissed back.

Wait… what?! That guy was just a fucking tank! What the hell was I supposed to do to him!?

"Not only that, you were barely able to save anyone else yourself. You just wondered into the town, figured you could be a Rescuer, and not only struggle to rescue others without any kind of help, you proceed to beat anyone who would otherwise get in your way!"

Every part of Sam's body began to pound, the blood starting to rush through him. "I said shut up!" he bellowed, the fire reigniting with a new found intensity that rose into his head.

"Is that the best you can offer!?" Rex demanded, fire erupting from his wrists as he cracked his fists together. "You always fall short, act irresponsibly and threaten the lives of your comrades, all to inflate your own ego even if it kills someone!"

Unable to control it, the fire flashed through him entirely, Sam's entire body shuddered, his teeth bared as he stomped the ground.

"SHUT. UP!"

His gruttal roar blew through the room like a cannon shell, the Blaziken's eyes widening as the Scorbunny's own flashed a dark red.

Eyes fixed on his target, Sam started to kick a pebble up into the air, but instead of sending it flying as an Ember, he instead started to juggle it between his feet, every kick sending another spark off the fireball… a fireball that was getting bigger.

Across the way, Alice had taken a couple of steps back, her entire body tense with her gaze fixed on her partner. Rex's response would have been even more shocking, his eyes widening with both realisation and clear worry. The wrist flames died down, raising his hands as the Blaziken… started to step back. "Sam…" Rex quietly said, all the seething anger he once had obliterated. "Calm down, stop what you are doing, right now."

Sam shoved the words aside, his mind focused on decimating the target in front of him. The fireball grew ever more massive, faint rings forming in front of the Scorbunny as he began to hop, still bouncing the fireball.

"Sam! You'll hurt yourself! Stop!"

But it was too late, as with one more kick up, Sam leapt after the fireball. With a final, bestial roar, Sam kicked the fireball with a devastating blow. The air igniting into rings as the flaming projectile sailed through the air towards Rex. Eyes widening, Rex dove to the floor with a bang, the Ball screaming past where he once stood towards the open balcony.

The Ball struck the safety field as Sam touched down, the air crackling around it as the fire attack tried to power through it, growing bright and starting to hum louder and louder. The rage vanished from Sam as he watched, his vision started to go dark and legs went wobbly beneath him.

Alice hopped onto the court, her back turned towards the Scorbunny as she looked at the burning projectile. "What the fuck-"

She couldn't finish her sentence, a cold sweat settling onto Sam as he stumbled back, the image before him blurring as Rex grabbed Alice and sprinted towards him, reaching for him.

As he toppled backwards, the last thing he saw was the bright flash of white light as the Ball exploded.

---

"…on Sam. Come on back to us."

A low throb ran through his body as he stirred from the depths of unconsciousness. Dragging him back into the waking world. His ears started to softly ring, and slowly, Sam opened his eyes. The blurry red and brown shapes hanging above him not quite drifting into focus.

"That's it my boy." Rex said, a scaled hand gently tapping the side of the rabbit's face, "Come on back."

Blinking, the shapes started to reform into the familiar forms of a Buneary and a Blaziken.

"W-What happened…" Sam croaked weakly.

Alice let out a visible sigh, her entire body slumping enough that Sam honestly thought she was starting to melt. "Thank Arceus…" she whispered, "Not again."

Rex did not look so relaxed, briefly closing his eyes before holding up a small vial of blue fluid. "Here. Drink this, it will help."

Sam tried to lift his head up, only for what little strength he had on him to crumble away. As his head dipped back down, Alice reached forward, only for Rex to get his hand underneath his head. "I've got him. Here, open up."

Letting his mouth drop open, he allowed the fluid to drain down his throat. Almost immediately, the dull throb began to fade away, the ringing ceased and his limbs began to stiffen. Coughing, Sam slowly lifted up one trembling arm, watched as it steadied as he held it up.

Feeling his strength slowly returning, Sam managed to start lifting himself up, Alice's hand grasping his back. "Easy." she whispered, helping him upright. "You scared the fucking shit out me. You okay?"

Groaning as his body protested, he slumped forward for just a second, the momentum carrying him forward before he managed to lean back. A singular pulse of pain went through his skull, the Scorbunny rubbing his forehead. "I-I'm feeling better now… what the heck was that stuff?"

Rex held up the now empty vial in between his claws. "A max strength Potion." He explained, "Made from Sitrus berries and King's Leaf. Not exactly common."

Alice narrowed her eyes, "Works a treat alright. Especially after that stunt."

"S-Stunt?" Sam questioned, shaking his head as he struggled to drag up any memory, "I don't know what you're talking-"

His heart missed a beat, the Scorbunny leaning forward to try and peer past Alice and Rex. The gym ahead of him was intact, as if no fight had occurred.

Well, apart from the massive black scorch mark that dominated the floor, stretching out towards them, whilst on the other side, it abruptly ended at what had been whatever that safety system was with a clear cut going through the mark. But even then, the wooden floor looked that little bit darker around the scorch mark on that cut off side of it.

"What the hell happened?" Sam managed to gasp.

Alice pressed her lips together, "You did."

Flinching, Sam turned to face the Buneary to question her, but then the memory rushed to the surface. Kicking that ball between his feet, almost on autopilot, before sending the raging attack flying. The explosion… that flash of light.

His gaze drifted back towards the blackened floor. "I… I did that?" he whispered, a slow shiver running through his bones.

Alice's own eyes drifted towards the mark, "Yeah. If it wasn't for Rex getting us out of the way, we'd be toast." She frowned, rubbing one of her shaking ears. "Still… never seen an Ember get that nasty."

"That's because it wasn't an Ember." Rex said quietly, himself inspecting the damage. "That, was Pyro Ball."

One of Sam's ears dipped aside, blankly staring up at the Blaziken. "Pyro Ball?"

"A powerful fire type attack, exclusive to the Pokémon Cinderace." Rex narrowed his eyes, "Until now."

The Buneary froze hard enough that Sam thought she had quite literally frozen on the spot. "Shit, that was Pyro Ball?"

"Indeed, I've only seen it a couple of times, but it's always left a mark." Rex's eyes flitted back to the scorch mark. "As you can see."

"Hold up." Sam cut in, raising a hand up to stop him, "You said only Cinderace know it. That's like, the final evolution Pokémon like me should have right?"

"Indeed."

"So… how the hell did I pull that off?"

On cue, Alice had swivelled on the guildmaster, "I know why." She hissed, stabbing a finger at the guildmaster, "What the fuck were you thinking!? Beating the fucking crap out of him and saying all that shit to his face! What was it even for!?"

The memory of Rex's aggressive attacks and his verbal tirade finally rushed back up to the surface. Sam spun himself round, nearly going dizzy as he glared up at the avian. After every good moment, every moment of trust, the guildmaster had just spun round on him and came down on his head, shattering that in not even a second. "Damn it Rex!" Sam cursed, eyes narrowing and a fist shaking, "I trusted you! And you just-"

One hand rested on each rabbit's shoulder, the Blaziken bowing his head down as he brought himself lower to their level. "I very firmly believe, that you two are excellent Rescuers." He stated, his voice soft and gentle. "You have saved so many lives in such a short period of time and defied the odds again and again. Whilst I do think you are a little bit reckless Sam, and you both have difficulty with emotions. I do believe your hearts are in the right place, and you have potential to be amongst the very best. And sometimes to get there, you have to occasionally get very challenging training assignments to get there. Both physically and mentally."

The anger was slowly starting to fade away from the Scorbunny as the words slowly settled. In the corner of his eye, he could see Alice slowly slump. The sudden change of attitude, the gentle pressure from his hands… the realisation was becoming as bright as day.

"So." Sam started with a click of his tongue, "You didn't mean…"

The corner of Rex's mouth began to twitch upwards. "I believe the word the youngsters use is… trolling."

A potent mixture of emotions boiled inside the Scorbunny at the words. Relief. Anger. Confusion. But unable and unwilling to dwell on it, Sam merely let out a heavy sigh. Rex had his ways at dealing with things. If he was going to throw a curveball at them, he could understand why.

"Geez Rex." Sam breathed out with a hint of frustration, "You really know how to get a rise out of people."

"You can say that again." Alice growled, thumping a fist against the Blaziken's arm with only a little bit of force. "After that, you're lucky Sam didn't blow your head off."

Rex bowed his head down at them, eyes slipping closed. "I know. Sam, Alice. I apologise for pushing you that far. I wanted to see how Sam would fare in a difficult situation, but underestimated how you would react. I'll never push you like that again."

One clawed hand rested against the avian Pokémon's chest. "I'm sorry."

Alice let out a heavy sigh of her own, briefly shaking her head. "I… I understand what you mean."

"Aye." Sam replied, nodding slowly back. "I mean, I hate the way you've done it. But I know you didn't mean to be… well…"

"An asshole?" Rex mused.

Sam pulled a thin smirk, "Language."

The Blaziken stifled a chuckle, "I suppose I've earned that one."

"Yes." Alice stated, "You have."

Sam's eyes drifted towards the scorch mark again, the realisation of what he had exactly done starting to spread through his mind. "Wait a second… maybe I could do that again." He stated, "I mean, just look at that!" he waved a hand over toward the blasted ground. "With Pyro Ball, I could kick some serious ass!"

Rex's eyes immediately went cold again, piercing through Sam like a sword. "No."

Sam recoiled a touch, nearly falling onto his back again. The Guildmaster rested a hand on his shoulder. "Sam, Pyro Ball has been exclusive to Cinderace for a reason. It's not only a powerful move, but draws a lot of energy. Something that a Scorbunny can't handle."

Alice seemed to realise what Rex was saying, crossing her arms at the sight, "Like a pre-evolution using Fire Blast. They'd be lucky to use it at all."

"Exactly." Rex explained, squeezing Sam's shoulder. "You were lucky to even use Pyro Ball when bruised up, and the result was you passing out. If you were in a true life-or-death battle and used Pyro Ball… the stress of the attack could kill you. It will kill you Sam."

K-Kill me? Sam thought, a cold wave churning in his gut.

Rex leaned closer in, narrowing his eyes, "There will be day you can use it safely Sam. But for now, you must – no – I'm ordering you as the Guildmaster to not use Pyro Ball. Do you understand?"

His voice was firm, but not massively to spook him. He didn't want to hear it, but he knew Rex had a point. Sam had felt his strength sap away within moments after he used Pyro Ball. He had got lucky this time. He wouldn't be the next."

Slowly, Sam nodded back at the Blaziken. "Yes sir."

"Good." Rex stated.

Behind the Scorbunny, the doors creaked open, the Guildmaster's head lifting up. "Esper?" he asked, surprised. "What brings you up at this hour?"

Standing at the entrance to the gym was the white and blue form of a Meowstic. Esper.

The deputy guildmaster and Team Spirit leader glanced around the gym, her eyes hovering over the scorch mark on the far side of the room. "I felt the battle whilst studying some files." She replied, raising a brow as she closed the doors behind her. "I was going to pass the files onto you, but it seems like you're quite busy."

"Just another training session." Rex said, rising to his feet. "Though it didn't go quite as planned."

"I can see that." The feline replied, not missing a beat as she approached. Alice rose to her feet and reached down to help Sam up. Legs wobbling, the Scorbunny stumbled upright, struggling to maintain his balance. He couldn't help but wonder how Esper was able to feel the fight. Through her own psychic powers? Or from the sheer power of the exploding Pyro Ball that he was able to release?

The Meowstic's gaze slipped between the two rabbits and the Blaziken, the latter slowly rising to his feet. "Don't worry Esper, they know about the recent events."

With a confirming nod, Esper walked over to the taller Guildmaster, reaching into a satchel at her side and passing over a brown folder to him as she walked past, one eye still flicking over to the scorch mark. "I've been looking through the reports on pirate attacks heading between Robinswood's port and the eastern continents. And I've noticed a pattern compared to those leading westward."

"Like the Daywalker being caught out?" Alice noted with a tilt of her head.

"Very much so." Esper replied as Rex opened up the folder and flicked through the documents inside. "The level of pirate activity is pretty much the same on both sides of the main continent, but the attackers themselves seem different on both sides."

Sam blinked, trying to picture the top-down view of the Sea of Wonders that he'd have seen on maps all the time. "What would you mean? Pirates are pirates right?"

Esper looked over at him, "True. But they aren't one big group, they will have different crews and ships. The ones reported on the east side tend to have larger ships, yet smaller crews."

"Sounds unorthodox." He replied with a frown. "Wouldn't they have a harder time even doing anything?"

"It would be, except it was also reported that the crews were more organised, and had an easier time fighting the defenders. Those on the west side often came on smaller, more crowded ships that tended to throw themselves at the merchants. That would imply-"

"That the pirates in the eastern Sea of Wonders are much more experienced." Rex finished, "And therefore are likely making use of intelligence and recon to pick out their targets."

Esper pulled a small smile, "Almost as if you were psychic yourself Guildmaster."

Rex let out a quiet chuckle, "I've said it a million times Esper, but for your age you continue to astound me."

Hold up. Your age?

He could already see Alice's ear twitch, knowing she also caught the hint.

"Her age?" Alice questioned, hands on her hips "What's that supposed to mean?"

The two guild leaders shared a glance, the Scorbunny tilting his head. "Yeah… we don't mean to pry but… how old are you?"

Rolling her eyes with a hint of annoyance, before almost seeming to visibly relax. There was something strange with how the feline Pokémon suddenly carried herself, with a hand placed on her hip and head tilted to one side. All of a sudden, Esper looked younger in every way. "Well, I'm eighteen, since you asked so nicely."

Sam felt an invisible fist hit him in the gut, feeling the blood rush to his face. All this time, he had assumed that Esper had been in her late twenties at very least, probably more so. Someone he could at least get advice from. And now she revealed this?

The Scorbunny realised he was chewing on his lip, "Well… crap…"

The teenager formed a little cheeky smirk, "Let me guess. You're twenty-five right?"

"You didn't have to read my mind on that." Sam groaned, feeling a headache slowly coming on. He had been getting advice from someone seven years his younger, and it felt like he was getting kicked in the n-

Sam could already see Alice's own teeth flashing, "You know Sam. You've never asked me how old I am."

"Err…" Sam winced, his body already shying away from the Buneary. "You're my age, right? Twenty-five? Twenty-four?"

"No." Alice replied, somehow managing to mix annoyance and amusement into her tone. "I'm not."

"Then… err… how old are you then?"

"Twenty-two. That a problem?"

Sam recoiled, "Hell no! That's fine!"

Alice smirked, "That's what I thought."

"Moving on." Esper said, turning back towards the Guildmaster. "If we are dealing with more experienced units with smaller crews, they likely have a base of operations in the eastern region. And if they are able to obtain intel, they likely knew what was on the Daywalker, if not, knew her size and typical cargo."

Sam clenched his fist into a ball, the thought of a targeted raid twisting his gut into a tight knot. "So it's even more likely they were getting Greg and the others out."

"I wouldn't believe that." Esper replied, "Greg wasn't exactly the most influential bandit. It's likely that cargo would be the prime target."

"Certainly didn't feel that way…" Sam grumbled.

"Did you recover the manifest?" Rex questioned, tearing his gaze from the file.

"I did, but there is nothing outstanding there." Esper confirmed, "Most of the cargo is on route for either Grass or Air, but it's things like food, some medicines and research samples, but nothing that would ring alarm bells."

The Guildmaster's frown deepened, his eyes narrowing. "That's odd. Why target a ship that is otherwise mundane?"

Esper merely shrugged, her own eyes narrowed. "I'm afraid we won't know without an actual pirate to interrogate. Or one of their informants."

"We could have someone else providing info in town?" Alice growled, ear twitching.

The thought of another informant in the town, like those potentially helping out Aidan only tightened the knot further in Sam's gut. But Esper shook her head, "We'll need to dig deeper. There could be a wider network that Aidan's smuggling ring was part of."

"Then do what you can to dig it out Esper." Rex stated, handing over the file back to her. "If there is a more extended crime ring around Robinswood, we need to find it. Especially with the representatives coming in soon."

"I'll get started immedia-"

"There you are!"

The gathered Pokémon spun round to find the familiar form of a Rapidash galloping in, her pink and purple mane fluttering behind her. Esper swiftly placed her hands behind her back, looking older just as quickly as she managed to make herself look younger moments before. Rex straightened up, "Rebecca, I didn't expect you to be up this early. Has Miss Kaliani woken up?"

The Rapidash shook her head, puffing out a visible blow of hot air from her nostrils. "No, but one of my other patients has gone missing! That Electrike!"

That caught the Scorbunny off guard, flinching back. "Zeke?" he questioned, the memory of the crazed electric-type attacking him in Broken Wood fighting to resurface. "He's awake!?"

"That guy?" Alice added, squinting, "I thought he was going to be unconscious for a while yet?"

Rebecca narrowed her eyes, "I came in to find one of my assistants crying in a corner. Said Zeke woke up with a start, snapped at her and ran off."

Narrowing his eyes further, Rex stepped forward past the younger Rescuers and up to the doctor, the doors off to one side, which had now been jammed open. "We'll start the search immediately." He declared, "He can't have got far. Get your supplies ready. Sam and Alice." He turned towards the rabbits, "I want you to wake up Team Seekers and Team Active. I'll rouse some of the other teams, to help search the town and surrounding woods-"

"I don't think there is any need Guildmaster."

Everyone turned towards the Meowstic, her hands still clasped behind her back. "You can sense him Esper?" Rex asked.

"No." Esper replied, nodding towards the door. "He's right there."

Blinking, Sam joined the others in turning towards the door. There, slowly stumbling through the corridor was a familiar looking Electrike. He blankly stared around him with clear, normal eyes. A long ribbon was wrapped round his chest, trailing behind him. Coming into view at the edge of the door frame, the ribbon wrapped round a plant pot, a small tree brushed against the floor as Zeke crept along.

The assembled Pokémon stared at the confused looking electric type as continued wandering through the corridor, many of them with widened eyes.

Finally losing it with the silence, Sam quietly coughed. "Well… that was easy."

 

[StolenMadWolf]

Spoiler: Author's Note

Righto, well, it's time for the biggest Chapter since Chapter 25. This took alot longer than planned, and went so long by word count that I couldn't reasonably squeeze in a reveal at the end. But I think the long length will pay off. I hope you enjoy this chapter, because oh boy, it leaves a few questions and a big wham shot.

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER V - THE TRUTH COMES OUT​

The green canine quietly lifted up the bowl in his mouth, faintly slurping the red liquid inside. He didn't put it down at first, drinking the contents in one draw before placing it down with a clatter.

Zeke sighed, licking his lips with a tired expression. "That… that was good."

They were gathered around the lower level of Rex's office, sat on the sofas or standing around the table in between them. Sam stood with his back to the entrance alongside Alice, whereas Esper stood on the far side of the table. Zeke himself was sat down on one of the sofas, with a scowling Rebecca slipping between the couch and table to inspect her patient. On the other seat was Rex himself, eyes fixed onto the Electrike.

Esper had managed to get Zeke focused enough to become lucid again, after which they swiftly abandoned the gym and moved to Rex's office. Sam couldn't help but quiver as they brought him up, feeling his fists clench. Not from anger, but more out of concern. The last time Sam had saw Zeke, the electric-type had been trying to kill him. Hell, he nearly killed Aidan with one well-placed electric attack. Now here he was, quietly sipping away at this medicine that Rebecca had managed to cook up.

He was half expecting the Pokémon's eyes to go bloodshot and lunge for the equine's throat.

Instead, the once Feral explorer had his head bowed, eyes partly closed and refusing to look anyone's way directly. "M-My team…"

Rex leaned forward, hands grasped together. "I'm sorry Zeke." He replied slowly with a very soft tone. "We only ever found you, and with Broken Wood in the state it is… Oliver and Tracy's chances of survival aren't great, even if we could access the remains of the dungeon."

Zeke shivered, still not quite looking at anyone. "I… I see…"

Rex glanced over at Rebecca, the scowl fading away in favour of a more concerned look. "Just don't push him." She said, her tone gentler than Sam had ever heard before. Not that his experience with her typically grouchy self helped matters.

Nodding back at her, Rex turned his attention back towards the Electrike. "Zeke. I know you still have a lot to process, but I have to ask, is there anything you remember about what happened to you and Team Nitro? Anything could help the Guild now."

Still staring at the floor, Zeke slowly shook his head, watery eyes narrowing. "I… I don't know." He started, "I remember us going onto the dungeon but… I can't remember why."

The canine let out a soft groan, rubbing his forehead. "I keep getting these flashes, but they make no sense. It's all so broken up, I can't make heads or toes of it."

"That sounds like amnesia." Esper noted.

Sam shuffled on the spot, eyes flicking between Zeke and the Meowstic. "Amnesia." He uttered, "Like I've got."

"Similar, you haven't had any flashes yourself?"

He shook his head, a pang of sadness singing in his chest. "No."

A flicker of a frown formed on Esper's face as she gazed at him, a chill forming at the base of his skull. What did that frown mean? He was about to ask, but the psychic type turned back to the Guildmaster. "His memory could return, but I doubt pushing further right now will make much of a difference."

Rex gently nodded back, "Fair enough."

"I do remember… one thing." Zeke continued, "It feels fresher. I was in a fight with someone… they were using fire type moves, hit me a couple of times. I tried to bite them. I-"

Feeling the memory surging back up, Sam sheepishly raised his hand up. "Aaactually, that might have been me."

It was only then did Zeke finally seemed to lift up his head, looking at him from the corner of his eye. Sam lowered the hand to rub the back of his head. "You were trying to kill me." He softly admitted, "Sorry, I had to fight back."

Zeke held the gaze for a moment, not really reacting to Sam's reply. The Scorbunny shuffled on the spot, feeling lightheaded. Nervous at how the Electrike was going to respond. He started to open his mouth to say something again, only for Zeke to lower his head, eyes slipping closed. "Thank you for managing to rescue me."

Sam froze, mouth hanging open. W-Hey! He's alright about it?

Alice's elbow hit him gently in the back, stirring Sam back into action. "Er-yeah. Glad to be of help."

Zeke managed to lift his head up again, looking towards Rex. "Guildmaster." He started, "I'd like to request to go to Broken Wood to search for my team."

The gathered Pokémon shared glances amongst themselves. Alice herself started to open her own mouth, only to slam it shut. As if deciding against what she was going to say.

Rex merely shook his head, "I'm sorry Zeke. But much of Broken Wood is gone. The Dungeons were almost entirely destroyed in an earthquake."

Sam shivered at the words. He was there when it happened. At the top of that final dungeon, ready to fight through a trial to get into the Guild, only for the ground to shatter beneath his feet. He still didn't know how he survived the fall into the depths now.

Straightening up, Zeke focused his gaze firmly onto the Guildmaster. "But sir, if there is any sign-"

"Even if you can get in there Zeke, what's left of Broken Wood is off limits." Rex explained, "A Mythical Pokémon is defending the caverns there, and nearly killed our recruits."

Volcanion. The Pokémon built like a literal steam engine. He just burst out of the ground and started chasing after them, barking some kind of nonsense about how they were committing a transgression or something like that. The sheer power that Pokémon had at its disposal. He could see Alice place a hand on her chest, and Sam shivered again at the sight of the Buneary recalling the memory herself.

They had barely got out of there alive.

"But…"

"Zeke." Alice cut in. Sam turned to look over at his partner, the brown-furred rabbit narrowing her eyes. "You wouldn't want to be down there. Trust me."

The green canine was now looking towards her, as if ready to try and argue against her, but Sam knew Alice's cool look, and that itself was enough to stop the Electrike from pressing the matter further.

"Believe me Zeke, I'd be joining you in searching Broken Wood." Rex said, leaning further over to put himself on the same level as the Electrike. "But until we can be certain that it's safe to enter the region again, I need you to stay within Robinswood. Alright?"

Zeke bowed his head again, gritting his teeth. "…understood."

Sam's heart sank into his gut. I know how bad an idea it is to go back into that hellhole. But still, I don't know if I could sit here if my friends were still stuck in there.

Rex began to open his beak again, only for a squark to ring out behind Sam. "How did any monkey doors op-aha!"

The Scorbunny spun on his heel to find the doors to the office creaking open, a familiar blue-grey bird was trying to squeeze his way through the door. The Corvisquire's red eyes brightened, "Ah, so we have our little protagonists here too! How quaint!

I swear, I like Perry, but he's so… Perry at the best of times that I never get what he means.

"Perry." Esper mused in an almost bored tone, "How do you manage to hide your… substantial ego from me?"

"Magic!" replied with a wink, wincing again as he finally managed to push himself through the gap, the bird crying out as he landed face first onto the floor. "Rex-man, why can't you get a window you can open?"

"Not exactly easy to replace." Rex replied with a bemused smile, "I'm assuming the fact you're stumbling into my office means you have post?"

Picking himself up, Perry brushed one of his wings down. "Not quite that, otherwise I'd lobbed a Bolo Grenade at the window. Anyway!"

As Sam blinked in confusion at the mention of this so-called grenade, Perry crossed his wings, "I was just floating on back in from one of my… longer flights and found that a trio of new ships have arrived at the port. The continental representatives, I believe."

The representatives? When-

"W-What?" Esper uttered, her composure immediately shattering over Sam's shoulder. "I've read the reports myself, they weren't due for another week!"

"Sorry to burst your bubble Espurr." Perry replied, "They either left early or got some damn good weather for coming on in."

Alice turned back towards Rex and Esper, "This wasn't what you were expecting Guildmaster?"

"No." Rex replied, rising to his feet with narrowed eyes, "It wasn't. Whatever the reason, we're already on the backfoot." He turned towards the Team Spirit leader, "Esper, I'll need your help in getting the Guild and the town ready for the representative's arrival. We might only have an hour, if that, to be ready."

Steadying herself, Esper nodded, already beginning to jog around the sofas. "I'm on it."

He turned towards Sam and Alice, "Sam, Alice, go with her. Though if you have any smart items on hand, it might be a good idea to put them on. Zeke, you should go back to the clinic with Rebecca, rest up as much as you can."

Sam sharply nodded, "We'll get it done Rex." He declared, beginning to turn as Zeke slowly climbed down from his own seat.

"I will" Zeke said, "And thank you Guildmaster, for talking through all this with me."

"I'll find the time to talk with you more if you wish Zeke."

"…I'd like that."

Esper was approaching the door, Sam and Alice jogging to join her as Perry stepped aside.

"Esper! Audacity! One more thing!"

The trio glanced back over at the Blaziken as Rebecca carefully led Zeke through the doors. "Let's try and keep this as relaxed and as calm as possible, shall we?"

Not wanting any more Pyro Ball explosions, Sam couldn't help but swallow the chuckle, "We'll do our best Guildmaster."

Alice flashed a cheeky smirk, "I'll make sure he doesn't pull any heroics."

Sam couldn't help flash half a glare at his teammate as they followed Esper out of the office.

As they departed, out of earshot, Perry turned back towards the Guildmaster. "Boy, they do have a whiff of hero material about them, don't they?"

"More than you realise Perry." Rex replied, raising a brow as best he could.

Perry's little cocky smirk vanished from the crow's face, "Wait, what do you need me to do Rex-man?"

Snorting to stop the chuckle, Rex merely shrugged, "You just do you Perry. Just don't start confusing the dignitaries."

Pulling a mock salute, Perry turned to march out of the office… only to bump head first into the doors with an audible clunk. Shaking his head with a yelp, the Corvisquire looked up at the Blaziken. "Err…"

Rolling his eyes and struggling to fight off the smirk, Rex simply took the door handle and swung it open, the winged avian wandering on through. "Grazie."

Watching the bird go, Rex couldn't stop the quiet quip coming out of his mouth. "All in a day's work." He quietly snarked to himself before stepping through and closing the door behind him.

---

The town of Robinswood went from a sleepy little settlement in the morning to a loud, packed one in half an hour. As Pokémon from across the town were roused, they scrambled to prepare for the imminent arrival of the continental representatives.

It was clear to everyone just how important a visit from all five continents was for the entire Sea of Wonders, nevermind Robinswood itself, so all hands were effectively on deck. Larger Pokémon transported the necessary equipment across the town. Smaller ones scurried around them, delivering messages or light packages as quickly as they could. Bipedal Pokémon began to construct a fenced off path through the town, allowing a clear path towards the Guildtree so the representatives were not caught off guard by a settler rushing towards them.

The Guild and the TalonKnight Post Office also made their presence acutely known. Donning their team colours, the Rescuers of the Robinswood Guild assisted in the necessary tasks, but also took up guard positions across the centre of the town, ready to leap to the defence of the town or the incoming visitors. In the air above their heads, Talonflames dove and flew to and from the tree at a disturbingly high speed, whilst lower down, the Corviknights assisted with the construction efforts, slowly bringing crates down into the square for the awaiting workers.

As the work began to finish up, Esper pulled Sam and Alice to one side, telling the two that she had a specific place that she wanted Team Audacity to be based at for the arrivals.

Which certainly didn't do Sam's nerves any favours when it turned out they'd be standing at the entrance to the Guildtree itself, alongside the Diamond Rank Team Spirit and the Rookie Team Seekers and Active.

A low murmur had settled over the crowd as they quietly waited, Sam's mouth dry and he tapped his foot against the ground, both from said nerves and being impatience. He wanted these representatives to just come through, do whatever formalities were needed, and move on through. Standing on a stage to be awarded the Bronze Rank is one thing. Being at the centre of a political play was something else.

Sam really didn't want to let the town down.

"S-Sam?" Dan whispered, quivering on the spot. "C-Can you stop doing that?"

The Scorbunny glanced over at the little electric type, then over at his tapping foot. Geez, I really need to cut that out. It's not doing him any favours.

He willed his foot to stop, "Sorry there Dan. Didn't mean to spook you."

Further along the line, Denver glanced over at Dan, the Skorupi clicking his claws, "Hey. These guys aren't that bad compared to what we've dealt with before. You'll be fine."

"Yup yup!" exclaimed Oscar, the big Birabel from Team Spirit. "They are just everyday Mons like you and me, and you've got us helping out!"

Dan took a shaky breath in, Nia gently resting a paw on his shoulder to ease him. Bruce meanwhile glanced around, his red eyes narrowing, "Hey, where's Jack? Isn't he supposed to be with you guys?"

Jack, the final member of Team Spirit and the one who helped Sam out with finding accommodation. The Butterfree had been nothing but welcoming to the Scorbunny, and by extension, his entire family had been. Heck, short of Alice and Rex, he was probably the Pokémon he trusted the most in the town.

Sam glanced into the crowd, trying to spot the familiar shape of the butterfly. "Yeah… I hope he's not too tied up in stuff."

Oscar crossed his arms, pulling a loose shrug. "Probably making sure his folks are all fine in the crowd, he'll get here."

Alice leaned over towards Sam, the Buneary taking the chance to wrap a blue scarf around her neck before leaving the tree. "Any ideas on how this is going to all go?" She whispered to him, eyes focused on the opening in the trees, where a trail was carved through.

Sam tugged at his red jacket, the one he recovered from Broken Wood along with his goggles. "No idea. I'm not even sure what to expect."

The Buneary let out a little gentle hiss, "Probably a shitshow."

"Probably." Sam admitted, trying to focus on the event ahead.

A minute passed before Rex emerged from the Guildtree, sporting a different armband on each arm. The black armband with the feathered symbol of the Robinswood Guild on one, and that strange red armband with a gold shooting star on the other. His eyes cool and focused on the path ahead. Esper leaned in, whispered something so quiet that Sam barely registered it.

It was something Rex merely nodded in response.

Another minute passed, and finally Jack came fluttering towards them. "Sorry I'm late." He panted, touching down next to Team Audacity. "Had to make sure the fam' was all sorted out."

Sam turned towards the Butterfree with a warm smile, "No worries there Jack. Kyle doing alright?"

Jack's eyes sparkled in response, "Oh! Brilliantly! He's been asking about you a lot too, you'll have to swing by at some point!"

Alice flashed a grin, "Next up, you'll be end up being some kind of uncle."

Sam coughed, struggling to contain the burst of laughter, a burst of pain of rubbing through his ribs. "Well, maybe not like that. But yeah, I'll find some time to say hi."

"That'd be cool!" Jack exclaimed, starting to walk towards the rest of his team, "Just let me know, alright?"

"Will do!"

Literally as soon as Jack took his place, a faint whirling noise penetrated the trees, and the murmur died down entirely. A Guild Team near the trail entrance looked down the path, before backing up as a trio of strange carts rolled into the square. But they weren't being pulled along by Pokémon. Instead, they ran under their own power, propelling themselves of their own accord.

Sam frowned at the weird sight, feeling a faint itch at the back of his mind. They seemed… familiar somehow and yet, he didn't recognise them either.

With a faint zap, the trio of vehicles came to a halt, a set of front hatches opening up to reveal a Pachirisu climbing out of each one and hurrying around the wheels of their respective vehicles, securing them in place.

One of the electric squirrels hurried towards a side door of the front vehicle, grasping the handle and letting it swing open.

Emerging from the inside of the vehicle was a reddish orange, insectoid like Pokémon, his arms ending in long thin blades and his face adorned in a black moustache of sorts. He donned a golden bowtie around his neck, and around one arm was a just as ornate pocket watch. But even those were blotted out by the green sash wrapped round his chest. The Kricketune, one who seemed quite overweight underneath the sash, stepped down from the carriage, not even acknowledging the Pachirisu that opened the door for him. Instead, he inspected his watch and giving a faint tut before turning his attention towards the Guildtree itself.

Rex stepped forward, Esper moving to join him. "Representative Brooks." The Guildmaster said with a bow of his head, "Welcome to Robinswood."

Brooks merely tilted his head back, "Guildmaster Rex." He replied in what Sam had to guess was some kind of upper-class voice. "I appreciate this welcoming committee." The overweight Kricketune scanned the surrounding town with an almost lazy gaze. "It seems at first glance that the investments from the Grass Continent have bolstered this fair little hamlet."

The Blaziken placed his hands behind his back, "They have, and the people made good use of it."

"Hmmhmm…" Brooks noted, patting his belly with a blade. "It shall be interesting to see the full ledger."

Dan shuffled on the spot, "I thought he ran a lot of farms back home." He whispered, "I didn't think he'd come out here…"

Edward flicked his gaze between Brooks and Dan, "I don't know about Grass' politics, but if someone's got enough money on hand, they'd probably invest in this place."

Sam tilted his head as he expected the Bug-type, unsure what to think about the guy. He didn't seem that bad, but at the same time, he couldn't help he was inspecting everything. And not for the sake of regular folks.

Further back as the crowd started to talk amongst themselves again, another carriage opened up, allowing a black and white equine to step on out into the open, her fur covered in white lightning bolts whilst a similar coloured spiky mane ran from head to tail. The Zebstrika also wore a sash of her own, only this time it was coloured grey. But beyond that, she didn't have much else on her.

"I recognise her." Edward said, eyes widening a touch.

Nia glanced up at the goat, "I remember now!" she said, clearly struggling to keep her voice down, "You're from Mist huh?"

"I am." Edward admitted, "That's Triss. She's an ambassador from Noe City."

Sam glanced over at him, "Anything else about her we should know?"

"Not much. She's a little more open about the other continents than most back home but…"

"Guildmaster." Triss simply said as she approached, not even bowing her head in greeting.

In the corner of his eye, he could see Edward visibly wince.

Huh, talk about being cold.

Brooks quivered on the spot, a tut escaping the insect. "Dear lord Mrs Triss! At the very least offer more courtesies to the Guildmaster here!"

Triss merely glared at him, blue eyes stabbing at the bug-type. "We aren't here on a social call, your obsession with money should be evidence alone of that."

"How dare you!" Brooks countered, his moustache quivering almost comically whilst his face got even redder, "I'm a respectable businessmon!"

His heart beating faster, Sam leaned towards Alice, "Looks like it's all about to pop."

The striped horse snorted, "Says the man who wants to change the culture of Mist. Pathe-"

"Triss, perhaps we shouldn't antagonise each other for now. We do have a lot of work to do."

The two representatives fell silent, glancing back and stepping aside to reveal a third Pokémon approaching them from the same carriage Triss had emerged from. She was smaller than her peers, however, this was offset by the massive grey set of jaws that came out of the back of her head. A Mawile. She wore a blue sash, but also wore a white armband with a gold circle and ring as it's symbol.

Okay. Sam admitted with a mental sigh, She at least seems to have her head on the right way round at least.

Triss' features softened as she settled her gaze on the steel-type, "Very well then." She said, turning away from the Grass Continent representative.

Brooks merely turned away from his Mist counterpart, frustrated at.

However, instead of Rex greeting her, Esper moved towards the Mawile, her smile glowing even from where Sam stood. "Mary." Esper said warmly, "It's been too long."

The Mawile – Mary – returned the smile as she walked towards the Meowstic, "Indeed it has Esper."

Sam blinked, looking over at Alice to find her staring at the two Pokémon, an ear visibly dipping to one side, "Esper knows her?" he asked.

It took a moment for Alice to reply, her ear straightening back up, "Seems like it."

The two Pokémon politely shook hands, "You've been keeping well?" Mary asked.

"Busy, but well enough." Esper replied, visibly slumping a touch, "I don't envy you anymore with all that work behind the scenes."

Mary quietly let out a brief giggle, "Don't feel too let down." She reassured her, "Just have a look around, you've done a lot of good here."

Esper gave a youthful wink, "I'd like to think I made an impact."

Huh, so Esper doesn't just know Mary here, but she worked with her? Sam thought, wondering how long they had been known each other.

Rex smiled as he stepped up to join them, "Should I leave you two be?" he said in a teasing tone.

Mary's smile didn't waver as she looked up at the Blaziken, "Don't worry Rex, we'll find time to catch up on our shared Expedition Society days a bit later." She stated as the Blaziken crouched down to shake her hand. "Arthur said you're always welcome to visit us at Lively City if you find the time."

"Well, if I get a holiday slot, I'll let him know." He replied.

Bruce leaned back towards Nia, "You're from Lively City right?"

"Yeah!" Nia replied with a little hop and struggling to quiet herself down, "Those guys and gals at the Expedition Society are awesome. And great fun too!"

Sam barely managed to stifle his laugh, not entirely surprised with the little bat's response. "What makes you say that?"

"Maybe they make a racket at the Society too." Alice quipped with a smirk.

Nia seemed to shrink, blushing in response. "That might be part of it."

"Speaking of which." Esper noted, "How is everyone back home? Especially-"

"Your old friends?" Mary interjected, "Quite well actually. You-know-who is still driving people crazy."

"Of course she is." The Meowstic said with a smirk, rolling her eyes.

Rex rose back to his feet, "Moving back to matters of business, where are the representatives from Air and Sand?"

"My counterpart from Sand is in the back car." Triss explained with narrowed eyes, "As for the representative from Air, he said he was arriving another way."

"To quote my fellow representative." Brooks said in that posh tone, "'I'm taking the high road'."

The Guildmaster stiffened, his eyes drifting up towards the sky, "Naturally."

A shadow flashed across the ground, blanketing everyone for at least half a second. Sam's heart missed a beat, someone gasping to one side as he snapped his eyes up at the sky.

A dark, draconic shape dove towards them, more gasps and cries echoing around him. Gritting his teeth, Sam swiped a pebble from his jacket pocket. He might not have been able to use Pyro Ball, but he could still fire off a good Ember-

Air slammed into his face as the dragon pulled up at the last second, a beat of it's orange-blue wings throwing up a cloud of dust before dropping down with a thud. The dragon brought himself up to his full height, looking slightly slimmer than most members of his species but no less well built underneath his white sash and navy-blue armband.

The Charizard's blue eyes fixed onto the Guildmaster, a puff of smoke erupting from his nostrils as he stared the Blaziken down.

Rex held his ground, fists clenched as he brought his hands to his side.

Blinking his eyes clear, Sam dropped the pebble to the ground, ready to fire off his attack. To his side, Alice was starting to crouch down into her fighting stance, ears coiled in. The other recruits looked less certain, sharing glances between each other. Come on guys! Sam cursed to himself, These guy could be looking for trouble!

The two fire-types held their ground, cold blue eyes locked on each other, sizing their opposing Pokémon up. Sam stiffened, foot on the pebble. Willing that fire up. Come on… don't try it.

The Charizard's eyes narrowed further.

Then the smile crept into existence.

His head immediately snapped back, his hearty laugh striking the Scorbunny hard enough that Sam nearly stumbled back. The aggression and tension now shattered as the Charizard stomped towards the Blaziken laughing, arms open. "Rex!" he declared in a rough, but warm tone, "My old friend!"

Rex broke down laughing himself as he stepped forward, "Calvin!".

The fire in Sam's chest immediately spluttered out as the avian and dragon embraced each other in a big bear hug. A quick glance at his companions showing widening eyes and gaping mouths. Even Alice seemed sideswiped, her coiled ear now completely dropping to one side. I… wasn't expecting that.

The two fire-types pulled each other apart, Calvin's smile utterly welcoming. "How are you even thinking of retiring down the line!" he exclaimed, "You look like you haven't aged a day!"

"And to the looks of it you've somehow got younger Cal." Rex joked.

The Charizard burst into laughter once more, "I suppose I'm still getting a kick out of flying around nowadays." He turned towards the Guildtree, settling his eyes on the assembled teams there. Sam immediately swept the pebble behind him as his fellow guildmates straightened themselves out. Calvin scanned the group with a friendly smirk, "Don't worry kids, I don't bite." He turned towards Rex, "I'm guessing from the power of deduction that these are your newest recruits?"

"Indeed they are." Rex replied with his own relaxed smile, "And already quite experienced for that matter."

"Experienced huh? Gotta be earning it to keep up with these lot." He nodded towards Jack and Oscar, flashing a rudimentary thumbs up at the Butterfree, "Keeping them on their toes little Jack?"

All of Sam's muscles began to relax as the bug-type rubbed the back of his head, his cheeks reddening, "I'm not throwing them that far off the deep end. And come on Cal! I'm not a Caterpie anymore."

"Take it in your stride Jack." Calvin expressed seriously, "You'll still be our little buddy. It doesn't take away how far you've come since then." He turned towards the less experienced teams, and Sam felt a buzz at the back of his skull. "Want to introduce me to these little guys?"

Jack motioned with one hand towards them, "These are Team Active, Seekers and Audacity."

Bruce's eyes seemed to fog over for a moment, before brightening so much Sam half thought they caught fire. "Holy c- Calvin!" he exclaimed, his voice booming as the crowd began to murmur with each other once again. "You're fucking legendary and –" Bruce's eyes widened with a fear, his mouth clamping shut.

Calvin narrowed his eyes, focusing his attention on the Bulbasaur, "What's your name kid?"

The grass-type quivered on the spot, "B-Bruce..."

The Charizard held his gaze.

Only for Calvin to laugh again, "Fucking legendary! That's a new one if I've ever heard it Bruce!"

Bruce almost seemed to collapse, barely holding himself up as he puffed out a breath of relief.

Wait, what's got Bruce so excited in the first place? Sam blinked rapidly, blowing out his cheeks as he raised his hand, "I hate to be that guy, but… are you supposed to be famous or something?"

Bruce's head spun round at the Scorbunny, snarling for a fraction of a second before the realisation settled back in, "Oh shit, memories, right." He nodded towards the Charizard, eyes sparkling. "This is Calvin. A Rescuer from Team ACT."

"Team ACT?" Edward stuttered, taking a step back, "The Gold Rank Team from Air Continent?"

Calvin snorted out another puff of smoke, "Master Rank now, though I suppose our time as the old Gold Rank is kinda remembered the most."

Team ACT? Aidan mentioned them when he first told me about Explorer Teams… Calvin is one of those guys?

"Sorry." Edward replied, bowing his head, "I'm from the far-side of Mist, I'm still running off old info from time to time."

Calvin casually waved a hand aside. "Ah, don't worry about it. So, you all been enjoying your time with the Guild?"

"Oh you can say that for sure!" Bruce beamed, "And we in Team Seekers will be pushing for the Master Rank some day!"

Denver sniggered from just behind Edward, "We're all a few years off that yet."

Geez, does Denver always have to put a downer on things here and there?

Sam leaned over, frowning at the Skorupi. "Hey, you never know. We've got the Bronze Rank. If we can do that, I'm sure we can get to… whatever Master Rank is."

A serious, but warm smile formed on the Charizard's face. "Exactly. You'd be surprised how far you can get in a short period of time." He dipped his head down towards the Scorbunny, and once again feeling on the spot, Sam felt that same buzz run down the back of his neck. "What's your name?"

Holding his nerve better than Bruce did, Sam straightened himself up, "I'm Sam."

"Sam." Calvin mused, letting the word roll forward, "Bronze Rank already huh?"

"Aye, along with my partner, Alice." He tipped his head towards the Buneary, who merely tipped her head forward in acknowledgement in the corner of his vision.

Scanning the pair, the Charizard slowly nodded, "You remind me of a few friends. Keep up the good mindset, alright?"

Unsure of what seemed so familiar to the Charizard, Sam merely nodded back. "Will do."

Nodding once more, Calvin rose up to his feet. "Well then, I'd love to see these guys in action, but I think we've got a lot of work to do."

"Indeed!" Brooks said, stepping up to join the Charizard and Blaziken. "These do represent the next generation after all."

"For once." Triss said, joining them, "We agree."

Rex raised his hands to his side, "I can arrange training sessions if needed, in the meantime, we can get you all settled into the Guildtree. You will have had a long journey."

"That would be ideal." Mary admitted, moving in alongside Esper. "It would allow for some of us to catch up."

Rex nodded, "Then it's settled. If you'd foll-"

"I'm not finished yet."

The six Pokémon before Sam and the teams slowly turned, the Scorbunny leaning aside to try and peer between them.

Standing behind them was the slim, blue Pokémon. They resembled a frog, bipedal in form with a pink tongue wrapped around his neck. A Greninja.

Uncrossing his arms to expose a dark orange sash around his chest, the Greninja started to walk towards. Rex tilted his head, "Are you sure you don't want to wait-"

"I will do my own independent investigation for now." The Greninja declared as he stepped amongst his counterparts. "I'd prefer I was not interrupted in this."

The Greninja's head then turned to look down on Sam, his red eyes locking onto him. A freezing chill rolled over Sam's body, and it took every last bit of Sam's willpower to not shrink away from the glare.

"You are Sam, correct?" he questioned.

Feeling everyone's gaze on him and mentally biting down on his nerves, Sam worked to hold his ground, "Yeah." He said as calmly as he could manage, "I am."

Damon's eyes narrowed, "I am Damon, of the Sand Continent. I believe you know my son."

His son? What does he mean-

The realisation came through as a hard, invisible punch to the gut, and finally Sam's nerve broke. The Scorbunny took an instinctive step back. To his side, Alice's ears coiled in, ready for a fight. Sam slowly raised a hand up, his foot already settling back onto the pebble. "Look… Aidan didn't leave me-"

"I'm not here to challenge you on the matter."

Sam blinked, the words dying at the tip of his tongue. "What?"

Damon kept his eyes on him, but the chill seemed to abate, if barely. "I disowned that deviant long ago. You'd have done me a service."

Dread fluttered away into confusion, and confusion reshaped itself into… something else. Disgust? Aidan may have tried to kill him, but he did confess to not liking his family. Sam saw how badly he took it when Alice had a go at him about it.

Geez… did Damon really end up pushing Aidan away? That'd explain a lot…

"That does sound rather harsh." Triss noted, eyes narrowing.

Nia actually quivered on the spot, and for the first time in a while, she looked genuinely annoyed. "Yeah! Aidan may have tried to hurt us, but he is your family!"

Damon barely reacted, his eyes flicking between the two, "Don't presume you can question matters related to family." He narrowed his gaze on the Zebstrika, "You should know that as much as anyone."

The Zebstrika seemed to withdraw, if only by a little bit as her eyes flicked away, the equine unable to reply. Even Nia seemed cowed by the Greninja, shrinking away. Now it was Dan who was resting a hand on her shoulder.

Hands placed behind his back, Damon slowly paced along the line, inspecting the assembled teams, the Guildtree and the surrounding town. "Appearances can be deceiving. This town might seem peaceful, but recent activities seem to… challenge that."

Esper frowned, "There are always difficulties far from the major cit-"

"Significant criminal activity?" Damon questioned as he paced the line, not even looking Esper's way. "Insignificant trade returns? A Mythical tying down valuable resources?"

His eyes narrowed again, "These aren't signs of a prosperous town."

Sam's fist automatically clenched, Alright… this guy is a proper piece of work.

Rex's own eyes narrowed, "The town itself is doing well despite those challenges, I'm sure if you speak to some of the people in the town-"

"And the signs of a failing Guild." Damon finished, turning towards the Guildmaster.

Tightening his first, Sam resisted the urge to protest. Fucking bastard, does he know what kind of stuff we've been having to deal with?

Calvin reared his head, the Charizard's eyes flashing red. "Come on." He growled, "That's not fair and you know it."

Damon didn't even hesitate to reply, "Is it?" he questioned, "Our countries agreed to maintain a joint presence in the Sea of Wonders. We even allowed some level of autonomy, to ease governance and use of resources. If that trust is strained, and the current status quo leads to disruption and crisis after crisis… we must consider alternatives. Especially in the wake of the disasters back on the home continents."

The Greninja brought himself close to the Blaziken, yet despite being shorter than the avian, the frog's presence seemed enough to make Rex stiffen. Damon leaned forward, red eyes still narrowed, "Whatever the outcome of our investigation, we'll learn many things… Guildmaster."

Sam could only watch as Rex stiffened even more, eyes narrowing as he looked down at the Sand Representative. "…understood." He woodenly stated.

Damon held the gaze for a moment long, before seeming satisfied, he turned away. "I believe we should at least find our accommodations first."

Esper stepped forward, eyes flicking between the Guildmaster and Representative. "If you'd follow me, I'll show you to your rooms."

Slowly, she led the Representatives into the Guildtree, Damon following close behind the Psychic type, followed more distantly by the other Representatives.

All except Calvin, the Charizard looking towards the Blaziken. Sam followed his gaze, where weakly shaking at the avian's sides, was Rex's clenched fists.

Rex…

"Damon is a right piece of work Rex." Calvin said, "Don't let him get to you." he bared his fangs, "That scummy politician..."

Rolling his shoulders, Rex relaxed his hands. "He's not the first I've dealt with. I'll be fine."

He turned towards the Charizard, "Care for a cup of tea?" he asked nonchalantly.

The Charizard flashed a smirk, "Thought you'd never ask." He replied, slowly beginning to walk into the Guildtree, waving a clawed hand at the younger guild members, "Don't worry you lot, we'll catch up another time." He winked down at Bruce, "Looking forward to seeing you in action."

Bruce's eyes sparkled in visible awe, "Y-You got it!"

Chuckling to himself, Calvin disappeared into the tree. Rex bowed down his head, sighed a breath of relief, and focused his attention on the recruits. "Thank you for holding yourselves up as well as you could."

With the representatives gone, the tension in Sam's muscles washed away, and the Scorbunny bared his teeth. That fire reigniting in his chest, "Damon is Aidan's dad!?" he snapped, "I thought Aidan was bad enough! But Damon shouldn't have pushed you around like that!"

Rex sighed, rubbing his forehead. "That is politics for you. And as harsh as he is, Damon does have a point. A lot has happened here, and the continents do have a vested interest in the region."

Alice frowned, "At least Calvin seems reasonable. Same with Mary."

"Yeah!" Bruce exclaimed, "I mean, Calvin's awesome! A Team ACT member on our side helps!"

Edward leaned forward, "That's still three other Representatives to consider."

Rex raised his hands for calm, "I'm sure you all have very strong opinions on this, but it will not help as of now." He motioned towards the rest of the town square, the talk amongst the settlers beginning to rise as they started to get to work with clearing the fences, or moving off to carry on with their own business. "If you would help the other guildmembers and townspeople, they'll appreciate that. If you'd excuse me…"

Rex started making his way into the Guildtree, leaving the assembled guildmembers standing at the foot of the tree.

Sam could only watch him ago, seething underneath his fur. It didn't matter if Damon had a point or not! He shouldn't have just tried to put down the Guildmaster in such a way. He only ceased quaking as Alice put her hand on his shoulder. "He can deal with it. Believe me."

Shakingly, Sam let out a heavy sigh. He couldn't deny she was right.

Oscar rubbed the back of his head, slowly striding off towards the fences, "I better go and… help carry some stuff away."

"We'll go and help you." Edward said, following close behind the Birabel with Denver in tow.

Bruce was next to move, the bulb on his back rustling as he started walking, "Hey, I promised Donal that I'd help move some stuff for him after this so… are you two okay to handle anything else?"

Nia, as if flipping a 180, was now beaming once more. "Me and Dan can handle some stuff easy! Especially with Ali here!"

The frustration in Sam's heart shattered as Alice recoiled in shock, "Wait wait-"

Oh boy, Nia really likes dragging Alice into her little jobs! Sam mentally cheered.

The Noibat was already hovering behind the Buneary, little hands placed on her shoulders. "Please Alice! You're strong! We've got some heavy things to move!"

Alice was blinking away rapidly, eyes foggy, "I… err…"

Smirking, Sam patted the Buneary on the back, "Go on, I'll catch up. Nia's gonna be bothering you all day otherwise."

Sighing, Alice rolled her shoulders, "Alright, fine. What do I need to move?"

Cheering with delight, Nia started pulling Alice off in a random direction, with a very nervous looking Dan following right behind them. Bruce was already moving off in the opposite direction, heading towards the bank, leaving Sam alone. Well, the work will take all their minds off things.

Jack walked over towards him, the Butterfree being the only other one who hadn't departed on some task. "Hey Sam." He started, eyes looking a bit dim, "You sure you're okay? You looked about ready to blow up."

Sam kept his eyes on Alice and the others as they disappeared into the town, before visibly slumping, his legs threatening to buckle as the stress faded off into the ether. "That was just… frustrating. I didn't expect Aidan's family to come here at all, never mind know me by name. Heck!" He bared his teeth, "How did he even know me?!"

The butterfly took to the air to hover in front of Sam. "Could be anything. Maybe Aidan told him, or he got his hands on an after-action report. Could even be just rumours. Stuff like that has happened before."

Feeling an ear dip, Sam looked up towards him. "Rumours? How would that even work?"

"Don't ask me. But I know Calvin would back me up on that."

Oh yeah. What did Calvin call him?

The rabbit let a small smirk escape, "Oh yeah, big Calvin and little Jack right?"

Jack softly groaned, rubbing his antennae in clear discomfort. "Please don't do that." He begged. "I'm not that small now."

"Okay okay." Sam replied, willing his ear back up. "So, how did you and Calvin know each other enough to talk about rumours?"

Waving a hand again, the Butterfree bobbled up and down. "Oh, I was only a Caterpie when I first knew him. Team ACT were Gold Rank… well, Diamond Rank by today's system. They were one of two teams of local heroes. At least to kids like me and the villagers. They had a load of adventures in the Mystery Dungeons, saving Pokémon during the first disasters. Doesn't mean they aren't perfect though."

Tilting his head, Sam twisted his ears to focus on Jack's story. "What do you mean?" he questioned, "Chasing a rumour?"

"A massive one." Jack said softly.

"And… what was that?"

"Chasing after those other heroes." The Butterfree's eyes brightening once more. "They were Team Warden. They were the guys who saved me when I fell in that fissure. Turns out some mean sods really wanted them out of the way."

Jack sighed, looking down, "They took this rather horrible story and tried to name one of Warden's members as a villain. Got the entire town and it's Rescue Teams chasing them out. Including ACT."

A faint chuckle came from the Butterfree. Sam's chest tightened, leaning away from Jack. "What's so funny?"

Stifling the chuckle, Jack shook his head, "Sorry, the gossips claimed that one of Warden's members was human."

Sam's heart stopped in his chest.

"But here's the funny thing, they were right about him being human!"

Human.

Jack knows about humans.

"But he wasn't the nasty human they were talking about! He was all fi…"

Jack's words teetered off as Sam stared at the Butterfree. The Scorbunny's body limp. The Butterfree's eyes widening.

"…I shouldn't have said that…"

Jack's yelp barely registered in Sam's ears as he grabbed hold of his hands and yanked him across the square at a breakneck pace. Unable to run with him, Sam instead marched, his grip nearly iron. "S-Sam! Uncool man! What got into you!?"

"We need to talk." Sam snapped, pulling him in between the buildings and looking for somewhere private. Anywhere. Anything.

Jack's protests barely registered in his ears as the Scorbunny's eyes settled on a small storage shed at the edge of the square. He had poked his head in there little more than an hour ago to find it empty and unlocked. It'd do.

Booting the wooden door open, Sam half dragged, half threw Jack inside before slamming the hatch closed behind him. Jack spun round, "What on earth is up with you!?" Jack rattled on, red eyes darkening.

Sam slammed his back against the door, snapping his hands up defensively, his mind buzzing on overdrive. "Listen Jack, what I'm going to say is going to sound crazy-"

"Crazy?! Talk about dragging me through the town into… whatever the heck this shed is! I mean, was it something I-"

"I'm human Jack!"

The words just flew out of his mouth. Already Sam was regretting it, the Scorbunny's heart pounding against his ribs as Jack seemed to freeze in mid-air, his eyes impossibly wide as if he had just been swatted by a thunderbolt.

They hung there in silence, only the clangs and bangs of the town breaking through the shed's walls. Sam could only stare back at the frozen Butterfree, half expecting Jack to come sweeping down towards him. Or to start screaming.

Unable to take the silence anymore, Sam shook his head and refocused his gaze, "Jack!" he hissed. "Well."

Jack quivered in the air.

"So…"

This is going to be bad…

"Fucking…"

Yeah, I'm screwed…

"COOL!"

The outburst nearly knocked the air out of his lungs, if not Jack diving down to buzz around the Scorbunny. "I can't believe I get to meet another human!"

"J-Jack…" Sam stammered, raising his hands up.

"I mean, I've only met one human. But the stuff these guys get up to! It's awesome!"

"Jack."

"Arceus! I can't wait to tell Belle this! Or Oscar! Or maybe Warden! Tob-

"JACK!"

The Butterfree flinched away, the Scorbunny panting as he motioned downwards with his hands. "Jack… calm down."

Shaking in the air, Jack touched down. "S-Sorry. Got excited. I-It just makes sense. That amnesia of yours? My friend in Warden had the exact same thing. I just didn't think I'd meet another human after so long…"

Whistling a breath out, Sam stepped away from the door, "Y-You know them?"

"Yeah! Like I said, they helped me out a ton of times! Inspired me to become an Explorer myself! Just like Esper and Oscar!"

"Whoa whoa, hold up." Sam cut in, rubbing the back of his head. "Like Esper and Oscar?"

Jack opened up his palms, "Remember Esper's speech? Back when you helped save Kyle? About Spirit and all that?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Esper and Oscar also worked with humans! I was with Warden, Oscar with Team Relic and Esper with Team Auraflame! The humans on those teams inspired us to go further! And their partners! That means… gosh! Alice! Alice would be your partner!"

Agitated, Sam waved his hands down again, "Just… just slow down!" Sam gasped, rubbing his forehead. Hell… this is just too much to take… but… I'm not the only one? I'm not the only human!

"Sorry." Jack said, taking in a deep breath. "Does… does anyone else know?"

Sam shook his head, "No… just you and me."

"Blimey… you managed to stay quiet about it for this long? Most humans I've heard about normally spill the beans quite quick. At least to a few trusted folks."

Sam's gut went cold. "Should… should I tell people?"

Jack raised a hand, on the cusp of answering, only to freeze. "Err…" he let that hand drop. "Well… you know how I said Team Warden got chased?" Jack shivered, itself sending a shiver through Sam just on instinct. "Well, the town was trying to kill them."

Sam's legs weakened beneath him, forcing the Scorbunny to lean back against the door. Kill? The town? Team ACT. Calvin… they tried to kill the human on Team Warden?

"H-Hey!" Jack cried out, hopping towards Sam. "It's alright! Team Warden got proven innocent! And Team ACT never believed the rumours. Even bought them time to get a head start to find the truth. It's just…"

The Butterfree shrugged, "You might want to be careful about who to tell. I'm sure Esper and Oscar would be fine, probably the Guildmaster too! And Alice would be a good bet too."

So… is it save to be out as a human or is it not? Sam questioned to himself. It doesn't matter if those guys are fine but…

Sam slowly shook his head as he stepped away from the door again, "I-I don't know Jack. What would everyone even think?"

"Hey! Look at me!" Jack exclaimed, hands on his hips, "You're still Sam to me. Nothing changed for me here."

Feeling a slight warmth form, Sam still shook his head, "It's not just that Jack… I could be putting others in danger. I mean, what about Alice? She's been through so much… I don't want to throw her into another quagmire because of me."

He barely registered something creak, nor did he catch Jack stiffening in front of him. "S-Sam."

"I mean, I could just be a freak." Sam stressed. "Who'd trust me on this?"

"Sam." Jack cut in. Firmer.

That got his attention. Jack's gaze also grabbed hold of him too.

The Butterfree was staring over his shoulder.

At something behind him.

An iron ball formed in his gut as he turned slowly round towards the door. The door was propped open, a small brown rabbit standing in the doorway.

The whole world came crashing down onto him, weighing down onto his shoulders along with the realisation itself.

He started to reach a hand out towards her, "A-Alice-"

The door slammed shut with a painfully loud bang, the Scorbunny barely flinching before scrambling to throw it back open. "A-Alice! Wait!" Sam shouted, chasing after her and leaving Jack all alone in the shed.

Jack shivered, eyes fixed on where the two rabbits were. "Oh no…"

Sam meanwhile charged after Alice, the Buneary storming off between the buildings. "Alice!" he cried out.

The Buneary didn't turn round, still marching through empty paths through the buildings. Almost as if she was deliberately avoiding the crowds. Not that it was doing anything to dissuade him. "Alice!" he barked, breaking into a sprint. "Alice!".

His fingers just grasped her arm, "Alice just st-"

Alice's fist flew into his face like a brick, the sheer shock enough send Sam staggering back, his vision a blur for a second. It swiftly recovered, and the Scorbunny found himself standing face to face with Alice. Her eyes red.

"You fucking idiot!" she shouted, her palms slamming into his shoulders and knocking him back further. "You think you get away with hiding that!?"

Heart threatening to burst out of his chest, tried to raise his hands defensively. "A-Alice! Look, I didn't know what to think! I didn't know if I was going to get killed, or thrown to the wolves- I didn't know if I was going to put you in d-"

Another pair of fists slammed into his shoulders, and this time, Sam couldn't stop himself. Crying out, he fell onto his back, just about able to stop his head from striking the ground. "You think I'd give a shit about all that!?" Alice barked.

Growling, Sam pushed himself up, "How was I supposed to know with something-"

He froze as he reached one knee, ears twitching as her words finally settled into his mind. "Wait… you don't mind me… being human? Once?"

Snarl widening, Alice turned away from him, her arms crossed tight. "Of course I don't care about that! After everything did you think I'd just throw you out?!"

Feeling part of the world's weight rolling off him, Sam blinked. "Then… why are you so angry?"

He couldn't see her face, but he could see her body clench up. "You didn't tell me."

Sam slowly finished picking himself up, "Look, Alice, I'm sorry I didn't say anything sooner…"

"Doesn't matter." Alice growled back, "You're still being a fucking idiot."

Grinding his teeth, Sam took a step towards her, narrowing his eyes. "Why the hell ar-"

She spun round on him in a second, "BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY FRIEND!"

Sam stumbled back again, feeling the air rush from his lungs. Alice glared at him, the fur under her eyes clearly wet. Blinking, she wiped a paw across them, took a glance at it, and deepened her snarl. "You wouldn't stop nagging me about telling you about my past. The one where I lost my parents… yet you won't do the same about yourself. It's like you don't even trust me."

His strength fading away, Sam gently reached a hand for her, only for the Buneary to flinch away from it.

"Alice…" Sam whispered weakly.

Turning away with her eyes clamped shut, Alice merely shook her head. "Just… leave me alone. Please."

Shoulders tense, Alice slowly walked deeper into the town.

Sam didn't have the heart to follow her, his arm dropping limply down to his side.

He could feel his own eyes getting wet.

God… what have I done?

 

[StolenMadWolf]

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II – DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER VI – DARK HISTORY​

Sam blankly wandered through the town, his feet dragging behind him as he did so. He barely acknowledged the presence of the Pokémon around him, his eyes dipped down towards the floor. In fact, he was completely in a world of his own, trapped in the same thoughts that had punched through him entirely.

The fact there were other humans besides himself.

And Alice.

Oh Alice… I'm so sorry…

He had always had some suspicion that revealing his human nature would potentially be disastrous. He was terrified that everyone around him would turn on him, or at least, something would come crashing down on his head.

But not like this. Not by Alice hearing him say it in private, voicing his own doubts about revealing it to anyone. Including her. And instead of being pushed away because he had been human, he drove her way because he didn't tell her at all.

And the painful thing was, she was one hundred precent right. He had pushed her about opening up. Everything she tried to push him away, he pushed harder back until eventually she opened up.

And Sam immediately backed off from doing the same.

He couldn't stop thinking that conversation over, the same set of words ringing in his ears over and over again.

"BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY FRIEND!!!"

An old, dusty smell drifted up his nostrils, and only then did the Scorbunny finally drag himself out of his shell and looked up. Somehow, he had managed to walk back into the Guildtree and worked his way back up to the upper levels, where he now stood outside the Library. He straightened himself up as he looked through the open entrance way, he had only been there once. Shortly after their return from Broken Wood.

He had tried to learn a bit more about the history of the world… but Aidan then came to find him… to bring Sam into his dark world.

The thought of returning back to the Library had completely evaded his mind.

Alice… Alice needs time. He thought quietly to himself. If things will even remain the same after all this. I suppose…

Then the originator of all this pain rushed back to the surface. Everything Jack was saying. About how he knew a human. How Oscar and Esper had known humans…

Why… why was I brought here? Why were they brought here?

The guilt slowly withdrew to a dark corner, the Scorbunny narrowing his eyes as with renewed purpose, he spun on his heel and marched inside. Time to find some answers.

It didn't take long to find the Oranguru librarian, a friendly Pokémon called Henry, working at the central counter of the guild library. The big orangutan looked up from a brown, canvas tome with a small smile, "Ah, Sam was it? I was wondering when you'd come back in."

"Been busy." Sam replied curtly, reaching up to place his hands on top of a desk that was slightly too high for him. "I need those old books I was reading through before. That Atlas and… whatever the other ones were called."

Henry let out a quiet chuckle, "Wanting to catch up? Luckily, I make a note of all the books that are requested. I can bring them back out for you in just a moment."

Closing the tome, he slowly began to rise to his feet. Remembering Jack's words once more, Sam swiftly reached out, "Wait a second!" he said a little bit too loudly, earning a confused look from the bigger Pokémon.

Wincing at himself, Sam placed his hands back on the table, "Sorry… but do you happen to have records on Explorer and Rescue Teams? Preferably something with references?"

Much to Sam's restrained relief, it turned out Henry did have such records on hand, and the Scorbunny soon found himself back at the original table he had first sat out, with a very familiar stack of books by his side. Alongside the Atlas of the Pokémon World – the one book he even managed to get a small read through – he now had a beefy tome placed alongside it. In small print was the very simple title on the cover: Registers and References for Rescue, Explorer, Adventure and Expedition Teams.

Right. I already know the basics behind the world right now. But if I want to know about other humans, I'm gonna have to dig deeper. What did Jack call that team with his human in it? Team Warden right? And Team ACT was involved. Jack's from Air Continent and he was a Caterpie back then so…

Instead of opening the register, he pushed the Atlas aside and picked out a book from the stack.

Rescue Teams of Air Continent.

Sam let out a heavy sigh as he flicked open up the book, Alright… let's get to work.

---

What came back to her first was the warmth that enveloped her entire body. Soft, gentle. That was what she could describe it as. Then her hearing returned, a very soft hum drifting into her ears before finally, a dull throb that worked its way through her limbs.

That was what finally got Kaliani to wake up.

Her eyes slowly drifted open to find herself inside a small cabin room. Soft yellow lights hung above her head to reveal a cluster of beds that ran alongside the far wall, each one with a bedside table next to them.

She was laid out on her side, one of her wings spread out to stop her resting on top of it. The Trumbeak tried to lift her head up, only for the throb to turn into a sharp pulse that sank through her chest and neck. Groaning, her head plopped back down with a soft thump on the cushion underneath her.

"Huh? You're awake?"

Wincing, Kaliani managed to lever her head round towards the source. Laid down on another bed just across the way from her was a green canine. An Electrike, she recognised.

"Y-Yeah." She weakly uttered, once more trying to lift her head up. "W-Where am – urk!"

She cried out as her head plopped back down again, the electric type dropping down from his bed. "Don't move, I'll help you up."

Clenching her claws together, Kaliani could only wait as the canine leapt up to the side of her bed. He looked about her age, older perhaps as he positioned himself alongside. "It'd be easier if I get you upright. I'll push you up, then you get your wing on me, alright?"

Meekly, Kaliani nodded, immediately regretting it as another pulse ran across her body. Carefully, she felt a bit of pressure against her side as the electric-type carefully rolled her over onto her stomach, and with that, she worked to lift her head up once more. Despite the throb of pain, this time, she managed to finally sit upright, her feet tucked underneath her. "T-Thanks." She managed to reply, "W-Where am I?"

The Electrike sat down next to her, bowing his head down towards her. "You're in Robinswood."

Robinswood… where was that again? Oh, wait.

"The frontier town?" Kaliani asked, voice getting a little bit stronger, if still feeling hoarse. She started to glance around for water, and noticed a bowl had been placed on a small wheeled table at the side of her bed. Seeing the flicker of water, she leaned over and scooped up some water in her beak.

"Yeah." The canine replied, "The big one anyway. Don't ask me how long you've been here, I've only just woke up."

"Woke up?" She asked after she swallowed down the water, feeling it soothe her throat.

"Yeah, I was… out of action for a while."

He tilted his head to one side, thoughtful eyes settling onto her, "So, what's your name?"

"Kaliani." She replied, feeling her body – and voice – strengthen as she shuffled on the spot. "Able seamon. You?"

"Zeke." He said, "Explorer."

Kaliani ruffled her feathers underneath the fluffy quilt she was sat in. "A Guild member?"

Zeke pulled a thin smile, "Pretty much. Not done much for them for a while though."

His smile faded away, his pupils widening as he tore his gaze away.

That was when the memory resurfaced, rushing through her so rapidly – so vividly – that the headache nearly caused her to collapse, a massive weight crashing down onto her head. The storm, the Daywalker, that pir-

"P-Pirates!" she cawed, trying to stumble upright, only to fail as her legs gave out and collapsed under her.

Zeke sprung back up to his feet, eyes widening in shock, "Careful! You were hit with a really powerful Thunderbolt! A-At least that's what the doctor said."

Groaning, the Trumbeak shook her head and managed to push herself up. "Doesn't matter, got to tell someone… my crewmates…"

"The guild already knows!" Zeke countered with a hiss, eyes narrowing at her.

Kaliani froze, the quilt having rolled down her back to expose her sore body, "T-They do?"

Zeke nodded, "From what I heard. And even if they didn't, you're not in any state to move around."

Shakingly, the avian settled back down, using her wings to stop herself from collapsing entirely. She must have said something before she passed out. She had a vague memory at the back of her mind, it was unclear, all foggy, but she could just remember saying something to someone. What exactly? She had no idea, but it must have been about the pirates.

Looking away, the canine sighed, "I know it's hard, not being able to do anything for your team, but the guildmaster here doesn't seem bad. I think he'll find a way to help them."

He shivered, "He's got a better chance with your guys than mine."

Frowning, Kaliani clicked her beak as she looked back over at him. The Explorer's head was bowed downward, his eyes squeezed shut, as if trying to hold back something painful from deeper within him.

"Hey…" she started reaching a wing towards him, "I'm sure this guildmaster can help your friends out. I know my captain would do the same."

"My friends are probably already dead." Zeke quietly replied, eyes still shut.

A pang revelated through her ribs at the rather blunt answer, and the Trumbeak couldn't help but recoil an inch. She signed on as a sailor accepting the possibility of death, but even then, she didn't want to give up hope that her fellow crewmates had survived. For Zeke to write off what she could only guess were his fellow explorers…

Shaking herself loose, she shuffled up next to him. "I don't know what happened to your team." She started, "But if you are sitting here right now, then your team must be alright. I've seen some… lax crews, but your Guild teams don't tend to be lolo. They'll be fine. You'll get to see them again."

She could feel the warmth radiate across from the Electrike as his eyes flicked over towards her. "I appreciate the thought." He said with a small smile, "I'm just being a realist."

Kaliani tilted her head over in the most relaxed fashion she could, even as she felt a weak, aching wave rolled through her neck. She understood what he meant about that. But still, her family back home had instilled in her the will not to give up. It got them through Dark Matter, and some other incident she couldn't quite put her feather on, but it was there.

Softly groaning, the Electrike rubbed his forehead with his paw. "It's just these damn memories. I don't recall anything that happened in the Mystery Dungeon! Just walking in and then…"

He shook his head, which only bolstered her desire to try and work through whatever issues he had. Afterall, if a member of the crew had issues, it was something that needed talking through.

"Well." Kaliani started, "What do you remember then?"

Zeke shook his head again, "You want to hear through that? Theres not much to say."

The Trumbeak merely shrugged, "Hey, it's a starting point. Baby steps."

---

Your gaze flicked between the passed out Scorbunny and the paperwork that were scattered across the table. The fire rabbit's face was pressed into the open page of one such book, its title hidden from view.

After what had happened between him and Alice, you had been compelled to stay closer than ever. Part of you also wanted to go elsewhere. To check over Alice. Or someone else entirely, but in the end, it was that focus on Sam himself that had won out.

You could feel the shadow's presence moments before it arrived. "I sensed the argument when it happened." It explained, settling itself into place next to you. "Not exactly the finest reveal. Then again, most of the humans who have came before Sam here revealed their identity much earlier than he has."

Bewildered, you felt… stiff… as you turned towards the dark shape of the shadow itself, a single blue light poking out from it. "Yes. I was aware of the other humans that have come to this world. One of which rather… too well."

The shadow drifted away from you to have a closer look at the Scorbunny, the former human's chest slowly rising and falling. "No doubt he'll be trying to make sense of who and what he exactly is. And by extension, the other humans of the world. At least, the information that is written knowledge. I only know of a handful of humans, and given what some have experienced… some of that knowledge is best kept hidden from the masses."

You found your gaze settling onto the shadow. Wondering what the future would hold in store for Sam now. What exactly he would have to do. Or what would come next…

"That much is the question." It rested a shadowy hand on the table, the blue light focused on you. "I can tell you this much. Every human that has come to this world before has always faced a great calamity. Sixteen years ago, that was the meteor. Six years ago, Dark Matter. The danger gets greater every time, and I have genuinely no idea what is coming next. But Sam will have to face that threat in time, and I fear if we can't find a way to make amends with Alice… I fear it won't just be them in danger. But the rest of our world too."

Even as the thought emerged, the Shadow was one step ahead of you. "I'm afraid there isn't much we can do with Sam and Alice's partnership. That is something that only they can solve themselves. I hope."

The light brightened, "What we can do is try and work out what this new threat is. If Sam's dreams are any indication, as well the hints we have received so far, there has to be a tie to the Guardians of Balance. You do recall do you? The warriors who once inhabited these islands? The ones who went into the ancient Mystery Dungeon of Broken Wood? Something befell them. And if we can work out what happened to the Guardians, I'm positive we'll find clues that with give us a better picture of what is to come. And potentially help Sam here in the process…"

Something creaked, and the shadow's gaze drifted towards the source in the dark room. "We'll have to continue this discussion at another time. But we must be ready for any information as we come across it. Stay close."

The shadow disappeared from view, and you quietly pulled away just as Jack fluttered by, taking in a pair of deep breaths before hovering next to the sleeping Scorbunny. "H-Hey. Sam." He whispered as he shook his shoulders. "Wake up, com-"

Sam woke with a start, jerking himself upright hard enough for the blurry world to spin. "W-What?" he uttered, whipping his head round in an attempt to wake himself up. "J-Jack? He managed to say. "What… what time is it?"

Jack hovered over to his left-hand side, fiddling with his fingers as he looked over the Scorbunny. "It's nearly midnight! I've been trying to find you for hours! What happened with you and Alice? Are you still…"

His words to teetered off as Sam slid down his seat, eyes squeezed shut, a tightness in his chest forming. The pain of that argument still too raw to even speak about.

"Oh… oh…" Jack started, "Look. I don't know what happened between you two, but it's-"

"Not as bad as it looks." Sam growled, opening his eyes, "I might as well have burnt down every bridge imaginable." He thumped his leg hard enough for the chair to quiver, "You didn't see the look on her face Jack… how hurt she was that I kept quiet about what I am. That I was still wanting to keep quiet about it. And the truth is she's right. I should have told her sooner." His hand shivered in place, digits clenching into a tightening fist. "I shouldn't have hesitated in telling her."

"Hey, hey." Jack started, touching down on the table and resting a hand on Sam's shoulder. "Just give her some time. Let her process it. I'm sure she'll come around."

Sam shook his hand loose, uncomfortable with the contact. Yeah… I'm not so sure about that.

Jack's gaze drifted towards the open books and paperwork scattered across the table. "What have you been looking at then – wait a second… isn't that…"

He leaned forward, eying the drawing of what appeared to be a fireball falling through the sky, plummeting to the earth.

"…the meteor? Why are you looking at that?"

Rising to his feet, Sam narrowed his eyes at the image. "I've been trying to work out what the other humans have done here." He replied, "I mean, your guys? Team Warden?" He tapped the image of the meteor in the book. "They not only got chased across the entire Air Continent, they had to fight a literal sky dragon god to get him to blow up that meteor! To save the entire damn continent from becoming a molten pancake!"

His voice began to rise, the fire beginning to ignite in his chest. Jack took a step back, shivering on the spot. "L-Look." He started, "You might be reading-"

"And that was on top of fighting legendries every other day." He leaned forward, shoving the book aside and shuffling through the other papers. "What else then? Lets see here, ha!"

He pulled out another book, opened up to show a drawing of what looked like an intricate mechanical gear. "Team Relic? They had to fight more legendries, and deal with stuff like time stopping. Fucking time! And that's before getting dealing with bad futures and nightmares? Nearly dying dozens of times too!"

"S-Sam…" Jack tried to interrupt.

"Team Heart!" Sam exclaimed as he snatched a single sheet of paper, "Took some time to work out they had a human too. This Bittercold. Wasn't a Pokémon. Ran on negative emotions and literally smothered Pokémon to death by just being near them! And let's not even get started with Auraflame and Dark Matter…"

Sam jumped as Jack's foot slammed into the tabletop, the Butterfree glaring at the Scorbunny with his darkened red eyes. "You need to calm down." He stressed, "Reading through all that stuff now isn't going to do you any favours."

The Scorbunny bared his teeth, thumping the table with his fist. "Well, what do you expect me to do?" he snapped, "I've found myself stuck in this world with absolutely no idea how or why I'm here!"

That managed to silence the bug-type again, Sam's skin boiling as he struggled to restrain his temper. "All I know is I keep hearing this damn voice in my dreams telling me I have to 'save' something. I don't have a clue about what I have to 'save'! For all I know I could be fighting an alien invasion! Or stopping the sun from blowing up!"

His body shaking, Sam's legs finally lost their strength and he slumped back down in his seat, puffing out a painfully deep sigh. "I just… I just want to know what I'm here for… that way I know what I'm dealing with. And hell, even if I did know, what could I do? I barely stopped Greg with help. I couldn't even do anything against Volcanion!" He let out a heavy sigh. "It's just… I might have the entire world resting on my shoulders and I can barely do anything. I can't afford to make mistakes…"

Sam squeezed his eyes shut, trying to slow his breathing and still his heart. He had spent hours pouring through what information he could find, trying to work out what the humans before him had done. But the deeper he dug in, the greater his despair had become. Chances are he wasn't just here for the heck of it. That 'saving' the voice in his dreams was talking about? What if it was the whole world?

How am I going to do that? And what am I saving it from? I've struggled so far… how can I take on the likes of what the other teams have done?

He barely noticed Jack's hand resting back onto his shoulder, and this time, he couldn't bring himself to shake it loose. "Sam… I can't say much on the other teams, but Team Warden started off the same way as you did. They were barely able to fight off another team themselves, and only just survived against legendries early on too. It wasn't all just plain sailing for them."

Sam opened his eyes to look over at Jack, the Butterfree keeping his eyes onto him. "I know you'll get stronger, just like they did." He continued, "And we can help you get there. I know we can. But if you let this get to your head, it's only going to make you feel worse man."

"Then what should I even do?" Sam questioned, weakly looking over towards the Butterfree. "With something like that or worse that could be down the road?"

Jack narrowed his eyes, "Don't think about it." he said firmly, "Focus on what you can do now. Not for something in the future you don't know about. Sorting things out with Alice would be a start."

Softly sighing, Sam thumped the table. It was difficult for sure. He had spent so much time researching and working out the activities of humans like himself, it had drawn his attention away from everything else that happened. Alice in particular had just been too… painful.

But… I've just traded one kind of pain for another. Shit, Jack's right. I can't keep cooped up like this.

Pushing himself away from the table, he finally tore his eyes away from the paperwork. "Yeah… you're right. I need to focus on what I can do now."

"Exactly!" Jack exclaimed, hovering back before him again. "I mean, we can start off with Alice. Then… well, we can talk about who else to tell this about. Like I said, I think the rest of Team Spirit will be fine to tell, and Rex too. Or hell, you can just tell me more about this 'Voice' you were talking about."

I suppose that makes sense. To be honest, I wonder if Esper was able to sense anything about me being human. I mean, she is a psychic type. And who knows? Maybe the other humans had voices in their heads too.

Dropping down the floor, Sam adjusted his jacket, "Right, let's focus on Alice. Then we can-"

The boom pounded at his ears hard enough for him to jump up with a jerk, the floor quivering beneath his feet. Over his shoulder, paper rustled.

The heck!?

He spun around towards the Butterfree, the bug-type's eyes glowing brightly. He had noticed the boom too.

"Jack, what the hell was that?" Sam asked, feeling the adrenaline slowly flow in at the building tension.

"Nothing good." Jack stated, his tone deepening. "Come on, sounded like it came from below."

The two abandoned the desk and shot through the library, bypassing the rather confused looking Henry and the few other Pokémon inside through into the corridors. As they rushed towards the elevators, they came across one of the windows overlooking the town. Instinct took over, and Sam scurried over, trying to peer down at the scene below.

He froze immediately.

"Sam?" Jack questioned firmly, "What is it?"

Sam had a good view of the town square from above, even in the dark. But he could make out the gaping hole in the side of one of the more far-flung buildings, the orange flicker of flames erupting from it. A building he had only been in once before. When he had first arrived.

And the same place where two key individuals were being kept in.

"It's the clinic…" Sam uttered, "Something's happened at the clinic!"

---

Zeke sat on the other end of the bed, his eyes closed and head bowed. "I remember… walking down the steps towards one of the Dungeon floors… I'm not sure which one… I was in the middle of the group. Rachel was taking point…"

Kaliani sat opposite him, having recovered enough strength to get herself fully sat upright. They had been talking for the better part of two hours. Kali had learnt about some visualisation techniques that she had learnt from a psychic-type back home, so she figured it made sense to try and put them to work.

And so far, progress has been slow. But steady.

"What was at the bottom of the stairs?" she quietly asked, keeping her gaze focused on him.

The Electrike's brow tightened. "I remember… a cold room. The walls were neat stone bricks… and there was only one tunnel out. We… we started walking through it."

"And what was that corridor like?"

"It was… it was…"

Kaliani tilted her head as she watched Zeke shuffle on the spot, the canine grimacing. "Take your time." She quietly stressed.

She watched as Zeke's lips twitched, as if he was trying to focus his attention on some particular detail. Finally, with a snap, he opened his eyes and shook his head madly from side to side. "It's no use." He growled, "I can't remember what's at the end of that tunnel! I know we made our way down a few floors before the dungeon broke up and we're all fine but…"

She leaned forward, pushing a wing out towards the Electrike. "Just take a deep breath." She said, "Have some water, we'll have another go in a minute."

A faint ring echoed through the room, and Kaliani's eyes drifted towards the sight of the Chingling making her way through the door. Her eyes widened as they settled on the two patients, her little hands lifting up. "H-Hello there! I didn't know you were awake! I can come back and sort things out later if you want-"

"A'ole." Kaliani replied, "It's fine. We're just trying something."

Beaming just a little bit, the clinic assistant hopped across the room, ringing all the way. With that noise clinging away in her head, Kaliani turned her attention back towards the explorer. He had lapped up a little bit of water by his side. "Are you okay?" she asked.

Sighing, he shook his head. "Not really. I just don't know what the hell happened to cause my memories to go like this…"

He thumped the bed with his paw, "Damn it, why is it so hard to remember!"

Zeke hissed as he breathed in. Any other person might have shivered from nerves, but Kaliani forced down the shiver away, and instead, she shuffled forward again, reaching out with her wing and letting it connect with his shoulder.

The Electrike didn't pull away from the contact.

"Then forget about the cause." Kaliani replied, "Maybe focus on what you can remember. Look for details in those."

Zeke opened his eyes, his gaze settling on her. "When did you learn to be so patient?" he asked.

"Dealing with greenmons on the ships." She explained without hesitating, "Plus dealing with far too many younger siblings and cousins."

Zeke let out a warm chuckle, suddenly looked that bit more relaxed. "Well, it's been good practice. Means you can deal with me."

Kaliani could feel the warmth rush to her cheeks, the Trumbeak turning to look away from him. "Thanks… lets… err… focus on those memories again. You ready?"

Sighing softly, if a little more gently, Zeke leaned back and let his eyes drift closed. "Ready."

Letting out a faint whistle, she turned back to focus her attention on him. "Okay. Let's start off with the corridor. What does it look like?"

"It's made of grey brick." He started, letting out a slow breath. "Like the rest of the rooms. The floor is smoother… dusty but smooth. Like it's been filed flat."

"How do you feel?" Kaliani asked, "About the corridor?"

"Nervous… dizzy… the tunnel ahead is dark… darker than any other part of the dungeon."

"Do you normally carry something that can light up dark places?"

"No… yes…" Zeke replied with a little zip in his voice. "Adam would… yes. He pulled out a Light Wand. I can see further ahead."

"And what can you see there?" she asked, feeling a faint hit of euphoria at the new progress.

"More grey brick for the walls… we're moving down it… and it seems to be going on forever. We've not found another room yet."

"And any changes?"

"No… but it is getting… colder… and quieter too… I can't hear my footsteps anymo-wait…"

The Electrike stiffened, and instinct took over as the Trumbeak leaned forward, placing a feather onto his front foot. "W-What is it?"

Zeke shivered, "There's… a light… a green light coming from down the tunnel… it's faint but… wait… it's starting to get brighter…"

Kaliani's mind was starting to throw out dozens of ideas of what could be happening. At first anyway. Now, there was an acute feeling of something else.

A flicker of fear?

I don't know much about Dungeons… but I'm sure green lights in the dark isn't normal.

She brushed her wing along his shoulder. "A-Alright, let's take a break Zeke…"

"It's so…" Zeke was whispering, eyeballs visibly moving under his lids, "Bright… I feel… drawn to it.

"Come on Zeke…"

"Like it's… calling me. I can just reach out and touch it…"

Her heart racing, Kaliani shook him carefully by the shoulder. "Zeke-"

The Chingling hopped towards them, a big smile on her face. "I've got some extra-"

Zeke's eyes snapped open, glowing a dark, malicious emerald green.

The next thing Kaliani saw was the flash of teeth.

The next thing she heard was the scream of the Chingling.

And Kaliani screamed herself as the blood splattered across her face.

 

[StolenMadWolf]

Spoiler: Author's Note 1

And after a very long delay, the latest chapter of GoB is finally uploaded. I do apolgise for the delay, as I've had a very busy few weeks between going through a very... err... obsessive art phase, trying to look after a new kitten who is very hyper, work, and trying to prepare a novel for submissions again. All of which took alot of time of working on this chapter. But stuff is happening, both for GoB... and for something else you'll find at the end. Enjoy.

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER VII - DEATH, AND A MISSION​

Sam and Jack didn't waste a second, rushing for the elevators. "Don't wait for me Jack!" Sam shouted, "I'll catch up!"

"On it!" The Butterfree answered, diving down over the edge and towards the lobby. Unable to follow, Sam resorted to pacing in the elevator car as it descended. His mind raced, what the fucking hell happened in the clinic? Was there an attack? Did something break out? Was everyone in their alright? What if this was launched by pirates or something worse!?

He forced himself to stay calm, rubbing his feet into the wooden deck. There was no point in speculating. What was happening down there was happening right now. Trying to work out all the details could wait.

Before the elevator had even touched the ground floor, Sam bounced out of the elevator and hit the ground running, Jack was already gone, but there was already another dozen members of the Guild sprinting for the entrance from the rampways. The entire town had just gone on alert.

As Sam rushed to join them, Alice emerged from one of those rampways, her eyes locking onto the Scorbunny. "I heard something go off!" she snapped, all evidence of their argument seemingly wiped out in the heat of the moment. "What's going on!?"

He barely slowed, "The clinic's exploded!" he barked, noticing Alice hopping alongside to join him. "Don't know how or why, but we need to help!"

"Shit!" Alice cursed, actually hopping hard enough for her to overtake him and forcing the Scorbunny to lengthen his stride.

It took a matter of seconds for them to race across the town centre and towards the clinic. The wooden cabin that he first awakened in after being rescued himself was now ablaze. Orange flames flashing through the windows as smoke poured out. Dozens of Pokémon surrounded the clinic, many of them regular townsfolk watching in shock and horror at the scene before them. Water-type Pokémon, some of them Sam recognised from the Guild, were already blasting away at the flames with their attacks. A Blastoise led the firefighting effort as he fired his cannons directly into the burning building.

Out of the flames, a red-black furred Pokémon burst out into the opening, an Arcanine of some kind. She jogged away from the burning building, a coughing Sneasel thrown over her back, "There's no one else in there!" she bellowed, "All clear!"

Sam slowed, watching as the water-type attacks intensified and started to douse the flames. A faint flicker of relief in his chest that there seemed to at least be no one left in there. He caught a flicker of movement to his left. Alice was already shooting off past him, heading towards the rear of the building. There, he could just make out fluttering form of Jack ahead of her.

He chased after her, rushing towards the Butterfree and headed round the burning building. There, he could make out the full picture of the devastation. It was like someone had dropped a bomb inside, the walls having been blown clear and leaving a gigantic hole in the side of the clinic. Flames roared with in. The bulky form of Oscar was silhouetted in the flames, water rushing out his mouth in an attempt to douse them. Jack hovered around the crouched form of Esper, her head bowed down towards something at her feet. They must have got here ahead of us!

Sam slowed to a jog as he approached, Alice skidding to a halt next to Esper. "I think the building's clear." He explained, "So what ha-"

As he stepped beside Esper, his gut twisted hard into a ball, sending a wave of nausea flowing over him.

Laid out in front of the Meowstic, was the little shape of a Chingling on her back… only the rope atop her head had been torn free, and there was a gaping, bloody hole where half her jaw should have been, her wide eyes frozen in terror.

Sam couldn't stop the gasp escaping, his legs reduced to jelly as he struggled to hold himself upright. He could feel himself going back in time, to the day he first woke up in the world. Where he come across Greg, and the broken bodies he had left behind-

Only Alice's gagging kept him from flashing back to that moment, the Scorbunny glancing over to find Alice covering her mouth, unable to tear her eyes away from the corpse. Esper leaned forward, and gently closed the Chingling's eyes.

Clenching his hands, Sam felt himself steady, a flash of anger rushing through him like fire. Before him was another victim. Maybe not at Greg or Aidan's hands, but still a victim. Someone who's life had been snuffed out in a terrifying fashion.

I… I can't let them get away with this!

"…who did this?" Sam growled, ears fully erect.

Esper didn't even look his way, narrowed eyes drifting towards the building. "We don't know." She admitted, a flicker of anger present in her tone.

"You don't know?" Alice snarled, tearing her hand clear of her mouth, "Whoever did this woke the entire fucking town, how could they get away?!"

"We don't know." Esper stressed again, "It can't be an external attack, otherwise the guards would have noticed."

Jack touched next to them, eyes a darker red than normal, "What if the guards are hurt too?"

"They all reported in." the Meowstic confirmed, her eyes still not looking back, "Whoever did this had to started their attack from inside the clinic."

"Who would be insane enough to waltz into the clinic and blow it up?" Sam questioned with a snap, earning a glance from the Buneary. "And why here? They could have done it at the Guildtree!"

Unless…

Sam stiffened, his eye drifting towards the collapsed beds he could just make out amongst the flames that Oscar was trying to put out. There were only a handful of people who would definitely be in there.

One of who had tried to kill him once.

"Wait… it can't have been-"

Esper stiffened, her ears unfolding to reveal a pair of eye shapes on the flaps of those ears. They let out a soft blue glow coming from them. Jack shivered, instinctively taking a step back from the Meowstic, and the Scorbunny was quick to catch the shiver running up Alice's back. It was Esper's eyes widening that encouraged Sam to back off. He had seen what power Esper had, and he didn't-

The ears dropped back down just as suddenly, Esper's pupils narrowing. "Team Battle." She hissed, "They're in trouble!"

Sam's head jerked back by the sudden shout, "W-What?" he uttered, "W-Why-"

"Because they are fighting whoever destroyed the clinic!" Esper barked, "Oscar! Leave it! A team needs help!"

The Bibarel's head snapped round towards them, "But the cl-"

"They are fighting for their lives!" Esper shouted, a faint glow forming around her folded ears, "We need to go! Now!"

That got him aboard, the beaver moving out far faster than his bulk would suggest. Jack was already in the air as Esper spun on the two rabbits so fast, that Sam caught Alice physically jump back, her ears twitching.

"Follow us!" Esper ordered, her tone sharp enough to slice through Sam. Instinct took over, and the Scorbunny immediately fell in behind the leader of Team Spirit along with Alice.

Esper led the way into the surrounding forest, brushing away foliage to reveal a faintly beaten path. Did Team Battle do this? Or was this the attacker? Sam questioned to himself, struggling to keep pace with Esper as she rushed ahead. He had never seen the psychic type move at this kind of pace before, and as much as that was dragging him along, he couldn't shake loose his discomfort.

Esper's never been this snappy… whatever's happening, it's bad!

The crack boomed through the air hard enough for Sam to feel the sound pound against his chest. A faint gasp just registered in his head as the group was brought to a halt. His body seemed to freeze, as if he was just dropped into an ice-cold lake. "W-What was that?" Oscar managed to utter, the big water-type stiff and on edge.

Another crack rang out, and on cue, Esper recovered first. "Trouble." She replied, "Come on!"

Esper shot on ahead again, and once more, Sam scrambled to join the others in pursuit. More cracks started to ring, then a boom… and finally a scream. Each one sent another jolt and shiver running straight up Sam's spine.

It didn't help as just as quickly as they came, they all faded away.

Sam's heart threatened to burst out of his chest, his mind that focused on the danger ahead that he ended up bumping into Oscar's back. The Bibarel frozen like a statue in front of him.

As was Esper and Jack.

Next to him, Alice cast a cold glare, bouncing past Sam and shoving her way past the now grounded Jack. "What on the hell is it…"

Her voice trailed off, the Buneary's arms going limp.

His heart now ready to explode in his throat, Sam more gently slid past Oscar and alongside Esper.

And in that moment, Sam struggled as his throat burned with bile.

They had emerged into a small clearing within the trees. A clearing that wouldn't have been out of place from most. A tree trunk lay across part of the grassy field with a couple of bushes off to the side near one tiny pond.

A clearing that had been turned into a killing field.

Six bodies lay scattered across the ground, blood spattered all around them. Three of them Sam recognised immediately. The nearest bodies were covered in dozens of deep, straight wounds that criss-crossed nearly every inch of their skin. The Breloom's throat had also been torn out, leaving a huge cone-shaped splatter of blood across the grass. A few feet away, the Gallade's head was snapped round a whole 180 degrees, his surprised, blank eyes staring at the still living Pokémon, and mouth dripping with the blood he had clearly vomited up in his last moments. Behind them, their Scyther companion was sprayed out over the trunk, his head impaled on a wooden stake with a look of pure terror.

The… the rescuers who helped Rex save me… Sam realised, his eyes bouncing between the three corpses. Two of them had played a role in rescuing him the first time he encountered Greg and his cronies, taking them down with ease. To see them now-

Someone retched to his side, and the Scorbunny snapped his gaze over to find Alice visibly covering her mouth, trying to tear her gaze away. But it was too late, and the Buneary swivelled away and keeled over, green and yellow gunk rushing from her mouth. Instinct took over, and Sam hurried to her side, gently patting her back as she struggled to recover. Alice didn't resist the help.

The Scorbunny swallowed, forcing the bile in his own throat back down as he turned his attention back towards the scene again, the other corpses were arguably in an even worst state. One Mon's head had practically explo-

Nope. Nope.

Sam stumbled away himself, all the anger and worry dissipating as he pressed a hand against a nearby tree, struggling to stop himself from vomiting himself.

"What…" he managed to gasp, "W-What the hell happened?"

Managing to recover, he turned to find that the members of Team Spirit were already moving into the clearing. Jack had touched down near one of the more distant bodies, inspecting her wounds. Oscar did the same for the dead Gallade, and Esper herself was inspecting the Scyther. Alice was wiping her mouth, still not fully turning to face the devastation.

Sam shakingly walked forward, struggling to tear his gaze away from it all. He barely registered the others speak, Esper giving orders, Jack and Oscar nervously responding to those. Alice finally recovering and barking with anger. Sam just kept walking. He didn't know what they were saying.

The memories of the dead Pikachu and his companions, brutally murdered by Greg, now flashed across his mind too.

Who… who was strong enough to… to do all this?

Sam found himself standing over the corpse of the Breloom, struggling not to gag at the sight. His eyes were closed, but it didn't help seeing he wounds cutting deeply into the grass-type's flesh, that gaping tear in his throat, still glistening-

That was what finally snapped Sam out of his trance. He blinked, focusing more closely on the wound, Something's off… like he's-

The Breloom's eyes snapped open, desperately gasping for air. Sam recoiled back with a yelp, "W-Whatthe- Guys!" he screamed, "Someone's still alive over here!"

Esper and Alice sprinted over as Jack and Oscar quickly moved to double check the other bodies. Sam dropped down to one knee, eyes locking back onto the struggling Breloom. He leaned forward, moving to put pressure on the wound.

W-Wait! Sam pulled them back a touch, staring at the gigantic, pulsing wound in the survivor's throat. I could end up choking him trying to stop the bleeding!

Alice slid to a halt opposite Sam, "What are you waiting for!?" she hissed, moving to try and press the wound herself.

"You could end up killing him!" Sam barked back, enough for Alice to freeze in surprise.

"He's right!" Esper shouted, coming in by her side. "The wound's too large, we need more than that!"

Alice grinded her teeth, "Does any here have any healing moves?"

The psychic-type narrowed her eyes. "No." She snapped her attention over towards something behind him, "Get back to the town, find someone with healing moves! Now!"

A Houndour shakingly turned towards them, mouth stained green and yellow. He must have followed them from the town. And the poor guy barely responded, clearly in a daze.

Esper's eyes flashed blue, "NOW!"

With that, the Houndour snapped to attention, "G-I'll be back!"

As he ran, Oscar and Jack were now by their sides. The beaver's eyes widened, "By gol- Jack, I'm going to need you to fly up into the trees. Find as many berries as you can, I'm going to try and find herbs!"

Fingers digging into the soil, Sam glared at him. "How's that going to help!?" he howled.

"Keeping him alive!" Oscar countered, starting to run for the forest.

"We'll be right back!" Jack added, taking to the air.

Sam couldn't argue with them as Esper pulled an Oran Berry out of her satchel. "Sam, hold his head!" She said, mashing the berry up in her paws. "I'll apply this, then you put the pressure on. Alice, raise his legs!"

Sam scrambled into action, holding the Breloom's head still as Esper started spreading the Oran paste across the neck wound. As soon as she pulled her hands away, Sam pressed his paws in, wincing at the squishing noise jabbing at his ear.

Esper was beginning to pull something else out of her satchel when the grass-type's paw grasped her arm. Glancing up, the Scorbunny could see her trying to push the hand away, only to freeze. The Breloom's eyes were slightly closed now, wet streaks running down his face as he looked over at the feline.

His lips were faintly moving, but something squirted underneath Sam's paws, dragging his attention away.

Sam let out a faint hiss, the blue paste that had been the oran berry was quickly turning red. Gritting his teeth, he pressed his paws harder against the wound, wincing as the Breloom groaned. "I'm sorry! Alice! Can you give me a hand!"

Out of his sight, came a faint grunt. "Just getting his legs propped up!" Alice replied.

"Alright, Esper, do you have another-"

He looked up to find Esper leaning forward, her hands resting against the Breloom's head. "E-Esper? What you doing?"

Esper closed her eyes, head dipping down as if focusing on something. The wounded Mon's eyes remained fixed on her, as were Sam's. He almost felt his paws peel away from the neck, his chest tightening as he pressed them back in. What did he say to her? Or… is he saying some-

The Meowstic screamed, yanking her hands away and grasping her head. Blue lights flashed underneath her ears as she stumbled away, eyes squeezed shut. Sam jerked back, the Breloom gasping faintly underneath his paws. The fuck!?

"Esper!" Alice shouted, eyes widening as she stepped towards her.

The feline's eye snapped open, the air rippling as the scream amplified. Now the Buneary was screaming too, grasping her ears. Hot knives stabbed at Sam's own, but with little choice, he could only tuck his head in, squeezing his eyes shut as his ears burned.

The psychic scream ceased, but Esper was on her knees, still clutching her head and crying out with pain. Alice had fallen onto her back next to Sam and the Breloom, grinding her teeth. "What the fuck happened!?" she barked, weakly trying to push herself up.

Shit! Alice is in no state to push back towards Esper again! But we can't just leave her or this guy in trouble!

Violently shaking his head, Sam reached across and grabbed Alice's shoulder, tight. "Take over! I've got this!"

Alice half froze, even as her paw drifted towards the Breloom's neck. "W-Don't be stupid!"

But it was too late, Sam was already running for Esper. "Sam! Stop!" Alice roared, already applying pressure to the wound, unable to pursue.

It took him only two seconds to close the distance.

Just enough to time for Oscar to emerge from the trees, and enough for Sam to catch his cry.

"W-Sam! Don't to-"

Sam's hand grasped onto her shoulder, "Es-"

Esper's eyes flashed open, glowing a dark blue. He tried to recover, to pull away. But it was too late, the light from the psychic's eyes engulfing him.

Blue light and black shadows streaked around him, all sense of his body gone as he rushed through the space. Figures formed across his vision, emerging from the stream of colours. The Scyther appeared before him, an ethereal blue in place of the typical green. His eyes wide in panic as he flew through the air. A dark shadow grasped him from behind, yanking him back before whipping him down towards the faint form of the trunk.

In a flash of green light, the Scyther's head slammed through the spike.

Agony rushed through Sam's skull, the Scorbunny desperately trying to scream as something punched straight through, but nothing escaped his mouth – if it was even there. Instead, he was thrown aside, the blue lines a blur as he was dragged towards another figure. This time a Medicham, a shadowy blade sinking into her chest, and sending another spike rushing through him and Sam into another silent scream as the world flashed green.

He was thrown from figure to figure, torturing him with their dying moments. The Gallade's neck being snapped, limbs being torn off, a head exploding as a whip flew through it. Each kill sending Sam teetering beyond agony, in a bathing green light.

In a sea of darkness and emerald specks of lights, a new shape began to take form. A shape Sam realised he was retreating from.

It was quadrupedal, a dark shape which seemed to be set ablaze in green energy. The shape of an Electrike.

No! No!

Zeke rushed forward, teeth glistening as his teeth sank into his throat.

Only then did Sam's scream finally reach his ears, feeling his flesh rip and tear before after what felt like an eternity, he was tossed aside.

Choking on his own blood, Sam could only watch as Zeke strolled away from the killing field, the limp form of a Trumbeak wrapped in a green tendril that hung behind him.

Kalian-

The water gun slammed into his chest, the air rushing out of his lungs as he was flung back and landed with a thud. He gasped, panting for breath. A hand squeezed his arm. "FUCK FUCK FUCK!" Sam shrieked, trying to bounce away from-

"It's just me!" Oscar bellowed, eyes wide as he tightened his grip on Sam's squirming arm.

Sam blinked, his skin clammy and fur drenched in sweat. "F-w-what?"

"You're okay." The big beaver stressed, "I broke the link."

"L-L-Link…"

Across the way, Jack had touched down next to Esper, helping the feline to her feet.

Something thumped behind him, and glancing over his shoulder, he could see the Breloom staring blankly at him, his chest no longer moving as Alice pulled her bloody paws away, softly panting herself.

W-What the hell was that… no… Zeke… Zeke can't have done all this… And I… I…

He turned towards Esper, the Meowstic's own fur soggy and her ears hanging limply. She seemed to look right past him, as if staring at some now distant place far away with cloudy eyes.

"E-Esper…" Sam managed to stutter, "W-What was that?"

Her eyes cleared, focusing back onto the Scorbunny. Her breathing rapid, as if she was about ready to faint.

And when she finally spoke, it became all too clear that she was terrified.

"Something I haven't felt in a long time…"

*****​

The following couple of hours seemed to last for an eternity. The flames had quickly been doused in the clinic, although it had been rendered uninhabitable between that and the explosion. An explosion that seemed to have been caused by none other than Zeke himself.

The corpses had to be carried back to the Guildtree too, to be stored in the morgue until they can be sent back home, or given a proper funeral in Robinswood. And that was on top of the Guild sweeping through the town like a wave, scouring the place for any signs of other intruders or just shoring up its defences. Others rushed towards the port, and towards the scarred remains of Broken Wood, to warn them and make sure those locations were secure.

Sam had kept himself busy in those hours. As had Alice. The still shaken Esper had swiftly retreated into the Guildtree, with Oscar in hot pursuit. Jack himself broke off very quickly, if only to check to see his family was safely out of the way before he'd rush to help his teammates.

He didn't blame Esper for her withdrawal though. As Sam assisted his fellow Guild members, he secretly wished that the work in securing the town didn't end. His mind remained almost completely fixed on that… that vision. The deaths of Team Battle, and the team that came to help them – Team Talisman. The scene was bad enough, but seeing their deaths? Feeling how they died. Every last second of it.

The work was the only thing keeping him from letting that vision consume him entirely.

But soon enough, another member of the guild was tapping his shoulder. He was to report to the Guildmaster's office immediately.

With a heavy sigh, Sam made his way up the Guildtree alone, now effectively emptied of its inhabitants. He tried to focus his attention on what Rex would want him for, and the answer became all too clear. No doubt Esper had to report to him about what had happened.

Esper must have seen the same thing I did, somekind of psychic… what? Feedback?

It didn't matter. Either way, Sam must have been as much a witness as Esper was. No doubt Rex would want to get every last bit of information he could. Including from him.

He was dragged out of his thoughts by the sound of arguing coming down the corridors, and soon enough, he found Alice waiting outside the door, her eyes fixed on the door. The voices were now clear now. He could hear the high shrill of Brooks' voice on the other side, as well as Triss' grumpy tone.

Of course the Representatives would be here. Sam moaned mentally to himself as he stepped alongside Alice. "How bad is it?" he asked.

"Bad." She replied curtly, her eyes staying fixed on the doors.

Sam shuffled his feet, looking at the Buneary by the corner of his eye. She was stoic, paws clenched into fists. It didn't take a genius to see she was angry. Either from the events of the night, the reveal of his human identity, or perhaps both.

Probably both.

'BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY FRIEND!'

Trembling with his arms limp by his side, Sam turned towards her, "Alice. I'm-"

"We better get in there." She interrupted coldly, planting her paws on one of the doors to push it open. Sam flinched, the words sending a tremor running through his body. But he didn't have time to think about it, rushing to follow Alice inside.

Standing on opposite sides to the table on the lower level, Brooks and Triss were arguing with each other, furious looks written across their faces. Calvin stood as best as he could between them, the dragon stretching his arms between them. Further back, Mary was sat on one of the couches next to Esper, a comforting hand on the latter's shoulder as her head was buried in her hands. Rex leaned against the railing between the two offices, rubbing his forehead whilst his beak was clenched. He almost missed Damon, one hand resting on the bookcases and his eyes flicking between the contents and the argument at the centre of the room.

"You can't just be thinking about the damage to the clinic!" Triss hissed, stomping her foot into the wooden floor.

The fat Kricketune merely waved one of his bladed arms away, whistling as he did so. "I'm not blind to circumstances of those affected. But without a functioning clinic, the entire community become less efficient and less able to receive-"

"Seven Pokémon are dead!" She snapped back, "Two of whom are from Mist. Nevermind those grieving. You should treat them with some more respect before considering your 'profits'!"

A deep growl rumbled from Calvin, a faint hint of smoke blowing out of the Charizard's nostrils. "I'm not a politician, but whenever you both have a point or not doesn't matter. We've got people to try and help!"

Sam stood half frozen at the edge of the office, his chest tight as he surveyed the whole scene. He had never felt tension like it.

"Perhaps so." Brooks started, "As long-"

"Not another of your damn conditions!" Triss countered, "You outsiders wou-"

A feathered fist slammed onto the table, everyone's head spinning towards Rex. The Blaziken seemed to darken physically before them, his eyes like ice. Under his fur, Sam felt himself pale, he had never seen the Guildmaster looking this angry before.

"This debate will have to wait until another time. My first priority is making sure Robinwood and it's people are safe. After that, my second priority will be finding the culprit behind this attack."

He almost snarled the last few words, only making Sam's body tighten further. Damn…

The representatives from Grass and Mist seemed to stiffen too, internally debating wherever or not counter the words of the Guildmaster. But the fire-type's dark expression seemed to shut those plans down, Brooks shying away, and Triss backing up, fur erect.

"Then do tell me how you intend to… apprehend this individual, or group of individuals." Damon questioned, turning to face the avian with a narrowed gaze. "As representative Triss pointed out, they had already dispatched two of your teams in brutal fashion." The frog crossed his arms. "How would you even fight such a foe? Never mind finding someone who will fight them?"

Rex focused his cold gaze on the Greninja, "We'll gather as much intelligence as we can, then we can plan out the best plan of attack."

"Rex is right." Calvin said, clenching his fist. "This bastard has to have a weakness, once we've got that, we can take him down." The Charizard bared his fangs, "Hell, I'll lead the Teams myself!"

Unfazed, Damon merely tilted his head, "I don't doubt your own abilities Calvin, as a former Rescuer yourself. And I am sure the Guildmaster here has the means to investigate, but that still doesn't solve the core problem. Who is skilled enough to go, and who would be willing to risk their lives against such an opponent?"

He turned towards Rex. "And don't say you'd volunteer yourself, Rex. I know of your reputation. But you can't simply punch the problem away yourself. If you disappear, I doubt your Guild would hold together. Likewise I doubt it'll help if you do the same Calvin."

Sam could almost feel the scowl Rex showed. Damon is a right prick. Sam thought to himself with a tightening chest, But he's not wrong. I… I felt how those guys died. Whatever Zeke is… he's dangerous. Who would be brave enough to try? And if Rex vanished trying to deal with this… who knows what would happen to Robinwood? I think Rex knows it too.

"That won't matter if we don't know what we are dealing with." Mary finally said, turning her attention away from Esper. "Unfortunately, the only hints that we have to the perpetrators identity is Esper here, and via psychic feedback… our young friend here."

The Mawile bowed her head towards the Scorbunny.

Sam's heart fluttered as everyone in the room sans Esper turned towards him. Not just the Guildmaster, but all five representatives. It was almost as if the whole world had suddenly turned an eye onto him.

"P-Psychic feedback?" Sam asked weakly.

Mary rested her hands across her lap, focusing her gaze on him and seemingly satisfied Esper would be okay for now. "Yes. Psychic abilities do involve the mind after all. Sometimes if a psychic type is under strain, others around them might receive echoes, even if they aren't psychic themselves. By touching Esper, and from what I've heard from the others in Team Spirit, you tapped into what Esper actually saw. Am I right?"

Brooks and Triss seemed to settle into their seats, whilst Calvin withdrew to join Rex. The Scorbunny gulped, not comfortable with the sudden interest. Alice wasn't exactly any help either, he could feel her gaze staring into the back of his head.

"Take your time." Mary softly said.

Can't just stand here like a stick in the mud. Sam weakly admitted to himself.

Rubbing his hands, Sam stepped forward towards the table. "I… I saw them getting killed by Zeke." He explained.

"Zeke?" Brooks asked quizzingly.

"A Rescuer from the Guild. I rescued him a while ago, but he had only just woken up like… yesterday."

Rex stepped towards the table himself, eyes narrowed again, "He didn't show any signs that he was planning on doing this when we spoke to him. And that was hours ago."

"I know." Sam stressed, "But he did try to kill me back when I found him… maybe it is tied with that?"

The representatives shared a glance between themselves, as if trying to process this information. Rex himself seemed to finally relax somewhat, if only by having a new problem to chew on as he scratched his beak.

"Was there anything in this vision abut Zeke you've noticed?" Mary gently pressed.

Sam hesitated, not wanting to recall how each person died under that attack, "I… Zeke was attacking them with some kind of… green moves. Not electric. A whip of some kind… and some kind of shadow…"

Calvin's eyes narrowed, "A shadow?"

Nodding back, Sam continued, "Aye… that shadow was holding Kaliani, she was recovering in the clinic too… I think that Shadow… it was killing the guildmembers." He let out a faint sigh, "It was… all around Zeke. Like a cloak."

A few concerned glances formed around him, Calvin's brow drawing together, Rex's beak scratching intensifying, Damon… merely raising his eyes.

"Almost sounds as if he's being empowered by something." Mary noted.

"Empowered?" Calvin grunted, "I've seen some fucked up shit, but nothing 'bout some kind of shadow power."

Finally ceasing his scratching, Rex's fist clenched. "Shadow… almost sounds like-"

"Dark Matter."

The air seemed to freeze around him, his eyes immediately flashing towards the source. Esper had finally raised her face, wiping it clean with one paw. The entire room seemed to shudder at the two words. Calvin's lip curled back, Mary's eyes widened. Triss slowly shook her head, as if trying to deny it. Brooks started to hyperventilate, his chest rising and falling rapidly. Alice!

When he turned to look at her, the Buneary was frozen. Her eyes blankly staring into space, her arms limp by her side.

Dark Matter… the same thing that helped kill her family… that nearly destroyed the world… how it still scares everyone now…

Only Rex and Damon seemed almost unfazed, the former's brow wrinkling, deep in thought. Damon merely tightened his crossed arms, eyes narrowing even more.

"Nonsense." Damon finally said, tone deepening, "Dark Matter was destroyed six years ago."

Esper shook her head, softly sighing. "I was there." She stressed, "I felt Dark Matter die. But I also felt what was going on with those it enslaved… and I felt something similar here."

Sam tilted a ear, trying to process what exactly Esper was saying. "So… what you and I felt wasn't Dark Matter? Or was it?"

"It wasn't." Esper replied.

"Oh thank Arceus." Brooks uttered, wiping his forehead with a sigh of relief. "We didn't need anything like that happening again."

Esper's frown deepened, "That wasn't a positive. Because whatever was in that vision wasn't Zeke."

The silence cut through the room again, Sam's body starting to shiver as Rex motioned for himself and Alice to approach the table. "How so then?" Triss finally asked, "You make it sound like Dark Matter's control and what happened here are two different things."

The Meowstic narrowed her eyes, "People tend to think that Dark Matter possessed Pokémon. But in practice it's more like it… corrupts them, manipulates them. It's more like puppetry. They possess elements of their personality, but that corruption is subtle. They found themselves slowly following it's whims until they lose themselves along the way. You can sense they are still there, but they aren't really themselves anymore."

Off to his side, Sam barely just caught Alice audibly scoff at the words. Disbelieving even.

"Makes sense." Calvin admitted, "And what of Zeke?"

Sighing, Esper shook her head, "I never felt that at all. That's the problem. I sensed a dark presence in the vision… but I felt no sign of Zeke either. Or if he is there, I can barely sense him. It's like someone – or something – shoved his mind aside and took control of him entirely. That's why his abilities seem different."

Shivering, she scanned the entire group, "Something else killed those Pokémon. Something dark and very powerful. It makes what Dark Matter pulled look like child's play, or at the very least, is very focused on one individual."

Sam's eyes flicked across the group, he never went through the Dark Matter Crisis. And if he somehow did, he didn't remember it. But he had heard about it, how it affected the whole world. It was how all the Continents formed countries in the first place. And this thing… whatever Zeke is… is worst?

The words of that star in his dreams crept back into his mind, Is… is this it? Is this what I'm meant to stop? Or just the first step to something more?

Rex sighed, "Then we need to find Zeke – or whoever is inhabiting his body – and stop him. The risk to the rest of the Sea of Wonders and the continents is too great to ignore."

"All the more reason for your teams to refuse to go." Damon said, rubbing his fingers together. "I could call upon troops from Sand Continent to… deal with this individual."

Calvin's eyes flashed red. "That violates every treaty we've made regarding the continents. We can get teams ready her-"

"I highly doubt that." Damon countered, "Nor are Guildmaster's Rex's teams… particularly highly ranked? Diamond at most? That used to be your humble Gold Rank after all. I'm offering-"

"I'll go."

For the first time, Damon stiffened, his eyes flicking towards the source, along with the gaze of every single other person in the room.

Aimed directly at Sam.

Fffuck. Sam thought, I've lost my mind… but… I can't just sit back with a threat like this. And I… I brought Zeke here…

Alice hissed in his ear, "Sam, what the fuck are you doing?"

"Doing the right thing." Sam countered with a hiss of his own, stepping forward towards the table again, straightening his back and narrowing his eyes. "I rescued Zeke in the first place. Those deaths are on me, and it's my responsibility to bring him down."

Damon seemed to darken before him, "You can't be serious. You are barely a novice, you are no match for this entity."

"You said it yourself." Sam quipped, shrugging, "Not many people will want to go, you've got yourself a volunteer here and now."

The Greninja's eyes merely narrowed further.

"No Sam!" Esper barked, trying to rise to her feet, "This is a threat far beyond anything you've ever faced. I'll go with Team Spirit, we're the most-"

She suddenly cried out, grasping her head as she slumped back to her seat. Mary swiftly rested a hand on her shoulder, "You're not in any state to go into a fight Esper." She turned towards Sam, directly making eye contact. "But she is also right, you aren't ready for this."

"I concur." Triss added, bowing her head towards him, "I admire your bravery, but this is a job for someone more experienced than yourself."

Come on! You've got someone willing to get involved! And I'm not letting anyone else die on my watch!

Snarling, Sam turned towards Rex. "Guildmaster, I have to do this. I don't see many others volunteering and I've beaten the odds before."

Rex's features softened, his eyes flicking away, a talon scraping the bottom of his beak.

The Scorbunny leaned on the table, eyes fixed on the Blaziken, "Please Rex, let me do this."

Calvin looked over the Scorbunny, a brow raised, "You could die on this mission. Is that something you're prepared for?"

This is my chance. I could opt out here. Right now. No one would blame me.

But at the same time, he only felt the fire in his chest intensify.

He nodded back, "I'm positive."

Over his shoulder, he felt a deep sigh, and a brown shape appear at the edge of his vision. "I'll go as well. Make sure he doesn't get himself killed."

Alice…

Calvin's eyes flicked between the two rabbits, as if peering into their very hearts before turning his gaze towards Rex. "It's your call Rex."

The guildmaster barely reacted, his eyes staring at some distant point on the ground. Deep in thought. Sam resisted the urge to shout, or to tap his foot impatiently. Begging for Rex to decide.

"Team Audacity…" He finally started, raising his head. "…I'm clearing you to go after Zeke and Kaliani."

Esper's eyes widened, "Guildmaster! Y-You can't-"

"I've made my decision Esper." He replied sternly, not even looking her way. "As soon as we have a lead, Team Audacity will handle this."

Sam let out a faint sigh of relief, Thanks Rex.

Damon's eyes seemed to burn, "Then I leverage my authority as Representative of Sand Continent." He declared, "I'm putting an end to this act of suicide."

"Then I'm leveraging my authority as Air's Representative to allow this to go ahead." The Charizard growled, turning towards the Greninja, "Rex trusts these two to get the job done." He nodded towards the two rabbits, "So, I'll trust his judgement. Besides, I've got a good feeling about these two."

The Greninja didn't even quiver, but his voice had clearly deepened, "Then their deaths are on your conscience then." He turned towards Triss, the Zebstrika taking a moment to look round at him.

She quietly shook her head.

Damon didn't reply.

Brooks motioned with one of his bladed arms, "I do believe there is one small problem… where Master Zeke and Miss Kaliani are now?"

A faint knock came forward from the doors, and Rex merely bowed his head towards them. "I believe this is your answer Representative. Come in!"

The door swung open, revealing a red and grey falcon leaning through the door, "Monsieur Rex?" he asked in a rather strong accent that seemed… oddly familiar to the Scorbunny.

"Ah, Jean." Rex said warmly, "Do you have anything to report?"

The Talonflame pushed his way through into the room with far more ease than Perry had, "One of our fliers has returned, she spotted the Electrike dragging a flying type, towards the mountains west of here."

"Any mountain in particular?"

Jean bowed his head, "Qui. It was Waterfall Mountain."

Alice's uncoiled ear twitched, "Waterfall Mountain?" she asked.

Esper sat back up again, a hand from Mary holding her in place, "It's a mountain on the coast, as you can probably imagine, it's covered in waterfalls running from the upper slopes, which are covered in thick mist."

The picture of a mountain mostly made of water flashed across Sam's mind, Sounds rather… pretty.

She narrowed her eyes, "It also happens to be a Mystery Dungeon."

And of course it is. Sam groaned.

Alice frowned, "Is it at risk of collapse? Broken Wood was bad enough."

"The most recent expedition to the Mountain reported that the Dungeon was in extremely good condition." Rex replied, "Whatever is afflicting the other dungeons clearly hasn't affected Waterfall Mountain yet, but that is not what you should be worried about."

The Dungeon isn't the problem? Sam tilted his head, "How come?"

Rex hesitated, "It is split into two dungeons, the first half is fairly straight forward. But the second half… is more difficult to traverse. Only myself and Esper have made it through, and the mist was so thick we couldn't navigate. We had to retreat out of the Dungeon proper."

Sam tapped his foot, trying to imagine the state of the dungeon in his head, Maybe Zeke will only go through the first half? But… but I've got a feeling that he'll make a run for the second. And if he gets through there… would we ever be able to find him and Kaliani?

Come on Sam, focus. Don't start doubting yourself now!

He instead turned his attention back to Rex, "Then we'll need to be careful then, and make sure we've got kit on hand."

Rex slowly nodded back in approval. "Very well. Team Audacity, get yourselves ready, I'll make some final preparations before you depart. Once you are ready, go to Waterfall Mountain. Try and save Kaliani. And if you can, Zeke as well."

Feeling a new found strength, Sam sharply nodded back, "We'll get it done."

"We will." Alice confirmed.

Rex turned his gaze across the room, "Then it's settled. We all have a lot of work to do."

*****​

Most of the gathered Pokémon flooded out of the office, Sam and Alice leading the way, whilst Esper, Mary, Triss, Brooks and Jean set off after them, leaving Rex alone with the remaining two representatives.

Damon uncrossed his arms, "This is a bold move guildmaster."

Rex's muscles tightened, "It is an unorthodox plan to be sure, but I will be making sure they do have support in reserve."

"A wise approach." He replied, "I must admit, I'm surprised Sam would even do this, or his companion for that matter, Alice, I believe?"

"They have done a lot in their short time here." Rex explained, feeling a hint of pride swell within him. "If any team can get the job done. It'll be them."

"Perhaps." Damon replied coldly, "They might be riding high now, but such highs always come to an end eventually. Sometimes… brutally."

He turned away, "I hope you do understand the costs if they fail."

The Greninja strolled out of the office, leaving Rex alone with only Calvin. The Charizard growled as the door slipped shut, "Manipulative bastard."

Rex sighed as he slowly climbed the steps to the upper level. "And yet you still entered politics."

"Mainly as a favour to Abraham." Calvin grunted as he followed him, "Besides, I can't dive into rescues all the time anymore. Got other responsibilities nowadays."

As Rex sat down behind his desk, Calvin placed his claws on his waist. "Being a dick aside, Damon's got a point. Sending a Bronze Rank team against someone who took out Gold Ranks? It's a big risk, what exactly do you see in them to let them try it?"

The Blaziken slumped in his seat, "That would be… complicated to explain."

Narrowing his eyes, the Charizard puffed out another bit of smoke, "I don't have Abraham's powers, but I'm not stupid. I know you too well Rex. I'm speaking as your friend here, not a fucking representative, I know you think those two are going to be important down the line. World changing levels of important."

Clicking his beak, the Blaziken merely nodded, "You can say that."

"I figured as much. I thought I saw a bit of Tobias in him."

He flashed a small smirk, "And to be honest, a little bit of you."

Rex huffed, bemused at the comment, "Perhaps from a long time ago."

"Come on Rex." Calvin replied, plopping himself into one of the seats, "The way he carries himself, you've definitely rubbed off on him. He's definitely more like you then you realise."

Closing his eyes, Rex leaned back in his seat, "Yes. He's going to be important. But… he does remind me of a young Pokémon many years ago…"

*****​

Twenty Five Years Ago

The Azumarill slowly backed up, panting desperately as her eyes flicked left to right, desperate for an escape route. The group of five Pokémon crept towards her, forming an arched line before her. The bandits were trying to box her in.

She felt cold rock bump into her back, a quick glance behind her revealing the cliff rising up above her. Definitely cornered now, she had already managed to get one good hit in but-

The water type winced, feeling the spike of pain running down her arm. She glanced over, seeing the flicker of blood coming out of the wound.

At the head of the bandit group, a Golduck rubbed his hands together, his red eyes glowing with barely concealed humour. "Come on lady… pass us the key to that chest you traders were carrying, and we probably won't have too much fun…"

Hissing back, the Azumarill tried to find a way out. Could she blow one away? No, the formation was too tight, she wouldn't get through in time.

The Golduck shrugged, "Up to you then. Boys, let's get her."

The bandits took a step forward.

The Azumarill clenched her fist.

A shadow formed over the bandits. "I wouldn't do that if I were you!"

The five bandits snapped their gazes up, wincing as the sun shone in their face.

An orange-yellow Pokémon dropped down between the Azumarill and the bandits. It was avian in shape, standing on two grey legs and had arms ending in long claws.

The Combusken flashed a grin, "Because trust me, it ain't worth it."

The Golduck snarled at him, eyes burning, "Who the fuck are you, punk?!"

Rolling his shoulders, the Combusken started to pace before them. "The name's Rex." He declared, "Just your friendly neighbourhood mercenary. I tend to get paid for protecting traders but… well… after seeing what you guys were doing, I'd figured I'd go in and help out."

Rex glanced back towards the Azumarill, the humour disappearing from his face, "Alright?" he said quietly and sincerely.

Nervously, the Azumarill managed to muster a small smile before nodding back.

Turning back towards the bandits, Rex scraped his claws against each other, narrowing his orange eyes on them. "So, walk away now, or you'll get what's coming."

The bandits turned towards the Golduck, who's fists clenched, "You think you can boss us around?! Come on boys!" The gem on his head glowed, "Let's teach him a lesson!"

Raising his claws, Rex settled into a combat stance, "Gonna be honest here…"

The Combusken flashed a grin, "Was kinda hoping you'd say that."

And with that, the mercenary jumped forward into the fray.

The Story Continues In

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

And

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
MERCENARIES OF DAWN​

Spoiler: Author's Note 2 and Annoucement

I hoped you enjoyed that chapter! And I'm also very happy to announce not just the continuation of GoB, but an additional story that will run alongside it. I'd like to confirm a new fan-fic, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Mercenaries of Dawn.

Mercenaries of Dawn (MoD) is set in the same canon as Guardians of Balance (GoB), but takes place twenty five years before the events of GoB... which also happens to be nine years before the events of Rescue Team. Yes, MoD is a prequel to the wider GoB/Canon-verse. It'll feature Rex as the protagonist in his younger days, where Rescue Teams and Explorer Teams and the like weren't around, instead, there are only mercenaries. But when one job goes wrong, Rex finds himself on a new journey across the Air Continent with new companions. A journey of vengence... that will lead him to shape things to come.

I don't know when I'll start MoD, given how slow I am doing posts at the moment and how many things I'm trying to do, but I do hope to start MoD sooner rather than later, especially as the events in MoD will ultimately tie heavily to the events of GoB.

 

[StolenMadWolf]

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER VIII - ONWARD TO WATERFALL MOUNTAIN
​

Spoiler: Author's Note

Right, this took far longer than planned. Long story short. I was doubling down on other projects and... to put it bluntly I had a bit of breakdown which put me off doing anything creative for a while, and I've only just recovered my mojo enough to carry on. Apologies if this chapter doesn't seem to be as good as others. But I do hope you enjoy some of story in this, as Chapter IX is going to hit like a truck now I'm getting back on track.

The preparation for the new mission was a swift affair, with Alice immediately telling him what kind of equipment they would likely need for the job before meeting at the main road out of town. But he couldn't even fully acknowledge the order before Alice was hopping away down the corridors of the Guildtree.

Alone, Sam merely sighed before setting off himself. He had only managed to piss her off even more.

He tried not to think about what had prompted him to volunteer for this rescue as he descended into the town, stopping by their room on the way down the tree to collect his satchel. Realising he didn't have that much Poké inside the bag as he strode out of the tree, he made his way to the Duraludon Bank and got help from its owner, Dural, in getting some more pulled out of Team Audacity's account.

It was pretty easy to figure out Alice would have gone straight to the farms and gardens first. It's out of the way, and she always said it was cheaper to get the berries from there.

Of course, he fully suspected she went that way just to keep away from him.

Keeping his mind focused, he worked through Robinwood's stores. He got his paws on rope to replace that lost in the last rescue, some Iron Spikes for both battle and to secure their gear, and a handful of Ethers. He didn't quite recall how it all worked, but the Ethers did help with allowing Pokémon to regenerate their ability to use moves, allowing them to be used more. Up to now, he hadn't needed them.

He shivered at the memory of the green whip snapping the necks of the rescuers in his vision. I've got a feeling I'm going to need them this time.

As he walked over to the Kecleon Shop, he couldn't contain his concerns anymore. Geez, I don't blame Alice for being mad. I just volunteered to go on this mission. Esper outright said this guy was worse than Dark Matter. Or… well, the thing inside him. She didn't say it was more powerful than Dark Matter right… oh who am I kidding? It's powerful enough.

He knew how dangerous it was. Even if Alice still seemed to care enough to help him they will still going up against something that wiped out two whole teams in a matter of seconds. Esper was right, this was beyond Greg. Maybe even Volcanion.

His ears twitched, they may have lacked experience, but they did have a couple of aces up their sleeves. One, they knew what they were getting into. They could be better prepared when the others had been caught off guard.

Two… there was himself being human.

Well, he didn't know how that would work. Maybe it was tied to that hidden ability of his? Libero? Not that has been very useful to him, with it refusing to fire up from time to time. Or maybe Pyro Ball? Or… well, he wasn't-

"Earth to rabbit dude?"

Sam blinked, his gaze snapping up to find the green-skinned Kecleon Larissa looking over him with a slightly confused expression, standing behind the counter of her shop. "S-Sorry." He managed to utter before recomposing himself, "Just lost in thought."

Larissa merely rolled her eyes and casually waved an arm, "Ah, it's fine. I think we're all stuck in thought."

With that, she flashed the warm smile of a merchant and leaned on the counter, "What can I get you?"

He managed to hold back the laugh, Larissa always seemed so friendly despite the reputation that Kecleon seemed to have throughout Robinwood. Something along the lines of being very easy to anger when it came to the protection of their merchandise or something. But Larissa? He couldn't imagine that. Why the heck are Bruce and Edward so scared of her then?

The Scorbunny returned his attention towards the conversation, "I'm looking to get some wands and orbs, I heard you had some in stock."

"Just came in from Water." Larissa confirmed, "And what you're thinking of using them for?"

He took a moment to get a breath in, "I'm going after the guy who took out the clinic."

"And the two teams right?" she replied with a straight face.

"Err, yeah."

She nodded firmly before reaching under the counter, "Then in that case, you want something heavy hitting." She pulled out what appeared to be a rather thick stick, ending with a charred tip and a red leaf.

His gut clenched, "A twig?" Sam questioned.

"Nooo, a Blast Wand." Larissa explained, "Give this bad boy a wave and you'll blow up the ground underneath the bastard's feet!"

Flicking an ear, he took a moment to inspect the wand with a slight smirk. The extra firepower would help for sure. "Sounds good, anything that could give more of a punch?"

Almost on instinct, she spun round and swiped a pair of small orbs off a shelf behind her. A peach-red orb and a bright orange one. "Thinking of fire types, you can try these." She patted the first one, "This All-Power Orb can improve the power of your attacks." She proceeded to tap the second one, "And the Sunny Orb can do the same thing for your fire-type moves, plus weaken water-type moves by intensifying the sunlight."

Huh… Waterfall Mountain does sound like it's going to have quite a few water types. Might be handy in a pinch.

Smiling, Sam pulled out some of the remaining Poké in his satchel. "Sounds like a deal."

With the orbs and wands contained in his bag, he made his way towards one of the routes out of town, the same one Alice told him to meet her at. The wide trail went into the trees, a wooden arch serving as the boundary of the town.

Alice had conveniently arrived at the same time as himself, and in silence, handed over a handful of berries and seeds. Sam likewise handed her back some of the equipment he obtained. An iron lump settled into his gut as he watched the Buneary load up her satchel. He couldn't bring himself to speak.

"Are you prepared?"

He turned to find Rex striding towards them, holding a pair of discs in one hand. "We've got our kit sorted ready, aye." Sam replied.

"I've made sure to get extra Reviver Seeds." Alice added, holding up a golf-ball-shaped seed that seemed very natural compared to the rather mundane seeds that he had come across before. "Still, it's not going to be easy."

Thanks for dampening the mood Alice…

Rex nodded, handing over the two discs, one in each hand, "I managed to dig these out from my old supplies, I have a feeling they'll come in handy."

Sam took a grey disc from the Guildmaster's hand, surprisingly cool to touch. As he looked down at the reflection, he caught a glimpse of the second disc, which was a bright yellow in comparison.

"TMs?" Alice questioned, "Why did you get us these?"

The Scorbunny blinked, the acronym flying over his head. It must have been obvious, as the Blaziken turned his feathered head towards him. "Technical Machines, they contain the key knowledge of moves."

"H-Huh? You can learn a move just from these?" Sam waved the disc as he spoke, frowning.

"Don't ask me the science." Rex confirmed, "Alice can show you how they work."

The Buneary rolled her eyes before inspecting her TM, "Electric?"

"Thunder Punch." Rex confirmed, "I figured it would be worth widening your reportare."

You can learn this stuff from what? Reading these things or… something?

Sam eyed the grey-disc, "And… this?"

Rex flashed a brief smirk, "Given your experiences, I pulled out Protect. It allows you to completely block another move."

His heart soared as he looked over the TM, the image of a powerful shield forming before him, "Wait… it can stop anything? Awesome! It should help!"

"Don't get too comfortable." Rex warned him, waving a finger, "It only works so many times in quick succession. So use it wisely."

And of course there's a catch. Sam sighed, the prospect of blocking off the devastating attacks of the foe non-stop quickly crumbling to ash.

As the two rescuers slipped the TMs into their satchels, Rex narrowed his eyes. "I know I gave you the go-ahead, but privately, this is still a chance for you to pull out. I can find another team if-"

"Rex." Sam interrupted, feeling the bite in his words, "We're up for it."

I'm not backing out of this now. I've got to this.

Alice merely nodded.

Satisfied, Rex stuck up his beak, "Then I will advise caution. I have already sent ahead two members of the Post Office to Waterfall Mountain to scout out the exterior of the dungeon, and we're trying to work out a means of resupply after the first dungeon. But once you walk in, you will be on your own."

"Won't be the first time." Alice replied curtly. "But we can't just be the only ones going up?"

"Not if I have anything to say about it." Rex confirmed, "I'm still gathering other guildmembers. If we don't hear anything from you after you enter the dungeon, I'll personally lead a larger team to search for you. You have my word."

Sam let out a faint sigh, having backup plans did offer some small comfort. "Fingers crossed; we won't need it."

"I hope that's the case." Rex replied, the Blaziken stiffening before glancing behind them. "Waterfall Mountain is a fair distance off, but I did arrange for some help in getting you there."

Behind the two rabbits, a red-orange canine Pokémon approached them, towering above the two rabbits easily. He recognised her immediately; it was the strange Arcanine who dove into the burning clinic. "'Sup." She greeted them with a casual, almost lazy tone, looking over the pair.

Damn… she's bigger up close than I thought. Sam pondered as he mustered a simple wave.

"Carol happened to be travelling past Waterfall Mountain. So I asked for a favour." Rex explained.

"Not often I help out the Guild twice in one day." Carol admitted, "I'm not trained for Dungeons, but getting you there is a piece of cake."

Sam's grin glimmered, "Thanks, it'd be a big help."

Alice merely nodded back her thanks.

It took mere moments for Team Audacity to climb onto Carol's back, who now began to stride towards the path out. Rex watched on, "Stay safe you two. And good luck, we'll be right behind you."

"I'll make sure of that." Alice replied firmly.

Sam faintly noticed his ear twitch as he pulled the mock salute to Rex.

Carol gently shook herself, "Hold on you two." She grunted, "I think the saying goes, 'Speed limits are meant' to be broken.'".

And with that, the Arcanine burst into a run, shooting down the path and leaving Robinwood very quickly behind them.

*****

​

The journey had been surprisingly pleasant for the two rabbits as their canine mount sprinted effortlessly through the forests and across the open plains of the island. The wind rushed past the Scorbunny's face, bringing with it the fresh scent of grass. It was bumpy of course thanks to Carol's running, but he could still hold himself comfortably in place with a good grip.

In just over two hours, Waterfall Mountain hove into view.

It sat at the tip of a mountain range that ran towards the north on Sam's right and found itself positioned just at the edge of the ocean itself. A grey peak that was only a little bit taller than the mountains near it, but it was still easy to spot with it being broader than the others. That, and there were the waterfalls themselves. Hundreds of them glistened in the distance, including one giant one that thundered from top to bottom in one clean go. A thick mist swirled around the mountain, forming a thick blanket that hide the summit from view.

He felt his heart flutter for a moment, "Whoa…"

"Quite the sight huh?" Carol puffed, "It's about to get a whole lot better."

She wasn't kidding. Within twenty minutes, they could slowly hear the thundering of the water itself. Ten minutes after that, they emerged from the forest they cut through to find the mountain in all its glory.

Waterfall Mountain was surrounded by a gigantic ring-shaped lake, the discharge from the waterfalls rushing into to fill it. White water bubbled across the very edge of the mountain, leaving the remaining water an azure blue in comparison. The sound of the waterfalls was what surprised him though. It wasn't unbearable as he expected, but it was still loud enough that it blotted out many of the other sounds. A faint mist swirled around them, but it didn't hide the glinting of the biggest waterfall coming down to their right.

A rocky arch was all that connected the mountain to the rest of the land, spared by the power of the waterfalls. As Carol jogged across it, Sam couldn't help but stare at Waterfall Mountain. Esper's words didn't get anywhere near close to doing it justice. Over his shoulder, he could sense that even Alice was taken aback, her head tilting back to get a good view.

At the end of the arch was a larger outcrop, where a dark cave opening beckoned. There, sat on a pair of boulders a few metres ahead of it were a pair of avian Pokémon talking to each other. A Talonflame and a Corviknight.

Wait, are those Jean and Clovis?

"We're here." Carol said, no worse for wear as she slowed to a halt a short distance away from the pair.

Sam clambered off her back, his legs wobbly beneath him from having sat on the canine's back for so long. "Thanks for the lift." He replied. "You sure you're alright?"

"That was like a jog for me." Carol replied, "I need to get moving up the range, there are a few camps that are out of the way that need someone giving the heads up of what's going on."

"Then stay safe." Alice said, "We'll try and keep this mess from spreading."

"Hurrah to that." The red and orange Pokémon slowly turned back towards the bridge. "Good hunting."

Sam watched as Carol started jogging back across the bridge, but he could hear Alice striding towards the two birds and he moved to follow her. "Ah. I believe you are Team Audacity?" inquired Clovis, the Corviknight looking down towards the two rabbits.

Not feeling intimidated by his height, Sam responded first. "That's us."

"Have you seen Zeke or Kaliani?" Alice questioned bluntly, leaving a bitter taste in Sam's mouth. Come on Alice, be mad at me. Not everyone else.

He didn't catch Clovis's reaction though. It was Jean who spoke first. "Non. We've tried to scout the perimeter, but we've had no luck."

"All we have ascertained is that the pair have entered the dungeon." Clovis explained, "Nor have they come out this way."

Sam called back his memory of how Dungeons worked. The layout changed all the time, there was often only one way in, and unless they had the means to escape instantly, the only way out was to work their way through and backtrack to find themselves at the original entrance.

I doubt either Zeke or Kaliani had Escape Orbs on hand. They still have to be up there. He angled his head up towards the mist-covered mountain. "Well, looks like we've got quite the climb ahead of us." He mused.

"We did try and scout out the upper slopes." Clovis explained in his posh tone, narrowing his red eyes, "Not that we had any real success though."

The Talonflame rolled his eyes, "Merde! You were so confident about flying above the mist layer, then the winds kicked in and you were diving back with your tail feathers between your legs! Tommy rostbif!"

Sam almost felt the audible crack as the Corviknight stiffened, his armoured head snapping towards the Talonflame. "Oi!" he exclaimed, his previous tone eradicated in a heartbeat for a much rougher, lower-class accent, "You froggie git! You nearly smashed ya'self into the cliffs ya nob!"

Ears ringing, Sam yanked his ears down. "Guys! Back on topic?!" he barked, dragging the attention of the two birds back towards him. The Corviknight coughed heavily, hiding his face behind his wing.

The Talonflame meanwhile merely ground his beak. "E-Either way, we've not had much luck in searching the upper slopes."

"We'll – ahem – keep trying." Clovis finally replied, "And if we can establish a means of resupply for the area between the two dungeons, we'll try and get up to you there."

The Scorbunny merely sighed, "Don't get yourselves hurt trying to reach us. Just having some backup here helps. Right, Ali-"

He turned to find Alice had disappeared. Growling, he scanned his surroundings and spotted the Buneary was already making her way towards the entrance. "R-Right, thanks guys, wish us luck!"

Leaving the two birds to watch on with confusion, Sam sprinted after her. Thankfully, Alice seemed to retain enough patience to wait for him at the threshold of the door. Barely, judging by how her arms were crossed.

He half expected her to stride in without him. But instead, she stood her ground, eyes fixed on the door.

It was only then did she finally speak to him. "This is insane."

Shuffling his feet, Sam looked over the fuming Buneary. "You didn't have to come." He quietly said, "This is my responsibility."

"And again you're trying to be a hero." Alice snarled, "Never quite seem to think through things."

Feeling the sting strike his chest, Sam peeled back. "Alice, come on-"

"Are we going in here or not?" she asked bluntly, eyes still fixed on the dungeon entrance.

Bloody hell Alice…

Unable to hide the flash of his teeth as a wave of heat rushed over him, Sam snapped his eyes towards the darkness of the mountain. "Let's get going."

And with that, the two entered Waterfall Mountain.

*****

​

Compared to Broken Wood, seeing the interior of Waterfall Mountain was a breath of fresh air. The walls were made of smooth grey stone, devoid of any cracks or deterioration. Shallow puddles formed breadcrumbs between deeper pools that ran into separate tunnels. Thankfully, corridors on solid ground remained clear and open for the two Rescuers to navigate.

A few Feral Pokémon battled them along the way, mainly some water types and rock types with the occasional flying type when the ceiling disappeared to reveal a misty grey sky. Despite the type challenges, the two pushed onward through the floors. Climbing higher. But Sam didn't tackle the fights with his usual vigour. Instead, it felt cold and distant as he tackled each threat one to one, focusing on his own battles and letting Alice handle hers.

There wasn't much point in trying to mess with each other's fighting styles.

Twelve floors later, Team Audacity emerged back into the sunlight.

They had emerged onto a wide, flat section that seemed to have been carved out of the side of the mountain by a trio of waterfalls that fell onto the ledge, forming a collection of streams and small pools before it ran over the edge and further down the mountain. Moss and a thin layer of grass covered anything that wasn't covered in rocks and water.

They couldn't get much of a view though, as the mist was now thick enough to block out the view from higher up. Only the sun and the odd patch of blue sky punched through from directly above.

Sam sighed as he leaned against a boulder near the tunnel they had emerged from. "Well… so far so good."

"For now." Alice said coldly as she moved on ahead, heading towards one of the larger pools. "We better rest and take stock before we head on towards the next dungeon."

He followed the jab of her head towards another rocky tunnel at the other end of the ledge. Even from here, a brief shiver ran through his skull and ears. It didn't seem much different to the one at the bottom of Waterfall Mountain, but it seemed… darker somehow. Or at least, darker than what pitch black should have been.

"Probably for the best, Zeke and Kaliani aren't-"

When he turned back, Alice had opened the distance even further, leaving Sam behind.

Groaning, Sam rubbed his forehead. He had been trying to work out how to even talk things through with her. But between the fighting and the journey to the Mountain, he hadn't been able to work out how. He had never seen Alice angry in this manner before, how could he handle it without making things worse and losing her altogether?

That was when he heard the light beat of wings. His ears perked up, he traced the source towards the cliff edge. Practically a second later, a familiar blue-grey shape shot out of the mist and dropped down onto the ground with the scraping of talons.

Sam hopped back to his feet, "Perry!?" he exclaimed, feeling dizzy from the sudden leap.

The Corvisquire post-bird flashed a winning smile with his beak, "Ah! Sam-man! You know, this place was easier to get to than those two old geezers claimed! Maybe because I'm a damn good flier…"

A subtle warmth rolled over Sam as he walked over to the bird. Perry may have been bonkers, but there was still something weirdly pleasant about seeing the guy. "I've never been so glad to see you, Perry! Did you manage to bring anything up?"

The crow had a satchel secured around his body, and reaching inside it, he pulled out a small bag. "The crafters have been working on overdrive to get these potions ready. A few Supers too, but that's it."

Sam took hold of the bag from the bird's claws, "And a message from Rex-man too." Perry explained, "Teams RAY, Trooper and Fox are nearly here, and he and Team Spirit were getting ready to lead the second wave. Probably already on their way."

Good. The Scorbunny thought as he closed his eyes. At least we've got back up on its way.

But… are we even going to be enough? He felt the doubt creep in, a small patch of cold forming at the base of his spine. It could be snapped in half soon enough.

"Hey, you've got hero potential buddy!" Perry exclaimed, his grin even bigger, "You'll probably curb-stomp this green bastard!"

Weakly, Sam could only laugh, "Hero potential? More like losing my mind." He found himself staring distantly off into the mists, his mouth drying up. "I saw how those teams died… they never stood a chance."

He narrowed his gaze on Perry. "What chance do we have?"

The smile vanished from Perry's beak. Instead, his eyes darkened and the bird straightened up. "You've proven yourself before. And you've already got a better mind to this than most. But if you let doubt get into your head, it'll slow you down."

His eyes flicked past Sam. "And so will mistrust."

Behind him, Alice sat at the edge of one of the pools, rubbing her hands in the clear water.

Here goes Perry again… flipping things on their head.

"I'm not sure what to even do," Sam admitted numbly. "She keeps brushing me off."

"Then you need to persist." Perry urged him, "You will get killed if you can't put your issues aside for the mission. Believe me, I've seen and heard families turn on each other because they can't work things out." He tilted his head towards her, "You might not get another chance."

Sam sighed softly, a part of him knowing it was going to be difficult to even try that. But he knew he had to give it a shot.

"You're… you're right." He glumly admitted, weighing the bag of potions in one hand.

"Of course I'm right!" Perry cheered, his serious composure evaporating as jabbed a wing at his head. "I've got big brains!"

He hopped back towards the edge, opening his wings up, "I better pass on word you got this far. Happy hunting!"

Sam reached out, "Wait P-"

The Corvisquire dove off the edge and out of sight.

The Scorbunny let his hand drop. And there he goes…

He turned to face Alice, her back still turned to him.

Taking a moment to rub his feet and shake himself loose. Okay… here goes.

The Scorbunny made his way over the rocks towards her, taking care not to slip off them and into the water. No point in making himself look like a complete fool now.

When he finally reached her, she was staring down at her reflection in the pool, her coiled ear twitching. Sam placed the vial bag next to her. "Perry dropped off some potions, other teams are nearly here." He explained.

"Good." She said, taking her eyes away to reach into the bag and pull out a couple of the vials.

She still didn't look at him.

Huffing quietly to himself, Sam rolled a shoulder. "Alice. We need to talk."

"Ah-huh." She said, inspecting a red vial.

Sam crouched down next to her, "Alice, I never knew what to expect with being human. I woke with absolutely no idea where I was or how things worked. I got attacked on my first day for crying out loud! I was worried that if I started sprouting that I was a human, it'd be like setting a bomb off or something."

"And look how well that worked out." Alice snapped, rolling her eyes. "You were worried about getting stabbed by someone. I get it. But you can't just shove people to reveal every one of their secrets or to do exactly what you want, then refuse to do the same."

Sam winced, "I don't force people to do anything like that, and I didn't want to put you at risk again because-"

"Because of the fake curse." Alice countered, her coiled ear twitching as she turned towards him. "That I had a part to play in killing my parents?"

Quivering, Sam couldn't quite respond.

"I had to fight to keep people off my back. Some of them wanted to break me. At least one wanted to kill me." She rose to her feet, "I don't need your protection."

He slipped back from her, "That wasn't what I meant!" he exclaimed.

"But it is!" Alice bellowed, fists clenched, "You've always got to be some kind of hero, barging your way into other people's problems and trying to act like you are looking out for everyone!"

"Al-"

"But you're not a hero Sam!" she shouted, "You've barely made anyone's life any better! And even if you do, you end up digging yourself a hole that someone has to get you out of! You can't save anyone without help! You're fucking hopeless!"

That last sentence struck him hard. The Scorbunny's back clicked as he straightened up, ears fully erect. He felt cold, clammy and… empty.

Then his heart began to pound, his arms began to shake. Flames began to burn through him entirely, a blaze that began to consume him.

*****

​

Alice panted, shaking herself as she tried to recompose herself. She needed to get the message into his thick skull. Come on you fucking idiot! Why can't you just see that I would try h-

Her thoughts ceased as she noticed not only the stiffening, quivering Scorbunny… but the snarl stretching across his lips and his dark eyes.

Her gut tightened, the Buneary feeling herself tremble as the full weight of what she had just said to him finally dawned on her. Shit… what the hell am I doing?

All the anger in her drained away, her eyes widening as she quickly raised her hands and backed off. "I… Sam, I didn't-"

"No." Sam growled, "I guess you're right. Hopeless, can't save anyone? Certainly makes sense."

"No! You can-"

"Shut up."

Alice flinched, the Scorbunny's eyes flashing red. "I'm not stupid Alice. I tend to make things worse. I don't think before I run in, because it's fucking instinct to me Alice. Hell, I might have to run on that instinct down the line when the whole fucking world is at stake!"

"The world!?" Alice cried out, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"How about dealing with another Dark Matter!"

Now she froze, all the heat fleeing from her body as the Scorbunny continued to rant. "I found out what the other humans did! Meteors, time crises, emotion eaters and Dark Matter! About how many people got hurt during all that! How much those humans had to suffer and fight through! I might have to fight something worse, such as that thing up there!"

He jabbed a finger towards the still hidden summit, "And I have no idea what I'm going to be dealing with, when that's going to happen, or what I can even do about it! If I can't fight a handful of bandits or save a few kids on my own, how the fuck can I deal with something like this! I brought him back to Robinswood! I got people killed!"

Sam's foot came flying, striking a rock and igniting it. A single Ember sailed through the air and smacked itself against the rock cliff, sparking as it tumbled down and into one of the streams with a sizzle of hot steam.

The fire-type turned away, panting heavily. Sh…

Alice shook herself loose, "S-Sam…"

"Keep the damn vials. I'm going into that dungeon soon. We need to be ready."

Sam stormed off, leaving Alice quietly watching him go, trying her best to conceal a haunted look on her face. S-Sam…

She failed to see Sam struggling to hold back tears.

Then he recovered, his expression going as hard as steel as he left Alice behind.

*****

​

After fifteen minutes, Sam and Alice made their way into the second dungeon in almost complete silence. When it materialised around them, it became apparent that Rex wasn't exaggerating. A thick layer of mist filled the chambers, so dense that it was only the faint forms of the corridors that gave Sam a sense of where the walls were. His senses were all borked too, every step seemed to send an echo bouncing all around him, making his ears twitch constantly. The air wasn't only damp too, but also cold too, leaving his fur to stand on end.

But as they began to work through the dungeon, Sam kept his nerve. If they started panicking now, they wouldn't stand a chance.

Not that he was going to panic in here, and he doubted Alice would either. The Buneary could barely look at him, an angry look written across her face now she had recovered from their latest spat.

He couldn't give a toss at the end of the day. If Alice thought he was that hopeless, he wasn't going to concern himself with her thoughts about him. What mattered now was getting through this dungeon.

The first couple of floors went slowly, not from fighting feral Pokémon, but from trying to navigate the place. With the mist so thick, they found themselves going wondering into larger rooms and often finding themselves back where they started. Even the Wonder Map they had, which should have allowed them to get an idea of the layout, wasn't taking shape properly, leaving entire sections of the map blank and forcing the two to try and scour the areas not being marked.

But as time progressed, they started coming across the stairs and began to ascend.

It was on the third floor when they started coming across another Pokémon. Sometimes appearing as dark spots within the mist, giving them some time to prepare for the threat. Other times, something would leap out of the fog towards them, trying to swipe at them with a physical move or blast them with something with more range. They had to be constantly vigilant, lest they got caught off guard by a blast of water or shard of ice punching through the mist.

The only words Sam and Alice barked at each other were warnings of incoming attacks. Neither seemed to be inclined to say much else.

The fifth floor was even more painful to navigate. The ground was covered in water that covered the top of his feet, and it was an effort to avoid slipping into any deeper pools that were hidden from view whilst being attacked and lost along the way.

More and more hits slipped through, forcing the two to pause along the way and munch on oran berries to patch themselves up. They saved the potions for the threat ahead.

The mist was so thick, they didn't even realise they had walked out of the dungeon entirely until they felt the gravel beneath their feet.

Sam looked down, toes digging into the ground. His muscles relaxed for a moment, the Scorbunny quietly glad they had reached the top.

But then he stiffened again, remembering Rex's words on the dungeon itself. How it was difficult to navigate. And yet…

"That felt too easy." Sam coldly noted.

"Agreed." Alice replied woodenly. "Zeke?"

"Has to be."

Sam stepped forward, hoping the mist would start to clear. But if anything, just one step made the fog thicken further and made it even more impenetrable.

"I can't see a fucking thing." The Buneary growled, "We'll walk off the mountain at this rate."

Frowning, Sam rubbed a few of the pebbles beneath his feet, feeling them heat up beneath him. Come on Sam think… how can you get rid of mist? Or fog? It normally pops up on a cold day right so, we need some… sunlight!

He reached into his satchel and pulled out the bright orange orb from within. "This might help."

Sam had slowly gotten to grips with how Orbs were activated over the last few weeks, and the Sunny Orb was no different. He carefully squeezed the ball in his hand, feeling the seemingly solid object vibrate in his hand. He tossed it gently up into the air, and the now glowing orange orb hovered just above his head. It glowed brighter and brighter, turning into a brilliant white for a fraction of a second before fading away.

And yet, the fog remained.

Alice blinked, "So much for that plan."

Growling, Sam stomped further forward into the mist.

"Come on, let's not be stupid." Alice snapped, "We need to work on a plan."

"Zeke and Kaliani had to have come through here." Sam countered, "I'm not turning back now."

He could just make out Alice's bite of her curse.

They moved deeper into the fog, keeping one eye on the gravel beneath them as it crunched. Alice did have a point, one wrong step, and they'd be tumbling down the mountain in no time. The fog got thicker with every step as if trying to encourage them to turn around. But Sam pushed onwards, hearing Alice's footsteps behind him. Part of him screamed that wandering around in the mist was stupid, but the rest of him knew that they couldn't just turn back round. The next group would run into the same issue.

Either way, they had to find a path through it or clear it out.

A dark shape formed ahead of them. For the first time, he glanced towards Alice. Her eyes were narrowed, fixed on the same point ahead.

They slowed down, Sam scoping up a few stones to get Ember ready, whilst Alice's ears fully retracted, ready to strike at the threat.

The shape darkened and began to take shape. It was a small column, about three times their height. With all the cracks and bumps on the surface, it wasn't even a column at all. Just a tall rock.

Sighing, Sam increased his stride towards the rock, Alice moving to follow him. But he slowed again as other details appeared. Or rather, just one.

On a flat patch of the pillar at his level, a white symbol had been etched on. A symbol he didn't expect to see.

A striped tear placed over a cross.

Sam managed to catch his gasp at the sight of it. A symbol he found in Broken Wood. A symbol he had heard of from an ancient story. The Guardians… what… what were they doing here?

Six weeks on from Broken Wood, he had tried and failed to learn much about them. There was nothing in the library that had anything on them. Even Edward, being knowledgeable as he was, only really knew the story he had explained in Broken Wood. They were just that obscure.

Did Rex and Esper come across this? Sam questioned, recalling the armband he managed to recover from Broken Wood, along with that mural down there too. He barely had a chance to look over the markings of it before Volcanion burst out of the ground and tried to kill him and the other recruits.

Alice peered around behind the pillar, "There's nothing here." She coldly said, "This is pointless, we should backtrack."

"No," Sam replied, leaning forward to inspect the symbol. "It means something. Who would carve this here?"

Snarling, Alice strode round and pushed him back. "Look, it's just an old drawing."

She placed her hand against the symbol, holding it there for a few seconds with a lazy look on her face. Understandably, nothing happened.

"There." She said, pulling the hand away. "Not worth anything at all."

Snarling, Sam pushed past her again. It can't have been that simple. The guardians wouldn't have left what seemed to be their emblem here. It had to mean something.

He planted his hand against the symbol. "Why would it be-"

In that instant, a bright green outline flashed around the symbol and with it, a resonant ping.

Sam stumbled back, his heart missing a beat as the glow intensified around the symbol. "…here…" he finally uttered. Alice's eyes widened as she took a step back herself.

The symbol began to pulse, and the wind started to howl, ruffling up the two rabbit's fur as it whipped around them. Sam blinked rapidly, trying to protect his eyes from the wind. "What the hell did you do!?" Alice cried out, eyes squeezed shut.

Sam dug his feet into the ground as the wind punched into his chest, struggling to stop it from brushing him back. The air around him grew brighter every second, the Scorbunny wincing and forcing him to close his eyes. The air screamed around him, pushing himself further back and whipping his ears around.

But then the wind slowly died down, fading away into silence. And slowly, Sam's eyes drifted back open.

Sunlight burned bright into his eyes, and once they had adjusted, both he and Alice gasped.

The mist had been blown away, revealing a vibrant blue sky above their heads and the majesty of their surroundings.

They stood on the edge of a crater lake, crystal clear blue water lapping against the rim. Dozens of smaller islands were scattered across the lake, rising dozens of metres above the surface. A small amount of steam rose from patches, only for a blast of water to shoot up from hidden geysers into the air and briefly forming colourful rainbows in the sky.

"It's… it's beautiful." Alice quietly said with awe.

Sam felt his eyes drawn to the geysers as they shot upwards. "Tell me about it."

They stood there for a moment longer, drawn to the scene before them until Alice broke the silence again. "How… how did you know that'd happen?"

"I didn't." Sam replied, "I've just seen that symbol before."

Unknown to him, Alice turned to face her, poised to ask another question, only to seal her mouth shut with a shake of her head. "This is going to take too much time." She said with a wave of her arm towards the lake, "They could be on any one of those islands!"

Sam scoured the surroundings, trying to spot any landmark that could hint at their location. The islands would be… well… obvious right? Maybe they're… aha!

"I think I found where they could be." Sam said, turning his gaze to the crater rim.

A section of the rim rose higher up than the rest several hundred metres away, but from where Sam's standing, at the top of a set of stairs carved into the rock, there was a tall grey tower, crumbling but otherwise intact. It wasn't made of plain rock, but clearly from cut stone bricks. Like the tower of a castle.

Alice stepped up next to him, "Makes sense, but… are you sure?"

Sam started talking around the rim towards it, "Only one way to find out."

 

[StolenMadWolf]

Spoiler: Author's Note

And finally, Chapter 2.9 is up and running. Sorry it took a while to come out.

I'm feeling in a better state now, so I'm hoping this chapter will make up for the last one. Plenty of action this time, and there are some significant details which should upend alot of conceptions about what is happening in GoB. Or at least, get folks thinking.

Hope you enjoy it!

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON​

GUARDIANS OF BALANCE​

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER IX - THE DARK POWER​

Kaliani groaned with a wheeze, slowly slipping back into consciousness. As her mind sharpened back into focus, she quietly begged for it all to be just a dream. Every bad thing that had happened so far had to have been part of a nightmare. She was still on her bed, trying to recover from the pirate attack.

That hope was dashed the moment the feeling of her legs tied together faded back into existence, her wing dragging along the smooth stone.

Oh Arceus… what happened? Zeke was so friendly and… and…

The memory of Zeke tearing apart the nurse… those teams… she had barely held onto consciousness. But she was awake enough to see all of that death.

It hadn't been the first time she had come across it, but nothing like that…

W-Where are we now?

On cue, the pressure around her legs vanished and weakly, the Trumbeak opened her eyes.

A grey sky formed above her head, shrouding her surroundings in a faint cloak, not enough to make everything to be wrapped in shadow, but enough to blur out a few details. A tall grey wall appeared before her, its surface visibly smooth and engraved.

That was before she saw Zeke. The Electrike had his back turned to her as he inspected the wall. A dark green energy flowed lazily around him. The same green energy that had killed those Pokémon. Her heart began to race as Kaliani tried to pick herself up, but her stupid legs again failed her. A jab of pain shot up them as she crumpled back into a heap.

She couldn't hold the cry.

The Electrike's head snapped around, a glowing green eye-locking onto her.

"God god!" Kaliani squawked in a panic, trying and failing to shove herself backwards.

Zeke – no – that thing revealed a cold, bemused smile. "Ah. Ye ave awokn. Idel tymeing. Bes not kepe thy waiten."

The language he spoke might as well have been gibberish, and it didn't help her increasingly rapid breathing and heart rate. "W-What do you want from me!?" she cried out, "What did we ever do to you?!"

The creature chuckled as he turned and approached, a green tendril beginning to scrape the stone ground behind him. "I wole nee thine ichon."

Vainly, Kaliani tried to retreat again, and once more, couldn't slip away. The tendril slipped forward, rising above her as the tip sharpened into a point.

"No! No!" Kaliani screamed, "Don-"

The tendril shot forward.

And pricked her shoulder, retreating just as quickly as it came, the tip coated in a thin layer of blood. Hissing, the Trumbeak fell onto her back, a wing instinctively reaching for the wound as the entity turned away, inspecting the blood. "My ichon wole be expelled. Thou lyfefor shal suffien."

He approached the wall, stroking the tendril across the stone surface with a simple movement. Kaliani's heart started to slow, if only while trying to process what was happening. He… he just needs a little of my blood?

It was in that moment, the sky suddenly brightened. Wincing, she shielded her eyes as she tried to look up. The clouds had evaporated away, leaving the bright form of the sun shining above her head.

Her captor didn't seem to physically react. "Thou poor succeonor cometh. It mattos not."

Faint glowing lines began to form across the wall, a near-silent ping ringing out as the entity took a couple of steps back, the tendril withdrawing and the energy tightening around him.

This is insane! I… I've gotta get out of here!

Finally, her legs gained the strength to lift her upright. She quivered, a twitch in her wings confirming that she was in no state to fly.

That left no alternative.

She turned and ran, heart racing as she struggled to hold her balance, desperately looking for an exit.

The entity didn't care about it's captive fleeing, instead, it continued to inspect the wall, it's glowing lines spreading and starting to form new shapes. "Zaiell… I shal se what hepen…"

---

Team Audacity moved at a steady pace, making their way around the crater rim for the tower. As they reached the foot of the stairs, Alice reached into her satchel and pulled out the yellow disc that Rex had given her. "We better use these first, might not get another chance to learn a move."

Sam couldn't deny she had a point. Slowing down, the Scorbunny pulled out the grey TM from his bag. However, a lump swiftly formed in his throat. He had no idea how to use the disc.

Alice isn't going to give me that answer so easily.

He did flick his gaze her way, noticing the Buneary staring at her yellow disc, as if mesmerized by it. With a frown, Sam looked back towards the TM in his hands, focusing his gaze on the shiny surface. He tried to spy little details there, blemishes, scratches, circular lines… stuff that was becoming more obvious.

Before his eyes, a pattern began to form. Covered in circles, arcs, lines and other shapes, he started to see bright white colours appear too. Getting brighter every second.

He only tore his gaze away when the disc itself flashed him, but it was too late, that mysterious pattern imprinted into his vision before fading away. A cold tickle ran at the base of his skull, and Sam quietly moaned as the image faded away. "Looks like we're all set." Alice said, putting her TM away.

"That was it?" Sam questioned with a groan, moving to do the same.

"Weird pattern flashing in your eyes? Yeah."

Shaking his head once more, Sam started to jog up the rocky stairs. "I'll take your word for it. Come on."

Each step wasn't that tall, making it pretty easy for the two small rabbits to pick up speed. But each step was massive, as if they were not only easy for small Pokémon to climb, but had plenty of room for bigger ones too. But Sam couldn't think about the universal nature of these steps. Zeke and Kaliani had to be ahead, he was sure of it.

Soon, the tower itself appeared before them. It was more than fifty metres tall, and was surrounded by a grey stone wall of around twelve metres, itself made of brick. Three arches offered a gateway into the complex.

Sam's frown deepened as they slowed, scanning the plain wall and the tower itself, which now he was closer looked more like a blunt obelisk than a castle tower. But that wasn't why he was frowning. This feels… familiar… almost like I've…

The image of a burning castle flashed across mind's eye, the Scorbunny nearly went as still as a statue. A dream! This looks the castle in my dreams!

It had been one of the dreams he was plagued with. A castle under siege, a giant battle being waged. Two powerful Pokémon clashing against each other…

This place looks so similar!

But this isn't a castle… it doesn't look as well fortified. Especially with that obelisk… what is this place? It's too open to be an outpost, and too far out of the way for trade I guess…

The answer suddenly became obvious.

A Temple…

Alice had crept ahead of him, and jerking back to attention, Sam widened his stride to keep pace.

But as they reached the last few steps, a black and white bird stumbled out from one of the arches, a surprised cry echoing from her orange beak as she tripped, and started to tumble down a step.

Gasping, Sam leapt forward, throwing his body weight at the Trumbeak and holding the bird up from hitting the ground. "Got you!" he exclaimed.

The Trumbeak let out a yelp as her feet settled underneath her. "W-Who-hell!?"

"Calm down!" Alice barked, clamping a paw onto the bird's shoulder. "Kaliani right? We're Rescuers!"

Kaliani blinked rapidly, gulping in fresh air as she worked to calm herself down. With a ruffle of her body, she shakingly stepped clear of Sam's arms, "About damn time…" she panted.

Sam raised a brow, Damn, she recovered quick.

"Are you hurt?" He asked, leaning from side to side as he checked her over.

"Nani, just a bit… shaky." She replied, her legs quivering for a moment. "W-We need to get out of here though!"

Feeling himself relax at the words, Sam let out a quiet sigh. Against the odds, Kaliani was in one peace. He was glad for that.

That was one half of the mission covered. As for the other half…

Narrowing his eyes, Sam peered past Kaliani towards the arches. "What about Zeke? Is he after you?"

"Zeke?! He just got some blood off me and started staring at that tower thing! I don't think he even cares now!"

Wincing, the orange-beaked avian lifted her wing, revealing a tiny patch of blood on her shoulder. Alice's brow furrowed, "That's it? He just wanted some blood and let you go?"

"I-I don't know!" Kaliani barked, "He's speaking some nonsense! And he has this green aura all around him! I saw him kill other Rescuers!" She narrowed her eyes, "We can't stay here!"

She took a shaky step forward, only to crumple again into Sam's arms as her legs gave out. "Kanapapiki!" she cursed.

"You're in no shape to move!" Alice growled, reaching into her bag and pulling out an oran berry. "It's not much, but this should help."

Staring at it for a second, Kaliani swiftly gobbled up the berry as the Buneary faced Sam. "We can get back to the dungeon, get her out of here."

Sam glared back at the arches, the deaths of the Pokémon back in Robinswood slipping back into his mind. They knew that whatever was up here was powerful. Dangerous. If they turned back now, got Kaliani through the exit and backtracked, Zeke could have been well out of reach.

Ready to cause more death and destruction.

No. I can't allow that.

He pulled one of the brewed Super Potions from his bag and handed it over to Kaliani. "Drink this too, then start making your way back along the rim towards a cave entrance. Head through there, and you'll end up at the bottom of the mountain. Others will be waiting there."

Sam turned his eyes towards the arches and began to march up towards the entrance. "What the hell are you doing?" Kaliani hissed in surprise and confusion, "You can't fight that thing! You'll get ripped apart!"

"He's being a thickhead again." Alice growled, "Come on Sam, let's try and get some H-"

Baring his teeth, Sam snapped his head back round, "I can't let him get away. If you think I'm that hopeless, take Kaliani and leave. I'm going up there either way."

He climbed the last step and moved through the arches, fists clenched. He heard a brief curse, followed by an order and finally, the beat of Alice's hops as she moved after him.

On the other side, a shallow pit greeted them, with a handful of steps placed inside the surrounding wall. The pit itself was only fifteen metres in length, but at the very centre was the obelisk. Now he was up close, its features became more apparent. A good chunk of it appeared to be made out of darker stone bricks, save for the side closest to them. That was made of smooth stone, and even from here, Sam could tell that it was covered in symbols, icons and carvings.

Sam and Alice held up at the top of the steps leading into the pit, eyes moving towards the base of the obelisk. Zeke was at it's base, inspecting the wall.

And with the same green aura flowing around him.

Feeling a faint shiver, Sam noticed a handful of pebbles on the floor and scooped them up. "We need to focus on evasion." He said, "Make every shot count and don't let him hit either of us."

"For once, we agree." Alice replied coldly, her eyes fixed on the dark Electrike.

Silently, the two descended into the pit and moved towards the obelisk. Sam's heart began to beat harder, the air feeling heavier around the Scorbunny. Zeke's back was turned to them, but they couldn't take any chances.

Then came the voice. Deeper, and more gruttal than the tone Zeke had before. Kaliani wasn't kidding either, almost every word that left his mouth came across as gibberish.

Alright, just get close… then we can try and surpr-

The canine's ears casually flicked back. "Gretel… hae ye cometh sla me? Rescuers…"

Zeke's eye flashed green as he turned to face them, Alice silently cursing off to Sam's side. He narrowed his gaze on the electric-type. Some of the words seemed… somewhat familiar again. But he couldn't put his finger on them. Save for Rescuers.

Must have learnt it from someone else.

Snarling, Sam dropped a pebble and placed his foot on it, feeling it warm up beneath him. "Zeke." Sam started, making his voice firm and strong-sounding. "Whatever you are. You're wanted for murder, give it up now."

Despite his efforts, the electric-type laughed. Coldly and quietly at his words. "Na."

Alice's clenched ear twitched, "I don't think he's going to listen."

As 'Zeke' started speaking again, as if about to start a monologue. But as he spoke, Sam noticed his voice… his words were starting to shift. Frowning, Sam's ears tilted slightly as he focused on the words.

"Ye ar currech. Ye ave no chan against me. D ave any idea wha kind of power that I possess? You don't even know the significance of this place."

Sam's eyes widened, suddenly feeling cold. W-What? He's speaking English? Or… am I understanding him? Like the words…

"Significance? What are you talking about?" he questioned.

Zeke narrowed an eye, "We stand in the remains of a temple. One created by my old enemies. They may have been obsessed with the balance their lord desired, but they did try and record every part of their disgusting history. Fate seems to have led to most of that history being lost. A blessing… if inconvenient for my purposes."

So this place is a temple… but…

"Enemies?" Sam questioned.

There was only one thing he could think of. That symbol he had been coming across, time and time again. "You're talking about the Guardians aren't you? You hated them?"

Alice's neck clicked as her head spun towards him, "What are you talking about?"

Blinking again, Sam glanced over at the baffled Buneary. "W-what? Can't you understand him?"

"No!" Alice snapped.

It's… just me?

Zeke's eye brightened, "Curious… You… understand me Scorbunny. How convenient."

Sam focused back on him again, "Guardians. That's who you're talking about?"

"Yes." The entity purred, "I knew them well. So narrow-minded, so secure in their self-righteousness. But even I will admit, your kind are a pale imitation of what they were."

Resisting the urge to shout, he instead threw out another question. "…who are you?"

"I'm not this 'Zeke'. I am merely… borrowing him. Call me… a missionary."

So Esper was right… something else is controlling him…

"And what exactly are you doing? Why the hell did you kill those Pokémon?"

"They were… merely in my way." The missionary chuckled.

Sam's nostrils flared. "So you just killed them for no reason at all? Just because they happened to be on your way out?"

"The strong are those that survive." He replied with a relaxed tone. "And after being dormant for so long… I needed to see what has happened since my… demise."

He raised his chin, motioning towards the obelisk and the murals on its surface. "Even with the Guardians long being gone, this Oracle has still been recording the events of this world. These disasters… new nations. The old continent being shattered."

Resisting the urge to bite his lip, Sam gazed up at the obelisk, confounded at what exactly he was meaning. "What… this thing is recording history all the time?"

"In a way… yes…"

A red-tipped tendril drifted away from the missionary and scraped along the wall. Green lines flared into life around the murals, and the two rabbits could only gasp as the shapes began to change and reform before their eyes. Sam shivered as the light faded away, revealing a new set of images on the wall.

"Hmm. Volcanion has reawakened it seems." The missionary stated, a tendril hovering over the very familiar, if crude shape of Volcanion erupting from the ground. "He never abandoned the ruins after all. Another fool to deal with in time."

Growling, Sam took a step forward, he wanted to put an end to this. But this thing was the best means he had to finding answers now.

"I'm guessing you found out what's been happening… so that means…"

A weight suddenly lifted off his shoulders, We could find out what is causing the disasters! If this Oracle thing records events, then maybe-

"Yes. And now I have what I need, I can start planning for the future."

The missionary's words dragged Sam's mind back, "For the future? What kind of plans?"

"Sam…" Alice started quietly, "What's going on!?"

He barely registered her as the entity chuckled, "That is simple. To spread the truth. To show what power the people of this world can tap into. And to destroy the fools who would deny it."

Sam felt all the warmth in his body escape. What truth? Is it the power he has? The same one he used to kill those Rescuers… no… I can't allow him to do that!

Snarling, Sam swiped his foot back, feeling sparks briefly ignite underneath it. "I'm not letting that happen. Let Zeke go!"

The missionary's eye flashed, "How very familiar… no matter. If you do not at least want to hear the truth I preach. Then you must be dealt with."

The green aura surrounding the missionary started expanding, tendrils… no… whips forming with it. "Get ready Alice!" Sam barked.

"Obviously!" Alice snapped.

"I shall give you one small blessing." The missionary stated, "You may know my name."

What happened next nearly stopped Sam's heart, and made Alice gasp in fear.

The aura concentrated into a clear shape above Zeke. That of a Pokémon. A dark simian towered over the gasping Electrike, vines wrapped around their arms and wicked eyes fixed on the rabbits.

"I… am Kain. I bring the truth of the past. I am the architect of the future. And now…"

Kain's eyes glowed. "You die."

With that, twin whips formed from the spectre's arms and snapped towards the two rabbits.

Instinct took over as Sam dove to the side, shoving Alice out of the way of one whip as it cracked through the air, they once stood in. "Watch out for the whips!"

"I know!"

The two were barely on their feet as another whip came flying down at them, the two bouncing apart to avoid it. Sam skidded across the ground, only to spring up to avoid the third whip sweeping across the floor.

So far so good! Not dead yet!

Kain had the element of surprise before. Now, Sam and Alice knew what to expect. But they couldn't take any chances. They needed to hit back…

Kain's controlling Zeke… but if we're not careful we might hurt Zeke more than Kain!

There was only one way to test the theory.

"Alice! Zeke's being controlled! I'm going to try something!" Sam shouted, ducking under another whip attack.

The spectre's eyes drifted towards Alice, the Buneary rolling underneath another whip. Got an opening!

With a pebble ready, Sam sent an Ember flying, aiming for the simian hanging above Zeke-

The fireball sailed through Kain's form with nought but a ripple across the aura. The ape's teeth flashed as a smile formed, "Pathetic!"

With a whirl of his wrist, one of the green whips spun above Kain's head, rapidly turning black.

"Shit!" Alice screamed, "Brutal Swing! Watch out!"

"Bru-"

The dark tendril flung round towards them, crackling with energy.

Sam wasn't ready to dodge it. A cry escaped his lips, hands up in futile defence. "Crap-"

The air shimmered blue in front of his hands just before the swing hit him, a boom ringing out as the whip struck the bright blue shield. Sam cried out as he felt air whump into his chest, shoving him aside. He stumbled, struggling to hold himself upright. The fuck!? I'm not dead!?

His heart soared, Protect! I did learn it!

"Look out!"

Sam looked up in time to see a spectral boulder fly towards him. Yelping, he threw himself aside as the rock crashed into the ground by him. Kain raised a clawed hand, a new boulder forming before he tossed it towards Alice.

Alice was ready, yellow sparks flashing around her ear as she jumped forwards. The Thunder Punch slammed into the boulder with a powerful crack, the latter disintegrating in seconds.

"Looks like Rock Throw!" Sam shouted with a flicker of realisation.

"He still uses moves, that gives us a chance!" Alice barked back.

The Buneary leapt forward, electricity replaced with ice as the Ice Punch snapped out at the spectre, only for Alice to sail through him with a look of pure alarm on her face.

"You think me to be a mere ghost?" Kain laughed as a new whip formed, "I'm much more than that!"

The whip snapped at the Buneary, and Alice sprung at it, ear crackling with electric power.

Punch and Whip connected with flash of light bright enough for the Scorbunny to flinch.

He barely heard Alice's cry as he caught a glimpse of her being tossed back effortlessly, the Buneary skidding across the ground to a halt. Groaning, Alice started pushing herself up.

Those attacks hit hard! And how can we even hurt this guy!? Our attacks just phase through him! Unless…

As Sam ducked another whip, he eyed the twitching form of Zeke, eyes glowing green and mouth agape. Shit… if you're still in there Zeke, I'm sorry about this!

Rolling away from another tendril, he readied another Ember, aimed for the Electrike, and fired it off.

Zeke didn't even attempt to dodge, the fireball striking his side with a flicker of flame. Zeke cried out, voice shrill as he stumbled. Kain himself winced, his projection flickering. That seemed to work!

"Alice! We've got to target Zeke!"

"Are you sure!?" Alice questioned, on one knee and ready to attack.

Sam clenched his fist, "We've not got much choice!"

Kain's teeth flashed, his eyes snapping between the two before snapping an arm up towards the Scorbunny, another boulder forming.

Alice sprung forward, snapping two feet out as she did. Zeke stumbled aside as the Double Kick struck him, and Kain's image once more flickered whilst Alice backed off.

"Useless vessel!" Kain cursed, "Move damn you!"

As Sam flung another Ember, Zeke stiffened and leapt aside, the fireball flying harmlessly by. "Keep the pressure up!"

"On it!" Alice replied, their arguments now gone in the face of survival. She lunged forward again with another Ice Punch. And once more, Zeke's body moved to evade. But Sam was faster, leading his next shot. As Zeke touched down, the Ember hit his side once more. Zeke cried out in pain, and Sam willed himself to shoot forward, triggering the Quick Attack and booting the Electrike in the same spot.

The Electrike skidded towards the obelisk, mouth frothing as he shakily rose to his feet. Kain's form flickered rapidly, eyes flashing as he focused his attention on the two rabbits. I hate doing this, but it's disrupting Kain!

Sam ignited another fireball, holding it at the ready with his foot. In the corner of his eye, ice formed around Alice's ear. This was going easier than planned, if they could just knock Zeke out, they might be able to cancel out Kain.

"It's time to finish this." Alice snarled.

"Aye." Sam replied, "It is."

With that, the two rabbits charged at their opponent.

Kain's eyes flashed a vicious black.

"ENOUGH!"

Green aura turned black and purple, resembling a ball of obsidian smoke as it concentrated itself around Kain's claws.

As Sam and Alice leapt into the air, Kain threw the energy, a pair of shadowy waves, towards them.

Sam gasped, snapping his arms forward and begging for the Protect to form. A ripple of blue energy formed before him just as-

The blue shield shattered, the shadow wave blowing through it with a snap.

"FU-"

The wave slammed into Sam's chest like a train, cutting off his scream. The world blurred before his body crashed into the ground, his back burning as rock seared his skin.

When he finally slid to a halt, his entire body prickled as if he was being stabbed by a dozen daggers. Vision swimming, Sam pushed himself up just enough to see Alice and Kain. The former moaned as she tried to push herself onto her knees, only for her to quiver and slump to the floor.

"Alice!" Sam cried out, wincing as he pushed himself up and stumbled towards the Buneary.

She was still breathing.

Damn! That was close! What the flying fuck was that!?

He looked up to find Zeke's body spasming, with even his pupilless green eyes wide in pain. Kain smirked, his ghostly claws surrounded by that black energy. "Ah… it has been too long since I used this divine power. Far beyond your feeble 'moves'."

He knew the best he could do was try and revive her. He knew Alice had always carried at least one Tiny Reviver Seed in her satchel, and quickly reaching in, he pulled the tiny, plain seed out, placed it in her mouth and manually crunched it in her jaw. It wasn't ideal, as it wasn't an instantly activating seed like most, but it'd have to do.

Sam shakily rose back to his feet, Protect wasn't going to be worth much now.

"I must admit." Kain murmured, "I'm impressed. Even with this weak vessel, you're still standing."

Growling, Sam scooped another pebble, igniting it beneath his foot as one hand reached into his satchel for one of the Potions. At the very least, he could keep himself going long enough for Alice to get back into the fight. "I'm pretty tough to kill." He managed to reply, fingers grasping one glass bottle, not sure what fluid it contained.

Kain laughed, and as he did, Sam took his chance, yanked the container out and with a faint pop, poured the contents into his mouth. A sudden surge of strength rushed through the Scorbunny, as he felt that little bit more stable. It'd do for now.

"Very familiar again. Very well. Let us test that theory."

With a flick of his wrist, another green whip snapped around. Sam Quick Attacked aside, avoiding the attack and countering with Ember. A green blade formed from Kain's wrist, neatly slicing the fireball in two before finding it found the mark.

Sam Quick Attacked again, dashing past Kain and reaching into his satchel.

As Kain turned to track him, Sam threw the weapons and dashed away again.

The ghost swatted his whip around again, the iron spikes effortlessly pinging away.

Sam reappeared behind the Electrike, pouncing forward for another Double Kick.

Another green blade flashed above the Scorbunny, and with a flutter of pure panic, Sam ducked mid-attack, the whistle of the blade scratching at his ears. He rolled away, readying another Ember.

His eyes widened as the black energy formed in Kain's hand and shot at him again, the shadowy wave rushing towards him.

FUCK!

Screaming, Sam threw himself aside, the attack skimming past his leg as he did. It went deathly cold, as if all the warmth from it was sucked out. He skidded to a halt, in time to hear Zeke scream.

The Electrike was spasming again, black energy pouring in and out of him to concentrate in Kain's outstretched claws. Sam panted, his chest tightening at the sight. G-God… what's he doing?

Within the shadow, dark yellow energy crackled.

The dark thunderbolt hit fast enough that Sam couldn't even blink. It slammed him hard in the chest, and somehow, he could just about scream.

He barrelled head over heels, his entire body twitching in agony.

That was when the tendril wrapped around his neck, and squeezed.

Sam's eyes widened, desperately gasping for air. He was almost begging for his mind to flash an image of Greg trying to crush his neck.

Instead, with a crack of the tendril, he felt himself float up towards Kain's face, the simian's teeth bared. "Definitely familiar… you remind me of an old acquaintance. But he has been dead for centuries."

The Scorbunny could only choke and squirm as Kain raised a green blade of energy that erupted from his wrist. "Time to send your soul to rest."

Even with his lungs screaming, Sam could only glare. Damn… damn monster!

As the blade raised to strike, the simian's form flickered briefly as a single spike sailed through him. Blinking, Kain turned his attention towards the source. Sam struggled to follow it.

Standing towards the entrance of the temple was Kaliani, the Trumbeak wide-eyed as she quivered at the bottom of the stairs. Another iron spike was held in her beak as she tried to step back, only for her foot to catch the first step and send her tumbling over.

W-what is s-she thinking!?

"Ah. I was wondering where she went." Kain mused.

The vice loosed its grip, and enough air slipped through for Sam to cough up the one word he could say.

"R-RUN!"

The whip tightened around his neck but for a moment, his head snapping forward as the tendril finally slipped free altogether.

Sam grunted as the back of his head struck the floor, his vision blurring. His head pounding, he managed to sit up. Across the way, Kain had moved closer to Kaliani, directing Zeke to take a few steps. "You had every opportunity to flee… and here you are. I have to admire that."

"I-I heard everything." Kaliani shouted, shaking off a layer of fear. "Let Zeke go!"

Kain flashed a nasty smirk, "Oh, I think not."

Grinding his teeth, the Scorbunny punched the ground, ignoring the jolt that ran through his fingers as he stood up. Shit… I'll be out of Potions before I can stop him. Ember doesn't cut it. All-Hit Orb? Still gotta hit Zeke, and that could kill him. Electro-Ball is useless. What can I do?

Then he remembered the gym. The charred floor, the flash of light. Rex's panic…

…Pyro Ball.

It was insane. He still had to hit the mark, and it could kill Zeke. But against Kain… with that level of power?

It might be our only chance.

He let the fire within him grow. He recalled Aidan's lesson in learning how to use his powers. He concentrated his anger, his fear, his rage. He willed it into the fire that burnt his chest. He could feel it grow, his body getting hotter and hotter. Hissing, Sam's foot connected with another pebble, and on instinct, he began to juggle it with his feet.

The ghost stiffened, having crept closer towards the Trumbeak. As if sensing what was happening, his spectre turned. "Interesting…" he purred, "Are you that desperate?"

Sam tried to ignore the words, the pebble now aflame and becoming hotter every kick.

"Is that… you can't be serious." Kain uttered, more out of disbelief than fear. "Even if you pull it off, you'll kill this vessel." He waved a hand to the tremoring Zeke below him.

"I've… gotta… stop you…" Sam hissed, his vision darkening as he started sweating, his kicks running almost automatically. His heart pounded against his rips, as if trying to break out.

One eye flashed red, "What is driving you? Why do you care so much-"

"Sam! Stop!"

He barely felt his ear twitch, Alice… she woke up…

Alice stumbled into the corner of his eye, ears drooping, but her eyes wide with alarm. "Oh yes." Kain mused, "Listen to your partner. She clearly has her head on straight."

"I don't know what the fuck you're saying but shut up!" Alice snapped, clutching her side. "Sam, you know what Rex said! You'll kill yourself!"

"I don't care!" Sam roared, anger surging through him, "I need to stop him! I have to do this!"

"Can you stop trying to be a hero for one second and be my fucking partner!"

Sam sharply jerked, nearly dropping the pebble. "That's what we need right now!" Alice screamed, "A Rescuer! Not a bloody martyr!"

The words hit him hard. The Scorbunny feeling shaky on his leg. He couldn't let Kain get away… not hurt anyone else…

And yet, Alice's words had found their mark. The memory of his friends was doing the same. Of the Guild…

The fire subtly began to die down, and the burning pebble fell off his raised foot and sizzled on the floor.

People… people need me…

Kain's cold laugh pierced Sam's confused thoughts. "And so, your will fails you!"

As the Scorbunny's vision cleared, Kain's form became clear, hands resting on his hips. "You aren't willing to lay down your life in the face of adversity. You are certainly no hero. Just a disappointment. A waste of a soul."

In that moment, rage surged through the Scorbunny. Igniting at the very centre of Sam's being.

But it wasn't the feeling of fire rising within him. Instead, it was a pulse, a flare of raw, undiluted power.

Dark power…

---

…Zech vo. Tenari Ulay.

I sense an awakening.

It has been nearly a millenium… nay, more than that.

Since I have felt the presence of one who can tap into my power.

My own energy.

…very well.

Empower this being I must.

Awaken… young fighter.

Unleash the power that coursed through my veins.

Banish this unnatural mockery. This Shadow.

And show your foe…

Show them the power of true darkness!

---

In that instant, Sam roared. Feeling that power rush through him, burning harder and faster than any fire could hope to match.

His eyes flashed red, and in that moment, a dark, reddish aura blinked into existence around the Scorbunny. His ears lengthened, and the rabbit seemed to increase in size by a couple of centimetres. But that aura clung to him like a cloak.

It wasn't smoky, or cloudy like the power Kain had wielded.

This was like the darkness around Sam had started outright glowing.

Alice was stunned.

Kaliani's beak dropped open.

Even Kain recoiled, shielding his eyes.

"The Dark Power?! How?!"

And his eyes went wide.

You tried to bring yourself close, tried to see what Kain could see. But you knew you wouldn't have a chance. All you could see was that crimson aura.

"N-No…" Kain uttered, "No! It can't be! You should have been obliterated!"

Kain's head snapped upwards to the heavens, "Damn you! Damn you Samiel! Not again!"

Sam's dark eyes locked onto the entity, and he slowly began to walk towards his target. Alice took a step towards him, arm outstretched, "S-Sam?"

He brushed her arm aside without a word.

With a horrific snarl, Kain snapped both hands towards the Scorbunny, "I will annihilate you apostate!"

Two shadowy waves shot forward, rushing towards Sam.

A thick, bright blue barrier formed before the Scorbunny, the shadow attacks bouncing helplessly off the shield. Kain could only growl, summoning another shadow.

Sam dashed into the air, fist glowing with red flame as he raced towards the monster's image. Too fast for even Kain to follow.

The flaming fist slammed across his face with a colossal crack, loud enough that Alice swore she could see the shockwave.

Kain roared, clutching his jaw as Sam slid to a halt behind him.

"I-Impossible!" Kain bellowed, "I was assured this wouldn't happen!"

The Scorbunny turned to face the enraged spectre, electricity crackling in his palms.

Alice screamed as the darkened thunderbolt shot at him. Sam blinked out of existence, the electric attack slamming into the ground where he once stood. Sam reappeared, only to dash out of the way of another attack. Again and again, getting closer before with another leap, he shot towards the threat.

Kain tried to swing another green blade, only for Sam's fist to smash across his temple. As the ghost recoiled, Sam came back at him. Again and again, each impact sending another powerful crack through the air. Alice winced, clutching her ears as each blow clawed at them.

After the twelfth blow, Kain's form was twitching and spasming, struggling to hold himself together. "B-B-B-y m-y -l-ord-…"

Touching down for just a second, Sam sprung up into the air. A red fire ignited near his foot.

Kain's form stabilised just enough for his eyes to widen, "NO NO N-!"

Eyes burning, Sam booted the dark fireball at his target.

The fireball punched through Kain's chest in a flash of red and green light.

For a moment, all sound seemed to fade away.

Then came the almighty boom that shunted Alice and Kaliani back, the Buneary crying out as she tried to cover her ears again.

The ghost glitched wildly out of control, particles flipping away from him. "N-NO! I-I-I AM ETERNAL! I W-WI-LL N-O-T AL-LOW MY-SE-LF T-O F-A-D-E A-W-"

With a final spasm, the ghost of Kain vanished from view.

As Sam touched down, Zeke's eyes squeezed shut, body twitching once more before with a final howl, his head snapped towards the sky. Green and black energy burst out of his eyes and mouth, air crackling with thunder, the light bright enough for Alice and Kaliani to desperately shield their eyes.

With a final boom, the energy dissipated altogether, and Zeke slumped to the floor.

Only then did the dark aura around Sam finally fade away. With a soft groan, Sam dropped to his knees, panting as his entire body shook, his muscles turning to jelly.

Kaliani scrambled to her feet, "Zeke!" she cried out, hurrying over to his side.

Alice growled as she moved for Sam, "Kaliani! Stay away from him! He could still be dangerous!"

"I don't give a toss!" Kaliani squawked back, checking over the softly breathing form of the electric type.

Alice reached Sam's side, resting a hand on his shoulder. "S-Sam? Are you alright?" she asked him softly.

Sam shook her hand loose with a hiss, "I'm fine."

The Buneary scowled at him, "No chance, did you see what you just did?"

"I don't care." Sam snapped, "Kain's gone now and we saved the others. That's what counts."

As Sam shakily rosed to his feet and walked away, Alice was about to curse at him again, but she resisted the urge to do so. She knew he wasn't in the best state to listen.

Instead, she hopped towards the Electrike and Trumbeak, pulling out one of the potions from her satchel. Much like Sam, she knew there wasn't much of a point in questioning why Kaliani was here still. Instead, she focused her attention on the injured Electrike. "Can you hold his mouth open?" she asked.

"I-I can." Kaliani replied, "Had to treat a few injuries on ships."

Somehow, Kaliani managed to use one of her wings to gently prop open Zeke's mouth, whilst with one hand, Alice held his head still and used the other to pour the fluid in.

Moments later, Zeke coughed, his eyes fluttering open. "Zeke!" the Trumbeak exclaimed, "A-are you ok-"

The Electrike's normal eyes stretched wide. "GET AWAY FROM ME!"

Alice and Kaliani both recoiled enough for the Electrike to half run, half drag himself away from the pair in alarm. His body hit the steps, and unable to ascend, he curled up into a ball, tears streaking down his face.

The Buneary softly sighed, Sam had pulled it off. Zeke was safe. But Alice could tell that he hadn't been buried deep enough to not know what had happened.

He had to live through every action that Kain committed.

Kaliani looked sullen as she took a step towards him, but Alice didn't hesitate in putting her hand on her shoulder. "No… give him a moment…"

The Trumbeak's face was puffed up, "B-But…"

"Trust me. I get how he's feeling." Alice interrupted.

There was a point when Alice felt responsible for her parent's deaths. A cold chill settling around her heart only hinted that she still subtly felt somewhat that way.

It wasn't hard to grasp what Zeke was feeling.

Kaliani bowed her head, unable to even look at the Electrike.

"No… no!"

At the foot of the obelisk, Sam was patting the rocky surface… a surface where the mural was fading away. "No! I need answers! Come on!"

The last images faded away, and Sam screamed as he kicked the wall. "Fucking damn it!"

Crying out, Sam hopped away briefly before smacking his fist against it.

But the obelisk didn't respond and defeated, Sam could only rest his head against the wall.

Alice could only stare at his back. A part of her wanted to try and beat some sense in him.

She sighed as she looked away, but she knew there was little point.

Sam's thoughts meanwhile, were a jumbled mess.

It… it can't be over like that… who am I? What am I meant to do… I…

I need to know…

 

[StolenMadWolf]

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER X - THE EXPEDITION​

From your position atop the wall, you watched the scene unfolding below you. Over a dozen Pokémon scoured the Temple grounds, inspecting the walls, the obelisk and even the floor, searching for anything that could provide some insight into the ruin. Anything they did notice was noted down, recorded, and safely stowed away for future reference.

The first relief teams arrived shortly after the battle against Kain, allowing Sam, Alice and Kaliani to descend the mountain.

Zeke meanwhile, didn't resist the restraints that were swiftly clamped round his legs, nor the muzzle. One of the arriving teams immediately escorted him back down behind Team Audacity and their charge.

You had initially moved to follow, but the Shadow had soon made itself known once more.

When it had finally processed the events that had transpired, the shadow somehow managed to darken beyond pitch black. This is disturbing. It finally said, An entity claiming to know the Guardians possessed the same Pokémon rescued from Broken Wood, wielding power unlike anything we have seen?

The shadow seemed to shiver before you, The fact that regular attacks didn't work on the spectre himself despite manifesting as a Pokémon can only imply one thing. This Kain was a spirit of some kind.

You felt your attention drift mostly towards the shadow now.

I do have some knowledge of the subject, but it is scarcely studied. The shadow explained, Spirits have been reported to appear before Pokémon in the past. Or agents of spirits at least. It has been said they are often Pokémon who have died in the past, but have lingered on for some reason or another before moving on to the afterlife. At least, that is just one of many theories and stories. Some far more authentic than others. But I've never seen or heard of any spirit exerting its influence into the physical world.

Some distant part of you may have shivered, another part might have scoffed. It was hard to work out exactly what all of you was feeling. But either way, you could tell the concern in the shadow's voice.

A spirit persisting for centuries, perhaps even millennia… between that and his interest in the current events only further confirms that today's disasters are linked to the Guardians. There was a conflict between them and Kain. Perhaps they encountered their own disasters? And the one who could give answers has now gone to the wind.

A flicker of confusion formed in part of yourself, and the shadow immediately noticed. This entity has managed to survive for centuries as some kind of spirit to possess one unfortunate soul. I doubt Sam killed him. Kain will show himself again, I'm sure of it. And speaking of Sam… his newfound power was… ominous.

The shadow seemed to darken again, Same with Kain's power too. And strangely… both look familiar somehow. Kain's powers were warped and corrupted versions of conventional moves. It was as if they had been cloaked in shadow. Sam's power though was channelling some form of dark energy into his abilities… similar, but radically different.

You could almost see the cold murmur from the shadow's words, Shadow Energy… and a Dark Power… where did I come across those before? Back in the Crater? Or during the Crisis? It involved… emotions… I'm sure that is part of it somewhere…

You heard someone bark out in surprise. Towards the entrance of the temple ground, Rex and Esper had emerged from the arches and were making their way towards the centre of the ground.

In the meantime, we should let the guild launch their own investigation. Without the means to access this 'Oracle', The Shadow motioned towards the obelisk, Our next best move is to wait on them. I must reflect on these Shadow Moves and the Dark Power. Once you have seen what Rex and Esper have to say… please keep an eye on Sam and Alice, I sense what anger they have towards each other between this reveal of Sam being human, and the events here will only intensify… you may have to step in to intervene again discreetly if all else fails.

The shadow seemed to turn to go, Be wary Observer, I fear we may find ourselves off balance at the wrong moment.

With those last words, the Shadow departed, leaving you to slowly approach the guildmaster…

---

Rex could feel his feathers ruffle up at the sight of the obelisk, the smooth stone wall that once, according to Team Audacity, contained a strange mural. But with this so-called Oracle now inactive, they had no means of gleaning that information.

He didn't doubt Team Audacity's report. If there was a way to access the mural, he would make sure to use whatever means the guild had to do so.

No, that was not what put the guildmaster on edge. It was the power that the entity controlling Zeke had for a start. An entity that appeared to have existed for centuries, with dark powers that sucked all the strength out of its victims.

But what really troubled him was the look on Sam and Alice's faces as they escorted Kaliani off Waterfall Mountain. How blunt and detached they were. How angry they were. How little they interacted with each other.

He could already tell something had left them on edge before they departed Robinswood, but whatever happened on the mountain had only made things worse. Esper hadn't even been near them, having passed each other along different paths. But even she could still sense the tension between them.

If they were vital in dealing with what may well come…

He shoved the thought aside. He would have to try and get to the bottom of the problem as soon as possible. In the meantime, he needed to complete her inspection of the site.

One of the members of Team RAY, a Rhydon, stood at the base of the obelisk, scouring every last inch of the surface. He noticed the two senior Pokémon approach, and turned to face them, "Guildmaster. Esper." He said in greeting with a bow of his head.

"Rhys," Rex replied, returning the head bow. "Have you and the others been able to find much out?"

The Rhydon frowned, "Not much. We've come across a few markings on the walls, but we doubt they mean anything."

It was Esper's turn now to frown, "Nothing at all? No pictograms or symbols? No artifacts?"

The Blaziken cast a concerned eye over at the young Meowstic. He tried to order Esper to stay behind and recover from the psychic backlash, and Mary attempted the same thing. But the leader of Team Spirit was not easily cowed, and even they had to relent from her persistence.

Even Rebecca couldn't stop her. And that was quite the achievement.

"Nothing we can see." Rohan admitted, "Maybe a Pokémon with sharper senses or something could spot something, but this place is bare."

Rex turned his attention towards the obelisk, taking a few cautious steps towards it as Esper questioned the guildmember further. Apart from its height, and the bare wall itself, the obelisk appeared unremarkable.

The guildmaster placed his clawed hand against the smooth stone, the material cool to the touch. Inert. Unresponsive.

"Guildmaster?"

Rex's eyes flicked towards Esper and Rhys, the two Pokémon staring at him. Raising a brow, he glanced back at the hand once more, before finally peeling it away. "Kaliani told me that the entity had activated the obelisk with her blood. Did anyone-"

"I volunteered to try." Rhys admitted, holding up a scaling hand where a thin line was marked out across his palm. "Couldn't get the thing to fire up. I asked Axel too, being a flying type, but he couldn't get it to work either."

Rex turned to face the obelisk, Curious… he pondered, scratching his beak. "I appreciate your efforts." He said, "We'll get ready to depart soon."

"Not going to leave someone here?" asked the Rhydon.

"There is not much worth we can glean for now. The dungeon will help keep this place isolated for now. Thank you, Rhys."

Bowing his head, the Rhydon set off to join the rest of his team. Esper narrowed her eyes, staring at the blank rock feature. "If blood isn't what allows access to this device… then why bring Kaliani up here?" she asked softly.

Rex directed his gaze upwards towards the top, clicking his beak as tried to peer at any finer details. "Perhaps it was a key." Rex mused, scraping a talon across the stone and leaving no mark. "Or rather, one half of one. Kaine must have had a hypothetical second half."

"Then why not use Zeke?" Esper replied with a frown.

"Perhaps that entity's act of possession caused issues. Either way, with it gone-"

"Then we have no way of accessing this mural." The Meowstic finished with a faint hiss.

Rex pulled his hand away from the wall. "Short of this… Kain returning, our only hope is that Zeke can recall anything about his methods."

Esper's frown only deepened, "Sam and Alice are in a bad enough state as it is. Zeke is borderline catatonic. We're not going to get much out of him no matter what method we try."

It was the fire-type's turn to frown now. "I know. But first Broken Wood, and now this. We need some answers. And whatever is plaguing Sam and Alice… is something we need to be able to try and support them with."

The Meowstic suddenly looked nervous, "Thinking back on what I sensed, I noticed… a lot of anger. At the wider world and each other. A sense of betrayal. Rex…"

She glanced round herself, making sure the other guildmembers were out of earshot before continuing, "Do you think Alice might have found out that Sam is human?"

Rex softly thumped his fist against the obelisk. Little escaped Esper's notice. If she couldn't work that out from a glance… then wherever his niece found out about Sam's true nature didn't matter. "I don't know." Rex admitted, "Either way, our course is the same. We do what we can to help them get through this. And hope they work through their issues."

He stepped back from the tower, shakingly letting out a breath of air he'd been holding in. "The events here just confirmed how important they are."

Esper stiffened, "You are that certain? The disasters and the last few weeks are connected?"

"Absolutely." Rex acknowledged, eyes narrowing as he looked towards her. "I have a feeling that what has happened here is just the beginning…

---

When Sam and Alice emerged from Waterfall Mountain, several more Pokémon had been waiting for them. Zeke was swiftly restrained further before being placed within a specialised cage before just as quickly being carried away under the wings of a Corviknight. That had sent a few alarm bells ringing in the Scorbunny's head, until one of the other Rescuers explained that the cage was designed to contain electric types, even in the air.

There had been another Corviknight on standby, but she only had enough space in her travel pod for two Pokémon. And so, without giving much of a chance for anyone to express their preference, Sam immediately volunteered to take the slow way back on the ground.

Not that Alice complained as she and Kaliani had climbed onboard.

The two members of Team Audacity had barely spoken since the battle at the temple.

It didn't take too long for the Arcanine, Carol, to come back round on her return leg and carry Sam on her back towards Robinswood.

And during that time, Sam turned inward, trying to think back on the confrontation with Kain. That ghost or spirit or whatever he was. He knew about the Guardians. He knew about Volcanion! And Sam was the one person who could even understand him!

And the whole thing has left him with only more questions than answers.

He nearly ended up thumping Carol's back in a blitz of rage, only just holding himself back at the last second. Still, he couldn't help but fume about the Oracle as well.

Even if Kain couldn't give him answers, that thing might have been able to do the trick too! It could have given him an idea of where was from, or even find out what was causing the disasters. And yet, unlike him, Sam had no such luck accessing the device.

He glanced at his hand, where a thin set of marks on the palm of his hand was already beginning to fade. Even his piss-poor attempt at trying to use his blood to reactivate the device failed miserably.

Puffing out a breath of air, Sam tried to ease out his anger, and refocused on what he did learn. The temple must have been first built by the Guardians. Kain had known about them too. Volcanion might have been connected to them as well. But the biggest indicator was his dreams, how the castle in them had features not too different from those of the temple.

I… I suppose that confirms it. He admitted to himself shakingly, Whatever I'm here for, it has to be connected to the Guardians.

He frowned to himself, But how? And why? Damn it, I wish I didn't take out Kain like that.

Sam was as much angry with himself, even with that power. It was… it felt like nothing he had ever had before. That sheer, unbridled energy that just surged through him, darkening his thoughts and empowering his every move. He… that went beyond anything he had mustered before.

Did… did I just lose it with Kain? Like with Pyro Ball? He shook his head, Nope, that can't be it. Even Pyro Ball didn't feel like that. It felt… it felt darker than that…

He was still trying to come to terms with it as Carol jogged into Robinswood, by which point, darkness was beginning to fall. He exchanged his thanks to the fire dog once more, before starting to make his way towards the tree. But he halted just short of the entrance, the tree suddenly feeling cold and unwelcoming. No one had come out to greet him, an odd occurrence to the Scorbunny. He had no idea he needed to see anyone, or just had some time to himself.

If it was the latter, then going back to his and Alice's room was not the right call. His chest tightened at the thought of Alice. How she just tore into him. He couldn't stand that bullshit of hers! He might have been wrong to hold back his identity from her, but he wasn't going to put up with that attitude. Not yet.

Instead, there was one other place he knew he could go. As what little sunlight remaining faded away, the former human headed through the town's streets towards the barracks, coming across very few Pokémon as he arrived at the large building, made his way inside, and onward to his destination.

Aidan's old room had been left abandoned ever since Sam moved into the Guildtree after he and Alice had been accepted into the Guild. No one had wanted to move into the free space ever since the smuggler had tried to kill him and planted the seeds of an attack on Robinwood itself. The beds and drawers had been left untouched, without even an inch of dust.

It worked for the night, he may have not had much of his stuff, but he still fell asleep with surprising speed.

If he dreamed, he didn't recall it as a paw gently shook his shoulder. "Hey, buddy." Jack said, "Wake up."

Groaning, Sam pushed himself upright, rubbing his eyes before focusing his gaze on the Butterfree. Of course Jack would be the one to find me, he lives here.

"You holding up alright?" the bug-type asked, his red eyes dim with concern.

Sam stiffened, hesitating for a moment as a knot formed in his stomach, "…not really." He admitted sadly, "What's up?"

Jack's concern remained evident in his tone, "Rex has asked for you and Alice to come to his office. To talk about the mountain mission."

His back creaking, Sam clambered out of bed. "I'll head up now." He replied quietly, already not looking forward to the prospect of seeing the Buneary again.

With a flutter of his wings, Jack hovered in front of him. "If you need to talk… you know where to find me right?"

His words were gentle, clearly intended to comfort the Scorbunny. Was it to do with Sam and Alice? The mountain rescue? Or something else?

Sam merely nodded, "Yeah. Thanks Jack."

With that, the Scorbunny pressed onwards, retracing his steps back to the tree. The sun still hadn't risen yet, but he knew it was only a matter of time judging by the faint orange smudge towards the east.

The corridors of the Guildtree were silent, and this time, there was no one waiting for him outside. The doors themselves were ajar, allowing the conversation to seep through.

"I told you everything I know." Alice explained, "He spoke gibberish the whole time, we didn't understand what he was saying short of a few words."

"And that is all?" came Damon's voice, firm and sceptical, "You expect us to believe that this babbling baffoon travelled to what it claimed was a Guardian temple, accessed a strange device to try and learn the events of history, and then tried to kill you."

"We've all heard and seen stranger things." Calvin grunted.

"And this is not one of those cases." Damon responded coldly, "A possession gone too far trying to deceive these recruits."

"You saw the bodies." growled the Charizard. "That was no trick."

"Yet where is the evidence?"

Must just be them. And Rex, I guess. And… Alice seems to have told a few details at least about what happened up there.

Did she say that I was the only one who ended up understanding Kain? She might have said something about me being human? How would Calvin and Damon react to that?

His fur going erect, Sam shook himself loose. No, she seems to be implying that we both heard bits and pieces. Well, whatever happens. I've gotta go in there.

Rolling his shoulders, Sam pushed his way inside. Alice and Rex were sat opposite each other on the couches, whilst the representatives Calvin and Damon stood surrounding them. The four Pokémon turned towards him, "Ah, Sam." Rex said, "Good to see you. Please, take a seat."

The Blaziken directed Sam towards the couch Alice was sat on, and with an iron lump settling in his gut, he sat down at the other end of the seat, away from the Buneary.

Sam got a narrowed eye from Rex, before the debrief began. He found himself assailed with questions, not only from Rex, but the two representatives. Rex and Calvin asked their questions carefully and neutrally, whilst Damon's were blunter and to the point. The Scorbunny did the best he could to answer the best he could. How they navigated the mountain, their discovery of the temple, their encounter with Kain.

"Did this ghost express knowledge about these Guardians?" Damon questioned, eyes narrowing. "Any peculiar details?"

Sam's ear twitched, refusing to show signs of emotion, "We got bits and pieces." He said, "I swore he said Guardians a couple of times."

"And this Oracle… did he explain how it functioned?"

"Not really." Sam admitted, "Details of recording history, but that's it."

It felt daft, holding back on information. But until he had a better idea of how to process everything, he didn't want to say much, especially in front of Damon. At the very least, his account seemed harmonised with Alice's. No one was questioning any holes in his story.

So… Alice is saying we both heard bits and pieces? Ha, I suppose she is not entirely wrong. She did hear me talking to Kain.

As the questioning finally ended, Rex scratched his chin with a narrowed gaze, "So the entity you faced… Kain he called himself, needed Kaliani's blood to access the Oracle. And whilst you didn't completely understand what he said, he seemed intent on killing other Pokémon. You seemed to suggest Sam, that Kain would try to force others to subscribe to his point of view, or get killed?"

"Yeah." Sam simply said bluntly, shrugging at the words. "Like Alice said. We didn't learn much."

"And these Guardians?" Damon questioned, arms crossed, "Did he say anything else?"

Calvin rubbed his forehead, "He did know where to find the biggest set of ruins in years."

Sam opened his mouth to reply, then hesitated. He hadn't revealed everything, he didn't want to start going through his newfound power. Nor did he want to go into how he understood everything Kain said. If he tried explaining what little he heard about the Guardians from Kain, no one would believe him. Not even Alice or Rex.

And yet… maybe he could still lean into using a small segment of what he knew to test the waters.

And so with a sharp sigh, Sam continued, "I'm… I'm not sure if I heard this right… but he did mention having known the Guardians."

That earned a surprised look from Rex, and Calvin seemed taken aback as a little whiff of smoke escaped his nostrils. He could almost taste the dagger pierce him from Alice's direction. Calvin opened his mo-

"The ramblings of an insane fool or liar." Damon declared harshly, clicking his fingers, "Not even the legendaries have talked about these Guardians, and you expect us to believe that he knew them personally?"

Sam bared his teeth, unable to hold back his anger. "That guy was stupidly powerful! We're lucky to beat him! You have to believe us!"

The Greninja's eyes went dark, "And I say again, where is your proof? An inanimate obelisk? The eyewitness report of a panicking, injured sailor?" He began to pace the side of the room. "This is mere fantasy."

"For fucks sake." Calvin growled, "You've changed your tone on how dangerous this guy was."

"I don't deny it's power." Damon countered, "But I won't entertain this story. More likely this 'Kain' was just a ghost – a powerful ghost granted – who happened to possess a missing rescuer and used an old ruin he found as part of some twisted game."

"The obelisk flashed an image of Volcanion." Alice hissed, speaking up for the first time since Sam entered, "Shouldn't that concern you?"

"A mythical who has recently emerged? Likely another part of this ghost's story to make it seem more relevant."

Alice's jaw visibly clenched, whilst across the way, Calvin looked about ready to spit a fireball at him. Rex merely narrowed his eyes.

Sam grinded his teeth, Fucking hell Damon… he thought to himself, seething at the Representative's nonsense. He turned towards Rex, "Guildmaster, you have to believe us!"

"I do." Rex replied, barely glancing back. "Especially given recent events."

Damon finally uncrossed his arms, leaning on Rex's couch, "The matter is dealt with. It is time. To move. On."

"Even if you're right." Calvin barked, "It's not over."

"As far as I'm concerned, it is!"

Sam's mind raced, trying to think of anything to try and convince Damon of the truth. How dangerous Kain was, it can't have been over just like that! He sprang to his feet, "What about Zeke?!" he shouted, "Maybe he caught something from Kain!"

Damon huffed in reply, "I doubt he'll offer anything worthwhile."

"You'll be surprised how resilient our rescuers are." Rex replied coldly. "Sam and Alice here are proof of that."

What little warmth Sam felt in his chest was quickly suppressed when Damon glared at the Blaziken, "An exception. I've seen little proof otherwise."

Rex slowly rose to his feet, eyes flashing red as he stared down the water-type. "You might want to watch what you say." He growled, jaw tight. "More than a few might take offense at that."

Sam's breath fluttered, his full attention focused on the two.

The bang that rang out made him flinch.

All eyes snapped towards the door, where Esper now stood at the threshold, a calm, unfazed look on her face. "Apologies for interrupting." She said, "But Zeke would like to speak to you."

Alice blinked, "That's sudden."

"I thought he was locked in isolation." Calvin said, a blank look on his face.

"He was." Esper confirmed, "He insisted he couldn't wait."

Damon narrowed his gaze, but the Meowstic beat him to the punch. "And before you asked, I personally looked into his mind. The presence that was there is gone. He isn't a threat."

Softly sighing – in a manner that suggested to Sam that the Guildmaster was glad for her arrival- Rex nodded at her. "Very well. Bring him in."

Esper pushed the door further open, allowing the Electrike to shuffle in. His legs were chained together, and a strange silver collar was fitted to his neck. "Don't worry." The deputy said, "He can't use his attacks."

"I don't want to use them." Zeke said quietly, positioning himself in front of the assembled Pokémon. Rex sat more upright, directing his attention towards the canine.

"Zeke… are you-"

"No." Zeke interrupted the Guildmaster, "I'm not alright. But I need to tell you what I saw."

Sam tilted his head, finding himself suddenly intrigued. "Like what?"

Zeke actually turned his gaze away from Sam, seeming to shrink in the presence of the Scorbunny. Sam couldn't help but feel numb as the Electrike continued, "I… I think I could read his mind."

"A psychic link." Esper uttered with brightening eyes.

Calvin flashed a smirk at Damon, "Sounds like you've spoken too soon."

The Greninja merely huffed in reply as Rex leaned Zeke's way. "Please Zeke, continue."

"I didn't see much." Zeke admitted with a sigh, "I was barely… l-look. All I saw were these images of some kind of ruin."

"Like at Waterfall Mountain?"

There was a moment of hesitation, "Similar but… different. Kain… he planned to get there."

Another ruin? Sam thought to himself, Why would Kain want to visit it? An artifact? More knowledge? It has to be a Guardian thing again, I'm sure of it.

"That does little to further explain the ghost's agenda." Damon said.

Zeke didn't seem fazed at that. "I… I think I know where it is."

A faint crack rang out in the room.

Well shit!

"W-Where then?" Sam asked, his mind buzzing. "On the island?"

"N-No." Zeke replied, finally directing his gaze towards Rex, "Can I look at a map?"

Alice reached over the side of the sofa, "I've got my map, here." She laid it out across the table in the middle, on the side showing the wider region of the Sea of Wonders. It showed a large island to the west side of the map, along with a cluster of smaller landmasses towards the east. Most of them were unmapped. From what he had heard, most of the smaller islands hadn't been fully explored.

Zeke shuffled forward, his eyes scanning the surface. "There." He pointed a paw towards some of the smaller northeastern islands. "It's one of those."

"Are you sure?" Rex asked, leaning forward to inspect the set of islands, roughly five of them clustered together.

He nodded, "They look a bit different… but yes… I'm sure of it."

Sam frowned, trying to inspect the details of the little islands. But they appeared only as little blobs. "How would he even get out there…" he uttered, not really intending the question to be answered as he lifted his head up towards Rex. "Any idea what's there?"

"We don't know." Rex admitted, "The best we have is just observations from offshore."

Ideal place to hide something… Sam figured as he spoke again, "Rex, this had to be important to Kain. We have to go and check it out!"

"I concur." Esper replied, "The fact that Zeke found this out just highlights it's significance."

"And maybe we'll find out more about what was going on with this place." Alice admitted with a shrug.

Damon grunted, "This is absurd. This outpost cannot fulfil all of it's requirements and search these islands at the same time. All on the word of one troubled Pokémon." He waved his hand dismissively at Zeke.

The Electrike's head slumped down in shame, and Sam couldn't help but glare at the Greninja, "How abo-"

Alice's elbow shunted him hard of the ribs, cutting off his words. The Buneary stared at him harshly, her coiled ear twitching. Damn it Alice…

Calvin's lips tightened, "It is quite a reach Rex." He advised.

Rex's claws moved to scratch his beak, only to stop short, his eyes brightening enough that the Guildmaster had suddenly become younger, "Remind me Esper, where have we been monitoring pirate activities?"

Esper recoiled in surprise, but then, just as quickly, a faint smile formed. "On the east side, especially towards the northeast."

Rex returned his own smile, "I believe the saying is our course is set."

"Very well. I'll send the word out to the dockmaster immediately." Esper warmly replied, turning and walking out of the room.

Wait a second… is Rex thinking of-?

"What are you plotting Guildmaster?" Damon coldly questioned.

"Fulfilling our requirements." Rex replied, "One of which is dealing with criminals, including any pirates who happen to be within our waters. And whilst the Guild is out in the field, we can do some survey work on those islands."

Sam's heart soared as started realising what was happening, even more so as Alice stuttered next to him, "Your planning…"

"Yes." admitted the Blaziken with a deeper smile, "You two best get yourselves ready. We'll be going on an expedition."

Hell yeah! We can cover both bases like this! Sam exclaimed internally, resisting the urge to fist pump.

And he had to fight his own smirk as Damon visibly shook to one side, "I struggle to…", he cut his words short with a hiss, as if realising he could talk his way out of this one.

"Sounds like a brilliant plan Rex." Calvin replied with a toothy grin, "You don't mind if I tag along?"

Damon spun on him, "You'd give up your responsibilities?"

"Consider it one part of the job." The Charizard grunted, "You and the others can still check over the town, whilst I can see the Guild in action."

He winked at the Blaziken, "Just like old times."

"I'd be delighted Calvin." Rex replied warmly.

Damon meanwhile sighed, "I will inform the other representatives of your decision."

As the Greninja left the room, Rex turned towards Sam and Alice, "Take the time you need to sort anything out." He advised firmly, eyes flicking between the two, "We could depart as early as tomorrow morning."

"You got it Rex." Sam replied, rising to his feet and moving for the door and sensing Alice moving to do the same, feeling a new warmth flow through his chest at the new possibility ahead.

Neither noticed Rex's focus directly on them, beak closed tight. He started to reach back out, only for his eyes to flick towards Zeke, the canine's head still bowed towards the ground, no doubt knowing what state he was in. When he turned to look at Team Audacity again, the door was already swinging shut.

His beak hanging open, Rex clicked it shut and turned towards the Electrike again. "Zeke… do you feel up for talking?" he asked.

You caught a brief flutter of his thoughts, I just have to hope Sam and Alice are mature enough to work though their issues. Zeke is much more in need of help now.

"I can offer an ear too." Calvin offered, his own features softening.

Zeke shivered, his eyes finally drifting back up towards them, tears starting to form again. "I… I'd like that…"

---

Twenty-Six Hours Later

There were two things Sam was processing as he walked through the wooden gates. Firstly, how consistently amazed he was at Robinwood mobilising itself with such speed, even in the face of preparing a long expedition to distant islands.

The second was how big the port itself was.

The port was a fenced-off area a few miles away from Robinwood proper, nestled within a well-sheltered bay. Several wooden and stone warehouses were scattered all around him, with dozens of Pokémon scurrying between them, carrying supplies to head back towards Robinswood or towards the water itself.

Off to one side though, Sam could see the darkened shell of one warehouse, scaffolding erected around it as a small team of Timburr worked on repairing and reinforcing the structure. The victim of Aidan's fire attack on the docks.

Sam ducked and weaved through the crowd, his satchel tightly secured around his red jacket. The Scorbunny had elected to bring as much as he could in terms of his own gear. Fruits, some left over potions from Waterfall Mountain and… well, two things he had recovered from Broken Wood apart from his jacket and goggles.

He flipped open the satchel to see the blue Guardian armband within it, its white striped tear and cross embroidered on the surface. If they found a Guardian ruin on the islands, better to bring something bearing its symbol just in case.

Tucked in at the very bottom of the bag however was a small, metallic red cup, its only other distinguishing feature being a white circle on the side. It was another item he had recovered from the dead Mystery Dungeon. Much like the armband, he hadn't shown it to anyone, but the cup itself was even more of a mystery to the Scorbunny. He found no reference to it in any materials. So what was it doing all wrapped up in a chest within Broken Wood was beyond him. But again, he had a feeling it would come in handy.

Sam cleared the bulk of the crowd, and found himself walking onto a wooden jetty, where the ships themselves finally appeared. Seven ships were tied up alongside a set of piers running into deeper waters. Four of them seemed to be fairly small, with a single mast and flashing a small red and white flag striped flag behind them. Alongside them was a larger, double-decked, double-masted ship with the same flag. Sam had to guess they were Robinwood's vessels.

The other two sported different flags, a grey flag fluttered on another, more battered-looking two-masted ship. Whilst at the other end of the port was a gigantic three-masted ship, a large blue flag waving from the stern, with two visible decks, on par with the two-masted ships, though she was considerably bulkier in comparison. Sam hazarded a guess that it must have been the ship that the representatives arrived on. A Water Continent ship maybe if the flag was any indication.

"Hey Sam! Over here!" came the big boom, enough that Sam and several other Pokémon dropped their heads in shock.

In the direction of the red-flagged ships, Nia was bouncing up and down on the spot, waving for Sam's attention. Pokémon were moving up and down gangways leading on board three of the ships, including the larger one of the set. Sam bared his teeth, "Volume Nia!"

The Noibat froze, her gaze snapping from left to right as a few of the dockworkers glared at her. "Sorry!" she whispered, a little too loudly.

Sam jogged over to join her, "You guys got called up too?" he called out as he approached. It only became apparent until a few hours ago that not all the Guild could join the expedition. They could only get so many onboard the ships at once and others were needed to protect Robinswood. It boiled down to choice, skill or just having the luck of the draw.

"We did!" Nia exclaimed with a massive grin, "Edward and Denver too. It's about time we all got back together again!"

The brief thought of Alice crossed his mind.

"Yeah…" Sam replied, "You can say that."

The two started walking towards the trio of ships being prepared, their names now becoming visible on their sterns. The two smaller ships donned the names Penguin and Crow. The larger vessel meanwhile was christened the Red Kite. At least, it seemed to be named that because of the red stripes that ran along it's hull, making her look in far better condition compared to the grey-flagged ship. "And on an expedition too!" Nia cheered, "On ships! We're going somewhere no one has been able to map yet!"

Sam eyed the Red Kite in particular; besides the red stripes, the vessel had been painted a warm, dark brown and it's sails were also dyed in a more reddish brown. At the front of the Kite itself, the figurehead resembled an angular-looking bird of prey. What species he didn't recognise, given the stylised form it had.

It seemed like a damn fine vessel either way, the Guild must have been lucky to have it.

"Should be quite the adventure for sure." Sam said with a small grin.

"You can count on that!" Nia said, "We're going to be on the Kite for the trip out!"

The Scorbunny felt a little bit more energised at that, "Should be comfortable at least."

In truth, he wasn't sure if was going to be seasick or not.

"Come on, we better get aboard!" Nia said, "Bruce and the others are already picking bunks- wait a second, where's Alice?"

"Wait up."

As Sam took one step onto the gangway, he turned to find Alice jogging towards them, her own satchel bouncing by her side. "Could have waited." She said with a bit of venom in her tone.

Nia quickly rubbed her face, blinking all the while. "I thought you two were coming together?"

"Not something we do everyday." Sam replied coldly, not feeling in the mood still to talk to the Buneary. She was still hostile towards him, and still feeling a spike of pain in his chest at her own rants at him, he wasn't ready to talk to her either. He turned to carry on up the gangway.

That was when he felt her hand clamp down on his shoulder. "How about you cut the damn attitude?" Alice snapped.

Growling, Sam shook her hand loose and spun round at her, "My attitude?" He questioned, "How about you start working on fixing yours before telling me about mine!"

Nia had frozen on the spot, eyes snapping between them.

Rolling her head sharply, Alice's teeth grinded together, "You're the one who can't control yourself! Did you realise how far off the rails you've been going!?"

Sam couldn't stop himself, heat flushing through him, "Maybe if you acted less like a rotten bitch and tried to think about others more, you'd understand better!"

Deep inside the Scorbunny, he felt like had suddenly stabbed himself in the gut. Or, rather, wanted to do so. Alice backed up an inch, a hiss of breath escaping her mouth. But then she recovered, glaring back at him.

"Maybe this is just what you are. A liar and cunt who thinks he's important enough to try and dictate what others should do. No wonder Aidan took a shining for you."

Anger rushed back through the Scorbunny again, with Sam stomping one foot forward and down hard enough that a brief spark flashed from beneath it. He could feel this sudden urge to lunge forward, and it took every ounce of his strength not to lash out at her.

Nia's wings snapped forward, the little bat managing to squeeze between the two. "P-Please guys! Can you two just make up?!"

Sam and Alice didn't respond, their burning gazes focused on each other.

When Alice finally spoke, her voice was cold.

"Long enough to get through this." She said, "Then I'm done."

Nia's eyes went wide with alarm, "N-No!" she exclaimed, "You two h-"

"One more time." Sam interrupted, unable to contain the venom in his tone.

He felt a hollow mass reluctantly fade away, as some form of understanding settled between the two rabbits. They shared a nod, and Sam stepped aside, allowing Alice to stride past and ascend the gangway. Nia started to protest, and biting his tongue, Sam silently held up a finger.

Nia clamped her mouth shut.

"Don't ask about it." he quietly urged her, before turning and marching up to board the Red Kite.

Nia watched the two rabbits go, shaking softly on the spot until the two vanished from sight. Only then did Sam and Alice vanished from view did she seem to steady herself, a new-found look. An alert, determined look. With a beat of her wings, she took to the air, flying for the Kite herself.

None of the trio saw a certain Charizard watching them from a distance, his eyes narrowing before he himself began to move…

---

Rex strolled into the harbour, making a deliberate effort to control his pace, "I understand it wasn't easy for you to ease the concerns of the other representatives." he said.

"It wasn't a problem."

The Mawile, Mary, walked alongside Rex almost casually, "Brooks was ecstatic at the pirate hunt. Triss took more convincing, but we've developed a good working relationship over the years, so she heard me out."

The pair now strode onto the pier leading towards the three Robinwood ships preparing for departure. As they did, Mary's expression hardened, "I am worried about you leading the expedition." She said, "There aren't many who can handle running the guild whilst you are away."

Rex placed his hands behind his back, "I would normally agree, but after the incident with Waterfall Mountain, I can't leave this expedition to chance."

"Water Continent's neutrality offers me a lot of weight in easing disputes, but Damon has much more influence." Mary warned, "Without Calvin or you to counterbalance him, I doubt Brooks will be able to resist anything he pushes for, and…"

She hesitated.

"You don't have to tell me." Rex reassured her.

"No, you should know." Mary countered, "Triss is worried that Sand trying to exert more influence in Mist. Grass may be a junior partner to Air, but at least it's still mutual partnership. Triss only has so much pull in trying to keep things equal between their two states, she may well be forced to follow suit with Damon."

The guildmaster's frown deepened, "Why are you telling me this?"

Mary flicked her gaze away for a moment, "Water's leadership believes in trying to maintain the peace, and a multinational approach to the Sea of Wonders is critical to that. If any continent asserts itself as the main entity here, it'll upset balance of power. Grass, Mist or even Water would be bad enough. But if Sand or Air gains the Sea? It'll trigger a massive escalation, and it'll drag all continents into conflict including Water."

Rex stiffened at the words, unwilling to imagine the hell that would unfold. "And… what do you believe?"

"Just in peace." She admitted softly, "Which is why I still feel that you are needed here."

Good thing I have a contingency for that.

Rex raised a brow, "Which is why I'll be leaving someone I closely trust to run the Guild in my absence."

"I can't run-" Mary paused, only for a small smile to form, "Esper." She realised, "But is she ready?"

"She nearly half runs the Guild as it is." Rex replied, "And she has the rest of Team Spirit to help her. Besides, they deserve the break."

They stopped at the bottom of the gangway leading upto the Red Kite, the Blaziken crouching down to the Mawille's level, "Can I trust you to support her?"

"As a representative, I can't influence Robinwood's internal affairs without the others." Mary admitted quietly, before giving a careful nod, "But as her friend, absolutely."

The two bowed their heads at each other respectfully, "We won't be long." Rex said, "Take care Mary."

With that, the Blaziken climbed aboard the vessel.

---

Whistles were blown as the gangways were pulled aboard and the lines were cast off. Larger Aquatic Pokémon, consisting of a squadron of Sharpedos and a few massive Gryandos took hold of other ropes and worked as tugs, pulling the expedition ships away from the piers and towards open water.

Only when they released their grip did the three ships unfurl their sails. The Penguin and the Crow released brilliant white sails, standing in stark contrast to the Red Kite's red ones. With the wind at their backs, the fleet accelerated, headed towards the east.

Sam leaned against the railing at the stern of the Red Kite, his eyes fixed on the slowly shrinking landmass of the island he was leaving.

The only one he had ever known.

I'm doing this for the right reasons. Sam thought, We gotta follow all the leads we can. The disasters, Kain, Broken Wood, the Guardians… me…

He looked down at the Guardian armband within his hands, the white symbol shining brightly under the sun. And yet…

With a sense of hollowness at his core, Sam turned to his side, only to find the familiar shape he had subconsciously been looking for wasn't there.

I've… I've never felt so alone.

Spoiler: Author's Note and Question

And so, we conclude what is essentially the first half of Episode 2 of Guardians of Balance. I hope you guys enjoy this!

I'm hoping to try and make future chapters a little bit shorter, both to allow for quicker posts and to make it easier to work on edits.

And this is the perfect stop over point, potentially, before the start of Mercenaries of Dawn, hence the shorter chapters will be a big help for writing both fan-fics. My question now of course, is what are you readers more interested in right now? The continuation of the GoB story with Chapter 2.11 as the team heads in the direction of pirates? Or the first chapter of MoD?

Either way, GoB will still continue, and GoB and MoD will alternate chapters accordingly once GoB starts off, with MoD occassionly getting breaks whilst GoB gets to the relevent plot points. Let me know what you fancy.

 

[Dragondg]

I'm curious about what MoD bring; at the same time I'm excited to find out what lies ahead in GoB chapter 2:11. Ultimately, go with MoD. I hope Sam and Alice are able to reconncile thier differences in the future. May Zeke make a safe recovery!

 

[StolenMadWolf]

I'm curious about what MoD bring; at the same time I'm excited to find out what lies ahead in GoB chapter 2:11. Ultimately, go with MoD. I hope Sam and Alice are able to reconncile thier differences in the future. May Zeke make a safe recovery!

Well, I ultimately leaned into Chapter 2.11, which turned out to be longer than I planned. But I think that I'm going to start working through the first MoD chapter alongside Chapter 2.12. Thanks for your feedback!

 

[StolenMadWolf]

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER XI - REALISATION​

Four Days after Expedition Departure

Sam swung the tent canvas aside and stepped out into the sunlight. He blinked, shielding his eyes from the bright rays. Gulls called out above his head and the whoosh of waves breaking resonated in his ears.

We had walked out onto a wide beach, the white sand beneath his feet warm and soft. The deep blue water gently lapped up onto the shore to his left whilst to his right, palm trees several metres above his head, serving as the front line of a thick forest.

Canvas tents of every size and colour dotted the beach, and from where Sam stood, he could just make out the masts of the Red Kite and her escorts sticking out from behind the tents. With no deep water by the island they had set up camp at, the ships had to anchor further offshore, leaving boats, swimming or flight as the only reliable means of reaching them.

A groan rumbled out behind the Scorbunny, "Ar… why does everything have to be so bright?"

Bruce stumbled out of the tent behind him, trying flutily to cover his eyes with a vine. Since boarding the Red Kite, Sam mainly hung around the boys amongst Teams Seekers and Active. And when push came to shove, the Scorbunny had ended up sharing a tent with Bruce.

Sam rubbed the back of his head with a frown, "Water and sand." He said matter-of-factly. "You really don't like the sea don't you?"

Grumbling to himself for a moment, Bruce squinted at the rabbit. "My family has lived in a forest since my great-great-great-great…greatgreatgreat-grandmother wondered in. We don't do oceans."

"Maybe you should get some sunglasses." Sam replied with a chuckle.

"How about we don't go near the ocean again after this?"

"I hate to break it to you Bruce but we live on an island."

Sighing heavily, Bruce's eyes began to widen as they adjusted. "You going to chat with the Guildmaster again?"

"That was the plan. I'll catch you at the forward camp soon."

Bruce nodded, pulling the vine away, only to wince and cover his eyes once more, "Got it buddy. We'll see you there."

The two parted ways, the Bulbasaur stumbling towards the treeline and a path carved through the undergrowth. Sam meanwhile, made his way deeper into the camp.

It had taken the better part of two days for the expedition to arrive at the first island in the micro-chain that Zeke pointed out, a relatively quick journey owing to the wind being comfortably at the fleet's back. Since the ships had weighed anchor, the Guild had descended on the island like a swarm, setting off on short journeys deeper into the forests. The aim was to investigate, map and survey the island for pirates, notable ruins, natural resources, potential new supplies and of course, any Mystery Dungeons that may have remained hidden.

Sam and the other recruits had worked to help with that effort. Whilst they hadn't come across any Mystery Dungeons yet, they had been working on the outer edge of the forest, marking down what was in each specific area before moving on.

Sam and Alice had made certain not to be part of the same team if they could avoid it. Not that it was too hard to do that. The island wasn't anywhere near as big as the one that Robinwood had been built on, but it was still big enough that it was taking time for the expedition to process even a small part of it, and the next islands were bigger than this one…

Sam slipped between the tents, making his way towards the centre of the camp. He had been trying to stay on top of any updates, any hint of Guardian ruins or even just their emblem. And that meant staying in touch with Rex, figuring if anything major came up, he'd know.

So far, Rex hadn't denied the Scorbunny access. If anything, he welcomed Sam's presence.

Sam approached a lightweight gazebo. It had been erected on a small wooden deck with black canvas covering the top to serve as shade.

Rex and Calvin were already there, the Charizard having put aside the sash that marked himself as a representative and now sporting a yellow armband in its place with the outline of a black sun in the centre. Thankfully, Calvin had been okay with Sam poking his head in too.

The pair were leaning over a wooden table that was covered in half a dozen charts and maps, some of which had been freshly updated and others had carved pieces placed atop them. Team locations and landmarks, Sam guessed.

"Maybe if we kept folks out at the camps." Calvin was saying, "Could speed up the survey."

"If we had extra manpower perhaps." Rex replied, scratching his chin, "But it would complicate the logistics of keeping teams supplied which would defy the point. We would better make sure we've got the trails fully cleared through the forest, make it easier to navigate from camp to camp."

"Might be a good idea to have someone get some touches put together then. At least we can keep the paths well-lit."

"Good idea."

The wood creaked underfoot as Sam stepped up onto the decking, bringing the Blaziken's attention to him. "Ah Sam, did you sleep well?"

"Well Bruce didn't snore this time." He replied, managing to hide most of his chuckle. "He's already headed out. Nia and Dan will probably be doing the same."

"I'll take that as a good thing," Rex replied, tone casual as he picked up another wooden piece and placed it on one of the maps. "Unfortunately, we haven't come across much in the night."

"Not even made it a hundred metres." Calvin sighed, rubbing his forehead.

Sam felt his face slacken, "You've gotta be kidding me."

That had been the one bit of trouble. Whilst progress around the island's edge had been relatively straightforward, piercing the interior was a different matter altogether. He had heard how dense the jungle was, slowing the teams down. That had even been a few feral Pokémon hanging amongst the trees, attacking some of the guildmembers on the way through. Whilst no one had been hurt badly yet, it was probably already a matter of time until that happened, especially with some teams getting lost in the trees.

"If we could just burn back-" Calvin started.

"Cal…" Rex softly groaned.

"I know, I know." The Charizard grunted, "Can't risk the fire going out of control and taking out any ruins."

Sam looked over at the map, it had only been a few days since they arrived but progress still felt painfully slow. There could have been a Guardian site just a few metres deeper in the trees, and yet they could easily walk past it without noticing. He spotted the other islands of the chain amongst the charts, still unvisited.

And yet we have to search this island first… how bad are the others going to be? I think anyone would kill to get out-

He stiffened, ears twitching as the idea drifted into his mind. It was probably a bad one… but-

"Any thoughts Sam?" Rex asked, jerking the Scorbunny back to attention.

"S-Sorry." Sam replied, "I don't know about this island but… when do you think we could check out the others?"

Rex raised a brow, clearly curious. "Already eager to leave this place behind?"

He started to shake his head, only to stop. The truth was, he was just eager for some progress, some kind of change. He needed to know what the Guardians were. What they had done. And the more time they spent trying to clear a jungle, the longer it'd take to find anything. "Well… I'm just thinking. Could we like, divide and conquer or something?"

The Blaziken huffed warmly, "Perhaps not quite like that. We need most of our people here, but we normally would send a ship to scout ahead of the main expedition."

Sam rubbed the back of his head, eying the ships anchored offshore, "Then… why haven't we done that yet?"

"You've got a pirate issue right?" Calvin asked bluntly, arms crossed.

It was only Rex's calming hand that stopped Sam from jumping, "Don't worry." He reassured him, "I have already told Calvin about the Daywalker."

Sam shook himself loose, "Ah…" he nodded towards Calvin, "Yeah, they seemed to have got pretty ballsy."

Stifling a laugh, Calvin winked at the rabbit, "Right! You've got a potential threat to those ships out there."

"The schooners." Rex started, nodding towards the two smaller ships, "They'd be the scouts, but they aren't equipped for a heavy fight, especially against anything that could threaten something the size of the Daywalker."

"Then why not the Kite?" Sam questioned, waving a hand towards the larger ship and recalling how well it had handled under sail and seeing just a handful of the cannons she had aboard her. "She looks like she could hold her own."

A warm smile formed on Rex's face, "She certainly would. But being between a brig and a frigate, she needs a large crew, and we don't have the manpower to send her out and survey this island at the same time. Even if we could-"

"The two schooners won't be able to help everyone else stuck here." Calvin finished, "Especially if we've got to evacuate."

Sam rubbed his forehead, softly groaning. The never-ending problem of manpower. He could already guess they would have had more if not for the representatives and Broken Wood taking some of that away. It was a pain in the side.

That was when he caught the glint in Calvin's eye. "Hold on. We can't send the Kite or a schooner out on their own, right?"

"That's right." Rex confirmed.

"Then why not send both schooners?"

Sam's eyes snapped towards the guildmaster, who was already casting an aside glance at the Scorbunny.

"Think about it." Calvin continued with a smirk, "Send the Crow and Penguin ahead together. They can get away with much smaller crews and watch each other's backs."

Sam chewed his lip, trying to imagine the two ships moving together, "I'd guess that would work for scouting. We could at least check the beaches out."

Rex started scratching his beak again, "The Kite can remain behind and support the expedition – and defend it if needed."

"Could she do that on her own?" Sam asked.

"We can keep her manned enough to start fighting." Rex admitted, "The rest of the crew can quickly get back aboard from here if she needs to move."

Sam nearly bounced as he rubbed his hands together, "I volunteer for scouting then!" he exclaimed, "We can head out, see what we'd expect and come back."

Seeing Rex's raised brow at his enthusiasm, he quickly calmed himself down and rolled his shoulder. "I'm just… wanting to get to the bottom of this stuff. That's all."

Rex stiffened for a second, before flashing a weak smile. "I know too well." He admitted. "And I do believe this is the best course of action."

"Y-You do?" Sam stuttered, blinking.

"Indeed. Audacity, Seekers and Active can go ahead on the Crow and Penguin, and I'll assign some of our stronger frontline teams to join you."

"I'll make it easier for you Rex." Calvin said, cracking his knuckles, "I'll lead them. I've kinda been itching for some fresh air anyway."

Calvin? We could do with the firepower but…

The Blaziken frowned, "Calvin, I'd appreciate the help, but-"

"Rex." The Charizard interrupted, "Screw the politics. I'm a Rescuer, and last time I checked, you outrank me. Put me to work."

Wait. Is he talking about Rex being the Guildmaster? Or the actual ranks? Calvin's Master Rank right? So… what rank does Rex have?

Sighing, Rex firmly nodded back. "Very well. I'll see if any of our Silver's are willing to join and contact the schooner captains, they might be able to set off today."

"I'll get some supplies prepped." Calvin replied, nodding his head before hopping out of the gazebo and strolling into the trees.

Rex turned towards Sam, "Before you go Sam… be careful out that. You're going to need to back up the others as best you can along with Alice."

Sam stiffened, not quite wanting to hear or hear about it. He quickly shook his head, electing to change the topic. "There's one thing to worry about it…"

---

"FUCKING HELL!" Bruce roared, looking a little more green than normal as the recruits started to push some of the longboats to the water. A few flying types flew above their heads, headed towards the two smaller ships. "Just when I was getting settled!"

"I'll take it." Denver grunted as he pushed one of the boats into the water, "The bugs in that jungle are murder."

Sam blinked, back pressed against another boat, "Err… Denver you are a bug type."

The Skorupi's pincers snapped together, "No type can protect against those little bastards."

Dan stumbled from around another boat, noticeable red spots dotted across his arm. "H-He's not kidding." He wheezed.

Feeling a shiver down his spine, Sam promptly analysed his arms for any bite marks that had evaded his notice.

"A Silver-Rank team will be following in behind us." Edward said as he trotted towards them, Nia and Alice following him from behind.

That's good to hear. Sam mused to himself as his eyes shifted towards the Noibat and Buneary, the former hovering just behind her. Huh… Nia's been trying to hang around Alice a lot more since we've set off. I wonder why Alice hasn't thrown her off yet.

The recruits started to gather around two of the boats, "Good. So…" Sam started, "We've got two ships. Who's going where?"

"I'll go on the Crow." Alice simply stated, not even looking Sam's way.

Not that he was in any mood to argue with her on which little boat they'd go on.

"Right." Sam said, "Looks like it's the Penguin for me."

Bruce seemed to recover enough to look more bewildered, glancing between the two rabbits. "Well… I heard that the Penguin is less… tippy? You don't mind if we-"

Nia dropped down to the floor next to Alice, "You can sign me up for the Crow." She declared, bumping Alice's side with a wing. "And I'm not taking no for an answer."

Sam nearly smirked as Alice groaned in reply.

Looking even more perplexed, Bruce slowly nodded his head, "O-Okay… well if the girls are doing that, how about us boys go on the Penguin! Would make a change!"

"Well…" Edward started, "It's a four-mon Silver Team, should be able to even things up."

Dan shuffled on the spot with a visible quiver, as his gaze flicked between Nia and Bruce. "I-I-I… I don't know if it's-"

Nia placed a paw onto the Morpeko's shoulder, "Go on Dan! Give it a try with the boys!" she flashed a gigantic grin, "Should be a new experience!"

A fuzzy feeling formed inside Sam as Dan seemed to visibly relax at the bat's words. Nia is damn good to Dan.

A hearty laugh rumbled from the camp, "Good job Team Iris is all girls then! Just don't start getting competitive! It's a team effort!"

Calvin stomped across the beach towards them, two big satchels hung over his side… and alongside him walked Zeke. His chains had been removed, but the silver collar was still secured around his neck. Sam blinked, he'd heard of Zeke being bought on the expedition to help with the search. But it was the first time he had seen him in a few days.

Denver snarled, "What's he doing here?"

"Calm down Denver." Edward stressed softly, "He's not going to hurt us."

"I'm only here in case I recognise anything." Zeke quietly admitted, "I won't get in the way."

"He's been through a lot." Calvin said seriously, "Treat him as well as any other. Now if you don't mind me-" he patted the satchels, "I've gotta pass on these requests to the captains."

With a whump of his wings, the Charizard flew up into the air, kicking sand straight into the recruits' faces. Sam quickly covered his eyes, gritting his teeth as the grains bounced off him. Edward hadn't been so lucky, the Skiddo coughing wildly out of sight. Blinking, Sam lowered his arm. The dragon was already flying towards the smaller ships, the sound of his wingbeat already fading away.

"Team ACT my ass." Denver grumbled, rubbing his eyes, "At least take off away from all the sand!"

"At least he's coming to help us." Alice grunted back.

Sam frowned, "Look, we better get over to the ships. Won't want them to leave without us."

"Yes." Zeke said weakly, "Lets."

The boys started loading up onto one of the boats, the girls having to wait for Team Iris to catch up. As the Scorbunny took his seat, he cast an eye towards Alice, her back now turned as she leaned against their craft. She's all alone again…

Sighing, he took one of the oars, and pushed the boat out into the water.

---

The wind was still at the ship's backs, so the journey towards the next island was a much quicker affair once the Penguin and the Crow had brought themselves out into open water, a collection of islands now visible before the horizon. Rex had requested the captains to at least survey the edge of the largest island, which happened to be the closest one of the chain.

It only took a few hours for the schooners to reach that island, but they couldn't get close. Waves crashed against towering grey cliffs, far too craggy and rough for the ships to approach. That left only one option, to circle around to a beach they could access.

Sam leaned against the railing of the vessel, watching the coast as the Penguin slowly started it's search. But occasionally, he would turn his head towards the Crow trailing behind them. He tried to put the thought of her passengers out of his head, but it wasn't working.

Not that he could move elsewhere, Bruce was still puking over on the other side of the ship whilst Dan tried to get the Bulbasaur to nibble on some bread chunks.

Dry heaving was hell, apparently. Sam figured he'd let the Morpeko do what he could to help his teammate. Edward meanwhile was now browsing through some charts along with the navigator, Zeke was watching the shore from the bow, and he had no idea where Denver was hiding. And Al-

Gah, fuck!

He thumped the railing, unable to finally turn his attention away from Alice. Not even the thought of finding Guardian ruins or any clues was getting buried. Come on! Alice can't stand me half the time on a good day, why should I even bother with her? After the bullshit she threw at me. No won-

"You look ready to fight someone."

Sam jerked upright. "H-Huh?"

Standing behind him was Calvin, the lean Charizard casting a wary eye on the Scorbunny.

"Calvin!" Sam exclaimed, "I'm not planning on that!"

"Bet you aren't." he gruffly replied, "But you're pissed, punching the railing and all."

The Charizard walked over to join Sam at the railing, eyes flicking between the island and the following Crow. "How are you?"

Sam tightened his grip on the railing, "Err… yeah. Just want to get started with surveying the place. Find what Kain was looking for, you know?"

"And are you going to do that alone?"

Flinching, Sam turned to fully face the dragon, his heart beginning to beat harder, "What's that supposed to mean?"

A low deep rumble came from Calvin, encouraging Sam to sweep a foot back. When Calvin turned to face him, his eyes were narrowed, and a faint stream of smoke rose from his nostrils.

"Let's say I can smell a mistake coming."

And with that, Sam bared his teeth, his fists clenching as he fought to keep himself from exploding.

---

On the Crow, Alice had found herself in a similar position to what Sam was in. She had positioned herself at the railing of the ship, albeit at the bow rather than the side. Behind her, she could hear the members of Team Iris talking amongst themselves, flashing whatever new possessions they got their hands on.

But it was something else that surprised her entirely.

"Make sure to keep those ropes tight!" Kaliani called out, hopping across the deck as she inspected some of the crew working on the deck. "I don't want the wind to blow us into those rocks!"

Zeke's presence was something Alice could expect. But she didn't expect Kaliani to join them until the Trumbeak helped her and Nia onto the Crow. The girl had been through a lot, something Alice could understand. But as the Buneary saw her passing on orders from the captain, she realised this was the best place for her to be. She was a sailor at the end of the day.

Alice watched the coast, wondering wha-

Nia hovered in front of her, a bright smile stretched across her face. "Whatcha doing?"

Alice recoiled, raising clenched fists. "Can you stop doing that Nia!" she barked.

The Noibat froze almost comically in front of her, "C-Come on! You like my surprises!"

"Not when they are non-stop!"

The Buneary started to hop towards the other side of the ship's bow, trying to ignore the thud as Nia landed on the deck behind her. "Just tell me what I can do then!" she shouted, "You are so on edge! Like… more on edge than normal!"

"Just sounds like another normal day to me." Alice grunted back, reaching the other end and leaning against the railing there. "It's none of your bus-"

"IT IS MY DAMN BUSINESS!"

The scream wasn't the loudest she heard, but Alice still had to retract both ears to cover them, the ship went briefly silent, a few members of the crew pausing to look their way, only for another deckhand to bark for them to get back to work.

"Can you keep it down for one fucking minute!" Alice hissed, releasing her ears.

"No!" Nia shouted back, managing to dial it down regardless. "Ever since the representatives arrived you've been so much nastier to Sam! And to the others!"

Alice groaned and turned away as Nia continued ranting, "I'm trying to help you here!"

"Yeah, that's what Sam offered." She growled back, "Then that liar just proved himself to be no better than anyone else."

She clenched her fists, eyes focused on the water. That was who nearly everyone was. Another person to disappoint her and turn on her. No matter how nice they seemed to act.

"You lost your parents to Dark Matter… right?"

Alice's head jerked up, her legs suddenly feeling weak beneath her. Nia's words were soft, without any shred of anger, something that Alice wasn't prepared for.

She turned back to face Nia, but instead of the bubbly Pokémon she recognised, instead, she looked much calmer and composed with her wings placed at her side. "H-How…" Alice started. "How did you…"

Nia walked up to join Alice, "I kinda worked it out awhile ago. I saw how badly you reacted about Dark Matter when Edward talked about it, and there is that cursed rumour too – which is rubbish by the way!" She placed her hands on the railing, "And there's how much the guildmaster keeps an eye on you too, the same one who led Team STAR…"

Alice could only stare blankly at the bat as she shrugged, "It wasn't that hard to connect the dots. I'm… sorry that happened to you."

Taking a shaky sigh, the Buneary steadied herself against the railing. Of all the people to work out her secret… her past…

"Nia…" she managed to utter, "You are officially scary, you know that right?"

She pulled a sly smile at that, if only briefly, "Let's pull back a sec. You don't trust many people because of all the shit you've put up with? I don't know what has happened between you and Sam-"

"I don't want to talk about it." Alice said quietly back.

"Hear me out."

For f…

She couldn't bring herself to finish the thought, not with what Nia was pulling off now. She still suspected that Nia wouldn't back down. So…

"Shoot."

Steadying herself with a shallow breath, Nia got started again. "I'm going to take a guess. Sam didn't tell you something big about himself right? And you got mad at him because he knows about what happened to you?"

"Get to the point." Alice bluntly stated, finally directing her gaze on the Penguin further ahead of them.

Nia tapped the railing with a claw, "Okay. Let me put it like this. What if Sam was like you?"

Alice's back stiffened, "The fuck?" she growled.

The bat, still composed, raised her hands as Alice turned back to face her. "Seriously, did you tell anyone else about your past?"

"No!"

"Why then?"

"Because it would get me or someone hurt!" Alice replied, clenching her jaw.

That was when the coin dropped. Alice suddenly felt cold as the words left her mouth. Someone getting hurt…

'I could be putting others in danger. I mean, what about Alice? She's been through so much… I don't want to throw her into another quagmire because of me.'

Sam… you were being a fucking idiot so many times but… you were always…

"Sam was probably thinking the same." Nia explained, "And that's not the only thing!"

Alice tore her eyes away, back towards the Penguin. But Nia scrambled around to remain in her view, "You've had – what? – six years to work through what happened. Sam's had six weeks. He probably doesn't know how to fully talk about it."

And Sam… probably wouldn't have to talked to Jack about it unless he felt like he…

The realisation only made Alice feel even colder.

---

Sam could feel himself burning up as the Charizard stared him down, both their nostrils flaring. If this had been over six weeks ago, Sam would probably have backed down or tried to ease the situation. But after fighting Greg and Kain, he didn't feel any fear of Calvin trying to fight him. He doubted it would end well, but he wasn't going to retreat here.

"What's this all about?" Sam questioned.

A sharp tooth poked out of the dragon's mouth, "Your attitude. And your partner."

Groaning, Sam rolled his eyes, "Look, we agreed to call it quits after the expedition. Its for the best."

Calvin merely grunted in reply, "Heh, so you think it's alright to keep barking down each other's throats?"

For fucking crying out loud, what's his problem!?

Fists squeezing even tighter, Sam's voice started to rise, "She was the one who blew her lid! Acting like a damn bitch!"

"Oh yeah?" the dragon questioned, taking a loud step forward as he looked down at the rabbit. "And you think shouting back at her is going to help? Sounds you pissed her off!"

"I tried to calm her down!" he snapped back, "And she ended up tearing me down for it!"

Calvin seemed to darken and grow bigger before him, "And here you are, still going on at each other. It's like you're some old married couple!"

Sam's eyes burned, "A-Alice isn't my concern anymore! I've got more important shit to deal with!"

"Screw that! You do give a crap, so why are you being such an arsey little shit over it!"

"BECAUSE I FUCKED UP!"

The Scorbunny panted, his body feeling like jelly. Not from fear, but from the shout itself. He could feel a few stares from the crew working on deck, but they didn't stop working.

The Charizard glared silently down at him as Sam felt the briefest flicker of a tear form, something Sam swiftly wiped away, "I kept something back about myself." He said quietly, throat sore. "And when she lashed out that I didn't trust her, I snapped."

He turned away, directing his gaze back towards the trailing Crow. "I... I started driving her away. And every time we tried to reconnect, we just started fighting again. And I just keep…"

Sam couldn't finish that sentence as Calvin started chuckling. "You're not pissed off at Alice. You're angry with yourself."

Clutching the railing, Sam couldn't bring himself to look Calvin's way. He wanted to deny it, Alice had thrown no small amount of abuse his way. But it was he who got the ball rolling. He was so terrified of what response he would get that he would get that he failed to see what hiding the truth would have meant to Alice.

"Yes… I… I pushed her away…"

He turned to face the now smiling Charizard, "You meant for me to get angry…"

Calvin gave a bemused flick of his wings, "Can't exactly beat pushing people's buttons until things click."

"Did… was that something you worked on with Rex?" Sam meekly asked.

"Worked with? More like something Rex learnt whilst playing hero."

And then, much like it had for Alice on the Crow, the penny dropped.

'You've always got to be some kind of hero, barging your way into other people's problems and trying to act like you are looking out for everyone!'

He had thought Alice was going on about him headlong into danger despite her warnings. But she was not meaning that at all.

"What are you thinking of Sam?" Calvin asked.

Sam's body started to numb, his eyes fixed on the rocking form of the Crow.

"I… I just kinda realised something."

W…What am I doing?

"And what's that?"

Sam's next words were soft, and tinged with a bit of sadness. "I never had to-"

---

"-go it alone."

Alice's eyes were fixed on the Penguin, feeling low on energy. W… What am I doing?

Nia leaned in closer and more into view, staring wide-eyed at the Buneary. "Wwwell?"

She blinked back, feeling the chill fade away, "I… I just realised something. I'm… I'm going to have to talk to him when we get the chance."

Rubbing her hands together, she finally looked back towards Nia with a small smile, "Thanks. I needed to hear all that."

With a beaming smile, Nia bobbed up and down in delight. "Amazing! I knew you two would come around!" Before Alice could react, she had planted a hand into her back, "You two do get along!"

"Get your hand. Off my back." Alice said bluntly but warmly.

"Okay." Nia complied.

Alice started to look back towards the front ship… but that was when she saw it, placed further past the Robinwood vessel.

She frowned, "Wait. What's that?"

---

"I'm guessing you figured out we were having a row?" Sam asked.

"Saw the whole thing from a mile away." Calvin admitted.

The two fire types were now leaning more casually against the railing, the rage having quickly faded away. Sam rubbed the back of his head, "I'm going to speak to Alice, sure." He stressed, "But… why are you so interested in us? I mean, we've just gotta be another team right?"

With a huff, Calvin shook his head, "Let's just say you remind me of someone. Someone who recently… had a pretty nasty break up."

"Break up?"

"With a teammate. A partner."

The Charizard sighed, rubbing his forehead. "It's not been pretty to watch. Not after seeing how important the bonds between teams are. I've felt it with Team ACT. I've seen it dozens of other teams, including Rex's."

That perked his ears up, "Rex had a team?" He asked.

Now he flashed a grin, "Team STAR." He explained, "Damn, you should have seen them, they were legends. There was only one Mon who inspired us in Team ACT more."

Sam frowned, There was one Mon who was better than Rex and his entire team? Or, what? More inspirational?

"And… who was that?"

He only got a snort at that, "That would be a story for another time. The point is, never give up on your teammates. They are your anchor when the whole world turns against you."

Is… is he talking about Team Warden?

"I don't want you to lose that bond because of something stupid." Calvin stressed, "Cherish it. And together… I bet you two could take on anything."

The Charizard smiled again as he patted the Scorbunny on the back, "I better get back to work." He said, starting to walk away.

Sam couldn't stop himself blurting out the word, "Wait!"

Calvin stopped to look back at the Scorbunny, "That Pokémon you mentioned, the one I reminded you of… who are they?"

The smile shifted to something smaller, more sincere, as if the dragon was recalling a pleasant memory. "His name's Tobias."

Tobias…

With a mock salute, Calvin turned away again, "Keep up the good work – as a team – and who knows? Maybe you'll meet him one day."

As he walked away, Sam spun on his heel to look back towards the Crow. Maybe… maybe we will…

He closed his eyes. I've just gotta find out how.

That was when the bell started ringing. "Sails! Straight ahead!"

Huh?!

Sam's eyes snapped open just as the crew ran into overdrive, responding to new orders being barked out. Instinct took over as Sam started running, headed for the ship's bow, scrambling up the steps to reach it. Zeke was trying to look over the railing, glancing back briefly to see who was coming. "There it is!"

Sam could see the ship appearing from behind a cliff. It was too far for him to catch all the details, but its size was easy. A two-decker, with three masts poking out from it's deck, supporting black sails.

Someone squarked out another panicked report, and he could hear Zeke hiss, but Sam's eyes had already drifted towards the top of the contact.

Where a black flag adorned with a white skull and crossbones flapped in the wind.

Sam felt his heart miss a beat.

Pirates!

Spoiler: Author's Note

Alright, and again, this took longer than planned, but the latest GoB Chapter is complete! This is a bit of a slower chapter, but not for much longer, as it sets the stage for the episode's main conflict. I hope it is enjoyable for you all again!

 

[StolenMadWolf]

And so, it has finally come. The Prequel to Guardians of Balance has come.

Mercenaries of Dawn is live. If you are interested in reading this, please follow the link.

Guardians of Balance is still fully active, and will likely be the next chapter update.

 

[StolenMadWolf]

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II – DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER XII – PIRATES!​

Sam tightened his grip on the railing, eyes fixed on the ship as it started to turn towards them. They know we're here!

"She's coming about!" One of the shiphands shouted.

Calvin's roar boomed across the deck, "Rescuers! Get over here!"

Jerking to attention, Sam and Zeke shared a glance as they ran back down the ship towards the centre. Calvin was waiting for them, alongside a rather panicky-looking Dan and a seemingly recovered Bruce. It seemed as if the threat of attack had pushed down whatever seasickness he had been feeling. From further back, he could see the captain at the wheel, shouting for the crew to ready the cannons. With a practised sense of urgency, the crew scurried across the deck, shoving the weapons into position.

As Edward and Denver scrambled from below decks, the Charizard directed his attention to the assembled recruits, "Alright boys, the wind isn't doing us any favours. We can't run until either the wind turns or until one of the flying types can get enough of a gust to turn us. The captain is going to turn us on for a broadside ahead of the Crow, try and keep him at a distance. But there is a good chance they'll try and board us. We need to keep them off the gun crews until we can break clear. Bruce! Edward!"

The Bulbasaur and Skiddo almost leapt out of their skins, "Y-yeah Calvin!?" Bruce barked.

Calvin pointed towards the railings, "I need you two to cover the sides for any water types coming up on us! Denver, I need you to be our fast responder. Sam and Dan, you both know electric moves, right?"

Sam sharply nodded, not thinking about how Calvin knew that. "Got Electro Ball."

"T-Thunder Shock!" Dan weakly replied.

"Then you two head up front. Any flyers come in, turn them round-" Calvin squeezed his fist, "Or blow the bastards out of the sky."

Can't argue with that! Sam flashed a thumbs up to that. "You can count on us!"

That was when Calvin turned to the Electrike. "Zeke, I need you to help them."

Sam's heart instinctively skipped a beat.

Denver's eyes widened, "Are you fucking nuts!?"

Zeke looked just as alarmed, "No no. No! I can't-"

"That wasn't you Zeke!" Calvin barked, cowing the younger Rescuers in an instant. "You're a Rescuer, I trust you to be that!"

"B-But…" Zeke blubbered.

"Flyers leaving the pirate ship!" one of the crew members shouted.

Calvin narrowed his eyes, "You want to keep Pokémon safe from harm? Then help us fight these pricks off, cos there's a good chance of more harm happening with one less fighter."

Sam's eyes flicked towards the Electrike, his mind flashing back to the first fight he had against him in Broken Wood, how easily he electrocuted Aidan in that fight. The Scorbunny did beat him, but he knew Zeke had a lot of power in him. But with Kain… he knew Zeke was terrified of losing himself.

He leaned into view, "We've got your back Zeke." He said firmly, flashing a determined look. "Trust me, I'll take any help we can get."

Zeke finally looked towards Sam, properly, struggling to fight back tears. Terrified.

But whatever he saw in Sam seemed to stabilise him. He narrowed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and turned back towards Calvin, lifting his neck to expose the collar.

With a flash of white, Calvin's Metal Claw easily cut the collar loose, the metal fragments clunking on the floor.

"What about you Calvin?" Bruce questioned, starting to back up towards one of the railings.

The Charizard flashed a grin, "I'm going to have a scrap, buy you boys some time."

With a whump of his wings, he shot up into the air, headed towards the pirate ship.

"Mad bastard…" Denver grunted.

"You heard him though!" Edward replied, starting to trot towards the starboard side. "We need to be ready!"

"Hurrah to that!" Bruce cheered, taking his position on the port side.

Whilst Denver grumbled to himself, Sam flicked his head back towards the bow. "Zeke, Dan, come on!"

As they ran back towards the bow of the ship, Sam could only spare a brief thought back towards the Crow, what was going through Alice's and Nia's heads? Was the captain making a similar call?

He wished he could get aboard the Crow right now, but he knew they didn't have that option. The best Sam could do now was try and defend the Penguin.

Reaching the bow, the pirate ship had closed the gap, and now, Pokémon were approaching in the air and water, running on ahead of the vessel. Bruce and Edward could handle the water, but they needed a good approach to deal with the air. He shuddered, he wasn't an expert on dealing with air targets, and he didn't even need to look to know that Dan was never going to co-ordinate their attacks… so…

"Zeke." Sam started, turning towards him with a firm look, "Can you take point?"

The canine hesitated, but only for a moment, snarling as he looked towards the flyers. "Alright, on my mark!"

An orange dart sliced through the air, forcing the approaching fliers to duck and weave to avoid the Charizard with some turning to take him on. Others closed in on the Penguin, almost all of them birds.

Dan was shaking uncontrollably, his mouth trembling, "Z-Z-Zeke?"

"Not yet."

The birds were nearly on top of them, Sam's heart thumping harder in his chest, "Come on Zeke." He hissed.

"Not yet!" Zeke barked.

Three started to dive towards the ship, Sam sweeping his foot back to ready the Electro Ball. "Now would be a good time!"

"Not yet!"

He could start seeing the features more clearly now of the attackers, the leader, a Fearow, was starting to shriek.

Blue energy crackled around the Electrike, his jaws snapping open-

Sam recoiled as the blue beam of energy shot out of Zeke's mouth, too fast for the Fearow to react. In a flash of light, the bird was blown back, spiralling out of the air. His wingmates squawked, immediately trying to pull away.

"NOW!" Zeke roared.

Eying a fleeing Swallow, Sam booted an Electro Ball into the air. The orb raced after it, and with a twirl, the flying-type barrel rolled away, the attack skimming across their back. Sam growled as with a panicked flutter of their wings, the bird peeled away.

A flash of yellow light erupted in the corner of his vision, another bird being blown out of the sky with the Thundershock attack.

Sam gritted his teeth, glaring at the Swellow scurrying away. At least his attack run is ruined!

"Here they come again!" Zeke shouted, "Sam, we'll fire first, you try and catch anyone evading us!"

Snapping out of it, Sam readied himself for another shot, "Got it!"

Another trio of birds began to dive, at them, coming from two angles to try and throw them off. But another blast from Zeke blasted one back, forcing their comrade to throw themselves aside to avoid them. Gotcha!

Sam's next Electro Ball sailed straight into his target, sending them screaming into the water below.

The rest of the fliers hung back, starting to circle the Penguin to try and find a fresh angle. "They're going round back!" Sam realised, ears going fully erect.

"Go!" Zeke shouted, "We'll keep the bow covered!"

"Y-Yeah! We'll… try!" Dan stuttered, trying to rile himself up.

Sam nodded, sprinting back across the deck, past the cannons and shooting up towards the higher stern. The Dewott captain was at the wheel, still barking orders to his crew. Sam reached the rear railing, just as a bug type tried diving in. Another Electro Ball later, and the bug was sent reeling back, trying to keep himself in the air.

Okay! Just gotta keep the flyers off us!

Another bird flew overhead, a red band wrapped around them. One of the crew. Must be getting ready to get the gust going!

"Surprise!" Bruce shouted.

Behind him, a Squirtle had poked his head up over the side, only for the Bulbasaur's vines to wrap around his neck, "See ya in hell!" he exclaimed with a smirk as he flung the turtle away almost casually.

Another squark came, and he turned in time to see the Swellow diving for him. Yelping, Sam dove aside, the air whistling as the flying type rushed by.

Sweat soaking into his fur, Sam growled and pushed himself back up to his feet. "Buzz off!"

Sam kicked off another Electro Ball, and this time, the Swellow wasn't ready. It struck them hard in the back. The bird's scream was swiftly cut off as he plummeted into the water.

"Hold them off! We're nearly ready!" The Dewott shouted, his eyes fixed on the closing pirate ship. It was close enough now that Sam could now see the forms of Pokémon running or clambering across it, getting ready for their attack. "Starboard cannons ready!"

Someone cried out, and Sam scrambled over towards the wheel to look down at the deck. A Lombre riding a pink Gastrodon had started sliding over the railing, the crew hurrying away from the deck.

The Gastrodon's eyes widened in time for Edward's head to bury itself in them, and with a slimy pop, the slug and the Lombre flipped off the railing and back into the water. "We're clear!" he shouted, "Back on the guns!"

Snapping to attention, the gun crews swiftly took their places, loading shot into the barrels.

"Hard to port!"

The captain started spinning the wheel, and with wood creaking all around, the ship started heaving over as she began to turn. Wind rushed above the Scorbunny, a pair red-sporting flying-types were beating their wings hard to try and add some extra speed to the turn. Sam struggled to keep his footing, one eye still on the sky if another flier tried to have another go at them.

The Penguin creaked even more, juddering as its turn sharpened, the bow peeling away from the pirate ship and slowly exposing the cannons of the schooner. The enemy ship kept sailing at them, its bow remaining fixed on them.

What the hell is he doing!? Sam snapped, He's gonna be a sitting duc-

Four hatches in the bow of the pirate ship sprung open.

He barely heard the shout. "CHASE GUNS!"

Smoke and fire flashed from the guns, wood detonating and splintering as cannonballs blew through the Penguin like an angry god. Pokémon screamed as they took a face full of shrapnel or were blown into the air.

One shot tore through the higher rear deck, Sam immediately shielded his eyes as he rolled back, debris whistling as she rushed past him. He landed hard on his back, the Scorbunny barely managing to keep his head from hitting the floor. His eyes snapped open to find the Dewott captain barely hanging onto the ship's wheel. He was wincing, clutching the side of his body, quickly becoming drenched in blood. Across the way, an unfortunate crewmember lay against the far railing, a grass type that sat unmoving.

Moans and screams echoed across the ship, out of sight of Sam. He only just stumbled to his feet when the whole ship jerked underneath him. Crying out, Sam nearly faceplanted the deck. Holy- did they just ram us!?

Gritting his teeth from anger and his aching arms, he picked himself up again to find the pirate ship's bow high above him, only just prevented from burying itself into the side of the Penguin. The schooner wheezed, water slushing against the hull. "T-There are pushing us aside!" Sam realised, the Penguin being turned to face the direction it had originally been travelling.

His chest tightened as he spun back to face the Crow, the other schooner still sailing onwards.

Into the path of the pirate ship's guns.

"No!" Sam screamed, "Get-"

Cannon fire roared as the pirate ship unleashed its broadside.

The Crow nearly exploded as the cannonballs slammed across her side, punching through her hull in a shower of shrapnel and flame. Sam's words died, as all he could do was watch as the ship heaved and rolled, gaping holes emerging out of the smoke.

"Alice!"

Above his head, war cries started to boom, a bell ringing as the pirates prepared to board the Penguin.

Sam snarled, readying a new attack, "Bastards! Come on! Come and get it!"

---

Across the way on the Crow, Alice gritted her teeth, her head pounding and her ears ringing. She had been terrified about Sam being stuck on the rammed Penguin when the broadside hit, throwing the Buneary across the deck. Through the ringing, she could make out the agonised cries and the moans of the crew. The captain was trying to get further ahead, to try and avoid striking the Penguin by accident. But then that pirate ship had lined up for its attack, and the Crow didn't stand a chance.

"Alice!" Nia shouted, "Alice!"

Grunting, Alice tossed aside the plank pressing against her back and pushed herself back up. "I'm alright!" She turned to find the Niobat unhurt, lowering herself back towards the deck with a beat of her wings. She must have got above the cannon fire.

The deck itself was ruined, covered in debris and blood from where Pokémon had been caught. We need to he-

Over the side, a team of four threw themselves over the railing, all sporting black armbands or bandanas. An Ambipom waved one of it's tails threateningly in the air, "Kill anyone who resists!" he barked.

Whilst a big Ursaring marched towards the rear of the ship, where a few members of the crew started to rise, the Ambipom, a Yungoos and a Minccino turned on Alice and Nia, moving towards them.

Alice took a step back, one ear already hardening in ice, she had to hope Sam was fine and deal with these guys, and with a smirk, she had the ideal solution. "Nia? You know how we keep telling you to watch your tone?"

She could hear Nia laugh as she floated past the Buneary, "Allow me!"

Her ears perked up, everything seemingly to go silent.

Alice covered her ears.

Nia's ultrasonic scream somehow slammed into Alice's chest, even though she was behind the bat. A scream loud enough that she could see the waves punch through the air. The three pirates screamed, clutching their ears as they tried to block out the sound. The Minccino keeled over, banging her head against the floor.

As the scream ended, Alice sprung forward, swinging her Ice Punch straight into the face of the Yungoos. As they skidded across the floor, the Ambipom shook his head, but his eyes were unfocused as he wildly threw a tail punch. Alice didn't even need to dodge it, letting her other ear glow white as she slammed the Rock Smash into his gut with a crack.

The Minccino looked up in time for Alice's still ice-encrusted ear to smash her face in. The rodent's face slumped into the deck, unconscious.

"Incoming!" Nia shouted as other pirates started throwing themselves over the railing.

Gritting her teeth, the Buneary readied herself for the next fight, hoping that Sam and the others were holding out.

---

Grappling hooks clunked against the railings, the larger ship reeling the stricken Penguin alongside. Even then, pirate Pokémon, all with black armbands, scarves or bandanas leapt aboard. Sam started to run for the stairs. Got-

A Sandshrew crashed down onto the deck, claws glinting as he charged at the Scorbunny. Sam sprung back, avoiding the slashes. "Out of the way!"

Roaring, Sam leapt back forward, trying to double-kick him away. The Sandshrew spun away, wincing as the kicks struck his back. It tried to swipe him again, but the Scorbunny was faster, leaping above the ground type. His feet connected at the back of the shrew's head.

As the pirate collapsed onto the deck, Sam could see the captain watching him, pressing some kind of paste into his wound. Grimacing, the water-type flicked his deck towards the steps.

Heart pounding, Sam swiftly nodded and leapt down the stairs.

Denver shoved a Tangela into the railing, his stinger stabbing away at the vined Pokémon. "Fuck off!" he bellowed, lifting the grass type in his pincers and throwing him aside. "Sam!" he shouted as the Scorbunny landed next to him, "Bruce and Edward are struggling at the mast!"

Sam didn't question the Skorpi, immediately jogging after the bug type. The Penguin was a scene of chaos, pirates and crew battled each other, trying to fire off whatever moves they could when they weren't fighting hand-to-hand. Sam ducked and weaved through the fights, fighting to keep his balance and not get trampled.

Bruce and Edward were back-to-back, fending off a pair of rock-type pirates trying to batter them. Denver roared as he charged the one attacking Edward, pincers cutting at them. Sam pounced at the other, double-kicking the rock-type away.

"Thanks!" Bruce shouted, "How many of these guys are there!?"

"You can ask them!" Sam panted, backing up to join the other Rescuers. "Any idea about Dan and Zeke?"

"Still at the bow!" Edward replied, the normally reserved goat scraping his hooves on the deck, "But there's so many!"

"If we could get away from these bastards!" Denver snapped.

One of the rock types lunged at Sam, only for Bruce's vines to wrap around their gravelly body and toss him across the ship. Sam couldn't help but smirk at the sight.

That was when in the direction of the tossed pirate, a Krokorok's head poked up from the crowd. Growling, his arm snapped up, a metal object glinting in his hand. Sam gasped, it was a bloody sword!

"Fire type at the mast! Kill him!" he roared.

Sam recoiled, "Wait, wh-"

Five pirates suddenly broke off from the main battle, charging for the Rescuers. Sam didn't think, immediately kicking away another Electro Ball. So close, two of the pirates, both monkey Pokémon, spasmed as the ball struck them. Denver immediately lunged forward, grappling two of the attacking pirates. Edward got the last, headbutting them back.

"Sam!" Bruce roared, vines raised and ready, "We could do with that fire-type shit!"

He gritted his teeth, "I can't just kick fireballs all over the place! I'll burn down the whole ship!" All it'll take is one rope catching and we won't have a Penguin left!"

As the three pirates were shunted back, a much bigger Empoleon and Sceptile barged through, limbs already glowing.

Sam's heart missed a beat, "Fuc – get back!"

Denver and Edward's eyes widened as they stumbled back. Bruce growled as he stepped forward, leaf-shaped projectiles shooting forward from the bulb on his back. But the water-type snapped one fin up, the Razor Leaves helplessly pinging off the steel.

Shit! Sam swept his foot back, feeling the heat underneath, he had to try and get a direct hit on them, or he'd-

The Charizard slammed down onto the deck behind the two Pokémon. They started to turn, but too late, Calvin's hands grasping the side of their heads and with an almighty crack, slammed them together.

"Now this is more like it!" Calvin roared with obvious delight as he tossed the two aside and his Metal Claws formed, "Come on lads!"

With a whip of his tail, he sent two smaller pirates flying, before lunging at an attacking Carracosta, forcing them back and laughing all the while.

"Another fire-type! Take out the dragon!"

"Hate a little firepower?" Calvin snorted, his tail glowing blue as he slapped the Sceptile away. "You're lucky you're not getting a taste!"

As the Charizard battered his way through the pirates, some of the shipmates rallied, falling in behind the veteran rescuer.

"What the hell is with these guys and fire-types?" Bruce wheezed, finally stopping to catch his breath in the lull.

Sam panted, leaning over as he caught his breath. "I'm asking the same."

"Fire hazard?" growled Denver, eyes on the unfolding battle, ready for someone to come at them.

He does have a point.

"There's still too many of them." Edward said, trying to survey the deck, "We need an equaliser."

Equaliser? Sam thought, back stiffening. We need a damn tornado! Could we break the Penguin free? He shook his head, No, the Crow would be a sitting duck! We need some more firepower!

His ears went erect, Firepower.

He looked towards the pirate ship easily overshadowing the Penguin… and the unfired cannons pointed right at it.

"Guys!" Sam shouted, "I've got an idea! Cover me!"

Bruce flinched, "Wha-"

Sam was already atop the guns, hoping Calvin could keep the pirates busy for another moment. Alright! How do I fire this thing!? He scanned one of the cannons, trying to find anything that seemed obvious. Fuses!

And there it was, a little dent to allow it to fire. Sam started to rub his hands together, feeling the heat rush through them.

"Sam on your right!"

The Krokorok's blade came rushing down at him, too close to dodge.

With a panicked yell, instinct fired off the Protect, the blue shield blinking in between them in time for the sword to ping off. The Krokorok's surprise flashed before he slashed again, the Protect fading away. Sam tried to spring away, but his feet slid away underneath him and with a yelp, he fell to the floor.

The croc roared, and the Scorbunny rolled aside, the sword impacting just inches away from him.

The sword came at him again and again, keeping the Scorbunny stuck on the ground. He tried to look back at the others, but all he caught was a glimpse of Bruce diving away from an ice shard. Another slash came and Sam evaded again.

The kick came flying into his gut, Sam barking out as his body spasmed. He tried to gasp some fresh air in, but with a crooked smile, the croc raised the sword again.

FUC-!

A dark projectile struck the pirate in the chest, sending him stumbling back. Rolling over, Sam eyed Dan standing at the bow, looking amazed… before screaming as another pirate attacked him. Hearing the growl behind him, Sam threw himself back onto his feet and fired off his Quick Attack, shoulder-slamming the returning Krokorok.

The larger Pokémon stumbled back right into Calvin's grasp. He had a moment to start crying for help before the Charizard casually chucked him over the railing. "Go on! Light them up!" He bellowed, turning back to grapple with another large Pokémon.

"On it!" Sam scurried back onto the cannon and rubbed his paws together, the heat building. Here goes nothing!

"Fire in the hole!" he shouted with a final scrape of his hands, a tiny Ember emerging and striking the fuse.

His ears rang as the front of the cannon exploded in smoke and flame, followed by the sound of detonating wood. The cannon jumped back, and unable to hold on, Sam flew off and slammed across the deck.

As he stumbled back to his feet, he caught a glimpse of Calvin, the Charizard laughing as the smoke cleared, revealing a gaping hole in the pirate ship. "Have a piece of your own medicine!" he cackled.

Out from the still battling Pokémon, the Empoleon charged, slashing his bladed wing across Calvin's back.

The Charizard roared, spinning around and slashing at the water-type. A Panpour and Mankey leapt onto his back, clawing away at his face. Wildly shaking himself, Calvin shook them loose, only for a Toxicroak to smack a fist across his jaws.

"Calvin!" Sam got back onto his feet, only for the Water Gun to strike his leg like a hot knife. Sam couldn't stop the cry, tumbling back over as he clutched his leg.

The Mankey had got on Calvin's back again, the dragon getting punched in the gut by the returning Sceptile, followed by the Toxicroak again punching his face. Another bird came swooping in, slamming into the Charizard's back. Grunting, the Charizard fell to his knees, getting pounded again and again.

Sam gritted his teeth, trying to rise to his feet, only for something to clamp around them and sweep them out from underneath him. Roaring, he struggled to break free, a Kingler hefting him into the air. Before he could do anything, he was hanging helplessly upside down.

As he struggled to shake himself free, he could only watch as Calvin was forced down to the ground. So was Edward, a Machoke holding the Skiddo by the horns. Bruce and Denver were backed up against the far railing, surrounded by pirates. The ship spun around him, bile burning in the Scorbunny's throat. As the world steadied, he could make out a Marshtomp holding a panicking Dan, whilst Zeke, electricity crackling all over his body, was being forced over the railing by a Sandslash.

Desperate, he tried to punch the claw, only for a wave of pain to flood up his arm. The Kingler could only laugh as he hefted the rabbit up higher into the air, "Just for you kid."

The Kingler smirked, "Greg sends his regards."

Sam's entire body froze, G-Greg!?

And before he could do anything, the Kingler threw him overboard.

And the last thing Sam saw was a blast of water rushing towards him…

Spoiler: Author's Note

Sadly again, this took longer than planned to complete, but chapters which are mainly battles tend to be trickier to write anyway. Either way, GoB's story continues as the pirates make their entry into the story. I hope you guys enjoy this one!

 

[StolenMadWolf]

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER XIII - THE MYTH OF BLACKAXE​

Days earlier…

Greg growled as the sword poked his back, making a deliberate effort to make it a rumble.

"Go on big boy." grunted the pirate behind him, poking him again, "Get moving."

A faint whimper came from the Swampert's side. "C-Come on boss…"

The Marowak next to him quivered, instinctively rubbing the back of his neck, no doubt remembering how the bandit leader had crushed it. Rolling his eyes, Greg started walking down the ramp of the ship.

It was midday, and ahead of them was a large town, composed of wooden structures that seemed to have been made from parts of old ships. An extensive dock was established outside, where not only smaller pirate ships were docked, but several other ships were currently being broken up and looted, likely to contribute to the building of the town. Greg could just make out an outer wall, that had also been built with stone alongside the wood.

"How did these guys get this place built?" asked the Rattata as he stepped down to the ground.

"Shipbreaking." The Pidgey replied with a snip, struggling to stretch his tied-up wings. "Are you blind?"

"Shut. Up." Greg grunted, as another pirate, sporting her black armband, started to direct the bandits – and the crew of the Daywalker – to stand around a small clearing before the central building, a large three-story structure with a set of stairs leading directly to the second floor. He narrowed his eyes at the crew, fear written across their faces much as it had with his own. Whatever the pirates want with us, it can't be good.

As the gathered prisoners were brought to a halt, surrounded by pirates from both the ship and the town, a Floatzel with a milky eye looked over them, his hand resting on an axe held at his hip. Didn't think anyone would get their hands on swords and axes. Save for those bastards on Sand maybe.

With a sharp whistle, what little conversation between the prisoners faded away, and the Floatzel crossed his arms. He scanned them once more, causing the bandits next to Greg to start squirming. The Swampert merely held his gaze, refusing to be cowed by the pirate's display of power. He even started thinking of using an Earthquake, to try and escape.

Instead, the Floatzel turned towards the building. "My lady!" He shouted, closing his eyes and bowing his head, "The prisoners are ready!"

The doors at the top of the stairs swung open, and as the new Pokémon emerged, Greg swore he could feel his back twang.

The pirate leader descended the steps, each footstep sending a faint quiver through the ground. She appeared insectoid in shape, but she was massive, her entire body armoured head-to-toe in beige and black rocky armour. At the ends of her arms, there were a pair of gigantic obsidian axes that didn't reflect any sunlight at all.

And as she stepped onto the ground, showing her to be even taller than Greg was, he could make out her eyes, nearly completely white, save for a dark pupil in each eye.

"I am Blackaxe." She said, her voice gravelly as she strolled towards the prisoners, letting her axes scrape across the dirty ground. "I'm the commander of these crews."

Blackaxe… it can't be! The legendary pirate queen!

Greg locked his jaw as Blackaxe started to pace along the line of prisoners. "Your ship and cargo now belong to Libertalia to do as we see fit. The question now becomes… what of you?"

A weak sob broke out from the captive crew, but Blackaxe didn't acknowledge it, continuing her pacing. "I offer a place where you can become a free Pokémon, no longer tied to the manipulations of the Continents and their guilds. You will be able to carve out your own destiny, and share in the spoils."

Some of the prisoners started sharing glances with each other. "You will need to prove this of course, but if you do… you will be welcomed as brothers and sisters." Blackaxe raised her axes in a somewhat welcoming pose. "If not… then fear not. Prove yourselves worthwhile, and I may be inclined to return you to the nearest safe port. But I do warn you… that is a fine line."

Her voice deepened with those last few words, and Greg swore he noticed a pirate shiver at that.

Blackaxe returned to her pacing, her eyes scanning the line of prisoners once more.

And then she stopped, and Greg could just make out that the strange Pokémon had stiffened.

"Come on out."

Two pirates barged into the crowd, much to the surprise of the prisoners. With a stifled squeal, they dragged a Pignite out from the crew, throwing him down at the feet of the pirate queen. "Stand." She ordered, and fearfully, the fire-type scrambled to his feet.

"Who are you?" she asked, her eyes narrowing as the quivering pig struggled to reply. "T-T-T-T-T-Trevor!" He babbled, his eyes wide.

"And what do you do for your crew?"

What's she up to…

Trevor was still shaking, but managed to muster up a nervous smile, "M-Me? I'm the ship's morale officer! I help keep these weary souls in the best of spirits with warm bellies from rum and stew!" He patted his belly, "I-I can you a taster! If your lady would be so inclined…"

Blackaxe turned away, and Greg could almost taste the sarcasm in her voice.

"…the cook… perfect…"

Then she spun and slammed her axe down on the Pignite's head.

Someone screamed as blood splattered everywhere, the crew starting to panic and the bandits gasping in shock as Blackaxe yanked her bloody weapon free, allowing the cook's corpse to limply hit the floor. Greg himself flinched, not ready for that sudden a strike. The pirate whipped her axe aside and motioned her head towards the prisoners.

A Vulpix was the next to die, a pirate stepping in from behind her and stabbing her in the neck with a knife, a faint gasp being all she could muster. A Salazzle clawed at her neck as it was slit with another blade.

As a Simisear started getting stabbed, Greg saw the pattern. His eyes snapped towards his own bandits… towards the dark Marowak, unable to tear his gaze away… and unaware of the pirate approaching him from behind.

Greg made his decision.

The Swampert's hands were bound, but without hesitating, he grabbed hold of the Marowak by the head, lifting him out of reach of the stunned pirate and the startled bandits. And as if on cue, the Marowak knew what was coming. "No no no! Please! Not ag-"

The skull of the Marowak imploded in the Swampert's grasp, the fire-ghost's body going limp. Should have stayed dead.

As the bandits stared on, mouths agape, Greg curled his lip in disgust and tossed the body away. But as he did, he found Blackaxe's eyes fixed on him.

Shit… here we go...

On the ground, the last of the target Pokémon gasped his last breath, his blood mixing in with that of his peers. Whipping her axe free of blood, she turned towards the Floatzel. "Get them accommodated. And someone needs to get rid of this… trash." She motioned towards the bodies.

"Of course, my lady." He replied, before barking his orders to the pirates. They sprang into action, starting to shove the prisoners towards the town. Another blade poked at Greg's back, shunting the Swampert along. Grunting, he started to move.

Only for the axe to hang just short of his throat. "Except this one." Blackaxe growled, as the other prisoners were forced further away. Greg clenched his jaws, holding his neck back from the weapon.

As the captives went out of earshot, Blackaxe leaned forward, peering down on the Swampert. "Who are you?" she questioned, voice deep.

Greg croaked out a cough before speaking, "Why would you ask?"

"You cur!" the Floatzel shouted, stomping over to their side, his eyes bloodshot. "You'll address her as Lady Blackaxe!"

"Overruled." grunted the axe-pokemon, earning a surprised look from the Floatzel that she didn't even acknowledge. "Answer the question."

Greg swallowed, keeping his heart rate down. "Greg." He admitted, "I'm… a vagabond."

Blackaxe's eyes narrowed, "And where were you caught Greg?"

"In the Sea of Wonders."

The axe twitched a touch, "You ran out of road… didn't you?"

Greg merely narrowed his eyes, resisting the urge to clench his fists. "You could say that."

The pirate queen stared down the Swampert, her axe still hovering by his throat. Greg held his nerve, refusing to show any fear.

Blackaxe swivelled the axe.

And neatly cut the bindings off Greg.

"My lady!" The Floatzel blurted out, "What are you doing!?"

"Don't worry Ezekyle." She replied, "I will keep my eye on this one."

She lowered the axe, and this time, Greg couldn't stop himself from letting out his held breath.

"You may well have found another road." Blackaxe stated before turning, "Come with me… we have much to discuss."

She started stomping towards the main building. Greg rubbed his wrists and feeling the eyes of the pirates piercing his back, he slowly shuffled after her.

---

Present day...

The sea of colours had returned, the soothing, rolling sounds playing within his head as everything softly shifted from one colour to the next.

Sam groaned softly to himself, seeing the white star hovering in the distance, blinking once more.

Great. This again? Come on… this is pointless…

He had no idea what had happened. The last thing he knew, he was being thrown overboard. For all he knew, his friends were in danger! And here he was in another stupid dream!

Can you get me out of here already!

The star continued to blink… but it was getting brighter.

"…please please please! Can you hear me! Oooohhh why does this have to be so hard!"

That brought the Scorbunny out of his stupor. Whoa whoa… hang on! I can hear you! Can you hear me!?

The star stopped blinking, only to start again, even brighter than before. "FINALLY! It's been so long! Do you know how many different methods I took to try and make contact again! It's normally a lot easier than this!"

If he still had a heart, it'd have leapt for joy. Finally! Six weeks after arriving in the Pokémon world, the voice that first greeted him had finally reappeared! About damn time! But… who are you? Why did you bring me here?

"Me? I didn't bring you here."

Huh?

"As for who I am… let me try something. It'd probably be better just to show you."

The colours rapidly started to shift again, before focusing onto a solid, warm green, the star rapidly brightening to the point that it nearly blinded the Scorbunny.

Instinctively, Sam shielded his eyes, trying to bloc- huh?

As the light started to fade, he blinked, finding his arm now hanging in front of him. Mouth agape, he looked down to find that his Scorbunny body existed again. A quick pat over and running his hand over his head and past his ears confirming it wasn't a trick. He flashed a grin to himself, God… this is so much better!

"Over here!"

Flinching, Sam turned back to face the star, the sea of colours seeming less intense but no less vibrant as it faded away to reveal a new figure.

A strange green… blob, with a tiny red hexagon on the body and a single little eye at the top.

"Hi!" they exclaimed in a high-pitched, almost childish voice, the blob wobbling cheerfully.

"Err…" Sam ears dipped as he tried to process the… thing in front of him. I… I have no idea what this guy is.

"Hi…" He managed to say. "Err… who are you? What are you? Are you some kind of Pokémon?"

"Yeah! Erm…" the blob suddenly looked confused. "No? Kinda? It's really complicated… how about you just call Squishy for now?"

Sam couldn't stop himself from stumbling over his own words. "Sq… S-Squishy?"

"Yeah! That's a long story too, been a while since someone called me that!"

Squishy hopped over towards the Scorbunny, his single eye beaming. "I'm glad to finally meet you!"

"Nice to meet you too…" Sam replied woodenly, swiftly shaking his head sharply. Come on Sam! Focus!

"So… Squishy." He started, managing to recover, "Do you know why I'm here?"

"To save the world obviously!" Squishy replied warmly.

"Yeah… and… what I'm saving it from what exactly?"

The little green blob froze. "Err…. Err…"

Sam rolled his eyes, "Go on." He said, motioning with his hand to request the answer, "I can take it."

"I… I don't know."

Something snapped in the back of Sam's mind, the Scorbunny nearly lunging at the blob. "Are you fucking kidding me!" he shouted, causing the weird creature to bounce back. "I've been waiting six weeks for an answer to what I'm doing here! You show up and your answer to the question of, saving the world is: 'i dont know!'", pulling a mock accent as he finished his rant.

Squishy blinked a couple of times at the Scorbunny, "In my defence…" He started with a slightly chipper tone, "I just woke up from a few hundred-year-old sleep about… a week before you arrived? I'm catching up as much as you are and I don't have a lot of cameras to look through!"

Suddenly feeling lightheaded, Sam sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Okay… that'd explain a lot…" Wait, a few hundred years?

"I can point you in the right direction to start looking though!" Squishy replied, hopping back over to his side. "The disasters, the guardians… your dream with the castle-"

Sam nearly leapt out of his skin, "H-How did you know that!?" he cried, recalling the dream of the besieged castle, what little he did anyway.

"I'm in your head dumdum!" Squishy bounced off the ground and before Sam could react, the blob was wobbling on the Scorbunny's head. "It's not that hard!"

Gritting his teeth, Sam grabbed hold of Squishy and pulled him down, holding the blob in front of him. "I get it!"

Cycling a breath in and out, Sam calmed himself down. "Okay… okay… so the Guardians and the disasters that have been happening... They're all related?"

"I'm positive of that!" Squishy confirmed, "You'll need to follow that lead. And if my memory hasn't borked out, there is an old Guardian structure on this island!"

Zeke was right! Kain was headed out here!

Sam lowered the blob down to the ground, "Great then! Do you know where it is? Or what is in there?"

"I think it might have been… an arcanum?" Squishy replied, eye clenched as if deep in thought, "Agh, if only I had a few more cells."

"Cells?" Sam uttered.

"Nevermind. Point is, I know its on the island, but where exactly? I don't know. But if you find that, I've got a feeling you'll start finding some answers. If not about what is happening right now, then definitely something on the Guardians."

Suddenly, Squishy seemed to start fading, only to rematerialize, his eye widened. "Great. I can't maintain this for too long. You're going to have to go on without me for now!"

Sam growled, "No! Squishy, you've just given the best help on this so far, how do I even find this place!?"

Squishy was already beginning to fade, "Maybe ask some locals? They know this place better than any guild members!"

The Scorbunny wanted to slap himself, "Where the hell am I going to find locals out here who want to help!?"

The blob seemed even more delighted, "Maybe ask the one looting your stuff?"

Stiffening, the Scorbunny could only cock his head. "Wait, looting-"

The sea of colours suddenly went back, the Scorbunny falling into blackness…

---

To the sound of gently breaking waves, Sam stirred.

Shielding his face, he opened his eyes, trying to stop the sunlight from burning them out. He was lying on soft, warm sand and his fur felt mangy and clumped up from salt and beach.

Groaning softly, Sam sat himself up.

The ships were gone. The only evidence of their existence was wooden debris that lay washed up on the beach, from planks to barrels. Sam's heart sank as he started to scan his surroundings, hoping against hope that Alice or the others had managed to get away.

He doubted they could have saved the Penguin, nevermind the Crow.

No one he recognised appeared.

God damn it…

Something clunked behind him, prompting the Scorbunny to spin round, facing a line of tropical trees.

He found himself staring at the back of a green monkey Pokémon about his size, with two leaf-like tuffs extending from its head and held in place by a stick. He had a rather familiar-looking satchel hung over his shoulder… and a certain red jacket.

"Hey!" he croaked, getting to his feet, "What do you think you're doing!?"

The monkey spun around, his eyes wide with alarm.

Sam took a step forward, "Give me bac-"

The Pokémon leapt away, running for the forest.

"Oh no you don't!" Sam barked, sprinting after the monkey.

Running into the trees, he chased the thief as he ducked and weaved through the foliage. As soon as he took his chance, the monkey started to ascend, working his way up into the trees. Unable to climb after him, the Scorbunny pursued him from the ground. Panting, Sam ducked through leafy ferns and hopped over fallen trunks, following him deeper into the forest and managing to keep his eyes fixed on his target.

As the forest started to clear, the monkey started to jump between lower, thicker branches. Alright! Try this!

Willing the fire within him to ignite, Sam shot an Ember away.

The fireball struck the branch the monkey landed on, the Pokémon yelping in surprise as he was flung off the tree and fell towards the ground.

Gotcha!

Sam punched through another fern, entering a larger clearing in the trees, a pool of water sat off to one side. The thief winced, trying to crawl away from the trees. Rubbing his feet against the ground, the Scorbunny slowly approached, "I don't want to hurt you." He panted, raising a hand as he approached, "I just want my stuff back…"

The monkey snarled at him, "Helping you outsiders! Not a chance!"

Cocking his head, Sam narrowed his eyes, He must be talking about the pirates….

"I'm not like those guys…"

"I don't believe you!" He shouted back, pushing himself back to his feet, and pulling the stick from the top of his head.

Sam swept his foot back, getting another pebble ready. "Alright… you're not giving me muc-"

A squirt of water landed between the two Pokémon harmlessly, Sam twitched at the sudden sight. The monkey seemed equally as baffled, blinking at the sight.

"Why is it that boys have to have a spat every ten seconds?"

The voice came from the pool. But… there's no one there.

That was when he noticed it, a shimmering patch of air that hung just above the water.

A faint sigh came from it, "Boys these days…"

The shape sprung out of the water, a blue Pokémon materialising as they touched down in between the rabbit and monkey. Sam nearly leapt out of his skin, almost seeing Aidan as a Froakie again. But his heart slowed as he saw the yellow fin atop her head, and she looked more like a lizard or a chameleon than a frog.

"How did you get back so quick?" The monkey snapped.

"Relax." She stressed, motioning for the monkey to calm down. "That doesn't matter, he's not one of those pirates."

I knew it!

Sam clicked his fingers, "Exactly! I'm not one of those guys! I ended up here because of them!"

"We can't trust these outsiders!" Hissed the monkey.

"Then why does she think I'm not a pirate?" Sam questioned.

The lizard turned back towards him, her blue eyes looking him over. She seemed a lot calmer, but her big eyes seemed to suggest that her species was… less so? "Look up then." She replied.

Sam stared blankly back at her, "W-What?"

"Seriously. Look up."

He started to look up, "What am I-"

That was when he saw them, his heart nearly exploding in his chest as he gasped. He stumbled back, unable to tear his gaze away, nearly tumbling over.

Hanging above their heads, were over a dozen bodies. Some were fresh, hanging limply from the tree branches. There was a Chimchar, a Salandit and a Typhlosion hanging there, deep cuts left open to fester. Some were older, starting to rot away into skeletons or starting to become bloated. Some unfortunate Pokémon, such as a Numel, had their heads mounted on spikes, and one unfortunate Flareon was fully impaled on a branch outright.

Sam teared his eyes away and keeled over, desperately trying to stop himself from retching.

"Because there are no fire-types with the pirates, remember?" The lizard explained, "They kill any fire-type they come across."

"I… hells." Cursed the monkey, "I thought I nearly caught fire then."

They… they all kill fire-types? Is… is that why they were so riled up at the sight of me?

A surprisingly soft hand settled onto his shoulder, and Sam weakly looked up to find the lizard holding on to him. "Come on." She said, "Let's talk somewhere else…"

---

The three Pokémon sat in a much smaller clearing, under the shelter of a much bigger tree with Sam's possessions now back in his hands.

"I'm Kyra." Said the water lizard, "This is my friend, Denzel."

The monkey sheepishly raised a hand in greeting. "'Ello."

Sam quickly introduced himself, "Sam. I'm a Scorbunny from the town of Robinswood." He looked over the two Pokémon, "I haven't seen your species before."

"We've known Scorbunny before." Denzel admitted, "But we're more obscure I guess." He rested a hand on his chest, "I'm a Grookey. Kyra is a Sobble."

Grookey and Sobble… got it.

Sam nodded back, "So… I'm guessing you guys live here?"

Kyra and Denzel shared a glance between each other, before Kyra continued, "We're from the Wela Tribe. We've called these islands home for generations. No one else came out here until the Lady arrived with her pirates and started attacking our people."

Cocking his head, Sam frowned back, "The Lady?" he questioned.

"Lady Blackaxe." Kyra confirmed, "She leads the pirates here and started taking our people captive to help build her Libertalia."

"Mainly after our fire-type chieftain went to greet her." Denzel said glumly, "And after she cut his head off."

Sam leaned forward, processing the word, "Blackaxe… I mean, who is she? I mean, do you know anything about her?"

"Not much." Denzel explained, "All we do know is she's a Pokémon unlike anything we've ever seen. One of a kind." He fiddled with the twig in his 'hairdo'. "I think she called herself… a Klevor?"

Klevor? Never heard of that Pokémon... is she a legendary or mythical like Volcanion? He felt a slight shiver at the thought of another one. Volcanion was bad enough, a second...

"She seems to have a bone to pick with other outsiders. And she really hates fire-types." Kyra added, "Why she does is anyone's guess."

The Sobble leaned forward, "So what about you? You're not a pirate. So what are you?"

"I'm a Rescuer." Sam explained, "Of the Robinswood Guild. It's on a big island… like, much bigger than this one. We came out to survey the islands and track down pirates like this Blackaxe to try and help people. They've been attacking ships going between the continents."

That earned a few blank looks from the two Pokémon, enough for Sam to shuffle his feet. "Er… boats?"

A light sparkled in Kyra's eyes. "Oh, boats! Got it."

"The point is," Sam continued, "We can work together to stop these guys. But first I need-"

The penny dropped; his heart clenching tight as he gasped. "The others!" he shouted, springing to his feet.

"What?" Denzel choked, doing the same.

"My friends! The other rescuers! Our ships, they got attacked by the pirates!"

He glanced between the others, "Did you find anyone else on the beach?" he quickly asked, gathering his things. "Another rabbit like me? Or a bat or a reptile with a bulb on his back?"

Kyra winced, "We… we heard there was a battle. That's why we came out here, to try and find out what was happening. But your ships were already gone. And me and Denzel have only found you."

Sam clenched his fist, trying to control his breathing, Damn it… could the pirates have got everyone? Alice? Nia? Bruce, Edward, Denver and Dan? I saw… I saw Zeke getting thrown overboard and… wait… Calvin! He's a fire-type too! Did the pirates… I've gotta know!

"Hey! Hey!" Kyra barked, grasping the Scorbunny's shoulders. "There are more of us out there! If any of your friends got away from the pirates, they probably got picked up and are already on their way to our village. We can find out there."

"Yes." Denzel said, "The pirates will come back to search the beaches again soon."

With a hiss of breath, Sam managed to get his heartrate under control. It frustrated him to no end, but he knew the two were right. He couldn't just start searching the forest randomly. He needed… needed to take inventory. Hope that some of the others got found by Kyra and Denzel's tribemon. Get somewhere safe, then work out the next best plan of attack.

"Okay…" Sam slowly said, "Lead the way."

Spoiler: Author's Note

Well hell... that was a new experience. I ended up getting on one of a roll last night with this writing. What was supposed to be just a thousand words max turned out to become the entirety of Chapter 2.13. All 4000+ words. Damn thing nearly killed me but I'm pleased I managed to get this chapter complete. After Chapter 12's events, I also felt that I had to get the rather significant Chapter 13 released sooner rather than later. And yeah... this Chapter should change things not only for Episode 2... but for the rest of GoB as well. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!

 

[StolenMadWolf]

POKÉMON MYSTERY DUNGEON
GUARDIANS OF BALANCE

EPISODE II – DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER XIV – PARTNERS​

The three Pokémon worked their way through the forest, with the Sobble Kyra leading the way. She kept her eyes focused forward, moving through a trail that Sam could barely notice through the undergrowth. Both Kyra and the Grookey Denzel moved at a fair pace, forcing the Scorbunny to focus on keeping up rather than checking out his surroundings. He tried to spare a thought to the fate of his fellow Rescuers. He could only hope that they were either able to get away or were spared by the pirates.

And if the bodies in the grove were any indication, Calvin was at the most risk of the lot. He was a fire-type like him. Like them. He was a powerful one too, would they risk capturing him?

Sam had been lucky to have been thrown overboard, otherwise, he could have met the same fate as the other, if not at the hands of the pirates, then definitely at the hands of this Blackaxe character.

He squeezed his fists tight at the last words he heard before being tossed into the water. Greg sends his regards… the bandit leader who nearly killed him three separate times was not only alive, but he was with the pirates. There was no doubt about it. They must have recruited him after taking the Daywalker, and if some random pirate recognised him…

Do the pirates know who I am?

The Scorbunny fought off a shiver, if that was true, Sam had an even bigger target on his back. Who knows what Greg had said about him? What about Alice? Would they recognise her too?

He wanted to kick something hard, only the rapid pace of the two tribesmon stopping him from doing so. I need to try and find the others with the help of this tribe, then I can worry about the pirates.

Kyra slowed to a halt as they reached a fork in the grassy trail, the Sobble frowning as she inspected them. Denzel stopped next to her, rubbing the back of his head, "You can't be thinking about that shortcut right?"

"It would cut at least an hour, easy." Kyra replied, "And it's been checked before, all the traps were disarmed."

"Only the ones we could find!"

Biting his lip, Sam skidded to a halt next to them, "What shortcut?"

"It's an old ruin." Kyra explained, "Well, more like a tunnel. It cuts through some of the hills near here."

"And it's not often used." Denzel groaned softly, "It's not in the best condition."

Sam couldn't stop his ears twitching. A ruin, could it be the one they were looking for?

No… that's not what Squishy suggested. It was an Arcanum or something. But who knows what else they might have in there? Maybe there might be a clue to another ruin.

He felt himself shrug, Besides, a shortcut is a shortcut. As long as it doesn't come down on our heads, it's worth at least checking out.

"Well, if it gets us back to your village faster, I say we give it a try." Sam remarked.

"And why am I not surprised." Denzel uttered as he moved ahead, "Come on, I know a quicker way there."

The three Pokémon continued on their way, taking the left path. As they advanced, the grass gave way to beaten dirt and the trail widened. Denzel didn't move anywhere near as fast as Kyra did, but they still moved fast enough that it only took about ten minutes until they arrived. The trio emerged into a small clearing where a large, steep hill formed in front of them, covered in massive trees. But at the foot of the hill was a gaping hole, lined with stone bricks that almost reminded Sam of the temple at Waterfall Mountain, only that this brick was stained brown and green rather than the grey from before. The tunnel entrance was easily about eight feet tall and wide, more than able to accommodate all three Pokémon side by side.

However, the tunnel itself was completely unlit, leading into pitch blackness.

Pins and needles briefly flushed through Sam's arm at the sight, "Is… is there no quicker way?" he asked.

Denzel halted at the threshold of the tunnel, fidgeting with his feet. "Yes… it's not great, I know."

Kyra walked past the pair towards the side of the entrance, "It's not dangerous. Sure, only the rangers use it, but we've used it a couple of times before. Here."

She pulled a large stick out of a rusty basket by the tunnel, one end wrapped in a greasy material. "Sam, you don't mind?"

It took a couple of blinks before the Scorbunny realised what she was asking, "Oh, gotcha."

With a quick spark, the touch lit up, sending a flickering orange light down into the tunnel. Sam carefully took the touch from Kyra, and with a deep breath, the trio slowly walked inside.

The tunnel was silent save for the faint tap of their footsteps, not even the dripping of water or the whisper of wind. The walls themselves were remarkably bare as well and each time Sam felt his eyes flick towards them in search of some kind of marking, he instead found some crack or dent.

"This place looks old." Sam said aloud as they walked onwards, "The Wela Tribe found this place?"

"Our rangers did." Kyra explained, "They managed to get the booby traps disarmed only last year."

Sam felt a small quiver in his throat, "Booby traps?"

Kyra flashed a brief smirk, "Darts. Gravelrocks. Spikes. The usual."

I'm not even sure what counts as usual with these guys!

"We still have to be careful." Denzel replied. "There might still be some traps. You can't trust these old ruins."

Sam's ears pried further as he tilted his head aside, "You make that sound like there are others."

"There's a few of them scattered around the islands." Kyra said, "But the Tapus and Elders have declared them off limits."

"Off limits?"

She sighed softly, pausing for a moment before walking onwards, "I… never understood it. They have been around as far back as the Wela Chronicle goes, built by the 'Champions of the Gods'." She rolled her eyes at her words, "And so they didn't want us desecrating their works."

Sam chewed on his lip, he had no idea who these Tapus and Champions were, and he had a feeling that his guesses could be wrong. Maybe these Champions were just Guardians by another name?

"Even putting aside how significant the ruins are." Denzel replied, "We have no idea what kind of traps are in them."

The Scorbunny slowly nodded as a light appeared at the end of the tunnel. "I… If we get a chance… can we check them out?"

Kyra flashed a sly grin, "If you can help with Blackaxe's pirates, I'll be more than happy to show you. Keep the touch lit, we're only halfway through."

Reaching the end, the three emerged into a large square chamber with beams of light shining down from openings high up the three-story-high walls. At the very centre of the room was a large pit, taking up over half of what the floor itself should be, but still leaving enough floor to leave a comfortably wide ring around it. On the far side of the room was another tunnel entrance.

Sam whistled as he stepped forward, scanning the browning walls of the chamber. They were still bare, much to his disappointment, but even so, he couldn't help but be impressed with the actual structure. "Well… if this is just a shortcut, then the ruins should be quite the sight."

Denzel rubbed his hands together with a tiny smile, "At least from a distance." He started making his way towards the right, "Come on, it is best not to stay here for too long."

He started to follow, but the Scorbunny found himself gravitating towards the pit, unable to contain some morbid curiosity, if only to be distracted from everything that had happened.

That was when he heard a whisper, causing his ears to twitch.

That… that came from above…

"Don't step on that-!"

Sam's foot sank with a soft click.

FUC-

Something wrapped around his leg with a sharp whirl and whipped him off his feet. Sam yelped in shock, dropping the touch as his body raced towards the pit, "Sssssshhhitttt!!!"

"Sam!" Kyra barked.

His legs snapped up, and Sam's world spun upside down as he raced into the air. Only then did the loud ping echo as the rope finally ran out, leaving the Scorbunny dangling above the chamber. Groaning, Sam looked up to find him hanging half a meter below the ceiling, just below the reach of some old roots. His right leg was wrapped up in a tight rope, holding him in place.

"…tile."

Hanging just outside arms reach was Alice, the Buneary hanging upside down herself with her arms crossed.

Sam's heart threatened to burst out of his chest, "Alice!?" he exclaimed, "You made it off the Crow!"

"Only to get stuck here." She grumped with a bored tone.

"Sam! You dead!?" Denzel called out from below, looking up in alarm.

Wincing as the rope dug into his leg, "D-no! We're alright!"

"We?"

Alice looked down and slowly waved, "Heya.". She briefly looked back at him, "New friends of yours?"

"You can say that." Sam said before shouting back down as he motioned with his hands, "Alice, that's Denzel and Kyra, Denzel Kyra, Alice."

Kyra gazed up at the pair, "You came on Sam's boat?"

Alice merely shrugged, "One of our boats, yeah."

"You must have set off a leftover trap!" Denzel called out.

Sam and Alice shared a glance, before looking back down at the Grookey, "No shit." They jointly said.

At that moment, something dawned in the Scorbunny, "Wait a second… how long have you been up here?"

"About half an hour." Alice admitted.

He frowned, "Then why haven't you shook yourself loose?"

"Because of the spikes."

"Spik-"

Sam snapped his head back down towards the pit, where jutting up at the ceiling, he could see the smooth wooden spikes nestled at the bottom.

Directly below them.

"Ah shit…" Sam muttered, suddenly feeling a lump in his throat. "Err… Kyra? Denzel? Please tell me you know how to… you know, get us down?"

Denzel rubbed the back of his head, "I've heard of this trap before, j-just give me a sec!" He reached for the touch, only to recoil at the last moment from the flames. Sighing, Kyra scooped it up, "Just sit tight!" she shouted, "We'll get you down! Denzel?"

"Right, there should be a side passage with the releases." He uttered, as the two tribesmon jogged around to the other side of the pit, "We'll be right back!"

The two entered the second tunnel, leaving the two rabbits all alone.

Sam sighed softly as he gently swung in the air, Great… walked right into my first trap. But…

He looked towards Alice, her arms still crossed as she eyed the tunnel. He caused the rift between them in the first place the moment he held back on his human identity.

I… I need to make things right.

"I…" "I…"

Sam's mouth clamped shut, finding Alice was now staring at him with her mouth agape.

"Look-" "Look-"

Their mouths worked in unison before they cut themselves off, and suddenly feeling cold, Sam started to motion for her to start first, only for Alice to butt in first. "Go ahead."

Sam shook his head, "No, you-"

"Sam-" Alice started countering.

"I put you in this position," Sam replied, firmly holding his hand out to calm her. "You go first."

The Buneary blinked a couple of times, before she undid her arms, closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. "I'm sorry."

Sam's gut fluttered, "Huh?"

Alice's eyes flickered back open, "I… I'm sorry that I tore you down the way I did. I know what it's like to try and hide something about yourself…" her breath went shaky as she tried to continue. "I… I should have realised what you were going through. This mess… it's my fault."

"No Alice!" he exclaimed, shaking his head and instinctively reaching out with his hand for just a moment, "I'm to blame! I should have trusted you in the first place about me… of me…"

His words died in his throat, the Scorbunny's chest tightening.

"Being human?" Alice gently asked.

He slowly nodded, "Y-Yeah. That." Sam replied, pulling a reverse shrug, this was a good start, he needed to keep this up.

"I… I had no idea why I ended up here, with no idea of what this world was like. If I wasn't afraid of what would happen to me, I was afraid of what would happen to everyone else. When Jack blurted out about humans I…" he sighed, feeling himself tremble, "I just…. Thought I had an easy way to get answers. And after what happened I was… angry with myself as much as anyone else."

Alice listened intently to Sam's words before she continued. "I get that." She replied, "Really. I do."

She rested one paw against her shoulder, "You know what happened to my parents. The thing is ever since then I… never really had a lot of social contact."

Sam slowly nodded back at her, "Because of the curse nonsense, right?"

The damn curse. The theory that Alice had something to do with her parent's deaths during the Dark Matter Crisis. Something that had followed her wherever she went.

"Right." She replied, "Every time I ever got close to someone... someone else would reveal what happened and just drive them away. Forced me and my uncle to move on. So I stopped bothering trying to have friends and…"

Wiping her eyes, she forced herself to carry on, and Sam had to resist the urge to swing over to comfort her. "I… don't know how to have friends anymore. I don't know how to help people with stuff like that. I'm only really good at punching stuff."

Sam managed a weak smile, "Well, seems like we're both learning… social stuff…"

Alice half-snorted in amusement, "I suppose you're right there."

She focused her gaze on him, "Sam… you're the first person I've hung around with a lot since my uncle took me in. I… it took someone we know shouting at me to make me realise how much that's meant to me."

He nodded gently back, "I know the feeling. Someone told me the same thing."

"Even if we drove each other mad with our promises to keep ourselves in check?"

Sam tried to laugh, only for a cough to cut it short, "Y-Yeah! In hindsight… we shouldn't have tried to make that promise two days after we got given the Bronze Rank."

It had been a spur-of-the-moment thing; Alice had her temper towards others and Sam had his hot-blooded nature. They figured they could try holding each other's worse impulses back by promising to do something to the other if they fell into that habit. Alice started punching people, Sam would have her do something daft. If Sam started getting himself into trouble, she got to punch him out of it.

Alice returned a thin smile, "Probably not the most… mature thing we could have done."

"Well, we have a good excuse for it." Sam admitted.

The Buneary looked away for a moment, "How about we make a new promise?"

"Like what?" Sam asked, frowning.

She nodded at him, "No punches or pranks." She started, "Whenever we're alone or together… we keep in mind what the other will say. You keep my voice in your head… I'll keep yours in mine."

Sam chewed on that thought, It… does make sense. It's simple and… well. It wouldn't be too hard to keep each other's thoughts on hand. We know each other well enough there.

He returned the nod, "Alright." He said with a smile, "You've got a deal."

She reached out for him, and with a gentle swing of his body, he grasped her paw with his own. "Partners?" he asked warmly.

Her smile widened, "Partners."

On cue, they shook paws, and didn't let go.

Feeling a pleasant warmth in his chest, Sam looked back towards the ropes, "Well in case Kyra and Denzel can't find anything, any ideas? Could we try and grab the roots?"

"Already tried that." Alice admitted, "They're too fragile, and these ropes are pretty tight."

"Would be pretty hard to hang on." Sam realised. "Think your uncle would have given you a tip on how to get out of a spot like this?"

"Probably, but he hasn't told me yet." Alice replied with a bemused huff.

"You make it sound like he's a rescuer." Sam mused, tilting his head to get a better look at the rope wrapped around his leg.

"He is." Alice replied, "Wish he was here right now."

Sam grinned, trying to picture her uncle showing knots in front of a young Alice, "One of these days, you've gotta introduce us."

Alice chuckled, "You've already met him."

Stiffening, the Scorbunny frowned, "Eh? When? From walking round the tree?"

Her chuckle deepened, "How else did you think I was getting special practice sessions?"

"I don't fol-"

The realisation struck him in the gut harder than one of Kain's attacks.

"Shut. The fucking. Door!" Sam blurted out, "Rex is your uncle!?"

He found Alice returning a deviously smug smirk, "Yep."

Sam recoiled, nearly letting go of Alice's paw out of sheer shock, "Holy – how the hell did I not see that!?"

It was true! Special sessions, the way the Guildmaster interacted with Alice… the way she reacted when he quipped about her having a boyfriend doing said sessions, it was so damn obvious and he never realised!

"It just means the secrecy works." Alice replied, only for the smile to fade away, "Just don't tell anyone else. I don't need Rex to catch flak because he looks out for me. Even if Mum and Dad were his teammates."

He sharply nodded back, "No worries, I'll keep quiet on it. I just… didn't expect that."

Alice smirked again, "Alright, that's my second big secret… how about you share your… little fear?"

"Little fear?"

"You know, the one you've conveniently forgotten?"

The warmth vanished, a new lump forming in his throat as he looked back down towards the very distant floor and the spikes.

"Remember now?" Alice teased.

Shivering, Sam finally tore his eyes away with a growl, "Alright, fine! I'm afraid of heights! I admit it!"

For the first time, Alice giggled, and the sight of that alone forced the growl away and prompted a chuckle from the fire-type. "Haha… alright, that was kinda funny."

Wiping her eyes again, a serious expression formed on Alice's face, "Back on humans though… if you want to talk about that, I'm all ears."

"I will. There's a lot I've got to get off my chest since last time." Sam admitted, feeling relieved that Alice was willing to hear him out, "But first, let's focus on getting out of here."

"I can get behind that."

"Okay! We've got a plan!"

Across the way, in a freshly lit chamber that had been formerly hidden out of sight along the wall, Sam could make out the green form of Denzel, whereas back on the ground floor, Kyra was waiting for them. "We found the winch for the ropes!" she called up at them, "Denzel is going to lower you down and then you can swing across to me!"

It's a start! "Alright!" Sam shouted back, "We're ready!"

"Just take it slow!" Alice added.

"Ok!" Denzel replied, his form reaching towards what appeared to be some kind of wheel, "I'm going to start lowering yo-"

An enormous bang, accompanied by Denzel's surprised yelp, "Gods no!"

Before Sam could ask what was happening, that familiar whirl began to scream louder than ever. Sam could only look towards the wide-eyed Alice as he realised what was happening.

FUC-

The rope slackened, and the pair started falling… right for the spikes!

They could only scream as they rushed towards the pit, Sam's eyes squeezed shut. Dang it! Just as he and Alice were back on the same page, they were going to-

Wooden sticks snapped underneath him, seconds before they slammed into the barely cushioned floor with a puff of stale air. A pulse of pain ran through his body as he coughed. The hell!? I'm alive?

"Alice?" he cried out, wincing as he started to push himself up.

"I'm alright." She groaned, stirring in the corner of his vision. "What… what did we land on?"

"How… oh… oh…" Kyra uttered from above, "Now that makes sense."

Blinking, Sam finally sat himself up, expecting to find themselves amongst sharp stakes.

Instead, they sat amongst twigs from trees. As for what they were sat on, they were on some multicoloured cushioning.

No, cushioning marked with very detailed shapes.

An illusion.

Alice sat nearby, slowly looking on with a dumbfounded look on her face. "What kind of idiot puts in fake spikes?"

Above them, Kyra's head poked over the edge of the pit, "That's… a really good question." She glanced over her shoulder, "It is fine Denzel! Just get some rope!"

Sam turned back to Alice, still blinking at their surroundings with a blank look on her face.

Still wincing from the pain, Sam pulled a faint chuckle as he realised one tiny detail. "You know… we could have cut ourselves free ages ago, and we'd probably been fine."

The Buneary slowly turned towards him, still blinking.

She visibly swallowed.

Then squeezing her eyes shut, she started to snigger.

Then came the laughter as she flopped onto her back. Unable to hold his mouth shut, Sam started howling with her, feeling all the strength in him fade away as he slumped over.

For a moment, the worries about the pirates, the ruins, Guardians or just everything seemed to fade away, as Team Audacity laughed about the ridiculousness of the pit.

Again, as partners.

Spoiler: Author's Note

And so our heroic duo are finally back together again. It's been several chapters (and embarassingly several months), but it's finally happened. Stuff has been happening in real life, plus catching up with MoD and GoB and art projects hasn't helped. But either way, the chapter is complete again. I hope this serves as a nice short and sweet chapter that you guys can enjoy.

 

[Dragondg]

I am excited to find out what'll happen next time.