o
Chapter 75
Ember Hideout
When Char asked his new recruits to build a base, he wasn't expecting the bunker to be completely restored to its original condition from centuries ago. And he certainly wasn't expecting nearly all the work to be done by professionals as the logistics team and home-base team stood around watching.
But he wasn't complaining. It was supposed to be an impossible task in the first place, and they found a way to get it done. Compared to what he expected (that he'd end up with a rickety amateur job and need to spend the next few years patching it up), this saved a lot of work in the long term.
I only hope they can pay for all this, Char thought.
Oh, don't worry, miss Scarlet has thought of that, Eva sneered. She's verified that miss Shadow Bandit has agreed to foot the whole bill. Parts and labor included.
Char peered at the Quilava, who was saying something to the ghosts of Team Cog on the other end of the room. Seems she's thought of everything. Char said.
Seems she has, Eva grumbled. Then a moment later: But I hope you realize she's just trying to impress you.
Isn't that what interviews are for in the first place? Char replied. Ah. I know you're just waiting for her to slip up so I can have an excuse to fire her.
I wonder what gave THAT away? Eva returned.
But… what if she's just a good teammate? Char wondered. What if she never gives me an excuse to fire her? What if she proves an asset to the team? She certainly seems like a better decision-maker than Gemstone at this point.
That doesn't make things any easier, Eva said. You know she can't stay on this team. Proving that she may have been an asset to Team Ember, under different circumstances, only complicates matters. Tell me: what will all of the new recruits think, when you fire such a wise and effective decision-maker in favor of the little bunny-brat? How many will foster resentment and distrust against you for that?
Char was beginning to feel intimidated by Eva's tone. Do you really feel so threatened by her? He asked carefully.
Eva huffed. If you think I am afraid of her winning over your heart, you are very mistaken. What I fear, my master, is her zeal tearing rifts in the rest of the team. I will always have you. I will always prove myself the most perfect servant and companion to my human. But I would not like to see your prided team fall to ruin, the same way I have seen so many other teams fall when similar circumstances arose. I am only… growing frustrated. Every passing moment that she remains here, that fate becomes more likely.
Char could only sigh long and deep. He knew he couldn't keep all his conflicted emotions from seeping out of his heart. He also knew there was no way Eva didn't notice anything amiss in his jumble of thoughts. She had an eye – and a mind's eye – for details.
But Char didn't dare say what was really on his mind – that she was going to be the reason Scarlet wasn't a good fit for the team.
This is so stupid, Char grumbled at himself. But… that doesn't mean it isn't a real problem. I can't make-believe this problem away. Stupid as it is, as team leader I need to resolve it. Even if it results in some broken hearts. Then he said to Eva: Alright. You've made your point. Look… give me until the end of today. I'll make sure this is resolved. Trust me.
You're not the one I distrust, master, she sighed in return. But that Quilava is hiding something. She's planning… something. And I'm certain it has to do with you. And it… it has me afraid.
Char noticed Eva's gemstone glinting at him from across the room before a Conkeldurr stepped in the way and blocked his view.
Do what you think is right, but know that I'm not taking my eye off you until that Quilava is no longer a threat to your team, she warned, in a strange combination of a bitter threat and undying loyalty.
Stepping carefully around the construction site, Char decided to check on a certain new pair of celebrities and the clamoring fans which surrounded them. Zachel and Seviper hadn't been given a moment of peace since admitting their secret, as the excitable children among the recruits kept hounding them for answers and fawning over them as though their friendship could have only happened through divine intervention.
"So you never hated each other? How long have you been friends?" asked a giddy little Leo.
"You've never had a fight? A single fight?" added Asunder.
Sitting and resting against the viper's coils, Zachel looked like she wanted to laugh in exasperation. Seviper sent her a glance that clearly said, You're the one who made this public. This is what you wanted. This is what you get. Are you happy?
Zachel returned the glance with a long, contented sigh, clearly meaning, It was going to happen eventually. Might as well enjoy it.
"How long were we friends? From the moment we first met, really," rambled Seviper, not turning his gaze. "Wouldn't you say? As I remember, we met at the waterfall lobby several days after I was first admitted to the base. We joked about killing one another. Then we started bragging about all the fights we won. And… what else?"
"Hey, don't look at me, you're the one with the photographic memory," Zachel said with a smirk.
"I prefer the term 'eidetic' memory," Seviper said, sticking out his tongue. "But yess, yess. How silly of me to forget. You helped show me around the base. Taught me about the culture of the Gold Division. We had such a long and insightful conversation, we both lost track of our teams. But I hardly cared, and neither did you. We agreed to meet the next day to speak more, and I remember what you said: 'You'd better come back, otherwise I'll find you and I'll drag you here myself.' After that, we came up with the fake rivalry. You said it would provide everyone with… a dose of entertainment, is that right?"
"Yeah, and don't forget, we're still doing it!" Zachel shouted, pointing her claw at the children. "No spilling our secret, got it? This is a Team Ember thing only. YIKE!"
Zachel screeched and jumped to her feet in a moment of panic. "Char! Didn't even see you there. How long were you watching? We're not slacking, I swear…"
"Actually, yes we were. Entirely slacking," Seviper teased. "Especially her. You should give her some work to do." Snickering, he just barely ducked under a swipe from Zachel's claw.
"Yeah… do you want us to do anything, Char?" Leo asked. "We're just trying not to get in the way of the Gurdurr team… We're not trying to be lazy! Honest!"
Char crossed his arms. "Well, for starters, that's not my decision," he said. "Ray is your team leader. He and the logistics team should be the ones giving you orders. But… since you're asking me, I think you should start planning what we should do with this room once the construction is done."
"You mean like decorations and things?" Leo asked.
"He means everything," said Seviper. "Decorations. Utilities. Furnishments. Carpeting. Door security. Supply cabinets. Secret passageways and traps. Everything a hideout should have."
"None of us have ever made a hideout before," Asunder said.
"Well, you might be in luck. Because I have," Seviper said, lifting his head smugly. "I've helped build several. No thanks to a certain overzealous Scyther and his band of peanuts who ransacked some of them," he sneered at Char.
"That overzealous Scyther also got you into the division base. I'd call that a fair trade," Char reminded, just as smugly.
"Indeed, how sssilly of me to forget, with my photographic memory and all, how he also made us chase you across the whole continent first," he said sarcastically. "Indeed, indeed, some fair trade that was. But yes, I am willing to share my wisdom with you, as long as boss insists we stay here." He gently flicked Zachel in the back of the head with his tail blade. "Because what else are friends for?"
Char shrugged. "Sounds fine to me," he said. "Why don't you start writing things down?"
"Why don't you? My hands are a bit tied at the moment," quipped Seviper.
"Because I'd like to check up on the security team," Char said. "Unlike the rest of us, they never got a break…"
Char laughed contentedly as he stepped away from the group. "Ahh," he sighed happily to himself. "Zangoose and Seviper… Who would have imagined? I guess it's true what they say… fate surprises all."
Char thought for a moment, as soon as he spoke those words, he felt some kind of shadow cast over his heart.
"WHAT!"
The booming voice made Char nearly jump to the ceiling. He leaped back in fright to find a big, scary Dusknoir staring him in the eye. Maybe. It was difficult to tell what Dusknoir was actually staring at. There was a face strangely drawn across Dusknoir's torso with bending yellow lines, a pattern which seemed to twist and contort in the way one would expect a face to behave. But Char couldn't shake the feeling that Dusknoir's real eye was the unsettling red orb which levitated in the dark hole in his helmet. The helmet-eye certainly drew his attention the most as the big creepy creature stared him down.
"…did you just say?!" Dusknoir hissed quietly.
"Uh… I… What, about visiting the security team…? Char tried.
"Repeat what you just said," Dusknoir commanded, focusing that gleaming red eye down on Char. "About fate. Word-for-word. NOW."
"Uh… fate… surprises… all?" Char uttered, trying to imagine what could possibly be wrong with the words as he spoke them.
Without further warning, Dusknoir swiped Char up in his hand, curling his cold, metallic fingers around Char's entire body and silencing his gasps of surprise.
Dusknoir dropped into the floor, taking Char with him.
…Not again…! Char could only think, taking the deepest of breaths he could manage before getting drowned in solid dirt and clay.
MASTER! Master! What happened? Where are you?! cried the desperate voice of Eva, which quickly faded away in the distance.
Char tried not to struggle as the layers of soil and sediment invisibly scrolled by his face. He thought for a moment that he felt the textures of the solid ground change as he was pulled through them; though he couldn't touch them while intangible, he still tasted or sensed them somehow. He wondered how exactly ghosts could so consistently navigate through solid objects the way they did.
Tightly held in the grasp of the Dusknoir, he fell, and he fell, and he fell, for what seemed like an entire minute. The coldness and the pressure steadily increased, bringing on a wonderful little migraine.
Then finally… thunk. Char landed in a deep, subterranean crevice. Unlike the gap in the wall that Kerzek had dragged him into, this space was long and wide, extending in both directions like a canyon on a moonless night. Surprisingly, he found that he could see his surroundings. Dusknoir's cyclops-eye gleamed in the darkness about three times as brightly as Char's own tail (even as brightly as it burned in such an unpleasant situation).
Dusknoir spoke, his ominous voice coming from everywhere at once.
"What you've just spoken is special passphrase that you were not meant to know," said the ghost. "You will tell me how you learned it."
Char needed a moment to dig deeply into his memories. Where had he heard 'fate surprises all' before? It seemed so innocuous, like such a natural and generic idiom…
In a far corner of his memory, he heard a voice speaking the words to him. A soft, perky, female voice.
Oh. Her. Well… there might be a small problem with telling the truth.
Given the circumstance, Char felt a bit hesitant to give Dusknoir the news. "I'm not allowed to tell you," Char admitted. "It's confidential information. Under orders of High Intelligence themselves. Why? What's going on?"
"Listen real closely, Charmander," said the ghost. "This isn't a threat. I've only taken you here so no one can eavesdrop, not even that blasted PSYCHIC KITTYCAT of yours. But I need to know. I need to know who told you that phrase. And when. And where. Because that phrase ISN'T MEANT FOR YOU. It's meant for ME."
"It's… confidential," Char tried again. "Sorry."
"OF CORUSE IT'S CONFIDENTIAL! I WAS THE ONE TO WHOM IT WAS CONFIDED!" Dusknoir boomed, the cavern rocks trembling at the power of his voice. He pointed a large, brick-shaped finger at Char's face. "I promise you. The forces at play are far beyond those of your High Intelligence. These are forces of the supernatural. Of the cosmic. Not even Alakazam has the authority to silence you on this matter."
As Char struggled to understand what he meant, Dusknoir seemed to bow regretfully and sigh.
"Charmander. I'm begging you," he grumbled. "Me. A big scary ghost. Begging you, a tiny little tadpole. For the truth. It's all I can do. I understand that we've been enemies in the past. My team has harassed yours. But I've also saved your life. So… please. At least in repayment for saving your life, please tell me. It means more than you can comprehend. At least… at the very least, tell me the name of the Pokémon who spoke that phrase to you."
Against his judgment, Char sighed as well. Something in the depths of his conscience told him to trust Dusknoir.
"Celebi," said Char plainly.
"Celebi," repeated Dusknoir, casting his gaze aside and shining his eye-light down the endless stone hallway. "I wasn't expecting that answer. Not at all. Not at all. Not at all… hmm. What could this mean, what could this mean…"
"Can I go back now…?" Char pleaded. "I don't think I can breathe for much longer."
Dusknoir only ignored him and kept deliberating. "Celebi. Celebi…? Celebi! That really could mean anything. Celebi could have picked up that phrase from anywhere in the timeline… from anyone… but wait a minute. As far as I'm aware, Celebi is…"
And then, Dusknoir's gaze snapped back to Char. But this time, there was a cold and frightening power in his eye. Somehow, Char felt deeply afraid.
"…Temporal Tower," Dusknoir nearly whispered in disbelief. "That's where you heard it. That's where it came from. Wasn't it? Isn't it? Because you were there. In Zerferia. You met Celebi. In Temporal Tower. And she's the one who told you. …Am I right? AM I RIGHT?!"
The vibrations caused by Dusknoir's fury made Char fear that the cave might collapse on him at any moment.
Char nodded carefully.
And then… suddenly it was Dusknoir, the big scary ghost, who seemed most afraid of Char.
Dusknoir eye widened. He backed away from the Charmander for a moment. His hands trembled in anxiety. The lines on his torso, normally representing a face, vanished entirely, leaving just his eye to convey emotion. And that eye stayed trained right on Char, as though Dusknoir expected a beast to burst out of Char at any moment and slay him.
There came a long, creepy moan from the ghost, which Char at first thought was a haunting wind rising from the dark abyss.
"Yyyyyoooouuuuuuuu…."
Dusknoir seemed to steel his courage and floated closer again, attempting to inspect the Charmander closely.
"It's you…" he whispered. "Celebi would not have spoken that line to you, if she wasn't certain it was you. It's YOU. It's always BEEN you. That makes sense. That makes so much sense. EVERYTHING makes sense… No wonder all roads lead to the Gold Division. No wonder we ended up here. No wonder fate always made everything about you. You. You. You… you're… you're the human."
To Char's surprise, Dusknoir bowed to him.
"And finally, I am able to properly introduce myself. Human, I am… your Executioner."
Char scurried backwards on his hands and feet. "Y… you what?"
"Oh for the love of… I've been practicing that line for years and I never realized it sounded like that...!" muttered Dusknoir quickly. "Nono, don't panic on me. I'm not here to execute you. I'm here to execute someone for you. You've spoken to me when you were a human, before your memories were taken. And before you ask… no, I don't know what your plan is. All I know is that you've hired me for a job: to remove your most powerful enemies from the picture, so that your plan might work."
"Enigma…?" Char guessed.
Dusknoir made his face-lines reappear, and wore a non-threatening expression. At least as non-threatening as a Dusknoir could possibly make itself look. "So the stooges already told you…" he said thoughtfully. "Well. I never said they couldn't. But yes. Apologies for spooking you, human. I'll let you get back to… whatever it is you're doing as a Charmander. Gods only know what you meant to accomplish by doing that… I'd have chosen something more interesting, honestly. But to each our own…"
Dusknoir held out his hand.
"I'll return you to the surface, boss," he said. "Let's go, before you suffocate…"
But when Char let his guard down and took a few steps forward, Dusknoir once again swiped him up in a single hand, and slammed him down against the ground. Surprisingly, it didn't hurt – he must have still been in range of the Frozen Flame.
Dusknoir held the Charmander firmly in place, and brought his glowing cyclops eye down on him, almost touching his nose.
"Oh yes. And one more thing regarding those… stooges," Dusknoir said threateningly. "To operate as the double-agents we are, we require free passage to the Master's hideouts, especially the Solemn Fortress. Passing the Master's security requires frequent exposure to mind-probing. I've learned many dark-type techniques, so I can hide and trick their psychics whenever I want. But the stooges of mine? Not so fortunate. I needed to do something different with them. Something… undetectable even to the Master's best psychics. Something undetectable to even Enigma herself. I've made them believe… that you are the Master."
Char held his breath, stunned motionless.
He continued to explain. "They believe you are the Master. That is how they can say they serve the Master without telling a lie. And… if they were to find you reincarnated in the body of a Charmander, they would believe you are the Master reincarnate, abdicated from the throne, leaving that psychopath of a Mismagius in charge, our mission being to defeat her and return the throne to you. Understand? Making any sense?"
Char only nodded, his mouth still blocked by one of Dusknoir's massive fingers.
"That's why I panicked when I heard you speak that phrase. Never again must you speak that phrase in public. NEVER. AGAIN. My Seviper and Croagunk must never know. They must NEVER know."
The cavern vanished as Char felt himself rising through the solid rocks and dirt back to the world above.
Grayleaf Reserve
"There. That's another one."
Saurvor patted the dirt on top of their latest pitfall trap, making it flush with the forest floor just like their father had taught.
"That makes seven," he reported. "Now, how about we… Saura?"
Saura had already bounded aside and set his paws into the dirt, beginning on the next one. Dust and dried leaves billowed into the air as he sank his paw-spades into the dirt, digging like a frenzied Eevee trying to make a den before nightfall.
"Another one?" sighed the exasperated Ivysaur. "Don't you think we've made good progress for now, brother?"
"Progress? I have no idea," Saura replied absentmindedly, focusing closely on his work and trying to ignore the debris which kept bouncing back into his face. "We don't even know how long we have. It could be here tonight. It could be here any minute. We need to do all we can…"
The big brother grew concerned. "Saura… we've been doing this for at least five hours. We're going to need a break eventually. Especially lil' sis. She's working herself down to the bud."
"We have chesto berries. Eat some of those if you're tired," Saura grunted, stab-stab-stabbing the dirt with the pointed ends of the spades.
Saurvor approached carefully. "Hey… come on, now. Don't you think you're being a little… extreme?" he said.
Shunk. Saura sank both spade-tips into the dirt, punctuating his frustration. He stood for a moment and hung his head. "You can't… just… rest… when someone needs you," he spoke between heavy breaths. "That's not how it works. You keep pushing. And you keep pushing. And you don't stop until you can't push anymore. This happened to me before... There was a time when I had to walk for leagues through a solid blizzard with no idea where I was even going. And before that I had to climb the world's deadliest tower filled with creatures trying to slice me and my friends to shreds. And before that, one of the Watchers left thoughts in my head, they hurt so much, and I had to fight it so hard… because if I didn't, I'd have to erase my memories, forget my family, forget you… but I fought. And I'm still fighting. And I'm not going to stop fighting."
Saura turned to his brother. The fiery look of determination in his eyes deeply surprised Saurvor, making him think for a moment that Saura had turned into someone else entirely. "Right now, every fiber in my body is telling me to stop and rest," said Saura. "But I know… I can't. Not if I want mom and dad and all the seedlings to stay alive. I'm… I can't go the rest of my life knowing I lost them just because I got lazy for a moment. You don't realize until it's too late. Times like this, every moment counts."
Saurvor stared back at him forlornly. He took another careful step towards his brother. "Yeah… I get that," he sighed. "No really, trust me. I do. You're serious about this. But times like this… I remember a story father once taught me, it helped me not to make some mistakes at the guild. Mind if I tell you?"
The frustrated little Bulbasaur said nothing, but he sat down and nodded his head. Saurvor came to sit beside him.
"I'll try to tell this the same way dad did," Saurvor began. "So the Dread Pirate Jawbone, he had two sons. When he retired, he gave each of his sons one of his best ships so they could carry on his legacy. The Altaria and the Sharpedo, they were called. But he made them promise they would really appreciate the gifts he gave them, not take them for granted. He explained, these were very special ships. Best pirate ships ever built. Both could cut through the water as fast as lightning. Both had their outer hulls lined with Aggron hide, impenetrable to weapons. Both could hold tons and tons of treasure, quadruple the amount of any cargo ship. And they were newly built, so they were in nearly perfect condition. So both the sons realized how fortunate they were to be given these ships, and promised they would cherish these ships forever.
"So then they both sail off in different directions and start their careers of pirating. They loot and pillage and pillage and loot. The younger brother, the one who took the Sharpedo, he wanted to prove he was a better pirate than the older brother, right? So he pushed himself extra hard. He also wanted to keep the promise he made to his father, so he made sure to use the ship to its fullest potential, you know? Squeeze every last little drop of usefulness out of the Sharpedo, so he could tell his father that he did it justice! So that's exactly what he did. He sailed around the shores of Ambera, gathered a crew, pillaged every village and ship and port along the way, and nobody could ever catch him because the Sharpedo was too darn fast and too darn strong.
"Now, forty years pass. Forty years of looting and pirating. The younger brother was such an active pirate that the Sharpedo now is getting all worn down. There are leaks in the hull. The brigs are all rusted. Big giant holes in the sails. The main deck is eroding away. The crewmates' quarters are all broken down. And the brother looks at all this, and he's very proud of it. He knows that used the Sharpedo to its fullest potential. It's given all it has to give. In fact, one day, the ship gives up its last breath and starts to sink into the ocean. So he gets all his crew into lifeboats and prepares to go down with the ship like pirates are supposed to do. But it's okay because he's a water-type so… well anyway, the ship is sinking, and sinking, and sinking, and the brother is reminiscing on all the memories, and he's happy…
"But suddenly another ship comes to his aid. It's his older brother on the Altaria! It sails right up to beside him and offers him a hand. But as his ship is sinking, he yells up to him, 'Big brother, see, I'm a better pirate than you! I've obviously done the most looting and pillaging! Look, I've driven the Sharpedo into the ground! Er… into the sea! But you've barely been pirating at all, your ship doesn't look like it has a single scratch on it!' and the brother yells back, 'Oh really? How many tons of treasure did you haul back to your hoard?' and the younger brother answers, 'fifty tons! What about you?' The older brother scoffs and says, 'One hundred tons.'
"The younger brother is flabbergasted. Just as the last of the Sharpedo is sinking underwater, he says, 'But… how in the world did you do twice the pirating that I did, without wearing down your ship?' And the brother looks at him all funny, and finally says, '…Maintenance!'"
Saurvor smiled expectantly, but Saura only tilted his head and frowned. After a moment of thought, he replied, "What's your point…?"
"My point is: sometimes trying your hardest is not the same as trying your best. Look… we're setting traps to catch monsters or something, right? But what if the monsters come, and we can't fight back or run away, because we're too exhausted from digging so many holes…?"
Saura sighed. "Alright, when you put it that way… but wait, wait. No! We have to keep going! Maybe we can start on the chestnut traps now! They'll take a lot less energy to string up, right? I know it's tough, but we can't waste a single moment! This could be the difference between life and death!"
Saurvor rolled his eyes. He lumbered forward a few steps, then gently wrapped his younger brother's bulb to hold him in place. He softly pressed his forehead against Saura's.
"Brother. Stop. For just a moment. Stop. Breathe. Just breathe. Alright? Breathe. Respirate. Feel the sunlight on your leaves. Set down your roots and fortify yourself."
The young Bulbasaur gave in, leaning forward into his brother's embrace.
"There. Just like that. Breathe in, breathe out. It's okay. You're doing fine. You overwork yourself all the time, don't you?"
"…Yes. I do," Saura admitted.
"And you're doing great, Saura. You're an amazing team leader. Better than many guild managers I know. You're strong and you're so determined. But sometimes you need to stop for a moment and remember what you are. Do you know what you are?"
"What am I?" asked Saura.
"You're a grass-type," Saurvor said tenderly. "Remember. We don't have the burning passion of a fire-type. We don't have endless energy like the electric-types. We can't fly away from everything like a bird, or swim away like a fish, or burrow and hide like a Diglett. But we don't need to. We are like the grass and the trees. We work best when we are calm, and we are collected, and we are patient. Now I can't promise you everything will be okay. But I can promise you that whatever it is we need to do, we'll only be at our very best when we cooperate with these flowers on our backs, and let ourselves be grass-types. Alright?"
Saura sighed again, long and deeply, never opening his eyes. "Thank you," he uttered. "I guess I spent so much time around a Charmander and a Raichu that started acting the way they do."
"Heh. You don't have to thank me, actually," said the Ivysaur. "That's a speech mom gave me back when I was your age. I was nervous about leaving home for the first time and she told me that. So nowadays whenever I start to panic, I remember to plant myself down and remind myself that I'm a grass-type. Six out of seven times, I want to say, it makes the whole situation so much better."
"Heh… and that seventh time?" Saura chuckled.
"Well… Heheh… sometimes I open my eyes and everything's just as bad as it was when I closed them. But it's never once made anything worse."
Saura took his brother's advice. He convinced himself that it probably wouldn't hurt to let a minute pass while he stopped to reflect on his thoughts.
He went through all his plans, his worries, and his theories. He let everything play out in his mind's eye, letting each vision fade away to the next, without stopping to stress over any of them.
Traps. We need more traps.
It's the only thing I can think of. It's the only way I can think to protect my family.
Because what comes, kills us all, and leaves no traces? What could do that, except for an assassin?
It can't be a plague. Poison-types can't get sick.
What else can endanger a powerful Venusaur like dad? Especially here, in his natural element?
Element. Elements.
What elements are there?
Animals. Ferals. Wild Pokémon.
That's what the traps are for.
Trees. Plants. Gardens. Those probably aren't a theat. Plants practically bow to a Venusaur's will already.
Birds. Sky. Weak to flying-type attacks. That's possible. But we can put snag-traps in the branches around the den. That's easy.
Ice? Is the forest going to freeze over for the winter? Is there a terrible winter coming? We never get terrible winters here. We're too tropical.
Ground.
Saura opened his eyes.
"Feel better?" Saurvor whispered, untangling vines from him.
Saura ignored the question. "I have some new theories about what's coming," he said plainly.
"Yeah?"
"Earthquake. That's a theory."
Saurvor hummed in displeasure. "We aren't particularly weak to ground-dangers," he considered. "We should be able to survive an earthquake. Unless, what, are all the trees going to fall and smash us? Are the rocks in our den going to collapse and trap us inside?"
"Maybe. It's just something I never considered before."
"Fair," said Saurvor. "Well, luckily there are precautions we can take. Maybe we can tell everyone to start earthquake-proofing the den. Any other theories?"
Saura was about to say his next idea, when a terrible burst of dread overcame him.
It felt something like the migraines he'd gotten whenever he imagined his family burning to death. He hadn't had one of those headaches in a very long time, thankfully because the risk of everyone dying in a forest fire was apparently unlikely.
But this… this gave him something new to worry about.
His eyes dilatated in panic as he glanced around, re-appraising all the threats he'd considered before. The birds. The trees. The ground itself.
"…Saura? You okay?" said Saurvor. "You… look like a Staraptor is about to swoop down on you."
"I… I have another theory," he shakily said. "I think… the Nidoking was lying to us. I think he knows what happens to us. Or… at least… he might not have known exactly what kills us, but he was hiding something. There was something we weren't supposed to know."
"What…? Don't you think he would have told us?" Saurvor said in confusion. "He treated you like you were a really important Pokémon, don't you think he would have warned you of the danger?"
"Maybe he couldn't," Saura considered in dread. "Because that's what he said. He said that he couldn't tell us things that we wouldn't have learned on our own somehow. Or it would break the whole timeline."
"Then why didn't he just say he wasn't allowed to tell us?" Saurvor asked.
"Maybe that would have broken the timeline too," Saura guessed. "Or maybe it was too big of a hint. Maybe it would have made us learn the truth sooner than we were supposed to. Maybe if he said that, it would have made us pry for more information and not listen to the other things he was talking about. So maybe the only thing he could say is that he didn't know."
Saura began to pace back and forth. "Maybe… he doesn't actually know after all. But… he's a time-traveler. He's been through this timeline so many times that he knows a lot about what happens. And I'm apparently a real important Pokémon like you said. So… that means… that means there must be a reason he didn't investigate what killed us. Maybe he didn't because he couldn't."
A burst of thunder cracked in the sky, quieting all the birds and animals of the forest and leaving the two brothers standing in an eerie moment of silence.
"…Oh. Looks like we're in for a shower," chuckled Saurvor, glancing at the clouds. "Good. I was hoping for one more before winter strikes. Even if it's cirrus-water and freezes our leaves off."
Though he didn't say it out loud, Saura nervously hoped his brother was right. Hopefully it was just a rainshower.
Because try as he might, he couldn't shake the feeling that it was some kind of a warning.
Ember Hideout
Early in the evening, the construction crew had finished their work, and Team Ember was left with something amazing.
It was a huge, round, empty room with a high ceiling almost like a cathedral-dome. It still smelled of metal. But it was clean, and it was perfect, and it looked strong enough to stay standing for a hundred more years. The roof was all in one piece, so moonlight and Watchers couldn't get in anymore. There were two functioning doors that actually locked (and with psyche-locks, as Eva had suggested). It was nestled safely in the ground, doubling as an excellent storm shelter. And best of all, it looked just as inconspicuous from the outside – like some abandoned building. (Well, at least it would look inconspicuous as soon as the Kecleons returned to haul away all the unused materials on their front lawn. )
In a way, it intimidated Char a little. Team Ember's room had been fully furnished when he moved in; Team Flamewheel had left them everything they needed, and he never had to worry about building things up from nothingness. But this is what he got – a huge, empty basement with nothing but a concrete floor, a steel dome cap, and endless potential to be whatever he and his team wanted it to be.
Was this even allowed by Gold Division standards? He never thought to ask for permission. He didn't know if there were rules and regulations about satellite bases – he could imagine that it wasn't good for security if all sorts of resistance teams operated outside of the central base, just sitting around waiting to get discovered and picked off.
Where's Otto when you need him? Char wondered. I'm sure he knows what the rules are. Not that I care much, though… this place is for my team. We can do our jobs much more efficiently if we didn't have to leave the base and walk across the country every morning.
His team. His big, huge, exciting new team. The team that had built this all in one day. Or rather, helped build this. Or rather, arranged to have it built. Or really, it didn't matter – they made it happen, and that's what counted in the end.
Some of the new recruits had really proven themselves. Others weren't given enough of a chance. Char knew he'd have to address the matter very soon. But it wouldn't be too bad. He reassured himself that it would be alright – there wasn't yet any bad news he needed to give out.
…Well, kind of.
After the construction, Kerzek and Lyre came up with one particular idea to breathe some life into this empty shelter. They'd built a single small structure in the center of the room: it resembled a water fountain, but instead of water it was filled with bright white rocks blazing with fire, and instead of a statue, the frozen flame sat on a pedestal at its center. The fire wasn't real, since there'd be nowhere for the smoke to escape. It was ghost-fire, the same kind that burned in all the torches at the Gold Division. Kerzek had convinced Team Cog to help her get it started and enchant it to be sustainable. It didn't crackle, it didn't provide heat, it didn't burn you when you touched it – but it did provide plenty of light. And it looked amazing. It billowed all the way to the ceiling, shining a hypnotic set of colors across the entire chamber. The flames burned shades of white and orange, somewhat like real fire, but they had a wispy blue outline to them.
As evening fell, Team Ember – Char's old friends, the new recruits, every member save for Otto – gathered in a semicircle around the blazing light. It was time to announce the results of the assignment.
"First, of all," started Char, "Let me – "
"AWWWWWWAAAAAAHHHH!" groaned a voice from the side of the room. A massive lion's yawn. "Ahh… sorry, I must have been – ACCK! WHAT! WHERE AM I?! Where is this place? Oh no… We've been captured, haven't we? Oh gods, oh gods almighty. I fall asleep for one moment and we all get locked up in a…"
Char spotted the brightly-glowing rings at the end of the room before he noticed the Umbreon who wore them. Raon stumbled forward to the center of the chamber to join with the crowd, his drawn claws click-clacking on the smooth concrete floor.
"Oh. Wait. Wait. Don't tell me… this… this isn't the same place, is it?" gasped the Umbreon. "It can't be!"
"No! Yes! Both!" shouted Lyre with glee.
"Naaah… can't be. You couldn't have rebuilt the whole place in just…" Raon paused, looked at the ceiling, and seemed annoyed that he couldn't see the sky through a massive hole anymore. "…How long was I out, exactly? Days?"
"Welcome back, Raon," Char sighed. "If you don't mind, I'm trying to give a speech here. Why not go outside and see for yourself what time it is?"
"Stand guard too, while you're at it, since the defense team is off-duty," added Gemstone. "Let's not waste anymore time. Tell us already! Who's staying, who's leaving?"
The rest of the recruits murmured in excitement. Char waited for the poor confused Umbreon to wander off before he began giving his answers.
He tried again. "Now, before I begin, I'd like to thank all of you – "
"Just skip that part!" Gemstone demanded. "We all know the boring stuff already! Get to the results!"
"Jeesh. Sounds like someone is trying to get fired," Zachel hissed at her.
But Char just chuckled. "Okay, fine. You want it, you got it. The results. Well, first of all, I can't give all the results just yet. Some of you, through no fault of your own, barely did anything this mission. And that's perfectly fine. But it still means I need to evaluate you in some other way. But for some others of you… I do have my definitive answer."
Char held out his hand. "For an incredible show of power and protecting the team from the Watcher swarm – Zona. You're in."
The Vulpix tried very hard not to explode in delight as all his former teammates, the Team Stripes graduates, cheered for him. But try as he might, he still cracked a little smile. "Thank you so much, Char," he replied happily. "It's an honor. You have my light whenever you need."
Char turned to a different recruit. "For excellence in logistics and decision-making… and for an incredible show of skill of initiative in helping the construction crew even when you didn't need to… Kerzek! You're in!"
"Thank. The. Gods," the Sableye moaned dramatically, digging her claws into her forehead. "I swear I never want to see Ether again. You have no idea. I nearly threw a fit when she came in here earlier. Finally. I'm OUT. I'm never stoking another ghost torch in my life. Except for this one right here. I'll be happy if this is the only one I have to work with."
A little to Char's surprise, but not really, the whole team applauded for her just as loudly as they had for Zona.
Char continued. "Tallie, do you have any good words to say about anyone on the defense team?"
Tallie answered without hesitation. "This guy," she said, waving a wing straight at Brace. "He knows his stuff. Knew all the codes and maneuvers I threw at him. Followed all the orders I gave and never asked for clarification. Flightspeed needs a little work, but endurance is perfectly acceptable."
"Good. Brace, you're in," Char decided. "For impressing Tallie. And that's not easy to do."
At the sound of the applause, the Pidgey flared his wings and gave a little bow of his head. "What can I say? I'm a flock bird. Silverwing trained me. Happy to work with Otto again, too."
Char paced in consideration for a moment. "Hmm… who else? Oh. I know. Zachel! For fulfilling our need as another bag-carrier, and for your prior reputation as a multitalented fighter who's worked with us in the past… you're in!"
The Zangoose only gave a dry chuckle, sitting back and propping herself up with her hands. "Hahah. And they said I'd never graduate," she mused, shifting her tail back and forth. "Finally, I feel like a grownup. Seeya never, Team Carrier!"
There. That's the four we originally wanted, Char told himself. Now… do I want any more…? I still don't know enough about these guys. I need to give them one more assignment. Maybe a dungeon exploration.
Just let them all in already, Eva suggested flippantly. As if you were ever going to fire any of them in the first place.
Nah. I'll think of something. Even if I let them all stay, I'll still let them prove themselves somehow. And I'll do it quickly. I know they can't take a lot of time off from their teams.
Well… except for one.
"I think that's all for now," Char announced. "For the rest of you… I need to learn a little more about you before I make my decision. So… let's break in the new base and have a little sparring tournament tonight, so you can show me how you battle!"
More happy gasps of excitement rose from the crowd of Pokémon. "Heh… that's honestly what I was expecting us to do in the first place," said Evan to Leo. "Either that or go to a dungeon. That's what I was ready for! I mean look at me. I'm a normal-type fox. How am I supposed to help on a construction project?"
Char paused for another long moment, enjoying the happy commotion of his recruits while it lasted. There was one more thing he needed to say, and he wasn't sure how much of the happiness would remain once he did.
"And finally, one last announcement," Char said, rather somberly. "Regrettably… there is one cut I need to make."
That did it. The whole team was instantly silenced. Char already felt afraid of saying what came next. He breathed deeply, putting his inner ember under control and drawing strength from its warmth.
"Scarlet," he said, looking directly at the Quilava. "You… have proven yourself a masterful leader and logistician. I know you were responsible for… several of the good decisions that led to the completion of the mission tonight. But… I'm afraid I cannot let you stay."
Calmly, quietly, the Quilava rose to her hind feet. She stared back at Char peacefully and graciously, then bowed her head. "I understand," she said quietly.
"Wait…? Her?! You're firing Scarlet?!" gasped Nincada. "Why?! She was AMAZING! I know I barely did anything, but even I could tell she was amazing!"
"Yeah… she is," Char admitted. "And she'd be a fantastic leader… on another team, maybe. But…"
"…It's alright, Char. I can tell them," Scarlet said wistfully. "Most people here in this room know the truth anyway. I told them a long time ago. Ah… it's because… honestly… I can't… look at Char as a team leader. I can only see him as…"
She trailed off, leaving everyone in awkward silence.
"You love him, don't you?" muttered Zachel. "I recognize that tone of voice anywhere."
Scarlet scratched the floor with her front foot. "Yes, and… more importantly, I respect him. I respect that he wants Eva at his side. So if I were to stay on this team… no matter how hard I would try… there'd just be… competition. And nobody needs to deal with that."
She bowed again, deeply and earnestly. "Thank you for the opportunity to meet you, Char," she said. "I wish you the best leading your new team."
And with that, the Quilava dropped to all fours, slowly slunk away towards one of the bunker's doors, and disappeared.
The silence lingered for a minute after she left.
I'm very proud of you, Master, said Eva, almost sadly. I know it was difficult for you. But what you've done is very courageous. You do not know how much respect you've earned from me tonight. Respect which will be well-repaid.
I'm glad you're happy, Char grumbled.
Sensing the disdain still in Char's mental voice, Eva said nothing else.
Though it was a somber moment to send such a skilled and capable Pokémon walking away, most of the team understood why it had to be done. And some of them considered Char a stronger leader for it. The mood couldn't stay heavy for long, not when there was a tournament to be held! Char sent Tallie and Brace to fetch heal-seeds and oran berries. Then he and Ray put their heads together to draw up a tournament bracket.
Sometime later, while the recruits were all stretching and warming up and practicing their elemental attacks, and while the team was still waiting for Tallie to return with the supplies, Eva felt an odd tingle in her mind.
Someone was nearby. Someone who wasn't supposed to be there.
She began to pace around the room, checking every shadow in every corner, trying to pinpoint the source of the mind-waves.
This mind-wave tasted familiar to her. Or did it? She seemed to recognize it, and not recognize it, at the same time.
That's impossible, Eva told herself. No. This is something unusual. This is a new entity. They are here. Somewhere, they are here. And I will find them.
She paced more frantically, leaving the noisy chatter of the recruits to fade into the background. Not a ghost. Not a fairy. Not a dark-type, obviously.
And then she heard a voice.
Two voices, actually. One was a voice she recognized. The other was also a voice she recognized, but much more vaguely, as though only meeting this Pokémon once or twice. But beside the point, it was a voice that was not supposed to be anywhere near the bunker.
She traced the voice to inside the wall of the bunker. A wall that used to be a door. The bunker originally had four doors, one in each cardinal direction. But at Char's preference, two of them were sealed completely.
Then she remembered somebody mentioning something about a secret passageway. A third exit. It was a good idea, in all honesty; something they could use to sneak out in case the bunker was ever invaded. But nobody told her that a secret passage had actually been built.
Once she knew exactly where the secret passage was, she easily found the way in. A simple trapdoor, something barely big enough for an Espeon to fit through… she knew it wouldn't serve much purpose for the larger Pokémon. But if it were made any larger, it would be too easily noticeable. She went inside, careful to make herself silent as the air and not alert the Pokémon of her presence.
Peering around the corner, she saw them.
Zachel and Seviper. Sharing some suspiciously… tender words.
His body was loosely coiled around her, a sweet embrace. She happily rested her head beneath his chin.
"Are you sure I can't join Team X?" Zachel said quietly. "I'll never see you anymore."
"You'll be seeing much more of me," Seviper assured her. "Char considers us his friendly rivals. I'm not sure how good of rivals we'll be now that we're so horrendously outnumbered… but I'll make sure that doesn't change. I promise."
"Yeah, but what about when you go to the fortress? You always leave for such a long time."
"…I know. I'm so sorry," he whispered. "But that's why you can't join us. Team X isn't a normal team. We have a special mission. It's nearly too dangerous for just the three of us already. The last thing I want to do is drag you into it. No way I'm putting you in that kind of risk. Never. I seize the day, every morning, by reminding myself that somewhere… you're still alive."
"Me too," Zachel said, snuggling closer to him.
"Hey there, tiger-eyes, remember… this won't last forever," soothingly hissed the viper. "Someday… our mission will be all through. Someday Team X won't need to exist any longer. And when that day comes… I'll be here for good. You want to stay on Team Ember? I'll join you. Or we could run off and leave the resistance altogether. When the time comes, you take the lead, and I'll follow you to the ends of the earth."
"I won't forget that promise," Zachel grunted, stroking the scales of his neck. "I may not have as good of a memory as you, but I won't forget."
"Heh. Did you know, I've been having lapses in my memory lately?" Seviper said. "All the time. It's embarrassing, actually. When boss needs me to remember something and I can't. And you know you're the one doing this to me, tiger-eyes. I'm spending so much time thinking about you… I forget about my duty as a witness. But you know? That's perfectly fine by me. I'd rather my mind be filled with memories of you. Nothing but you."
"Yeah right. You forgot to give me my scarf back again," Zachel giggled.
"Did I?" deviously said the viper. "Or did I steal it, so that I could get the enchantment copied onto another scarf? So that I could give it to you for your hatchingday this winter? You think I'd forget your hatchingday, did you?"
"Well thanks. I'm probably going to fail at Char's tournament without that scarf." Zachel said, wiggling contentedly in his coils.
"What, you mean you can't beat up a bunch of kids? You'll do fine, tiger-eyes. Absolutely fine. Never tell me otherwise. Besides, even if you lost, you're still on the team, aren't you?"
"It's not about being on the team. It's about pride."
"Alright, well, if you lose any of your sparring matches, just let me know and I'll come give them a good bite later. Nobody's taking your pride and getting away with it. I won't let them."
"Gods, why are you so wonderful?" cooed Zachel. "What did I ever do to deserve you?"
"Fate. I'd call it fate," he replied. "Fate surprises – I mean, sometimes it does things we don't expect. And I know I never imagined that the most wonderful thing fate would ever done to me… was to put you right in my path."
Eva THANKFULLY averted her eyes just in time to avoid watching the Zangoose and Seviper press their mouths together and kiss.
She staggered back to the exit, her head spinning and her mind processing what she'd just witnessed.
Hahahahaha… she laughed, hollering at her loudest in telepathy. HA-HA-HA-HA! Oh… Oh Char. Char! You'll never believe this… I found out why Zachel is still hiding things from you. Oh, this is rich. This is so very rich. You'll love this.
Char? Are you there?
Char?
…Master?
Restless Plains S2
The Restless Plains mystery dungeon was a flash-dungeon – a very small, young anomaly that had sprung up seemingly out of nowhere. Not so long ago, it only had one sector. Now it had three.
After being dropped off by Tallie – who'd given Scarlet a ride to the same place some two hours ago, right after she'd been fired – Char entered the dungeon, ready to finally hear what Scarlet's big secret could be.
Missions to Restless Plains were always D-rank. It was a simple and harmless dungeon, home to practically no wild Pokémon except for some Diglett and Wurmple. So Char didn't feel so afraid of entering it with no preparation, no supplies, and no rescue emblem.
He hoped that it would deter Eva from even thinking about eavesdropping on this conversation.
The mystery dungeon, on top of posing no challenge whatsoever to even the least experienced of explorers, also had a particular trait which made it very easy to tell if one had accidentally wandered into it. The sky of restless plains was perpetually nighttime. The moon and stars covered the sky from one horizon to another. But through some planar anomaly, the sunlight never stopped shining at full brightness upon the ground and the grass, making them glow like deep-sea reeds, even if the sun was nowhere to be seen. This is where it had gotten its name – it was a dungeon which could never decide if it should be day or night, awake or asleep. Restless.
Meandering into the second sector of the dungeon, Char found the Quilava patiently waiting for him, sitting on a fallen log and staring at the false visage of the full moon in the sky. He sat down next to her.
"Well, you pulled it off, somehow," Char admitted. "That was almost as good as the heist my team and I recently pulled with the shadow bandit. So how many of them were actually in on it?"
Scarlet never stopped staring at the sky. "Everyone but Eva," she explained. "But I only gave everyone pieces. A few orders to follow, a few lines to say, here and there. I even made sure they put in a secret room for Zachel to hide with Seviper and told them both about it. Most people only knew something harmless. Nobody knew the whole plan except for you and I."
"That was incredible," Char gasped. "And all to outsmart Eva, huh? You're good at this, aren't you?"
"I have experience," she only said. "Sometimes, I think, a little too much experience."
They sat still for a moment. Both knew they couldn't stay for long; all dungeons would violently kick out unwanted intruders who stayed too long. But the time limit for Restless Plains was over an hour. There was plenty of time.
"I'm assuming you don't actually have a crush on me," Char said plainly. "That was part of the ruse."
"Yeah. Nobody can ignore that kind of gossip, I find," Scarlet said. "For the record, Char, I do think you're cute. But nothing really more."
"Well… thank you, I guess," Char said, not even daring to blush. "But I'm sure that's not a secret that's worthy of having to hide in a mystery dungeon to share. I guess I'm sorry I had to fire you. I saw you directing the Gurdurr team. You did an excellent job."
She shrugged. "I could work on your team, easily. Circumstances permitting. Even if I were as infatuated with you as everyone thinks… Eva doesn't seem to understand the concept of professionalism. And knowing one's place."
"Yeah… that's just a thing with her," Char sighed. "I… I tired to get her to accept you. But she fought every step of the way. I'm sorry."
I even thought about using the Call on her, Char remembered. Celebi's voice had come to him at an opportune time. But something in the back of his mind warned him that it would be an absolutely terrible idea to brainwash Eva. So he let the day's signal go unused, like so many other Call signals recently.
"Alright, ready for this?" Scarlet sighed. "Honestly I'm not sure I'm even ready for this. I haven't told anyone this secret in decades."
"Ready as I'll ever be," Char replied. "Try me."
Scarlet took a deep breath, controlling her inner ember. Then another.
She looked at the sky. She looked at the ground. She looked at Char.
"Nobody must ever know this, understand?" she said one last time. "Unless you want to tell Eva. But only her. Nobody else."
"Yeah. I get it," Char answered.
So Scarlet stood up from the log. She turned around and stood before Char.
She held out her front hand.
"Hello, Char," she said. "My name is Scarlet. It's nice to meet you."