Author's Note:
For the next arc in this story, I'm going to try something a bit different: shorter chapters, more frequently. I'm getting annoyed at all of the 4-month-long waits just as much as you are, so hopefully this will make the story just a little bit more fast-paced. That's not to say that I'm going to cut any of the planned content, I'm just going to split the chapters smaller. (They always get split anyway, so I'll just start preemptively planning for it.)
Well, let's see how far I can get before the end of the summer!
Season V: Guardian
Chapter 61
The morning calls of the songbirds woke the Bulbasaur from his sleep.
It felt strange to awaken in someplace so different. It was somewhere dark and cozy, somewhere that smelled of fresh moss and morning dew. The deep red glow of the sunrise washed over the walls.
He felt the warmth of his father beside him.
Many of his dreams had started in this way. He learned to relish them, but also hate them, knowing they would end too soon. He learned to fear the nightmares which would come to disrupt his happy memories and turn them into something terrible. This time, he felt none of the fear. Somehow he knew that the nightmares were gone.
He sat still and wondered whether he was still dreaming, or if he had just awoken from the dream. Perhaps, he imagined, the Charmander had come to him in a dream, and the dream had finally come to an end, leaving him just where he had started. Perhaps he had never run away, or made his father ashamed of him. Perhaps all of that had only been imagined. Or perhaps the light from the sun was only the glow of the torches through his closed eyelids, and someone would soon wake him, calling him to his daily duty.
The discipline of many months made him restless, and he found he could not close his eyes again. He yawned and snuggled closer to his father, but his muscles only filled with energy, and his leaves thirsted for sunlight. He carefully left his father's side and tiptoed around him, exiting the den and squinting as the maroon rays of sunlight grew sharper.
The prairie had fallen into great disarray. Weeds had sprouted in patches, trees were downed near the forest's edge, and the gardens had sprawled and lost their symmetry. But the dewdrops covered every leaf and flower petal and spiderweb, and the crimson sunlight made everything sparkle. The Bulbasaur stood on a fallen log and admired it all. For just the moment, everything looked perfect.
"Why am I here?"
The thought had come to him idly as he watched the sunrise. It was an uncomfortable thought. His instincts always made him feel that he should be going somewhere and doing something important, and they could not comprehend true peace and contentment. A small part of him felt lost, as though he was somewhere far away from where he should have been.
Hearing some leaves rustling behind him, he turned and expected to see some rodent scurrying into the shrubs. Instead, he found an Ivysaur pushing through the saplings and staring back at him. The Ivysaur had strapped a small wooden dish to his back in front of his flower, and filled it with fruit and leaves. In his vine he held a large yellow berry, and was about to bite into it when the two of them locked eyes.
"Huh, Saura! I didn't even see you there. You're awake early," the Ivysaur said.
"Yeah, I guess," Saura replied indifferently. "I guess I just wanted to see what the meadow looked like in the morning again."
The Ivysaur snapped his vine and tossed the berry to his younger brother, who caught it in his mouth and began to gnaw on the tough skin. "Me, too," he said, drawing another piece of fruit from his basket. "The rest of us haven't been back here for a while either, you know. We've been on the road."
The Bulbasaur averted his gaze shamefully, swallowing the bite of sour fruit.
"I looked around. I won't lie, the place looks bad," Saurvor said, glancing up at the nearby trees. "Down on the south end, there are more dandelions and clovers than blades of grass. And to the west there's a huge patch of thistle bushes. I could barely get to the berries."
Saura shuddered. "Ack… I hate thistles," he said. "Those are going to take forever for us to get out. I bet dad is going to want us back to work as soon as we're all awake."
"Yeah, all you little seedlings have got your work ahead of you," Saurvor said. "I'd stay and help, but I've got places I need to be. Need to see if my guild still wants me back after all the time I've been away."
Saura felt disheartened at the news. "Aww… you're abandoning us already?" he whined. "I missed you…"
Saurvor unstrapped the basket of fruit, setting it down in front of the entrance to the burrow. "Well, Saura, my life isn't confined to this meadow anymore. I'm not a Bulbasaur anymore. I can't just stay here all the time… there are Pokémon out there who need me."
But he sighed with a sad smile, and added, "Though, I guess staying for an extra day wouldn't hurt. You're right, my family is important, too. I'll head out tomorrow morning. Besides… There's something I think you should see. Come with me."
Saura walked with his older brother alongside the forest edge. He saw how the meadow was not at all like he remembered. It had fallen into such disrepair over the summer that it looked no different than the rest of the wilderness. He heard the dried leaves and sticks always crunching underneath him, and felt the uneven stalks of grass brushing past his face. He kept a sharp eye out for the thistles; though they were pretty, the thorns would always get lodged under his scales and hurt for weeks.
"So… I guess I should ask how you feel about being home," Saurvor said candidly. "Do you miss your friends?"
Saura shrugged. "Yeah, I miss them a lot, actually," he confessed, hanging his head. "I was on a team, and… they needed me. I feel like I should still be back there with them. The only reason I wanted to come back home was because… I knew that I put all of you in danger when I ran away from Hunter and Adiel. I couldn't live with that… it bothered me all the time. I had nightmares about it."
"Yeah, well… I admit it wasn't so fun having to keep Saurlee in the dark all the time," Saurvor admitted. "It wasn't so fun always wondering how long we could keep running. But that's all over now. And now we even have the Master's protection, so… no harm done."
"Yeah… it's hard to believe it's all over," Saura replied. "I spent so long learning how to fight… And now I finally feel like everything's okay. There's nothing to worry about anymore. I guess this is what it feels like to win the battle for once. I feel really happy."
"Do you think you'll ever go back?" Saurvor suddenly asked, not turning to look at him.
The question caught Saura off-guard, even though he figured it was coming eventually. He sighed.
"I know what it's like to have a life outside of this meadow," Saurvor said. "If you feel like you have friends counting on you, I know what that's like. Or maybe it's a whole guild. And you know… you could probably go back if you wanted. Dad is going to let you do whatever it is that you want. So what do you think?"
"I… haven't really decided yet," the Bulbasaur replied. "Maybe someday. But… well, my team leader kind of ordered me to stay here… because he thought I'd be happiest here. And I think he might have been right. So I don't really know right now. I'll keep thinking about it."
"Here," the Ivysaur said suddenly, dashing forward. "You've got to see this."
Saura followed, leaping through a rough patch of grass which had grown far above his head. When he emerged, he couldn't believe his eyes.
A tiny corner of the meadow was somehow perfectly preserved, even though nobody had been around to tend to it for months. Three small circles of copper-colored stones sparkled in the sunlight, each enclosing a soft patch of soil. From the soil there grew several patterns of delicate flowers. In the center between the circles, there grew a colorful bush shaped almost perfectly like a sphere, sprouting little round beads of immature berries.
It was such a simple work of landscaping, but Saura marveled at how immaculate it had remained, even though the surrounding meadow had become nothing short of disastrous. Barely a stray leaf or an unwanted weed was anywhere to be seen in the formation, and the bush still appeared perfectly trimmed.
"If I'm not mistaken, Saurlee made this garden," Saurvor said as his younger brother tiptoed reverently beside the stones. "It was her first garden she made all on her own. Just look at this… she used annuals, so they're still blooming even though it's halfway through autumn. And I think she might have put clay under the flowers so that the grass roots wouldn't get in."
"This… she must have trimmed the branches just before she left," Saura said, pawing at the fluffy leaves of the shrub in the center.
"I never realized how much work she put into it," Saurvor said. "And this is only her first one. I think she's got some natural talent. She might even be better than dad."
Saura smiled as he continued to admire the simple design, the handiwork of his little sister. He began to imagine restoring the whole meadow to its full glory, and how beautiful it would look in the springtime when everything would be in bloom again, a perfect place for the Pokémon he loved most in the world, a place where they would be safe from all the wars and struggles between the Master and the resistance forces. A place where he could sunbathe in the summer, hunt for berries in the autumn, explore the forest in the spring, and cuddle in the burrow on the coldest days of winter. A place he could live and grow with his brothers and sisters, teaching them everything he had learned and hearing their stories in return.
He began to remember why he loved his home.
"So, Saura," the Ivysaur said with a grin, "you say that you learned how to fight?"
"Yeah," Saura replied, turning to him. "I can defend myself now. You won't have to rescue me from mystery dungeons any more. If I get stuck in one, I can get out all on my own!"
"Glad to hear that," Saurvor replied proudly. "What do you say, after breakfast we take a walk in the forest and you show me some of the things you've learned? I might still have a few things I could teach you."
Saura smiled. "Of course I will. Besides… it's not like there's anywhere else I need to go today…"
Division Base
Char stood tall, addressing his three teammates.
"Meeting is now in session," he announced, pacing across the floor. "Starting today, I'm going to run this team a bit differently. For one, we will have a meeting every morning. I don't know how long we'll last before we need to start hiring even more members, and we will need to learn how to use these meetings to keep up communication with the team. As you might have noticed, we can't fit any more beds in the master bedroom than we already have, and that means additional members will need to be assigned to the smaller bedrooms and they won't be able to share in our evening discussions."
Char glanced at his audience, scrutinizing them. Otto and Ray looked perfectly attentive and energetic. Eva, on the other hand, seemed groggy and lethargic. She loudly stretched and yawned, sending terrible ruffles across her fur.
"Sadly, we cannot be only friends anymore," Char said, holding his hands behind his back and staring at the floor as he paced. "We have the makings of an elite team here. Ray, your talent is with handling dungeon equipment. So, you'll continue to be our inventory manager and bag carrier. I'm giving you free rein over all the team's items, and if anyone wants anything to do with items, they'll have to go through you first."
"Of course! I've got it," Ray replied. "I'll give it nothing less than my best, as always."
"Otto, I couldn't have asked for a better bird," Char said, smiling at him. "You'll continue to be my chief tactical advisor. You'll be in charge of reviewing our mission options each day and choosing those which best suit us. You'll also help us plan our strategies for our missions using whatever resources are available to us."
"You make me sound as though I am Metagross," Otto said. "But seeing as though my analyses have rarely led the team to failures, I accept the role. Though I did not understand it before, I see now that it is a wise decision to assign this role to me."
"Uh… thanks," Char said. "...And anyway, Eva. Welcome to the team. Somehow, you've kept hidden from High Intelligence and Team Remorse for a very long time. I can't imagine that was easy. So I think I am going to designate you as our team spy."
Eva's eyes were droopy and her gaze was distant; she didn't give any response that indicated to Char that she had heard. She soon noticed his stern glare and snapped to attention.
"I apologize… I am not used to being awake at this hour," she sighed.
"Well, you're going to have to learn," Char said bluntly. "We'll be up this early every morning, every day of the year, no exceptions. I don't care if you have an assignment or not, you're going to come to every team meeting if you're in the same base with us."
"Very well, but I cannot guarantee I will be very attentive, at least for the first month," the grumpy Espeon said, laying back down. "It is not so easy to adjust."
Char crossed his arms. "I think it will be easy," he said wryly. "You see, here on Team Ember, we have a special way of making sure our teammates are awake when they are supposed to be awake."
Char gave the signal.
The room flashed as Ray touched a paw to Eva's flank, shocking her awake with an impressive static charge. Eva's hair stood on end, and she jumped nearly a foot in the air, landing on all fours.
"Fine! I get the point!" Eva growled. "I am awake. I am listening."
"As I was saying, you're going to be our spy. You'll be in charge of infiltrating other organizations and extracting information we need from our targets, so that Otto can use the information to help plan our operations. You'll also be the first one we go to if we ever need to commit fraud."
Eva sat down and swished her tail, looking content. "It's simple," she said. "I tell lies about just as well as I breathe. And infiltration is much easier than it might seem to someone like you. It is a simple matter. I have even broken into Alakazam's chamber and read from his private library on occasions; he has never suspected."
"Good, just what I need," Char said without breaking a smile. "I'm not happy that we'll have to be dishonest, but it's just something we're going to learn to deal with if we want to be an elite team."
"Correct. It is the nature of the world," Eva said plainly. "When corruption cannot be put in check by the threat of force, it can only be opposed with further corruption. I'm impressed that you would acknowledge it so easily, it makes you a wise leader."
"Well, yeah, as we humans like to say, 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em,'" Char said.
"Indeed," Eva replied. "With matters of espionage, I promise that I will not fail you… Where I will fail you, in the end, is in matters of physical confrontation. Fighting is something I have not done in over a decade. I have become frail and out of practice. You might say there is a good reason I have learned to keep myself hidden."
"Maybe we can schedule some time you can spend with Domo," Ray offered cheerily. "You know, just in case. I know we probably won't need you to fight most of the time, but you never know when you might need to fight."
"Yes, perhaps," Eva said tersely. "I suppose there would be no harm in regaining some of my long-lost skill. There was a time in the past that I could fight, and I'm sure I could learn again."
Char eyed the torch, wondering how much time he had left to set out on the day's mission.
"Alright, so let's talk about the day's agenda," Char said, standing straight again. "Otto, yesterday you chose a mission for us…?"
"Today, we are traveling to the Anvil Quarry mystery dungeon to retrieve a 'valiant scarf,'" Otto said, beginning the briefing. "The scarf was lost two days ago by Team Carrier during a successful rescue mission, and they did not realize the item had been left behind until taking inventory after the completion of the mission. The Anvil Quarry dungeon is very close to the northeastern entrance, we can arrive there in less than an hour. They estimate that the scarf was left somewhere on the fifth floor."
"Char, before we go any further, there is something I would like to make known," Eva said awkwardly, cutting off Otto's next word. "This may seem sudden, but I didn't realize were you were planning to go today. Char, I… deeply despise the mystery dungeons, and I would appreciate if you… would consider leaving me out of them. I suppose I should have told you this earlier, before accepting me onto your team. But… I would do anything else for you without protest."
"Aww, don't be afraid! Everybody's afraid the first few times they go into a dungeon," Ray said. "With us around, you don't have to be afraid. We've gotten good at exploring dungeons. It's one of our specialties!"
"It's not that I'm afraid," Eva said, shifting uncomfortably and staring at the floor. "It is just that I… do not like them. They are unnatural and alien, the laws of physics do not make sense, and… and I simply have no interest in them. I have decided a long time ago that I would stay out of any mystery dungeon unless absolutely necessary. I would simply like for you to respect that."
"I do not see how that's different than being afraid," Otto replied. "Your hesitance resembles the fear of every newcomer, including myself. With practice and experience, you can overcome the fear."
Eva shot him a scowl in return. "I said, I'm not afraid," she hissed. "But I have… personal reasons for detesting mystery dungeons, which I do not feel the need to explain at this moment. They are perhaps my greatest enemy in the world, and I am not interested in confronting them. Please understand, Char?"
Char thought for a moment, scrutinizing his new teammate and deciding what to say. "Duly noted," he said, "But I'm not going to make any promises that you'll never have to go on a dungeon mission. Like it or not, we're a dungeon-crawling team. That's how we make a lot of our money here. So you're going to have to learn to work with us whether you like it or not. I'll take your request into account, but I'm still going to expect you to follow orders. Understood?"
For a moment, the Espeon looked ready to loudly object, but she bashfully bowed her head after a small pause. "That is fine, and fair," she replied quietly. "You're the leader."
"Good. In that case, you're going with us today," Char decided. "But after that, I promise that we'll leave you out of the next dungeon exploration, at least. I'm sorry, but until I get used to Saura not being here, I'm going to need all the help I can get."
Eva didn't look too happy, but Char ignored her and turned his attention again to Otto. "Anyway, as you were saying… Anvil Quarry, five floors. What kind of resistance?"
"Standard fare for a cave. Expect rock-types and the Zubat family," Otto recited. "But it is also possible that we could encounter various grass Pokémon, such as the Turtwig family and the Snivy family. It is possible that there will be colonies of Joltik. I recommend we take a moderate supply of healing seeds to counteract possible poison and paralysis."
"Thinking the same thing," Ray said. "Also, probably should take the Frozen Flame this time. That'll protect at least one of us from the rock-types. Let's see… how may reviver seeds should we take? I think we've got six."
"Let's take two, it shouldn't be too hard of a mission," Char replied. "The emblems should help us if something goes wrong."
"Right. And I might want to take some of the iron thorns for the Onix and Graveler, unless everyone's good with their steel skills?"
"I can turn my wings and talons to steel with white energy," Otto said, nodding. "I will suffice."
"I think I'll be alright," Char said, looking at his hands. "I haven't tried using iron claws in a while, but might as well try to remember. What about you, Eva? Do you know any steel skills?"
When Char glanced at the Espeon, she returned a sour, unamused frown.
"Meeting is adjourned," Char said flatly, not taking his eyes from his newest teammate. "Let's start packing."
He continued to stare at her as the Raichu and the Pidgey wandered off in the direction of the supply closet, ready to pack the bag.
Eva, could you try to at least pretend that you're taking this seriously? Char asked her telepathically, crossing his arms. For being so thankful that you're on the team, you aren't trying very hard.
I have made myself clear, human, that I can't fight, and that I would rather bathe in a pond of mucus than set foot in a mystery dungeon, Eva replied. Perhaps if you were to give me espionage work, as apparently I am now the team spy, I assure you that I would perform my duties well beyond your expectations. But now I find myself taken far out of my element on the first day of work. Pardon me for my lack of enthusiasm, but tell me, who is it that is failing to take whom seriously?
Char remained firm, and replied, Look… maybe I have to see how you handle a dungeon mission before I can start making decisions about how you can help the team. Maybe I think you're underestimating yourself. Maybe I think you're not as bad as you say you are. After today, we can compromise about it. I'm alright with compromising. But we chose this dungeon mission yesterday and we can't back out now. Come with us. You can consider it a test of our trust.
Fine, then, she said with a snort, cocking her head flippantly as she turned to walk away. I will do your will, master.
Eva approached Ray and demanded to know which scarf she was supposed to wear, and Char continued to watch her, shaking his head.
I hope I have enough strength to handle you, Char said to himself, scratching his forehead. You're already draining me…
Despite being clearly unhappy with her assignment, Eva protested no more as the team packed the bags and delegated the equipment. Char decided to give Eva his rescue emblem, ensuring that she wouldn't be accidentally trapped in the dungeon, and she seemed pleased by the thoughtful gesture.
Just when Ray was tying the last straps and buttoning the buttons on his bag, there was a rapping at the door.
"Ah, just on time," Char commented, opening the door and letting the familiar Marowak in. "Good morning, Marrow! I think we're all ready to go."
"Certainly looks like it! I'm quite impressed," Marrow said, glancing at the team. "Ah, took me a second to remember Saura's not here anymore. I'm so used to seeing him."
"Believe us, we know," Char said. "I've been trying to get used to it all morning."
"Ah, but I see you've hired a replacement," Marrow said, eyeing the Espeon suspiciously. "Eva, if I'm not mistaken? Last I heard of you, Scythe was thinkin' about putting a bounty on your head. Hope you're not planning anything funny with Team Ember. They're smarter'n they look."
"If they were not smarter than they look, I would not have joined them," Eva retorted.
"Right. You might say that, I bet you would've joined any old team to get out of gettin' caught," Marrow joked, tapping her on the head with his club.
Char cringed as the Espeon recoiled in disgust.
"Don't touch me," Eva hissed back at him.
"Sorry, but I happen to be Char's designated teacher," Marrow replied jovially, ignoring her threat and walking away. "Means I can bop you on the head whenever I want. But you're always free to dodge."
Don't mind Marrow, he's always like this, Char advised silently. He's given us all bruises in turn.
Yes, but I don't have to like him, Eva returned. Also, just now, he dropped his guard for a moment and I was able to see inside of his mind. He fancies himself difficult to break, and indeed his memories show that he does not easily bend to intimidation, but I have some ideas about how to break him if necessary.
With a wry grin sent to Char, she added, Perhaps it will never come to use, but it's just the kind of information I prefer to collect about everyone I meet… just in case.
Once the five Pokémon had left the room and Ray had shut the door behind everyone, Char glanced at the bulletin board. There were already a few notes pinned to it, either notes sent through the division's mail system or posted directly by other division members. Char knew they were all surely job requests for mundane things, and he was not very excited about cutting time out from his schedule to get them all done, but he knew he could not simply ignore them and disappoint the other teams who looked up to Team Ember and specifically sought out their help. He determined they would look through the notes later that day after returning from the mission, and start to decide how to handle them.
He also had a passing thought about another task he would need to investigate in the near future, that of Ray's brother and the hidden treasure which could only be found after teleporting to a specific place. He knew it would be difficult to find someone who not only knew how to teleport, but also would agree to keep the secret from High Intelligence. It was another item to add to the long list of things which needed to be done.
I have to keep a level head, Char said as he counted the seven notes on the board. My plate's filling up fast, but if I take things one day at a time, I'll be fine. Today, we'll focus on Team Carrier and get that done, then afterwards we can plan our next move.
We'll be fine.
Char found comfort and reassurance in his thoughts… which lasted for all of six seconds, until Marrow eyed something suspicious on the board and stepped aside to take a look.
"Hmm, now what is this?" he hummed, reaching for one of the notes. "This isn't what I think it is, is it?"
As soon as he unpinned it, Char realized that the note was, in fact, a large envelope. Marrow sliced it open with the tip of a claw and withdrew the document from within.
It was quite a large, formal-looking sheet of paper; it was tinted a rosy color and had a prominent seal near the bottom.
"Oh my, oh my," Marrow said, reading the paper. "Char, it looks like you've officially gotten your first red note."
The sound of Marrow's voice didn't sound too assuring, and Char felt a tingle of fear spread across his back. "What's a red note?" he asked warily.
"A mission sent straight from High Intelligence!" he described, holding the paper up to show him. "This means that they want you to drop everything you're doing and work on this job as soon as possible. See? It's even signed by Xatu herself."
Char hesitantly took the paper and pretended to read it. Yes, it did look very official, and the footprint runes were all very sharp and neatly arranged. Even though he didn't know what it said exactly, he already felt a trickle of fear seep into his fire, and his hands trembled as he clutched it.
"Ah, it was inevitable you'd get one of these, Char, "Marrow said. "Get good enough at your job, and the bosses will be sending you these all the time. Actually, my team's working on one right now. It's the Red Haven job. We haven't made progress on it for a long time thanks to all this canyon nonsense, but we got the mission in one of these red letters. We've still got to show High Intelligence we're making progress every once in a while or they'll get all mad."
"Wait, does… this mean we can't go to Anvil Quarry today?" Char inquired, his voice cracking. "We have to do this job right away?"
"Eh, nah, not if we're already set to head out," Marrow said. "We can always 'pretend' we didn't see it until we got back. But by this time tomorrow, you should definitely have a solid plan about what you're going to do about this."
"What is the assignment?" Otto cried, bouncing in place. "Show me the note."
Char flipped the note around for all to see. Otto began to read it.
"This is an urgent matter which affects the integrity of the Gold Division as a whole. Of the available candidates suited for this task, Team Ember has been selected.
Client is Kecleon. Rank is one star. Reward is one hundred-thousand gold credits and an increase in your team's rank.
The Kecleon brothers complain of harassment by a rogue thief in Iron Town. The thief has proven bothersome and difficult to catch, and threatens to compromise the services which the Kecleon offer to the Gold Division. You are to apprehend this thief by any means necessary, so that the Kecleon may continue their operations in Iron Town undisturbed.
A representative of Team Ember will need to report to Kecleon within three days for a briefing. The matter should thenceforth be resolved in a reasonably timely manner.
Signed by Mistress Xatu, one among your greatest servants."
The last line caught Char off-guard, but he remembered that High Intelligence always referred to themselves as the division's greatest servants. They weren't wrong.
There was an uncomfortable pause as the four teammates glanced at one another, letting the note sink in. It certainly sounded like a difficult task; if Kecleon couldn't apprehend a criminal, Char knew it was going to take some work. He only wondered why his team had been selected for such a task when dozens of other teams seemed more suitable. Team Dread seemed like the best fit for a thief hunt, seeing that the team was almost entirely made of thieves themselves, and they knew how thieves operated. Team Silverwing also came to mind, as they were known to be the surveillance champions of the Division, and could watch miles of landscape all at once just by putting the right birds in the right places.
Then it hit him.
"What did you say was the rank of the mission?" Char asked again, already knowing the answer.
"…One star," Otto replied.
Char grinned. It was an uneasy grin, but he felt somewhat comfortable in knowing the truth. "In that case, I know why they gave us this mission," he told his team, folding the paper again. "This will be our first one-star mission."
"Ooooh! Right!" Ray said, gawking. "I get it now! Alakazam's list!"
"Right," Char said confidently, sliding the red letter under his door. "Eva, you weren't here to see the list, but we'll explain everything later. Looks like we've got our work ahead of us. But as for now, we have a scarf to find. This is going to be a huge project and we'll have a lot to talk about, but we've got to focus on one thing at a time. Now, let's get moving!"
Anvil Quarry Road
The northward walk to the mystery dungeon was short, but rocky; the only road going to the quarry degraded in quality until it was nothing but a trail of rough, unstable gravel winding through carved-out hills. Char's feet began getting just as sore as if he'd been walking for hours.
Even as they drew close to the abandoned strip-mining site, the mission wasn't on Team Ember's minds. Try as they might, the team of adventurers just couldn't bring themselves to ignore the job request from High Intelligence. They rambled tirelessly to one in eager anticipation of the great endeavor, and Marrow only stood back in amusement of their enthusiasm.
"Unlike this… petty errand we are running today, I for one am quite interested in catching a thief," Eva said as she tried not to stumble through the loose gravel. "Granted I somehow survive walking through a mystery dungeon and keep my sanity intact, I'm ready to begin work immediately. We should try to get into the thief's mind. Does he strike at high noon, or twilight, or perhaps at night? What kind of loot does he prefer? What are his strategies of attack? Does he have a motive? If we could only create a psychological profile for this thief, we could catch him easily."
"Well, I think the first thing we should do is talk to Kecleon," Ray said. "I know he's been really angry at this thief for a long time. I had no idea it was so bad he needed to submit a job request for help! I'll talk to him first thing tomorrow after the morning rush, see how much information we can get on this thief. I know he'll be happy to see that we're on the case! Maybe he'll even give us some free stuff to help us."
"I'm thinking, without any shadow of a doubt, we'll need to bait this thief," Eva said with a sneer. "Perhaps with the assistance of Kecleon, we can arrange to have an object of value stored out in the open, free for the taking, and then once he takes the bait, we should close off the escape route. Simple! I don't know of any better way to catch a thief."
Char walked at her side. "Maybe, yeah, but I don't think we should underestimate him!" he said. "This is Kecleon we're talking about. You'd think that Kecleon would have tried that. But this is the first thief that Kecleon hasn't caught yet! That means everything he's tried so far hasn't worked. If we're going to set a trap for the thief, It's gonna have to be a really good one!"
"Do not worry about the trap," Eva said with a hint of evil glee. "I can craft a perfect trap for any Pokémon, as long as I have an accurate idea of how their mind works. In fact, I bet that I could finish the mission all by myself. All I would need from the rest of you are the resources and the hands to carry them."
"Ah-hem," a stern Marowak grunted from behind the Espeon. "I don't recall Char making you the team leader, newbie. I think you're about halfway to another tap on the head."
"And I am not hearing any objections from Char," Eva replied haughtily. "I am merely trying to be a helpful and productive teammate."
"Yeah, well, just keep something in mind," the masked Pokémon said sternly, eyeing her through the skull's sockets. "I've seen a lot of death and destruction in my day, but I don't think I've ever seen something nearly as destructive as an oversized ego with some rambunctious ideas. Some days I wonder if all the problems we face are just 'cause one day somebody just happened to be a little too proud and overconfident for their own good. Wouldn't surprise me."
Surprisingly, Marrow's words seemed to resonate strongly with the Espeon; her eyes widened for a moment, and she fell silent.
Char squinted into the distance, wondering how much farther was left. The quarry was plainly visible, as the earth's surface opened into a great abyss at the end of the road. Surrounding the pit, he saw evidence that many Pokémon had once congregated at this place, like broken stone buildings and large objects that were probably defunct machines. There were many rivets in the ground suggesting that huge worker Pokémon had beaten the path, or perhaps that large objects had been pulled around.
"So, what happened to this place?" Char wondered out loud. "Why'd they abandon it? I guess they mined it dry?"
"Nah, same thing that happens to everything else in Ambera," Marrow said with a sigh. "Mystery dungeon took over, and the miners couldn't work anymore without getting lost. I was actually alive long enough to see this place active. Lotta Iron Town's buildings came from the steel that came from here. This place made us all a lotta money. Then one day… left started going right, and up started going down, and next thing, they evacuated the whole place."
"That's really sad," Ray said, gazing at their destination. "So there's still a lot of ore down there, you think?"
"Sure there is, but good luck getting to it when any Pokémon or machinery you bring could suddenly disappear," Marrow said, shrugging. "Sadly, it seems like that's the only certainty in our lives nowadays: if there's any good in the world, either the Master's gonna destroy it, or a mystery dungeon's gonna swallow it. The Master at least we can push back if we try hard enough. But the dungeons… well, they just keep gettin' worse, and there's nothin' we can figure to do. Last I heard, the scientists at the Black Division found a way to make them spread faster, but nobody knows how to reverse them. Just the cruel reality of life, I suppose."
"And I'd have nothing to do with them, if I had any choice in the matter," Eva grumbled. "Unfortunately it seems that they are becoming unavoidable. I would cut off two of my legs if it meant that I could make them all disappear, no questions asked."
"Have you considered moving to the human lands?" Otto said suddenly, descending to speaking distance.
The Espeon seemed revolted at the suggestion, sending him a sour gaze. "Why in the world would I want to move to the human lands?" she said oddly. "No offense to the humans, of course," she added, giving Char a sideways glance.
"Because no mystery dungeons have ever been reported from the human lands," Otto replied. "Pokémon who have gone to the human lands and have returned to Ambera have confirmed it. The humans have never heard of them. If you desire a life apart from the dungeons, it is something for you to consider."
Eva fell quiet again and didn't respond. Char eyed her again, trying to inconspicuously glimpse at her face. He could tell she looked unsettled, but he couldn't quite read her. All he could tell was that there were many things on her mind, things that she perhaps had no interest in sharing.
Anvil Quarry Surface
The quarry was much larger than it had appeared from a distance. It consisted of one giant road which looped around in a great oval, digging deeper into the earth with every revolution. At the very center there was only blackness, which seemed to indicate the entrance to the treacherous spatial anomaly. Char peered over the edge and could hear the wind howling down in the depths of the artificial canyon.
"Walking around the whole road would probably be safest… unless we could just climb down," Char considered, backing away.
"I don't know, that's an awfully long way down," Ray said. "I didn't bring any rock-climbing gear. If only we had someone with retractable vines…"
"Eva, you claim that infiltration is effortless," Otto said. "If that is true, infiltrate this quarry."
She turned her back to him. "I do not appreciate your sarcasm," she said. "Have the Marowak do it, he is the ground-type."
"What, you want me to burrow you all down there? All the way down there?" he laughed. "That's an awful lot of work, even for me. When I got you folks out of Purevine Village, Rocky and I had to dig those tunnels an hour in advance. Plus, they weren't through solid rock." He tapped his bone on the shale underfoot.
Char sighed. "Alright, I guess we're taking a walk," he decided, turning to follow the road as it descended into the pit.
In reality, Char didn't mind taking a longer walk. The sky was solid overcast, but it didn't feel like it would rain, and the air was only slightly chilly. He even looked forward to exploring all of the interesting industrial remnants which still lay scattered across the winding road. His only worry, with so much extra travelling time, was that the Call would strike before they would have a chance to return to the base. He realized he had to start thinking about what he'd use the Call for, if anything at all.
For a tiny moment, he thought about asking his friends for advice on the matter. He knew they could offer him insight and support with his power. Otto already had, once, even though he didn't remember it. But the thought didn't last long before he convinced himself that it was inappropriate, and he determined to keep suffering quietly, bearing the Call as his own burden.
Besides, the one Pokémon who he felt he could trust enough with such a huge secret wasn't there anymore. He had lost the chance to tell him, and now he simply had to live with it.
Basin Canyon
Within the walls of the canyon, over a kilometer beneath the surface, an elite team of Pokémon scrambled through a series of torch-lit tunnels preparing for a great event.
Among the deepest tunnels, there was Jahzara's lair, a chamber where the ruling family of the Sandslash congregated. Accompanied by the leaders from several elite teams, they stood over a grand map of the canyon's network and tersely discussed plans for the impending battle.
Spirits were low and nerves were high as the warriors discussed the uncertainties involved with having underestimated the enemy. The entire plan had been cast into doubt, as it was unknown how much Cepheus knew about the time and circumstances when the great Sandslash tribe would return to their deserted home. Jahzara's eldest son blamed Team Remorse for the mistake, as Scythe was the one who had wrongly anticipated resistance from Adiel. But even under the heat of contempt, Scythe's confidence did not waver. It seemed as though he was the only Pokémon among them who did not seem worried.
There was a loud explosion as the stone doors to the chamber crashed open, one of them flying from its hinges. In the doorway stood Ursa with his powerful fist drawn.
"Ursa, we were speaking!" Daemon roared in rage at his underling. "This had better be good."
"Oh, believe me, it is good," he called back, approaching the table. "Guys, we did it. We found him. You all can take a moment to breathe a huge sigh of relief, because we did it. We found the Starborn."