Chapter 7 - Saving Marie!
Pecha Forest S2
The three Pokémon all stood motionless within the forest clearing, the ancient floor pillar standing tall, a stark contrast to the natural scenery around them. The duo of Ewan and Ozzy were breathing heavily, both in battle stances, both watching the Ivysaur in front of them, who seemed to be getting ready for another attack. The Mudkip was crouched, ready to pounce forwards, tail fin raised for defence, while the Treecko had his paws clenched together, ready to use them at a moment's notice.
"Ewan, you ready for this?" Ozzy asked, not taking his eyes off off the opponent ahead of them.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Ewan replied, a small grin etched across his face.
Despite having only been in less than a handful of battles, there was something about the fighting that seemed to excite the Mudkip. Maybe this was what people called "the thrill of the fight". Or he was just being a bit overly dramatic? Either way, he was ready to fight, and he could feel the desire to win coursing through him.
"Move!"
Ewan saw the razor leaf coming this time, ducking down to avoid a sharpened leaf that had been aimed at his head fin. His eyes widened at just how quick he had dodged the attack. He hadn't shown that speed before now, so how come he could dodge the attack so well all of a sudden? But it was not time for him to be questioning his luck, not while they were still trapped in a fight for their lives.
He quickly rolled to the left, feeling a vine scrape across his right side, but it was unable to grab a hold of his legs this time.
He saw Ozzy leap up at the Ivysaur from behind, firing more seeds from his mouth, and the Treecko, with surprising precision, flipped forwards to slam his tail directly into the Ivysaur's face with a sickening thud.
But the bulb Pokémon had a trick up its sleeve, because as Ozzy landed on the ground after the attack, the Ivysaur quickly recovered, leaping from behind the Treecko, landing right on top of Ozzy, who cried out in surprise.
Ewan charged forwards, propelling himself towards the grass type, ready to tackle it of off Ozzy. He slammed into the side of the Ivysaur, who grunted in surprise, turning its attention to the Mudkip who was quickly recovering from the attack, giving Ozzy a moment to breathe and pick himself up.
Ewan's eyes widened as he met the eyes of the Ivysaur, who glared straight at him with those red pupils. The water type felt himself freeze for a moment, locked in place by the glare in those eyes. Something about them seemed to be awfully intimidating, and he couldn't help but stumble backwards in panic, his breathing speeding up, a cold sweat already forming on his forehead.
"Ewan! Don't look into its eyes! It's trying to intimidate you!" His friend called out, but it was far too late for that, Ozzy's warning reaching deaf ears.
He had been gazing for far too long in the eyes of the Ivysaur, and he knew what that meant when the Ivysaur - now back on its feet - charged forwards towards the Mudkip with a clear intention.
'Gah, I can't move, I can't even look away! I have to do something, I've just got to th-'
The Ivysaur collided with Ewan, slamming its head straight into his stomach. Ewan felt himself sailing through the air, his back slamming into the rough brown tree trunks by the wall of the room.
"Ahhh! Ahhh!"
The pain shot through his back, the Mudkip thrashing about where he had landed, pain burning across his entire body. It seemed to engulf him for a moment - although just for a few seconds - before the dungeon's healing began to kick in slowly.
The pain began to numb itself, but he was still in pretty bad shape. His back was bruised, it had to have been from that attack, and he could feel small droplets of blood dripping to the floor where the worst of the scratching had taken place from the tree bark.
"GAH!"
The sound of a certain Treecko hitting the ground quickly brought Ewan back into reality, and he glanced up to see what had happened. The Ivysaur had once again pinned Ozzy down, only this time, it's vines were raised, ready to attack Ozzy. The Treecko was breathing heavily, unable to summon any more seeds. He was out of energy!
"Ozzy! Hold on!" Ewan cried out, pulling himself up from the floor into a standing position.
'Ozzy needs my help,' Ewan thought to himself. 'B-but... I can't do anything except distract that Ivysaur. It would whip me away before I could get anywhere near close enough to deal a lasting hit. But I have to try! I can't let that overgrown plant win this fight! Not if that means he's going to keep hurting Ozzy!'
"Chaaaarge!" He flung himself forwards into a sprint towards the Ivysaur, hoping he could reach it before it was too late to help his friend.
The Ivysaur turned its head menacingly, noticing the Mudkip charging towards it, and with a growl of frustration, it reared up and launched a flurry of leaves towards its opponent.
The leaves all sliced through the air, the large flurry slamming straight into Ewan, who couldn't find the strength to dodge, the Mudkip finding himself flung backwards into the ground once more. He closed his eyes, wincing in pain as the stinging wounds began to grow a lot more numerous.
"Ugh... It hurts!" Ozzy screamed, and Ewan could only imagine what was happening since he could barely move. But he couldn't give up, damnit. Ozzy needed him!
"Hey! Get away from those two!"
Suddenly, the entire clearing was suddenly filled with smoke, the entire area vanishing underneath a dark haze that appeared seemingly out of nowhere. The sound of something powerful making contact with a Pokemon and a feral cry was enough to tell him that the Ivysaur had been attacked. But by who?
As the smoke began to dissipate, as quickly as it had arrived, Ewan found himself being lifted up off of the ground by a strong grip and dragged towards the middle of the clearing. For a moment, there was just silence as he was pulled, but as he finally managed to move his head a bit, he got a decent look at what had happened.
The Ivysaur was lying on the edge of the clearing, completely singed on one side, vines hanging limply off of the shrubbery that it had gotten tangled with. It was unmoving and unconscious, although from what the Mudkip could see, the burns would take some serious time to heal.
"I never thought I'd see you two out here," A voice chuckled, a frighteningly familiar voice.
'Wait a minute,' Ewan thought. 'That voice... It couldn't be?'
"Hey Ewan, you okay? You got pretty banged up by that Ivysaur." He felt himself spin around once he was released from the grip of his saviour, coming face to face with a rather familiar bandana wearing Charmander, who was looking at him with relieved eyes.
"Charlie? W-what are you doing here?" Ewan choked out, trying to stand up on his own, only to feel his front left leg give way slightly.
"What do you think? We're here to rescue that Vivillon," The Charmander grinned, producing a large blue berry from a bag he had around his shoulder. "Eat this, it's an oran berry, it'll help heal your wounds."
Nodding slowly, Ewan took the berry from Charlie. He examined it for a few moments in his paws. It seemed a little squishy, was a very bright blue, and it smelled like fresh fruit. That was something he was craving, and it only took him a few seconds to chomp down on the berry with reckless abandon.
It was only after he'd finished gulping down the last of the berry that he realized just how hungry he was. Not only that, but neither himself nor Ozzy had actually eaten anything the day before. The excitement must have caused him to forget such things, and that made the berry even sweeter to him.
Not to mention his wounds were starting to heal at a much more rapid pace, ever since he'd eaten the oran berry. It was as if the berry was made for healing, and after thinking about it, he didn't doubt that the blue berries were healing items. Why he and Ozzy hadn't brought some along, he didn't know, but he was grateful for the help.
"You're both lucky Charlie and I came along," Another familiar voice said, huffing. "Or you both could easily have been knocked out. You're clearly not at a high enough level to tackle an Ivysaur."
Ewan turned to the source of the voice to see Ozzy on the floor, also munching on an oran berry, with a rather familiar Riolu standing above him. Aura was rolling her eyes at the Treecko, who weakly smiled, flashing a grin to Ewan.
"It wasn't our fault that the Ivysaur was right by the pillar to the next sector," Ewan grumbled. He took a few steps forwards, still rather perturbed by his wound on his foot. "Urk..."
"What's wrong with you?" Aura asked, raising her brow, as if ready to complain at a moment's notice. "You seem a little under the weather there."
"It's his leg," Ozzy pointed out, scrambling up from the regenerative powers of a simple berry. Quickly making his way to the water type, he bent down and grimaced at the scratch. "For some reason, it won't heal, odd."
"We can cover it or something for now," Charlie suggested, going to look for some bandages in the bag he was holding, which Ewan assumed was their team bag.
Ozzy was already one step ahead though, withdrawing the blue scarf that had fallen off of the Mudkip's neck earlier that day. "Ewan, I'm thinking that the scarf might be our best bandage. We already know that when you wear it, you get a boost in power, maybe it'll help with your healing too?"
Ewan nodded slowly, the logic checking out, and within a few moments, Ozzy and Ewan were back in business - albeit with a scarf now wrapped around Ewan's front left leg - now ready to continue their venture in the Pecha Forest. Well, if it wasn't for Aura.
"Alright, what are you both doing out here?" Aura asked, though her question read more like a demand, if anything.
"Looking for a Vivillon called Marie," Ozzy replied.
"Funny, we're also looking for a Vivillon called Marie," Charlie mused, the faintest smile on his face.
Aura, however, didn't find the situation amusing, "Are you trying to steal our Client?" She accused, which Ewan was having none of.
"Hey, we were asked by the Vivillon's friend to rescue her after nobody from your Guild replied to her request!" Ewan countered, glaring at Aura, who turned away with a huff.
"Wait, didn't she know that we were going to do the job?" Charlie asked in confusion.
"Nope, she thought the guild didn't receive her request, as Ewan said," Ozzy pointed out, and at this, Aura whirled around, visibly surprised.
"So you are telling me that you met the Vivillon that sent the request, but she had no idea we were already going to rescue Vivillon?" Aura asked, her voice low as she seemed to be thinking.
Ozzy nodded slowly. "Yeah, we then came to the dungeon as soon as we could, since we had to help the Vivillon out, plus it'd be a great experience for me and Ewan as a team."
Aura was clutching her hands in fists, and Charlie was looking a little worried. Ewan looked at the Charmander with a confused gaze, but Charlie merely mouthed back, "She's not mad at you." Ewan turned his attention back to the stressed out Riolu, who looked ready to smash everything around her at the slightest of chances.
As Ewan got a closer look at her, he could see that her fur was a mess from where she had been clutching it in frustration, and from the way her muscles seemed tense, it seemed to suggest that she was really tired. Apparently, one night off of the night shift wasn't doing her as much good as it could have been. "That damn Turtwig! When I get my hands on him," She growled, slamming her fist into the ground, causing the rocks to fracture and crack.
"Aura, it was just a mistake. I'm sure Twiggy didn't mean to forget to inform the client," Charlie hurriedly replied, placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. He let his tail flare up slightly, letting his heat calm down the angered Riolu, and sure enough, she sighed and looked up at the three Pokémon around her.
"I know, I know... We're learning, I get that," She huffed. "But I do wish the other recruits would be a bit more professional, it makes us look bad." She mumbled, tensing when she felt Charlie place an arm around her shoulder. "C-Charlie?"
"Just calm down a bit Aura. We all make mistakes, and sure Twiggy will probably never hear the end of this from the Guildmaster, but we need to keep a cool head if we're to be an Arcean-ranked Destiny Team. And we have to learn to work with everyone, so let's try and be a bit more lenient, alright?" Aura looked to the ground, ears drooping slightly as Charlie finished his little monologue.
"I know... Let's just find this Vivilon and get out of here," She murmured, turning to face Ewan and Ozzy, who were silently watching. "You two are free to tag along, you already had a head start on us and we can't just leave you here."
They both nodded, Ozzy seemingly grateful for the extra companionship, though Ewan was a bit more bothered by the pair, noticing Charlie peering at them both curiously. Ewan caught his gaze, noticing how the Charmander looked away suddenly to turn back to Aura. 'Hmm... That guy is up to something, and I'm not sure I want to know about it.' Ewan turned to Ozzy, who was back to his normal cheerful self.
"Come on then you two. Do you really want to get left behind when that Ivysaur wakes up?" Aura called, motioning for the two to hurry up.
They both nodded, quickly scrambling over to the pillar. Ewan breathed a sigh of relief as the trees began to close in around them, and the Ivysaur vanished into the shrubbery. At least they'd have a better chance of finding the Vivillon as a group.
Pecha Forest S3
The moment the pillar lowered into the ground, the scenery seemed to morph and change once more. The leaves began to pale, turning a dark shade of purple, some even blackened, yet still able to sway in the wind despite their ruined appearance. The bark on the trees began to slowly decompose, turning a dark chalky grey while rotting wood began to soak into the ground, like water to a sponge. The earth began to strengthen itself and as Ewan's eyes gazed upon the ground, he noticed various sharp stones pointing upwards off of the floor.
The last part of the area to change was the sky. Once tinted magenta, the sky began to darken leaving the four Pokémon in a much darker forest than before. Charlie's tail was one of the few sources of light, as well as a few of the luminescent plants that Ozzy had seen on the first floor. While the area seemed dark, there was still some light shining through, only it seemed more like moonlight than sunlight.
Far off in the distance, the sounds of insects rustling could be heard, the noises echoing throughout the forest. Ewan even thought he heard a roar coming from deep within the labyrinth of the dungeon, but it was far away, and thus much tougher to make out exactly what it was. The Mudkip merely looked towards the rest of the group, wondering how they were doing.
Ozzy was looking around in wonder, his eyes glinting as he looked towards the lit up plant life that surrounded them. Charlie was a little pre-occupied, now holding his tail in his right hand. He was waving it around like a torch, providing some much-needed heat. Aura was probably the most confident, strolling onwards like there was no problem. He hated to admit it, but the darkness was rather unnerving to the Mudkip, and he felt his breathing quicken slightly.
They all walked forwards in single file, Ewan at the back, followed by Ozzy, then Aura, with Charlie at the front since he had the flaming tail. The Charmander led them across turns to the left, then to the right, passing by a variety of wild plants as they went. Ewan noticed the plant with the blood red petals and the blue stem once more, only it seemed to wilt as the light from Charlie's tail crossed its path.
For the moment, his instincts were going haywire. He was trying to listen out for any Pokémon who wanted to ambush them, but every snap made him jump, and any noises that were not of their own doing seemed to cause him some inner trouble. It didn't help that nobody was speaking at all. Everyone was so focussed on the mission, that it was almost a death sentence to break the silence.
"Ozzy?" Ewan whispered, just loud enough for the Treecko to hear, but not anybody else.
He noticed the Treecko slow slightly in pace, moving to the left until he was walking next to Ewan, before turning. "Yeah, something wrong?"
Was there anything wrong though? Did he just want someone to talk to? He didn't want to say that he was scared, that would just give Aura another excuse to make fun of them both. "Uh... I've been thinking about what to say to Steel," Ewan muttered, not knowing where he was going with this talk.
"Oh, really? What are you planning on saying to him?" The Treecko asked, brows raised.
"I was thinking of telling him how I felt while... Um... Exploring this dungeon today! Yeah, that's it. Exploring..."
"Riiiiight, well, just keep it up. I'm sure you'll get the right answer eventually," Ozzy sighed, quickening his pace, to Ewan's confusion.
"Hey, wait! What do you mean, I'll get the right answer eventually?" The Mudkip hissed, quickening his pace to keep up with his friend.
Ozzy thought for a second before saying, "I just mean that maybe you'll figure out the true reason Destiny Teams help others. I mean, it's just a natural answer when it comes to Pokémon."
"Don't forget, I'm a human, remember," Ewan pointed out, rolling his eyes. "I wouldn't know about your world's culture."
Ozzy sighed once more, coming to a quick stop to look at Ewan. "Look, Ewan... I know you have amnesia, but come on, enough with the human story. It was fine yesterday when it wasn't getting in the way of the mission, but now really isn't the time."
Ewan was about to retort with a rather angry comment, believing they were past this whole issue with his human story, when they both heard the voice of Charlie call out, "Hey! Get over here you two! We've found something!"
Closing his eyes, Ewan groaned in frustration before moving along the path towards Aura and Charlie. Ozzy was following behind, although now there was an awkward silence between the two and, of course, when they finally caught up to the two Pokémon in the lead, Aura was already on their cases. "Why did you both stop?"
"Private conversation," Ewan spat, grimacing for a moment, not noticing Ozzy look away with a hurt expression.
"Aura, lay off of them right now, can't you see they aren't getting along too well," Charlie whispered, though Ewan heard it just barely, quickly moving on before anybody could comment. "Anyway, look at what I found on the ground."
The Charmander quickly lifted something up that was in his paws, the two Pokémon peering forwards to get a good look at what it was. There, in Charlie's paws, was a leather pouch that had a strap to go around the shoulder. The strap was ripped in two, and Ewan could see some sort of writing on the front of the pouch, in the lining. "What does that say?"
"You can't read footprint runes?" Aura asked, looking at Ewan suspiciously. "I've never known an illiterate Pokémon before."
"I - uh... was never taught," Ewan lied, looking away before she could quiz him any further. "So it says?"
"Marie," Ozzy stated calmly. "Marie's the name of the Vivillon that's gone missing. Do you think this is her bag?"
Aura let out the smallest hints of a smile, something Ewan thought he wouldn't see that day, or ever for that matter, grabbing the bag as she did so. "Of course it is. I don't know of any other Marie in Paradisal Town, and the chances of two different Vivillon's called Marie being trapped in this dungeon are next to none."
"But wait, if that's her bag. What's it doing out here? Surely she'd keep it with her, right?" The Mudkip asked, slowly starting to piece together what had happened. "I mean if we know that this bag is hers and that she wouldn't lose it... Think, that bag looks a little tattered on the sides, and it's covered with dust, meaning it's been there for a little while. And don't forget the broken strap. Now, I don't know about you, but straps don't just break by themselves."
"But why would Marie break her own bag strap?" Charlie asked, lost in thought.
Ewan just looked at him, brows raised. "Really... You think that she broke her own strap... Isn't it obvious, she was attacked and whatever attacked her broke the strap!"
"She was attacked! But that means she could be around here somewhere!" Ozzy exclaimed, all four of them letting their eyes gaze onto the path ahead.
"We need to find her fast then! Before she gets hurt!" Charlie replied, raising his tail as a torch once more so that the group could continue. "We don't have much time! Let's go!"
"Right," The other three replied.
The four of them continued their pace across the corridors of the dungeon, being careful not to lose anybody in the dim light of the halls. It seemed that with every turn, the trees began to close in on them, making the path tougher to walk. However, the path seemed to only go in one straight direction, so it had to lead to something substantial.
That feeling of being watched was quickly creeping back into Ewan's mind as he gazed upon the much darker spots between and beneath the trees. His eyes were darting back and forth, hoping that any wild Pokémon would leave them alone, or suffer the consequences. He could see Ozzy glancing around at random intervals as well, and it quickly became apparent that the Treecko was also feeling a little bit nervous as well.
"Charlie, something feels wrong here," Aura whispered quietly as if the dungeon would attack if she was any louder.
"I know. It's like... I don't know... It just feels bad," The Charmander replied, a chill running down his spine as he continued trudging forwards. "Once we find the Vivillon, we need to get out of here as soon as possible."
Ewan watched the two with great confusion. In his opinion, all of the mystery dungeons were unnerving, even if he had only been in two of them. The whole concept of a maze that changes every time you enter was rather unnatural, and it goes against any natural law. But could there be something more to this dungeon specifically?
'Vivilon did say that this was a new dungeon,' Ewan thought. 'Maybe it's still trying to adapt to its surroundings and that's why it became so much darker when we entered sector three... Then again, maybe mystery dungeons are meant to get worse the further you go. I wish I knew, I've got so much to learn about this world... So much to learn about myself... Why do I want to be on a Destiny Team, for example?' He felt his fin seem to lower for a moment as he pondered the question. 'I mean, I've got personal problems, but what do I gain from a Destiny Team? What makes it so fulfilling to devote time to?'
"There's a room up ahead," Charlie called out, breaking Ewan out of his stupor. "Aura, can you see anything in there?"
The Riolu walked over to Charlie at a fast pace, eyes darting across the dark expanse that was beginning to open up. From what Ewan could see, there were leaves falling from the trees, there was a bit more light in the area due to the larger canopy, but it was still too dark to make out any Pokémon.
"Hmm... I can hear something moving in the corner of the room, to our right. Sounds like a sleeping Pokémon. There's something else though... I think... I think it's running water." Aura pointed to the left, and sure enough, the sound of rushing water could be heard.
"Alright, since I've got the light and there are no luminescent plants here, I'll go check on the sleeping Pokémon with Ozzy. Aura, Ewan, go check on the water, please," Charlie ordered, taking some steps into the room.
Ewan, moving over to the female fighting type, began to listen for the sounds of running water. Hopefully, it was just water they'd find and nothing worse. He saw Aura walking slightly ahead of him, and turning around he could see Charlie and Ozzy in the distance, heading to the corner of the room. They were too far away for Ewan to make anything out in the murky green and grey of the area, but there was definitely something down there.
"So, Ewan, what are you doing here?" Aura suddenly asked as they were walking, much to Ewan's surprise.
The Mudkip turned to face her, slightly confused by the question. "Looking for Marie, same as yo-"
"No, why are you here, in a more general sense? You don't seem like the type who would run into a dungeon for fun," The Riolu interrupted.
Ewan sighed for a moment, noticing that he had set foot in the water they had been tasked to find. All that was there was a small stream of clear water which flowed from one end of the room to the other. "I don't know... Honestly, I've not been voicing my opinion much..."
"I'll say. That Treecko's been putting words into your mouth every time I meet you."
The Mudkip winced. While it was true, it still hurt to admit that. "I have my reasons..." 'I just wish I could remember what I was like. It might help in the long run if I had my old personality!'
"So you're suffering from amnesia then," Aura silently stated, Ewan's blood running cold.
He turned to face her, eyes widened in shock. "W-what? How could y-"
"You really can't remember anything, can you? It's basic knowledge that Psychic-types, as well as the Lucario evolution line, can mindread. I can read the thoughts of Pokémon through my ability to channel aura," She explained, staring into his eyes.
For a moment, he felt vulnerable, like something sacred had just been intruded upon. She saw his expression, and quickly changed her tone.
"Don't worry, I can only read minds if they're really weak at the time. You've basically started from scratch due to your amnesia, right, so your defences are pretty low," She pointed out, giving Ewan an attempt at an understanding smile. "Perhaps I understand you better now. Amnesia would explain why you're so slow, and based on what Charlie told me about you, you've known that Treecko for a day, right? That's a pretty short time to want to form a team with someone."
"He saved my life, and he's the only person who I can really trust at the moment," Ewan stated. "Not that I don't trust you and Charlie in your own way, but it's different with Ozzy and I."
"Even if you're not getting along right now?" She asked curiously. "I could tell from your body language, as could Charlie."
"Great, I'm like an open book," Ewan groaned, turning away from the stream they were surveying. "But to answer your original question about why I'm here, I just want to find something fulfilling. Something that makes me happy in life... It's selfish, I know, but I came here hoping I would get some sort of guidance. The most I got was that I enjoyed battling a good bit."
"Well, that's something!" Aura stated. "You battle and grow stronger in a Destiny Team, more than any other job. But, you need something more. You need heart."
"Heart?"
"Yeah, you need to really enjoy helping people. My favourite part about Destiny Teams is when you help someone, and they thank you. That's the best feeling you can have, knowing you helped someone..." Aura smiled for a moment while talking, and Ewan could only smile as well, as the two made their way back towards Charlie and Ozzy. "I bet that once you feel it, you'll have a change of heart. Just wait and see, Ewan."
"I never thought you were the type to give advice Aura."
"And what type am I then?" She asked, rounding on him with a deadly stare, though luckily Charlie's voice cut through the room before they could continue.
"Guys! We've found her!" The voice of Charlie called, and within seconds, Ewan had abandoned their conversation so that he could get to the other two, avoiding Aura's wrath just barely, who were standing over a Vivillon that was eating an oran berry.
"Are you Marie?" Aura asked kindly, crouching down to the Vivillon's level when she got there. The butterfly-like Pokémon looked up, nodding. "We're here to rescue you."
"Will you help me get back to my friend?" Marie asked, her eyes glinting with hope.
"Yeah, we can actually leave right now. You see, with this-" Charlie quickly pulled out, what looked like an iron block, shaped in a diamond. It had a large green gem in the middle, and it seemed to glow in the darkness. "Destiny Badge! It'll teleport anybody we ask for out of the dungeon, which goes for all of us."
"That's so cool," Marie replied. "I hope I can get home soon. I need to get these pecha berries to Tiffany."
Aura laughed, pulling the Vivillon up. "Alright, I need everyone to hold hands. We need to all be physically connected so nobody gets left behind!"
Aura quickly grasped the Vivillon's wing, along with Charlie's paw. Charlie went to grab Ozzy's paw, the Treecko holding it out gladly. Ewan felt the Vivillon wrap it's other wing around him, and he looked over to Ozzy, noticing he hadn't grabbed the Treecko's paw. He lifted his front right leg slightly, which Ozzy grabbed, pulling Ewan up into a standing position, which made him jump slightly.
"Woah, I'm not the best on two legs, you know," He exclaimed, grasping Ozzy's paw tightly. As he grasped it, he felt a sudden jolt in his paw, which almost made him let go. It wasn't from the badge, that much he knew instantly, but what that jolt was, he didn't know.
"Alright, off we go," Charlie grinned. "Destiny Badge, escape the dungeon."
Charlie then chucked the badge into the air, letting it hover in the centre of their circle. The light it was emitting began to glow brighter, and Ewan found his eyes hurting slightly from the rays it produced. He felt Ozzy and Marie tense up, closing his own eyes as the light covered his body. And then, the light began to dim down. He was rather surprised when he opened his eyes.
Paradisal Fields
The bright green countryside of the Paradisal Fields greeted the Mudkip as his eyes opened up. Warm sunlight drifted down, only a few solitary apple trees standing in the fields. Looking around, the Pecha Forest seemed to be hidden by a hill, and he knew he wouldn't be heading there again any time soon.
"That was so cool," Marie gasped. "We were in the dungeon, and now we're not!"
"That's the power of a Destiny Team," Aura exclaimed, motioning towards the group to follow her. "Now let's get you back to your friend!"
When the group arrived at the wooden hut belonging to the Vivillon Ewan and Ozzy had talked to that morning, the Vivillon was sitting outside, looking up at the evening clouds.
"TIFFANY!" Marie squealed, fluttering away from the group towards her friend.
The Vivillon's head snapped down to the ground, noticing the other Vivillon, eyes widening with happiness. "M-Marie! Is it really you?"
The two Vivillon fluttered next to each other, hugging each other with their wings by wrapping them around the other's back. Marie was crying, while Tiffany was smiling. "Thank you so much for getting Marie back safe! I can't believe you did it!" She smiled, praising the four. "As thanks, I want each of you to have some poké for your troubles. Here, a nice 1,000 for each of you!"
At this announcement, Ozzy's jaw dropped, although Ewan wasn't paying attention. He was focused on how happy Marie was, and how it was making him feel. He felt a little warm and fuzzy inside... He felt proud. Maybe this was what Aura was talking about. He could get used to this feeling, the feeling of accomplishment and happiness at a mission well done. Thinking back to that morning, his attempt to dismiss Tiffany's request, it was rude of him. Maybe that was why Ozzy had been so upset with him?
"I can't take this much," Ozzy choked out, looking at the money with disbelief. "I'd feel bad!"
"And I'd feel bad if you didn't take it! Please, we don't need the money anyway, we have more than enough to keep ourselves out of trouble," Tiffany replied with a smile. "Thanks again, hopefully, you and your Mudkip friend will become a great Destiny Team soon!"
And with that, Marie and Tiffany fluttered off into the house, leaving the four Pokémon outside. Aura and Charlie were splitting their money up into two piles, while Ewan had given his to Ozzy for safe keeping.
"Are you sure it's been split forty - sixty!" Aura groaned, looking at Charlie nervously. "We don't want a repeat of last time."
"It's fine Aura! You've got 800 for us, and Steel's gonna get the 1,200. It's all good," Charlie replied with a rather forced grin.
"You mean you guys have to pay Steel sixty per cent of your reward?" Ozzy asked surprised. "That's a lot of money taken from you guys..."
"Hey, we get to keep items. Plus, we've got a decent amount of money already," Aura stated. "Now Charlie, we've got to head back to the guild. It's almost sunset!"
"SUNSET!" Ozzy cried out. "How is it sunset! We went into that dungeon in the morning?!"
Charlie merely rolled his eyes, looking at Ozzy with a smirk. "Don't tell me you forgot that dungeons have a different flow of time to the real world. Ten minutes in a dungeon is about thirty minutes in the real world. It's why we get so hungry easily."
Ozzy facepalmed. "How could I forget... So Ewan, what should we do?"
Ewan really wasn't sure. Was he ready? Did he figure anything out while exploring that dungeon. He could sense there was still some unresolved tension between himself and Ozzy, which they needed to get through. But at the same time, could he afford to wait any longer? Sure, the Guild wasn't going anywhere, but every day wasted was a day where Ozzy wasn't able to live out his dream, and a day away from Ewan finding a purpose.
"I..." He huffed, looking to Ozzy with a nervous, yet determined gaze. "I think we should go see Steel again."
