Tony tapped at the base of the device in front of him, activating the orb atop its pedestal. The orb glowed brightly, and a slot opened near the bottom.

"Please insert the team leader's badge," the speaker buzzed.

"That's your cue," Tony stated, looking over at Rocard and Lockjaw. "I'm sure you two can take it from here. Any last questions?"

"Actually, now that I think about it, yes," Rocard said, then stepped forward cautiously. "Do you… have a larvitar son named Bang?"

The tyranitar halted. He blinked rapidly, sweating. "Y-Yes. How did you…"

"Pattern recognition," the draconid quipped. "Those four bagon were centered around a theme - one that was missing a fifth part. Considering… other factors, it wasn't that hard to put the pieces together."

Opening his mouth to refute what could put him in a bad light, Tony only stuttered.

Rocard, surprisingly, sent a reassuring smile. "Whatever it was that you did or didn't do, you clearly regret it, and you want to make up for it. Mad props to you; if I had a hat, I would be tipping it for you. If you don't get it to work out, there are still plenty of options."

Lockjaw exhaled through his nose. "I still don't like the way your team discriminates against draconids. This whole stigma that's been placed is completely undeserved, but… as a 'mon, you're a nice guy. I don't think your actions were deserving of what Aunt Farrah did."

Tony sniffled, attempting to keep his welling tears from surfacing. "I… Thank you. Go ahead and do your mission."

He shuffled away, making sure he was a certain distance from the two before letting the tears fall. Truly, it was unprofessional for him to get this emotional, a point only emphasized when he saw Char making his way down the path.

The charizard noticed the mess of a tyranitar his partner was, and he promptly approached the rock-type with a stern, yet concerned look. "What happened? You aren't injured, so why are you crying this much?"

"Char…" Tony mumbled, a glint of a smile on his face. "Team Redemption know about my youngest son."

"What?!" Char hissed, turning towards the now-empty warp stall. "What else do they know? If they so much as talk down on you-"

"They understood my pain," the tyranitar pleaded. "Even Lockjaw wished for my well-being! I-I didn't think anyone aside from you would care…"

He spotted a mighty blush forming around the fire-type's cheeks, and he let out a joyful sob. "Thank you, Char…"

Then, Tony embraced the charizard.

"I-Uh-" Char choked out, before calming himself and returning the hug. "No problem, Tony."


Rocard steadied himself, disoriented by the sudden change in environment. He glanced up at the mountain entrance, noting the occasional flipped minecart or broken tracks. A sign written in bold footprint runes stood in front of him, with the text underneath it being in unown script. "'Mount Steel Mines.' Fitting."

"Did you read the runes or the unown script?" Lockjaw asked, leaning on the sign.

"The latter," came the dragon-type's reply. "I've heard of footprint runes, but they're far from the most common form of writing in my world. Unown script is usually taught as a secondary language at least, considering it's so universal… except it's a rarity here, by the looks of it."

Lockjaw shrugged and checked his claws for any dirt. "So I'll need to ask you for a translation if it's just unown script."

"I could say the same for footprint runes," Rocard remarked, a playful smirk forming on his face. "At least unown script is easy to learn, if a bit tedious."

The totodile narrowed his eyes in confusion, but the shifting of dirt kept him from coming up with a retort. "Oh, boy…"

Dugtrio popped out of the ground a little bit too close to the both of them. "Good, you made it before I did. That certainly cuts down on my waiting time, heh!"

"Got any info on where your son is?" Rocard inquired, flicking a bit of dirt off of his scales.

"He's up at the ninth floor, all the way at the top," Dugtrio stated. "I'm counting on you!"

"Yeah, but-"

Before Rocard could ask anything more, the ground-type dug right back into the ground and burrowed away. "Damn, was hoping to know if his other heads function individually."

"Why would you ask something like that?" Lockjaw interrogated, raising a brow ridge. "I'm pretty sure that's not the case, since he referred himself as one 'mon just then."

"Well…" Rocard started, looking away. "...Most humans can't understand pokémon. Some researchers believe the heads of a dugtrio function as three, while others believe they're one entity. My guess is that both instances can occur with different dugtrio."

"Hey, I have an idea," the water-type suggested. "How about we talk about this after we've rescued this diglett?"

Rolling his eyes, the deino stepped into the mine.

Immediately, a zigzagoon jumped at them, successfully clawing at an unprepared Rocard's torso. Rocard hissed, tossing his body against the normal-type. "What a cheap shot!"

Lockjaw spouted some water at the zigzagoon, which seemed to be enough to knock it unconscious. "Certainly a way to start the dungeon…"

Well, shit, Rocard mused in defeat. Yo, Cerberus. I feel like you might battle better than I could with this body. Mind lending a hand-er, claw?

"...Oh! Right, sorry. I'll get right on it!"

Cerberus stumbled a little while gaining control, indicating the shift to Lockjaw as well. The deino looked up at his teammate with a slight flush in his cheeks.

"So, any reason for the switch?" Lockjaw asked, making his way around one of the corners.

"Rocard told me he thinks I would battle better in this body," Cerberus responded before focusing on his mind. At least I hope you said that.

"Were you not listening? Yes, I did say that. Just because I don't like you doesn't mean I can't at least respect your potential abilities."

Cerberus sighed. It was a start, at the very least. He followed Lockjaw down the corridors, taking in the rather unique formation of stalactites. A couple of sleeping zubat hung between the spikes - none of which seeming like they would wake up easily.

His sightseeing would have to wait, however, as evidenced by another wild pokémon occupying Lockjaw's front. An aron charged at the totodile, subsequently getting doused not too long after the tackle missed. Lockjaw faced Cerberus with a deadpan expression, holding a claw out and keeping the steel-type out of reach with ease. "How about you deal the last hit?"

The deino arched a brow ridge. "Um… okay?"

He inhaled instinctively, though he couldn't determine why. At this point, his cheeks were puffed, and his lungs felt dry. What now?

Then, his lungs no longer felt dry - rather, they burned. Ack! Hot, hot, ow, ow!

"Breathe out, idiot!" Rocard demanded, and Cerberus blew out the air - now a magenta flame - and knocked the aron out cold.

Cerberus coughed, tongue sticking out. "Ow… Uhh, how did I do?"

Lockjaw pinched the bridge of his nose. "You… somehow did worse than Daisy's first attempt at a dragon rage. I'm not sure if I should be impressed or I should determine you to as absolutely hopeless."

"Oh," the deino said simply. "How should it work, then?"

"Well, you-"

A tremor shook, tripping up the totodile. He looked out into the room, then back to Cerberus. "...I think teaching you not to suck will have to wait."

The two of them rushed on ahead, taking the first flight of stairs.


Surprisingly, the next couple of floors weren't so bad. A spearow would attempt to peck at Lockjaw, but one swift ice punch took it down. Cerberus could tell Rocard wanted to know why the totodile hadn't used it up to this point, but they agreed to ask after the mission.

Once they reached the next staircase, Lockjaw stopped the deino with an arm. "Okay, we seem to have made good progress. I think we have enough space to practice that dragon rage."

"Now? When we're doing a rescue?" Rocard retorted. "Tell him that could be done later!"

"Shouldn't we rescue the diglett, first?" Cerberus suggested, eyeing the stairs.

"Well, yeah," the water-type admitted, sheepishly rubbing his arms. "But if we need to fight off the skarmory that kidnapped him, I'd rather think you can actually use a move properly."

Cerberus felt his control loosen, and Rocard barged in just to say, "Then let's talk while we walk! That diglett isn't getting any fucking safer!"

Lockjaw glared at the deino, whose eyes flickered back to green and black. "Okay, Rocard, geez! C'mon."

He climbed up the stairs, looking at the steps in thought. Cerberus followed not too long afterwards, noticing the change in environment; instead of the browns that dominated the lower floors, the walls were a light gray, with some faded green adorning the cracks in the stone.

"Limestone," Rocard mentally noted, a bit of mirth sprinkled into his voice. "What a coincidence."

Cerberus arched a brow ridge. What kind of coincidence?

"Oh, nothing. Just a little inside joke for me. You wouldn't get it."

The deino shook his head, deciding not to press the topic any further. He faced Lockjaw, asking, "So what were you gonna help me practice?"

"Well," the totodile began, "I'm not sure if what I'll tell you is worth looking into. I only learned about how dragon rage works by listening to Dad teaching my sister, since I can't use it myself… Um, where do I begin?"

"How about the color?" Cerberus suggested. "It was almost pink, and you said that I did it wrong. Maybe something about it being pinkish is part of the reason?"

Lockjaw shrugged. "Pretty sure it's supposed to be more purple. It turned pink because you held it in too long."

"Okay?" the draconid said, unsure if he really understood. "So I just let it out sooner, right?"

"Yeah, but-"

Due to the two of them being so distracted with conversing, a beldum managed to sneak up on Cerberus and slam into him with a powerful take down attack. The dark-type yelped, tipping forward and nearly falling over, before he turned around with a glare.

Lockjaw winced. "At least you can practice dragon rage on that beldum?"

Cerberus huffed, then took in a deep breath. He felt the heat rising, drying his lungs. Then, just as they started to burn, he exhaled, launching violet flames onto the beldum. The steel-type drooped, hardly able to continue floating.

Scratching at the enemy, Lockjaw finished it off. "That, uh, certainly went better than I thought it would. How'd you get it only on the second try?"

"Er…" the deino started, looking away and feeling strangely energized. "I guess I just wasn't prepared the first time. Felt like I kinda knew how, but once you told me it was all about timing, I got it… And, um, why do I feel energetic all of a sudden?"

Lockjaw opened his mouth to answer, but both of their badges blipped simultaneously. "Huh? Let's see here… Oh. 'You levelled up'. Great."

"'Current level: seven'?" Cerberus asked, quoting his badge and soon realizing what it meant. "Ah, okay. What's your level, anyway?"

Lockjaw glared at the draconid, clicking on his badge and grumbling, "C'mon, turn off level-up notifications…"

The dark-type tilted his head. "...I said, 'What's your-'"

"I heard you!" Lockjaw snarled, stuffing the device back into his scarf. "I'm just not answering you. Let's go."

Cerberus meekly followed the totodile, not saying another word to him. He could hear Rocard sighing.


It was only when they reached the peak that Lockjaw's frown lessened. Although tempted, Cerberus refrained from speaking up, focusing on the surroundings ahead; the stone had darkened to the color of slate, matching the jagged walls. Now, there was no more ceiling, showcasing the midday sun in its full glory. The floor also consisted of multiple platforms, separated by wide gaps that extended far enough for the bottom to disappear.

A large steel-type circled around a platform that stood higher than their own, and it appeared she had already seen them. Skarmory flew down to them, wearing a scowl that put even Lockjaw's to shame. "What might you two be doing here? Are you here to rescue the diglett?"

"Ho boy," Rocard muttered. "Hey, mind if I take control for a bit, at least until we… more than likely inevitably fight?"

...Sure, Cerberus sighed, turning his control onto the former human.

Rocard nodded in response to Skarmory's question. "Yes, ma'am. It would be easier if you hand him over without a fight."

"Oh, joy," she seethed. "And let him keep destroying our planet? What's in it for you to take him back to the ground?"

"You think one little diglett could cause all these massive earthquakes?" Rocard countered, keeping his gaze steady despite the brief flicker of purple around her. "And in rapid succession? Whatever's causing this-"

"I see you're not convinced," Skarmory quipped, spreading her wings. "You two will perish like the rest of them!"

Yup, should've expected that, Rocard mentally noted. You're up, Cerberus.

Cerberus went into a battle stance alongside Lockjaw, watching Skarmory leap into the air.

The totodile squirted some water, but the force wasn't enough to reach the flying-type. "Damn! C'mere, you ugly bird!"

Skarmory dove towards the water-type, completely ignoring Cerberus, who had started charging a dragon rage. She slapped Lockjaw with a wing attack, then felt a searing pain in her other wing. Turning to her assailant, the steel-type huffed and charged at him with her beak.

Cerberus clashed his head with hers, but the type disadvantage knocked him back. He gritted his teeth, starting up another dragon rage.

Lockjaw spouted a water gun at Skarmory, keeping her distracted just long enough for the deino to hit her with the heated breath. The totodile ran up to her while she reeled, slamming into her with an ice punch.

"Enough!" Skarmory squawked, digging her talons into the ground. "You two are enough of a hassle! Get off me!"

She spread her aching wings out, forcing Lockjaw to the ground. The skarmory flapped into the air, tipping to one side. The wing that got burnt by the dragon rage soon failed her, sending her barrelling back to the ground.

Cerberus rushed over to the steel-type, giving control to Rocard so that he could keep her neck down with a claw.

"See, this is why you should've done this peacefully," Rocard gloated, a smirk forming. "Chances are you'll get hurt trying to defend your skewed reality."

"B-But-" Skarmory choked out, prompting Rocard to squeeze a bit tighter.

"But what?!" Rocard suddenly screamed. "What's so terrible about a lone diglett - a child, no less! - that you would kidnap him to off him?! What makes you think-"

"R-Rocard, please-"

Rocard growled at Lockjaw. "I am giving her what she deserves!"

The totodile shrank back.

"Good. Now, what do you have to say for yourself-"

He looked into Skarmory's eyes. She twitched, letting out a gurgling sound. Rocard glared into her for a good few seconds before realizing just what he was doing.

He let go and

he found himself in his room. He looked at all the Team Hurricane propaganda on his shelf, something he couldn't bring himself to get rid of.

Because they were watching.

He knew they were. The moment he tore down a poster would be the moment a group of "bodyguards" would drag him to Cole's office.

He couldn't bear to get himself starved again. Not after all that he'd accomplished.

The doorknob turned, and he

was back on Mount Steel, choking a skarmory to death.

Rocard backed off, almost relieved to hear her gasping. I won't be him. I can't afford to be like him.

Lockjaw stared at the deino, brow furrowed. "You… What were you-"

"No, I don't want to be like him!" Rocard spluttered, hyperventilating. "I can't… I won't…"

Clutching him by the shoulders, Lockjaw peered into his eyes. "Snap out of it! You aren't 'him'!"

And yet Rocard's eyes wouldn't meet his. Instead, they saw through him.

Lockjaw faltered. He weakened his grasp on the draconid's shoulders, gesturing to the semi-conscious steel-type. "She's alive, if that's what you're worried about."

"Gghk…" Skarmory coughed, sitting up and looking around. "...Wh-Where am I?"

"Y-You don't know where you are?" Lockjaw asked, flabbergasted. He looked into Skarmory's eyes, finding no recollection. "...You don't. I dunno what you think you've been doing, but you kidnapped a diglett and brought him here - Mount Steel."

"...Mount Steel?" she repeated, gasping. "Oh sweet Mew! I thought I was going to Mount Freeze to visit some nice lady! Lemme tell you, I have the worst sense of direction!"

Lockjaw tripped. "Well, we experienced something more than that… Can you fly up, see if there's a little diglett around here?"

"Oh, sure," Skarmory obliged, but her wings ached. "Ow… My wings are sore right now, though. I'll just hop around instead."

The steel-type jumped onto a higher ledge, looking around.

Lockjaw looked on, still dumbfounded by the change in Skarmory's temperament. He faced Rocard, muttering, "Are you okay now?"

Rocard's eyes flickered, indicating Cerberus was now the one he was talking to. "He's, uh, still very panicked. I-I saw what he saw, too…"

"What did he see?" the totodile inquired.

Cerberus shuddered. "He says the less people that know what he knows, the better. I don't even know all about what he saw, and I'm just… The sheer terror he felt spread into my feelings as well… Where's Skarmory?"

"I found him!" came the reply, now a distant echo. "Whoa-He's a rowdy one!"

Lockjaw furrowed his brow. "She… Something happened with her, and now she doesn't remember anything about the kidnapping or fighting. Diglett's probably more confused than I am right now. Someone's gotta tell him it's alright, but…"

Cerberus nodded, standing a bit taller. "Hey! Diglett! We're here to come and rescue you!"

"But why's the skarmory here?!" a young, shaky voice called. "She's the big meanie that stuck me here-Wah! Let go!"

Skarmory hopped back to the main platform, Diglett clinging to her back… somehow. The steel-flying-type settled him down, giving a worried glance to the rescuers. "I d-don't know how long I was out for… Days? Weeks? If I ended up kidnapping this little guy while I was out… what else could I have done in that time? I'd gladly turn myself in if it means I don't do something like this - or worse - again!"

"Uhhh…" Lockjaw croaked, looking between Cerberus and Diglett. "Let's just get out of here first. I think we'll get more done at Pokémon Square than this place."

"Return to Pokémon Square?" Cerberus's badge buzzed, catching him by surprise.

"Ah-Uh-Yes!" the deino stuttered.

The badge glowed a bright blue. "Teleporting…"

Soon, all four pokémon were engulfed in the light.


Lockjaw recognized the house that appeared in front of them as Rocard's. The totodile shook his head in an attempt to ease the vertigo of teleportation, noticing Diglett and Skarmory next to him. He reflexively jumped back, then realized that the skarmory had seemingly been "brought back to her senses" from the fight.

Nonetheless, he hesitantly waved at the steel-type. "So, yeah… You might not want to show your beak around-"

"My son!"

Dugtrio popped out of the ground beside Diglett, much to Lockjaw's dismay. "My son, you're okay! Papa's here, boy…"

All it took was one glance towards Skarmory for the older ground-type to make a whole one-eighty in attitude. "You. What are you doing here?"

"We're bringing her to the post office!" Lockjaw sputtered, then took a moment to calm himself. "We'll take her to Officer Swellow. She seems to be willing to turn herself in, so don't worry about her."

Dugtrio narrowed his eyes, each head facing Skarmory, Lockjaw, and Cerberus. He kept staring for what felt like an eternity before relaxing. "...Okay. Here's your reward. Hopefully you follow through with that."

Two seeds and a bundle of coins popped up out of the ground in front of Cerberus. Facing Diglett, the larger ground-type said, "Let's go home. I bet your feet were cold up there, weren't they?"

As they burrowed away, Lockjaw furrowed his brow in confusion. Feet? I certainly didn't see any feet on him when Skarmory carried him.

Both Cerberus and Skarmory looked just as bewildered as him.

After a moment of silence, Cerberus shifted his gaze toward the town. "I guess we'll go and take Skarmory to that Officer Swellow you mentioned?"

"Yeah," Lockjaw affirmed, picking up the rewards and stuffing them in the deino's bag. He gave one last look at Skarmory. "Well… C'mon."

The steel-type walked slowly behind them, wearing a forlorn expression. Even with Lockjaw checking her every so often, she didn't deviate from them.