Hey, everyone! I'm back! I apologize for taking to long, but I had some difficulties in many areas to sort out, and things are only now coming into alignment. Anyway, I have a fairly long chapter for you guys and girls, to make up for the hiatus. Enjoy!
A few days later, Sparky and I were about to start our morning when we were once again interrupted.
"Excuse me, is this Team Scent's base?"
The timid voice behind Sparky turned out to be Caterpie, the young Pokémon I rescued on my first day in this world. Ms. Butterfree wasn't around, so he must have come alone.
"What's wrong?" Sparky asked.
"My friend and I were playing close to a dungeon named Sinister Woods, when something startled us. My friend ran into the Woods in fear before I could stop him, and I haven't seen him since. Mom forbade me from entering any more mystery dungeons until I'm older, so I can't go find him."
"Don't worry, kid. We'll find him," a coarse voice rang out, as Team Meanies stepped out of the bushes on the far side.
Sparky's cheeks buzzed in irritation, while I swallow a growl. "He came to US for help!" he growled. "Stay out of this!"
"Like I said before," Gengar taunted. "It doesn't matter who does it, as long as it gets done, right? So how about a race, then? First to find Caterpie's friend gets the reward. Deal?"
"B-but…" Caterpie stammered weakly. "I…don't have any reward…"
"I wouldn't worry about that, kid," Gengar replied evilly. "I'm sure your mum will pay us handsomely when we're done. Kehehehe! Let's go, boys!"
They ran off into the distance. I made to go after them, but Sparky pulled me up short.
"You're letting them get a head start!" I complained.
"It can't be helped, Lauren," he replied calmly. "We're not equipped to explore a new dungeon right now, while they already had their supplies on hand; I caught a glimpse of their Explorer Bag as they ran off. However, we have a distinct advantage over them, remember?" He casually booped me on the nose. "You can guide us right to our target, while they have to wander blind; we can take our time to prepare."
Such an intimate gesture left me speechless, so he question's Caterpie in my stead. "Who is your friend, anyway? Preferably his name or species…"
"Um, he's a little older than me, so he's a Metapod. We've never asked each other for names, so…"
"That's fine," Sparky interrupted. "We'll save him, no problem. Right, Lauren?"
I recover and nod firmly, so we set out for town. Sine we haven't been to Sinister Woods before, we loaded up on as many items in preparation for whatever we may find in there. Before we headed out, however, Sparky pulled me off to one side in front of Makuhita's Dojo.
"There might be a chance we'll have to fight Gengar and his team. If we run into them before finding Metapod, they'll try and stop us. Do you have any ideas to get the jump on them?"
"Well," I admit. "I have been practicing something on my own. I know now that I can't hit Gengar with my normal moves, but I can keep him from using his mean look against me. If you can keep Medicham busy, I'll take out Ekans, and then we can double up on Gengar."
"Sounds like a plan," he remarked. "Let's go, partner!"
We set out for the dungeon, which was even farther away than Mt. Steel; despite that, we still managed to get there before the sun went down. I am proud to say that we both ran all the way there, and I didn't stumble once! Could I finally be getting used to this body? I wondered.
As the name suggested, Sinister Woods looked like a normal forest from the outside. Once we crossed the threshold, the distortions took hold and closed our entrance behind us. Immediately, I was assaulted be the scents of the feral Pokémon, which was mostly grass types at first. There were a couple of outliers, like an earthy-and-icy Swinub, the stony Sudowoodo, and a muddy Wooper. I concentrated and tuned out the other scents, focusing on the strong honey smell of Metapod. Once I found it, we set out.
We cleared the fist three floors without incident. However, I ran into a problem on the 4'th floor: other bug scents! Up until now, I've had little issue tracking down targets in the dungeons, because their particular scent was always different than those of the local Pokémon. Now, I have to find ONE scent amid many similar ones, and needless to say, I struggled a lot! More than once, we ran into a Silcoon or Cascoon that I thought was Metapod, and it took us almost twice as long to clear that floor than the previous three!
By the time we reached the stairs, I was thoroughly frustrated, so Sparky pulled be aside. "Take a deep breath, and tell me what's wrong."
"I'm…I'm sorry," I admit reluctantly. "Maybe my nose isn't as good as I thought. I keep getting mixed up, and I bet Team Meanies are getting farther ahead., and…"
"Lauren, stop worrying. I'm confident your nose can get us there in time, despite this. Have faith in your abilities." He smiles, and suddenly, I feel better.
"Thanks, Sparky," I reply, blushing slightly under my fur. We descend the stairs, and I take a deep breath. Immediately, I notice a subtle difference. I can't put my paw on why, but any confusion I had before was gone. Stepping confidently, we make our way through the floor, and though we still bump into a Silcoon or Cascoon, we reach the stairs with ease.
"See, I told you!" Sparky cheered, clapping his paws together. "Now, onward!"
As we passed the 6th floor, the tracking got easier. Sure, there were still bug types like Ledyba and Scyther, but their scents were noticeably different from Metapod's and thus easier to ignore. We blazed through the remaining seven floors, only fighting occasionally, and soon near the end. Like Caterpie before, I figured Metapod would be at the deepest part, and his scent trail confirmed this.
However, as we reached the final room, who should come charging in behind us but Team Meanies. They look slightly more beaten up than us, so either they healed themselves beforehand or tried to avoid conflict inn anticipation for this fight.
"Hold it right there!" Gengar declared, as his team jumped in front of us. "We're clearing this mission whether you want us to or not! Our pride as a team demands it!"
"You don't even know who you're trying to rescue!" I remarked incredulously. "You're just in it for the reward, aren't you?"
"Doesss it matter?" Ekans scoffed. "Asss long asss we're the bessst, who caresss?"
"Yeah!" Medicham remarked. "We're bent on world domination; all that matters is wealth and status!"
"Enough!" Sparky shouted. "Rescue teams are meant to help others, not extort them for wealth. You're just a bunch of bullies pretending to be a rescue team!"
"Tch, whatever," Gengar blew him off. "Why don't you just stay out of our way? Or do we have to make you?"
I wanted to lunge at him again, but I held myself back. I figured he would send his cronies to fight first, so I held my ground and closed my eyes, trusting myself to my other senses. As seen in practice, my nose alone created a mental 'picture' of the area around me. I could smell and hear Sparky's electricity as he charged Medicham, as we discussed, so I turned my attention to Ekans.
Kicking up a quick sand attack in his face, I dodge out of reach of his wrap and followed up with a tackle. He tried to launch a needle that smelled sharply of poison (poison sting), but thanks to the sand in his eyes, it flew wide. I dove underground, using dig and tunneling underneath him, only to launch him into the air. He flew into Medicham, already weakened by Sparky's thunderbolt, and they both collapsed, defeated.
With those two taken care of, we both turned on Gengar; however, he immediately threw something at Sparky before charging at me. It exploded in my partner's face, causing him to cry out in pain and surprise. "I…I can't see!" he cried out. Unfortunately, he didn't have any training in fighting blind like I did, so he just fired thunderbolts randomly. I dove back underground to dodge, unable to assist Sparky with helping hand like I wanted; as it was, he may do more harm than good with it anyway. Digging underground, I locked onto Gengar's scent, once again catching that odd piece amid the usual ones. Suddenly, it dawned on me: I had smelled it before…within my own scent!
I struck Gengar hard with my dig attack, but my mind was elsewhere. How does he have a scent like mine? Could…could he have been human as well? Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to ask him; my attack happened to launch him into a stray thunderbolt, and he hit the dirt unconscious.
Opening my eyes, I jumped to dodge another bolt and shouted, "Sparky, STOP! He's down!" Thankfully, he heard me and stopped attacking, rubbing his eyes.
"Stupid x-eye seed…" he mumbled. "Sorry for freaking out there; I hate being blinded. Did you knock him out?"
"We kinda both did. My attack knocked him into one of yours. Either way, we should find Metapod before they wake up."
"D-did someone call for me?" a timid voice spoke up. From behind one of the trees near us, a pale-green cocoon bounced out of hiding. "I…I heard fighting…so I hid…and hardened…"
"You're Caterpie's friend, right?" Sparky remarked calmly, now that his eyes are clear. "We're here to rescue you."
As he reaches for his badge to teleport us out, I glance at Team Meanies, still unconscious. They hadn't disappeared yet, so I assumed they aren't in any danger from the dungeon's distortion. Against my better judgement, I nosed into the satchel on my back and pulled out a pair of Oran berries in my mouth, setting them next to Gengar. Then, I rejoin Sparky and we all leave the dungeon.
And there you have it! I hope i got some of the terminology right; if not, feel free to let me know. I wonder why Gengar has a human scent, hmm? Anyway, I promise I'll be uploadig more often now, and will have the next chapter up soon. Stay tuned in, everyone, and may your Ember never fade!