Chapter 11: An Old Face

Martha called out to Nate, "Oh! Ian, over there! I see a fissure in the stone spire! I think we can go in through there."

The two of them approached the fissure and took a step back as a wave of humid heat brushed against them. Nate walked to the side where the Kangaskhan Rock was and began updating their Adventure Log and organizing the Treasure Bag. As he did so, Martha stared at the entrance and the small geysers spewing steam.

Martha shook uncomfortably, "Is that steam? It's probably going to be really hot in there." But she shook it off and leaned forward, "But we didn't come all this way to be stopped by a little heat! I'm about to burst with anticipation, Ian! This is what I've always dreamed of! We're heading into a place that no one's ever gone before! I don't know what awaits us inside, or at the top, even, but that just makes my heart pound even harder!" She suddenly turned to Nate, "Let's go, Ian! Let's go inside and climb upward!"

Nate found himself caught up in Martha's excitement, even though he knew precisely what awaited them inside and at the top. He smiled and said, "Right!"


Back at the Groudon statue, Team Skull was still standing there. Unfortunately for them, Wigglytuff had turned around before they could make their move, and Skuntank stopped and started staring him down.

Zubat fluttered closer and whispered, "Psst… Hey, Chief! What's going on? Something wrong?"

"Chief…" Koffing murmured. "Hey, Chief… You've been staring him down for how long now…? C'mon… let's you and me give him a double dose of the ol' noxious gas…"

Skuntank didn't break eye-contact as he whispered back, "Shut your yap!"

Wigglytuff tilted his head, "Dear friends! What's wrong? You've been making such scary faces at me!"

Skuntank was unnerved by Wigglytuff's oblivious attitude, 'Bah… this guy's tough… really tough…'

Wigglytuff's face lit up, "I get it! You're trying to make me laugh with silly faces! I bet I can make you laugh too!" Wigglytuff grabbed his cheeks and started rubbing, kneading and pulling his face into different shapes, complete with incoherent blabbering, trying to make Team Skull laugh, but only succeeding in unnerving them further.

Koffing whispered shakily, "C'mon, Chief…! I can't take this… this whole weird scene is freaking me out…"

Skuntank nodded, "Okay, then… This isn't working, and we're out of options…" Raising his voice, he called out, "Hey, Wigglytuff!"

Right in the middle of pulling faces, Wigglytuff asked, "Whatiswhatiswhatis… What is it?"

Smirking, Skuntank said, "Hey, no hard feelings, but… You're going down! Take this! A noxious-gas special! Straight from me and Koffing!"

Both Skuntank and Koffing sprayed a foul gas at the same time, hitting Wigglytuff in the center and mixing the two gases together.


Nate sprung up from underground beneath a Slugma and sent it flying with Dig while Martha used Quick Attack to pin down a Yanma. As they moved further and further up the cavern, Nate grew more and more nervous. If they were to reach the end, he would have to pretend that he knew nothing about this place and most likely fight the guardian. He couldn't try to talk his way out of this, because the guardian would be able to tell he was lying, being a Psychic-type and all.

As he took down an Aerodactyl with Thunderbolt and went with Martha up another staircase, Nate decided to deal with that as he went.

Soon after, he and Martha reached a rest point where there was a Kangaskhan Rock. Nate took out the Adventure Log and wrote what had happened since they entered Foggy Forest. Right as he finished, Martha spoke up.

"We've been climbing for a while now…" Martha said. "It shouldn't be much farther until we get to the top."

Nate slid the book back into the statue's mouth and nodded. Before they could take a step forward, there was a distant noise. Martha's ears perked up and she looked around, "What was that…?"

The noise sounded again, this time a bit clearer, sounding like a distant roar coming from the way forward. While Martha thought about it, Nate was thinking, 'Now at the intimidation phase, are you, Spirit of Knowledge?' she said, "Ian, you're hearing that too, right?" She took a few steps toward the path forward and jumped back a bit as a much louder roar sounded.

"Whoa! Okay, it wasn't my imagination! But what could it be?" Martha wondered. "Well, whatever it is, we have to be brave! We can't stop now that we're nearly there, so let's go, Ian!"

Nate nodded. As they moved forward, he was internally pleased with Martha's bravery. Despite not knowing what could be ahead, she wants to continue on for the sake of exploring. 'It'll all mean nothing if she doesn't learn to stand on her own two feet, well, four paws, without me. Perhaps… if I can clearly explain… No. Any way you look at it, to a Pokémon that is from this peaceful time, my story will appear completely crazy. It would be best to remain silent for now. I'll tell her before I leave to meet up with Grovyle to search for the Hidden Land. On that note, I should ask Chatot if he's heard anything about the Hidden Land or if he knows someone who would.'

"Ian, you're lagging behind!" Martha called from a few meters ahead.

Looking up, Nate started walking faster. Shortly after he caught up, he and Martha arrived at the second half of the dungeon. Nate decided to put his worries aside for now and focus on helping Martha.

The two of them went through the dungeon, thankfully finding another Reviver Seed along the way. With what Nate knew was up ahead, it would be good to have some extra insurance.

The dungeon itself wasn't that difficult. It had some tedious enemies to take down, like the defensive Shuckle and the tough Granbull. Despite the challenge, Nate and Martha were strong enough to take down any ordinary enemies.

On the way, Nate found another TM that would help him against what lie ahead. Using it, he learned Focus Punch.

As Team Rapid reached the topmost level of the Steam Cave, they entered a rocky antechamber made of a lighter stone than the rest of the cave. There was a path forward, but it was hard to see what was ahead, since the light outside was dimming.

Martha let out a whistle, "Wow, we've climbed quite high!" Then the furry ruff on her neck ruffled as she looked around nervously, "Wait, this place… It feels… strange somehow… The very air itself is charged with tension! It's making my skin crawl… and I feel like we're in great danger…"

As if to emphasize her point, a flash of light appeared from up ahead before a massive roar filled the cavern. Martha jumped back and said, "It's that sound we heard earlier, Ian! I thought it might be a roar, and it is!"

Another roar sounded and then there were quaking footsteps that made the room shake. Nate looked up ahead and said, "It's coming…"


"Hey, hey, hey! Check this out, everyone!"

As the sun started dipping below the horizon outside, back at the Groudon statue, the members of the guild started running into the clearing. Chatot looked at the statue, "This is it? The Groudon statue?"

Sunflora looked around, "Oh! But there's no one else here!"

Chatot turned to Corphish, "Are you really sure that you saw the Guildmaster, Corphish?"

"Sure, I'm sure!" Corphish nodded, "I saw him when I was scuttling back to base camp. The Guildmaster dashed past, all willy-nilly, in hot pursuit of a Perfect Apple! I gave him a shout and a wave, but he seemed too occupied to holler back." He shook his head, "But I'd guess that Ian and Martha went ahead. So I'd bet that the Guildmaster went up after them, don't you think?"

Before Chatot could answer, the ground started quaking. Diglett was the first to feel it, and Bidoof confirmed that it wasn't his imagination. Then, far in the distance, a roar could barely be heard.

Chimecho looked around, "What… whatever could that be?!"

"What an uproar! Is it maybe…?" Loudred wondered.

Corphish pointed at the mounted plateau and said, "Something is going on up there! Let's head up! Hurry!"

The guild members started making their way, but Diglett stopped, causing Dugtrio to stop as well. As he looked to one of the waterfalls, Diglett asked, "Hey, Dad! Did you hear something right over there? Like moaning and groaning?"

Dugtrio shook his head without looking back, "Oh you just imagined it! Now, let's hurry!"

"Yep!"

The two left the area, following after the rest of the crew. Unknown to them, there was indeed someone behind the waterfall. Team Skull lay in a bruised and battered heap, groaning in pain and wishing that they were unconscious.

"I'm d-d-deflated!" Koffing groaned. "I can't move!"

"Hork-ork-how did that happen?" Skuntank moaned. "How did Wigglytuff shrug off our noxious-gas special like it was nothing?"

"And h-h-how did Wigglytuff strike back at us…" Zubat shuddered. "It's un-believable…"

Team Skull wallowed in their pain as they tried to rest enough to move.


As the mountainous footsteps continued, a pair of glowing yellow eyes could be seen in the shadows of the way forward. Martha trembled, "Wh-what is that?!"

The giant figure stepped out of the shadows revealing itself to be the splitting image of the statue that led them here. Martha spoke, "That Pokémon… really exists? I-it's a-"

She jumped as the giant Pokémon cut her off with a roar. Afterwards, the Pokémon growled and said, "YOU! YOU HAVE COME TO DESECRATE THIS PLACE? DEPART NOW!"

"B-b-but… W-w-we only want to go to Fogbound Lake!" Martha managed to stutter out.

Nate mentally shook his head, 'Poor choice of words, Martha…'

"WHAT?! FOGBOUND LAKE?! I AM THE GUARDIAN OF FOGBOUND LAKE! I AM GROUDON!" it snarled. "YOU WILL NEVER LEAVE HERE ALIVE, INTRUDERS!"

Martha yelped as Groudon let out another roar.


The rest of the guild apprentices and Chatot arrived at the base of the spire that allowed entrance into the Steam Cave.

"Hey, hey! There's the way in!" Corphish shouted as he pointed with his claw.

"Let's HURRY!" Loudred added.

The guild went through the dungeon as one large group, restricting their mobility, but allowing them to make quick work of any Pokémon that got in their way.

As Corphish scuttled along, he fell into step next to Chatot, who was flying a foot off the ground. "H…hey…Chatot! Can I ask you something while we're running? Chatot, do you know about a Pokémon called Groudon?"

Chatot spoke without turning towards Corphish, choosing to focus on the path ahead, "Well, of course! Just what do you take me for? I'm only the head of intelligence for the guild! Squawk! Groudon is a legendary Pokémon spoken of in myths passed down through generations."

"A legendary Pokémon?" Corphish asked.

"Correct," Chatot replied. "The myths say that he raised land from the sea. And that he build up the continents!"

Corphish whistled, "Hoo-boy! That explains why the statue was so big!" Then a thought occurred to him, "What if you were to face Groudon in battle? What would happen?"

This time Chatot did turn to face Corphish with an incredulous expression on his face, "Battle?! Out of the question! Squawk! If anyone were foolish enough to face Groudon in a battle… Well, it would be like throwing your life away! He is that strong! Like all legendary Pokémon!"


Groudon let out another roar and Martha muttered, "I'm scared…" But then she took a deep breath and steeled herself, "But it's time to be brave! I need to stand up to this! We can't just run away now, Ian!"

"Well spoken," Nate replied.

"PREPARE FOR MY WRATH! GRROOOOOOH!"

Quick as a thought, Nate took an X-Eye Seed out of the Treasure Bag and threw it at Groudon's face. It burst into yellow gas and the Groudon let out a frustrated roar as its vision was muddled. Nate turned to Martha and tossed her a Violent Seed, "Split up to confuse it! It's much larger, but that means it has much larger blind spots!"

As Martha caught the Violent Seed in her mouth and crunched down on it, she put a paw on Nate and powered him up with Helping Hand. After that, the two split up and each went around a different side of Groudon, both of them glowing with their own colored aura.

Martha's Power Band glowed as she dashed straight up Groudon's side with Quick Attack and rammed it in the head with Tackle. Groudon started teetering to the side before standing properly again, but Martha jumped back to the ground before it could counter. Regardless, she had a dull, throbbing pain in her head. 'That is some hard armor… this will take a while. Still… for a legendary, it was pretty easy to knock it off balance.'

Nate was burrowed underground and biding his time as he charged a move. After he was done, he started moving back above ground where he could hear the Groudon's heavy footsteps. After he broke the surface, Nate rocketed upwards from the force of his glowing blue fist and hit Groudon in the chin with Focus Punch. This time, Groudon was knocked backwards, but it caught itself with its tail and pushed itself back to an upright position.

As it righted itself, its vision cleared and it swiped with one of its massive clawed hands at a surprising speed. Nate pushed Martha out of the way and took it himself, being knocked back to the ground before rolling and standing on all fours again. The only wound he had to show for it was a bruise on his side. As Groudon fired a Mud Shot, Nate burrowed back underground.

Meanwhile, Martha charged forward again, more suspicious than ever. 'Ian just got slashed with claws as big as himself, and he just gets some bruising…? Something fishy's going on.'

Despite the Groudon's solid armor, it was surprisingly frail and started teetering after a few more rounds of hits from Nate and Martha. Soon, it was panting near the passage at the rear.

Groudon roared weakly, "GRROOOoooh… oooooh…" The cave rumbled as it let out one last roar, "GRROOOOOOH!" After that, Groudon fell to the ground.

Martha was breathing heavily before she jumped for joy, "We did it! We actually defeated Groudon! But… is it really…?"

As the Groudon's body flared bright yellow and disappeared in a flash of light, Nate thought, 'No. The real guardian should be due to show himself now.'

Martha was shocked when Groudon vanished and even more so when a new voice echoed in the cave.

"That was… That was not Groudon. That Groudon was nothing more than an illusion that I conjured."

Martha looked around and Nate stood passively. She said, "Who… who said that?"

There was another flash of light around the room, signifying great power, as the voice spoke again, "Like I said earlier, I am the guardian here. And I cannot allow you to pass."

Nate decided to let Martha do the talking since she and the rest of the guild were perfectly innocent in their pursuits. In this one time, they might actually be in more trouble if he tried to cover for them. As Martha spoke, he did his best to keep his face schooled into the proper expressions and even clamp down on his mind. You could never be too careful with Psychic-types, after all.

"W-wait, please!" Martha pleaded. "We don't mean to cause any trouble! We came only to get a little information! Th-that's all!"

"Information, you say?" the voice inquired.

"We're telling the total truth!" Then her face faltered a bit, "Well, the totally total truth is that we're an exploration team… And we really would love to leave with a treasure after all this work! But we don't want any if that's going to cause trouble! We'll be satisfied to say that we just made it this far! Oh, please! You simply must believe me!"

The voice pondered before speaking. "Hmm… Well… Okay, I believe you."

There was another flash of light and then an orb of bright yellow light appeared before it faded to reveal a small gray Pokémon with two tails. The majority of its head was colored yellow with a red gem in his forehead. Despite its eyes being closed, it addressed them as if it could see them perfectly.

"Let me welcome you, then. I am Uxie, the guardian of Fogbound Lake."

Martha's jaw dropped, "P-pardon?! Did you say Uxie?!"

Uxie nodded, "Yes, truly. I stand guard over something special… that lies in Fogbound Lake. Now, let me escort you to Fogbound Lake." He waved for them to follow him as he turned, "Please, come this way."

Martha followed, and Nate followed behind Martha, all the while keeping an iron grip to not have any stray thoughts about his mission.

As they reached a rocky outcropping the sky was visible up above. The sun had long since set and the moon and stars were out. Martha noted this, and Uxie floated to the end of the outcropping and turned around, addressing Nate and Martha, "It may be a little difficult to see at night, but… Behold! Fogbound Lake!"

"Wow!" Martha was astonished by the mystical view. The water reflecting the moonlight and the light of several Illumise and Volbeat flying over the water. Another blue-green glow emanated from the center of the lake and added to the lake's beauty. Martha looked out over the whole lake, "It's so very incredible! Who would have guessed that a big lake could be high up on this plateau! And just look at those fluttering Volbeat and Illumise… This couldn't be more dazzling!"

The sentiment was somewhat lost on Nate. Yes it was quite a sight, but he couldn't stop staring at the glow at the center of the lake.

Uxie explained, "Water constantly wells up from far below this place. It flows so heavily that it has long formed this enormous lake. Now cast your eyes to the glowing area at the lake's center."

Nate was already looking and Martha nodded, "Sure, I can see it! The bluish green radiance, right?"

"Step forward for a closer look," Uxie said.

Nate and Martha did so, standing on either side of Uxie, and under the still waters, they could see a glowing gear that was giving off a bright blue radiance that mixed with the green light of the glowing patterns surrounding it. Nate was fascinated. He had never seen a Time Gear in person before. There was no way that it could be anything else.

Nate's hand that was facing away from Uxie and Martha tightened into a fist. He had to calm himself. Every instinct he ever had was telling him to try taking the Time Gear while he had the chance. But all that would accomplish would be blowing his cover. He had to calm himself. If he acted too anxious, Uxie might pick up on it.

Martha had no need to be reserved. "That's fantastic! But… What is that? Oooh… It seems so mystical!"

"That is… a Time Gear," Uxie replied.

Martha turned to Uxie, "What?! Really and truly?! That's a Time Gear?!"

Uxie nodded, "Yes. I guard the Time Gear. It's the sole reason I'm here."

Nate and Martha took a step back as Uxie turned around. "Others before you have tried to trespass here. But I used my Groudon illusion to chase most of them off."

Tilting her head, Martha asked, "Groudon? How'd you do that?"

"That is something I create using my psychic abilities. Like so…" Uxie turned his closed eyes to an area behind and to the left of Nate and Martha. Within a matter of seconds, a perfect replica of Groudon appeared. Martha was startled and backed away, but Nate wasn't scared. Even before getting here, he knew it was an illusion.

Uxie waved his hand towards Martha, "There is no need to be startled. As I've said, it's just an illusion. What you fought was nothing more than that."

"Huh. That right?" Nate said, so that he wouldn't seem suspicious by being too quiet.

Nodding, Uxie continued, "There have been others before who defeated my Groudon illusion. They managed to make their way to this spot. But they were trespassers! So I took away their memories… And, thus, protected the lake."

Martha tilted her head, "Took away their memories…? Oh, I almost forgot! We want to ask you something, Uxie." She walked up to Nate's side and said, "Allow me to introduce my partner, Ian. I found him one day, and he had lost all of his memories. So, if we may ask… have you met Ian here before, Uxie? And did you take away his memory, perhaps? Has a Pikachu ever come here before? Do you recall?"

"The answer is… no." Uxie shook his head. "No Pikachu has ever come here. I should explain further… I erase only memories of Fogbound Lake. I cannot fully erase all memories from living beings. I had nothing to do with your friend's memory loss. The cause lies elsewhere."

Nate did his best to look as disappointed as Martha. But it seemed that Uxie couldn't readily read minds if he didn't figure out that Nate had never had amnesia to begin with. 'Perhaps he can only read the memories of those he comes in eye-contact with.'

Martha sighed, "Oh, well… thanks anyway." She turned to Nate curiously, "So I guess that you haven't been here after all, Ian. It seems that this path was a dead end after-" She stopped as she heard singing coming from behind them. "Uh, what's that?"

Soon, the voice stopped singing and spoke, "A Time Gear! A Time Gear! Well, too bad!" The trio turned and looked as Wigglytuff came into the area from the passage to Steam Cave. He shook his head, "We can't take a Time Gear."

Martha was shocked, "W-Wigglytuff!"

Wigglytuff walked past Nate and Martha and looked out over the lake. "Wow! Fantastic!"

Uxie looked at Wigglytuff and said, "And who might this be?"

"Our Guildmaster," Nate replied.

Wigglytuff enthusiastically greeted Uxie and even the Groudon illusion, calling them both "Friend". Then he turned back to the lake and said, "Gaze upon this amazing view! I'm delighted we came!" Wigglytuff started singing a song again.


Soon, the rest of the Guild arrived at the top of Steam Cave and continued through the antechamber to reach the open air. Sunflora sighed in relief, "Whew! Here we are at last!"

"No time to catch our breath," Dugtrio reminded. "We've got to hurry!"

Corphish pointed, "Hey, hey! Someone's over there!"

"Let's go!" Chatot said in response.

They moved forward, but once they got close to the shore of the lake, they stopped short at seeing the massive Pokémon, Groudon. Chatot let out a squawk of surprise, and Loudred started stuttering, "Gr-Gr-Gr-"

Sunflora cried out, "It's Groudon! Spit it out!"

Chimecho dinged in fear and Corphish cried out, "Don't eat me! I'm not tasty!"

As the members of the guild were panicking, Wigglytuff came towards them, completely disregarding the still-motionless Groudon. "Hellow to one and all! So what's wrong?"

"G-G-Guildmaster!" Chatot stuttered.

Wigglytuff waved for them to come forward, "Oh, never mind that! Everyone, look out there! It's spouting!" He turned around to look, "Pretty! Pretty!"

Everybody stared at him dumbfounded before turning to look at the lake as well. After being stunned by the sight for a bit, they moved forward to get a better look.

In the center of the lake, a geyser was spouting, catching the light of the Time Gear and the glows of the Illumise and Volbeat, making for a multicolored, shimmering tower of water that cascaded glowing mist back down over the rest of the lake.

"Oh, my!" Chimecho exclaimed. "So shimmering!"

Bidoof nodded, "Yup yup! Some kind of pretty!"

"Yes, the lake geyser erupts every now and then," Uxie explained. "It sends up water, just like a fountain… And the Time Gear sends up an illumination from below… While many Illumise and Volbeat glow upon the fountain of water… In harmony, they are the very vision of beauty!"

"The treasure!" Wigglytuff said. "The treasure… must be the view of Fogbound Lake!"

Nate conceded that it was quite a sight, but the centerpiece would have to be taken for a greater cause. Knowing that somewhat spoiled the effect for him. He was snapped out of his thoughts when Martha suddenly spoke up next to him.

"Are you taking in this view, Ian? This is so magical! It's a shame that we didn't learn anything about your past, Ian. But I'm glad we came!" Martha nodded, "I'm happy that I was able to share such a beautiful moment with everyone! I just couldn't be happier!"

'… Martha, don't ever change. Even after I'm gone, just stay your cheerful, pure, naïve self.' Nate hoped as he turned to her. But out loud, he said, "I'm glad too. This is the sort of thing that you've dreamed of, isn't it? I'm happy for you."

Martha tilted her head at Nate's somber tone, "Ian, are you feeling okay?"

Nate turned back to the lake, he responded cryptically, "Just thinking about what the future might hold for us."


As the members of the guild got ready to leave, Wigglytuff waved to Uxie, "So sorry to have disturbed you! Had a fantastic time, Friend!"

Uxie bowed his head slightly, "I shall not take away your memories of this place. You have earned my trust. But I must ask that you keep this place a secret."

Wigglytuff nodded, "Surely! Thank you! We all know what we need to do! You know, another Time Gear has been stolen. This one must stay safe! We won't ever say a word about this place! I swear it in the name of Wigglytuff's Guild!"

"Please hold true to that promise," Uxie replied.

"Okay! Let's be on our way!" Wigglytuff turned back to the guild apprentices and said, "Chatot, if you will!"

"I'll hop to it, Guildmaster!" Chatot affirmed. As everyone turned to him, he said, "Everyone, we're going back to the guild!"

"HOORAY!"


Upon arrival back to the Guild the following day, everybody went to sleep that night after dinner, tired from the journey. When they got back, Nate noticed that the Treasure Bag had grown again, and Martha was glad for that.

The next day, Nate woke up with the sun again and roused Martha out of her own sleep. By now, she had gotten more used to waking up early for the sake of avoiding Nate's electric shocks. They promptly reported to the morning address, returning to their standard guild training schedule.

After the morning cheers, and being dismissed by Chatot, Martha turned to Nate and enthusiastically said, "I imagine that it's time to get back to our guild training, Ian! Let's work hard at it!"

"Now that's what I like to see!" Chatot chimed in. "A lot of morning pep! Impressive! Let's see you put that pep to good use today!"

"WHAT?! You can't identify the footprint?!" Loudred's shout made all three of them jump and turn their attention to the sentry post. Loudred continued shouting down the hole leading to the post, "What do you MEAN?!"

Diglett's smaller voice echoed back up, "I'm trying to tell you! I can't identify what I don't know…"

Chatot, Nate and Martha made their way over and Chatot asked, "What's wrong?"

"We have a Pokémon visitor up top whose footprint we can't identify!" Loudred replied. "Diglett is an outstanding sentry. So it's rare for him to be stumped by footprints!" He glanced pointedly at Nate and Martha, "If THOSE two were doing sentry duty, that'd be no shocker…"

Martha fumed slightly, "Okay, first, we've yet to mess up a single identification. Second, it's not the first time that Diglett's not known a footprint. What about when we first arrived at the guild? You guys couldn't figure out Ian's footprint. Right, Ian? …Ian?"

While Nate was glad that Martha didn't explode at the jibe, what she said specifically got him thinking. 'Couldn't identify my footprint… Because I had just arrived from… But unless it's Grovyle, who else could it…? Oh, dear Arceus, no… it can't be…!'

Before Martha could get Nate's attention again, Diglett spoke up again, as if talking with the visitor, "Hmmm? … Say again? You want to meet our Guildmaster? Your name is… Dusknoir?! Oh! Please wait just a moment!"

Loudred, Chatot and Nate had shocked expressions on their faces. Chatot stuttered, "Dus… Dusknoir?!"

"The world-famous Dusknoir?!" Loudred added.

Nate, while his face looked as shocked as Chatot and Loudred's, didn't have the shock of meeting a celebrity. He had the shock of meeting someone he didn't want to encounter. Martha turned to him confused, "Ian, have you heard about this Dusknoir?"

Remembering where he was, Nate put on his best "Ian" face and said with a puzzled expression, "Well, I heard the name once or twice when I was gathering tips for our first outlaw," he fibbed, "but nothing really concrete. People seem to hold him in high respect, though. Perhaps today I'll find out exactly why…"

Martha tilted her head and looked as everybody, even Wigglytuff, gathered around the ladder. Soon, a Dusknoir floated down the ladder and greeted Wigglytuff and Chatot.

"Thank you for visiting!" Wigglytuff replied. "What an honor!"

Dusknoir shook his head, "No, no! Think nothing of it! The honor is all mine! There is no greater pleasure than visiting Wigglytuff's Guild! It's famous!"

Martha looked at Nate, who was extremely poker-faced as he looked at Dusknoir. Then she turned to Loudred, "Tell me, Loudred…"

"What do you want?" Loudred asked without turning around.

"Who exactly is Dusknoir?" Martha asked.

Loudred, along with Sunflora and Bidoof who was standing next to him, turned around and Loudred shouted, "WHAT?! You haven't heard of Dusknoir?! The famous explorer?!"

Martha jumped back slightly at the sudden outburst, "W-well… No, I haven't…" Unnoticed by Martha and the other three, Nate had turned his attention to the conversation, even though he was still looking at Dusknoir.

Sunflora waved her leaf hand, "That's not surprising, really! He's a new arrival on the scene! He came out of nowhere! Like a comet! He became famous almost overnight! They say his talents as an explorer are superexceptional!"

Martha's eyes widened slightly in interest, "Really?"

Loudred nodded, "Yeah! Here's some more good stuff that I heard! He does things unlike anyone else! First he doesn't work in a team. He does all his exploring solo. He's got to be pretty sure of his skills to do that! But what's even more incredible? His wealth of knowledge! It seems like there's nothing in the world he doesn't know! That's how much he knows!"

Martha was shocked, "Oh, wow! So, he's really that knowledgeable?"

Sunflora nodded, "So the rumor goes! But he has used his knowledge to succeed on many explorations so far! So many Pokémon revere Dusknoir for his achievements… That's how I know the claims about his mighty knowledge must be true!"

Nate had heard all he needed to and didn't really care to hear anything else about Dusknoir's alleged achievements, so he tuned out the rest of the conversation. 'He followed us… Even here, Grovyle. Okay, calm down, Nate. He can't recognize you in this form. You're even using an alias. Even if Martha introduces you, it'll be as "Ian." And how would he be a threat to the "world-famous" Dusknoir? After all, "Ian" is just an amnesiac apprentice to Wigglytuff's Guild. I need to warn Grovyle, though, somehow…'


Sheeee–oot! I'm so sorry that this took forever and a half! Two months (and four days)! I had a new idea, then I had finals, and then I was recovering from fried brain, and then I had another new idea! I'm going to devote more time to writing this to try and finish it before my summer school starts in the second half.

-AJ 203