Soren led the way on a path along the top of rugged cliffs hanging over a vast body of water. He rarely looked up from the Wonder Map, since he wanted to be sure they were always on the right track.
The teams had all split off to get to the base camp on their own when they all left the guild. Chatot had made it perfectly clear that no one should be separating from their teammates or aiming to be going somewhere other than the base camp. Those who didn't make it to the camp in time would be left behind.
"Are we there yet?" Gina whined. "My feet hurt, and I'm tired."
"We get there when we get there," Soren replied without looking at her. "And I think we should be at the first destination in a little while."
"Where are we going to end up first?" Bidoof asked.
"A place called Craggy Coast, from the looks of it. We'll know we're there when we come to a cave at the end of this path."
Gina bit her lip impatiently. She wanted to get to the camp as soon as possible so they could look for Fogbound Lake before everyone else. Her paws tingled with excitement at the thought of it.
Up ahead, there was a large cave mouth in the side of the cliff. Soren was too busy looking at the Wonder Map to notice. "Uh, Soren? I don't mean to distract you, but-"
"Gina, I can't look away right now. I think we're almost-" He cut off as he walked right into a statue just beside the cave mouth. He stumbled back with surprise and looked up from the map. "Oh, I guess we're here." He chuckled. "All thanks to the Wonder Map, of course!"
Gina rolled her eyes with amusement, then she walked over to the edge of the cliff, staring down at the clear water splashing up against the rocks. "The water's so high up! This is awesome!"
"It sure is starting to look like a real expedition, yup yup!" Bidoof remarked. He stared at the statue that Soren ran into. "I suppose this here must be a Kangaskhan Rock."
"So that's what this is?" Soren examined the statue closely, eyes narrowed. "What's so special about it?"
"When you find a Kangaskhan Rock at the entrance of a dungeon, or at a dungeon's midway point, it marks a safe place for explorers to rest, since wild Pokemon don't come to them." Bidoof gulped. "I haven't exactly ever seen one, the older explorers just talk about them a lot. I reckon I shouldn't be talking like such a big shot..."
"Hey, don't worry about it!" Gina said cheerfully. "It's our first expedition, so of course we're all feeling nervous. Right, Soren?"
"Right!" The three of them gathered around the Treasure Map, which Soren held out for them all to see. "So right now we're at Craggy Coast, right over here. We need to get to the base camp, which is over here." He pointed at each location in turn.
"It looks like it'll take a long time for us to reach the camp from here without stopping," Gina said. "Maybe we should try to find some kind of halfway point?"
"That sounds like a good idea." Soren tapped his chin thoughtfully. He then pointed to a mountain that was halfway between Craggy Coast and the base camp. "How about here?"
Gina grinned. "Let's do it!"
Bidoof nodded in agreement. "Sounds like a good idea to me, yup yup!"
As Soren led the way into the cave, Gina couldn't help but admire how her partner had taken charge. He was certainly growing in confidence, and was beginning to look more like a leader, despite Gina having taken that role in their team.
With a smile, she ran up to walk alongside her partner as they made their way through the dark, damp cavern.
~o~o~o~o~
The sun was sinking behind the enormous mountain, painting the rocks a pale orange. Soren marched up the hill to the entrance of the mountain cave. His legs felt stronger than they ever had before. He wondered if it was because of all the walking they had done so far.
"Soren!" Gina's voice brought him out of his thoughts. "Wait up! You've been walking so fast!"
"Sorry!" he called. "It's just so awesome to be out here!"
"Well, I think you could afford to slow down a little! We don't have to be at the camp until noon tomorrow!"
He watched as the tall brown ears of his companion came into view. Gina collapsed onto the ground, her chest heaving. "I hate this already!"
Bidoof was not far behind, panting and appearing exhausted. "You sure are excited for this, aren't you, Soren?"
"How did you guess?" Soren asked. He looked at the Wonder Map. "Okay, right now we're at a place called Mount Horn. As you guys can see," he scanned the mountain from top to bottom. "it's a very tall mountain, apparently one of the biggest in this specific area. If we cross over it, we'll be at the base camp in no time! With that said, let's-"
A loud growl interrupted him. Bidoof chuckled in embarrassment. "Whoops! That was my belly!"
Gina's stomach rumbled as well, and she blushed. "Yep, and that was mine. Maybe we should just rest here for the night?" she suggested.
Soren bit his lip. "But if we don't go now, we won't be able to make it in time!"
"And if we do go now, we'll have fainted from exhaustion and hunger by the time we arrive." Gina looked up at her partner pleadingly. "Come on, Soren. Please? Can't we just spend the night here?"
"What if it isn't safe? We could get attacked by wild Pokemon," he protested.
"There's a Kangaskhan Rock," she observed, peering past him to see a tall gray statue of the Pokemon. "Remember what Bidoof said? They mark safe places to rest. We'll be fine!"
Soren sighed in defeat. Maybe just one night of rest wouldn't hurt. "All right. I have some Apples we can share. Then we'll get some sleep and be ready to set off again tomorrow right away."
The sky darkened as they ate. The Apples tasted refreshing, reminding Gina of home. Her gaze drifted to Soren, who hadn't eaten much of his meal. He was staring absentmindedly up at the sky, watching as stars glittered into view.
Bidoof had already fallen asleep, snoring soundly. Gina tiptoed over to Soren's side, so not to wake Bidoof up. "You okay?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah," he replied. "Just a bit nervous."
"Is it because we're almost done the first day of our expedition?"
Soren shrugged. "A little. It's really exciting being on it and all, but..." He sighed and shook his head. "What if they really do leave for Fogbound Lake without us? Did Chatot even mean what he said about that?"
"That's what you're all worked up about?" she said. "Soren, of course they won't do that! If they left someone behind, well, they'd end up losing them, then they would have to go look for the Pokemon they lost, and that would waste a lot of their time, wouldn't it?"
"But what if they didn't even care?" Soren fretted. "What if they're just like, 'Oh, don't worry, they'll turn up eventually! They'll find their way back one day!' And then, those explorers would never turn up, and-"
He yelped as he felt a paw swipe him across the cheek. Gina stared at him as though he were completely crazy. Tears lingered in one eye as his cheek stung. "What was that for?" he snapped. "You know how I am with that kind of stuff!"
"I'm sorry, but it was to get you to calm down," Gina replied. "And keep quiet; Bidoof's trying to sleep." She turned to the sleeping figure, who didn't seem like he heard anything.
"Well, you didn't have to slap me!" Soren hissed, quieter than before. "You could have just told me to be quiet." His face fell and he sighed. "I just want everything to work out okay."
"That wouldn't have been as effective." Gina's eyes grew softer. "And you shouldn't worry about that kind of stuff! We'll be fine. We'll get there tomorrow safe and sound, and we'll go to Fogbound Lake with everyone else."
"But-"
She placed a paw on his mouth. "We'll be fine," she repeated. "Just don't think about that kind of stuff."
That's easy for you to say, he thought. "I'll try, but I doubt it'll work."
"Good." She opened her mouth in an enormous yawn. "Now come on. Let's get some sleep, and we'll be good to go in the morning."
They laid down closer to Bidoof, hoping to get warmer. "Goodnight, Soren," Gina whispered, wrapping her tail around her body.
"Goodnight, Gina," Soren murmured, curling up tightly before shutting his eyes, welcoming the wave of sleep and darkness that overtook him.
~o~o~o~o~
"Where are they?" an angry voice growled.
"I've already told you, they aren't here. Go look somewhere else," replied a firmer voice.
Gina twitched her tail and her brow furrowed. It had been a long time since she had one of these dreams, where everything was too blurry for her to see, but the voices as clear as though the dream were reality.
"Liar!" the first voice shouted. There was a thump, and the second voice winced in pain. Gina felt arms tighten around her, as though they were hugging her. They were trembling, and whimpers filled her hearing.
"Just leave!" a feminine voice commanded. "We've already told you, only we live here. Get out!"
"I'll be back," the voice snarled. "I know you're hiding something. You think I don't know what you're up to? Give up now, or you'll face the dire consequences of disobeying us."
"It doesn't matter," the second voice spoke up hoarsely. "We'll fight you if we have to. You can't scare us."
"We'll see about that." Gina waited for them to say something more, but nothing happened after that.
Her vision was fading to black, and she fought weakly to hear more. What are they talking about? What do they mean?
"Wake up, Gina! We have to go!"
She opened her eyes to see Soren and Bidoof staring down at her. "Wh-what?"
"We're leaving," Soren replied. "We need to get going now, or we may not make it by noon."
"Didn't I tell you not to worry about that?" she asked, getting up and shaking loose pebbles and dirt from her fur.
"Yeah, but it would still be nice to make it there by noon." He grinned with determination. "Now, onward! To the base camp!"
Gina caught up to Bidoof and her partner as they entered the cave leading into the mountain. The inside was very spacious, with large stalagmites sticking up from the ground. Light filtered in through holes of varying sizes overhead.
Gina's ears pricked at the sound of a Pokemon's cry. "What do you think that was?" she whispered.
"I sure don't want to find out, by golly," Bidoof replied nervously. "It sounds scary!"
"Then we should move it along before whatever it was finds us," Soren said briskly. "Pick up the pace!"
They hurried through the mountain, occasionally coming to areas where they would travel outside and around it.
Gina occasionally paused to take a look at the view. Vast expanses of bright green forests and fields, enormous mountains stretching high into the sky, and sparkling blue lakes and rivers, flowing peacefully along the landscape. She felt staggered by how beautiful everything looked, as though nothing bad would ever happen to it.
"Gina! Come on! We're almost out of the mountain!" Soren called.
Gina groaned. Time had passed quickly, it seemed. She looked up at the sky to see the sun had climbed higher into the sky. She guessed Soren was getting more anxious, so she obeyed.
"So, what do y'all think the others will say when we see them at the base camp?" Bidoof said curiously.
"Maybe they'll be telling stories of what they saw on their way there," Soren suggested. "I think we'll have the best story, though."
"You kinda sound like Amber," Gina teased. "'Oh, look at me! I'm so much more special than all of you!' Ha, I can't wait to see the look on her face when she sees that we made it there easily!"
"It'll be hilarious!" Soren laughed. "She'll probably be all, 'What?! How did you get here? Why are you better than me!'"
Bidoof grinned. "You all certainly don't seem to think highly of her, yup yup!"
Gina shrugged. "She's kinda rude to us. I tried to be friendly, but I guess she doesn't take it well." She stuck her tongue out. "I feel a bit upset that she doesn't like us."
"Don't worry about it, by golly!" Bidoof said. "She's really a nice Pokemon. She might seem arrogant and cold-hearted, but if you get to know her better, she's really caring, yup yup!"
"Have you gotten to know her?"
"No, but the other apprentices have. They've told me she's a really good explorer, and she and Jasper make a good team."
Gina giggled. "I'll believe it when I see it."
They continued on, until they could clearly see the path leading to the ground. "Look at that! We're almost there!" Soren cheered. "Come on, guys! Just a little farther!"
"Sweet!" Gina's step increased in speed. "We were able to make it through without having to run into anything-"
The shadow of a Pokemon flew overhead. It screeched loud enough for anyone several miles away to hear.
"-dangerous." Gina chewed her bottom lip. She suddenly remembered the cry sounded very familiar, and recognized it as the sound they heard when they first entered the mountain. She gulped. What saw us?
"Um... I don't want to alarm anyone, but..." Soren's red eyes were wide, and he pointed up to the sky with a shaking finger. Gina and Bidoof looked up and gasped in unison. An Aerodactyl was perched on a pointed boulder not too far from where they stood. With slavering jaws and burning eyes, it looked ready to kill.
"I have a good idea for what to do right now," Gina whispered calmly.
"Really? I'd love to hear it," Soren replied.
She lifted her muzzle and screamed, "Run for our lives!"
The Aerodactyl screeched and dove for them. Gina sprinted as hard as she could, her heart thudding against her chest. Soren and Bidoof were not far behind her.
"It's getting closer!" Soren cried. "We have to hurry!"
"No kidding!" Gina shouted back. "This is as fast as I can go!" Soren was quick to come up next to her. Bidoof, on the other hand, was huffing along, just barely able to stay close behind them.
The Aerodactyl flew higher, and for a moment Gina thought it had given up on them. The moment was short-lived, however, as the Rock and Flying-type fired a Hyper Beam at several enormous boulders just above them. The side of the mountain shook, and the boulders came tumbling down.
"Hurry! We have to get out of here now!" Soren sprinted ahead, just barely dodging a falling rock. Bidoof, having found a new energy inside him, sprinted quickly after him.
Gina quickened her pace as well, however she felt her breath coming in painful gasps. She urged herself to keep running, but she knew she was only getting slower. She eventually slowed to a stop, breathing heavily.
"Gina! Above you!"
She registered Soren's voice and looked up. The Aerodactyl was making a steep dive for her, its jaws spread wide. She charged up Iron Tail then, right as the Rock and Flying-type was about to attack, swung her tail up. With a loud clang, her tail connected with its jaws, giving it such a shock it was sent sprawling. It roared at her one last time, then flew off.
"Glad that's over," she panted. It felt as though she had no more energy left, and she just wanted to lay down and rest. Her eyes suddenly widened. She completely forgot the tumbling rocks.
She swung her head up again, and watched with terror as an enormous boulder cast its quickly growing shadow over her. She cringed, squeezing her eyes shut.
"No! Gina!" Soren sprinted to his partner as fast as he could, despite Bidoof's warnings for him to stop. He stretched out an arm, not knowing why. Light glowed from his palm, and he saw nothing as the boulder fell onto his partner, and the light blinded him.
A shattering noise was heard, and he winced as shards of rock pelted him. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his vision, and gasped. Gina still stood motionless, crouched low to the ground.
"Gina? Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Soren asked, not seeing any wounds.
"I think I'm okay," she replied, opening her eyes. "That was so weird though. Did you see that light from your hand?"
"Light?" He gasped. He remembered Marowak telling him about Force Palm and that when a Pokemon used it, light would form in their palm and cause a blast of light to attack. "Gina, I think I just used Force Palm!"
"So that means that all your training paid off!" She jumped around Soren in a circle. "This is so awesome!"
"You bet it is! Now I can actually use a Fighting-type move instead of just Quick Attack and Bite!" The Aerodactyl's roar sounded, and Soren shuddered. "Let's go; I don't want another fight with that thing."
Gina nodded. "Agreed!" She and Soren walked back over to where Bidoof waited and continued on their way to the base camp.
~o~o~o~o~
"Are we there yet?" Gina asked wearily, noticing a thick blanket of fog enveloping the forest surrounding them. They were able to get through the rest of Mount Horn without having to run into any more dangerous Pokemon. Judging by the fog, Gina guessed they would be at the base camp soon.
Soren was looking over the Treasure Map again. "Almost, but with all this fog, it's a little hard to see where we're going."
Beside him, Bidoof strained his ears. "I think I hear voices up ahead. Maybe it's everyone else?"
"If it is, we better pick up the pace!" Soren started into a jog, and Gina and Bidoof followed. Bidoof was right; there were indeed voices, which got louder the farther they went.
Soon enough, the shapes of Wigglytuff-like tents could be seen through the fog. "Look! We made it!" Gina cheered.
"We finally did it!" Bidoof said. "Yes, sirree, we've arrived at the base camp!"
The straight forest path widened into a large clearing. The guild's crew was busy talking excitedly about what they had been through. Chatot stood with his back facing them at the end of the path.
"Howdy, folks! Sorry to keep you all waiting!" Bidoof announced. Gina and Soren exchanged an excited glance. At last, they had finally reached their goal.
Chatot spun around. "It's about time!" he squawked. "You are all late! Everyone else arrived either this morning or last night!"
Gina gulped. He certainly wasn't happy about their arrival. "S-sorry, we just-"
Chatot raised a wing for silence. "Never mind. Set your things down, and hurry up! We will be having our strategy meeting now, so set your equipment down by a tent."
"Yes sir!" the three apprentices replied in unison. Soren and Bidoof walked over to an empty-looking tent, putting the Treasure Bag down and organizing its contents.
Gina, however, stayed behind. She had a strange feeling in her mind that this place seemed oddly familiar. Why does it feel like this? I've only just heard about this place a couple of days ago, so why does it feel like I know this place? I've never been here before...right?
"Hey! Gina!" She jumped at the sound of Soren's voice. He was standing just a little ways ahead. "We're having the meeting right now. Come on, let's go!"
She nodded, walking up to the assembled Pokemon. Amber cast a smug glance in her direction. "So where did you run off to? Chatot wouldn't be very happy if he found out you went off on your own somewhere."
"We just got caught up in something, that's all," Gina retorted. "Besides, it's none of your business!"
"Well, you kind of held up everyone here, so it kind of is." Amber snickered. "Of course, Jasper and I were the first ones here, so it's not too surprising you made it here last."
Before Gina could reply, Chatot called for everyone's attention. She glared at Amber one last time before turning her attention to Chatot.
"It appears everyone has finally arrived," he observed. "Now, we shall proceed with our exploration of Fogbound Lake!" He gestured with his wings to the forest around them. "As you can see, this area is densely wooded, as well as covered in a thick layer of perpetual fog. Somewhere in this forest, Fogbound Lake is concealed, just waiting to be discovered!"
Gina felt her paws itch with excitement. Her ears twitched happily. Why couldn't they just go already?
"However, keep in mind this has been nothing but a mere rumor," he continued. "No exploration team alive has been able to see it yet."
"Hey, hey!" Corphish called. "So is this Fogbound Lake even here? How do we know it even exists?"
Sunflora scoffed. "Silly, Corphish. You'll ruin the dream if you say things like that!"
"Yeah, don't spoil things now!" Loudred added.
"Well, hey, I was just being skeptical..." Corphish sighed. "You can never be too sure, hey hey..."
Chimecho cleared her throat. "May I say something?" she asked nervously. When Chatot nodded, she spoke. "While we were traveling, I heard about a legend."
"Really?" Chatot tilted his head. "A legend?"
She nodded. "A legend about Fogbound Lake. It is said that Fogbound Lake is the home to a legendary Pokemon called Uxie. They say that Uxie locks eyes with others and can wipe their memories clean."
Gina let out a tiny gasp, and her ears pricked. Uxie can wipe memories clean?!
"That's why if travelers were to come across Fogbound Lake, Uxie would erase their memories, therefore preventing them from revealing the existence of the lake. It's apparently how he protects it."
"Meh heh, sounds like my kind of tale," Croagunk said.
"It sounds a little scary," Bidoof replied, then deciding that was probably why Croagunk liked it so much.
Loudred gulped. "What'll I do if MY memory is erased?"
Sunflora giggled. "I don't think you have much to worry about, Loudred," she said. "You're already so forgetful, you make me want to scream!"
"Ahem." Everyone turned back to Chatot, who looked ready to continue with the meeting. "I hope you all realize that places like this can be expected to have a folktale or legend of some sort tied to them." He chuckled. "But our guild has overcome difficult challenges and obstacles when conducting successful explorations."
"Oh my gosh, that is so true!" Sunflora said.
"That's how our guild earned its reputation of being first-rate, after all!" Dugtrio added.
Wigglytuff laughed, "Don't worry about a thing! Let's believe in ourselves, and have lots of fun! We'll be sure to discover Fogbound Lake!"
Chatot nodded. "Indeed. Now then, let's move on. The Guildmaster and I will stay here to gather intelligence from everyone in the field. You will all go off in teams to explore. We believe that this fog is why Fogbound Lake has eluded discovery, and can possibly be lifted, so you will find one of two things: One, find Fogbound Lake, and two, find a way to lift the fog. If you accomplish either, return here and tell the Guildmaster or myself." He finished off with a grin. "All right, everyone. Let's give it our best!"
"HOORAY!"
Diglett turned to Dugtrio. "Hey, dad, you think Fogbound Lake might be underground?"
Dugtrio let out a hearty laugh. "Son, you make me so proud. Indeed, we should look underground." He turned to give the group one last glance. "Everyone, we're off." He and Diglett burrowed under the earth to begin their search.
"Hey, hey! We should get going, too!" Corphish said, heading down the path into the forest. The group dispersed, leaving Gina and Soren, Amber and Jasper, and Team Skull behind.
"Come on, boys. We should get a move on, too!" Skuntank said to Zubat and Koffing.
"Right!" Zubat and Koffing followed their leader into the fog.
Soren looked at Gina. "We need to hurry. We don't want to be outdone by everyone else, do we?"
Gina smiled. "Nope! Come on, Soren!" She and her partner went after the others, a bounce in their step. But Gina still couldn't shake the feeling that she had been there before, and after hearing Chimecho's story, she felt even more convinced that maybe she had been. Maybe Uxie erased my memory, then I somehow became a Pokemon...
"Woah! Gina, come look at this!"
She turned to look at her partner, who was bending over something on the ground. She walked up to him. "What is it?" She followed his gaze to see a gleaming red pyramid-shaped stone in the grass.
"Maybe it's a gem?" he mused. He picked it up. "It feels really warm, but it doesn't seem to be magma." He shrugged and put it in the Treasure Bag. "We'll keep it for now. Maybe it'll be important later."
"Maybe." She bounded ahead. "Now let's go! Time's a-wasting!"
Soren grinned as his partner's enthusiasm and ran after her.
Amber and Jasper were watching them from farther back. Amber snorted with disapproval. "That Gina can never take anything seriously. It's so annoying, don't you think, Jasper?"
The Shinx shrugged. He looked at his sister with glimmering eyes. "So...did you get that feeling, too?"
Amber stared at him in confusion, then nodded slowly and sighed. Her eyes glanced to the ground. "Yeah. I felt it." She was quiet for a moment, then she shook her head. "Whatever. Let's just focus on getting to Fogbound Lake before they do, okay?"
Without giving him a chance to reply, Amber went along the path without him. Jasper sighed, and went after his sister, in hopes of finding the elusive Fogbound Lake.
