-:-

Chapter 10. The Bitter Aftermath

"Did you not hear me?" the Gardevoir repeated forcefully. "Come out right now or I will not hesitate to kill all of you."

Ven's body trembled, and the Eevee willed himself to stay put, even though his instincts were all but screaming at him to run away. He glanced over at Reviak in the hopes that their teacher would have some kind of plan, and saw a hint of fear in the dog's wary eyes, which did not boost his confidence at all. If even their ever capable mentor was worried, their situation couldn't be good.

"Zack, your bag," the Lucario whispered. The shaking Dedenne jumped and promptly handed over the leather bag slung over his shoulder. "I'll need to be quick for this to work… Both of you, no matter what happens, do not move."

Don't move? Ven was grateful that the Lucario apparently had some kind of plan, but hadn't the Gardevoir threatened to kill them if they didn't step out of their hiding spot immediately? Surely the dog wasn't just going to let them get killed or something!?

"You seem reasonably healthy, Lucario." The Gardevoir slowly approached, casually tossing and catching in her hand a black and white orb with yellow markings. A Pokéball, Ven realized with a start. "Laborers are always in high demand and it would be a shame if I had to damage the goods. Those little mongrels you have with you would also make passable –"

There was a blur of motion and before Ven could even blink, Reviak had jumped out from their hiding spot and sprinted towards the Gardevoir. The Lucario closed the distance between them in a few short seconds, and the Gardevoir's eyes widen in surprise.

But then the Luminary flicked her wrist. A blinding flash of light and a quiet pop.

The Pokéball rolled to a stop. It shook a few times. There was a small click, and the ball was still.

"No!" Ven and Zack cried in unison. There went that plan. Reviak was out of the picture. Even the Gardevoir seemed mildly amused by how quickly the Lucario had fallen. She picked the Pokéball up off the sand and smiled serenely at the two children. A panicked shiver went up Ven's spine.

Without even thinking, the Eevee jumped out from behind the wall and poised himself to pounce. With nowhere for them to go, he knew that running and hiding would be useless.

"Ven, what're you doing!?" Zack pulled on his scarf insistently, trying to drag him back.

"What do you think? We can't just stand by and let the Loomy capture us!"

"B-but Reviak said –!"

"Don't be so dense! We can't rely on him for everything!"

Convinced that Zack wouldn't be helping him anytime soon, the Eevee made a mad dash for his opponent alone. The Gardevoir gave a pleased smile and took out another Pokéball, this one blue with red markings. "Going to make this easy for me, little one?"

The Gardevoir tossed the ball and Ven managed to barely dodge it by jumping to the side. Whether by blind luck or instinctual reflexes, Ven didn't care. The Eevee jumped and latched himself onto the Gardevoir, her arm stuck between his teeth. With all the strength he could muster, the fox Pokémon tried his damndest to bring his jaws together, squeezing down on flesh and drawing blood.

"Get off me you filthy animal!" The Gardevoir screeched. Her blood-red eyes turned a brilliant blue and Ven felt a nauseous sensation of weightlessness fill his body. His jaws loosened their grip on the Gardevoir's arm, and the Eevee found himself helplessly floating before the Psychic-type, his short limbs flailing wildly in a futile attempt to free himself. The Gardevoir had another Pokéball in her hand.

"L-let me go!"

Ven closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable. He briefly wondered what it would feel like to be captured in a Pokéball. Would it feel cramped in there? Dark? Unpleasant and suffocating? He was used to that sensation, at least. The Eevee could vaguely hear Zack shouting behind him, pleading for the Gardevoir to stop.

A pained shriek startled Ven from his thoughts, and he felt warm liquid splatter across his face – fresh blood. A second later, the Eevee went tumbling back to the ground, his impact softened by the hot sand.

The wave of nausea passed and Ven saw his assailant facing the ground with dull eyes, letting out strangled coughs, and Reviak – where the hell did he come from!? – standing directly behind her, one of the spikes protruding from his paw cleanly piercing the Gardevoir's torso.

Reviak pulled the spike out and the Gardevoir staggered away, a thin arm clutching her wound. The Lucario took a bizarre stance, feet spread apart and arms outstretched beside him. The air around the Lucario pulsed, and a cobalt blue orb of energy formed between his palms. Zack gasped. "Whoa, Aura Sphere!"

Apparently just as confused as Ven was, the Gardevoir tossed the black Pokéball Reviak had been captured in. The ball burst open with a flash of light, revealing a dazed-looking Spearow.

"A switcher… D-damn you!" the Gardevoir screeched through gritted teeth. Reviak thrust his arms out, sending the orb of energy flying towards her. But then the space around the Luminary distorted for the briefest second and the Gardevoir was suddenly gone, the projectile careening off to the side and blasting a hole into a cracked wall. The nearby flock of Spearow frantically flew off, startled by the explosion.

Ven tensed and expected the worst, but the Gardevoir didn't reappear.

Zack cautiously pattered out from his hiding spot, ears twitching. "Is… is she gone?"

Reviak let out a tired breath and closed his eyes. "…Yes," he muttered. "She's gone."

As he wiped the blood off his face with his tail – none of it had gotten on his scarf, thankfully – Ven begrudgingly had to admit he was impressed. "Care to explain just what the hell happened?"

Reviak pulled out two dull, grey crystals about the size of his fist. "An Invisify Orb and a Switcher Orb," he sighed. "They're Wonder Orbs. The former turns the user invisible for a limited time while the latter allows the user to swap positions with nearby Pokémon. I would have preferred not using them as they're very rare, but it was the quickest way of incapacitating the Gardevoir that I could think of without putting you two at risk."

Ven was still confused, seeing as the orbs didn't really explain where the Spearow had come from. Zack, however, hummed in understanding. "Oh… so you used the Switcher Orb to switch places with one of those Spearow when she threw the Pokéball at you, and then you attacked her while you were invisible…"

The Lucario chucked away the used orbs. "Right. It's fortunate that you're so knowledgeable Zack. My initial plan was to simply evade the Pokéball and use the Invisify orb to sneak up on the Gardevoir, but then she would've sensed that the Pokéball was empty. I wouldn't have thought to switch places with the Spearow if you hadn't told me about the Gardevoir's ability to sense other Pokémon."

The Dedenne smiled and sheepishly scratched his ear. "Uh, no problem."

"Now you, Eevee." Reviak turned his gaze to Ven, steely eyes hardening into a cold glare. The Eevee involuntarily gulped. "I believed I told you not to move, no matter what happened."

Ven could feel his ears heat up with embarrassment. He had felt brave when he'd charged at the Luminary, but he simply felt stupid now that he knew Reviak had planned everything. In retrospect, Ven wasn't even sure what he'd been thinking. He and Zack couldn't even beat a pack of measly Burmy, had he seriously thought he could take on a Luminary? "Well excuse me for not having enough faith in you, sir," he scoffed irritably. "But you can't blame me. It's not like you've given us any reason to think that we could rely on you before."

Reviak leaned in close with bared teeth. "I will not be responsible for your death," he growled. "Because that's what's going to happen if you can't control your recklessness. You will die. You may have gotten by one luck thus far, but the world doesn't care if you're a child. You can either be smart, listen to someone who is smart, or you die. There aren't any other options."

The Eevee's fur stood on end. For once, the biting retort died in his throat because even Ven could see that messing with the Lucario now would be a bad idea; the air around the canine was suddenly different. His voice was low and quiet, but there was an underlying rage that hadn't been there before. It probably would've been less scary if the Lucario had simply yelled at him. This was definitely the angriest Ven had ever seen him.

"Guys, um… p-please don't fight…" Zack stammered.

Reviak pulled away and took a deep breath. And Ven most certainly wasn't shaking.

"My apologies. But my words still stand. Acting on impulse alone never ends well, and it's important to know your limits. Why do you think I let you two choose today's mission? I wanted to see if you were aware of the extent of your abilities. And yet you chose this job because you thought it would be fun, not because you thought you'd be fit to complete it."

"Well… sorry," the Eevee muttered meekly. The Eevee backed away when he felt his paw brush against something hard and oddly smooth.

"– What the heck is this?"

"Hey, that looks like a Pokégear!" Zack gasped and the tense atmosphere quickly disappeared. The mouse scrambled past Ven, pushing him aside in his rush to grab the object off the ground. He brushed any lingering sand off the object, rectangular and faded blue with the Luminary logo printed neatly in the center. For some reason, it looked vaguely familiar to Ven. "Yeah, it is a Pokégear! That Gardevoir must've dropped it when you bit her, Ven."

Reviak stared at the object, his anger apparently extinguished. "A Pokégear, you say? Well, the Luminaries adopted and modified human technology after the Purge, so I'm not surprised that you recognize it." So the device in Zack's paws was human technology? Perhaps that was why it looked so familiar to Ven. He probably saw pictures of these 'Pokégears' back in Lucidia or something…

"We've confiscated Luminary devices in the past, but no one could figure out how to operate them," Reviak continued. "The Alliance usually stores them away, or destroys them if they're dangerous."

"I don't think this thing is dangerous though," Zack laughed. "Pokégears are basically glorified flip phones."

Ven wasn't following what the Dedenne was saying at all, and he was pretty certain Reviak was just as confused. They both jumped back warily when the mouse flipped over the cover of the device, revealing two glowing screens.

Zack groaned. "Looks like it's password protected…" After a thoughtful pause, the mouse tapped the bottom screen a few times, and Ven jumped again when the device violently shook in his paws with an angry beep. "Darn, got it wrong…"

Ven looked over Zack's shoulder, eyeing the device with apprehension. The bottom screen was covered in an alien text Ven assumed was Unown, while the upper screen was taken up by a picture of an eye, the Luminary logo.

"Pretty lame wallpaper. It says 'Enter Passcode' by the way," Zack explained once he noticed Ven's confusion. "Looks like it'll lock down and erase all the data if I put in the wrong password again…"

The Dedenne opened his bag and the stored the device inside. "You don't mind if I hold onto this, do you Reviak?" Zack asked earnestly.

The Lucario gave a tired shrug. "If it's not dangerous, I don't see why not. The Alliance wouldn't have much interest in it anyways."

"So… what now?" Ven let out an awkward cough.

"We're done for today", Reviak announced resignedly. "We're going back to the base, and we'll have to be quick. The Guildmaster needs to hear about this as soon as possible."

"Are we going back through Pecha Forest?" Zack asked nervously.

The Lucario shook his head. "Mystery Dungeons only ever have one entrance. You can check the cave we came out from, but it won't lead us back to the forest. Only one way in, and only one way out."

"So… we have to walk all the way back?" Ven shook his injured leg for emphasis. There was no way he was going to walk the whole distance in this condition. Ven noted with some irritation that after such a hectic day, he seemed to be the only one of the three to be any worse for wear.

Reviak didn't even spare them a backwards glance as he started walking. "Don't worry," he deadpanned. "It's not as if you have any pecha berries to weigh you down."

-:-

The distance from the village to the base was long, far longer than the distance from the base to Pecha Forest's entrance had been. Ven decided that, if nothing else, he liked Mystery Dungeon's for their ability to defy the laws of space like nobody's business. Because he sure as hell didn't enjoy walking the full distance from point A to point B.

After an exhausting trek over the hot desert sand, searing sunlight pounding against his back, he could now understand why Reviak had been so insistent that they travel before sunrise. Even Zack had been too tired to spout his usual inane chatter as they walked.

Reviak had packed water for them thankfully, but Ven was pretty sure his attempts to hydrate himself were fruitless what with the near constant sweating. The tall ashen walls of the Amber Guild base were a sight for sore, and scorched, eyes. It was nearly time for dinner judging by the low position of the sun, and Legion opened the front gates for them without preamble.

Fledge was startled awake by their sudden appearance. Reviak handed the bird the job request, the one empty carrier bag they hadn't lost, and some Poké, presumably to pay for the bag Ven had lost. Fledge wordlessly accepted the items with blinking eyes, visibly surprised.

Bet this is the first time the great Reviak's ever handed in a failed job request… Ven thought bitterly.

The three made their way past the front desk and into the main complex, where they ran into a familiar Lopunny. "You guys are back pretty late," Luna greeted cheerily, though her smile was quickly wiped off her face when she noticed Reviak's grimace.

"What happened?"

"We ran into a Luminary in Seklar Village–" Reviak answered, eliciting a muffled gasp from Luna. "The whole town was in ruins."

"No way… you don't think –?"

"Not only that, the village was completely deserted," said Reviak, which seemed to confirm Luna's fears.

"You're kidding me. After this long, and this close to Alliance territory?"

"Damn it… damn it, I knew this would happen!" Reviak suddenly exclaimed, voice lowering into a growl. "We never should've let the Guildmaster…"

The Guildmaster…?

"Well come on then, what're you telling me this for?" Luna said. "Guildmaster should be in his chamber, and Tenzo and Kai came back a few hours ago. Team Voxel and Team Prime as well." Reviak seemed relieved by the news, whomever Luna was talking about.

"So what do we do?" Zack piped up.

"Just go eat dinner or something," Reviak said curtly, clearly distracted. The Lucario impatiently nudged Ven and Zack with his foot in the direction of the mess hall. "And don't tell anyone about what happened today."

Before Ven could so much as ask just what was going on, Reviak and Luna had sped off down the hall in the opposite direction, leaving the two apprentices horribly confused and lost.

-:-

Dinner was a hassle. Zack, and Ven by virtue of simply standing next to the mouse, was once again the subject of the apprentices' curious stares and blatant pointing. Ven supposed he should appreciate the positive attention while it lasted; he didn't imagine it would take long for everyone to hear of Team Seeker's utter failure.

"You guys are back really late. How was your day with Reviak?" Mako asked eagerly as he filled a tray with the night's meal, a plate of sliced berries and some kind of roasted meat. The Buizel was on cafeteria duty tonight, it seemed. "You, er, might want to pass on this, Zack. There's meat in there."

The Dedenne made a disgusted face and took the tray. "It's fine. Ven can have it."

The Eevee promptly grabbed some berries off the counter with his teeth. "For Zack," he mumbled, glad for the excuse to avoid answering Mako's question. He walked off to find an empty table, while Zack hastily assured Mako that they'd talk later.

Deciding that he didn't want to sit in a crowded room getting gawked at, Ven led Zack out the exit and into the common grounds. "Too noisy," he quickly explained when Zack gave him a puzzled look.

"Yeah, it's nice eating outside, huh?" Zack agreed. "Pretty chilly though…" The Dedenne took a seat on the cool sand, dyed orange by the setting sun, and bit a chunk out of his rawst berry. Ven chewed on his own food, but the meat tasted bland to him.

An awkward silence settled between them, Zack trying every now and then to fill the void with inane remarks. How he'd never seen so many stars back home, wherever that had been. How his whiskers would probably freeze stiff if they stayed out too long. How he'd caught his tail wagging on its own sometimes.

Ven appreciated his efforts, but even he could tell that the mouse's good cheer was diminished. Their recent failure hung over them like an oppressive weight. Eventually, even Zack couldn't ignore how one-sided the conversation was.

"You okay Ven?"

"…You don't feel it, too?" the Eevee asked, brows furrowed.

"Feel what?"

Ven sighed and pushed away his half-eaten meal. "I just… I wish there was more I could do. After today, I feel so helpless. Insignificant. And… and there's obviously something huge going on. The ruined town. Running into that Luminary. Reviak and Luna were obviously worried about something."

It was a familiar feeling. Oppressive and suffocating. When the Gardevoir had stopped him so effortlessly, held him defenceless up in the air, it had been a painful reminder of how weak he was. There were Pokémon like Reviak, who could fight and strategize and easily blast holes through stone walls. And then there was Ven, who couldn't even handle a pack of Burmy.

…I'm so in over my head.

"You shouldn't let it bother you too much," said Zack. "It's not like we can do much about it right now."

Easy for you to say, the Eevee thought. Everyone already thinks you're super important. You're the only reason we're not cleaning hallways or serving lunch. Mr. Human-turned-Pokémon. Almighty Dedenne.

Ven couldn't say he was surprised by the response. This was the Dedenne that had barely been fazed to find himself transformed from a human into a Pokémon after all. Move on, forget about it, go with the flow.

As if it could be that easy when harsh reality was finally starting to crash down on him. They were both just kids. Ven was completely inexperienced and Zack, for all his incredible power, was an incompetent idiot. After today, his wish to avenge his family was starting to sound more ludicrous and unobtainable by the moment.

Another awkward silence followed and Ven was glad for it. He wasn't sure what had come over him, why he'd felt the need to spill all his pent-up feelings to Zack again when he'd gotten along just fine before by keeping to himself. He wasn't sure he wanted Zack to talk back.

But Ven had long since learned that the mouse rarely did what he wanted.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" Ven was genuinely confused. Zack was frowning now, strangled enough.

"What happened today. It was my fault. I completely screwed up when we fought those Burmy. And that bag we lost, I could've grabbed it if I'd been quicker…"

Ven eyed the mouse warily; he wasn't in the mood to be lied to for comfort. Then again, based on what he knew about him, Ven couldn't imagine Zack being insincere about something. "Don't blame yourself," he insisted. "Like you said, there's nothing we can do about that. We'll just have to get better, alright partner?"

Perhaps that was the right choice of words, as Zack broke out into another smile. A genuine one this time, Ven found himself hoping. "Partner, huh? Yeah, you're right." The Dedenne's tail wagged energetically. "This was only our first day on the job, we will get better!"

The two returned to their meals, and Ven had to admit the food tasted a little better now. The Eevee repeated the mantra in his head. It wasn't our fault. It was a fluke. We'll get better. It wasn't our fault. It was a fluke…

Perhaps if he repeated it enough times, he would start to believe it.

-:-

After returning the cleared tray to the mess hall, Ven and Zack wandered around until they ended up somewhere on the second floor. The two had settled on exploring the rest of the complex seeing as yesterday's tour had been interrupted. To Ven's surprise, the two of them ran into Iris in a lonely hallway.

The Espurr had always seemed to follow Mako around and it was a little jarring to see the feline on her own. She looked even smaller than usual, a leather bag far too large for her size slung over her shoulder, and Ven probably would've felt sorry for her if she didn't look so completely unaffected by her solitariness.

"Hi Iris!" Zack called out happily.

"Oh, hello Ven and Zack. I'm surprised to see you two up here," Iris said flatly, not looking surprised in the least. Zack tilted his head in confusion.

"How come?"

"This hall leads to the archives. Most apprentices aren't interested in that sort of thing, and I assumed that was the case for you as well."

Ven felt his eye twitch. "Hey, I actually happen to enjoy literature quite a lot, thank you very much!

The Espurr raised a brow in dull surprise, as thought it had never occurred to her that Ven was capable of something as sophisticated as sitting down and reading a book. "My apologies for generalizing. I seem to remember Mako warning me at one point about doing that …"

"So you like reading, Iris?" Zack asked.

"It passes the time," the Espurr answered. "So tell me, what's it like being Reviak's apprentices?"

Zack hesitantly scratched at his ear. "Er… He has a 'hands-on' approach when it comes to training, I guess"

"Very hands-on," Ven added. "Like, an unreasonably large emphasis on hands-on training."

"I see," said the Espurr who, in Ven's opinion, was making a passable attempt at appearing interested. "And how did your first mission go?" the Espurr asked.

Ven shared a look with Zack. He remembered the Lucario's anger when he disobeyed orders, the barely restrained rage that he'd never seen before. Regardless of his opinion on the canine, Ven wasn't planning on angering him like that again anytime soon.

"Nothing exciting," Ven mumbled. "We failed the job, nothing else to say."

"Really? You failed?" Iris' already wide eyes widened further. Ven grunted noncommittally.

The atmosphere felt tense without Mako leading the discussion, but perhaps Ven was the only one who felt that way. Zack seemed like his usual obliviously cheerful self and Iris still looked as vaguely detached as ever. Not for the first time, Ven wondered why the Espurr had even agreed to give them a tour of the Guild in the first place. Her expression had screamed I don't care about this, why I can't I be somewhere else? the whole time, with Mako running most of the tour.

"I see. Well if that's all, I'll be going now. There's an item I need to purchase at the market for a job tomorrow," Iris said curtly. "You can come along if you want. Or you could check out the archives, I suppose."

For the first time Ven appreciated Iris' constant apathy, seeing as she apparently didn't think it was a big deal that Team Seeker's had failed. He considered arguing for going to the archives, but decided it wasn't worth the effort. Nor was he in the mood to read tomes in a stuffy room.

"Market it is, then."

-:-

"So… how the hell did we missed this place when we first arrived?"

Granted, he and Zack had only been at the Amber Base for a day or two, but Ven was honestly shocked he'd never noticed the bustling mini-town before. The market square was a large cluster of flashy tents situated in the common grounds, directly east of the central building. Rows of decorated stalls lined the dirt streets, offering a variety of goods like snacks and pottery. A Lampent was drifting around the market, dutifully lighting torches with its flame as the sun slowly disappeared over the horizon. Dozens of Pokémon, presumably both guild members and civilians, were flitting about the stalls, making purchases and chatting beneath the torchlight.

Ven and Zack quietly observed the hustle and bustle, awestruck by the colourful merchandise and diversity of Pokémon, only half-aware as they followed Iris to a massive, emerald green tent. Actually, it would've been more accurate to call the place a marquee. It was clearly one of the largest and most colourful of the shops, and an artsy wooden sign depicting two stylized lizards, one green and one purple, hung from the ceiling.

"Kecleons' Adventure Bazaar?" Zack read aloud. The inside of the marquee felt incredibly crowded in spite of its size; the shop was packed wall to wall with boxes of dried berries and seeds, collections of patterned scarves hanging from racks, and shelves cluttered with bottles of oddly coloured liquids.

There were a few other Pokémon browsing the store, which made it difficult to manoeuvre around. Ven passed by a box filled to the brim with withered pecha berries, and couldn't help but feel a little dejected.

The three eventually made their way to the counter manned by a purple bipedal lizard, presumably a Kecleon, who was busy polishing a small blue orb.

"Hello Mister Guanus," Iris said, her head barely poking above the countertop.

"Ah, hello Miss Iris!" the lizard greeted, halting his work and setting the orb down. "And to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I need a dozen stun seeds, please."

"Of course. Fourth floor still infested with Nincada, I take it?" Guanus asked, to which Iris hummed an affirmation. "Then your purchase comes to 600 Poké."

The Espurr rummaged around her entirely too large bag and fished out a couple of gold coins, while the Kecleon pulled out a small sack from behind the counter. As the two made their exchange, the shopkeeper peered curiously at Ven and Zack.

"Now who might this be?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I should introduce you," Iris said as she stored the purchased sack in her bag. "Guanus, this is Zack and Ven. They joined the Guild yesterday."

"Yes, I heard that a Dedenne had joined the Guild recently. A rare Pokémon with equally discriminating tastes, I'm sure!"

Zack blinked at the odd compliment.

"Anyhow, welcome to Kecleon's Adventure Bazaar, your number one source for all the adventuring supplies you could ever need! All of our items are of the highest quality and offered at very affordable prices, I assure you."

"Mister Guanus and his brother Ignus have trade connections all over the region," Iris clarified. "They specialize in supplies for explorers and Rescue teams, and they were kind enough to set up shop here in the Amber Guild."

"And it has been a most rewarding venture!" Guanus chuckled. "I must say that business is far less of a hassle here than in the cities. My brother and I haven't had to change our identities in months! And incidentally, that is a very fine scarf you have there, Mister Ven. Volcarona silk by the looks of it. Handmade, I take it?"

The Eevee jumped at the sudden comment directed at him and self-consciously wrapped his mother's scarf tighter around his neck. "Er… yeah, I guess?"

The Kecleon stared intently at the cloth for another second with a hungry gleam in his eyes, a look that was quickly glazed over by a professional smile.

"Well, would you two be willing to do any business?" Guanus asked briskly. "Today we have a very special off –"

The Kecleon's spiel was cut off as an absurdly long tongue shot out of the lizard's mouth. It sped past Ven and Zack at blinding speed and smacked into something behind them with a loud squick.

"H-HEY! What's the big idea! Let go of me!"

Ven spun around to see Guanus' tongue wrapped around a struggling Zangoose, who was shouting obscenities at the shopkeeper. Guanus pulled the Zangoose roughly towards him, lifted the Pokémon above his head, and shook him rapidly in the air until sacks of stolen merchandise tumbled out of his grasp.

"H-H-HEY! S-S-STOP T-T-THAT!" the Zangoose screamed. Without warning, Guanus flicked his tongue and sent the Zangoose flying out the store, where the Pokémon landed with a resounding crash.

"Deepest apologies, Mister Zangoose!" the shopkeeper called after the dazed Zangoose. "But thievery is not tolerated in our store!"

The Zangoose, cursing up a storm, limped away as the other Pokémon in the market went back to their business, their interested abated. Ven and Zack stared dumbly at what had just happened, while Iris seemed as unaffected as usual.

Note to self. Don't steal from this guy.

"Do you want me to report this, Mister Guanus?" Iris asked flatly.

"Oh, that won't be necessary," Guanus said, airily waving his hand. "Now as I was saying, today we have a very special offer of top-rate gummies, perfect for boosting an assortment of cognitive functions and motor skills," the Kecleon continued his pitch as though nothing had happened, the same businesslike smile on his face.

Zack awkwardly cleared his throat. "Er… we don't actually have any money…"

"Oh, my apologies!" the Kecleon gasped. "It was just… you two are Reviak's new apprentices, no? We didn't expect…"

Didn't expect us to fail under his amazing tutelage?

"Hang on, how do you even know Reviak's teaching us? Iris and Mako are the only ones we told!" Ven glared at the Espurr in question, even though he felt it was incredibly unlikely that the quiet feline would be one for gossip.

"We also told Fledge, remember? This morning," Zack reminded him.

"That explains it." Iris nodded primly. "Telling Fledge a secret is equivalent to going into a crowded room and screaming it at the top of your lungs."

Duly noted. Ven grimaced, because if Fledge really was a huge blabbermouth it wouldn't be long before news of Team Seeker's complete failure got around.

"Good evening Miss Iris! Mister Ven and Mister Zack, we look forward to doing business with you soon!" Guanus saw them off with a friendly wave as the trio started back to the guild, though Ven could detect the disappointment beneath the shopkeeper's smile. As if he needed more reason to feel bummed out.

Ven was so preoccupied moping that he barely even noticed when he bumped into someone.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" cried a bipedal, red-scaled lizard. Female, judging by the voice.

Ven would've retorted had his attention not been drawn by the fact that the lizard's tail was very clearly on fire. "Your, uh… your tail's on fire," the Eevee said in a dumbfounded voice.

"Oh, she's a Charmeleon, Ven. The Flame Pokémon," Zack recited enthusiastically. "They have these pockets inside their abdomens called pyrosacs which expel combustible gas through ducts to their throats and tails. Their scales are fire-proof so the flame doesn't actually hurt them. Anyways, we're really sorry about bumping into you like that."

"Hang on, I've heard about you two!" the Charmeleon exclaimed, sounding surprisingly angry. "The Dedenne and the Eevee getting trained by Reviak!"

"Um, yeah, that's us..." Zack answered.

"Tch, what the hell was the Guildmaster thinking letting a couple of incompetent wimps like you get trained by Diamond-Ranks?"

"E-excuse me?!" Ven spluttered, taken aback by the blatant insult. "What'd you just say, Miss Sunburn?"

"The name's Kindle, you little runt!" the Charmeleon growled. "And I was just saying that useless slouches like you and that rat don't deserve special treatment while the rest of us are working our asses off for some recognition!"

"Yeah, you're just a bunch of posers!" cried a new, higher-pitched voice. Ven was confused by the source of the voice until he noticed the puny panda Pokémon hiding behind the Charmeleon, glaring and chewing on a dead leaf.

"What, so you jealous?" Ven taunted the two bullies, perhaps rather unwisely considering the Fire-types larger size and, well, the violent flame on her tail. "Ven, don't start something…" Zack whimpered from behind him, trying to tug the Eevee away.

"I'm not the one starting anythi –"

Without warning, the Charmeleon yanked on Ven's ears and pulled him close. "H-hey! Let me go!"

"Tch, figured as much…"

Ven wrest himself free from the lizard's grip, and was about to rebuke when the Charmeleon spat out a burst of fire. Ven leapt back with a yelp as the flame burst on the sand, narrowly missing the Eevee.

"What's the big idea, you lunatic?!"

"I can't freaking believe a runt like you has an Aura Crystal," Kindle grunted. "You two don't even realize how big a deal that is, huh?"

"Miss Kindle, Mister Zack! Please stop!" Guanus suddenly came running out from his shop, frantically flailing his arms in the air. "Uncoordinated violence is not conducive for good business!"

The Charmeleon reluctantly shrunk her flame, shooting Ven another angry glare. "You and that Espurr, you're all the same. A bunch of complacent, no-good wastes of air. Everyone in the Guild knows you two completely failed your mission today, even with Reviak helping you!"

Without another word, the Fire-type stalked off with the panda stumbling after her. Guanus, meanwhile, slinked back to his shop and gave Team Seekers a dirty look, perhaps questioning his previous assessment that they were good customer material.

"What's her problem?" Ven exclaimed angrily. "She nearly singed my tail off!"

Before anyone could answer, a familiar Buizel walked up to them.

"Mako? What're you doing here?" Zack asked the Buizel.

"Needed to buy some stuff for a job tomorrow."

"Don't worry, I already bought the stun seeds," Iris said.

"Oh wow! Thanks Iris!" Mako laughed and the Espurr shrugged in response. "So what's with the flaming crater over there?" he asked conversationally.

"Some jerk Charmeleon just attacked us," Ven spat.

"Kindle and Ruki," Iris added.

"Oh, of course," Mako sighed. "I'm guessing they was angry because you two failed your mission today?"

"So you heard about that?" Zack chuckled sheepishly.

"Well, yeah," Mako grinned. "Everyone was talking about it during dinner."

"Okay, so what's the Charmeleon's deal, exactly?" Ven grumbled.

The Buizel nervously wagged his tails. "To be honest, I'm not surprised that she's upset…"

"What!?" Ven cried in outrage. "Don't tell me that you're actually sympathizing with her?"

"No, no, it's not that! She had no excuse to attack you like that!" Mako held his arms up in surrender. "It's just, you guys haven't been here for long so… it's hard to explain."

"Give it a shot," said the unimpressed Eevee.

"Ven, you have to understand that a lot of kids joined the Alliance hoping to make a change, or get back at criminals who hurt them in the past, things like that, y'know?"

Oh, I know exactly what you mean.

"Pokémon come in thinking that they'll be fighting on the front lines or something, mowing down Loomies and ferals left and right. But in reality the Bronze Ranks, the apprentices… we're all just inexperienced kids that the Alliance doesn't know what to do with. It's irrational, I know, but a lot of us feel like prisoners, not contributing members."

"That's crazy," Ven said. "Everyone's safe and fed here, right? What's not to like?"

"Look, Iris and I don't complain because neither of us are big on fighting, but most of the apprentices aren't too happy with how things are run. Everyone appreciates the free food and protection, but our 'missions' are nothing more than chores, we're not allowed to leave the base without strict supervision, and it isn't exactly easy to move up in ranks around here. Honestly, I can't remember the last time someone's graduated to Silver-Rank. Kindle's been working a long time for some recognition, and I guess some apprentices are jealous of you two. Apprentices usually have to train for months to move up to Level-D missions. You guys got to start as soon as you got here."

"Wow… I can kind of understand why she was so angry now," Zack said timidly.

"N-not that I can blame the Guild for how things are run, y'know," Mako hastily added. "It's understandable that the higher-ups wouldn't want to send kids out to fight in life-threatening situations…"

-:-

Although he really, really, really did not want to admit it, Ven was honestly surprised to hear that Kindle wasn't any higher ranked than he was. The Charmeleon was most definitely a huge jerk, but she could freaking breathe fire. Ven couldn't breathe fire…

Not now, anyways.

He couldn't do much of anything, now that he really thought about it…

The Eevee's bad mood persisted for the rest of the evening, even after bidding Mako and Iris farewell for the night and he and Zack returned to the Diamond Ranks' quarters. The Eevee couldn't help but feel like he didn't deserve to be sleeping here. For once, Zack seemed reluctant to talk to him, perhaps bothered by the day's events as well.

"Oh, you're back!" Luna greeted them at the door, Reviak standing impatiently by her side. "Hang on, there's something we need to tell you two before you turn in."

"What is it?" Ven sighed, half-afraid that the Lopunny was about to tell them they weren't welcome in the Diamond Ranks' quarters anymore or something. The day hadn't been kind to his self-esteem.

"Reviak and I are going to be gone for tomorrow, so you two are getting a day off."

"A day off?" Zack repeated.

"In light of recent events, the Alliance has decided to evacuate civilians from all nearby small towns," Reviak added. "Long story short, the Luminaries became infamous for kidnapping Pokémon to use as slaves in the past, and we suspect that's what happened at Seklar Village today. The Alliance, the Amber Guild in particular, became complacent due to the recent lull in the war–"

A lull?! Ven scoffed internally, thinking back to the numerous life-threatening situations he'd faced before being taken in by the Guild. He'd hate to see what Chiora was like when the war was going in full swing, that was certain.

"– and weren't prepared for the Luminaries to make such a blatant attack. We don't have the resources to guard every community, so it'll be easier to have the civilians stay in the Amber Guild until further arrangements to move them to the Jade Shelters."

"The largest Alliance-run evac center, basically," Luna explained. "Thankfully a few of the Diamond Ranks got back today so we'll all be helping out with the evacuation effort. I wanted you guys to meet the rest of Team Revolution, but we're all in a rush right now. Introductions will have to wait."

"Okay then," Ven shrugged. Honestly, a day off sounded great at the moment. "Good luck, I guess."

"Hang on," Reviak said. "Go on ahead, Luna. I need to have a quick word with these two."

"Sure thing," the Lopunny answered brightly. "Don't be too hard on them," she whispered before skipping off.

"What's wrong?" Ven asked apprehensively, his recent failure and recklessness still on his mind.

"I just wanted to clarify a few things. As of today, Zack is still in the clear for getting specialized training from my Team. However, in light of today's performance, I've decided that you still need to prove yourself, Eevee."

Ven's breath caught in his throat. "What… what's that supposed to mean?" he asked weakly.

"The day after tomorrow I'll be assigning Team Seekers an independent mission. I will not be there to supervise you. If you prove yourself a capable leader, then you'll get to keep the head start the Guildmaster so graciously gave you. If you fail, it's entirely possible you won't be allowed to take higher level missions anymore."

"What the hell!" Ven exclaimed. "Then how come Zack's in the clear and I'm not? Because he used to be a human or whatever?"

"It's because he has already proven to me that he's capable of following orders. He's capable of discipline. It seems that you, on the other hand, have yet to realize the weight of your behaviour today. You nearly died because of your recklessness, Eevee."

"But Reviak, we're a team!" Zack insisted. "It's not fair if Ven gets left out and I get all the special training."

"Teams can be dissolved if necessary," Reviak said simply as he briskly headed out the door. With a final backwards glance he added, "I'll make this clear, Eevee. The Guildmaster insisted that I take Zack under my wing because he believes the Dedenne will play a role in the future. He asked that I train you as well because he was feeling gracious, nothing more."

Ven was grateful that Zack had been willing to defend him. Honestly, he was. But that didn't stop the sickening feeling of envy bubbling in his chest. The Eevee understood quite well what Reviak was trying to get across. Zack was special. Ven wasn't. And the only reason he got special treatment was because of his connection to the Dedenne…

"Enjoy your break tomorrow. You'll need the rest."

AN: So yeah, back after not updating for like half a year :v

I feel like I should put some kind of disclaimer on my story. "Do not read unless you have the patience of a saint." But then that describes like 90% of most fanfics, so...

Anyways, happy holidays everyone!