"Hey, Beck? W-why do I feel like we forgot something?" Rye asked as he stuffed our bag away, ready to tucker in for the night. As with the rest of the Guild, we had hurried back to our base as the moon started to climb into the sky. Apparently the Guild had a curfew in place, and while I wasn't sure why exactly, I wasn't about to try and challenge it.

"Sh... ergh..." I groaned in response to Rye's pondering, momentarily forgetting I couldn't say I didn't know. As I shook my head, Rye shrugged his unsure feelings off, lodging the bag under the table. He gave a quick gesture, signaling me to fire a Water Gun off at the torch lighting our base. Our small base was plunged into darkness just moments before the toll of a bell rang through the air. Rye sighed in relief.

"Whew, that was close. They don't like when rookies stay up after lights-out." he said, curling up in his bed. "Hey, what do you say we go to Cinccino tomorrow and... uh..."

Rye paused.

"...w-we forgot to give Nidoran her bag."

I heard him hit his head against the floor as he let out a groan.

"Well, I'm an idiot," he huffed.

"Shaagh," I added, gesturing to myself. Surely if he was an idiot for this, then two's a party, right?

"W-we'll get it back to her early tomorrow. Here's hoping she won't be too mad at us," Rye decided as he rested his head. "Night, Beck."

As Rye started to snore beside me, I found myself staring at the backs of my eyelids, finally afford some time to think without attracting too many odd looks.

'When I got poisoned yesterday, I had that flashback... what did it mean? Maybe that voice knows something about it? Come to think of it, where'd the voice go? Why won't it just tell me why I'm here? Will I ever hear from it again, or...? Ugh, my head hurts, moving on. ...uh, Rye. What he told me... just... what do I even say to that? I haven't lost anyone like that, have I? He clearly trusts me a good bit if he's going to tell me all that, so what comes next?'

Such questions frantically swam through my head, keeping me awake for a while before sleep finally claimed me.


"Nidoran? Yeah, I think I saw her heading down to town square just a bit ago."

As Rye thanked the Silgoon pointing us up the street, we started up the rocky path into the town. The morning atmosphere of Impetus Town bubbled pleasantly around us as we walked along looking around for Nidoran. A pair of laughing young Pokémon chased each other around us as a small street band played a lively tune on strings, providing ample noise over the dozens of pleasant indistinct conversations around us.

As we passed Officer Magnezone giving us a nod of greeting as he floated by, we caught sight of Nidoran intently watching something in the square with a Seedot standing close by, the Pecha scarf we had retrieved not so long ago wrapped around it.

"H-hey, Nidoran! We-" Rye began.

"Shh. We're listening," Nidoran whispered, not breaking her focus. Shuffling past her, we peered into the square to see what she was looking at. A small group of kids, mostly Fire-types, I noticed, was gathered in the center of the square watching a familiar Quilava talk over them, his teammates behind him.

"Alright, keep those deep breaths coming. In, out. In, out. Now... yes, you in the back?" Arden said, pointing to a Magby raising its paw.

"What does this have to do with fighting? We wanted to learn how to be stronger, this is just what my mom would tell me!" the Magby said. A small murmur rose among the group, the nearby May and Pike smirking knowingly as Arden got over the initial shock of the comment.

"Well, kid, uh, your ember's like an actual fire. It grows and shrinks depending on how much fuel it has. Taking in oxygen helps to feed it," he explained.

"But that takes forever!" the troublesome Magby groaned. Arden cocked an eyebrow, then took several long, deep breaths as May stepped back. After a minute of this, he stopped, then blew a massive plume of fire twenty feet into the air. Even from our position, the heat brushed against us, making Rye jump back. Arden gave a smug look to the group as he closed his mouth and let the fire curl away.

"Any more comments?" he asked. The Magby disgruntedly shrunk back, prompting a loud clap from Arden.

"Alright, that's my advice for you. Keep at it and one day, you'll be crawling dungeons like us! Now go out there and fuu... er, f-fudge... fuss? Yeah, uh, f-fuss 'em up!" he piped. He turned away as the excited group of young Fire-types applauded and started trying to produce their own giant fireballs, much to the displeasure of the adults in the area. Nidoran sighed contently beside us.

"One day, you know? One day Seedot and I will be able to hold our own like them, and we can finally quit bugging the Guild to help us. That'll be the day..." she said. She continued to stare ahead for a minute before snapping out of her trance and quickly turning around to meet our looks.

"Oh, it's you! Seedot, look, it's the team I told you about!" she said. "Uh, d-did you get our stuff back?"

"Oh, yeah, w-we were just coming to get it to you. Here," Rye said, placing Nidoran's little bag in front of the pair. The two quickly tore it open and began digging through it, presumably to make sure everything was in order. Eventually, Nidoran fished out several coins and rested them at our feet.

"I... I don't know how we can thank you enough, honestly. I feel like the Poké is enough..." she said.

"Sha, shaah!" I reassured her. Nidoran's Seedot friend looked at me oddly.

"Huh, thought you were exaggerating when you said he couldn't talk," he said. Ignoring this, Nidoran turned to leave, Seedot following close behind. As they walked down the street, she stopped to look back at us one last time.

"Uh, th-thanks again!" she stammered before the two continued I watched them disappear into the thin crowd as Rye knelt down to pick up the Poké still at our feet.

"I wouldn't do that just yet, kid," a voice said from behind us. We jumped back in shock, spinning around to find May looking at us concernedly, Arden and Pike flanking her.

"Oh, Ms. May! Uh... wh-what's wrong with them?" Rye said.

"Chances are they've got poison all over them. I mean, that was a Nidoran paying you, right? I'd wash them off first," May replied, looking to me expectantly. I sighed and began soaking the pile of coins with a Water Gun as Rye looked back up to Team Apex.

"S-so how was Bewilder Forest?" he asked, to which Arden grinned widely.

"Well, we helped out a little town or two, had to save Pike from a herd of Emolga, beat the shit out of the resident Zoroark, had a nice lunch with her after the fact, and ended up hunched over digging through rubble for a crusty safe," he explained. I finished hosing the Poké off as Rye cocked his head.

"Did you find anything?" he asked.

"I mean, we did end up digging up the thing. I'd say it was worth the trouble; had a few decently preserved books, some kind of old weapon, and... get this, a fucking TM! Not like the kind you buy from Kecleon or Alakazam, I mean a human TM! Western model, too; the type that wasn't designed to break after one use! Ohh-hoho, just wait till they figure out how to get it working again!" Arden chimed, rubbing his paws together excitedly. Rye and I stared at the ecstatic Quilava, unsure of half of what he had just said.

"Um... th-that's cool," Rye soon said, picking our reward money off the ground. As he did this, Pike cleared his throat behind us.

"Need I remind ya of the time?" he asked, pointing a wing at the sun. Arden snapped out of his spell and clenched his teeth together.

"Shit. ...er, come on, we'll take you two to the amphitheater, it's rude not to show up for weekly assembly. You're gonna like what they say, I'll say that," he quickly said before dropping onto all fours and dashing off. Rolling her eyes, May quickly followed as Pike stopped to give me a wary glance before flying off after them. With Rye haphazardly clutching our coins, we started weaving through the lively morning crowd to hurry after the team. As we managed to catch up with them, May looked over her shoulder at us.

"So what've you two been up to?" she asked.

"Uh, m-mission to Amber Meadow, went to Bassa Village to catch some outlaws, met an old friend. That's... ugh, that's basically it," Rye managed, struggling to keep up with the far more fit Leafeon.

"Ah, yeah, the guys with the screwed-up legs, right?" she asked.

"Wh-what?" Rye said, looking up confusedly.

"Gossip travels fast, kid. You can tell us about it later, I guess," May replied. With nothing else to say, we kept up our pursuit, leaving me to wonder just what this assembly was about.


Even with my memory loss, I could well understand the pain of mass social gatherings, especially ones where you're sitting next to a complete stranger. At the present moment, I began to wonder how much I had taken that for granted when I could at least talk, wasn't a foot and a half tall, and wasn't sitting next to a hulking seven-foot Pangoro who kept giving me the stink-eye.

'Perks of being a Pokémon, I guess.'

As I sulked at the thought of all the idle finger-twiddling I and my little paws were missing out on, a sudden cheer rang from the other explorers sitting around the amphitheater. My ears ringing from the Pangoro's roar, I looked up to find Guildmaster Arcanine entering the ring with Cinccino and several others following. With a small nod to his two-hundred-odd apprentices, he took a seat just in front of his statue, the sunlight gleaming off his golden hide. With a steely look from the Guildmaster, the crowd fell silent, allowing him to speak.

"I thank you all for attending, even though there is not much to say," he said, his baritone voice echoing along the amphitheater's cone-shaped structure. "Firstly, I would like to commend Teams Minutemon, Opportunity, Apex, and Stonewall for their continued vigilance and discoveries in the field."

Light applause sounded as Arden nodded and stuck a paw up a couple of rows below me. I failed to hide my scowl as I glanced at Rye, who looked equally disappointed. All that and we weren't going to be mentioned for it? Boy, that was encouraging.

"Now then, I'd like to make an announcement," Arcanine stated, prompting me to redirect my less-than pleasant face towards him. "As you are all likely aware, Greninja, our Water-type master of twenty-seven years, has recently retired, leaving our Guild in dire need of a new trainer. Thankfully, we have managed to find a promising candidate for such a role."

Arcanine paused for effect as I gave a loud sigh, earning another look from the Pangoro beside me.

'Oh, boy, who's gonna pull the feral card on me this time?'

Looking over the dozens of Pokémon murmuring to each other, Arcanine continued.

"It is with great pleasure that I introduce our new Water-type trainer, Master Wartortle."

'Wait, Wartortle?'

As the Guildmaster's words sunk in, I watched as the aforementioned Wartortle walked into the amphitheater, sheepishly waving to the crowd.

"Ah, come on, now, I'm no master, I'm just a sailor who happened to have experience. Just call me Wartortle, yeah?" he requested. I shrunk back, dumbfounded. That voice...

'...Bert?'

"Beck, th-that's..." Rye began. Arcanine quickly cut him off as he continued his announcement, most of which was lost on me as I gaped at Bert.

'This... this is just... wow.'

"...and the annual gathering for the Guild's group painting will be held at week's end. That is all I wish to announce. May fortune be on your side. Forever forward!" Arcanine declared.

"Forever forward!" the congregation of Pokémon roared. As Arcanine and his assistants filed out, the crowd dispersed, either leaving to go about their day or gathering around Bert to welcome him to the Guild. In Rye and I's case, we sat there and watched as he Wurmpled his way out of the small crowd, dusting himself off as he looked around at the now mostly-empty seats. It didn't take long for him to notice the two of us, recognition and a big grin flashing across his face as he quickly walked up to us.

"Well, I'll be damned! How've you two been?" he asked.

"H-how did you...?" Rye asked, still in mild shock. Bert chuckled.

"I told you, kid, it's a small world. Your friends over there said there was an opening here at your Guild, and we figured I'd be decent enough at the job here, what with what happened on the river. I tried to tell them off, but five hours on the river with them saying otherwise really convinces you otherwise, you know?" he said. At that moment, he took notice of my wrapped-up arm, narrowing his eyes.

"Well, then, what were you doing while I wasn't watching? I don't think I can quite help you out with your arm like that," he said.

"Sha!" I protested, grabbing my scalchop to show I could still try. I proved myself wrong within two swings once I doubled over in pain, clenching my teeth as Bert watched on, unimpressed. After a moment of consideration, he knelt down to meet my gaze.

"You know what? I'm moving in tomorrow, so how about you head on over to the Water-type grounds once I set up shop?" he requested. Still clutching my pain-wracked arm, I nodded, prompting Bert to stand.

"Alright, then. See you then, kid," he nodded before walking away, quickly being swarmed by the explorers still there. Rye and I quickly made to leave the amphitheater, vaguely aware of the suspicious glances and whispers we were getting from several Pokémon idling about. As we headed down the path to our quarters, Rye suddenly perked up.

"Oh, hey, Beck! You know how you can read Unown-script? Maybe we could ask Mr. Arden for help, maybe he can help you figure them out better! Uh, what do you think?" he said.

"Huh... yeh, shaah!" I said, nodding in agreement.

"Alright! Let's just... uh, what do we do until then?" Rye wondered.

'...good question. Maybe Ms. Audino can fix up my arm?'

I gestured to my cast and pointed up the path.

"What? ...oh, uh, I don't think Ms. Audino can help much with that. I mean, w-we already set it, so there isn't much she can really do besides Heal Pulses, and those take a lot of energy," Rye said. I sighed, choosing to simply follow Rye to our base.

'Ugh. Broken arms suck.'


As Beck and Rye turned the corner, Arden took a glance back to watch them go. Judging by the smirk he had seen on Bert's face, he could assume their discussion had gone well. Grinning to himself proudly, Arden followed May and Pike as they headed to the boards. As they began to check over their bag, Arcanine's voice suddenly cut through the air.

"Team Apex? A moment, please." Paling, Arden turned to find the Guildmaster at the head of the road, watching the team as they froze in place. The three quickly saluted as he approached them.

"I'd like to speak with Arden alone, please," he requested.

"Wait, what? Sir, if this is about the team, we-" Pike began.

"No, no, it's okay, I'll, uh, meet you guys at the boards," Arden reassured them. May and Pike watched the Quilava before nodding and turning to continue without him.

"Come along," Arcanine commanded, walking back towards the now mostly empty amphitheater. Still quivering, Arden obediently went after him, soon sitting down next to him. The remaining Pokémon at the amphitheater gawked at the sight, though quickly shrunk back as Arcanine dismissed them with a wave of his paw. As they scampered away, Arden finally found the nerve to speak up.

"S-so... you wanted me, sir?" he asked in a hushed tone. Arcanine nodded.

"I trust that you have not forgotten of what I asked?" he questioned. Arden gave him a confused look.

"Sorry, what?" he asked.

"About my suspicions of Beck? The Oshawott?"

Arden quietly and rather colorfully insulted himself as the memory came rushing back.

"Oh, um, y-yes sir. From what I can tell, there's nothing special about the kid. I mean, not in the way you're asking. Aside from what you picked up off the bat, he's just your typical impressed feral," he explained. Arcanine gave a light hum as he nodded again.

"Continue to watch him, I still have my suspicions. Come to me immediately should anything reveal itself, and continue to not tell anyone. Yes?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," Arden affirmed. Arcanine stood up, shaking dust out of his golden fur.

"Thank you again, you may go. I will be in my quarters researching the recent findings should you need me. Forever forward," he said. Arden stood and repeated the motto before bounding off to catch up with his friends. As he ran, he began to ponder Arcanine's words.

'Surely the old dog's got a point. I mean, what if the kid really is...?

No, no, you're just being paranoid, Arden. The world doesn't look to be in any danger, right? It would have just called us in that case, heh.

...but really, what if? ...ugh, oy vey. I've said it once, I'll say it again, just... the irony! Humanity fucks the world over, now they're the ones stopping the world from fucking itself over. At least, I hope...'

"Yeah, I hope..." Arden mumbled to himself as he reached the square, absentmindedly waving to his teammates as they stood by the mission board, a handful of requests in Pike's beak.

'Ugh, enough about Arcanine's weird fantasies. More on taking this Sentret to meet this Nickit, I guess.

...the fuck's a Nickit doing down in Basculin Strait, anyways?'