Chapter 8 - Guild Association

"Mmn, Morning Henr-AH!"

The first thing I get the pleasure of feeling in the morning is my head getting tossed onto the rocky floor before even waking up fully. When I lifted my face off the cliff, I was met by an uneasy chikorita and a splitting headache. "Is everything alright?"

"I, uh, may have overreacted." Maple's distressed face turned sheepish as she continued, "It's just, I woke up, and we were, kinda, laying, um, on each other."

My face flushed a bit, but I continued regardless, only feeling a slight annoyance. "So you smacked my face into the cliff?"

"Well, of course I jumped back, and look what happened. We only dozed off while looking out, but you can't expect me to remain calm after realizing we slept…!"

"Well, if nothing else, it explains why I slept so late today." After I had expended all the sarcasm I could muster, I rubbed my temples with my open palms, still fighting back a headache from my abrupt awakening. "Besides, I think you should start trying to get comfortable now. I'm sure there will be longer treks with more need to rest."

"Well, you can't expect it to happen overnight, is all I'm saying."

I stood up to stretch my limbs. "I understand, but remember what our partnership as explorers means."

She sighed. "Yeah. That really was an overreaction, huh? I'll get used to it eventually." I nodded in response. "So, it's about time we move to the guild. Are you ready?" Her ability to steer conversations away from things she didn't want to talk about was always awe-inspiring.

"Ready as ever." With that, we made our final descent into the town. "So we just walk down this hill and we'll be in Agate?"

"Yep! You know, they say the founders of Agate built the town at the foot of the western hills to deter attacks. Everyone knew that Agate's troops had an easier time getting up the hill than the attackers could, so it was never tried. This area really is the best place to start a town."

"The strategy of making your base in a good area… there is an art to that." I nearly lost myself, thinking of the machinations of strategic planning, determining a main city's location for decades. It's possible I had a problem.

I didn't have time to humor that thought before my head hit the dirt.

"Oh geez, are you okay? You need to watch your footing around here. Even if it's clear, it's steep enough for you to trip if you're not paying attention," Maple so astutely explained as she valiantly resisted a laugh and extended a vine to help me up. "That was probably on me. I shouldn't have brought up something to overfixate on, knowing you."

I chuckled, pulling myself up with the vine. "Yeah, I need to stop getting lost in thought. I managed to hurt myself on this leg of the trip."

"Speaking of…" After I was finally up, she gestured down the path we were walking, and I was taken aback. In my stupor, we had gotten much closer than I could've thought. I could almost reach out and touch the town.

The town was nothing like I had seen before, not that it was saying much. The stone brick walls bolstering the natural cliffs, the paved path through the small farms into the residential district in the main part of the town. By all means, I had never seen a monmade area coincide with the nature around it so perfectly. "Woah…"

"This is what I see while you're so wrapped up in whatever the topic of the day is!" She nudged my shoulder a bit.

I waved my hand in response. "Yeah, yeah. C'mon, we're almost there."

As we walked the main streets of Agate Town, we almost lost each other on several occasions. It seems we had picked the time of the morning rush to enter the town, as the street was filled with all sorts of people moving in seemingly random directions. If we had waited outside the town for an hour, we may have gotten to the guild sooner. Maybe the people could be helpful, however.

It took about seven apologies for bumping into people, but eventually we both sat at the bottom of a flight of steps in the middle of town, towards the largest and most central building.

Maple sighed, sitting outside the flow of the main road, lest she get trampled. "Geez, this place has a lot more people than Eris, that's for sure." I nodded in response, still trying to get my breath back as well. "Aaaalright! we're almost there, let's do this!"

I stood as the chikorita just did, ready to climb… so many steps. I steeled myself for the climb for a second and took the first step… it was soon realized that it was my first of maybe ten, so my dread was swiftly quelled. "You know, this looked a lot taller from the hill…"

The circular plateau we reached seemed surprisingly barren. In my inspection, the only things that could be found were the main doors to the guild, a few torches for light, and a suspicious-looking grate on the ground. The torches could have helped if we had come at almost any other time, but alas.

Maple clearly didn't have much luck finding anything else, if her puzzled look was anything to go by. "So… do we just knock on the door?"

I shrugged and advanced toward the door. Once I had passed the centerpoint grate, a distant and otherwise puny voice shouted up from it. "Hey! W-wait! Pokemon detected!" My entire body froze, darting my eyes around, I was about to call out if anyone was there before it continued. "It seems to be… a buizel's footprint! ...Well, I don't know. We've surely had weirder species here before, right? Why don't you just talk to him?" It was only more confusing the more the voice spoke, I was about to try and cut in to ask anything, until a woman's voice pulsed and echoed in my head.

(State your name and purpose here.)

The state of demand nearly put me in shock. It had been a while since I had to communicate like this with Ralts.

(Well? I have good ears, so don't be afraid to just say it.)

My recoil lasted a little longer until I got some semblance of guts and nervously responded, "My name is Henry. I am here to form an exploration team."

"Who are you talking to…?" My partner's concerned voice was drowned out by another.

(An odd name, too. Looking at you, however, you don't seem to be all that bad, so I'll at least let you come in. The rest is up to the commander.)

"W-wait! What does any of that me-"

(There's someone else with you, right? Have them walk onto the grate.)

Getting only questions from that conversation, I moped off the gate. On the bright side, this commander should have answers about the guild. When Maple pensively stepped on the grate, the same small voice came from below. "Pokemon detected! It's a, um… Chikorita's footprint! Chikorita's footprint!"

Following that display, we both waited around in silence for a second until Maple flinched. "M-Maple. To form an exploration team with Henry. We know Team Serenity. Wh… what's an unladen swellow?"

The voice did not seem interested in relenting, as suddenly, it was back in my head, seemingly along with hers.

(Alright, I'll page Team Serenity, wait here.)

Finally, the voice left our heads, and there was some peace again. My partner and I took the chance for brief respite before things got the chance to become more chaotic. I sighed, trying to make nervous conversation to fill the time. "Those two seemed interesting."

She waited a second, before slowly backpedaling off the grate, and then snapping into conversation. "Oh, uh, yeah. It's hard to imagine what goes on if those two are the first line of defense!" We shared a laugh, so I guess I had done my job well enough.

"Who do we know that would want to join the guild?" A set of voices came from behind the front doors of the guild before they sprung to life, slowly pulling themselves open.

"I don't know, but I'm guessing they- oh, crap." The doors were only about halfway open when an Eevee and Braixen quickly emerged and the former continued. "Please don't tell me you're…"

After that reaction, Maple was understandably pensive to answer. "U-um, yeah, we were hoping you could help us get into guild training…"

Eevee looked at the two of us nervously. "You two? All due respect, are you sure you're up for this? I don't know if it's such a good idea…"

"Hey! We can take care of ourselves! We took down that berserk rhydon with Trip and Mai, and we got here alone!"

"I understand that, but our training can be dangerous, especially in the times we live in now, and you're just kids…"

"Eevee, you two are hardly older than us, just please-"

The borderline bickering was interrupted at the same time I got blinded. When the light cleared, Braixen calmly lowered her arm and placed her stick back into her tail. "Now then… Why don't we let the commander decide? I think he's done this long enough to know better than us if these two are ready." She shocked me in a different way. Since when was she the wise one of the team?

"I… yeah, that would be a good idea." The eevee turned her head back to us. "I apologize, please follow." Both teammates turned back and disappeared into the door.

For the inside of a guild, I would have expected more natural light, but as we stood on the ground floor, the only light was that leaking in from the still-closing doorway and from the small torches that loosely lined the stairs up and down. After the entrance was closed again, Braixen corralled our group up the former flight of stairs. "Most guilds build exclusively into the ground, but they decided to use some of the airspace above the plateau for the Guildmaster's office."

I nodded silently, as if anyone could see. A moment after I fell into contemplation about the true state of this area. "How much bigger is this place than I thought?"

"Hah! You'll see if you pass inspection," Braixen replied, giving a major vote of confidence. Once we all reached the top of the stairs, she knocked on the door at the top. After not getting a response, she shouted "Sir! We have the recruit hopefuls!"

"Meowstic told me as much. Please, come in, the door's open!"

Braixen opened the door the voice boomed from, leading us all in and greeting the 'commander' with either a deep nod or a light bow. "Acting guildmaster Furret, these are Henry and Maple, wishing to join the guild."

Acting guildmaster Furret nodded. "Thank you. Also, what have I said before? Please, call me Commander. Even in Guildmaster Vivillon's absence, I still have my station."

"Apologies, Commander." That was the last Braixen said before walking past us, toward the back wall.

The furret called his attention to him and began, pulling a binder from a bookcase near his desk. "So, what is your team?"

"Um… pardon?"

"The Intercontinental Guild Association keeps records of all teams and gives them to all local guilds in case of mid-adventure lodging or transferring, so what team are you guys registered under?"

Eevee cleared her throat from the back of the room. "Commander… They aren't part of a team. They wish to register here."

Commander Furret just looked blankly at us four for a second before snapping the binder shut. "Sorry, of course. So, you two want to join the guild as new trainees? This training will be arduous, bringing you to faraway places and putting you in dangerous missions, especially with a problem we've been having for a bit. Are you prepared to take that risk?"

Maple immediately took the charge. "I accept the risk."

"I see… Do you, Buizel?"

I froze for a second, now realizing I've been mostly silent since we got here. The question directed at me brought me to a standstill. Did I really want to be a part of these risks or did I just go along with it? Looking over at her, Maple still seemed fully stalwart in her belief in me, not turning to face me, even in my silence. I took a deep breath and reaffirmed my own judgement.

"Yes. I accept the risk as well." I tried to match Maple's conviction.

"Very well, but I still need to know if I can trust your abilities. Guild exploration can be especially physically taxing, and we need to know if you two can stand up to the challenge."

"Well if that's what you need, Henry's armed." Maple used her leaf to gesture toward the lance on my back.

"Not as if we needed it," I casually added, "We managed to take down a Berserk without it. Given, we were with two other friends."

Furret's ears perked up. "You what?"

"Well, yeah. We did. The same day they rescued us, we took down a berserk rhydon."

Braixen intervened, "Sir. These are the kids we told you about once we got back from our leave."

"That does explain a lot. That and Team Zeal leaving… I think this might just be the luckiest time for you to have come. Team Serenity, you are dismissed. I have some matters I must discuss with our new recruits, sorry to have interrupted today's mission." My stomach dropped. I didn't think it'd be that quick.

The biped of the two gasped. "Yay! Good luck, you two!"

The eevee, on the other hand, just seemed perturbed. "Very well then, do stay safe, you two."

Once we were alone with him, Commander Furret continued. "As for the next step, here." The commander was digging through a shelf on the far side of the wall when I snapped back into it, producing two badges, and tossing them to us. The badge I caught seemed to depict a simple circle with a smaller filled circle within. The shape had a notch on top and wings to each side. "These are official exploration team badges. They act as licenses to explore, identification for a rescue team, and a necessary tool for rescue. Our resident mechanist can tell you more about it."

When I looked over at Maple, she already had the one given to her proudly pinned on her scarf. I hesitated. Kirli just gave me this and this needle is pretty sharp… Pulling my bag over to my front, I began pinning my badge to the strap.

The furret interrupted me before I could attach the pin. "Ah, that reminds me, I need to give you two something else." Furret scurried to yet another area in the room, how big is this place, anyway? When he returned, he was carrying a bag much like the one I was holding.

"Oh, it's quite alright. I'm good with using my own bag."

"Oh, no, it's not that. It's just that you brought a regular satchel and all teams are required to at least be given a Guild Association-approved official Treasure Bag." Upon closer inspection, it seemed the bag was sewn with a nicer leather than Maple's, and it seemed to have a logo in the same shape as my badge emblazoned onto the side. When I took the bag and tried to open it, the seam wouldn't budge. "Touch your badge to the marking on the side. There's a bit of ether woven into it."

Nodding, I did as I was told, holding the badge up to the leather. The inscribed pattern seemed to glow a bit before fading. A long moment passed before the bag fell open, almost making me drop it. The inside was empty, save for a scrolled-up paper, seemingly made for the side-sewn compartment it was in. It was hard to tell, but this thing seemed much larger on the inside.

"Treasure bags are made with fairy-type ether, which warps the space inside the bag to not only organize the bag itself- to a degree- but also let more space be taken up within. It's hardly noticeable yet, but as you do more jobs and get more Exploration Points, you'll raise up ranks and your bag will become larger!"

"Oh, so that's why it's bound to my badge. Why not just release all the space now?"

"The Guild Association's administration has been on us about giving incentive to do more rescues, so a lot of guilds decided this was the best course of action. I don't see why just helping people and their pay is enough of an incentive for the higher-ups, though. The rescuers didn't seem to mind just having regular bags…" He looked back up at us and visibly snapped back into his head. "Oh, I apologize. I have only been acting guildmaster for about a month, so I'm not used to the internal affairs yet. I shouldn't have vented to trainees like that." It seemed his demeanor just changed before and after his rant.

I transferred all the few items I had to the treasure bag, which still seemed very light in comparison. Fairy magic sure is an oddity. "So, what next?"

"Someone is to show you around the guild. Most of the teams are out, but there's one who can help you. Look for Meowstic. You are dismissed, Team… um…" Furret confusedly looked between us and the binder, still sprawled on his desk. "...Right! Now that you're not a transferring team, you still need a name!"

Of course! A team requires a name, and I hadn't thought of a single one on the way here! I rifled through my ideas trying to come up with one that fits, but I was coming up flat. Not a single name with emotional connection, what was she gonna think?

"Um, what about Team-?"

Maple mercifully interrupted my certainly-embarrassing ramblings. "Team Wishmaker."

"What?"

"Well, to get here was part of my wish, back at the Aether Meteor Shower, and knowing you, it was yours, too." She read my soul perfectly. "I think this is a perfect way to celebrate that! Also, we'll be the shining stars granting wishes to those in need!"

Trying my best to ignore the outburst, I circled back to the proposal. "Like Jirachi's nickname? I like it, let's go with that, then. This team will be known as Team Wishmaker from now on."

"Understood. Quite the interesting name."

Maple stood there beaming with pride. "Yeah! I thought of it last night, looking at the stars on the hill. I dunno if it was something different about them, but it made me think back. I thought it'd be cool to make our team feel connected with it."

"Well, I think you did great!"

"Ah, thanks!" She seemed quite receptive to such a simple compliment on my part.

Commander Furret cleared his throat to regain our attention. "That should be our last order of business. I'll go set up some other things, and ask Meowstic for a tour of the guild. You are dismissed, Team Wishmaker."

'Team Wishmaker'. It felt so odd to be referred to as a single collective. It felt as if Maple and I were bonded together now. We weren't just a couple of friends helping each other out anymore; we were a team.

With that, our team was dismissed, sent out to move to the basement floor. As we walked through the entrance area to get to the second flight of stairs, in the corner of my eye, Maple suddenly stopped. When I turned back to see why, she was smiling.

"You know, when we were up on that hill and I remembered that wish… I think it was because being up there, looking out at the view with you, it just reminded me of sitting at Outlook Tower and just talking. That was the same day as the meteor shower, too."

This confession of sorts really threw me for a loop, I could hardly figure out what I wanted to say. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah…" She responded to my amazingly eloquent question in kind. "I think we've grown a lot since then. I'm… glad that we're partners, Henry."

I nodded, but what she said put me into deep thought. On our way here, we lectured each other nonstop about our partnership and us being teammates, as if we were trying to convince ourselves. While doing that, every time we called each other teammates or partners, it always felt empty. Not this time.

"Yeah, I feel the same way. I'm happy we've become a team."