Chapter 3: Loose Chains
The trail of wagons eventually made their way to a more mountainous, familiar region. Scattered light that spilled from street lamps had eventually given way to the darkness of night, only the occasional ray of moonlight illuminating the surroundings. From her position inside the moving cell, Pan could only make out the outlines of rocks and boulders, the slight incline telling her that they were heading up a trail, presumably toward a mountain. She couldn't tell for certain, as currently she was squished between the comparatively large girth of a Zangoose and Donphan. Although the transport cart was floating above the ground, it shifted erratically due to the one pulling it needing to adjust to the rough terrain, and as a result the Pachirisu had been repeatedly shoved against the sides of the larger pokémon around her.
Despite her size, most of the noise within the cart came from her mouth.
"Oi! Flippin hell, is he drunk up there? I could pull this thing better..." she grumbled underneath her breath. They had been on the move for over an hour and a half, and by that point most of the prisoners had grown some tolerance to the Petrification, able to at least move their mouths. So long as no sharp movements were made, speaking was possible, something that Pan made liberal use of once she figured out how. For the most part, the other prisoners ignored her and chose to stay silent, the mood staunchly pensive, but the Donphan next to her grunted and rolled his eyes.
"Are you really going to complain the entire way, small one?"
"Small? For your information, tubby, I'm considered above average height!" she huffed, raising her voice. The surrounding prisoners flinched, and her ears flattened as the elephant shushed her.
"Arceus above, keep your voice down," he muttered. When there was no sign their jailer had heard them, he continued. "Just be quiet. Focus on saving your strength for the mines."
"If that slimy seal thinks she can ship me off to who knows where, I have a right to say whatever I want about our traveling arrangements."
"I don't think you fully grasp the reality of the situation."
"And you do?"
"Aye," he continued in a grave voice. "It was already hopeless for those of us stuck inside the castle. Being sent to the mines was a punishment for bad behavior, but now we all have the privilege of going." He paused, exhaling a great sigh. "I just don't understand what changed."
Pan thought back to that Riolu with the sword, Sacred Treasure Courtain. She had made no effort to hide the fact that the royals were planning something, and had enough influence to make even Diana cower in fear. Riolu's power had made her shudder, but Pan wondered why she was so insistent that more people be sent to the mines. The situation was suspicious, and reeked of some kind of plot.
She wanted to find out what it was. She also wanted out of this damn cart.
"Listen, you can sulk like that however much you want, but there's no way I'm lifting a paw just to mine some metal, or whatever they want us to do. Besides," with a grunt, she arched her head up to face the Donphan, cringing at the uncomfortable jolt it sent through her system. "Don't you feel a bit daft just sitting there, when there are so many of us locked up? Between all of us, we could figure out a way to bust out of here instead of giving up so easily."
Instead of responding, he let out another deep sigh and turned away from her. She scoffed and reclined back against the steel bars, the cage becoming silent once more.
Some time later, the incline levelled out, and Pan heard a verbal exchange come from the front of the cart. She couldn't hear what was said, but the sound of a moving grate was heard, and the cart lurched forward. The chill of the evening was lessened as they were encompassed in a tunnel, orange light bathing the inside of the cart coming from sturdy lamps hung on wooden posts. Pan scanned her surroundings with rapt attention, noting the guards that would pass by occasionally in the widening tunnel, some of them hauling empty floating carts on the way out.
From ahead, the rhythmic clang of metal on something hard could be heard along with the noisy din of shouting voices. It grew louder as the cart was moved further in, until her ears strained at the clamorous noise around her. With a final jostle the cart stopped suddenly, everyone inside grunting as it was unceremoniously dropped to the ground. Pan felt as if a weight had been lifted, and it took her a while to realize that the hum of energy that ran throughout the cart had ceased, stopping the paralysis effect. She didn't get much time to relish in the free movement of her joints as, a second later, the cage door was opened, the Nidoking that pulled the cart now glaring at them.
"Alright you lot! Step out one at a time to receive your assigned station. I shouldn't have to tell you what will happen if you try anything."
All he received in response were resentful glares, but he seemed satisfied with that. He began to call Pokémon out by their species, roughly pulling them out if they took too long. Pan wondered why they didn't overpower him with sheer numbers alone, but a glance to the side showed that a group of guards lined the entrance to the cart. She pretended not to hear when she was called just to spite the Nidoking, but aquiested when he began beating on the bars, not wanting to start anything quite yet.
She hopped out of the cart, and was able to catch a glimpse of the mines. Her eyes widened, not expecting such a large area. Beneath a wide cavern ceiling, the entire operation spanned the open area of what she presumed to be a hollow point in the mountain. Pokémon pushed minecarts through corridors lined with wooden supports on the side, and in the center was a deep, circular pit. She couldn't see inside of it, but could hear and feel low, rumbling impacts coming from its direction.
She didn't get long to gawk at her surroundings before she was roughly kicked from the back. She threw up a baleful glare at the Nidoking, who merely motioned his head forward. She huffed and shuffled on, the weight of the guards stares heavy on her back. In front of her were two Pokémon, a Leavanny whose face was buried in a clipboard, and a Manky next to a bin filled to bursting with various metal objects.
When Pan came to stand in front of the Leavanny, the grass Pokémon glanced from behind the clipboard and tutted in disdain.
"Well, this one isn't good for much, is she? Much too small..." Before she could let out an angry retort, the Leavanny gestured to the side. "She's not worth a full Petrify collar, so just fit her with chains and we'll have her pick up rocks or something."
The Mankey nodded and fished around in the crate to pull out a pair of cuffed chains. He bent down to affix them around Pan's wrists and ankles, restricting her movement to only being able to lift her paws above her head. Pan clenched her teeth in frustration as she was chained, but her ears perked up at the sight of the key the Mankey pulled out to lock them. Her eyes zeroed in on every detail of the key, committing its ridges to memory before it was placed back in the guard's pocket. She was motioned to go join a group of the other prisoners off to the side who were currently corralled by a pair of guards. The Leavanny shouted orders while walking along.
"That's the last of this group, so take them to site B! Double time, our quota just skyrocketed!"
With that, the guards harassed the prisoners until they were all in a rough single file line, and began to lead them towards one of the offshoot shafts on the left side of the cavern. Pan maneuvered herself so she was right behind the lead Simisear guard, ears strained to listen as the Leavanny walked alongside them. He grumbled to himself while he stared at his clipboard and rubbed his head in frustration.
"Damn, there's no way we can make that Riolu's demands at this rate," he grumbled in a low voice that she had to strain to hear, given all the ambient noise.
"We're supposed to be gettin' more muscle come morning. Townsfolk, soldiers, even those noble sods," offered the Simisage. The Leavanny scoffed in response.
"Nobles? They'll definitely be more trouble than they're worth. No, we'll need to speed things up, and soon. Five thousand tons by the end of the month? Insane."
"We could start usin' explosives? I know we got a stockpile somewhere. Could just blast our way through."
"...Perhaps. I'll leave a request on Tor's desk. I need to drop this report off anyway."
Pan pocketed that exchange away for later as she was led deeper into a mineshaft. High over her head, crystals of various shapes, sizes, and colors hung from wires nailed into the rock walls. They shone with enough light to force her eyes to drift away. They walked parallel to a rail track, larger prisoners with collars affixed to their necks pushing heavy minecarts filled with the crystals. She did her best to remember the turns they made along the path, what she assumed to be a straight shot having turned into a maze of connected passageways illuminated by shining crystals and lamplight. She grit her teeth as she witnessed Pokémon along the way being forced to dig into the ground and walls, overseers watching over them as they used pickaxes, or their own natural means, to dig through the walls.
She couldn't tell how long they shuffled along behind the guards, but at some point the Leavanny broke away from the group to hurry to a cramped wooden platform built into the rock wall. He pulled a switch, and the platform rumbled before it slowly descended beneath the floor. At once, Pan whipped her head around to memorize as much of the surrounding area as she could, taking note that this seemed to be one of the main connecting passageways given its length. If she wanted to find out just what was going on, finding whatever that Leavanny thought was so important was a priority.
Walking down the length of passage, it seemed they had finally reached their destination in the form of another open cavern. Large crystals jutted out from the walls and ceiling, with a gigantic one taking up most of the far end of the wall. The ground was uneven, more akin to the battered terrain of a war ground for how pockmarked it was with holes and grooves, pokémon slaving away inside to mine more crystals. All that could be heard were harsh clanks and the sound of crumbling earth. They were led to the side where there were relatively fewer workers, and the Simisear from before stepped away for a bit before coming back, lugging a crate full of digging tools from the side. As he struggled to haul the heavy equipment, Pan paid rapt attention to the pouch tied around his side, a plan already forming.
"Alright, it's simple! Ugh..." he huffed a bit to catch his breath. "You see anythin' shiny at all, you dig it up, and throw it in one of the carts right there. You do that until we tell you to stop. Try anythin' cheeky, and we won't hesitate to sort you out. Any questions?" he asked with a smarmy grin.
Pan immediately shot her paws up.
"I have to use the loo, can you tell me where it is?" she asked, making sure to put on as sweet of a voice as she could.
The other prisoners glanced down at her in concern, and the Simisage flicked his eyes to the other Ekans guard for a bit before regaining his composure.
"Bathroom breaks are not scheduled for another couple of hours."
"Oh dear, really? I don't think I can wait that long..." she did a little dance for effect. Simisage rolled his eyes and mumbled something to the other guard before addressing her.
"Damn kids...fine, I'll escort you to the bathroom as soon as we get set up here, happy?" his voice strained as he tried to put on his 'kid' voice, clearly not having expected to deal with someone so young.
"Yay! Thank you mister!" Mentally, Pan slapped herself for needing to resort to putting on the act, but outside she let out a juvenile cheer and clapped her paws as much as she could.
The prisoners were handed equipment and, under the watchful eyes of some of the surrounding guards, began the laborious task of excavation. Pan was placed next to a Weavile inside a ditch, a tiny shovel in hand presumably for digging out dirt. She half heartedly dug at the wall, periodically peering over to keep an eye on the Simisage, before her eyes widened at his approach. She tossed the shovel to the side and began building a small pile of rocks from the ground. The Weavile next to her watched on wearily.
"Hey, what are you doing? Didn't you hear what-" she was cut off as the Pachirisu shushed her harshly.
"Quiet down, this is an even better chance than I thought," she whispered, shoving the pile just so, right underneath the ridge of the ditch.
As she expected, the Simisear came right to the edge and hopped down, landing exactly on the precarious pile of rocks she had laid. He yelped as his feet made contact and he slipped on the loose stones, falling forward and landing with a grunt on his side. Pan let out an exaggerated gasp.
"Oh my goodness, mister!" she exclaimed, rushing over to where the exposed pouch was and putting her years of pickpocketing experience to use. She made sure to tug just enough so it seemed like she was trying her best to pull the heavier Pokémon up.
The key was slipped into her tail just as the Simisear pushed himself up. She looked up at him with innocent eyes as he brushed himself off.
"Sonuva...alright kid, follow me. I won't help you if you get lost."
"Yup, I'm right behind you!"
As the monkey climbed up the ditch, Pan sent the bewildered Weavile a wink before she scampered up. The moment she got the opportunity, these chains were coming off, and her first stop would be that lift the Leavanny went down.
She sighed, hoping that time would come soon. She could only do 'cute' for so long.
Deep, cold night fell. On Charmander Hereward's scales, it managed to prick him with the help of the breeze as if they carried icicles. He followed behind the convoy as they made their way to the mines. He knew the way himself, but made sure to stay behind to keep from encountering them early. A light drizzle forced him to stay on the tips of his toes or risk the splashing sound alerting anything nearby. Mud coated his feet as he kept to the side of the trail.
A hole in the mountainside acted as the entrance to the mines. Hereward took stock of what he had to work with: a Luminous and Slumber Orb, then some arrows and thorns. Out front, a Purrloin and Shelgon stood guard. His targets were primarily the Petrify Orbs, the locks would also be problems. He would be spotted for a certainty. He had to move fast and recruit them to free the others at a multiplying pace so they had enough force to fight back.
The guards could be dealt with. From their faces, they were both tired. Hereward ducked down and crossed the muddy road. He came to a rock wall and climbed it. Within a few minutes, he reached his destination: the top of the entrance.
Hereward pulled out the Slumber Orb and dropped down to the ground. He triggered it before they registered the sound. Shelgon and Purrloin slumped on the ground as he turned away and returned the Orb to the bottom of his quiver. From here on out, he wouldn't always have a simple way out.
The sounds of bashing metal and crumbling rock echoed through the tunnel. Hereward couldn't estimate how far in their origin was. He kept quiet for as long as he could. Torchlight arched along the dark surface of the cool, damp walls. Charmander Hereward crouched as he came to the end.
Lady luck granted him another overhead view of the situation. The ceiling opened up into a large vacant cavern, sturdy brown stone alit with torchlight around him. He crept out to a landing with a path that declined into a lower level. At the bottom along the walls, pokemon chomped away at the hard stone with pickaxes and other tools. The situation got complicated.
Some of them were in chains. Hereward had to assume they were made of the same metal used to reject pokemon energy, so they couldn't be broken by moves. It would be possible with sheer force, but he needed to conserve that. He wanted keys to the locks scattered along the string of metal. One or more of the guards had to have it.
Or a plucky, impatient thief. Pan always moved first in chess. If she hadn't gotten herself into trouble, then she successfully obtained some form of spoil by now.
"Hey?" came a voice from behind.
Charamander Hereward didn't hesitate. He stabbed the Slumber Orb at the bottom of his quiver with an arrow, whipped around and shot it from his bow. It burst open and hit a Toucannon behind him. To avoid being seen, he dashed forward and slid down the sheer wall in front of him. His black cloth and hood took the scratches and tears instead of his scales.
Guards raced up the pathway to where he fired the Slumber Orb. Hereward ripped out his lockpicks to get as many of the other prisoners free as he could before they would come for him.
"What in the…"
He kept an eye locked on the upper level as he worked from pokémon to pokémon, the rattle of chains hitting the ground evidence of his quick work.. Pokemon shook themselves free and glanced around wondering what to do next. Meanwhile, he concentrated. He had half a minute before this all would devolve into chaos, and the plan was still coming together in his head.
A sight to the side gave him some relief. The wagons from before sprawled out in a lazy pile underneath the sides of the wall. Petrify Orbs dangled within reasonable reach. They wouldn't be very efficient against trained soldiers, but there weren't any in sight. He ran along the wall behind the backs of the workers.
"Hey," a hushed voice hissed. "Here."
Charmander Hereward turned. A Sceptile gestured for him to come forward towards the wall. The fear in his eyes convinced him to do so. Sceptile blocked their view of him by using his bigger body as a shield, and loomed over the smaller Charmander. Hereward pulled his black cloak over his head.
"I see you're a fellow man of shadows," Sceptile whispered. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm here for a Pachirisu," said Hereward. "Have you seen her?"
"Pachirisu? Aye. Heard word of a little spitfire that arrived not too long ago. Word passed around, she was taken down a lift to a lower level. Guards are everywhere though."
"Have a plan for the guards?" Hereward asked.
"Are you strong?"
"Yes."
"Then yes. Get down."
Hereward wrapped the black cloth over himself and curled up. He poked an eye out to see the Sceptile's play. He turned towards the top of the way that led up and outside.
"Guards!" Sceptile hollered. "I've struck something…! I think I've struck gold!"
Hereward rolled his eyes and smiled. The guards apparently forgot their search for him and ran down the path like slobbering pigs being called for dinner. A Morgrem led the pack. A Litten, Boltund, Grotle, and Nidoqueen followed behind. Hereward retreated his gaze under the cloth and steeled himself. He'd take three.
The mob of footsteps closed in and came to a halt. Hereward tensed.
"Where?" someone demanded.
"Take a look," Sceptile said. "A pile of dirt fell over it, but I'm sure it was gold. Take a look."
The footsteps pushed forward. Hereward moved at the first impact.
Litten stood closest. Hereward grabbed his forehead and bashed it on the ground. Sceptile spun around and kicked Grotle in the chin. Morgrem already sprawled out on the ground, dealt with. Boltund froze up in the pressure. Hereward uppercut Boltund's chin.
Nidoqueen didn't freeze. She tackled Sceptile. He overpowered her and pushed her back. Hereward took a moment to make a plan. She didn't threaten them on her own, and clearly didn't have any combat training worth its salt. Hereward stepped forward as her chest rose and fell.
"What's all this for?" he asked.
Nidoqueen took another breath and ran forward. Hereward built up energy in his chest and spat out Dragonbreath. It struck her in the face and stopped her momentum. She fell back with a thud. Hereward sighed as the impact rumbled through his feet.
"You are strong," Sceptile said.
"Take everyone outside," Hereward said. "Flee to safety. I need to find my friend, and what's going on here."
"I would, but it's too dangerous with Diane and Tor Acuity about. Not to mention Serah…"
"Then stay here. Use those Petrify Orbs to keep them at bay. We'll all leave together."
"I hope so."
Hereward made towards the pile of wagons. Many of the cages hung open, letting him climb up and take two Petrify Orbs for himself. He plonked them at the bottom of his quiver and hopped back down.
Only one path led forward, cut through stone and held up by wooden archways. Hereward approached and noted shining crystals that lit the path. He stayed alert and continued forward.
Footprints weren't left in the dirt, but he identified it as a main hallway, wide enough for multiple of the floating cages to move side by side. Fur, hairs, and other signs of many different species passing through recently littered the ground. As he walked further, a great symphony of clanging metal and rock grew louder. The noise drowned out his footsteps as he neared the end.
The mines opened up. The ceiling stretched high over his head, so tall he could see no light after a certain point. Broad wooden pathways spiraled down a massive pit of dark rock that rang out with the sound of mining tools. On his level, the path circled around and branched off into three other large tunnels that led further into the mountain. At a glance, he saw dozens of pokemon, but he rushed over with his head low to get a better look in the pit. After study, at least a hundred pounded at the rocks. Hereward took note of the positions of the guards. As expected, they all stood idle on each level. There were fewer of them than he figured there would be. He needed to assess their physical leverage.
Charmander Hereward rubbed down the bridge of his nose. Many of them had chains, and others had Orbs, Wands, and other weapons bearing down on their backs. With a deep breath, he tempered the rage he felt at the sight into something more useful, razor sharp focus. He needed a plan. The guards were bound to have keys and such for the restraints. He'd take them out first. He couldn't rely on his Petrify Orbs without the guards being weakened. If they were handling Orbs themselves, they knew how to counter its effects with their energy.
He'd have to be violent for them to be freed.
Hereward pulled out his bow and stabbed his Luminous Orb with an arrow. It'd provide cover and confusion to prevent any hostage takers when he took out the first one. From there, the situation would improve with freed pokemon able to help. He took tabs on the guard for the level below him: a giant of a Seismitoad prowled along the walkway at a brisk pace. He adjusted his position to drop down on him from above.
Things would probably get chaotic fast, but he didn't feel any sort of apprehension. The sight of hundreds of his fellow countrymen in chains lit something within him, and he felt nothing before he leapt off the platform except a clarity of purpose.
He fell for a few seconds before he landed right between the Seismeoad's shoulders. The large toad grunted in confusion, all he got to do before Hereward swiped him across the face with his claws; hard enough to disorientate the guard before he continued. Seismitoad cried out.
"Everyone! Intruder!" he heard from somewhere. He balanced on the back of the writhing guard, and took aim at a point roughly in the center of the wide pit, activating the orb right as he pulled the bowstring.
He let it fly.
The room flashed a hot white, bright enough to be seen even through closed eyes. The moment he let go, Hereward jumped off the Seismitoad and sprinted, hood up and eyes trained on the ground to avoid the flash. He estimated around twenty seconds for anyone who saw that light to be out of the count. More than enough time to turn the tide.
He palmed a lockpick and came up to the first prisoner, a Zangoose. Her eyes blinked rapidly and she shouted in surprise, so before Hereward let her loose, he gave her the only instructions he could think of to help.
"Get up, fight, escape!" he urged into her ear, slipping the tool into her lock and releasing her chains. That was one lockpick, if he kept count correctly in his head, he only had about four more. He couldn't stick around to help her further, and his feet pounded along the wooden walkway that spiraled in a slow descent towards the other prisoners.
He repeated the same message to everyone he freed, and before long, he heard the sounds of a scuffle behind him. A glance showed that, apparently, the prisoners were more eager to fight than he expected. Zangoose had left a Wartortle guard twitching in her wake, and a Mightyena and Sunflora he rescued were engaged with some others. A smirk graced his face, this was better than expected.
Hereward needed to claim the momentum. He ran and jumped down another level to spread the chaos before the guards could think to take hostages or otherwise. Even still bound, other pokemon took leaps of faith using the Luminous Orbs and distracting screams and cries on the top level. A Kadabra and Axew running free demonstrated that they already claimed more keys from the guards. Convinced of their growing success, he slid down to the next level to avoid adding to the stinging sensation on the bottom of his feet.
The third floor down needed help. There were fewer workers, so they lacked the numbers advantage. Some chose not to resist yet, and rightfully so, but the glimmer in their eyes screamed out that they were ready and waiting.
Across the pit, a Lurantis used Leafage. A small twister of leaves glowing with energy soared in his direction. By the time it reached him, it lost all of its speed. Hereward smiled. He gulped down air and pierced straight through it with a Flamethrower. It slammed into the opposing rock wall at virtually the same speed he fired it at. Lurantis tried to run, but the flames caught and tripped him. An Absol nearby took her chance and started to rip and tear for the keys he carried around his waist.
A Shelgon rushed Hereward from the side. It blindsided him, so he only had enough time to brace before it slammed into him. The impact only hurt a bit, but he lost his footing and got knocked back toward the rim of the walkway. He felt his lower body slip over the edge, and he had enough presence of mind to dig his claws into the wood. Only one managed to find purchase, while the rest of him dangled precariously over the pit. He looked down and gulped, there were at least three long levels before the bottom.
Heavy vibrations through the walkway turned his attention back up, and he gritted his teeth as the Shelgon walked towards his vulnerable position. It leered down at him and raised a foot. It slammed on his hand, and Hereward grunted in pain, but managed to hold on. It raised it once more, and Hereward's mind raced as he tried to think of anything else to do, but came up short.
A blur of green entered his vision before Shelgon's foot smashed his claw. Hereward watched as the Sceptile from before landed on the Shelgon's back and placed his hands on the dragon's body. Green energy seeped into Sceptiles arms, and the Shelgon's body went limp as the Giga Drain left it exhausted. Without a word, the Sceptile hopped off the downed dragon and picked up Charmander Hereward. He wiped himself off and breathed in. Adrenaline started to catch up with him.
"...Thanks," he said, voice raised over the clamor of fights all around them.
"I should be thanking you! You caused all this in the span of five minutes?" exclaimed Sceptile, gesturing to their surroundings. Charmander Hereward shrugged.
"I barely did anything, this is the work of all the prisoners here."
"A man of the shadows, and modest. You're a rare breed." The two started to jog together down the walkway, keen to not stay in one place. Hereward nodded at the compliment.
"Weren't you going to stay up top and keep the guards busy?"
"That was the plan, and then I heard all this ruckus behind us. Figured I could leave things to the ones up top, so I came to investigate. Lucky I did, eh?" Sceptile smirked, and Hereward couldn't resist a chuckle. It felt good to have someone like minded. The two fell into a rhythm as they made their way deeper into the pit, prioritizing freeing any prisoners along the way and making sure they didn't get mobbed by guards.
Sceptile led the way as they rushed down, but their progress was blocked by two guards who ran towards them, a Beartic who wielded a long lance, and a Patrat who reeled his arm back to use a Petrify Wand. Sceptile picked up the speed and blitzed the Patrat with a Quick Attack. He kicked Patrat onto his back and moved past to target Beartic, leaving the rest to Hereward. He followed up with a punch to the gut to the Patrat to knock them out.
Beartic thrust forward with his metal spear, but Sceptile dodged to the side and kicked it out of his grip. He grabbed on each of Beartic's arms and held him in place. Hereward stole Patrat's wand and waved it. Beartic seized up as soon as the effect took hold.
Other guards who tried to stop them met the same fate, most often at the hands of escaping prisoners. Soon the number of freed prisoners began to outnumber the guards. Some stayed to fight their way back up the pit, but others saw the two blaze down the side of the pit and decided to join. Hereward found himself leading a group of prisoners without meaning to, but it turned out to be helpful when he reached the very bottom of the pit. They spilled out along the dirt floor, and there were enough of them to outnumber the guards here.
There weren't many, only about five guards, and the bravest among them, a Meowth, stood against Hereward with shaking knees. Hereward put a claw up to steady the angry prisoners and stepped forward.
"You don't want this fight. Lay down your weapons," he called. The guards shared one look with each other before they all dropped whatever weapon they were holding and threw their hands up in surrender. The prisoners wasted no time in detaining them.
"That was some fine work," acknowledged Sceptile as they watched the guards get chained up against the wall. Hereward hummed in acknowledgment, and then brought his gaze up to view the rest of the space. Everywhere he looked, he saw once chained pokemon fight for themselves, resistance against the ones who used to oppress them. A warm feeling took hold of his chest, one that took him a while to put a name to. He felt the atmosphere in the room change from oppression to one of freedom, and he could finally place it.
It was hope.
"So, did you ever find your friend?" Sceptile's voice brought him from his thoughts, and he blinked a bit before he shook his head. His hope sobered a bit when he considered how he still hadn't done what he originally came here for. Sceptile noticed his downtrodden expression, and came over to place a hand on his shoulder.
"Chin up mate, you're closer than you think," offered Sceptile. Hereward raised a brow.
"How do you figure?"
"We're at the bottom now, and right through there is the way to the lowest level." He pointed to a tunnel that Hereward had missed up until now. It led deeper into the wall, and looked to be constructed with actual wood paneling and somewhat nicer light fixtures than just torches.
"If she'd be anywhere, she's probably in there, along with Tor Acuity. The lift goes deeper in, so I doubt they even heard all of this. Didn't see a messenger go down to warn them, either."
Pan was near Tor Acuity? The thought made him rush forward to help her on instinct, but stopped just as fast. He looked back and forth between the tunnel and the rest of the pit. There were still prisoners up there. What if they needed help? His mouth opened and he huffed as he tried to balance the needs of others versus his own.
With a shove towards the tunnel, Sceptile made the choice easier for him.
"Get going, I'll make sure things are alright here and then come to take the fight to Tor himself," he said. He put a hand up when Hereward made to object. "You've done enough, leave the rest to us, Hood."
"You know me?" asked Hereward.
"Not many who don't. Word gets around." Sceptile smirked and crossed his arms. "Glad to see the stories are true."
A genuine smile grew on Hereward's face, and he reached a claw out.
"Can I have your name?"
"Sure. Call me Baxter."
They shook. Once they stepped back, Hereward gave one last wave to Baxter before the two went their own ways. If he knew Pan, she wouldn't sit around.
She just loved to take the worst options..