Chapter 13: Return to Creepy Tunnel
Curled up against Growlithe's warm body, Zorua was finally beginning to get sleepy when she heard the main door creak slowly open and closed. She lay still, listening for footsteps. Whoever it was was quiet; she could hear the occasional creaking floorboard or tick of claws on wood, but not enough to guess who it might be.
Zorua wriggled out from between Growlithe's legs and padded to the library door, making even less noise than the intruder. She poked her head out through the curtain, sighing in relief when she saw Arcanine's familiar outline silhouetted in the moonlight, sitting beside the sandglasses in the center of the room.
"Arcanine?" she whispered.
"Zorua."
"You came back!" she ran to meet him, standing up on her hindlegs and putting her forepaws on his shoulders so that she could reach up to nuzzle her face against his.
Arcanine winced as she leaned against him, pulling his left foreleg back protectively. Now that she was close, Zorua could smell blood; Arcanine's, both fresh and dried, and several other species, dried.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to be so late."
"What happened? Are you okay? You're not in trouble again, are you?"
Arcanine chuckled. "I'm fine. Went to Craggy Coast to think. Took longer than expected."
"I was worried." She sat down, leaning her head against his flank. "Absol was too."
Worried that he wouldn't decide to come back, Arcanine wondered, or worried that he'd gotten himself in trouble? Probably both. He couldn't remember what he'd said when they talked on the hill earlier, but he knew he had been too upset to think clearly. Talking to other Pokémon was difficult enough when he was calm.
He wrapped a foreleg around Zorua, pulling her close; his injured leg. Ordinarily, the dungeon would have been no challenge for him, but he'd been reckless, and his power was only beginning to return. He ignored the pain; pain was the consequence of making poor choices, and he had plenty of experience with making poor choices. Zorua was a good Pokémon, and she deserved a more reliable partner.
Arcanine felt a subtle psychic touch at the edge of his mind. Without much thought, he pushed it away. His ears swiveled around, taking in the sounds of the night; Pokémon breathing and snoring, the shifting of the building, a footstep at the top of the stairs. They still didn't trust him, he thought. He couldn't fault them for that; they were wise to be cautious.
"So, how did thinking go?" Zorua prompted.
"You were right." He couldn't see in the dark, but he imagined Zorua grinning as he said it.
"So you'll come with us in the morning?"
"Yeah." He'd been thinking about this on the way back. "Going to need our bag back. Also, someone who can reach the top of the door."
"Took care of all that, big guy."
"What?"
"Charizard says they don't have your bag any more, but they're giving us supplies and a new one, and Espeon and Umbreon are coming with us."
Even more subtly, the other mind touched his again. It felt familiar. It must be Alakazam, he thought; Alakazam could have been in his mind a week ago after he was captured. He pushed it away again.
"Oh, good." Arcanine wanted to ask for details, but he didn't want to imply that he doubted her. A week and a half ago, she'd been ready to venture into Creepy Tunnel without so much as a light, but since then she'd faced down Team ACT on her own and gotten them recruited for what was probably the single most important job in the world right now. Anyway, Creepy Tunnel was easy; all they really needed was a light.
"Also, want to be an official team…however that works."
There were other things he'd been thinking about on the way back too, but now didn't seem like the time to discuss them; later with Team ACT and the others, who were in a better position to address his concerns.
"Delphox can arrange that in the morning," Absol said, pushing through the curtain, "I'm sorry, I was listening."
"Absol is coming too!" Zorua said, "but, can we go back to bed? We can talk in the morning."
"Wait. Arcanine, you're injured. May I …"
"I'm fine," Arcanine answered reflexively. His wounds weren't serious, and he would be fit to travel by morning. It was difficult to tell in the darkness, but he thought Absol's ears drooped a bit in disappointment. No, he told himself, teamwork. They were going to be exploring Creepy Tunnel together in the morning; they needed to cooperate and trust each other.
"Actually," he corrected himself, "please."
Absol's ears perked back up. She reached out a paw onto his shoulder. At first, nothing happened. Then, her whole body began to glow with a pale, silver light. It flowed out, moving more like fog than light, surrounding the three of them. He felt his wounds growing closed, like a whole day of healing channeled into a few seconds.
There was no finesse to her Moonlight, but Absol was stronger than he had expected. The expression on her face was blissful, almost ecstatic as the light faded away, and then it was dark again. Absol dropped her paw to the floor.
"Thank you," Arcanine said.
"Thank you," Absol answered excitedly, "this is the first time I've gotten it to work without Umbreon's help."
"Growlithe still in there?"
"We talked, earlier," Absol said, "I think it will be okay."
"Besides," Zorua said, "you have just as much right to be here as she does. You're helping, and she's not."
Arcanine shook his head. "Won't risk it, especially in the library. Embarrassing if I have to fight her."
"Where are you going to sleep, then?"
It wasn't just Growlithe that he was avoiding; there were too many Pokémon he didn't know in the manor, too many strange scents, and only one door. He would sleep better away from them.
"Outside. Not that cold. I'll find dinner and sleep by the door."
"Arcanine..." Zorua whined.
"Still be there in the morning. Promise."
"Fine," Zorua sighed, "but just tonight, okay? If Team Mighty isn't here when we get back from Creepy Tunnel, we'll find someplace else for Growlithe to sleep."
A faint body-scent lingered in the courtyard when Arcanine emerged. It seemed strangely familiar, but he couldn't identify what species of Pokémon it belonged to. With the breeze and fresh snow, it wouldn't have lingered for long; someone had been there, he thought, just now while he had been inside.
Was someone following him, Arcanine wondered. If so, why? He wasn't wanted any more; at least, Charizard had seemed confident that Magnezone wouldn't come after him here, and the people of Pokémon Square didn't seem hostile. It could have been an innocent traveler or someone from town, but who would come up here in the middle of the night and leave without even knocking?
He could go back inside, but anyone confident enough to attack him here, in Team ACT's territory, probably could have ambushed him anywhere along his way. He sat beside the door, in the lee of the windward buttress, letting his eyes close, but keeping his ears alert. Perhaps the stranger would return before he fell asleep; perhaps not.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Absol, you should join our team too," Zorua said the next morning. They lay on either side of Growlithe, in no hurry to get up. It would be hours, still, before Alakazam was scheduled to contact Ralts and Braixen in Meadow Town to teleport them.
"That would be fun," Absol agreed, "but there's so much work to do here. This might be the only time I get to explore with you."
"That's okay, you can still be on our team from here. I'm going to put Riolu on the team too, and he'll probably stay in Meadow Town. Also, you can help me keep Arcanine in line."
"Do you really think you'll have trouble with him?"
Zorua shook her head. "No. He's made up his mind. I have an idea, though; we'll have to pick a team leader, right?"
Absol nodded.
"I'm going to be leader, of course. Arcanine doesn't even care what we do, but he'll be more cooperative if he thinks it was his idea..."
They talked for a while, until they heard the door open and Arcanine's footsteps across the lobby. He poked his head cautiously through the curtain.
"Safe in here?"
"She's still asleep."
Arcanine's head withdrew, then reappeared carrying a basket of fruit. He padded across the room and sat down beside them in front of the stove.
"Breakfast from Tyranitar," he explained, "Alakazam is Teleporting a team back from somewhere, then they all want to talk.
"See? You're making friends already," Zorua joked.
Arcanine grunted in reply, but he seemed more relaxed today, she thought.
"Absol's joining our team too," Zorua said, "what's our name going to be?"
Arcanine shrugged. "Haven't thought about it."
They all looked at each other.
"We need a theme," Zorua said, "we could be Team Vision, or Team Snow."
Absol shook her head. "Eventually this will be over, and I'll have to return to Mount Freeze, and you guys will still be a team, right?"
"I guess so." Zorua hadn't thought that far ahead. She hadn't thought past Creepy Tunnel, but she and Arcanine were always going to be a team, weren't they?
"Okay, how about something fierce. We could be Team Claw, or Team Fang. That's applicable to everyone."
"I know a Team Fang," Arcanine said; he thought that had been Electrike's team. Maybe, someday, after they took care of this weather thing and beat Team Magnezone, she would find her teammates again and they could open their shop in Treasure Town.
"Team Claw isn't bad," Absol said.
"Team Arcanine's Harem?" Zorua suggested.
"Like that one," Arcanine said, "awkward if Riolu joins, though."
"Oh, right."
"We could use our initials, like Team ACT," Absol said, "we could be Team..." Absol considered the possible options; they were all bad, even if she included Riolu. "...There aren't any good options, are there?"
"Team Fluffy?" Zorua tried again.
"That's good," Arcanine agreed, "no one will overestimate Team Fluffy. Could be Team Naptime."
Zorua groaned.
"Fluffy is good, or Team Warmth?" Absol suggested.
"That's a good one," Zorua agreed.
Arcanine nodded. "Like it too."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Normally, it's twenty thousand Poké for a badge," Delphox said, "and five thousand a year to maintain your registration. Most teams also buy rescue insurance; you pay as much as you want at the beginning of the year, and if you badge for rescue that year, we guarantee a reward of ten times that amount to the team who rescues you."
Absol, Arcanine, and Zorua all looked at each other.
"I don't think we have any money," Zorua said.
Delphox smiled and reached into her bag, pulling out a shiny new badge. "Under the circumstances, we can't really charge you, can we? Now, who should I put as team leader?"
"Zorua," Arcanine said immediately.
"Arcanine," Zorua and Absol said in unison.
Zorua turned to face him. "Arcanine, you're the strongest and most experienced, and we're going to make you carry the bag; of course you should be leader."
Arcanine shook his head. "Haven't made good decisions so far, have I?"
"You saved me in Haunted Forest. You saved Meadow Town. You got us through Creepy Tunnel."
"Zorua, almost didn't save you in Haunted Forest. Wouldn't have helped Meadow Town either, if you didn't go back."
"Arcanine…"
"We did what I wanted, you and Riolu and Luxray would be dead, and I'd still be hiding in the cave."
Zorua sighed, feigning disappointment, and turned back to Delphox. "Okay, I guess me, then."
"Good," Delphox said, recording it on her clipboard, "now, what's your team name?"
They all looked at each other again. They still hadn't really decided on a name, Zorua thought. "Team Warmth okay with everyone?"
Absol and Arcanine nodded in agreement.
"Oh, and…can we put Riolu on the team too? I know he'll want to join us." Treecko would have wanted to join them too, she thought; the three of them had talked about it sometimes, becoming a team and leaving Meadow Town behind, but even though they had never fit in in Meadow Town, they had all been to comfortable to leave.
Delphox recorded that on her clipboard too. She cupped the badge in her hands and concentrated for a moment, then leaned down and pinned it on Zorua's bag. "Great. Do you all know how these work?"
All three of them shook their heads.
"Basically, it's an Orb," Delphox said, "Break the blue crystal in the center, and it sends a psychic message to this with your location and team identification." Delphox reached into her bag again, and pulled out a crystal about six inches long, set in intricate metal bands. "Don't ask me how it works, but every Federation representative carries one. If you break it on accident, or if you use it and decide you don't need rescue, get to town as soon as possible and let us know, so we can spread the word not to come looking for you."
"Got it," Zorua said.
Team Mighty arrived next. They trouped into the library and stopped, staring at Arcanine in surprise. They must have been the team that Alakazam was Teleporting this morning, Absol thought. Surely they had smelled that he was here, but they had probably expected him to still be a prisoner.
Arcanine turned to face them, his fur bristling. The Mightyenas spread out to either side, growling in unison. Growlithe gave up pretending to be asleep and stood up, turning to growl at Arcanine as well.
"Arcanine!" Zorua scolded.
"Growlithe..." Absol reproached her.
Absol got up and stood between them. Zorua joined her. "Arcanine is helping us now," she said firmly, "no fighting, especially in the library."
Growlithe pointedly avoided looking at Arcanine as she hobbled past him and out into the lobby, followed by the Mightyenas. Arcanine watched them go, still uncertain how to interpret her odd behavior.
"Do you think they'll go back to Team Meanies' base?" Zorua wondered.
Absol shrugged. "We did what we could. It's her choice."
Shortly after Team Mighty had left, Team ACT entered the library, accompanied by Xatu and Team Arcana.
"Delphox tells me that the three of you are now a team," Alakazam began.
Zorua and Absol both nodded.
"We've provided Zorua some supplies. Is there anything else you need?"
Arcanine still hadn't looked through their supplies; it would be a good test for Zorua, he thought, now that she was leader.
"What have you done to prepare?" he asked instead.
"Absol explained most of our work yesterday before you ran off," Alakazam reminded him.
Arcanine shook his head. "You've barely begun solving this. How long to find all the fragments? Learn what they do? Can we survive that long if it keeps getting colder? How much food stored? How long will it last? How much firewood? How will you deal with all the refugees? Probably hundreds of thousands of Pokémon in the wild who don't know what's happening, and when they get cold and hungry and scared enough, they'll head to towns looking for help. What about displaced locals? Some of those houses outside town are barely standing and won't take a significant snow load. The post-and-wattle houses like Aromatisse's won't be practical to heat. What about defense? Start bringing Orrery Fragments here, Pokemon Square is a target; do you know what forces they have?"
The rest of the room stared at him in surprise, and his fear was confirmed. Everyone expected a miracle solution, and none of them had considered the problem of how to keep everyone alive in the meantime.
"We...hadn't really considered all that," Alakazam admitted, "we were expecting a solution before it became necessary."
"We have some food and wood stored, but not nearly enough for a situation like that," Tyranitar said, "it should be spring, and everyone's used their winter stores."
"There are a few large, sturdy building around town," Delphox said, "nothing else as suitable as the manor, but Team Hydro's base, Makuhita Dojo and Kangaskhan Storage would all work well. Ampharos' bar could also be completely enclosed much more easily that building a new structure."
"We could organize a town watch," Zorua said, "there are plenty of Pokémon here. If those Ice-types didn't surprise us in Meadow Town, we could have beaten them."
"Plan the area you'll defend," Arcanine suggested, "Can't watch the whole town all the time, but don't want to be trapped in one building."
Absol looked to Alakazam. "There are a lot of Pokémon in town who want to help, but they don't know how. They need someone to lead them; someone everyone respects."
Everyone else in the room was looking at Alakazam too. He shook his head. "We're just a rescue team. Anyway, this isn't Treasure Town; no one will take orders from anyone."
"You don't need to give orders," Absol said, "just explain what needs to be done and Pokemon will volunteer, just like all the teams who have been helping us."
Alakazam sighed. "Alright; we'll begin working on a plan. Is there anything else?"
"Yes," Arcanine said, "first, don't trust Ralts, and don't want him guiding the Teleport. Second, probably missing one of the discs for the door, unless Bayleef hid it somewhere."
"I don't like Ralts either, but what could he do?" Zorua asked.
"Bring us in in a rock, or a tree, or a hundred meters in the air."
"Ralts is a Federation representative," Delphox objected, "he wouldn't be so unprofessional."
"He kept your message a secret from the whole town," Zorua pointed out, "and he lied to all of you to get rid of Arcanine."
"While I have every confidence in Delphox and Team Victory," Alakazam said, "I think Arcanine's concern about Ralts is reasonable. Zorua, is there another Psychic-type in Meadow Town who could guide us?"
"Braixen," Zorua said immediately, "she was my mother's friend. I know we can trust her."
"Good, we'll have Braixen guide you in," Alakazam said, "Arcanine, you're sure it needs thirteen?"
"No. Were ten planetary orbits, each with twelve slots for discs, and three lunar orbits, one on each of the third, sixth, and seventh, each with four slots at each of the twelve possible positions of their planet. I see two reasonable arrangements; either each orbit gets one disc, for a total of thirteen, presumably representing the positions of all thirteen bodies at some point in time, or one of the planetary orbits gets all twelve, presumably representing which piece is inside."
Arcanine stopped. Everyone else in the room was staring at him with uncomprehending looks on their faces.
Arcanine sighed. Hands would be convenient right now, he thought. "Need a picture. Alakazam, could you draw it from my memory?
"Possibly, but we already have one which may be satisfactory. Delphox?"
Delphox motioned Arcanine over to the table where their last night's research was still layed out. "Charizard and Zorua drew this for us," She pointed to the drawing, "and we found this in Armaldo the Explorer's journal." She pointed to the page Pink had found for them.
The others gathered around as Arcanine studied the latter for a minute or two, trying to remember what the carving in Creepy Tunnel had looked like. As best he could remember, the illustration seemed to match.
He didn't know how he knew, but as he looked at the drawing, the names of the planets came to him "So, we have Sol, Mercury, Venus, Earth and Luna, Mars, Jupiter..." Arcanine named each one, tapping a claw on the page. Something wasn't right, though. Shouldn't there be a gap between Mars and Jupiter? The drawing wasn't to scale, of course, but there was still an artistic consistency to how they were arranged. He named the rest off in his head, ending with Pluto in the orbit he was sure belonged to Neptune.
Beginning from the outermost orbit, Arcanine tried again, this time skipping the fourth orbit. He named them off aloud again, ending up with moons on Earth, Jupiter, and Saturn. That made sense, he thought, as they would have the moons most visible from Earth.
"But," Arcanine concluded, tapping the fourth orbit, "hasn't been a planet here in billions of years; it's just asteroids, now."
Everyone looked even more confused. It seemed like a simple enough explanation, and Arcanine didn't know what he'd done wrong. Then he realized that they didn't have telescopes here, or any of the mathematics necessary to describe orbital motion. They were probably still practicing geocentric astrology, and he might be the only person in the world who understood what the symbols on the door were supposed to be.
"Arcanine," Zorua said, "I don't know anything about astrology, but even I know it doesn't work like that."
Arcanine seemed sure of himself, Absol thought, but his explanation meant nothing to her. Still, she was hesitant to disagree with him directly; what if he got angry and walked out again?
"Anyway," Zorua said, "how are we going to get the discs back from Bayleef?"
Arcanine blew a little puff of fire in answer.
"Arcanine, no. I don't like Bayleef either, but you can't just go around hurting other Pokemon."
For a moment, Zorua thought he would argue with her, then he shrugged.
"Okay," Arcanine said, "you're leader."
"Maybe a letter from Alakazam?" Absol suggested, "explain that Arcanine is helping us now and why we need them?"
"I don't think Bayleef will listen," Zorua said, "but if we can convince enough other Pokémon, maybe he'll cooperate."
"I'll sign it too," Delphox said, "Ralts knows we have Team Victory's support; he won't want to explain to Victini why he's obstructing us."
"Alright," Alakazam said, "anything else?"
Arcanine turned to Absol. "Have an hour. How much astrology can you teach me?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The whole world seemed to turn inside-out as Alakazam's Teleport enveloped them. Zorua's stomach turned and her legs felt unsteady, but she managed to avoid embarrassing herself.
There was still snow on the ground, from the night before they'd brought Arcanine back to Pokemon Square. Zorua recognized their location immediately; they were less than a kilometer from Meadow Town, though the hill to their east blocked their view. Braixen stood in front of them, flanked by Luxray and -
"Riolu!" Zorua squealed in excitement, "You've evolved!"
Ignoring the others, Zorua dashed forward to meet him. Lucario took a step forward and knelt down to catch her in a hug. Zorua licked his face in excitement.
"I'm sorry," Lucario said sheepishly, "I know we talked about evolving together, but I wanted to be stronger to help Luxray…"
"No, this is really exciting! Anyway, I won't be strong enough to evolve for a long time. I'm glad you did."
"Are you going to introduce us to your friends?" Braixen prompted, interrupting their reunion.
Lucario released her, and Zorua took a step back.
"Me and Arcanine and Absol are Team Warmth," Zorua said proudly, "Arcanine, show them!"
Arcanine laughed and lifted their new bag, shiny badge pinned to the front, for everyone to see.
"Don't worry," Zorua whispered to Lucario, "we put you on the roster too."
Lucario grinned and ruffled her head fur.
"And, Umbreon and Espeon are Team Arcana."
The pair of Eeveelutions bowed in unison.
Absol approached, sniffing Lucario and Braixen's outstretched hands and Luxray's muzzle, and allowing herself to be sniffed in turn.
"A p-pleasure to meet all of you," Absol said, "Zorua t-talks ab-bout you a lot. And B-braixen, thank you for h-helping us Teleport."
Arcanine met Lucario and Luxray's eyes, and they shared a smile and a nod.
Luxray was keeping everyone busy, Zorua thought as they walked back to the lodge. A score of Pokemon worked on the stockade, which was now almost a quarter of the way around the town proper, and hundreds of logs were piled up, waiting to be used. There were racks of Berries and Apples drying in the sun, and stakes in the ground which looked like they marked a planned addition to the lodge. Two pairs of guards patrolled the perimeter and nearby hills. Meadow Town was better prepared to survive the cold than Pokemon Square, she thought, and they had a tenth as many people.
Lucario followed her gaze. "Luxray has really inspired everyone," Lucario explained, "and, well, we only got your letter yesterday, but he read it aloud to everyone. Some Pokemon felt that it proved him and Natu right, even though all this was originally just to keep people's minds off the attack."
"And some others think it's a prank, right?"
Lucario hesitated, then nodded. "Zorua, there are some Pokemon here who will believe anything you say is a prank…and other Pokemon who will encourage that view."
"So is Bayleef still giving you trouble?" Zorua asked.
"That's…complicated," Lucario said, "Bayleef himself barely leaves his office. He's not the brightest Pokemon, and I honestly don't think he understands the situation. He has a few supporters, though, who interfere with everything we've tried to do."
"Could get rid of him for you," Arcanine suggested flatly. He expected Zorua to scold him, but she didn't.
"We don't have to hurt him. Arcanine is pretty terrifying when he wants to be; we could chase them off."
"No," Luxray said firmly, "whatever happens, nothing can happen to Bayleef. It would destroy Meadow Town."
"Why?"
Luxray sighed. "Lucario, can you?"
"Zorua, Pokemon in Meadow Town don't like change. Bayleef's family is one of the oldest in town. They've been record-keepers and managed the winter stores, and one of them has been mayor for as long as anyone can remember. Until two weeks ago, Meadow Town was safe and boring and predictable, and Bayleef's family is credited with that stability, even if most of them are incompetent. Luxray and Gurdurr's families are old, too. Gurdurr's family built most of the town, and several of Luxray's ancestors are credited with heroic victories against bandits."
"That's neat," Zorua interrupted, "but why does it matter?"
"I know you never cared much for history, but it's important. Pokemon will follow Luxray as long as they feel threatened because most of them are basically cowards, and they think Luxray will protect them. They all believe that, eventually, life will go back to normal. Bayleef represents normal; threaten Bayleef, you threaten their way of life."
"A rather cynical summary, but yes," Luxray agreed.
"The wall and the sentries," Arcanine said, "not just for defense; constant reminders of danger."
Luxray nodded. "Also, they've gained Gurdurr and the Timburrs' support. The town is so well built that there hasn't been much demand for construction since before Lucario and Zorua hatched."
"You're going to need those stone discs, aren't you?" Lucario asked.
"Yeah."
"I'm pretty sure they're in Bayleef's desk. I don't know how you're going to convince him to give them up. If you try to take them, Pokémon will fight you. Even if they don't agree with Bayleef, they'll side with him over outsiders."
"I'm not -" Zorua began to object.
"You are," Lucario cut her off, "so am I."
There was a fire burning in the fireplace when they got to the common room, and Absol immediately seated herself in front of it. Arcanine sat next to her. Zorua jumped up on the table next to Luxray, while Lucario poured tea for everyone. It smelled like burned Chesto Berries, much stronger and more bitter than the tea Charizard and Aromatisse made in Pokemon Square.
Lucario started another pot of tea and sat down on the bench beside Zorua, one hand idly stroking her back. She leaned into it, curling her tail around his arm. There were a half dozen other Pokémon already in the room, and more locals were trickling in, probably sensing that something interesting was happening. Conspicuously absent were Bayleef, Snivy, and Ralts.
"How much did Alakazam tell you guys?" Zorua asked Luxray and Lucario.
"Just that you needed whatever artifact the Ice-types were searching for."
Zorua sighed. Her letter hadn't been particularly detailed, either. She didn't want to go through the whole story again, especially here, and she knew Absol didn't either, but the Pokemon here deserved to know what was happening, and they would need support against Bayleef. "Absol, can you start?"
Absol repeated her story again, between sips of tea which didn't taste any better than it smelled, but was still satisfyingly warm. Most of the others seemed to be enjoying it, so she didn't complain. After Absol finished, Zorua told the part of her story which the Pokemon of Meadow Town didn't already know. There were considerably more questions and interruptions than when she had told the story in Pokemon Square, and Absol was glad that she had not had to tell it here first.
"So," Zorua concluded, "we need those stone discs we brought back from Creepy Tunnel to open the door and get the Orrery Fragment, so Alakazam can figure out what it does."
For a moment, everyone was silent.
"That's quite a story," Servine said eventually, "almost as good as the time you got Shinx lost in the forest, and convinced her she was in the mystery dungeon, or when you told everyone the Ghost-types kidnapped Chikorita."
"Or when you stole Braixen's orb collection disguised as Timburr," Chikorita added.
Zorua winced. She had done all those things, and a lot more, some of which they probably still didn't know were her fault.
"Yeah," Zorua admitted, "I was a bad Pokémon, but you don't have to take my word, because you can take Arcanine's, or Team ACT's, or Delphox and Team Arcana from the Explorer's Federation."
Arcanine nodded in silent agreement as Espeon withdrew Alakazam's letter from her bag and set it on the table. Half of the population of Meadow Town crowded around to read it for themselves.
Seeing the signatures of the world's third-most-renowned rescue team and the seal of one of the Federation's senior agents next to each other seemed to quiet most of their doubts; even Servine and Chikorita didn't offer any further objections. Most of the Pokémon in the room seemed to be accepting their story, Arcanine thought; enough talking, it was time to act.
Pokemon parted ahead of Arcanine as they made their way to Bayleef's office, Absol, Zorua, and Team Arcana in his wake. He pushed open the door to find Bayleef cowering behind his desk, flanked by Ralts and Snivy. The five of them crowded into the room, and Espeon set the letter down in front of Bayleef.
"The discs," Arcanine demanded flatly, after Bayleef and his companions finished the letter.
"I-I can't," Bayleef stammered.
"Why not?" Arcanine tried to keep his voice calm, resisting the desire to jump across the desk and sink his fangs into the mayor's throat.
"I'm not allowed to."
"Explain."
"My family discovered the chamber generations ago, before they founded Meadow Town; we've kept the discs secret since then so no one else could get in.
"Your ancestors opened the door?" Arcanine asked.
Bayleef nodded.
"What is inside?" Arcanine asked.
"I don't know," Bayleef admitted miserably.
Arcanine was sure that it was the truth. Zorua and Lucario were right; Bayleef wasn't intelligent or clever enough to make a credible opponent.
"But you know how to open the door?"
Bayleef shook his head. "We weren't ever supposed to go in. No one is."
"We know what's inside," Absol said, stepping forward next to Arcanine, "your family was wise to protect it, but now we need to use it."
"The Ice-types will come back for it eventually," Zorua said, "more of them than last time. They need it too." She was bluffing, of course; she had no idea what the Ice-types wanted with it, or how many more there were, but Bayleef couldn't know that, and Ralts couldn't read her.
Bayleef looked past them into the hall. If he was searching for support from the Pokémon out there, Arcanine didn't think that he found it. If it came to a fight, they might still defend their mayor, but they didn't agree with his decisions.
Bayleef's shoulders slumped in defeat. One of his vines reached down to slide open a drawer in his desk, withdrew a bag, and set it down on the desk between them with a rattle of stone on stone.
"Is this all of them?" Arcanine asked. He hoped that Espeon was watching Bayleef's thoughts. Forcing him to answer the question, to make a conscious decision between lying and telling the truth, would make it easier for her to determine his honesty.
"Yes."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
It was evening by the time they set off for Creepy Tunnel, and Absol was secretly terrified that they wouldn't make it by sunset. She wanted to stay the night wrapped in her blanket in front of the fire in the cozy common room of the Lodge, but the others were eager to begin, and she was determined not to begin her first explorations with a real team by making everyone wait on her.
Absol didn't know whether the rest of Team Warmth and Team Arcana sensed her fear or were just excited, but they kept a quick pace. Arcanine carried both Zorua and Lucario with little apparent effort. She walked shoulder to shoulder with Arcanine, and Team Arcana trailed slightly behind.
For a while, they were mostly silent. It was the friendly silence of companions who didn't have much to say rather that the awkward silence of Pokémon who didn't want to speak to each other, but it still made Absol uncomfortable, and her thoughts kept wandering to the coming night and her freezing horn.
"Arcanine, can you tell us about how you got here?" Absol asked, trying to distract herself, "before you met Zorua?"
Arcanine thought for a few seconds, then shook his head. "Will have to tell everyone when we're back to Pokemon Square. Rather only do it once."
He didn't seem to mind her asking, Absol thought. That seemed like a good sign. What else was there that she could ask?
"Zorua said you had dreams about somewhere else. Can you tell me about them?"
Arcanine was silent for a few more seconds before answering. "Yeah. Will try"
Zorua, who had been dozing with Lucario's arms to hold her on Arcanine's back, perked up, and Team Arcana moved a bit closer.
Arcanine looked away, obviously gathering his thoughts, and she waited patiently.
"Mostly, I'm on an island. Sometimes it's a big island with a huge mansion built of stone, sometimes a smaller island, with rooms and tunnels carved into the rock. There are always other Pokémon, sometimes just one or two, sometimes twenty or more. We're friends, or family. Both. Mostly I can't remember them, but I know I loved them. We train together, or we explore, or play, or read, or just talk and sleep."
Arcanine blinked rapidly, holding back tears. Everyone waited silently for him to continue.
"Sometimes there are Humans. They come and hurt us, but I don't know why. We try to fight them, but there are too many, and they have metal machines to fight for them."
"You've seen real Humans?" Absol asked, "not turned into Pokémon?"
Arcanine nodded.
"What are they like?"
He considered for a moment. "Stand upright like Lucario, but tall like Zoroark. Mostly bald, but they wear cloth things that they make to cover most of their bodies. Angry a lot. Weak and die easily, but love to fight. Don't have moves, but they make metal plates to protect themselves, and machines that attack for them."
"They can't all be bad, can they?" Absol asked, "mother said the Human in Team Go-Getters was nice."
Arcanine just shrugged.
These were dreams about the past, Absol was sure, not the sort of prophetic dreams that she might have been able to help him understand. Still, she was determined to keep the conversation going, not only because it was distracting her from being cold, but because the idea of a whole other world somewhere was fascinating. Arcanine already seemed to remember more than Mother said Team Go-Getter's Human remembered. Mother had traveled with Team Go-Getters for less than a year, though, and Arcanine had been here for five.
"You said you explored with them. Were there mystery dungeons there?"
"Don't remember. Don't think so, only because when I got here, didn't know how they worked. There was the island though, and a jungle, and a huge mountain."
"Do you remember any of the Pokemon in your dreams?"
"There's Vaporeon, I think, and…I don't recognize the species, but he's bipedal and tall, with grey fur and big eyes. He's our leader, I think. All the others…hard to remember when I wake."
"You never told me all this, big guy," Zorua complained.
"Sorry. This last week, since the night before they captured me, remembered more than before."
They continued to make small talk as they walked, mostly Absol and Zorua, with the others joining in occasionally. Everyone's spirits seemed high; Absol was even enjoying herself now, despite the cold. They had a job to do and friends to do it with, and it was a welcome change from being trapped in Team ACT's library.
Several times, Arcanine offered to stop and make a fire for her, but Absol declined. She was far more concerned about the fading daylight than the cold. Arcanine assured her that they would reach the tunnel by sunset, but it was going to be close.
Arcanine watched Absol grow more and more skittish as the sky darkened. His pace quickened until Team Arcana were jogging to keep up, and Absol's forelegs kept getting entangled in her blanket. He wanted to carry her, but it would be too awkward to keep her on his back at a run. He needed to find someone to make a saddle when they got back to Pokemon Square, he though. He had some ideas to improve her blanket, too.
Finally, the tunnel entrance was in sight. Absol sprinted toward it, tripping on the corners of her blanket as she ran. Arcanine kept pace, worried that she would go too far and enter the mystery dungeon on accident. Her fear eased as soon as she entered the tunnel and could no longer see the darkening sky overhead. A few meters in, she stopped, not knowing where the dungeon began. Arcanine stayed right beside her the whole way. It was so embarrassing, panicking in front of everyone like a cub. They all ought to laugh, but looking around, all she saw on everyone's faces as she curled up shivering into her blanket was concern.
Zorua wriggled under her blanket and stretched out against her chest, and Arcanine stood behind her. He began to lay down, then paused.
"Ah, may I?" Arcanine asked.
Absol nodded. Arcanine lay down against her back, wrapping a foreleg across her shoulders. Zorua was right; he was warm. Lucario tucked the blanket around her and sat down on Arcanine's other side, leaning against his shoulder.
Arcanine expected Absol's horn to be cold as it pressed against his shoulder, but it wasn't. A physical symptom would have been easier to deal with, he though; they could have had a sock or hood or something made to cover it. If her symptoms were entirely magical or mental, would that help? If they bundled her up, would they get her body temperature too high without her being able to feel it?
Team Arcana curled up together on the other side of the tunnel and began to groom each other. Zorua watched for a while, eyes half-closed. It was obvious that the two of them were more than just siblings. They were fortunate, she thought, to have such a close relationship, and a shared interest.
"We shouldn't waste time," Absol said, "just long enough to get warm. Don't let me go to sleep."
Sleeping seemed like a great idea, but he nodded in agreement. He drew up just enough fire to warm his breath and exhaled across her; the exercise took enough concentration to keep him awake.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Creepy Tunnel wasn't much different this time than it had been last time. Lucario and Espeon both carried Luminous Orbs, and Espeon kept hers near the ceiling where the Beldums had lurked on Team Warmth's previous visit. They encountered several, and dispatched them with little effort.
Neither Espeon nor Umbreon seemed much interested in fighting. They stayed to the rear, allowing Arcanine, Lucario, and Absol to do most of the work; none of them seemed to mind.
Eventually, they saw the tunnel widening into a room ahead, similar to where they had encountered the Metangs before.
"Stay back a bit," Arcanine cautioned the others. He advanced cautiously, the others trailing behind.
Arcanine could hear the crackle of electrical discharges to the left and right as he entered the room. A Klinklang floated to either side; the four interlocking gears of the left Klinklang began to Screech and the right made an awful Metal Sound as they spun to face him. His ears folded back involuntarily. Had he been alone, he would have retreated into the corridor and forced his opponents to come to him; with the group, the open space of the room would work in their favor.
They were too far apart for Heat Wave. Arcanine spun to the left, trusting the others to deal with the Klinklang behind him, and released a Flamethrower as he charged. His target wobbled back, scorched and blackened, but relatively uninjured.
Arcanine's fur stood on end as the Klinklangs began to Charge with energy, bolts of electricity arcing between their Plus and Minus sides and the damp walls and floor of the room. As it finished Charging, Arcanine Protected himself. An incredibly powerful Zap Cannon arced out from the Klinklang's red core, flowing around his shield in a blazing display of light. If it had hit, Arcanine thought, it probably would have knocked him out in one hit.
Absol, Zorua, and Lucario had no time to watch Arcanine's fight. The right Klinklang finished Charging as they entered the room. Espeon's Light Screen formed in front of them as they advanced, sparkling as it caught and diffused stray bolts of electricity. Umbreon's Dark Pulse flashed past them, knocking it back.
The right Klinklang sparked more intensely as it began to Discharge it's stored power. A wave of crackling electricity flowed around them, engulfing the entire side of the cavern. The Light Screen blazed blinding white as it dissipated most of the energy aimed at the five of them.
Even behind Espeon's Light Screen, the blast was incredibly strong. Zorua didn't have time to react. Her legs collapsed as the white-hot electricity flowed agonizingly through her body and the damp floor beneath her paws, and she caught a brief whiff of her own burning fur before the world went dark.
Absol saw Zorua collapse beside her, but there was nothing she could do to help right now. The electricity burned through her body, but she kept going. Lucario was right beside her; they had to knock the Klinklang out before it could Charge again. Even with Espeon's Light Screen, she didn't think she or Lucario could withstand another Discharge.
Arcanine loosed another Flamethrower at his Klinklang at point-blank range. It spun unsteadily, the tips of it's gears glowing slightly red in the dim light. Distracted by the noise of Screech, he didn't dodge quickly enough as it swung back toward him. It's small Gear Ground into the side of Arcanine's muzzle, the sharp edges of the gear tearing away skin and flesh. The large gear tore into the muscle of his shoulder.
Absol's horn Night Slashed into the Klinklang's outer ring as she dashed past, cutting off several of the protruding teeth. It spun to face her, wobbling with each revolution of it's now unbalanced ring. Behind it, she could see Lucario Focusing for a mighty Punch; if she could keep it's attention a moment longer, he would have a clear shot at it's rear.
Absol danced back out of reach as it's Gears Ground toward her. Unexpectedly, she found Umbreon beside her, distracting it to give her a Helping Hand. She lunged forward with another Night Slash. Her horn sliced completely through the Klinklang's outer ring this time, and it clattered to the ground.
Arcanine howled in pain and anger. His jaws snapped out with ExtremeSpeed, closing on the big gear's face as it retreated from it's attack. The momentum of the gear jerked his head around, but he held on. Metal bent under the force of his jaws and the gears ground to a stop as the big gear's bearing broke under the strain.
Lucario's fist slammed into the back of the Klinklang's big gear with a loud clang. It toppled over, gears changing direction spasmodically as they ground againt the rock. Umbreon hit it with another Dark Pulse, and it was still.
"Zorua!" Absol cried, running to where she lay. Her body was covered in welts and burns where the electrical bolts had entered and exited, and the scent of burnt flesh and fur filled the air. Her side rose and fell slowly. She was badly burned, but Absol didn't think that she had suffered any permanent injury. Lucario knelt beside her, and the others gathered around.
"You want to get this one?" Umbreon asked.
Absol nodded. "Let me try. Everyone, come close."
Absol concentrated as the others gathered around. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, dispelling the excitement of the fight. The Moonlight came much more easily this time, surrounding all of them in a hazy silver glow which cast long shadows across the floor and walls before fading back to darkness.
Zorua raised her head and looked around. Everything hurt, and she wanted to be unconscious again.
"Are you okay?" Lucario reached out a hand to her chin and turned her muzzle to face him; their eyes met.
"I don't think I died, but it sure feels like it." Zorua saw the worry on his face and tried to smile.
Lucario leaned forward and pressed his cheek against hers. Absol and Umbreon, on either side of her, began to glow with Moonlight. As the light washed over her, the pain of the burns faded. Her whole skin felt like it was crawling under it's own power as skin and fur regrew.
Lucario's cheek was wet. "Don't ever do that," he whispered, "I don't know what I would do without you."
Lucario's arms wrapped around her neck, and they leaned into each other. Arcanine's muzzle pressed against her back, and Absol leaned down to touch noses with her.
"I love you guys," Zorua said, "I'll try not to, okay?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The room looked almost the same as they had left it a week ago, except that the puddles had dried. Arcanine set the bag down on the floor in front of the door, and Lucario sorted out the discs while Absol and Team Arcana looked around.
"Okay, big guy, what do we do now?" Zorua asked.
Arcanine shrugged. "Thought you had a plan."
Espeon lifted several of the discs and placed them into slots on the door; as before, they fit closely enough to stay in without being difficult to remove, but nothing happened.
"We could just start trying them," Absol suggested, "we're sure to get it eventually."
Arcanine shook his head. "Not before we all die of age, and we haven't that long."
"You had a theory, before," Espeon said.
"Each of the main circles is one of ten planets in Human astrology. Some of the planets have moons like ours. Three are represented here; the smaller circles with four positions. Each planet or moon can only be in one place at a time, so ten planets and three moons is thirteen discs, one of which the Ice-types escaped with. The discs go in slots representing the alignment of the planets and moons at some specific time the past of future."
"That improves our odds a lot, doesn't it?" Zorua asked.
"Yes…but not enough."
"So it's a question of history," Espeon suggested, "what date is important for the artefact?"
"Probably," Arcanine agreed, "but even if we knew the date, and the alignment of the planets in your astrology, I don't know nearly enough to convert them."
"These runes on the discs," Umbreon said, "They're ancient astrology symbols. I've seen them in dungeons and books before. This is Mercury, Saturn, Mars, Venus, and Jupiter..." He slid each one into a pile as he named them. "I don't recognize the others, but they're the same style."
"I've never seen anything like those," Absol said, "Ninetales never used them."
Umbreon shook his head. "No one does, now. These are thousands of years old, or more."
"Is there a rune for Earth?" Arcanine asked.
Umbreon sorted through the runes again. "There is, but it's not here."
It was a suspicious rune to be missing, Arcanine thought; it could have been lost or taken by chance as easily as any other, but if Bayleef was correct about all the discs being present, why would their own planet not have a rune?
The six of them made a thorough search of the room, hoping to find further clues. There were murals carved into each of the four altar-like stone blocks along the sides of the room, depicting Arceus and the Creation Trio and other strange species of Pokémon no one recognized in various scenes of battle and destruction.
Each altar seemed to be trying to tell a story, Arcanine thought, and each one contained a scene of massive destruction; a cometary impact, continental scale vulcanism, a world baked to desert in the rays of a much-too-large sun, a planet shattered by a massive asteroid. The way that the scenes wrapped, he couldn't tell whether each disaster was intended to be the end of its story, or the beginning, but each one filled him with a sense of dread.
None of the others understood what they were looking at, Arcanine thought. They saw the destruction, but they didn't have the necessary context to understand it's scale; the first three were global extinction events, and the fourth...could it be the planet depicted on the door between Mars and Jupiter? If so, and if the murals had been made at the same time as the door, Arcanine suspected they were very old indeed.
"You okay, big guy?" Zorua interrupted his musing.
"Yeah. Sorry. Find anything?"
Zorua shook her head. "And we're still missing one. Couldn't we just have one made? With the Earth symbol? There must be someone in Pokemon Square who carves stone."
"Doesn't appear to be any mechanical interaction when the stone is inserted; it's not pushing a button or something. Assumed the stones were enchanted," Arcanine said.
Lucario picked up a disc and examined it. "They're very, very old, but I don't feel any active magic. Espeon?"
Espeon shook her head.
"Well, if we can make one, why not make a whole bunch and fill all the holes at once?"
Everyone else stared.
Arcanine laughed. "Actually, why not? Might work."
"Or we could just hire an Excadrill."
"An Excadrill?" Absol wondered.
"Yeah. To drill through this stupid door."
"Zorua," Umbreon objected, "that door is thousands of years old; we can't just destroy it."
"We won't care how old it is if we're all dead," Zorua countered.
"If it's magically protected, we may damage the mechanism without getting through the door," Espeon said.
"This part of the dungeon is stable; there's still drag marks on the floor from Arcanine hauling the Ice-types out. Couldn't we just go through the wall?"
"Don't understand enough about dungeons to guess whether that could work, "Arcanine said, "but think we should consider it."
"Espeon, Lucario, can you get any sense for what's inside or beyond the door?" Absol asked.
Espeon shook her head.
"There's something powerful in there," Lucario said, "but I haven't any idea what it is."
The six of them talked for a while longer, but they weren't making any further progress. It had been after sunset when they entered, Zorua though; it had to be well after midnight now. She was tired, and they were all getting grumpy. When she suggested continuing in the morning, no one objected.
Arcanine lay down, and Zorua snuggled into his mane, just like she'd done back at the manor. Absol was a bit jealous; it looked like such a warm spot. She hesitated a moment, then lay down beside them. When Arcanine didn't seem to mind, she slid closer, then closer again, until her back was touching his side. Arcanine shifted his weight, leaning into her.
Lucario tucked Absol's blanket around her and sat between her head and Arcanine's shoulder, putting one arm around each of them and leaning back against Arcanine. Before long, Zorua and Absol were asleep. Arcanine kept himself awake a while, trying to remember how, and more importantly from whom, he had learned about Human astrology. He could feel Lucario fidgeting occasionally beside him.
"Arcanine?" Lucario said quietly.
"Hmm?"
"You and Zorua mated the night before you were captured?"
"Yeah."
"Good."
They were both silent for a minute or two.
"She's changed since she met you."
"Hmm?"
"She's always been a smart Pokemon, but she never thinks things through. How much has she told you about Meadow Town?"
"Some stories." Arcanine considered for a moment. "Not much, really."
"Zorua and her mother lived outside town for nearly a decade without anyone knowing who they were. They didn't socialize much, and they didn't battle anyone. I think she must have been hiding from something, but I don't think even Zorua knew what. When we were cubs, everyone wanted to battle everyone, of course. Zorua would hide behind me because I was strong enough to make the others leave her alone. I didn't understand why. At first I thought she was a coward, but she would go anywhere and explore anything; except Haunted Forest, none of us went there.
"She always liked pranks and practical jokes. before her mother disappeared, it was mostly innocent. After that, though, she started to get mean; stealing things, tricking Pokemon into fighting. She stopped trying to hide who she was after she moved into the Lodge, and before long, she was being blamed for everything that went wrong. We've always been good friends, but I felt like I had to be her father as well...it was uncomfortable for both of us. This last month or so, it's like she's finally decided to grow up."
Arcanine didn't know how to answer, so he didn't, just lay his head across Lucario's lap. They were both silent for a while, until Arcanine remembered something else he'd been intending to ask the Fighting-type.
"Lodge in Meadow Town, when you told me not to hit Froslass; why?"
"She used a Ghost-types move, Destiny Bond. If you'd hit her, it would have knocked you both out."
"Thank you."
Lucario didn't answer either. His fingers wrapped around Arcanine's ears and dug into the soft spots at the back. It felt wonderful, Arcanine thought. Before long, they were both asleep.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Far above treeline and higher than any of the surrounding peaks, the peak of Mount Freeze gave them an unobstructed view of the night sky in all directions. The bitter wind whipped around them, chilling her even through her thick winter coat and spraying her face with stinging crystals of ice. Ninetales, beside her, seemed unaffected, and she attempted to mimic his stoic demeanor.
The sky was clear, and the stars seemed impossibly bright and close and numerous tonight. She searched for familiar constellations to orient herself, but everything seemed alien. Eventually, she found a familiar shape; if she looked only at the brighter stars, that could be Temporal Tower, but there was a star missing at the base. Above it, the Polestar. Arceus' Spurs should have been beside it, and Mew's Tail over there, but she couldn't find them.
"See those two bright stars together, and the dimmer star below?" Ninetales asked, pointing. His voice was deeper than she remembered.
Absol searched for a moment, then nodded. Though he had not yet looked at her, Ninetales seemed to sense her response.
"In your time, those two stars are so close that they appear as one. Follow the curve of the tail to that bright one to the left, and the dim one below it."
Ninetales paw traced out the curve. Now that she knew exactly where to look, Absol could see the rest of the constellation.
"Now, what planet is that below the base of Mew's Tail?"
It's reddish tint hinted at Mars, but she knew that was impossible; Mars never crossed there this time of year. Ninetales nodded, and she knew that it was.
"Where...when... are we?"
"A memory of a very long time ago. I'm afraid I don't know how to say it in terms you would understand."
"A hundred years?" Absol tried, "a thousand?"
Ninetales shook his head. "If it were a lifetime ago, a thousand years would be the blink of an eye."
Absol shivered. His voice wasn't unfriendly, but there was something dark and cold and utterly alien in it.
The pair of them didn't move, but the night sky rotated around them as Ninetales showed her the rest of the planets with which she was familiar; Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn, Luna, and the major constellations. Most of them were so different here that she would never have found them herself.
"Remember," Ninetales said, "I may not be able to show you again."
"Wait! What about the other circles? How do they fit on the door?"
"I'm sorry, little one. I don't know." He turned to face her finally. His eyes were not Ninetales' red, but a glowing, pupil-less cyan.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Absol awoke suddenly. In an instant she was on her feet, certain that something was wrong. In the gentle yellow light of the sun orb, the rest of the party appeared to be trapped in nightmares.
Zorua was curled up tightly with her face tucked under her tail. Her whole body shook, and she made choking noises as if she were crying. Lucario jerked and flailed, kicking the floor and hitting his elbows and head against Arcanine's side. Arcanine whimpered pitifully. His legs were curled up under himself, and his jaws were clenched. Espeon and Umbreon were still curled together, clinging tightly to each other.
"Arcanine!" Absol shouted, shaking him with both forepaws on his shoulder. There was no response. She leaned over and bit his ear, hard, but he didn't move. Absol felt herself beginning to panic. She didn't know what to do.
The bag; Team ACT had give them a Chesto Berry, hadn't they? Absol picked it up and shook the contents out on the floor; there was only one. She needed to get it down someone's throat without choking them, but how, and who? Espeon knew Heal Bell; she could wake the others.
Absol chewed the Berry as she rolled Espeon onto her back, trying to swallow as little of th juice as possible. She sat on Espeon's chest to keep her still and braced her head with one forepaw while she forced the claws on her other forepaw between Espeon's teeth and pried her jaws open.
Absol's claws left bloody gouges in Espeon's lips and gums, but that wasn't important now. She pushed her teeth between Espeon's and spat the chewed Berry into her mouth, then pushed her jaws closed and licked her lips and throat until she swallowed.
At first, nothing happened. Quite a lot of juice had dribbled out of the corners of Espeon's mouth, and Absol didn't know whether she'd gotten enough in. It had to be enough, because they didn't have any more Chesto berries, and she didn't know what else to do.
Espeon stopped twitching, groaned, and opened her eyes, looking up at Absol in confusion.
"Espeon!" Absol cried in relief, "you're awake!"
"Wha' happ'nd?" Espeon slurred.
"I can't wake anyone else. Can you use Heal Bell?"
Espeon wobbled to her feet and looked around. She licked her lips, then wiped a paw across her mouth; it came away smeared with blood and juice.
"Espeon, can you please use Heal Bell?" Absol tried again.
Still dazed, Espeon bent down to nudge her brother. "Umbry?"
Espeon wasn't listening to her, Absol though; she was still half-asleep. She reached out her forepaws, pulled Espeon around to face her, and bent down so that they were eye to eye, noses touching. "Espeon. Heal Bell."
Finally, Espeon seemed to hear her. She sat down and closed her eyes in concentration for several seconds, then chirped out a wavering Heal Bell.
The others woke slowly like Espeon had, groaning and looking around in confusion. Absol's Moonlight and another, much more confident Heal Bell from Espeon helped them along. Everyone looked awful, Absol thought; why had she had a vision while all of the others had nightmares? It couldn't be a natural occurrence. Maybe it was something in the magic of the room, or the artefact, but then why hadn't Zorua, Arcanine, and Lucario experienced it before?
Absol explained the situation briefly, and apologized to Espeon and Arcanine.
"You probably saved our lives," Espeon said, "that was awful. Let's not sleep down here again."
"Do you still remember the dream?" Arcanine asked.
Absol nodded. Despite the excitement, the details were still fresh in her mind, as if she had really been there instead of dreaming it.
"Charizard gave us paper and pencils?" Arcanine asked.
"Yeah, so we could send a letter back," Zorua confirmed.
"Absol, think you should write down as much as you can with Lucario or Espeon before you forget details. Must be someone somewhere who can interpret it for us."
"I don't like this place any more, big guy," Zorua said to Arcanine, "can we head back?"
"You're leader," Arcanine reminded her, "but I think it's a good idea."
"Too bad it was a waste of time," Zorua lamented.
"Not at all," Absol said, "now we have a plan; several plans, really. We're going to have another disc made, or 252 more, we're going to find someone who can tunnel through the wall, and we're going to find someone who can translate Human astrology. If the Legendaries can bring Pokemon and Humans between worlds, someone must know about it."
"Absol is right," Umbreon agreed, "there's nothing more we can learn here now. We need Pokémon Square's resources."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Zorua walked this time, leading them a different way back. It didn't take Lucario long to figure out where she was taking them. He walked beside her, silent, as tough and stoic as he'd always been. What was he thinking, Zorua wondered; did he think about Treecko every day too? It had only been two weeks since the attack on Meadow Town, but so much had changed for both of them since then that it seemed like years had passed.
Arcanine, Absol, Umbreon, and Espeon were talking behind them; the continuation of Absol's astrology lesson from the previous day, interspersed with Team Arcana's speculation about the dungeon and questions about Humans. Arcanine didn't seem to know much more than he'd shared before. Ordinarily she would have joined in, but right now, she was enjoying Lucario's company.
Zorua brushed against Lucario's leg as they walked. He was too tall, now, to conveniently scratch her ears like he would have before, but that was okay; she knew he was thinking the same thing.
At the river, Zorua turned off the main trail to follow the shore. Two huge old trees hung over a bend in the river, surrounded by a half-ring of the same ancient stones which dotted the meadow in piles around town. Zorua and Lucario both paused as they passed between the stones. There was something special about the place. It wasn't just her imagination; Riolu had told her years ago that he could feel the lingering presence of some ancient magical aura. On the shore of the river, at what would have been the center of the circle if it were whole, was a small cairn of much more recent construction.
The others' conversation stopped as they passed between the stones. She looked back and saw that Arcanine recognized where they were; he padded over to join them at the cairn. Absol and Team Arcana hung back, sensing that something was happening, but unsure what it was. Zorua leaned against Lucario's leg. He sat down beside her, pulling her face into his chest, and Arcanine's big paws wrapped around both of them.
It wasn't fair, Zorua thought. Why Treecko? He had been such a friendly, hard-working Pokémon, always helpful even if he knew he would never really be accepted like Bayleef or Luxray or Gurdurr's families. There were dozens of crates of Berries and Apples in the basement of the Lodge that he had helped pick and slice and dry and pack, but would never get to help eat. They were never again going to huddle under a blanket in front of the fire to tell stories through the long winter nights, or lose battling Riolu two to one, or make a game of who could fill a basket of berries the fastest.
Zorua let go of all her self-control and sobbed into Lucario's fur, and she could feel by his breathing that he was crying too. Arcanine held them both silently, and she wondered what he was thinking; though he'd never known Treecko, she was pretty sure he knew how it felt to lose friends. Absol joined them too, and even Team Arcana, even if they didn't know what she was mourning, and Zorua wished Treecko could be there to see them all.
Zorua woke to find herself being lifted onto Arcanine's back in Lucario's arms. She really should get down and walk, she thought. It wasn't fair to make him do all the work, especially if she was going to be leader. She was still exhausted from the night before, and she was so comfortable that she dozed the rest of the way back to Meadow Town. In her dreams, Treecko joined them sitting together in front of the cairn.