Book 2 Chapter 1: Mount Mistral

#There are more than five thousand pieces here,# Mewtwo said, #and I suspect that every one of them is unique.#

The courtyard was cluttered with parts. They had begun by laying out the pieces based on the order in which they had been packed in the chamber in Creepy Tunnel, but had quickly realized that it had no relationship to how they would be assembled. Now they were laying them out based on size and apparent function.

They had spent most of their first day back clearing the courtyard of snow to give themselves space to work. The gears and bearings were arrayed in rows on one side of the manor, and the struts which ought to make up the gantries to support each planet and moon would make several rings around the inside of the courtyard wall.

"At least it should only go together one way," Arcanine said.

There were no bolts or screws, or their legendary equivalents; grooved holes and studs on each piece of the gantry appeared designed to slide smoothly together. They had already found a few which seemed intended for each other.

#That's true,# Mewtwo agreed, #I don't think assembly will be difficult. It's learning to use it that I'm worried about. There's nothing here that looks like controls, or a drive mechanism.#

"Has Team Arcana made any progress?"

Mewtwo shook his head. #Not on that question.#

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ampharos brought lunch for everyone that afternoon. There were so many Pokémon working and living in and around the manor now that it took four Pokémon to carry all the steaming trays of Berries and Apples up from his bar. Tyranitar roared an announcement. As they set up in the lobby, Pokémon trickled in from the library and courtyard to eat.

Absol and Zorua waited for Arcanine as the others served themselves, but by the time everyone else had begun eating, he hadn't arrived.

"Do you think he didn't hear?" Absol suggested.

"He heard," Zorua said, "everyone else from outside is here. He probably smelled, too."

"He's avoiding Growlithe, isn't he."

Zorua nodded. "Probably."

Growlithe had come into heat two days ago, just before Arcanine, Mewtwo, and the others returned with the Orrery Fragment, and she was even more grumpy and aggressive than usual. It wasn't just Arcanine avoiding her now; the rest of Team Mighty were gathered around her, but all of the other male Field-group Pokémon gave them a wide berth.

"Why did she have to pick now," Zorua grumbled, "Arcanine just got back and we're all stuck in the manor with her, plus we're supposed to be saving food, plus if she gets fertilized now, the egg will hatch in the winter."

"Zorua," Absol chided, "I don't think she has any control."

"I know," Zorua agreed, "I think her medicine messed up her cycle. But it's still annoying.

Absol flicked her ears dismissively. "There's nothing we can do. Shall we go eat with Arcanine outside?"

"Yeah!" Zorua grinned. "If you don't mind the cold."

"It's not so bad today," Absol said, "Mewtwo, would you like to join us?"

Arcanine's face lit up when the three of them arrived with food. He set down the metal rod he has carrying and came to sit with them in the shelter of several of the larger Berry bushes

"Smells great," Arcanine said, "thank you."

Just because they were trying to be conservative with food now didn't mean that they couldn't enjoy it, Absol thought. Ampharos was a wonderful cook, and everyone licked their plates clean.

"Arcanine," Zorua said once they had finished, "we can't let Growlithe keep chasing you out. What are we going to do?"

Arcanine sighed. "Nothing."

"Why not?"

"Some battles you win by not fighting."

Zorua looked away, obviously unsatisfied. She licked her plate a few more times, then turned back.

"I don't understand why she hates you so much, though."

Arcanine shook his head. "Don't think she does."

"I don't think so either," Absol said, "but why does she treat you like that?"

"Because she can. Proud Pokémon, and she feels helpless. Something she can control."

Zorua looked doubtful. "But why you?

"I'm the strongest, except Mewtwo, who could just hold her with Psychic. She can claim I'm a bandit. Zorua, I fight back, proves I'm a bully and a bad Pokémon, like she says. What she wants."

"Oh." Zorua considered for a moment. "I guess that makes sense, kind of, but what do we do about it?"

Arcanine sighed. "Just keep being nice to her. Until she wants to be helped, all we can do."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

For the first time since Arcanine had arrived in Pokémon Square, there was nothing that required Team Warmth's immediate attention. Without hands, there wasn't much that he, Zorua, or Absol could do to help assemble the Orrery. They wouldn't be returning to Temple Ruins or attempting Destiny Tower until they were certain that Teams Charm, Hydro, Dragon, and Flighty were fully recovered from dungeon sickness. The other teams in Pokémon Square ought to be able to handle the other dungeons Grey and Team Arcana had found. There were enough other experienced Pokémon to defend the town and the Orrery, and Tyranitar would manage the watch.

Arcanine and Mewtwo sat together on the courtyard wall, where they had first spoken in this world. Below, the dozen Pokémon helping them set out the last few parts before they stopped for the night. Mewtwo already knew what he wanted, Arcanine thought, but was going to make him say it.

"Mewtwo, I'm going back to Treasure Town."

Mewtwo's tail twitched. He raised an eyebrow, but didn't answer.

"Don't want to fight the whole town," Arcanine continued, "help me do it quickly?"

Mewtwo still didn't answer immediately. Arcanine waited.

#What is your goal?# Mewtwo eventually asked.

"Free Electrike and the others," Arcanine said, "and kill Magnezone and his team as a deterrent.

#Then I can't help you,# Mewtwo said, #I'm sorry.#

"Why not?"

#You remember when we began experimenting with Human governments back on Cinnabar?# Mewtwo asked.

Arcanine considered for a moment, then shrugged. "Vaguely." He didn't see how that was relevant.

#I know you remember how it ended.#

"Yes." Arcanine glanced down involuntarily and shuddered, remembering Sandslash's claws carving into his chest.

Mewtwo leaned back, staring up at the sky. Arcanine's gaze followed Mewtwo's upward. The sky was clear, and the western horizon stained orange by the setting sun. It would be a cold night, he though idly.

#Mew warned us when we began that it wouldn't work; that we would turn on each other like Humans,# Mewtwo said, #we thought we knew better. I thought I knew better.#

"And she was right."

#Of course she was,# Mewtwo continued, #but that's not the important part.#

He turned to look at Mewtwo. "What do you mean?"

#Arcanine, if Mew had come back with an army to try to force us to stop, what would have happened?#

"Would have fought," Arcanine said immediately.

Mewtwo nodded slowly, and motioned for him to continue.

"Would have fought, even if we couldn't win, because making our own decision was more important than making the right decision."

#Yes.# Mewtwo nodded. #And afterward?#

"...would have hated her for interfering. No matter who won. Mewtwo, are you saying we can't interfere in Treasure Town?"

#No,# Mewtwo said, #I'm saying I can't interfere. I'm an outsider there, like Mew was on Cinnabar. I could help you free innocent Pokémon, but I can't take away their right to choose, no matter how much I know that they've chosen wrongly. You, on the other hand, are one of them.#

Arcanine opened his mouth to disagree, but Mewtwo held up a hand.

#Magnezone went beyond any possible justification of self defense pursuing you. That makes you a citizen of Treasure Town, whether you like it or not, and you have as much right to judge Magnezone as anyone else.#

Mewtwo waited silently while he considered. He could see Mewtwo's logic, even if he wasn't sure that he agreed with it. If Mewtwo said he couldn't interfere, then he wouldn't; even if they were captured or killed. He was confident that they could do it without Mewtwo's help, but he was risking his own team, and Razor Wind, and anyone else who joined them. They would be swift and brutal, and by the time the Guild arrived, the fight would be over. Team Razor Wind would understand. Zorua and Absol would accept the necessity of their actions after talking with the prisoners.

"Two week round trip if we walk," Arcanine said, "more if we bring prisoners back with us. Help us get there?"

#I don't see why I can't guide you in, safely outside town,# Mewtwo said, #if you can find someone here willing to Teleport you.#

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Mewtwo, Delphox, Team ACT, Team Arcana, Team Easy, and the rest of his team were all in the library that evening when Arcanine finally came in from working in the courtyard.

"Can't wait any longer," Arcanine said, "going back to Treasure Town."

Everyone stopped what they were doing. Everyone looked around at each other. No one answered.

"Alakazam, will you Teleport us?"

Alakazam shook his head. "We can't be involved. We won't risk a conflict with Treasure Town, particularly now."

"Going either way. Help me do it quickly."

Alakazam didn't answer. His face was unreadable. He wasn't dumb, Arcanine though; none of them were. Even if they were willing to take bounties from Magnezone, they all had to have some idea of what was happening in Treasure Town.

"Helped you find the Orrery, didn't I?" Arcanine said, "even after you attacked me. Still helping. All I'll ever ask in return; help me free them."

Alakazam looked to Charizard and Tyranitar. Charizard hesitated, then shook his head. Tyranitar nodded slowly. He looked at Mewtwo; their gazes locked for a handful of seconds. Something passed between the two of them, but Arcanine couldn't guess what it was.

"Alright," Alakazam said finally, "there and back, half an hour outside town. I'll send Xatu to receive you, if he's willing. But there's one more thing we need from you first."

Arcanine tilted his head to the side, inviting Alakazam to continue.

"We still don't know whether we can open any of the other Orrery Fragment chambers, or how large the other spheres will be. Take your team to Mount Mistral while Xatu flies to Treasure Town; the three of you should have little difficulty. Delphox will arrange to have a wagon and team from Obsidian Village meet you there."

"That's reasonable," Arcanine agreed, "Zorua?"

"Huh?"

"You're team leader," Arcanine reminded her, "it's your choice."

"We'll do Mount Mistral," Zorua agreed immediately. She hesitated before continuing. "Arcanine, this isn't just for revenge, right? I mean, we're really, honestly going because innocent Pokémon need help?"

"Yes," Arcanine said, "Zorua, I'd fight Magnezone for revenge, but not now, and I'd go alone."

"Okay, big guy," Zorua said, "I trust you. I'll help."

"So will I," Absol agreed, "I trust you, and I trust Team Razor Wind too."

"Then it's settled," Alakazam said, "Arcanine, don't make me regret this."

Arcanine bowed his head in acceptance. It was another delay, but still, it was more help than he'd really expected. Besides, by the time they returned from Mount Mistral, the Mightyenas would have Growlithe out of heat.

They all talked for a while, about Team Arcana's translation, and their supplies, and the other dungeons. Arcanine didn't have much to add. He dozed in front of the stove, enjoying the warmth on his aching back.

"There's something I've been wondering," Absol said, "Rayquaza helped with the meteor incident, and of course there were lots of Legendaries involved in the Time Gears crisis. This is just as important, but besides Darkrai in my dream, we haven't seen any of them."

"I've been thinking the same thing," Alakazam agreed, "we were unable to locate Darkrai or Kyurem, and Team Poképals was unable to contact Dialga or Palkia, despite having worked closely with them before."

"Yeah," Zorua agreed, "this is Palkia's job, right?"

No one answerd for a few seconds, then Mewtwo spoke up.

#I think I can address this.# Mewtwo raised his mug and took a slow sip of tea before continuing. #You have to understand that Legendaries aren't like us. Some of them, Arceus and his children, Mew, Darkrai, Cressellia, Celebi, they're six or seven billion years old, maybe more. They don't age. They can spend decades or centuries in their own realms between visits to our world.#

"But this is important," Zorua insisted, "don't they care?"

#Say you live in a hut in a field,# Mewtwo said, #each spring, thousands of wildflowers bloom in the field; they're beautiful. One day you come home, and find that a whole herd of Bouffalant have trampled through your field, and eaten or trampled most of your flowers. How do you feel?#

"Mad," Zorua said immediately, "they could have been more careful. Mom probably wanted some of them for potions, too."

Mewtwo smiled and raised his eyebrows. #How mad?#

"Well, not that mad, I guess," Zorua hedged, "if it's a whole herd, I suppose they can't help stepping on stuff. Anyway, they'll grow back next year."

#The older Legendaries feel the same about us, but that day they're gone might be a lifetime. We're so ephemeral that they don't really see us as individuals; if most of us died, well, they'd check back in a few millenia to see whether the survivors had repopulated. If not, they can always make more. Maybe they'll try something different next time. If the murals in Creepy Tunnel are accurate, and I believe they are, most of the Pokémon species alive today are at least the fourth batch.#

That shocked everyone into silence. Everyone knew that the ruins scattered around the world belonged to some previous civilization, and that most of the legendaries appeared only rarely. None of them had ever really considered why, Arcanine thought.

"Rayquaza did destroy the meteor," Absol said, "I know it did; Mother watched it. She spoke to it."

#Of course,# Mewtwo said, #the Legendaries are real. They do act, sometimes. Mew sent me. But they can't be relied upon to intervene. How long did Ninetales and your mother see signs before Team Go-Getters came to Mount Freeze?#

"A few months," Absol answered.

#But when they found Rayquaza, it didn't know?#

"Well, no." Absol shook her head. "It was angry that Team Go-Getters woke it, and Mother had to explain..." Absol trailed off, reconsidering something that that always seemed too obvious to question.

"...When Mother said they woke Rayquaza, I always thought she meant like waking a normal Pokémon at night; you're saying it might have been hibernating for years, aren't you, and that's why it didn't know?"

Mewtwo didn't say anything, just nodded.

"What about the Time Gears?" Zorua asked, "like Absol said, there were lots of Legendaries there."

#Darkrai woke Dialga, if I understand correctly,# Mewtwo answered, #though by the time he woke, he was already corrupted by Darkrai's nightmares. Darkrai and Cresselia share a link, being opposite sides of the same domain. Dialga and Palkia share a similar link, and Celebi is closely attuned to the flow of time. Cresselia and Palkia didn't arrive until months too late, though, and Celebi didn't make it to the current time at all.#

"Well, who sent the Humans, then?" Zorua demanded.

#That,# Mewtwo admitted, #I don't know.#

Everyone was silent for a moment. Charizard took the kettle from the stove, and refilled everyone's tea. It was a lot to think about, Absol thought. Practically, it didn't really change anything; they were already doing everything they could do. Still, it was frightening to think that if they failed, there might not be anyone else to save the world.

"You said Mew talks to you," Absol said eventually, "are you a Legendary too? What are you?"

#That's a complicated question,# Mewtwo said, #I suppose you all deserve an answer. Humans created me by combining parts of other Pokémon into a single egg. I can't explain how; some of their science is so different that you don't have the words to describe it. I'm more similar to Mew that any other Pokémon; I'm also part Human.#

That wasn't quite true, Arcanine thought. Mewtwo hadn't hatched from an egg any more than he had, but it was close enough.

"So, you're kind of a Legendary?"

#Kind of,# Mewtwo agreed, #I'm more powerful as a Psychic than Mew, but I lack some of her other capabilities. I'm also mortal.#

"Do you have a family?" Absol asked, "other Mewtwos?"

Mewtwo glanced at Arcanine again.

#Arcanine and his compatriots were...are...my family. There are no other Mewtwos.#

Mewtwo's voice sounded final. Absol had more questions, but she didn't think that was a topic Mewtwo wanted to pursue any further.

It must be a lonely feeling, she thought, being the only one of his kind. She had thousands of years of ancestors carved into the wall in Mother's cave back on Mount Freeze. They all had their own stories, even if some of the older ones had gotten muddled or forgotten over the centuries. If they all succeeded here, her children would carry on the tradition for thousands more, and tell stories about her. That wasn't much compared to the billions that Mewtwo and Arcanine talked about, but still, it was a lot of years, and a lot of Absols who were all pretty much like her. There was a beginning, and there would probably be an end, but they were both so far away that she didn't know how to think about them.

Maybe that was why Mewtwo was so distant sometimes, she thought. He didn't have a history to depend upon. He wouldn't have any children continue whatever traditions he and Arcanine and the others had back in their world. However long they might both personally live, his beginning and end were much closer than her own.

Arcanine stood and walked over to where Mewtwo was sitting. He lay down beside the chair, and leaned his head against Mewtwo's leg. Mewtwo reached down to scratch his ear. They looked so comfortable like that, Absol thought. She stood and followed Arcanine. If she lay down, her head would be out of reach, so she sat instead, on the other side of the chair.

"Mewtwo," Absol asked, "may I be part of your family here?"

Mewtwo smiled. #I would like that.#

Absol leaned against Mewtwo's other leg, just like Arcanine was, and looked up at him. Mewtwo reached his other hand down to scratch her ears. It was the hand which wore the Ring Target, and when it brushed against her, she could feel a subtle, friendly presence in the back of her mind.

Zorua watched as her teammates settled beside Mewtwo. He was still hiding things from them, she thought; from Arcanine. Did it really matter, though? Arcanine seemed satisfied with their relationship. He hadn't actually deceived them about anything. Absol was naïve, but she wasn't foolish, and she trusted him.

Maybe she was being a little bit like Growlithe, Zorua thought, trying to provoke a reaction from Mewtwo to prove that she had been right about him all along. Lucario wouldn't have told her that it was a childish thing to do, but probably would have thought it.

Zorua walked over and sat in front of Mewtwo, not touching, but close enough that she could have wagged her tail and hit both of his legs.

"Do you want to be part of Mewtwo's family, too?" Absol asked.

Zorua's tail twitched, and curled around her forepaws. That was as much as she was going to give today. "I'm still thinking about it."

"If we're your family now, you're basically part of the team, too," Absol said hopefully, "that means you can sleep with us, right?"

She looked to Arcanine and Zorua for confirmation. Arcanine nodded. Zorua hesitated a few seconds, then nodded as well. Zorua agreed with them, Absol thought; she'd been the one to invite Mewtwo to sleep with them first. She just had to agree at her own pace.

Mewtwo smiled again. #I think I would like that too.#

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"But Arky" Vulpix whined, "I want to see it."

"So do I," Arcanine admitted, "but it's Mewtwo's private quarters. He doesn't come into our rooms without invitation."

"Well, we don't have secret power armour hidden in our rooms, do we?" Vulpix countered, "anyway, it will take him at least two days to get to Hoenn and back. He'll never know."

Of course Mewtwo would know; Mewtwo always knew. It wasn't long ago that he had believed that he needed to correct every mistake and punish every minor disobedience. Since Sandslash's attempt at seppuku, he tried to give them more freedom. If they tried to be subtle, if they were polite, if they didn't take advantage, Mewtwo would pretend not to know. That didn't mean it was right.

"You can go see it. Not stopping you."

"I don't want to see it alone. What good is knowing a secret if we can't all talk about it?"

Arcanine looked to the others for support. Sandslash wouldn't offer an opinion, but he would go along with whatever the group decided. Ninetales and Vaporeon were always respectful and polite, though, and they would agree it was a bad idea.

"Arcanine, Mewtwo knows we're all curious," Ninetales said, "he doesn't want to talk about it, but that doesn't mean he doesn't want us to know. If it was supposed to be a secret, he wouldn't have let everyone see him bring it in.

"I think Ninetales is right," Vaporeon agreed, "he carried it up in front of everyone, right before he knew he was leaving for a few days. He's inviting us to peek."

Arcanine sighed. He couldn't argue with the whole team. He couldn't even argue with Vulpix, really. He always gave in eventually, just because disagreement made him uncomfortable, and Vulpix knew she could outlast him.

He had been in Mewtwo's office and quarters hundreds of times, but only once before without permission. The new latch was a simple handle with no lock, mounted at a height everyone in the family could easily reach, with a handle they could all operate with one paw. It wasn't intended to exclude anyone, only to keep the now- crooked door from swinging open by itself.

Suspended from the ceiling in the center of the room by several cables, the armour stood well over two meters tall. Dozens of dents and scrapes marred the polished silver metal, and the mirrored visor seemed to stare back at him as he approached. Arcanine shivered. Maybe Vaporeon and Ninetales were right, he thought; maybe Mewtwo did intend for them to see.

"It does look kind of like in Fallout," Vulpix whispered, "what if he's really inside, watching us?"

They all knew he wasn't; his scent in the room was a day old. It still made him shiver to think about Mewtwo staring out through the glass, like he had once stared at Mewtwo through the side of the cloning tank. What did the world look like from inside?

"Can you imagine living in it?" Vulpix continued, "you wouldn't be able to smell, or hear..."

"Do you think it still works?" Vaporeon wondered.

"I think he's planning to fix it up," Ninetales said.

"Oh. You don't think he wants to use it again, do you?"

"I don't think he wants to," Ninetales said, "maybe he expects to need it."

Everyone was silent for a few seconds. Mewtwo spoke very little about his time with Team Rocket, but they all knew it was a painful memory for him. Until yesterday, the armour had been only a rumor. Mewtwo wouldn't be preparing it for use unless he expected to need it.

Everyone started guiltily as they heard footsteps in the hall, but it was only Squirtle and Nurse Joy, come to look for themselves.

"See?" Vulpix said as if their presence proved her right, "eveyone wants to look."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The wind whistled through the cracks around the doors and windows of the Obsidian Village town hall, and Absol shivered reflexively in anticipation of the cold outside. Inside the sturdy structure, built with logs the size of her torso, was pleasantly warm and cozy, but outside was a blizzard. She knew she should be listening as Abra, the Federation representative in Obsidian Village, explained the situation, but she couldn't help staring out the window at the blowing snow. It looked just like a winter storm at home. They were at about the same latitude, only now it was summer and there should only have been snow on the highest peaks.

Absol didn't know why she had chosen to come; of course it was colder here than in Pokémon Square. Now that she was here, however, it felt like the correct choice. There was something out there in the snow, she though, something important. Maybe it was a subtle feeling of danger in her horn, still too distant to identify. Maybe it was only her imagination, restless after weeks cooped up in the library. There was only one way to know.

"It's two days to Mount Mistral from here in decent weather," Abra was saying to Arcanine, Zorua, and Team Razor Wind, "probably four days, if the storm keeps up. Weavile has volunteered to guide you there."

"Weavile of Team Icicle," Weavile said, stepping forward to introduce himself. He exchanged scents with the rest of their party. Absol pulled herself away from the window to greet him as well. He wore a battered treasure bag across his shoulder with a badge pinned to the front.

"I can show you to the entrance," Weavile said, "then, if you don't need me, I'll wait outside with the rest of my team and the sledge.

"I know Alakazam requested a wagon," Abra said, "but there's no way you'll get a wagon up Mount Mistral in this weather. We have a sledge prepared instead. It will be difficult, but Weavile think you can make it."

"Are you certain it's necessary?" Weavile asked, "there's snow drifted four meters deep in places; even the sledge will be difficult going."

"The door is there?" Arcanine asked.

"Yes." Weavile nodded. "I've been there several times. Just as Alakazam described, but only about three meters across."

"Then we'll need the sledge," Arcanine said.

Weavile and Abra both nodded.

"Are you all ready?" Weavile asked.

Arcanine and Zorua nodded. The treasure bag around Arcanine's neck bulged with supplies and the stone discs, and an extra blanket for Absol. If anything happened to the sledge, Arcanine didn't want to risk losing their supplies as well. Zorua's own, much smaller bag, held some extra Berries.

A blast of frigid air and snow greeted the seven of them as Weavile opened the door. Absol's shoulders hunched, and she tugged the stocking over her horn down tightly.

"Absol, are you sure you want to come?" Zorua asked.

"Y-yes." It was a lie, but Absol thought she sounded confident as she said it. She didn't want to be here at all; she wanted to be somewhere warm and dry and sunny, preferably with a hot bowl of tea.

A pair of Mamoswines lay outside the door, both already wearing harnesses. The wind whipped through their shaggy coats, but they didn't seem bothered by the weather.

"The rest of Team Icicle," Weavile introduced them.

The Mamoswines looked at them and nodded in greeting, but didn't speak. Absol got the impression that they ordinarily didn't. There weren't many Pokémon better suited to pulling the sledge through the snow, she thought.

Arcanine volunteered for the first shift pulling the sledge, and Zangoose, Sandslash, and Weavile hitched him up. He was still sore from the trip back to Pokémon Square with the sun sphere. While he enjoyed carrying friends, he never wanted to be a draft animal again, but he couldn't ask the Mamoswines to haul it up the mountain in a blizzard if he wouldn't do it first.

The Mamoswines took the lead, breaking a path through the drifts with their chests and shoulders. Weavile rode on one's back. Arcanine followed the with the sledge. Absol followed behind him, then Team Razor Wind. Zorua, the smallest of the party, followed in the path that they had all cleared. The snow was a meter deep in places on the trail, and though the others had trampled it down for her, it was still exhausting. Absol began to shiver almost immediately, walking with her head and tail down, and Zorua could smell how uncomfortable she was.

Arcanine kept looking back to make sure that the rest of the party was keeping up. Absol looked miserable already, he thought, and the weather wasn't going to get warmer or less windy as they ascended. Why had she chosen to come?

Of the team, she ought to be the most comfortable here, and the most capable, but with the curse of her vision, she was a liability. He wanted to send her back to Obsidian Village. If he insisted, Arcanine thought, she would go, but would that be the right thing to do? She must have a reason for braving the cold with them. Did she sense something? Did she know something that the rest of them didn't? How much danger was she actually in, if her chill was psychosomatic as he thought, and her body temperature was normal? Arcanine didn't know, but he knew he trusted Absol. He remained silent and kept walking.

This was a terrible idea, Absol thought as she trudged after Arcanine. Already her paws and face ached from the unnatural cold. What if she froze to death up here, despite having Arcanine and Zorua to care for her and keep her warm at night? What if she panicked in the darkness and ran off a cliff? What if the feeling was a premonition, and she ignored it, and something happened to her team?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As always, as the sky began to darken, Absol's terror began to return. Arcanine was in the lead now, and she edged closer and closer until they were walking side by side. Arcanine looked over at her, and she could see concern in his face.

"Weavile?" Arcanine shouted, motioning for their guide to join him.

They needed to get Absol under cover soon, Arcanine thought. She was fidgeting and her eyes were wide, despite the blowing snow which forced the rest of them to squint. With the added stress of being cold, she was already beginning to lose control. If she panicked up here on the rocks, with the poor visibility of the storm, it could be deadly.

"Need a place for the night!"

"Already?" Weavile shouted back, "we have light for another hour!"

"Yes!"

Arcanine glanced down at her again, and Absol looked away, embarrassed. She knew she was slowing them all down. Maybe she really had been foolish to come.

"There's an overhang in the cliff ahead," Weavile shouted, "not a cave, but it will get us out of the wind!"

"Show me!"

Arcaine bent down, and Weavile climbed onto his neck. Holding fistfulls of Arcanine's mane, Weavile leaned forward to shout directions into Arcanine's ear as they continued.

Snow was drifted in front of the overhang three or four meters deep, but beneath the overhang was mostly clear. Between the snow and the rock was a narrow area which was mostly sheltered from the wind. Weavile dismounted and Arcanine waded into the drift, feeling ahead with his nose and forepaws. The outer layer of snow was fresh and soft, but underneath, it was older and more solid.

Arcanine began to dig, hollowing out a cavity in the snow bank facing the cliff. Team Razor Wind and Weavile, seeing what he was doing, joined in. Absol crowded in among them as they worked, eager to be under shelter.

When they had a cavity large enough for the seven of them to curl up in, they stopped. Arcanine directed a gentle Flamethrower across the walls, floor and ceiling. The snow melted under the heat, then hardened into a layer of ice as it refroze. Unloaded, the sledge wasn't very heavy, and Zangoose and Scyther tipped in up in front of the entrance as a windbreak.

It wasn't unpleasant in here, Arcanine thought, now that they were out of the wind. Absol looked calmer already, out of view of the sky. Weavile and Zorua folded their extra blanket and lay it on the icy floor. Absol shook the snow from her coat, and then each paw, and quickly curled up on it.

Arcanine lay against Absol's back, and wrapped his legs around her. Zorua tucked the edge of the blanket around Absol's paws, then wriggled in between to lay against Absol's belly.

Team Razor Wind formed their own pile at the other side. Theirs was a practical sharing of warmth rather than cuddling, Absol thought; they were good friends, but they didn't have that sort of relationship.

Weavile sat by the door alone. As an Ice-type, he wasn't as affected by the cold. Inside their cave and out of the wind, he seemed comfortable enough. The Mamoswines burrowed halfway into the snow just outside. With their thick pelts, they didn't seem bothered by the cold either.

"Th-th-thank y-you," Absol said as she pressed back against Arcanine's warm chest, "I d-don't th-think-k I w-would hav-ve l-last-ted much l-long-ger."

"I don't know how you made it this far," Zorua said, "cuz I'm freezing too."

Just like outside Creepy Tunnel, Arcanine thought, Absol's body didn't feel cold; no more so than any other Pokémon's would, under the circumstances. She probably wasn't clinically hypothermic, despite having all of the secondary symptoms. That didn't make her suffering any less important; it was real to her, and there was no way to know how much danger she was really in.

"I'm s-sorry," Absol said, "I'm s-slow-wing ever-ryone d-down."

"It's okay." Arcanine's muzzle rested between her ears, and his hot breath blew around her horn and across her face.

"Yeah," Zorua agreed, "we know it's not your fault."

Within a few minutes, Arcanine could feel Absol's body begin to relax, and her shivering stopped. Weavile was watching them, his face concerned and uncertain.

"Know you don't want to be here," Arcanine said, "felt something, didn't you?"

"I th-thought s-so. N-now I-I'm not s-sure."

"We trust you," Arcanine said, "you felt it, was important.

"Th-thank you," Absol said again, pressing her head back into Arcanine's mane.

Weavile was still watching them, Zorua saw. He was polite enough not to ask the obvious question: what was wrong with Absol. She wasn't going to explain that, either, because it was Absol's story, but still, he deserved their gratitude for leading them up here in the storm.

"Thanks for guiding us," Zorua said, "we never would have found the trail in this weather."

Weavile shook his head. "No one comes up here in this weather; it's too dangerous. We never have storms like this in the summer, either; the trails should be melted out by now. Whatever is in the treasure room in Mount Mistral is supposed to fix this?"

"The Orrery Fragment." Zorua nodded. "Well, one of them. You guys don't know, though?"

Weavile shrugged. "It was an unusually cold spring, then Abra said the Federation said there was something wrong with the weather everywhere, and people from Pokémon Square were working on it. There was more about astrology I didn't understand."

"Oh." She had though that it had only been Meadow Town which hadn't gotten the message, because of Bayleef's treachery. Apparently their communication had failed here, too. They would need to talk to Alakazam and Delphox about that when they returned.

"W-we h-have t-time," Absol said, "l-let me w-warm up-p a b-bit m-more and we'll t-tell y-you ev-veryth-thing."

Arcanine began to groom her with long, slow strokes of his tongue, beginning between her ears, and working down her neck and shoulders. It felt wonderful. Zorua dug into Arcanine's bag again and passed out food. They ate in silence. When they had finished, Absol began her story, speaking loudly so the Mamoswines outside could hear as well.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"This is it," Weavile shouted, pointing ahead of them to where the trail passed through a narrow cleft in the rocks. "Those wood posts mark the entrance."

It was morning on the fourth day, and they were nearly to the peak of Mount Mistral. This high up, the fierce wind had scoured most of the snow from the rocks, and the runners of the slegde scraped on bare patches on the trail.

Arcanine knew it wouldn't be much more pleasant inside. After they stopped for the evening on the second night of their ascent, Weavile had spent several hours telling them everything he could remember about the mystery dungeon. They would be outside most of they way. The room with the fragment would presumably be enclosed, but since no one from Obsidian Village had been able to enter, they wouldn't know until they reached it. Like most mystery dungeons, the static area at the end contained the exit.

The Mamoswines settled in the shelter of the rocks, with Weavile between them.

"We'll wait for you here," Weavile said.

There was a brief disorientation as they passed between the poles, and they were inside Mount Mistral's mystery dungeon. Inside was a relative term; on the far side of the cleft, the trail continued to wind up the exposed face of the mountain.

The wind was just as bad here. Arcanine wondered why. Mystery dungeons didn't seem to be physically contained within their borders in the normal world; they didn't fit. Creepy Tunnel was far too long and straight not to emerge from the far side of its mountain, and from Weavile's description, he didn't think Mount Mistral could fit on its peak, either. It had to be some kind of pocket dimension, existing in its own space. Why should it have the same sky and weather?

If the door was three meters across like Weavile had said, and it followed the same pattern as Creepy Tunnel, the trail ought to be at least three meters wide the whole way. Presumably, someone must have brought it into the dungeon by the same path. Or maybe not - had the mystery dungeons even existed then? Were the Orrery Fragments and Time Gears placed in mystery dungeons, or had the dungeons formed around them from whatever arcane energy they emitted? Another unanswerable question.

Again Absol wondered why she had come. She could see the worried looks the others gave her; not only Zorua and Arcanine, but Team Razor Wind as well. She was shivering so hard that she didn't even want to try talking, and the wind seemed to cut through her coat as if she were naked. The cold flowed down from her horn and up from each paw as it touched the ground. Her feet ought to be numb from the cold, she though, but they weren't. She could still feel each pebble and ridge of ice beneath her pads. Her nose and cheeks ought to be frostbitten through the short fur on her face, but when she rubbed them with her paws, they felt undamaged.

She forced herself to keep her head up and keep walking. Whether or not she had made the right choice in coming, it was too late to change her mind. No matter how much it hurt, she thought, the others needed to focus on the dungeon, rather than worrying about her.

With Arcanine pulling the sledge and Absol too distracted to fight, Zorua and Team Razor Wind were left to defend them. Zorua fell to the rear where she could keep an eye on Absol, and Zangoose joined her.

Fortunately, the dungeon's ferals didn't seem to appreciate the weather any more than they did. The passed a pair of Drifblim huddled in an alcove, who screeched angrily but didn't move to attack them. A Pidgeot dived at Scyther. It swerved to avoid his slashing blades, and by the time it turned around for another pass, the wind had carried it so far away that it gave up chasing them.

A Swellow startled out of a sheltered side path. Arcanine fired a hasty Flamethrower as it approached, but the wind blew both the attack and its target off course. Sandslash and Scyther dispatched it, and pushed it back in the corner where it wouldn't tumble down the slope before recovering.

As they passed another alcove, something shiny and blue caught Zorua's eye, half-buried in the snow. It was a Foe-Fear Orb.

"Do you guys want it?" Zorua said, offering the Orb to Zangoose, "none of us have hands to use it in combat."

Zangoose shrugged. "Orbs are good for new teams. Once you're strong enough, moves are almost always quicker and more reliable. Why don't you keep it and sell it?"

Zorua tucked the Orb in her bag. Zangoose was right, she thought; they would want money, when this was all over and they were just a normal team again.

After several monotonous, uncomfortable hours, a cliff face rose up across the trail ahead of them. From Weavile's description, they knew this was the end of the dungeon. Unlike the perfectly round opening in the mountain near Meadow Town, the tunnel at the base of the cliff looked jagged and natural.

Zangoose and Sandslash unhitched Arcanine from the sledge, and he took the lead. Team Razor Wind followed close behind him, while Zorua and Absol hung back together. Zangoose produced a Luminous Orb on a cord from their bag, and looped it around his neck.

After thirty meters or so, the tunnel opened into a large room. Arcanine stopped at the entrance. There were Pokémon in here, Arcanine thought, flying types. He could smell them, but he couldn't see anything in the darkness.

Zangoose stepped up beside him, cupping the Orb in both hands to direct the light away from them. It helped, but wasn't enough to penetrate the shadows at the far side of the room. Arcanine stepped cautiously forward.

"Above you!" Zorua shouted behind him.

There was a rustle of wings, and Arcanine ducked as something whipped by his face. He felt talons rake through his mane. Behind him and to either side he heard two more pairs of wings. There was a thud of something solid hitting flesh, and he heard Scyther grunt.

He sent a Flamethrower after the retreating shadow, illuminating the room and revealing their opponents. The Flygon which had nearly hit him was already out of range. Arcanine turned to check on Team Razor Wind.

Scyther was sprawled on the ground, with Sandslash and Zangoose standing protectively over him as a pair of Aerodactyls flapped upward away from them. He wasn't badly injured, just stunned, and he was already pushing himself upright.

Arcanine, Sandslash, and Zangoose readied themselves as the Aerodactyls banked and turned back for another pass.

The left Aerodactyl dove, its thick skull aiming for Sandslash's chest. Sandslash watched calmly as it approached. At the last moment he spun deftly aside; his claws raked upward, scoring two parallel gashes in his opponent's chest. Aerodactyl shrieked, its clumsy Wing Attack deflecting ineffectually off Sandslash's plates

The right Aerodactyl began its dive toward Zangoose. Arcanine sent another Flamethrower across its path. Aerodactyl passed through it, seemingly unaffected, and Zangoose spread his legs and raised his claws, preparing for the impact.

Zangoose grunted as he rolled with Aerodactyl's Take Down. His claws tore into its wings in Revenge, tearing long holes in the fragile membranes.

Flygon hung back. Its wings beat forcefully, but it wasn't gaining altitude. The wind in the tunnel began to pick up.

"Sandstorm!" Zangoose shouted in warning, as the wind from Flygon's wingbeats grew more forceful.

Sandslash's Aerodactyl circled upward out of reach, and a ball of orange energy began to form in its beak. Zangoose's Aerodactyl wriggled free from his grasp and leapt into the air. It flapped furiously, but its torn wings couldn't lift it quickly enough. It shrieked as Zangoose's claws caught its wings again, pulling it down into Close Combat.

The glowing bars of Scyther's Light Screen formed around Team Razor Wind. The three of them could handle the Aerodactyls, Arcanine thought, while he dealt with Flygon.

A blast of sand caught Arcanine in the face as he turned back toward Flygon, blinding him and filling his nostrils. He sent a Flamethrower upward toward his opponent, then another, but his watering eyes made aiming difficult, and they both dispersed in the whipping wind before reaching their target. Sand began to pool around his paws in a Tomb, piling up impossibly fast, and Arcanine found that he had to keep moving to stay on top of the mound.

Flygon swooped down again, breathing out a Dragon Breath which illuminated the swirling sand a surreal purple. Arcanine didn't think he could move quickly enough on the shifting sand to dodge, so he didn't try. He braced himself and drew in a deep breath, nearly choking on all the sand in the air, and answered with a powerful Flamethrower.

Arcanine's limbs went numb as Dragon Breath flowed around him. Flygon flapped frantically, trying to avoid his fire, but couldn't pull up quickly enough. Arcanine couldn't tell how much damage it had done, but Flygon stopped maneuvering and flew straight for several seconds, blinded. A fist-sized rock sailed past Arcanine and cracked against Flygon's head. It wavered in midair, momentarily stunned. Arcanine struggled to free his legs from the sand. Another rock hit its shoulder. That had to be Sandslash, he though; no one else could have aimed so well through the Sandstorm.

The beat of Flygon's wings faltered, and it began to lose altitude. Arcanine pounced with Extreme Speed, pulling it to the ground before it could recover. Flygon screeched once as Arcanine's fangs dug into its back, then went limp.

The wind dropped off quickly. Arcanine turned to see Sandslash behind him, a grin on his face and another stone in each hand. He grinned back, and Sandslash bowed.

Behind Sandslash, Zangoose and Scyther supported one another. Zangoose's arm pressed against his chest where the Aerodactyl had hit him, and they were each bleeding from several wounds and scorched from Aerodactyl's Hyper Beam, but Arcanine didn't think either of them were seriously injured. Both Aerodactyls lay unconscious at their were all cold, and exhausted, and now the added insult of sand in their coats and eyes and throats.

None of them looked as bad as Absol. She was huddled between a rock and the cavern wall at the entrance to the room, her face hidden under her paws and her whole body shaking. Zorua stood protectively over her, her fur still fluffed out threateningly. Arcanine bent to examine Absol. She wasn't injured, he thought; the ferals hadn't come near her. She certainly wasn't afraid. After all she had endured in the last few days, the Sandstorm has just been the final stress that was too much to endure.

"Arcanine, we have to stop," Zorua said, "she can't go any further."

"The door should be just ahead," Zangoose reminded them, "we'll be safer inside."

Zangoose was right, Arcanine thought, but so was Zorua. They would be safer, and probably warmer, in the Orrery chamber, but Absol needed attention right now. She was a strong-willed Pokémon, despite her youth and innocence; perhaps even more determined than he was. If she could have gotten up, she would have.

Arcanine didn't want to stop here either, but unless he was going to drag Absol the rest of the way, they didn't have much choice. He ducked out of their treasure bag and lay down beside Absol. She didn't respond. Arcanine pulled her against his chest and began to wash her face.

There were six competent Pokémon in the party, Arcanine thought, and the others didn't need his directions to know what to do. Zorua opened her bag and passed him an Oran, and placed on in front of Absol as well, then jumped up on the rock to stand watch.

Zangoose grimaced as he bent over to pick up Team Warmth's bag, his other hand pressing on his chest where the Aerodactyl had hit him. Moving gingerly, he spread the extra blanket over Absol, then sat down against her side. Without a word, Sandslash and Scyther headed back the way they had come. A minute later, Arcanine heard the scrape of metal rails on the stone floor.

By the time the two of them returned with the sledge, Absol wasn't shivering so badly. She nuzzled against him, burying her face in his mane. Arcanine could feel her body jerk with each heavy breath, and smell the warm, wet scent of tears. Mewtwo was right, Arcanine though as he and Zorua silently groomed Absol; his new team was too much like his old team to be chance.

Zangoose passed out Orans to his team, and Scyther and Sandslash sat watch beside the upturned sledge. The three of them waited patiently, though Arcanine knew they were as anxious as he was to be done with this place.

After fifteen minutes or so, Absol began to regain control. "Arc-c-can-nine, I'm s-sor-ry," she whimpered, "I c-can't d-do i-it any-y m-more."

"You don't have to," Arcanine comforted her, "we're almost there. I'll carry you."

Zangoose and Sandslash put his saddle on and hooked his harness back to the sledge. It was more of a basket than a seat, with a cord to hold a blanket across the top at night and footholds for Absol's paws.

His back, already sore and raw from pulling the sledge, protested at the extra fifty kilos as Absol climbed aboard, but he didn't let it show. Zangoose didn't ask for a heal, either, though his ribs obviously still pained him. He itched from the sand beneath the saddle. What he really wanted, Arcanine thought, was a bath and a good, long nap somewhere warm. He leaned into the harness, and the sledge began to grind forward once again.

The room at the end of the tunnel was just how Weavile had described; to one side, an arched stone threshold looked out at the snowy gap in the rocks where they had entered. Across from it was the door, a miniature replica of the one in Creepy Tunnel. Zangoose took the bag with the discs from Arcanine's neck, and Team Razor Wind got to work.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

There was no antechamber here; the first door opened directly into the room with the sphere. Arcanine was relieved to see that there were no piles of parts, either. There were four altars around the room, with the same images as before, and the sphere itself. It was about two meters across. He could feel something from it, like a sense of pressure, but it was much less intense than the sun. It was made from the same silvery metal, but instead of the sun sphere's featureless surface, it was etched with what appeared to be continents. They weren't Earth's continents; at least, they didn't match either version of Earth with which he was familiar.

With the extra weight aboard, the rails of the sledge shrieked and squealed loudly across the stone floor. It was much lighter than the other, Arcanine thought; probably less than a ton, but it was still going to take him and both Mamoswines in harness to get it safely down the mountain.

Before they left the dungeon, however, they all needed to rest. It had been late afternoon when they entered the tunnel, and it would be getting dark, soon. Absol still wasn't in any shape to face the wind and cold outside, even in daylight. Zangoose needed to heal. He needed to sleep.

"I'll go out and tell Team Icicle," Zangoose volunteered, "they'll worry if we're in here all night."

Zangoose started for the exit.

"Wait," Zorua said, "I'll go."

"Are you sure?" Zangoose asked.

"Yeah," Zorua said, "I've done less work than anyone today, and I'm not injured."

Zangoose smiled, looking relieved. "Thanks."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It wasn't warm in the Orrery chamber, Absol thought, but cuddled up with Arcanine and her blankets, she wasn't cold, either. She was fortunate to have found such a good Team, just like Mother had. By morning, the rest of the trip seemed a lot more manageable.

"Come c-close, everyone." Absol motioned for Arcanine and Team Razor Wind to gather around her. "Let me heal before we go."

Moonlight came easily now, despite the cold and itching sand in her fur. Zangoose and Arcanine each stood a little straighter once she had finished. She should have healed them last night, she thought. They were tough Pokémon, and didn't like to show that they were hurt, which meant that she had to take the initiative and tell them when to stop and let her help.

As they began their descent, the sense of purpose which she had felt at the beginning of the journey returned. It grew from just a feeling, to a subtle vibration in her horn, to a constant hum which pushed back her chill as they continued. It was painfully slow going. Arcanine and the Mamoswines took turns, two of them pulling the sledge, and one harnessed to a rope on the rear to hold it back on the steeper slopes.

After a few hours, the path widened at the bottom of a draw which probably held a stream in normal summers, and Absol walked beside Arcanine in front of the sledge. He was working too hard for conversation, and she was shivering too hard, she thought, but that was okay; they could still enjoy each other's company. Arcanine glanced over at her occasionally and smiled, and she knew he felt the same way.

The trail ahead curved around a spur of rock where their draw joined the larger valley below. As they passed the rock, the feeling in her horn became overwhelming. Absol raised her head, looking out across the slope in front of them, and suddenly she knew exactly why she had come.

"Arcanine, stop."

He stopped immediately, mid-step, raising his head to scan the rocks around them for danger. Arcanine wasn't lying when he said he trusted her judgment, Absol though. Mamoswine took two more steps before the slack in the leads between their harnesses ran out, stopping him as well.

They were safe here, Absol thought, but she wasn't sure about Weavile and Scyther, a hundred meters ahead of them on the trail. She shouted for them to come back, but her shaking voice didn't carry over the wind. Arcanine's roar got their attention, and he motioned them back.

Mamoswine looked around as well. "There's nothing here," he said, "why are we stopping?

"The trails seems fine," Weavile agreed.

Everyone was clustered around her now, waiting for an explanation.

"Just wait." Absol said.

They waited. Arcanine sat down. She leaned against him, and he rested his chin on her head. Zorua leaned on her other side. Several minutes passed. The Mamoswines began to fidget, then Weavile and Team Razor Wind as well. Absol felt a sudden vertigo as the mountain seemed to begin moving around them. It wasn't them moving, though; it was the snow on the opposite slope in front of them, slowly at first, then faster and faster, until the whole side of the valley was rushing down the mountain.

Living on Mount Freeze, Absol had seen avalanches before. It was still awe-inspiring. All nine of them sat or stood in place for the fifteen minutes or so it took for all of the snow to stop moving.

"That's a lot of snow," Zorua said. Her voice was quiet and almost reverent.

The others nodded in agreement. They were all thinking the same thing, Arcanine knew; without Absol's warning, they would have been in the valley beneath it all. He wrapped a foreleg around Absol's and Zorua's backs and pulled them both close.

"How much snow do you think that is, big guy?" Zorua asked.

"Hmm." Arcanine stared at the hillside for a few moments, thinking. "How large an area would you say that was?"

No one answered immediately, so Arcanine continued. "Say four kilometers by twenty, and a half meter deep, average...that's forty thousand cubic meters of snow. Water is a gram per cubic centimeter," Arcanine said, "ah, a thousand kilos per cubic meter. Say the snow was twenty percent water, the rest air."

Everyone was staring at Arcanine, but he was used to that, now. Pokémon were intelligent, he though; many of them much moreso than Humans. Some of their natural abilities, the ability to observe the world from the air or underwater, or generate electrical current or change temperature, should have given them an immense advantage over Humans in developing a scientific system. For some reason, they had never progressed beyond a few basic measurements of weight, time, and distance. Maybe, he thought, they were just so capable, and so confident, that they didn't feel the need for further explanation of how the world worked.

"Eight million tons or so," Arcanine concluded.

Zorua gulped. "That sounds like a pretty big number."

Arcanine nodded. He didn't think any of the rest of them really understood what eight million tons was. He didn't either. It was more reasonable than seven billion years, but still a large enough number that it was difficult to comprehend.

"And if you didn't warn us," Zorua continued, rubbing her head against Absol's leg, "we'd be at the bottom."

"And I would have led us all into it," Weavile said. More than any of the others, Absol thought, he looked shaken. "Thank you."

"It's not your fault," Absol said.

She meant it. He'd been a good guide so far. He was cautious, and knew the mountain well. She just had an ability that none of the others had; that was why she was here.

"Is it safe to cross?" Sandslash asked. He looked more than slightly dubious.

"I don't feel anything else," Absol said, "but it will be loose and rough." She looked to Team Icicle. "Is there another way around?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It took them four more days to get back to Obsidian Village. Weavile found them another route down, and Absol's disaster sense was quiet for the rest of their journey. Going down wasn't any easier than coming up, she thought. If anything, it was worse. She was just as miserable as before, though she tried not to let it show.

Now Arcanine and the Mamoswines were miserable too. It was a constant struggle for all three of them to control the overweight sledge on the steep slopes. Absol wanted to help, but she knew she wasn't big enough or strong enough, and she would only be in the way.

Each night, when it got too dark for the pullers to see, Zorua, Weavile, and Team Razor Wind scraped them a shelter in the snow. Arcanine collapsed inside, too exhausted to stretch or groom himself. She ignored the cold as long as she could to help Zorua massage his back, then wrapped herself in both blankets and huddled against his chest for warmth through the night.

Each morning, Arcanine limped out to be hitched to the sledge again. Her back ached in sympathy just to watch him walk. He didn't complain; somehow, he seemed to welcome the pain, she thought, as if he felt he deserved it. She didn't complain either. None of them did; they all knew there weren't any other options.

When they entered Obsidian Village in the evening, the street was empty. They could see the orange glow of fires though several windows. Weavile broke off from the group and disappeared into one of the smaller buildings. By the time Team Razor Wind had Arcanine and the Mamoswines unhitched in front of the town hall, Weavile was back with Abra and a half-dozen other Pokémon. The Mamoswines mumbled hasty farewells and departed; the rest of the party followed Abra into the building.

"I'm glad you're all back safely," she said, "everyone has been worried about you, and Alakazam has been calling twice a day for updates."

Arcanine lay down in front of the stove where Weavile was starting a fire, and Absol immediately joined him.

"You all look exhausted," Abra continued, "we'll get your artifact into the wagon tonight. I'll bring food over, and you're all welcome rest here a day or two."

"Thank you," Arcanine said, "we'll be ready in the morning."

"No." Zorua said.

"Hmm?" Arcanine asked. He wasn't used to Zorua disputing his decisions.

"I mean no, you're not pulling it back to Pokémon Square," Zorua said. "Arcanine, you and Absol both look like you're about to die, and there are dozens of big Pokémon in Pokémon Square not doing anything. Besides, Xatu ought to be ready for us. I'm going to make Alakazam Teleport us all home in the morning, and he can send some else to pull his stupid wagon."

For a moment, Arcanine wanted to argue. Then he closed his mouth and lay his head back down, because he knew Zorua was right. She was getting pretty good at being team leader.