Chasm Edge 8F
They left the skittering ones to their skittering and didn't pursue it whatsoever. If the Hatenna wanted to be left alone, they would leave them alone. Either way, it was less trouble.
"You know, there's gotta be some reason Salem wants you aside from you just being a rare occurrence," Arashi noted as they entered another opening from an empty room.
Astrid shook her head dismally, casting a glance up at the ceiling to make sure no wild ones waited to pounce from above. "I sure wish I knew why that was. I-if she's out to upset the world, and it's true that I was sent here to stop it, then… I guess that makes sense, but… there's gotta be more to it than that if Zariel said Salem wanted me alive, otherwise just killing me would be enough…"
The Dartrix ruffled up a bit at the thought of what they might do if killing her was the goal… then got even more flustered when considering that being alive in Salem's clutches probably wasn't much better of an option than being shocked or torched into oblivion. Zariel and the Beast had left the absolute opposite of a good impression on her, but even so, she didn't particularly want to think of spending ages around anyone like that.
"Well, whatever it is, we can't let them have you," Arashi declared with a grin. "Our names are gonna go down as the greatest expeditioners in history, and Salem is just a part of the journey!"
Astrid gotta hapless look. "You really do love being an expeditioner, don't you?" she inquired, glancing backwards for a moment.
Her comrade was beaming. "Yup! You know it!"
The next room was empty… save for a Chimecho that immediately became unhappy on seeing them and detached itself from its place on the ceiling. Astrid's Razor Leaf was flying within moments of laying eyes on it, and an Extrasensory was the return.
"Hey, now, we're just passing through!" Arashi cried, mostly in jest.
The sharp leaves left a few scratches on the wild one's long tail, and Astrid darted out of the Extrasensory's way with a flap of her wings. A Water Pulse connected with the Chimecho next and it started glaring at them both in frustration, though its cries didn't sound intimidating in the slightest. Loud intonations filled the room in quite the Uproar, the Froakie and Dartrix getting stalled for a moment by the harsh volume.
"Sheesh, imagine trying to sleep with one of these things around!" the Froakie exclaimed.
"To be honest, I don't think I'd ever fall asleep in a place like this regardless!" Astrid mused.
The Chimecho wasn't wasting any time and hurled itself to Take Down Arashi, but a Quick Attack was faster and knocked it out.
Astrid swiped at the leaves on her face again. "These dungeon-dwellers don't mess around…"
Her comrade chuckled. "That just comes with being a dungeon-dweller."
They glanced about the room with their feral assailant neutralized, and noticed the walls opened up into three tunnels- one on both sides and one in front of them. Astrid shrugged and picked the one in front, and Arashi came hopping along after her.
Chasm Edge 11F
By the later floors, the glowing stones had all turned to a deep red color with just an occasional green or purple. Astrid couldn't help but think they looked like blood, and started wondering if nature itself was trying to send them some kind of warning, for that's precisely what it looked like- a giant 'KEEP OUT' sign in all but words. She was certainly still keeping watch with her head swiveling in every direction as they trekked, just in case something hid where the light wouldn't reach in wait. Their surroundings were illuminated just sufficient enough to see the necessities, but it would not have been hard to evade her detection simply by choosing the right corner and staying perfectly still.
The skittering had also stopped after the tenth floor. If there were any Hatenna to be seen, they couldn't find them, and only hoped that was not because they'd all evolved into Hattrem. (Why they'd been dubbed the 'Serene Pokémon' was anyone's guess, as their lone encounter earlier had said quite the opposite.)
"Fourteen floors, right?" Astrid inquired, glancing backwards.
"Yup!" her comrade replied. "We're almost there!"
"If this Clefable hits us with a Sheer Cold or something, it was nice knowing you," Astrid remarked, not quite sure if she meant it in a joking way or not.
Her comrade grinned nonetheless. "Oh, c'mon, the odds of actually dying are super low!"
"Key word there being 'low,' not 'zero,'" Astrid said nonetheless.
The room they entered was split in two longwise by a stretch of water in the center with another corridor on the opposite side. The pool wasn't glowing, but a quick glance into its depths revealed two Chinchou nonetheless sitting happily at the bottom, one of which appeared to be sleeping. Nonetheless, that didn't stop the one that was awake from looking up at them and Sparking the water, making the Froakie jump back in fright. Without a word, Astrid swooped him up and fluttered over it.
"Thanks," the Froakie chirped, giving an awkward smile back at the pool.
They trailed off towards the corridor, though before they entered it, a slight splash graced their ears before they entered it. Astrid turned her head back and saw the Chinchou peeking back at them with its front fins gripping the edge of the pool's boundary... and its antennae sparking. An Electro Ball followed momentarily.
"No-!" Astrid cried, whirling around and sending a Razor Leaf while shoving Arashi aside.
"Agh-! Oh, jeez!" Arashi exclaimed, startled at first by the random shove.
The Electro Ball smashed into the cave wall and thankfully fizzled out without connecting to anyone, and while the Froakie still smiled, he turned a bit hesitant. Astrid's leaves gave the Chinchou some scratches that it clearly wasn't happy about, and one that sliced it straight between the eyes was enough to make it fall back into the water with a cry.
"Seriously?! You were just chilling in your pool!" the Froakie protested.
"Let's ditch it!" Astrid proposed, making for the opening while the sparking one was out of view.
Arashi wasn't far behind, the two of them scurrying into the corridor and quickly leaving the pool behind.
However, something sprung out at them from the shadows at the end of the tunnel, and the two of them halted to avoid crashing straight into it. The silhouette was murky and incorporeal, but its features gave it away easy enough- a Haunter. It stuck its tongue out to Lick Astrid, but she gave a flap upwards to render such a move useless. Arashi didn't waste time and hit it with a Water Pulse while Astrid was still in the air, but the Haunter too was ready and laid a Curse while laughing with sinister glee.
"Agh!" the Froakie shouted, tensing up.
"What'd it do?!" Astrid cried, landing again while letting a Razor Leaf go.
"It Cursed me!" Arashi cried, getting a pained expression. "It feels like a ton of little needles are getting stuck into my skin!"
Astrid had to admit, that sounded extremely unpleasant.
However, the Shadow Punch that followed was even more unpleasant, for the Dartrix had no way of avoiding it in time. Both she and her comrade were knocked flying back to the corridor's beginning, where an angry Chinchou was attempting to crawl out of the pool they'd left behind, still bearing the scratches of a Razor Leaf.
"Oh, you've gotta be kidding!" Astrid protested.
She let an Ominous Wind go right as the Chinchou escaped its pool and began waddling closer, and the eerie gust hit both the sparkling little fish and the ghost. The Haunter too let out a pained cry, while the Chinchou, still definitely hurt by the blows taken, nonetheless seemed to stomp its little feet in anger while sparking. An Electro Ball followed at the Dartrix, while the Haunter Hexed Arashi with a little flash of ghostly energy.
"Kiyah!" cried the Froakie, tensing up again and stumbling.
Astrid cast an alarmed glance to her comrade, whom she could easily tell wasn't in the best of conditions from his pained expression. She flapped her wings in an attempt to avoid the Electro Ball, but it still grazed her and made her eyes twitch in discomfort, to which she sent a Razor Leaf on her way back down. Thankfully, it was enough to knock out the Chinchou, and she darted over to the Froakie while the Haunter seemed to be chuckling to itself. Arashi shakily spit another Water Pulse, and the Haunter's body dissipated back into the shadows presumably in defeat.
"Are you alright?" Astrid inquired, eyeing her comrade uncertainly.
With a heavy gasp, the Froakie slumped on the ground whilst trying to slip the bag off. "Heal Seed… I won't make it…"
He twitched again, and Astrid scurried around behind him and undid the bag's flap with her beak.
"You look awful," the Dartrix noted, rustling through the contents with one wing.
A weak chuckle followed. "Well, that makes two of us in one dungeon run, aha…"
The Heal Seed was uncovered when Astrid brushed aside an Oran berry and the orb, and she grabbed it up in her beak before scuttling back in front of the Froakie. She nudged it into his mouth with one foot, and as soon as he swallowed it, the pained expression left.
"That's better," Arashi said happily, if a bit subdued for his lack of health. "That Hex just about took me out!"
"Well, I'm glad it didn't," Astrid said simply.
Her comrade situated the bag again and they were off.
Chasm Edge 13F
"One more floor," Astrid mused, eyeing their corridor for anything that might have been lurking in the shadows.
"This is so excitiiiiiing!" Arashi chirped, clapping his hands together.
Astrid hoped it was the 'good' kind of excitement where things went spectacularly well and not involving a myriad of ridiculous, unavoidable attacks.
They weren't alone in the room they entered, for as soon as they stepped in, the shiny eyes of a Sableye peered at them, the wild one grasping something they couldn't quite make out in one hand and apparently trying to detach one of the glowing red gems from the wall with the other. It unhanded the gem and flashed its claws, baring its pointy teeth in a crooked grin before scuttling toward them. It slashed at them with its free claws, the other hand still cradling its object, which on closer (but brief) inspection they could determine was another Dusk Stone.
"Well, that's one way to say hello!" Arashi remarked, leaping out of the way of the Fury Swipes.
Astrid was in agreement but merely sent a Razor Leaf its way, scuttling aside herself to evade the swinging claws. Her leaves left a few cuts and scrapes, but their wild assailant didn't seem to mind so much and just swung at them a few times more. A Water Pulse from Arashi made it shake its head while letting out something of a growl, and it turned its attention to the Froakie. A rather loud, aggressive cry came from it as it pounced at Arashi, and while Arashi tried to attack again, the Sableye's move nonetheless Astonished him. The shiny-eyed one jumped back, but an Ominous Wind from Astrid elicited a less-than-thrilled cry and it turned its attention to the Dartrix.
It didn't seem to move, and yet Astrid could tell something stirred behind her from the quick shade that seemed to fall on the ground before her, something blocking out the reddish glow keeping everything lit. She whirled around, and sure enough, it wasn't the Sableye, but a Shadow Sneak. She squawked and flapped aside, but the shadow clawing at her connected with one wing and shredded through a patch of feathers.
"Agh-!" the Dartrix hissed.
Nonetheless, she turned back around and sent another Razor Leaf while Arashi spit a Water Pulse, and that was enough to silence their shiny-eyed company. Its grip loosened on the Dusk Stone and the dark crystalline object tumbled a short ways across the floor, which Arashi went to pick up.
"… Well, at least it wasn't a Carbink," Astrid remarked, smoothing out some of her feathers that had been sliced and recollecting the Sableye in Sheriff Zaara's office.
Arashi gave her a knowing grin, stowing the stone in the bag.
They glanced about in search of which way to go next, noting the two openings on either side of them. Astrid nudged one wing at the corridor closest to them, and Arashi shrugged, to which they headed for it next.
"… Honestly, this place seemed a lot less threatening when all the crystals were pastel colors, e-even if those Litwick were a pain…" Astrid noted, scanning their surroundings.
"I thought it looked a lot cooler," Arashi too noted.
Maybe it was nature's way of telling travelers they'd come to the wrong place. The wild ones were manageable, but in any case, they certainly seemed to be causing more trouble than any in Brushwood Tangle or Tranquil Tunnel. Perhaps such was to be expected, but still, the Dartrix didn't think too much of it, and the Froakie didn't seem fixated either.
The room they found themselves in had no ghostly visages waiting for them nor any others intent on attacking, but a lone corridor faced them and another blinking pool took over the ground off to one side. Wordlessly, they both looked at each other, then back at the pool, and made a point to stay as far away from it as was reasonable. There was no need to provoke and draw out the Chinchou if they were happy to blink to each other (or just blink by themselves) without coming up and launching balls of sparks.
"Those little guys must have it so great out in the larger seas," Arashi chuckled.
"Those sparks probably come in handy," Astrid didn't disagree.
Nonetheless, the next room contained the thing they looked for most- the stairs- but it also contained a Beldum on one side that immediately locked onto them and another Sableye entranced by the glowing crystals.
Astrid and Arashi shared another glance, then bolted for the stairs as fast as they could. The Sableye scampered towards them, and apparently the Beldum had intended to land a Take Down, but the Starstorm duo darted up the steps too fast and the metallic one smashed straight into the shiny-eyed one. Cries of protest could be heard from below, but the Starstorm duo vanished up the staircase before anything could come of it.
Chasm Edge 14F
"Whew! We made it!" Arashi cried happily.
"A-alright, where is this Clefable…" Astrid's voice trailed off.
The floor they found themselves on was also empty, as well as slightly elongated to seem like a wide hallway more than anything. The crystals were still glowing, but it was just bright enough to see and definitely left something to be desired. Nonetheless, a quick glance around revealed another figure, seemingly pacing back at forth with small but quick steps, that paused upon noticing them.
"A-ha!" came the Clefable's voice, resembling something of a growl despite still seeming sweet and fairy-like.
She skittered closer, a few giggles coming from her that they certainly couldn't decipher the meaning of.
"Hey! Are you crazy?" Arashi called.
Astrid gave her comrade a glance, wondering if he really needed to ask such. The Dartrix was already poised to go.
Nonetheless, what they got in response was as good as anything, the Clefable's eyes furrowed in what looked like fury while her mouth was curled up in a grin. "DIE, MY LOVELIES~!"
Astrid and Arashi looked at each other, not even needing to say what was on their minds- indeed, another death threat seemed as good of an indicator as anything. The Clefable curled her fingers down on one hand save for the one in the middle, which she held up while giggling.
… She wasn't quite sure why, but Astrid couldn't help but be just a bit puzzled. "Is… Is she flipping us off?" she asked, tilting her head sideways with narrowing eyes.
Arashi gave his comrade a glance in return. "What do you mean, 'flipping us off?' What's that?"
Astrid studied the Clefable, trying to think of why that phrase came to mind, but she drew a blank. "U-um… w-well…"
Apparently the recollection wasn't going to come to her in any timely manner if it came at all, for the Clefable waggled her middle finger and quickly formed a giant burst of energy between her hands that fired off into a Hyper Beam.
"Gah!" Arashi cried.
"Are you serious?!" yelped Astrid.
The two of them sprang out of the way as fast as they could, but nonetheless they felt the beam's raw power as it blew past them and into the wall behind them, smashing a crater into its surface with steaming edges. They blinked at it for just a moment, then blinked at each other in stupor, while the Clefable, on the other hand, let out a tired sigh. They certainly weren't going to waste time after that display, and a Water Pulse and Razor Leaf followed that their target was too worn out to avoid. Still, her expression practically taunted them, and she didn't seem all that worried even as Astrid dove down and gave her a Peck. The fairy only giggled.
"Of every move out there! Hyper Beam?!" Arashi exclaimed.
Nonetheless, shortly the Clefable was sticking her finger up to waggle it again, and more light engulfed her- a Flash Cannon. She aimed it at the Dartrix, who took to the air and let it sail beside her, while Arashi darted off in a Quick Attack that elicited a somewhat startled cry from their target when he slammed into her. However, something in the room changed, for the air started to feel intensely heavy as Astrid tried to move her wings, and shortly the task became too difficult to keep up. The Dartrix dropped to the ground, and the Clefable giggled.
"Oh, good grief, she's got Gravity!" Arashi noted, scurrying back from the fairy.
"Why?!" Astrid protested, shaking more leaves loose.
Their distress only made the Clefable laugh while holding her finger up and waggling it. Somehow Astrid couldn't help but feel odd about her perpetually waggling her middle finger, but she didn't think about it too much when waggling said finger held so much potential against them.
A Razor Leaf flew at the Clefable, but the Clefable's hands took a white glow from which seemed to materialize a barrage of spikes, and a Spike Cannon followed that met most of the leaves in the air while also flying at both the Dartrix and Froakie. The Starstorm duo scurried around while trying to dodge them, but the heavy gravity made it harder than normal, especially for the avian, and a few of the glowing white spikes jabbed at them. Luckily, they didn't pack too much of a punch- the strength was in large volumes, not individual ones.
"Come closer, come closer~! So I can kill you!" the fairy chirped maliciously.
She stuck her finger up, though a Water Pulse hit it before she could waggle it. An Ominous Wind struck her as well, getting something akin to an annoyed growl in return, but in any case, she still waggled her finger within seconds and opened her mouth to let out an ear-shattering Hyper Voice. Both the Froakie and Dartrix let out cries of their own when they felt the ridiculous power of the sound waves produced, for it certainly didn't feel like just a voice. They looked at each other.
"Seed?!" Astrid suggested.
"Yeah!" Arashi agreed.
Their target still giggled, and went to waggle her finger again. Arashi fished the seed out of the bag and stuck it in his mouth before rushing the Clefable in another Quick Attack, who just grinned her malicious grin while waving her middle finger in circles. Astrid didn't attack, not wanting her comrade to be hit by any stray blows, though she couldn't help but be slightly amused when his expression contorted after biting down on the seed. Maybe he resisted fire… but he certainly didn't seem happy about breathing it.
Still, a surprised cry came from the fairy, and she got a bit wide-eyed, but nonetheless she could apparently take the hit better than the last Blast Seed target and still grabbed hold of the Froakie with a green glow covering her hands. In any case, there was a tired look to the Clefable's eyes, and the green glow seemed to comfort her far more than Arashi.
"Yiiaaaaah! Oh, come on!" the Froakie protested, Pounding the hand latched onto him as soon as he felt it.
The fairy's fingers weren't all that great for maintaining a hold anyway and she let go fairly quickly when the Froakie tried to wiggle out rather frantically, the green glow fading as she did and Arashi bouncing away from her and closer to Astrid. The Clefable seemed happy (if not also angry), but Arashi looked hesitant.
"She freaking Mega Drained me!" Arashi exclaimed, letting out a heavy breath and slipping the bag off.
Astrid eyed their target and shook some more leaves loose from her feathers, while the Clefable went right back to waggling, albeit with a few singe marks covering her body and a slight shake to her arm as if the movement was just a bit tiresome. Arashi gulped down an Oran berry, still keeping an eye on their target for her next attack.
"Maybe we should use that orb?" the Dartrix mused.
That certainly seemed like an attractive option when a dark red aura surrounded the Clefable and her countenance contorted into pure wrath. She balled up her dainty fists and ran at them with a furious screech, to which both of their faces fell.
"Is that Outrage?!" Astrid cried. "You're a fairy! That'd be like me using Ice Beam!"
Arashi fished the orb out as fast as he could go and held it up, to which it let off a bright glow and dissipated, though not before a glowing veil of energy formed a protective shield around them. The Clefable crashed straight into it, but that didn't stop her from wildly banging her fists against it in an attempt to tear through it in her dragon-like fury.
… Both the Dartrix and Froakie breathed a sigh of relief.
"… An All-Protect Orb," Arashi breathed. "That sure comes in handy!"
Astrid blinked, not quite believing their luck. "… Arceus above, you're right."
The red aura left the Clefable and her expression turned annoyed. "Hey! Quit hiding!" the fairy shouted. "Get out here and let me thrash you!"
"No," Astrid shot back.
She wasn't sure whether it would work or not, but nonetheless she sent another Razor Leaf their assailant's way. They went straight through the shield and straight into the Clefable, garnering a shriek of pain.
Arashi beamed. "Yes! Let's finish this before it wears off!"
The Clefable frowned with furrowed eyes, nonetheless going back to frantically waggling her finger (and probably hoping for Feint or Future Sight to bypass their shield). Arashi spit a Water Pulse, and she growled again, shortly after which Astrid lunged forward and planted a Peck when the Clefable tried to land a Hammer Arm through their field.
The field broke down, but the fairy apparently did too for a sharp cry of protest escaped her before she stumbled back and fell over with her eyes shut.
Astrid and Arashi looked at each other, then at the Clefable. Without saying a word, the Dartrix stalked closer and Pecked her again, not getting any response.
"… Well, I guess we won that one," Arashi mused, breaking into a grin again.
"… I knew that would be ridiculous, but that was ridiculous," Astrid remarked. "Not a single status move?! Hyper Beam and Outrage?!"
Her comrade shrugged. "Well, this'll make a good story later!"
She gave him a hapless look. "You're not wrong…"
The Froakie too studied their fallen target just a bit. "Didn't Rush say to just… leave them alone? That it'll wear off?"
Astrid tilted her head to the side, likewise eyeing the fairy. "Hasn't she been here for a few days though…? Do you think it'll just… wear off? I mean, there was that whole incident with Team Aeroslash that your dad seemed to think was the same sort of case too, and they were acting weird for a week…"
Arashi shrugged. "Well, that's also the first case of anything like that happening," he noted.
The Dartrix looked to him next. "And these Expedition Coalition members have been doing this sort of thing for a long time, right?"
Her comrade grinned. "Yep! They're the best!"
She nodded. "Alright. Your idols must know what they're talking about, so let's get out of here and leave her to whatever it is that fallen crazies do."
Shortly, the two of them were trailing towards the room's end, the motionless Clefable getting shrouded in dimness the further away they got.
"Seriously, though," Arashi mused, "what did you mean by 'flipping us off?'"
The Dartrix tried to think again about where, precisely, that thought was coming from. "W-well… when she held up her middle finger… I don't know; I just thought it was a bad gesture, but maybe that's just the human in me talking…"
Her comrade studied her, amused but puzzled. "What's wrong with sticking up your middle finger? She's only got three on each hand; not a whole lot of options there for which one she prefers to waggle."
The Dartrix tilted her head to the side. "… I'm honestly not sure."
Arashi laughed. "A lot of Pokémon don't even have fingers, and some of them don't have a middle one! As Trixie would put it, if an obscene gesture can't be replicated by everyone, then there's no use having it! I mean, look at you! You couldn't do that!"
That made the edges of her beak curl up just a little. "When you put it that way… Y-yeah, I really don't know. It sounds dumb."
"Well, if we ever come across a human-in-the-flesh, we can ask them," the Froakie said with a grin.
Astrid doubted they would find such a being, and if they did, whether they would take kindly to such a question. One way or another, she wasn't going to worry about it.
The name 'Crescent Ridge' was fairly accurate, for the entire town was situated on a crescent-shaped cliff which, had the Dartrix not had wings, hiking up the path to it likely would've been a laborious process. (She almost pitied the residents when they had to leave for another destination.) Still, it was rather peaceful, hardly an inch of the ground not covered by shade from a tree, and the occasional wild Kakuna could be seen hiding among the leaves. They had their own Kecleon Shop and a few more places that seemed to be a bit more important than the rest, but the Starstorm duo went for the black-colored cottage overlooking all the hills on the edge of the area. It looked as though some of it had been burnt a few times, but whether that was aesthetic or not was impossible to tell.
Arashi hopped up to the curtain door and gave the frame of the entrance a knock, while Astrid stayed a bit further behind him with slightly ruffled feathers. She wasn't sure if this 'Niko the Houndoom' was a nice individual or not, but regardless, she couldn't help but feel a bit awkward approaching anyone else, especially someone they'd never seen before. Her comrade, however, certainly didn't seem to mind.
In any case, shortly after the knock, the horned head of a certain doomy canine stuck out and brushed the curtain aside, his glance falling on the two smaller figures. Astrid couldn't help but notice the flashy red collar around his neck studded with what looked like black crystalline spikes- something resembling shards of the Dusk Stones they carried.
"Hiya! Are you Niko?" Arashi inquired with a smile.
"That would be me, yes," the Houndoom answered nonchalantly. "I don't believe I've met you two. What brings you here?"
"We saw your request about that Clefable, and she's taken care of," the Froakie replied, Niko's attention getting piqued at the mention. "And you weren't lying about her being a real piece of work! She almost hit us with a Hyper Beam and Outrage- we were worried for a few seconds! She's still beat up on the last floor, but she's probably not gonna cause trouble again."
Niko blinked with a slightly opening maw, but clearly the news made him happy. "Really?! Oh, thank goodness! I'm glad you just left her there, since we've got a Miltank a few houses over that just can't resist healing any hurt thing she sees, and that fairy out there just needs a good thrashing… but this is great! Here, let me get you something nice!"
The Houndoom disappeared back inside before they could say anything, the Froakie giggling happily.
"D-don't forget the stones," Astrid mused softly. "W-we don't need those, right…?"
"Unless you know anyone who evolves with a Dusk Stone, nope!" Arashi laughed, slipping the bag off and taking them out.
Astrid definitely did not- her social circle was identical to Arashi's, if not probably smaller.
Niko returned momentarily with a sack in his mouth, and seemed to be surprised at the dusky stones when he saw them.
"We found these and thought you'd want them!" Arashi noted cheerfully. "We don't need them, and you'd mentioned liking their dark essence."
The Houndoom set the sack down and blissfully pawed at one of them. "You two are great," he said happily. "Me and my buddies- a Zoroark and an Absol- just can't get enough of these things to bling out our houses with. Of course our Doublade pal gets one when she goes to evolve, but… what can I say, these things are just too dark not to love!"
Both the Houndoom and Froakie laughed, the Houndoom nudging the sack towards them with one paw and still admiring the stones out of the corner of his eye. Astrid deflated… just a little.
"Say, what're your names? I gotta remember you two," Niko inquired.
"I'm Arashi, and that's Astrid- she's pretty shy, but she's good in the dungeons. Together we're Team Starstorm," the Froakie answered, giving a nod at the Dartrix on mentioning her.
At the mention of her being 'shy,' Astrid blushed a bit underneath her feathers, and she puffed out just a bit again. "H-hi," she said softly.
The Houndoom chuckled. "Well, nice to meet you two! I've never heard of your team, but I'm not gonna forget it now!"
That made Arashi practically glow with glee. "Send us a word if you ever need anything!"
"I'll definitely keep you in mind," Niko replied. "You two take care out there, and don't get roasted by Salem!"
It was the Froakie's turn to chuckle as he took up the sack. "Oh, don't worry!"
Astrid couldn't help but think that it was too late for that warning, but kept her beak closed.
Nonetheless, they were leaving shortly, the Dartrix's feathers smoothing out as they did so. Arashi examined the contents of the sack and seemed rather enthralled with them.
"Alright, so that's about 300… two Oran berries, and… Arceus above! A Pure Seed!"
Astrid glanced over at the object he referenced and noticed a rather ornate-looking seed, at least as far as a seed could be considered 'ornate.' A small golden sprout came from one end, and about it was curled another green shoot. Her friend seemed entranced by it, as if he couldn't quite believe it was real.
"Hm? Pure Seed…?" Astrid asked.
"If you eat it, it warps you to the stairs!" Arashi noted, "That's really useful! If you get stuck on a floor that's giving you a ton of trouble, you can use this, and just go to the next one!"
"Ah… That does sound useful," the Dartrix mused, looking it over.
Her comrade giggled happily, stowing their loot away in the bag. "Third day of being Team Starstorm is also a success!"
Astrid couldn't help but giggle just a bit too before inquiring, "You ready to head back?"
Arashi nodded, to which she swooped him up and set off flying back over the cliffs and hillsides back home.
However, much later when the sun was starting to vanish over the horizon and leave everything shrouded in darkness, a certain Charizard's flame lit up just a small area of swampy brush around a circular body of water with what looked like a small island in the middle. The air was mostly quiet, save for the occasional Hoothoot or Murkrow, the wind in the sparse trees, and two voices. One of them belonged to Zariel, and one of them belonged to someone else mostly hidden by the thick patches of tall grass and cattails. The giant set of claws, though, was impossible to conceal.
"My, I wish I had been there," said a slightly gravelly, growling voice. "I do quite like the rain- it feels so much more natural with it present if I'm to be in a forest or rocky area…"
Zariel snickered. "It's a damn shame that Salem needs me somewhere else, or I'd stick around to see them again," she mused. "You'll give 'em hell for me, right?"
A gravelly laugh followed. "Of course. I should be seeing them within a day or two."
The thought made Zariel smirk wildly, a few puffs of smoke coming out of her maw as she chuckled to herself. "That human… it's adorable that she thinks she stands a chance against Salem, as if she won't end up on our side.~"
"You'd think the resistors would've learned the first time they tried this, after all the trouble it's caused them. They're all but signing their own execution warrants at this point."
The Charizard cackled, and the one in the brush made a few gravelly giggling sounds as well.
"Don't go getting your ass kicked, or I'll never let you forget it," Zariel remarked, spreading her wings out and turning to fly off.
"Do not worry, comrade. I'm sure I'll leave them with a fine First Impression."
The Charizard shot one last wild-eyed smirk back before flapping her wings and taking off into the night sky. The long set of claws disappeared into the grass and a splash could be heard on the other side, a large figure vanishing into the water.
