Starry Peak 13F

"Incoming Explosion!" Adnea cried.

Rozen's Reflect went up right in time as a screeching mid-sized Gourgeist came sprinting down the hallway next to them, the resounding BOOM echoing throughout the floor and whatever wall was next to it getting blown to smithereens.

"Daaaamn!" Rush exclaimed with excitement, not fazed at all.

Just as before, a big crater was left in the floor with the fainted dungeon-dweller limp at the bottom of it. Whether it had hit them or not, the Starstorm trio all had rather frazzled senses, Astrid's feathers puffing out while Arashi grinned awkwardly and Raijin gave a twitch of surprise.

Rush shook his head, not too bothered and keeping their venture going. "And there's Beasts on Ultra Space that can pull off more than one of those, yeah?" he said with a snicker, shooting their own Beast comrade a glance.

"Blacephalon? Yes," Raijin replied. "Mind Blown looks pretty, but… it'll definitely blow your mind."

The Scrafty let out a hearty cackle, crossing his arms. "Ehehe! Sounds like fun!"

Perhaps it was fun, Astrid figured… for everyone but the target.

At the same time, she couldn't help wondering about Team Sweetheart waiting for them up at the top. The Coalition members were definitely making quick and easy work of the wild ones, and she had to agree with Arashi that the synergy was incredibly impressive, so surely they'd pull through when faced with Ama's team… Between Adnea and Rozen on guard, they'd barely taken a single hit, and Rush's strength spoke for itself. Of course, with such a reputation as the Coalition had, it was to be expected, but her partner's fanboyish tendencies started to become a bit more understandable. Team Starstorm definitely had no issues fitting together and covering each other where they could, but Astrid hoped that their own group could reach the level of cohesion that the other half of their group was showing too. Surely, they were well on their way, at least.

"As much as I wanna put my fist through her non-existent face, that Nihilego did a bang-up job," Rush flippantly remarked. "This place is way more exciting than it's ever been."

Astrid had to wonder what part of Exploding Gourgeists, Discharging Flaaffies, and annoying Mr. Mimes couldn't already be considered 'exciting.' She certainly wouldn't have called it 'boring' or 'peaceful.'

Nonetheless, Arashi piped up with the same sentiment. "You wouldn't call this place exciting already?! I mean, the wild ones seem like they'd kick up a fuss regardless!"

"Hah!" the Scrafty scoffed. "This ain't even close to being a hard dungeon in my mind! I mean yeah, there's Exploding Gourgeists and the flocks of Florges piss me off, but this ain't nothin'!"

"Really?" Arashi asked, starry-eyed. "What is a hard dungeon, then?"

Rush and Rozen shared a glance, both grinning and chuckling.

"Forsaken Crater?" asked the Audino.

"Forsaken Crater," Rush snickered, then to the Starstorm trio, "It's cold as hell, it's pitch-black, the weather sucks, there's earthquakes just about every other minute that can block off paths or bury you in rocks, and every 'Mon there has a Mega form that you will run into. It's 'forsaken' for a reason 'cause no one wants to go there, ehehe!"

"It's only ten floors, but those ten floors are a gauntlet," Rozen concurred. "Most teams don't get past the first or second."

"But we've made it through all ten," the Scrafty quickly noted, grinning. "The feeling that you might get fucked up at any moment is great, ehehe!"

It sounded… unpleasant, to say the least, and Astrid fluffed up a bit at the thought of wandering through underground darkness in the midst of earthquakes and Mega forms. However, if their company had conquered such a place, then that felt reassuring with having them around, at least. The Frogadier certainly had starry eyes.

"You guys are the best…!" Arashi breathed, as entranced as could be.

"Don't you forget it, Li'l Blue!" Rush laughed, shooting him a smirk.

Starry Peak 17F

The Gourgeists started to look bigger, and indeed, what had been said about them earlier was true- their size increased the further up the mountain they trekked. Not all of them caused Explosions on sight, but the ones that did certainly stirred up a ruckus and reshaped their immediate vicinity from the blast. Still, something else started to become more numerous, something with claws and sword-like feathers…

"Incoming," Adnea informed them again.

"SkreeeeEEEEEEE!"

The same avian screeching they'd heard outside quickly came echoing down a corridor in front of them, the metallic feathers of a Skarmory glinting a bit in the refracted light as it dashed for them. Rush went balling his fists up while Arashi spit an Ice Beam at it, the metallic feathers quickly getting an icy sheen too as the cold crystals clung to it. More screeching followed, but the Skarmory seemed more wrathful at being attacked in the first place than pained at any damage it had taken.

"So you decided we were a better target than the Mr. Mime you were originally following," Adnea flatly noted, crossing her arms and staring sharply at the dungeon-dweller.

"What a dumbass idea," Rush laughed.

Raijin Discharged a bolt at the steely avian, but it took to the air and instead the corridor it had run out of was full of refracted rainbows as the electricity flew down the crystal-coated hallway instead. Still, a few fast flaps of the Skarmory's wings shook some downy, but very sharp and pointed all the same, feathers loose and attempted to throw the Spikes around the ground under the expeditioners. An Ominous Wind from Astrid was enough to blow them back while also striking their foe, the pointed metallic shards not getting too close to them.

"Nice one there, Li'l-li'l Green," Rush remarked, smirking. "Screens can't block out terrain hazards."

Astrid only gave a small intonation of acknowledgement, not thinking much of it.

Their company, however, quickly took a dive down at them, specifically aiming for the Audino, with its talons slashing away and screech after screech escaping its beak. A Reflect shield went up, and the avian Metal Clawed away at it with the utmost ferocity that probably would've ripped some deep gashes into Rozen's furry front had it made contact.

"Oh, heavens," Rozen mused, a bit surprised but not too fazed. "I can't even threaten you, dear…"

"Don't you go after my best pal, asshat! You go after me!" Rush exclaimed rather pointedly, his eyes narrowing.

"That thing has no idea what you're saying and only seeks the most convenient target," Adnea said flatly.

That much was probably true, but Rush still looked utterly peeved at it as he ducked out from behind the shield and drew his fist back. The Skarmory turned its attention on him next, but before it could do much, there was a loud THUD as Rush's Brick Break collided with the avian's armored form. It went down with a muffled snarl, the unpleasant feeling of its metal form getting dented by the Scrafty's fist cutting off whatever vocalization it wanted to make. Yet again, Astrid almost felt sorry for it… almost.

Rush, though, looked to Adnea again. "Adnea, we clear?"

"For now, yes," the researcher replied.

"Good! Break time, y'all?"

There were no protests.

Starry Peak 20F

The Skarmories started to replace the crowd of Florges, and one of them even had red-tipped wings from a certain viscous liquid best left on the inside of one's body… but fortunately, it was not from any of the expeditioners.

"Skreeeeeee!" it hissed, clattering onto the ground as Arashi froze the joint of one of its wings with an Ice Beam.

Adnea's eyes took on their glow shortly thereafter and the wild one couldn't resist her piercing gaze, calming down to more normal levels of fussiness in seconds before its eyes shut and it drifted off to sleep. Perhaps it was in a terrible roosting position with its wings haphazardly splayed out to the side and one leg haplessly stuck out, but one way or another, it was taken care of.

"It must be a nuisance for the other wild ones when those things grow new feathers," Arashi giggled. "Just be out walking around and bam! A sword drops out of the sky!"

"Pfffft, if I was just walking around and some random 'Mon dropped a big-ass sword-feather, I'd call that a good time," Rush said, smirking.

"You call almost everything a good time," Adnea remarked, still as unfazed as ever.

"Oh, fuck off," the Scrafty said to the contrary, shooting her a playful side-eye. "I got fists for causing KOs, but you can move shit with your mind. You could literally just impale someone with it by thinking!"

"That is a horribly inefficient use of my abilities if any such situation necessitated me coming to blows," the Orbeetle wasn't all that convinced. "Besides, I should say- we have a Mr. Mime and a Gourgeist coming this way."

Rush still smirked but rolled his eyes at the mention of their incoming foes, and Rozen too let out a bit of a sigh at knowing there was a chance his screens could get nullified. Nonetheless, towards the next room they trekked, a few little red trickles on the ground that they assumed must have come from whatever unfortunate wild one that had found itself on the other side of the Skarmory's claws.

"They've noticed us," Adnea piped up again.

Indeed, from further down another corridor, the familiar screeching of an angry Gourgeist could be heard, albeit a bit faintly.

"… Well, ain't that fantastic," Rush mused sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

Nonetheless, a Mr. Mime entered the room at about the same time the rest of them did, and the fussing of the Gourgeist was growing louder as plodding footsteps started to grace their senses too. The icy one didn't waste time in becoming cloaked in a rainbow light, and very quickly, Rozen was throwing up a Light Screen to keep the Dazzling Gleam from doing any damage, especially not to their Scrafty lead. However, their major concerns were quickly realized when the dancing wild one made a wiping motion, Screen Cleaning their shield away.

"Alright, we ain't putting up with this shit," Rush remarked flatly, making a dash at their foe.

However, the Mr. Mime Protected itself and instead its own shield met with Rush's Throat Chop, all while the wild one danced away in place and glared at them all.

"Come on," Astrid lamented, unamused while her own eyes narrowed at their foe.

Adnea floated closer to the Mr. Mime's shield, her eyes glowing in hypnotic power again, but at the same time, the others quickly became aware that they would have other company soon, for the figure of a large Gourgeist dashed down the hallway at them (at least, as fast as one of its size could dash), starting to become cloaked in a bright light. They all knew what that entailed- that some explosive damage was soon to follow. Astrid skittered backwards a bit and hardened one wing as if holding a Steel Wing up might shield her as well, and Arashi too stuck close to her while uncertainly aiming an Ice Beam. Raijin followed suit and charged up a Signal Beam, albeit backing away from their wild company too.

"For fuck's sake!" Rush hissed, turning to the ghostly gourd next. "Rozen! Warp that thing!"

The Audino wasn't wasting time, either. As quick as he could, Rozen fished out a Warp Wand and waved it at the Gourgeist, who screeched in wrath before becoming completely enveloped in energy.

BOOM!

Whatever Explosion happened, it was elsewhere, but the Starstorm trio was still startled by the shaking of the floor it caused and the sheer loudness.

"That's an awful combination…!" Astrid squeaked, eyeing the place the Gourgeist had been seconds prior and the dungeon-dweller that Adnea practically stared holes through.

"That's why we carry those wands, Li'l-li'l Green," Rush noted, likewise giving the place the exploding dungeon-dweller had been a side-eye. "Don't nobody wanna get cornered by an attack like that."

She certainly agreed.

The Mr. Mime was soon sound asleep on the other side of the room, and the expeditioners relaxed a bit… At least, for a moment, before Rush spotted something behind a crystalline shard and darted over to it.

"Hah, looks like someone dropped somethin' else," Rush snickered. However, he shortly got a funny look when he retrieved the item in question, eyeing it in a mix of confusion and amusement. "… The hell?" he said incredulously, inspecting the object he'd picked up.

It was certainly something they hadn't seen before, yet… somehow, Astrid thought it looked familiar. A bluish liquid was contained in something of a rectangular clear cartridge, the grey lid snapped into place over it containing a small nozzle on the front and what looked like a flat lever on the back. It was definitely out of place, likely dropped by another expeditioner trying to run from a wild one and forgetting to close their bag as a result. She studied it, trying to figure out where she could've possibly seen such a thing before, while Rush and his comrades looked fairly confused.

"The fuck is in here?" the Scrafty said with a chuckle, turning it around to get a good look. "Heh, may as well find out!"

Rush went to pry the top off, but before he could get very far, Raijin piped up and reached out to stop him, exclaiming, "No! Don't!"

Just as quick, Rush paused, studying the Xurkitree next. "What's up? You know what this is?"

"That's a max potion," Raijin explained, calming down but still seeming a bit hesitant with the Scrafty's hands around its top. "W-we should keep that. Just… don't press that button on the back of it."

Rush took his hand off of the cap, still looking inquisitive. "Why? What's it do?"

"It'll spray it out," was the answer, Raijin easing up a bit without the Scrafty touching the top. "L-look, u-um… Can I see that…?"

Rush shrugged, handing it over. The Xurkitree was studying it next, as if he couldn't quite believe the object he held was real.

"Okay, explain," the Coalition lead snickered, crossing his arms and smirking. "The hell is a max potion?"

"It's a type of medicine," Raijin replied, still looking it over. "You use it by pointing the opening at yourself and pressing the button, then it'll spray out and you'll feel its effects. I haven't seen a single one of these since I came here, which I guess is par since they're a human invention and you don't have humans here, but you see potions all the time on Ultra Space. They'll restore your health depending on the potency, and this one here is the strongest type that'll completely heal you back to normal… Squad Fourteen-Five must have dropped this when they came through."

That certainly caught their attention, Adnea even getting a surprised look as opposed to her perpetual flatness. It started to sound familiar to Astrid, but where her mind was gathering the scattered recollection from, she had no idea.

"So it's an artifact from your homeworld!" Arashi exclaimed. "And they're a human invention?! Sheesh, the Ultra Space humans must be cool!"

"Sounds like they're like Oran berries but they're not Oran berries," Rush remarked, looking it over.

"And Raijin can't use berries!" Arashi added, perking up. "We should keep that! That is such a lucky find!"

"That is a damn lucky find," the Scrafty concurred, still looking the potion over. "Yeah, y'all three hang onto that. Might save your ass next time you ain't got Rozen."

Shortly, Raijin had it safely stowed away in their bag, but Arashi still seemed fascinated by the entire principle of it even if it was out of sight. Astrid tried to think of just why it seemed familiar… but as with much everything else regarding her sealed memories, she had no idea. Regardless, she was happy that their Beast comrade had a surefire way of healing if they ever needed it… and at some point or another, they probably would need it.

Starry Peak 24F

A Florges kicked up a fuss and a Flaaffy was intent on giving them all a shock, but they too were dealt with swiftly. Their stash of items hadn't taken too huge of a hit… which was at least somewhat reassuring, seeing as there were still plenty of Oran berries to go around if Heal Pulses stopped being an option (or the Audino himself was targeted) and Blast Seeds could certainly be helpful. The Escape Orb was there, but… hopefully they wouldn't need it.

"Okay, so let's talk this setup over," Rush said, crossing his arms and pausing at the base of the stairs. "We've made it through this dungeon fine, but this fight ain't gonna be easy. Team Starstorm, y'all pay attention so you know what to expect from them."

The rest of them were listening, the Starstorm trio much more intently so. Indeed, they weren't sure what to expect, but if the Coalition lead was going to tell them, they definitely wanted to know.

"Our biggest threats here are obviously Ama herself, and Millicent comes after even if that Alcremie ain't got a single damaging move in her arsenal," the Scrafty explained. "Ama's running with Soft-Boiled, Refresh, Ice Beam, and Counter, so she's probably gonna get in our way and drag things out with her healing. If Yunael were here, Millicent would be boosting her attacks with Decorate first, but she ain't, so Millicent's gonna go for Chira and Jingle instead. On top of that, she's got Aromatherapy to heal whatever status conditions might happen to her team, which, for us, knocks out our wands and orbs, but that's alright, since we only brought those to be extra safe in case we got some real unpleasant company. That also means we can't count on getting sleep, poison, freezing, or paralysis from our moves either. If her Sweet Scent starts wafting around, ignore it as best you can, because it's only there to fuck with your senses. If she starts batting her eyes and looking cutesy, run like hell, because it's a Sweet Kiss that'll confuse the shit out of you."

Astrid and her comrades carefully took it in.

"After those two, we got the attackers," Rush continued. "Chira moves pretty fast and hits pretty hard with those fluffy scarves, but if she can't get close enough for Iron Tail, Tail Slap, or Play Rough, she'll sic a Swift after you. Jingle's got Dragon Breath, Hyper Voice, Extrasensory, and Flamethrower, so even if you ain't close to him, watch yourselves, because he can pretty much hit whoever he damn well pleases whenever he wants to."

Rozen too chimed in. "I should probably mention to be a bit cautious in case a shield breaks. Defending is my forte, but with enough damage, they can be broken through. That hasn't been a problem thus far, but all bets are off now."

They nodded.

"So let's talk our strategy here," Rush said, giving each of them present a glance. "Rozen, you obviously know what to do, 'cause we've been doing it for years now, but if anything happens to you or you get KO'd and we ain't got your Heal Pulses, we got Oran berries."

The Audino smiled a bit, giving the Scrafty a quick playful nudge.

Rush turned to the Orbeetle next. "Adnea, go straight for Hypnotizing Millicent the instant you see her. Keep her from doing her thing as best you can, and if you can get her to support us instead, do it. Those boosts she give her teammates ain't no joke. She's the first priority, then Ama, but if something happens and you need to go for Chira or Jingle instead, do whatever the hell you see fit." He turned to Team Starstorm next. "Now, you three. Raijin, you've got Dazzling Gleam, so that makes Jingle an easy target as long as Ama stays out of your way, but knowing Ama, expect her to jump in front of your attacks. Li'l Blue, you're pretty fast too, and Li'l-li'l Green, you can fly, so I want y'all to get after Chira, and Li'l-li'l Green, feel free to whop Millicent with a Steel Wing if she's being problematic. We all clear?"

More nods.

"Good," declared the Scrafty. "Constant vigilance."

He motioned them along, and up the stairs they went.

Starry Peak Summit

It was almost the same as they'd seen in Yunael's memories- the cave with its star-shaped exit through which sun filtered in, but there was no Beast brigade there to meet them. There wasn't anyone there to meet them, but the cheerful voices from the flowered field on the other side of the cave's walls made it fairly clear where their targets were.

"… Oh my, it's even worse than I'd initially appraised," Adnea noted, keeping her voice low. "They've completely changed their 'love and joy' catchphrase to be about Void's enlightenment."

"You're kidding," Rozen whispered, looking stunned.

"I'm not," the Orbeetle replied.

"Of all the squads they could've run into, it just had to be one with a Nihilego…" Raijin's voice dismally trailed off.

"Now I see just how problematic that species is," Adnea acknowledged. "Never mind not seeming like themselves- it's like they've completely forgotten who they are."

"Well, we're gonna remind 'em," Rush declared, balling up one fist and pounding it into his other hand. "Even if we gotta beat the everloving shit out of 'em and drag 'em back home kicking and screaming. That bitch Void and those jackasses on Squad Fourteen-Five ain't just gonna brainwash a team like Ama's into believing whatever bullshit 'enlightenment' they're spreading."

Outside the cave, though, Team Sweetheart, didn't seem to have too many concerns as they happily chattered away to each other. On the cliffs below, some of the wild ones might have gotten into scuffles with each other, but that didn't seem to bother the poisoned expeditioners too much, for the reflective stones around them were only reflecting their grins. By all indications, it was a lovely day, but nonetheless… something was clearly amiss.

"We could get Shar's team, too!" a certain Blissey chirped, clapping her hands in glee. "And Xeno's! Oh, we need Xeno! His abilities are too good to pass up! I can stall out Karma too, no problems!"

"And Team Mirage!" Jingle piped up. "Delphi's abilities would be really useful too!"

"Now, now, she might see us coming," Chira noted, sounding a bit more hesitant but calm and collected nonetheless. "We know we have one Dark-type coming our way, and we all know that a Psychic-type couldn't just read someone like Rush."

Millicent was still silent as ever, but the other three around her had no trouble understanding her hand motions. (*Between Adnea and Delphi, that's two psychics… Would they know anything about where a human-turned-Pokémon would be hiding?*)

"You're right; we should ask them!" Ama acknowledged, grinning at the Alcremie. "If she's hiding, it can't be Astrid! That's too bold of a move for someone as shy as that! Besides, there's a lot more members of the Rowlet line scattered around than her!"

However, a few new reflections in the crystalline slabs around them caught their attention, and all at once, Team Sweetheart went whirling around to see the Coalition brigade at the mouth of the dungeon's exit, Adnea's eyes already glowing and Rush with his fists balled up. The faintest sound of a whimper came from Millicent's mouth as her eyes too started to glow, but just as quick, one of Chira's scarves clapped over the Alcremie's face.

"What's this about me and Li'l-li'l Green~?!" Rush pointedly but amusedly inquired, smirking with narrowed eyes. "Ama, the fuck is wrong with you?"

Astrid had ideas on what Ama's words meant, and she wasn't particularly fond of what they entailed.

Nonetheless, the Scrafty wasn't wasting time either, the aura of Rozen's Helping Hand cloaking him as he went rushing up to Ama with a fist drawn back for a Brick Break. Ama, still smiling but with eyes that turned sinister, braced herself and took the hit, her expression contorting with pain for just a moment. The Blissey struck out on her own, and Rush jumped back, for she Countered his hit… straight into a Reflect. The giant crack she put in the shield was indication enough that no one wanted to be on the receiving end of either attack.

Even with her eyes covered, Millicent was snarling and pounding one of her own fists into her other hand, a complete turnaround from the heart-shaped gestures and cute grins they'd seen from her before. Chira and Jingle weren't too far off, the Cinncino's eyes narrowing while her scarves flicked while smoke escaped the dragon's maw.

"Darling, if you'd like to fight me, go ahead," Ama nonchalantly brushed it all off, her egg starting to emit its healing light.

Adnea's Hypnosis turned on the Blissey next with Millicent out of reach, but at almost as fast, another of Chira's scarves clapped over Ama's eyes too. Again Adnea's target switched to the Cinccino, but yet again a scarf shot up to block it out, and before Jingle could be the next in line, the Drampa let loose a Flamethrower that necessitated Rozen shielding them all again. Team Sweetheart became little more than distorted silhouettes behind the flames.

"We've all found a new purpose in life," the Blissey said with a smirk, patting her egg. "Coalition darlings, the ones from the 'crazy' incidents have had it right this entire time, even if most of them didn't know it.~ Call us what you will, but I've never been so full of love.~"

"We can't help but share it!" Jingle enthusiastically concurred, clapping his furry forearms together while wearing a happy glare on his face.

"Our love belongs to Void now," Chira likewise declared, her scarves going back to their ordinary places on her head and neck.

The ground was left with a patch of grass scorched into ashes, but the targets were still unharmed. Astrid certainly wasn't thrilled to see another Flamethrower- Zariel and Salem had definitely spouted enough fire to last a lifetime, but she kept that sentiment to herself.

"Theeeere we go," Raijin said flatly. "That's the same sort of thing that every Beast on Ultra Space says."

Ama, however, giggled. "What do we say, comrades~?!"

Both the Blissey and two of her teammates echoed it, while Millicent only mimed it with her hands. "MAY THE LOVE OF VOID'S ENLIGHTENMENT FILL THE WORLD~!"

It was the Blissey's turn to cackle, bracing herself with a maniacal grin that seemed utterly out of place on someone that had formerly been so sweet and cheerful. Millicent set to Decorating their Drampa comrade while Chira became cloaked in a pinkish glow, all three of them getting similar grins of madness. It was… unsettling.

"Fuck Void's enlightenment!" Rush hollered back, balling his fists up again. "Sorry, not sorry for what we're about to do!"

"Try me, darling!" Ama hollered back, not fazed at all.

It was blatant to all of the Coalition members that indeed, Team Sweetheart's sweetness had been completely tossed aside. Whatever they were spouting… it surely wasn't 'love.'


Author's note: This one is a bit shorter since I started writing the fight scene at the end, then realized this chapter would stretch to around 30 pages if I continued in that same vein... so I decided I would save that for the next chapter since there is quite a lot of scuffling in chapter 37. I finished it last night, though, and it was quite fun to write, so you'll be seeing that in the near future. It's just that time of the semester again where multiple lab reports and exams all begin to happen around the same time, so please be patient with me.