Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out…

Blue tried to calm himself as he sat on the deck of Prince's ship. The broken blade strapped to his side seemed to hum with the crashing waves. He couldn't tell if it was from nerves or excitement. The Temple of the Sea, ancient city of Manaphy! He was going there!

…to march through and kill a death maze that has spread its influence there. Kind of put a damper on that bubbling excitement.

…a slight one. It was too bad Pana and Scales wouldn't be coming along, as he just heard.

"Why the hell not?" Pana growled at her parents. Rio yawned at her side, while Scales dozed off to the side a bit. He was carrying both his and Pana's bags, and stared at another island in the distance. Blue thought it was called… Greenpaw.

"I know you can feel the first reason," Master Kuma said, pointing in the direction Scales was looking towards. "I know you can feel it."

Pana said nothing, but her eyes wandered towards the island as well. The Bidoof watched her fists clench, and relax. Over and over…

"You and Scales have your own to find," Ursa added on, crouching to get on her daughter's level. "They can't stop you, you know that. Go and claim what's yours."

…did her eyes flick to Blue for a moment? He wasn't sure…

"...fine," she said finally. "We'll go. Just…"

"Alright," with that, Kuma waved Blue over, calling to him. "Time for one last debrief."

Blue went over, a bit of nerves creeping back in. Where exactly were Pana and Scales going…?

"To put it simply," Ursa said to the team. "we're splitting you up. Pana and Scales have their own task nearby, and they'll be of limited use in the water."

Blue knew the reasoning made sense, especially if their task was what he thought it was…

"Rio can shift into a Vaporeon," Kuma added on. "Blue's powers work best when there's water around, and for obvious reasons this will be Prince's home turf. You three will be the assault squad. Get Prince through, get Manaphy loose, and drive the maze out. Got it?"

"Yup," Rio nodded, tapping the crystal he got from Red.

"I'm ready for this," Prince looked positively excited, and Blue couldn't really blame him. If Blue was excited about seeing this place, Prince's anticipation must have been staggering. His Legend, the fact he probably heard more stories about the place than even Blue, and he's been working towards this for who knows how long? And he needed one last push…

"...ok," Blue said after some hesitation. This was it. He was doing it.

"I'll be dropping the two of ya off on Greenpaw on our way out," Prince said to Pana and Scales. "You got this."

"Right…" Scales nodded.

"Don't we always…" Pana agreed, before turning to her brothers and Blue. "None of you are allowed to die."

"Last thing I wanna do," Rio waved the concern off, but flashed her a genuine smile. "We'll be ok. Always have been."

"...We'll keep it that way," Blue finally said.

"It'll take more than that place," Scales shot back.

"...good." she nodded, before going to sit next to Blue. The Bidoof didn't flinch, instead calming down a bit. Rio shot the two of them a smirk. Then Blue's blush came.

"Good luck," Kuma nodded, before going to jump off the ship.

"You won't need it," Ursa smiled, before following.

…

Pana walked as silently as ever as she and Scales walked Greenpaw. They could feel where they needed to go, it was so obvious now… She didn't bother with trying to sneak around, she really didn't care. Plus, Scales's scales tended to stand out.

It looked as nice as ever, the fields of different crops standing against the forest that gave the island its namesake. Fruit, rice, vegetables, and of course bamboo. She resisted the urge to snatch a small piece for herself. Small houses and fences marked the borders between, a path snaking into the lush forest that took the second half of the island.

And, of course, there were the people themselves.

The Snorlax, the Pangoro… they all stared at the siblings, exiled years ago only to return. The runt and the bastard. The thief and the glutton. The freaks…

Scales didn't even flinch as he caught an overripe tomato thrown by a Munchlax and just popped it in his mouth. Free snacks are free snacks…

Pana however, retaliated almost instantly. No one really saw what exactly she did, but the kid found his own face full of mud in an instant. Her paws only had the faintest of droplets as the tiniest bits of evidence. But no one would dare call her out on it. Their new family, their actual family… they made them strong. They wouldn't have it. They didn't need to take it anymore, and the people knew that.

She thought back to those early years. Just her and Scales. She had to steal for herself, and a RAVENOUS mouth. She had a talent, and it just… blossomed under so much pressure. And it got her noticed.

"Pana," Scales said, holding out his tail to stop her. "We're here."

Pana looked up at the dungeon entrance. The seemingly normal forest clearing ripped and writhed in front of them, stretching far past what should be possible on such a small island. And, of course, the roiling mass of tentacles that edged each side. Signs of the maze.

That, and the longing in their heads told them they were in the right place.

"Let's do it," Scales growled, his scales already shimmering with Iron Defense.

Pana nodded, taking a deep breath before Bulking Up herself and walking inside the death dungeon. The world seemed to get colder as they were spat into a forest of darkness.

"The preview was off…" Scales notes kicking a tendril that got too close. The tree leaves were a gunky black, the trunks themselves were coated in a gnarled, oily substance, the grass was pitch black, and the silence was eerie.

In other words, about what the two expected. There was only one path ahead.

"Is it weird I feel more comfy here than back in town?" Scales asked, taking a careful look around.

"Feel the same way," Pana said, her already light footsteps drowned out by Scales's jingling. Two paths to take, one to the left, another to the right. That feeling that drew them in… all Pana could feel was it being faintly ahead. Without discussing, Pana went for the leftmost path. Scales shrugged and followed.

Of course, the enormous, rotting Trevenant waiting there wasn't inclined to let them advance without a fight. It didn't even wait for them to finish walking through the corridor, bringing a massive Wood Hammer down on the pair as they emerged. Scales brought his own hand up to block and flared his Dragon Dance to push back, his Iron Defense combining with his natural toughness to barely make him feel it in the first place. He just held it there, keeping it in place for Pana's attack. She was already gone.

Suddenly, the ghost tree's other arm was severed from its body, the sneaky Shadow Claw rending ghostly wood like paper. It didn't cry out, but did not look like it appreciated being pruned. It looked around for the unseen panda, before suddenly taking an Aerial Ace to the back, forcing it to stumble. That was all Scales needed, YANKING it off its root legs and towards his burning maw. His Flamethrower erupted point blank, dead wood going up in smoke. Again, no cry of pain. No agony displayed. Only the release of a zombie.

Pana rejoined her sibling as they watched their enemy burn. Another monster of the Labyrinth.

She almost wanted it to be this stupid island instead.

"Let's do this fast," Pana said, tearing her eyes away from the burning log and starting down another path.

"Yeah…" Giving the burning ghost tree one last glance, Scales followed. They had a job to do.

And dammit, it would be done.