The newly transformed pinks and whites were gathered before me, listening intently to my words. "Here's the plan of attack," I said. "Pinks? Fly the whites around at a high point, high enough that they can scan far and wide. Whites? Focus your gazes on the ground. You won't find the White Onion up a tree or on a cliff face. And do not waste time searching the valley. If it were here, we would've seen it by now. Instead, I want you to search the areas surrounding it, especially those that we don't frequent. Understand?"
"Understood!" they replied in unison.
"Good! Now flap to it!"
As instructed, the pinks airlifted the whites and scattered. Once they were gone, I turned to the Harlequin Onion. They had already fused again, evidently satisfied with our new initiative. By all means I should've been excited, not just by the prospect of a third Onion, but also by the fact that I had successfully communicated with my own.
And yet something felt off.
"Y'know something, Spice?"
I looked aside and saw Peppergrass. With a puzzled expression, he asked, "Isn't it weird that the White Onion isn't laying out in the open?"
I tilted my stem. "How is that weird?"
"Think about it. If it needed help, then why didn't it make itself more visible? That would've made sense, right?"
"It may have been trying to hide from dangerous beasts."
"That didn't stop the Harlequin Onion."
I shrugged. "Does it matter either way? Nothing can hide from a white pikmin, so it's only a matter of time."
He shrugged back. "I guess you're right. Wherever it is, they'll find it."
He had tried to sound confident, but I could tell he was still bothered by the paradox. I didn't understand why; it had no bearing on the mission. But it wasn't worth discussing, I supposed. Soon enough, he'd be able to ask the White Onion himself. I couldn't help but wonder how it would respond...
Some time passed before I spied a dual shape approaching from the sky. It was one of the pink-and-white duos, and as soon as they were in earshot, they answered the obvious question:
"We found no sign of the White Onion."
Okay, one search turned up fruitless. To be expected. Before long, another duo returned and gave me the same report. Again, to be expected. Then it happened again. And again. And again.
And again.
By late noon, all but one of the duos had come back. They waited with me as the final duo emerged from the forest, and I knew we were all thinking the same thing.
Is this the one?
The pink drew ever closer, carrying the white in his hands and suspense on his wings. Then, just like that, he was before us. And then the stale words spilled out of his mouth.
"We found nothing."
A troubled silence followed. I could feel everyone looking at me for direction, but I was just as confused as they were. If the White Onion was really here, then how could it have avoided detection? "This... doesn't make sense," was all I could think to say.
"Or maybe it does?"
I narrowed my eyes, then rolled them to the speaker. "Why do you always show up at weird times, Pepper?"
"You stumble, I pick you back up," he said flatly. "Tell me, have you considered that the Onion might've already been rescued?"
"If that were the case, then wouldn't our Onion know about it?"
"Not necessarily. The White Onion could've just neglected to send a 'never mind' signal."
I glanced aside. "I can't rule that out as a possibility."
"But we can't confirm it either, can we?" asked a white.
I thought for a moment. "Well, theoretically our Onion could try signaling it. But what are the odds it would even catch the signal? We couldn't be sure if it was still dormant or simply out of range."
Peppergrass's face lit up. "Spice! You're a genius!"
"...I am?"
"Our Onion could signal other Onions! The odds of a specific Onion catching the signal are low, but the odds of any Onion catching the signal are higher, yes?"
"Well, yeah. But how does that help us?" I asked. "We already have plenty of pikmin able and willing to search, so reinforcements won't necessarily-"
"It's not for reinforcements. It's for confirmation," he clarified. "Our Onion could ask another Onion if it's seen the White Onion, and then that Onion could ask another Onion. See where I'm going with this?"
"I do. But the world's a big place, Pepper. It's always possible to go undetected, even if you're not trying to hide."
"That doesn't mean we shouldn't try it, though. We've got nothing to lose and something to gain, so we might as well." He turned away. "You keep coordinating the search. I'll go speak with the Onion."
And with that, he ran off. I couldn't imagine this helping very much, but... whatever. It was better than nothing.
"What do you want us to do?" asked a pink.
"There's not much we can do other than expand our search," I replied. "It's getting late in the day though, so we'll pick this up tomorrow."
They looked at one another, exchanged nods, then looked back at me. "Alright. Tomorrow it is," said the same pink.
"Don't worry, Spicebloom. Wherever that Onion is, we'll find it," said another pink.
"Yeah. You can count on us," said a white.
I smirked. "I know. And thanks for your help."
They turned and left in unison, heading back to the Labyrinth. I could hear them chattering amongst themselves, and although I couldn't discern their words, I could sense their excitement. Perhaps they were imagining their success, or what the White Onion would do once they found it? The White Onion joining us was certainly an interesting prospect...
...White...
I sat down and wondered what the white would've thought of this. Now that she knew the truth, would she be excited by the possibility of meeting her Onion? Or would she be angry at it for catalyzing this situation in the first place? After all, it could've waited until after she was plucked to take off, couldn't it? Imagine how different her life would've been...
...Onions. Who understood them, really? I mean, I understood the Harlequin Onion a little better now, but their behavior was still largely unfathomable to me. They had come here to rescue one of their own, and yet they had permitted their pikmin to slaughter each other for almost a year. Clearly they hadn't wanted that, but it would've been so easy for one to leave and the other to remain. What was the logic behind them both staying? To cover more ground? Had that slight advantage really been worth all the bloodshed?
I recalled the time I had first seen the war. The blue had told Peppergrass and me that Onions didn't care about pikmin, and that was why we had been left behind. And at the time, I hadn't believed him, because the Red Onion had had a good reason for abandoning us.
But the same could not be said of the Black and Orange Onions.
A fury simmered within me. Half of it was directed at the Harlequin Onion, and the other half was directed at myself. Why? Because I was admitting something that I had never, ever wanted to admit.
The blue hadn't been completely wrong.
I clenched my fists. I was glad the Onion could understand us, because once our mission was over, I would have some words for it.
