"They're planning something, but the question is what," Sol said and paced the room. "The obvious answer would be that they're planning to steal anything found during the expedition. Chatot and Wigglytuff are completely oblivious to what they've invited along, so we can't expect much help there. No use to try explaining it to them either. They won't believe us. We'll have to-"

"Sol, you've been repeating the exact same thing over and over again for the last hour," Eevee said from his pace on his bed.

"I'm not exactly comfortable having a pack of vipers sleeping just down the hall."

"Worrying isn't going to change that."

"Maybe, but it'll keep my guard up against any backstabbing."

"I'm… not sure whether you're being serious or not."

"Neither am I."

Sol sighed and fell back on her bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"I hate not being able to do anything."

"They'll slip up eventually and show their true colours. Get some sleep, Sol."

Eevee blew out the flickering lantern, plunging the room into darkness. Sol continued to stare up at the ceiling, her eyes soon adjusting to the scant moonlight shining in through the window.

Eventually her eyes slid shut, though her mind was still plagued with thoughts of schemes and traps springing shut.

…

It was in Sol's firm opinion that dreams are nature's way of screwing with your mind. You get dropped in some pseudo reality, where you're either tortured by inner demons, or spend the night in a place where people walk on water and stairs stretch on forever.

Or, if you're extremely unlucky, you'll end up in the middle of a symbolic labyrinth, tearing your hair out at your subconscious' inability to speak plainly.

And so it was that Sol found herself surrounded by a deep, grey fog. She couldn't see more than a few feet ahead in any direction, and it would be easy to lose one's way amid these uniform surroundings.

Sol started walking at random, and as it always was in dreams, didn't question what was happening. There wasn't a sound to be heard amongst the grey, not even the noise of her feet hitting the ground. It leant an eerie feeling to the place, as if it were not meant for any living being to witness.

Sol stopped. A door stood in her path, made of dark, imposing metal, connected to nothing. She looked around the edges to the other side. Nothing.

Sol considered the door for several seconds, then reached for the handle. Locked. She felt a surge of annoyance. What was the point of having a door appear out of nowhere of you couldn't open it?

She shook the handle around in frustration, then rammed her shoulder against the door. It burst open easily, despite its strong appearance, spilling Sol onto a cold, cement floor. Muttering angrily, she pushed herself to her feet and looked around. She was in a dimly lit hallway, wide and leading on into the far distance. Along the sides were numerous cells cut off with thick, iron bars, all empty.

Sol spared a glance behind her and saw the door leading out into the fog still stood open. Despite her instincts screaming at her to run, she turned back and went deeper down the corridor.

Her eyes flicked from side to side. Each cell she passed was identical, lacking furnishings and occupants, locked up tight and impossible to open.

Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Noth- wait.

In a cell no different from the others, a plain cot with a rusty metal frame was placed in a corner. Curled up on it was a figure in black clothing and boots, facing the wall and away from Sol.

"Hello?"

No response.

"What? Am I not important enough for you?"

After a moment, the figure slowly turned its head to reveal the face of a young human woman with long, light brown hair. At least, Sol assumed she was human, but there was something… off about her, though Sol couldn't say what exactly. It was like the time she had seen a Ditto had transformed into Eevee, but she could still tell who was who. Her features just had a foreign, unfamiliar air to them that was unmistakeable, but at the same time no specific difference stood out.

Except for her eyes, which regarded Sol with a mixture of contempt and annoyance. It shocked Sol when she realized that they were the same as hers, with blue irises and pupils shaped like tapered ovals instead of circles.

Sol's mind scrambled for something to say, but her words turned into a cry as thick, black tendrils wrapped around her chest and yanked her away from the woman, watching impassively from her cell.

…

Sol awoke with a start, her heart beating wildly and her breath coming in ragged gasps. Eevee, still asleep in his bed, stirred at the noise, but then turned over, muttered something about pillowcases filled with cheese, then was still once more.

Sol got up as quietly as she could and padded over to the window. It was still dark, but it couldn't have been more than an hour before dawn. No point in trying to get back to sleep, and she doubted she'd be able to anyway.

She crept out of the room with a sudden feeling of confinement. She needed to get out, at least for a little while.

Down the darkened corridor and into the deserted main room. The guild was such a quiet place at night. Chatot was perched on the edge of the stairs, eyes wide open as he slept, a silent sentinel in the dark. Sol carefully climbed the stairs to the top of the guild and into the night.

The air was fresh and cool, a welcome respite that served to alleviate her pent up stress. She walked down the path with no particular destination in mind. She soon found herself on the beach, the sound of waves lapping against the shore her only company.

Sol wandered over to a familiar shaped rock protruding from the sand and sat down next to it. This is where she had met Eevee for the first time, her earliest memory. So much had happened since then.

The sky began to grey as the dawn grew closer. Sol stayed there, alone on the beach, even as the sun began to peek over the trees behind her. It was probably time she head back to the guild. With a sigh she got to her feet and was surprised to see another Pokémon on the beach, earthy brown in colour with what appeared to be a skull on his head, jogging towards her.

"Nothing like a morning run to keep the body strong," he said as he approached Sol. "I'm Marowak. What brings you down here so early?"

"Just needed some fresh air. I'm Sol."

"Oh, you're a member of that exploration team that rescued Azurill! Team Wanderers if I'm not mistaken?"

Sol nodded.

"I own the dojo in town. I've dedicated it to the training of exploration teams!"

"Really? I didn't know there was a dojo. Is it new?"

"In a way. The dojo went to rack and ruin, then to a pile of rubble, but it has risen to it has risen from the dust to its former glory!"

Marowak puffed up in pride, but then deflated.

"But… I haven't had any visitors yet…"

"Why not? I would think a dojo would be much more popular. The guild doesn't do much actual physical training. They're much more in favour of trail by fire."

Marowak perked right up.

"I'm happy to hear you say that. Perhaps if a renown explorer was known to use my dojo…"

Sol smiled. "I'd hardly call myself 'renown', but I'd love to check the place out. I'd could use the extra training."

"That'd be great! Of course, the use of my facilities would be free of charge for you and your team."

"I'll come by the first chance I get. But right now, unfortunately, I'm going to be late for the guild's morning addresses."

"Of course. I hope to see you again soon."

Sol ran back to the guild, arriving just as the apprentices were forming up in their lines with team Skull a little off to the side.

"Where were you?" Eevee whispered as Sol took her place.

"I'll tell you later."

They went through the morning cheers as they did every day. Team Skull snickered amongst themselves and watched on with mocking smirks. As much as Skuntank and his lackeys disgusted Sol, she still had to agree. The cheers were ridiculous.

The group broke up to go about their jobs for the day and Chatot waved Sol and Eevee over.

"You two. I have a very important mission for you."

"Is that so?" Sol said, instantly suspicious. With the expedition so close, there was no way Chatot would be helping them out by giving them an important job that would attract notice.

"Yes. I have been taking stock of the guild's supplies, and there are a few things we will need to resupply before we head out on the expedition. I need you to collect perfect apples from Apple Woods."

"What?!" Sol exclaimed. "You expect us to go forage for food!"

"Hush! Through careful deliberation, I have decided you are most suited for the task. Perfect apples are the guildmaster's favourite food, and if we were to run out, he would, well… I prefer not to talk about that. This may seem like a simple errand, but it's a crucial job."

"Bullshit!" Sol said, her voice rising in volume and attracting the stares of those still in the room. "Why don't you just come out and say admit it? You don't want us going on the expedition, so you're giving us crap assignments to take up our time so we can't do anything noteworthy!"

Chatot's eyes narrowed. " Look here, you little upstart. I'm the guild's lieutenant, and I will not be allowing mere rookies who think a few weeks in training makes them experts talk to me like that. I am your superior and you will follow my orders. Believe what you will, but I do have the guild's best interests at heart. Now I've given you a job to do, so I suggest you go do it."

Sol's hands curled into fists, but she said no more to Chatot as he walked away.

"What are you looking at?" she snapped at the members of team Skull, watching with amusement from the edge of the room.

Sol stomped up the stairs with Eevee close behind.

"You need to calm down," Eevee said as they reached the top floor.

"I can't stand him! Every time I see that self-righteous jerk I have to resist the urge to boot him across the room!"

"Getting angry won't solve anything. Now, if we hurry, we might be able to get back in time to take some other jobs, as long as they aren't too far away."

Sol sighed. "All right, let's get a move on then."

"Good. We should make a quick stop in town first, though. You can expect a lot of bug Pokémon in Apple Woods, so it'd be a good idea to stock up on heal seeds and berries to counteract poison and paralysis attacks."

They hurried to the Kecleon Market and did some rushed shopping, not even sparing the time to haggle (Sol was getting good at that, but she was still miles behind the Kecleon brothers). Apple Woods was quite a distance away from Treasure Town, but it was a route often travelled and so signs clearly marked the way.

True to its name, Apple Woods was filled with apple trees. The vibrant colours and warm breeze was a welcome change from the caves they usually found themselves in, but they didn't have the time to admire the scenery. Why Wigglytuff couldn't settle for regular apples was beyond Sol, though so was a lot of the things he did.

The woods were brimming with bug Pokémon, just as Eevee had predicted. For the most part, however, they kept to themselves in the shadows, watching with compound eyes but not attacking as long as the group didn't venture too close to them or their nests. Other than a couple of particularly hostile Butterfree (Sol had found it difficult to fight while laughing at the ridiculousness of being mobbed by a horde of butterflies), the trip was rather peaceful.

Then, of course, they reached their destination and it all went to Hell.

"Chaw-haw-haw! It's about time you two got here. We've been having ourselves a proper feast while we waited."

Skuntank dropped down from the perfect apple tree, flanked by Koffing and Zubat.

"They've been eating all the apples!" Eevee exclaimed. "But there's still some left on the tree. Let's just knock them out and get back to the guild."

Sol was rather proud of Eevee right then. Not long ago he would have turned into a hysterical wreck when faced with this lot, not suggesting they attack.

"Whoa-ho-ho. No need to be hasty."

"Heh-heh-heh. We just want to talk."

"What about?" Eevee asked cautiously.

"Not with you," Skuntank said. "We don't deal with wimps. We squash 'em. No, we want a word with your partner there."

"What do you want?" Sol demanded.

"Team Skull is always looking to expand, and I think you have potential. You're the only one at that guild who has any backbone, and from what I hear, you're not half bad in a fight."

"You're asking me to join your team?!"

"But of course. You'll get a much bigger cut than the scraps the guild hands you and you won't have to take orders from fools like Wigglytuff and Chatot, just me. I heard what you said earlier. You don't belong at the guild, you never will. You would fit in perfectly with us, however."

"I'm nothing like you! I don't go around picking on people!"

"You're no goody-two shoes either. I can see your true colours, even if you deny them yourself. Come on, I can see you're thinking about it."

"Don't do it, Sol!" Eevee pleaded. "You're better than them!"

Skuntank turned to look at him with annoyed eyes.

"Before you can join, however, you'll have to prove your loyalty by giving the wimp a beat down. Of course, if you refuse, you'll be sharing his fate."