Chapter 17:Where relaxation goes not as planned.
Late in the morning and after paying costs for the hotel, way higher than planed, Team Purple arrived in Baram Town and went straight back to the guild, hoping the key was found by one of the other teams. At arrival they were greeted by the whole guild, except for Team Blue. They were told Team Blue was still on their mission and they haven't been heard since they left. Much to Team Purple's and also to the whole guild's disappointment it turned out no one of them has found they key by now, leaving Team Blue as their last hope. This was Mo's worst case scenario.
At the moment, the members of the guild had no other choice but to wait and hope.
"What are you doing?!", Mo heard Amy said behind him. All three members of Team Red were suddenly right behind him. This startled him for a moment. HE thought he was alone.
"I'm just taking a stroll. Through the HQ. It's not like there is much to do right now.", Mo defended himself for what he was doing.
"INSIDE TEAM BLUE'S ROOM? WITH YOUR HANDS IN THEIR BELONGINGS?!", Steve asked.
Busted.
"It's not like Team Blue will find out. And I'm not stealing anything.", Mo defended his actions further.
"It's not like it's against the rules of the guild:", Amy added.
"Alright! I'll go. The room stinks anyway.", Mo grumbled. "But seriously, something ..."
Mo pulled out a small basket with moldy plums and held them in front of him in disgust.
Axel and Amy were holding their arms in front of their noses.
"THAT'S RICHARD'S.", Steve said. "HE LIKES PLUMS ALOT."
The four left the team's room.
"We just came to ask if you want to do something with us today?", Amy said to Mo. "It's not like there is much to do."
"Me? What do you have in mind?", Mo asked her back.
"We wanted to ask your team. Is there something we can do as a group to kill some time?", Axel said.
Mo began to think.
"I have to talk to the others first, but there is a place in Baram Town I like to visit now and then. I'm sure you would enjoy it, too!"
After a small discussion with Aaron and Charlotte and bringing back Mo's idea to Team Red, ending with Charlotte and Steve to stay behind for their own reasons, Team Purple and Red went to spend the rest of the day in Mo's place of choice.
The Baram Town SPA.
Mo's disguise always took long to dry when it got when. His fake face would also wash off after some time in water and this freaked out everyone every time. To still have freedom and to guarantee the health of the other visitors during his SPA visits, Mo had an idea. He would take his disguise, put it in his locker and wrap himself up in towels. After that he appeared as a small, almost ball-like, mummy with only one glowing eyes being visible.
As he left the locker room and entered the pool area Mo could feel the change of atmosphere. The warm, wet air and the smell of the water. The sounds of other Pokémon enjoying themselves. While the tiles of the pool are were bright gray, the walls were painted like Baram Town used to look like about hundred years ago. Not much different from today. It was supposed to give visitors a classic and historical feeling. Near the entrance and the signs for daily and monthly events the others were already waiting for Mo.
"I fell naked without my scarf.", Axel said as he rubbed his neck. It was the first time Mo ever saw him and Amy without their team scarfs.
"You're always naked.", Amy told Axel with a little smile.
Axel's eyes were suddenly wide open and his face slowly turned red in embarrassment. He tried to cover his nakedness with his tiny arms.
"By the way ...", Amy suddenly seemed worried and looked around. Then she finally saw Mo approaching them. "Okay, that answers my question."
Mo looked around.
"Well. Here we are.", he announced. "The best spot in all of Baram Town."
Next to them, an elderly looking Swalot let himself sink into a hot top, wich water already hat a bright green tone, and let out a burp.
For Mo, it still was the best spot in town.
"So ...", Mo said and looked back to the others. "What are we going to do first?"
Amy looked in disgust at the Swalot.
"Not the hot tub for sure.", she said.
"CAN I go into the water?", Axel asked, still trying to cover his nakedness.
"As a fire type you should know it the best.", Mo reminded him.
Aaron was not quit interested about the SPA. He just didn't wanted to hang out at the guild. He overall didn't washed himself regularly. So Mo decided for the group to use the bicarbonate bath first. It was a small pool with hot, foggy looking water. A special kind of salt was added to the water, Mo explained. It was supposed to be good for the skin, making it more smooth. Shortly after, inside the pool, Axel found out the hard way he could not swim. He spend the rest of the time in the pool with a little pink floating tire. Amy thought it was cute.
"Isn't it nice?", Mo asked the group, relaxing together in the pool.
"Yes, it isn't nice.", Axel answered annoyed, swimming in his tiny floating tire.
Somehow, Mo knew he was going to say this.
"I'll go and try the outdoor pool.", Aaron said and began to climb out of the pool on the wrong side. "When does the happy-hour at the pool bar starts?"
"Half an hour? May be a little more?", Mo answered unsure.
"But I'm definitely going to get a massage afterwards.", Aaron added as he walked away.
"You know that costs extra!", Mo reminded him, but he was already gone.
"Is there something else we can do beside ... this?", asked Axel, who started floating in circles.
Mo didn't needed to nice for long.
"There is! And I bet you would enjoy this! I sure will!", Mo answered him.
The SPA had four different saunas. One for beginners and fire sensitive Pokémon, two medium, with the one slightly hotter than the other one and one for experts and fire resistant Pokémon. Mo himself liked to use the second hottest one, wich was known as "Cafe Baram" for being made out of dark wood and always having coffee themed tisanerie.
"Whooo! It sure is hot in her!", Amy noticed out loud.
Mo tried hard not to answer: "You don't say."
"I don't feel the heat much.", Axel said, a little disappointed. "What do we do here?"
"Relax. Feel the burn. Sweat it all out. Try it.", Mo explained. "15 minutes should be enough."
They sat down on the wooden benches. They were the only one at them moment inside this sauna. While Mo had one side of the sauna for himself, Axel and Amy shared the other half. The room itself was dark and a little foggy. The walls were decorated with small display cases with coffee beans and coffee grinders inside.
Mo closed his eyes and quietly breathed deep breaths. He liked the sauna alot. This was his spot. There he could forget all worries in the world, when the heat was burning through his towels on his skin. For some time it was very quiet. Too quiet, Mo noticed. He opened his eyes to see if the other two were still there.
"Amy? You alright?", Mo asked her. She looked tired and a little pale. Axel looking at her and rubbed her back.
"She's just worried about Team Blue.", Axel answered for her. "They normally do they job efficient and fast. It's not like them to take ore than two days for a mission. We once on a rescuing mission with them together and Ziggy forced us to walk the whole night."
Axel leaned forward.
"Don't go on a mission with him, when he has a higher authority than you!"
Amy smiled for a moment and nodded to what Axel just said.
"To be fair. I'm not worried about their safety. I'm worried about OUR safety.", Mo explained.
"What? Why?", Axel asked.
Mo took a deep breath. He could feel the hot air inside his throat.
"First of all, you know how Ziggy and the other two are. Especially Ziggy.", he started to explain.
Now Mo leaned forward.
"I already told you, that the key leads to the Origin Stone itself. And that the Origin Stone can do a lot of things. And I mean A LOT! The stone had to be hidden, just not for common Pokémon like us, but also for the god Pokémon. Even for Arceus!
Mo leaned back again and his eyes started to glow.
"He or she, who controls the stone, is giving divine powers. Powers enough to destroy the world it should save. You can make Pokémon bow down to you against their will, bring Pokémon back from the dead or letting the sun rise in the west and set in the east. You just have to hold the stone and to want for it to happen."
Mo's eyes topped glowing and he leaned forward again.
"Who doesn't want such powers?"
"What do you mean? What got this have to do with Team Blue?", Axel asked.
"I bet, and I'm not just talking about Team Blue, they found the key and are now on their way to look for the stone themselves.", Mon continued. "I can even imagine there was a fight, and while we're talking Ziggy is about to find the stone and the others are lying somewhere in the bushes, if you know what I mean."
For a moment Axel was speechless and just looked at Mo with his mouth open-
"He wouldn't do such a thing!", Axel said almost angry and then looked confused and worried to Amy"... would he?"
Amy still just sat there, with half open eyes and emotionless.
"This is a dangerous task.", Mo further explained. "You either have to have a good heart or a small brain to not abuse the stones power. Once someone found the stone, ..." , Mo eyes began to glow again, now brighter than before. " ... there will be a war. Everyone versus everyone. The winner will be emperor of all."
Mo knew, what he just said and how he looked like gave Axel the creeps. Meanwhile, Amy seemed very unimpressed.
"Would you take the stone if you find it?", Axel asked him, truly terrified now.
"I don't want to lie.", Mo confessed. Yes. Yes, I would."
Mo's eyes stopped glowing again.
"Right now, we can't trust anyone.", he said. "Axel. If you REALLY are the chosen one from the legend like the guild master said, then you are the only one who can stop with world from falling into chaos. If not, and I don't like to say it, then you are also a threat to us."
That moment, Amy fell from her spot, head first, to the ground and was laying there lifeless.
"Amy!", Axel screamed.
"Heck!", Mo cursed.
Axel flipped Amy over and stroke over her head.
"Amy?! What's wrong?!", Axel tried to speak to her with no response. "Come on, Amy!"
"I didn't wanted THIS to happen!", Mo said. He was worried for Amy and what Hilarius would do when he finds out. "We need to get her out of here first."
Mo took Amy by her feet and Axel her back and carried the Riolu out of the sauna.
"We need a medic!", Mo called out to everyone in the SPA. "We weren't in there THAT long!"
Turned out, Amy was not good at sauna. Luckily all she needed was some fresh air and something to drink. Still, Mo was sorry and gave himself the fault for what happened, not only because he insisted they try out the sauna but also with his story. The last thing had probably nothing to do with Amy's health. She couldn't remember what happened minutes after entering. Mo later explained he was joking when he told what he was thinking about Ziggy and the legendary stone. He said, he just wanted to "spook" them. But this was a lie.
Deciding the SPA wasn't for them Axel and Amy left, returning back to the HQ. They were in the SPA for not even an hour. For once, Mo wanted to spend some time with others and introduce them to things he liked. And of course it ended in disaster.
A while later Aaron met Mo again at the pool bar. A bar inside the pool with it's benched under water.
"Hello there!", Aaron said and sat down next to Mo.
"Aaron.", Mo replied.
The Vaporeon waiter behind the counter handed Mo a big class filled a azure blue liquid, a straw and a slice of pineapple in the side.
"One large Tropical Blue.", the waiter said as he gave it to Mo.
Mo thanked him and took a sip.
"Where are the others?", Aaron asked him.
"What would you like to drink?", the Vaporeon asked Aaron.
Aaron was distracted for a moment.
"Do you have Angry Electrode?", Aaron asked.
"One Electrode coming up.", said the waiter and disappeared behind the counter.
"Amy wasn't feeling so well, so they left.", Mo answered to Aaron's question from before.
"Oh.", Aaron expressed. He didn't seemed to care much.
Mo began stirring his drink with his straw. There was now an awkward silence between them.
"I kind of miss life before the guild.", Mo confessed to Aaron.
Aaron looked at him.
"I know I once said this before but I'm starting to think again, maybe joining the Adventurer Guild wasn't such a good decision.", Mo said, still stirring his drink. "Overall I only got worse experience."
Then why don't we leave?", Aaron suggested, casually.
"We can't leave. At least not now."
Aaron looked at Mo, examining him with his eyes.
"Why?", he asked, raising an eyebrow.
The waiter came back with a glass with a liquid wich top half was white and bottom bright red. It also had a straw and a slice of pineapple.
"At the moment we are part of something big. We have informations no one else should or can know.", Mo explained further.
While Mo took another sip from his drink, Aaron didn't used his straw at all.
"What is also bothering me, this is not our fight.", Mo continued.
Aaron looked at Mo again in the same way from before.
"This is not our story. We. You. M. Charlotte. We just came to the wrong place at the wrong time. Nothing more. We are a part of someone elses story.", Mo further explained his point of view.
Aaron patted Mo with his paw.
"There, there."
"Aaron.", Mo said, looking at him. "I believe there will be no Team Purple anymore once the main threat is defeated."