Chapter 6: Road to the Elite Four- B3F

Ugh.

I made a face as I took another bite from the chesto berry in my grasp. It was disgusting. I had never been a fan of chesto berries. Even before the events of the trial, yesterday, I couldn't stand them. All the trial had done was lower my opinion of them.

Grovyle gave me a look form the corner of his eye. "Eat your breakfast," he ordered, popping a cheri berry into his mouth and chewing. He swallowed before continuing, "You'll need your strength if we're really in…" He paused. "You know."

Zebstrika, who was sitting across from him, gave him a withering look. "You don't have to remind us, you know," he scowled.

Lycanroc seemed to choke on his apple and Zebstrika turned to him. "What?" the Ultimate Racer snapped.

"Nothing you little wimp," Lycanroc sneered. "Just laughing at how scared you are. Can't run away, any more can you?"

That only seemed to rile up Zebstrika more. "Why you-!"

I sighed. "Zebstrika," I said, softly, feeling the air around Zebstrika relax slightly. "Just don't listen to him. He's not worth it. If you let him egg you on like that you're just playing into his hands."

Lycanroc slammed his fist onto the table. "What'd you say, girl?!"

I gave him a dull look, which made him flinch. "I was the one who defended you yesterday, remember?" I pointed out.

He recoiled. "Yeah… thanks with that… but…" He paused before looking away while grumbling.

Seeing that the conversation was done, I turned back to stare at the chesto berry I was holding, before tossing it into my mouth. I grimaced before slowing on it slowly, unable to enjoy the taste of it.

"T-This f-food s-sucks," Froslass grumbled, throwing an apple over her shoulder after only taking one bite from it. "I-It's t-the s-same as y-yesterday."

"I don't think it's too bad," Ribombee mumbled, as she swallowed her own food.

"I don't think it's bad, either!" Blissey cheerfully exclaimed, patting her friend on the back.

"It sucks that Wigglytuff didn't think to hire someone as the Ultimate Chef," Gengar laughed nervously.

"Please," Marowak dismissed. "Let's not wish our situation upon anyone else."

Gengar blinked. "Oh right… sorry."

"No need to apologize." Porygon wasn't eating (though I had no idea how he would eat; he had no mouth) and instead was looking at the screen on his E-Badge. "Just don't do it again."

Gengar gulped. "Right."

Another long silence followed as we all just chewed on our breakfast.

Suddenly, Noivern slammed her wings onto the table, startling all of us. "I can't take it, man!" she yelled in a panic. "We're in a mystery dungeon! What do we do?! How do we get out?! I've never been in one before!"

We all just stared at her before turning back to our food.

Noivern blinked. "That's… not the reaction I expected," she admitted, slowly. "I was thinking more panic."

"I did most of my panicking in my bed," Pelipper muttered, picking at his food. "I'm all out right now."

Lucario gave him a weird look. "Was that…?"

"What?"

Lucario shook his head. "No, never mind." He turned to Noivern. "What do you suggest we do?" he asked. "The only thing we can do is train and prepare for whatever this dungeon throws at us."

"It has already thrown something at us," Greninja pointed out, folding her front arms. "A killing game. One that has already sacrificed most of the pokémon population living here on the earth."

I squirmed guiltily in my seat, as Grovyle glared at Greninja. "Don't assume things," he snapped. "We already established that the entire things were a setup by Monotuff to get one of us to kill. No one's dead. Metang was just an idiot."

"No, he was a genius," Porygon replied. "And that's just it. He used the Orbs too. He should've known that we were all trapped inside a mystery dungeon. Was there something about our situation he only knew? Or perhaps he truly believed Monotuff's threat." He shook his head. "I do not know."

"Jeeeeeez!" A nasal voice suddenly said from the center of the table. "Y'all are still talking about that? It's over with. They're dead. Get over it!"

I jumped out of my seat, my gaze snapped over to the center of the table, where Monotuff was standing on a plate of berries, now completely squashed. Nearby I could hear Ribombee let out a low moan at the sight, but I could only keep my cautious gaze on Monotuff, as it casually wiped the berry juice off of its feet.

"Monotuff," Grovyle said stiffly. "What are you doing here?"

Monotuff did a little twirl. "I'm here just to congratulate all of you for succeeding in that trial! And…" Its expression took a sinister turn. "To give you a reward for a job well done. That's what exploration teams do, right? Get rewards once a job is finished?"

"No!" Lucario snapped angrily. "Exploration teams are meant to explore the world and save pokémon!"

"And get paid while doing it so…" Monotuff nodded. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. I'm just acting like a real guildmaster to you bastards. Some thanks would be nice."

"You're not my guildmaster!" Lucario snapped.

"What is the reward?" Greninja asked, unable to hide the curiosity within her voice.

Monotuff seemed to beam. "Oh, I just finished renovations on the floor below and on some of the gyms! I thought it would be nice to know."

A couple of the others perked up at the word, "gyms." I would be lying to say that I wasn't also interested in seeing if my gym would be among the new ones. But at the same time, I couldn't help but wonder what my gym would have. What kind of talent is luck really?

My gym would probably just be empty.

Lycanroc looked suspicious. "What do you mean by the 'floor below,' exactly?" he asked, scratching his nose.

"Exactly what I said," Monotuff replied. "The bottom floor is open. Take the ladder outside this room to go down and you'll find yourselves in B3F. But that's not all!" It covered its mouth holding behind its laughter. "I created two more gyms on the surface that I'm sure everyone will like."

Gengar frowned. "In one night?" he asked. "How did you manage that so quickly?"

Monotuff stuck out its tongue. "It's not that hard to figure out that, bub!" With that, it disappeared.

A moment passed before someone spoke and it turned out to be Lucario, "It knows," he said, gritting his teeth. "It knows that we know where we are and it's just rubbing it in our faces that we can't escape."

"We shouldn't dwell on it too much," Marowak reasoned. "It's just trying to taunt us so we'll grow desperate and resort to killing like…" She hesitated before her eyes narrowed. "Like Metang did."

A heavy silence settled on us, and I let my eyes fall to the floor. Metang. I still hadn't gotten over what he wanted me, and nearly made me, do. The idea constantly hung over me like a wet blanket and I had stayed up for most of the night instead of sleeping.

If I had taken Metang's offer… what would've happened?

"Well…" Blissey's voice broke the silence. I looked over at her to see her giving a rather sly smile. "Shall we claim our reward now? Best not postpone it any longer, after all."

Xxx

None of us really wanted to go down, deeper into the mystery dungeon. The idea was well… terrifying at least to me. Especially since this was the first mystery dungeon I had ever been inside and already it was succeeding any prior expectations I had of it. So, suffice it to say, I was completely unwilling to go done to B3F.

So there was a compromise. We split into two groups. The more experienced people would explore the floor below and the rest of us would look around outside.

The first group contained me, Zebstrika, Noivern, Froslass, Ribombee, Pelipper, and Lucario, who insisted on going with us in case anything happened. The second group contained Grovyle, Porygon, Greninja, Lycanroc, Marowak, Gengar and Blissey, who was holding onto a pouch containing some berries.

We said our farewells, but I was secretly worried about the possibility that Monotuff was just leading us into a trap. That's what mystery dungeons did, right?

The moment we emerged onto the surface we checked out maps, which already had the layout of the surface painted on the screen. Well everyone checked it other than Lucario. He, instead, opted to just survey the land with his two eyes, doing his best not to lock eyes with us.

"There are two new buildings," Zebstrika noted, with a raised brow.

Noivern visibly deflated. "Aw man…." She moaned. "I don't see any sort of stage." She scratched the back of her head. "I really wanted to finally get to play some music…"

Pelipper perked up and reached his wing around to pat her on the back, only for Noivern to suddenly whip her head at him. "Don't touch me," she said in a low voice.

Pelipper recoiled. "I'm s-sorry!" he yelped.

Noivern glared at him before her face suddenly broke out into a grin. "Aw don't sweat, bro. I was just kidding. You can touch me all you want! Gahahahaha!" she laughed, seemingly in a more brighter mood than she was in a few seconds.

Pelipper just stared. "Was that an innuendo?" he muttered to himself just loud enough for me to her.

What's an innuendo? I wondered.

"C-Can y-you g-guys focus on out s-situation in-instead of you st-stupid comedy routine!?" Froslass snapped before I could ask. "W-we n-need to see if th-there's a w-way out!"

Noivern rolled her eyes. "Fine jeez." She glanced at the map hovering in front of her. "I guess I'll check out the Gym near Kecleon's." She looked at Lucario. "Yo, Lucario. I think your gym opened up."

Lucario frowned. "It did?" he asked warily.

"Yep!" Noivern grabbed his arm and began to flutter hop down the stairs, dragging him along. "Let's go check it out, boi!"

"H-Hey w-wait!"

"Noivern!" Ribombee cried. "Stop that! You could hurt him!" She raced after the duo.

"Hmm…" Zebstrika glanced at his own map. "I guess I'll check out the raceway. That seems to be more style." He closed his map and began to head down the stairs.

"I'll come with you," Pelipper said. "That's close to my gym anyway…" Anything else he was going to say faded away as he and Zebstrika left, leaving me at the front of the Guild.

Not alone, granted. But not someone who I would consider a friend…

I looked at Froslass, who flinched and snapped her head away. "A-are you im-implying j-just be-because we were l-left al-alone that we should g-go to-together?" She snapped. "I'm-I'm n-not as m-much as a sk-skank like you, y-you know?! E-Even, I-I have s-some dig-dignity!"

"Well if you want to go alone then…" I trailed off, waiting for her response.

"F-Fine!" she snapped after a second. "I-If you r-really need my h-help…"

It was a little surprising to see how easy it was to convince her. I had initially expected that I would go by myself like last time, but it was a little encouraging that someone would be next to me while I explore.

Even if it was Froslass.

"So where should we go?" I ask her.

"The raceway," she replied.

I blinked. "Why there?"

"I don't like L-Lucario or Rib-Ribombee," she explained. "P-Pelipper and Zebstrika are at l-least a little more t-tolerable by c-comparison."

"Oh." I just nodded, figuring she had her own reasons. "Let's go then."

Froslass also nodded. "L-lead the way."

Xxx

It wasn't what I expected, that's for sure.

Right next to the Deliveryman Gym, was a huge glass and metal coliseum. The building wasn't like anything I had ever seen before. There were several arched openings leading inside it and the entire thing didn't seem to have a ceiling. Through them, I could just barely see the dirt and grass raceway inside.

"This is…" Froslass had her mouth open, for once her stutter not present.

"How did Monotuff build this so quickly?" I gaped.

"Oh." We bother turned to see Pelipper nearby looking a little downcast. "You're here."

Froslass and I exchanged a look. "W-what's w-with you?" she asked a little harshly. "D-Did Br-Braixen finally d-dump you?"

"Huh?" I turned to Froslass my face turning red.

"No, I haven't asked her yet," Pelipper said nonchalantly, which only made me turn red even faster, as he gazed at the metal coliseum in disdain. "It's just that the Racer Gym is a lot more impressive than my rinky-dink one." He sighed heavily.

Froslass frowned, as I stood there still processing the conversation. "R-racer Gym?"

Pelipper nodded, just as the red began to fade away from my face. "Yeah, Monotuff popped up just before you came to tell us that. Zebstrika was pretty excited." He lowered his gaze and grumbled, "That lucky ass…"

"He's inside?" I finally manage to gasp out.

Pelipper gave me a strange look. "Yeah…?" he said slowly. "Are you okay, Braixen?" He suddenly grinned. "Are you trying to say that you are interested in me?!"

"Uh, w-well… I…" I could only fumble desperately. I had never been asked this before! I had never even dated someone before!

Suddenly, Froslass grabbed my hand. "S-sorry!" she quickly. "Br-Braixen isn't in-interested. S-She's al-already got s-someone on the out-outside, she's w-with."

"Oh…" Pelipper visibly deflated. "Who's the other…?" However we were already going through one of the archways, by the time he started to ask the question, so what he said next only faded from my ears.

"Why did you say that?!" I asked Froslass alarmed. I didn't have a boyfriend or anything of the sort!

"I-I was just lying," Froslass explained, rolling her eyes. "Y-you've g-got to know h-how to t-turn down g-guys like that b-before its t-too late."

I paused letting me digest her words. "Are you used to it?" I questioned curiously. She was the Ultimate Dancer and despite her personality, she must be used to putting herself on a stage. And plus looking at her closely she was pretty cute, so surely some pokémon would ask her out.

"Y-yeah," she confirmed. "Quite o-often."

"Huh," I said. "Are you going out with someone?" I said it without thinking and once the words left my mouth I winced.

Luckily, Froslass didn't seem that annoyed. "N-no," she said averting. "I… I j-just don't l-like love." With that, she floated away, emerging inside the stadium.

I watched her go with some confusion. She didn't like love? What did that mean? It didn't seem like she was ready to answer however, so I just shut my mouth and followed her out onto the raceway. I then looked around, trying to see where Zebstrika was, but could only see a small cloud of dust in the distance. "Where is he?" I asked aloud.

Froslass was also trying to find him. "I-I d-don't know," she replied. "M-Maybe he l-left?"

Wait… I squinted. Was that cloud of dust growing larger?

And closer?

My eyes widened when I finally realized that whatever it was it was running straight towards me. I froze, my mind drawing a blank. They… they were going to hit me!

"Watch out!" I felt someone push me from behind and I fell onto the grass that lay on the sidelines, just as Zebstrika ran past me. I sat up and glanced behind me to see Froslass floating there looking embarrassed.

"Did… you just save me?" I asked, my eyes wide.

"D-Don't b-bother!" she snapped. "I-I know y-you're j-just going to go back to m-making f-fun of me!"

"Huh?" I tilted my head. "I was just going to thank you."

"T-Thank…?" Froslass seemed stunned.

"Braixen!" I turned back around just in time to see Zebstrika trotting over to me, in a small panic. "Are you alright?! I didn't hurt you did I?"

"I'm fine." I got up and dusted off my any dirt on my fur and offered Zebstrika a smile. "Just a little dirty."

Zebstrika breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Arceus…"

"Y-you sh-should watch where you're g-going next time!" Froslass scolded him. "Y-you could've k-killed us!"

Zebstrika winced. "I'm sorry!" he exclaimed. "I didn't expect anyone to walk onto the raceway! I.. I thought it was common knowledge that you're never supposed to do that! At least… that's what my father said to me…"

"I-It m-may be common kn-knowledge t-to you, m-maybe!" Froslass shot back.

Since the two were arguing it gave me a chance to finally investigate the raceway. It was just as impressive as it was on the outside. The race track was a simple oval-shaped dirt one with chalk lines denoting the different lanes. Anything that wasn't dirt was covered in grass and there were several indents within the walls themselves where there were seats and water coolers. Right next to the water coolers were some lockers and above that were stadium seats that were made of a material that I couldn't identify. The seats reached into the sky

"Incredible…" I said aloud, unable to hide my amazement.

Zebstrika noticed. "Yeah it is, isn't it!" he beamed. "Monotuff told me this was the Racer Gym. But honestly…" He gazed around at his surroundings. "It's way bigger than any other racetrack I've ever seen! You could fit every pokémon in the world inside-!" He stopped mid-sentence and awkwardly looked down. "I mean…"

"Don't worry about it." I gave him a reassuring smile even though my stomach churned on the inside.

"A-any es-escape route?" Froslass asked, unwilling to conform to the current mood.

"No…" Zebstrika muttered. "At least I couldn't find anything here. Nothing connects to the outside of the wall."

"T-then this g-gym is use-useless," Froslass sneered.

"Hey!" Zebstrika cried indignantly.

"She doesn't mean it," I quickly assured Zebstrika.

"No, I get it," Zebstrika said glumly, before perking up. "But maybe the other gym has some sort of escape route?" he offered.

"Hmph." Froslass looked away. "M-Maybe."

"Would you like to come with us?" I asked kindly, silently praying that I would have someone else to balance out Froslass's attitude.

To my internal dismay, Zebstrika didn't seem to get the message. "No thanks," he said brightly. "It's been a while since I've actually run in a specialized track like this, so I want to practice and get my speed up. In case we ever…" He hesitated. "Escape." He suddenly brightened. "Though if you ever want to me to train you in running, just ask!"

"If I do I will," I replied politely, thinking that I would probably never take him up on his offer. Not that Zebstrika was a bad pokémon or teacher but mostly because I had no talent in exercise.

"C-come on, Br-Braixen," Froslass said, turning away. "W-we've been here l-long here enough."

"Oh!" Zebstrika perked up. "If you can warn other people about the racetrack and tell them to be careful that would be helpful."

"Of course," I replied amicably, as Froslass and I left the Racer Gym, heading to the second building on the surface.

Xxx

Was the Fighter Gym a lot more impressive than the Racer Gym or less?

I honestly couldn't decide on an opinion.

Located just below Duskull Bank, it was an ornately designed building colored a deep reddish brown and had curved spires stretching into the sky. It mostly made from stone, giving it a different vibe than the Racer Gym, like it was something that pokémon made rather than the mystery dungeon. On the top of the building's roof were several skylights, which were the only windows I could see, as the rest of the building didn't have any. There were only two entrances inside, one in the front which faced the cliffside and another in the back facing Duskull Bank.

"N-Not that im-impressive," Froslass scowled from behind me.

Before I could disagree, the back door, which we were closest too, suddenly opened and Ribombee flew out. She caught sight of us and relief flooded her face. "Oh, thank Arceus!" she gasped. "Someone else!"

Before I could ask, I hear Lucario's voice suddenly shout from inside, "Ribombee you're not done with your push-ups! Get back in the Dojo!"

Ribombee gripped my arm desperately. "Help me," she begged. "Please."

"I-" I couldn't think of a response, as Lucario walked out.

He gave us a grin. "Braixen!" he cheerfully greeted. "Are you here to train with us?"

"Um…?" I blinked.

Luckily Froslass came to my rescue. "W-we already did some tr-training at the R-Racer Gym," she answered, not bothering to hide her annoyance.

"Oh, that's alright!" Lucario didn't seem bothered. "More training never hurt anyone."

Froslass narrowed her eyes. "I'm a d-dancer," she hissed. "I already h-have a s-specialized d-diet. I-I don't need any more v-variance in my d-daily routine th-than I have r-right now."

"Oh." Lucario's smile fell, before turning to me. "How about you Braixen?"

I gave him an apologetic smile. "Sorry but I already did some running with Zebstrika," I lied, hoping that it wouldn't show on my face. "I'm exhausted." To sell my point, I mimed wiping some sweat off my face.

"If you say so…" Lucario said believing me. "Ribombee still hasn't finished her push-ups though!"

"I'm exhausted, Lucario!" she insisted. "I'm not made for this hard labor!"

"Nonsense!" Lucario shouted, folding his arms. "Training can only help when conquering mystery dungeons!"

"I'm a Botanist!" she exclaimed. "I'm not made for this sort of heavy workout!"

I noticed Froslass moved past Lucario sneakily, just trying to get out of the conversation and, after a second of a torn conscious, I followed her inside.

The inside of the Fighter Gym was just as impressive on the inside as it was on the outside. It was a lot like the Racer Gym with raised seats surrounding a large arena in the middle. The arena was barren and the only one on it was Noivern, who was struggling to do some sit-ups. Along the wall were tan lamps, glowing with a fire giving the atmosphere a warm feeling. From where I entered (the back door), I could see the front entrance on the opposite side of the building, where the back entrance was on the right side while the front on the left. On the wall where the back door was and on the left side there was a smaller room with beige-colored walls and two buttons. Looking up at the ceiling, I could see the same skylights I saw outside. There was also a large wooden slab that cut the entire ceiling in half, only held up by two stray ropes.

I gulped. If that fell on someone…

No. It wasn't right to think like that.

There was no way that someone would try to kill again. Not after what happened in the last trial. Metang's execution had probably terrified us all from acting in any way.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing towards the smaller room nearby, as Lucario walked in with Ribombee behind him.

Lucario grimaced. "I don't know," he admitted. "But I have no interest in touching it."

"W-why n-not?" Froslass asked.

He frowned. "It reminds me of human technology. Like that lift from before and…" He tugged his collar. "This thing."

Froslass gave him a strange look, as I walked into the small room and examined the red and green buttons. The red one had a small arrow pointing down and the green one had an arrow pointing up. Without thinking, I pressed down on the green button hearing a satisfying click when it gave way to my weight and I tensed up.

Nothing happened.

"W-well that was d-disappointing," Froslass said from behind me. I glanced at her to see that she had joined me inside the room, with Lucario nearby, nervously shifting back and forth, refusing to join us inside.

I gave her a half-hearted shrug as I pressed the green button. Again, nothing seemed to happen.

Froslass gave the buttons a disgusted look. "W-what a dis-disappointment-!"

"Braixen!" I heard Lucario cry out. I turned towards him and recoiled.

The room that Froslass and I were in was sinking into the ground. I could see Lucario's panicked face from a gap that was only getting smaller and smaller.

Lucario reached out an arm. "Grab it!" he yelled, desperately.

I attempted to do so, but Lucario quickly withdrew it, before the gap could close completely and completely chop off his arm. Now I stood there facing a dirt wall, hearing the fading desperate cries from Lucario above us.

"G-good g-going, Braixen," Froslass stammered out, though she didn't look too worried.

"I didn't know that something like that would happen!" I protested.

"Y-you d-didn't expect to g-get trapped in a mystery d-dungeon and in a k-killing g-game, too!" she snapped back.

"T-that's-!" I shut my mouth and tilted my head, hearing some new voices different from Lucario's.

"…at's…on?" I heard someone say that sounded like Porygon's.

"No…dea." Another one that sounded like Gengar's.

"…Move back." Porygon's voice was now a lot clearer, as the dirt wall gave away to bright light that nearly blinded me, causing me to shield them as I felt the room stop moving.

"…Braixen?" I opened my eyes to see Gengar and Porygon staring at me in surprise. "Froslass?"

"W-what?" Froslass stammered. "H-How… what?"

Gengar seemed just as confused, but Porygon's eyes' narrowed as they shifted between me and Froslass. "You're in B3F," he informed us. "Did you come here from the surface?"

Speechless, I nodded.

"Whoa, wait." Gengar frowned. "Does that mean this thing is a lift like that thing in Sharpedo's Bluff?"

"Probably." Porygon said. "It wouldn't be the strangest thing we've seen on this floor." He gave us a look. "Where does the lift connect to?"

"T-The F-Fighter's Gym," Froslass answered. "Or the D-Dojo. W-We l-left Lucario, N-Noivern and R-Ribombee up there."

Porygon nodded, gestured for us to get off, which we did. "Don't worry, this floor is safe," he informed us, getting on the lift himself. "The others should be around exploring. I'll inform Lucario and the others on the surface that you're safe." He eyed the buttons before pressing the green button. The lift began to rise and, before long, Porygon had disappeared into the ceiling.

Froslass looked around. "I-Is this a-all th-there is o-on B3F?" she asked.

"Uh…" Gengar looked around awkwardly. "No there's some more rooms. This one was called the Fighter Gym's basement, so that's why Porygon figured it was connected to the surface. Though we didn't expect it to be connected through a lift."

I too gazed around at our new surroundings. It wasn't the biggest room or basement. The floor was covered in a strange material that felt like Mareep wool but wasn't at the same time. It was a little scratchier. "What is this?" I wondered aloud.

"It's carpet," Gengar immediately answered. When I looked at him, he turned away from me and blushed slightly. "At least that's what Marowak and the others think it is."

I gave him an astonished look and gazed around. The walls were a tan color while the ceiling was a stark white. On the ceiling hung a large ornament that shined with a bright light that seemed to come from a small round object made from glass. Littered around the room were several pieces of exercise equipment, rubber mats, and dumbbells, along with other things I couldn't identify. Just across from where the elevator was a wooden door, though stylized differently than the usual ones in the guild.

The room gave me a weird feeling. It was different from everything I had ever seen, even after coming here. Alien was one word to describe it.

"It's-At least Marowak and the others say that the mystery dungeon is mimicking human buildings," Gengar explained.

"H-human?!" Froslass stammered out.

Gengar nodded. "You'll… You'll understand when you see the rest of the floor." He shook his head. "It's a trip."

I gave him a curious look and walked over to the door, pulling it open after turning the doorknob. Just before that, I noticed a small switch right next to the door.

Finally, I saw B3F for the first time.

Cold.

It was so cold.

The floor was made of white marble and both the ceilings and walls were painted a dull gray. Light spilled from rectangular indents within the ceiling, but not from a fire like I was used to, but some sort of electricity. When I opened the door, I was facing a wall, but to my right and left there were two other hallways that curved forwards from where I was standing.

I hugged myself and shivered. "Why is it so cold?" I asked, seeing Froslass float forward unperturbed by the temperature.

"Um…" Gengar simply shrugged.

"It's nice," Froslass said, her stammer suddenly gone.

I stared at her. "Froslass…?" I started to ask.

"What?" She gave me a strange look before realization crossed her face and it was quickly replaced with disdain. "What?" she asked again, a little more forcefully. "You think I stammer like that all the time. I'm an Ice-type! I prefer the cold!"

"That doesn't make any sense," I heard Gengar mutter behind me.

"Hmph!" Froslass folded her arms a little haughtily. "Let's just finish our exploring so that I don't ever have to talk to you ever again." She floated off to the right.

"If she doesn't like you then why is she still willing to explore with you?" Gengar asked aloud, giving me a baffled look.

I shrugged helplessly, but since I didn't want to be left behind, I quickly ran off in pursuit of Froslass, while giving Gengar a small wave. I found her in front of another door, this time with a plaque that said, "Archive Room." She had been waiting for me, so the moment that I arrived, she opened the door and floated inside, forcing me to follow her.

It was another small room, but it felt even smaller given everything inside. They were numerous wooden shelves lined in a row stuffed with cartons of papers and leather-bound books. A small desk was shoved into the corner near the entrance and a couple of fire-lit lamps were bolted to the stone walls.

Two pokémon were already inside. Grovyle was rummaging through some files muttering to himself while Lycanroc leaned against the wall, watching him carefully.

Froslass cleared her throat, as Grovyle stopped whatever he was doing and turned to her, surprise etched in his face. "W-What are you d-doing?" she asked.

Oh. Her stammer was back.

"What does it look like?" Lycanroc grunted. "We're looking for information."

"Lycanroc please be quiet," Grovyle sighed.

He scowled. "Oi, what did you-?!"

"He's right, though," Grovyle interrupted, leaving Lycanroc to scowl and just look away. "I'm looking for any information that can explain our situation. An archive room would have something like that right?"

"Right?" I said uncertainly.

Grovyle sighed, before glancing at Lycanroc. "Lycanroc," he said slowly, catching the attention of the Ultimate Berserker. "Didn't you have something to say to Braixen?"

"… No." He looked away.

"Don't lie."

"I'm not."

"It would be better to get over it now than later," Grovyle said impatiently.

"Fine," Lycanroc grunted, turning to me. "Braixen…"

"Yeah?" I asked suddenly feeling nervous. What did he want to tell me?

"I wanted to thank you for defending me during the trial yesterday," he muttered, halfheartedly. "Without you, I might have…" He hesitated but continued once he noticed Grovyle's stern face. "I might have died." He bowed his head. "So, thanks."

"J-jeez th-that was p-pathetic," Froslass mumbled behind me. Luckily it didn't seem like Lycanroc heard her.

I gave Lycanroc an astonished look. "N-No it's fine," I quickly said. "If we all had accidentally voted for you, then we would've died too, anyway! I… I was just being selfish." I bowed my head. "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize for anything!" Lycanroc snapped, making stand up straight in fear. "If anything, I have to. If I had managed to defend myself properly then the trial wouldn't have lasted if it did. And we might have died. And… I can't let that happen. Not yet. Not when…" He fell silent his expression distant. "So, I'm sorry."

A silence passed between us.

"I-I understand," I finally said, carefully. "I accept your apology and thanks."

"…Figures," Lycanroc grumbled, rubbing the back of his head. "You're too nice for your own good."

Grovyle jabbed Lycanroc in the stomach caused the Ultimate Berserker to recoil and hug his stomach while glared at Grovyle. "At least you finally did it," Grovyle grumbled.

"S-Still p-pathetic," Froslass muttered behind me.

"Have you seen the rest of the floor?" Grovyle asked me, ignoring both Froslass and Lycanroc glaring at each other.

"Not yet," I replied. "There was a lift in the Dojo that brought us down here."

"Well… I wouldn't get your hopes up," he said. "None of us have found a way out of this place. Including the way, it looks…" He looked conflicted. "It's unnerving. Why would a mystery dungeon try to emulate human buildings?"

"Maybe it just likes it?" Lycanroc suggested halfheartedly.

"Maybe." Grovyle just scratched his head.

"I-Is there a-anything interesting in this p-place?" Froslass groaned.

"Honestly?" Lycanroc shrugged. "Not really. At least there isn't anything that's going to get us out of here."

Grovyle gave Lycanroc a withering look, before glancing at me. "There are a few interesting places here. There's another gym for one."

"Another gym?" I blinked. "Who's?"

"Blissey's?" Lycanroc responded. "She was pretty happy about it. Though…" He puffed up his chest. "It wasn't as impressive as mine!"

"Right." Grovyle rolled his eyes.

"L-let's g-go, Braixen," Froslass said. "T-There's n-nothing here f-for us. L-let's get the r-rest of the r-rooms over with." She floated out without another word.

Grovyle watched her go. "Why are you…?" he started to ask.

"It just happened," I admitted nervously. "It's really not that big of a deal. She's actually pretty nice once you get to know her."

Grovyle studied my face, before smiling. "Well, that's good." The smile dropped. "Explore the rest of the floor. I'm sure that Monotuff is planning something by opening itself up like this. We should know what we're facing so it doesn't get the upper hand."

I nodded. "I-I'll be back!" I said, determined to keep moving forward and, after waving goodbye, I quickly followed Froslass out of the Archive Room. She was standing in front of another door, again with a plaque but this one read, "Healer Gym."

"Tch." Froslass scowled. "Why did that crazy have to get a gym?" she asked, placing her hand around the doorknob, getting ready to enter the room.

I gave her a strange look. "Crazy?" I echoed. "She's not…" I looked down remembering Blissey's personality during the guild trial. Afterward, she had seemed to return to how she was when I met her, but at the same time, there was always something off with her…

Froslass rolled her eyes but didn't give me any sort of answer and instead just threw open the door. She made a face. "Oh," she groaned. "You're here."

Blissey smiled. "Froslass! Braixen!" She bounded towards us and clasped my hands within her own, making me realize that she was wearing gloves. "I'm surprised! How did you get here?"

"There's a lift in the Fighter Gym," I explained, peering over Blissey's shoulder to try and see what was inside. The room was just as big at the Fighter Gym's basement but was a lot more high-tech. There were several glass shelves in the walls that held differently colored bottles and cups, each with a paper label pasted on the glass. Within the room were two beds and four drawers next to them. On a messy oak table, there were several flasks and tubes filled with liquids.

That was all I saw, however, as Blissey moved in front of me to block my view. "Sorry," she apologized. "I'm still cleaning up. I can't let anyone in until I move out any specialized chemicals or treatments."

"Specialized?" Froslass asked, narrowing her eyes.

"You know!" Blissey said brightly. "Lethal!" My mouth dropped.

"And how do we know you're actually throwing them out?" Froslass continued to interrogate Blissey, while my eyes flicked between them, trying not to get in between the two.

"I've already shown Greninja all of the ones I'm taking out," she said cheerfully. "You can trust her, can you?"

Froslass grit her teeth and backed away. "Fine," she said softly. "Do as you please." She floated away.

"I-I'm sorry!" I quickly said to Blissey once Froslass was out of earshot.

Blissey only laughed lightly. "It's fine," she assured me, while at the same time pushing the door closed so that only a gap remained that I could see her through. "Just be sure to make sure she doesn't come back until Greninja and I are done." She shut the door in my face.

I just stood there for a few moments, staring blankly at the closed door. Again, I just couldn't understand Blissey. Everything about her was just… off.

Shaking my head, I turned around, to find that after the Healer Gym it ended in a dead end with only a staircase leading up, presumably to B2F and where the rooms were. The only way forward was to the left to two other hallways, one which kept going forward and another turning left. However, the one that kept going straight was blocked by a large metal wall. Curious, I opened the map on my E-Badge to confirm my suspicions.

The entire floor was essentially a circle, with some straight edges instead of curves. It looped back on itself, so if I continued to walk on the same path while ignoring the ladder going up, then I would eventually make it back to the Fighter Gym's basement. Though… I tapped the area where the metal wall blocked any progress forward. I couldn't see through the wall with my own eyes, but the map revealed that behind the gate was a staircase leading down to B4F.

Meaning, there was more of the mystery dungeon that we couldn't even explore yet.

I swallowed my fear and turned the corner, passing the metal gate, trying to put it out of my mind. If we couldn't go there now, then why bother thinking about it?

Though even I knew that that wasn't the best idea in the long run.

I noticed that there were two other doors in this hallway before it looped back to the Fighter Gym's basement. The closest was wide open, so I entered it without a second thought. The moment that I did, however, my nose was assaulted by an incredible smell. My eyes wide, I looked around just to try to find where that delicious smell was coming from.

Froslass was already here with Greninja, both of whom were giving me amused looks. It was another large room with a brown and white tiled floor and white walls and ceilings. The farthest wall in the back wasn't a wall at all and instead was a large window that looked out onto the ocean behind Wigglytuff's Guild. Through it, I could see the wall that surrounded us and the waves constantly crashing into the stone. There was another red door to the right that was open, where I could see Marowak inspecting some berries.

"What's that smell?" I asked.

Greninja gestured to the kitchen. "There are some more fruits and berries in there," she explained. "Along with some other food that Marowak is trying to identify."

I blinked. "Why Marowak?" I asked.

"She's the only one who has any knowledge on human customs and creations," Greninja explained. "The only one who can make sure everything in there is safe."

"I-Is t-that n-not dangerous?" Froslass stammered.

"It is." Marowak walked out, giving the kitchen an objective look. "But I'm pretty sure nothing in there is a trap set up by Monotuff." She placed a plate down on a table which contained berries I had never even seen before. "But there are some weapons inside which can be used to kill."

I gave her a terrified look. "Then-!" I started to say.

"No." Marowak interrupted, with a shake of her head. "I doubt anyone will use it. Not after seeing how Metang was executed. Anyway, Froslass." She turned to the Ultimate Dancer. "You were complaining about the food we had before, right? Well…" She gestured to the food she had brought out. "If you want…"

"I-I'm fine, t-thanks." Froslass looked away.

"Suit yourself." Marowak shrugged and chowed down on one of the berries she brought out.

I tried one myself and my eyes widened. "Bis iz rate!" I said with my mouth full.

Greninja chuckled before her face turned serious. "Have you too checked the other room in this hallway."

"N-no," Froslass answered. "W-why?"

"No reason," Greninja replied. "It's just that it is the last room that Marowak and I were going to check. I was wondering if you would've liked to come with us."

"E lan!" I said, still stuffing my face.

Another chuckle. "Excellent," she said, taking a berry for herself. "Marowak you're coming right?"

Marowak shook her head. "No," she denied. "I think I am going to investigate the kitchen some more." Her eyes sparkled. "The machines in there are things I've only ever seen broken or destroyed. This would be a dream come true if it wasn't for the circumstances."

Greninja looked a little disappointed. "If you say so," she said, walking out of the cafeteria. I quickly grabbed two more berries and followed her out with Froslass right behind me.

It only took a few seconds to go through the door that led to the second room within the hallway. The moment I entered I lost my appetite.

It was huge. The ceiling stretched so high that when I looked up it made me slightly dizzy. Huge lamps like the one in the Fighter Gym's basement hung from the ceiling, lighting up the entire room. Metal shelves stretched just as high, piled high with different types of items. Some of them I could identify like a ladder, rope, and gravelrocks but others were beyond my understanding. There were also some boxes containing other things within.

"What is this?" Froslass gaped, her stammer not present as the room was just as cold as the outside.

Greninja seemed tense. "This is…" Her eyes flickered between several of the items on the shelves. "Unnerving."

"How so?" I asked. I mean I found it strange and weird too, but for reasons that I couldn't explain.

Greninja moved within the shelves examining everything. "This place has everything you would need," she muttered to herself.

"It's a Storage Room." I glanced over at Froslass to see that she had her map open.

"Exactly. A Storage Room to hold everything we could ever need," Greninja said slowly.

I blinked. "What do you mean by that?"

She gave me an unreadable look. "To murder," she said, making the already cold room even colder. "A murderer has everything they need in here to kill someone perfectly."

Xxx

I could only thank Marowak for finally bringing some new food for us to eat. As much as I hated to admit it, the new berries and food she had brought from the Cafeteria were leagues better than anything I had had for the past week. Still, no one was willing to eat in the Cafeteria, so we all just crowded ourselves back into the guild's dining hall.

Everyone was down, so while the food did lift some pokémon's spirits, most of us remained quiet.

Finally, Porygon sighed. "We're not getting anywhere staying silent."

"I agree!" Lucario shouted forcefully. "We should come up with a plan right away!"

"A-And wh-what do you s-suggest?" Froslass snapped.

"I… er…" Lucario sat back down looking ashamed.

"We need to get through this mystery dungeon somehow," Marowak muttered to herself.

"Yes, but how?" Ribombee asked. "We haven't found an exit yet."

"There was a wall that blocked us from going deeper in B3F," I added trying to be helpful. "Maybe there's an exit there."

"Or there's something there that Monotuff doesn't want us to see," Lycanroc said darkly. I gulped.

"…No, I don't think so." Greninja said, looking thoughtful. "I believe that it's using these as an additional motive to have us kill?"

Noivern laughed nervously. "What… what makes you say that?"

"Think about it," Greninja tapped the side of her head. "The only reason it opened up B3F was because we solved Zoroark's murder last night. If that's the case what's to say if we complete more it won't open up another floor for us."

Grovyle's eyes widened. "It's trying to use our hope that we can escape against us," he said. "It's trying to encourage more killings."

Everyone exchanged an uneasy look.

"That's a bit of a stretch," Porygon pointed out. "If someone is killing then there is already the idea that they'll escape if they get away with the killing." He let out a small hum, thinking to himself. "We need to prepare for the worst. Monotuff's most likely got another motive prepared to get us to kill. And to do that we should probably make sure another killing doesn't happen."

"Um… how do we do that?" Pelipper asked.

"We train!" Lucario suddenly stood back up and yelled, as everyone turned to look at him.

"Train?" Ribombee echoed.

"Yeah!" Lucario folded his arms and nodded. "Training with others promote healthy growth of friendship and teamwork!"

Everyone gave Lucario a strange look other than Greninja. "That's… not a bad idea," she admitted. "Admittedly I've never done something like that before, but if it is anything like Lucario is saying, then we could use it." She eyed some of the others including me. "Especially pokémon who've never been in a mystery dungeon before."

"E-Exactly!" Lucario agreed.

Blissey smiled. "That sounds like a great idea!"

"Um…" Pelipper looked concerned. "Are these classes optional?"

"Of course not-!" Lucario started to say before he was interrupted by Porygon.

"Of course," he said, contradicting Lucario. "But working together and learning from each other can only help us get through this situation."

"Oh… uh…" Pelipper looked flustered.

"Then it's agreed upon!" Lucario said excitedly. "Tomorrow morning everyone should meet me in the Fighter Gym! Or as I call it the Dojo! Lucario's Dojo!" He placed a hand on his chest. "We'll train like there's no tomorrow!"

"Oh!" Zebstrika perked up. "I can train others in running and endurance with my gym! Endurance is an important part of exploration teams, right?"

As the conversation devolved into people offering their own expertise and suggestions for classes, I eventually tuned it out and focused on my food. I had gotten the gist of what we were doing tomorrow. We were going to train each other to hopefully escape this mystery dungeon eventually or strengthen our bonds so another killing would never happen again.

Looking around the table at everyone talking and genuinely getting along, it made my heart rise.

Yes, I had hope for the first time since coming here. We were working together thinking of ways to beat Monotuff at his own game. We weren't about to lose so easily. We would all survive this.

Yes… we would all survive this. I… I know that. My head knew what I was saying was true. The evidence of us working together was there.

So why did my heart say otherwise?

New Rooms:

1F: Fighter Gym/Dojo, Racer Gym

3BF: Dojo Basement, Cafeteria + Kitchen, Healer Gym, Archive Room, Storage Room

And finally we begin the second arc.

Apologies that this chapter wasn't super interesting. It was mostly a "New Rooms" chapter and setup chapter so there wasn't a whole lot I needed to add.

It was also a very Froslass heavy chapter since I felt that Froslass didn't really do a whole lot in the previous arc, mostly because writing dialogue for her can take some time. So by extension writing, this chapter took some time too, haha!

So just some basic questions: Who do you think will die next? Any more predictions?

Oh and don't worry about this chapter's relative lack of interesting things. Stuff will really be moving forward in the next chapter...

Reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated.