Lucario's POV
"Ouch..."
"Oh! Glad to see you're awake. Flake's been pretty worried about you for the last few days."
I opened my eyes, and realized I was on a bed. It was pretty soft, but I felt battered and bruised in most places. There was also a Audino next to me, with a nurse's hat on.
"Is... is this a hospital?" I asked.
"Yes, this is a hospital," the Audino explained. "More specifically, it's the Burning City Guild hospital wing, but what matters is that you're awake."
"How did I get here? The last thing I remember is fighting a Gengar, and then I passed out."
"One of our rescue teams, Team Scorch, went to rescue you. If you want to say thanks, one of the members is next to you."
I sat up and sure enough, there was a Cinderace lying on the bed next to mine. But he was out cold, and missing his right arm.
"What happened to his arm?" I asked Audino.
"It was chopped clean off while he was fighting that Gengar. The wound has healed, but his life will never be the same."
"So his arm was severed while he was trying to rescue me?"
"Yes, that's what happened. He almost died from blood loss, but his partner got here just in time."
"That's good." But in my head, I knew that I was responsible for him losing an arm. He lost it saving me, and if I was never in trouble, he'd probably still have it. "What's his name?"
"His name is Lucky, and his partner is a Braixen named Flake."
Flake? That name sounded familiar, but I had no idea why. "So where's Flake right now?"
"Hello, are Lucky and the Lucario okay?" Right on cue, Flake walked into the room.
"They're doing fine. Lucario just woke up from his coma." Said Audino.
"That's good." Flake sighed with relief. "How are you, Lucario?"
"I'm fine, thank you for saving me," I said. "I would probably be a goner without you and Lucky."
"You're welcome, it's nice to see you're doing okay. You do look a little roughed up, but at least it doesn't look too bad."
"Unfortunately, there was one serious injury to Lucario here." Said Audino.
"I do have a name, you can just call me Shu." I said.
"Well okay, Shu's aura feelers were damaged, and sadly that caused the loss of his aura based moves like Aura Sphere and the ability to sense aura."
My heart sank. What was a Lucario without the power to sense aura, it was what made us special.
Flake seemed to notice my dissapointment. "Don't worry Shu!" She tried to cheer me up. "You're okay, and that's what matters in the end."
Flake's reassurance did make me feel a bit better, but I was still dissapointed. "So, how long will I end up being in here?"
"Probably for quite a while," said Audino. "You were pretty roughed in that dungeon, so you aren't in any shape to leave."
While I was dissapointed by that, I did have another idea. "Can I at least explore the guild while I recover? I feel up to it."
"You probably can, but you need to have a guild member with you, so in case something goes wrong they can quickly bring you back."
"If you need someone to go with Shu, I don't have any missions, so I'm available." Flake offered.
"Well, alright," I agreed.
"Just make sure to tell me if you feel off, because I can take you back to the Hospital Wing."
"Don't overextend yourself either," said Audino.
"No worries," I reassured them. "I'll be careful."
"Okay," Flake said, visibly excited to show me the guild. "Let's go explore the Guild of Fire!"
Sorry this chapter took so long, I had some stuff going on so I never had time to finish until recently. Thanks for reading, and see you(hopefully) soon!
