The following morning, Morgan looked over her map to weigh her options. She could plow straight ahead, but there were routes east and west as well. She couldn't head too far east yet, but she could possibly fish up a Pokemon. Meanwhile, the western path was entirely optional, but offered another catch opportunity as well as the chance to see a little town called Verdanturf, which she was almost certain was where Wally had moved.
Eventually, she opted for the latter. Along the way, she saw a super cute Pokemon Daycare. Though she couldn't think of any use it would serve her personally any time soon, seeing some of the different Pokemon people had left there proved briefly entertaining.
More notably, she: (a) caught a Surskit, which she decided to keep and name Maple, and (b) she stumbled across another Revive. At this point, Morgan wasn't sure whether their rarity was greatly exaggerated or she had inconceivable luck. Or… heh. Perhaps, since they allegedly just appeared in random places, they were actually a literal gift from this land's gods, and she had somehow earned divine favor.
Ha, yeah, okay.
Verdanturf was an idyllic paradise of a town if she ever saw one, at least for anyone who was attracted to a quiet country lifestyle. The gentle breeze smelled of the arrays of beautiful flower, yet she felt no hint of allergies. It was a shame Nik had grown to fear the outdoors in general, because everything about this place felt peaceful and safe, at least in Morgan's opinion.
Which also meant there was approximately nothing of interest to do, given she didn't see the point of Pokemon Contests and Wally apparently wasn't home, though his cousin said she'd tell him Morgan stopped by, which she hoped he'd appreciate anyway. Really, she probably could have turned around as soon as she caught Maple, but then she supposed she wouldn't have found the Revive, and so long as Sera hadn't gotten ahead of her-
Speak of the devil yet again? "Heya. You headed to Verdanturf?" It was sort of a rhetorical question given they were only about 50 yards outside the city limits, but starting conversation was not Morgan's forte.
"Hm?" Sera's eyes lit as she saw her. "Oh, hey! Yeah, I just love the Contest scene, and while we're so close…" She would, wouldn't she. "Speaking of, you didn't happen to catch a Roselia, did you?" Morgan shook her head. "Dang. I guess the Nidoran I got off Wonder Trade is pretty cool, too, but Roselia would have been really nice for beauty contests."
"If you say so, I guess. Well uh… Good luck, then, I think?"
Sera giggled brightly. "Thanks~!"
It was mid afternoon when Morgan made it back to Mauville, and late afternoon by the time she'd stopped for dinner and made it across town, but that gave her plenty of time to head out to the shore and fish up a Magikarp, promptly traded for… a Skitty. And as much as she tried to convince herself that she had a lot of better options, something about that cute face gave Morgan the feeling she was going to end up using her anyway.
It seemed too late after that to head north yet, so Morgan turned in for the night and spent some time getting to know her two new teammates. Maple was quite sweet, and Morgan was excited to get another Water-type on her team. Skitty- who she held off on naming just yet since she wasn't sure if the original trainer had called her anything or not- was surprisingly ambitious. On one hand, Normal-types didn't seem very versatile, but on the other, Zuma. So who knew? Perhaps this little Skitty's determination would lead her to be a valuable ally.
Day… was it thirteen now? Or fourteen? Morgan was starting to lose track, and couldn't recall if the day she was thinking of as her "first day" was the first day of her journey or her first day in Hoenn. Or, first she could remember, given she still didn't know how much time passed between showing up here and waking up in the van. The days on the boat also blurred together. It could have been slightly longer? She… probably could have looked at her records, but that seemed like way too much effort for something she didn't actually care that much about..
But all right, for convenience's sake she was going to say she'd been at this roughly "two weeks" now. Leaving the largest city in Hoenn seemed like a good marker, so she may as well assign a significant number to it to help her remember.
So after give-or-take two weeks in her journey, this was all starting to feel pretty standard.
She left early, fought some trainers, no big deal.
She met a field reporter and a cameraman who insisted on a battle. Morgan couldn't imagine the point of this given her every move was already recorded, but she supposed the insight offered by an interviewer directly asking questions was something a little different for fans. Okay, no big deal.
She caught a Geodude hidden among some of the rocks along Route 111, and managed to trade it for a Weedle; kind of the opposite of a big deal.
As she grew closer to Mt. Chimney- really? She didn't know if that was the best or worst name for a volcano- she felt like maybe she should be a little more awed by it, but it still felt like no big deal.
All in all, it was a pretty uneventful day. She was nearly to the foot of the mountain, now, and it was getting dark. This was probably going to be her last battle of the-
Shit.
Rock-type Pokemon were weak to Water, right? Right! Unfortunately, she hadn't considered that Bugs were weak to Rock, and now Maple was dead. After only a day and a half of having her.
Morgan found herself more pissed than sad, even if some part of her felt bad for feeling that way. She considered reviving the Surskit, but….. Well, just because she'd had luck so far didn't mean it would persist. Maybe later, if she found more Revives. Sera said even literal fossils could be brought back, right? So she probably didn't have to bring back Maple right away to still, maybe, eventually, possibly do so...
So that certainly put a damper on the otherwise boring day. To add insult to injury, it was hot as balls out here, and Morgan could barely sleep for the sticky, suffocating heat.
What little sleep she got was cut short by a sudden uproar in the wee morning hours. She shot upright and scrambled out of her sleeping bag, finding Cerberus already on high alert, but they soon realized the commotion was actually a good way up the mountain.
Though she could see smoke rising- and not from the peak- and hear distant clamor and sounds of panic, she found herself confused for a few moments as to just what could have awoken her, until the sound she realized she'd heard in her sleep resounded once more, so loud it shook the the smaller stones around her: a deep, ear-splitting roar with a distinct sound of "KUUUU." This was followed by the far more distant sound of something exploding or perhaps just collapsing. Morgan couldn't imagine what could be making the roar to be so much louder, nor did she even want to think about how loud that must have been up close.
Whatever the case, she was very awake now, which meant she should probably either get as far away as she could or go try to help. As it turned out, the decision was made for her just as she finished packing up camp, in the form of her Nav resounding with a sudden cacophony of different alert messages.
"RED ALERT: YOU ARE NOW IN A RESTRICTED-" one was crying. "THIS IS AN EMERGENCY NEWS BROADCAST" cried another. And of course between those, an incoming call began ringing. Cerberus doubled over in pain as he held his ears, while Mithril managed to add to the noise with pained screaming beeps of xir own as xe flailed wildly, beginning to attack a nearby boulder to vent.
Morgan nearly joined Cerberus, but to her indescribable relief, answering the call temporarily quieted the other sounds, though they continued on low volume just enough to make the call a bit hard to understand.
"Morgan!" It was Genevieve. "Did you see the news?"
Gritting her teeth to try to cope with the noise, Morgan snapped, "You mean the news that just started blaring at me? No, I haven't had the chance."
She audibly winced. "Just up the mountain from where you are, Team Aqua is attacking the cable car stations. So far no one's been seriously injured, and the League wants to keep it that way, so they're ordering all competitors and civilians to stay away at all costs. ...I- I'm sorry, I know you would have seen for yourself but I just… I had to make sure you weren't-... You're not hurt? Or thinking of doing anything stupid?"
Morgan fought the urge to sigh. She was very on-edge at the moment, but did appreciate the concern. As she listened to Genevieve, she jogged away from the mountain until, to her great relief, she finally got out of the restricted zone and the red alert stopped. She still heard the strange roar once in a while, but it seemed to be getting farther away.
"So, what? They just want the cable cars out of order?" Morgan finally asked.
"It… seems that way, I suppose. If they've given any motive it hasn't been reported yet. All we know is that it's a much larger scale attack than anything we've ever seen from them, and they- Some reports are claiming they have an extremely powerful unidentified Pokemon on their side. I know you've dealt with some of their peons before, but just… promise me you won't get involved in this. This is… different."
"I… Yeah, okay." But then that begged the question, "What now, though? Am I supposed to rock climb my way to Lavaridge or…?" Dammit all. She really should have given up the extra night in a Center, or put off getting a Rt 118 Pokemon. She might've been to Lavaridge already if she'd left a little sooner. ….Or, she might have opted to camp higher on the mountain last night and been caught square in the middle of all this. Morgan supposed there was no sense dwelling either way now.
But Genevieve answered, "No, I don't think so. From what they're saying, Leader Mura is being dispatched to deal with the situation, so the Gym may be closed for a few days anyway."
"They're… sending a Fire-type user to deal with Team Aqua?"
"I know," Genevieve snapped; it was not a sound of agreement. "If everyone would stop fucking-" She bit her tongue. "Apologies, dear. It's just every other person seems to be making the same comment right now, but as a Leader's wife, it's… trying, to see everyone doubting the League's decision like this. Mura is a former Elite, and he's the closest Leader. We just… need to have faith that he can handle the situation."
"I… see. Sorry." The emergency news broadcast in the background was finally ending now, and the sounds from the mountain were growing more scarce. Was Mura there now, Morgan wondered? "But so, should I just…?"
"Mm…" There was a pause before she said, "Let me make a few phone calls. In the meantime, Sera should be headed your way. Backtrack until you meet with her. If something does happen, you'll be safer together."
For once, Morgan couldn't seem to muster any protest to being around her rival. She simply nodded and answered, "Yeah. We'll do that." She turned then to make sure Cerberus and Mithril both seemed okay now, and together they headed back to the southeast.
When Sera and Morgan's paths finally crossed, the younger girl was just standing and staring out Mt. Chimney. "Hey!" Morgan called, snapping Sera out of her reverie. "Are… you okay?"
"Uh… Y-yeah, I guess…" Sera pulled her cloak a little tighter around herself even though it really was too hot for it here. She stared at the ground. "Just… Being this close… It's like a punch in the gut, ya know?"
The pause felt a little too long before Morgan said, "Yeah, I can see how it would be." When Sera gave her a look between questioning and concerned, Morgan clarified, "I mean… I guess it's a little scarier to me not knowing all the details than just knowing they attacked some property, and it seems like it's settled down now. I've… seen a lot worse back home, so I guess it doesn't really.. register as much to me?"
As Sera's eyes fell to Morgan's dog tags, she replied, "R-right. I guess I do forget about that. Not that you've really talked about it, but I guess we haven't talked a lot in general, have we…. Heh."
Morgan shrugged. "I tend to focus more on the present and the future than the past. I can't say I never feel weird about the fact that I block things out so well, but… Well, it's gotten me this far in one piece, so I find it hard to complain, too."
Sera shook her head. "No, that's fair. Everyone has their own ways of dealing with… things." She sighed, but then added, "Speaking of everyone. How are these guys-"
Everything, she heard Mithril whispering to xirself. ... could be ours. … end… everything according to … Open it up. Release it. … not defy it. … Open. … everything before us.
Though she could only catch about half xir words, the others mumbled too quietly to make out, the hair on Sera's neck stood on end. It almost made it worse that Mithril didn't seem to be speaking to anyone, just mumbling, whispering, over and over… "I-... Has Mithril been okay this morning?"
"Hm? Xe freaked out pretty badly when the Nav started going off, but xe's been fine since everything quieted down, I think. Xe didn't like the alarms when- well, a thing happened toward the beginning of our journey and I accidentally set them off. So I think xe just doesn't like loud noise in general." Morgan shrugged. "Something in common I guess."
"...Oh."
… Morgan took on a skeptic look. "Wwwhy do you ask?"
"O-oh, xe just… seems…"
Xe's always like this now, Cerberus offered.
"What?" Cerberus repeated, and Sera asked, "...Now?"
Since Dewford, I guess. I stopped asking about it. Xe can be pretty cool sometimes if you can just ignore it, though. Like xe's creepy, but more fun than when xe used to be all quiet.
"Uh… huh."
Morgan rolled her eyes. "What are they saying?"
Sera sighed. "I'm not-wha'd'you mean?" she suddenly shifted, and Morgan just raised an eyebrow. … Right. It wasn't like Sera ever made an effort to be subtle. "I guess the real question is, are you going to believe me?"
Morgan shrugged. "Maybe not, but it probably wouldn't be the weirdest thing in this-"
Their conversation was cut off by the sound of Morgan's Nav beeping. It was Genevieve calling back. "Ah, good, Sera's with you. So I got an answer back."
In many more words, Genevieve explained that the girls's restricted area map had been reduced just enough to allow them to pass through the Fiery Path that ran well under Mt. Chimney, so long as they stayed low, stayed together, and made a point to get through as quickly as possible. There had been discussion of putting their journey on hold, but it was decided that they were too high profile, too popular with viewers at the moment, and that in the wake of such a scare Hoenn needed something to keep their minds off of it.
So for now, the girls were being redirected to Fallarbor Town until Lavaridge was deemed safe. This would give them more opportunities to build up their teams, as well as affording the opportunity for a bit of an unusual endeavor with two rivals getting to spend more time than usual together.
There was supposed to be a local professor- a prominent researcher- studying properties of meteorites and how they may relate to Mega Evolution, so the chance of obtaining that power would have been reason enough for the detour. However, they were also given the errand while there to personally extend Devon's invitation to him. Apparently, the man hadn't responded to the last two emails and never answered calls, so… Well, it was more of a job for Sera, really, given she had some clout outside these ridiculous Games, but having Morgan along could hardly hurt.
For safety's sake, however, their broadcasting was continuing to be postponed until tomorrow morning. For that matter, most Nav systems would be offline for the duration. The internal GPS would still be working, but they were encouraged to refrain from activity as much as possible, lest someone outside of Devon pick up their signals.
Once everything was settled and the call ended, Morgan piped, "So question. Are the Games always Bread and Circuses, or is that just an extra bonus sometimes?"
Sera could only blink and tilt her head. "Bread and… circuses? I don't think I get the reference."
Morgan shook her head. "Nevermind. We'd better get going."
Sera nodded. "Yeah… All right."
Over the course of the day as they trekked back toward and through the mountain, they spent a lot of time in silence, and often spread out somewhat to do their own things, but were careful to never leave the other's line of sight, at least no further than around an immediate corner. Mithril continued to unnerve Sera, but to her relief, as soon as she started to mention something to Morgan, her rival was kind enough to recall the Pokemon without pressing questions, even if she did seem a little annoyed by it.
Flash and Cerberus both stayed out with their trainers, and bickered most of the day, but Sera found that much somewhat comforting. It really was uncanny how similar their personalities were, and though their banter was heated, it seemed mostly in good nature.
Morgan caught a Machop which she planned to Wonder Trade, but it seemed it would have to wait until tomorrow, as the PC transport was working, but none of the social services were, save for emergency numbers.
Meanwhile, Sera fought a trainer with a Taillow… and defeated it with Pelt the Nuzleaf. Easily. Afterward, she found herself sighing. "Have you gotten to the point where you feel like type match-ups are just a formality against most people?"
Morgan blinked. "I mean… Being able to do it without them doesn't mean they don't help…"
"Yyyeah… But I do wish more trainers made me feel like battling you does..." She smiled weakly at Morgan, who didn't seem to know what to make of that statement; her confusion, in turn, made Sera chuckle. "I just mean… You actually give me a challenge. Not many other trainers have so far, and… Considering I joined these Games to try to prove how good a trainer I can be, I guess I'm doing that, but it's sort of… underwhelming, you know?"
Morgan raised an eyebrow. "Would you rather head up than inside, then?"
Sera cringed. "N-no… I'm not… going to push my luck that hard…"
A little way into Fiery Path, a wild Numel decided to block their path. Since Morgan took the previous wild encounter, Sera took this one. And since it was the first in the tunnel, she thought paralysis might help make it easier to capture, switching out Flash for Pikachu.
"Thunder Wave," Sera ordered.
Pikachu reflexively moved to comply, then paused to give Sera a questioning look before going ahead and doing so. But why the hesi- SHIT.
Sera remembered too late that Thunder Wave was negated by Numel's Ground typing same as any offensive Electric move. And Pikachu was no match for the Magnitude.
As Sera called out to her, tears welling up, Pikachu turned to her with a weak smile. With her dying breath, she said, It's okay…
Sera could not believe she'd made such an amateur move- but the battle was still going. Wiping her eyes, she sent in Zuma, who looked from Pikachu's body to Sera in a brief moment of bewilderment before focusing on the battle.
Sera was able to capture the Numel, at least, and held no direct resentment against him for his part in the death. This was entirely her own fault, after all. All the same, she felt she was likely to Wonder Trade him once able, between what negative association there was and her already having such a reliable Fire-type. She sat staring at her Nav for at least a solid minute, considering whether or not to name him.
… Actually? If she could blame anyone, it should be Team Aqua, shouldn't it. It was their fault her mind wasn't entirely in the game today. And if Team Aqua's goal was to… what, flood the earth? What could the volcano's cable cars possibly have to do with that? Whatever. She just knew that whatever they stood for, she wanted to be against it. And looking at the little volcanic Ground-type's entry now, she found herself- ….they didn't usually check registered nicknames so long as they didn't flag any vulgar words, right? Slowly, she typed the name "Expand Land". Whoever got it was likely to call it someone else, she knew, but if she could send that subtle message to someone, it would be worth it.
Of course, now there was the matter of- "Where's Pikachu?"
Hm? asked Zuma.
"...Morgan? Did you see where- Morgan?"
"Huh? Sorry, another Numel came up so I was catching it. What did you say?"
"Did-... Did you see where Pikachu- where…" Sera bit her lip and corrected, "Where Pikachu's body went?"
"Oh no, did you lose her?" … In more ways than one, apparently.
Oh no! said Zuma sadly. What could have happened? Sera took another look around, then held her aching head for a few seconds. Does this mean… you won't be able to revive her? But.. What ever will I do without Pika-chan? She and I were supposed to do all the cuteness contests together! Does this mean that now I'll have to do them… allll by myself?
Sera's headache suddenly grew worse as she opted to ignore how scripted that sounded. "Hang on," she muttered. "I think… Yeah, okay. I'm not sure what she's hidden under or behind-" she bit the inside of her mouth as she dryly seethed "or who could have put her there…- but she's still in the Nav sensor's range." A few button presses, and… "There."
Zuma seemed a little shaken. O-oh! Good! ….S-so, are you going to revive her after all…?
Sera sighed. "No, not right away I don't think. That was a stupid move on my part, switching her into a Ground opponent, but.. I don't think she really liked battling anyway. Maybe if I'm able at the end of all this, I'll bring her back just for contests. Until then, though, I think…" She sighed more heavily.
Quietly, she heard Morgan mumbling, "So much for types being a formality." Sera's bewildered glared threatened to move the very mountain above them, and Morgan cringed before offering, "S-sorry, that was. Not in good taste."
"I just-... Whatever." Sera recalled Zuma, and replaced her with Tank: a nice, calm, friendly Pokemon who was also unlikely to die to anything here.
As they continued through the tunnel, they had a few more tough battles. Once, Morgan nearly lost Manowar, but he barely pulled through, pushing himself up when Sera had been sure that attack would finish him, and both Navs confirming he was only just clinging to life. All the same, he used that bit of determination to deliver a finishing blow to his opponent instead, and evolved into a Tentacruel for the effort, the energy that accompanied his evolution leaving him still very weak, but in far better shape than he was. Sera didn't have many potions left, but she definitely had to offer him one for such an astounding feat and as congratulations for his evolution.
Though there were only a few major events, and most of them very early, by the time they found themselves nearing the end of the tunnel, it had been a very, very long day.
With some luck, they'd still have a little time to distance themselves more from the mountain before setting up camp, and Sera sincerely hoped nothing of consequence happened to them between here and there.
Those hopes were dashed immediately.
Just ahead, at the tunnel's exit- or entrance, depending on perspective- a rather heavyset man in a lab coat appeared, intently focused on some device in his hands and muttering to himself irritably. Perhaps if they just stayed out of his way they could pass with minimal acknowle-
He suddenly looked up to them. Oh c'mon, Sera mentally griped.
"Hyuh? What do you think you're doing in here?" he demanded.
"I-" Sera found herself suddenly tongue-tied.
"Just passing through," Morgan shrugged. "Going to see a man about some rocks, I think."
"... Hnnn." He squinted skeptically.
"I guess we could ask you the same though?"
Sera looked him over again, then leaned to Morgan to tell her, "I- I think that's a Devon coat actually."
"Oh. … Okay then." Since no one else seemed to be talking, Morgan went on. "So, yeah, we were actually just leaving, so-"
"Wait… I know you two." He moved closer, and leaned in a bit to get a better look, looking each of them over in turn.
All the while, Sera's mind was nervously racing, especially when his eyes were on her. Though he dressed the part of a Devon researcher, she couldn't actually imagine why he would be way out here right now, and there was something distinctly menacing about his demeanor. ...Also, she couldn't seem to stop thinking about the fact that he must have been at least twice her size. Morgan, however, seemed mildly uncomfortable at worst.
"What kind of rocks, did you say?" he asked.
"M-meteorites?" Sera squeaked.
"I see… We at Devon have been looking into them, recently, as well."
"Probably why your bosses picked that for us," Morgan observed. "With any luck, we'll be helping you get in touch with a Professor… What was it? Cosmic?"
"Cozmo," said Sera.
"That's.. only barely less ridiculous for an astronomer," Morgan muttered, but Sera shooshed her.
The scientist's face twisted in disgust. "Not Raizoh Cozmo?"
"Uh- N-no, I think…" Sera could probably think a little clearer if he wasn't quite so close but she refused to take a step back herself so... "Ta… Takao, wasn't it?" Morgan shrugged.
But the man's face softened thoughtfully now. "... Interesting." Finally leaning back, he smiled smugly. "Very well, kiddies. You'd better be on your way, then."
"Why does everyone insist on calling me a kid," Morgan sighed.
"...I'm-... almost eighteen," Sera mumbled in turn, pouting slightly.
The man gave her another glance over, then sniffed a quiet laugh along with a look Sera wasn't sure if she should classify as a smirk or a sneer. "Run along," he said, rather flatter. He moved past them then, and as he headed deeper into the tunnel, Sera and Morgan finally headed out.
Once she was quite certain they were well out of earshot, Sera glanced around awkwardly before asking "D-did-.. um... did you see his eyes?"
"Huh?" Morgan took a moment to re-process the question before answering, "Oh. No, I avoid eye contact more often than not."
"...Oh."
"Why do you ask?"
"N-.." Well she couldn't very well say 'no reason', could she, because then she wouldn't have asked. "They were just uh… Very red…"
Morgan glanced her way and blinked. "..So? Your eyes are red."
"I know!" Sera said a little too quickly. ...Oh, good job. That didn't sound dumb at all. "I just uh-... I… really like red eyes… is all…"
Morgan deadpanned. "... Sera."
"Huh?"
"... Sera."
"What?"
Morgan rubbed a temple, and Sera couldn't tell if she seemed more amused or annoyed. "Are you trying to say you thought he was good-looking?"
"... I-..." Her face heated. "I dunno… m-..maybe a little? In.. more of a 'cute' than 'handsome' way, but…"
Morgan shook her head. "Wow."
"What?"
"Wow…" Her rival chuckled. "Serious question: is there anyone you don't find attractive?"
"I-!" Sera's face was getting close to matching her hair now. "I.. have pretty varied tastes. I'm pan, if that's what you're asking."
"...Nice to confirm, but no, I was asking if you can talk to someone under 30 for more than ten seconds without crushing on them."
"..."
….
"..."
…?
"...They don't have to be under 30."
Morgan's sudden laugh was so genuine- and so much less bitter than Sera would have expected- that Sera didn't even know if she could stay upset about this. "Oh my gods…" After a little continued laughing, though, she finally said, "I'm sorry, I'm not trying to make fun of you or anything."
"...Really?" Sera did her best to sound sarcastic, but it was a genuine question.
"N-no, I mean… Okay. Maybe a little, in a hard-time way, but not like… genuinely shaming or anything." She chuckled a bit more. "This just explains a lot."
"...Wha'd'you mean?"
Morgan shook her head. "It's nothing. I just think I read way too much into some stuff is all."
Sera tried not to let her flinch be too obvious. "I-... It's not-"
"No, it's fine." Sera spun to look at her, and Morgan went on. "I wasn't sure how to take some of the teasing and stuff before, but as long as I know it's not serious, I don't really mind it."
"... You-..." What were words? Who knew? Not Sera.
"Sorry if that ruins the fun or whatever, though." Morgan shrugged. "Or.. I dunno. If you still want to, I could play along for the cameras? It might be fun getting to actually do some acting if I'm gonna have people watching every waking moment either way."
. . . . Sera forced a light laugh. "I mean, if you're sure you don't mind. Sure~ We can totally do that." Putting on her best coy grin, she added, "I warn you, though, I'm a really good actress~"
Morgan rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Just don't go too far without some kind of warning and I think I'll be okay. And maybe keep it more verbal than physical most of the time."
"Ahaha~! Can do, pal!" Yup. She could totally handle this. It was just casual, everyday permission to super duper fake flirt extra fake-ly with her ultra platonic rival who she definitely wasn't really interested in at all, because having lots of crushes totally made each one less sincere, that was definitely how all of this worked.
Thank Arceus it was about time to set up camp, because Sera very, very much needed to lie down.
Are you sure you're okay? Tank asked. Sera nodded. … I'm sure she didn't mean to hurt your feelings. She nodded more slowly, hoping it was clear it was in agreement and not to say 'yes she did'.
Clearly, she just has awful taste, Flash shrugged. Not that I can imagine what you'd see in her anyway. Someone a bit cooler seems more your speed. He waggled his brows, and Sera stifled a laugh as she rolled her eyes affectionately, causing Flash to pout slightly.
Pelt touched his mouth, then looked to Sera questioningly. Sera returned the look.
I think he's asking why you're not talking, guessed Tank.
Sera couldn't help but smile that Pelt would be the one to question, but she gestured toward the walls of the tent, then touched her ears. She didn't know whether Morgan was asleep yet or not, but overhearing Sera talking would be far more incriminating than hearing the Pokemon. The three Pokemon she'd opted to keep for company each nodded in understanding.
… H..hey… started Tank, more somber now. Did… you tell Wings about Pikachu yet? Sera bit the inside of her mouth, but nodded once.
Oh man… How did he take it? asked Flash. Sera shrugged, then sighed heavily. There was little telling with him. Either he was pissed at Pikachu for dying or Sera for letting it happen or Sera for thinking he'd care. She may never know.
Pelt moved to sit next to Sera, placing his small hand on hers and offering a comforting squeeze. Sera did her best to smile in response.
After a brief silence, Flash waved a hand dismissively. Hey, it's fine. We can fix it when we win the game, right? So no sense dwelling on it now. It's like Sera's said all along, as long as we do well, any danger we're in is just temporary. It's just a game, right?
… Sera nodded with a light "Hm.." of agreement. She knew she might not be able to bring back every Pokemon if she ended up losing too many, but Pikachu was only her third. It was maybe a little more dangerous a game than she'd led them all to believe, but as long as she was good enough, it didn't have to be.
Yeah… I guess you're right, Tank agreed.
And when am I not~? asked Flash with a smirk. Sera stifled a laugh, and the remainder of their conversation until falling asleep took a rather more pleasant tone.
Morgan thought for a moment she may have awoken before Cerberus for a change, but as she processed the feeling of his cool neck against hers, she had to wonder if he'd just cuddled up to her in the night or if he fell back asleep while waiting for his normal trick to wake her. Either way was adorable, and she couldn't resist lying there to pet him for a bit until he finally awoke as well. "C'mon, cuddlebug," she teased. "We should wake Sera and get going."
To her surprise, Morgan had time to pack all her things including her tent before Sera awoke. Rattling Sera's tent a bit, she called, "Rise and shine, sleepyhead."
Then she had time to get breakfast ready, and still no sign of her rival. Against her better judgement, Morgan unzipped the tent door enough to peak in. "Hey, you o-"
Given how hot it was here, she really shouldn't have been surprised that Sera had kicked off her blankets in the night, though if heat was the issue, using a Combusken like a teddy bear didn't seem like the best idea.
And given their limited wardrobes on top of the heat, sleeping in underwear was an entirely practical choice, though Morgan could not begin to fathom why anyone would opt to bring such lacey, fashionable lingerie over something more practical on such an extended venture into the wilderness.
And if neither of these things was quite awkward enough, the tiny yawn as Sera pulled back her mess of hair to squeak "I'm awake" in such a small voice absolutely was.
Morgan zipped the tent back up and went back to her food quietly, refusing to believe there was any chance she was blushing. Ha… hahaha… No. Wow, no. Morgan had very definitively decided that she wasn't interested, and had finally been able to clarify that Sera was in agreement. Obviously, she just felt awkward about this situation in general. That's what this feeling was. Just awkwardness. Of course.
By the time Sera finally emerged, Morgan had thankfully calmed down.
"Sorry I overslept a bit. I think I really needed it, though." As she began to fold up her tent, Sera asked, "Are the Nav systems up yet?"
"Oh hey, I almost forgot." Morgan pulled hers out to check.
"This is Navalie, your personal PokeNav assistant. Scheduled maintenance on the Devon servers is expected to end in: Approximately. Two. Hours. Thank you for your patience."
Morgan barked a laugh. "Scheduled maintenance, huh. Yeah okay."
They finally got camp cleaned up and set out, then.
Sera was still a little groggy, and Morgan was hardly complaining about the peaceful silence, but it wasn't too long before they saw someone ahead in the road. Another trainer, perhaps? Or even another sponsor's competitor. Whatever the case, he looked in rougher shape than most, but not too-
As the man spotted them, he quickly ducked behind the nearest tree, because that wasn't suspicious at all. "Uh…" started Morgan.
As he peeked out, his sunken gray eyes suddenly lit. "Wait, it's you!"
"Uh… Me?" asked Sera. "Er… her, us?"
"You!" he repeated just as vaguely. He stayed mostly hidden, but beckoned for them to approach, even as he fidgeted and mumbled to himself. When they did not comply, he added, "C'mere! I have something to show you!"
"... Oh...kay, creepy man in the bushes. We're just gonna-"
"You're competitors, I'm sure of it! Please, this is worth your time."
… Morgan sighed. "Be on guard," she muttered to Sera, but together they approached.
Once all three trainers stood under the large tree, he stepped out to allow them their first good look at him: tall but frail, barely more than skin and bones, with a gaunt face and deep circles under his pale eyes. His hair was only just long enough to tie most of it out of his face, but his beard was as ragged and unkempt as his tattered clothing. A wide-brimmed hat shadowed his face worse than his features already did, and-
"Okay I'll ask," began Sera. "Why are you just carrying such a huge coat?"
"...B-because I need it to stay incognito, but it's too hot to wear it here and it won't fit in my bag." Looking her over, he asked in sudden bewilderment, "How can you stand to wear that cloak out here?"
"I literally wore this the entire way through Fiery Path," Sera answered. "I like the heat, and I really like this cloak."
"Huh." He chuckled. "Riiight, you're the native one, aren't you? This whole region's too hot for me, but I guess I never did grow out of my Unova roots. It stays a lot colder there, you know."
Though the name meant nothing to Morgan, Sera seemed intrigued. "Oh! You're from Unova? What brings you to Hoenn?"
Growing serious, he answered, "Your Game."
"...Hm? I don't think I've seen-..."
"Name's Aarune. Twenty-five years old, and I've spent the last eleven trying to find myself." Giving them just a moment to do the math, he went on, "That's right. I was only fourteen when they brought me here. Said it was a golden opportunity. Said an orphan like me didn't have any ties anyway. Turned out people did start asking questions. Weren't so sure about kids from familiar places being put through the gauntlet." He turned to Morgan. "Then they started getting folks like you. Older kids, young adults. Sob stories from places no one never heard of. Folks like that more."
As much as Morgan was interested in hearing about the early Games- or he made it sound early; were they really that new? And why did that number sound familiar?- she could see well enough where he was headed, and she'd promised to shelter Sera from that. "Dude," she interrupted. "Aarune, was it? We didn't ask for a history lesson here."
"Oh?" He seemed legitimately surprised for a moment, then brushed it off with a friendly, "Bet your heart did!"
"...Right. Uh. Anyway, you wanted to show us… something?"
. . . "Oh! Right, yes! Do you know what's special about this spot?" He looked at them with an anticipation that made Morgan suspect they were supposed to have a clue.
"Uh…"
"It's a Secret Spot!" . . . "Guess I should explain. You!" He pointed at Sera now, and she pointed at herself questioningly in turn. "You know what Secret Spots are, don'tcha?" Even as she started to try to answer, he went on, "You led your friend here to a weak one the other day, didn't ya? Isn't that where I recognize you from?"
"... Oh, I- Is it a place where the broadcast gets weak? Is there a name for that?"
"There is in my Guild!" Aarune declared. "There's spots where it's weak… and there's spots where it's flat-out dead! This whole area around here, about twenty to thirty yards in any direction, you'll find them fancy Navs don't work so well."
"I mean they're not working at all at the moment but-"
He ignored them. "But right here! Here under this tree, and up inside, is a true bonafied Secret Spot- a place to hide, a place you can be safe, just so long as you don't make the mistake of staying too long and gettin' 'em suspicious. If you've got anything you don't want the suits at Devon or your sponsors to know about, this is the sort of place you wanna stash it."
"... You know my sponsor is my dad, right," Sera said flatly.
"... What."
Morgan cringed a little for both sides. "Yyyeah, do you just go blabbing your Super Secret Information to everyone, or…? Because that doesn't seem like a very sound-"
"N-no!" he declared. "I knew you were competitors, I thought you'd be-" He began fidgeting and mumbling to himself again, something about mistakes and what to do.
Sera sighed heavily. "Just- What are you aiming to achieve here, anyway?"
"I-I- I just, I try to help," he stammered. "I don't, I can't go- I don't want them in my life again and I've-"
"...You're responsible for every competitor that's mysteriously dropped out of the Games, aren't you?" Sera accused now. But as Aarune started to grow defensive, Sera forced herself to calm down. "Okay, no, hang on. Just… Please tell me they left of their own accord, and that you didn't-..."
"Of course not!" Aarune exclaimed. "All I've ever done is give folks resources. A way out, when they decide it's too much. A network, a safety net. Hell, a bunch of 'em stay on as members of my Guild to help me out; I see 'em all the time. Even you've gotta know once you start a Game, there's no way out but to finish it, right?"
Sera winced. "I… Y-yeah.. I guess I never.. gave that much thought. I knew it could get stressful but-" She sighed heavily. "All right, so you just…?"
"I map Secret Spots, give competitors a way out, if they want it. Me and my pals, my guildmates, we find places like this and fix 'em up. Look."
He pulled out a small device then, not quite as intricate-looking as a Nav, and punched a few buttons to make it produce an odd sound. When it did, a rope fell from the tree, and Aarune immediately began climbing it. Against their better judgment, Morgan and Sera followed at his request… and found a surprisingly comfortable treehouse, which had been completely concealed from the ground.
"See?" he said.
"This.. does seem like a better sort of place to camp," Morgan admitted, and Sera had to agree. "So… What does it take to be in your so-called Guild, anyway?"
Aarune shook his head. "Only dedication to the cause. I can give you both your own phones, equipped with Secret Power to help you locate nearby bases and register on our private network any you claim for yourself. You're free to crash in any empty base or any claimed one the owner allows overnight, and you're welcome to stash or take stuff from community stores, but please don't claim more than one at a time as actually-yours. Helps keep things nice and fair." The girls nodded. "All we need from you is a few promises:
"1. Never tell anyone affiliated with Devon or the League about our Guild. … Present company apparently excluded," he grumbled. "So long as you can promise you'll be the only exception. Ain't never heard of a kid like you doubling as a competitor, though, so I'm putting a lot of faith in you, you got that?" Sera nodded nervously.
"2. There's a small light here-" he pointed to his own phone- "that will tell you if you're anywhere in the vague range of a Secret Spot. If it's not lit, don't use it. And if you're not inside a base, don't make any calls to anyone. It's the only way our secrets can stay safe.
"And 3. If you ever cross paths with other struggling competitors, be sure to refer them to the Guild in Fortree or tell them to look for Aarune, and do your best to look out for them and each other. We're all in this together."
"Got it," said Morgan.
"I…" Sera swallowed. "I'm not really sure about all this, but…" She took a deep breath. "As long as it's all by choice and just for privacy, then if Morgan trusts you, I do too. I… I promise."
"Great," Aarune said, visibly relieved. "In that case…" He pulled out two phones even simpler in design than his own, and extended them to Sera and Morgan. "Welcome to the Guild of Secrets."
