Chapter 3

Jungle Of Change

The following morning saw Zero and Furno heading out on yet another mission, this time accompanied by Quill, Dusty, Nieve, and Landon, much to Zero's chagrin. For whatever reason, the Hakamo-o seemed to hate Zero's very existence and he wasn't afraid to show it. Needless to say, Landon wouldn't have been Zero's first choice, but Riolu didn't have much say.

In fact, neither of Team Dawn Breaker had any say as it was no longer their team. It was Zero and Furno who were accompanying them and following Quill's instruction. It was…surreal be accompanying their team rather than leading it. Zero felt like a client requesting an escort rather than an actual team member. It…wasn't a good feeling.

Before the sun had fully rose, the group of Pokemon had made their way to Excadwen's port and took a quick Lapras ride to the neighboring island of Bulu. Unlike Excadwen, Bulu only had one major city being Port Selva. The rest of island was made up of a jungle the locals called the Guardian Wilds.

There were a handful of areas within the jungle had been cleared out for several small villages to be established as well as several paths that safely led travelers through the jungle. That said, the vast majority of the island was wild and untamed jungle and a total of four mystery dungeons.

The group trekked to one of the villages closest to the port to meet their client. Zero had been to a few villages before, but it was always jarring to go from seeing building made from stone and lumber to ones made of clay and bamboo.

"Thank you all for accepting my request!" a Mimikyu, if Zero remembered correctly, exclaimed. They were possibly one of the oddest Pokemon Zero had encountered. They were a short with their entire body garbed in a pale-yellow cloth that was styled to resemble a Pikachu.

"It's our pleasure, Ma'am," Quill replied smoothly. "Now, what was it that you needed from us?"

"Well, you see my child recently came of age," she explained, gesturing to the much smaller shape that was trying to hide behind her. Unlike their mother, this Pokemon's disguise didn't have a defined shape. In fact, it looked as if it were made of several different swatches of fabric. "Us Mimikyu have a tradition of crafting our own disguises and my child ran out of the materials they needs to make their own."

"What kind of materials are we talking about?" Landon questioned.

"Nothing to atypical," the Mimikyu assured. "We have all of the fabric and dyes that they need, we just need a strong enough thread to bind everything together."

"What kind of thread do you need?" Quill asked.

"The kind that comes from Leavanny silk," the Mimikyu replied. "There's a small colony of Leavanny that live at the end of Jade Jungle that will come by the village to trade on occasion. I would normally wait for one of them to come by, but my child is rather anxious to complete their disguise…"

The younger Mimikyu shifted nervously, though Zero did notice them give a subtle nod.

"Jade Forest…" Furno repeated. "That's one of the dungeons on Bulu, right?"

"That's correct," Quill said. "As I'm sure you know, there are four mystery dungeons located at the four corners of the Guardian Wilds. Despite each of them being connected to the Guardian Wilds, each dungeon was considered a separate dungeon complete with its own topography and inhabitants."

"Jade Forest happens to be the eastern most dungeon," Nieve added. "It's roughly an hour's walk from here."

"I'd go myself, but lately the dungeon Pokemon have been more aggressive than normal and I don't want to risk going," the Mimikyu added.

Zero stepped forward to assure their client that it was no trouble, but Quill beat him to the punch. "It's no trouble. We're here to help after all." The Chesnaught turned to the group. "Let's head out."

Without another word, Quill began leading the group out of the village, none of them noticing Zero hesitating behind them. Zero, still fixed in the same spot, watched Quill lead the team towards the dungeon. An uncomfortable weight constricted around his chest as he watched them go. Leaving him behind…

A soft tug at Zero's paw drew the former human from his thoughts. Looking down, he saw the young Mimikyu pulling a shadowy hand back underneath their disguise. "Are you Zero? The Riolu with the Silver Soul?"

Zero blinked in surprise. "Y-Yeah. I mean, yes. That's me."

"Really?!" The young Pokemon practically had stars in their eyes. "That's so cool! Wait 'til I tell my friends that the Zero helped me make my disguise!"

Zero did his best to keep smiling, but felt his lips twitch downward. Once more, an oppressive weight settled in his stomach and depreciating voices began echoing through his head. The Riolu's eyes glazed over as the young Mimikyu continued to speak animatedly, not that Zero heard him.

I heard he can't even control the Silver Soul.

I heard he ran away from the siege at the Latios Division!

What a coward!

How's he supposed to save us?

We don't need him. He's just a waste of space at this point!

"…hey! Can I see the Silver Soul?" the young Ghost-Fairy type suddenly asked.

Zero blinked back into awareness at the question. "Huh…?"

"Poppy, let the nice resistance member do his job," the older Mimikyu called out.

"Okay, Mom!" the younger Pokémon -Poppy- called back. They turned back to Zero and seemed to smile under their disguise. "It was nice meeting you, Mr. Zero!"

With a final exuberant wave, the little Pokémon scuttled off towards their mother. Zero watched them go with a blank expression on his face.

"Zero! Come on!" Quill's voice rang out.

Zero jumped in surprise. "C-Coming!" he shouted back, quickly jogging towards the group.

-Resistance-

Jade Forest: F1

The sweltering heat of the islands seemed to double as they entered the jungle labyrinth. The walls were a combination of trees and thick looking vines weaving around them. The canopy of the jungle did nothing to impede the blistering sun from bearing down upon the group.

"Let's hurry up and finish this mission. This heat's unbearable," Landon said, swiping a claw across his forehead.

"I concur," Nieve agreed. "I would like to leave this dungeon as soon as possible."

"Alright, alright," Quill said with a chuckle. "This particular dungeon's only thirteen floors deep, so it shouldn't be too difficult." The Chesnaught gave a quick glance around the area, noting the three separate paths. "Let's go left for now."

Hearing no opposition, Quill began leading the group down the leftmost path. Their chose trail proved to be a particularly long one as it twisted through the first floor of the maze, occasionally branching out into separate paths. Eventually, the hall would open up, revealing a large room with three more paths along with their first dungeon Pokémon.

A bulky Heracross turned to face the group, its eyes narrowed into pinpricks. It gave a loud cry before racing towards the group, its wings buzzing furiously. Its horn took on a silvery light as the Bug-Fighting type charged towards their group.

Zero tensed, preparing to leap forward and meet the Pokémon head on, but Quill beat him to it.

"Nieve, ground it!" The Froslass complied with a silent nod. The Ice-Ghost type drifted in front of the group before exhaling a large wave of frigid cold air towards the encroaching Heracross.

The Single Horn Pokemon charged straight into the Icy Wind, either not caring about the attack or incapable of stopping. For a moment, the dungeon Pokémon showed no signs of slowing. Zero stepped forward, fully prepared to push the Froslass out of the way of the Heracross' Megahorn when the dungeon Pokémon faltered in the air.

The super-chilled air, while cold enough to completely freeze the Heracross, was enough to weigh down its wings. Giving a shrill cry, the Heracross fell like a stone, crashing to the ground with a dull thud.

"Dusty!" Quill called.

"Understood!" the Sandslash replied, curling into a ball and racing towards the struggling Pokémon as blistering speeds. Still struggling to rise, the Heracross was helpless to avoid Dusty's Rollout. With a loud crack, the Mouse Pokémon slammed into the dungeon Pokémon, flinging it into the air.

Not even waiting for Quill to call his name, Landon launched himself into the air, his tail taking on a metallic sheen. As the Heracross reached the apex of its rise, Landon was already swinging his tail in a downward arc. There was a loud crack as the Heracross shot back towards the ground, slamming into the unforgiving surface with a loud thud.

Landon landed lightly next to the Heracross, eyes narrowed, searching for any movement from the Pokémon. However, as the dust settled, the Heracross didn't so much as twitch. If Zero looked close enough, he could make out a sizable crack running along the side of its carapace.

All of this happened in less than ten seconds.

"A little excessive, Landon, but good job nonetheless," Quill said as he entered the room.

The Hakamo-o gave a nonchalant shrug. "Just wanted to make sure."

Quill hummed, but didn't comment any further. He glanced around the room, his eyes landing on a blue orb resting in the corner of the room. He made his way over to the object and took it into his hands.

"A Petrify Orb. This could come in handy," he said as he placed the orb in their bag. He then turned back towards the group, his eyes finding Zero and Furno who both remained at the mouth of the room. "Everything alright?"

"Y-Yeah, just…shocked," Furno replied, his eyes on the unconscious Pokémon. "You all knocked it out so fast."

"It's called efficiency," Landon said with a condescending sneer. "What? Did you just expect us to throw random attacks at it until something worked?

Furno's eyes narrowed despite the light flush filling his cheeks. Zero flinched as that was essentially how he had led the team in the past. Landon saw both of their reactions and gave a derisive chuckle. He made to say something but was cut short when Nieve slapped the back of his head.

"OW! What the heck, Nieve?!"

"Stop antagonizing them," the Froslass replied. Landon growled at the Ice-Ghost type but chose not to verbally respond.

"Thank you, Nieve," Quill said with an appreciative smile. "Now, let's press on. We still have twelve other floors to get through."

-Resistance-

Jade Forest F7

The next few floors passed with relative ease. Each enemy they came across were dealt with swift action courtesy of Quill's commands. Occasionally, Zero and Furno would be called to aid, but, while both of them were at least close to the level the rest of the group was, their coordination was less than ideal.

"Watch where you're aiming!" Landon shouted at Zero when one of the Riolu's Vacuum Waves went wide and barely missed clipping the Dragon-Fighting type.

"Sorry!" Zero said through gritted teeth as he dodged the bright pink sickle of an odd bug-like Pokemon.

Leaping back, Zero fired another Vacuum Wave, this one striking the pink mantis Pokémon in the stomach. It stumbled back, its sickles coming up to shield its already injured stomach. Just as it looked to have recovered, Furno, wreathed in flames, barreled into the Pokemon, sending it crashing to the group with a pained cry.

"Thanks," Zero said, panting lightly.

"No problem," Furno said with a grin before shooting a Flamethrower at a charging Nidorino.

The Poison Pin Pokémon shrieked in pain and veered off course to avoid the searing flames. As it did, Zero shot forward and struck the Pokémon across the face with a high-speed Bullet Punch. The Pokémon gave a final cry before it collapsed onto the ground.

"Good work everyone," Quill said as he too dispatched another Pokémon. "Any significant injuries?"

"Not for a lack of trying," Landon spat out, sending a hateful look towards the Riolu.

Zero looked away. "I said it was an accident," he mumbled.

"Accidents get you killed," Landon snarled. "Accidents get others killed."

"He said he was sorry, let it go!" Furno stepped in with a snarl of his own.

The Scaly Pokémon whirled around to face Furno. "I will not let it go! Stupid mistakes like that have no place in this war and neither does he!"

"What was that?!" Furno growled, taking a purposeful step towards the Hakamo-o.

"Alright, enough!" Quill interrupted, stepping between the two Fighting types. "Landon, go cool off."

"But he—" Landon tried to argue, but a sharp look from Chesnaught silenced him. With a final glare towards Zero, the Hakamo-o stomped off down a random path.

"I'll make sure he doesn't go too far," Nieve said as she floated after the irate dragon.

Quill gave a nod before turning back to Zero and Furno. "What the hell is that guy's problem?!" Furno grumbled angrily. "He's been on Zero's case since we came to the Islands!"

Quill sighed heavily and gave the duo a weak smile. "I wouldn't take anything he says too seriously. Landon's just…he's been through a lot. We all have."

Furno gave a few incoherent grumbles but seemed to except the Chesnaught's words. "Furno, why don't you help Dusty establish a perimeter?" Quill requested. "We don't want any dungeon Pokémon getting the drop on us while we rest."

Anger still simmering in his eyes, Furno reluctantly agreed and made his way towards the Sandslash, leaving Zero and Quill alone. Zero said nothing, his gaze still planted at his feet. The former human heard the larger Pokémon sigh tiredly before they sat down next to the Riolu.

"Take a load off, Zero," Quill said. "We've got a few minutes before we need to get moving again."

Silently, Zero lowers himself to a sitting position, his eyes still glued to the ground. For a while, neither of them spoke, the only sounds coming from the wind rustling through the trees and the distant conversation between Dusty and Furno.

"It must be strange," Quill said suddenly.

"Huh?" Zero asked.

"Not leading the team," Quill clarified.

"Oh…yeah. It's definitely different," Zero said.

"Yeah, that was my reaction when I had to step up," Quill responded with a chuckle. He glanced over at Zero. "But that's not what's really bothering you, is it?" Quill pried.

"…" Zero bit his lip and unconsciously pulled his legs closer to his chest. "It's just…the way you lead is so different than how I did. You actually coordinate with everyone and give out orders where I essentially let everyone do their own thing."

"Well, everyone leads differently…"

"But I wasn't leading!" Zero argued, unable to stop himself. "I didn't give direction or even a basic plan of attack! I just attacked an enemy and everyone else responded."

"Yes, that may be true of how you lead in the beginning, but it didn't remain that way," Quill pointed out.

Zero gained a confused look at the Chesnaught's words.

"You were new to everything, both as a leader and as a Pokémon. It was to be expected," Quill explained. "Not only that, but you also didn't have the typical training that most recruits went through upon joining the Resistance."

Zero bowed his head lower in shame.

"But you were still a good leader. A great one even," Quill added. Zero's head snapped up, eyes wide with surprise. Quill chuckled. "You were always willing to step into the line of fire when any one of us was in danger. You cared about our desires and dreams. You went out of your way to listen to our random problems and squabbles. Heck, you put up with me and that took commitment."

Zero gave a snort at that, remembering how Quill acted back when he was a Quilladin. "The point is, Zero," Quill continued, "being a leader isn't just about barking orders, it's about making the hard choices. Choices that could have consequences for everyone under your command. Choices that you must take to accountability for."

Quill paused, allowing his words to sink in. "That's something that you did better than most team leaders. You weren't just in charge, you put yourself at as much risk as the rest of us. We weren't just members of your team, we were your equals and all of us respected the hell out of you for it. That's the mark of a good leader."

Zero stared at Quill for several moments before turning his gaze back to the ground. He allowed Quill's wash over him. He was grateful for the Spiny Armor Pokémon's vote of confidence, but it still felt inadequate compared to Quill. Come to think of it, Zero never thought that he would be comparing himself to the Grass-Fighting type in such a way. Not that Zero had thought Quill as lesser than himself, but he never saw the Chesnaught as someone who would be in a leadership position.

"Things really have changed, huh?" Zero said.

"Yeah, they have," Quill agreed. "After the Latios Division fell, and you and Furno disappeared, we all had to step up. Then when Weiss…"

Quill voice died out and his eyes became glassy. A near choking wave of heavy sadness washed over Zero, causing him to flinch. "Sorry," Quill whispered, noticing the Riolu's expression. "It's just a rough topic…"

Zero frowned at that. "What…What happened to Weiss?" Zero asked before he could stop himself.

Zero knew it was a touchy subject, the wave of depression that he had just felt was proof enough, but he had to know. Since Zero and Furno arrived in the future, the lack of a certain red Absol was glaringly obvious. They had asked, but their team had reacted with heavy silence and neither Zero nor Furno wanted to press the issue, but…

"Please," Zero said. "I know you don't want to talk about it, but…please. I need to know what happened."

For the longest time, Quill remained frustratingly silent. His face was completely devoid of any emotion and he pinned the former human with an unreadable expression. Zero swallowed thickly, his throat suddenly dry, but he refused to break eye contact. He needed to know what happened to his teammate.

Just when the unbearable silence seemed like it would remain just that, Quill sighed. "To be honest, I don't know."

Zero blinked. "What?"

"I don't know what happened," Quill repeated, shifting anxiously. "None of us know what happened to her. Not really."

Confusion filled the Emanation Pokémon eyes as he waited for an explanation. The Chesnaught took a deep breath, his eyes rising towards the open sky. "After…After the division's fall, things were bad. Really bad. Those of use who escaped were hunted relentlessly by the emperor's soldiers. We were forced to break into smaller group to make it easier to avoid our pursuers, but…it didn't work forever."

Zero leaned forward, hanging onto the Chesnaught's every word. At some point, both Dusty and Furno had approached the two of them. Furno, likewise was watching Quill with rapt attention while Dusty looked on with an expression filled with grief.

"Weiss was in charge of our group," Quill continued. "It was us and a few injured Pokémon we managed to smuggle out with us. We were slow because of this, but none of us wanted to leave them behind. Unfortunately, this would catch up to us in the end."

Quill paused, taking yet another deep breath. "We…got cornered outside a mystery dungeon. We knew we couldn't move fast enough to evade them, even if we entered the dungeon. So, Weiss came to a decision."

"Weiss stayed behind," Zero realized.

Quill nodded. "None of us wanted to leave her. I even tried to convince her to let met stay behind, but she insisted. I was still injured from what happened in Ashen Woods and she said I wouldn't be able to stall them long enough. She said that it was up to me to get everyone to safety."

"What happened next?" Furno asked tentatively.

"We went through the dungeon," Quill responded. "We got through and, eventually, came across other members of the Resistance. Shortly after, we arrived as refugees."

"So Weiss…?" Furno began.

"We aren't sure," Quill responded harshly. "We've received intel that there are facilities housing those they consider war criminals. Weiss could have been taken to one of them and, until we prove otherwise, this will remain the case!"

Quill spoke with such conviction that Zero nearly believed him. However, Zero could feel the subtle edge of doubt in the Chesnaught's emotions. He wasn't so much as convincing him and Furno, he was trying to convince himself.

"I didn't realize Weiss had done that," Zero found himself saying.

"Yeah. It's hard to believe she was the same snooty Absol that joined Team Dawn Breaker," Quill said with a watery chuckle.

"The Resistance changes people," Furno said.

"As does war," Dusty added solemnly.

The four of them sat in silence after that. Zero found that he couldn't speak even if he wanted to. The revelation behind Weiss' sacrifice hurt. It hurt bad. It was like Belladonna all over again. Another team member, another friend, lost because of Maledic and their desire for control.

Anger began burning through Zero's veins. How many more would have to suffer because of the Cofagrigus' actions. He had to pay for what he'd done. Zero had the Silver Soul, he would make him—

A sharp-toothed smile and malicious glowing purple eyes flashed in Zero's mind. Zero gave a near silent gasp, all his anger vanishing in an instant.

"Zero? Are you okay?" Furno asked, having heard the Riolu's gasp.

"Y-Yeah," Zero said, cursing himself for stuttering. "I'm fine."

"You're shivering," Dusty pointed out, eyes furrowed in concern.

"It's nothing," Zero denied, refusing to meet the group's collective gaze. "Just…caught off guard by a cold breeze."

It was obvious that Zero's lame excuse wasn't believed. Thankfully, before any of them could press the issue, Landon and Nieve returned.

"We found the stairs a few rooms down," Nieve reported as she drifted over to the group.

"We didn't encounter any opposition on the way but…" the Froslass trailed off upon seeing the looks of the four. "Is something wrong."

Quill surveyed Zero for a moment before turning his attention to Nieve. "No. Nothing's wrong."

"Then we should head out as soon as possible. I'd rather not be stuck here for too long," Landon grunted with his arms folded. He glanced at Zero, his eyes searching and his snout pulled into a scowl.

"Yeah, I think we've resting for too long," Quill said, rising to his feet with a sigh. He then turned to the rest of the group. "Let's head out."

The group responded with a chorus of acquiescing shouts and followed the Chesnaught. Zero trailed ever so slightly behind the group, his expression shaky. He shivered once more, unable to shake the chill that now clung to him like a second layer of fur or the ominous laughter that echoed in his head.

Author's Notes:

Hey all. I didn't expect to be gone for this long. I won't lie, it's been a little hard to get motivated to write in the recent months. Between my job and the articles I write for commission, I've been burnt out as of late. I can't guarantee how frequently I'll be able to update, but I'm incredibly thankful to all of you have stuck with me for so long. I appreciate each one of you and I hope I can continue to produce content that you all enjoy. Until next time, stay safe and feel free to leave a comment!