As soon as we exit the post office an orange monkey with a flaming head drops onto Boon and pins the helpless Pikachu to the ground. "So you thought you could skip work, Boon!? You thought I wouldn't care!?" The simian glances in my direction and points a sausage of a finger at me. "Stay out of this." He commands. I do not wish to get in a fight with a primate almost twice my size so I comply with his demand. Boon squirms under the weight of the Pokémon's hold with tears running down his face.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'll come to work today! I promise! Please don't kill me!" I find myself wondering if Boon is overreacting or if the punishment he faces actually is death. I hope it is the former, yet at the moment I cannot be entirely certain.
"You better come to work today, or I will make sure you're back on the streets again! Honestly Boon, after getting fired from every job in town I thought you would have learned your lesson! It's no wonder your house is a dump!" Sheesh, coming from personal experience Boon's home is not that bad. While I admit the shack is nothing to write home about (home… I wonder if I can ever get back there. Not when I'm a freak of nature) I have slept in places far worse. I remember one of the huts in Africa I slept in was lacking a floor. I awoke in the middle of the night when I felt tiny legs crawling across my face. My eyes jolted open to find a spider resting on my nose. If one arachnid wasn't enough there were about thirty more scattering out from under the beaten mattress. Roughly two magazines of Ak47 ammunition were wasted that night, and I never slept in that building again. Looking back at the incident now I realize I should have just walked out the door. But I digress; African spiders have nothing to do with a Pikachu in the dirt. At that moment Watchog rushes up to the three of us and raises a finger as he pants from exhaustion.
"Infernape! It's mah fault! I letz Boon out yesturday and nevah told ya."
"Tell me exactly why you didn't say anything when I talked to you yesterday."
"Uh… er… well ya see… I…" Wow. One sentence in and Watchog already failed spectacularly. I turn my attention back towards Infernape who is crossing his arms waiting for the interjecting Pokémon to answer-he never does, just twiddles his excuse for thumbs around. The flaming monkey lets his weight off of Boon who scampers behind me like a scared puppy. I push him back out with the heel of my foot and Infernape crouches low bringing his face mere centimeters away from Boon's.
"You have one more chance. Don't screw it up." He raises his head to mine: "Make sure he doesn't." The ape storms off into the pizza shop with a scowl, and Boon's entire body shudders as he rises back to his feet. Watchog sheepishly grins at us with a hand behind his head.
"Sorry y'all. I tought I could help ya better dan I did… I'll go back ta mah post now." The guard excuses himself rather poorly and rushes back to the gate's lobby area where he came from. I take a glance at Boon who runs his hands through the fur along his head.
"That was my boss. Believe it or not, Infernape is a pretty nice guy most of the time. It's that temper of his that's scary. Anyways, my shift doesn't start for another thirty minutes; I guess we can go do something while I still have time." It would be helpful to have a book with guides to which Pokémon is which. There is a library just down the street; therefore I decide to make my way in that direction. "Wait, are you seriously going to the library!? But that place is sooooooooo boooooorrrrrrriiiiiiiing! And it smells like cheese!" Libraries always do. Nevertheless, I need some guides to carry around and the library is my best bet in finding a few.
The book repository is predictably small for such a cramped town. There are roughly seven shelves of books and a counter for check out. Boon refuses to go inside with me so I'm all alone. On the bright side, Boon was kind enough to lend me his satchel of coins, and I count 150 Poké. The librarians don't even acknowledge my presence which is both a blessing and slightly irritating. I scan the shelves and within minutes come across everything I need: 'National Pokédex: A Guide to Pokémon-Generations I-V', 'Jichi Islands Map-Timburr Town and surrounding areas-15 Miles','Jichi Islands-The Legendary Lost Treasure',and 'Recent Events of the World-20 Years'. Checkout costs me sixty Poké which leaves Boon and I with only ninety. The map of Timburr Town proves to be extremely beneficial as it is highly detailed. There are even labels for each store, the only buildings not labeled I presume are houses.
Timburr Town's perimeter is a rather simple shape-the eastern half of town is a horizontal rectangle and the western half is shaped into a vertical column. There are two lobbies attached to the eastern wing staying true to the rectangular theme as well-one to the north and one to the south. Judging from the locations of the various stores I conclude Boon and I entered from the south. Most homes are located in the western division (I am 90% sure the house in the northwest corner of town is where I spent the night) but the post office managed to find its way there. Under the post office is the dojo, followed by the fucking monkey's market. Directly to the east of the post office Timburr Town's perimeter wall transitions into a horizontical shape with the pizza shop at the northern tip. Beneath Boon's workplace is Blaziken's carnival game and the drink bar; Kangaskhan's storage depot lies directly across from Exeggutor's smoothie stall. There is a large gap in-between the library (positioned to the south of the northern lobby) and storage which may be Timburr Town's square. The southeast corner of Timburr town is occupied by an unlabeled building (probably more storage for Kangaskhan) but the northeast corner is bare. I look towards the spot and am greeted by the sight of Foongus's bench. On the eastern wall is both Leavanny's shop and Smeargle's tattoo parlor.
"Browley! You're already done in there? That was fast!" Boon sits on the library's roof swinging his feet through the air. He slides himself from between the rafters and plops back onto the dirt; I cough from the resulting dust. Our shopping comes to a close at Leavanny's store. I need a bag to carry my new books and Kecleon's stolen wares in when we acquire them. A chime sounds when I swing open the door to her shop, which is packed with items. Not only are there bags, but I holsters and various cloths hang from the walls as well. Leavanny steps out from behind the wooden counter greeting us with a warm smile.
"Why hello dears. Welcome to my boutique, and I see a new face today! My name is Leavanny, what is yours?" I stare for a handful of seconds before attempting to answer. My voice box once again fails me and I am left mouthing my reply instead. Boon finally steps in and tells the saleswoman my name for me. "Oh! Well no need to be nervous Browley. We are all friends here in Timburr Town!" Tell that to the Elvis wannabe on the west side. "May I help you two find what you need?" Yeah, find me the cause of my transformation and a way off Jichi. I would appreciate it. Boon responds to the question with a "No thank you." With Leavanny preoccupied chatting to my Pikachu ally I take the opportunity to return to what I came here for: finding a bag. I scan my eyes across the various merchandise, ignoring the non-necessities and browsing for an affordable backpack. My search lands me a brown drawstring sack. I'm not entirely pleased with the limited space and lack of complexity but I suppose I can upgrade when I acquire more money. Boon taps me on the shoulder and I tilt my head in his direction in response.
"According to the alignment of the sun and the planet, I postulate the hour to be in sync with the period of my employment schedule!" What? Boon laughs at my expression and translates into understandable terms. "It's time for my shift at work! I'll see ya later!" He is still chuckling as he leaves me inside the store on his way to work. A sigh from Leavanny catches my attention.
"Boon is truly a darling. Perhaps a little on the hyperactive side, but a darling nonetheless." The humanoid Pokémon strolls behind the counter and asks if the bag is all I will be purchasing. Still staring at the door, I nod and Leavanny tells me the price is seventy Poké. I spend the money and roam about Timburr Town in an effort to pass the time. The children are still playing outside so I flip open the Pokédex to their entries. All three kids are engrossed in a game of tag. The smallest child is yellow furred mite called a Joltik. The second child is completely covered in some type of white armor, so I cannot tell what animal it resembles-the Pokédex lists it as Aron. The largest, a brown Pokémon with what appears to be a green alpaca cap, is curiously not recorded. The cover said this guide only goes up to Gen V, so does that mean the Pokémon is from another generation?
"You there! Charmander!" The Aron shouts to me. "Do you wanna play?" I inwardly groan, realizing that my new form is roughly the same size as the children. They probably think I'm a kid as well. "We're playing tag! Do you wanna play with us?" The Aron's friends are now staring at me as well. These kids are rather impatient. They frown when I shake my head 'no'. "Okay then. Let's go somewhere else guys!" The Aron says and the three young Pokémon run off to another part of town.
"BROWLEY!" Boon's voice screeches in my ear. That was a fast shift! I shove the Pikachu out of my comfort zone and motion a 'what?' with my hands and forearms. He is wearing a black baseball cap with 'Inferno's Pizza' stitched onto the front in bold red letters and carrying a box of pizza. "Browley! You're not gonna believe this! Guess who just ordered a veggie-lovers pizza!" I don't care. Boon drops a notepad into my hand and I read the order:
ITEM: Veggie-Lovers Pizza
CUSTOMER(S): Wartortle and Vulpix-Exploration Team Shellfire
LOCATION: Pachirisu Pass, directly east of Wieldy Jungle
I blink and reread the order. They can't be serious. Who in their right minds would order a pizza from the same town their victim was headed?
"Do you think it could be a trap?" Boon asks. No shit it's a trap. If even Boon can smell BS then something is seriously flawed with the planned ambush. The good news is that not only do we now know the exact location of the Exploration Team, but we also know what awaits us as well. "Browley? Should we still go after them or not?"
Timburr Town's northern gate is identical to its southern counterpart. Rather than a Watchog guarding there are three smaller forms of the Pokémon called Patrats. One Patrat is positioned on scaffolding hanging over the gate. There is a viewport to spot any Pokémon outside without leaving the "safety" of the wooden bunker of a room. Beside the metal gate is a crankshift manned by the second Patrat and the final guard walks up the Boon and I.
"Will you two be headed for Division 2 today?" Division 2? What is he talking about? I check my map and notice the areas are split into different groups. The land north of Timburr Town is labeled with a two; the land south of town is labeled with a one. Division 1 contains routes one through three and Division 2 consists of routes four through eight, Pachirisu Pass is located east of route six. With new knowledge on the Jichi Islands' mapping system I nod that I am indeed on my way to the second division. The Pokémon stands at attention and salutes upon my answer. "Right away sir! Futatsu! Open the gate!" Futatsu gives a salute of his own and cranks the wheel he is assigned to. Slowly but surely the metal sheet folds vertically in on itself revealing the outside world.
As soon as Boon and I step outside into the jungle a loud slamming noise announces the gate's closure. I take another look at Division 2's map to chart our direction. By the looks of things it appears that we can get to our destination without entering a single Mystery Dungeon if we follow the straightforward route four and cross route five. That would put us east of Pachirisu Pass, but if this is a trap then the shortest route is likely expected. Perhaps if we hike a little further we can close in on the team from the north.
Boon is shaking like a leaf, something must be wrong with what we are about to do. He notices my stare and composes himself. "Eugh, I'm a little nervous about this. An Exploration Team saved the world twice. As if one time wasn't enough! I know these Explorers we're going after aren't the two Pokémon that actually did that, but still." He lets out a forced chuckle eyeing the pizza box still in his hands. "This is nuts! But I still want my peppers and Infernape to get off my back!" I want that cash and Reviver Seed. We walk along route four and within a minute are at the intersection to route five. Across the dirt road is a cliff overlooking our current position. At the top of the cliff is Pachrisu Pass so I pull Boon behind a wall of shrubbery with me.
"Th-that… That's our target. We're uh… g-going to run across this road and um… -climb that hill to the… right." I murmur while drawing out the proposed path with my hand. "Then we'll… -we'll loop around like this," My finger traces a curved line from route five to the pass. "-and hit them above."
"Alright! Where does the pizza come in?"
"It… it doesn't."
"But Infernape is totally gonna beat me up if I don't deliver this!" Fuck, that's true. Then he'll probably come after me for not making sure Boon did his job. Goddammit! Why couldn't Boon be unemployed!? I sigh, at least him having a job means there's a sure-fire income of money.
"Jus-…just drop the pizza on them when we… finish." Boon rapidly drums the cardboard with the palms of his hands.
"Okay! I can do that! Anything else?" I shake my head. "Let's go do something stupid!" Before emerging from the bushes I check the left and right of route five for any additional Pokémon patrolling. Seeing none, I signal for Boon to move and we race across the road and up the hill like planned. There are two tents set up in Pachirisu Pass as well as an unlit fireplace. Wartortle and Vulpix are within plain sight sorting through a purse-like satchel. Are the two Explorers truly too stupid to even set up an ambush? They haven't noticed us yet which is odd considering both my tail flame and orange body are the exact opposite of proper camouflage. Come to think of it, Boon's yellow fur is rather loud as well. A gentle tap on the shoulder from Boon and a whisper: "I'm an electric type. I'll be able to do more damage to Wartortle than you." That information makes this much easier than I suspected; I signal an 'O.K.' and we silently crawl to the north of their camp. Along the way I manage to overhear their conversation.
"Can you believe that Kecleon was charging 1,000 Poké for a Max Elixir? Outrageous!" Wartortle exclaims. Vulpix responds with a nod of the head.
"Some paradise." She sarcastically replies. "The Guildmaster won't even let us visit the local villages."
"What is with that? I'm sure the Wigglytuff Guild gets to go into whichever town they want! Pompous bastards."
"Don't say that, they've earned it. How many expeditions have they failed?"
"Whatever. At least you didn't mention you-know-who."
"Those two? Yes, I wonder if they are exploring these islands as well?"
"I hope not. They would find the Lost Treasure within a week! Why can't they give us rookies a chance to shine?"
"Oh quit complaining."
I wonder who it could be they are talking about. It doesn't matter; the Lost Treasure still does not catch much interest. The peculiar thing about it is how often I've heard its name since I arrived here yesterday. Dismiss that thought, Browley. There are two crooks to cash in before you. I turn to Boon and mouth 'on three' while raising the specified number of fingers, giving them a slight wiggle for good measure. Making a clicking sound with his mouth, he winks and points two fingers at me. The Wartortle pulls a rectangular device from the bag he is sorting through. It looks like… a tape recorder?
"Are you ready to try this thing out?"
"Better now than never."
"Here goes…" He pushes a switch located on the side and sound emits from the machine.
"Audio Diary number 75: I saw a kid in the village today, not more than 18 I would say. Was carrying an AK47 and had a flamethrower strapped to his back. Had on a Kevlar vest with multiple bullet holes littered all over the thing. Doesn't look like a local and he can't be a hired gun-boy's too young. But what do I know? This is Africa. The boy looked like a mess himself-ragged, battered, scarred, tired, you name it. I may sound stupid for saying this here, but a kid that young shouldn't look like that. Other mercs say he came in a couple days ago being dragged by rebels, but managed to escape when a reb shot a N.R.G. soldier. Apparently he was in even worse shape then, mostly everyone thought he would bleed out within a mile. He found a way to survive somehow."
I-I know that recording. I stole it off a N.R.G. soldier I killed when storming a diamond mine. I still don't know if he was the voice in the tape or not, but something tells me he didn't steal it. How the fuck did they get their hands on it? The two explorers look confused by the audio, if I were them I would probably be myself.
"Wartortle, what is that thing?"
"I already told you, I don't know! It fell from the sky two nights ago and bopped me on the head!"
"Are there any more of them?" If any survived, yes. I remember carrying at least ten, but I may have picked up more my last day in Africa. This lapse in my memory is beginning to scare me now. I take a glance at my partner who seems mesmerized by the tape recording. A soft jab in the shoulder is enough to break him out of his stupor. We can think about the recording later, it is time to go to work.