We check the entire town, yet there are curiously no leads to be found. Every member of town Boon asks shakes his or her head no and tells us the mystery Pokémon was never around. It is as if the Pokémon went through the gate and vanished. I rack my brain as I attempt to piece together what happened. Could it be the mysterious figure was successfully able to sneak from building to building without detection and exit? Perhaps the Pokémon was simply not notable enough for the townsfolk to remember. If the former is true then I may be chasing after someone I have no hope of catching. However, if the latter is true then I may be wasting my time worrying about nothing significant. If the entirety of a village is not concerned, why should I be? I take a glance at the bag we stole from the Exploration Team known as Shellfire. I stifle a laugh, that's such a stupid name. I don't know if they just combined the turtle's shell and the fox's element for quick paperwork or if they consciously wanted to make a terrible pun. I do not claim to be the master of naming either. Thinking of titles was never my strong suit, not in Africa and not on these islands. I met at least seven people who would name their guns when I was stranded in that third world country. Sometimes the names would be obvious for a weapon, such as Sasha, Nicole, Lucy, or even Charlene. I'm about ninety percent sure that last name was at least partially inspired by Full Metal Jacket. The other three names I can remember off the top of my head were a tad more original: Geraldo, Shauntal, and Seacrest. But I digress, Shellfire could call themselves whatever they wanted, I would have still killed them and stole their supply satchel. The bag is slightly bigger than the drawstring sack I used before, but the extra space is always welcome. The strap however, I'm not very fond of. Not only will the weight of a fully packed bag cause it to painfully dig into my shoulder, the single strap is also more likely to slip off me than a standard backpack. The purse-like structure is damaging to my self image as well. I raise my view to the sign once again resting above me. Inferno's Pizza has a way of wasting my time. At this rate it may be advisable to ditch my travel guide Boon and venture on my own. If I could survive Africa by myself then surely a little island won't stop me. Then again, this island is filled with Pokémon—something Africa lacked. A bell rings as the door swings open, Boon in the doorway handling three boxes of pizza. His eyes are wide and his mouth rests in an uncomfortable frown. With one hand he reaches for a note stuck to the top of his pizza stack and hands it to me.
ITEM: 3 Veggie-Lovers Pizzas with extra cheese hold the onion
CUSTOMER(S): Delcatty and Braviary—Exploration Team Kitten Wing
LOCATION: Exploration Camp Sigma, Southwest of The Path to Trade
Jesus Christ. Are we really expected to go back outside town so soon? Boon just told his boss yesterday somebody was trying to kill him just outside Timburr's walls. Infernape is either an asshole or assumed Boon was attempting to lighten his workload. I make eye contact with the Pikachu and sigh. We might as well get this over with. I try thinking of the bright side and realize that this gives us the perfect opportunity to kill Wartortle. If we do that then we will never have to worry about him again. Now something else that most others would consider is there is only one enemy out there. What harm could one guy do? There are two reasons why this logic is flawed. One reason is because although there is only one of him, there are also only two of us. This means statistically he is outnumbered by only fifty percent and can remove that fifty with minimal work. The other reason is because numbers do not win battles. Now don't get me wrong here—numbers help out a whole lot. In most circumstances numbers will get the job done. After all, one can only hold out for so long. But the issue is when the side with the high numbers consists of nothing but meatheads. While they may be big and intimidating, superior tactics will get the better of them. How the fuck did I survive in Africa for so long? I learned my enemies' tactics (or lack thereof. After all, none of them were trained soldiers, just a bunch of sweaty dudes with guns) and discovered I'm a natural with a gun. I assume hand-eye coordination is a factor. It is lucky for me on that last part, because it took a couple of days to be able to predict the militiamen's actions.
Back in the real world, the Pikachu is passing the time practicing his wall running. He's almost got it down to Matrix quality. Handing back the slip of paper, I nod to Boon who blinks in disbelief.
"You can't be serious." he says. "I mean-I think you want me to go ahead and deliver these things, but you know there's a highly trained Explorer out there looking for us." I raise a brow. "There's an Explorer out there looking for us." Boon corrects. An uncomfortable handful of seconds passes. The pizza boy's eyes widen ever so slightly and his jaw dramatically drops low enough for me to cringe inside. "You don't care, do you?" Nope. "Browley! We barely escaped District 2 alive yesterday!" Funny, I remember pulverizing those rookies. Boon sets the pizzas down by the door and throws his hands to his hips. "What makes you think we could survive when the Exploration Teams are expecting us?" Meh, can't live in fear forever. "Don't think I can't see that look in your eyes. You think Explorers are overhyped weaklings!" They are! Just because two of them supposedly 'saved the world' doesn't mean all Explorers are elite combatants. My tour guide stares me in the eyes. "Well? Say something! I'm tired of guessing!"
"W-w-we-"
"Whu-whu-what?" He asks imitating my stutter.
"W-we..." I feel something in my throat sealing off the rest of the sentence. I swallow hard to force it down and attempt to continue, but only succeed in making choking noises. Boon pinches the bridge of his nose (Hm, does he actually have a nose bridge? Maybe he's simply using part of his muzzle as substitution) and releases a heavy sigh.
"Just… don't bother. You're probably right anyways. Infernape is going to kick my ass if I don't deliver these. I'm just trying to be careful, you know?" He's right. As much as I hate to admit, he's right. Going outside town so soon after killing—what? Three or four Pokémon and letting another get away is extremely dangerous. I've been underestimating the enemy, and that can have fatal consequences. Still, we have to deliver the pizza and deal with Wartortle before he actually can do any damage. Boon lifts the pizza boxes again and I adjust the strap to our bag. We enter the lobby to the North of Timburr Town and I nod the affirmative to Patrat's repeated question. Boon looks to the overhead balcony, sticking his fingers into his mouth and blowing which creates a shrill whistling noise. The same Patrat who supposedly used official documents as toilet paper pops its head into view, red eyes darting every which way before settling on me, then Boon.
"Yottsu of Timburr Town Security reporting for duty! How may I be of service?" He calls out, saluting as if by reflex. Boon's head tilts to one side as he asks for Overwatch while we use the gate. Of course, he doesn't use those exact words. He said something more along the lines of,
"Hey Patrat! Can you make sure nothing is coming to get us when we leave?"
"Roger that!" The brown furred Pokémon responds before he swiftly vanishes from sight in the balcony.
"Futasu! Open the gate!" Barks the leader of the Patrats with a finger held high above his head. Futasu salutes (this display is going to get old quickly) and twists the crank located by said gate. The sheet of metal slowly rises making a rhythmic thudding noise. Boon and I exit the lobby looking both ways to make sure Wartortle is not hiding out of sight by pressing against the walls out of Yottsu's view. Thankfully the coast is clear so I reach into our bag and check the new map. Exploration Camp Sigma is presumably northwest of Wieldy Jungle. However, it is backed against an inaccessible cliff wall to the west and two rather large Mystery Dungeons prevent entrance from both the north and the south. If we head to Camp Sigma, the only entrance is to the camp's east, right off of Route 10. I do not wish to waste any more time standing in a single spot checking the map, so I signal for Boon to follow and we walk north along Route 4. Boon sticks a finger into his nostril and digs out a flaky booger which he carelessly flicks into the dirt at the intersection of Route 4 and 5.
"So…" He begins, "How has life as a Charmander been treating you?" Aside from killing four Pokémon on my second day and consequently having a blue turtle running around quite possibly looking for vengeance? For all my bitching, I've had it worse. I shrug my shoulders and note Wieldy Jungle is to my right and a mountain of rock to my left. The road ahead continues for a good 75 meters before curving to the right around the mentioned Mystery Dungeon. Boon stares at the distortion effect the edges of Dungeons create and chuckles. "Kind of funny how we've been avoiding those places." Why's that? "Exploration Teams go through them all the time. I don't see the point though. I mean, if a Mystery Dungeon changes layouts every few seconds, what's the point of exploring them? You can't map 'em! Maybe I'm missing something." Yeah, probably. The dirt road comes to a sudden stop directly in front of another Dungeon. By the looks of things it appears that the road was created first and the Dungeon overtook it. Well shit, looks like we'll have to hug the wall until we get to the destination.
As we walk along the edge of the Dungeon, I wonder if it has a name like Wieldy Jungle did. Boon runs a hand along the distortion, creating a trail along the scattered images much like when one runs something along water. However, unlike water's circular rings, the Dungeon's were much more… square-ish. I don't even think that's a word. When we reach viewing distance of the northern Mystery Dungeon I spy two Pokémon apparently keeping watch. I don't want to take any chances, so I crouch down behind the cover of the southern Dungeon's distortion effect and wave my hand for Boon to do the same. The creature closest to us resembles a baby elephant, only it is a bright shade of baby blue with what appears to be a red bandage across its trunk. There is a dull pink cloth wrapped around its neck and a yellow bag identical to ours strapped to its flank. According the my Pokédex handbook this Pokémon is known as a Phanpy, and despite being only about two feet long and one-and-a-half feet tall, weighs roughly seventy five pounds. The Pokémon accompanying Phanpy is a sheep colored a far darker shade of blue. It has yellow wool which I can almost swear gives off the faintest of glows. This Pokémon is apparently called a Mareep, and weighs a much more reasonable seventeen pounds. The Phanpy kicks the dirt at its feet and speaks in a disturbingly young voice.
"Man, I'm so hungry! When's the pizza gonna get here?"
"I don't know." The Mareep replies, boredom evident in her voice. "The town isn't very far from here, so it should arrive any moment now." Phanpy looked away for a split second, then turned back angling his head.
"Why did Mr. Wartortle say not to order pizza, Mareep?" Oh shit.
"The same reason we did anyways, champ." Oh shit, no. Phanpy is bouncing now, eagerness clearly etched on his face.
"We're going to get those outlaws? Awesome! I always wanted to catch an outlaw!" Then he stops, and raises his trunk to the sky, twitching it every half a second. "Do you smell that? It smells like… pizza!" I can't stay hidden for twelve seconds can I? I sprint from cover and Boon rolls to the side with static lighting up his cheeks. The Phanpy dodges my claws but in the process is struck by one of Boon's electric attacks. Before I can even register it, Mareep charges at me with her head held low, tackling me to the ground.
"Phanpy! RTB and tell the others the outlaws are here!" She orders with a paw on my chest. The small elephant runs westward and curls into a ball, rolling off like a vehicle's wheel at a speed which should be impossible for such a small creature (especially if it is as heavy as my book says) to achieve. I pull a leg up and kick Mareep in the gut, knocking her off me but twisting my ankle as well. The glowing waves of a Growl attack launch from Boon's open mouth into Mareep, whose tail glows a bright yellow as her wool becomes encased in static. Beams of light launch themselves randomly from her body and home in on her targeted Pikachu. Miraculously, Boon does not appear to be in bad shape at all after being hit with so much electricity. The electric sheep stops glowing so I use the moment of opportunity to deliver more Scratches and a Growl on her. In a swift movement, Boon drops to all four legs and waves a hand at me.
"Hey! Watch this!" He shouts. My companion spins around until his rear faces Mareep and swings his tail downwards. A glowing light not unlike the one from a Growl appears from where Boon swung his appendage and speeds into Mareep. She doesn't even flinch, but Boon looks rather pleased with himself regardless. "Hit her!" I use Scratch and am surprised to see the sheep fall unconscious immediately. My partner fist pumps at our victory and picks his pizza boxes back up. "That was sweet! Let's try not to kill this one." I stare at the lamb still trying to understand what Boon did to make her go down so quickly. "You likey?" he asks. "That one's called Tail Whip. It makes them get weaker or something." Tail Whip… that move is pretty useful. Wonder why he didn't use it sooner. The Pikachu stands over Mareep's body with his hands placed on his hips and a grin plastered on his face. "Yep, it might have took you two hits to beat her if I didn't use that attack. Yay for me!" Well that isn't much of a difference. I thought Tail Whip meant one-hit KO. Apparently not. Boon's grin falls as he spends more time staring. He points a finger at Mareep's neck and nervously asks, "What's that?" There is a large spot of deep purple fur where it was once blue. I place a hand on the stain to discover it is wet, and getting more soaked by the second. When I pull my hand away from the spot I see it is now covered in a sticky red liquid. Oh for fuck's sake, seriously? The one time I'm trying not to kill someone and I accidently slice open her neck.
From the direction Phanpy rolled off to, a loud siren rings through the trees; a couple birds scatter from the sudden noise. Boon stops gaping at the corpse, twisting his body towards the sound.
"Ohmygawdquickhidethebody!" He shouts at a hundred miles per second. It takes a moment for me to decipher his words, but when I do I roll Mareep into the nearby Mystery Dungeon to the south. Once past the distortion barrier, her body vanishes entirely, lost within the unnatural void. Boon exhales the breath he apparently had been holding and runs his hands over the boxes of pizza. "So what do we do now?" The alarm is going to attract too much unwanted attention; we have to shut it off. I point to the west and Boon seems to get the message. "Aw man, again?" He complains. "Last time we went to a camp you…" The Pikachu points at the blood stains on the grass, "Did that to everyone except Wartortle. What ever happened to Vulpix though?" Immediately after asking Boon's face drops in sudden realization. He quickly shakes it off and drops to all fours, ditching the pizza in the process. "Well come on then! Let's turn that annoying noise off!"
Camp Sigma is almost identical to that of Shellfire's. There are metal sheets stacked this way and that to form walls and large featureless teepees are scattered randomly with no sense of organization. However, in the midst of camp is a wooden pole stretching high into the sky. A thick rope holds two speakers shaped like wide open jaws to the stick. A moat filled with water also surrounds the installation and only a single bridge acts as both the entrance and exit to camp. Well that's just fucking stupid. One of Murphy's combat laws is 'Make it tough for the enemy to get in and you can't get out.' I notice the Explorers in Sigma are busy, rushing around while tying bandanas of assorted colors around their necks. Curiously the Phanpy is nowhere to be seen. I'll have to keep an eye on that. A tan Pokémon with tufts of purple fur on its head, neck, and tail takes notice of us.
"There they are!" She calls to the other Explorers. A miniscule Pokémon with roses for hands (don't ask) pops its head up from behind a metal sheet in eagerness.
"Heck yeah! Let's get 'em!" He shouts as he thrusts one arm in our direction. The green Pokémon vaults over the metal sheet and charges straight for us. The tan and purple Pokémon gasps.
"Roselia! Wait! He's a fire type!" She warns to deaf ears. Do Roselia even have ears? Boon leans towards me speaking from the side of his mouth.
"Erm, now would be a good time to learn a fire attack." Before Roselia can even reach us our surroundings suddenly become darker, as if shrouded in a shadow. I quickly crane my neck to the sky and see a large bird of prey diving at me. "Browley! Watch out!" Boon shoots electricity from his left hand at the bird, causing it to caw in pain. It rears off-target and lands a couple feet away from Boon and I. I use a Growl on the downed bird and elbow Roselia who is now close enough to smell my sweat.
"Stay off Braviary you criminals!" Roselia commands. Does he honestly expect us to listen? I answer his order with Scratch, Growl, and a shove to his gut. He retaliates by slamming his roses on my head, which actually hurts more than it sounds. Boon is too busy lighting up Braviary and dodging his many pecks to help me out, so it looks like I'm on my own. I smack Roselia off me with the back of my hand then follow up with more Scratches. "What's the matter? Two weak for fire?" He taunts. Both flowers on his hands glow purple as he swings them around himself making stereotypical karate noises. "How'd you like my Swords Dance, butt face?" Butt face? I'm caught off-guard when he delivers an uppercut into my chin, which strangely seems to hurt more than his other blows.
"Did he say Swords Dance?" Boon asks from atop Braviary's head. He holds onto the largest feathers growing from around the beak for dear life. "Watch out for that! It makes him stronger!" Braviary rolls onto his back, forcing Boon to jump off to avoid being crushed. "I learned that the hard way in the dojo…" he mumbles. "Hang on! Almost done here!" Seeing as Roselia is now more likely to beat the shit out of me, I kick him in what I assume to be the shin and rush to my combat partner's aid.
Braviary looks worse for wear. His/Her breaths are heavy and too exhausted to bring his/her wings up anymore. Its eyes jump to my position and flash a bright yellow for a moment. Boon cringes, calling out the move as Leer. I'm too busy Scratching the shit out of Braviary's chest to hear what it is Leer does however. In one final act of battle, Braviary lifts his/her lengthy neck and swings a glowing beak as hard as he/she can at my skull. Instinctively I duck, placing my hands around my bald head.
Shunk!
The feeling of blood dripping onto my neck forces me to look back up. The Pokémon's beak rests deep inside its chest. Braviary's last stand backfired, ending up taking away his/her own life. Why is it that everyone I come across dies? Was I cursed my last day in Africa? I bet ten bucks I was. Some freakshow probably got so angry at me for killing her husband that she cursed me to wind up on an island of monsters as a lizard, and everyone I come across in battle will find a way to die. Shit, that makes too much sense. I hope that's not what happened.
Roselia slamming into my back returns me to the moment.
"You motherfucker! Look what you did! Look what you did!" The flame on the tip of my tail glows brighter for a moment, and I can feel something within me changing, growing. Roselia swings his roses blindly at me as I backpedal to avoid each attack. In his rage I don't think he is even using moves anymore, instead opting to mindlessly beat me with his natural strength. Around his fifth swing I find myself channeling new energy within me, much like when using Scratch or Growl. As it rises to my mouth I realize I need to use my head to aim when using this new Move. The energy gushes from my throat forcing me to open wide and watch in awe as orange glowing bolts of fire rapidly release from within me. I'm fucking breathing fire! Granted they are only small embers, but Roselia lights up all the same! He screams as he dances in circles in a futile attempt to put out the fire. That's right bitch! Plants burn! All that's left of Roselia now is a charred husk still smoking. Boon shakes his head in utter disbelief.
"That's four times... That's four times Moves have killed someone! What is going on?! Oh, and congratulations on leveling." The tan and purple Pokémon still at Camp Sigma (from process of elimination I assume this is Delcatty) timidly pokes her head from behind cover and immediately ducks again. I signal for Boon to move towards her from the right as I creep up to her left. We are maybe five feet from her hiding spot behind one of the metal sheets when she spontaneously pops back up to fire a blinding red laser at me. I'm unable to react quickly enough to dodge, earning me the full blow of the attack. The last thing I hear is Boon shouting my name as I receive a face full of dirt and black out.
Day 2.
I passed out escaping from town. I'm lucky to have survived; some mercenaries found me and fixed my wounds, although I didn't wake up until the next day. I don't know if these mercs are currently employed by the N.R.G. or the rebels, but they are most definitely bad news. Immediately when I woke up two big guys forced me into a sitting position and a bearded man in a yellow Hawaiian shirt carrying my Colt. 45 put me to work killing more people. I'm not one to write journals like I am right now, but I can't sleep after taking so many lives. I'm at 6 counts of murder now, and that's not including the pilot who brought me here. Anyways, I should probably explain the details of those killings; maybe I can give myself some therapy that way. The man who hired me to go kill people never told me his name. But then why should he? All I have to go on is his face. If I ever do escape this place, if I ever do get out of Africa, I won't be able to tell authorities who this guy is. All I know is that he saved my life, and then put it back into danger. There was a camp of armed men he wanted cleared out, although I do not know whom these men worked for. Apparently bleeding out wasn't enough for my rescuer; he planned for me to be shot up. I can only assume he didn't shoot me himself because he thought that maybe, just maybe, I might actually succeed in my assignment. Part of me wishes I hadn't. My God, I just realized something. I didn't have to do that job! I could have easily ran off! He gave me back the Colt. 45 and threw in a CETME rifle and a rather shoddy flamethrower about to fall apart as well. I could have gone somewhere else, like to a cease fire zone. I could have gone there and used this shitty prepaid phone I found to call someone to get me out of here. Unless this phone doesn't go out of the country… Still, I didn't have to kill those guys! I guess I was just so scared I did what he said without question. The people at the camp was holding a man prisoner though, a foreigner like me. I have no idea where he's from but the guy is insane. He finds this country fun. He's here because he wants to be here. I don't know what all this man had been doing before being captured, but I'm regretting freeing him. I hope he never finds this journal. Oh, and I'm sleeping in some hut now. It isn't big at all; I can practically lie down and reach the opposite wall. There's nothing in here but a mattress, a shelf full of camping supplies (thank God), and the door.
I awake in a daze, my head throbbing and the whole world spinning in my view. When my vision stabilizes, I'm greeted by the sight of Delcatty's charred husk limp against the wooden pole in the center of camp, which is now turned off. Boon is curled into a ball near the corpse's head with his back towards me. He is rocking back and forth at random intervals sniffling and mumbling to himself like a mad man. His ears twitch at the sound of me rising to my feet and instantly Boon looks at me in shock. His face is wet with tears and blood and his eyes, small and unfocused, show the tell-tale signs of what happened here. Nevertheless, he tries to explain.
"B-Browley!" His stutters are more controlled than mine. I'm kind of jealous. "You're alive? I-I thought she…" The Pikachu resumes staring at what remains of Delcatty. "I thought you were... d-dead. Oh my God, what have I done? When you went down like that I got so scared I just—stopped thinking." His voice softens to a whisper as he mumbles 'What have I done?' over and over again. The first kill is always hard. So is the second and the third, actually it took me roughly twenty to be able to take another's life without hitting a mental block. But even then, killing alone wasn't enough to calm me down over time. I needed some help, I needed encouragement. Not from a fucking therapist, they would tell me stop. They wouldn't understand that in Africa, it's either kill or be killed. Which is why I was fortunate when a man gave me a tape recording from some furry. Well, he wasn't really a furry, but the nickname people gave him was some type of animal. The first time I listened to the tape I was disgusted, but a couple hours later I listened again with an open mind, that time finding comfort in the words captured by the device.
"B-Boon?" I call.
"What?" His voice is still soft, he needs to hear this. Hopefully it will show him to not be afraid to take a life, like it showed me.
"Boon, let me t-tell you something I once ha-he-heard before I w-woke up." I recite the recording as best as I can from memory: "You c-ca-can't fight with dignity, there's no such thing. I-in this p-p-place, you will have enemies. Enemies who won't s-stop ch-chasing you until you break them—break their m-muh-minds." I swallow that annoying lump in my throat. "To make your enemies l-leave you alone, make them… fear you. Kill their wounded, burn them," I take a glance at my flaming tail- huh, that's convenient. "d-destroy their image of a m-man—or in your case, a Pokémon—and b-become a beast. Show them h-how awful killing is, a-and show them you f-fucking love it. W-when they f-fear you, you become s-st-stro-stronger. Better. Then they'll th-think twice." I feel my stutter made the message much less powerful than the real recording. I need to try to find it again before whoever has it on this island figures out how to clear the tape. Boon slowly rises to his feet, wiping his tears with one arm.
"That's morbid. But I think… I think whoever told you that has a point." My traveling companion takes a deep breath and holds out his hand. "Can I see the bag?" I pull the strap off and hand him the entire satchel, which he gratefully accepts. "While you were telling your little story, I think I figured out what saved your life." Oh really? Awesome. "Yep, look at that." Out from the bottom of the bag comes a large seed with a burned streak down the center. The marking looks familiar, it looks just like- "It's the Reviver Seed Kecleon gave us. I guess it kept you alive, but it's useless now." He tosses me the used up Reviver Seed. So this is how I survived. This makes me glad I accepted that mission yesterday. "Can we get out of here? I already checked the tents, there's nothing." Sure thing, let's leave before anyone else shows up. As we head east I check over my shoulder wondering where the Phanpy wandered off to. Although the rational side of my brain tells me it is far too dangerous to leave two hostile survivors in the wilderness, the sympathetic side tells me to let Boon rest. Killing a child is not what he needs right now. On our way back to Timburr Town we pick up the Pizza Boon left behind during the fight with Mareep. Dinner is served; what Infernape doesn't know won't hurt him.