- N - = Nicky's part
- J - = my part
Chapter 016 - Fear
- N -
"I mean... Ms. Brown! You're alright!"
"Of course I'm alright!" Brown ran up to the purple-eyed woman, throwing her arms around her. "I was so worried about you guys! It's much safer outside, I was fine, but all the while I thought you were all smooshed!"
She giggled as Amy brushed her hair. It felt affirming, real, like proof that everything was going to be alright. As Amy explained how brave, Rodent had been, Brown couldn't help but smile. Rodent had been the kindest little pokemon she'd ever had the luck to take care of – she knew that enough – but it felt different when coming from someone else.
Rodent puffed out his chest proudly, but squirmed as Amy pulled him to a kiss. Out of manly pride, the Raticate rubbed at his forehead gruffly, but his rapidly reddening face betrayed how pleased he was to be complemented.
"C'mon, you big hero," Brown ruffled the fur on top of his head, a gesture that made the Raticate redden further. Gingerly, she twisted her back to let him climb it. "I'll let you sit on my shoulders-"
She broke out in a fit of coughing, shaking Rodent off her and earning Amy's alarm.
"Mmh, I think we should breathe some... fresh air."
She nodded as Roark agreed to the suggestion, waving her hand in front of her face as if to scare the dust away. "Never (cough) realised how dusty (cough) it was inside here,"
Once outside, she checked several boulders, making sure none of them were alive, before resting herself against one. Rodent padded to her feet and laid a tiny paw on her knee.
"I'm okay," She managed, before hacking one last final series of coughs. She shook her head as Amy's Roserade offered her help again.
"No thanks," Brown cleared her throat. "I'm good now,"
"Are you certain, Stephanie?" Riley crossed his arms. "We're still going to try training you for tonight's battle, but if you're not fit you should tell us. We could always postpone it - no sense in putting any unnecessary pressure on you."
"It's just some dust," Brown cleared her throat again, sounding much better this time. "I can take it."
Laelaps walked to stand behind his trainer, as Riley looked somewhat unconvinced. "Are you absolutely sure?"
"I can take it!"
Riley nodded. "Alright, then."
He turned to the redheaded Gym Leader, "Maybe you can help, Roark," He explained, "I'm looking for a certain cave in particular. I think I saw it in a vision – its roughly the size of an animal cage, big enough for a Luxio to pace in, and big enough for the girls to have another round of battling; it's definitely more sturdy than the cavern we had just now, I remember seeing claw marks on the walls, so the cave should be able to take some beating."
He searched Roark's expression for a clue, a tiny slip to give away what Serena was hiding. If Roark was living with the Joy, he might've known her plans. But it was hard to see anyone else's expression in the dim corridor light. He relaxed, trying not to look like an interviewer. As much as he wanted to find out more, he didn't want to upset the Gym Leader – not when Roark held him in such high regard. Not to mention how Roark was hosting him.
However, despite his efforts to keep things cordial, Laelaps sniffed the air and emitted a low growl. The Lucario turned to the Gym Leader, his eyes steely and convinced, his lips parted in a snarl.
"Laelaps, stand down," Riley put a warming hand on the bipedial dog's shoulders. By now, even Stephanie had started staring at the Lucario growling at the ginger.
"I said: stand down." Riley repeated. Reluctantly, the Lucario took a step backwards and was silent. His eyes, however, still glowered with disdain.
Riley looked oddly at his pokemon, "I apologize," he murmured, his voice a blend of regret and curiosity. "Laelaps is never this hostile – I don't understand, especially since he's known you for years."
"I don't think it's Roark," Brown said. "I bet it's the beast – Laelaps must've smelled him coming from there," She gestured vaguely to the direction down the corridor Roark had his back to.
"Think we should keep moving?" Her voice was fearful. "I… I don't want to fight another Onix, especially not one that eats pokemon."
"Eating pokemon?" Riley turned around to face the blonde. "Where did you find out about that?"
Stephanie pulled the clipping out from her jacket, brandishing it. "I found it," She explained. "They say there was a monster living in the mines and that it ate a pokemon."
Riley took the piece of paper from her, making no indication on how familiar it was to him. He'd seen it almost every night of his investigation. He knew the story – he just never expected it to land in the hands of Stephanie, especially not when she was so close to Amethyst…
"I think it's best if I keep this," he whispered, bending down to look the girl in the eye. "There's no need to get worried, Miss Brown. This is all superstition and untrue until proven so."
Slowly, he stood up, turning to look at the purple-eyed trainer. "What do you think, Amethyst?"
- J -
Roark was staring at Riley as he talked to the teen. Despite offering a good meal and complimenting him for his great work saving Amethyst, the blue-haired man hadn't spoken to him yet...
...Then again, they had found him hugging the tiny woman when they entered the cave. Maybe he was mad at them or something. Well, definitely, not at Stephanie.
"Maybe you can help, Roark,"
The ginger's thoughts were interrupted by Riley's words. Right, he was talking to him.
"Y-yeah!" Roark exclaimed lively, although he didn't know what his friend was going to ask. "What is it?"
Roark's eyes widened as Riley described the cave. The size of an animal cage... claw marks on the walls... Roark tried not to make his change of expression very obvious. Then again, the environment helped him.
Maybe he was talking about the cave where Serena used to take him to in the full moon nights. No, it HAD to be that cave, definitely. But how did he find...? And why had he seen that cave in his visions?
"Mmh, yeah." Roark muttered, realizing that it was taking him too much time to reply. "I think I know which cave are you referring to."
Nah, it had to be a coincidence. Riley was right: it was a perfect cavern for battles. Maybe he had seen it in his vision just because he was looking for a good place to train! And the Aura Guardian's words sounded as nice, friendly as always.
Amethyst was like in a daze, still thinking about how Riley had hugged her just some minutes before. She hadn't noticed Roark's nervousness despite being the nearest to him.
However, she did notice how Laelaps had started to act hostile towards Roark. What was him sniffing? And why the angry face?
"Laelaps?" Amethyst asked, surprised.
"Rose?" Dew asked, too, kind of worried.
They hadn't seen Laelaps that angry since... since those cue balls kidnapped the baby Riolu at Iron Island. Amethyst, being near Roark, couldn't help but feel a bit scared.
"Eeh... What's wrong...?" She asked, a hand on her chest.
"E-eh? Umh..." Roark stuttered, nervous.
The miner, however, didn't step back. He didn't know what Riley knew... but he didn't want to give him more hints, so he tried to stay cool.
After several, tense seconds, the bipedial dog remained calmed and stepped back. Riley apologized and a nervous, silly laugh came out from Roark's mouth.
"Hehe! Don't worry, Riley!" He exclaimed, trying to sound casual. "Maybe he's still upset for all that's happened this last hour! You guys sure'd had a tough tim-!"
"I don't think it's Roark, I bet it's the beast."
Roark turned his head quickly to the blondie, pretty sure that she was referring to the Zoroark that'd been supposed to be seen near Oreburgh. Great. Why did Riley have to talk about that last night?
"The... The beast?" Roark repeated, his throat dried. "Oh, you're referring to the pokémon Riley talked about last night? Do you really believe in that?"
Well, it didn't have to be very tough to fool a teenager, he thought.
Amethyst was starting to notice the tense air between Riley and Roark. Her purple eyes rested on Roark, then went to Riley and then went back to Roark. She didn't understand anything...
...And just when she had forgotten about 'the beast', Stephanie'd had to talk about it! Amethyst did nothing to hide her annoyance.
"I… I don't want to fight another Onix, especially not one that eats pokemon."
OH. NO. Roark was about to put his hands on his head, desperate, but he controlled himself. All he had to do is acting worried, as they were doing... But how had the teen found about that, anyway?
"Rade! Rose! Roserade!" Dew exclaimed, in panic.
"Ms. Brown, please... Don't talk about such things..."Amethyst begged, taking Dew back to her pokéball. "At least not at these situations..."
She looked carefully how Stephanie handed Riley the clipping. Amethyst thought of reading Riley's expression when seeing the clipping, but he was just back to her, so she couldn't see his face. Too bad.
She would have to rely on Stephanie's words later...
The chestnut-head noticed the man near her slightly shaking. Maybe in fear?
"B-but but why...?" Roark was thinking, looking at his friend and the blondie. "And how...? Well, that clipping isn't definitely Steph's... Maybe Riley's? No, his expression hasn't changed, mmh... Serena's?"
He looked at Amethyst, trying to read her expression as well. He flinched as he found her staring at him.
"What's the matter?" Amethyst asked, innocently.
"N-nothing." Roark said, realizing that the woman was too good-natured to be trying something against him.
"Are you worried about the beast, too?" Amethyst asked, flickering quickly.
"Eh? No..." Roark replied. "I'm sure it's a mad Luxray. Didn't you hear Serena? Zoroark are Unovvian pokémon."
"..."
Then, Riley turned to them both. He was patting his pocket, so Amethyst figured that he had kept the clipping.
"What do you think, Amethyst?"
"Wh-why are you asking me?" Amethyst asked, blushing; but she didn't want to ruin everything after the hug from before.
"Mmmh, I believed Serena's words last night." The small woman said. "I don't think there's a beast, and even if there were..."
Amethyst turned to Stephanie.
"...it's still 11am, so I doubt the presumptive 'beast' would appear now." She added, warmly.
She turned hed head back to Riley, smiling at him.
"And haven't you just told Ms. Brown that everything is "superstition and untrue until proven so"?" Amethyst asked him. "I think there's nothing to worry about. Well, other than Ms. Brown's training!"
Her purple eyes rested inquisitively on Stephanie and Rodent, and Roark thought that was his perfect chance.
"All right!" He exclaimed. "Enough tittle-tattle! I'm working on an important project, remember? I can't stay here chatting with you guys!"
With his air of 'liable man' back, Roark felt relieved. He took the group out from the cave corridors.
"Well, Riley," Roark said, approaching the older man. "I have to go to work, so I'll give you the indications to get to that cave."
"Just keep going straight and, when you're at that mountain of slag, turn to the left and keep going. You'll find some stairs. Well, go downstairs and in a few minutes you should be at that cave. It's basically the farthest, deepest mine here."
"Oh, thank you very much, Roark." Amethyst said, approaching both men.
"Mmh, it's nothing." Roark said. "Riley will take you both there. I must go. See you!"
- N -
The sudden change in the atmosphere was prodigious – Brown knew she'd said something wrong. Maybe talking about the beast was an Oreburgh taboo. The hair at her nape stood on end, maybe playing detective wasn't such a great idea.
Amethyst, for one, didn't seem too pleased to bring up the beast again, especially since it spooked her Roserade.
"I'm sorry," She murmured. She kicked herself mentally – hadn't she stepped on enough metaphorical toes in one morning? Quietly, she prayed that Amy wasn't too mad about it.
"I don't think there's a beast, and even if there were, it's still 11am, so I doubt the presumptive 'beast' would appear now."
"You're probably right," Brown attempted to chuckle, but choked on her laughter and coughed raspily instead. "There's no need to worry. Absolutely no need at all-"
By her leg, Rodent was shivering.
"Oh, come on you softie," She picked him up and placed the fluffy rat pokemon on her lap. In a show of bravado, she tried to make her voice sound less scared than it actually was. "You're not afraid too, are you?"
Riley noticed the exchange, turning, he addressed them: "Does Rodent taste like venison, or beef, or anything that remotely resembles livestock?"
"Probably not," Brown scrunched up her face, thinking. "How DO you taste like, anyway, Rodent?"
Experimentally, the Raticate sucked on his fist, then pulled it out of his mouth and made a face. "Riii." Rodent said, clearly not liking what he'd tasted.
"I rest my case," Riley said reassuringly. "If an animal like that were after us, it wouldn't have much of a taste for Raticate, Stephanie."
I'm more worried it has a taste for humans, He thought, worried.
Stephanie was stroking her Raticate. Rodent's fur, bristling like a frightened cat, was starting to lie flat again. Just when she thought everything would be alright:
"All right! Enough tittle-tattle! I'm working on an important project, remember? I can't stay here chatting with you guys!"
She hoped she hadn't chased him away. Guilt tugged at her while Roark began to direct Riley to the cave.
Eventually, it became evident he was about to leave. Brown waved vaguely at him. "Thanks," She muttered to the Gym Leader as the darkness of the corridor swallowed him whole. Without the light of one more hardhat, the hallways seemed so much darker.
Riley rubbed his hands together, creating a light blue Aura sphere that added slightly to the glow.
"We should be going," He said, leading the way. "Amethyst, it seems your light's a little dim" he pointed at the hardhat on the older trainer's head, which had been damaged by the rockfall. "You can walk with me, as a precaution. I don't want to lose anyone as we walk," He turned to the rest of the group, taking in Stephanie and her Raticate.
"Are we clear on that?"
"Transparently," Brown gave him a shaky thumbs-up, walking in the rear of the group while Riley and Laelaps and Amethyst took the front.
The tunnels didn't seem to stop, getting darker and darker as they progressed deeper into the mine. Brown had never seen anything this dark – and just when it seemed it couldn't possibly get any harder to see, they'd turn a corner and the world would get just a tiny bit darker than it had been before.
Stephanie shuddered, shaking Rodent slightly as he perched on her shoulders.
"I don't see anyone else but us," She noticed. "It's like there's no one working here,"
"Most of the miners should be helping Roark prepare for the Miner's Dance. Not to mention that this area's so deep in the mine that miners probably wouldn't dare to go this deep." Riley explained. "They'd put lamps in here if they did."
He pointed to the walls, lighting up a section with his aura. The walls, unlike the ones closer to the entrance, didn't have brackets for lamps, or any indication that lighting had ever been used in the tunnel.
"We're here," He stopped walking abruptly, causing Brown to walk into his back.
"Ow."
He turned around, inspecting the new abrasion on her face. "I'm sorry," He wasn't laughing, but the amused expression on his face was unmistakable. "Come on, let's go inside,"
Taking Amethyst by the hand, he led her into the cavern, Brown trailing cautiously behind. Her foot hit something metallic, which rolled away from her.
"What's this?" She picked it up, recognising the shape. "Hey, guys, I found a flashlight!"
It seemed almost odd to find a light here, especially since Riley had mentioned nobody even used lights so deep in the cave. However, she didn't question it; any light right now was good light.
She turned it on, and what a difference that made! She could easily see the room – it was smaller than the cavern they'd been in before, but not small enough to stop a battle. Riley had been right: there were claw marks on the walls, made by large sharp claws, and then petering out into what looked like fingernail scratches.
"Whoever used the room before us sure was violent," She whispered in awe. "Look at this,"
Riley, however, was looking at something else. He stood by the wall on his own. A ripped miner's uniform lay in pieces on the ground, it had been torn and scattered about, as if the creature wasn't so pleased to be reminded of his ruined humanity. The pink sewing was still on the clothes, but he couldn't discern any other letters.
Broken bits of mirror ground under his foot – leading to a ruined tortoiseshell hand mirror that looked like it had been broken on purpose. Whoever the Zoroark was, Riley found himself thinking, he really didn't like himself.
"Looks like something slept here," Brown pointed the flashlight at corner of the room. Several blankets had been laid out on the stone floor to make some semblance of a bed. A stuffed toy Rampardos was tucked in between the blankets – unlike nearly everything else in the room, it looked like it had been treated with some care.
"Hehe," She picked it up. "Amy, look at this! Someone must really like Rampardos," She pushed the toy in the belly, causing it to squeak, before handing it to the purple-eyed trainer. "It's so cute!"
She looked the older trainer in the eye. "Is everything okay, Miss Amy?" She asked, a little worried the older trainer might be spooked by the lived-in look of the cavern. "Do… do you think we should start training here?"