EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER VIII - ONWARD TO WATERFALL MOUNTAIN
Author's Note: Right, this took far longer than planned. Long story short. I was doubling down on other projects and... to put it bluntly I had a bit of breakdown which put me off doing anything creative for a while, and I've only just recovered my mojo enough to carry on. Apologies if this chapter doesn't seem to be as good as others. But I do hope you enjoy some of story in this, as Chapter IX is going to hit like a truck now I'm getting back on track.
The preparation for the new mission was a swift affair, with Alice immediately telling him what kind of equipment they would likely need for the job before meeting at the main road out of town. But he couldn't even fully acknowledge the order before Alice was hopping away down the corridors of the Guildtree.
Alone, Sam merely sighed before setting off himself. He had only managed to piss her off even more.
He tried not to think about what had prompted him to volunteer for this rescue as he descended into the town, stopping by their room on the way down the tree to collect his satchel. Realising he didn't have that much Poké inside the bag as he strode out of the tree, he made his way to the Duraludon Bank and got help from its owner, Dural, in getting some more pulled out of Team Audacity's account.
It was pretty easy to figure out Alice would have gone straight to the farms and gardens first. It's out of the way, and she always said it was cheaper to get the berries from there.
Of course, he fully suspected she went that way just to keep away from him.
Keeping his mind focused, he worked through Robinwood's stores. He got his paws on rope to replace that lost in the last rescue, some Iron Spikes for both battle and to secure their gear, and a handful of Ethers. He didn't quite recall how it all worked, but the Ethers did help with allowing Pokémon to regenerate their ability to use moves, allowing them to be used more. Up to now, he hadn't needed them.
He shivered at the memory of the green whip snapping the necks of the rescuers in his vision. I've got a feeling I'm going to need them this time.
As he walked over to the Kecleon Shop, he couldn't contain his concerns anymore. Geez, I don't blame Alice for being mad. I just volunteered to go on this mission. Esper outright said this guy was worse than Dark Matter. Or… well, the thing inside him. She didn't say it was more powerful than Dark Matter right… oh who am I kidding? It's powerful enough.
He knew how dangerous it was. Even if Alice still seemed to care enough to help him they will still going up against something that wiped out two whole teams in a matter of seconds. Esper was right, this was beyond Greg. Maybe even Volcanion.
His ears twitched, they may have lacked experience, but they did have a couple of aces up their sleeves. One, they knew what they were getting into. They could be better prepared when the others had been caught off guard.
Two… there was himself being human.
Well, he didn't know how that would work. Maybe it was tied to that hidden ability of his? Libero? Not that has been very useful to him, with it refusing to fire up from time to time. Or maybe Pyro Ball? Or… well, he wasn't-
"Earth to rabbit dude?"
Sam blinked, his gaze snapping up to find the green-skinned Kecleon Larissa looking over him with a slightly confused expression, standing behind the counter of her shop. "S-Sorry." He managed to utter before recomposing himself, "Just lost in thought."
Larissa merely rolled her eyes and casually waved an arm, "Ah, it's fine. I think we're all stuck in thought."
With that, she flashed the warm smile of a merchant and leaned on the counter, "What can I get you?"
He managed to hold back the laugh, Larissa always seemed so friendly despite the reputation that Kecleon seemed to have throughout Robinwood. Something along the lines of being very easy to anger when it came to the protection of their merchandise or something. But Larissa? He couldn't imagine that. Why the heck are Bruce and Edward so scared of her then?
The Scorbunny returned his attention towards the conversation, "I'm looking to get some wands and orbs, I heard you had some in stock."
"Just came in from Water." Larissa confirmed, "And what you're thinking of using them for?"
He took a moment to get a breath in, "I'm going after the guy who took out the clinic."
"And the two teams right?" she replied with a straight face.
"Err, yeah."
She nodded firmly before reaching under the counter, "Then in that case, you want something heavy hitting." She pulled out what appeared to be a rather thick stick, ending with a charred tip and a red leaf.
His gut clenched, "A twig?" Sam questioned.
"Nooo, a Blast Wand." Larissa explained, "Give this bad boy a wave and you'll blow up the ground underneath the bastard's feet!"
Flicking an ear, he took a moment to inspect the wand with a slight smirk. The extra firepower would help for sure. "Sounds good, anything that could give more of a punch?"
Almost on instinct, she spun round and swiped a pair of small orbs off a shelf behind her. A peach-red orb and a bright orange one. "Thinking of fire types, you can try these." She patted the first one, "This All-Power Orb can improve the power of your attacks." She proceeded to tap the second one, "And the Sunny Orb can do the same thing for your fire-type moves, plus weaken water-type moves by intensifying the sunlight."
Huh… Waterfall Mountain does sound like it's going to have quite a few water types. Might be handy in a pinch.
Smiling, Sam pulled out some of the remaining Poké in his satchel. "Sounds like a deal."
With the orbs and wands contained in his bag, he made his way towards one of the routes out of town, the same one Alice told him to meet her at. The wide trail went into the trees, a wooden arch serving as the boundary of the town.
Alice had conveniently arrived at the same time as himself, and in silence, handed over a handful of berries and seeds. Sam likewise handed her back some of the equipment he obtained. An iron lump settled into his gut as he watched the Buneary load up her satchel. He couldn't bring himself to speak.
"Are you prepared?"
He turned to find Rex striding towards them, holding a pair of discs in one hand. "We've got our kit sorted ready, aye." Sam replied.
"I've made sure to get extra Reviver Seeds." Alice added, holding up a golf-ball-shaped seed that seemed very natural compared to the rather mundane seeds that he had come across before. "Still, it's not going to be easy."
Thanks for dampening the mood Alice…
Rex nodded, handing over the two discs, one in each hand, "I managed to dig these out from my old supplies, I have a feeling they'll come in handy."
Sam took a grey disc from the Guildmaster's hand, surprisingly cool to touch. As he looked down at the reflection, he caught a glimpse of the second disc, which was a bright yellow in comparison.
"TMs?" Alice questioned, "Why did you get us these?"
The Scorbunny blinked, the acronym flying over his head. It must have been obvious, as the Blaziken turned his feathered head towards him. "Technical Machines, they contain the key knowledge of moves."
"H-Huh? You can learn a move just from these?" Sam waved the disc as he spoke, frowning.
"Don't ask me the science." Rex confirmed, "Alice can show you how they work."
The Buneary rolled her eyes before inspecting her TM, "Electric?"
"Thunder Punch." Rex confirmed, "I figured it would be worth widening your reportare."
You can learn this stuff from what? Reading these things or… something?
Sam eyed the grey-disc, "And… this?"
Rex flashed a brief smirk, "Given your experiences, I pulled out Protect. It allows you to completely block another move."
His heart soared as he looked over the TM, the image of a powerful shield forming before him, "Wait… it can stop anything? Awesome! It should help!"
"Don't get too comfortable." Rex warned him, waving a finger, "It only works so many times in quick succession. So use it wisely."
And of course there's a catch. Sam sighed, the prospect of blocking off the devastating attacks of the foe non-stop quickly crumbling to ash.
As the two rescuers slipped the TMs into their satchels, Rex narrowed his eyes. "I know I gave you the go-ahead, but privately, this is still a chance for you to pull out. I can find another team if-"
"Rex." Sam interrupted, feeling the bite in his words, "We're up for it."
I'm not backing out of this now. I've got to do this.
Alice merely nodded.
Satisfied, Rex stuck up his beak, "Then I will advise caution. I have already sent ahead two members of the Post Office to Waterfall Mountain to scout out the exterior of the dungeon, and we're trying to work out a means of resupply after the first dungeon. But once you walk in, you will be on your own."
"Won't be the first time." Alice replied curtly. "But we can't just be the only ones going up?"
"Not if I have anything to say about it." Rex confirmed, "I'm still gathering other guildmembers. If we don't hear anything from you after you enter the dungeon, I'll personally lead a larger team to search for you. You have my word."
Sam let out a faint sigh, having backup plans did offer some small comfort. "Fingers crossed; we won't need it."
"I hope that's the case." Rex replied, the Blaziken stiffening before glancing behind them. "Waterfall Mountain is a fair distance off, but I did arrange for some help in getting you there."
Behind the two rabbits, a red-orange canine Pokémon approached them, towering above the two rabbits easily. He recognised her immediately; it was the strange Arcanine who dove into the burning clinic. "'Sup." She greeted them with a casual, almost lazy tone, looking over the pair.
Damn… she's bigger up close than I thought. Sam pondered as he mustered a simple wave.
"Carol happened to be travelling past Waterfall Mountain. So I asked for a favour." Rex explained.
"Not often I help out the Guild twice in one day." Carol admitted, "I'm not trained for Dungeons, but getting you there is a piece of cake."
Sam's grin glimmered, "Thanks, it'd be a big help."
Alice merely nodded back her thanks.
It took mere moments for Team Audacity to climb onto Carol's back, who now began to stride towards the path out. Rex watched on, "Stay safe you two. And good luck, we'll be right behind you."
"I'll make sure of that." Alice replied firmly.
Sam faintly noticed his ear twitch as he pulled the mock salute to Rex.
Carol gently shook herself, "Hold on you two." She grunted, "I think the saying goes, 'Speed limits are meant' to be broken.'".
And with that, the Arcanine burst into a run, shooting down the path and leaving Robinwood very quickly behind them.
The journey had been surprisingly pleasant for the two rabbits as their canine mount sprinted effortlessly through the forests and across the open plains of the island. The wind rushed past the Scorbunny's face, bringing with it the fresh scent of grass. It was bumpy of course thanks to Carol's running, but he could still hold himself comfortably in place with a good grip.
In just over two hours, Waterfall Mountain hove into view.
It sat at the tip of a mountain range that ran towards the north on Sam's right and found itself positioned just at the edge of the ocean itself. A grey peak that was only a little bit taller than the mountains near it, but it was still easy to spot with it being broader than the others. That, and there were the waterfalls themselves. Hundreds of them glistened in the distance, including one giant one that thundered from top to bottom in one clean go. A thick mist swirled around the mountain, forming a thick blanket that hide the summit from view.
He felt his heart flutter for a moment, "Whoa…"
"Quite the sight huh?" Carol puffed, "It's about to get a whole lot better."
She wasn't kidding. Within twenty minutes, they could slowly hear the thundering of the water itself. Ten minutes after that, they emerged from the forest they cut through to find the mountain in all its glory.
Waterfall Mountain was surrounded by a gigantic ring-shaped lake, the discharge from the waterfalls rushing into to fill it. White water bubbled across the very edge of the mountain, leaving the remaining water an azure blue in comparison. The sound of the waterfalls was what surprised him though. It wasn't unbearable as he expected, but it was still loud enough that it blotted out many of the other sounds. A faint mist swirled around them, but it didn't hide the glinting of the biggest waterfall coming down to their right.
A rocky arch was all that connected the mountain to the rest of the land, spared by the power of the waterfalls. As Carol jogged across it, Sam couldn't help but stare at Waterfall Mountain. Esper's words didn't get anywhere near close to doing it justice. Over his shoulder, he could sense that even Alice was taken aback, her head tilting back to get a good view.
At the end of the arch was a larger outcrop, where a dark cave opening beckoned. There, sat on a pair of boulders a few metres ahead of it were a pair of avian Pokémon talking to each other. A Talonflame and a Corviknight.
Wait, are those Jean and Clovis?
"We're here." Carol said, no worse for wear as she slowed to a halt a short distance away from the pair.
Sam clambered off her back, his legs wobbly beneath him from having sat on the canine's back for so long. "Thanks for the lift." He replied. "You sure you're alright?"
"That was like a jog for me." Carol replied, "I need to get moving up the range, there are a few camps that are out of the way that need someone giving the heads up of what's going on."
"Then stay safe." Alice said, "We'll try and keep this mess from spreading."
"Hurrah to that." The red and orange Pokémon slowly turned back towards the bridge. "Good hunting."
Sam watched as Carol started jogging back across the bridge, but he could hear Alice striding towards the two birds and he moved to follow her. "Ah. I believe you are Team Audacity?" inquired Clovis, the Corviknight looking down towards the two rabbits.
Not feeling intimidated by his height, Sam responded first. "That's us."
"Have you seen Zeke or Kaliani?" Alice questioned bluntly, leaving a bitter taste in Sam's mouth. Come on Alice, be mad at me. Not everyone else.
He didn't catch Clovis's reaction though. It was Jean who spoke first. "Non. We've tried to scout the perimeter, but we've had no luck."
"All we have ascertained is that the pair have entered the dungeon." Clovis explained, "Nor have they come out this way."
Sam called back his memory of how Dungeons worked. The layout changed all the time, there was often only one way in, and unless they had the means to escape instantly, the only way out was to work their way through and backtrack to find themselves at the original entrance.
I doubt either Zeke or Kaliani had Escape Orbs on hand. They still have to be up there. He angled his head up towards the mist-covered mountain. "Well, looks like we've got quite the climb ahead of us." He mused.
"We did try and scout out the upper slopes." Clovis explained in his posh tone, narrowing his red eyes, "Not that we had any real success though."
The Talonflame rolled his eyes, "Merde! You were so confident about flying above the mist layer, then the winds kicked in and you were diving back with your tail feathers between your legs! Tommy rostbif!"
Sam almost felt the audible crack as the Corviknight stiffened, his armoured head snapping towards the Talonflame. "Oi!" he exclaimed, his previous tone eradicated in a heartbeat for a much rougher, lower-class accent, "You froggie git! You nearly smashed ya'self into the cliffs ya nob!"
Ears ringing, Sam yanked his ears down. "Guys! Back on topic?!" he barked, dragging the attention of the two birds back towards him. The Corviknight coughed heavily, hiding his face behind his wing.
The Talonflame meanwhile merely ground his beak. "E-Either way, we've not had much luck in searching the upper slopes."
"We'll – ahem – keep trying." Clovis finally replied, "And if we can establish a means of resupply for the area between the two dungeons, we'll try and get up to you there."
The Scorbunny merely sighed, "Don't get yourselves hurt trying to reach us. Just having some backup here helps. Right, Ali-"
He turned to find Alice had disappeared. Growling, he scanned his surroundings and spotted the Buneary was already making her way towards the entrance. "R-Right, thanks guys, wish us luck!"
Leaving the two birds to watch on with confusion, Sam sprinted after her. Thankfully, Alice seemed to retain enough patience to wait for him at the threshold of the door. Barely, judging by how her arms were crossed.
He half expected her to stride in without him. But instead, she stood her ground, eyes fixed on the door.
It was only then did she finally speak to him. "This is insane."
Shuffling his feet, Sam looked over the fuming Buneary. "You didn't have to come." He quietly said, "This is my responsibility."
"And again you're trying to be a hero." Alice snarled, "Never quite seem to think through things."
Feeling the sting strike his chest, Sam peeled back. "Alice, come on-"
"Are we going in here or not?" she asked bluntly, eyes still fixed on the dungeon entrance.
Bloody hell Alice…
Unable to hide the flash of his teeth as a wave of heat rushed over him, Sam snapped his eyes towards the darkness of the mountain. "Let's get going."
And with that, the two entered Waterfall Mountain.
Compared to Broken Wood, seeing the interior of Waterfall Mountain was a breath of fresh air. The walls were made of smooth grey stone, devoid of any cracks or deterioration. Shallow puddles formed breadcrumbs between deeper pools that ran into separate tunnels. Thankfully, corridors on solid ground remained clear and open for the two Rescuers to navigate.
A few Feral Pokémon battled them along the way, mainly some water types and rock types with the occasional flying type when the ceiling disappeared to reveal a misty grey sky. Despite the type challenges, the two pushed onward through the floors. Climbing higher. But Sam didn't tackle the fights with his usual vigour. Instead, it felt cold and distant as he tackled each threat one to one, focusing on his own battles and letting Alice handle hers.
There wasn't much point in trying to mess with each other's fighting styles.
Twelve floors later, Team Audacity emerged back into the sunlight.
They had emerged onto a wide, flat section that seemed to have been carved out of the side of the mountain by a trio of waterfalls that fell onto the ledge, forming a collection of streams and small pools before it ran over the edge and further down the mountain. Moss and a thin layer of grass covered anything that wasn't covered in rocks and water.
They couldn't get much of a view though, as the mist was now thick enough to block out the view from higher up. Only the sun and the odd patch of blue sky punched through from directly above.
Sam sighed as he leaned against a boulder near the tunnel they had emerged from. "Well… so far so good."
"For now." Alice said coldly as she moved on ahead, heading towards one of the larger pools. "We better rest and take stock before we head on towards the next dungeon."
He followed the jab of her head towards another rocky tunnel at the other end of the ledge. Even from here, a brief shiver ran through his skull and ears. It didn't seem much different to the one at the bottom of Waterfall Mountain, but it seemed… darker somehow. Or at least, darker than what pitch black should have been.
"Probably for the best, Zeke and Kaliani aren't-"
When he turned back, Alice had opened the distance even further, leaving Sam behind.
Groaning, Sam rubbed his forehead. He had been trying to work out how to even talk things through with her. But between the fighting and the journey to the Mountain, he hadn't been able to work out how. He had never seen Alice angry in this manner before, how could he handle it without making things worse and losing her altogether?
That was when he heard the light beat of wings. His ears perked up, he traced the source towards the cliff edge. Practically a second later, a familiar blue-grey shape shot out of the mist and dropped down onto the ground with the scraping of talons.
Sam hopped back to his feet, "Perry!?" he exclaimed, feeling dizzy from the sudden leap.
The Corvisquire post-bird flashed a winning smile with his beak, "Ah! Sam-man! You know, this place was easier to get to than those two old geezers claimed! Maybe because I'm a damn good flier…"
A subtle warmth rolled over Sam as he walked over to the bird. Perry may have been bonkers, but there was still something weirdly pleasant about seeing the guy. "I've never been so glad to see you, Perry! Did you manage to bring anything up?"
The crow had a satchel secured around his body, and reaching inside it, he pulled out a small bag. "The crafters have been working on overdrive to get these potions ready. A few Supers too, but that's it."
Sam took hold of the bag from the bird's claws, "And a message from Rex-man too." Perry explained, "Teams RAY, Trooper and Fox are nearly here, and he and Team Spirit were getting ready to lead the second wave. Probably already on their way."
Good. The Scorbunny thought as he closed his eyes. At least we've got back up on its way.
But… are we even going to be enough? He felt the doubt creep in, a small patch of cold forming at the base of his spine. It could be snapped in half soon enough.
"Hey, you've got hero potential buddy!" Perry exclaimed, his grin even bigger, "You'll probably curb-stomp this green bastard!"
Weakly, Sam could only laugh, "Hero potential? More like losing my mind." He found himself staring distantly off into the mists, his mouth drying up. "I saw how those teams died… they never stood a chance."
He narrowed his gaze on Perry. "What chance do we have?"
The smile vanished from Perry's beak. Instead, his eyes darkened and the bird straightened up. "You've proven yourself before. And you've already got a better mind to this than most. But if you let doubt get into your head, it'll slow you down."
His eyes flicked past Sam. "And so will mistrust."
Behind him, Alice sat at the edge of one of the pools, rubbing her hands in the clear water.
Here goes Perry again… flipping things on their head.
"I'm not sure what to even do," Sam admitted numbly. "She keeps brushing me off."
"Then you need to persist." Perry urged him, "You will get killed if you can't put your issues aside for the mission. Believe me, I've seen and heard families turn on each other because they can't work things out." He tilted his head towards her, "You might not get another chance."
Sam sighed softly, a part of him knowing it was going to be difficult to even try that. But he knew he had to give it a shot.
"You're… you're right." He glumly admitted, weighing the bag of potions in one hand.
"Of course I'm right!" Perry cheered, his serious composure evaporating as jabbed a wing at his head. "I've got big brains!"
He hopped back towards the edge, opening his wings up, "I better pass on word you got this far. Happy hunting!"
Sam reached out, "Wait P-"
The Corvisquire dove off the edge and out of sight.
The Scorbunny let his hand drop. And there he goes…
He turned to face Alice, her back still turned to him.
Taking a moment to rub his feet and shake himself loose. Okay… here goes.
The Scorbunny made his way over the rocks towards her, taking care not to slip off them and into the water. No point in making himself look like a complete fool now.
When he finally reached her, she was staring down at her reflection in the pool, her coiled ear twitching. Sam placed the vial bag next to her. "Perry dropped off some potions, other teams are nearly here." He explained.
"Good." She said, taking her eyes away to reach into the bag and pull out a couple of the vials.
She still didn't look at him.
Huffing quietly to himself, Sam rolled a shoulder. "Alice. We need to talk."
"Ah-huh." She said, inspecting a red vial.
Sam crouched down next to her, "Alice, I never knew what to expect with being human. I woke with absolutely no idea where I was or how things worked. I got attacked on my first day for crying out loud! I was worried that if I started sprouting that I was a human, it'd be like setting a bomb off or something."
"And look how well that worked out." Alice snapped, rolling her eyes. "You were worried about getting stabbed by someone. I get it. But you can't just shove people to reveal every one of their secrets or to do exactly what you want, then refuse to do the same."
Sam winced, "I don't force people to do anything like that, and I didn't want to put you at risk again because-"
"Because of the fake curse." Alice countered, her coiled ear twitching as she turned towards him. "That I had a part to play in killing my parents?"
Quivering, Sam couldn't quite respond.
"I had to fight to keep people off my back. Some of them wanted to break me. At least one wanted to kill me." She rose to her feet, "I don't need your protection."
He slipped back from her, "That wasn't what I meant!" he exclaimed.
"But it is!" Alice bellowed, fists clenched, "You've always got to be some kind of hero, barging your way into other people's problems and trying to act like you are looking out for everyone!"
"Al-"
"But you're not a hero Sam!" she shouted, "You've barely made anyone's life any better! And even if you do, you end up digging yourself a hole that someone has to get you out of! You can't save anyone without help! You're fucking hopeless!"
That last sentence struck him hard. The Scorbunny's back clicked as he straightened up, ears fully erect. He felt cold, clammy and… empty.
Then his heart began to pound, his arms began to shake. Flames began to burn through him entirely, a blaze that began to consume him.
Alice panted, shaking herself as she tried to recompose herself. She needed to get the message into his thick skull. Come on you fucking idiot! Why can't you just see that I would try h-
Her thoughts ceased as she noticed not only the stiffening, quivering Scorbunny… but the snarl stretching across his lips and his dark eyes.
Her gut tightened, the Buneary feeling herself tremble as the full weight of what she had just said to him finally dawned on her. Shit… what the hell am I doing?
All the anger in her drained away, her eyes widening as she quickly raised her hands and backed off. "I… Sam, I didn't-"
"No." Sam growled, "I guess you're right. Hopeless, can't save anyone? Certainly makes sense."
"No! You can-"
"Shut up."
Alice flinched, the Scorbunny's eyes flashing red. "I'm not stupid Alice. I tend to make things worse. I don't think before I run in, because it's fucking instinct to me Alice. Hell, I might have to run on that instinct down the line when the whole fucking world is at stake!"
"The world!?" Alice cried out, "What the hell are you talking about?"
"How about dealing with another Dark Matter!"
Now she froze, all the heat fleeing from her body as the Scorbunny continued to rant. "I found out what the other humans did! Meteors, time crises, emotion eaters and Dark Matter! About how many people got hurt during all that! How much those humans had to suffer and fight through! I might have to fight something worse, such as that thing up there!"
He jabbed a finger towards the still hidden summit, "And I have no idea what I'm going to be dealing with, when that's going to happen, or what I can even do about it! If I can't fight a handful of bandits or save a few kids on my own, how the fuck can I deal with something like this! I brought him back to Robinswood! I got people killed!"
Sam's foot came flying, striking a rock and igniting it. A single Ember sailed through the air and smacked itself against the rock cliff, sparking as it tumbled down and into one of the streams with a sizzle of hot steam.
The fire-type turned away, panting heavily. Sh…
Alice shook herself loose, "S-Sam…"
"Keep the damn vials. I'm going into that dungeon soon. We need to be ready."
Sam stormed off, leaving Alice quietly watching him go, trying her best to conceal a haunted look on her face. S-Sam…
She failed to see Sam struggling to hold back tears.
Then he recovered, his expression going as hard as steel as he left Alice behind.
After fifteen minutes, Sam and Alice made their way into the second dungeon in almost complete silence. When it materialised around them, it became apparent that Rex wasn't exaggerating. A thick layer of mist filled the chambers, so dense that it was only the faint forms of the corridors that gave Sam a sense of where the walls were. His senses were all borked too, every step seemed to send an echo bouncing all around him, making his ears twitch constantly. The air wasn't only damp too, but also cold too, leaving his fur to stand on end.
But as they began to work through the dungeon, Sam kept his nerve. If they started panicking now, they wouldn't stand a chance.
Not that he was going to panic in here, and he doubted Alice would either. The Buneary could barely look at him, an angry look written across her face now she had recovered from their latest spat.
He couldn't give a toss at the end of the day. If Alice thought he was that hopeless, he wasn't going to concern himself with her thoughts about him. What mattered now was getting through this dungeon.
The first couple of floors went slowly, not from fighting feral Pokémon, but from trying to navigate the place. With the mist so thick, they found themselves going wondering into larger rooms and often finding themselves back where they started. Even the Wonder Map they had, which should have allowed them to get an idea of the layout, wasn't taking shape properly, leaving entire sections of the map blank and forcing the two to try and scour the areas not being marked.
But as time progressed, they started coming across the stairs and began to ascend.
It was on the third floor when they started coming across another Pokémon. Sometimes appearing as dark spots within the mist, giving them some time to prepare for the threat. Other times, something would leap out of the fog towards them, trying to swipe at them with a physical move or blast them with something with more range. They had to be constantly vigilant, lest they got caught off guard by a blast of water or shard of ice punching through the mist.
The only words Sam and Alice barked at each other were warnings of incoming attacks. Neither seemed to be inclined to say much else.
The fifth floor was even more painful to navigate. The ground was covered in water that covered the top of his feet, and it was an effort to avoid slipping into any deeper pools that were hidden from view whilst being attacked and lost along the way.
More and more hits slipped through, forcing the two to pause along the way and munch on oran berries to patch themselves up. They saved the potions for the threat ahead.
The mist was so thick, they didn't even realise they had walked out of the dungeon entirely until they felt the gravel beneath their feet.
Sam looked down, toes digging into the ground. His muscles relaxed for a moment, the Scorbunny quietly glad they had reached the top.
But then he stiffened again, remembering Rex's words on the dungeon itself. How it was difficult to navigate. And yet…
"That felt too easy." Sam coldly noted.
"Agreed." Alice replied woodenly. "Zeke?"
"Has to be."
Sam stepped forward, hoping the mist would start to clear. But if anything, just one step made the fog thicken further and made it even more impenetrable.
"I can't see a fucking thing." The Buneary growled, "We'll walk off the mountain at this rate."
Frowning, Sam rubbed a few of the pebbles beneath his feet, feeling them heat up beneath him. Come on Sam think… how can you get rid of mist? Or fog? It normally pops up on a cold day right so, we need some… sunlight!
He reached into his satchel and pulled out the bright orange orb from within. "This might help."
Sam had slowly gotten to grips with how Orbs were activated over the last few weeks, and the Sunny Orb was no different. He carefully squeezed the ball in his hand, feeling the seemingly solid object vibrate in his hand. He tossed it gently up into the air, and the now glowing orange orb hovered just above his head. It glowed brighter and brighter, turning into a brilliant white for a fraction of a second before fading away.
And yet, the fog remained.
Alice blinked, "So much for that plan."
Growling, Sam stomped further forward into the mist.
"Come on, let's not be stupid." Alice snapped, "We need to work on a plan."
"Zeke and Kaliani had to have come through here." Sam countered, "I'm not turning back now."
He could just make out Alice's bite of her curse.
They moved deeper into the fog, keeping one eye on the gravel beneath them as it crunched. Alice did have a point, one wrong step, and they'd be tumbling down the mountain in no time. The fog got thicker with every step as if trying to encourage them to turn around. But Sam pushed onwards, hearing Alice's footsteps behind him. Part of him screamed that wandering around in the mist was stupid, but the rest of him knew that they couldn't just turn back round. The next group would run into the same issue.
Either way, they had to find a path through it or clear it out.
A dark shape formed ahead of them. For the first time, he glanced towards Alice. Her eyes were narrowed, fixed on the same point ahead.
They slowed down, Sam scoping up a few stones to get Ember ready, whilst Alice's ears fully retracted, ready to strike at the threat.
The shape darkened and began to take shape. It was a small column, about three times their height. With all the cracks and bumps on the surface, it wasn't even a column at all. Just a tall rock.
Sighing, Sam increased his stride towards the rock, Alice moving to follow him. But he slowed again as other details appeared. Or rather, just one.
On a flat patch of the pillar at his level, a white symbol had been etched on. A symbol he didn't expect to see.
A striped tear placed over a cross.
Sam managed to catch his gasp at the sight of it. A symbol he found in Broken Wood. A symbol he had heard of from an ancient story. The Guardians… what… what were they doing here?
Six weeks on from Broken Wood, he had tried and failed to learn much about them. There was nothing in the library that had anything on them. Even Edward, being knowledgeable as he was, only really knew the story he had explained in Broken Wood. They were just that obscure.
Did Rex and Esper come across this? Sam questioned, recalling the armband he managed to recover from Broken Wood, along with that mural down there too. He barely had a chance to look over the markings of it before Volcanion burst out of the ground and tried to kill him and the other recruits.
Alice peered around behind the pillar, "There's nothing here." She coldly said, "This is pointless, we should backtrack."
"No," Sam replied, leaning forward to inspect the symbol. "It means something. Who would carve this here?"
Snarling, Alice strode round and pushed him back. "Look, it's just an old drawing."
She placed her hand against the symbol, holding it there for a few seconds with a lazy look on her face. Understandably, nothing happened.
"There." She said, pulling the hand away. "Not worth anything at all."
Snarling, Sam pushed past her again. It can't have been that simple. The guardians wouldn't have left what seemed to be their emblem here. It had to mean something.
He planted his hand against the symbol. "Why would it be-"
In that instant, a bright green outline flashed around the symbol and with it, a resonant ping.
Sam stumbled back, his heart missing a beat as the glow intensified around the symbol. "…here…" he finally uttered. Alice's eyes widened as she took a step back herself.
The symbol began to pulse, and the wind started to howl, ruffling up the two rabbit's fur as it whipped around them. Sam blinked rapidly, trying to protect his eyes from the wind. "What the hell did you do!?" Alice cried out, eyes squeezed shut.
Sam dug his feet into the ground as the wind punched into his chest, struggling to stop it from brushing him back. The air around him grew brighter every second, the Scorbunny wincing and forcing him to close his eyes. The air screamed around him, pushing himself further back and whipping his ears around.
But then the wind slowly died down, fading away into silence. And slowly, Sam's eyes drifted back open.
Sunlight burned bright into his eyes, and once they had adjusted, both he and Alice gasped.
The mist had been blown away, revealing a vibrant blue sky above their heads and the majesty of their surroundings.
They stood on the edge of a crater lake, crystal clear blue water lapping against the rim. Dozens of smaller islands were scattered across the lake, rising dozens of metres above the surface. A small amount of steam rose from patches, only for a blast of water to shoot up from hidden geysers into the air and briefly forming colourful rainbows in the sky.
"It's… it's beautiful." Alice quietly said with awe.
Sam felt his eyes drawn to the geysers as they shot upwards. "Tell me about it."
They stood there for a moment longer, drawn to the scene before them until Alice broke the silence again. "How… how did you know that'd happen?"
"I didn't." Sam replied, "I've just seen that symbol before."
Unknown to him, Alice turned to face her, poised to ask another question, only to seal her mouth shut with a shake of her head. "This is going to take too much time." She said with a wave of her arm towards the lake, "They could be on any one of those islands!"
Sam scoured the surroundings, trying to spot any landmark that could hint at their location. The islands would be… well… obvious right? Maybe they're… aha!
"I think I found where they could be." Sam said, turning his gaze to the crater rim.
A section of the rim rose higher up than the rest several hundred metres away, but from where Sam's standing, at the top of a set of stairs carved into the rock, there was a tall grey tower, crumbling but otherwise intact. It wasn't made of plain rock, but clearly from cut stone bricks. Like the tower of a castle.
Alice stepped up next to him, "Makes sense, but… are you sure?"
Sam started talking around the rim towards it, "Only one way to find out."
