Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Dare To Dream
Chapter 14
Foul Play
Empty streets, still air.
Once alive with fervor and bustling of folk on the cleared roads, these cold trails reflected which no more. Only the pale morning light peering through the golden canopy illuminated the village- none of the countless paper lanterns adorning street poles were lit through the night. No sound, save for the whisper of wind and the crunch of cluttered footsteps, were heard.
A red wolf traveled the lifeless road, lumbering forward on two legs as he cautiously looked between still tent after tent. Behind him, a gathered crew of those like-minded: a tyrogue, poochyena, wartortle, tandemaus, and a new face- vigoroth, as well as many others behind.
Many others had already broken off from the pack, wandering the barren streets with arms filled with a pathetic amount of stolen goods. Impatiently, the vigoroth peeked through each dull tent the gang passed by, hoping to add to his poor hull, but left leaving fiddling his claws together in frustration at another empty home. "Nothing in this one, either," the vigoroth bitterly stated.
A nidorino moped around a dark-blue tent, crossing in front of the crew while shaking his head sourly. "Nothing."
"Something's not right…" Cobb muttered as he eyed several empty stalls ahead. He raised a red paw skyward and in an instant, a bombirdier flew down and perched herself on a near branch. "What say you?"
"Village's good as dead, as far as I can see," she coldly replied. "I've looked everywhere: couldn't find any movement no matter where I looked. And I don't recall this number of tents before."
"Must be planning a little welcoming party for us," Cobb smiled.
She turned her head to have one eye leer at the lycanroc. "It's a trap."
"Obviously."
Looking behind Cobb, she could see that the bunch were getting impatient: shifting eyes and swiveling heads were evidence enough of that. The bombirdier fluttered down closer to Cobb, leaning close and whispering so that the group behind did not hear. "Shall we retreat while we can?"
"No," Cobb immediately replied. "I need to find that egghead here, she's our big break, Harrier. She was in that shambled house two nights ago, yeah?"
Harrier nodded. "She had something fancy by the look of it when she left. Took it to her home when she left."
Cobb leaned in closer. "Take me there."
"And what of this little predicament? You're pulling it awfully close. We should leave while we still have the option."
"Our little friend will be around. It'll buy us time."
Harrier peeked over to the tetchy group. Many of them looked back expectantly, curious as to what they had been discussing in hushed words. "And what of them?"
A sneer grew on Cobb's pointed face, punctuated by fangs and spit. "They planned out this lovely trap for us, didn't they? Let's make the most of it." He turned over towards his crew and threw his arms out boisterously. "Open-season, lads! Finders keepers! And if you run into any trouble, sort it out yourselves!" Harrier spread her wings once more, enticing Cobb to turn to leave alongside her. Struck with a sudden remembrance, he looked over his shoulder towards his now eager pack. "Oh, and one last thing: seven-hundred pieces to the lad who brings me the insufferable fox, that blowhard plant, some lowly bug, or that insufferable leader of theirs! Any one of them! They've been feeling awfully cocky as of late, and I think an example is in order!"
Amid the now excited crowd, the vigoroth stepped forward, raking its claws against one another in anticipation. "Yeah? And where can we find them?" he asked Cobb as he was leaving with Harrier.
"Somewhere around here, probably," Cobb muttered, not even turning around. "I'm sure you'll find them soon: they're not shy. If you want a fair guess, I'd say check the farmhouse thataway." Cobb pointed down a split in the path, past some still trees and hollow tents towards a fair wooden farm surrounded by fields in the distance. "That plant said her name was 'Petal,' last I remember. I hear that farm is run by a Petal or another. Seems a good place to start."
"Aye," the vigoroth nodded. Flexing out its black claws, it stuck them into the trunk of a close tree, then pulling itself up and into the branches where it swung from limb to limb towards the farm, bending branches with each lunge forward and raining down golden leaves as he went.
"Any more questions?" The pack remained silent. "No? Then get on with it!" he barked. At once, Harrier took wing and glided through the packed trees with Cobb in tow.
The crowd's spirit broke into a fever. With Cobb now gone, they broke out and spread throughout the village individually. Both the wartortle and nidorino began tearing open the tents around them, frantically searching for goods that were not there, whilst many others went further towards the center of the village, where the blazing briar lay. Empty home after empty home greeted them, as did stalls filled with nothing as they tore down the cold street.
A tyrogue wandered the street as his allies tore apart the location around him, taking steps over newly tossed, worthless pieces of string and canvas that now darted the street. Ahead, he spotted a promising looking home ahead. Whereas many of the other shelters were fitted loosely with unsecure layers of tarp and hastily strung together wooden beams, this one and others ahead seemed quite more agreeable. They did not have cloths that swung in the wind. These ones were taut, stiff against the breeze. The tyrogue messaged a large bump on head he had acquired a few nights ago as he approached the promising spot. Reaching out, he pulled back the entrance flap.
A flash of iron was the last sight he held before he blacked out, flung out onto the cold earth behind from the cold smack of steel that pealed throughout the still air.
At once, the many heads of the pillagers turned to look at the source. From in front of their fallen friend, a riolu dressed in a simple poncho stepped out from the dim tent behind, carrying in his hands a shovel split at its handle, and a glossy blue orb that glowed brilliantly at its center.
"Hey! We've got trouble over here!" a poochyena yelped from the motionless crowd. Before anyone could act, a sudden soft light rose from behind them, blanketing them in the drawn shadows of trees as it rose into the sky: an ember, shot upward, where it then fizzled and boomed in the open air.
Some low rumbling toiled around them.
Bringing its attention back to Felix, the poochyena growled and began tearing through the dirt towards him, sprinting at him with fangs bared. But as distance shrunk, the rhythmic pace of the rumble grew faster as well, and soon fell upon him and all others around as dashing figures descended onto them from behind trees and tents.
A wicked bolt of lightning crashed in front of the poochyena, forcing it to a stop as a zebstrika barreled down the road to them, brandishing a threatening coat of raging yellow and pitch black. It began circling the fiends, forcing them nearly into a huddle as they fell back to one another. A mankey reached its hand out as if to threaten the zebstrika, but was quickly pushed back with a jolt of electricity laid at its feet.
Felix spun around, peering past his hideaway down the road and spotting the reinforcements he had planned. "Round them up!" he called out to Fawna as she led the charge of herself, Jeral, and a conkeldurr, ferrying Dimas on its back.
"Already on it!" she replied as she and the others passed him by.
As soon as they came in proximity of the thieves, Dimas leveled his arm at their feet and began popping off slivers of gold from his fingertips, kicking up dirt from where the bullets landed before the fiends with each shot, forcing them further and further back.
"Scatter, now!" Jeral commanded. "Break them apart!" The hakamo-o lunged at the huddled mass alongside Fawna, swinging his plated arms at them as Fawna whipped her head about and launched a barrage of razor-sharp leaves at the crowd. Many of them recoiled back and began retreating away with the crowd, scattering further away into the village whilst Fawna, Jeral, and others pursued them in the ensuing dust cloud. From that whir of kicked-up dirt, some figures broke away from the frenzy, evading the force that threatened them by scurrying away from the chaos to any cover they could find, be it the odd stack of wooden boxes or nearby trunk of a tree.
"Good work!" Felix called out to Jeral and Fawna as they left. "You all focus on that bunch! We'll handle the stragglers!" The hakamo-o shot him a quick nod before returning to his chase.
The poochyena, nidorino, wartortle, and the pair of tandemaus had broken off from the pursuit, watching briefly as their accomplices were driven further and further away into the distance. Once the others were well and gone, they turned to look at Felix with eyes that could cut through stone and brandishing the fangs they all had, ill with intent.
Grabbing hold of the sunny orb, Felix raised it skyward. "Orb! Do your thing!" No reaction came. "Come on," he muttered. "How do these things work?" he asked as he slapped the device a couple times in a misguided attempt to get it to function.
The poochyena once again charged at him now that it was free from the earlier interference, keeping its body low to the ground as it bolted at him. "Boss will make me his right-hand for sure if I drag you in!" it snarled.
It knelt just ten-feet before Felix, then springing through the air towards him with its jaw wide open, ready to snatch at him with the many dagger-like teeth that lined its mouth. Whilst the poochyena was airborne, a thick-curved blade of grass shot from behind Felix from within the tent, curving through the air and striking the mutt in its side, launching it away in a tumble.
"Don't just stand there, Blue!" Petal chastised him as she came outside. She whipped another blade at the attacker's feet, making them leap back. "Look, if you want the long answer, ask Star! But those things just work, like leafage or ember! Don't think about it! Just do it!"
"Right, just do it," he softly repeated to himself.
The poochyena had already begun getting up, but Petal shot another bladed leaf at it, which the dog managed to shirk away from as it leapt back towards its friends which had now begun to gather around. "Hurry up, Blue!" Petal called as she looked at the four Pokémon around them. "Don't think about it, just do it!"
The wartortle shot a torrent of water towards them, passing between the two of them as they reeled away and tore a hole through the canvas behind them. Petal shot a blade at the wartortle, only for the attack to ricochet off its shell as the turtle turned in anticipation of the attack, sending the blade careening through the air and crashing into the gold canopy above.
As the wartortle prepared another blast of water, a shot of fire burst from behind it, slamming into the assailant's shell and forcing its attention onto the vulpix that had appeared behind them. Wisps of flame snaked from the corners of her mouth. "Not one of you are escaping!" Star snarled.
The wartortle sneered, spinning on its heel and launching another azure torrent of water targeting Star. She instinctively fired off another ember towards the rushing water, only for the ball of flame to be swallowed without resistance by the deluge. Before the attack could strike her, a silvery bug dropped from the branches above and took the blow against its layered shell as it fell, being launched back and recoiled off of Star as she stumbled back from the blow.
Wimpod shook his carapace, throwing water everywhere. "You'd do better to keep your head down," he remarked.
"I'll take my chances," Star stated as she reignited the fire in her maw.
Star lowered her head and quickly bounded across the ground, circling the thieves and joining Felix and Petal. Wimpod scoffed to himself, quickly scuttling up the same tree he leapt from only a few seconds earlier and hiding in the autumn leaves once more.
"You took your time getting here," Felix said.
"But got here I did!" she smiled. "Anyhow, I take it you're still hung up on how to use the orb?" she asked as she leered at the volatile group ahead.
Felix looked down at the orb perplexedly.
The poochyena knelt and growled, eyeing them with wide-open eyes as it took a cautious step forward. The tandemaus beside it followed, drawing closer. More confidently, the wartortle and nidorino joined behind them, coming ever nearer. "Boss'll pluck those leaves right off you when we bring you to him, shrub!" the nidorino threatened through clenched teeth.
Petal threateningly lowered the splay of her leaves at the crowd. "Uh, Blue, might want to hurry up!"
"Remain calm. Just hold the orb up, and as you would command your limbs to move, animate this tool with the same power," Star instructed. Bubbles began rapidly forming at the wartortle's mouth, locking eyes with Star. "Now would be preferable."
The wartortle blasted another volume of water towards them, forcing Star to duck to the ground as the attack sailed above her and punched another hole in the tent behind them. With fangs glowing with fire, she lunged at the group, forcing a reaction as they all threw themselves forward to attack. The poochyena charged forward, meeting Star head-on as the two snapped at one another and fell to the ground, both frantically snarling and biting at each other as they tumbled only for the dark mutt to pin Star to the ground with a jaw locked around her foreleg as she writhed to take back control.
"Blue! Get to it!" Petal shouted. Running forward, she threw two crescent blades of green at the remaining group as they ran, causing them to stumble for a moment before they continued their advance, but it was only a moment before they charged at her as she froze.
Felix frantically held the orb back up, staring at the glow in its center with no thought, just the hope that something would come of it.
Just a hope.
The light within the glassy sphere flared to life. As if possessed, the now blinding light threw itself against the container that bound it, shattering the orb into countless pieces that made Felix flinch in the ensuing sharded rain. The blaze flew many stories into the air before stopping suddenly in the air. All eyes had fallen onto the spectacle, captivated by the radiance the miniature sun had now been flooding the ground floor below in heat and rays. Felix found himself utterly bewitched by such a strange and mystic power.
The poochyena that had pinned Star had been one such whose attention was stolen by the display, only to be reminded of its situation when a burst of fire so fierce erupted from below from Star and blown it off of her, sending the cur smoking across the open space and falling into a collapsed, smoldering pile at the foot of a tree, unmoving.
The nidorino and tandemaus pair immediately moved to crash upon Star. Lowering its horn, the nidorino's formidable spine began oozing a thick purple sludge from the tip, then running at Star as she recovered off the ground whilst the mice broke apart and moved to attack from her sides.
As the nidorina approached, a barrage of leafage had soon filled its vision as Petal whipped her head at such a speed she had never before, flinging blade after blade in quick succession that tore at the nidorino's hide and forced the mice to scatter behind close tents to avoid the leafy onslaught. "Ooh, no you don't!" Petal laughed as she quickly darted off after one of the tandemaus. In one swift motion, she ducked around one of the tents that one of the small rodents had fallen back to. "I got this one, Blue!" She was much quicker than he had ever seen before.
The nidorino had flinched, clenching its eyes shut as it continued its blind charge towards Star, which she was able to easily leap out of the way as it continued to run beneath her. Unaware of its doomed attack, the nidorino continued until it had slammed into the trunk of a tree, embedding its horn in the wood as sprays of poison splattered outward from the impact. There, it dug its heels into the dirt and reeled back, failing to dislodge itself as it struggled.
Star looked at the humiliating sight with a self-assured smile, but her ears perked once a familiar called out to her.
"Behind you, twerp!" Wimpod shouted.
At once, Star whipped around to see the wartortle once again foaming bubbles at the mouth, its head reeled back. In one motion, it threw its head forward and unleashed another beam of water towards her- though this one was thinner, and clearer than the azure shot it had produced before. Star immediately shot an ember towards the stream that burned intensely beneath the guide of the new sun, vaporizing the weakened shot of water into fine mist as it continued unopposed right onto the wartortle's head, bursting in a small explosion that rang in the air.
The wartortle pitched back, reeling in pain but remained standing on its feet. Star turned towards Felix, her eyes aglow with confidence. "Felix, round up that last tandemaus! I'm sure Petal would appreciate the help!"
"You sure you got this?" he asked in turn.
Star took her eyes off of him and returned her focus onto the wartortle. Throwing its head forward, it now had a charred burn on a cheek of its enraged face. Tucking its limbs into its shell- save for its bristled tail- water erupted out of its armor like exhaust and propelled itself forward, spinning wildly as it careened across the road. Star dropped her body low to the ground and leapt high into the air, evading the attack as it crashed into a stack of crates and sent the boxes scattering across the ground, though the wartortle skidded to a stop a moment after. "I can hold my own!" she shouted, now behind the turtle.
Felix nodded. "Right." He took off towards one of the disheveled tents he had seen the other mouse scamper off to, leaving Star as he heard the crackle of bursts of fire and the slosh of water behind him.
He found himself facing a great number of potential hiding places for the rodent: so many newly fashioned homes, thick bushes, stacks of simple building supplies and countless trees served to obstruct him. He did not know where to even begin looking for the small creature, given that it had ample time to reposition itself in the brief period it was left on its lonesome.
"Second tent to the right!" a familiar voice called to him from on high. Looking up, he could see Wimpod latched underneath a large branch, just visible through the cloak of fall leaves around him. "The rat should be in there. Take care of it."
"Thanks, on it." Wimpod stared briefly at him, no discernable expression present on him before scurrying down the length of the branch and vanishing into the ruby and gold foliage.
Left to his task and now given direction, Felix passed the first tent to his right and continued to the second, slipping in through its loose flap. It was considerably darker inside the small hobble, having to have his eyes adjust somewhat to see. Once his vision settled, he could tell this was one of the many false homes they had created the night before. Nothing lay inside, just a singular box he knew to be empty. Though, that initial belief was contested once he heard a small skitter of a critter within the container.
Kneeling down, he lifted the box and looked down the opened side. Inside, surrounded by a very modest collection of glittering jewelry and silver rings, was the tandemaus, clutching at its ill-gotten gains. "Well, look at you!" Felix chuckled. "What's the little mouse gonna do?" he mocked.
The single tandemaus looked around its cramped surroundings and found a single glass vial amongst its stash. Sparing little time, the mouse grabbed the clear flask and with all the force its small body could muster, smashed the end of the bottle against the side of the box, shattering it. The newly jagged weapon was then pointed at Felix, each of the many cutting edges threatening to cut him should he come any closer, all while the mouse maintained an empty gaze.
Felix simply looked at the sight unamusedly. Using both his hands, he shook the box as quickly as could, sending the mouse bouncing between the walls like a rubber ball. After a moment, he reached inside and pulled out the dazed critter, carrying it by his side as he left back outside.
Back in the intense light, Felix could see both a muddied Star and Petal dancing around an exhausted and filthy wartortle, nimbly evading its desperate attacks in a now thoroughly muddy environment. Pushed to its limits, a pool of water had formed around its feet; its eyes were wide and manic. Just behind them, he saw the nidorino and the other tandemaus writhing on the ground in sudden spasms of their limbs- both paralyzed.
"Oh, Blue!" Petal shouted. In her momentary lapse, the wartortle's tail became cloaked in a watery veil which it then swung towards Petal. She noticed the swing too late, and was struck by a visceral aquatic tail that crashed like a ceaseless wave upon her, sending her tumbling away in a violent roll across the muck.
"Petal!" both Felix and Star shouted.
Star took a deep breath and shot out an ember onto the wartortle, stumbling it back briefly as she went towards Petal's side, helping her up with the push of her snout, only just getting her onto her feet.
Felix saw as the wartortle began winding up an attack from its mouth, beginning to foam once again in preparation for a ranged assault at Star and Petal as they frantically recovered. He was too far away to make the distance and interrupt the blow; he would have to throw something. In a flash of insight, he quickly reached into his bag with his free hand and slung the fruit stored on the very top: one of the strange electric lemons Petal had given him the night before. Quickly dragging the rind of the lemon across the chipped and jagged surface of the metal on his arms, he felt the sharp tinge of an electric current course through him as the emerald juices of the now torn lemon spilled out. In a brisk movement, he slung it. "Heads up!"
The wartortle only saw the improvised projectile for a glance as it sailed across the air, then landing on its shell with a small plop.
A bright green flash instantly engulfed the wartortle; electric currents arced from the wartortle in sharp crackles of energy that locked its body in place from the jolts. After a second of continuous electrification, the light ceased, leaving the wartortle standing there with a blank expression on its face. Then a look of anger.
Summoning the remains of its strength, the wartortle shouted a defiant cry and began one last attack. Turning to Felix, it wrapped its tail in a veil of surging water and sprinted towards him. Felix could only take a step back, grabbing the handle of his shovel in anticipation of the devastating blow as the wartortle came right on top of him, spun around and… dropped to the floor after a sharp smack was heard from behind it.
Looking on the back of its head, he found the cause: one of the blades Petal's leafages had slammed against the back of its head, and now rested on the now unconscious wartortle. Felix caught his breath.
Petal came cautiously closer and examined her work, remaining silent. After a moment, her head spun towards him, a proud spark behind her eyes. "Ha! Did it!"
The prideful look from Petal caught him off-guard. She had always been prideful, of this there was no doubt, but something about seeing her reveling in her accomplishment stirred something within him. Even when she was slightly lurched forward in pain, covered in mud and bruises, she was still boasting. It was rather endearing. A genuine smile was soon coaxed out. "Nice shot, herb."
Petal delivered a small kick with her near-non-existent foot on the head of the collapsed wartortle. Star had taken a moment to shake some of the mud and water on her coat off before joining them. By this time, the light from the sunny orb had already begun fading rapidly, returning the forest to its natural shade.
"Watch it, Blue- this herb's packing some spice!" she beamed.
Felix gave her a brief pat on her muddy shoulder. "Good job."
"There was some nice force behind that one, Petal," Star added. "You're getting stronger. Be proud of that."
"Yeah, well…" Her gaze quickly fell, unable to meet their praise. As her sight looked downward, something dangling in Felix's hand caught her attention. "Blue, you just carrying that dude for show?"
"Hm?" He looked down. In his hand was the tandemaus he had caught just a minute earlier, still in a daze from his simple extraction method. "Oh yeah, him." He gently tossed the mouse onto the ground in front of them, which Petal quickly doused with a small yellow puff of paralyzing powders. "Right- we have any word yet on the others?"
"They're fine," Wimpod answered from behind.
Felix spun around and saw the silver bug crawling down the length of the tree beside him, joining the group. "You know, you could just be a part of the group when we're already talking, and not have to scuttle down here every time you have something to say."
"How are they?" Star asked. "Any injuries?"
"They're just wrapping up now; they've cleaned up nicely from what I've seen," Wimpod answered.
A small grin formed on Felix. They were near the end now. Much-if not all- of the village's assailants had been defeated. All but the one he cared about most. "Everyone up for trying their luck?" Felix asked. "I know of one last target we can go after here."
"Cobb," Star glowered, her ears pulled back. "I'm prepared to engage with him again."
Wimpod's antennas shifted concerningly at her words. "He nearly had your throat, last I recall."
Star shot him a glare. "I'll do better this time."
"Where can we find him?" Felix asked.
"Saw him a ways on the eastern side. He was tearing apart the tent that linoone's kid lived in." Wimpod turned towards the intended direction, which would have them off the cleared roads and cutting through trees and bush. "Ready?"
"Lead the way."
—-
Before long, they had come across a wrecked tent, torn apart by claws and misshapen like a crumpled piece of paper.
In front of that ruined home, was the red lycanroc, holding the clear orb filled with colored shards Felix had seen on their second encounter. The bombirdier was beside him, holding her apron out with her beak. Cobb held the device with a devious grin, transfixed by its sheen, as if knowing something more about it than its intrinsic value. He turned to the bombirdier, tucking the device into the bird's feathery apron. The two exchanged some brief inaudible words, and the bombirdier took flight, leaving into the canopy and out of sight.
A sly chuckle left Cobb as he saw his avian friend steal away the device, but when he turned to leave, that sly grin left him. Four of his least favorite people were standing a ways across from him, each none too pleased. Strangely enough, his focus was largely focused on Petal, staring at her in a certain disappointed disbelief.
He planted his face into the palm of his hand. "Not only did they not find the egghead linoone, but the blasted idiot grabbed the wrong one," he said dryly. Looking back up, his ire was replaced with an oozing vitriol. "How about we skip the whole song and dance, and just let me on my merry way?" he said through pointed teeth. An ember seared across the air and just missed Cobb's body as it soared further away. "I suppose not."
"You've only got one chance to give up, Cobb," Star growled.
"Listen," he sneered, "I'm already running late on a very important business meeting, and prefer not to dally." Cobb pointed a jagged claw at Petal. "And now I've got the mess of sorting out what to do with that shrub's mother."
Petal's fierce look melted down. "What?" she mumbled.
"Suppose that one's on me for not clarifying to those idiots whose who," Cobb said with a shrug.
She looked down at the ground, at a loss for words. "Felix…" she whispered. "He's just lying, right…?"
"Probably," he responded.
"Probably?"
Felix looked towards Wimpod, the small bug looking back. "Check," he whispered. With a short motion, he briskly waved him off. Understanding, Wimpod scurried off, climbing once into a nearby tree and disappearing towards where they had securely moved all the villagers for their safety.
"You better be bluffing, Cobb," Star warned. "We can do this the easy way, or the hard way."
Cobb's jagged finger reached under his chin, scratching it as he humored a thought. "Tempting offer, really. But I think I'll be taking the easy way." His eyes flashed red as he raised his foot and stomped the ground below, bulldozing it and sending tremors beneath Felix, Star, and Petal that knocked them to the ground in the sudden quake. "Listen, I'd love nothing more than the chance to beat the daylights out of you all, believe me!" he chuckled. "But fortunately for you, I'm already far behind schedule and have to get back as soon as I can- business and what-not, I'm sure you understand." He turned to leave, planting his fists onto the ground.
"Oh, you think we're just gonna let you leave?" Felix shouted as he stood back up.
"We've already defeated all your friends, Cobb! I must say, I expected better! All I must look forward to now is dragging you in by the scruff of your neck!" Star taunted.
Cobb let out an exhausted sigh. "Quiet, girl. I wouldn't call them 'friends,' more-so… work associates. Do with them what you'd like- helps to keep my share bigger at the end of the day." Another ember rocketed across the air. Before it could reach Cobb, he had turned and punched the flare with his stone-cold swing, bursting it before it could strike him. Pulling his head back and sucking in a great breath, he howled. The sound was sharp and cruel, almost like a blood-curdling scream, but it remained distinctly monstrous- like a man becoming beast. "But don't worry- I wouldn't dream of leaving you all begging for a good tussle. I'll leave you all in good hands. I trust it won't hurt you all too badly." Digging his front claws into the dirt once more, he took off in a burst of speed, using all four of his limbs to propel himself forward like a misshapen wolf. "So long, chumps!"
"You don't get to leave!" Star shouted as she took off in a chase after him. As she gained ground, something caught her eye ahead that made her skid to a stop- something that Felix could not see from where he was, his sight blocked by thick trunks and tarps. She turned around, sprinting back towards the group.
"What is it?" Felix asked as she returned.
"Why aren't you grabbing him?" Petal frantically asked in turn.
Her eyes remained sharply focused, her ears pulled back, and her fangs visible from the pulled corners of her mouth. "Golett!" she shouted.
That word struck a tinge of fear into him. He had not heard that word for some time, especially because of his time here. Yet the constant drills and tales he had heard of those deplorable machines from overseas had done enough to instill into him the same wariness he felt now. He reached out his hand slowly, as if to make a point. "Are you sure you saw a golett?" As if to answer his question, a sound akin to the rolling of a stubborn stone rumbled from beyond. In that moment, he knew she was telling the truth.
"A golett? What do they look like?" Petal confusedly asked.
From the stretch of trees Star had retreated from, the source of the looming roll finally appeared: a modest sphere, not much bigger than Felix, had rolled into view. It was covered in dark stains of dirt and had patches of moss strewn across its round body- the same way Felix had seen a distant sphere before when Cobb had attacked the convoy.
It came to a stop some distance away. Center on the stone ball, laden between dinged crosses of bronze, was a crest, lightly pulsating on its center in a wondrous, soft glow like a flickering heartbeat. Then it stood. Manufactured limbs shakingly deployed from the itself: first small legs, then a thicker arm, and then its small head. Now that it was closer and fully activated, it could be seen it was missing its right arm, leaving an empty notch of ethereal light in its side where one should have been.
It looked to the frozen group with cold eyes- if the faintly flickering lights at the front of its head could even be called as such. Lifting its one arm, it leveled it at the group, retracting the stone fist and leaving the hole empty. Shadows began to amass in the darkness, forming a dark sphere.
It hollowly beeped, as if suffering.
"Get out of the way, now!" Felix commanded.
A shadow ball launched itself out of the arm like a cannon shot, zipping past the three as they all threw themselves to the side and exploding into a visceral shower of splinters and shrapnel as it blew off a trunk of a tree in a single strike, leaving the towering timber to fall to the earth in a loud crash as it tore open the canopy above on the way down.
"What is that thing!?" Petal shouted in a daze. Before anyone could answer, the golett retracted its limbs once more and rolled into a ball, then launched itself towards her at a blistering speed. She let out a yelp and managed to lurch to the side, evading the attack as the golett smashed into the splintered tree bottom behind her, becoming wedged as it continuously let out weak beeps like an alarm as it tried to unstick itself with sudden twitches.
"That thing is a war machine!" Felix shouted as he picked himself up off the dirt. "Destroy it!"
"R-Right! On it!" Petal got herself closer to the embedded apparatus and threw a cloud of stunning spores onto it as it struggled onto it. "Alright!" she shouted. "I got it paralyzed!" The cloud of yellow spores came to coat the golett like snow on a log in the winter. Yet it did not cease, continuing to writhe. Petal began trembling as it continued to move.
Its arm deployed out of its socket, pointing at the stump that trapped it and began humming with dark energy once more. "Petal! Get out of there!" Felix shouted.
She froze.
The golett shot the stump with a point-blank shadow ball, utterly destroying it and kicking up a fierce dust cloud on itself in a sudden detonation that Petal was caught in.
"Petal!" both Felix and Star cried out. They both moved into the large cloud as fast as they could, and their sight instantly became obscured. They both began coughing as they waded through the debris, trying their best to remain focused on the ground in front of them as they searched for their friend. "You check that way, I've got over here," Felix ordered.
"Right," Star responded with a wheezy breath.
The tumbling of the golett gave away that it had already rolled out of the cloud, but they did not care. Keeping his eyes on the ruined earth below him, Felix soon came across Petal. She was lying face down and covered in cuts from the chips blown off the stump. And she was not moving.
"Found her over here!" Felix shouted to Star, who was somewhere in the cloud. He reached down and picked her up, holding her close to his chest as he began moving out of the cloud.
"Get her to someplace safe!" Star shouted back, still not seen.
"Already on it! You keep that thing busy, I'll be right back!" He exited out of the storm of dust, and took in a lungful of fresh air. Looking around, he spied a tree amidst a cluster a ways away. Hurrying over and looping behind, he placed Petal gently down against its base and looked her over. Just as he suspected- though still to his relief- she was just unconscious. "Come on, wake up," he muttered as he tapped the side of her head. Her closed eyes stirred a little, but she otherwise did not respond. He sighed.
The familiar sound of Wimpod scuttling above forced his attention up, and sure enough, there he was. Wimpod looked down with mouth agape, his attention focused on Petal below. "I heard the commotion. What happened to her?" he asked.
"Got too close to a shadow ball attack a golett used," he responded.
"A golett?" Wimpod repeated after coming down. "What's a golett doing here? Those things should've all been decommissioned!"
"You say that as if they still aren't making the darn things. Last I checked, those scum-sucking Unovians were still producing them as fast as they could," Felix lamented. Looking back at Petal, he rested his hand on her shoulder briefly, then stood back up. "You stay here with her, try and wake her up. I need to get back to Star."
Wimpod looked defiantly back at him, then to Petal. He grumbled to himself, but then looked back to Felix and nodded.
Knowing Petal would be looked after, Felix ran back towards the lively commotion.
Ahead, he saw Star exhausting fireball after fireball at the golett, each slamming against its stone shell with cracks of flame, yet it only just stumbled back after each attack. Whipping its arm out, the machine thrusted its arm into the earth beneath itself. The golett let out a terrible whirring noise, growing in pitch as the light within itself began to grow in intensity, then flowing to its arm and into the earth as cracks began to form below. With one final push, the golett sent that energy into the earth below, sending the cracks snaking underneath Star at tremendous speed. Before she could react, the earth below her split and poured out light, then blowing out with mighty power that sent her flying back in the attack as she cried out, crashing into a stack of wooden boxes that collapsed on top of her.
"Star!" Felix swung his attention back onto the golett as it pulled its arm out from the earth. In a desperate move, he pulled out another of those strange lemons and tore open the skin the same way he had before, feeling once more the tinge of electricity. He threw it onto the golett, creating another lightshow as the juices of the torn fruit splashed out onto the drone. Once the flashes of electricity settled, he was surprised to see that the golett remained upright, not having been affected at all by the shocks.
Tucking in its head and limbs, it began to roll out towards him, tearing across the newly upheaved dirt, to which Felix evaded. Undeterred, the golett's arm shot out as it continued rolling, planting its hand into the ground which allowed it to swing its momentum back around and towards Felix once more. This one came at him faster than the last one, and he knew he could not dodge it. In a desperate attempt to protect himself, Felix grabbed the shovel tucked at his side and held it in front of himself, and braced. The rolling stone crashed right through him, splintering the already broken shovel into many pieces and bent metal that flew around Felix as he himself was knocked to the ground in heavy pain.
Looking up while he lay prone, trying to catch his breath through a chest in turmoil, he saw the golett stop and redeploy near him. Its head locked onto him, and it began to march, raising its one arm with a fist cloaked in shadow. Right by his head was the metal head of the shovel, now bent and completely missing the handle, but still serviceable for what it needed to do at this moment. Grabbing it, he stood up just in time to avoid his head getting smashed by the golett as it thrusted its fist down onto the earth where he was a second ago.
Grabbing the spade with both his hands, he raised it above himself and slammed the edge of the metal into the front of the golett's head, embedding it deeply into the machine as its lights began to flicker widely and its beeps sputtered.
Felix stepped back, taking deep breaths as the machine began twitching whilst remaining upright, the golett looking down at the ground emptily.
Its split head then twisted to him.
Throwing out its arm, it grabbed Felix by the throat and slammed him to the ground, pressing the full force of its weight onto him as he struggled with all his might to gain some sort of leverage, some sort of way to get it off him. That struggle turned to desperation as his arms wrangled around the golett's own and could find a way to get it to stop, strangling him longer and longer. The golett's cold stare was all he could see.
Just as the golett leaned in further, a bright flash of fire boomed across its back, showering Felix with warmth as the golett stood back with him still in its grasp, and looked to a battered and disheveled Star leering it down. She readied another ember in her mouth, but before she could shoot, the golett twisted its body and held Felix between itself and her, forcing her to smolder the attack into smoke.
She darted at the pair, whilst the machine kept Felix positioned between the two. Star swung her body around to have her tails fanned between herself and the golett, effectively blocking its sight of her movements behind the impromptu curtain as she suddenly spun back around and beside Felix, her head cloaked in darkness as she headbutted the golett's body with a sinister smack. Caught in surprise by the feint attack, the golett stumbled back and released Felix, dropping him to the ground in a coughing fit.
"Stand up, Felix!" she shouted. "Stand and fight by my side!"
"We're not done yet!" A green blade soared across the air, striking the golett with a satisfying crack. Looking over to where the attack had come from, there was Petal, standing back up though still wincing with pain. She hurried over to the teetering machine and together with Star, threw their bodies on top of it, about to topple it over.
As it looked down at the two as they struggled to push it over, the golett raised its arm. As it pulled its fist back, Wimpod dropped down from the tree branches above onto its arm, pushing it down with his sudden weight. "Put your backs into it!" he shouted.
The machine teetered, pushed to the absolute limit of its balance. Scrambling back up, Felix joined their efforts and planted his hands against the wavering golett, pushing with all his might alongside Star and Petal and they all heaved in one final effort, finally toppling the stone drone with a satisfying thud as it crashed to the earth.
Giving it no opportunity to recover, Star's fangs glowed fire-red as she clamped down onto one of its legs, searing it as smoke rose from the limb. Petal herself grabbed hold of the other leg with the splay of her leaves, wrestling for control as the golett began wildly beeping and flailing its limbs. Wimpod remained firmly attached to its arm, unable to be thrown off.
"Come on, Blue!" Petal yelled as she fought to keep the golett still. "Take it out already!"
Felix scrambled on top of the writhing robot and grabbed the spade embedded in its head. Pulling with all his strength, he pulled out the metal and then thrust back into the machine's face.
Over.
And over.
And over again.
Chips of stone were sent flying, and the frantic hollow beeps that filled the air soon stopped, as did the spastic movements of its body.
—-
A fair amount of time had passed, allowing for a sunset to come.
Felix sat against the trunk of a tree, watching as the trinkle of villagers entered back into the village. Though he was not as comfortable as he would like. Pechi, the shuckle nurse he had met on his first night, had her tentacles wrapping some bandages on his wounds after applying some gauze. He was still repulsed by the sight of her limbs, but had grown a bit more tolerant of them treating him after his last couple of visits.
There was going to be a lengthy clean up. Though much of the true tents that the pokemon who lived here resided in were untouched- thanks to the false ones- that did not stop the destruction and strewn items and cloth from being tossed into the streets, not to mention the many spots of battle that had taken place between his group and the one Fawna and Jeral led. Then there was the issue of waiting for a detachment of authority to arrive and retrieve the swath of criminals they had tied up.
"That should do it," Pechi murmured as she wrapped the last roll of bandage around his chest. She looked out to the trickling in of residents. Her eyes were caught on the younger ones, such as a weedle and taillow, as they gawked at the mess around them. "It's terrible the kids had to experience this," she sighed. Her attention then turned towards the briar, still flaming brightly above. "But at the very least, I'm glad we know we're safe now. Really, thank you for this, and extend my thanks to the others- even that wimpod."
"Weren't nothing," Felix grumbled as he got up.
"I need to get back to the others, see how they're faring," Pechi explained as she retracted the rolls of bandages and bottles of gauze into her shell. "Those wounds should heal very quickly. I used gauze dipped in a solution utilizing an oran base. Not cheap stuff. You should be feeling better very soon."
As she had said, much of his pain had already began subsiding under the effects of her treatment. "Thanks." She gave him a final nod and dragged herself away, towards the village center.
When she had left, he saw a group coming towards him: Star, Petal, and Wimpod, as well as Fawna and Jeral as they escorted the tyrogue from earlier, his hands bound in rope. Star and Petal both were covered in bandages as he was. Star had wraps across her chest and front leg, whilst Petal's body was mostly bandaged, as well as some of her head. A forlorn, worried expression was painted clearly across Petal's face. "Was it true?" Felix asked as he approached them.
"I wouldn't have gotten them to drag this sorry sap over if it weren't," Star said as she pointed her snout at the cowering tyrogue.
"Just have him tell us where they took my mom!" Petal suddenly shouted, on the verge of tears.
Jeral struck the tyrogue in his stomach, earning a cough from the pathetic sight as he dropped to his knees. "That's the plan, little lady."
Star leapt up and planted her front paws on the shoulders of the tyrogue, leaning in close with fiery breath. "Where?" she angrily asked. "Where did they take the lilligant?"
"I'll… I'll show you guys! Just please let me go!" the tyrogue tearfully replied.
The tyrogue felt a disturbing tingly sensation on his back, which tickled closer to his head. "And why should we believe that?" Wimpod asked from behind his head.
"You just gotta believe me! I don't care what happens to Cobb! It's everyone for themselves in this world! Please, if you promise to let me go, I'll take you right to him!"
"Where?" Star asked again, her teeth dangerously close to his face. "Where did Cobb take her?"
"Rip Rapids!" the tyrogue shouted as he turned his head away. "He's holed up in a cave at the end of the currents! We have a whole operation set-up from all the stuff we find in those distortions!"
"Rip Rapids?" Felix repeated. The name was familiar. "Hey, isn't that…?"
"That's the dungeon you and I first went to- our first mission together," Star said. She leered back into the tyrogue's watery eyes. "There's a dozen currents in that area at least, which one is he at the end at?"
"I- I'll show you! Please, just say you'll let me go!" he begged.
"Why would we ever let someone like you go!?" Petal burst out once more. "You'll be lucky if you aren't too banged up by the time the attendants get here!"
"Please! Cobb's not a patient guy! There's no telling what he'll do to her if you guys take too long! Cobb doesn't like additional baggage…" he whimpered.
Petal's eyes trembled.
Jeral raised a fist and brought it down against the top of the tyrogue's head. "Don't try lying to weasel your way out of this!" Jeral growled.
The tyrogue cowered, closing his eyes firmly as his lips trembled. "It's true! You guys don't have a lot of time! Let me just show you the way, then turn me loose! You'll never see me again!"
"I…" Petal whimpered, her head towards the ground. She suddenly looked up, tearful. "Let's just let him take us already! We don't have a lot of time!"
"Petal!" Star responded. Petal looked down sorrowfully. "I know this is a lot for you right now- trust me, I understand. But we can't trust him! He'll just lead us on and try making a break for it when he sees the chance!" Star drew her head closer to the cowering tyrogue, a low growl rumbling out her mouth.
"Let's take him," Felix suddenly stated.
Everyone looked at him in varying states of surprise.
Everyone but Petal, who looked alleviated.
"The coward there's right," he said while pointing at the tyrogue. "We've been here too long already, and we'll spend even longer looking for the right current. That's time we don't have. If he's telling the truth, we let him go."
Star looked between him and the tyrogue. Relenting, she pulled herself off of him, but maintained her leer on him. "Very well." The tyrogue let out a sigh of relief. Star immediately bared her teeth at the tyrogue, making it jump in fright. "But if you dare lie to us, I'll singe the bottoms of your feet so that'll never walk again." She leaned in closer. "Understood?"
"Y-Yeah! I'll take you right to him! No funny business!" the tyrogue whimpered.
Felix walked up to the tyrogue and grabbed the rope that bound his hands, pulling him forward and pushing in the direction of the village's exit. "Then we leave now."
"Now?" Fawna asked. "Cobb's serious business. Want me and Jeral to come along?"
"No, stay here," Felix ordered as he continued pushing the tyrogue forward until his legs would stop buckling. Star, Petal, and Wimpod followed behind.
Fawna's face grew concerned. "Why not?"
"We appreciate the offer, we really do," Star responded as she looked back. "But you two should stay here and make sure none of our rogue's gallery cause any trouble. Can you do that?"
Fawna did not respond, instead looking away.
"For me?"
"...We'll keep everyone safe. I promise."
Star smiled fondly at Fawna, a gesture which she returned, but both their expressions dampened after a moment.
"Come on," Felix ordered. The tyrogue had begun picking up his pace, finally letting the group travel at a more reasonable speed. Star returned to his side, looking back one last time at Fawna. "This hunt's gone on long enough," he commented. "But we end things tonight!"
Whilst they traveled the road together, Petal came closer to his side.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Soon, they had passed beneath the village's archway; past the paper lanterns and familiar golden leaves of the village, leaving the light of its briar.
And into the young night.