Chapter 25: Welcoming Silence
Lumi dreamt that he had created a brand new wand. He named it the Quake Wand, because it caused earthquakes when you waved it, and he had a big smile on his face as he demonstrated it right in the center of the Dynamo Branch.
Of course, dream Damia was not at all pleased that he had effectively destroyed a portion of her Branch with a localized earthquake, and throttled him by the neck. His tongue lolled as he got shaken back and forth by the angry dragon.
That must have explained why, when he sensed the earth below him shake with violent vibrations, and opened his eyes to Damia, who yelled and shook him awake, it took him just a few extra seconds longer to register that the earthquake was not, in fact, a dream.
"Rise and grind, danger cat! It's time to move!" she roared in his face. Lumi blinked rapidly and stepped away from her. He tried to amble towards the doorway of their tent shelter, and tripped a couple times over the slowly awakening members of their team. He stumbled past the tent flap and blinked away the last traces of sleep as the early morning air hit his nose.
Outside, the earthquake became even more apparent, and the mountain landing they had made camp on shook so hard he fell to his paws. A sound like groaning stone emanated all around the mountain. When he looked up, he saw his parents with their backs turned to him, overlooking the cliff towards the horizon. He struggled to make his way over towards them. Somehow, they both managed to keep their footing despite the cacophonous quake.
He called for their attention when he finally crawled next to them, and Clement made a sound of alarm and hoisted him up by the shoulder to hold him steady as the ground shook. With his new vantage point, Lumi could overlook the rest of the land to see what was going on.
His heart spiked.
The gargantuan oak of Hollow Garden in the distance dominated his field of view. Its canopy of ivory stone leaves, hundreds of meters in length, were blotched with patches of purple, and a haze of deep pinks emanated from its bows to wisp over the forest in the wind. Its wide branches cast a dark shadow over the forest below, and that purple fog seeped down its trunk and blanketed the stone grove.
The ground below and the land beyond continued to quake, and he could only attempt to stand and watch the Dungeon destabilize before his eyes. The earth shook for ten more minutes, long enough for the others to come up behind them and watch as well. When the quake finally died down, a tense silence remained, so heavy with tension that it felt like the earth would split if someone spoke.
The aether below continued to spread.
Lumi saw this, remembered his mission, and reminded himself that his destination resided inside of that horrible natural disaster waiting to happen.
Arceus, he couldn't wait.
He nodded, turned, and locked eyes with each member of his team.
"Let's break camp and get down there!" He didn't wait for their response before he rushed past and began to put things away. His mind worked just as quick as his paws.
Wasn't this too soon? Hollow Garden had been perfectly stable yesterday (albeit, unnervingly strange), and yet it had become volatile in only a day. That meant a Dungeon they hadn't even heard of had its keystone targeted very recently, but that shouldn't have been possible so soon...
Perhaps the more Dungeons that began to spread, the less time it took for more to become vulnerable in a region. He furrowed his brow at the thought. How could they prevent this from getting this bad in the future? They had worked so hard to try and defend those Dungeons in the beginning, yet it all seemed to not matter in the end; their enemies simply moved faster than them.
No matter what, he had to get to the Keystone and pause it. He didn't know if they would have a Bright Continent anymore if they failed.
"You were hyped a couple minutes ago, why the frown?" Van's voice shook him from his thoughts, and his hand clamped on his shoulder. Lumi glanced up from unfolding their tent and grinned.
"Thought I would try something new, and think something through for once. Not as fun as people make it out to be, surprisingly."
"Hey, you're doing better than me on that." Van glanced out at the tree and rubbed his mohawk down. He gave a shaky breath. "It just now hit me what it is we're actually gonna be doing. And to be real, it's, uh, sorta looking out of my league..."
"Like Damia?"
"Shut up, mon." Van shoved him and chuckled. "You flirted with a literal assassin. I'm not the only one punching above my weight class."
"First of all, we don't know if she's an assassin. And second, I wasn't flirting, I was just being nice. That's it."
"Uh-huh."
"I'm serious, that's all it was!"
"Yeah, aight." Van picked up a bottle and mimed quenching his thirst. Lumi took offense and did the same thing back at him.
"Hey, boys," cut in Damia's voice. They froze. "What the hell are you two doing? Finish packing up, and stop being weird." She muttered that last bit.
She walked off to go pack the other tent. Lumi watched her go, and gestured at her with a flourish of a paw.
"Your queen~" crooned Lumi. He laughed when Van pulled him in a quick headlock for a second before they returned to their task.
Once all traces of the camp had been removed, they considered the quickest way to get down. As he thought, Lumi let out a surprised mewl as Damia plucked him from the ground and held him against her chest with a claw. She did the same for Clara and Van, and held the three of them together like stuffed animals. She crouched low and allowed Clement and Opal to find a spot along her back while avoiding her wings.
She walked to the edge of the cliff and flared them out. Van squirmed and looked everywhere but the ground, and Clara kicked her feet in anticipation. Lumi had an excited smile too, but glanced up at Damia.
"Are you sure you're okay to carry us like this? It's fine if you're sore from yesterday."
"Don't be ridiculous, that was just a light workout. We could have carried that boulder at least the whole Dungeon, easy."
"Aw, did you hear that guys? She said we!" cheered Clara. "I think she's starting to like us!"
"Clara, I already like-" she huffed and rolled her eyes. "Whatever..."
"Damia, set us down at the entrance of the forest, there." Clement hoisted himself next to her head and pointed at the edge of the forest, where the haze was most thin. "I don't want to land in the middle of where it's thickest. Let's take this slow, for now."
Damia nodded, and jumped off of the cliff. Her body leveled out as she caught an easy glide on the way down. Butterflies danced in Lumi's stomach, but not from the weightless glide. The alabaster forest grew larger as she coasted down, and even from above, the air tingled with the electric sensation of aether on one's skin.
She touched down on the rough ground a few moments later, right at the forest edge. Everyone hopped off and faced the tree line. From this close, they could see a light haze obscure the trees further in, which made it difficult to see very far past. Opal stepped in front and called out.
"Alright, so to reiterate: Our goal is to get Lumi through this Dungeon, which has become thrown all out of whack, and have him get close to something called a Keystone, which will solve this whole mess. I get that right?"
"Pretty much, mom."
"Alright, great..." she glanced back at Clement and forced a grin. "Just a slightly complicated escort mission. That's all this is, we did tons of those. This will be cake."
"Keep that same energy, dear," he commented as he started to stretch. "Based on what you all have said, once we step in, it will be something even we haven't seen. Are we all prepared?"
He looked back at Clara.
"Have we all used the bathroom?"
"C-c'mon!" She blushed as the others snickered around her. She pouted for a bit, before she seemed to realize something.
"Oh, wait! Before we go, we should call the guild and let them know."
Everyone agreed, so she fished out an Echo Orb and called Pandora. It rang for a bit longer than usual, until the Whimsicott picked up. They all came closer to listen.
"Hello? Team Nova? Nimbus? Are you alright?" she sounded concerned.
"Hiiii Dora! We're fine, just wanted to let you know that we're about to enter the Leyline thingy."
They line went silent, and when Pandora spoke again, her normally rich voice had a faint tremble to it.
"...Hollow Garden? Has it become volatile? Is that what caused that earthquake?"
"The earthquake? You felt that all the way down south in Verdant?" asked Damia.
"Yes dear, it shook the whole guild for a good bit! And it wasn't just the guild, the whole town was shaking, from what I understand. I wouldn't be surprised if it was felt all over the continent."
That bit of news gave everyone pause. The whole Bright continent? Just how massive was this Dungeon?
"No other Dungeon we've been to has ever had that kind of reaction," murmured Van. "Hell, we don't even know if the inside will look like anything we're familiar with, and it's not like we know the most about Leylines anyway..."
"Then we can call this a research expedition." Lumi grinned and took the orb from Clara. "Pandora, while we make our way to pause the Keystone, we'll make sure to make notes of everything we see for the guild. With all the unknowns, we'll need to learn as much as we can if we want to deal with Leylines in the future, and to inform the other guilds."
"That's all well and good Lumi, but heed your own words. There are a lot of unknowns with this little 'expedition,' so all of you will prioritize your own safety over anything else. Am I understood?"
"You can be sure that the moment things get too out of hand, we're using an escape orb," asserted Clement. Lumi made to object, but the Mawile shut him down with a hard look. "I'll be the one to make that call."
"Marvelous, thank you." She tutted, and they could feel the heavy sigh she took on the other end. "More than anything, I wish I could be there with you, but unfortunately I am quite occupied here at home."
"How are things back there? Is my branch still in one piece?" asked Damia.
"I assure you, Purl has done an adamant job ensuring tha-"
"Wait, Purl? You put Purl in charge of my-" Damia sucked in a breath, and pinched her snout.
"...If I find even a speck of pink in my office, there will be blood."
"Hah! I will be sure to relay that message."
"Please do," affirmed Damia. "Is there anything else we should know about?"
"Ah...Nothing to worry yourselves with. Just be sure you all return safely. Please." A chorus of affirmatives answered her. "Excellent. I wish you all the best of luck and wonderful discoveries on your mission. Always searching-"
"Never lost!" cheered all of the apprentices. After a final farewell, they cut the line, and returned the orb to the bag.
"Hey, did she sound kinda...off to anyone?" wondered Van.
"I'm sure she's just worried about us," said Clara. "Exploring this kind of thing is wild enough to put even the Mienshao Guild to shame. Let's be sure to pay attention to everything in there, so we can give her and Vert a good report when we get back."
"Yeah, research, reports, science and all that jazz. Now, are we done stalling?" asked Opal, who faced the treeline. She paced back and forth, and her ears flicked in agitation. "I'm getting antsy just standing here."
"I'm ready when you are," said Lumi, who strolled to the front. Clement grabbed him by the shoulder, and pulled the Meowstic right behind him. Opal came up next to her mate, and they made a silent agreement to take point.
"Here's how this will go." The Mawile began to issue orders. "Everyone stay close, make sure you are within eye and earshot at all times. Damia, you watch our rear. Van and Clara will take the wings. Lumi, stay in the center, and by Arceus if you step out of formation, I will carry you in my jaws."
"The...jaws?" For a brief moment, a shiver of fear struck Lumi's normally calm eyes.
He hadn't been threatened with the jaws in years. Didn't need to be, after the first few times.
"You're uh...you're not actually serious about that, right?" he questioned. Clement turned, and with one look, instantly transported Lumi to childhood memories when he got caught trying to sneak out of the house after getting grounded.
"Try me and find out, son."
"...I'll just be in the middle..."
"Good idea, son." Clement kept his eyes on Lumi until he had adequately positioned himself. He nodded when satisfied, and looked over the group at large. After a few seconds of deliberation, he took his bag and fished around until he pulled out a dull brown band. He slipped his hand through it.
"Feel free to take out your personal weapons as well," he said. "I'm trusting you know how and when to use them."
Van, Clara, and Lumi were quick to celebrate, and began to dig in their bags for their own items. Lumi had his Amp Orbs set to orbit around him in record time, but he paused when he saw the spikes Van held. In one claw he held his Seeker Spike, with the yellow line down its metal center, but in the other he held a new spike; the one with the engravings that he had shown Lumi a couple nights ago.
Van noticed his curiosity and winked. Lumi couldn't wait to see what they did.
Once everyone seemed finally ready, they all faced the treeline once more with renewed purpose. The world seemed quieter next to the stone trees; unnervingly so. Any ambient noise seemed to be sucked into silence within, and the thin haze of Aether that emanated within cast a stark contrast to the almost pure white trees.
None of them had seen anything like this before, but that didn't matter. They were ready, as much as they would ever be.
"...Let's go," stated Clement, and took the first steps forward. Everyone followed.
The crunch of rough, sandy ground gave way to hard clacks as their feet crossed the border. They passed by the formations of quartz that resembled pine trees, and the clack of their feet on the marble ground echoed all around them. The sound only heightened the sense of silence within.
Lumi found it difficult to adjust to the terrain; he often tripped over sticks or upturned roots without being able to tell them from the ground. Pale roots blended into the alabaster forest floor, the environment a challenge to distinguish from itself. White dominated their surroundings. A dull, silvery white that made it difficult to tell how far they had actually gone, and only interrupted by the shadow cast by the sunlight that streamed through stone leaves up above.
Only the light purple haze interrupted the monotony of color.
That electric sensation grew stronger as the air became heavier with aether. Every breath he took sent his nerves on edge, and as he glanced to the sides, he could see the difference on his companion's faces.
Clara's normally cheerful expression had softened into a reserved alertness, her eye swirls set in a slow rotation as she turned her head to absorb everything around them. Van's teeth were clenched, and he took deep breaths in a clear attempt to calm himself. Lumi didn't hesitate to walk a bit closer to him as they continued deeper into the forest.
They kept a steady pace for the next half hour, their course set for the massive tree they knew stood in the center of the forest. Up until now, every Dungeon had had a specific entry point, so it seemed logical that the gargantuan tree served as this one's, with the forest around it merely the result of warped aether spillage.
This theory shattered after the tree failed to present itself.
"...We've been going for a while," murmured Lumi, the first words since they stepped in. "I feel like we should have seen it by now."
"Be patient, we'll get there soon enough," assured Clement, who took cautious steps forward. "If we just keep going straight, we'll reach the entrance. It looked closer from high above, that's all," he reasoned. This seemed logical enough, so everyone continued.
After another ten or so minutes, the haze that permeated throughout the forest lessened, until it seemed to dissipate entirely. In its place, a light gray fog settled around them, thick enough to obscure sight further ahead. Lumi made a mental note, but chose not to comment on it.
Clara spoke next.
"Hey guys? Does anyone else think the trees are getting a little...bigger?" she wondered. Sure enough, Lumi had to crane his neck a bit higher than before to see the tops of the stone trees. Before, the trees only reached about eight feet tall, only a bit taller than Damia. Now, the treeline had seemed to elevate above them without their noticing, canopies upwards of twenty feet, and trunks thicker.
They all stopped and looked up to confirm. Their breaths bounced off of the stone facsimiles of nature and echoed around them. Lumi clutched one of his tails and breathed out. For some reason, as he looked around their surroundings, he had the strong sense of being exposed.
Did...did the branches always bend that way? Was the fog getting thicker?
"...Damia, how we looking back there? Did you notice anything strange on the way?" asked Opal, who glanced up and around with a frown.
No response.
"Damia, I asked-"
"D-Damia? Where are you!?" yelled Clara. Her voice jolted everyone else into alertness, and they all whipped around the small clearing they had found themselves in.
Nobody saw Damia.
Clara had her paws to her cheeks, and yelled herself hoarse trying to look for her Partner. She ran further back, staff in paw as she bounced from tree to tree to look.
"No...Clara, stay close!" Opal yelled and bounded over to chase after her.
"How did...but she was right with us!" Clara slid and stumbled a little bit as her pace made her slide on the rough stone, before she sprinted behind a tree.
Opal cursed and ran to go get her, but stopped on a dime. Her tail went ramrod straight, and she backed away slowly. Her eyes bounced around the forest, disturbed.
"What's the matter?" asked Clement. Opal huffed, and shook her head in confusion. The two boys traded uneasy glances.
"Where did she...Rollcall Orb. Now," she ordered, and stalked slowly around the trees, ears folded back.
Lumi nodded, and almost ripped his bag off to try and dig in. They had prepared and divvied up a solid amount of supplies, so it shouldn't-
"What?" he said aloud. His paws didn't grip anything in the bag. He turned it over and shook it out, only to receive nothing.
"I...but I swear I packed last night!" he exclaimed, eyes wide. As he dug further in a futile attempt, he heard Van curse loudly next to him, and saw that he too had an empty bag.
"Alright, what kind of silly bullshit is this!?" groaned the Scrafty. He punched the ground in frustration, and yelled in pain since the ground was made of literal stone. "Aagh! Where the hell are our items!?"
"Boys, stay calm. This is..." Clement's assurance petered off as he looked ahead where Opal stood.
Or, used to stand.
"Opal? Opal!" He called out, and turned in a circle. Not a speck of pink anywhere amongst the white trees. Lumi got up and put his paws to his mouth.
"Mom! Where are you?" He called out. He stepped forward to look for her, but got yanked back and held up against his father. Clement did the same with Van, and held them both tightly to him. Van shook his head slowly and murmured to himself.
"What the hell...what the hell...where..."
"Stay calm. It's okay. We'll be okay." Clement spoke softly, and guided Van's gaze from their surroundings to look him in the eyes. The Scrafty's breaths were deep and uneven, and his claws clutched his spikes with an iron grip.
"Look at me. Breathe, it's fine," said Clement, and he slowly began to walk with them to where Opal and Clara used to be. "Think. Have you read anything about this? Is this Dungeon behavior something you all have studied?"
"Nah...nah, this is..." Van swallowed and sucked in a breath. "Even Dungeons that became volatile and started to spread never did anything like this..."
They stayed no further than a foot apart from each other, and slowly cast their eyes around for any sign of the missing girls. As he looked, Lumi registered that the fog dwelled at the edges of their vision, both around and above them. The sun must have left them long ago, because when he looked up, he could only see the bodies of the trees disappear into the silver mist above.
"The Dungeon is doing something. It has to be," asserted Lumi. "It's separating us somehow. Mom and the girls didn't just walk off."
"Then we'll find them. Together. If we stay close, it won't-"
A sound like clattering rocks interrupted them. They went perfectly still as something cracked around them, but they couldn't see, and converged back-to-back to try and assess what was wrong.
The ground shifted with the sound of marble grinding on stone, and jolted them away from each other. Lumi landed on his stomach, and turned just in time to witness something that took him a few moments to understand.
From the earth, a wall of marble roots and branches broke through the ground. Flecks of marble flaked off as they surged up from the ground
And Van laid on the other side, eyes wide. Lumi didn't even get a chance to yell out before the wall of roots cut him off completely. He ran forward but got yanked back once again by his father.
"Let go! Van is-"
"Lumi, we have to move. NOW!" Clement yelled back.
Before he could say anything, Lumi's ears flicked at the sound of more cracks, and the floor rumbled once again. He looked down, and more roots began to break through and shoot up around them. He only got a second to look before Clement pulled him back by his paw, and they ran.
Tree after tree raced by them as they sprinted through the forest, now so impossibly tall that not even their branches could be seen. The fog had become so thick that they could only see a few meters ahead.
Lumi sprinted on all fours, thankful that he had the presence of mind to keep his psychic hold on his Amp Orbs during this insanity. Clement raced forward, head low, with a determined gait, and leapt to the sides to avoid oncoming trees with a grace that Lumi had never seen before.
Pain. A second from now, along his right.
Lumi heeded his senses warning, and veered left just in time to avoid a wall of thorns that shot up next to him. Clement came closer too. Stone bristles and roots grew and twisted alongside them. As if they truly were living roots, the wall of oncoming stone plantlife twisted and churned in an effort to overtake them.
They had no destination, no end in sight, and the fog grew ever thicker. Lumi's breaths came out in gasps, and the fur on the top of his head billowed as he ran. Adrenaline staved the exhaustion off, but it wouldn't last forever.
"Dad, what do we do!?" he yelled, unable to think of a way out.
"Just...just stay close! Stay with me, I'm here, I'm right-"
His voice cut out.
Lumi glanced over. His pupils dilated.
His father no longer ran next to him. There were just more trees. He called out, but at this point, he knew it was in vain.
The roots began to close in on both sides. Warnings flashed in his head as he struggled to stay in the center, only a few feet ahead of the oncoming wall behind him. No thoughts came to him, no sudden plan or bout of inspiration to escape. His empty bag that fluttered behind him stood as a stark reminder of his lack of options.
The roots pressed closer. He pushed himself, pushed so hard to try and eek out some distance. The sliver of light in front of him started to close as his room to maneuver became more narrow.
He tripped over a stray root.
His legs scrambled to right himself, but he slowed down too much. The wall of roots overtook him. His legs got caught. He yowled as it snagged his tail. The roots coiled around his arms, and one wrapped around his mouth. He hung in silent shock.
His bindings tightened enough to pull him deeper within the mass of stone brambles. Darkness completely surrounded him as he got closed in, yet he could still sense movement.
Movement. He was being moved. Transported, possibly, where his family and friends got taken.
The thought gave him just enough peace of mind for him to regain himself. He would stay calm. Of course he would, things would be okay, he just knew it. Slowly, he forced his shaking paws to settle and his panicked breaths to slow, and resisted the urge to fight the bindings of his horrible, cramped prison.
He closed his eyes and went slack. Right now, the Dungeon had control, not him. Fair enough. The best he could do is conserve energy and go with the flow.
For an untold amount of time, he beared the awkward rumbles and twists of the moving roots. His bindings were firm, but didn't crush him completely. The stray thought of the way Willow would grab people to inspect them fluttered through his head, and he managed a laugh even through this.
He still owed her a round of testing. Well, at least he had that to look forward to.
The strange form of transport eventually slowed, and he felt hung in a weightless limbo before his bindings began to push him upwards. The stone around him started to crumble, and light broke above him. Marble branches lifted him up, and they became less tight. The Meowstic had to shield his eyes from the influx of light that grew stronger as he ascended.
The roots and brambles deposited him onto the ground, and he heard them retread as he blinked his eyes. He pushed himself to his feet, and got his bearings as he admired his surroundings.
He was still in a white forest, although it seemed...fuller. More lush plant life (if he could call it that) occupied his vision; thick bushes coated the forest floor around him, and pale flowers grew on their boughs and from the crumbling soil underfoot. He reached down and cupped one of them, and marveled at how the petals were smooth to the touch, and yet rigid as marble. If he didn't know better, he would think that every object around him were some beautiful art exhibit; the level of detail on every surface in this forest resembled the real thing to an uncanny degree.
After some observation, he realized he had been dropped along a path that wound through the forest, one that cut through the trees and bushes. Curious, and always better at thinking on the move, Lumi began to walk forward.
He took stock of his situation as he continued. No items in his bag, although his Amp Orbs remained in his possession, still floating around him. No food, and the thought made him put a paw on his stomach as it rumbled. He cursed inwardly at his own impulsiveness; nobody ate breakfast before they entered. That would need to be a priority soon, if there were even any food to find in this place.
And of course, nobody else. They would need to be found, and soon. He put his arms behind his head and huffed on his stroll. Getting to the Keystone would have to be put on the backburner for now. Getting everyone safe was the highest priority. He would need to get the lay of the land to figure out how to do that.
The path tilted up in an incline, and he saw light stream through a group of trees at the top of the hill. He crested it after some exertion, and once he got to the top, finally got a wide view of the forest beyond.
His jaw dropped.
A sprawling woodland expanse of white, one that stretched further than the horizon, greeted him. It stretched wider than he could see, free and open like a real forest, with rolling hills and even a river in the distance that snaked through the wooded areas.
In the very center, by far the most important feature of this place, stood a gargantuan oak, much like outside, only larger. Roots, miles wide and thicker than houses, sprouted from its base and made their way throughout the whole expanse.
And all at once, it hit him. He leaned against the trunk and let out a shaky laugh. This was the Dungeon. There were no floors.
They had entered it.
Leyline: Hollow Garden
Pandora had gone into damage control mode as soon as the earthquake hit. With Vert out of commission for now, it fell to her to be the source of stability and leadership within the guild, a role she had become quite familiar with.
Her instinct told her to visit Dynamo first. She waved Purl down as he helped pick up many of the scattered materials and testing supplies that had crashed onto the floor around the proto dungeons. The other apprentices continued to pick up the mess while she pulled him to the side of the long room.
"Alright Purl, status report," asked Pandora, her little book already out and ready to jot down any pertinent information.
"Oh Dora, it's horrible! Monstrous! Unbelievable!" cried the Sylveon, who put a paw to his forehead in dramatic fashion. Pandora paused and looked at him with a raised brow.
"Dear, what happened? Did someone get injured?"
"No! Worse!" With a whimper, Purl reached a feeler back and pulled open the flap to Damia's office.
"My redecorating! All ruined!"
Pandora glanced inside. Damia's normally barren, minimalistic office had gotten a total makeover. Her walls had been halfway painted with still drying coats of purple and orange, ribbons attached to the ceiling were drooped to the floor, and several decorated lamps lay shattered on the deep purple shag carpet.
"...When did you have time to install carpet?" asked Pandora, voice a mixture of perturbed and fascinated.
"I found some in storage. Along with the rhinestones I coated her anvil with to give it some flair," replied Purl, who gestured to said anvil towards the back. Several of the rhinestones had dropped to the floor, and others slowly slid down the metal, the glue that held them on there still fresh.
The Whimsicott held a paw to her chin and hmm'd thoughtfully.
"That is definitely a...bold choice. I find myself curious as to what possessed you to do any of this."
"Pandora, have you seen Damia's office!? I don't know how she ever gets anything done in such a drab, boring room. As soon as I came in to inspect, I knew I had to do something to save her from this crime against passion. Plus, she's working so hard, out there fighting for the guild and the world, so I wanted to give her a nice gift to come back home to!"
Pandora pursed her lips. Well, she didn't see any pink, so perhaps Damia would be merciful and only break every bone in his body, as opposed to outright killing him.
She would mediate that when the time came. For now, she had a different fire to put out.
"That's quite thoughtful of you dear, I am sure she will have much feedback to offer when she gets back." Let it never be said that Pandora could not be a diplomat when she wanted to be. "However I was more so referring to the status of the Dynamo branch since the quake not long ago."
"Oh. That." Purl huffed and closed the flap to the office, and turned to the rest of the floor. "Besides making a good mess of things, nothing major was broken, thankfully. I personally made sure everyone here had no injuries, and Vert's nexus is still in tip top shape, minus a few scratches."
"Excellent news." And she meant it. Injuries were common in their line of work, but she wouldn't know the first step in fixing the Dungeon Nexus. Vert had worked on that on his own, and she didn't quite have his insight when it came to inventions of that nature.
The Sylveon pursed his lips in a tight smile, but she noted that it didn't quite reach his bright blue eyes. Pandora's joy dimmed a bit, and she folded her arms across her stomach.
"Is there something else I should know?"
"Oh! Erm...nothing really major per se. Hardly worth mentioning and I don't want it to sounds like I'm complaining or-"
"Speak your mind, Purl."
"Well it's...it has to do with morale, Pandora."
Purl came a bit closer, and shot a glance out at the twenty or so apprentices in the room. Now that Pandora got a better look, it seemed that the usual zeal for testing was missing. Pokemon put materials away with a notable lack of pep in their step, and as she listened closely, she realized something that made her heart skip a beat.
Not a single explosion had gone off the entire time they'd been talking. Not one!
"...hmm," she murmured. "Have you noticed anything in particular?" she asked. A sigh escaped Purl's mouth, and he pawed at the ground.
"I know we tried to keep it hush-hush, but I think word of Vert's condition might have spread faster than we would have wanted," he admitted.
Pandora frowned. She wished she could be disappointed, but she supposed it was bound to happen. She had heard from the frazzled Pepin that Brook had burst from his branch's flap dragging an unconscious Vert all the way to the infirmary. The Wartortle had sworn up and down that their Guildmaster had simply fallen asleep as usual, but this occasion seemed just off enough for people to catch on that something bad had happened.
Apprentices should never see their Guildmaster fall. That rule stayed true no matter the Guild.
"And that's not all," he continued. "We're low on testing supplies! I thought it might have just been my Branch, but when I took inventory over here, I realized that Damia had to start rationing out dud orbs, wand sticks, everything! Many of the apprentices have already felt a bit aimless without jobs coming in this whole time, and now some don't even feel the motivation to touch an orb for fear of running out. Not that I blame them, I mean..."
Purl put a paw to his head, and the normal passion he seemed to exude off of his body seemed to wilt as he sucked in a breath to compose himself.
"Everyone here is being strong but, all of this stuff? The hiding, the sneaking, the takeout? It's all starting to wear on us, especially without a clear end in sight. Honestly, the news about Vert might just be the straw that broke the Numel's back..."
Pandora absorbed all of his words, and closed her eyes as she thought of the best response. Everything he said had been valid, of course, and in truth she had noticed a subtle change in everyone's mood as the days had gone on.
The thought of finally vindicating themselves to the world by stopping the threat of the Dungeons had kept them going this far, but with so much of their efforts having borne no fruit, and a team already out doing something about it...
That left the ones at home to...bide their time, so to speak. But idle minds bred idle thoughts, and creativity just so happened to be their most valued resource. Her apprentices could hardly thrive in this environment.
But with a lack of supplies to give life to any thoughts...
"...We'll have to get a bit creative in lifting everyone's spirits," murmured Pandora. A coy grin grew wider as a plan began to form. "Though it may only be a stop gap solution, what do you say to a brief diversion to get everyone's minds out of a rut, hmm?"
"What, like a party?" The gleam returned to his eye. Pandora nodded.
"However you would call it, I think something to show our appreciation to everyone for enduring this long would help things. Ideally this would be something that leaves a lasting impression, really stirs up the heart, so to speak. I believe you take particular pleasure in such things?"
"...Are you saying, you want moi to be the master of ceremonies for a guild wide celebration!?" he said under hushed breath, as if he couldn't believe what he heard. Pandora stepped closer and put a paw on his shoulder.
"I wouldn't trust anyone else with this."
Purl gasped and snatched the Whimsicott up in a hug.
"Yes! Thank you thank you thank you-" he repeated. Some of Pandora's cotton got flung off as he swung her around, and some of the apprentices glanced their way, confused by the sight. Pandora let out a surprised giggle as Purl kissed her right on the forehead, and set her down.
"I won't let you down, I swear! Ooh, I could get some in Tailor to get decorations and...and maybe I could get some of the ones here to do fireworks and pyrotechnics, Brook could be in charge of food and-"
He gasped.
"We could have our very own Satin Festival! I need to get Esther ASAP to plan..."
"Feel free to use whoever and whatever as you see fit, though try to keep the plan on the 'down low' so to speak. I think a surprise would be much appreciated." Pandora clasped her paws and smiled. "Of course, reach out to me if you would like my assistance. I believe I will start meeting with everyone individually to get a read on how they are coping with everything in the meantime."
"...comedy routine, maybe a musical number? I can do a mean falsetto..." Purl's face scrunched as he continued to list ideas. He shook himself from it with a wide grin a second later.
"So much to do...What did you say? Oh! Yes, emotional support sounds like a great idea to get everyone ready for a good time! In fact..."
Purl started to walk to the exit flap, and gestured for Pandora to follow.
"If we're going to celebrate, I want everyone to celebrate. I'm hoping our brave heroes at Hollow Garden will finish their adventure before I'm ready to throw it, but Vert absolutely needs to be ready to shake some tail when the time comes. That's why you should be with him now! Your body heals quicker when in the presence of someone you love, after all."
"And just what would be your source for such a bold, biological claim, Purl?" asked Pandora, bemused. Now in front of the flap, Purl put a haughty paw to his chest and stuck his nose up.
"Why, the heart, of course!" he proclaimed. "Now if you excuse me, I must go consult with mine regarding the next few days. Sometimes she has good ideas. Adieu."
He dashed off in the direction of the Tailor flap. Pandora shook her head and huffed a laugh.
"Vert shaking tail...ridiculous." She shook her head, and brushed her cotton down to straighten it. "The scruffy thing wouldn't even know how to do a foxtrot."
Still, Purl had put the thought to check on Vert into her head, and despite her best efforts, her latent anxieties won out in the end. She began to make her way across the room, to the flap that led to the infirmary. She pulled it open and started to make her way down the cramped hallway, colored curtains that led to treatment rooms lined the sides along the long hallway down.
The curtains muffled the clack of her steps on the stone floor, and she let the rhythmic sound settle her emotions.
Vert had been stationed in the room at the very end of the hallway, far down enough that nobody would have any reason to check. She stood in front of the egg white curtain and took in a breath. She would just check for a few moments. That's it. Then after, she would visit Bio. Doubtless some of the plants were unsettled, and she would need to give some support to-
"Brook?" she exclaimed, eyes wide as she saw the Wartortle at Vert's side once she opened the curtain. Brook sat on a short stool and wrote something down in a notebook, before he flinched and whipped his head to her with a yelp.
He had deep shadows under his eyes, which seemed more red than usual, and Pandora spotted the remains of a light breakfast on a back desk. She knew he had the most medical experience out of anyone here, but from the looks of it, it seemed as if he had hardly left Vert's side since yesterday.
"P-Pandora! Hello, uh. Good morning! Are you alright? You didn't t-trip or anything?"
"I am quite alright dear, I was going around to make sure everyone else was okay," she murmured as she tiptoed in. Her eyes glanced over Vert's sleeping form: bandages had been wrapped around his forearms and chest, which rose and fell as he lay on a cushioned table.
"But what are you doing in here? I would have thought that you'd be in your branch."
"Y-yes, well…" He jotted something down and leaned over to press his claws gently against Vert's side, and applied pressure in certain places with expert precision.
"I've actually been here since last night. I m-might have fallen asleep while checking his wounds…but the earthquake woke me up! All the shaking could have aggravated something, so I wanted to give him a final look before I head back to the branch."
"I see…" she said, and came closer. She stepped right next to Vert, and frowned as she placed a paw on his side. She grasped some of his thick white fur in her paw and scowled.
She cursed the world that this was the longest he had slept at one time in recent memory.
"I was told that Haxorus did this to him," she stated after some time. Her voice had chilled at the mention of the other Guildmaster. "Tell me, what are his injuries?"
"W-well, he's stabilized, so there's nothing to worry about at this stage! It will still take some time for him to recover. As you know, Oran berries and Reviver Seeds aren't as effective outside outside of Dungeons, and we don't have many healers in ho-"
"That's not what I asked." Pandora looked at him, and didn't feel as bad as she probably should have when he flinched at her gaze. "Tell me what Haxorus did to him, so I know how to repay him later."
Brook stammered a bit, but managed to flip a few pages back in his notebook.
"U-um…some internal bleeding, several broken ribs, a long fracture along his tibia, his horn is chipped off of the top, and some other minor injuries from the impact of falling several stories without time to brace. And that's not to mention the burns on his chest and the major swelling from when he took a...giga impact...point...blank..."
Brook petered off and slowly started to retreat into his shell as he saw Pandora's face. Her frown crept upwards into a jagged smile as she all but scratched words into her own little notebook.
"Burns...ooh I like that...is that all dear?" she asked, a hint of bloodthirst in her words. Brook squeaked out an affirmative, and tried to regain his composure.
"I-I'm sorry Pandora, really! It all happened so fast, and we didn't even know Haxorus would be there, and I...it was a stupid idea to even leave, I should never ha-"
Pandora shot her paw out under his chin and yanked his head up to look directly into her eyes.
"Enough. You have nothing to apologize for. Vert knew the risks, and frankly I wouldn't know where we would be if you weren't there to bail him out. Arceus knows the journalist wouldn't have been much help."
"But...B-but-"
"Brook. Thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you," she stated, and made the warmth ease back into her voice. Brook's shakes slowed as he calmed, and she continued.
"I won't have you blame yourself for things out of your control. I highly doubt Vert needed you to watch him all night, he's recovered from prototype injuries worse than this. Now leave this room, get your branch in order, and get some sleep. Or I will make you. Understand?"
"Y-YES! Yes m-ma'am! Um, let me just-"
"Now."
Brook's eyes bugged, and he stammered an affirmative before he hopped off the stool and scuttled out of the tent flap.
When he left, Pandora let out a deep sigh, and let her eyes roam over the wounded Absol once more. In the silence, his deep snores resounded throughout the room, and she clicked her tongue at just how peaceful he looked. She stepped closer to him and, with one last glance to the entrance flap, allowed herself to drape over his chest.
With half her face buried in Vert's thick ruff, she sent an annoyed glare at his unopened eyes.
"...You damn fool..." she muttered, "If you know what's good for you, you'll stay asleep. Because I will have words with you when you wake."
She perked up when his snores abated, and he instead began to softly murmur gibberish under his breath. If she focused, she could barely make out sounds that resembled the names of some of their apprentices. When he murmured her name, the scowl melted off her face, and she pulled herself up fully to lay her back against him, mindful of any bandages.
She stared up at the ceiling, and clutched bits of white fur into her paws. For just a moment, she allowed herself to close her eyes and pretend that they really did have a grip on anything.
Thoughts of her brave apprentices at Hollow Garden, of the ones here who had gone through so much, of how much Vert had put himself through, of how unfair it all was, of how many questions she still had...
She let them all wash away in this moment. An indulgence, perhaps, but right now she just wanted it to be her and her big, awkward, darling genius. The rest of the world could wait a few minutes.
The future had enough trouble.