We've been walking almost non-stop since we met those explorers. While traveling, we watched the sun steadily set, then darkness quickly followed. One by one, stars appeared in the sky. Without the light pollution of the human world, the night sky here is absolutely incredible. I wish Rotom still had her Pokédex so she could take a photo—I'd love for the others to see it.

Although I suppose they might anyway, goodness knows where they are.

When it became dark, Espathra stopped us, "what do you guys wanna do? Camp out here or push on? We're probably a couple of hours from the Center still." After leaving the beach town, it's been a relatively straight path onwards, with the occasional passerby. I'm exhausted, and I can tell Rotom is too, but if we're so close, relatively speaking…

"Let's keep going, the sooner we get to the Center, the sooner we might get home!" Stephanie answers for us, fired up. I can almost see the rest of her unspoken thoughts; the sooner we get there, the sooner we might find out about Elliot and the others. "Atta girl, onwards!" Grapploct grins, obviously glad to keep trudging ahead.

As we walk, Stephanie starts coming up with questions about the Center. While Gwen had talked about it at length before, she hadn't really been a part of it long enough to know all the ins and outs. We learn all about their values, the general setup, how one rises through the ranks, and, most surprisingly, that Skitty—apparently Delcatty now—is the new Master.

I vaguely remember meeting the previous Master, a crazed lurantis, briefly on Permafrost Mountain. I assume she's normally more…level-headed, to be able to run an entire organization. In her defense, she did think we were a group of dangerous criminals, courtesy of Dr. Laurel. I also recall she was quite distraught learning the truth—that we had no ill will, nor had committed any crimes, but were really just lost, confused, and scared. "Yep, couple of years ago former Master Lurantis passed on the title," Grapploct tells us, "think she got tired of all the upkeep, lot of work, running that place, I bet!" "Oh for sure! Ever since you guys left, Master Delcatty's been working tirelessly, first as an explorer, then making sure the Center is in perfect running order."

It all sounds very impressive. Surely, with so much knowledge at her disposal in the Center, Delcatty will know some way to get us home. I hope so, at least, otherwise, I have no idea where else we could even begin to look.

An hour passes, then two. Then I notice a faint twinkling of lights on the horizon. "There is it!" Espathra says excitedly, ruffling her feathers. "If we keep up at this pace, it should only be an hour or so! Let's go!"

An hour or so (in reality it's feeling closer to two, I'm thinking, and that's in addition to the previous 'couple of hours') later we stumble over the threshold of the world-famous Exploration Center. Gwen informed Rotom and I that we had been stored here in our pokeballs for a time until they broke us out, so I've never actually seen the vast structure before. Gwen, Noivern, and Serperior had described it to us, but their accounts didn't nearly do it justice. I'm awed by the massive trees, the bridges spanning between them, and what appear to be buildings perched high above. There's a reception area illuminated with a couple of soft lights, otherwise it's mostly dark. A honchkrow sits at the desk studying his feathers and looking bored.

"Team RufflePunch reporting home," Espathra tells him (that's…quite a team name…). He shuffles around behind the desk, then produces a thick file; when he opens it I see it's filled with signatures. Espathra and Grapploct sign in, one after the other, and I notice they mark that they have three visitors. "Your friends need medical attention?" Honchkrow asks. We each shake our heads; what we really need is to go to bed, I can barely keep my eyes open after all that traveling. "Alright then, feel free to take any vacant room." "Thanks, I'll sign for it later," Espathra replies, "well then, let's get you guys settled!"

We're brought to a room containing three hay beds made up on the floor. We wish Grapploct and Espathra a good night, and are finally left in peace.

"Wow, the Center's certainly something, huh?" Rotom says. "I thought you guys had been here before?" Stephanie asks, looking confused. "Not us, only Gwen, Serperior, and Noivern actually saw inside, although it was really mostly Gwen and Noivern, apparently," I reply. Serperior told us all about his stint with the Center; mostly in its prison cell. Rotom and I still give him a hard time for it every now and then—the most uptight of us, yet the only one who's officially been to prison. I'll admit I get a laugh out of it—sometimes with the teasing we can make his face go as pink as mine! Although technically we were arrested, so not sure if we're ones to talk. It's strange to think about, really, we were just being stored in our pokeballs in some kind of exhibit…did they ever plan to release us? If Gwen hadn't learned the truth…if they hadn't rescued us…I shudder at the thought.

Stephanie stretches out on her bed and sighs, "I've gotta admit…I'm a little nervous, meeting Ski-Delcatty. What's she like? I know Gwen's told me, but what do you guys make of her?" "She's great! In another life we could've been twins!" Rotom beams, "oh Arceus, I don't think the world is ready for two Rotoms," she replies, laughing. "She was…fierce, with a real fighting spirit," I say, remembering how she took charge to arrest me when we first met, despite being a total rookie and looking quite nervous, "but she has a real sense of justice, she fought so hard to protect this world, even when it got her in trouble…when it jeopardized her whole career and her dreams." "She sounds amazing…and now in charge of all this…" Stephanie looks off distantly. I agree, it is all rather impressive.

"Well, dunno about you guys, but I'm wiped, let's get some rest!" Rotom says, settling on her own bed. Me too—I can feel myself nodding off as she speaks. "Goodnight," I manage to say before drifting off to sleep.

—

I hear rhythmic breathing from Dragalge and Rotom, but despite my exhaustion, I can't sleep.

I slowly get up from my bed, and quietly make my way onto the small balcony outside, careful not to wake them. Looking down, feeling the gentle breeze on my face, I take in the stillness of the Center.

I've heard so much about this place from Gwen, about the pokemon who live here, what they do—everything she learned about it, I know too. But I still can't believe I'm seeing it for myself. It's amazing, really—being in a whole other world? Incredible! But…

Well, I'm still worried. Worried about what's happened to Elliot and Gwen, about our other pokemon, and…as embarrassed as I am to admit, I'm even worried about meeting Delcatty. I know they say you shouldn't trust your feelings about your life after about 9pm or whatever, but given the incredibly unique circumstances, I think I'm allowed to worry. I just hope tomorrow we'll get some answers.

Oh Gwen, where are you? How's Elliot keeping? How are you keeping, possibly managing him by yourself? I hope you're all ok. I hope you're not too worried about us—we're ok. I stare into the trees, savoring the gentle swishing of leaves in the wind. I can see the appeal of this place—even in the darkness, it is truly beautiful. I'm surprised to find myself excited about seeing it in all its glory tomorrow. I let out a yawn, a tiny ember of fire appearing in front of me before fizzling out.

Now that's going to take a little more time to get used to. I've caught glimpses of my reflection a couple of times along our journey, and each time it caught me off guard. It's…different, to say the least. I wonder how Gwen felt, waking up in a strange body with no memories? At least mine are intact.

Even with my memories, it's been tough. As a fennekin everything seems so…big. Half the time I had to do a light jog just to keep up with the others! Looking around, especially through the town and the Center…it seems a lot of care has been made to accommodate pokemon of all sizes, but it still feels like most things are probably best suited for those who've evolved at least once. I guess it's not too different to the human world though—most things being built for adults and all.

The chilly air cuts through my rambling thoughts. I take one last look at the trees, and return to our room. It sounds like it will be a busy day tomorrow—it'll be easier to handle after a half-decent night's sleep.