"Here, this was everything that was on you when, well..." Aiden said as he held out a translucent bag. Inside, red driblets speckled the inside where her torn Team Magma clothes were.
Great. Now I have to sew it all back together again, Moxy thought with disdain.
"Don't worry about that." Aiden read the look on her face. "We can get a replacement later."
Moxy opened the bag and fished through it. She pulled out her wristwatch, a compass, and a bloody Team Magma ID card from the pockets.
But something was missing.
"Um, Aiden? Where's my journal?! A-and necklace?" She rummaged frantically around the inside of the bag.
"Oh," he said while pulling out the aforementioned items from his hoodie pockets. Her silver necklace dangled between his fingers.
"What are you doing with those?!" Moxy hissed, plucking the necklace and journal out of his grasp.
"Sorry. They seemed more important than everything else, and I wanted to make sure no one stole them."
"Really? More important than my ID?" She scowled, turning the necklace over to check for any marks before pocketing it in the tattered jeans Chloe lent her. When she looked back up, Aiden was eyeing her curiously.
"Someone's in a mood."
"I'm sorry." She crossed her arms against her dull, white t-shirt. "I'm not having a great day." Aiden opened his mouth to say something, but he just shrugged and walked out of the medical ward. More guilt welt inside Moxy as she followed him out.
Outside, she was greeted with a wide, arched hallway. Black tiles patterned the walls of the hallway, along with various fluorescent lights scattered throughout the hall and numerous grunts traveling within it, giving the tunnel a lively feeling. Aiden hid his hands in his pockets and turned right down the hall. Before Moxy followed him, she unclipped a tiny red and white ball from one of her belt loops. In a flash of light, Sylveon appeared.
Moxy cracked a wide smile. "Hey, girl!"
Sylveon turned around to face Moxy. In an instant, the pokemon ran up to her trainer and wrapped a ribbon around Moxy's injured shoulder. Her blue eyes lit up, and she barked happily. Moxy beckoned Sylveon as she ran to catch up to Aiden, weaving their way through the crowd of Team Magma soldiers.
Moxy caught the gazes of a few grunts leaning against the end of the T-intersection ahead. Their eyes followed her and Sylveon's movements, and they looked none too happy.
"Aiden," she started, finally catching up to him, "those guys are looking at me weird."
He quickly glanced in the direction Moxy was peeking at before taking the left hallway. "Don't worry, they're just curious about your condition. Most of the members here know one another and they don't know anything about you yet. Call them curious, especially after you recovered so quickly from those injuries."
"T-they all know about what happened?" she mumbled.
"I made a little bit of a ruckus when I brought you here," Aiden admitted, rubbing the back of his head.
Moxy gulped as she kept her gaze forward.
A few paces ahead and they reached a steel-caged elevator. A sign on the wall beside it read 'B2'. Sylveon grabbed one of Moxy's hands with a feeler and they both entered behind Aiden. A wave of euphoria washed over Moxy like she had taken a drug.
Aiden pressed a button that said B1, and as soon as the caged door rattled shut, the elevator began to rise.
"So, where are we going?" She turned to him. He was watching Sylveon, and when she followed his gaze, she swore Sylveon's eyes were narrowed at Aiden, despite her cheery mood.
"To see Tabitha." Aiden broke eye contact with the pink pokemon. "He wants to assess your condition before making a decision to send you back to Rustboro."
"O-oh..." she trailed off. Apparently, she was going back to Rustboro anyway.
"Don't feel so down. He makes the decisions on which members get promoted. You've shown your loyalty and worth. So, I have high hopes for you."
His cheeks creased into an elfish smile. The elevator suddenly stopped, and the gate opened automatically. Aiden gestured her out, and a few steps later, her heart stopped.
It was as if she'd stepped into a stadium. Moxy had to squint just to see the dark tiles of the domed roof. Just like the hallway, the gray colors gave the entire place a professional, almost mechanical vibe, and it was much more packed with people than in the hallway. There were openings in the walls, and countertops set up in between these openings turned them into little shops. What smelled like ramen steamed out from what looked like a bar-restaurant, and a place on the opposite side made sounds like the grinding of metal. People wearing Magma uniforms and all kinds of pokemon were scattered around the room, each doing their own things. The commotion was the loudest sound here.
"What is this place?" Moxy asked with a mixture of wonder and curiosity.
"This is the Hub," Aiden said. "I know. I was also amazed when I stepped in here for the first time."
Even Sylveon was following Moxy's gaze, and the pokemon's nose followed the scent of spices from the ramen shop.
"This way." He held out his hand for Moxy. She raised an eyebrow in return.
"It's easy to get lost in the crowd. Let's go," he urged, and he wiggled his fingers impatiently. Sighing, she took his hand.
As Aiden led her through the crowd of people, a feeling began to well in her gut. It was that feeling she used to get when she saw Janice with a new purse, or Charles getting his PokeNav.
It was envy. After seeing such an awesome place, she dreaded the thought of having to go back to that cold and bleak hideout in Rustboro.
"Anything you need, this is the place to go." Aiden explained. "There are all kinds of services here. If you need new equipment, repairs, food, clothing. Of course, there are a few services you might need to go out to Lilycove to get access to, like pokemon salons."
"How does Team Magma have this many members?" Moxy was too enamored with the crowd to listen to Aiden.
"The cause. The belief in a new life. Tabitha will explain it to you," Aiden explained
Suddenly, the people in front of her began to make way. A huge Rhydon stomped in her path with a male grunt on its back. She narrowly sidestepped out of its way while yanking on Sylveon's ribbons. The pokemon was pulled from her food trance and jumped beside Moxy. The ground shook with the Rhydon's every step, and it huffed loudly before trudging towards a large tunnel.
"Where does that tunnel go?" Moxy tugged Aiden's hand like a kid at an amusement park.
"Training rooms. I'll take you there later if you'd like."
A Rhydon fit through there?! How big are those training rooms? she thought. It furthered her desire to explore the base. Assuming she could convince Aiden to let her stay for a day or two, perhaps it would be a great idea to train Sylveon there. After all, she needed to catch up on her training.
As they trudged deeper through the Hub, Moxy caught sight of a large, fat man wearing all red with his back turned toward them. Moxy's eyes sparkled upon seeing the two, golden horns on his hoodie among the black stubs everyone else had. The man was speaking with two members in front of another tunnel, where a sign read COMMAND. As Aiden led her closer to the man, he nodded curtly and the grunts he was speaking with walked away.
"Tabitha, sir," Aiden spoke aloud. He let go of Moxy's hand to place a fist on his chest while raising his other arm at a forty-five-degree angle to his side. As the man spun around to face them, Moxy quickly mimicked Aiden's salute. Sylveon retreated behind Moxy's leg.
"Greetings, Aiden," he said, and Moxy recognized his nasal voice as the one from the TV back in the Rustboro hideout. Looking at him now, Moxy wondered why people held him up to such high stature, besides his large appearance. His eyes were small and narrow, like slits, above his chubby cheeks, and his nose was just as stubby-looking as him. His short, black hair with the cute curl in the front didn't help either. He seemed more like the chief of all-you-can-eat-buffets rather than an Admin Chief. The Team Magma insignia was imprinted on the front of his coat, and the ends of his sleeves had large, yellow cuffs like irons. Tabitha shot a devious smirk at Aiden before his gaze fell on Moxy, who was trying hard not to let go of the Team Magma salute despite her aching shoulder.
"And who might this child be? Ah, this is the injured recruit. And her admirable partner," Tabitha deduced as he leaned forward a little. She could see those two, mahogany pupils of his between his squint as he assessed her. Sylveon whimpered in fright at Tabitha. Moxy moved her hands behind her back and stood at attention like she'd seen soldiers do in those army movies she used to watch.
"Pennington, right?"
Moxy winced upon hearing the name. "I prefer Moxy, sir," she corrected the Admin, though she wondered if that was the right thing to do.
"I can see why you talk about her a lot." Tabitha looked over to Aiden. "The hair, the looks, and the name. She's quite similar to the leader."
That's a first, she thought. Even Aiden seemed embarrassed by the comment.
"Leader? Aren't you the... umm, summo praefecti?" Moxy asked hesitantly.
Tabitha raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, well, well! Very impressive accent. Most of the members here don't care for the language."
Moxy blushed. It seemed those accent lessons with Aiden had paid off a little.
"But summo praefecti means Top Officer. The leader, or communis, is in charge. All I do is deal with all the minuscule things he simply has no time for." Tabitha smiled as he explained.
Moxy was confused. She heard no mention of this person anywhere. She lowered her eyebrows in question at Aiden.
"It's reasonable to react that way," Tabitha said, reading her expression. "We try to keep him a secret from the initio. We can't have a spy or such learning the true identity of the mind behind Team Magma, couldn't we? Ahayaya!"
"R-right..." Moxy responded.
"Anyways, I'm sure you two didn't come here to have small talk."
"Yes, sir," Aiden started. "Chloe discharged Moxy from bed rest. She is ready to be stationed at your choosing."
"Quite a miracle how someone recovers from what you and Chloe told me was death." He chuckled at the end, but it fell flat when Aiden made a weak and exaggerated cough. Moxy struggled to give Tabitha a sheepish smile.
Tabitha continued, "Regardless, didn't you take her under your wing as her supervisor? I suggest taking her back with you to the Rustboro hideout to see what Quinn wants her to do."
Moxy felt her heart drop. That was that then. No promotion. The last six months paid for absolutely nothing. Anger welled deep inside her like a bubbling volcano, but she knew better than to let those feelings explode. There was a moment of silence between them, and the only noise heard was the rabble in the background. Sylveon rubbed the side of her head against Moxy's leg and cooed softly.
Aiden cleared his throat. "As her supervisor, I am recommending a promotion, from initio to auxiliaris. She's shown unwavering commitment and loyalty to Team Magma within the last six months, and she is resourceful in her own way. I believe she can be an incredible asset to our ranks rather than a hindrance. In some ways, I am proud to be her supervisor."
Moxy was in awe of Aiden's words. Commitment? Loyalty?
She supposed so. She did work her ass off doing all the menial crap Quinn assigned her, with a promotion in mind. But she didn't feel like she was committed. If something horrible happened to Team Magma, she was more inclined to cut all ties rather than deal with it.
Tabitha put a hand under his chin. "Is that so? Quinn was really angry with her a few days ago. After she interrupted our last meeting."
Moxy went white, and Sylveon jumped from the spike in Moxy's emotions.
He remembered?! She shouldn't have been as surprised as she was; it was only a week since that happened. She couldn't tell Tabitha that she was snooping in on their conversation. But as much as she wanted to lie and say it was a misunderstanding, something held her tongue back. Moxy was scared of lying to him.
However, the pressure gripping her heart was released when Aiden spoke up, "Well, she dropped something at the wrong moment, and Quinn thought she was eavesdropping. And you know Quinn. He was having one of his bad days."
"Ayaha! Isn't he always!?"
Huh. Aiden lied for her.
Tabitha rubbed a hand under his chin before saying, "Assuming she is as resourceful as you say, I want her to prove it. Ask Chloe to get an ASVAB ready for her."
"What is that?" Moxy asked.
"The Armed Service Vocational Aptitude Battery," Tabitha answered immediately. "The Pokemon League gives it to trainers who want to serve their military. I've changed most of the questions to fit with the divisions here."
Ugh, a placement exam. she complained to herself.
"Right away, sir," Aiden saluted.
"I'll be in my office," Tabitha said before leaving.
Aiden walked back towards the elevator, and Moxy quickly caught up to him, Sylveon beside her.
"That went... well?" she asked.
"Yep. Now comes the hard part, but it shouldn't be too difficult for you. Being a student and all," Aiden told her.
"I really thought I was done with exams after I left school."
"It's nothing like that. Think of it more like an application for a job."
"Easy for you to say," she grumbled as she and Aiden made their way to Chloe's.
"Yes, I have them. Give me a moment," Chloe said. Her right eye was glued to a microscope. A couple of seconds more and Moxy was already sick and tired of waiting. Aiden felt the same way too because he peeked out from behind Chloe's shoulder.
"Um, Chloe-"
"This is important, dear," she sang. Aiden sighed and turned to Moxy.
"This might take a while," he whispered.
"What did you excel in on the test?" Moxy bumped Aiden's arm with her elbow. The medical ward was as cold as ever, and she crossed her uncovered arms in an attempt to warm them.
"Infiltration and Transportation," he answered.
She nodded. "That's nice."
They were silent for a moment. Moxy's gaze wandered towards the exit, and she could make out Sylveon's angry face staring at Moxy from behind the glass. Ignoring her, Moxy looked up at Aiden, and her eyebrows automatically creased into worry.
"Thank you for this, Aiden," Moxy whispered hesitantly, "especially for lying to Tabitha for me."
"It's fine. Just place well on the test and prove me right. I don't want to look like an idiot in front of him or Quinn," he replied while slipping his hands into his hoodie pockets. Moxy turned shallow from the indirect comment. She could see the puff of vapor leaving her mouth as she sighed. Why does Chloe have to make the place so damn cold?
As if on queue, Chloe took her eye off the microscope. She carefully slid the black substance under the scope into a petri dish. Balancing it between her fingers, she walked through a steel door, where inside, Moxy assumed was the doctor's office. Less than a minute later, Chloe came back holding a few sheets of paper and a pen. She placed the items on the desk at the end of the room.
"Here you are. Don't leave until you're finished," Chloe ordered before strutting back into her office. Moxy turned to Aiden.
"Well, I don't know about the rules on test-taking here, but I think you're supposed to let me do this by myself," she told him while giving him a sheepish smile.
"I'll be outside... talking with Sylveon, or something." He rubbed the back of his head upon seeing Sylveon's face twist in aggravation outside of the medical ward.
As Aiden left, Moxy walked over to the test. She pressed her thumb against the side of the papers and flipped through them.
Twenty-four pages?! Oh, Arceus. She shook her head before sitting on the desk chair.
Despite its length, the test didn't take too long. It was multiple-choice, with each part being two pages each, counting to twelve parts. The questions were mostly about how to handle machinery and computers, pokemon biology, naming different kinds of guns, and strategy. There were also other parts that asked her what she would do in specific situations.
In short, it was tough.
When she looked at her watch after she was done, an hour and thirty minutes had passed by. Gripping the papers in her hands, she walked them over to Chloe's office. The metallic door clanged as Moxy knocked on it, and her cold knuckles stung in pain afterward.
"Come in," she heard a voice say. Moxy entered.
The office was... odd. It wasn't necessarily an office, but more like a lab. There were desks pushed against the edges of the white room with various pieces of equipment lying on them. They ranged from electronic devices to lab beakers holding unknown substances of different colors. On the far wall was a much bigger desk with tons of papers scattered on top. In one corner, there was a long machine that resembled a futuristic escape pod. In another, a long, glass tube holding an orange, bubbling substance connected the ceiling and floor.
"Finally," Chloe started, getting up from behind the big desk. Moxy was too distracted with the tube to notice the doctor strutting towards her.
"Is that... lava?" Moxy tilted her head.
"Yes. What of it?" Chloe followed her gaze.
"What do you mean 'what of it'!" Moxy took a step back from the tube. "That's actual lava in your office! What would happen if the tube broke?!"
"Concerned about me? Cute." Chloe held her hand out. "Now, those papers, please,"
Moxy harrumphed as she handed Chloe the papers. The doctor ignored her and began to flip the pages over as she paced back and forth, only stopping to adjust her spectacles about five pages in.
"An angry swarm of Dustox approaches you from about eight yards away in the dead of night. You have an injured Persian in your party and a single revive in your backpack. What do you do?" Chloe asked, reading the question directly off of the strategy portion of Moxy's test. "Your response: Crumble the revive into dust and blow it in an opposite direction. The Dustox will follow the glitter and allow us to escape."
Moxy shrugged. "It should work. In theory."
Chloe just nodded before assessing the rest of the answers. Moxy took a seat on a metal chair and waited patiently for about ten minutes, and that was when Chloe spoke up again.
"I'll be honest, Moxy. You're quite adept at pokemon biology and abilities. Maybe a bit too theoretical. What division are you planning on applying for?"
"Infiltrator," Moxy answered without so much as a second to think about it.
"Shame." Chloe placed the papers on her desk and pulled out a pink slip of paper before writing something on it. "I think you'd be a great fit in the medical division."
Moxy's face grew hot. That was probably the first compliment she received from Chloe. It was a nice change of pace from the constant berating she was used to from her.
After another few minutes of writing, Chloe held out the pink slip of paper for Moxy. "Here you are, dear."
Moxy took the slip from Chloe and read it. There was a column of the twelve divisions, with numbers next to them. Moxy's eyes skimmed over to the Infiltrator column. The number beside it was 92.
"Is this a ninety-two out of one-hundred?" Moxy asked incredulously. Chloe nodded.
"You're more than knowledgeable enough to join the Infiltrator division. Based on your results, of course. How you use those skills on the field is an entirely different subject."
Moxy blushed again and perused the rest of her scores. 70 in Strategy. 83 in Medical. 79 in Science. 24 in Transportation. Well, she couldn't drive, nor did she know how to.
"Go. Don't keep Tabitha waiting. He isn't exactly the most patient man in the world," Chloe said, sitting back in her chair.
"You aren't either," Moxy quipped, smiling cheekily.
"Me? I'm not an impatient man."
Moxy mentally facepalmed herself. "I meant... never mind."
Chloe gave Moxy a smug grin before returning her focus to the pile of papers on her desk.