Chapter 11

The Accolade


Kerrosian Territory - Kerrosian Guild

The Guild allowed Dillan and his team to stay in the hospital wing, just in case his wounds were more serious than initially diagnosed. As newly inducted members, they could rest and recuperate within the Guild's walls, even though the Guild hadn't officially declared their membership yet. Dillan imagined the stay would be arduous, similar to his time in Fericia. Lying in bed, his thoughts occasionally drifted back to playing 'Monopoly' with Grace, causing his heart to ache. Thankfully, conversations with Ryan and Hazel often pulled him back to reality.

"I'm telling you, Ry," Hazel insisted, perched on a wooden chair beside his bed, while Ryan lounged at the foot of Dillan's mattress. "It's ridiculous! No, it's criminal."

Ryan laughed. "What's so bad about crossing a river?"

Hazel leaned forward, eyes glinting. "You just said it was on the stomach of a Snorlax! It puts him in danger."

"He was asleep," Ryan shrugged. "Didn't even notice us."

"What if he sank?" Dillan asked, curiosity piqued. "You'd be responsible for drowning that guy."

Ryan stretched, crossing his feet. "He floated. And he woke up on the riverbed with a nice tan. No harm, no foul."

These silly conversations made the passing hours more than tolerable—enjoyable, even. Not even the pain in his arms could take the moment for long. Whenever Dillan's face tensed, Ryan summoned the nurse along with a yellow berry for Dillan to eat. The cycle of sweetened numbness repeated itself.

As the evening wore on, Hazel's eyes drifted towards the door. "We should probably get some sleep," she suggested, standing from the chair.

Ryan smirked. "Like that's gonna be possible. We're riding a high right now, Hazel. We beat Kaimana today. You think we're gonna get any sleep?"

"We didn't beat Kaimana," Hazel corrected. "But that's besides the point."

Dillan nodded, sinking into his pillows. "Hazel's right. Kaimana's letter said the Guild's… ah…"

"Accolade," Hazel interjected.

"Yeah, that. The letter said it was tomorrow night."

Ryan raised a finger. "Key word is right there: tomorrow night. We have time!"

Hazel curled up atop her bed in protest. "It said the Accolade is a formal event, right? We'll need to wake up early tomorrow to buy some fancy clothes."

Dillan stared up at the ceiling, pondering Hazel's words. Clothes. He couldn't help but smile. Just what kind of clothes counted as "fancy" within Ganderosa? Most Pokémon they encountered hardly wore anything at all - not even pants. Dillan hadn't even considered that until then. Did that count as casual wear or were they all just legally streaking? Oddly, the idea didn't bother him as much as he thought it would.

Regardless, Dillan shook his head. "Actually, I was hoping to check out the library tomorrow."

The room became eerily silent as Ryan and Hazel's heads craned back in surprise.

"The library?" Ryan asked, as though the building were a foreign concept to him. But with a snap of his fingers, he remembered: "Oh, right. You joined the Guild to visit Kerrosia's Library."

But a smile played on the tip of Hazel's lips. "Come on! You can do that in a couple of days! Celebrate with us instead!"

An awkward laugh escaped Dillan's mouth. Shirking the library… Was that fair to Grace? "I don't know…"

Ryan flopped backward over the sheets. "What's there to know?" he grumbled. "We've worked our asses off until now. One day off wouldn't kill you."

Dillan considered his words carefully. He was right, after all. They'd done nothing but travel and train the last few weeks. And researching in a stuffy room sounded like a very arduous task. Maybe he did deserve a day off.

"Come into town with us," Hazel begged, still lying in her bed. She clasped her claws together as if pleading with Dillan to see reason.

Dillan eventually surrendered. "Why not?" he asked. "I could use a break."

Hazel pumped her fists in victory. "You won't regret it! We'll have so much fun tomorrow!"

"Right up until Kaimana slaps us," Ryan sneered from Dillan's feet.

"W-wait," Dillan blinked back in question. "Slap?"

Hazel scoffed, offended by the notion. She raised a paw in the air as if presenting her own, bleeding heart, pierced by Ryan's words. "You make it sound so vulgar!"

"Isn't it?" Ryan laughed. "She puts on that iron glove and beats you across the face with it."

"I-iron?" the gabite stuttered.

Hazel beat her fist against her chest. "It's a mark of honor! It shows your strength as a Guild member!"

Dillan shook his head in panic. "Wait wait wait. You're saying Kaimana is actually going to slap us tomorrow?"

"With a rock-hard fist," Ryan pumped his fist in the air.

"It's just bronze," Hazel added.

Dillan found his jaw stiffen—both bracing against the mental image of getting clocked by a sledgehammer and from fear he'd break even more bones in the exchange. "How is that better?"

"It's a symbol of Guildly honor!" Hazel insisted with a wicked grin. "That strike represents the last blow we'll ever turn a blind eye to! From then on, we have the blessing of King Judah himself to carry out justice!"

"By getting bludgeoned," Dillan said dead-panned.

"Like real Guild members!" Ryan sneered. "Couldn't tell you how this is a thing, but here we are."

Dillan shook his head at the image of getting slapped around by an iron hand. Was that really the price of admission?

Almost as if answering his question, Hazel chimed in with a flick of her tail, "You can't be a Guild member if you don't get hit, meaning it's the only way into the library."

Dillan bit his lower lip in thought. "Damn," he spat. "Well… I-if we have to get hit to be Guild members, I guess I'll have to take it head-on."

"That's the idea," Ryan laughed at his own joke stupidly.

"Tomorrow's going to be amazing," Hazel sighed into her pillow. "The boutique should be fun, too."

Ryan sneered as his tail swished back and forth in the air. "You realize clothes shopping isn't a male fantasy, right?"

"That was surprisingly sexist," Dillan sneered with a nudge of his foot at Ryan.

Yet Ryan beat back against his foot with his tail. "Are you assuming I was saying clothes shopping is a female fantasy? Isn't that, in itself, sexist?"

Dillan's smirk stopped at Ryan's words with a claw to his chin. "Touche."

"Come on," Hazel insisted, "it'll be fun. We'll pick out something… nice." But she didn't sound sure of herself. "Maybe a shawl… or something."

Ryan seemed to pick up on this as he asked, "Are you sure that's fancy enough? Wouldn't a hat be better?" Hazel remained silent, and Ryan sat up with a sneer. "Hazel?"

"I mean…" Hazel started, a light blush forming on her cheeks. "N-not… really…?"

Cheek to cheek, a smile formed on the pachirisu's face. "Hazel, are you telling me you don't know Ganderosan fashion? And here I thought you knew everything about Guild customs."

"I-I'm not a diva," she weakly countered, growing boisterous.

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Dillan assured with another playful nudge of his foot. "The clothing store should have a manager, right?" He looked towards Hazel for confirmation, and she nodded in agreement. "They'll probably be able to help us pick something that looks good. Maybe a new cloak is in style."

"Or a poncho," Ryan laughed wickedly.

"Or maybe a bow for you, Ry," Dillan added.

This seemed to boost Hazel's mood in an instant. She began chuckling to herself, imagining the pachirisu with a pink bow in his fur like some frou-frou dog. Ryan, however, did not laugh.

"Har har," he sneered. "Laugh it up."

"Okay, okay," Hazel surrendered with her paws in the air. She eventually got control of her snickering and stood from the bedside. "We should get some sleep." She rolled over in her bed.

Ryan waved in surrender, curling up at the foot of Dillan's bed. "Fine. But really: no bow tomorrow." His body convulsed as if shaking the idea from every cell.

"You guys get some sleep," Dillan yawned, laying back and closing his eyes.

He took a single breath, feeling his body melt into the cushions. He moved his lips and mouthed "good night," but exhaustion grasped any chance of speaking. Days of moving without stop pressed atop Dillan's body in an instant. Not even the dull sting in his arms kept him awake. The gabite would sleep through the night as peacefully as ever.


The saying, "All good things come to an end," rang true even now. Dillan stirred awake with a dull pain in his head, though the one in his arms radiated more intensely. He grumbled from the mattress and moved his claw to his face instinctively, trying to rub the sleep from his eyes but stopping at the sharp pain.

"¡Ay…!" he spat through gritted teeth.

His head felt heavy as he sat upright, threatening to topple his body back against the pillows. He felt each pulse of his heart beating in his ears. He leaned across the bed towards the dresser, hooking the end of his bandaged claw around the ring and sliding the drawer open, feeling a grinding pain in his arm. He resisted the urge to yelp, lest he wake his sleeping teammates.

Yet Dillan faced a new predicament. He saw a small berry at the bottom of the drawer, but realized he couldn't skewer the fruit with his damaged claws. At least, not without causing himself more pain than it was worth. The world must have had a laugh right then. Curse his lack of hands.

He considered waking Ryan for a moment. Dillan heard his small breaths coming from the foot of the bed; he still slept despite the gabite's hissing pain.. Looking towards Hazel's small, glittering flame, he knew she also slept. She'd wake up in her own time, and Dillan didn't want to disrupt either of them.

No, Dillan had to be independent. This was his mistake. He needed to fix it. Relying on Ryan or Hazel would be unfair.

So Dillan maneuvered the base of his fins down into the box—like a clumsy claw game at an arcade, he made slow, careful movements to position himself. He felt the pain in his arms just from twisting his fins, but he didn't let himself stop. With another twist (and a biting of his lip), Dillan managed to pinch the berry awkwardly in his fins.

Each movement upwards created a small shift. Little, awkward twists of the berry, followed by frantic readjusting. He didn't want to drop the berry. That would cause issues, he was sure. He needed to do this. He was seventeen, for God's sake! He was more than capable of such a small feat as feeding himself!

This was Dillan's last thought before his muscles cramped. The berry slipped up and out of his grip, spun against his scales, and bumped against cracked bone. Dillan chomped down on his lip and whimpered like a pup, all while the berry clattered onto the top of the dresser.

He planted his face into the pillows as he seethed, using them as an effective muffler for his shotgun screams. The pain swelled in his claws, and beads of sweat formed against his neck.

He pressed his feet into the bed, feeling for a shifting form. Yet Ryan stayed perfectly still, his small breaths sounding like contented sighs in the dim room. Hazel's flame stayed a small glow, indicating she continued sleeping like a baby.

Dillan sighed through his nose. "Still asleep…" he thought.

The gabite raised his head from the pillow and narrowed his eyes on the berry below. It lay unmoving against the wooden top. Dillan saw its shadows contort into what looked like a face, sneering at him. It wanted him to fail. It needed him to give in.

"Here."

A voice broke through the dead silence. Dillan found himself tumbling to the ground from the startle. Looking backward towards the source of the noise, he found Ryan pulling at his cheeks and dragging his tail behind him. He walked across the bed with a weight to each step. In a moment, Ryan reached the nightstand and lifted the berry with both paws.

"Eat that," he said.

Dillan blinked back in surprise at the pachirisu. He smiled at Ryan, resisting the urge to rub the back of his neck for fear of further irritating his claws. "I, uh… didn't mean to wake you…"

Ryan merely shrugged. "Couldn't sleep." He pushed the berry closer to Dillan. "You gonna take this or what?"

"Oh." The gabite looked down at the offer and gave an awkward smile. "Can you, uh… break it for me?"

"What?" Ryan glanced around the berry towards Dillan's bandaged claws and immediately felt stupid. "Oh, uh… right. You can't do that yourself."

The base of Dillan's neck grew hotter from the awkward display. The pachirisu found this becoming tedious, didn't he? "N-nevermind. I can… uh… figure something out."

"It's fine," Ryan insisted. He pulled from both sides of the berry and split it in two, then brought one of the halves closer. "Just… open your mouth or something."

But Dillan heard the edge of awkwardness in his friend's voice. "I mean… I don't want this to become a thing, you know?"

"If it's a thing, it's only because you're making it a thing," Ryan blurted.

Dillan stuttered back: "I-I'm not trying to make it a thing."

"Well, you are."

"Well, I'm not trying to."

Ryan pushed the berry closer. "Maybe shut up and just eat the berry?"

"Well, I don't want you to hand-feed me!"

Ryan's eyes scrunched together. "See? Now it's a thing!"

"Ryan…"

"Just eat the berry, man!"

Ryan jumped down onto Dillan's chest, pushing the berry towards his mouth. The gabite placed his left arm between his face and Ryan's insistence, but the pachirisu didn't relent now that it was, indeed, a thing. His cheeks sparked, and he descended towards Dillan like a crazed chef, threatening to hand-feed him if it was the last thing he did.

Hazel began stirring from her own bed, and the two Pokémon froze. Dillan imagined if a Pokémon were to walk in at that very moment, the two of them would be a statue of awkward kinship; a feud only two friends could have. True art, but definitely not something he nor Ryan wanted anyone to see.

Dillan eventually managed to push Ryan from his chest and convince the pachirisu of the action's absurdity. Once Ryan set the berry down, the gabite swallowed the resulting pain and managed to handle the berry much like one would imagine a praying mantis would a leaf. Maneuvering above his mouth, Dillan managed to drop the berry down his throat quickly, not bothering with the taste, just to end the awkwardness.

Yet even as he finished, and after Ryan had taken a spot on the floor next to him, an almost glass-like delicateness still sat in the air, and neither Pokémon felt comfortable breaking it. What happened was out of friendship, even if admitting to it would kill both their pride. So, instead of addressing it, Ryan changed the focus entirely:

"Dude," he said with a nudge to Dillan's leg. "I wanted you to know… You kicked ass against Kaimana. I didn't say it last night, but I thought you should know."

"It was implied," Dillan smiled, nudging Ryan back with his foot.

But Ryan blew out a puff of air with an almost insistent tone. "I mean it. I know the plan didn't work out, but you put yourself in the hospital ward to win. Not to mention you moved like lightning."

Dillan gave an awkward laugh. "I don't know about that."

"You didn't see it from the ground, man," Ryan stared off towards the wall almost as if the previous fight projected itself across the stone. "Kaimana kept up with me pretty well throughout the battle. I only got a few cheap shots off because she was focused on Hazel. But you?" Ryan threw a few quick jabs at the air. "You socked her right in the gut like… really fast. She wasn't close to blocking you until… well, you know."

The moment came rushing back as clear as looking in a mirror. Dillan remembered throwing jab after jab, and he remembered how sluggish Kaimana seemed to move. "She was just… tired, right?"

Ryan shook his head. "Don't give her any credit. She tried blocking faster than me or Hazel, but you were relentless." Ryan looked to Dillan for confirmation he wasn't able to give. Instead, he saw the gabite scanning the floor in confusion, and his own head tilted slightly.

Dillan remembered the fight to the last detail; it had been printed on the surface of his claws, plain as day and easy to read. He remembered the tense look in her eyes as he wailed. He remembered the bending of his bones with every strike. He remembered the surge of adrenaline when he shot towards her. He remembered…

And that's when it hit him. His claw moved instinctually towards his bandanna: to what lay underneath. He remembered the glow of the Sapphire Star against the lucario's face. Kaimana moved so slowly because of the gemstone…

The blue glow convinced him of it. The Sapphire Star slowed Kaimana's movements. In fact, she moved just as slowly as the falling debris back in Sandy Slopes. Did the star save him there, too? Even Void Canyon, back when everything stood still…

He couldn't explain how if you asked him. Truth be told, it didn't matter. He knew it helped him—saved him. Yet it only brought worry to his mind. Just what did he accept from Lily?

"What?" Ryan asked. He seemed to look towards Dillan's bandanna, almost as if he knew what the gabite's claw drifted towards. And he smiled insistently. "You don't think your scarf made you go faster?"

But Dillan didn't answer. He didn't know how. 'Hey, Ryan. Truth be told, I got this rock from a talking wolf right after we escaped the tree elves. Turns out it makes people slower or stop completely.' His own mother would call him 'loco' just for saying something so out-of-pocket.

And yet, there Ryan sat. He didn't look at Dillan with contempt or negativity, just a beckoning gaze that said, "You can talk to me." Would it be so bad to share his thoughts with the pachirisu? Did he really have to fear what Ryan would think?

Dillan's heart raced in his chest, but something told him those thoughts were irrational—he didn't need to worry. He could afford to sound crazy right now. Ryan looked at him with trust and understanding, and Dillan couldn't just ignore it this time.

The gabite reached beneath his bandanna with his left claw. The string now felt like a numb pressure against his cracks, and he tugged the Sapphire into sight. "I… don't think the bandanna had anything to do with it, honestly…"

Ryan looked towards the gemstone with a raised brow. "That's… that's that rock the wolf gave you, right?" He scoffed. "You were pretty lock-jawed about it back in Fericia."

Dillan nodded, swallowing hard. "S-sorry… It's… just that… I think it's more than a rock. But I'm honestly not sure how.

"When Lily gave this to me, she called it the Sapphire Star. She said it had powers."

Ryan scoffed aloud. "A rock with special powers?" He flicked his tail at the idea dismissively. "Yeah, sure."

Dillan blinked a couple of times at the pachirisu. "Y-yeah…" he said slowly. "It's… weird, I know. But back in Void Canyon, when we were fighting the Sandslash, it froze everything."

"Oh, is that why you took a spine to the shoulder?" the pachirisu laughed.

Dillan's neck became hot with embarrassment. He could feel his cheeks growing warmer. "I'm being serious," he insisted, scowling at Ryan. "It starts glowing when I'm in danger. And then everything gets… slower."

Ryan saw his insistent look and pursed his lips. He seemed to look around the room as if searching for an explanation written in the stone. "Look, man. The adrenaline of a fight gets to some pokémon. Things look like they happen in slow motion, but that's your brain working overtime to compensate. It isn't a magic rock: it's just you."

There was such a finality to Ryan's words. It shocked Dillan to his core. He didn't believe him?

"It's not adrenaline," the gabite assured, shaking his head at the pachirisu in confusion.

He suddenly felt like he was sitting at Grace's bedside. All the worries bottled up inside, all the emotions he had to force down—the passive facade he'd come to adopt as his own. Perhaps he'd misread things between himself and Ryan. "Do you really think I'm crazy?"

"Dillan, it's not…" But Ryan stopped himself, seeing the confusion on Dillan's face.

He leaned against the leg of the bed. His paws pressed themselves together and created a resting spot for his chin, as if making an archway to support his thoughts. His brow seemed tense with thought, though his breathing remained steady. Whatever was happening within Ryan's head, Dillan couldn't say, and it left him waiting anxiously.

Eventually, Ryan took a deep inhale: "If you're right about it, it sounds like your rock controls time or something," he stated with an unmistakable edge of intrigue in his voice. And soon after, a smile followed.

Dillan found a grin of his own slowly spreading across his face. His shoulders suddenly relaxed, his brain latched onto Ryan's calm, and he brought the Sapphire Star into the light of Hazel's tail-flame. The two Pokémon began staring into the crystal that seemed to entrap the light from Hazel's flame.

"Honestly," Dillan admitted, "that doesn't sound too far off from what happens, now that you mention it."

"That'd be pretty badass," Ryan chuckled. "And you got it from that lycanroc."

Dillan opened his mouth to answer but stopped as a pillow, catapulted from across the room, collided with his face.

"Would you guys please keep it down…?" Hazel's voice croaked, buried inside the mattress. "Some Pokémon are trying to sleep…"

"Hey, you said you wanted to get up early," Ryan countered. "We're supposed to pick out clothes for the Accolade, right?"

"Mphmmm…"

Dillan looked towards Ryan with a smile. He could see in his calmed demeanor Ryan didn't believe him outright. He knew the squirrel was forcing himself to come off sincerely for Dillan's sake. Regardless, Dillan wasn't mad. In fact, he felt… relieved.

Truth be told, Ryan didn't need to believe in a "magic rock." It took this long for Dillan to believe it outright. What mattered was that Dillan believed and Ryan didn't put him down for it. At the end, that's all he wanted: acceptance. He didn't want to hide this from him. And it's what Ryan gave him. At the end, Ryan didn't try to take his dignity. He showed Dillan respect.

Ryan dismounted the bed's post after a moment and stretched towards the ceiling. "You wanna keep talking to me about it over breakfast?" he asked. "I'm hungry, and I'm not waiting for Hazel any longer."

Dillan found a light chuckle escaping his mouth. "We can eat, but only if you don't try to spoon-feed me."

"God, there it is again!" Ryan dramatically threw his arms upwards. "You've made it a thing!"


Within no time at all, Dillan and Ryan managed to find the Guild's diner. They grabbed platefuls of food and ate until their bellies were full and satisfied. Hazel crawled out of bed shortly after they got back, looking like she'd been hit by a truck. She stumbled around the room like a zombie, scraped together her bag of things, and sloppily draped her purple scarf over her shoulders. Her appearance redefined the word "disheveled."

"Did you sleep at all?" Dillan asked. "Or were you too excited?" Yet she only replied with a half-mumble, half-sigh.

Hazel walked towards the doorway before face-planting against the rail. "Give me a moment… I'll be awake in a moment…"

The three slowly departed the room and made their way through the orange Guild halls. Pokémon buzzed about like worker bees. Pokémon beat every banner, dusted every painting, and polished every floor. Eventually, they traipsed over the last of the orange stones and out into the Guild's courtyard.

Today was a day for celebration. It was the day the three - Team Rapture - became official Guild members. By tomorrow, he'd be allowed within the Guild's library and all of this would be nothing more than another bad memory.

The sunlight fluttered down over the edge of the cliff in an array of light, bathing the inside of the canyon in warmth. With a breath of fresh air, Hazel became more like her usual, peppy self.

The group walked across the sand-covered streets of Kerrosia, following Hazel's lead. They weaved between legions of singing Pokémon who wore glistening badges of silver. These groups gathered on every corner, singing in unison around a central Pokémon: this one in particular, a green lizard wearing a feather-topped hat (Kecleon). The lizard stood above the crowd, leading the group in their theatrical shanty like a bard, strumming on a stringed instrument while they hopped atop wooden boxes:

Before our Great King's greatest quest, dark dungeons formed a dire test.

Lands once lush with vibrant life, now twisted pits of wicked strife.

Max took his sword, his noble crest, yearning to quell the cruel unrest.

With friends beside, to earn the crown, he'd beat the darkness; drive it down.

Dillan couldn't help but smile at the sheer joy that filled the streets. Soon enough, the wave of singing washed over him like Kerrosia's stream. He found himself dancing to the chants, hopping away and skipping across stones. He felt as if an ocean of joy enraptured him, drowning all his previous worries and sorrows. This was something he'd be hard-pressed to find back in the human world.

No. Back there, he would have lazed underneath that tree. His entire world revolved around that tree, a run-down school, and a hospital bed. Here, he found such a spring in his step he felt like he could leap upwards and touch the sky itself.

He heard Ryan laughing at his antics in his ear, and that was fine. He didn't feel embarrassed or awkward at that moment. He just spun. He pirouetted joyfully as a ballerina does on opening night, dancing to the chanting of the song overhead. All the while, Ryan gripped his arm and cheered from the weightless feeling in his stomach.

Hazel eventually stopped, having heard the pachirisu's laughter. She found herself smiling. In fact, she joined in on the chanting, clapping away to the beat.

The group was in great spirits. Dillan skipped across those cobble streets with intoxicating smiles around them. Pokémon standing near the corners watched them both, clapping to the beat. And Dillan looked Hazel in the eyes with a smirk as an idea dawned in his brain.

He recalled days underneath his tree, where watching passing people became commonplace. But two people in particular had caught his eye: two guys who were getting ready for some school dance, he was sure. He chuckled to himself at their awkwardness as they attempted to spin circles in that grassy field. Dillan wondered if now, in Kerrosia's musical alleyway, he'd be able to remember enough of their dance to actually do something coordinated.

Only one way to find out, right?

He arched a brow towards Hazel playfully. The charmeleon just looked back at him with a bemused smirk, not quite understanding his idea. But within a moment, Dillan skipped towards her and interlocked an arm around hers (not too forcefully to keep himself from pain). Hazel's flame flared as she gasped, and within a moment, the gabite pulled her towards a less crowded area before skipping in circles with her in tow. It was a dance that looked straight out of some old western, but one that was simple enough for his memory.

It didn't feel exactly on-beat, and honestly, it was a bit sloppy, but Dillan found himself too elated to care. This was his day; it was their day. As Hazel yelped from the surprise skipping, he couldn't keep from laughing.

"What are we doing?!" the charmeleon cheered, her eyes locked on her messy steps.

"It's obviously a dance, Hazel!" the pachirisu cheered. "You've never danced?"

Dillan quickly found Hazel's foot atop his own followed by a quick, "Sorry!"

"I'm an explorer," she insisted. "Dancing isn't a requirement!"

"It's easy," Dillan laughed with a randomly added kick. "It's just circles! Just… feel the music!"

They slashed through beasts, found great relief, conquered monsters, ended grief.

Emerging from shadows, triumphant and bold, Max brought an end to strife untold.

The people sang with great relief, for feral frights now changed to feats.

This is the story that we sing, Of how a poor boy was crowned Great King.

Dillan hummed an impromptu beat as best he could to the song, attempting to make things easier on Hazel. Yet he couldn't keep his tempo consistent. There was a "four" when there should have been a "three." However, Ryan had him covered with a rhythmic tapping to his shoulder.

"You're all over the place," Ryan laughed in his ear. "Leave the beat to the professionals!"

One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. Ryan managed to bring an even pace to the surrounding chants. To his own surprise, it seemed to work. Soon, Dillan's humming interlocked with the pachirisu's clapping, and the nervousness on Hazel's face began to fade with every step. Each progressing spin felt more effortless. Hazel mounted his feet less and less as they went, and eventually, she brought her heels on the ground instead (with the occasional toe-step).

"Oh!" she cheered, her flame bursting beside the gabite. "I'm doing it!"

A spark from Ryan's cheeks tickled Dillan's neck. "Hell yeah you are!"

By now, a circle had formed in the center of the street, making ample room for the trio. They circled the edge with joy. Everything melted away. None of it mattered. The three's elation was the only thing that filled the air, as strong as the scent from a rose.

And within no time at all, the song came to an end all too abruptly. The three Pokémon continued to travel for a second too long, but it didn't matter. Cheers erupted across the street. The trio broke away with arms raised in excitement.

Hazel laughed aloud, expelling some of the extra energy inside her. "That was awesome!"

"I didn't know you danced," Ryan jeered with a whip of his tail to Dillan's arm. "You holding out on us?"

"I used to watch… uh… other Pokémon do it outside," Dillan said, almost spoiling his secret. "That was actually my first time."

Regardless, the dance would be fun enough to spring them forward. They continued down the streets all the way up to the boutique: a drab-looking building from the outside that quickly gave way to an assortment of sights: shelves lined in gauntlets and satchels, belts and cloaks, bandannas and necklaces. You name it, Dillan was sure the store held it.

And in no time at all, the three put on new clothing for the coming accolade.

Hazel found that, indeed, shawls were an 'in-season' thing for Ganderosans. After a quick discussion with the clerk (a minun with measuring tapes looped all over its body), the small Pokémon helped Hazel find a white shawl that complemented her scarf surprisingly well. The designer made it longer on the right end so it draped down the length of her arm. Hazel also managed to find greaves made from some type of faux leather that turned Hazel, as Ryan put it, "super badass." She finished off the look with her bag slung over her shoulder.

Ryan, himself, found something simpler than Hazel's choices: nothing at all.

The shopkeep showed Ryan a black cloak with a lacy trim around the neck, recommending it for the pachirisu (Dillan thought Dracula would have looked dashing in it). Ryan shivered at the sight, almost offended by the garment.

"Cloaks are too baggy," he justified. "You can't run in a cloak."

"I found my cloak surprisingly floaty," Dillan said, recalling Lily's other gift. "I miss that cloak."

Hazel rolled her eyes and nudged Ryan's tail. "You have to wear something."

But Ryan refused, insisting, "My tail-band is enough 'fancy.'" That said, Ryan did end up purchasing a small brush for his tail, using it to remove the knots and mats.

Dillan, on the other hand, went absolutely crazy with excitement. He might have tried on too much. All sorts of cool goodies flew on and off his scales, making him feel like he was turning into a real-life DnD character.

He tried on gauntlets and belts, capes and shawls, hats and hoods—all the possibilities made his excitement bubble over. He finally settled on a more complex design compared to his friends: iron gauntlets around his wrists (which were surprisingly plush inside, making them more than ideal given his current injuries), a belt with little pockets on the side for berries, and leather-like stockings for his legs. Not to mention his bandanna to keep the Star hidden. All in all, Dillan thought the group looked surprisingly mythical. Definitely cooler. Not to mention the stockings had puffy tops keeping his legs especially comfy. Definitely an improvement: one that made his tail wag.

Now fully adorned with fancy clothing, the group decided to head back to the Guild for the ceremony. They took the long way back, exploring the town and all it had to offer. As today was the accolade, the town itself seemed to be in full swing. Shopkeepers knew the type of clientele that would be in the town (Guild members) and aimed to please. Most Pokémon set up along the main path down to the Guild, hitting the major checkpoints like the catwalks. They insistently waved passing Guild members to their abodes, saying things like: "Have you tried the world's best berry crust?" "How about some shiny new boots?" Dillan found multiple things that caught his eye on the way back to the Guild.

One of the more popular items to sell seemed to be hold-items much like his bandanna or Hazel's scarf: items to boost natural abilities. Vendors erected temporary walls of scarves and ribbons for display. And of course they would be selling them, given the Guild members needed the extra boost for dungeoneering. Not to mention everything else: multiple items made for "alchemy" (though Dillan doubted it had anything to do with forming rings), herbs and spices to spruce up dinner on the road (Ryan seemed especially interested in that), even items advertised as "battle items" such as iron spikes and large tossing stones. There was even a store selling alcoholic drinks right on the street (Dillan now had to consider the age requirements for drinking as a Pokémon).

The trio slowly inched down the streets, trying events and games along the way. They had a version of "bobbing for apples" Dillan found he was especially good at. By the time they'd made it back to the Guild, they found the sun had just set over the cliff face above, a little past five if Dillan were to guess. And making their way inside, the entire outside mirrored inside perfectly. New banners lined in gold strung themselves across the surrounding pillars, displaying the dragon emblem. Decorative flags hung overhead. Pokémon cleaned the walls and polished the floors to such a luster, Dillan considered walking across them a crime. Yet they did so, finding themselves body-to-body with Guild members. They all swarmed the main hall in a wave of chatter.

"It's pretty loud in here!" Ryan called above the noise.

"Welcome to the Accolade!" Hazel cheered.

"You say that like you've been to one," Dillan smirked, nudging Hazel with a fin.

The charmeleon shrugged towards him. "I might have snuck into one back in Fericia."

"What a bad girl," Ryan sneered. "Next you're gonna tell us you used to knock over convenience stores."

Hazel just looked away from the pachirisu, lacing her hands underneath her shawl. "W-well…"

"Attention Guild members and Guildlings!" a voice squeaked above the commotion. "Please make your way into the throne room! Keep in mind, the first table will be reserved for new recruits!"

And with that, the swarm of Pokémon pushed their way towards the great oak doors at the back of the room. Passing under the doorway, they found themselves within a large throne room adorned with pillars along the walls. Great purple banners with the dragon's skull swung from the walls, while magnificent glass chandeliers hung overhead. Dillan noticed a small, lamp-like Pokémon blowing flames onto the candles above. Four great tables ran down the length of the room, and a larger table sat at the end where four golden thrones were placed. To Dillan's surprise, two of the thrones were occupied by Pokémon he recognized.

In the first chair sat the familiar, fluffy face of Guild Master Lawrence Staudt. The stoutland had obviously brushed his poofy mustache since their last meeting. He donned a purple cloak wrapped delicately around his neck, decorated with a silver, vine-like pattern. Pinned to the neck of the cloak sat a golden Guild badge. He seemed to be engaged in a rather one-sided conversation with the Pokémon in the throne next to him: Guild Master Kaimana. She was just as elaborately adorned as Staudt, with gold and bronze circlets now accompanying the Guild badge pinned to her ear. She wore a scarf much like Hazel's, draped over a glittery breastplate. Her head rested atop one of her bronze gauntlets as she stared blankly at Staudt, already bored by whatever he was saying.

Next to Kaimana was a Pokémon Dillan hadn't seen before. The green slug-like Pokémon, with three eyes and numerous frills lining its body (gastrodon), wore a high-collared cape pinned shut by the golden Guild badge. The Pokémon already had its head submerged in a full plate of food, crumbs scattered all over its face.

The trio found themselves sectioned off from the rest of the group: those with Guild badges and those without. The ones without were pushed towards the first table by a familiar minccino (whom Dillan guessed was the source of the squeaky voice) who now wore a frilly, wrinkle-free cape. The ones with badges were allowed to sit at the other three tables.

Dillan walked the length of the recruit table while Hazel gasped. "The Guild Masters are here…" she said in awe. "We get to eat with Guild legends! Dungeon masters whose honor and merit know no bounds…" She let out a squeal that sounded like a deflating balloon.

"You sound like a travel guide," Ryan laughed.

"Is… one missing?" Dillan asked, pointing towards the empty seat.

Hazel looked on for a moment before a slow nod took hold. "Guild Master Zinclyde. She oversees the Alkan Region." Hazel pinched her chin in thought, yet she eventually shrugged.

"Maybe something came up," Ryan suggested. "Got busy counting her money pile?"

Dillan, hardly understanding Ganderosan politics at all, decided it must not be important. He, with his friends, continued finding themselves a seat towards the end of the table. As he sat, he considered himself fortunate enough to be sitting between Hazel and Ryan, the former pressed against a scary-looking polar bear and the latter having to sit on the table's edge to have any kind of height.

Dillan looked over their table, seeing a vast array of Pokémon of all shapes and sizes. There were scarf-wearing snakes, pauldron-packing polar bears, armor-adorned icebergs (that one was a particularly strange Pokémon): so many species and so much variety. No matter where he looked, Dillan always found something different and spectacular. He smiled in sheer awe.

The human world hardly had such extravagant sights. And here, he got to see so many already. Sitting in that room gave him a new perspective on… everything. Perhaps he wasn't unlucky to have been dropped in that field. Quite the opposite. Sitting there, ready to share a meal between dragons and beasts, he felt like the winner of a cosmic lottery. Imagining all the stories he'd be able to tell Grace made him smile.

A sharp ping rang out from the front of the room, and all the chattering voices fell silent in an instant. Kaimana stood at the front, a goblet resting in her fingers and a two-pronged fork in the other hand. She stood tall at her own table as she looked across the Guild.

"Friends," she began. "Brothers and sisters of the Guild, it is my pleasure as Kerrosia's Guild Master to host the Guild's annual Accolade." Kaimana set the goblet down as her smile began to falter. "A dark stain has begun to mark Ganderosa's legacy. Daily, we face down spies to the north who threaten our great country's peace. We stare down enemies from within who threaten the very stabilization our Guild system brings. And they call us monsters.

"But," The lucario's eyes flashed towards the table where Dillan sat. And suddenly, Dillan felt a pin at the back of his neck - some sort of light unease that slowly ate at his nerves. "Pride has brought you here. For you have risen above the noise and doubt, knowing the Guild System is what keeps our country functioning. You come to pledge yourselves to something greater than the individual." She shook a clenched fist towards them: "You seek to wield King Judah's sword, and to bring further peace in a world where traitors like Team Armageddon wish it death. And you will do so honorably!"

Kaimana beat a fist against her breastplate with a metal clang, while Guild Master Staudt and the gastrodon chanted, "Hail Judah!" The surrounding Guild members stood from their seats and followed suit. The soon-to-be Guild members trailed behind but managed to join in the salute.

"Now, let the accolade begin!"

Within a moment, cheers erupted throughout the room. Multiple Guild members, all dressed in close-necked cloaks, marched towards the table in front of the Guild Masters. They each took a corner and shuffled it away. Then the minccino hopped towards the middle of the room.

The little Pokémon clasped its paws around its mouth and hollered, "Good evening, Guildlings! We will now begin the Ganderosan Rites! When you hear your team name called, make your way before Guild Master Kaimana, who will officially mark you as Guild members!

"Team Silverhart!"

Three Pokémon—a kirlia, corvisquire, and leafeon—stood from the table. They held their heads up high and beat their chests. Then they knelt before Kaimana. The lucario turned towards her glittering throne before lacing a large, iron gauntlet around her fist, its spike fitting perfectly into a hole in the back. Almost as if on cue, an absol, who wore silver chains from its blade, stepped up to Kaimana. Upon its back sat a silver dish, as well as a wide array of silver Guild badges resting upon a pillow.

Kaimana took the dish first, setting it upon the armrest of her throne. She then took the pillow before beating her chest at the absol. With the gauntlet on her fist, she dipped it into the bowl, and when it came up again, Dillan noticed a sort of rainbow-hued liquid dripping from its knuckles.

"This gauntlet represents the ire of King Judah himself. After tonight, to strike at you is to strike at Ganderosa's Crown itself."

She turned to the Pokémon, one by one, raised her fist, and struck each against the cheek. A metal clang sounded, loud enough to make Dillan wince. They all staggered beneath the bludgeoning gauntlet before rising with determination burning behind their eyes. "May this be the last strike you ever turn a blind eye to." She raised the gauntlet to the sky and announced, "Hail King Judah!"

The three newly anointed Guild members pounded their fists and cheered. As they made their way back off the stage, the minccino stepped up once more: "Team Valor!"

One by one, each Pokémon stepped up and received a blow from the gauntlet. And every one of them staggered beneath the force. Pretty soon, Dillan could tell who had gone up and who hadn't just based on the number of welts around the table. And it made him a bit nervous.

He volunteered for this. He was about to get clobbered. Was he crazy? Was there any way around it? Ryan seemed to share similar thoughts as every strike led to him wincing. Yet Hazel just beamed at each blow like a masochist. God, she was way too happy about what amounted to a bruised jaw.

But as they heard their team name, "Team Rapture," Dillan realized he didn't have much of a choice. After all, this was for Grace. He'd have to swallow the fears and the pain like a man… like a gabite.

Team Rapture pounded their chest, with the exception of Dillan who merely hovered his injured claw over his breast. As they stepped away from the bench, all eyes were set on them. Yet he found all of them were watching with the same amount of pride Hazel brought. Team Rapture was about to become official, and they were all proud of them. Of Dillan.

Suddenly, the imminent assault didn't seem so bad.

Dillan, Ryan, and Hazel all knelt before Kaimana, just as the others had before them. As Kaimana dipped her gauntlet, she seemed to pause at the sight of the three.

"Team Rapture," she said with a smirk. "I will admit, I did not expect to see the three of you at the foot of my throne."

"We'll take it as a compliment," Ryan sneered.

And Kaimana nodded. "As you should."

Kaimana stood in front of Hazel with her gauntlet raised. The charmeleon stared up towards the gauntlet with starry eyes. Dillan even found her leaning closer to the Guild Master, with fists clenched on her knee and eyes closed, ready for the attack of her life.

"This gauntlet represents the ire of King Judah himself," Kaimana repeated. "After tonight, to strike at you is to strike at Ganderosa's Crown itself."

And she swung her knuckles against Hazel's cheek. The charmeleon reeled from the blow, and her eyes fluttered to see reality instead of stars. Yet she returned to her kneeling position with her head held high all the same. Her tail-flame flared brighter than ever.

Then came Ryan. "Is there any way we skip the part where you nail me in the face?" the squirrel grimaced. But Kaimana just smirked down at him. Ryan bowed his head in surrender with tightened eyes. "Just do it quick then."

Kaimana brought her entire fist against his face. This was the moment Dillan realized just how hefty the gauntlet must have been. The knuckles fit Ryan's head perfectly, as if designed with his height in-mind.

Ryan spun from the blow, landing against the wooden floor. Pokémon behind were whispering, "Ooh…" and Dillan found his nerve leave him again. Ryan tried to stand twice, fell the first time, and then shook the blow off. "I'm… good," he slurred.

Then came Dillan.

Kaimana stood a good three feet over him from his kneel. Her gauntlet caught the lights overhead in the perfect way to catch Dillan's gaze in a blinding flash. Even the oil, which smelled of iron and earth, drew his attention. He was really doing this. He was really getting decked. After his claws, the last thing he needed was a broken jaw. And all the jagged angles of the knuckles didn't agree with his face at all.

Kaimana reeled her fist back and stared down the gabite. He resisted the urge to cover his face, knowing he'd have to take the hit if he wanted to be a Guild member. This was the price of admission. He'd have to look her in the eye and show no fear. He'd—

And in a flash of blue intensity, Dillan saw on her face the same expression he'd seen during their fight. Her smile twisted into an almost joyful snarl. She eyed him like an enemy she'd finally caught up to after a long chase. It was a look of murderous intent. She intended to break him with the blow.

Dillan didn't know what brought out such a look—whether she really intended to kill him with the strike or if it was just his mind playing games. Truthfully, he didn't see the attack coming through an intense blue glow. That instant realization made him shrink, raising his broken arms hoping his new gauntlets would defend him. A wave of vertigo washed over the gabite, and he wondered if he'd throw up before the blow. Yet as time turned to seconds of waiting, no strike came. No attack. No instant pain. Just… a dizzy feeling in his head.

"Uh…"

Dillan slowly began opening his eyes. Inch by inch, he feared he was about to take the strike. Yet an intense, blue light bathed his arms. He took a breath and steadied himself. Then he looked down towards the gemstone, whose cyan glow washed up his neck. "Did… did it stop her attack…?"

Dillan slowly uncurled his arms from around his head. If his theory was correct, Kaimana would have been caught mid-punch, barreling down upon him from above. Her body should be suspended in the air like a floating statue, just as the Star had done for him back in Void Canyon. Yet where he expected to find Kaimana's hunched form, he found… nothing.

Kaimana was gone.

"Kai-…" was all Dillan got out.

The gabite stood up with a start, realizing the lucario's absence wasn't the only thing to change. In fact, the entire room had shifted within the blink of an eye.

Ryan and Hazel, who were just kneeling next to him, had vanished into thin air. The room no longer contained the tables. A thick layer of orange dust now caked the floor that once shone bright. Torn and wrinkled, the Ganderosan banners now lay on the ground, buried beneath the remains of shattered pillars. Cracked shards of the chandelier littered the ground, and the thrones that once held the Guild Masters were now reduced to one: a single, rusted piece assaulted by time itself. Even the ceiling held a spider web of cracks, on the verge of total collapse. It was as if the room spiraled with age.

"Wh…" Dillan gasped. His eyes searched frantically for some sign of life but found none. Instead, he found himself staring wide-eyed at the wall behind the throne.

The wall, which once stood as a solid backdrop to the Guild Masters, now sat crumbled at his feet. He assumed there would have been more wall behind the stone, considering they were underground. Yet there was… nothing. A literal wall of nothing.

He walked slowly, and each step echoed into the void before him, consumed by it. Closer and closer he got but found nothing blinked back from beyond the shadows. No more stone. No more Kerrosian desert. Not even a single star shone against the darkness. No warmth came through it, and neither did any chill. Just a choking, black nothingness.

Then his eyes caught the glow of the Sapphire again, and realization kicked him in the gut. He shoved his arm into his bandanna, not caring about the shooting pain it brought. He just needed to see the gem. He needed answers. "What is this…?" he shouted at the crystal. "What did you do? What did you do to my friends?!"

As he shouted like a madman at a rock, the Sapphire began to glow more intensely. Dillan had to squint from its glow. "What?" he asked. "What, are you trying to tell me something?" And it grew more intense.

Dillan was at a complete loss. He found himself staring towards the crystal as if it were about to speak to him. Yet it merely glowed stronger and stronger.

That's when he heard it. It was a groan that mirrored the creaking of a ship underneath a great wave—metal stretching under sheer pressure. It was loud and drawn out, yet it held a sharp hiss just underneath. And it came from the void.

Dillan's spine locked in place from the noise. His eyes drifted towards the void with surprise. Was… something there?

"H-hello…?" he made out.

Another groan answered back, though it sounded short, almost violent like the crack of a whip.

Each breath forced itself from Dillan's lungs. He could feel panic starting to set in, shooting pins and needles up his arms and legs, and prickling at his neck. After meeting literal dragons, ghosts, and talking lycanthropes, any horrific possibility seemed available. And they all played in his brain: demons with wicked snarls, feral beasts with snarling fangs, though nothing came close to what he saw.

At first, a dim glow of crimson like fire grew sharper with the passing seconds. He saw it grow and pulsate violently, red-hot spines that fired into the walls. The whole building seemed to shake from the blow. Parts of the ceiling crashed against the dust behind, throwing a cloud that raced for the hole. Within a moment, the surrounding area seemed bathed in smoke.

He could make out a form from beyond the cloud. Its spines seemed tied to writhing tendrils, and the beast dragged itself from the void towards the room, twisting in the shadows of the dust cloud.

Dillan couldn't get a clear figure through the dust, but that only aided in his panic. He attempted a retreat, yet he found himself glued in place at the sight of those red eyes: two circlets of crimson, like a pair of blood moons boring under his skin. A chilling shriek echoed into the room, and Dillan slapped his claws to his head: pain be damned.

One of the tendrils broke free from the wall. It slithered through the air like a demonic snake. The limb lunged at Dillan, who only had enough time to brace for impact before—

BAM!

In another flash of blue light, Dillan felt his jaw give way to a metallic fist. He spiraled across the floor in a daze. The world spun out of control, and he collapsed onto the ground.

In a panting fit, the gabite stumbled onto his feet. He blinked quickly, trying to be rid of the dust in his eyes. Yet as his vision cleared, he looked upon a sea of Pokémon sitting at tables. Murmurs echoed across the room.

"D-Dillan?" Hazel's voice called from behind.

Dillan spun around quickly, spotting Ryan and Hazel kneeling at Kaimana's feet. The two Pokémon stared back at him with furrowed brows and arched shoulders.

"You good?" Ryan asked.

But Dillan hadn't even registered the question. He was still panting profusely. His eyes darted past Kaimana. The void was now gone, and so was the creature. Now, only a solid wall of orange stone stood. And Dillan could only watch it in shock.

"What the hell was that thing…?" he thought, mind racing with possibilities. "Was that thing… even a Pokémon?"

He must have watched that wall for a good minute as even Kaimana broke from her spot. Her hand came into Dillan's sight, extended towards him. "A member of the Guild should be able to take such a blow," she chided.

Dillan's eyes rested on her gauntlet, considering her words. Was that blow… from her? He pressed his claw to his cheek and winced—both from his broken bone and from a welt that had formed on his cheek. So, Kaimana had struck him. He was back in the Kerrosian Guild… or back to normalcy, at least.

Dillan set his fin in Kaimana's arm and she hoisted him to his feet. The gabite looked towards her with a forced sheepishness. "S-sorry," he said with a shrug. "I, uh… guess you caught me off-guard, is all."

A smirk played off Kaimana's lips as she laced her paws behind her. Yet her eyes seemed fixated on a spot below Dillan's chin. And the gabite's arms straightened in panic. He could see it in her eyes, the light of the Sapphire playing across her vision as it died. It was exposed.

Before he could worry about what to do, Kaimana turned on her heels back to her throne. "Perhaps you should kneel so we can finish your anointing, hm?" she said through a smile.

"Ah," Dillan stuttered. And with her back turned, the gabite quickly (painfully) stuffed the gemstone underneath his bandanna again. "R-right," he managed.

Dillan followed Kaimana back to his spot, next to a bewildered-looking pachirisu, and knelt down. As Kaimana finished the rite, Ryan nudged Dillan by the leg.

"She clocked your ass hard," he whispered from below. "You gonna be good?"

But Dillan didn't have a good answer. Honestly, his mind replayed the strange situation he'd found himself in. He couldn't excuse it as a dream; it was too painful for that: too real. In which case, the Sapphire Star became his go-to explanation.

That said, it hadn't done anything like that before… Nothing stopped upon its use, everything just vanished. Maybe it was a new ability of the Sapphire, one he hadn't stumbled upon yet. He recalled Ryan's suggestion that morning: "It sounds like your rock controls time or something." That would explain the age the room had suffered.

Thoughts continued to pile upon Dillan's mind as Kaimana dismissed them. They walked back towards their bench, but Dillan's mind stayed glued to the gemstone under his bandanna. "What exactly did you show me…?"


(A/N)

Hey everyone! Hope you enjoyed the chapter, because this is the end of Section 1. This will be the last chapter for a bit while I work on Section 2. For those who have read the story before, I'm planning on the next section to go all the way up until the end of the Castellum Town arc. For those who don't know, call it roughly "Chapter 20".

This took a lot longer than I'd wanted it to, but such is the nature of life. You roll with the punches and don't worry about anything else lol

Anyways, thanks for reading up until this point! Feel free to leave a comment on how you're liking (or not liking) the story. Each one becomes a little gem of inspiration to me that I can go back and look over for a burst of energy. So leaving them does help the story in a weird way.