ALWAYS AUDACITY

CHAPTER XI - Meeting the Competition

When you expect someone or something to wake you up, you would normally expect a gentle shake on the shoulder, or a rather annoying alarm to ring next to you in the morning to bring up back into the real world. If you were unlucky, you might get startled by someone shouting through your door. You know, the usual stuff.

What Sam was never prepared for was the scream to come barrelling down his ears.

"ELLO! IT'S TIME TO PARTY!"

Sam jerked in his bed; his limbs locked into place as his eardrums cried in agony. What in the name of-. He only had control over his eyes, if barely as they rolled over to one side. In the doorway, flapping the wings excitably with widened eyes was a black and purple bat, with ears that resembled… loudspeakers?

A-A Noibat? Kin-

"HEY!" she screamed, immediately causing his body to stiffen even more as his ears were assault. Across the room, Aidan too was frozen in place, his eyes squeezed shut as he was frozen in place. "HEY! WE'VE GOT TRIALS!" the Noibat bleeped out, "GOTTA GET OVER TO THE TREE UNLESS YOU WANT TO MISS IT ALL!".

She began to drift out… only to flutter back in. "Sorry about the volume!" she teased, "Easiest way to get everyone up!".

With that, she flew on out, leaving the two-half frozen on their beds, their limbs locked in place and unable to move. Sam's ears rung as if a jackhammer was still slamming into his head, blocking out his thoughts.

An uncomfortable thirty seconds later, and Aidan finally spoke. "T-T-That... w-was… lou-ud…"

Sam shivered, trying to will his muscles to move, his ears still ringing. "My. Ear. Drums. Are. Leaking!"

He blinked, feeling his arms beginning to sink. "Why. The hell. Would She. Wake us-"

Oh shit!

In that instant, Sam's muscles relaxed, and the Scorbunny sprung upright, his head spinning around to find the sunlight shining. "Damn it, what time is it!?"

"W-What do you-"

The Froakie's eyes snapped open, the frog rolling off his bed and landing with the grace of a brick. "The trials! Shit! I forgot that was happening!" He cursed, reaching into a half open drawer for a small mechanic device, "Shit! We need to get over to the tree in about ten minutes!"

Sam threw himself off his own bed, helping prone Aidan upright. "We better get moving!"

"E…err, can I pack a bag?" Aidan moaned, shaking his head sharply.

"Who gives a shit!" Sam barked, "Didn't you say we were getting better bags anyway? Let's just get there and deal with it all later!"

As it turned out, the Noibat's overblown wakeup scream had actually done the two a favour. That Esper wasn't kidding about getting up early. The sun had only just cleared the horizon, shining through the trees and leaving much of the considerably quiet square covered in shadow. Panting, the two partners would stumble upon a cluster of Pokémon, many of whom Sam recognised from the large group he came across in the barracks just the previous day. A collection of crates had been laid out in front of the entrance, with the entire group spread out amongst them.

Aidan flashed an exhausted grin, "Phew…" he uttered, "We're not late."

Sam was in a little bit of a worse state, panting as he leaned over with his hands clamped to his legs, his heart pounding. "I… I'm…. definitely… not… used to… running… with these legs…"

I guess… that run from the barracks is a lot longer… than my… err… escape.

"Hey Aidan! You made it!"

Blinking, Sam looked up to find the familiar blue and green shape of the Bulbasaur approach, a massive grin on his lips. "Bruce." Aidan said warmly, hopping forward to greet the reptile. "I have to admit it… but if it wasn't for Nia… we might have been in trouble."

The Scorbunny growled, pushing himself back upright. "Yeah… by deafening us! My ears have only just stopped ringing!"

Both the Froakie and the Bulbasaur visibly winced, the former already rubbing the side of his head. "Yeah." Bruce started, eyes dipping downwards. "She can't really help it… but still… when she did it to me, I couldn't get up for about twenty minutes."

He turned towards the Scorbunny, "Hey, I didn't actually thank you for helping me with that cursed idiot. What was your name again?"

Sam resisted the urge to frown, still unsure of what this 'curse' was all about. "It's Sam, and yeah, I couldn't let you get hurt."

"I appreciate it. That bitch was stupidly strong, I don't know how she did it."

Sam nodded back, "Well, that ear-punch was enough for me." He glanced past the Bulbasaur towards the other Pokémon gathered round. "I'm guessing you are taking part in the trials?"

"Yeah! With Team Forest."

"Forest?" Aidan mused, "But we're not signing names yet."

"Eh… we figured we might as well go ahead with it, make us work even harder."

Bruce glanced back towards the gathered Pokémon. "We've got about five teams here, six if…" his eyes widened a touch, "Wait, you two are going in as a Team?"

Aidan flashed a big grin, "Correcto mundo."

"Well, looks like you'll both be quite th-"

"Are you kidding me!?"

The three spun back towards the tree… where they found most of the Pokémon once more facing a very familiar Buneary. Only this time, Alice wasn't alone.

The Noibat, Nia, was there, along with what appeared to be a strangely coloured… guinea pig? For some reason though, it reminded him of a Pikachu and yet… wait… isn't that a Morpeko?

One of the Pokémon who was staring them down was considerably taller than most of the others, resembling a goat with a leafy green mane around its neck. They booted a hoof into the ground, eyes narrowed as they stared down the three Pokémon. "You are partnering with her?" They asked questioned, fixing their gaze on the Buneary.

Alice merely shrugged, arms crossed, "Honestly? I'm surprised they even offered me a place."

Nia was now firmly on the ground, but she had a giant grin on her face. "Oh come on! Why pass up her skills? Besides, I bet she's actually a big softie inside!"

"She is not." Alice replied quietly, with a tone that suggested that she was more bored than bothered.

Sam blinked, his mind trying to ponder what had been said or done for Alice to even sign onto a team in the first place. She wants to take part in the trials?

He turned to question Aidan about it, only to blink when he realised that Aidan and Bruce had already scampered on ahead towards the gathering group. I really need to keep up with people! He thought, as he sprinted after them.

"She's a real piece of work." The Skiddo grunted, "Do you really want her barking down your earhole all day?"

The Morpeko shuffled uncomfortably on the spot, "Hey… I don't like her either… but she knows her stuff."

"Yeah, in pissing people off!" barked a Skorupi, clicking their pincers together. "She'll probably leave you for dead before you know it!"

Alice narrowed her eyes, an ear twitching once as she took a step forward towards the Bug-type. "For the record, I would never do that." She quietly stressed; her voice quivering. "If you think I'd just leave someone for dead… you've got another thing coming."

The Skorupi took another step back at her, the Skiddo scraping their hoof across the ground. The Morpeko shivered, hands tight against their gut. Aidan stiffened. Alice was unmoving. The square fell silent.

Sam glanced at each of the Pokémon, already feeling his foot touch a loose stone. This was about to get hot again. He braced himself, steeling himself to leap forward to try and stop the fight that was about to happen.

He took a breath, and stepped forward. "How ab-"

"What's going on here?"

The white and blue furred feline that Rex had called Esper strolled out of the Guild Tree, ahead of another two Pokémon, including the Butterfree Jack and a Rhydon. All of them now baring armbands or scarves around their necks. Purple for the feline and the bug, red for the reptile. The Meowstic's eyes were narrowed as she surveyed the scene.

The tension flowed out of Sam's body, letting out a heavy sigh. Bloody. Good. Timing.

Alice glanced flicked her eyes over the Meowstic, "Nothin'."

"Edward? Denver?"

The Skiddo's looked towards her, shaking their head rapidly. "N-Nope. We're good."

The Skorupi meanwhile kept their gaze on the Buneary, but otherwise kept their mouth shut.

Esper and Jack shared a glance, before the former nodded. "Good. Everyone gather round in a semi-circle with your teams. Go."

The potential rescuers scrambled into action, assembling into the requested formation. Bringing himself up alongside Aidan, Sam took a glance across the assembled Pokémon. Alongside their own pair, there were five other teams assembled, including the team Alice had joined and Bruce's so-called Team Forest, each one with anywhere between two to three Pokémon each. I suppose most of the team's aren't that big.

Esper cast an eye across the whole group, taking it slowly as if she was absorbing virtually every detail about them. Sam felt a few hairs rise up the back of his neck, sensing that perhaps the feline was doing a little bit more than just looking at the way they looked.

"Alright. Some of you are nervous. That's understandable, especially with what's happening right now." She started; arms placed behind her back. "I was in the same position you were a few years ago, scared that something would go horribly wrong."

A few of the assembled Mons shared glances, a faint moment of fear flickering in Sam's chest as Esper continued, "Exploring and rescues can be dangerous, but with a bit of time and effort, you can get through the challenges you'll face. Even these trials are potentially dangerous, even with our preparation. Understood?"

"Got it!"

"Understood."

"Sure."

"Loud and clear!"

"Righto." Sam said, returning a nod. Well, we are training to be Rescuers. There is going to be a bit of danger wherever we go. No point in fretting about it, especially with what happened with that Swampert.

A little smile formed on the Meowstic's face. "Good. Jack?"

The Butterfree floated forwards alongside the Rhydon, placing what appeared to be a collection of satchels down onto the ground. "Okay, everyone take a satchel and don't lose it!" he explained with a buzz, "You've got a few bits to get you started, a map, a couple of berries, an apple and an Ether."

Flicking an ear, Sam picked one of the packs at random, opening it up to find that it indeed contained the items in questioned. "Hey." Bruce started, "I thought these packs normally had Explorer Badges?"

"Expedition Badges." Alice corrected him with her bored tone, "And no, they don't pass them out for those going through trials anymore."

"Alice is correct." Esper confirmed, "Besides, where we are going, you won't need them."

Sam pulled out the map, formed out of a browned but strangely thick paper. It showed what appeared to be dozens of islands, albeit most of them seemed to be centred around four central landmasses. One on its own to the west, marked with a square labelled with Robinswood's name. That island flanked by a crescent shaped collection of smaller bodies to the east, and three larger ones gathered further out from them. Interestingly enough, when he flicked the map over, he found himself staring at another map, now with the original features shrunk down and now surrounded by five even bigger islands on all sides apart from the south, continents actually, Sam realised.

Each one of them marked with a name. The smaller Sand Continent to the west. The mountainous Mist Continent to the North West. The lush Grass Continent to the east, the jagged and rugged Air Continent to the North East. The Water Continent squeezed in between Air and Mist. And finally, in the ocean in between, the islands of the Sea of Wonders.

He looked up towards Esper, "So… where are we going? Not too far I hope, I doubt I can go off to another continent yet."

Sam half expected the Meowstic to shake her head at that, but instead, she flashed a little wink. "Not yet." She replied, "No, we're headed over to Broken Woods. Just a few miles from here."

The Skorupi lifted their head up, eyes widening. "Hold up. Isn't there a Mystery Dungeon there?"

Sam tilted his head, confusion taking over as his ears dipped. Mystery Dungeon? What is that, some kind of… gaming arena or something?

"Three, actually." Jack confirmed, with a flutter of his wings.

"Err… that seems a bit dangerous for a first time trainee right?"

Sam's frown deepened, "I mean… the name alone makes it sound rather… err… dangerous as it is."

"Not really." Aidan stated, holding up his own map. "Broken Woods used to have one pretty big Dungeon. But it's been falling apart for the last few years. Those three dungeons are all that's left of it and nowhere near as dangerous."

"The Mystery Dungeons can do that?" asked the Skiddo, looking just as confused as Sam was. "I've never heard of that."

"Probably because you're the other side of Mist." Aidan explained, "Not as much news get there, but a lot of the Dungeons have been breaking down for the last couple of years, some have even gone entirely"

"No one really knows how the Dungeons came to be in the first place." Esper added, "Or why they function the way they do." She flicked a tuff of blur fur back, "In the meantime, we're going to take advantage of these Dungeons before they disappear entirely."

She turned back towards the Rhydon, taking a step back and extending out one arm to allow him past. The horned reptile immediately straightened up, "Alright, everyone follow me!" he barked, slinging a satchel and a larger rucksack over his shoulder. "Don't start enjoying the sights, you'll have plenty of time for that once we get there!"

One by one, the teams fell in behind the Rhydon. Nia pounced ahead of the others, forcing the Morpeko to clumsily jog after her. Alice didn't at first, merely rolling her eyes before walking onward on her own.

Sam and Aidan settled in the back, headed on their way towards one of the roads leading out of town. Aidan had a little smile on his face, trying to rub his hands together mid hop. "Finally…" he said, the catharsis thick enough in his voice to cut with a knife. "We're on our way."

The Scorbunny took a very steps in front of the Froakie, placing as his hands behind his head as walked backwards. "Sounds like this has been a long time coming." He mused, a little bit of pride slipping into his voice.

"I've been waiting to get my chance with this for years." Aidan replied, "It's been long enough. And three Mystery Dungeons! Even better!"

Despite his casual pose, Sam couldn't shake off that little bit of unease settling onto his shoulders. Here they were, walking off to some place that may well have been it's own brand of dangerous, training for a job that was by it's very nature dangerous. The sensible part of him thought this was madness, he barely had any context behind all of this. He had nearly died. He should be staying away from it.

And yet, the rest of him felt eager. Excited. Desperate for some kind of action. It was an adventure in its own right. Besides, he knew how to use Ember now, so he wouldn't be helpless in a fight.

Still… there is one thing I need to get a better picture of…

Sam frowned, rubbing the back of his head, "Actually… can I ask you something?"

"Go on?"

"What the hell is a Mystery Dungeon?"