Always Audacity

Chapter XIV - Campsite Tribulations

When they finally emerged from the dungeon, Sam's limbs were half ready to fall off. He panted, each one of his muscles aching as he struggled to at first carry and later drag the Electrike throughout the dungeon and up the last two sets of stairs. Despite his initial digging in the Scorbunny's side, once Aidan had realised how difficult the job actually was, he quite literally hopped into action to help Sam along.

Not that he was much help, Sam would ultimately realise. Having a frog's body wasn't ideal for dragging large weights, meaning it was still mostly up to him to get the comatose canine out.

As they emerged under an orange sky, Sam collapsed onto his back side, rolling his shoulders as he tried to shake lose the kinks and cramps that had built up. "Isn't there supposed to be an easy way of doing this?" he panted, staring up at the fluffy clouds above him. Aidan let out a huff, staring down at the green canine with a narrowed pair of eyes. "With badges… we could just teleport him out."

Sam's head snapped up, ear cocked to one side as he scanned Aidan's face for any signs of humour or an indication that the Froakie was just pulling his leg. But there was nothing of the sort. Instead, his eyes remained fixed on the canine, pupils now pinpoints as if trying to pierce through the Electrike with his vision alone. Sitting back upright, a frown began to form on Sam's face. "Aidan? What's up?"

He jerked back upright, eyes flashing back to normal. "Huh?"

"You seem a little… focused on the guy."

"I am?" Aidan uttered, shaking his head, "Sorry, I thought I recognised him but… I'm mistaken. Come on, we better get him up to the camp."

"By golly! I didn't think you would all look so tired from that!"

Coming from further up the path was a large, brown beaver like Pokémon that towered over the rabbit and frog, two big white teeth hanging out of their mouth that had a piece of straw stuck in between them. Pulling the straw out, he hobbled over at a quicker pace. "Are you juniors alright? What happened?"

"We're fine." Sam stated, nodding towards Aidan before pointing at the fainted Pokémon. "Although we nearly weren't thanks to this guy."

"Huh? Hang on, he's not a teammate?" questioned the Bibarel, his eyes drifting across the gentle breathing body of the Electrike. "Why di- by golly! Zeke!"

Sam nearly flinched, "Uh, what? You know this guy?"

"Yup yup! I do! He was part of Team Nitro; they went missing not long before Broken Woods began to break up. We never could find them."

Stooping over, the Bibarel scooped up the Electrike and slung them over his shoulder, "How did you find him?"

"We didn't." Aidan stated, "He attacked us whilst we were collecting the Dynis.". He flashed a glimpse of the glowing crystal inside his satchel. Barely giving it a nod, the Bibarel turned and got started back up the path, "Well, good job on getting the crystal and helping Zeke here. Yup yup! Maybe we can learn what happened to him and Nitro."

As Sam and Aidan scrambled to follow the surprisingly speedy Bibarel up a dusty trail through some more battered trees and rocks, he glanced over his shoulder towards the Scorbunny. "Name's Oscar by the way! Nice to meet you!"

Pulling off a sheepish grin, Sam flashed a mock salute, "Sam, I'm the new guy. I guess you probably already know Aidan."

"We've met." Aidan confirmed with a thin smile as the Bibarel let out a hearty laugh, "We have, and by golly, Jack wouldn't stop talking about you."

Sam nearly halted in his tracks, "Jack? You two know each other?"

"Oh, very well! We met each other over a decade ago, during a transfer between Air and Grass continents when I was at one of the Guilds! Damn, feels like a life time ago now."

Brushing a bush aside, they emerged in a clearing just before another cave entrance, the second dungeon, Sam imagined. Only this time, there were little more than half a dozen tents set up around a campfire. Tepees, Sam would realise, given their cone like shapes that rose well above the two smaller Pokémon's heads. "Well, I better try and check this guy over once he's secured. You two go on further in and pick a tent, a few of the other rookies got here before you and are by the fire."

As Oscar moved as fast as he could towards the largest of the tents gathered, Aidan led the way further into the campsite towards the fireplace. And yet, Sam could already sense his muscles tensioning at the combined sight of the Buneary Alice, the Noibat Nia and the Morpeko.

But he visibly relaxed at the sight of Alice's eyes being closed, sat down against a log with her head resting against it as Nia let rip a giant grin, flapping up a wing to try and shakingly wave over at them. "Hey! You two made it!" she exclaimed, only for a little frown to form, "Hey, what's wrong."

Sam couldn't help but pull an embarrassed grin as Aidan looked back at him with a flicker of surprise. Namely at his paws stuck in his long ears. "Sorry, just… please don't deafen me."

The bat Pokémon's face relaxed as she let out a little giggle. "Oh don't worry!" she stressed, "I'm not a Loudred."

"Only in the mornings." The Morpeko mused, juggling an apple in their little paws. "It's why I still wear earmuffs to bed."

Nia laughed again, nudging the guinea pig shaped partner. "Come on Dan, I'm not that loud."

The Morpeko could only shiver as Sam plopped himself down on a small boulder by the fire, Aidan hopping atop of on the logs. The two putting the fire in between them and the sleeping Buneary. In that moment, Sam figured he might as well spare Dan – and himself – more eardrum-bursting related memories. "So, you guys managed to find a Dynis too?"

With a look of relief written across his face, Dan pulled out a similarly sized glowing crystal from behind his own seat. "First floor, believe it or not. And we didn't have to fight that much of anything. Just a couple of Patrats."

The Morpeko must have noticed Sam's narrowing eyes, as soon enough, the electric Pokémon was quickly backpedalling, "They were feral mon's, don't worry."

He held his gaze for a moment, before finally willing himself to relax again. He just had to take the electric type for his word. He only relaxed further as the heat from the fire began to soak in to his fur and through to his skin.

Next up was Bruce's team, the Bulbasaur flashing a massive grin. That was, of course, only for about five seconds before it quickly melted away as his big red eyes scanned over at the two assembled teams. "Seriously?! You got here before we did!?"

"Yes Bruce. You were painfully slow." Alice quietly said, her eyes drifting open as she pulled that same, sly grin that she flashed to the Scorbunny on those crates. He felt a shiver run down the back of his neck, watching the scene unfold. Was… was Alice awake the whole time?

Thankfully, Bruce finally rolled his eyes, and settled himself down.

One by one, other Pokémon started wandering into the camp. Sam counted them, trying to see who else had made it. Each team proudly showing off the Dynis crystal they had recovered. But soon enough, the final group composed of Edward and Denver, the Skiddo and Skorupi respectively, wandered into the camp, their own glowing gem cradled in the bug-type's claws.

Sam flashed a small grin at their arrival, feeling himself shrug off another layer of the cooling air. It was a relief to see everyone had got up without any real issue at all beyond a few scuffles. If anything, Sam and Aidan had seen gone through the most action, at least in terms of difficulty.

It was only then did he finally realise how late it was, as the sun began to dip below the horizon. He looked up to find the sun slowly beginning to dip below the horizon through the trees, the air already starting to cool even faster than before. Were they higher up? He supposed it made some sense after climbing up all those stairs.

As if on cue, Esper, Jack and the Rhyhorn finally emerged from the darkening trail, their eyes faintly glinting in the remaining light. "I see you have all made it." Esper stated warmly, her eyes settling onto Sam, "And with fresh loot."

The Scorbunny blinked, glancing round himself until he finally realised what she meant. He immediately tugged his new red jacket closer in, "Err… finders' keepers? I just came across it in the dungeon."

He flinched as the Meowstic let out a quiet, but warming laugh. "Oh, you don't have to worry about that. If you find anything useful, please, keep it. It may prove useful later. Although I suspect that jacket and googles are… probably just cosmetic."

That didn't earn much more than a shrug from Sam, letting out a puff of foggy air. After fighting the Electrike, he very much didn't want to start losing his own real possessions now.

"Yup yup! Seems like everyone's all back together!" Oscar announced, balancing a few woven bags on his tail and in his paws. "You guys didn't have any issue coming up here?"

Jack let out a buzz as he settled down on the ground, his wings somehow a little bit brighter in the dark. "Not a problem at all! Not much to find though, that wasn't really cool."

A toothy grin emerged as the Bibarel lowered the bags to the ground, "It's not much, I'm not the cook back home but I've got a bit of food all here for you. Help yourselves."

A few of the recruits cheered with delight as they started to scramble for the bags, only for Bruce's green vines to reach across and wrap round some of the bags themselves. "I'll help." He declared, lifting a couple of the bags and bringing them back across the campsite to drop them alongside his teammates. As the closest members picked up their own bags, Bruce lifted the remainder to the rest. Sam took his own bag with one hand, starting to open it up to check the contents as Oscar straightened up, "Esper? Can you folks just come with me one moment? I need to check something over with you."

Glancing back over the group once more, Esper turned to look up at him, "Of course."

As the four Rescuers departed, night fully settled in, with the glow of the fire now providing the main bulk of the light. Stars began to twinkle in the sky, as a low murmur began to settle over the group. "Hey, Sam." Bruce asked, as the rabbit reached into his sack, "Where did you find that stuff?"

Sam barely hesitated, "I just found it in a cave." He explained, pulling out a chunk of bread and starting to nibble at it. "Half the wall just came down in a fight and there it was."

"Never seen anything like it." Aidan added, already munching on… what looked like an orange? "It's probably just the dungeon falling apart, nothing fancy."

"You've been in a dungeon before?" asked the Skiddo, sitting down on the ground rather than the logs and rocks themselves. Aidan nodded, taking pulling a slice of orange free before tossing it down his mouth. "A couple of times. By accident of course.". He added that last statement with a flicker of haste.

In the corner of his eye, Alice rolled her eyes. Less from annoyance and more detached amusement, judging by her relaxed posture. "I wouldn't be surprised if that dungeon collapses at some point this year." She said, arms resting behind her head as she looked up at the night sky. "Honestly, I don't know why we are training here."

"They're pretty much the easiest set of dungeons close to town." Aidan explained, examining one of the orange slices.

"I know." Alice replied, not even raising her voice or disguising it. "Doesn't mean it's dangerous."

Swallowing down a bread fragment, Sam leaned forward, "Have you been in a dungeon before Alice?"

The Buneary didn't say anything at first, her eyes still fixed on the sky. But as Sam began to turn away, she finally spoke, in a quiet, it was barely above a whisper. "A couple of times. Not by accident."

The Scorbunny felt himself deflate a touch, there wasn't a hint of malice or disgust in Alice's voice. Was…. Was that sadness?

But before he could say anything else, Nia immediately perked up, "All the better to have that experience on hand then!" she cheered, eyes shining in the light of the fire.

Even from his position, it was easy to tell that Alice had already rolled her eyes again. And with that, the moment was gone.

"Not like we need much help!" Bruce said, rubbing his front feet into the ground as he let slip a grin. "That dungeon was still a piece of cake."

"You don't want to underestimate a dungeon." Aidan warned, his eyes narrowing a bit. "Even a dying one can still hit you hard. Never mind the time distortion ideas of old" He added with a shiver, earning a glance from Sam. Time being distorted was something that squeezed at his heart, but his mind was mainly fixed on that memory of Aidan being zapped by that electric attack still made his hand twitch a bit as Aidan got up to his feet. "I'm just going to put our bags away; I'll be right back."

As Sam watched the Froakie disappear into the darkness of the camp, the little Noibat was rubbing her paws together, bringing her wings comically close together. "Well, anyone got any good stories about the dungeons?"

"Just don't give me anything about time problems." Dan said, trembling a bit where he sat.

"I actually know a story about Broken Woods actually."

Everyone's eyes drifted towards the Edward the Skiddo, his black eyes drifting across the group. "Well, it's more of a myth than anything else."

"Oh, let's hear it!" Nia squealed, "Has to be pretty awesome right?"

"Or plain tragic." Alice grumbled, earning a glare from Bruce as she propped herself up to listen. Edward however merely tilted his head as he shuffled forward. "Well… a very long time ago, off the written records and long before the modern settlements formed on the Continents… back before Broken Wood became what it is today, there was supposed to be a cave. A cave that constantly changed even though it was impossibly deep. Some kind of proto-dungeon well before the actual ones we knew showed up. If it was, then the inhabitants of the Sea of Wonders barely knew anything about them. Explorers would constantly delve through it, trying to get a sense of the layout of the place, or what treasures may have been inside."

"I'm guessing it was the Talonflames and the Corviknights that were mainly doing the exploring right?" Sam asked, leaning forward again and perking his ears up.

Edward shook his head, "Not all of them. A few other species went in too. But the teams couldn't make much progress. Eventually however, more Pokémon got drawn to the site. Looking to discover something or descend deeper into the depths."

As the goat-like Pokémon continued, his voice lowered a bit, became more resonant as he told the story, luring the gathered Pokémon even closer in. "Eventually, some children, inspired by the early Explorer's efforts, decided to go into the cave when no one was looking. No quite knows how, but then ended up travelling deeper down than anyone had ever gone before. So deep did they go, that the dungeon ended up… growing?"

Dan blinked, holding an apple especially close to his mouth, "Growing?"

"It was… as if the dungeon went on for miles beyond the woods all together. But the teams, unbowed, when underground to try and rescue the children. But as they did, following the calls of the children, each rescue team was force to withdraw, fighting Pokémon darker and stronger than they had ever expected."

Edward fell silent for a moment, letting the silence settle across the campfire before finally speaking again, "With the children's cry's more desperate, the Pokémon of the island didn't know how best to proceed, until a Lapras arrived on the shoreline, carrying two Pokémon on it's back. A Lucario and a Zoroark. The villagers who lived close to the cave didn't not recognise the newcomers, but they did know of the emblem they carried. A sharp cross, emboldened with a tear in front of it. According to the myths, they were known as Guardians."

"Guardians?" Sam mused, his mind trying to imagine the scene of the two arriving. "Guardians of what?"

"No one knows." Edward stated, his voice remaining low and poetic. "But the Guardians were honoured and revered amongst Pokémon of the Sea of Wonders. They elected to descend into the depths, and find the children. And so, they did. They entered that cave alone, carrying between them only their Guardian scarves and their packs. A few rescue teams attempted to follow them… but they could keep up… and soon, the Lucario and the Zoroark disappeared into the darkness."

Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a breath, and the goat continued, "Two days later, the villagers returned to the cave to find the children back outside the cave. Shaken, wet and covered in blood, but otherwise alive. But the Guardians… were never seen again. All the children had in their possession was a single egg. An egg that was collected by another, unknown Guardian and taken back out to sea. The children never spoke about what happened in the depths, and the Guardian took steps to seal the cave for good."

He fell silent again, each of the Pokémon showing a different reaction. Dan quivered further, Nia's eyes brightened, Bruce looked disturbed and Alice… just looked indifferent. "At some point, the cave vanished, the old region became known as Broken Wood, and the modern dungeon appeared decades after. But even so… there have been sightings of a shadow, drifting through the trees or chambers of the area around and in the dungeon. And occasionally… a cloaked figure can be seen laying a flower at a seemingly random spot in the Wood… before just quickly vanishing… according to myth, Broken Wood is right on top of where the old cave used to be… and occasionally, you can hear the old echoes of the children's cries reaching out through the earth…"

As the silence settled down again, Sam waited for the Skiddo, but he didn't, and it became apparent that the story was over. Nia immediately opened up her wings, a giant grin written on her face. "That. Is. Awesome! I mean, guardians! Giant dungeons? It's one cool legend alright!"

Bruce let out a heavy sigh, "Nia, I think sometimes you get too excited about horror stories."

"Or think they are real." Alice groaned, arms crossed where she sat, "It all sounds like a bunch of hogwash really. These 'Guardians' were probably just some skilled Pokémon who went down into a cave and stopped some kids sliding off a cliff."

Sam merely shrugged, still playing the story in his head, "Well, if it got told down to today… then there has to be some basis of truth in it in, right?"

Alice glared at him, harshly enough for the Scorbunny to tear his eyes away, "Just focus on the actual facts rather than possibilities. It'll do you more good."

Dan sheepishly raised a paw up, "I-I think it's a good thing it's just a story. I'd rather not have to hear any kids crying out to me for help down there an-"

That was when the hands shot out of the darkness and clamped down onto the Morpeko's ears. His eyes flashed as let out an almighty squeal, leaping off his log almost comically into the air before landing face first in front of the fire. A few surprised gasps rang out, and Sam had already sprung to his feet, ready to dash across in a he-

The familiar, croaky laugh echoed across the campfire. "Oh by Arceus! Ha! You should have heard yourself!"

Aidan emerged back into the light, tears actually forming in his eyes as he struggled to control his laughter, coming around the log. "Damn it Aidan!" Alice snarled, also on her feet as well, both ears tucked in. "Did you have to scare the shit out of him!?"

The Froakie finally calmed down, visibly clamping his mouth shut before taking in a breath. "S-Sorry, I just heard what you all were talking about and… well… couldn't help myself." His lips tightened as he closed his mouth, chest fluttering as if trying to fight off another chuckle as he reached a hand down to Dan. Looking up, Dan took it and was quickly pulled off to his feet. "I-It's fine." He stated with a shaky grin, "I-It's actually kind of funny actually."

Sighing, Sam could only shake his head with a thin smile. It was a little bit too much for Aidan to do, but at least it was just in jest. Dan himself was even starting to chuckle with some encouragement from Nia. Only Alice didn't relax, her arms crossed again as she glared at the Froakie. Alice… what bad thing can you see in him? If such a thing is there?

As the group settled back down again, Esper reappeared at the edge of the campfire. Her yellow eyes almost shining in the light of the fire. "I hope you are all doing well." She stated, "Oscar already told me you have all found a Dynis."

"We have." Aidan confirmed, settling back down on his own seat next to Sam. The Meowstic nodded, "Good. Tomorrow, we'll be aiming to get the second trial done and, if possible, the third one. So, I'd recommend you get a good night's sleep before tomorrow, we'll be getting up early."

And without another word, Esper vanished back into the campsite, and with a yawn, Bruce picked himself up. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'll be calling in."

"I'm going to do the same." Edward declared, also rising. "I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be more difficult."

One by one, the recruits began to rise to their feet and head off to the tents. Aidan himself giving Sam a pat on the shoulder, "Staying out for a bit longer?"

Hesitating, Sam nodded, "Yeah. Just figured I'd enjoy the view."

"Fair enough. If I'm not awake, I'll see you tomorrow."

The Froakie joined the others, and soon enough, all that was left was Sam… and Alice. She stared down into the fire, eyes blank as if she was searching for something flickering in the flames. I… I wasn't expecting Alice to stay up.

Shuffling his feet, Sam debated just getting up and leaving, but as if some invisible force was holding him in place, suggesting he say something. Taking a breath, he finally spoke.

"So… you've been around here for long?" Sam asked, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. Alice herself continued staring down into the fire, almost as if she hadn't heard him. He was nearly about to stand up when she finally spoke. "You can say that."

He sat back down, "Huh, well, how long ex-"

"Look." She growled, now turning to face him proper. "I know what you are trying to do. You are trying to understand me. Try and get to know me. Maybe if you are really naïve, you are probably wanting to be a friend, right?"

"Alice… I was just asking a question…"

"And I don't want to answer it." she countered, eyes narrowing. "I'm not here to make friends. I'm just here to clear the training and do a job. That's it."

Her features softened, "It'd be better for you if you just left me alone."

Before Sam could even reply, she rose to her feet, hopped over the log, and off into the mass of tents.

And soon enough, he was all alone, staring at where Alice had disappeared. Alice… what happened to make you like this? He questioned, sliding down to the ground and with his back pressed to the back of the log, looked up towards dark sky, the faint twinkle of stars still present. His mind drifted back to Edward's tail… about those Guardians. Of how they went into a dark place and never returned. And those kids…

He dug his digits deeper into the ground beneath him, breathing out another cloud of foggy air and watching it rise upwards towards the sky. It only added to his concerns… what was so dark about the world to leave Pokémon in such a state? Hostile, broken or just distant? Or outright dead?

The answer, even as he eventually left the fire for the tent, felt painfully out of reach.