Author's Note: Righto, well, it's time for the biggest Chapter since Chapter 25. This took alot longer than planned, and went so long by word count that I couldn't reasonably squeeze in a reveal at the end. But I think the long length will pay off. I hope you enjoy this chapter, because oh boy, it leaves a few questions and a big wham shot.

EPISODE II - DARK, WONDEROUS PAST
CHAPTER V - THE TRUTH COMES OUT

The green canine quietly lifted up the bowl in his mouth, faintly slurping the red liquid inside. He didn't put it down at first, drinking the contents in one draw before placing it down with a clatter.

Zeke sighed, licking his lips with a tired expression. "That… that was good."

They were gathered around the lower level of Rex's office, sat on the sofas or standing around the table in between them. Sam stood with his back to the entrance alongside Alice, whereas Esper stood on the far side of the table. Zeke himself was sat down on one of the sofas, with a scowling Rebecca slipping between the couch and table to inspect her patient. On the other seat was Rex himself, eyes fixed onto the Electrike.

Esper had managed to get Zeke focused enough to become lucid again, after which they swiftly abandoned the gym and moved to Rex's office. Sam couldn't help but quiver as they brought him up, feeling his fists clench. Not from anger, but more out of concern. The last time Sam had saw Zeke, the electric-type had been trying to kill him. Hell, he nearly killed Aidan with one well-placed electric attack. Now here he was, quietly sipping away at this medicine that Rebecca had managed to cook up.

He was half expecting the Pokémon's eyes to go bloodshot and lunge for the equine's throat.

Instead, the once Feral explorer had his head bowed, eyes partly closed and refusing to look anyone's way directly. "M-My team…"

Rex leaned forward, hands grasped together. "I'm sorry Zeke." He replied slowly with a very soft tone. "We only ever found you, and with Broken Wood in the state it is… Oliver and Tracy's chances of survival aren't great, even if we could access the remains of the dungeon."

Zeke shivered, still not quite looking at anyone. "I… I see…"

Rex glanced over at Rebecca, the scowl fading away in favour of a more concerned look. "Just don't push him." She said, her tone gentler than Sam had ever heard before. Not that his experience with her typically grouchy self helped matters.

Nodding back at her, Rex turned his attention back towards the Electrike. "Zeke. I know you still have a lot to process, but I have to ask, is there anything you remember about what happened to you and Team Nitro? Anything could help the Guild now."

Still staring at the floor, Zeke slowly shook his head, watery eyes narrowing. "I… I don't know." He started, "I remember us going onto the dungeon but… I can't remember why."

The canine let out a soft groan, rubbing his forehead. "I keep getting these flashes, but they make no sense. It's all so broken up, I can't make heads or toes of it."

"That sounds like amnesia." Esper noted.

Sam shuffled on the spot, eyes flicking between Zeke and the Meowstic. "Amnesia." He uttered, "Like I've got."

"Similar, you haven't had any flashes yourself?"

He shook his head, a pang of sadness singing in his chest. "No."

A flicker of a frown formed on Esper's face as she gazed at him, a chill forming at the base of his skull. What did that frown mean? He was about to ask, but the psychic type turned back to the Guildmaster. "His memory could return, but I doubt pushing further right now will make much of a difference."

Rex gently nodded back, "Fair enough."

"I do remember… one thing." Zeke continued, "It feels fresher. I was in a fight with someone… they were using fire type moves, hit me a couple of times. I tried to bite them. I-"

Feeling the memory surging back up, Sam sheepishly raised his hand up. "Aaactually, that might have been me."

It was only then did Zeke finally seemed to lift up his head, looking at him from the corner of his eye. Sam lowered the hand to rub the back of his head. "You were trying to kill me." He softly admitted, "Sorry, I had to fight back."

Zeke held the gaze for a moment, not really reacting to Sam's reply. The Scorbunny shuffled on the spot, feeling lightheaded. Nervous at how the Electrike was going to respond. He started to open his mouth to say something again, only for Zeke to lower his head, eyes slipping closed. "Thank you for managing to rescue me."

Sam froze, mouth hanging open. W-Hey! He's alright about it?

Alice's elbow hit him gently in the back, stirring Sam back into action. "Er-yeah. Glad to be of help."

Zeke managed to lift his head up again, looking towards Rex. "Guildmaster." He started, "I'd like to request to go to Broken Wood to search for my team."

The gathered Pokémon shared glances amongst themselves. Alice herself started to open her own mouth, only to slam it shut. As if deciding against what she was going to say.

Rex merely shook his head, "I'm sorry Zeke. But much of Broken Wood is gone. The Dungeons were almost entirely destroyed in an earthquake."

Sam shivered at the words. He was there when it happened. At the top of that final dungeon, ready to fight through a trial to get into the Guild, only for the ground to shatter beneath his feet. He still didn't know how he survived the fall into the depths now.

Straightening up, Zeke focused his gaze firmly onto the Guildmaster. "But sir, if there is any sign-"

"Even if you can get in there Zeke, what's left of Broken Wood is off limits." Rex explained, "A Mythical Pokémon is defending the caverns there, and nearly killed our recruits."

Volcanion. The Pokémon built like a literal steam engine. He just burst out of the ground and started chasing after them, barking some kind of nonsense about how they were committing a transgression or something like that. The sheer power that Pokémon had at its disposal. He could see Alice place a hand on her chest, and Sam shivered again at the sight of the Buneary recalling the memory herself.

They had barely got out of there alive.

"But…"

"Zeke." Alice cut in. Sam turned to look over at his partner, the brown-furred rabbit narrowing her eyes. "You wouldn't want to be down there. Trust me."

The green canine was now looking towards her, as if ready to try and argue against her, but Sam knew Alice's cool look, and that itself was enough to stop the Electrike from pressing the matter further.

"Believe me Zeke, I'd be joining you in searching Broken Wood." Rex said, leaning further over to put himself on the same level as the Electrike. "But until we can be certain that it's safe to enter the region again, I need you to stay within Robinswood. Alright?"

Zeke bowed his head again, gritting his teeth. "…understood."

Sam's heart sank into his gut. I know how bad an idea it is to go back into that hellhole. But still, I don't know if I could sit here if my friends were still stuck in there.

Rex began to open his beak again, only for a squark to ring out behind Sam. "How did any monkey doors op-aha!"

The Scorbunny spun on his heel to find the doors to the office creaking open, a familiar blue-grey bird was trying to squeeze his way through the door. The Corvisquire's red eyes brightened, "Ah, so we have our little protagonists here too! How quaint!

I swear, I like Perry, but he's so… Perry at the best of times that I never get what he means.

"Perry." Esper mused in an almost bored tone, "How do you manage to hide your… substantial ego from me?"

"Magic!" replied with a wink, wincing again as he finally managed to push himself through the gap, the bird crying out as he landed face first onto the floor. "Rex-man, why can't you get a window you can open?"

"Not exactly easy to replace." Rex replied with a bemused smile, "I'm assuming the fact you're stumbling into my office means you have post?"

Picking himself up, Perry brushed one of his wings down. "Not quite that, otherwise I'd lobbed a Bolo Grenade at the window. Anyway!"

As Sam blinked in confusion at the mention of this so-called grenade, Perry crossed his wings, "I was just floating on back in from one of my… longer flights and found that a trio of new ships have arrived at the port. The continental representatives, I believe."

The representatives? When-

"W-What?" Esper uttered, her composure immediately shattering over Sam's shoulder. "I've read the reports myself, they weren't due for another week!"

"Sorry to burst your bubble Espurr." Perry replied, "They either left early or got some damn good weather for coming on in."

Alice turned back towards Rex and Esper, "This wasn't what you were expecting Guildmaster?"

"No." Rex replied, rising to his feet with narrowed eyes, "It wasn't. Whatever the reason, we're already on the backfoot." He turned towards the Team Spirit leader, "Esper, I'll need your help in getting the Guild and the town ready for the representative's arrival. We might only have an hour, if that, to be ready."

Steadying herself, Esper nodded, already beginning to jog around the sofas. "I'm on it."

He turned towards Sam and Alice, "Sam, Alice, go with her. Though if you have any smart items on hand, it might be a good idea to put them on. Zeke, you should go back to the clinic with Rebecca, rest up as much as you can."

Sam sharply nodded, "We'll get it done Rex." He declared, beginning to turn as Zeke slowly climbed down from his own seat.

"I will" Zeke said, "And thank you Guildmaster, for talking through all this with me."

"I'll find the time to talk with you more if you wish Zeke."

"…I'd like that."

Esper was approaching the door, Sam and Alice jogging to join her as Perry stepped aside.

"Esper! Audacity! One more thing!"

The trio glanced back over at the Blaziken as Rebecca carefully led Zeke through the doors. "Let's try and keep this as relaxed and as calm as possible, shall we?"

Not wanting any more Pyro Ball explosions, Sam couldn't help but swallow the chuckle, "We'll do our best Guildmaster."

Alice flashed a cheeky smirk, "I'll make sure he doesn't pull any heroics."

Sam couldn't help flash half a glare at his teammate as they followed Esper out of the office.

As they departed, out of earshot, Perry turned back towards the Guildmaster. "Boy, they do have a whiff of hero material about them, don't they?"

"More than you realise Perry." Rex replied, raising a brow as best he could.

Perry's little cocky smirk vanished from the crow's face, "Wait, what do you need me to do Rex-man?"

Snorting to stop the chuckle, Rex merely shrugged, "You just do you Perry. Just don't start confusing the dignitaries."

Pulling a mock salute, Perry turned to march out of the office… only to bump head first into the doors with an audible clunk. Shaking his head with a yelp, the Corvisquire looked up at the Blaziken. "Err…"

Rolling his eyes and struggling to fight off the smirk, Rex simply took the door handle and swung it open, the winged avian wandering on through. "Grazie."

Watching the bird go, Rex couldn't stop the quiet quip coming out of his mouth. "All in a day's work." He quietly snarked to himself before stepping through and closing the door behind him.

The town of Robinswood went from a sleepy little settlement in the morning to a loud, packed one in half an hour. As Pokémon from across the town were roused, they scrambled to prepare for the imminent arrival of the continental representatives.

It was clear to everyone just how important a visit from all five continents was for the entire Sea of Wonders, nevermind Robinswood itself, so all hands were effectively on deck. Larger Pokémon transported the necessary equipment across the town. Smaller ones scurried around them, delivering messages or light packages as quickly as they could. Bipedal Pokémon began to construct a fenced off path through the town, allowing a clear path towards the Guildtree so the representatives were not caught off guard by a settler rushing towards them.

The Guild and the TalonKnight Post Office also made their presence acutely known. Donning their team colours, the Rescuers of the Robinswood Guild assisted in the necessary tasks, but also took up guard positions across the centre of the town, ready to leap to the defence of the town or the incoming visitors. In the air above their heads, Talonflames dove and flew to and from the tree at a disturbingly high speed, whilst lower down, the Corviknights assisted with the construction efforts, slowly bringing crates down into the square for the awaiting workers.

As the work began to finish up, Esper pulled Sam and Alice to one side, telling the two that she had a specific place that she wanted Team Audacity to be based at for the arrivals.

Which certainly didn't do Sam's nerves any favours when it turned out they'd be standing at the entrance to the Guildtree itself, alongside the Diamond Rank Team Spirit and the Rookie Team Seekers and Active.

A low murmur had settled over the crowd as they quietly waited, Sam's mouth dry and he tapped his foot against the ground, both from said nerves and being impatience. He wanted these representatives to just come through, do whatever formalities were needed, and move on through. Standing on a stage to be awarded the Bronze Rank is one thing. Being at the centre of a political play was something else.

Sam really didn't want to let the town down.

"S-Sam?" Dan whispered, quivering on the spot. "C-Can you stop doing that?"

The Scorbunny glanced over at the little electric type, then over at his tapping foot. Geez, I really need to cut that out. It's not doing him any favours.

He willed his foot to stop, "Sorry there Dan. Didn't mean to spook you."

Further along the line, Denver glanced over at Dan, the Skorupi clicking his claws, "Hey. These guys aren't that bad compared to what we've dealt with before. You'll be fine."

"Yup yup!" exclaimed Oscar, the big Birabel from Team Spirit. "They are just everyday Mons like you and me, and you've got us helping out!"

Dan took a shaky breath in, Nia gently resting a paw on his shoulder to ease him. Bruce meanwhile glanced around, his red eyes narrowing, "Hey, where's Jack? Isn't he supposed to be with you guys?"

Jack, the final member of Team Spirit and the one who helped Sam out with finding accommodation. The Butterfree had been nothing but welcoming to the Scorbunny, and by extension, his entire family had been. Heck, short of Alice and Rex, he was probably the Pokémon he trusted the most in the town.

Sam glanced into the crowd, trying to spot the familiar shape of the butterfly. "Yeah… I hope he's not too tied up in stuff."

Oscar crossed his arms, pulling a loose shrug. "Probably making sure his folks are all fine in the crowd, he'll get here."

Alice leaned over towards Sam, the Buneary taking the chance to wrap a blue scarf around her neck before leaving the tree. "Any ideas on how this is going to all go?" She whispered to him, eyes focused on the opening in the trees, where a trail was carved through.

Sam tugged at his red jacket, the one he recovered from Broken Wood along with his goggles. "No idea. I'm not even sure what to expect."

The Buneary let out a little gentle hiss, "Probably a shitshow."

"Probably." Sam admitted, trying to focus on the event ahead.

A minute passed before Rex emerged from the Guildtree, sporting a different armband on each arm. The black armband with the feathered symbol of the Robinswood Guild on one, and that strange red armband with a gold shooting star on the other. His eyes cool and focused on the path ahead. Esper leaned in, whispered something so quiet that Sam barely registered it.

It was something Rex merely nodded in response.

Another minute passed, and finally Jack came fluttering towards them. "Sorry I'm late." He panted, touching down next to Team Audacity. "Had to make sure the fam' was all sorted out."

Sam turned towards the Butterfree with a warm smile, "No worries there Jack. Kyle doing alright?"

Jack's eyes sparkled in response, "Oh! Brilliantly! He's been asking about you a lot too, you'll have to swing by at some point!"

Alice flashed a grin, "Next up, you'll be end up being some kind of uncle."

Sam coughed, struggling to contain the burst of laughter, a burst of pain of rubbing through his ribs. "Well, maybe not like that. But yeah, I'll find some time to say hi."

"That'd be cool!" Jack exclaimed, starting to walk towards the rest of his team, "Just let me know, alright?"

"Will do!"

Literally as soon as Jack took his place, a faint whirling noise penetrated the trees, and the murmur died down entirely. A Guild Team near the trail entrance looked down the path, before backing up as a trio of strange carts rolled into the square. But they weren't being pulled along by Pokémon. Instead, they ran under their own power, propelling themselves of their own accord.

Sam frowned at the weird sight, feeling a faint itch at the back of his mind. They seemed… familiar somehow and yet, he didn't recognise them either.

With a faint zap, the trio of vehicles came to a halt, a set of front hatches opening up to reveal a Pachirisu climbing out of each one and hurrying around the wheels of their respective vehicles, securing them in place.

One of the electric squirrels hurried towards a side door of the front vehicle, grasping the handle and letting it swing open.

Emerging from the inside of the vehicle was a reddish orange, insectoid like Pokémon, his arms ending in long thin blades and his face adorned in a black moustache of sorts. He donned a golden bowtie around his neck, and around one arm was a just as ornate pocket watch. But even those were blotted out by the green sash wrapped round his chest. The Kricketune, one who seemed quite overweight underneath the sash, stepped down from the carriage, not even acknowledging the Pachirisu that opened the door for him. Instead, he inspected his watch and giving a faint tut before turning his attention towards the Guildtree itself.

Rex stepped forward, Esper moving to join him. "Representative Brooks." The Guildmaster said with a bow of his head, "Welcome to Robinswood."

Brooks merely tilted his head back, "Guildmaster Rex." He replied in what Sam had to guess was some kind of upper-class voice. "I appreciate this welcoming committee." The overweight Kricketune scanned the surrounding town with an almost lazy gaze. "It seems at first glance that the investments from the Grass Continent have bolstered this fair little hamlet."

The Blaziken placed his hands behind his back, "They have, and the people made good use of it."

"Hmmhmm…" Brooks noted, patting his belly with a blade. "It shall be interesting to see the full ledger."

Dan shuffled on the spot, "I thought he ran a lot of farms back home." He whispered, "I didn't think he'd come out here…"

Edward flicked his gaze between Brooks and Dan, "I don't know about Grass' politics, but if someone's got enough money on hand, they'd probably invest in this place."

Sam tilted his head as he expected the Bug-type, unsure what to think about the guy. He didn't seem that bad, but at the same time, he couldn't help he was inspecting everything. And not for the sake of regular folks.

Further back as the crowd started to talk amongst themselves again, another carriage opened up, allowing a black and white equine to step on out into the open, her fur covered in white lightning bolts whilst a similar coloured spiky mane ran from head to tail. The Zebstrika also wore a sash of her own, only this time it was coloured grey. But beyond that, she didn't have much else on her.

"I recognise her." Edward said, eyes widening a touch.

Nia glanced up at the goat, "I remember now!" she said, clearly struggling to keep her voice down, "You're from Mist huh?"

"I am." Edward admitted, "That's Triss. She's an ambassador from Noe City."

Sam glanced over at him, "Anything else about her we should know?"

"Not much. She's a little more open about the other continents than most back home but…"

"Guildmaster." Triss simply said as she approached, not even bowing her head in greeting.

In the corner of his eye, he could see Edward visibly wince.

Huh, talk about being cold.

Brooks quivered on the spot, a tut escaping the insect. "Dear lord Mrs Triss! At the very least offer more courtesies to the Guildmaster here!"

Triss merely glared at him, blue eyes stabbing at the bug-type. "We aren't here on a social call, your obsession with money should be evidence alone of that."

"How dare you!" Brooks countered, his moustache quivering almost comically whilst his face got even redder, "I'm a respectable businessmon!"

His heart beating faster, Sam leaned towards Alice, "Looks like it's all about to pop."

The striped horse snorted, "Says the man who wants to change the culture of Mist. Pathe-"

"Triss, perhaps we shouldn't antagonise each other for now. We do have a lot of work to do."

The two representatives fell silent, glancing back and stepping aside to reveal a third Pokémon approaching them from the same carriage Triss had emerged from. She was smaller than her peers, however, this was offset by the massive grey set of jaws that came out of the back of her head. A Mawile. She wore a blue sash, but also wore a white armband with a gold circle and ring as it's symbol.

Okay. Sam admitted with a mental sigh, She at least seems to have her head on the right way round at least.

Triss' features softened as she settled her gaze on the steel-type, "Very well then." She said, turning away from the Grass Continent representative.

Brooks merely turned away from his Mist counterpart, frustrated at.

However, instead of Rex greeting her, Esper moved towards the Mawile, her smile glowing even from where Sam stood. "Mary." Esper said warmly, "It's been too long."

The Mawile – Mary – returned the smile as she walked towards the Meowstic, "Indeed it has Esper."

Sam blinked, looking over at Alice to find her staring at the two Pokémon, an ear visibly dipping to one side, "Esper knows her?" he asked.

It took a moment for Alice to reply, her ear straightening back up, "Seems like it."

The two Pokémon politely shook hands, "You've been keeping well?" Mary asked.

"Busy, but well enough." Esper replied, visibly slumping a touch, "I don't envy you anymore with all that work behind the scenes."

Mary quietly let out a brief giggle, "Don't feel too let down." She reassured her, "Just have a look around, you've done a lot of good here."

Esper gave a youthful wink, "I'd like to think I made an impact."

Huh, so Esper doesn't just know Mary here, but she worked with her? Sam thought, wondering how long they had been known each other.

Rex smiled as he stepped up to join them, "Should I leave you two be?" he said in a teasing tone.

Mary's smile didn't waver as she looked up at the Blaziken, "Don't worry Rex, we'll find time to catch up on our shared Expedition Society days a bit later." She stated as the Blaziken crouched down to shake her hand. "Arthur said you're always welcome to visit us at Lively City if you find the time."

"Well, if I get a holiday slot, I'll let him know." He replied.

Bruce leaned back towards Nia, "You're from Lively City right?"

"Yeah!" Nia replied with a little hop and struggling to quiet herself down, "Those guys and gals at the Expedition Society are awesome. And great fun too!"

Sam barely managed to stifle his laugh, not entirely surprised with the little bat's response. "What makes you say that?"

"Maybe they make a racket at the Society too." Alice quipped with a smirk.

Nia seemed to shrink, blushing in response. "That might be part of it."

"Speaking of which." Esper noted, "How is everyone back home? Especially-"

"Your old friends?" Mary interjected, "Quite well actually. You-know-who is still driving people crazy."

"Of course she is." The Meowstic said with a smirk, rolling her eyes.

Rex rose back to his feet, "Moving back to matters of business, where are the representatives from Air and Sand?"

"My counterpart from Sand is in the back car." Triss explained with narrowed eyes, "As for the representative from Air, he said he was arriving another way."

"To quote my fellow representative." Brooks said in that posh tone, "'I'm taking the high road'."

The Guildmaster stiffened, his eyes drifting up towards the sky, "Naturally."

A shadow flashed across the ground, blanketing everyone for at least half a second. Sam's heart missed a beat, someone gasping to one side as he snapped his eyes up at the sky.

A dark, draconic shape dove towards them, more gasps and cries echoing around him. Gritting his teeth, Sam swiped a pebble from his jacket pocket. He might not have been able to use Pyro Ball, but he could still fire off a good Ember-

Air slammed into his face as the dragon pulled up at the last second, a beat of it's orange-blue wings throwing up a cloud of dust before dropping down with a thud. The dragon brought himself up to his full height, looking slightly slimmer than most members of his species but no less well built underneath his white sash and navy-blue armband.

The Charizard's blue eyes fixed onto the Guildmaster, a puff of smoke erupting from his nostrils as he stared the Blaziken down.

Rex held his ground, fists clenched as he brought his hands to his side.

Blinking his eyes clear, Sam dropped the pebble to the ground, ready to fire off his attack. To his side, Alice was starting to crouch down into her fighting stance, ears coiled in. The other recruits looked less certain, sharing glances between each other. Come on guys! Sam cursed to himself, These guy could be looking for trouble!

The two fire-types held their ground, cold blue eyes locked on each other, sizing their opposing Pokémon up. Sam stiffened, foot on the pebble. Willing that fire up. Come on… don't try it.

The Charizard's eyes narrowed further.

Then the smile crept into existence.

His head immediately snapped back, his hearty laugh striking the Scorbunny hard enough that Sam nearly stumbled back. The aggression and tension now shattered as the Charizard stomped towards the Blaziken laughing, arms open. "Rex!" he declared in a rough, but warm tone, "My old friend!"

Rex broke down laughing himself as he stepped forward, "Calvin!".

The fire in Sam's chest immediately spluttered out as the avian and dragon embraced each other in a big bear hug. A quick glance at his companions showing widening eyes and gaping mouths. Even Alice seemed sideswiped, her coiled ear now completely dropping to one side. I… wasn't expecting that.

The two fire-types pulled each other apart, Calvin's smile utterly welcoming. "How are you even thinking of retiring down the line!" he exclaimed, "You look like you haven't aged a day!"

"And to the looks of it you've somehow got younger Cal." Rex joked.

The Charizard burst into laughter once more, "I suppose I'm still getting a kick out of flying around nowadays." He turned towards the Guildtree, settling his eyes on the assembled teams there. Sam immediately swept the pebble behind him as his fellow guildmates straightened themselves out. Calvin scanned the group with a friendly smirk, "Don't worry kids, I don't bite." He turned towards Rex, "I'm guessing from the power of deduction that these are your newest recruits?"

"Indeed they are." Rex replied with his own relaxed smile, "And already quite experienced for that matter."

"Experienced huh? Gotta be earning it to keep up with these lot." He nodded towards Jack and Oscar, flashing a rudimentary thumbs up at the Butterfree, "Keeping them on their toes little Jack?"

All of Sam's muscles began to relax as the bug-type rubbed the back of his head, his cheeks reddening, "I'm not throwing them that far off the deep end. And come on Cal! I'm not a Caterpie anymore."

"Take it in your stride Jack." Calvin expressed seriously, "You'll still be our little buddy. It doesn't take away how far you've come since then." He turned towards the less experienced teams, and Sam felt a buzz at the back of his skull. "Want to introduce me to these little guys?"

Jack motioned with one hand towards them, "These are Team Active, Seekers and Audacity."

Bruce's eyes seemed to fog over for a moment, before brightening so much Sam half thought they caught fire. "Holy c- Calvin!" he exclaimed, his voice booming as the crowd began to murmur with each other once again. "You're fucking legendary and –" Bruce's eyes widened with a fear, his mouth clamping shut.

Calvin narrowed his eyes, focusing his attention on the Bulbasaur, "What's your name kid?"

The grass-type quivered on the spot, "B-Bruce..."

The Charizard held his gaze.

Only for Calvin to laugh again, "Fucking legendary! That's a new one if I've ever heard it Bruce!"

Bruce almost seemed to collapse, barely holding himself up as he puffed out a breath of relief.

Wait, what's got Bruce so excited in the first place? Sam blinked rapidly, blowing out his cheeks as he raised his hand, "I hate to be that guy, but… are you supposed to be famous or something?"

Bruce's head spun round at the Scorbunny, snarling for a fraction of a second before the realisation settled back in, "Oh shit, memories, right." He nodded towards the Charizard, eyes sparkling. "This is Calvin. A Rescuer from Team ACT."

"Team ACT?" Edward stuttered, taking a step back, "The Gold Rank Team from Air Continent?"

Calvin snorted out another puff of smoke, "Master Rank now, though I suppose our time as the old Gold Rank is kinda remembered the most."

Team ACT? Aidan mentioned them when he first told me about Explorer Teams… Calvin is one of those guys?

"Sorry." Edward replied, bowing his head, "I'm from the far-side of Mist, I'm still running off old info from time to time."

Calvin casually waved a hand aside. "Ah, don't worry about it. So, you all been enjoying your time with the Guild?"

"Oh you can say that for sure!" Bruce beamed, "And we in Team Seekers will be pushing for the Master Rank some day!"

Denver sniggered from just behind Edward, "We're all a few years off that yet."

Geez, does Denver always have to put a downer on things here and there?

Sam leaned over, frowning at the Skorupi. "Hey, you never know. We've got the Bronze Rank. If we can do that, I'm sure we can get to… whatever Master Rank is."

A serious, but warm smile formed on the Charizard's face. "Exactly. You'd be surprised how far you can get in a short period of time." He dipped his head down towards the Scorbunny, and once again feeling on the spot, Sam felt that same buzz run down the back of his neck. "What's your name?"

Holding his nerve better than Bruce did, Sam straightened himself up, "I'm Sam."

"Sam." Calvin mused, letting the word roll forward, "Bronze Rank already huh?"

"Aye, along with my partner, Alice." He tipped his head towards the Buneary, who merely tipped her head forward in acknowledgement in the corner of his vision.

Scanning the pair, the Charizard slowly nodded, "You remind me of a few friends. Keep up the good mindset, alright?"

Unsure of what seemed so familiar to the Charizard, Sam merely nodded back. "Will do."

Nodding once more, Calvin rose up to his feet. "Well then, I'd love to see these guys in action, but I think we've got a lot of work to do."

"Indeed!" Brooks said, stepping up to join the Charizard and Blaziken. "These do represent the next generation after all."

"For once." Triss said, joining them, "We agree."

Rex raised his hands to his side, "I can arrange training sessions if needed, in the meantime, we can get you all settled into the Guildtree. You will have had a long journey."

"That would be ideal." Mary admitted, moving in alongside Esper. "It would allow for some of us to catch up."

Rex nodded, "Then it's settled. If you'd foll-"

"I'm not finished yet."

The six Pokémon before Sam and the teams slowly turned, the Scorbunny leaning aside to try and peer between them.

Standing behind them was the slim, blue Pokémon. They resembled a frog, bipedal in form with a pink tongue wrapped around his neck. A Greninja.

Uncrossing his arms to expose a dark orange sash around his chest, the Greninja started to walk towards. Rex tilted his head, "Are you sure you don't want to wait-"

"I will do my own independent investigation for now." The Greninja declared as he stepped amongst his counterparts. "I'd prefer I was not interrupted in this."

The Greninja's head then turned to look down on Sam, his red eyes locking onto him. A freezing chill rolled over Sam's body, and it took every last bit of Sam's willpower to not shrink away from the glare.

"You are Sam, correct?" he questioned.

Feeling everyone's gaze on him and mentally biting down on his nerves, Sam worked to hold his ground, "Yeah." He said as calmly as he could manage, "I am."

Damon's eyes narrowed, "I am Damon, of the Sand Continent. I believe you know my son."

His son? What does he mean-

The realisation came through as a hard, invisible punch to the gut, and finally Sam's nerve broke. The Scorbunny took an instinctive step back. To his side, Alice's ears coiled in, ready for a fight. Sam slowly raised a hand up, his foot already settling back onto the pebble. "Look… Aidan didn't leave me-"

"I'm not here to challenge you on the matter."

Sam blinked, the words dying at the tip of his tongue. "What?"

Damon kept his eyes on him, but the chill seemed to abate, if barely. "I disowned that deviant long ago. You'd have done me a service."

Dread fluttered away into confusion, and confusion reshaped itself into… something else. Disgust? Aidan may have tried to kill him, but he did confess to not liking his family. Sam saw how badly he took it when Alice had a go at him about it.

Geez… did Damon really end up pushing Aidan away? That'd explain a lot…

"That does sound rather harsh." Triss noted, eyes narrowing.

Nia actually quivered on the spot, and for the first time in a while, she looked genuinely annoyed. "Yeah! Aidan may have tried to hurt us, but he is your family!"

Damon barely reacted, his eyes flicking between the two, "Don't presume you can question matters related to family." He narrowed his gaze on the Zebstrika, "You should know that as much as anyone."

The Zebstrika seemed to withdraw, if only by a little bit as her eyes flicked away, the equine unable to reply. Even Nia seemed cowed by the Greninja, shrinking away. Now it was Dan who was resting a hand on her shoulder.

Hands placed behind his back, Damon slowly paced along the line, inspecting the assembled teams, the Guildtree and the surrounding town. "Appearances can be deceiving. This town might seem peaceful, but recent activities seem to… challenge that."

Esper frowned, "There are always difficulties far from the major cit-"

"Significant criminal activity?" Damon questioned as he paced the line, not even looking Esper's way. "Insignificant trade returns? A Mythical tying down valuable resources?"

His eyes narrowed again, "These aren't signs of a prosperous town."

Sam's fist automatically clenched, Alright… this guy is a proper piece of work.

Rex's own eyes narrowed, "The town itself is doing well despite those challenges, I'm sure if you speak to some of the people in the town-"

"And the signs of a failing Guild." Damon finished, turning towards the Guildmaster.

Tightening his first, Sam resisted the urge to protest. Fucking bastard, does he know what kind of stuff we've been having to deal with?

Calvin reared his head, the Charizard's eyes flashing red. "Come on." He growled, "That's not fair and you know it."

Damon didn't even hesitate to reply, "Is it?" he questioned, "Our countries agreed to maintain a joint presence in the Sea of Wonders. We even allowed some level of autonomy, to ease governance and use of resources. If that trust is strained, and the current status quo leads to disruption and crisis after crisis… we must consider alternatives. Especially in the wake of the disasters back on the home continents."

The Greninja brought himself close to the Blaziken, yet despite being shorter than the avian, the frog's presence seemed enough to make Rex stiffen. Damon leaned forward, red eyes still narrowed, "Whatever the outcome of our investigation, we'll learn many things… Guildmaster."

Sam could only watch as Rex stiffened even more, eyes narrowing as he looked down at the Sand Representative. "…understood." He woodenly stated.

Damon held the gaze for a moment long, before seeming satisfied, he turned away. "I believe we should at least find our accommodations first."

Esper stepped forward, eyes flicking between the Guildmaster and Representative. "If you'd follow me, I'll show you to your rooms."

Slowly, she led the Representatives into the Guildtree, Damon following close behind the Psychic type, followed more distantly by the other Representatives.

All except Calvin, the Charizard looking towards the Blaziken. Sam followed his gaze, where weakly shaking at the avian's sides, was Rex's clenched fists.

Rex…

"Damon is a right piece of work Rex." Calvin said, "Don't let him get to you." he bared his fangs, "That scummy politician..."

Rolling his shoulders, Rex relaxed his hands. "He's not the first I've dealt with. I'll be fine."

He turned towards the Charizard, "Care for a cup of tea?" he asked nonchalantly.

The Charizard flashed a smirk, "Thought you'd never ask." He replied, slowly beginning to walk into the Guildtree, waving a clawed hand at the younger guild members, "Don't worry you lot, we'll catch up another time." He winked down at Bruce, "Looking forward to seeing you in action."

Bruce's eyes sparkled in visible awe, "Y-You got it!"

Chuckling to himself, Calvin disappeared into the tree. Rex bowed down his head, sighed a breath of relief, and focused his attention on the recruits. "Thank you for holding yourselves up as well as you could."

With the representatives gone, the tension in Sam's muscles washed away, and the Scorbunny bared his teeth. That fire reigniting in his chest, "Damon is Aidan's dad!?" he snapped, "I thought Aidan was bad enough! But Damon shouldn't have pushed you around like that!"

Rex sighed, rubbing his forehead. "That is politics for you. And as harsh as he is, Damon does have a point. A lot has happened here, and the continents do have a vested interest in the region."

Alice frowned, "At least Calvin seems reasonable. Same with Mary."

"Yeah!" Bruce exclaimed, "I mean, Calvin's awesome! A Team ACT member on our side helps!"

Edward leaned forward, "That's still three other Representatives to consider."

Rex raised his hands for calm, "I'm sure you all have very strong opinions on this, but it will not help as of now." He motioned towards the rest of the town square, the talk amongst the settlers beginning to rise as they started to get to work with clearing the fences, or moving off to carry on with their own business. "If you would help the other guildmembers and townspeople, they'll appreciate that. If you'd excuse me…"

Rex started making his way into the Guildtree, leaving the assembled guildmembers standing at the foot of the tree.

Sam could only watch him ago, seething underneath his fur. It didn't matter if Damon had a point or not! He shouldn't have just tried to put down the Guildmaster in such a way. He only ceased quaking as Alice put her hand on his shoulder. "He can deal with it. Believe me."

Shakingly, Sam let out a heavy sigh. He couldn't deny she was right.

Oscar rubbed the back of his head, slowly striding off towards the fences, "I better go and… help carry some stuff away."

"We'll go and help you." Edward said, following close behind the Birabel with Denver in tow.

Bruce was next to move, the bulb on his back rustling as he started walking, "Hey, I promised Donal that I'd help move some stuff for him after this so… are you two okay to handle anything else?"

Nia, as if flipping a 180, was now beaming once more. "Me and Dan can handle some stuff easy! Especially with Ali here!"

The frustration in Sam's heart shattered as Alice recoiled in shock, "Wait wait-"

Oh boy, Nia really likes dragging Alice into her little jobs! Sam mentally cheered.

The Noibat was already hovering behind the Buneary, little hands placed on her shoulders. "Please Alice! You're strong! We've got some heavy things to move!"

Alice was blinking away rapidly, eyes foggy, "I… err…"

Smirking, Sam patted the Buneary on the back, "Go on, I'll catch up. Nia's gonna be bothering you all day otherwise."

Sighing, Alice rolled her shoulders, "Alright, fine. What do I need to move?"

Cheering with delight, Nia started pulling Alice off in a random direction, with a very nervous looking Dan following right behind them. Bruce was already moving off in the opposite direction, heading towards the bank, leaving Sam alone. Well, the work will take all their minds off things.

Jack walked over towards him, the Butterfree being the only other one who hadn't departed on some task. "Hey Sam." He started, eyes looking a bit dim, "You sure you're okay? You looked about ready to blow up."

Sam kept his eyes on Alice and the others as they disappeared into the town, before visibly slumping, his legs threatening to buckle as the stress faded off into the ether. "That was just… frustrating. I didn't expect Aidan's family to come here at all, never mind know me by name. Heck!" He bared his teeth, "How did he even know me?!"

The butterfly took to the air to hover in front of Sam. "Could be anything. Maybe Aidan told him, or he got his hands on an after-action report. Could even be just rumours. Stuff like that has happened before."

Feeling an ear dip, Sam looked up towards him. "Rumours? How would that even work?"

"Don't ask me. But I know Calvin would back me up on that."

Oh yeah. What did Calvin call him?

The rabbit let a small smirk escape, "Oh yeah, big Calvin and little Jack right?"

Jack softly groaned, rubbing his antennae in clear discomfort. "Please don't do that." He begged. "I'm not that small now."

"Okay okay." Sam replied, willing his ear back up. "So, how did you and Calvin know each other enough to talk about rumours?"

Waving a hand again, the Butterfree bobbled up and down. "Oh, I was only a Caterpie when I first knew him. Team ACT were Gold Rank… well, Diamond Rank by today's system. They were one of two teams of local heroes. At least to kids like me and the villagers. They had a load of adventures in the Mystery Dungeons, saving Pokémon during the first disasters. Doesn't mean they aren't perfect though."

Tilting his head, Sam twisted his ears to focus on Jack's story. "What do you mean?" he questioned, "Chasing a rumour?"

"A massive one." Jack said softly.

"And… what was that?"

"Chasing after those other heroes." The Butterfree's eyes brightening once more. "They were Team Warden. They were the guys who saved me when I fell in that fissure. Turns out some mean sods really wanted them out of the way."

Jack sighed, looking down, "They took this rather horrible story and tried to name one of Warden's members as a villain. Got the entire town and it's Rescue Teams chasing them out. Including ACT."

A faint chuckle came from the Butterfree. Sam's chest tightened, leaning away from Jack. "What's so funny?"

Stifling the chuckle, Jack shook his head, "Sorry, the gossips claimed that one of Warden's members was human."

Sam's heart stopped in his chest.

"But here's the funny thing, they were right about him being human!"

Human.

Jack knows about humans.

"But he wasn't the nasty human they were talking about! He was all fi…"

Jack's words teetered off as Sam stared at the Butterfree. The Scorbunny's body limp. The Butterfree's eyes widening.

"…I shouldn't have said that…"

Jack's yelp barely registered in Sam's ears as he grabbed hold of his hands and yanked him across the square at a breakneck pace. Unable to run with him, Sam instead marched, his grip nearly iron. "S-Sam! Uncool man! What got into you!?"

"We need to talk." Sam snapped, pulling him in between the buildings and looking for somewhere private. Anywhere. Anything.

Jack's protests barely registered in his ears as the Scorbunny's eyes settled on a small storage shed at the edge of the square. He had poked his head in there little more than an hour ago to find it empty and unlocked. It'd do.

Booting the wooden door open, Sam half dragged, half threw Jack inside before slamming the hatch closed behind him. Jack spun round, "What on earth is up with you!?" Jack rattled on, red eyes darkening.

Sam slammed his back against the door, snapping his hands up defensively, his mind buzzing on overdrive. "Listen Jack, what I'm going to say is going to sound crazy-"

"Crazy?! Talk about dragging me through the town into… whatever the heck this shed is! I mean, was it something I-"

"I'm human Jack!"

The words just flew out of his mouth. Already Sam was regretting it, the Scorbunny's heart pounding against his ribs as Jack seemed to freeze in mid-air, his eyes impossibly wide as if he had just been swatted by a thunderbolt.

They hung there in silence, only the clangs and bangs of the town breaking through the shed's walls. Sam could only stare back at the frozen Butterfree, half expecting Jack to come sweeping down towards him. Or to start screaming.

Unable to take the silence anymore, Sam shook his head and refocused his gaze, "Jack!" he hissed. "Well."

Jack quivered in the air.

"So…"

This is going to be bad…

"Fucking…"

Yeah, I'm screwed…

"COOL!"

The outburst nearly knocked the air out of his lungs, if not Jack diving down to buzz around the Scorbunny. "I can't believe I get to meet another human!"

"J-Jack…" Sam stammered, raising his hands up.

"I mean, I've only met one human. But the stuff these guys get up to! It's awesome!"

"Jack."

"Arceus! I can't wait to tell Belle this! Or Oscar! Or maybe Warden! Tob-

"JACK!"

The Butterfree flinched away, the Scorbunny panting as he motioned downwards with his hands. "Jack… calm down."

Shaking in the air, Jack touched down. "S-Sorry. Got excited. I-It just makes sense. That amnesia of yours? My friend in Warden had the exact same thing. I just didn't think I'd meet another human after so long…"

Whistling a breath out, Sam stepped away from the door, "Y-You know them?"

"Yeah! Like I said, they helped me out a ton of times! Inspired me to become an Explorer myself! Just like Esper and Oscar!"

"Whoa whoa, hold up." Sam cut in, rubbing the back of his head. "Like Esper and Oscar?"

Jack opened up his palms, "Remember Esper's speech? Back when you helped save Kyle? About Spirit and all that?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Esper and Oscar also worked with humans! I was with Warden, Oscar with Team Relic and Esper with Team Auraflame! The humans on those teams inspired us to go further! And their partners! That means… gosh! Alice! Alice would be your partner!"

Agitated, Sam waved his hands down again, "Just… just slow down!" Sam gasped, rubbing his forehead. Hell… this is just too much to take… but… I'm not the only one? I'm not the only human!

"Sorry." Jack said, taking in a deep breath. "Does… does anyone else know?"

Sam shook his head, "No… just you and me."

"Blimey… you managed to stay quiet about it for this long? Most humans I've heard about normally spill the beans quite quick. At least to a few trusted folks."

Sam's gut went cold. "Should… should I tell people?"

Jack raised a hand, on the cusp of answering, only to freeze. "Err…" he let that hand drop. "Well… you know how I said Team Warden got chased?" Jack shivered, itself sending a shiver through Sam just on instinct. "Well, the town was trying to kill them."

Sam's legs weakened beneath him, forcing the Scorbunny to lean back against the door. Kill? The town? Team ACT. Calvin… they tried to kill the human on Team Warden?

"H-Hey!" Jack cried out, hopping towards Sam. "It's alright! Team Warden got proven innocent! And Team ACT never believed the rumours. Even bought them time to get a head start to find the truth. It's just…"

The Butterfree shrugged, "You might want to be careful about who to tell. I'm sure Esper and Oscar would be fine, probably the Guildmaster too! And Alice would be a good bet too."

So… is it save to be out as a human or is it not? Sam questioned to himself. It doesn't matter if those guys are fine but…

Sam slowly shook his head as he stepped away from the door again, "I-I don't know Jack. What would everyone even think?"

"Hey! Look at me!" Jack exclaimed, hands on his hips, "You're still Sam to me. Nothing changed for me here."

Feeling a slight warmth form, Sam still shook his head, "It's not just that Jack… I could be putting others in danger. I mean, what about Alice? She's been through so much… I don't want to throw her into another quagmire because of me."

He barely registered something creak, nor did he catch Jack stiffening in front of him. "S-Sam."

"I mean, I could just be a freak." Sam stressed. "Who'd trust me on this?"

"Sam." Jack cut in. Firmer.

That got his attention. Jack's gaze also grabbed hold of him too.

The Butterfree was staring over his shoulder.

At something behind him.

An iron ball formed in his gut as he turned slowly round towards the door. The door was propped open, a small brown rabbit standing in the doorway.

The whole world came crashing down onto him, weighing down onto his shoulders along with the realisation itself.

He started to reach a hand out towards her, "A-Alice-"

The door slammed shut with a painfully loud bang, the Scorbunny barely flinching before scrambling to throw it back open. "A-Alice! Wait!" Sam shouted, chasing after her and leaving Jack all alone in the shed.

Jack shivered, eyes fixed on where the two rabbits were. "Oh no…"

Sam meanwhile charged after Alice, the Buneary storming off between the buildings. "Alice!" he cried out.

The Buneary didn't turn round, still marching through empty paths through the buildings. Almost as if she was deliberately avoiding the crowds. Not that it was doing anything to dissuade him. "Alice!" he barked, breaking into a sprint. "Alice!".

His fingers just grasped her arm, "Alice just st-"

Alice's fist flew into his face like a brick, the sheer shock enough send Sam staggering back, his vision a blur for a second. It swiftly recovered, and the Scorbunny found himself standing face to face with Alice. Her eyes red.

"You fucking idiot!" she shouted, her palms slamming into his shoulders and knocking him back further. "You think you get away with hiding that!?"

Heart threatening to burst out of his chest, tried to raise his hands defensively. "A-Alice! Look, I didn't know what to think! I didn't know if I was going to get killed, or thrown to the wolves- I didn't know if I was going to put you in d-"

Another pair of fists slammed into his shoulders, and this time, Sam couldn't stop himself. Crying out, he fell onto his back, just about able to stop his head from striking the ground. "You think I'd give a shit about all that!?" Alice barked.

Growling, Sam pushed himself up, "How was I supposed to know with something-"

He froze as he reached one knee, ears twitching as her words finally settled into his mind. "Wait… you don't mind me… being human? Once?"

Snarl widening, Alice turned away from him, her arms crossed tight. "Of course I don't care about that! After everything did you think I'd just throw you out?!"

Feeling part of the world's weight rolling off him, Sam blinked. "Then… why are you so angry?"

He couldn't see her face, but he could see her body clench up. "You didn't tell me."

Sam slowly finished picking himself up, "Look, Alice, I'm sorry I didn't say anything sooner…"

"Doesn't matter." Alice growled back, "You're still being a fucking idiot."

Grinding his teeth, Sam took a step towards her, narrowing his eyes. "Why the hell ar-"

She spun round on him in a second, "BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU WERE MY FRIEND!"

Sam stumbled back again, feeling the air rush from his lungs. Alice glared at him, the fur under her eyes clearly wet. Blinking, she wiped a paw across them, took a glance at it, and deepened her snarl. "You wouldn't stop nagging me about telling you about my past. The one where I lost my parents… yet you won't do the same about yourself. It's like you don't even trust me."

His strength fading away, Sam gently reached a hand for her, only for the Buneary to flinch away from it.

"Alice…" Sam whispered weakly.

Turning away with her eyes clamped shut, Alice merely shook her head. "Just… leave me alone. Please."

Shoulders tense, Alice slowly walked deeper into the town.

Sam didn't have the heart to follow her, his arm dropping limply down to his side.

He could feel his own eyes getting wet.

God… what have I done?