Climbing Destiny Tower was substantially easier this time around. Splash expected heavier resistance, but with a party of three and a similar strategy for conserving resources that he and Alex used, the journey was much faster.
Robin and Cinder were in perfect sync the entire way through. Splash had to stand back sometimes as the partners practically danced around the battlefield, coordinating their attacks with few words between them. Even the dreaded monster house barely slowed them down as they used their orbs and wands to shut down every threat that came their way.
Granted, they didn't pass through completely unscathed. Cinder was knocked out once, and even Splash was caught off guard by a haxorus on the 78th floor.
Before they knew it, the team arrived at the stairwell leading up to the 90th floor. Their group arrived first, so they made a small camp and waited for the others. In short order came Teams B and C.
As Robin packed the small camp away, Ampharos addressed the crew again.
"Okay, everyone. Looks like we all made it safe and sound. Now that we're here, I'll go into more detail on how our search will commence."
"As soon as we arrive, we'll fan out and map out the floor. Keep your eyes peeled, but don't focus on searching for signs of Alex yet. Get your bearings, and try to chase off any hostile pokemon you encounter first. The less distractions we have, the easier this will be. We'll all meet up again and fan out from the room at the top of the stairs here. Keep your Expedition Gadgets handy, and notify Dedenne the moment you notice anything out of place."
"Yes, sir!" said the members in unison. Cinder smiled at the group, then checked in on Splash.
"How are you feeling?" she asked him.
"You know, I thought I'd be more nervous, but I'm okay," he said. "If anything, I'm more worried about Robin." The mudkip and torchic glanced at their friend as he put things away. Robin seemed to be moving slower, and every now and again, he flinched.
"Robin, can I talk to you for a minute?" asked Ampharos as he approached the treecko.
"Sure, what's up?"
Their conversation quieted, so Splash and Cinder couldn't quite hear. Robin glanced at Cinder with something like a pained expression, but Ampharos stepped in between them, blocking her view.
"Okay, now I'm a little worried," said Cinder.
Cinder and Splash approached Robin once Ampharos departed. "What was that about?" asked Splash.
"It's nothing," said Robin. His monotone could break glass, and he wouldn't meet Cinder's gaze.
"I'm not stupid, Robin," said Cinder carefully. "Ampharos said something to you, and now you're upset. What is it?"
"I said it's nothing," he asserted, staring hard at her now. Cinder was taken aback.
"Fine," she sighed. "I need to coordinate with the others anyway. Let me know when you're ready." She turned away and stomped off.
As she walked away, Robin's face fell. He turned back to finish the last of the packing.
"Why can't you tell us what happened?" asked Splash. "Is it about your headaches?"
"This doesn't concern you," he said sharply.
Splash took a step back. "That's cold, Robin."
Robin spun and glared at Splash. "You don't get it," he said through gritted teeth. His eyes were red, and he was clearly trying not to cry. "I can't just- I'm not-" He turned away again. His shoulders shook as he tried to hold back. "I'm sorry. I can't say. Especially not to Cinder. I just can't. Please."
Without another thought, Splash leaped forward and brought Robin into a hug. The treecko froze beneath him as Splash squeezed him tightly. "I think I know," said Splash. "You don't have to say it. You're worried that something's going to happen to you too, right? And that you and Cinder will get separated again?"
Robin was still for a moment, but slowly brought his arms around Splash. He cried silently into the mudkip's shoulder.
"You're going to be okay," said Splash. "We won't let anything happen to you. You're not going anywhere."
Robin broke the hug slowly. He gave a simple nod to Splash, dried his eyes, and put on a not-very-convincing smile. "Come on," said Robin. "It's time to go."
The troupe of pokemon all ascended the stairs together and stepped out into a spacious cave with a high ceiling. Several tunnels lined each wall.
"Well well, it looks like we might be in the center of the floor," said Mawile thoughtfully, looking to the north. "According to Splash's intel from his last visit, we could encounter anything here. Be on your guard."
"Okay pokemon, move out!" commanded Ampharos. The teams split, each taking a different direction.
It only took about 10 minutes to clear the floor. All the while, Robin's headache got worse and worse. He started stumbling during the few encounters their team saw, but Cinder and Splash were there to cover him.
"Here, take this Oran Berry," said Splash, passing one to Robin while they waited by the stairs to floor 90. He ate it slowly while Cinder stood watch.
Their second sweep didn't turn up anything, so Team A could only wait.
Footsteps came from one of the eastern tunnels, and Ampharos, Wigglytuff, and Jirachi stepped out. "Hello!" called Ampharos from across the room. "Find anything yet?"
"Nothing so far," said Cinder as they got closer. "Though I'm not sure what we should be looking for."
Ampharos folded his arms and sighed. "That's quite alright. In your group's case, I was hoping for more of a 'feeling' than anything else. Jirachi has been using his extrasensory to check for signs of Alex, and Dedenne should be sending signals in each room they pass through."
As if on queue, their Expedition Devices lit up at once. "Teams A and B, hurry to the south-eastern room. We might have found something."
The group exchanged a quick glance, and hurried after Dedenne's message.
They arrived in a medium-sized room, about 50 feet wide and long. Dedenne was sitting in a corner, her whiskers wiggling frantically. Mawile was consulting a book, while Buizel stood guard.
"Hey." Buizel waved the group over to them.
"What did you find?" asked Robin. He took a few staggering steps, but righted himself as they slowed.
Mawile closed her book and said, "Dedenne might have found a trace of Alex's presence here."
"Really?" asked Splash. He looked around as if he expected to see his missing friend appear somewhere.
"It's small," continued Mawile, "but there's some electro-magnetic disturbance in this room. More than the ambient amount in the dungeon so far. She's hoping it will give us some ideas. I brought a book on the history of this place, but I'm not finding anything about a difference in how the upper floors operate, nevermind anything specific about what's at the end."
Robin took a deep breath, and approached Dedenne.
As he passed by Cinder, he put a hand on her shoulder. The torchic looked up at him, confused, and time seemed to slow for a moment. He gave her a reassuring smile, as if he was trying to say, "Don't worry, everything is going to be okay. Trust me."
"What are you…" she trailed off as Robin's hand left her, and he made for the corner.
"Here, let me take a look," he said, kneeling down next to Dedenne. He reached a hand towards the corner she was investigating. The air here felt strange. A gentle hum sounded in the air, and he was unsure if it came from Dedenne's whiskers, or something else.
As Splash watched, Ampharos seemed to tense up next to him, as did Jirachi and Wigglytuff. He'd rarely seen such a serious and focused expression on the chief's face, much less Jirachi's of all pokemon. Something's going to happen, he thought. I can feel it. But what?
Robin started feeling the ground near his feet. He reached out a hand, pushing or wiping away dirt, trying to find any sign of a disturbance. He blinked and, for a moment, thought he saw a wispy light appear and disappear in the corner of his vision.
After finding nothing, he stood up and sighed. "Welp, there doesn't seem to be anythinG HEEEERE! ARGH!"
Pain exploded in his head, and the pitch of his voice rose as he collapsed to the ground. Dedenne lost her focus with Robin's outburst, and she jumped back with an "Eep!"
"Robin, what's wrong?" asked Cinder. She started forward, but before she could get close, Wigglytuff blocked her way. When Cinder looked up at her guildmaster, his expression was grim.
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"Cinder, you need to trust Robin right now," said Wigglytuff. "He's going to be okay."
Her heart sank. "What does that mean? What's happening to him?"
Robin felt his pulse throughout his body. It felt like something drilling into his head, and he shouted in pain.
Ampharos rushed to his side. "Robin, talk to me. Tell me what's happening," he said, trying to maintain a level tone.
"I- I don't know," he gasped, struggling to breathe. He opened his eyes, and realized he was starting to glow.
Splash was rooted to the ground. "Not again," he muttered. "Please, not this again."
Cinder only had to glance at his face to realize what he meant. "Robin!" she shouted.
She started pushing past Wigglytuff, but the guildmaster wrapped his arms around her and picked her up. "Let me go!" she screamed.
"Jirachi, Dedenne, Mawile, plan B!" commanded Ampharos. The three pokemon steadied themselves and started approaching Robin.
"What are you doing?!" cried Cinder.
Jirachi closed his eyes and held his hands together. Dedenne got as close as she dared to Robin, and her whiskers started twitching rapidly again.
Robin felt his strength start to wane, and he fell back into a sitting position, still clutching his head.
"Robin, can you still hear me?" asked Ampharos.
"Yeah, yeah I think so," he said.
"You've got to tell me what's happening to you. Describe it in as much detail as you can." Ampharos nodded to Mawile, who quickly opened up a journal and started furiously jotting down notes.
Robin could barely make sense of anything. The pain in his head was too distracting. He knew where he was, and who was around him, but the rest of the world felt blurred. "The pain in my head is spreading," he tried. "Everything hurts."
"Think," said Ampharos. "Think through the pain, and think outside the box. What are you feeling right now?"
Robin's breaths became faster and shallow. "I'm scared," he said. "I'm so scared."
"Good, scared is good," said Ampharos. "Hold onto that, and focus. You remember what we talked about? I know this hurts now, but this might be our chance to find Alex." He turned back. "Jirachi?"
"I'm almost ready," he said, still focusing in place.
"Robin, try to remember," stressed Ampharos. He held onto Robin's shoulders to steady him. "No matter what, you can't forget. If this doesn't work, you know what you have to do when you're gone."
"Gone?!" shouted Cinder. "You can't go! Not again! I can't take that!"
"Cinder, please," begged Robin weakly. "It's gonna… it's gonna be okay…"
"Robin," said Ampharos. "You need to stay with us. Focus on something, anything, you can. What are you doing here? Why are you here, in this world right now?"
This world? thought Robin. What's keeping me here? Why have I stayed? Why did I come back in the first place?
"You said you were scared," said Ampharos. "What are you afraid of? Why are you scared?"
It's Cinder. She's the reason. I came back for her. I'm here now… for her. And I'm scared of losing her.
Robin tried to speak. Tried to make any sound, but he was barely staying awake.
"That's it, I've got a lock on his signal!" said Dedenne. Her whiskers stopped vibrating wildly, steadying and producing an audible hum. She turned to Mawile. "There's more to that electrical field I felt earlier. It's concentrated around Robin. It's like something is dragging him away. Something is trying to affect him right now."
The pain started to subside, and after a sharp gasp of air, it was suddenly easier for him to breathe. He looked at himself, and his body was now freely radiating glowing orbs of light. It's just like before. When I was being erased from time. He raised a hand to examine it, but he could see Ampharos on the other side.
"Okay, I'm ready," said Jirachi.
"Do it!" commanded Ampharos.
All three of Jirachi's eyes opened, and a brilliant light shone from his belly, blinding everyone in the room.
Cinder took this opportunity to try and break free. She knew a simple Peck or Quick Attack wouldn't be enough to escape Wigglytuff, so she settled on her last result. She built up fire in her chest until she couldn't take it anymore. "I'm sorry, guildmaster. Forgive me."
"Flare Blitz!" she called.
Her body erupted in flame, and she tried not to scream from the searing pain she was in. She kept struggling, and eventually, Wigglytuff lost his grip, and she rocketed away from him.
"Robin!" she cried as she flew.
He felt himself losing consciousness. He had to do something. Or say something before it was too late. No, he thought. In case it'll be too late. There's still hope.
"Cinder," he managed as the light faded. He was almost gone. He could barely make out the room around him now. He thought he must still be sitting, but nearly all of him had faded by now.
"I'll come back to you. I promise…"
Cinder's heart hurt, but she kept flying. "Robin!" she cried as she landed, but he was already gone. The last thing Robin saw was Cinder's tearstained face.
Cinder scratched furiously at the ground where Robin sat. "No! Bring him back! Bring him right back now!" She hadn't canceled the Flare Blitz yet. She was burning horribly, but she ignored the pain.
"Cinder," said Ampharos softly, but she could barely hear him over the sound of the raging flames around her. "Cinder, that's enough."
The others stood back as Ampharos approached the raging inferno around her. He knelt down next to her, and slowly hugged her. He too ignored the pain of her flames. "He's already gone."
When Cinder heard that, her flames went out. The pain finally caught up to her, crashing into her like a tidal wave, and she collapsed in Ampharos' arms.
"He can't be gone. He just can't…" she cried softly as she closed her eyes and lost consciousness.