EPISODE I – RISING STARS

CHAPTER II – AN OPEN OFFER

Rex weighed the pouch in his hand with a satisfied smile before placing it back into his satchel. It had taken a bit of time to get the bandits gathered up and locked within the small collection of cells that the town had, but getting the bounty was worth it, enough that the sun was beginning to set.

"Thanks for sharing the bounty." Allisa said, both hands grasping her pouch. "You've got no idea how much this will help out back home."

"You did half the work." Rex admitted, "It's the least I can do."

The little hamlet of Windford only had a few wooden huts that lined a single road, surrounded by wheat fields. It would have looked borderline unremarkable, save for one little windmill that stood at about twice the height of the biggest hut, its sails lazily spinning. "You live here?" Rex asked as they started walking down the road.

"I do. My parents live just at the end of the road." She waved a paw towards a hut at the other end of town. "So… what's your plan now?" she asked, "Stay over at Colin's for the night and then what?"

The Combusken could only shrug, "I don't know. If there are any jobs around Windford, I can look into those. If not, then I might need to move on."

Allisa frowned, "Always moving?"

"Yeah." Rex admitted, "I might stay an extra day, make some plans but I've got to keep looking for the next job." He scratched his beak, "I heard there is a little village called Baram to the west of here. Might try that out."

"Baram? Thats on the coast, right?"

"Maybe?" Rex said. "I've not got that far over before."

Baram might not even be the best idea. There are a few places I could go to. There's Avio. Or one of those camps around Mount Thunder. I'd have to check it out tonight.

They reached Colin's hut, a slightly larger structure with the two now-empty carriages left unattended. "Don't worry." He said warmly, "I'll still be hanging around tomorrow for a while."

"I'll hold you to that." Allisa replied, "I feel like I owe you a drink at some point."

Rex smiled, "You don't have to. Still… it sounds nice."

"If I get my hands on something, I'll let you know." Allisa said with a grin, "See you around merc."

Rex watched the Azumarill go with a smile. She would make one hell of a mercenary.

With that, made his way inside the hut.

As it turned out, Colin didn't have a whole lot of space inside his hut. Not only did he and his wife stay there, but it also happened to be three of their kids. Luckily for Rex, they had a small shed out back that doubled as a spare room.

Rex happily took it of course, if only to have some privacy. Besides, given how hyperactive one of the kids had been, he was glad he wasn't having to sleep inside.

With stars easily visible from the open door, Rex poured over his map, keeping a candle lit by him whilst trying to work out the next best place to go. Baram was getting bigger last he heard, but it was a fair distance off. There were other villages and hamlets along the way though, so he could try and pick up jobs on the road in that direction. Of course, there was always plenty of work in the east, where the terrain was rougher so the need for an extra pair of hands was always needed.

The Combusken sipped a mug of hot coco, something he had picked up from the southernmost parts of the Air Continent. He didn't normally bring it out, but he figured it'd help him make his decision on where to go next.

Maybe I could brush past Mount Thunder and follow the mountains towards the coast. There aren't particularly big villages that way, but it should be quiet. Then I can follow the coast towards B-

Something rustled, snapping the Combusken out of his thoughts. Stiffening, Rex fixed his eyes on the door, going deathly still – there it was again. Another rustle outside. The shed was at the edge of the wheatfield, but the wind had died down for that evening. Was it one of the kids? No, he had a clean view of the back of the hut, he would have seen them coming.

Quietly, he placed the mug aside and rose to his feet, keeping his claws at the ready as he approached the open door. He leaned out, scanning the surrounding area behind Colin's hut. Nothing.

Trying to make sure that he didn't make any sound, he crept to the corner of the shed. He stopped just short, willing the fire within him – his own fire-type energy – to start simmering, ready to fully flare up.

A sharp clunk rang out, "Shi-!"

Rex spun around the corner, grabbing hold of a furry target and slamming them against the wall. "Wait wait! I'm not a thief!"

Struggling in the Combusken's grasp was a Furret, his eyes wide as the avian's claws rested against his chest. "L-Let's not do anything hasty here!" he said.

"Why did you sneak round back then?!" Rex questioned, motioning with his free arm. "Not that you were that sneaky."

"I wanted to talk to you!" the Furret explained with a squirm.

"Could have gone through the front door for that."

"I tried! But one of those kids kept trying to poke me with one of those horns!" He shivered worryingly, "Do you know how poisonous those guys are?"

Rex just managed to restrain the chuckle, Well, that explains everything. Must be the hyperactive one not being able to control his poison.

Instead, he raised a brow, "Fair point. But how do I know you are being honest?"

Ceasing his fidgeting, the Furret took a nervous breath, "Because I'm a merc too!"

Stiffening, Rex released the normal-type, letting him slip to the floor.

"I saw you come in with the caravan." He explained, brushing himself down, "And I figured you might be looking for another job."

"Aren't we always?" Rex replied, rolling his eyes. "Why not keep this job to yourself then? You could just take the Poke without me knowing."

"I figured we could tag team it. And its an open offer, the client's calling on a load of mercenaries for it. They want like, twenty at least?"

That startled the Combusken, mercenaries normally operated alone or in pairs. And in one case, he heard of a four-mon team. But never in double digits. If that did happen, the mercenaries would be fighting each other with overlapping jobs.

But to call on so many at once? What could be so important for someone to call on those numbers?

Perking up, Rex motioned for the Furret to follow. "Okay. Consider me intrigued."

Back inside the shed, the two sat down across from each other, Rex passing over a small cushion for the Furret to sit down on whilst Rex used the bedding he had. "I didn't catch your name?" Rex asked, taking a quick sip from the coco as he passed over a small chunk of bread to the mammal.

"Foster." He replied, catching the snack and taking a small bite out of it. "You?"

"Rex."

"Well, nice to meet you Rex." Foster did a mock tip of an invisible hat. "Look, sorry for the-"

"Don't worry about it." Rex replied, "Those kids are nuts. You've been doing merc work for long Foster?"

"Four years. From the Square."

"The Square?" Rex mused, stopping himself from taking another sip.

"Its a little hamlet, not far from Baram. I was going to start making my way back that way when this job came up."

Rex nodded back at him, "Five on my end, from Caelfall." He started leaning forward, placing the mug to one side. "And speaking of that job… twenty mercs? Are you sure its not some prank?"

Reaching into his satchel, Foster pulled out a slip of paper and laid it out between them, with Rex bringing the candle over. "It was dropped off by post all over southern Air." Foster explained, "By those Peilpper guys."

"The Post Office? I thought those guys were just doing stuff over on the west coast." Rex said, staring at the other mercenary with disbelief.

"Must got paid more by a village headmon." Foster said, pointing towards the text on the sheet.

Calling on all mercenaries! On behalf of the village of Blackridge, we request your aid in clearing bandits from a recently discovered ruin at the foot of the central mountains! The village will provide payment in the form of a share of 60,000 Poke. If you seek to aid us, please come to the camp at the foot of the mountains, west of Blackridge by the night of the full moon!

As Rex read the message, he could feel his hands shake at the words. 60,000 Poke!? That's insane! We could easily walk away with a few thousand alone!

He'd been to Blackridge once before, it was easily the largest village on Air, surpassing even Baram and nestled at the very heart of Air Continent. If any village can muster up that much money, it would be Blackridge. But to even hear them toss that much out on mercenaries was beyond him.

"Thought you'd like the idea!" Foster said with a gigantic grin on his face.

"It sounds crazy!" Rex exclaimed, forcing his limbs to cease shaking. "If it was any other town, I'd write it off."

"And we're not far either!"

The Furret pulled out a similar map to the one Rex had, pointing at the twin dots that represented Windford and Blackridge. In that moment, Rex's heart sank, "You've got one problem." He reached over and poked a forest between the two settlements with a claw. "That is impenetrable. We'd be two days late if we tried to walk around it towards the south. So unless you know how to fly, we're dead in the water."

There was a little gleam in the Furret's eye. "Ah, you say that! But there is a way." He drew a direct line between the two towns with a digit, "There's a patch of softer ground that runs through the forest, along an old fault line where the trees are less dense. I know Dig, so we can get under some of that foliage. Couple that with your fire-type abilities, and we should be able to cut our way through."

Frowning, Rex watched as Foster pointed towards a narrower section of forest, trying to imagine the state of that section. It was only a few miles north of Windford, and the area itself only had to be another half a dozen miles after that. It would still take a couple of days to reach Blackridge, but they would get there on time.

"How do you know about this works?" he asked, an iron lump in his gut.

"Well…" Foster pulled a sheepish grin, "I did kinda go in there a little bit the other day. I didn't go very far, but… it works."

Rex looked back towards the map again, scratching his beak. It could put Blackridge in reach. And that cash… it's very difficult to pass up. Still, why so many mercenaries? What could be so important about a ruin?

He leaned back against the wall, "You don't just need me to get to the forest. So why tell me about this?"

Foster sat back up, suddenly looking nervous. "We both know that jobs like these never happen. Not with this much cash up for grabs. Some mercs headed that way might… err…"

It didn't take psychic powers for Rex to grasp what he meant. "Might try and encourage 'accidents'."

It was rare, but not unheard of for teams of mercenaries to operate, only for one to mysteriously perish, allowing the surviving mercs to get a bigger share of the profits. Rex hadn't had to suffer with that. But with so much money up for grabs and with so many mercenaries about, the risk was a lot greater.

"Yeah…" Foster replied, looking suddenly nervous. "I can handle one or two mercs at once, but twenty? Might be a bit too much for me to handle. But as a pair? Might stand a better chance."

He flashed another grin, struggling to hide his nerves, "So… whatcha think? Up for teaming up for one job?"

Rex reached for the mug at his side, glancing inside before quickly finishing it off. It was a strange job, and risky. He couldn't quite shake off that feeling of discomfort that came from it. Too many mercenaries in one place with a huge share. It almost sounded too good to be true. But at the same time, it was too much to pass up. The message did seem authentic, most paperwork was routinely handled by the Pelipper and the paper appeared to be the same grade. Even if it turned out to be some kind of trick or prank, it would place him close to Blackridge.

That, and he had a feeling that Foster wasn't some kind of crook. Mercenaries didn't normally get dragged off to forests to get robbed or killed, not out of the blue.

With a huff, Rex leaned forward again, extending his hand out. "Alright Foster. You've got a deal."

Suddenly looking a lot less nervous, the Furret shook his hand.

The two made their preparations the following morning. They didn't want to take any chances about the forest in case they found their path blocked and had to work their way around it. If they were lucky, they could arrive a couple of days early at the camp. Rex used some of the Poke he had to purchase a handful of supplies from Colin (despite the Nidorino insisting he take a discount), namely some food and berries. Still, he'd keep his eyes peeled for any other berries and even seeds along the way too.

There had just been one final detail they needed to sort out.

"You're leaving already?" Allisa asked him at the edge of the hamlet, looking somewhat deflated.

"If we want to get on this job on time." Rex admitted sadly, "I can't really pass it up."

The Azumarill sighed softly, "Gotta do what you gotta do." She admitted.

"Don't worry!" Foster said with a slight cheer, "I'm sure Rex will be back round before you know it!"

Rex flashed a grin of his own, "That's the plan."

When Allisa stared blankly at him, he propped up a brow, "To have that drink?"

"Oh! That!" Allisa blurted out, starting to blush. "I'd like that."

The Combusken winked at her, "Then make sure you've got it ready. I won't be long."

Shaking paws one more time, Rex and Foster set off along the north road, turning back only briefly to wave their goodbye to Allisa. And as it turned out, one of the Nidoran kids had sprinted out of the house to join her, waving back at the two mercenaries as they finally focused their attention on the road ahead.

The road to Blackridge and the mysterious ruin.

Author's Note: And so we move on towards the first main event of MoD. After some feedback from GoB, I'm making an effort to try and have more happen in the initial chapters and have the plot be more driven, so things should take off alot quicker in MoD. Hope you enjoy this shorter chapter!