A couple hours after Bunsen's fleet fled from Tromba Island, Bluewhorl's townsfolk began gathering under the orange glow of the sunset in the main square. The buildings had been reduced to a tangled mess of charred timbers and rubble, much as they had after Hess' raid on the island, but in spite of it, a shared feeling of relief hung in the air.
"Daddy!"
Just outside the square, Ander pulled Sandra and Cassie into a tight embrace. Sandra looked over at Ander with misty eyes, the mother Scyther struggling to fight back tears as she spoke to her mate.
"We were so worried about you," she said. "After seeing that Charizard take you away, I-"
Ander raised a scythe and quietly nosed back at her with a reassuring smile.
"It's alright, dear," he insisted. "It all worked out and we managed to get the best of him."
"Huh? You mean that you
fought that mean Charizard?" Cassie asked. "But
how? He burned you in our own home!"
"Well, I had help, obviously," Ander explained. "Crom was there to help fight, and... so was Pleo."
Sandra and Cassie looked up with puzzled blinks as the young Scyther glanced up worriedly at her mother.
"'Pleo'? As in this island's demon?" Sandra asked. "Why on earth would it help you?"
Ander fell quiet and thought the matter over, only to find himself increasingly at a loss for answers.
"I... am not fully sure why myself, but he even took a Flamethrower from that Commissioner for me," he said. "If it wasn't for that, I'd probably be sleeping off some nasty burns in the medic's hut right now."
"Huh? But why
wouldn't I help you? You're my teammate!"
Ander turned around to see Pleo waddling up, his mate's eyes shrinking to pins as Cassie nervously ducked behind the safety of her mother's legs and latched on tightly.
"M-Mom!"
Pleo blanched at Cassie and Sandra's reaction, before shuffling back slightly and attempting to soothe the pair with a reassuring wave of his wing.
"It's alright! I'm not mad at you or anything!" the Lugia insisted. "I just saw you all together and was wondering if you were okay, so I came over to check up on you."
Sandra and Cassie glanced worriedly at Ander, prompting the father Scyther to look between them and Pleo before pausing and leaning in to his mate and child.
"Give us a few moments," Ander reassured. "I don't think there's any trouble."
The two Scyther looked back at Pleo for a moment, before quietly hurrying off. The Lugia watched as they slunk away, before drooping and turning back to Ander.
"They're still afraid of me, aren't they?"
"I know it might seem strange to you, but you
are more imposing than you give yourself credit for," the Scyther said. "Please try to be patient with them."
The Lugia paused before ruffling his feathers uncomfortably in reply.
"I guess…" Pleo murmured. "Though are you happy to see your family again?"
"Of course," Ander replied. "It's been almost three weeks since I last saw them, and I'd been worried sick about them for most of it."
Pleo raised a brow and gave a puzzled tilt of his head back at the Scyther.
"Huh? But if you were so worried, why did you go and help Kiran and the others look for me?"
Ander shifted uneasily, and tapped his scythes together a couple moments before he spoke up.
"Well... before I left, Hatteras asked for one of us Marked to come along," Ander explained. "That way, everyone could know for sure whether or not you were a demon like the Scripture of Truth says."
Pleo craned his head back uneasily. Surely it was crazy for Ander to still doubt him like this, but… at the same time, he couldn't argue that there were still times that he'd hurt other Pokémon or left a trail of destruction by accident during his journey. He and the other Marked were the only Pokémon that expected something like that would even happen, so then… could it be…?
"You... really still think I am one?"
The Scyther flit his wings uncomfortably, before glancing away uneasily.
"I... I don't know," the Bug-Type admitted. "All I know is that if you really
are a demon, you're more kindhearted and caring than any of us would've ever imagined a demon to be."
Pleo blinked back at Ander, unsure what to make of the Scyther's response. The Lugia thought the matter over briefly when his train of thought was disrupted by footsteps and the sound of chatter from passing villagers.
"Oh come on, I was in the middle of clearing the front of my shop!" a Magmar fumed.
"Meh, it can wait," a Spheal insisted. "The big trial's about to start!"
Pleo gave a blank look at the pair, before turning back to Ander and speaking up warily.
"The 'big trial'?"
"For the Company Pokémon that got stranded on the island," Ander explained. "We might as well go and see what's happening."
Pleo and Ander followed the pair into the main square, where a crowd of surly-faced villagers had gathered as a cohort of captured attackers were bound up at the center in front of a set of crates that had been gathered to form a crude podium. Their colors were different, and their ranks were larger in number, but beyond having a less offensive odor and being less outwardly frightened, the Company Pokémon held at the square seemed to scarcely differ from Hess' former underlings as they awaited their judgment.
As the pair reached the fringes of the crowd, Ander drifted off for his mate and child as Pleo continued on through the crowd, following a ruddy crest poking over the heads of some nearby spectators until he found himself next to Gwenith, who had been watching the proceedings with her family, and the rest of Team Traveller's members.
"It's good to see you again, Protector," Gwenith greeted.
"It's good to see you too," Pleo said. "Though did I miss anything?"
"Nah, the trial's just starting," Orino explained. "Everyone's waiting on Mayor Hatteras to show-"
"Ahem."
The crowd fell silent as Hatteras made his way up to the makeshift podium, bedecked in his black-and-white judge's scarf on his head. The Ampharos paused a moment as Osmund made his way to the base of the podium and leaned against it. The sheep looked around, briefly surveying the captured Company grunts with a silent scowl before he turned his attention off to the ringing villagers.
"Sorry for the wait, I had some property damage to survey before coming here," the Ampharos said. "But I,
Judge Hatteras, am now ready to call this court into session!"
"Is this some sort of joke?" a Tangrowth snarled, fighting against his bindings. "You can't charge us!
We're the law here!"
"Hrmph, last
I checked, being in law enforcement didn't exempt a 'mon from having charges pressed," the Ampharos chided.
A sharp creak rang out followed by a loud crash as a charred shopfront collapsed in the background. As the dust and ash from the toppled shop settled, Hatteras looked about the damaged buildings about the square before settling narrowed eyes back onto the Tangrowth and his fellows.
"I can already think of a few obvious property crimes to charge you all with," he continued. "But I admittedly hadn't gotten the chance to fully review them all."
"Well, there was the whole moment with them summarily dragging me off and throwing me in a cell without trial," Osmund huffed. "Oh, and also all those villagers sleeping off wounds in the medics' tent right now."
"Yes, right. So you all stand accused of Battery and Assaulting an Officer..." Hatteras mused.
"Those jerks forced me to give them free drinks!" Mirlia protested. "I've been losing money every day since they set foot on shore!"
"And Extortion..."
"And they bullied us out of her bar every day!" Pyry complained.
"And Intimidation..."
"And one of them kept knocking bottles out of my paws and making me pick them up!" a Meowth chimed in.
"And Serial Littering... And that's just the stuff we can think of offhand," Hatteras explained. "Why if you all were a pirate crew, that'd be more than sufficient grounds to send the lot of you off to the Wastes right now!"
Upset grumbles and growls came from the crowd of villagers, which began to fray the nerves of some of the Company peons as a few gulped and traded worried looks. A Zweilous was one of the exceptions, as he stomped the ground and bared his fangs back in defiance.
"Is this sham of a trial supposed to
scare us?" one of the Zweilous' heads snapped, before the other spoke up. "Go ahead and dig your own graves! The Board will be sending reinforcements to retake this lousy ro-"
The Zweilous was cut off by an icy beam summarily freezing his right front foot to the ground. The Dragon-Type looked down in alarm as Marley stormed out from the crowd and grabbed onto the Zweilous' necks, jerking the dragon's heads up to face her.
"Oh trust me, we
know that already," the Nidorina growled. "You should be worried about what
we'll do to you before your friends get here."
Marley pulled a paw back which slicked over with a purple, venomous sheen, making the Zweilous yelp and flinch. The Dragon-Type cringed and pulled his heads in close to his body, as Marley let the poison dribble off, walking off with a disgusted huff as Hatteras turned his attention back to the now-chastened Company grunts.
"We're fully aware that we're constrained on what we can do with you right now," the Electric-Type replied. "But even so, we
do still have some options at our disposal."
The Ampharos turned off towards the sea and raised a paw at Bunsen's stricken flagship.
"We're a small town, and in light of our limited jail space, we'll be repurposing your ship as overflow space," he said. "You will be doing tasks around the village in shifts as part of Community Service to help repair the damage you've done to this town until we can reach an understanding with your employers to let you go."
"Don't get too cocky about your friends storming the beaches to help you, either," Osmund chimed in. "We'll be moving the ship as a blockade to the harbor. If the Company comes in with cannons blazing against this town, you'll get a great view of their assault from the bottom of the harbor."
The pair's words drew quiet grumbles from the gathered underlings, their faces betraying annoyed indignance as well as hints of relief that worse had not come to pass.
"Is that all?" a Corvisquire scoffed. "If that's all you want, then we're ready to go back onto the ship to sleep."
"One last thing," Hatteras insisted.
The gathering fell silent as both villagers and Company grunts alike trained their attention on Hatteras, the Ampharos swinging his tail back and forth as he sized up the village's captives and spoke up in a calm, serious tone.
"Since we don't have many of our normal fallback mechanisms to keep you in line should you abuse your Community Service, we will be tying your daily meals to your participation and effort," Hatteras explained. "Furthermore, you will all start with a probationary task before moving on to more normal duties."
Osmund raised a brow at the Ampharos' words, turning to him with a puzzled frown.
"Eh? They will?" he asked. "What task will that be, May- er... Judge Hatteras?"
"Cleaning out the local latrines in town, of course," the Electric-Type answered. "As for those of them that can swim well enough, there's always some ship hulls with scum buildup that needs to be scraped away. Some of the ones in port weren't damaged in today's battle and could stand to get a good cleaning."
Hatteras' pronouncement drew a chorus of angry bays and protests from the grunts, a few attempting to slip their bindings to give the blasted sheep a piece of their mind. From his perch beside the podium, Osmund got up with a sighing roll of his eyes before turning to his waiting subordinates at the other end of the crowd.
"Get them aboard the ship and move it out into position," the Sceptile grumbled. "It'll be a long night hearing these jokers otherwise."
The local guards grunted back in affirmation as they began to march the grunts off, a few quite literally kicking and screaming in resistance. Team Traveller's members watched as the underlings' numbers thinned and their cries of protest died down, Elty shaking his head and giving a sideways glance at Hatteras.
"Yeesh, that old
baran really knows how to pour salt in a wound, doesn't he?" the Growlithe murmured.
"Well, he
did become our leader for a reason, you know," Nida said. Pleo looked off as the last of Bunsen's underlings were marched off, before turning back to his companions.
"So what do we do now that we're all home?"
"Well, we'd been planning a big festival for when the Siglo Swellow brought you home," Teja replied. "Obviously, those plans have been messed up a bit, but I think we can still throw something together quickly enough!"
Pleo blinked at the Nidorino's explanation, giving a puzzled tilt of his head back.
"You can? Just what do you have in mind?"
Later that evening, the square was hastily tidied up to the best of the town's ability as stands and decorations normally kept tucked away for festive occasions were drug out and fireworks shells were shot into the air from the guild, forming a crude street party as food and drinks were handed out. Amid the booming of the shells in the background, Nida recounted the tale of her long journey through the Cradle to a gathering of her neighbors and family, who hung with baited breath on her every word. When the topic of conversation reached her and her teammates' triumph over Darzin on Haipheh Island, Marley's eyes lit up, the older Nidorina stepping forward to her daughter beaming with pride.
"Ah, my
niñita is all grown up now!"
Marley pulled Nida into a tight embrace, hugging her daughter tightly in full view of the circle of onlookers as the younger Nidorina squirmed and flattened her ears out flusteredly.
"
Mamí! We're in public here!" Nida protested.
"Heh, even with that grand adventure, I see the apple really
hasn't fallen far from the tree," a bandaged Mildew chuckled.
The other villagers broke out into bemused laughs as Marley let her daughter go and smiled back at her. Nida gave a pouting frown back, before shaking her head and starting to head off.
"I'll be back a bit later," she insisted. "I want to see how Crom is doing."
Nida waved farewell to the group and slipped off into the crowd as the sound of Lugia's Song whistling from an ocarina flitted through the air, the little spike ball looking about and sniffing at the air as she searched for any sign of her Druddigon teammate. Along the way, she spotted Gwenith and Patricia manning a stand passing out slices of apple pie to a long line of eager takers. A little further off, a raucous cheer rose up from a few of Elty's old pirate buddies as a visibly tipsy Sableye and Quilava chugged bottles in their midst, only for Osmund to step in and snatch them from the pair much to the lot's groaning disappointment.
Nida shook her head and turned right down an intersecting street, passing Albert, Charlie, and Marilyn gawking at a booth selling wearable accessories. A little further down the street, she saw Trizano entertaining Hariti and a small gathering of her charges with tales of his exploits as an Immortal much to their delight, leaving Nida to pause and furrow her brow as she wondered to herself where Crom could've gotten off to.
As she tried to think of where to look next, Nida saw Pleo and Alice pass further up the lane, the Sneasel talking to Pleo as the pair walked together. Nida flicked her ears and tried to listen in, only for the crosstalk of the carnival to muddy their words, leaving her with nothing to go on but the sight of Pleo happily nodding along with Alice as the pair continued up the lane.
"Huh?"
Nida followed along after the Sneasel and the Lugia as the two made their way to a table set out near a stand handing out cups of berry juice where Crom, Cenn, Elty, Pyry, and Pekka were gathered standing about and trading laughing banter with each other. Pleo hastily darted up behind the older of the two Druddigon, beating his wings out wide as he called out to his Dragon-Type teammate.
"Crom! Crom! Let's have our rematch right now!" Pleo exclaimed.
Crom turned around and blinked in confusion, the others at the table giving Pleo puzzled looks. After a brief moment, they noticed he was staring at one of the still-full cups of berry juice on the counter. Elty looked between Pleo and the cup a moment, before his face curled up into a bemused smile when he realized what sort of 'rematch' the young Protector was requesting.
"Oh, so you want to give another go at a burping contest?" Elty asked, wagging his tail slightly. "Well,
I'd certainly be down to watch you two chug a drink or two and see who comes out on top!"
"Ah! I wanna see it too, Crom!" Cenn chimed in. "Show off what dad taught us!"
Crom paused before grinning back at Pleo, tightening his grasp around his cup as he lifted it from the counter.
"Well, if you
really want one, I certainly won't turn you down!" he insisted.
The Dragon-Type raised his cup of berry juice to his mouth, throwing his head back as he rapidly gulped down his drink. After finishing his serving, everyone waited in anticipation before Cromcracked his maw wide open.
BUUUUUUUUURP
Pleo flinched out of surprise from the deep burp that came from Crom's throat, the Druddigon's performance drawing laughs and cheers from his surrounding companions, with his younger brother throwing in a starry-eyed cry.
"That was amazing!" Cenn cheered. "Way to go Crom!"
Pleo began to visibly hesitate after the Druddigon's opening belch, something Crom picked up on as he shot the Lugia a teasing grin.
"What? I never said I was going to make things
easy for you," he chuckled. "Go ahead and hit me with your best shot!"
Pleo looked at Alice uneasily, who shot back a determined grin and pulled a balled-up fist downwards. The young Lugia inhaled sharply before grabbing the cup before him and chugging its contents down. Pleo pulled the cup away as the taste of Nanab Berries lingered in his mouth, shifting a bit in place as he felt air rise in his stomach. He fought to keep it down, thinking back to advice that Alice had given him beforehand as he felt more and more air build up, before cracking his beak open wide and pushing it all up into his throat at once.
BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRP
Pleo's burp came out as a strong wind that made the other Pokémon at the counter shield their eyes and stumble back, Crom cracking his eyes back open as the smell of Nanab Berries hung in the air. The Druddigon's mouth flopped open in astonishment as Cenn gave a small pout, their disappointment being drowned out by Elty, Pyry, and Pekka cheering on Pleo and crowding about the victorious Protector.
"Ha! Good job, feather duster!" Pyry exclaimed.
"Yeah, you'd give most pirates a run for their money with a burp like that!" Pekka chimed in. As the gathered Pokémon celebrated Pleo's performance, Crom let his jaw hang open in shock, the Dragon-Type stammering in surprise at his Lugia teammate.
"H-Huh?! But how did you learn to do
that?!" the Druddigon cried, prompting Pleo to give back a teasing grin of his own before he glanced off at Alice.
"I just had a little help," he explained.
"Hey, don't sell yourself too short," the Sneasel replied. "You're a great student and learned things pretty quickly!"
"But you're a really great teacher!" the Lugia insisted as he beat out his wings. "I wouldn't have done so well if you hadn't shown off that super loud burp of yours for me to copy!"
The pair patted claw and wing together with one another, Pleo beaming with pride over his hard-earned victory when a disgusted growl cut through the air behind him.
"Ugh. Enough, you all."
Pleo and the others turned as Nida walked up, the Nidorina folding her ears back as she shot a sour frown at her teammates.
"You know, sailors have a reputation for having poor manners for a
reason," she grumbled.
Pleo tilted his head back puzzledly, before looking over at Crom and seeing him give a sheepish, flustered smile back at Nida. Before the Lugia could question her any further, the moment was broken by Alice leaning back against the table and shooting a sly grin at Nida.
"
And?" the Sneasel asked. "Who needs manners when you can have fun instead?"
"Someone who doesn't want to be
gross?" Nida spat. "And why would you even help Pleo with that?"
"Well, Pleo told me about his contest, and how Crom's dad gave him some tips while no one was there to help
him out," the Dark-Type offered. "Soooo, I figured I might as well put some of the tricks I picked up as a pirate to good use and give him a leg up."
Nida narrowed her eyes and let out a disgusted sigh, muttering to herself about why Team Zephyr needed a teammate who never seemed to miss a moment to indulge in some stupid or immature antic. The Nidorina opened her mouth to scold Alice, when she noticed Kline hopping along in the background, a quick glance revealing him to be making his way towards Nerea as she lounged in a small wooden tub of water. The Poison-Type blinked out of surprise, as she wondered aloud to herself...
"Eh? Haven't those two been avoiding each other all day?"
The others similarly turned their attention over to Kline, watching as he approached Nerea's tub. As the Zygarde made his last few hops forward, he sighed before raising his voice to speak up.
"Nerea, do you have a moment?" the serpent asked. The Manaphy said nothing back at first, before warily turning around and shooting a guarded glance back at him.
"What is it?" she demanded. Kline visibly hesitated at Nerea's curt reply, before shifting his body uncomfortably.
"I just... wanted to say you did great earlier," he said. "You and Dimitri's clan helped us a lot fighting off Bunsen's underlings."
"Uh... thanks, I guess," Nerea murmured.
Kline waited for the Manaphy to continue, only for her to remain quiet, resulting in an awkward silence between the two. After a moment, the serpent turned and started to hop off, when a sharp grumble cut through the air.
"
Kline."
Kline looked up to see Percy peering down at him with a stern frown and disapproving shake of his head. The Zygarde rolled his eye, before turning back towards Nerea and speaking up.
"Look, I know the circumstances in which we parted ways last time was anything but ideal," he began. "I'm sure we've both said things that we regret, and looking back at it, maybe I should have handled things differently."
Nerea blinked in surprise at Kline's words, before slowly opening her mouth to reply.
"You... do?"
"Yes. In retrospect I probably shouldn't have gotten so mad at you over giving up so quickly after a bad scare like that," Kline insisted. "Because of that... I wanted to say I forgive you."
The Manaphy stared back blankly as Percy looked at Kline dumbfounded, before he buried his face in a claw. Nerea's befuddled reaction quickly dissipated, and was swiftly replaced with a deeply offended air that surrounded her.
"You... forgive
me?!"
Nerea's face fell as her features hardened into seething scowl. Kline spoke up to try and continue on, only to be cut short by a sharp hiss from the Manaphy.
"Kline, I've been
hunted by the Company since I tried to get the volume of the Ledger on Vollezee!" Nerea fumed. "I've got nothing to apologize for over how things turned out, especially since
you couldn't bother showing up in person to help!"
Nerea's rant served only to infuriate Kline in turn, the Zygarde glaring at the Water-Type as he angrily shot back at the Manaphy.
"I had my reasons, Nerea, and you
know that!" Kline huffed. "I was also the one who gave you the reconnaissance that even allowed you to get as far as you did!
I've been hunted as well, yet
I didn't pretend Elilan suddenly stopped plotting to take over Anyilla to run away under the sea!"
The festivities around Kline and Nerea ground to a halt, as the nearby Pokémon stopped and stared at the feuding Protectors. With no mind to the state of her audience, Nerea jolted to the edge of her tub and leaned onto the edge before launching into an angry tirade at the Zygarde.
"
Who do you think you are, Kline?! You haven't been in Anyilla for
literal years before we met just now, so how dare you berate me like this?!" she cried. "Just because
you have a vendetta with Elilan doesn't mean you can just dismiss every other problem that others need to deal with! How have you gotten
anyone to go along with you with that selfish, arrogant mindset of yours?!"
"I am the
Keeper of Balance and have more responsibilities to manage than you do!" Kline snapped. "And last I checked, I didn't spinelessly use my personal safety to pass up on multiple chances to chase after the Ledger! Or flatly
refuse to help look for the volume that was on Pioppo! As soon as I saw an opening, I
took it!"
Nerea grit her teeth and angrily hopped out of her tub as she spat out a fuming reply to the Zygarde.
"This conversation is over, Kline," the Manaphy said. "I'm not going to stand here and be hectored by a 'mon that sees everyone else as a pawn for him to manipulate!"
"Fine!" Kline shouted. "Go back to cowering at the bottom of the sea!"
Kline and Nerea turned from each other and stormed off with sharp huffs, Percy and Nerea's companions from the Khranitel Rod trading awkward looks with each other, before hurrying off after their respective Protectors. The festive mood in the square froze for a moment, until the lights and sounds of the rest of the festival slowly prompted the nearby villagers to return to their food and drinks. All the while, Nida gave a blank stare after Kline, before she too turned back to her teammates.
"What... just happened?"
"… Looks like Kline's plan to patch things up with Nerea didn't quite go as expected," Alice sighed. Pleo worriedly turned his head at the Sneasel's reply, the young Lugia giving an uncomfortable ruffle of his feathers.
"Is... everything going to be okay?"
Nobody answered Pleo's question, as Alice pawed at her elbow uneasily. After her initial hesitation, the Sneasel turned back to Pleo, forcing a small smile over her mouth.
"I'm sure it will be," Alice said. "But just to be safe, I probably oughta check up on Kline and see how he's doing. We'll touch base later."
Pleo watched as the Sneasel hurried along after her Zygarde teammate and slipped off into the crowd of revelers. As hard as he tried, the young Lugia just couldn't shake a lingering worry over Kline and Nerea's argument when he felt a scaly claw paw at his shoulder reassuringly and turned to see Crom looking at him.
"It'll be alright, Pleo. They're both Protectors, and we're all on the same team," the Druddigon insisted. "I'm sure they'll come around to each other."
The Lugia hesitated for a moment, before turning his attention towards Crom and his friends as they refilled their cups of berry juice. As much as he tried to immerse himself back into the festival, Pleo kept having lingering doubts over how easily Kline and Nerea would be able make amends after their shouting match earlier. All the while, he kept wondering to himself if there was anything he could do to help the two smooth things over.
Bluewhorl Town's festivities continued past midnight, when the less nocturnal residents began to retire for the night, including Team Traveller's members. Even with the festival in his honor and the comforts of sleeping at home, Pleo couldn't help but be nagged by a lingering unease over Kline and Nerea's argument that carried on into the following morning. The Lugia decided to follow up with the pair to try and make sense of what could've gone wrong between them, with a few questions to passersby in town eventually steering him up to the guild, where he came across Team Zephyr at the scenic bluff overlooking the sea.
As Pleo neared, he went up towards the party where he noticed Percy, Calidus, and Alice were there… though curiously, Kline wasn't. The Lugia opened his mouth to ask them where their friend had gotten off to, when his attention drifted off towards the cliff, where he saw Kline on his own staring silently out to sea. The young Protector blinked in surprise, before turning back towards Percy, Alice, and Calidus as he walked up to them with a puzzled look.
"Is Kline doing okay?" the Lugia asked. "He's just standing there."
"Don't worry, he's just talking with Micky," Percy reassured. "Kline said he needed some space."
Pleo tilted his head curiously at the Gliscor's reply. Kline was just standing there all alone, so how could Micky hear him when he was on a different island altogether? As peculiar as it was, perhaps he could ask Kline himself sometime when he was less busy.
"… Should I come back later?"
"I think it's fine, Pleo," Calidus replied. "After last night, Kline could probably use another Protector to talk to."
Pleo nodded back and waddled over towards Kline. The young Lugia watched as the Zygarde remained deeply entranced, prompting him to crane his head down.
"Hey Kline, is everything alright?"
Kline opened his eye, before pivoting on his tail and turning his head back up at the little Protector.
"Oh, hello Pleo," the Zygarde said. "I was just talking to Micky."
"I mean, Percy told me about it… but how are you two doing that?" he asked. "Isn't Micky all the way on Nagrobek?"
"We can communicate with each other from long distances through telepathy," Kline answered.
"It basically means we can talk to each other with just our minds."
"Oh, that's so cool!" Pleo exclaimed. "Can you teach me?"
Pleo's eager curiosity made Kline narrow his eye and curl his features into a dubious frown.
"… I don't think that's something you can learn."
The serpent closed his eye and paused briefly, before looking back at Pleo with a small smile.
"Also Micky says hello to you, in case you were wondering."
Pleo's eyes lit up, realizing that Micky and Kline must be able to pass the things they saw and sensed along to each other. The Lugia waved back at Kline, eagerly chirping back a greeting.
"Oh! Hi Micky!"
The Zygarde gave a bemused chuckle back, making Pleo reply with a happy chirp as he sidled up beside Kline and looked off towards the sea with him.
"So what were you two talking about anyways?" Pleo wondered.
Kline said nothing for a moment, before letting out an audible sigh as he shook his head
"The same thing why you most likely came to see me," the Zygarde said. "I assume you're here because of what happened between me and Nerea last night."
Pleo ruffled his feathers and sheepishly pawed at the back of his head with a wing.
"I mean… you two
did seem pretty upset," the Lugia murmured.
"Well, I can't help it that she got so offended after all these years when I was trying to be nice to her," Kline muttered back, prompting the young Protector to tilt his head puzzledly.
"What happened between you two?" he asked.
Kline said nothing for a noticeable moment, before lowering his eye towards the ground.
"Years ago Nerea agreed to partner up with me to get the volumes of Knights' Ledger just like you did," he explained. "We both decided that she'd try to get the Company's volume on Vollezee, but that plan fell apart after she ran into Inler."
Pleo's eyes shot open wide at Kline's reply, realizing the Zygarde meant that Nerea had fought...
"You mean the Company's Director?!" he squawked. "She had to fight
him?!"
"'Fight' is probably an overstatement. From what I've heard they briefly traded some attacks while she tried to get away, but yes," Kline replied. "Though given that Inler
is Vollezee's ruler it's not
that shocking she wound up encountering him while she was there."
Pleo fell quiet and shivered at the thought of having to fight whatever Pokémon would be strong enough to control the whole Company, only for Kline to disrupt his train of thought as the Zygarde continued on with his account.
"Anyway, after she got back she told me she didn't want to go after the Knights' Ledger any longer," Kline explained. "I tried to persuade her otherwise, but she quit our partnership and opted to hide with different ocean clans instead."
Pleo blinked and tilted his head back puzzledly.
"Huh, but why?"
"Hmph, she lost her nerve, of course," Kline scoffed. "And when it was time to regroup and continue on, she got scared and gave up."
"Is that what she told you?"
Kline fell silent at Pleo's question, the Zygarde giving a small shake of his head as he spoke up again.
"Well, no…" the serpent admitted. "But what else could it have been?"
"I mean, if you've never asked her... aren't you just assuming that she gave up because she was scared?" Pleo murmured. "If things happened differently from what you thought... maybe it'd explain why she kept getting so upset."
Kline paused and shifted uncomfortably at Pleo's prodding, as he lowered his gaze to the ground with a sigh.
"Micky
did say that I was being too hard on her…" Kline said. "But what am I supposed to do? I can't just erase years of ill will between us!"
Pleo moved a wing to paw at his chin deep in thought. Surely it would be an impossible task for Kline to completely undo such a long and bitter misunderstanding with just an explanation… but...
"Well... what if you didn't
need to do it on your own?"
In spite of no new ships coming into port on Tromba that day, Bluewhorl Town's harbor hummed with activity. There, the members of Viktor's clan gathered at the docks, trading chatter with the local harbor-dwellers and dock workers as they loaded up on supplies for the next leg of their wandering journey about the Cradle's sea. In the midst of the clan's reprovisioning, Nerea climbed onto a small rock near the shoreline, looking on quietly as she brooded to herself. The Manaphy heard the water behind her splash, turning to see Viktor and Dimitri swimming up to her.
"Are you feeling alright, Nerea?" Viktor asked.
"I'm fine, Viktor," the Manaphy insisted. "I was just doing my part to help ensure that your clan's ready to swim off by sundown today."
Dimitri and Viktor said nothing in reply and traded glances, before Dimitri looked back at Nerea with a dubious expression.
"...
Ty uverena?" the Kabutops asked. "Since you've been kinda tense ever since that moment last night with Kline."
Nerea fell silent for a moment, raising a fin and waving the matter off.
"Don't worry so much about me, Dimitri," she huffed. "I just want to make sure that everyone's properly looked after, and right now that means getting our provisions together."
Dimitri and Viktor gave doubtful frowns in reply but held their tongue before starting to swim off. Nerea lowered herself into the water, preparing to follow after her guardians when a sudden chirp reached her ears from above.
"Huh? You're already leaving today?"
Nerea peered up as Dimitri and Viktor paused, the three turning to see Pleo waddling up on the pier and looking down at the Manaphy with a curious tilt.
"After how happy everyone was that you came, I would've thought that you'd stay around a bit longer."
Nerea said nothing at first, before shaking her head back with a quiet sigh.
"It's the nature of an ocean clan to drift along with the sea's currents," she said. "Besides, I'm a wanted Pokémon. It wouldn't do your island any good if I wound up bringing unwanted attention to it, would it?"
"Eh? But Kline's also got Pokémon chasing after him," Pleo replied. "And
he's not in a rush to leave."
Nerea's face curled down into a sour frown at the young Protector's response, prompting him to uneasily shuffle his wings as he carefully weighed his next words.
"I mean... I'm not trying to force you to do something you don't want," the Lugia began. "But it just felt like if you hadn't gotten mad at Kline last night, you wouldn't be in such a hurry to leave. And I wanted to know what had happened between the two of you."
"Hrmph. A Protector's wishes are sufficient reason to swim off,
chayka," Viktor cut in. "If Nerea wishes to leave today, we will guide her along."
"Maybe so, but perhaps it also makes sense to heed part of Pleo's wishes as well."
The Dragalge looked back at Nerea in surprise and opened his mouth to speak, only for the Manaphy to swim over to Pleo and motion for him to follow.
"Let's go someplace more private," she insisted. "If you really want to hear the full story, I can do my part to help with that."
Pleo hesitated a moment, before jumping down into the water. The Lugia ruffled his feathers as he surfaced, letting the seawater wash off his plumage as he swam up to Nerea.
"Okay... lead the way, I guess."
Nerea swam ahead of Viktor and Dimitri as Pleo followed suit after the pair out of the harbor and westward for some of Tromba's quieter beaches. The four made their way to a sandy stretch flecked with tide pools, Viktor and Dimitri waiting in the water near the shoreline as Nerea made her way into one of the pools and Pleo waddled out onto the sand. The pair took a moment to settle in their new surroundings, when Nerea shot a stern scowl back up at him.
"Okay, first off,
what did Kline tell you?" she demanded. "Since he's clearly put you up to this."
Pleo bit his tongue, taken aback by Nerea's sudden change of mood, the young Lugia hemming and hawing uneasily as he tried to explain himself.
"Erm... well... he said that you had tried to get the Ledger from Vollezee after teaming up together. He also mentioned that while you were there, you ran into Inler, and things went wrong and that you didn't want to help anymore afterwards."
Nerea's face maintained its stony, displeased expression, making Pleo shrink back uneasily. The Manaphy moved her head to the side, turning her face up with a disgusted scoff.
"Of
course he'd tell it like that," she grumbled, making Pleo shift in place awkwardly.
"Well... if his version of the story's missing some things, what
did happen?" he asked.
"Well,
context for one. When I went to Vollezee, it was with the help of four different clans, who helped me make my way into Company's main headquarters where the Ledger was being kept," Nerea harrumphed. "We'd managed to get it in our grasp thanks to a stroke of luck before Inler showed up with reinforcements and trapped us."
"Trapped you...?"
"The headquarters were blocked off in every direction after we made our way in, and Inler was there to meet us when we tried to escape," the Manaphy explained. "I'd hoped that we would have had some advantages against Inler as Water-Types since we knew in advance that he was a Ground-Type. Much to our shock, we discovered he'd mastered Thunder and was strong enough to overpower even our toughest fighters with just a few blows."
Pleo blanched and grimaced at Nerea's recollection of events. While it was only logical that Inler would be very strong as the leader of the Company, he never imagined that he'd be strong enough to come out victorious over so many Pokémon that held an advantage over him. But… if he really
was that strong…
"How'd you get away then?"
"We fought our way out and had some good fortune, I suppose," Nerea said. "I along with a handful of allies were able to escape thanks to it. We left Vollezee that day with a third of the Pokémon we went there with and nothing to show for it."
Nerea lowered her head, setting her teeth on edge as her narrowed eyes betrayed a glowering bitterness.
"I... just can't stand it when Kline has the nerve to insist that I didn't do enough there," she muttered. "
I wasn't the one safely on another island passing messages."
"But why didn't you try again?" Pleo asked.
"Because our attempt and my overconfidence almost destroyed the clans that helped!" she cried. "Even
now, Viktor's clan still doesn't have as many Pokémon in it that it had at the time! What sort of Protector would I be if I casually endangered the Pokémon that sheltered and trusted me when what little success we had at first was essentially a fluke?"
"... This is the first I've heard you mention the losses the clans took in Vollezee, Nerea."
Pleo and Nerea turned to see Kline approaching, the Manaphy of the pair locking her eyes with Kline's and hardening them into an icy glare.
"Of course it is, Kline," she glowered. "You never
asked. And you always assumed the worst when I refused to try going back to Vollezee!"
Kline stiffened up and scowled back indignantly. Pleo grimaced, thinking that the two were surely about to shout at each other once again, only to see Kline relax his posture and let out a low sigh.
"I... suppose that I did, yes," the Zygarde admitted. "And I apologize for that."
Nerea blinked and stared back incredulously at Kline, the serpent hopping up to the Manaphy and shaking his head apologetically.
"It was never my intention to make you feel abandoned or that I used you as a pawn. I'm sorry for how I treated you and for last night, and I hope you can forgive me for it," he said. "Though, I wasn't making excuses for not going to Vollezee back then. Unlike now, circumstances genuinely didn't allow me to fight alongside you there."
Nerea said nothing in reply at first, turning aside to stare off at the docks. After a moment's pause, she shuffled her feet in the water a bit, before casting a sidelong glance back at Kline.
"So, you're also looking for those ledgers, then?" Nerea asked.
"Of course!" Kline piped back. "It's the only hope we all have of being able to live in lasting peace, so why wouldn't I?"
Nerea turned her head back at the serpent's question, shooting back a stern frown as she opened her mouth to speak.
"No, I mean are
you looking for those ledgers," the Manaphy pressed. "No more feeding information to others on your behalf. Are
you going yourself?"
Kline paused for a brief moment, before replying with a quiet sigh.
"I mean, I've taken this much of a risk by fighting the Company here, haven't I?" the Zygarde responded. "It'd be rather unseemly for me to just slink off right now."
Nerea gave no answer, leaving Pleo to think that perhaps the Manaphy had been unimpressed with Kline's offer, when he noticed that her face was no longer curled into her earlier scowl, but now softened into a small smile.
"Then perhaps we should plan our next move together then," Nerea offered.
"I think that's a great idea! Pleo chirped. "More help's always better, right Kline?"
The Zygarde nodded back in reply, letting out a small chuckle as his features eased and began to match those of his Manaphy counterpart's.
"Yeah, I'd love that, actually."
In the days following his summons by Elilan, Ellsberg found himself shuffling back into his normal duties as a notary within the Company's Headquarters. There, he returned to a simple office overlooking the canals outside, furnished with the same wooden desk, shelving, and cushioned seat that a good dozen on his same hallway were. The defining features that set his office apart from the others were a small planter with flowers that Ellsberg kept in the windowsill for the aroma, a glass lantern he lit up with warm-colored candles on occasions where he had to work late into the night, and a stack of paperwork that had been piled up on his desk.
Ellsberg pawed through the papers, disinterestedly perusing through them before occasionally scribbling some runes on them or applying a stamp and shuffling the marked ones into a separate stack of notarized documents. The Mothim quietly repeated the process over and over until he heard his office door open, and spotted a Patrat entering with another stack of papers.
"Your invoices, sir," the Patrat said. "It took a little while to gather them together."
Ellsberg stared briefly at the Normal-Type, before sighing and pointing off at his current batch of documents he had yet to tend to.
"Just leave them there," the Mothim replied. "I'm a little busy right now."
The Patrat nodded back and quickly obliged, shuffling the invoices down next to Ellsberg's stack of unfinished paperwork before exiting the office. Ellsberg looked over at the twin stacks of papers and pinched his brow when the distant chime of clocktower bells reached his ears. The Mothim got up and went to the window as the chimes continued, glancing up towards the sun to see from its position that it was already noontime, right when the Pokémon in the complex started taking their leaves for midday meals.
"... Meh, it'll all still be here after lunch."
Ellsberg fetched his office keys off the table and after locking it up, carried down the hallway, shuffling past offices until he reached an open window next to a stairwell and fluttered out of it. The Mothim flew past the third-story window of his office in the southern wing of the Company's headquarters, occasionally peering down to see the intermingled waterway and terraces below between the complex's core building where the Administrators worked and the peripheral wings ringing it. The open space allowed seafaring members of the Company entrance to the complex, but also provided a favored space for its workers to escape from their duties for brief moments throughout the day.
As Ellsberg flew north along the complex, he spotted the stepped fishway that led up to the aqueduct that connected with the north side of the complex's core. Under an arch of the fishway, a small crowd of Pokémon could be seen going in and out of a set of open doors into the central building that had been built next to a moon pool. Ellsberg flitted down, coming to a stop in front of the entrance into the central building. There, the Mothim entered inside into a large, open hall with other entrances that connected to the rest of the central building that were packed with Pokémon in lavender scarves of all shapes and sizes. Ellsberg made his way towards the back of the hall passing along the edge of a pool to his left that ran the length of the windows where aquatic Pokémon such as a Brionne and a Toxapex who rested at the edge pecked at their food, while to his right Pokémon sat at table on stone stools about tables, a few Pokémon with body types that didn't fit the stools such as a pink and teal-maned Rapidash opting to stand in place by their tables.
When Ellsberg made it to the end of the hall, he took a plate and proceeded through a line where a small assortment of food had been set out as the day's offerings. Like any other mess hall run by the Company, much of it was gummis, though as the dining hall serving the Company's beating heart, extra niceties were made available such as a large spread of produce and baked goods that were set out for display at each meal. The Bug-Type made his way through, taking a few gummis and berries for himself along with a few pastries, filling up his plate as he looked out into the hall for a vacant seat when a Noivern's voice called out behind him.
"Oh, hey. I didn't expect to run into you here, Ellsberg."
The Mothim stopped and turned around, looking up to see Aldrich looming behind him holding a small tray bearing bread, a croissant, and some gummis. Ellsberg blinked out of surprise, before giving a puzzled tilt of his head.
"
Aldrich? I didn't know you were now working here at headquarters."
"I'm not. I was just passing through and figured I'd take advantage of the free lunch," the Noivern replied. "Though why don't we take a seat so we can catch up properly?"
Ellsberg moved a tarsal to his chin and cast a glance about the mess hall, when he noticed an unclaimed table a little ways away to his right. While it wasn't exactly planned, it wouldn't
hurt to have some company during his lunch break and Aldrich had always seemed pretty friendly. The Bug-Type turned back to the Noivern and gave a small shrug of his shoulders.
"Eh, I'm not in a hurry today. Why not?"
The pair made their way over to the free table, where they set down their trays and quickly settled in. Ellsberg made himself comfortable on his seat, before helping himself to a Green Gummi on his plate. As he made his way through the gummi, the moth glanced back curiously at Aldrich as he bit into a croissant.
"So if you're
not working here, why'd you come anyways, Aldrich?" Ellsberg asked.
The Noivern set the remains of his croissant down a moment, before shifting his wings slightly.
"Administrator Elilan is looking for a gift for his daughter before he returns to Nagrobek next week," Aldrich explained. "I'm able to get around town quickly, so I figured I'd lend a wing to help."
"I see... I take it that means Sorge and Zelle are also still in the city?" the Mothim pressed.
"Yes, along with Ketu," the Noivern answered. "Lyn's current plan has allowed him to stay in Canalhouse a bit longer, so he's been using that time to hang out with Sorge. As for Zelle, she's spent a good portion of her time shopping on
Afschaffingstraat to make the most out our little bonus we got from Buyeom."
Ellsberg paused at Aldrich's reply. While it was hardly surprising for Team Sentinel to need shore leave like any other Pokémon, the idea of a lot of veteran spies casually going out in the city felt strangely amusing to him.
"I see they're certainly not letting their spare time go to waste," the Mothim murmured.
Ellsberg fell silent, realizing that amid all the abrupt changes that had come since Lyn's mission was rebooted, he hadn't spent his share of the con artists' money yet. The Bug-Type wondered if perhaps he ought to spend some time accompanying Zelle and let some of the local shops liberate a few of his own coins, when his train of thought was disturbed by Aldrich raising his voice from across the table.
"So how have you been settling back into your daily routine?" he asked.
"Alright, I suppose. I can't say that things haven't been going back to normal lately," Ellsberg replied. "Or at least as normal as one can hope when Administrator Elilan or Lyn could upend everything at a moment's notice."
The moth trailed off for a moment, before continuing on with a grumbling shake of his head.
"Maybe I ought to have asked them for specifics," he sighed. "Since it feels at times like I'm just waiting to get blown along by a sudden wind."
"I suppose I don't blame you there," Aldrich said. "This certainly wasn't the homecoming I was expecting. A years-old cover got burned, and all so that Red could give us the slip yet again."
The Noivern ran a claw absent-mindedly around the rim of his cup, before raising it to drink and setting it aside with a brief closing of his eyes.
"Even so, I can't really complain about things," he continued. "I've had time to stretch my wings and take in the city. Won't get too many chances to do
that anytime soon once the Intelligence Division hands us down our next assignment."
Ellsberg pulled his gaze up in the middle of a small sip from his drink, the Mothim setting it back down as he twitched his feelers puzzledly at Aldrich's reply.
"I'm surprised that you're in such good spirits after such a setback and not knowing where you'll be shipped off to," Ellsberg remarked. "Here I thought things had been rather frustrating for
me lately, but I didn't have years of work ruined in a day."
"Well, it depends on how you look at it," Aldrich replied. "It's not the outcome I was hoping for, but at least Red surfaced again after we'd been in the dark about his whereabouts for years. Not to mention it
is nice to get to spend some time with Ketu again."
"Hm, I
suppose that's true..." Ellsberg mumbled, his sullen demeanor prompting Aldrich to tilt his head back puzzledly.
"Is something the matter?" the Noivern asked.
"Everything about this Protector chase has been an exercise in frustration, and I'm not exactly looking forward to going back to it," the Bug-Type grumbled. "It wasn't exactly fun getting shouted down and put upon by Lyn and his lackeys, much less the rest of the Board thinking that I'm just some pawn to be used at their whim. Becoming a subordinate on my own ship certainly wasn't
my choice."
Aldrich listened intently for a moment, before closing his eyes and letting out a small sigh.
"Yeah, I know the feeling."
Ellsberg blinked back in surprise as Aldrich opened his eyes and glanced back across the table with a quiet frown.
"I wasn't
always a Noivern, and as you may know, it takes a while for Noibat to evolve," the Dragon-Type explained. "Back then, I wasn't nearly as strong, and most Pokémon in the Company certainly didn't give me the same respect I get now."
The Noivern picked up a Royal Gummi off his tray and bit down into it, before turning his attention back to Ellsberg
"All I can tell you is to not give up and sell yourself short. Even if I wasn't there to see much of it, Ketu told me about how you fought on Buyeom," Aldrich said. "You've got potential, even if a lot of other Pokémon in the Company can't see it right now. Maybe that's even why Administrator Elilan reached out to recruit you."
Ellsberg pawed at a stray hunk of bread on his plate, before giving back a small smile to the Dragon-Type.
"Well, you certainly know how to
flatter a 'mon," he replied. "Though thanks for the encouragement, it's helped a bit."
The Mothim nibbled at the bread and reflexively reached back onto his plate only to see he was down to a stray berry. Ellsberg took it and began to eat it when he glanced up at a water clock at the other end of the dining hall and noticed that somehow, it'd moved along by a full half an hour from when he'd left for lunch.
"Egh... I wasn't expecting time to go by so quickly. Guess it's time for me to head back to work," he sighed. The Mothim quickly scarfed down the remaining berry, when he took his tray and rose from the table just in time for Aldrich to interrupt him.
"Oh? Busy day?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm on a bit of a tight schedule," Ellsberg insisted. "And a crowded mess hall like this is a bit hard to hold a long conversation in."
"Touché, though maybe that's a reason for a change of scenery next time," the Noivern said, making Ellsberg twitch his feelers puzzledly before speaking up in reply.
"Hm? What do you have in mind?"
"There's a snackbar out at
Hardenheuvel near the Academy," Aldrich said. "The
frietjes they make there are pretty great, and there's a clock tower nearby that overlooks the entire district. If you can be there around noon, I'll get you lunch and a view to remember. My treat."
Ellsberg paused at the Dragon-Type's offer, before curling his mouthparts into a small smile and warmly nodding back at him.
"I'm a bit busy tomorrow, but I'll take you up on that the day after. See you then, Aldrich."
The Mothim carried off with his tray to put it away. All the while, he couldn't help but find himself in higher spirits, and quietly looking forward to this lunch and scenic view that Aldrich had to offer.
After the sun had crossed its midday high on Tromba, the local guild's grounds had fallen suspiciously quiet aside from the warehouse at its periphery. There, Kiran led Team Traveller's members in as a steady stream of Pokémon filed past the door. The Swellow and his companions looked about as their eyes adjusted to the dim light to see the seasonal decorations and fireworks that normally were kept here had been shoveled up against the walls in order to free up space for Hatteras and a small crowd of gathered Pokémon to stand in a rough circle.
Kline and the rest of Team Zephyr were already present at the front of the crowd. Osmund was there along with a few of the local guards, as were most team captains from the Guild. There were townsfolk who'd skipped work from their shops and fields, and even Beatrix and Vicente were there with a small number of sailors from the Siglo Swellow. A wet slosh at the doorway made Kiran turn back in time to see Nerea walking along with a Hariyama and a Machoke as they carried in a pair of water-filled barrels and set them down with tired pants, Nerea looking up at the rims of the barrels as Viktor and Kuda poked their heads up and glanced around, the two sea dragons grumbling and fuming to themselves over their awkward accommodations.
"Is this
really necessary?" Kuda complained.
"Well, you
did insist that you wanted to get involved with planning," Kiran said. "And unfortunately this is where the town meets for that."
"Hrmph, if I had known
this was going to happen, I'd have just asked Dimitri to take notes!" Viktor huffed.
Eye rolls went about the gathering, as even Vicente couldn't help but join in finding the Dragalge's complaints to be a touch overblown. After a moment to gather his thoughts, the Hitmontop turned his attention over to the other Pokémon in the gathering and warily folded his arms.
"So now what?" Vicente began. "We've got this Ledger, right? Isn't it just a matter of tipping off the Company and Empire and then revealing we have it at this point?"
"You're getting several steps ahead of yourself," Kline replied, shaking his head back. "For one, we'd need the other two volumes before we could even begin considering forcing a confrontation."
"Huh? Wouldn't the Ledger from Pioppo enough?" Nida asked. "There's no shortage of bad things about both the Company and the Empire in there."
"The volumes interlock and complete each other," the Zygarde explained. "If you don't want the Company or the Empire to be able to twist things to their advantage, you'd need to have the full story to use against them."
Nida blinked in surprise and put a paw to her mouth. While it was to be expected that Kline would have an idea about the ledgers with how long he'd been chasing after them, he sure seemed to know an awful lot about them. The Nidorina's mind turned back to the passages she'd read when she remembered that it was written that three eggs were being researched on Conntow by the Company and the Empire… could one of them have been Kline's? The rabbit opened her mouth to speak, only to trail off, opting to press the matter some other time as Hatteras spoke up.
"So the Company obviously has one of the volumes…" the Guildmaster murmured. "But what about the third? If it's someplace less guarded, perhaps it makes sense for you to go there first."
Hatteras' question made Kline fall silent and shift uneasily, before reluctantly speaking up to answer the Ampharos.
"It's on my home island… Conntow. Which is currently the home of another Protector named Yveltal."
Startled gasps and incredulous cries went about the assembly. Elty seemed particularly surprised, as he went wide-eyed and bolted in front of the Zygarde with an insistent stare.
"Wait,
Yveltal?"
Nida and her companions looked over at Elty puzzledly, wondering what about this Protector could have disturbed him so. Before they could pry further, Viktor splashed and shifted in his barrel, turning his snout with an incredulous scowl over to Kline.
"But how can
that be?!" Viktor demanded. "Nothing's living on that blasted rock!"
"Not... exactly. It's a long story but the gist of it is that Yveltal is a counterpart to Cernun," Kline explained. "While Cernun's powers hold sway over life, Yveltal's by contrast command death."
The Zygarde fell into an uncomfortable silence, before he spoke up and continued on warily.
"She hatched on Conntow years ago and has been living there ever since. As time has gone by, she's developed somewhat of a command over her powers, but she's... not exactly calm or friendly to visitors," he said. "The area around the island isn't called the 'Dead Zone' these days for nothing, so it's not a matter of just sailing up and asking her for the volume."
Worried murmurs filtered through the crowd at the stark options Kline laid out to them. On the one hand, they could try and sneak into the Company capital and
somehow pry a part of the Knights' Ledger out from under the noses of a city's worth of underlings there. On the other, they could sail through waters where ships' crews had repeatedly vanished without a trace since the Great Calamity to try much the same with an apparent death god. A death god that if Kline was right, probably had the power to make them all keel over at the bat of an eye. Why, this sort of choice was like asking a sailor to choose between drowning at sea or burning to death in a ship fire!
"... Where do we even
start here?" Ander asked.
"I'd personally recommend Conntow. If we went there, we'd only need to worry about holding out against
one Pokémon instead of a whole city of them," Kline insisted. "Besides, I assume I can protect everyone from her powers and I'm sure that with a little work, Yveltal will surely listen to reason..."
"You
assume?" Kuda demanded. "You mean, you don't even know it will work?"
Kline grimaced at the Kingdra's question, before letting his eye's line of sight drift towards the ground with an audible hem and haw.
"Well, I know that
my powers curbed Cernun's," Kline offered. "So if she's a counterpart to him, it'd only follow that they
should work on hers too."
The Zygarde's words drew uneasy glances and worried whispers from the other Pokémon gathered about, Guardia being the first of the lot to articulate her misgivings.
"Eh? But even if your powers do work on her, isn't it the
bigger risk to go there first?"
"I don't see why it would be. I
clearly elaborated how it was the less dangerous route between the two," Kline harrumphed. "On top of everything that's
already dangerous about Vollezee, remember that
Team Sentinel went over there only a few days ago. There's a good chance they wouldn't have moved on yet if we went there straight away, and our mission would almost certainly be compromised if we
did run into them."
"Yeah, but then we're going to have to take all of the other parts of the Ledger along into that big Company colony," the Cubone said.
The room fell silent and traded antsy looks with each other over the idea of bringing all Team Travellers' hard work directly into the Pyroar's Den of the Company. Kline faltered a moment, as he too began to realize the risk of his original plans as Dimitri spoke up to continue.
"If it really is that much more of a risk to go to Vollezee, then isn't it better to risk losing the
one volume we have instead of
all of them?" the Kabutops asked. "I'm sure the Company would like the chance to bury whatever dark secrets are written about them within the Knights' Ledger. If they have the whole thing, who will stop them?"
"
No me da confianza..." Pladur replied. "It's a matter of time before the Company comes to Bluewhorl Town to try and punish everyone for what happened with Commissioner Bunsen. Shouldn't we be taking whatever route gets us the other parts of the Ledger faster?"
"We already knew that would be coming and started taking some preparations," Osmund reassured. "Don't worry too much about getting this done fast, worry about getting it done right."
Team Traveller's members stopped to think matters over following the Sceptile's reassurance, trying to weigh which of the two routes would be the less dangerous option. After a long pause, Pleo ruffled his feathers, and craned his head up to speak.
"I think Dimitri's got a point and we
should go to Vollezee before Conntow. We had so much trouble escaping Giotto, so wouldn't the city on Vollezee be just as dangerous for us?" the Lugia mused. "And if we go to Conntow with all the other parts of the Ledger then maybe we could even have Yveltal help us make the Company and Empire back off!"
Crom and then Kiran murmured in agreement, their other teammates following suit as even some of the villagers were swayed. All the while, Kline narrowed his eye back skeptically, when Nerea stepped forward and spoke to him.
"Maybe it's my bias to my home island speaking, but I do think that it's worth trying, Kline," she said. "Besides, if there's
anything you're unsure about regarding Conntow, it would give you a bit more time to try and find out about it in advance with your Cells."
Kline hesitated a moment, before shaking his head with a sigh.
"I suppose that I can't argue with that…" he admitted. "It's settled then, we'll set sail for-"
Thump!
"Ack!
Veikka! Stop jostling like that!"
The gathered Pokémon fell silent and looked around at the sound of a chittering hiss and quiet shuffling and creaking, their attention going up towards the roof as they realized the noises were coming from above.
"
Chto za chert?" Viktor started, only to be answered by a
crack and a sharp yelp from above.
"Whoa!"
A patch of the roof abruptly gave way as Pyry and Pekka fell in, the Vibrava hastily attempted to flutter and stabilize himself, only for his Gabite partner to latch onto him in a panic and drag the two crashing to the ground with a sharp thud and pair of yelps. Pyry let his friend go, the pair getting up with woozy groans before they looked about to see the entire gathering staring at them.
"Uh... hey, just passing through?" Pyry offered.
The duo were answered by scattered growls and glares from the audience. Kuda fidgeted in his tub to get a better view of the intruders, only to narrow his eyes in scowling recognition as he realized them to be none other than the two beach bums who'd berated him from shore the other day.
"And what do
you two think you're doing here?!" the Kingdra snapped. "This is supposed to be a private meeting!"
"We and our friends want to help, obviously!" Pekka insisted. "If you're sailing off and going to fight the Company, you're gonna need all the help you can get!"
Vicente frowned and shot a dubious scowl back at the two former pirates, folding his arms over each other with a sharp scoff.
"Yeah, and I'm
sure your Community Service has nothing to do with that."
"Hey, we mean it!" the Gabite of the pair insisted. "And if Eltenios can be here, why can't we?"
The surrounding villagers let out dismissive scoffs and snorts in reply, a few mumbling under their breaths about the audacity of the two thieves, when the assembly gradually quieted down as Osmund shook his head and raised a claw to interject.
"They
have been better sports about their Community Service sentences lately," he said. "I don't know if that's really an argument for bringing them all onto a crew though, but it
is something to consider.."
The Sceptile's assessments drew murmuring debate and even a few scattered agreements from a few nearby Pokémon, only for Elty to sense it was a good time to press the argument and stepped forward to add his own thoughts.
"I mean, you can't argue that they
didn't help out earlier with driving out Bunsen and his lackeys," the Growlithe insisted. "Isn't that enough of a reason to hear them out?"
The other Pokémon blinked and traded uncertain glances with one another, before Beatrix flitted forward and spoke up in reply.
"I'm willing to take them along if everyone else here is alright with it," she said. "Though if anyone's got any reason to object to this, I'm all ears."
"Well,
I'm willing to give them a chance," Alice insisted.
"I mean, if we're
sure they won't cause trouble," Philips murmured. "The extra fighters would always help."
"Yeah, and it's not as if they'd have many options if they tried to run off..." Natrix added.
Cross-chatter floated about the gathering as the lot grew more and more amenable to the idea of accepting the aid of Pyry and Pekka's companions. After a moment to read the room, Beatrix nodded her head and mused aloud to herself.
"I suppose that settles that," she said. "Though what exactly do we need to know before going into Vollezee?"
"Well, I know that after Nerea tried to go for the Ledger the Company moved it to a different location," Kline explained. "I've tried to figure out with my Cells where exactly they moved it to, but I've never had any success beyond some rough leads."
"It's one of those things where we'd probably have more luck after getting there in person. I grew up there, so I think that I'd be able to help get the lay of the land quickly," Percy added. "The plan would be that after we dock in Canalhouse we'll first try to find out where the Ledger is being kept. After that, we'd use our findings to plan out how to steal it and get out before anybody notices."
"Think of it like planning out a heist!" Alice exclaimed. Pyry and Pekka's eyes lit up and they traded excited glances with each other, the pair puffing their chests out proudly as they tried to reassure their new teammates.
"Well, you certainly could do worse than having us around!" Pyry insisted.
"Yeah, we're
experts at stealing stuff!" Pekka added, prompting Kline to narrow his eye unamusedly at the pair.
"Somehow, I think this will require a bit more
precision than storming in and pillaging," he grumbled.
Pyry and Pekka drooped at Kline's rebuttal, when Trizano cleared his throat and stepped forward to speak up.
"I
think that plan can work, though are we sure it makes sense to bring the volume from Pioppo with us?" Trizano asked. "It's safer not to keep all your eggs in one basket, and if we got caught, the Company would just take everything we'd been working for."
"It's an obvious risk," Calidus admitted. "But if we leave it here on Tromba, we probably won't be able to get it back once the Company sends those reinforcements."
"Besides, it wouldn't be the
first time we've smuggled along an important book," Beatrix insisted. "And I can think of a few things to try and keep it protected below deck."
"I suppose that settles it, then," Hatteras said. "Though you should push off before dawn tomorrow to make sure you're gone well before the Company shows up here."
Team Traveller and the other Pokémon present from the Siglo Swellow hemmed and hawed over the idea of setting off to Vollezee and
Conntow with less than a day's preparations. While it was hard to argue Hatteras' point, were they perhaps getting too ahead of themselves with this mission?
"Are we sure about this?" Ander asked.
"I mean, it's not as if we're sending you out with nothing," Mosca piped. "We'll see to it that you're well-stocked before sailing out of port."
"And I've got my own contribution to add to make sure my
niñita can hold her own," Marley said. Nida blinked back wordlessly at her mother's comment, giving a curious raise of her brow.
"You do?"
"You'll see," the mother Nidorina insisted, smirking back at her daughter. "Just be a little patient,
mija."
Nida tilted her ear puzzledly, only for her attempts to puzzle out what her mother might be referring to to be cut short by Nerea suddenly speaking up.
"I'd like to also add that you're certainly not in any
worse of a position than when I made my attempt. And you won't be going alone, either," the Manaphy reassured. "Viktor's clan and I will be keeping an eye on you all from offshore, and if need be, we'll step in to help you get away."
"Yeah, and we should have some faith in ourselves! We just chased off a Company Commissioner yesterday!" Philips insisted. "If all goes well, maybe we can even end this without another fight!"
The mood in the room brightened and took on a more confident air as Nerea and the others' reassurances served to largely clear away Team Traveller and the sailors' earlier doubts. Elty continued to give an unconvinced frown afterwards, when his eyes drifted over to Pleo, prompting him to hesitate a moment before turning back to the others.
"What do we do about Pleo?" the Growlithe asked. "While it's true most 'mons only know Pleo from a description, he's got a fairly distinctive look. Even if we go in with Company scarves, I don't think it's safe to assume that he won't get recognized."
Elty's question made Hatteras crack a small smile as he glanced over Pleo and gave a knowing look back.
"Oh, I might have a way to get around that..."
The following morning, Nida carried on along at her mother's side as they, her father, and her siblings headed towards the Siglo Swellow at the town's docks. On the way over, she could see the pier humming with activity as the crew loaded provisions aboard the schooner and Viktor massed the members of the Khranitel Rod together. Marley watched as Nida built up ice in her mouth before blowing out frigid puffs, making her curl her muzzle up in a smile.
"Heh, you've been taking to that move like a natural,
mija," Marley chuckled, prompting her daughter to blink and tilt and ear back.
"Eh? But Melissa just taught it to me yesterday!" Nida protested. "And I didn't even aim it right the last time I tried using it!"
"You'll have plenty of time to get used to it. It's always the hardest part of using Ice Beam," her mother reassured. "But you're my
niñita and if you could already get the better of that cheating Dragonite without it, I'm sure it'll serve you well against the Company once you do."
Nida raised a brow back and opened her mouth to reply, when she saw Team Zephyr's members pass by. She noticed that Kline had opted to go along with his teammates in his dog-like form that day, which made her wonder if perhaps he sensed this mission would be dangerous from the jump. The younger Nidorina watched the Zygarde as he happily chatted and joked with his companions and thought to herself about how strange it was to see him doing so while in his battle-ready form.
"Take care of yourself out there, dear."
Nida turned her head at the sound of a buzzing voice, where she saw her teammates had gathered at the pier and Sandra and Cassie were embracing Ander in front of the gangplank just as Albert and his team made their way up onto the deck. Crom and his family were also present, Pladur giving a teasing poke at Cenn's belly when the family of Dragon-Types saw Marley approaching and the father and children blanched. Marley blinked and shook her head with a bemused shrug, opting to hang back a moment as Nida carried on and gave a puzzled tilt of her head to Crom.
"Oh? What did we miss?" she asked.
"Just saying our goodbyes," Crom said. "I mean, we're almost ready to start boarding the ship again."
"Tch, you're overselling it a bit," Elty scoffed. "We can't exactly go anywhere without Pleo, and Hatteras still hasn't come back with him and that 'disguise' he's been working on."
Nida blinked back puzzledly at Elty's reply, unsure what to make of the Fire-Type's comment.
"A disguise?" she asked. "What exactly could he be doing that'd take so long?"
"Hey!"
Nida and her companions turned at the sound of Pleo's voice to see him running ahead of Hatteras, when much to their surprise they saw his feathers were now a dark purple and his belly, plates, and eye markings were a silvery gray instead of their normal blue. On top of it all, the Lugia's normal scarf was now replaced with a First-Rank Company scarf worn much as one of Lyn's goons would wear it. As he neared his dumbfounded teammates, a grin spread over Pleo's beak, the young Lugia batting out his wings in front of them, proudly showing off his wings' new feathering.
"I'm back!" the Protector chirped. "How do I look?"
Team Traveller's members stared back at a loss for words at Pleo's new appearance, with Ander and his family appearing visibly cagey at the sight. Whatever Hatteras had done to Pleo, he certainly looked different enough to throw off most others at first glance. Why, instead of the regal Guardian of the Seas that they expected, this new appearance looked downright menacing!
"Like you're ready to conquer Anyilla, especially with that Company scarf," Elty remarked. "So... good job, I guess?"
Pleo pawed at the back of his head with a sheepish smile as Guardia sized up Pleo's now-purple plumage warily and gave a puzzled tilt of her head at Hatteras.
"What did you do with his
umo to turn that color?"
"We dyed them," Hatteras explained. "It's said that in the old world, there was a time when Lugia's heart closed and his plumes turned purple and silver, while his eyes turned completely blood red. We couldn't get anything to make the eyes match, but a little purple dye here for his feathers and some silver for the blue parts, and his appearance looks just like the legends!"
"And we
did try to use the goggles Neil gave me at first for my eyes," Pleo added. "But we couldn't work out how to make the clear parts red and Hatteras said that it would be too obvious that it was just an accessory."
Nida blinked wordlessly for a moment, before giving an askew glance at the Ampharos.
"... Why is this the first that I've ever heard of this legend?" she asked.
"It's not a very popular tale, since it’s not a particularly happy one," Hatteras replied. "Why, the last time
I heard it told was back when Administrator Darzin still ran the island, so I’m not holding my breath on the average Company grunt knowing about it."
Ander stared at Pleo for a long moment, before the Bug-Type backed away and gave an uncomfortable pat at his shoulder with the flat of his right scythe.
"I mean,
I wouldn't have recognized him if I hadn't seen him beforehand, so it can't be that bad of a disguise," the Marked Scyther murmured.
"Well, it
does have limits," Hatteras insisted. "We tried to waterproof the dye and it
should last if Pleo gets a little wet, but try to keep him from going on any long swims until you're out of Vollezee."
Kiran nodded back at the Electric-Type, giving a sharp chirp in reply.
"Right. I think that shouldn't be too hard."
"There's more, too," Pleo piped up. "I also got these for Dimitri, Pladur, Ander, and Trizano!"
Pleo nosed at Hatteras, prompting him to take out a quartet of blue scarves, before handing them over to Pleo. The Lugia stepped forward and proudly passed them along to the four as one after the other, they unfurled the scarves to reveal they had Team Traveller's white star pattern on them. The four gaped at their scarves, Pladur blinking before looking back surprisedly.
"Uhh... Pleo?" the Fraxure asked. "Not that I don't appreciate this, but aren't we going to be wearing Company scarves as part of our disguise on Vollezee?"
"Well... yes. But we've still got things to do after it too!" the Lugia insisted. "I just thought that if we work as a team it would make sense if we all had the same scarves!"
Dimitri took his scarf, and with Crom's help, proudly fastened it about his neck. The Kabutops took a moment to bask in his new colors, realizing that at long last, after years of poking in and out of various guilds, he'd managed to take his place on a Rescue Team on land after all.
"Heh, well you can't really argue with that," Dimitri chuckled. "Thanks, Pleo. I really appreciate it."
"Yeah, I'll happily wear mine alongside you once we get a chance," Trizano chimed in.
Ander looked down at his scarf and hesitated a moment over whether to don it. As the Scyther began to put it on, the silhouette of a Unfezant flew overhead, prompting the Bug-Type to look over and see Pat landing in front of him.
"Eh? Pat? What's going on?" Ander buzzed.
"Time to get going," the Unfezant explained. "Captain Beatrix sent me and a few others to go and wrangle up everybody. The sun's about to come up and we should be pushing off right now."
Gwenith looked over the gathered Pokémon, her gaze settling on her mate and oldest child briefly, before turning to the rest of the party.
"I suppose that makes sense," she murmured. "Good luck out there, everyone."
The mother Druddigon pulled Pladur and Crom into a quick embrace that Cenn joined in on, before letting the Fraxure and his son go to head off for the gangplank. The Dragon-Types were quickly followed one by one by the rest of Team Traveller's members, with Nida rounding off the group by following at the rear. As the Nidorina joined her teammates up the gangplank, her ears pricked up as her mother cried out from behind.
"
Mija, wait!"
Nida turned and saw Marley and Teja bounding up after her, the mother Nidorina motioning for a pause as Teja reached for a bag slung over his shoulder.
"You left home without this last time," Marley said. "We wanted to make sure it was there for you before you set off again."
Teja shuffled the bag off and handed it over to Nida, who took it and after looking it over, realized that it was none other than the bag that they'd given her for New Year's just a few months earlier. Nida peered down at the bag and thought back to all the twists and turns her life had taken in those few months, before looking over at her parents, who smiled at their daughter's reaction to her reunited keepsake.
"Just bring it back home safe with you, alright?" Teja chuckled.
"I will," Nida insisted. "That's a promise!"
Nida hugged her parents, the three squeezing each other tightly and trading nuzzles before Marley and Teja let their daughter go. Nida hurried off and darted up the gangplank and onto the deck of the Siglo Swellow, going over to her teammates gathered at the railing as the last of the crew came aboard and the moorings were loosened. The ship jolted, the escorts churning up currents in the air and water to push the schooner forward as the townsfolk cheered them off with wishes of good luck and a safe return. Team Traveller's members waved and called back farewells while the Siglo Swellow set off northwards as the sun slowly came over the horizon, on towards the keys to the peaceful future they were fighting for.
Author's Notes:
-
baran - Polish: "ram"
-
Ty uverena? (Ты уверена?) - Russian: "(Are) You sure?" (BGN/PCGN Romanization.)
-
Afschaffingstraat - Dutch: "Abolition Street"
-
Hardenheuvel - Dutch: "Hardridge"
-
frietjes - Dutch: "fries"
-
No me da confianza - Spanish: "This doesn't give me confidence". Analogous in usage to "I don't know about this."
-
umo (羽毛) - Japanese: "feathers", "plumage" (Hepburn Romanization)
I even hoped I'd be able to do it for Review Blitz, but alas I didn't get around to it then.
) on the ship.
