Treasure Town ~ Marketplace

[Namohysip]

Darkwhite bounced off and landed on the ground, growling. "So what, you don't want my help? Fine! Then maybe I'll beat YOU up, too!" She pointed at Dave, but then stared at Owen. "And what're you looking at?!"

"Can't you at least give us a hint? I'll, er, I'll pay for the curry!" Owen forgot his money at the dojo. "Maybe we can, um..."

Darkwhite hissed. "No, you lost your chance! You'll never find Garchomp, that's for sure!"

Then, she stood up and lunged for Owen, slamming him in the nose.

Darkwhite used Darkwhite Jab, dealing 1 damage to Owen!

"Ow," Owen mumbled, rubbing his muzzle. But by the time he looked up again, Darkwhite was gone--disappeared into thin air.

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave shook his head, his heart still pounding uncomfortably. "Jesus," he snarled, turning toward Owen. "Could've used a little fucking help there trying to get something out of her. Now we've got nothing. Thanks."

He paused. "...Except fucking Garchomp I guess. As if we wouldn't have found them anyway when we check the rest of the market. That irritating fucking cartoon mascot. Hope she chokes on her fucking curry. Come on."

He strode towards the door.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen flinched, his tail blazing with some mixture of emotions that he wasn't sure how to properly articulate. But a little while later, it settled enough for him to follow Dave out, a tightness in his chest. They had to find a Garchomp; that narrowed things down a lot. And along the way, maybe they could find the other ill Pokemon that was apparently going to be less trouble.

But Owen moved silently with Dave, not speaking unless he was addressed, looking more fidgety than before.

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave had his nose to the ground again, focusing on the smells of the marketplace, whether he could detect anything off.

 

[Namohysip]

The awkward silence continued, but it wasn't until Owen had suddenly stopped and looked up that he held off on his observation duties.

And then, a second later, Diyem spoke--Owen had sensed him coming. Perhaps he was used to the vague sensation of his presence. What happened? I suddenly lost contact with your general area.

Owen couldn't find the words to reply back, but Dave also would have heard this.

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave looked up. Oh, just fucking Darkwhite hanging around in the restaurant, no big deal. Transformed into a Minun, we could tell but probably nobody else. Said a lot of shit about how 'ooh, you didn't believe me about the society falling into darkness, how dare you', and 'oh, I'm the bad guy, please play along with my inane bullshit', and 'pay attention to me', and 'there are two more infected Pokémon in the marketplace and one of them's a Garchomp and will do something baaaad ooooooh'. I tried to get something out of her about the other society thing but she didn't bite.

 

[Namohysip]

...Well, it seems you took the encounter better than Owen did. He appears to be shellshocked.

"Huh?" Owen looked up. "N-no, I'm fine. I'm fine."

You are not.

After another pause, Diyem said, there are three Garchomp in this place at the moment. Two of them appear to be cheerful. The other one is in the middle of a sparring match and is more agitated than usual, just at the marketplace road's edge. I will guide you there. Forward, third right, then continue forward until you hear battle sounds.

 

[Dragonfree]

Jeez. He glanced towards Owen, then back in the direction Diyem was pointing them.

His heartrate had slowed down by now, the adrenaline worn off, replaced by a general sort of just feeling like shit. God, this investigation couldn't be done soon enough.

"Cool. Okay. I guess we don't even need to track it down. Whatever."

 

[Namohysip]

They walked along, and Owen followed with slightly less silence than before.

Why did he freeze up like that? Dave was right. He could have done more to get information out of Darkwhite. She had been right there and all he did was stare and sputter a few words. And then...

They made the first turn and continued down the roads. With how quiet it was relative to rush hour, navigation was easy.

"Sorry I wasn't much help," Owen mumbled. "I... I froze up completely. I need to be stronger if we're standing up to people like that, the way you did..."

 

[Disco]

Some sort of scuffle was happening down the road... Mellow glanced in the direction it was coming from pensively as she filled another jar with yet another tea blend. Whatever it was, she hoped it would be resolved soon. And hopefully, it didn't mean the two that were part of the team were in trouble-

Luckily it seemed like they weren't. The other Charmander and the Poochyena were in the distance, but when she took a closer look, both seemed...off. Mellow frowned and set aside her work.

"Are you both alright? You two look pretty upset..."

 

[Dragonfree]

"Sorry I wasn't much help," Owen mumbled. "I... I froze up completely. I need to be stronger if we're standing up to people like that, the way you did..."

Dave stopped, looking properly at Owen for the first time a while. What? His first instinct was a kneejerk annoyance, but the Charmander's big sad eyes just made him think of Jean, and it gave way to something else entirely. Fuck. He sighed, averting his gaze.

"Look, Owen, it's... it's fine. You were fine."

 

[Namohysip]

Owen blinked, looking surprised, but then glanced back at Mellow. In an effort to stall for time, he waved back and said, "It's fine! We're just searching for someone." Mellow didn't need to get involved in this line of work; perhaps Diyem had brought her for moral support or something.

That bought him enough time to compose himself as they continued along. "But you still stood up to her," Owen said. Sure, that was probably also what Zane tried to do and it had ended horribly, but maybe there was some merit to at least trying to press things if they had the opportunity to risk it. He sighed. "Thanks, though. I think you pressured Darkwhite enough to slip out that detail before she left. And we learned something else, too." Owen rubbed his muzzle. "I don't think she can hit as hard as we think she can."

And just like that, the shine was back in his eyes, and he'd transitioned from crestfallen to contemplative. Had that little bit of assuaging praise from Dave been all that was needed to bounce him back?

"She might be powerful in some other way than raw strength. We were just really weak back when we first met her."

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave blinked at Owen's quick recovery, again reminded disarmingly of Jean. How old was he, anyway?

He took a breath. "Huh. I was figuring she just didn't use her full power against you. Maybe?" He paused. "Don't ask how the fuck, but I could smell somehow that... that if we take her down, she'll just come back, multiple times. Don't think we want to have to fight her."

 

[Namohysip]

"I sensed that, too," Owen said. "But maybe there's a limit to how many times she can do that at once? Or--"

The ground trembled and Owen nearly fell over mid-step. Then came a shout and a cry, and then a roar.

Owen blinked, and suddenly he said, "I can't feel Diyem anymore." Which mean a distortion just popped up from some kind of spike in power.

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave looked up. "I'm going to make a wild guess that this is that Garchomp."

He inclined his head at Owen and took off on a run towards the sound.

 

[Namohysip]

The run wasn't long, but the sight took a lot of time to process. At the very edge of the marketplace, where the buildings stopped and an open field started, two Pokemon were battling with one another. Or, it was the end of a battle, with Garchomp victorious, and a weakened, immobile Arbok crumpled on the ground.

"That's what you get for CHEATING," Garchomp snarled at Arbok, stepping over large gashes in the fields that still burned with blue fire. Arbok was trying, helplessly, to get away, but Garchomp stomped on her tail, earning a yelp.

Garchomp's body was several shades darker than it should have been, and a similar specter of the same Pokemon floated behind her, coming from her back. Her claws were extended and dripped with black ink and haze. Her tail had extended into something like a serrated whip, and each step she took left the ground dried up and gray. Arbok's tail seemed to be suffering a similar fate.

"What are YOU doing here?" Garchomp snarled at Dave and Owen. "This... is a private match. I won. Go away! I'm finishing our feud once and for all!"

 

[Disco]

Mellow hadn't been quite so sure that Owen was telling the truth. In fact, as soon as she saw them heading away towards the fighting in the distance, she had put away almost everything as fast as she could and followed after them. When she caught up, right before the last building, Mellow stopped short. That Garchomp... What was happening to it? Then she noticed the plants and the Arbok-

Was...this what they meant? She had never imagined that something so awful could happen to anyone...

If Owen and the Poochyena (...His name was Durian, right...?) tried to fight this on their own, they'd get seriously hurt. If she went herself, so would she. Mellow found herself frozen in place, but it felt like there was a countdown until she had to act. What should she do, though...?

 

[Dragonfree]

Dave stepped back as the Garchomp noticed them. How strong was this thing? He concentrated on his nose, trying to smell its power - but also take note of whether it had a distinguishing scent, something he could use to find other infected.

He eyed the tea-selling Charmander approaching. "Hey! Careful!"

 

[Namohysip]

Garchomp:
HP: 400
Will not stop attacking.

Infected Pokemon appear to smell cold and spicy.

The timer was short. Garchomp ignored Arbok, who had fallen unconscious, and made a mad-dash for Dave, the one to make the most noise in recent memory, which might have only been the past few seconds.

"Dave!" Owen shouted. He had perhaps a second to react.

 

[Disco]

Mellow didn't think. She did the first thing that popped into her head.

"S-Sunny Day!"

A ball of light appeared in her hands. She aimed and threw it at the Garchomp's face. She then backed away and ran back towards town.