Chapter 18 – Day 9, Part 2: Savages

Chapter 18 – Day 9, Part 2: Savages

Turns out Speedwell was a Dragonite.

Lace was more than happy to give us that information as well as what floor the landing site would be on, but as soon as I mentioned Occa Village, her demeanor changed dramatically. That in itself was alarming, but then she said, “If they give you a reward, don’t bother turning it in here. You won’t get any credit for it.”

I asked her why and she refused to answer me. Something about it being “off limits as a discussion topic.”

Every new thing I learn about this place makes me more and more worried.

Regardless, the three of us took an elevator up to one of the higher floors in the castle.

For whatever reason, the landing place was more like a large room with lots of windows than anything else. The sound of rapid winds could be heard after we got off of the elevator and a cool breeze brushed against my fur. The docking station was one room over.

The area felt as though it would work well as a ball room if not for the gaping holes in the ceiling. Fancy splintered wood paneling, no decorations—just like the rest of the building. Assuming that this room jutted out of the side of the castle somehow, there existed both vertical and horizontal entrances to the outside for flyers that prefer one or the other. I threw my head up and around just so I could take in how huge this place was, almost falling backward from the strength of the wind. It seemed to get stronger the closer we got to the windows.

Flying type pokemon, both birds and dragons, occupied the room on all ends. A lot of them wore harnesses and saddles; I had a sense that most of these flyers were contracted for their ridability. Some of them—like the team of Pidgeot in front of one of the open windows—prepared for lift off. Smaller pokemon rode on their backs. Others, like a Salamance near the center of the room, beat its wings and left through the ceiling with a marginally bigger pokemon on their back.

Makes me wonder how big a pokemon would have to be to carry an aggron. Implying that an Aggron would need to fly at all.

“Woooow! This is so cool!” Cosmo exclaimed, darting around in amazement at everything he saw.

“It sure is,” I concurred. “The pokemon here sure know how to make the best out of what they’ve got.”

Fenn stuck close behind me. Whether it was because he was not as impressed or just overwhelmed, he had nothing to add.

It took us a bit of searching, but we eventually found a Dragonite clad in his riding gear next to a water cooler conversing with a Flygon off to the side. We approached.

“You know, I’ve always wondered,” the Dragonite said, “if a water-type refills the water in this thing every day, would that make it a… water-type cooler? AHAHAHA!” The two dragons laughed heartily.

The closer I got to the dragons, the more I began to realize just how huge these pokemon were. I was really hoping this exchange wouldn’t end with my head getting caved in. “Excuse me?” I squeaked, trying to get their attention.

It worked. The two dragons abruptly turned their attention to me. “Hm? What’s up, Smallfry?” the Dragonite asked.

“Yeah, what’s up?” chortled the Flygon in a voice almost too nasally to comprehend. “Can’t you see we’re on break?”

I pointed at the Dragonite, ignoring the Flygon. “You’re Speedwell, right?”

He grinned. “That’s my name! Don’t wear it out!”

The Flygon elbowed him. “Are you ever gonna get tired of saying that?”

“No! I’m not!” Speedwell declared. “Anyways, what can I do for you?”

I shot a quick glance at Fenn before continuing. The look on his face was more or less the same as mine: rapidly fading worry being replaced with uncomfortable awkwardness. “Uh…well, Marigold recommended you and-“

“Marigold! It would be her, wouldn’t it?” He beamed. “She’s great! Is she available yet! Haha! I’m just kidding!” He lifted his styrofoam cup up to his lips and took a drink.

“Yeah…” I trailed off, giving him a weird look. “Right…uh, we were wondering if you could take us to Occa Village-“

Speedwell did a spit take, effectively soaking the dragon next to him. “Ugh, gross!” wailed the Flygon.

“O-Occa Village?” Speedwell choked. “What could you possibly want from there?”

I blinked. “…Marigold…told us that the pokemon there need help taking care of some ferals.”

He looked between the three of us incredulously for a few seconds before shrugging. “Eh. It’s your funeral.” Speedwell pointed to the far side of the room, bringing his cup to his lips once again. “My station is the first one next to the wall” —he downed his drink in one gulp, crushed the cup, and threw it over his shoulder— “Meet me there in five minutes.”

Fenn, Cosmo, and I did what he told us to do without much more than a bewildered glance. As we shuffled away, I caught distressed whispers coming from the Flygon behind us. Something to do with “killer savages” and the word “doomed.”

Okay, now I’m really worried, I thought.

So, I anxiously waited, thinking up questions to ask Speedwell as I leaned against the far wall and watched Cosmo bounce in front of the window. That anxiousness shifted into annoyance as way more than five minutes passed. I deviated my attention to Fenn, who was having a considerably worse time than me. He kept his wide eyes on the entrance of the room, bobbing his head up, down, and all around to get a better look outside. Evidently, I needed something better with which to pass the time, so I got his attention.

“You doing alright, Fenn?”

He jolted out of his anxiety induced daze and yelped. “Ah! Um, yep! Just fine!” he told me, looking over his shoulder with a fake smile. He quickly dropped that smile and went back to looking out for the Dragonite.

“…Are you sure?” I pondered. “You don’t look like it.”

He shook his head while looking away from me. “N-nope! Just…ready to get going!” Fenn, under his breath, whispered “Come on already…”

I pushed myself off the wall and stood up straight. “You seem…excited,” I remarked as I walked closer.

“Y-yep! Sooooo excited!”

“Yeah, I bet.”

“All ready t-to…get up in the air and…m-make our way t…to Occa Villa-“

Fenn stopped abruptly when I placed a paw on his shoulder. “Fenn.”

There was a tension in him that I could feel through my paw. As he slowly twisted to face me, I caught a flicker of unease in his eyes. “Is it…is it that obvious?” he asked with drooped ears.

“Yes. I’m pretty sure I would’ve still picked up on it even if I hadn’t been paying attention.” I should start writing down all of Fenn’s nervous ticks. He’s got so many that I could fill a book with ’em!

Fenn exhaled and looked away while rubbing his arm. “I’m…I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry? I’m nervous too!” I threw my arms out as if I were about to give him a hug. “We may as well talk about how nervous we are together!”

“No, I…I can’t…I-I’m not…” Fenn bit his lip.

Okay, this might not be the best time to joke. It’s normal for Fenn to stutter, yes. I like to think that he’s more comfortable around me and —as such— has an easier time speaking. So if it’s just the two of us and he’s at a loss for words then…

I dropped my arms to my sides. “Fenn, what-“

“Alright! Sorry to keep you guys waiting! Ready to go?”

I kept my eyes on Fenn for a moment. His eyes met mine for a mere moment. There’s that look again….

“Yeah…” I turned to see Speedwell finally showing up, “I think so…”

At some point during Fenn and I’s conversation, Cosmo appeared behind me. “Cosmo is ready to fly!” he said loudly, causing me to jump in surprise.

“I bet you are!” Speedwell pointed a finger at the Solosis. He walked past us to his station. “So Occa Village, right?” he asked. “Hope it’s not much of an issue, but I can’t drop you right on site. You’re gonna have to walk a ways.” The Dragonite opened a drawer on a metal cart nearby and dug around inside.

“It…shouldn’t be,” I stated, recovering from my shock and trying to stay composed talking to the seven foot tall behemoth. “I do have a few questions though.”

“Shoot,” he said. Speedwell continued to dig through the drawers, looking away from me.

Speedwell was very, very tall. Did I mention that? The sheer intimidation factor behind the fact that Speedwell was a dragon three times my size was enough to make me reluctant to speak. Even from behind, the Dragonite made me hesitate. I was really glad that he was at least trying to make us feel welcome; I don’t know if I could’ve handled another tall and threatening authority figure in my life right now.

I eyed the harness and saddle attached to his back. Best to start out by asking about that. “So…this is completely safe, right? No chance of us detaching and falling off?”

“Ha!” Speedwell laughed, still rummaging through the drawers. “One hundred percent! I’ve never dropped anyone before.” He stopped to stroke his chin in thought. “Actually, there was this one time with a Charmander…”

“H-huh?”

He smiled while looking back at me. “Just kidding. I caught him in the end so it technically didn’t count.”

Is it too late to back out now?

“Hey, what’s with the long face? Everything will be a-okay! Trust me!”

Doubt tha-

My ears perked up at the sound of a chattering noise at my feet. Looking down, I caught sight of Fenn peering out from behind me, his teeth clattering together and his body shaking.

Man, he is really nervous about this. Poor guy. I rubbed his ears as I asked my next question.

“What’s the deal with this place anyways?” I wondered. “What’s so bad about it?”

Speedwell shook his head. “Sorry, little buddies,” he said, “can’t talk about it. Contract says so.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Contract? What the…?”

He finally got done rummaging through the metal cart and spun around. There were some new objects attached to his front and he was wearing red aviator goggles. “Okay! All set!” he announced with his hands on his hips.

It had gotten to a point for me where I was fully ready to drop this job entirely and do something else. In between my limp, the chance of death during the flight, the chance of death by…something in Occa Village, and Fenn being scared out of his wits, guard duty seemed like the more preferable option. A shame, too. This was a mystery I was hoping to solve.

But before I could voice my concerns, Speedwell noticed my perturbed expression and bent down to meet my level to the best of his abilities. “Having second thoughts, bud?” he asked softly.

I should say that it felt particularly patronizing to be talked down by a guy who—more than likely—was probably no more than a decade older than me; an adult. But whatever, I was having doubts. “Yeah,” I sighed, “you caught me.” I looked down at Fenn and met his troubled gaze. “I’m…not so sure about this one anymore…”

For some reason, Fenn’s ears perked up after I said that.

I lifted my gaze back up to Speedwell, only to see him looking left and right, his jittery antennae portraying his unease. After a few seconds, he bent down even further until his face was right next to mine and I could feel his hot breath, prompting me to lean back. “Don’t tell any other pokemon I said this now,” he whispered, “but I’m willing to bet that everything you’ve heard about Occa Village is completely wrong.” He paused as he looked left and right once more, then continued. “They need pokemon out there, believe me. Do me and the rest of them a favor and go through with this. Okay, little buddy?”

“Wha-“

Suddenly, Speedwell launched himself onto his feet and bellowed “OH, OCCA VILLAGE! WHAT A HORRID PLACE! FILLED WITH SUCH HORRIBLE MONSTERS! OOOOOOOH I WEEP FOR THE SORRY SOULS FORCED TO GO THERE!”

He winked.

…Goddammit. Now you have me curious.

“Horrid beasts?” Cosmo gasped. “Cosmo has to defeat them! We must hurry!”

“I agree, Solosis!” Speedwell acknowledged hyperbolically. “Get onto my back and we’ll…” He stared at Cosmo and stroked his chin quizzically. “Hm…how am I going to carry a Solosis I wonder…”

“Oh!” I exclaimed, remembering a similar situation yesterday. “Cosmo can ride in the bag.”

Speedwell gave me a thumbs up. “That’ll work. As long as you keep it on during the flight then he should be safe.”

“Awww, Cosmo doesn’t want to ride in the bag…” Cosmo pouted.

“Sorry, little buddy,” the Dragonite said. “Can’t carry you if you’re not locked down.” He smiled at me. “Guess that means you’re going through with this, huh?”

It does? Oh. I did just inadvertently confirm that I’m okay with this, didn’t I? I suppose if what Speedwell is saying is true, then maybe it won’t be so bad after all? I mean, how horrible can it be?

“Guess so,” I agreed. “By the way, how much-“

I felt a tugging on my thigh. Knowing full well what that meant, I halted my last question. “Excuse me for a second.” I bent down and turned my back on the dragon. “What’s up, Fenn?” I whispered.

“I-I thought you said we weren’t going to do this.” he whispered back.

“Well, yeah, but you heard Speedwell. They need us.”

His ears drooped and he looked away. “I…”

I rested a paw on his shoulder. “What’s the matter, Fenn?” I asked gingerly. “You’ve been really nervous since we got here.”

Fenn avoided my gaze and looked to the other side of the room. I followed his eyes and saw a Noivern speed off so fast into the air that they created a shockwave in the process. The distant screams of the two pokemon on the Noivern’s back could be heard, gradually growing quieter as they flew away.

Looking back at Fenn, I found him with his eyes glued to the window that the Noivern flew out of. He was trembling lightly and gritting his teeth. The fire on his back was sparking sporadically.

Fenn was scared—not of the mission, but of flying.

“Hey, everything will be okay,” I consoled him, trying to peer into his eyes. “Listen, we’ll be fine; Speedwell knows what he’s doing.”

I didn’t believe my own words, but I wasn’t the one that needed to right now.

The Quilava looked down at the ground, still avoiding my gaze. “I…I’m so stupid. I shouldn’t be scared, I know. I-it’s just…”

I shook my head. “You’re not stupid,” I said. “It’s perfectly understandable if you’re scared. I’m…a little scared too, honestly. But like I said, we can be nervous together.”

Slowly, he lifted his head. His vibrant red irises met my green mumbled quietly “Um…I don’t want to be a b-bother…but…can…can we…?”

“Can we what?”

“…When we fly t-to Occa Village…”

“Yes?”

Fenn squeezed his eyes shut, almost as if he were in pain. “Can I…hold on to you?”

“Of course, Fenn,” I chuckled. “I think I’d actually prefer that over anything else.”

The fire type began to relax and he let out a breathless sigh. “I’m so-“

“Don’t finish that sentence, Fenn. There’s nothing wrong with being scared. In fact, why don’t you show me how much of a brave pokemon you are after we get to Occa Village?” I smirked. “You can hold off on being a badass for a little bit, can’t you?”

That made him laugh, if only a little. “H-heh…I guess I can.” Now for the best part, Fenn smiled. “Th-thanks, Oswald.”

My heart soured. That went… surprisingly well. Since when have I been so good at pep talk? “You’re welcome, Fenn.” I stood up and held out a paw. “Let’s get going,” I said softly.

Fenn nodded, standing up onto two feet and gripping my paw tightly, eventually wrapping his arm around my own. He was still scared—I felt it—but at least he was scared alongside me. Couldn’t ask for anything more.

Speedwell and Cosmo had been waiting for us for a few minutes; one of them was busy preparing for flight while the other berated them with questions. “No, we won’t be flying over any volcanoes,” Speedwell told Cosmo. “Sorry, little guy.”

“Aww, but there might be bad guys there…”

Fenn and I hobbled closer. “I doubt even the strongest fire types can handle the inside of a volcano,” I said, catching the attention of the two of them.

“Oh, you’re done!” The gigantic Dragonite spun around and rested his hands on his hips. “I assume that means you’re ready to go?”

“Uh…yeah, I suppose so.”

“Great! So am I!”

“Cosmo is also ready!” Before I knew what was happening, Cosmo zoomed through the air, straight into my bag. He beamed from behind the previously shut flap. “Cosmo is ready to fly!”

Speedwell walked to the closest window and threw open it’s hinges, causing harsh winds to rush in and blow against my fur. “Ah, nothing like the feel of open air!” He gazed at us with a sharp, toothy grin over his shoulder. “Favorite part of the job coming up…” the Dragonite muttered enthusiastically.

I gulped. The longer we wait the worse it’s going to get. “We’re prepared to fly, Speedwell.”

The dragon shouted “Then hop on my back and grab on!” He bent down and presented his back to us.

Slowly and deliberately, Fenn and I ambled closer and climbed up his back to the harness. A metal bar was attached to his shoulders and served to act as something to hold on to as we flew. The harness itself provided us multiple leather straps to lock us in. I went on first, wrapping my lower half in safety straps and buckles as I straddled the saddle. Next came Fenn, who insisted on wrapping himself around me. His lower half also got the safety treatment while his arms clung to my torso as though it were the most important thing in the world to him. Last came Cosmo, a procedure that mostly just involved me stuffing him further into the bag despite his pleas.

“By the way,” Speedwell started, “what was that you were gonna ask me before your friend interrupted you?”

I froze with my paw halfway in the bag as I stopped to recall what he meant. “Um…oh! That’s right, I was gonna ask how much we owe you.”

“Oh, haha!” he laughed. “Don’t worry about that; I get paid by the guild. By you, actually! Where else are those taxes going to go? Haha!”

“Wait,” Cosmo began, his voice muffled, “didn’t Ms. Lace say-“

“Alright, cool!” I interrupted Cosmo, shoving him into the bag to shut him up. Then I locked the bag closed. “I think we’re all set now!”

“GREAT!”

The Dragonite suddenly stood up straight, to which I reflexively leaned forward and grabbed onto the safety bar. Fenn gripped my body tighter; I could feel his body shaking.

“YOU’RE ABOUT TO FIND OUT WHY THEY CALL ME SPEEEEEDWELL!”

He bent forward into a preparatory stance; the wings on his back began to flutter on both sides of me. Smoke billowed from his nostrils and Speedwell produced a noise I could only relate to the sound of an engine starting. I gripped the safety bar with frightened fervor, hoping that the ride would be over quick.

“YOU BETTER GET COMFORTABLE! THIS’LL TAKE ME NO LESS THAN TWO HOURS!”

“Wait, what-“

“HERE WE GO!”

Boom!

I had no time to react as the massive dragon launched off the wood paneling so hard that I could hear it crack from the pressure. Within seconds we were out of the landing site and above the expansive vista encompassing the area around Kebia. I screamed, I think. But even if I did, my screams—alongside Fenn’s cries of terror—were drowned out by Speedwell and Cosmo’s hooting and hollering as well as the rushing roar of the wind engulfing the entirety of my body.

Any thought that I might’ve had about enjoying this flight was thrown out the window. The sheer adrenaline boost from this assault on the senses gave me enough reason to hold my head down and push the horror to the back of my mind for the next who knows how long.

Kinda hard to do, considering that Speedwell decided to do a loop in the air for no reason, causing my stomach to churn.

I had a long and painful two hours of flying ahead of me.

---

I was truly thankful, and frankly dumbfounded, that I hadn’t puked my guts out by the time we got to our destination. I’ll give Marigold this: Speedwell was very fast. What she failed to mention was the fact that, while he may have been fast, he was not courteous in the slightest. I screamed and yelled until I lost my voice, but that Dragonite would not listen; he was too busy doing sick, wicked tricks.

Speedwell touched down amidst a patch of trees, finally slowing down enough for me to realize that not only was my head spinning, but my ears were ringing too. I could not hear him announce that we had made it. My mind was also too scattered at the time to remember that this bank of trees was not actually our destination. All of that pain and suffering and we still had to walk.

Oh well. We got what we paid for: a free, shitty experience. Couldn’t wait to do it again on the way back.

“We’re here!” Speedwell bellowed, muffled considerably by the ringing in my ears. I groaned, just about everything hurting. My eyeballs were dry, my paws hurt from gripping the safety bar so hard, my stomach was still churning; it sucked. It took me a moment to realize that Speedwell was trying to tell us to hop off.

“Wha…oh…ok,” I mumbled. I tried to move but found myself pulled back. The safety latches were still attached and so was Fenn. He hugged my back and shook like a frightened puppy. The Quilava was whimpering too, though I couldn’t hear it as much as I could feel it—what with him being so close.

I nudged him. “Hey, Fenn,” I slurred, “we gotta get off.”

He shook his head against my fur. “No…no…please don’t leave me…”

“I’m not gonna…” I balked. Jeez, he must really hate flying. Wish I would’ve known that. “I’m not gonna leave you, Fenn.”

“Hey, you two okay back there?” Speedwell wondered. “Not trying to rush you, but I’ve got places to be.”

“Yeah, we’re good,” I responded. “Just give us another minute.” With Fenn still gripping my back, I got to work unstrapping myself and trying to unstrap Fenn. “Come on, Fenn. We gotta go!”

“No!” He cried with his face buried in my back.

I was still having trouble. Trying to fiddle with reinforced leather safety straps while I couldn’t even turn around felt like I was solving a puzzle with both arms tied behind my back. Eventually I got sick of it and used my last resort. “Might need some help here, Speedwell.”

“I hear ya!”

All of a sudden, the world spun. The ground beneath me was now above me and I felt myself falling. I hit the dirt with a painful thud, my body going limp as I landed on my back. For the second time today, I saw stars. All I wanted was to lay down and rest at this point, but-

I heard Fenn yelp. “Ah!”

Flop!

“Ow! Damn!” I yelled out as a fluffy Quilava landed squarely on my stomach. The pain of getting body slammed by a pokemon even as light as Fenn was enough to make me want to die. I couldn’t find the strength to move.

Fenn continued to shudder on top of me, hugging my prone body tightly. It was almost as if he hadn’t realized that he was on the ground now. In fact, that was probably the case.

Speedwell, meanwhile, did a spectacular flip in the air and landed on both feet flawlessly. “The good old ‘get off of me’ maneuver! Still a classic!” Speedwell grinned, striking a pose to an audience of no one.

I attempted to lift my head which only earned me a twinge of pain in my back and the incentive to not move again. No chance in hell was I getting up anytime soon, let alone with a Quilava on top of me. I had to get him to move first. “F-Fenn…” I grumbled. He wouldn’t budge even as I feebly shook his shoulder.

“I can’t do this…I can’t do this,” Fenn whispered under his breath.

“Fenn…we’re on the ground. Open your eyes.”

“I can’t…I ca…h-huh?” Fenn finally calmed down some and opened his eyes. I first saw panic that began to fade and was now gradually being replaced with relief and perhaps…embarrassment? His cheeks did flush a deep pink as soon as he realized that we were essentially cuddling in the dirt. Regardless, I was happy to see him calm down.

We stared at each other awkwardly. I soon found that my hearing returned and the stars in my vision dissipated, which meant that now was the time to tell Fenn to get off me. “Hey, Fenn?” I mumbled.

He blinked; Fenn was having a hard time saying any words. He stuttered, “U-uh! I’m s-sorry, I…” His blush only got brighter as he scrambled off of me, slipped, and fell onto his back on the way out.

I layed there for a few more seconds, thinking about the absurdity of this situation. I should’ve made it more apparent that I was okay not going through with this. Had I known Fenn was scared of flying, I would’ve turned this job down right away. And I mean, I wasn’t too thrilled about it either, but I digress.

Oh well. We’re already here. May as well finish the job. I gripped my lame leg as I sat up, sucking in air through my teeth. Fenn was still flailing about in the dirt by the time I caught sight of him. Though as soon as he saw me, his embarrassment vanished immediately and he rushed to my side, helping me sit up. “A-are you okay, Oswald?” he asked tensely. “I didn’t mean to land on you.” Fenn patted my shoulders to check for injuries, inciting me to shake my head.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I sighed, trying to ignore the pain in my…everything. I rubbed the back of my head and shot him a smirk. “I’m more worried about you, honestly.”

“M-me? Why? I’m fine! Really!”

“You weren’t a second ago.”

“Mmhmm! Mmmm!”

Fenn and I turned our attention to a sound coming from below, both of us caught off guard by the sudden noise. Upon closer inspection, I determined that the sound was a muffled voice coming from my shoulder bag. The fabric bulged from the force of a small pokemon bumping against the bag’s walls. I stared at the bag as though it were the strangest thing I had ever seen. What could that possibly…?

Oh!

“Cosmo!”

I rushed to free him. The bag’s latch caused me some trouble, but I was eventually able to get him out. As soon as the latch came undone, Cosmo launched into the air. “Hahahaha!” he giggled, the giddiness exploding out of his bubble. “That was amazing! Cosmo wants to do it again!”

Both Fenn and I let out a sigh of relief. At least Cosmo didn’t have a bad time.

“You’ll get your chance, little Solosis.”

The three of us turned to Speedwell. The Dragonite looked alive as ever. He grinned as he approached, simultaneously doing arm stretches. “That was fun, wasn’t it?” he said casually. “Arceus, I sure do love flying.”

“…Not to be rude, but could you have been a little more gentle?” I glowered.

Speedwell shrugged. “Not part of my ‘code,’ little buddy. Did Mari never tell you that?”

“No.” I should really start asking as many questions as possible from now on, I thought. That was not fun in the slightest. It sucked and I hated it. Fenn and I exchanged glances. Yeah, he wasn’t thrilled about doing this again either.

“Oh,” Speedwell said. “Well, she should have. Anyways!” He clapped his hands together. “For the trip back we’re gonna need a place to meet up!” The Dragonite pointed to the trees behind us, prompting us to turn around. “Keep walking through the trees in that direction and you’ll find Occa Village. Good luck by the way.” He winked.

“Head a bit north from there and you’ll find a beach,” Speedwell continued. “Meet me there around sunset after you’re done.”

“What if we’re not there on time?” I asked.

“Uhhhh…” He paused. “Well, I’m supposed to wait for at least an hour then head back if you don’t show up. After that, I can drop by the next morning just in case, but—” he shook his head, “—I doubt that’ll happen.”

He seemed really adamant that nothing would go wrong, didn’t he? Should we trust his judgement? Current status of my capacity for trust of strangers has reached an all time low, so no. Either way, I was fully ready to get moving and find out what the deal was with this village. I might’ve been out of commission for this, but I had Fenn with me. Cosmo too. I would find a way to manage.

I sighed. “Alright.” I made the motion to stand and almost fell over before Fenn caught me. He supported my weight with his own, managing to get me back on two feet. “Ngh…agh…” I cringed. “We’ll…find the beach and wait for you there. Thanks, Speedwell.” And thank you too, Fenn. I smiled at the Quilava and he smiled back.

“Yeah, Cosmo had fun! He can’t wait to do it again!” Cosmo’s bubble jiggled as he bounced up and down in the air.

“Haha! No problem, little dudes!” the Dragonite chuckled as he began to beat his wings; the abnormally small things somehow lifted his huge body off the ground. “See you later!”

Leaves and branches got caught in the updraft as Speedwell propelled himself off the dirt and into the sky. And then he was gone. The three of us watched him fly past the trees into the distance, waving goodbye. Soon enough, he was out of sight; now it was just the three of us.

I looked at Fenn. He was better now but visibly still rattled. I made it a point to remind him of something and make sure he would remember it.

“Hey, Fenn?”

“Yeah?”

“Let’s never do that again after this.”

“…Agreed.”

---

There was no road to Occa Village. Fenn and I stumbled around the broken branches and piles of autumn leaves towards our supposed destination. Sunlight filtered through the gently flowing tree branches above us and painted the grassy dirt in dancing shadows. The forest was quiet aside from the sound of birds chirping and wind blowing. And our own footsteps, of course. And Cosmo whooping as he dived into piles of leaves. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

Honestly, I was surprised at how relaxed I was. It had been a while since I last set foot in a place with such a predominance of common nature and it felt strange to admit that I was having such an adverse reaction to it.

I had nothing to worry about because Fenn was with me. Felt strange thinking that after the flight, but I still held to my belief that Fenn was lightning in a bottle through and through. There was nothing here that could possibly hope to take him down. I was sure of that.

Especially considering that there was no chance that we’d encounter another dungeon out here; the map didn’t specify that there were any. Granted, I should’ve known better than to trust anything at this point, but…still…

I wanted this moment to last.

“Yay! Yippee!” Cosmo soured past Fenn and I, diving into another pile of leaves and coming out the other end.

“Don’t do that too much,” I called out. “I’m not cleaning you up if you get dirty.”

Fenn giggled. “I don’t think he can get dirty.”

“Sure he can,” I said. “I’ve touched him before. His bubble’s like gelatin. Gelatin sticks to dirt.”

Fenn looked at me with a perplexed expression. “Gelatin? What’s that?”

Crap! Uh…

“W-well, it’s a kind of- ah! Pffft!”

A leaf hit my face. I spit and clawed to get it off.

That seemed to make Fenn laugh for some reason. “Hehehahaha!”

“Hey, don’t la- ah! What the hell! Pfffffttt! Gah!”

Another leaf hit my face. Then another. I must have looked pretty stupid dancing around trying to get them off.

Fenn certainly enjoyed it. He was laughing so hard that he started to roll on the ground, charring a few stray leaves in the process. It only got worse as a big gust of wind blew right into me, coating me in leaves.

“Ah! Get them off! What the-! Stop!” I swung my arms around to no avail. The forest had overtaken me and there was nothing I could do to stop it. Eventually, there was a gust of wind so strong that it knocked me off my feet. I fell back and landed right next to Fenn who was still giggling hysterically.

“Ahahaha! That…that’s so…ahahaha! Watch out for the leaves, Oswald! Hahaha!”

“Yeah, yeah. Yuck it up, will you,” I scowled, my cheeks burning from embarrassment. “Make fun of the Dewott with the bad leg.”

“Haha…I’m s-sorry, it’s just too funny!”

I groaned. I’m sure it was funny. I’m positive it was hilarious. It was so hilarious that Fenn’s eyes were watering apparently. Really happy that Fenn found that so funny. Cool. Awesome.

“Hey, look!”

Fenn stopped laughing and my bad mood faded as we shot up at the sound of Cosmo’s voice. We saw him looking back at us from up ahead, at the end of a clearing in the trees. “Cosmo found it!” Fenn and I gave each other a quick glance before we stood up and darted across the forest floor.

Or at least, Fenn did. I instantly regretted stepping on my bad leg and fell forward. Fenn heard me fall and rushed back to lend me a paw. He helped me up and we made our way to Cosmo, much slower this time.

Cosmo was jiggling in excitement when we got to him, a sparkle glittering in his eye. “Cosmo found the village!” he beamed. “Cosmo is the best navigator!” He spun in circles and zoomed off ahead, letting Fenn and I catch a sight of what he was talking about.

Houses. Old, decrepit, and worn down houses sitting in a clearing. I say “clearing” but even that would be a stretch. Patches of this shabby pocket of civilization had been overrun by moss and other such foliage. It wasn’t abandoned—I could tell as we got closer—but it was obvious that some of the rotten wooden shacks had been left to be claimed by the forest. Some seemed to be barely standing. All of them seemed to be decades old.

It was a village. I assumed that it was most likely the one we were looking for. Though I’d hardly consider this a “village,” let alone a decent place to live.

I might have been concerned for our safety had I not admittedly felt pity for any pokemon forced to live here. Even more so after I remembered that we actually came here to help these people, and it had nothing to do with improving their quality of living.

So that was why I kept moving forward. Seeing Occa Village now gave me the impression that we hadn’t been getting the whole picture.

We quickly caught up to Cosmo as he was floating in the middle of the village, seeming out of place. “Where are the villains?” he wondered bemusedly.

“Something tells me that we won’t find them here, Cosmo,” I answered.

Fenn stood next to me on two feet and scanned the area around him. “This is awful…” the Quilava said under his breath.

“You think you could fix up the place all on your own?” I elbowed Fenn with more playfulness than necessary.

He didn’t seem to notice, or he was too lost in his own thoughts to care. “I-I almost want to…Arceus…”

“A villian!”

Fenn reflexively dropped to all fours and his back ignited, ready to burn a pokemon alive. I followed suit and reached for a scalchop, beating my tail against the dirt in anticipation. Unfortunately, our attentiveness was poorly placed. The “villain” that Cosmo had pointed out was a Thwackey minding their own business. They were in the process of leaving their abode when they saw us. Undoubtedly appearing like a bunch of brigands ready to rob them, the Thwackey’s eyes went wide and they rushed back into their house, slamming the door behind them.

“Wait!” I cried. I put my scalchop back on my hip and limped to Thwackey’s front porch. My other two teammates followed then waited next to me while I knocked on the door. “Hello? We’re not here to rob you.”

“That’s what they all say!” the grass type shouted back through the wood, his voice clearly male. “Just leave us alone! We don’t have anything valuable!”

We? Does that mean…?

I felt a tugging on the back of my thigh. “Oswald, look!”

I momentarily spun around and immediately understood what had Fenn so surprised. More pokemon began to leave their houses and peeked out from behind their doors. The noise we were making must have pulled them out to see what the commotion was. The fear in their expressions and the general tension in the air was very apparent.

I turned back to knock on the door again. “Please,” I pleaded, “we’re here to help you! We know about your feral troubles!”

“W-what?” There was a moment of silence. I shot a glance behind me and saw some of the pokemon getting slightly closer, their expressions slowly shifting from fear to curiosity, or perhaps interest. After a few more seconds, I heard a click and the door opened. The Thwackey peeked out from the now slightly open door. “You’re here…to help us?”

I nodded. “Yes, we are.”

A clamoring of voices rang out from behind us.

“Help? We’re getting help?”

“Thank Arceus! I thought we were done for!”

“It’s been weeks since we sent that letter! Our prayers have finally been answered!”

“We have been blessed with saviors! Rejoice!”

The pokemon of Occa Village came closer and surrounded us, singing their praise for three miscellaneous pokemon that hadn’t even agreed to anything yet. I noted how all of them seemed to be just as weak and frail as the houses they lived in. Dirty and unkempt too; they all needed a bath. I might not have been native to this world, but even I could tell that the majority of these pokemon were old. Mostly grass types and no younger than middle aged. There was only one kid among them. A Sunkern that clung to their mother, a Sunflora.

I counted maybe twenty in all. Hardly enough to be considered a community. These are the “killer savages?” I wouldn’t think of these pokemon as a threat under any circumstances. Let alone enough for us to be “doomed.” What was that Flygon talking about? These pokemon are…pathetic.

“These pokemon don’t look like villains…” Cosmo mumbled.

“Yeah…no kidding…” Fenn added.

The Thwackey finally got his door open and stepped out. “I am very sorry for running before,” he said, regarding us with a friendly smile. “We don’t get many visitors that don’t intend to kill or rob us. Our little hamlet is so out of the way…and…” He trailed off.

This Thwackey was young. Er…youngish. I’d imagine he would be in his thirties in human years just from my first impression. He was definitely the most capable one here, that’s for sure. What concerned me was that he was still very frail looking. This was the best they had to offer. No wonder they need our help.

Thwackey shook his head. “But enough about us,” he continued. “You mentioned that you are here to deal with our feral infestation? Did you receive our letter?”

“No?” I raised an eyebrow. “We only heard about this place earlier today. None of us know anything about a letter.”

“Earlier today…?” the Thwackey whispered, his face going pale. “I sent that request three weeks ago…”

I put my paws up. “Anyways, we’re here to help. Better late than never.”

“Yeah!” Cosmo shouted. “The heroes have arrived!”

The village folk began to happily chatter amongst themselves, talking more about “blessings” and “saviors.” I tried my best to ignore them. We hadn’t even started and we were already being lauded. Before long, Fenn tugged on my thigh. I looked down and his face told me everything I needed to know.

He was uncomfortable and, admittedly, so was I.

I loudly cleared my throat and threw my arms up. “Okay, so,” I started, making sure I had the Thwackey’s attention, “we can fix your problem. Just show us where to go.”

The Thwackey nodded quickly. “R-right, I can take you there.” He pulled wooden sticks out of the bundle on his head, letting his spiky and grassy hair flow freely. Walking past me, he banged them together, creating a hollow noise that got the attention of every other pokemon here. “Attention, everyone! Attention!” Thwackey pointed a stick at me. “These young pokemon are going to bring us prosperity in these trying times. I know you have all been struggling. Believe me, so have I.”

He continued with his fist on his chest. “But fear not! Soon we will be free of these hardships. I will make sure of it.”

“And so will we!” Cosmo added proudly. “Cosmo will take out all the bad guys, don’t you worry!”

The crowd cheered. I examined them as Thwackey continued his speech. Words couldn’t describe the emotions spilling out from this minuscule group of pokemon. There was joy here that I can’t say I had experienced since I got to this world. The power of the Thwackey’s words sent these poor pokemon into hysterics, inciting tears of happiness from most if not all of them.

This isn’t normal, I thought. A community shouldn’t have to depend on a Dewott with a bad leg, a pyromaniac, and a literal child as their last line of defense. It shouldn’t have to be this way.

Thwackey finished his speech and turned to us. “Please follow me,” he said. “I will show you where to go.”

We followed him away from the village and past a canopy of trees. I knew I would regret this, but I glanced back at the village folk on our way out. They waved and cried and wished for a safe return. I heard one promise to cook us a grand feast while we were gone.

Again, this shouldn’t be happening. These pokemon should be somewhere safer like Nanab Town. It’s a miracle they’re still alive at all.

Thwackey continued to lead us past all of the houses and over to an opening in the trees. We were sufficiently far away from Occa Village so I figured now was the time to ask questions. “Hey, Thwackey-“

“Peon. My name is Peon.” He didn’t turn around.

“Right. Peon. Can you tell us what’s going on here, Peon?”

He slid to a stop, kicking up dirt. There was a moment of silence between us, then he sighed. “It’s a long story.”

I glanced at Fenn out of the corner of my eye as I spoke. “We’d…be willing to listen.”

Peon looked at us over his shoulder, his eyes dull and tired. “…I have been here for a good four or five years now,” he stated. “The pokemon here are stuck in their old ways and that’s why they suffer. If it had not been for me and a couple other kind souls, they would all be dead. Not a fair way to go at that age.”

I narrowed my eyes. “…Okay, but why? This village isn’t even on the map. Why hasn’t Anemone done someth-“

“We are not Kebia’s top priority in case you have not noticed.” He crossed his arms and glared at us. “I know that you three are explorers; a part of Kebia’s castle guild. All of the pokemon in Occa Village have had bad blood with that place longer than any of the four of us have been alive. Unfortunately, that’s their fault. They made the bed, now they have to lay in it. It’s not fair, hence why I’m here, but that is just the way things are.”

Suddenly, he smiled and raised his eyebrows. “I would appreciate it if you would do your job then leave us be. All you need to know about us is that we are doing our best with what we have.” Then, he sighed again, the smile being lost in the process. “But that is not always enough now is it? Sometimes I just want to quit and go home, leave these old pokemon to themselves, find a mate, and settle down.” Peon glanced back towards the forest. “But I can’t.”

I stared at Peon for a few moments. I could read the frustration in his voice and general demeanor. He wanted nothing more than to leave this place behind. I think I understood to some degree, if only a bit more than before. I didn’t know why this small community was here on their own, why this Thwackey had to throw his life away for them, how Kebia is involved, or what led to this happening in the first place…

…but I do know one thing: they needed our help.

I walked closer to the grass type and put a paw on his shoulder. “Tell us where to find the ferals,” I said.

He pointed into the canopy of trees with a wooden stick. “Aipoms,” he stated darkly. “They’ve been stealing our food.” Peon shook his head. “It’s bad enough here as it is, but having to deal with rabid ferals really is the icing on this shit cake.” Peon turned his head to meet my gaze with a furrowed brow. I saw anger. Intense, fuming anger.

“Maybe if you had gotten here a week or too ago I might encourage some amount of mercy,” Peon growled. “But no. The time for mercy has passed.

“Kill them. All of them. Make them suffer. Don’t let a single one escape.”

I…released my hold on his shoulder. I didn’t know how to respond to that.

“You don’t have to say anything,” Peon said. “Just get the job done. I will scrounge up some money for you when you get back.”

“Uh…thanks,” I muttered. “We’ll do our best.”

Peon nodded. “Please do.” He was gone before I was able to process what I had just heard.

I stood at the entrance of the forest at a loss for words, unsure of what to think. It took me a while to shake it off but apparently I wasn’t the only one.

“That was…i-interesting,” Fenn mumbled, standing on two feet on my right.

I blinked. “Uh…yeah…sure was.”

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Cosmo asked loudly, already hovering into the forest. “Cosmo has some villains to beat!”

“Don’t go too far, Cosmo!” I called out. “There are some dangerous pokemon in this…forest.” I faced Fenn. “It’s just a forest, right? There aren’t any dungeons around here?”

Fenn shook his head and smiled. “Shouldn’t be. I-I know how much you hate them, but don’t worry, I’ll handle anything we come across.”

I started to walk into the forest; Fenn got on all fours and stuck by me. “I know you can, Fenn, I’m not denying that.” It’s the mental trauma I’m worried about.

Fenn chuckled lightly. “W-we have this conversation a lot, don’t we?”

I also chuckled. “Heh, yeah, I guess we do.”

We walked in silence for a few moments, taking in the serenity of the woodlands around us. I reflected on what happened today. And boy, a lot sure did happen.

Fenn, Cosmo, and I only just now started the actual mission. Did I anticipate that I would be riding a Dragonite to work? No, not really. There was quite a bit about today that ended up being unexpected. At least I would get to kill some ferals as a reward.

Weirdly enough, getting to kill ferals actually made me excited. After they caused me so much trouble, I was ready to make these Aipoms bleed. I would think that Peon wanted the same, so…maybe I shouldn’t have judged him for that.

Hell, maybe I could learn how to be a samurai on my own. Who needs a mentor anyways? Not me!

This world was slowly changing me, I noticed. I never anticipated finding so much joy in causing another living creature pain. Honestly, it was their own damn fault. Shouldn’t have crossed paths with me. Even with my injured leg, I’d find a way to do some damage.

Aaaiiieeee!

Speaking of, it was time to follow through on that promise.

Fenn and I rushed forward until we caught up with Cosmo. We found him wrestling with a feral Aipom. He ducked and dodged out of the way of the feral’s swipes.

“Hya! Swoosh! Take this! PSYCHIC BARRAGE!” Cosmo exerted himself and his bubble glowed a deeper purple. “Hrngh!”

The Aipom spat and flailed its limbs around manically as it began to to float upwards quite slowly. “Cosmo!” I yelled. “Are you…?”

It was at that moment that I finally saw the feral with my own eyes. And what I saw disturbed me. Not because the pokemon was grotesque or particularly gastly, but because it was…normal. Normal as in, this was what I expected a feral pokemon to look like when I first got here.

The feral’s fur was matted and disheveled. Scrapes and wet spots littered its entire body. And then its eyes…good god, its eyes. They were glossy and wild. I saw no sign of humanity in those eyes. Or…poke…whatever, who cares.

Point is, this was an animal. Pokemon were technically animals, yes, but this was an animal. The hatred I recall seeing in the eyes of dungeon ferals was not there. This Aipom did not know me; it did not hate me.

These ferals wouldl likely never talk, or engage with civilization, or become sapient at all. It might kill, but it does so because it has to, not because it wants to. Morality was a foreign concept to them.

As the Aipom struggled to gain a foothold and thrashed around, I wondered if it was scared. I was planning on killing these things without mercy not two minutes ago, and now here I am coming to terms with the fact that I had nothing against this creature.

What…the hell? Why was there- how come- what? I don’t understand. Why were the dungeon ferals different from this? No…this isn’t right.

I attempted to look it in the eyes, find a way to connect with it, but I couldn’t. It did not understand the gesture. It was too busy trying to escape. This was not the same thing as dungeon feral.

I was…conflicted. Sure, we had to kill these things, but they weren’t the same pokemon that I hated. They were just…animals.

I reached out to let it go free, but retracted my paw when the Aipom was suddenly engulfed in flames, burning it alive. I stared in horror as it screamed and screamed and screamed. It was soon nothing more than a burnt corpse, not too dissimilar to the burned corpse of any other pokemon.

My mind couldn’t process it. What was I even doing here?

I don’t…I don’t understand…