Chapter 10: Down Down And Down

I could almost swear these stairs had the inability to end (except for the face plant made upon reaching the bottom).

The tunnel was close to pitch-black, but I had decent vision. Was it on-par with Dark-Types? No. But it was far better than flat nothing.

Considering the lack of notable objects, I just kept moving. Okay sure, there were other directions, but a lot of them were either useless and abandoned rooms or dead ends. Plus, the air was rather dusty.

---

In time (after more repeated dead-ends than I cared to count), the end of the latest tunnel got brighter and brighter until I reached an overwhelming room. Though at the same time, should I say corridor? No, more like a shaft of sorts. The air was certainly cleaner than the maze before, not that it was a high-standing standard, but still.

The area was no doubt the hub Milotic spoke of earlier. In front of me and past a bridge was a massive pillar, far taller than any tree I’ve ever seen. It extended from the undetectable ceiling all the way to the overwhelming abyss that was the bottom. Just looking down made my fur stand on-end.

Numerous bridges, pipes, and passages connected to the pillar from the wall. Thinking back, the old building I entered was certainly close to an expansive and tall wall. I briefly cursed myself for not figuring it out sooner, but then my heart started beating rapidly.

I forced myself away from the edge and dropped to the ground. I just couldn’t keep staring at the abyss. My limbs went numb and washy like Alcremie cream. My teeth chattered at the thought of climbing down.

I took a moment to compose myself, taking deep breaths. “Ok, ok. Calm down…Th-this is just like regular practice. N-Nothing to worry about. Just a very…very steep drop to your death if you screw up. J-Just find the pipe thing.”

I gulped as I looked around for the right color. “S-Sun colors…Sun colors…”

 

Eventually, I did find something worth my notice. A peculiarly bright orange pipe extended itself on the pillar’s right side. I could barely see it, but it was better to check there…after a moment.

(I didn’t care. Tight schedule. Break time was no longer a luxury.) Motivation suddenly started overflowing from within. A general thought of, (“Move idiot! Move! No time to sit!”) Within moments, much to my internal displeasure, I moved for the pillar.

 

Crossing the bridge and walking around the tower, I found a wide gap between the platform and the pillar, only fenced off with a guard rail.

I gripped the rail and gazed at the orange pipe before me. “D-Down you say, hehe…” (“I hate this.”)

I stepped back, preparing myself to jump over. My fingers twitched from it all. (“Just jump, just jump, just jump.”) And with that, I ran over and jumped off the railing.

I grabbed onto the pipe as soon as I reached it, nearly hugging it in the process. My toes barely held their ground with the pipe flange. It was a struggle to not let my claws pop out. In hindsight, climbing down the pipe was probably not the smartest decision I made, but I thought it would be faster…if it weren’t for my instincts fighting against me. I ended up just sitting there in my precarious position. (This was getting ridiculous and this needed to stop. Needed a quick slip back.)

My feet suddenly slipped off the flange, causing me to fall a short distance before latching back on with my fingers. Letting out a whimper, I wrapped my legs around the pipe. (“Regret! This is a bad idea.”) My heart was pounding from the sheer stupidity of what I was doing and my eyes were forced shut. The steam in the air and the pipe were all I wanted to think about. (“Stop being a youngling for once and get a grip!”)

 

Much to my dismay (and for the sake of progress), I let go of the flange and quickly wrapped my arms around the pipe…or as best as I could anyways. (“Come on, Zera, just like climbing vines. Just…with segments. Now slide.”)

I loosened my grip and slowly started sliding down. At first, the descent was fine. But then it sped up. (It was hard to do without really seeing, but odds were that I was sliding fairly fast when…) Suddenly, my body collided with another pipe flange.

I yelped in pain, which made the speed problem even worse. My eyes shot open just in time to see the vast abyss below me. And of course, I was falling away from the pipes, which did wonders for the nerves.

In a panic, I let out a charge with a Thunder Shock through my fingers before activating my magnetic field. The result was a sudden explosion of power that slowed my descent, which was good. But then my magnetic field kicked in, sending me right into the pipes.

I shrieked and latched onto the pipe tightly after a few bouncing collisions. The slightly rough texture did not help matters much. After about a solid minute of coining pipe rash and repeated upper-cuts via pipe flanges, I finally slowed down enough to let my leg catch the pipe as it protruded from the pillar. With it, I stopped on the spot, barely hanging on and moaning.

 

In my stunned stupor, I slipped off the pipe and my heart stopped with a gasp.

“Aaaaaaahhhhhh- Ooof!”

Solid ground hit my back just a short way from the pipes. How lucky. I took a moment to rest myself, catch a breath or two. That lucky explosion was strange, but it did make me wonder for a brief moment how it moved me through the air there. (“Hmm…I should try that again sometime.”)

Afterwards, I got up and followed the pipe, which entered a rather large hole in the wall. As I used the bridge I noticed some upward stairs next to the hole.

I blinked. (“Wait a minute…”) My gaze traced the stairs and the paths. That’s when it occurred to me. “Oh you’ve got to be-” The stairs and paths I skipped literally led to here anyways. “Son of a Ditto!!! Aaaaaaagh!”

(After a short session of headbutting the nearest wall,) I drew my attention to the hole. With a simple motion, I climbed my way inside. A small tunnel of sorts laid itself out in the darkness. With no better options, I began my precarious journey of following the pipeline.

---

Using the pipes as a pathway, I slipped my way through the narrow and winding passageway. The air, like the old building above, was dusty. The walls were rough and cracked. Neatness and aesthetic were not a priority for whoever dug this.

After a short while, I came across a slightly larger space. The pipes continued through a wall, which had a mural of the sun. Well, more like an abstract representation of the sun, vaguely like what was shown on the Hourglass Tower’s clock, only with more detail.

The left side of this small room held another passageway, marked with an arrow. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to follow these minimalist arrows or not, but I made enough noise in the prior room. So…(“Probably wouldn’t hurt to check,”) I thought.

 

And so I went. I walked through the next set of boring and dusty corridors. Though it was worth admitting that they were wider than the pipe passageways.

Eventually, I found myself faced with what looked like a maze. That was what the many different points of split pathways indicated. It took a couple of intersections to figure out, but then I realized it.

“…Ah shoot. A maze? Seriously? It’s like this place wants me to get lost.” At the particular intersection I found myself in, several different murals were on the walls of each passage way.

“Hold on…” I glanced at the pictures again. One had the deception of a crescent moon. Another had a sunrise, one more had a sunset, and finally one more had a sun mark on it.

(“Where do I even go? Could these…”)

“…Colors of the sun…” I glanced at the pictures once more. Dawn had blue and yellow. Sunset had Orange and Brown.

I then turned to the Midday passage. Yellow and orange. “There.” Without any more wasted breath, I proceeded through the tunnel.

From there, I followed any paths that had yellow and orange and then proceeded forward otherwise.

---

After a while, I made my way to what seemed like a dead end, except for a boarded-up hole. Some light shined through from between the planks. My ears reacted to voices from behind the wall.

I took a peek to see what was there.

Beyond the wall was a large room.

(“What’s this? Some kind of…hub? Plaza? No…”) I tried to look around from other angles, but alas, I couldn’t see much apart from some pales, planks, and other unimportant items. (“…Blasted planks…”)

 

The voices meanwhile belonged to two different pokemon. I couldn’t see them anywhere though…I wasn’t sure if they were above or below my field of view. (My guess would have been below.)

I decided to bide my time and listen in before jumping to action.

A male voice spoke up. “You serious? In the infirmary? Just like that?”

“Aye,” A gruffer voice replied, “Da poor lad got bruised, scratched n’ just beatn’ all over. Looked like a total mess when they up ‘n took im from where de scouts were lookin.”

“Geez! Any idea who did that?”

“Yer guess is as good as mine I’d say.”

“I guess. Do you think it was that new goddess everyone’s been talking about?”

“Her? Could be, but ere I was think’n she’d be someone a little less…”

“Brutal? Savage?”

“Vicious.”

I sighed upon hearing yet another case of mistaken pronouns. Seriously, this goddess nonsense was getting on my nerves. It wasn’t that hard to tell the difference.

Nevertheless the conversation continued.

 

“…Look, I don’t know about this whole deal with the legends and all that, but aren’t those legendary pokemon supposed to be super strong?”

“They be strong, but they most certainly ain’t beastly ferals. They’re smart, elegant n’ profound. ‘Nd most importantly, not the sight I heard about. Ain’t that at all.”

“You think it’s something else…and it’s still out there.”

“Aye…that’s I be fearing most right now.”

“…Hgggh…You know what? L-Let’s just take a short break, outside. These catacombs really just…don’t do it for me at times like this.”

“A ‘ight, lead the way, short stuff.”

“I-I’m not short, jaw man! I’m just mildly inadequate in height!”

The other guy laughed and started walking away with heavy steps.

Soon after, the younger gentlemon followed suit in leaving the area with more quiet steps.

 

The whole conversation left me wondering what they were actually talking about. (“Could it be…nah, that’s not possible…”)

 

I waited a short while before I decided my next course of action, just in case more uninvited interruptions came. With a silent confirmation, I took some extra time to charge myself up with my paws. Once I settled the charge, I wound up a nice Mega Punch and smashed through a good number of the planks. The result was a decent hole I could widen by kicking with my good leg.

Sure, it made a little noise (a lot of noise actually), but it was worth the effort. (And yet despite the time crunch, very few of, if not none of, the planks were spared in the carnage.)

 

Afterwards, I crawled through the opening and took a better look at the plaza I found myself in. The air was not as dusty as before, now returning to that not-so-lovely moistness I learned to loathe. The ground I stood on was mostly an ensemble of wooden planks strung together by rope. Even the metal guard rails had a sense of wear, tear, and everything in between. 

I found myself on the second floor of three in this central hub area, where there were at least three other tunnels to my right, as well as a set of stairs. The third floor looked particularly precarious with more doors and sloppily maintained pathways.

Down below on the first floor, there were three tunnels to choose from; Ahead, left, or below (at least from what could be observed).

 

I took my chances and jumped down to a somewhat hard, but manageable landing.

The first floor was definitely made of rock. Somewhat rough, but not mountainous rough. The ground was also somewhat wet all over the place. (It was rather ironic considering what the Sun typically meant in legends.)

 

I decided to go for the first route I saw, which was obviously the forward tunnel. Going through it was no issue, though the structure was a bit peculiar. Actually, no, that would be a lie. It wasn’t that strange to me at all. (No, no. It was actually strange. It was a river, like those found in caves, only it was definitely not a cave.)

I would mention other aspects, like the odor…and the odor…and how long and empty it was…but the run was just boring. And being unable to run at max speed without giving myself away was just the worst. (There was no other way.)  

---

Moving on, I made a couple of right turns at some four-way splits. (Sadly in the midst of reveling in boredom-fueled running, the obvious foul signs of obvious danger were neglected.) I entered a large hub space with one other entrance.

The noise of a crowd caused me to skid to a stop. I blinked and glanced around. Quite a few thugs were watching from on top of the walls, observation stands. Then it hit me. “Shoot…” (“Aww, nice going, Zera.”)

The crowd went silent and glared. Even a quiet cough could be heard in this silence.

I made some awkward glances and began to step back toward the way I came. “Uhhh, ahem, Wrong turn…”

 

As I turned around, some metal gates slammed shut, sealing away the only visible exit I had.

A somewhat grand voice spoke up. “Well well well, looks like a stray got a tad too curious, and it’s not local to boot. Hmmm, too it’s not as gracious as I hoped…”

I glanced around at the crowd once more and that’s when I saw a distinct space above the arena. It was similar to the presentation of Diancie’s throne (except it was actually a chair and was actually comfortable).

Sitting on said throne was a large armored pokemon with several appendages (likely a Bug-Type). Its small and spiky antennas vibrated as he continued. “It’s not often we get visitors, let alone nosy folk that aren’t police. You don’t happen to be undercover, are you?”

I gritted my teeth and made more awkward glances. (“That’s your cue.”) “I uhhhh, got lost on the way home…” (“Wrong answer, idiot!”)

The chief pokemon (or rather, the Golisopod) pointed at me from his throne. “Corner him!” he ordered.

 

And just like that, several pokemon, all of which were Water-Type, jumped into the arena from the stands. I was more or less surrounded as the horde of scoundrels slowly closed in, ready to strike on a moment’s notice.

“I heard a great deal of things about you,” the Golisopod stated, “the talk of the town.”

“I noticed,” I remarked, readying a battle stance. (“Crud, there’s a lot. Not ideal at all. I don’t have time for this. Better settle this quick.”) “Very well, I came because I believe someone, the leader preferably, can help me with a problem.”

The Golisopod and a good chunk of the crowd laughed.

I sighed and muttered, “He just spoke to me, didn’t he?” (“…Yep.”)

 

Once the Golisopod calmed down, he stood up. “…Haha…ha…For your information, you may call me Gusoku. And why oh why would someone like you want my help of all things?”

(He wasn’t wrong to ask that by any means. The prospect of going to a gang first and not the police seemed asinine to…well, any sane pokemon really.) I promptly brought up the note’s sender, hoping to ease out any information I could. “The Lunar Stars, does that ring any bells?”

The name got Gusoku’s attention. “…Hmmm…” He sat back on the throne. “So, you’ve done your research, and you go to me…”

“I have no choice. I just need to find where their main hideout is and that’s it.”

“……….Really? Is that really all you’re here for?”

“Yes! Yes! I don’t want trouble, not now. I mean…” (“Better bring up that bit Milotic talked about.”) “The Lunar Stars are rivals with your gang, right? Me going over there would be a nice blessing for you guys, wouldn’t it?” (“…So much for maintaining composure…”)

 

Gusoku brought his claws together, pondering what he heard.

Murmurs stirred in the crowd.

“This guy can’t be serious, right?”

“Who does he think is?”

“What a moron!”

“What? Is he gonna go n’ knocking on their front door?”

“Why would anyone do that?”

“All alone or what?”

“Not exactly the brightest, is he?”

“Are them legendaries like this guy? Cause I think I’m losing faith here.”

I slowly blinked. (“I see that the legendaries’ current reputation is at an all-time low for the public right now. Thank goodness, I don’t live here…Oh, right…Lugia…”)

 

Gusoku raised his arm, silencing the crowd in seconds. “…….Hmmmm, how about this? Defeat my loyal members and then we’ll talk. Well, if you’re still standing.”

One of the Water-Types spat a warning shot on the gate behind me.

I reluctantly tightened my fists. (“So much for reasoning…”)

“Now, without further delay, seize him!” Gusoku ordered.

 

The crowd charged at me, ready to wail on me with many physical attacks.

Instinctively, thoughts poured themselves into my head. The general consensus? (“Space! You need space! Spark!”)

I made a small clapping blast with Plasma Fists, hoping to push back and disorient the horde. This also ended up blasting me back onto the gate. Though my Plasma Fist backfire didn’t damage me in the traditional sense (thanks to the Volt Absorb ability us Zeraoras share), the drain on my energy was undeniable, even if it was slight for the current use.

A good chunk of the visible crowd was either knocked down, had fainted, or were coughing. The cloud of dust, water and sparks certainly didn’t help me see any better.

(“Move, Zera! Move!”) And with that thought, I made haste to get away from the gate and to the center.

I Mega Punched anyone that was unfortunately in the way, a tactic that proved itself more effective than expected. Each punch caused me to be pushed along by the force. I knew it was a strong attack, but I didn’t think it was that strong. (Plasma Fists did have an after-effect of sorts, the leftover sparks turned any Normal-Type move into Electric, as long as it was channeled in the same small area anyways. Nifty in most situations, but I had a lingering feeling this Silspring-made boost had repercussions I wasn’t exactly aware of.)

 

Once I made it out into the clear, I was greeted with an attempted Tackle from some Croconaw.

I kindly responded with the simple motion of vaulting over.

More Water-Type charged in, prompting me to jump away.

The thugs collided with each other as I made a rough landing with a tumble.

I turned around to see if anyone was pursuing, but then I got a glimpse of a rather unsettling sight.

The sparks from my earlier Plasma Fists clap were lingering far longer than I expected. It was even over a much wider area than usual. Even worse, folks within the area weren’t moving out of there. They seemed paralyzed as they grunted in pain. It was almost as bad as the effects of a rough rainstorm on it. Granted, I never thought of using the technique in a rainstorm, let alone on sentient pokemon, but it was still not something I liked at all. (It was a grim reminder of the power of a legendary pokemon. It’s a power not meant to be wielded by half-witted fools.)

 

The scene ended up distracting me as my cheek was suddenly greeted by a Poliwhirl-brand Ice Punch.

I stumbled back from the blow, more irritated from the interruption than hurt. Despite wanting to just knock them out and get it over with, I still felt the buzz of my lingering sparks.

So, I just jumped at the poor fella, kneeing them in the gut, before kicking them away. Was it excessive to use my raw strength to send a somewhat weak pokemon into a nearby wall with a simple kick? Probably, but the heat of battle blurred the lines of reason to an extent anyways. (Besides, the guy deserved it.)

 

A few stragglers from the crowd (a Marill, a Prinplup, and a Dewott) managed to avoid my sparks and were still ready for a fight. Everyone else was either too busy dealing with the sparks or just running away at that point, much to Gusoku’s displeasure.

It was clear they saw what happened (and they must have been somewhat scared considering the type disadvantage). So I tried to go for the intimidation approach, asserting my dominance and superiority.

“Now you listen!” I said, in a booming voice, “That is but a small glimpse of my power. I’m holding back far more than you can imagine. Now stand down, or I’ll have you join them.”

 

The trio glanced at each other with uncertain expressions. (They were mad, quite mad. But they did attack first. There was a hint of hesitancy in their slow movement, but nevertheless…) The words seemingly fell on deaf ears as they briefly glanced at Gusoko, now sitting alone on his throne.

Gusoku merely pointed at me with a harsh motion.

The Dewott gulped as he turned his gaze toward me.

I scoffed at the trio’s submission and their attempt to slowly approach. “Hmmph! Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” With a serious glare, I gestured to the trio, telling them to come over.

 

They of course did so, some with more reluctance than others. The Prinplup rushed in first with Fury Attack, trying to peck at my face.

As I blocked with my arms, the Dewott tried to follow up with a Razor Shell.

I pushed against the Prinplup’s assault repeatedly until he stumbled out of his balance. With a leap, I then pressed an elbow against the Water-Type’s gut, barely dodging the Razor Shell.

The scalchop-wielder didn’t stop his assault and instead charged forward once more.

With the Prinplup at least presumably winded from my previous jab, I hastily fanned out a Scratch with my claws to guard.

 

In an unexpected twist, the sparks from my claws shot into the Dewott’s water attack.

The Dewott screamed from the sudden shock.

I quickly realized what was happening and dissipated my attack.

The poor Water-Type stumbled back and collapsed afterwards. (He was still breathing thankfully, but the fact those sparks did that much damage was a tad concerning, even if he was a criminal.)

*POP! POP! POP! POP!*

“Agh!” I took a Bubblebeam from the behind, nearly causing me to stumble forward.

I turned around and saw the Marill jumping around, trying to take small shots from a distance. Clever thinking, but it did have a flaw.

“Attack me in the back, will you?” I raised some sparking fingers in a Snipe Shot-like posture, pointing at the Marill.

The remaining Water-Type froze in place and halted their assault for a moment.

Despite my threat, I hesitated. (“…..On second thought…No.”)

So I clenched my fist and readied a battle stance. “Hmmph! You’re not worth the trouble at all.”

 

I was going to turn my attention to Gusoku, but then the Marill shouted at me.

“Hey!” he shouted, “You’re not going anywhere, pal! Not after what you’ve done to my friends.”

I rolled my eyes and turned back to the Marill. “Oh calm yourself, child. I told you that I only showed a glimpse of my power, just to push that crowd away. Nothing more, nothing less. Only out of necessity.”

The Marill didn’t take the response very well to put it mildly. His fury swelled as his face twisted and bent itself. “Necessity? Necessity?!? How is exploding and shocking everyone a necessity?”

A valid question, but an annoying one for certain. “T’was a crowd. And a simple solution came to be.”

“I’ll show you a simple solution!” the Marill declared.

“How-” My ears swiveled. Danger approached from the side. Likely the Prinplup from earlier.

I turned and saw the Prinplup charging in with a Metal Claw.

Not wanting another potential shock, I slipped to the side and kicked the Water-Type away.

However, the Marill jumped over to me afterwards, tossing a seed at me while I was occupied.

 

The swirl-shaped seed popped open and in a flash my vision distorted. I felt light-headed. Everything looked more blurry, what could I do? My body just wouldn’t do what I wanted.

(The Confusion made standing difficult, let alone telling which way was where. And then there was the Marill and the Prinplup, who were both using attacks. The Marill passed by with a Rollout or two, while the Prinplup made small Bubblebeam streams from a distance. A dodge was needed, but each attempt to move the body was met with a disjointed mix of success and failure. The body just kept on fighting me as I attempted to control it.)

Each incoming hit was stronger and stronger, growing from mere annoyance to something that actually hurt. With the confusion fighting me, there was practically nothing I could do to stop the onslaught from happening.

I tried to hit myself hoping that it would resolve the issue faster. (It really didn’t help at all.) Once I did eventually regain my senses from the confusion, I was immediately greeted with a blue and round blur coming right at me. (“…Uh oh…”)

The attack hit its mark, steamrolling over me with a decent amount of force. I was on the ground before I realized it, with a rash-like pain on my chest. (“Had to rub it in, didn’t he?”)

 

I pulled myself up, but then that Prinplup kept on pestering me with Bubblebeam. (“Alright, they’re just asking for it.”)

I didn’t act immediately, I was more annoyed at their determination than anything. But my patience was running low.

“Seriously?!?” the Marill exclaimed, “You’re still standing after all that?”

I glared at the Marill, unflinchingly taking another Bubblebeam to the back. “…..Must I spell it out?”

“You’re right,” the Prinplup piped up, “There’s no need if we knock you out.”

 

The duo started to charge at me once more, but then a cold voice echoed through the area. “Not on my watch, boys.”

It was a somewhat familiar voice to me, but it was more than enough to stop the duo in their tracks. Both the Marill and Prinplup slowly turned their gaze toward the source.

I followed suit and saw something unexpected.

An Indeedee standing next to Gusoku. No, not just any Indeedee, DD Ivory, coat, horns and all. She was holding some kind of odd item near Gosoku’s head.

Just the presence of this object was enough to cause the bug leader to shiver in place.

I squinted just to get an idea on what DD was holding. The position and postures in view seemed oddly familiar. (“Is…is that a…a gun?!?”)

 

Yet another set of memories came to be…well not just “human” memories, recent memories. Connections. Guns were loud and quite dangerous too, especially in irresponsible hands. Shaky and tense subject matters aside, the fact that DD introduced the threat of a gun to the room was already bad enough.

(“What the heck?…Why? What in the world is she doing? Isn’t she supposed to restrain? Isn’t she an officer of the law?”) I blinked at these thoughts. (There was too little that made sense.) Glancing closer at the Indeedee’s weapon, it seemed to be of a shiny silver and teal color scheme. Rather odd for a gun, even the muzzle pointing at Gusoku’s head seemed a bit bigger than it should. And that wasn’t even starting to cover the orb sticking out of the top of what I assumed was the handle.

Regardless of the shape, the presence of the object halted all combat.

 

DD glanced at the arena and then back at Gusoku. “Now that we’re all acquainted with the pecking order, how about we get to business, shall we? Tell us what you know. And please, do be honest.”

Gusoku’s voice shook as he spoke. (He seemed far more scared than he was earlier. In fact, it seemed like the total opposite of how he talked earlier.) “W-W-Wait…A-Aren’t you an officer? Y-You…You folks don’t do this.”

Without so much as a word, DD pulled Gusoku’s head to one of the throne’s armrests by one of his antennas. She pinned the bug’s head down and pressed the gun to it.

“L-Leader!” the Marill called, almost stepping forward.

But then DD promptly called out, “Don’t anyone move! That includes you, cat.”

 

Everyone in the arena is frozen in place. Even I didn’t want to move a muscle. (I hated the idea of doing nothing, but at the same time, I wasn’t exactly in a good position to test my own theories, sadly.)

“Now,” DD said to Gusoku. “Where were we? Ah yes, how about you tell me where the Lunar Stars’ hideout is located? Sound good?”

I quietly blurted “Wha-?” before frantically biting my lip. (“…What in the world? She’s tracking them down too? Why? Did she, hold on a second…Milotic said that she’d- Is this what she meant? But wait, that doesn’t make sense…why would she go and do that? Wasn’t she going to check out the other garden?”)

Gusoku tried to speak up. “N-Now…”

“…Wrong answer…” DD remarked, before knocking Gusoku’s head on the armrest again.

“Agh!…St-Stop…”

“Oh I will, once you share what you know with the adult in the room.”

“…Urgh…”

This wasn’t getting us anywhere, and at this rate, we would get in even more trouble. (“…What do I do? I can’t just move against her for this, but…”)

 

DD leaned over the Golisopod, seemingly whispering to him.

They were far enough away to hide whatever they were saying. The best I could get was a shocked reaction or two, but for what…I couldn’t say for certain.

I took the opportunity to slowly approach the wall while everyone else was occupied. I needed to do something, but each step I took was slow, tense, and terrifying. One wrong move, and it’s all over. I needed Gusoku alive.

I edged closer and closer to the wall, much to the Prinplup and Marill’s bewilderment and dismay.

Closer and closer.

*WHAM!*

I froze in place as DD checked the arena once more after beating Gusoku’s head against the armrest. Other folks were coming to now, slowly and groggily. (Had a feeling those sparks wouldn’t have dealt that much damage.)

After the check, the Indeedee turned her attention back to Gusoku, forcibly pinned him down. “I’ll hound all of you, if you don’t tell me now.”

“That’s the problem with you uptight folks,” Gusoku replied, back to his earlier tone, “You always do things by the books and never once question it. Especially you, little pri-”

DD cut him off with another slam. “Can it!”

“Grgh!…” Gusoku noticed me coming closer as he continued. “Such wrath, but gated and locked in with no power. North, West, North, North, East here, East there, South and South and South over there. And then another Eastern case there. You don’t know true justice and steeds when you see them, no matter the radiant-tinted specs.”

 

Everyone was a bit bewildered by the ramble, even DD, seemingly. If he was trying to impress an audience, spouting random directions and context-less nonsense was not the way to do it.

DD frowned and pressed her hand harder against the leader’s head. “And what’s that foolish blithering supposed to mean?” she demanded.

 

I was out of time. With a short running start I leaped for the top of the wall.

Gusuko spoke loudly. “I mean, you should have had a contingency!”

At that moment, I landed on the wall and immediately leapt for Gusoku.

However, DD turned her attention to me quickly. She made a motion to swat at me with the gun.

To my honest surprise, the attack landed a hit to my gut. The blow felt more like a type-less Bone Club, rather some round, narrow, or square blunt object. I was flung to the side and onto a seat.

 

This was the moment Gusoku was looking for. He pushed DD away with the raising of an arm and then backhanded her towards me.

Both of us stood up in time for Gusoku to stomp in place. His gaze sharped as he made a skeletal growl.

DD grabbed my arm at that moment and pulled me toward one of the exits. “Move, moron!”

I barely got started in running away when Gusoku roared out his latest set of words. “Geeeet Ouuuuut!!!!” He fired numerous Pin Missiles at the two of us.

The storm of spikes showered onto the stands with no time to react.

 

Though we got into the passageway, we didn’t do so unscathed. Several spikes struck true on us. For the lack of a better phrase, we were both poisoned, but we kept running, we had to.

Gusoku’s orders and insults echoed through the hall. “You can’t hide from us forever! You won’t survive the trek. …All of you! Get up! Stand up! Don’t let those noxious Weedles escape! Now!”

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DD and I ran, taking tunnel after tunnel, all the while the poison ebbed at our strength.

(We needed respite and fast. That was when a peculiar hole in the wall ahead was noticed.) My attention suddenly drew itself to the nearby wall as a way to elude pursuit.

I grabbed DD and dragged her over, a feat made pretty easy by my natural strength, much to DD’s general resistance.

We dove into the hole and hid in the shadows.

Before DD had a chance to speak, I shushed her.

 

Footsteps and stomps rushed past our spot.

“Those two couldn’t have gone far!”

“Split up! A yellow cat can’t be that hard to find, let alone him and the Negative Sniper.”

 

In short due time, the voices faded away as the thugs continued running.

DD and I breathed a sigh of relief.

“Clear for now, but still poisoned.” DD remarked, glaring at me.

“Hey!” I said behind gritted teeth, “You’re the one who suddenly decided to hold a gang leader at gunpoint.”

“Neat word, gunpoint, but it’s called interrogation,” the Indeedee refuted.

“No, it’s called stooping to their level.”

“Oh and what was your plan, become buddies with them?” She then gave me a dull look. “You did well with those lovely little zaps of friendship. Ohhhh so well.”

I crossed my arms and sat in place.

DD continued, taking a seat as well. “And now thanks to your rash actions, neither of us have anything but poison.”

It was hard to say for sure, but any further attempt to interrogate Gusoku would fail. (DD, on the other hand…)

 

I took out one of my Pecha Berries and ate it right in front of her.

DD’s mouth was left agape as she saw my poison wear off..

“Correction,” I said in a somewhat bold tone, “You have something and poison.” I pulled out an Oran Berry and started eating it.

DD tried to grab me, but I kicked her back to the wall with ease. (The poison really helped make my dominating position stand true.)

“Sit, child.” I said finishing the berry. The relief of healing my poison and damage kicked in.

The Indeedee in front of me clenched her teeth together. Her fists were tightened. She tried to maintain an intimidating front. (To her credit, she did quite well, but even the best could have a hard time with poison. She was no exception.)

Nevertheless, I continued. “Now tell me. What were you and Gusoku whispering about?”

DD glared at me. “And why should I tell you? Oh wait, never mind. You already did…”

“…Hmmm, good. Less words and time wasted. I can end your pain right now if you tell me a few things.”

To be frank, I expected her to pull out her gun, but for some reason she didn’t. I wasn’t sure if she wanted to make sure I didn’t have it or what. Regardless, DD continued to glare.

I glared back. “What time is it?”

DD raised a brow and pondered for a moment. She slowly spoke. “Odd question…I will bring out my pocket dial slowly.”

I readied myself just in case she tried to pull a fast one on me.

 

After a slow motion, DD pulled out a small round object from her pocket. Said object seemed chained to her jacket. She then slowly turned the object toward me.

I was tense. Many thoughts ran through my head. (“What is it? Is it a gadget of some kind? Is it a trick?”) I held my breath in anticipation.

She pressed a button on the top, which caused the object’s lid to lift up. Inside was a dial, modeled just like the Hourglass Tower, colors, apparatuses, and all. The hour arm was nearing the Midnight wedge.

“Less than an hour til,” she stated. “N-Now…”

“Now now,” I remarked. “I said a few things, not just one. Now tell me, what did Gusoku tell you?” (“Come on, just give up the information already. I may be patient, but poison isn’t.”)

DD growled, “Why should you care? What in all of this matters to you?”

I sighed. (“She‘s likely hoping for some excuse to attack me at this point. Those thugs could be back any moment and then bam! She steals my berries and gets away. Nope. Not gonna happen.”) “Stop your stalling, child. No one’s coming for a while in these tunnels. And even if you do somehow run away, which you definitely cannot, I doubt the poison will show you mercy.”

Despite her now shaky hands, DD’s maintained that admittedly concerning glare of hers. “It’s no wonder Five turned out the way she did.”

Though indirect, the slander-like set off a furious fire within me. (She struck a nerve. I refused to let that statement stand.) “Don’t you dare. Don’t you dare say that name around me! She is ‘Lucy!’ And it would be in your best interests to respect it!”

“She always changes her name. Quite a few times. What’s stopping her now? You do not know who she is! Don’t you dare say you know her! I know you don’t! But enough about her! …Hah…” Her poison status was progressing.

She didn’t think Lucy had anything to do with this. So I thought about adding motivation. It was a gamble, but it had to work. “Why you…How about these words for thought? Lucy has been taken away.”

DD gritted her teeth and shook her head. “Wha-…What? No. That’s…impossible!”

She didn’t believe me, of course. “How about you believe this?” I held up the note in front of DD, who quickly read through its contents.

Again, she shook her head adamantly in disbelief. “No, that can’t…” The poison was pushing against the Indeedee’s limits. “I…She couldn’t…”

DD gasped. “!!!…”

The reaction was enough to snap me out of fury for a moment. “Huh?”

 

She tried to stand, but couldn’t. “Hah, Hah…Zeraora, listen to me…”

“What?”

“We’ve been set up. She…set us up.”

“Huh? Who?”

“Fi- No, Lucy…betrayed you.” At that moment, the Indeedee winced from and started leaning on the wall, desperate to keep herself from falling unconscious.

The response took me aback. I didn’t understand. (I couldn’t possibly understand.) Lucy? But why? How? Just as I thought I had leverage, she turned it right back in her favor. I was the one under fire. I was the one under pressure. And unless I helped her, I would never get my answers (clever girl).

I hastily grabbed a Pecha Berry and brought it up to her. “Eat it now.”

DD slowly managed to grab the berry and chomp it down. Her poison slowly left her, but the process left her in a short coughing fit.

 

I gave the detective a few minutes to rest, even giving her an Oran Berry to help stave off the damage the poison did to her. 

To be honest, I didn’t have the guts. I planned to give DD the Pecha and the Oran anyways and then leave her in the hiding hole. No amount of pride was worth taking a life. (That is something I refuse to do, no matter what those higher-ups say.)

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Fragment of Knowledge:

Silspring Central Catacomb System

The Central District’s Catacombs come in three parts, one for each of the layers (Upperside, Underside, and Deep Underside in descending order). There are also three main types of tunnels in this system; Waste, Traveling, and Inspection. 

Waste tunnels are highly self-explanatory, stemming through the more fortified areas and descending through the layers of the central district until it reaches the seafloor. Once there, the waste flows underground until it reaches the magma of the underwater volcanoes near the Salt District.

Traveling tunnels, also known as Expressways, act as speedy underwater routes that go to and from the Upperside and Underside. While there are more dry ways to climb through the layers, such as the many stair pillars, the travel time is significantly slower in comparison, even at full sprint. The Deep Underside has no Traveling tunnels as of yet due to a lack of available space

Finally, Inspection tunnels are where repair pokemon can travel between the layers, fixing problems, and controlling the district’s climate. While they travel all over the Central District, the Inspection tunnels are labyrinth-like in structure, making it extremely easy to get lost. Not only that, they are also the most dangerous as some tunnels tend to travel near or through the old and destroyed tunnels that make up the Catacomb Expressway Mystery Dungeon.