Spice of Life: Mina the Mienshao
 
The Mienshao laid on the bed, thinking on the conversation she had had with the doctor. She had told him about her travels, how she had come to the region of Sinnoh from Heart Isle, an island lost in the mists of the sea, guarded from the sight of humans. Was that what had caused him so much alarm? That she came from somewhere far away?
 
Mina shook her head and took another spoonful of her oran berry soup. No, that couldn’t have been it. The Leafeon had told her that he had tended to pokemon from all walks of life. He wouldn’t have cared where she was from. Was it her breath that had caused him to flee? In her defense, it wasn’t as though she had a lot of time to brush her teeth. She had been unconscious for what seemed like a month, though she had only been in the clinic for a few weeks. Most of her time in Sinnoh had been spent underground, trapped in a cave of water and ice, guarded by a legendary.
 
She almost choked on her soup as she remembered. Shiver! No doubt the Articuno would be waiting to hear from her. She sat up on the edge of the bed and gingerly put her paws to the floor, making sure her legs didn’t so weak she would collapse. She eased herself onto them and began to step towards the door, though as it opened she quickly leaped back into her bed and covered herself up with the sheets.
 
“Mina? Are you awake?” The Leafeon asked as he stepped in, letting the morning sun wash into the room from behind him. “I hope you didn’t mind the soup, I wasn’t sure what you would want for breakfast and I didn’t want to wake you..”
 
“It’s fine, the soup was great. I feel better already.” the Mienshao replied with a grin, stretching out to demonstrate her health. “Ha, Sure was nice of you to let me stay for so long, but I’ve gotta hit the road. You said the town wasn’t too far from here, right?”
 
“It’s not far at all,” the Leafeon concurred as he stepped in, leaving the door open as he approached her, “But I thought before you went out on the town you could meet someone from Clearspring, so you can get a better idea of what the pokemon are like there.”
 
“Oh, really? Who did you bring?” Mina asked, her eyes turning to the door as she sat up and patted down her fur, trying to make herself look presentable. Her small ears perked curiously as the Lucario stepped in, the metal pauldrons on his arms caught the light and caused the Pokemon Adventurer’s Guild emblem to glisten. “Did… did you call the guard on me?”
 
“Not just yet.” another voice replied from the door. The shiny Liepard turned the corner and closed the door behind her, her green eyes locked onto the Mienshao as she approached her bed. “I just have a couple of questions for you. We’re the heads of the Winners, a rescue team here in Clearspring.”
 
“Liepards can’t be on a rescue team,” Mina frowned “They’re far too selfish.”
 
“Nice. Good first impression there, Nina.” Cyn replied sarcastically, “I feel like we’re best buddies already.”
 
“Mina.” The Mienshao corrected her as her nose scrunched up at the sight of the Liepard. She turned her attention to Leaf, “Where’s Cyn? I thought you said the Winners were lead by a woman named Cyn.”
 
“Mina, this -is- Cyn.” Leaf told her as he glanced over to the shiny Liepard, who seemed to be having a hard time keeping herself from snapping at the pokemon. “I guess Liepards aren’t particularly liked on Heart Isle.”
 
“There’s only one, and she’s a real pain in the tail. She said that was how all Liepards acted though.” Mina crossed her long arms over each other, “I guess you’ll have to prove otherwise.”
 
“Well, we’re off to a great start.” Cyn breathed out a frustrated sigh and shook her head, “I can’t believe I was worried about you being a problem. I knew you’d be a loon.”
 
“Who are you calling a loon, lady?” Mina snapped at her.
 
“It’d be best if we stayed on topic, we have a lot to discuss.” Auric told them both, moving between them so he could both address the room and keep the two from starting a fight. “Mina. I understand you’ve told the doctor that you’ve met legendary pokemon. Is that correct?”
 
“Of course. Shiver and Flare have guarded Heart Isle for as long as I can remember.” The Mienshao replied, resting back in her bed as she looked at the Lucario.
 
“‘Shiver’ and ‘Flare’?” Cyn asked incredulously, her eye twitching.
 
“Articuno and Ho-oh.” Leaf explained, “From what Mina’s been telling me, those are their real names.”
 
“It’s strange to hear of the two being mentioned together. It’s not as though they would have any reason to speak, other than through their mutual connection to Lugia.” Auric noted as he stroked his chin, “You must understand Mina, there’s no record of ‘Heart Isle’ on the Guild’s map. This whole situation is quite a peculiar predicament.”
 
“So you don’t believe me?” Mina tucked her ears back as she glanced around the room, her eyes finally landing on the Leafeon. “But… but what about when you two fought Regice to rescue me? Is it that hard to believe that I’ve met legendary pokemon before?”
 
“Yes!” Cyn snapped, causing Auric and Leaf to exchange a concerned glance. “Yes, it -is- hard to believe. Why should we believe anything you say? You could be a spy!”
 
“A spy for who?” Mina blinked in disbelief at the accusation. “Is Clearspring at war with someone?”
 
“...No.” Cyn let out a defeated sigh. It seemed like a much better line in her head. Her tail twitched furiously behind her as she tried to save face, “But that still doesn’t explain why you’re here. If you really have links to Articuno and Ho-oh, why did they send you to Clearspring?”
 
“I wasn’t sent here, I chose to come here because I needed a change of pace.” Mina huffed, crossing her arms over her chest, “But if this is how I’m going to be treated, perhaps I shouldn’t have left at all. If you’ll direct me to your nearest computer, I’ll contact Shiver to pick me up and take me home.”
 
"My... snnrk." The Liepard bit her lip, trying to avoid laughing at the request. She shook her head and breathed in, "Ha, alright Mina. Let's go over to my computer and I'll get 'Shiver' up on the big screen, then you can use my cellphone to stay in touch while you wait for them." she snickered as she struggled to contain her laughter. "Or hey, why wait at all? You can take my personal plane out, it's even got a built in home theatre system."
 
"Of course you'd have something like that, you probably stole it." Mina huffed before climbing out of the bed, "Still, if it'll get me home, then fine. Take me to your plane, Cyn."
 
The Liepard couldn't take it anymore, the fighting-type had believed everything she had said. She rolled on her back, laughing and kicking her legs. "You seriously think I have a plane? I'm a pokemon, you jackass! We barely even have electricity in Clearspring!"
 
"What?" Mina's eyes widened in disbelief, she almost found herself staggering back at the Liepard's laughter. "No electricity? No computers, no phones?!" she looked around, finally it dawned on her how... natural the walls of the clinic looked. "Wait. Is... is this a tree? Am I in a tree right now?"
 
"You're in a tree." Leaf admitted with an awkward smile, "I've been meaning to move closer to Clearspring and get a house, but I've just got so many memories in this place-"
 
"What is wrong with you pokemon? How can you be so backwards?" The Mienshao stared in disbelief, her eyes finally turning to Auric, "Surely not all pokemon civilizations in Sinnoh are this outdated."
 
"Virtue is the most impressive city in all of Sinnoh, and even it doesn't have access to the human’s internet." The Lucario replied honestly, "Such things would draw attention to us. We believe one of the few reasons a human would stray from the road is to find an internet signal."
 
"If we need access to that sort of thing, there's usually pokemon in the human cities who can figure it out." Cyn added in as she finally got over her laughter and stood up, "And to answer your question, yes, there's electricity in Clearspring... it's just that it's all powerful by one Raichu and the generator he built." she paused and tilted her head, "Or stole. You know, I've never really asked him."
 
"But... but this is terrible. I must contact Shiver immediately, she'll be so worried about me." Mina gasped, "Isn't there any way I could? I'd only need to get online for a moment."
 
"I'd offer to hook you up with my guy in the city, but I'm sure you wouldn't want to accept the help of a dirty thieving Liepard." Cyn replied with a little smile, "Welcome to Clearspring, Mina. Bathroom's outside."
 
"I think I need to sit down." The Mienshao mumbled, holding one hand to her head as she turned and walked back towards the bed, "And what was that you said before? You were worried about me? Why?"
 
"Cyn believed you might have had something to do with the recent rise in trouble around the local mystery dungeons." Auric replied honestly, causing the Liepard to rapidly flail her paws at him to stop. The Lucario continued with a shrug, "She thought your connection to the legendaries suggested you were an avatar, someone who had come in their place to enact divine justice for... wrongdoings."
 
"Maybe I should. No doubt she's got plenty of wrongdoings under her belt." Mina replied before shaking her head, "But no, I wasn't sent here by Shiver or Flare. I didn't even realize there was any trouble around here."
 
"The Dark Woods is the closest Mystery Dungeon, and lately there's been a food shortage." Leaf explained, "It's sent the local pokemon into a hungry frenzy... and the pokemon back in Clearspring are afraid to walk around at night."
 
"I'd wager it has something to do with that crystal ball." Mina replied. Auric, Cyn and Leaf froze in stunned silence as they watched the Mienshao back. She slowly turned to face them, her ears perking, "You... didn't think I wouldn't notice it, did you? we both sleep in the same room."
 
"Please don't say 'we' when you're talking about the lense. You make it sound like it's alive." Cyn shuddered.
 
"Isn't it?" Mina blinked. Cyn's eyes widened at the answer, and finally the Liepard sat back on her haunches. The Mienshao turned her attention to Leaf, "I hear it singing it's sad song every night. I thought you would have too, Doctor. Don't you sleep in the other room?"
 
"No, I sleep in the Winner's HQ now." The Leafeon gasped. "I had no idea it was singing. I didn't realize it could even make a sound."
 
"It's more like chiming." The Mienshao replied, tapping her chin as she looked up to the shelf where it was kept at night, hidden beneath the burlap sack. "But I can tell it's sad. If you heard it, you'd understand."
 
"What time does it start making that noise? Is it the same time every night?" Auric inquired.
 
"Yes. It starts at midnight every night, and continues for about five minutes before stopping again." said Mina with a nod.
 
"Kaiser said that midnight is when the Mystery dungeons shift." Cyn said, slowly getting back to her feet as she stepped forward towards the group, "It must be trying to change the landscape, but it can't because we're not in a Mystery Dungeon."
 
"All the more reason to take it back to the Dark Woods. I don't want to hold it against its will if it's alive." Leaf tucked his ears back at the thought. "To think I've made it grow berries and seeds for so long... I feel awful."
 
"I'm sure the guild would want to know about this. They use several Rainbow Lenses to generate supplies for new teams." Auric said, moving towards the door, "I'll send a letter to Virtue at once."
 
"Wait, hold on." Cyn reached out and grabbed the Lucario's tail, causing him to grunt a little and turn. She quickly removed her paw from it before looking up at him, "You can't go to Virtue. If you do, they'll know we have a lense."
 
"The time for secrecy has long passed, Cyn. The Dark woods are growing more dire by the day, and Clearspring may be in danger." the Lucario told her, "You must put your town before your pride. I urge you to do the right thing."
 
"And I will... just, not like that." Cyn replied, tucking her ears back as she turned to the Rainbow Lense unsurely. "What if... what if you had a reason to be in the storeroom at Virtue when the Rainbow Lense sang? That way you could point it out, and it wouldn't reflect back on the Winners having one."
 
"You want me to lie to the Guild in their own city?" Auric asked incredulously. The Liepard tucked her ears back and lowered her gaze the floor, and Auric shook his head as he looked out the window. "Cyn... I was instructed to mentor you, and I plan to do just that. You can't lead your team while taking part in so much deceit. It's time you started telling the truth."
 
"So what, you want me to tell Kaiser this is all my fault?" Cyn shook her head, "No dice, Auric. The last thing he needs right now is more to think about." she glared at the Lucario, then over at the Leafeon, "Now, we are going to take the Rainbow Lense and bury it somewhere until we can figure out what to do with it. You guys got that? No one finds out about the Lense until it's back where it damn well should be."
 
"I suppose I was right. Liepards really are all the same." Mina spoke up, causing Cyn to turn her glare on her. The fighting-type shook her head, "You're all selfish, scheming creatures, who want nothing but to protect your own hides, no matter what it means for everyone else." she narrowed her eyes, "How dare you call your team the Winners. Clearly you're anything but."
 
"How about you stay out of this, Crazy?" Cyn snapped at her, her fangs showing as she began to hiss and her sharp claws beginning to slide out of her paws, "Who asked you anyway?!"
 
"You're the one who's acting crazy, Cyn." Leaf spoke up, causing the Liepard to turn on him next. There was a softness in her eyes, a sadness that the doctor had never seen in her. "Auric was right, and I shouldn't have enabled you. The Rainbow Lense is making you nuts, we need to get rid of it." he paused and shook his head, "I know you don't want the Guild or Kaiser to know, and I understand that..." he turned to Auric next, "but I think the Guild deserves to know everything we know about the Lense too. They -all- need to be returned to the mystery dungeons, not just the one that we have."
 
Cyn looked from one pokemon to the next before finally sighing and shaking her head. "Whatever." she finally sighed, "Let's just... let's just go back to the base. The morning meeting will be starting soon, I need to figure out what the team is going to do today."
 
"I recall you wanted to explore another dungeon that had lost its lense." Auric reminded her as they walked, "If you want, I could lead the team there while you focused on finding a way to get the lense back into the Dark Woods. Of course, I also need to write a letter requesting transportation to Virtue to speak with the Guild on this matter."
 
"Of course." Cyn replied with a sigh, "I deserve that, and so does the Guild. Maybe this is happening to other dungeons too... maybe they don't know the damage they're doing by keeping the Rainbow Lenses from them."
 
"I suppose that just leaves what you'll do, Mina." Leaf turned his attention to the Mienshao, "Do you have any plans on what you'll be doing in Clearspring until you can find a way to contact Shiver?"
 
"It sounds like you'll be down a fighting-type with Auric on his way to Virtue." Mina replied, looking to the Leafeon, "I suppose I might lend my expertise. It would help me explore the region and look for ways to contact Heart Isle."
 
"Welcome to 'The Losers', kiddo. It's not like I care if you join or not, once the Guild gets that report I probably won't even have a team." Cyn sighed in defeat as she pushed open the door and stepped out, closing it behind her before the Mienshao could so much as respond. Leaf smiled awkwardly over at her and gestured for her to follow him, figuring that they'd best attend the morning meeting if she was going to be the newest member of their team.
 
  * * *
 
Cyn walked up the path towards the base, expecting to be greeted by the smells of breakfast escaping the kitchen windows. Instead she found herself staring at her team members running through an elaborate assault course while Kaiser stood on the sidelines watching them.
 
"Spice. Blastoise, ten o'clock!" he yelled out, pulling one of the strings and causing the cardboard cutout to spring into action. The Ninetales yiped and ducked, his fur shimmering with Protect as Volt moved in and slammed his paw on the ground, sending a bolt of thunder soaring from the sky and splitting the cutout in two as he stood guard before the Ninetales, "Nice, remember your type advantages and pick your battles, that'll save your tails out in the field." He then turned towards the top of the structure, "Malus, secure the flag!"
 
"On it." Malus replied, swiftly scaling what appeared to be a climbing wall. As Cyn looked further up she could see Rune at the top dropping gravelrocks down at him. Judging by the marks on the Persian's fur he had been hit a few times, but he was determined to take the flag from the top of the structure. He gasped and swung himself to the side as a gravelrock flew past him and shattered on the grass below.
 
"Nice dodging. Good shot for you too, Rune. Conserve your ammo, alright?" Kaiser called out before perking his ears and looking over his shoulder as he noticed the Liepard, "Cyn! Good morning, I thought you were still asleep in your room."
 
"I went out with Leaf and Auric, we had to check on a potential recruit." Cyn explained as she moved to his side and looked at the assault course ahead. "What is all this? How did you make it so fast?"
 
"Typh mentioned the base used to be a dojo, I figured they'd have some equipment laying around but this is a motherlode." Kaiser grinned as he patted one of the nearby ramps, "Me and the boys got to work and set up this course, should help you guys prepare for the more advanced dungeons. Auric tells me you're heading out to a new mystery dungeon today."
 
“Not bad, huh sis?” Typh called out from one of the ramps, using a rope to climb up the steep slope, “I bet that dungeon will be a breeze after all this working out.”
 
“Just don’t tire yourselves out. Otherwise we won’t be going anywhere.” Leaf called up to the Swampert. He couldn’t deny that the course looked both challenging and fun though, before long he was running towards the start to join the rest of the team.
 
“Leaf’s right, don’t overdo it guys. We’ll need to be ready for whatever awaits us in Sharpstone Gorge.” Cyn called out to the others before smiling over at Kaiser as she focused her attention on him, “I’ve got to say, I’m impressed you and your team managed to pull all this together so fast. This is a really nice surprise.”
 
“I thought I might try to help out as much as I can while I’m here. I wouldn’t want you to have too hard a time when we go back to the Dark Woods.” Kaiser said with a smile as he moved over. He nuzzled at her cheek affectionately, “I want your team to be able to protect their leader.”
 
“I can protect myself just fine.” Cyn replied, batting her paw against his chest playfully as she shook her head. All her worries about the Guild seemed to have faded, perhaps they would be able to get the lense back to its rightful place after all. She looked over her shoulder at the Lucario who had been following her along with the Mienshao, “So, what’s the mission you’ve got for us?”
 
“It’s a delivery and escort mission combined into one. Your team will need to go to the seventh floor of Sharpstone Gorge and ensure the courier gets to their destination.” Auric replied, “You’ll meet him at the Mystery Dungeon. It’s about an hours walk from here, I suggest you choose your team on the grounds that you’ll be up against ground and rock types.”
 
“Escorting a courier? That doesn’t sound so hard.” Cyn replied before turning her attention towards the course, watching her team. It seemed like the mission would be a perfect chance to catch up with Volt, though his typing would leave him at a disadvantage. Her eyes locked onto Typh, and a smile crossed her muzzle. “Hey, bro. How about we go on an adventure together?”
 
“Sounds like a good time to me.” Typh called back, leaping off the side of the course. He landed with a heavy whump, the dust around his feet kicked up as he hit the ground. He made his way over towards his sister and raised his hand, giving her a high-five.
 
“That just leaves one more pokemon for you to choose, Cyn.” Auric pointed out before looking over his shoulder to the Mienshao, who was staring out at the view of the pokemon town. The Lucario looked back to Cyn, “I think you should bring Mina. She’ll be useful against the Rock types, and this will be a good chance for you to see how she performs in battle.”
 
“Please don’t make me take her. She’s annoying.” Cyn tucked her ears back, “She thinks Liepards are evil. I really don’t want to be alone with that kind of a pokemon.”
 
“Lighten up, Cyn. I’ve got your back.” Typh grinned broadly, “Besides, if she thinks Liepards are evil, isn’t this a perfect opportunity to prove that she’s wrong?”
 
“Huh… I guess it would be.” The shiny Liepard replied, tapping her chin as she considered it. Finally she nodded in agreement, “Fine, it’s me, Typh and Mina then. We’ll make sure that courier gets to the floor and makes the delivery.” she tilted her head, “But I wonder what he could be delivering so far down.”
 
“That information wasn’t included in the report, I’m afraid you’ll have to find that out when you get there.” the Lucario replied, resting his hands behind his back. “I’ll be working on getting in touch with Virtue today, I imagine you’ll want the others to go to other mystery dungeons?”
 
“Yeah, keep everyone busy. I want us to be ready when the time comes to go back to the Dark Woods.” Cyn replied with a nod before turning to face Kaiser, “Maybe you and your guys should focus on getting settled into Clearspring today. Grab something to eat at the Cafe, talk to the locals, just make sure they know you’re not here for trouble or anything.”
 
“I’ll have them charmed with my wit and good looks by the end of the day.” Kaiser replied with an over-the-top bow, causing Cyn to chuckle in response. He didn’t seem to be any the wiser to all her scheming, she knew she could count on her team not to spill the beans on the Rainbow Lense situation. She turned and began to walk, her Swampert brother and Mienshao recruit following her as they made their way towards Sharpstone Gorge, where they would finally find out what was keeping it from the chaos that had engulfed the Dark Woods.
 
 
  * * *
 
 
Cyn hadn’t counted on how far the walk would take them from Clearspring. It felt as though they had been travelling for hours, despite Auric’s insistence it was only an hour away, and her paws were getting sore as the grassy ground became hard stone. The land was untouched by humans, and that was just how the Liepard liked it… no chance of running into any trainers looking for a shiny pokemon.
 
Typh and Mina had been talking, it seemed like the two had quickly bonded. The Swampert had always been good at talking to other pokemon. The Mienshao had just finished laughing at one of his stories, “Wow, Typh. I haven’t laughed like that in a while.” she smiled over at him, “I think I’ll fit into this team fine.”
 
“Heh, well if you need anything to help you settle, you let me know.” the Swampert replied, rubbing his knuckles against his chest as he plodded along, “Few words of advice; watch out for Malus, I wouldn’t want you to go disappearing on us.” he looked over at her, “Oh and, uh, don’t heckle Spice too much, alright? Ninetales are pretty vindictive if you get on their bad side.”
 
“That Ninetales looked familiar, but he couldn’t possibly be the same one I saw.” Mina said as she looked up at the larger pokemon, “I went to a human city before I went to Hearthome. I saw a Ninetales get eaten alive on television.. It looked like some sort of contest.”
 
“Yep, that’d be Spice all right. His moment of glory.” Cyn replied, smirking a little at the thought. “Must’ve been pretty funny watching him get eaten in front of all those people. I wish I had seen it myself, I’ll have to catch a replay sometime.”
 
“How can you laugh at that? He could have died.” Mina crossed her sleeve-like arms as she shook her head, “Though honestly, I’m not sure how he -didn’t- die. Back on Hearthome Isle Flare was in charge of bringing back any pokemon who had been eaten, but how did Spice manage to do it in Sinnoh?”
 
“He used a Revive, which I’m pretty sure is what the humans use instead of Reviver Seeds.” The Liepard replied as she looked back at her, “It’s kind of hard to explain, but so long as you have one you can get back on your feet after pretty much anything.” she turned to look up the path once more, her eyes locking onto the mystery dungeon gate ahead of them, “Just don’t fall back on them too much, alright? They’re one use a piece, and we’ve only got four on us today.”
 
“What? Why wouldn’t you bring more? Isn’t this a dangerous mystery dungeon?” Mina gasped, though Cyn quietened her down as they approached the pokemon standing by the gate. The Tauros had been busily checking over the large cart, which was almost as big as he was. He turned to them as they approached and gave a grunt of recognition.
 
“You the team?” He asked in a gravelly tone.
 
“That’d be us.” Typh replied, crossing his arms as he looked at the cart, “Need a hand with that? It looks heavy.”
 
“I’ve pulled heavier. Just make sure you’re ready to jump the moment we get to the seventh floor.” The Tauros replied as he made his way over the harness and lifted it up. He began to drag the cart towards the gate, “Keep any wildies off me until we’re there. Got it?”
 
“Uh… sure.” Cyn blinked, giving a shrug to the rest of her team as she followed after the pokemon. The moment they passed through the gate the environment shifted around them, revealing jagged slate-grey walls. The Liepard took a few steps away from the nearest one before looking around. No plants, no grass, just rock as far as they eye could see. If she couldn’t see the sunlight shining from above, she’d have assumed they were in a cave underground, “So, uh… what’re you delivering?”
 
“You know what I’m delivering.” The Tauros replied lowly, “It’s bad enough I have to do this without you rescue teams rubbing it in. How about we both just do what we came here to do and go our separate ways?”
 
“Alright, chill. I was just asking.” Cyn sneered before looking over at Typh, “Typh, you take the left. Mina takes the right and I’ll walk ahead.” she reached down to her chest and lifted up the compass dangling from her neck before flipping open the lid. The needle struggled as it aligned itself with the dungeon before finally pointing ahead, “The stair’s are dead ahead. That’s a relief.”
 
“One floor down, six to go.” the Tauros added in, “Just keep those wildies off me. We don’t want them getting to the cart before it’s where it should be.”
 
“Was this place always like this? Even before it lost its Rainbow Lense?” Mina asked, looking over at Cyn. The Liepard shot her a glare and moved her paw to her muzzle, making a zipping motion before continuing onwards down the stairs. The Mienshao shook her head and raised her voice, trying to think of a way to reword her question, “Hey, how do you think this place gets food?”
 
“How’d’ya think?” the Tauros replied gruffly. It was becoming abundantly clear he wasn’t there to answer their questions. His eyes narrowed on the path ahead and his hooves dug into the stone ground, “Look alive, we’ve got company.”
 
The trio moved in front of him, preparing to face whatever came from the hallway. Cyn’s heart raced as they finally saw their opponent, a Rhyhorn ran full pelt into the wall at the far side of the hallway, its horn breaking off part of the wall as it landed the blow. It scrambled and turned before stomping its hoof and beginning to charge towards them, its horn lowered to break the wall of adventurers and reach the cart.
 
“Typh!” Cyn yelled out, though the Swampert hardly needed her to tell him twice. Typh slammed his foot against the ground, causing it to crack open. The crack rapidly raced towards the Rhyhorn, though as it got closer Mina could see brown water rising out of it. As it reached the Rhyhorn it burst out, creating a wall of muddy water that came crashing down on the pokemon. Typh smirked and pumped his fist in victory… only for the armoured rhino to burst through the wall with a blood frenzied roar.
 
“Hit it again!” the Tauros called from behind them, though it was far too close for Typh to perform another attack. He moved forward to intercept it, taking the brunt of the pokemon’s horn as he used his hands to wrestle with its head. He let out a grunt and rolled onto his side, bringing the Rhyhorn with him before dropping it onto its back with an almighty crash.
 
“Erf, yep. That hurt.” Typh wheezed, holding onto the spot where the horn had hit him. He slowly began to get back to his feet, watching as the four legged pokemon thrashed on its back, unable to get upright. “Phew, just relax, buddy. You’ll be fine.”
 
“Give me your cart! I’m seriously, I’ll… I’ll-!” the Rhyhorn snarled, kicking his stubby legs as the team watched him.
 
“Don’t kick too hard, you might break something, ya big oaf.” The Tauros growled at him before moving past the other pokemon, his cart trundling along behind him, “You run into any other dungeon-dwellers, you tell them to stay out of our way. Got it?”
 
“At least help me up.” The Rhyhorn pleaded, kicking his legs in the air. He began to glance at each member of the team, finally his eyes locked onto Mina. “P-please, you’ve got to help me up. You can’t leave me here like this, they’ll turn on me.”
 
“They who?” Mina blinked.
 
“The other pokemon here. They’re starving, they have nothing to eat.” The Rhyhorn explained hurriedly, his eyes darting around as he tried to keep an eye on all the different hallways leading off from the clearing, “I may have a strong hide, but that isn’t going to stop an Onix. Come on, please, I’ll do anything, I’ll join your team!”
 
“You don’t have to join our team. Just… just, stop begging, alright?” Cyn shook her head before turning her attention to Typh. The Swampert simply nodded and the three pokemon moved to the Rhyhorn’s left and pushed their sides against it. “On three. One. Two. Three!”
 
The trio pushed with all their might and finally managed to roll the Rhyhorn back onto its front. It shakily got to its hooves and lowered its head, moving to kiss their feet. “Y-you saved me! Thank you, thank you so much. I won’t forget about this.”
 
“Don’t mention it, that’s what rescue pokemon do.” the Liepard replied, backpedaling to avoid having her feet kissed by the strange pokemon. “What’s going on here? Why would the pokemon of this dungeon be starving?”
 
“I-I don’t know. One day everything was fine, and the next suddenly there was no food at all.” the Rhyhorn blinked, “But sometimes there’s food, about once a week, I’d wager. Everyone scrambles to get what they can. I’ve got some hidden myself, but I don’t know if it’ll be enough to-”
 
“Hey, rescuers. Am I escorting myself?” The bull called back to them, “We need to keep together. Stuff happens when pokemon wander off by themselves in mystery dungeons, and this wagon isn’t getting any lighter.”
 
“Right.” Cyn sighed moving to follow after the Tauros. She paused and looked back at the rhino before reaching into her bag and taking out a single apple. She tossed it back his way, managing to get it to land on his large sloping forehead, “Take it. We’re only going seven floors in, so we shouldn’t really need it.”
 
“R-really? Oh, thank you. I’ll find some way to repay you all, I swear it.” the Rhyhorn bowed lowly before racing off down one of the hallways leading out of the room, kicking up a cloud of dust as they went. Cyn shook her head and the group carried on, though Mina found herself unable to get the thought of her head. Why would the Liepard be so eager to help another pokemon? Especially seeing as how it meant giving something away.
 
 
  * * *
 
 
The further they went, the more she wondered about the encounter. It didn’t help that the dungeon was a boring walk through grey surroundings. Every floor they went through was barren and empty. No items on the ground, no berries or seeds, and most suspicious of all, no pokemon. She had lost count by the time they made it to the seventh floor. The floor wasn’t like the others, it was much darker, only a crack of light streamed from above to light the area around them. The Mienshao could see dark paths all around the walls, leading into the unyielding darkness.
 
“Here we are! Your destination.” Typh said, slapping the bull on the back as he looked around curiously. “So, where are we going to meet this client anyway? Are we finally going to see what’s in the truck?”
 
“They’re just a little further, follow me.” the Tauros replied, his brown eyes staring down each dark hallway before he turned his attention to the Liepard, “Hey, where does your compass say the stairs are?”
 
“They’re…” Cyn paused as she opened her compass, and her eyes widened at what she saw. The needle was spinning rapidly, going so fast it seemed like it might break from the strain. She began to look around in confusion, “I… I don’t get it. It’s going crazy. Where are the stairs?”
 
“I’d reckon there aren’t any. Looks like we’ve hit rock bottom.” The Tauros cracked a smile at his joke, though as the others stared at him he rolled his eyes, “The bottom of the Mystery Dungeon. Good job, team. We can dump the cart here and warp out, and you can get your reward from the Guild.”
 
“But what about your client? Are they going to find it here?” Mina asked.
 
“Oh… I think they’ll find it just fine.” the Tauros replied, unhitching the cart from his back. He made his way around it before giving it a heavy kick, knocking its back wheel out from under it and causing the contents to spill out onto the uneven stone floor. Berries of all colours tumbled onto the ground, and immediately various pokemon leaped from the shadowy paths and raced towards the four. Cyn let out a gasp of surprise and lowered herself to brace for the attack, only for the pokemon to charge past them and towards the cart.
 
Geodudes and Larvitar grappled and punched each other over single berries while Golems raced off with their arms full of them, only to be knocked across the room by the two powerful Onixs that roared out in dominance, their voices shaking the room. Cyn grabbed Mina and began to back away with Typh until finally they were at a safe distance, the same distance the Tauros had retreated to in order to watch. “Wh-what’s going on? What is this?” The Liepard shook her head in disbelief, “What the heck is going on?”
 
“This mystery dungeon doesn’t have enough food to support it.” The Tauros explained, regarding the three briefly before turning his attention back to the chaos ahead of them. Rock spikes and boulders went flying, knocking pokemon back and destroying a good deal of the berries as they were trampled underfoot, “The Guild has missions to dungeons like this one, ones that can’t support themselves. They provide them with food so the pokemon here don’t starve.”
 
“That’s nice of them.” Mina blinked.
 
“Not when you know the whole story, it isn’t.” Cyn growled, “The reason all this is happening was because the Guild took something that didn’t belong to them. They’re the reason the dungeon can’t support itself!”
 
“Eh, it doesn’t bother me either way. Now that I’ve done this assignment I’m home free.” the Tauros replied before taking an orb from the bag that had been hanging at his side. “You guys might want to warp out. They’re about to realize there isn’t enough for all of them.” he noted before throwing the orb against the ground. It shattered like glass, and a white light burst up from it and engulfed him… in moments, the courier was gone.
 
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Cyn yelled out, slamming her paw against the ground in anger. The low rumbling sound that had been bothering her rapidly turned into a tumultuous barrage against her ears as its source moved towards her. She turned at the last moment to see the Tyranitar charging towards her, its fist glowing as it prepared to strike her with a power-up punch. The Liepard leapt back nimbly as the fist slammed into the ground, and her eyes turned to the others. “Typh, Mina, Warp out!”
 
“How?!” the Mienshao called as she continued to step back from the three Graveler that rapidly advanced on her. Cyn’s eyes widened as she realized she had forgotten to give Mina a badge, she hadn’t even thought to go to the outpost and get one for her. The Mienshao whipped out her sleeves, which glowed with a purple energy as they performed a dual chop on the chest of closest Graveler, knocking it back towards the other two.
 
“Damn it.” Cyn hissed, ducking under another punch from the Tyranitar before whipping her tail towards it, sending a shadow ball into its side. It barely scratched its scales, but it had only needed to be a distraction anyway. She slipped feinted right before racing towards the left, hoping her speed would allow her to reach Mina before the much closer pokemon did.
 
She could see Typh wrestling with the jaws on an Onix as it loomed over him, using its weight to push its jaws down towards the floor in an attempt to trap the Swampert inside. Typh grunted as his legs began to buckle, only to slam his foot down into the floor and take a quick step back. A geyser of muddy water burst from where he had been standing and shot up at the pokemon, causing it to drink a decent amount of the earthy water before finally the power of the stream forced it to slam its head against the ceiling, causing rocks to fall over the combatants. The Tyranitar and other pokemon began to scurry back towards the hallways as the Onix roared and flailed, its large rock tail lashing at anything that dared get within 10ft of it before it finally fainted from exhaustion.
 
Seeing that he was safe she focused her attention on Mina, who was starting to sweat from her attempts at keeping the pokemon back. She slapped them with her sleeves, leaving marks over their faces as they grunted and growled, inching closer to the Mienshao as their large hands grabbed at her. One finally managed to grab her sleeve and pull her forward, only for an explosion of flame to go off at the side of its head. It let out a yell and fell onto its side, and as the others turned for the source of the explosion they saw the Liepard reaching around in her bag, searching for the next Blast seed.
 
The pokemon began to advance on Cyn, who rapidly began to pat at her bag as she searched. Damn, had she really only thought to bring one? She knew she had brought more, even if it was just a simple escort mission. The Graveler began to beat the ground in unison with the large hands on their backs, causing the room to rumble around them as rocks fell from the ceiling and the earth shook. The Liepard struggled to keep her footing, and before long she was being bounced around the floor with the rest of her team, the earthquake was far too much for any of them to take.
 
Each slam against the floor left her less conscious, she could see her brother constantly trying to find his feet only to be knocked down again and again. A sharp pain shot through her, leaving her drawing her last breath only to be reawoken as her Reviver seed burst, sending its restorative energy over her in a flash. She saw a similar flash from Mina, and moments later another from Typh.
 
That was it… they had one Reviver seed left and three pokemon in the team. Her gaze fell on Mina, watching as she fell up and down against the floor, feeling pangs of guilt with each blow the Mienshao took. It had to be her. She had to get out of the dungeon and tell the others what happened. Cyn closed her eyes, awaiting the moment their last Reviver seed would activate on the Mienshao. She could hear the rumbling of the walls around them.
 
...No. That rumbling wasn’t coming from the walls, it was coming from the ground, and it was coming from directly behind her. She gasped as she felt something firm press against her back and launch her into the air, and as she looked down she could see the Rhyhorn racing under her and towards the Graveler. He let out a triumphant roar as he slammed his head into the first and knocked it into the second, leaving them both rolling into the wall. The Rhyhorn panted as he looked around, the rumbling of the floor slowly faded entirely. “A-are you all alright?”
 
“Everything… hurts… I think I get how Reviver seeds work now.” Mina groaned as she held her head, “But… I think we’re fine. We’re alive, at least.” she added as she slowly got to her feet.
 
“Here, this’ll help.” Cyn said, offering the Mienshao an Oran berry. She immediately then ate one herself before making her way to her brother, “Thanks for coming to the rescue, by the way.” she said to the Rhyhorn as she helped the Swampert recover.
 
“I wasn’t about to leave you after you helped me before.” The Rhyhorn replied as he looked around, watching as the Graveler grabbed their friend and fled into the shadows. Finally he saw the wreckage of the cart and the crushed berries that were strewn about the floor. His eyes lowered to the ground, “I guess there’s nothing left then… erf. I knew I should have gone after the cart before. Letting you guys go was a bad idea.” he paused, looking over his shoulder at them, “But… it was the right thing to do, wasn’t it? So, it wasn’t all bad.”
 
“I… guess not.” Cyn replied, her eyes drifting to the floor. She perked her eyes and looked over at the Rhyhorn, “Hey. Maybe you should come back with us to Clearspring. You’d be a lot safer there, and you wouldn’t have to go hungry.”
 
“Heh, I don’t think I could leave this place, even with all its faults. Heh, That’s a little rock joke for you.” The Rhyhorn shook his head with a weak chuckle, “No… no, I’m going to stay put, I think. I can still make this place livable, even if it isn’t always great.” he replied before turning and heading for one of the hallways. “Hey…don’t tell anyone what happened, alright? This is the only way this place ever gets food. Usually pokemon don’t even get hurt, Most rescue teams are smart enough to warp out right away.”
 
“We won’t tell anyone, pal.” Typh replied, holding his head as it finally stopped spinning. He made his way over to Mina and held out his badge, pointing at her first. The Mienshao reached out to take it, only to disappear into the white-blue light of its beam. She gasped as she was warped, feeling as though she were both falling and flying at the same time, all the while surrounded by the blinding white light… and finally she felt her feet touch the ground.
 
She was back in Clearspring.
 
 
  * * *
 
 
Cyn stared at the ceiling as she laid back on her bed at the Winners’ headquarters. She had decided to buy Mina a room at the Inn for the night, deciding the Mienshao deserved some luxury after everything she had been through. They had all needed rest, though the Liepard found herself particularly restless. Her mind kept going back to the Rhyhorn, trying to make the best of a bad situation and seeing the brightside of doing things that ended up leaving him with nothing… doing the ‘right thing’.
 
“The right thing.” Cyn thought out loud as she shook her head. She could never do the right thing. She could never accept responsibility for her actions and tell the Guild the truth, get a high-ranking team to get the Rainbow Lense back where it belonged and give Kaiser his old life back. She didn’t have it in her… perhaps Mina was right after all, perhaps all Liepard were like that.
 
Her heart sank into her stomach as the door to her room opened, and she rolled onto her front in order to face the door. The Lucario stepped through the doorway and closed it behind him, “I sent the letter, and got one back. It appears my request to visit Virtue was happily accepted and I’ll be leaving tomorrow morning.”
 
“How long are you going to be gone?” The Liepard asked, “I mean, you only need to stay there for one night in order to tell them about the Rainbow Lenses trying to shift the environment, right?”
 
“Yes, but I’ve requested some more time. It’ll be good to see Jasper again, spend some time with my friends back in the city.” Auric replied, holding the stack of papers under his arm, “Incidentally, I hope that Mina did well on her first mission as she’ll be taking over my role as the team’s fighting type pokemon. I’ve gone through the paperwork and she’s now a full-fledged member of The Winners.” he furrowed his brow, “Well, other than your hazing ritual.”
 
“Hazing ritual?” Cyn blinked drearily. Her ears perked as she recalled, it had been far too long since they had last done it. It gave her something to look forward to, if nothing else, though no doubt the other members of the Winners were already lining up to be the one to ‘initiate’ the Mienshao into their team. “Oh, yeah. Heh, should be fun. I’m going to miss having you around though, you kept me in line.”
 
“It’ll only be for a week or so, you’ll manage.” the Lucario replied with a nod before making his way over to her. She began to notice something hidden in the palm of his hand; glowing, shimmering and blue. It looked as though he were preparing an aura attack, though he’d never do it so close to his beloved reports. “I’m afraid I have one more thing to burden you with, Cyn… it’s regarding Malus.”
 
“Please tell me he’s going with you.” Cyn breathed out a sigh of relief.
 
“No, it’s not that. I’m hesitant to leave his side, but I do think he’s been improving lately. However, the Guild gave me strict orders when I took him on as an apprentice… or rather, a conscript.” The Lucario replied, remaining serious even as the Liepard joked. He sat on her bed and finally opened his palm, revealing a small vial of blue glowing liquid. “Do you know what this is?”
 
“No. It doesn’t look like anything I’ve ever seen before.” she blinked. She leaned down to sniff it, and found herself light-headed from the sweet scents that managed to escape the wooden plug. “Woah. It smells… I can’t even think of a word. ‘Pretty’?” she shook her head.
 
“Through studying human advancements, the scientists of Moss Rock were able to deduce that certain berries increase a pokemon’s loyalty towards them. They make pokemon want to obey the ones who gave it to them, to serve them as their friends unconditionally.” Auric replied as he held up the vial, “This was their creation, Amity. It is an elixir that would stop a pokemon from having dark thoughts regarding any pokemon they met. They would meet strangers and treat them like lifelong friends, and they would do whatever they asked without questioning it.”
 
“Why would you have something like that?” Cyn stared at the Lucario in bewilderment and horror, “Wait… what does this have to do with Malus?”
 
“You may have not known this, but Malus’ last team were not so much a rescue team as they were a gang.” Auric explained as he stared into the vial of amity, “They were known as the Marauders. We don’t know all the details, they were unfortunately lost when the Guild raided their headquarters and their leader escaped. All we know is that their initiation ceremony involved stealing the badges of another rescue team… a team that would never be heard from again.” he shook his head in dismay, “They found over fifty badges during the search, and only six members.” he paused to consider what he was about to say, looking up at the feline before finishing with his explanation, “Malus played a role in uncovering them. I never knew if it was out of fear or folly though. He left his targets with their reviver seeds, allowing them to report back to the Guild once they had reformed.”
 
“That doesn’t tell me anything.” Cyn narrowed her eyes on the Lucario, “If Malus helped uncover their plan, why would you need to keep something like that on you? Are you afraid of him?”
 
“No, but I’m afraid of what he might do.” The Lucario said with a shake of his head, “I know there’s good in him, he just looks up to the wrong pokemon. I managed to convince the Guild to spare him from being amitized, to prove that he could change without it.” he sighed, “But lately I wonder if I was the fool in all of this. Perhaps I should have let them give him the amity.”
 
“How could you say something like that?” Cyn gasped as she shuffled away from the Lucario. The tiny vial had gone from an object of interest to a deadly weapon, and she was eager to keep her distance from it. “You think he’d be better off being some kind of mind slave?”
 
“Amity will not turn you into a slave, Cyn. It simply removes your desire to disobey.” Auric replied, his ears folding back as he gripped the vial, “What if we had managed to give it to Guzzler? A Venusaur his size could have built skyscrapers the likes of which the pokemon world has never seen.” he snapped before getting up, “Or what of the Pyroar king? He could have become a great general, leading armies into battle for the greater good. Every pokemon criminal who is destroyed had the potential to be something, to have a good life and value to society.” he narrowed his eyes on her, “But still you judge us. The ones who would allow them to live and repent, while looking past the actions of teams who would kill them in vengeance.”
 
Cyn fell silent at the accusation, unable to even lift her head. The Lucario’s words had hit her, and it began to occur to her just how many villains they had ‘destroyed’, how many could have lived normal lives under the effects of the elixir. Though as she thought on the effects of Amity, her eyes began to return to the Lucario. “...So, Amity makes you unwaveringly loyal to the Guild, does it?” she asked pitifully. “Auric… are you-”
 
“No. I was never given Amity, some pokemon just prefer order to chaos.” Auric replied with a shake of his head. “I know this isn’t easy for you to hear, Cyn. But it’s a fact that a pokemon criminal is less likely to be trusted, even after they have reformed. There’s no telling if they might turn back to their old ways, there’s no telling that they -want- to be a good pokemon.” the Lucario held up the vial between them, allowing Cyn to see her reflection on the glass, “This is how we know for sure that they will never return to becoming criminals, and it is not used lightly.”
 
“Are they… going to do it to me?” the Liepard asked, finding herself shivering under the Lucario’s intense gaze, “When they find out about the lense, am I going to end up having to take it?”
 
“No. Your actions were out of naivety, you had no idea the chaos you would cause when you took the Rainbow Lense. None of us did.” The Lucario shook his head before taking her paw in his. After some struggling from the cat he finally placed the vial in her paw, “But you need to keep this. If you think Malus is about to go rogue, you must make him drink it.”
 
“Arceus, Auric.” Cyn breathed out. Finally she curled her paw around the vial, only to place it on the bed and shake her head, “I don’t want to have to do that. Even to Malus, it just seems so… wrong.”
 
“I’m glad to have left it in your paws then, Cyn.” The Lucario replied as he stepped back. He turned towards the door and began to move to leave the room, “I know you wouldn’t use it unless you absolutely had to. Please, take care of it, and take care of yourself.”
 
“I will…” The Liepard said, her ears folding back as she watched him go. She laid on her bed, though as she felt the cold glass of the vial on her side she gasped and quickly rolled away from it. How something so small could leave her so afraid, she’d never understand. She opted to put it in her bedside cabinet for now, planning to find somewhere better to put it in the morning.
 
She would miss having Auric around, but she knew he would be back soon to lift the burden of Malus’ fate off of her. Perhaps while he was gone she and Kaiser would be able to turn the young Persian around… maybe there was still a chance for him.
 
Maybe there was still a chance for her.