Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Quenched Torch

Chapter 15: Law and Chaos

A long, sleep-deprived night passed before I was woken up from a light sleep by the scorching desert sun in my eyes. Letting out a weary moan as I sat up to blink the colored spots out of my eyes, I noticed Rye was already sitting idly across from me, leaning out the window to talk with who I guessed was Cap'n Brine. He quickly noticed me and got to his feet.

"Morning, Beck. Uh, we're all up a little earlier than expected, I guess," he chuckled.

"That's fah the best, eh," Cap'n Brine's voice rang from outside the window. "Back when I was a wee Wingull servin' in the Ten Years War, they'd throw yeh into the water if ya snoozed out at sea. Now, you go an' get a move on, Feraligatr's prolly waitin' for ya." Rye looked back out with a start.

"What? Y-you're not...?" he asked.

"Ah, Feraligatr said she'd bring me an Oran while me leg quits smarting," he responded. "She said she'd be o'er at the cafe joss down the street."

Rye, his prior cheeriness gone, swallowed hard and nodded, prompting the Pelipper to presumably fly back up to the roof. As we collected our things, I couldn't help but notice how nervous he seemed to be about what was coming. Handing our bag to him, I put my paw on his arm.

"Shaa," I said reassuringly, only to be met with a forlorn gaze. I didn't understand what this was about; I mean, Officer Feraligatr was pretty nice from what I could tell, why was Rye...

'...oh. Feraligatr.

Yeah, should have figured.'

With this in mind, I followed Rye out into the arid morning air. As the police-mon had said, Bassa Village did seem to be built around the sun-bleached ruins of an old town; even the roads had patches of faded asphalt. As for Feraligatr's house, it looked to have been built on top of a concrete foundation, maybe an old apartment or shop. Of course, most of the ruins seemed to have been worn down by years of erosion, though I guessed the Pokémon that had taken up residence here had worked to preserve what was left. With sunlight now making my surroundings clear, I could clearly see the fragmented Unown-script in the architecture around me. Although only limited to a few faded letters, they held a twinge of familiarity to them, unlike the strange footprint runes. Maybe if I got up closer, I could actually read them...?

I couldn't actually do this, as I ended up tripping over a passing Sandile when I tried. Earning a scraped leg and a dubious look from Rye, I got to my feet and kept trudging along. It wasn't long after that when we found the restaurant Cap'n Brine had mentioned, where Officer Feraligatr was waiting at a table for us. She offered a cock of her head and a small nod of greeting as we found a seat across from her.

"You're here early. Haven't even gotten my food yet," she muttered. handing us a couple of small cups.

"Tea? Wasn't cheap, it's made from Energy Roots," she offered. Reluctantly taking a sip, I quickly spit it out as a bitter taste attacked my tongue. While the herbs in the tea did make me feel more awake, I decided I'd settle for the water provided instead. As an unamused Feraligatr looked on, Rye cleared his throat.

"S-so... uh, you wanted to talk to us, ma'am?" he asked.

"Mhm, about the outlaw mission. Say, which Guild you in from?" Feraligatr questioned.

"Uh, Arcanine's."

An amused grin crossed Feraligatr's maw as she leaned forward.

"So I guess that'd make you Team Reach, then," she said.

"Hwha?" I asked, only for her to smirk and nod.

"Yup, definitely Reach. Heard about you from explorers from Arcanine's," she said before glancing over to me.