It almost felt normal again, meal of apples at the table, followed by sleeping in a hay bed in my old room with Keeper at the guild. We were woken up by WPM as usual and made our way out for the morning meeting. Everyone got a refresher on their tasks and then split up. As we decided yesterday, Keeper and I were planning on making our way to the hot springs, but we stopped in town first to sell a bunch of items and organize our inventory.
We didn't actually know how to get directly to the hot springs for some reason, so we had to go back through the low-leveled dungeon of Waterfall Cave. None of the enemies could hardly even damage us, so we went through fairly quickly, eventually making our way to the hot springs and our target, Rusty Sticks the Torkoal.
<Rusty> Hey guys, 'sup?
<Keeper> Not much, we just wanted to ask you a--
<Rusty> What's that you say? You come seeking wisdom? Come, sit down, and I shall answer all of your questions in the form of a long-winded, rambling story.
<Athena> >_> *sits*
<Keeper> <_< *sits*
<Athena> So, we were wondering if you've heard anything about a place called the Hidden Land?
<Rusty> The Hidden Land, you say? Ohboy, that takes me back. An old, old legend based down via oral tradition since my granddaddy couldn't figure out how to write with a pen using these stumpy legs.
<Keeper> Can we hear it? :D
<Rusty> Oh, I'd tell it to you whether you wanted to hear it or not. Let's see now.... *ahem* Once upon a time it was a dark and-- no, no, that's not the right one. Oh, yes! Long ago, the Hidden Land is a wondrous place that lies beyond the sea.
<Athena> *sigh* I knew TGK's off-hand suggestion was going to be some kind of lazy foreshadowing...
<Rusty> But it's in a hidden place, you see! That's why it's called the "Hidden Land". In order to actually find it, you must be "chosen" and in order to be "chosen" you must possess "certain" "qualities"... something about having "proof".
<Athena> That's a lot of air quotes. >_>
<Keeper> What kind of proof?
<Rusty> *shrugs* Sorry, I got no idea, kid. I'm just an old Pokémon NPC whose only purpose is to give out vague hints. If you want real information, go to GameFAQs or something.
<Keeper> Fair enough. Any other hints for us?
<Rusty> Nope, that's all. The hint barrel has run dry.
<Keeper> Alright, well, let's get back to the guild.
We actually soaked in the springs for a bit longer and then finally headed back to report to the others.
<Tails> So, old Rusty was useless, eh?
<IA> Not entirely. At least we know we need.... some kind of proof.
<Tails> Anything else useful learned?
<Everyone> ... ... ...
<MtC> In that case, it's time for dinner!
After dinner and bed, we started the next morning hoping that some new plot thing would happen because we had run out of ideas. Thankfully, peer obliged.
<peer> Pokémon detected! It's.... it's Rusty!
<Keeper> Man, he actually came out of the springs?
<Athena> Must have found an extra clue hiding in the bottom of the hint barrel after all.
<Rusty> I did indeed come to share another hint with you! It's not really that big or important, though.
<Athena> Well, rules of video game plot state that it must be important or this whole scene wouldn't be happening, so go ahead and spill.
<IA> Yes, please share! ^_^
<Rusty> You see... the "proof" that you need to have is an inscription of a certain pattern.
<Luis> What kind of pattern?
<Rusty> A bizarre, complicated pattern that doesn't actually mean anything by itself but is integral to the plot regardless. Anyone have any plot-related things that haven't been fully explained yet, especially ones with goofy-looking patterns on 'em?
<Athena> Keeper's rock!
<Keeper> You mean my precious treasure? What makes you think that's plot-relevant?
<Athena> Of course it's plot-relevant, silly. Show it to Rusty.
<Rusty> By golly, that sure is it alright.
<Everyone> :O!
<Teal> So, does that mean Keeper can go to this Hidden Land then?
<Rusty> Maybe? I dunno, this was my last hint. You guys will have to figure out the rest on your own.
<IA> This has been very helpful for our search, thank you! ^_^ In fact, this symbol looks familiar to me. Don't you think so too, Tails?
<Tails> Yep. Brine Cave, by the sea inlet to the northwest. There was that vicious bandit there. *sigh*
<Everyone> :O!
<IA> I still think we should go there, though. We'll be okay together. ^_^
<Everyone> Yay, new dungeon! :D
<IA> Everyone go get ready and then we'll head out together tomorrow! ^_^
<Everyone> Hurray! :D
<IA> Except you, Tails. You get to stay behind and watch the guild.
<Tails> Awwww.... ._.; But I want to go!
<IA> *sigh* Fine, you can go. But you have to stick with the main characters to make sure nothing happens to you, alright?
<Tails> Fine. >.>
<IA> Now, I must go do preparation of my own! *flees*
<Tails> Alright, I guess we're stuck together tomorrow. So go prepare well! Make sure to bring plenty of Reviver Seeds in case I get in trouble.
<Athena> *sigh* Stupid NPCs...
Meanwhile, outside....
<Rusty> Oh, these young whippersnappers remind me of the days of my youth... if only I were young and strong enough to go with the guild on their adventure to the Hidden Land...
<???> Hold it, old man!
<Rusty> Oh, who's this?
<Vom> *enters with Celever and bbninjas* Team Skull of course! Surely you didn't think we were out of the story for good.
<Rusty> *sigh* What do you want?
<Celever> We overheard you talking about the guild!
<bbninjas> They're planning another expedition to a cool place, aren't they?
<Rusty> I was just--
<Vom> Let's take you someplace and have a little chat...
Keeper and I went to town for our inventory sorting and then decided to go back to Keeper's old place and see if TGK was around. He wasn't, but he had left us a note, explaining that he 3 of the Time Gears and was cooperating with the guardians. He had found out from them that we were working with the guild now, too, but planned on staying away in case TT showed up. And, finally, he named both the Bluff and the Beach as potential contact points. So, we went down to check out the beach, too, just in case, but...
<Keeper> Nope, no sign of him anywhere. Must still be out gathering one of the remaining Time Gears. But, being on this beach again... I remember...
I tuned out as Keeper reminisced about the past a bit. I understand that it means a lot to him, but I get tired of hearing the story of our meeting over, and over, and over, and over. Mostly, I just nodded and made a couple acknowledging noises here and then to let him know I was still paying attention.
<Keeper> ... at's that?
<Athena> Oh, yes, of course, Keeper. *yawn*
<Keeper> No, seriously, what is that?
<Athena> *blink* Huh?
<Keeper> Out in the ocean there!
<Athena> It looks like a Lapras to me.
<Keeper> Huh, weird. I haven't seen any of them around here. Oh well, it probably doesn't mean anything. Let's get back to the guild.
<Athena> I have a feeling it'll be plot important, but oh well, it can wait for morning.
After we left, a few Pokémon remained lurking on the beach....
<Vom> Man, I thought Keeper was never going to shut up. My neck is stiff from hiding behind those rocks.
<bbninjas> Still we got some good intel.
<Celeber> Heh, yeah. Never imagined that rock we had stolen before would end up being so important!
<Vom> Well, we'll steal it back and loot the Hidden Land for ourselves, no worries.
After everyone else had eaten dinner and was in bed, a mysterious meeting took place on a rocky coast, proving that the Lapras would, indeed, be plot relevant...
<IA> Hey, PMJ, 'sup? Haven't seen you swimming in these parts in quite some time.
<PMJ> Looking good, man. Tails doing well? And the guild?
<IA> Right as rain. ^_^
<PMJ> You know, I wanted to thank you again for keeping that mysterious and secretive promise you kept for me.
<IA> Yep! Sadly, that's why I'm here. Though I have a feeling you know about that. Now, about that mysteriously weird symbol we saw....
The next morning, we had a meeting to prepare for the trip to Brine Cave.
<Tails> IA still hasn't come back yet, but time is of the essence, so we're going to leave on the mission to Brine Cave without him.
<Teal> Is that safe? >_>
<Tails> Yeah, no problem. He'll probably just meet us there. Besides, you have me to lead you!
<Everyone> ... ... ...
<Keeper> It's ok, we'll do all do our best together!
<Tails> Thanks for the vote of confidence, everyone. >_>
<Zyflair> Awww, we're just teasing you Tails. Now lead on with your best IA impersonation!
<Tails> Alright.... *ahem* Everyone do your best! ^_^
<Everyone> Hurray! :D
As a group, we all made the short trek to Brine Cave in the northwest. Outside the cave, we had our final pep talk.
<Tails> Alright, everyone, the mission is as follows: get to the bottom of the dungeon!
<Everyone> Yay! :D
<Tails> And look out for the terrifying outlaws that live there.
<Everyone> D:!
<SR> So, uh, do we get a warning about what these outlaws are like?
<Tails> No idea! When IA and I were here before they OHKOed me and I don't remember a thing.
<Teal> So, we don't get any hints?
<Tails> Well, I think it was a Water-type attack?
<SR> Ohshi-
<Tails> Anyway, we're all going to split into groups. I'll be going with Athena and Keeper, the rest of you can figure out your own groups.
None of us saw Team Skull lurking in the corners as we made our way into the cave and split up. Keeper, Tails, and I headed off in one direction leaving the other NPCs to figure out their own groups. Tails wasn't too bad of an NPC to have tag along; he was a bit on the fragile side, but his Fury Attack hit like a beast. The Water-type Pokémon were somewhat problematic for me, but we managed to make it through to the halfway point with a saving statue when suddenly...
<Vom> Team Skull is rocking the house! *bamp*
<Tails> Ohhey, I remember you guys from...
<Vom> Ooh, look, shiny rock! *takes Keeper's precious*
<Keeper> No! That's mine!
<bbninjas> We stole it before and we'll steal it again.
<Celever> You guys never learn, do you?
<Tails> Hold on, please. What are you doing here? I've been worried about you ever since you disappeared during the expedition to Fogbound Lake...
<Vom> *snickers* This guy is so dumb he still doesn't realize we're bad guys!
<bbninjas & Celever> *high five*
<Tails> This is...
<Keeper> Yes, Tails, they really are bad guys.
<Tails> WHAT?!
<Athena> We did try to warn you before.
<Vom> Anyway, now that we have this thing, we're going to go to the Hidden Land ourselves. Smell ya later! *leaves with the others*
<Tails> Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle. How RUDE. It's time someone showed them a lesson.... *flies off after them*
<Keeper> *facepalm*
<Athena> Eh, it's fine. We can take care of the rest of the dungeon ourselves. We're all headed in the same direction anyway.
<Keeper> Alright...
And so Keeper and I continued on our own, eventually making it to the next plot floor.
<Keeper> Dammit, no sign of either Tails or Team Skull. I hope they didn't get lost.
<???> Uggghhhh....
<Athena> Well, let's go follow that suspicious noise.
We walked forward until we came to an amusing site.... Team Skull lying all over the room, KOed.
<Athena> trololololololol
<Keeper> What happened?
<Athena> Who cares? Let's rifle through their pockets.
<Keeper> This was the work of those outlaw bosses, wasn't it?
<Celever> No one told us about any outlaw bosses...
<Keeper> You guys okay?
<bbninjas> Why do you care?
<Keeper> I, uh, just do.
<Vom> Well, that's better than we got from Tails. When he saw us like this he just laughed and took all our stuff and flew off.
<Athena> *snicker*
<Vom> Don't worry; we'll get him back. Funny that after how horribly we treated you that you'd be the ones to be nice to us.
<Keeper> Well, you're Pokémon, too, even if you're jerk Pokémon.
<Vom> Well, since you're so nice and all, I guess you can have your stupid rock back.
<Keeper> Sweet, thanks!
<Vom> But don't think this makes things good between us! We're still bad guys.
<Keeper> Okay, fair enough.
<Vom> Now, stop worrying about us and go worry about your friend... after all, he flew right into the outlaw boss den.
<Athena> Ohshi-
<Keeper> Let's go!
<bbninjas> *snicker* You're a little bit of a good guy after all, boss.
<Vom> Shut up or I'll gas you.
<Celever> Don't worry; we won't tell anyone...
Keeper and I rushed forward and eventually met up with Tails. There was no sign of the outlaws, however, until we looked up and saw them dangling from the ceiling above us! It was a Kabutops and 2 Omastar!
<Tails> Ohshi-
<Uralya> I am Uralya!
<Omastars> And the Omastar Brothers!
<Keeper> Nice to meet you, I'm--
<Uralya> Shut up, it's time to fight! *slash*
<Keeper> Urk!
<Tails> *dives in the way*
<Keeper> Tails! You saved me. :O
<Uralya> Ohhey, I remember you. We KOed you before when you came in with that fat pink guy.
<Tails> I won't let you harm these Pokémon! >:|
<Uralya> ... ... ...
<Tails> *collapses, KOed*
<Uralya> That's better. Now, like I said before... time to fight!
The 3 Pokémon surrounded us. I busied myself trying to keep them Smokescreened while Keeper plinked for damage. As soon as one of the Omastars was KOed, Keeper and I swapped spots to keep me out of the line of the Water-type attacks. Eventually we wore them down and the remaining 2 were badly injured. Before we could finish them off, they fled, leaving us to take care of Tails.
<Keeper> Hey Tails, you ok, bro?
<IA> Taaaaaaaaiiiillllllllssssss!
<Tails> Guildmaster!
<Keeper> Ohhey, it's IA, and TGK, too!
<Teal> And don't forget us too! *arrives with the rest of the guildmembers*
<MtC> So, uh, what's going on?
<IA> Tails is hurt... ;~;
<Tails> I'll be fine; stop worrying. My pride was hurt more than anything...
<Keeper> He jumped in front of the bad guys and saved us!
<IA> *sigh* I can't believe this happened again.
<Athena> Again?
<IA> That's exactly what he did when we came here before. He saved me! That's why I keep him around.
<TGK> This guy needs medical attention. We should take him back to the guild.
<IA> We will, yes. But you, Athena, and Keeper need to keeping going. You're the main characters! Now go do your job and save the world and stuff.
<Keeper> Alright. You guys take care!
<IA> Good luck! ^_^
Keeper, TGK, and I continued down through the cave to the place where IA and Chatot had seen the mysterious symbol before.
<Keeper> So, uh, how'd you get here anyway, TGK?
<TGK> Oh, IA brought me. Just when I had found all the Time Gears he found me and brought me to the cave, too.
<Athena> I guess that's why he didn't make it back to the guild in time.
<Keeper> Anyway, I think we're almost there now.... hey, wait, this is the sea!
<Athena> A little cave entrance it looks like... shame we didn't know about this before, we could have come straight here and avoided the dungeon.
<Keeper> And here's the symbol! It's the same as on my treasure rock alright. *pulls it out to compare*
As soon as Keeper pulled his rock out, the rock and the symbol on the cave wall both started pulsing with a blue glow. Then suddenly, a laser fired off towards the sea!
<Keeper> :O!
<TGK> What the *&%# was that?
<Keeper> And what's that outside now?
Sure enough, something was coming towards on us on the water. It was a Lapras, like the one I had seen before!
<PMJ> Keeper, Athena, TGK 'sup?
<Keeper> Wait, you know us? :O
<PMJ> Yeah, IA told me about you guys. I'm PMJ, the guide to the Hidden Land.
<Everyone> :O!!!
<Keeper> So, wait, you can just take us there? Sweet!
<PMJ> That laser you just sent out is the signal. It means you're cool.
<Keeper> Did you hear that, Athena? PMJ thinks I'm cool! :'D
<PMJ> Go ahead and hop on my back and I'll have you brought over there in no time flat.
<TGK> Come on, let's go!