A month ago, on the summit of Mt. Silver:

Fire and ash rained from the sky; little slivers of white and specks of black that dug into Ryan's skin like needles as he ran, cutting through the thick smoke surrounding the summit of the frozen mountain.

The world around him was nothing but pain and dust and chaos. Pokemon attacks cut through the air all over; flames and electricity lighting the pure blackness that was everything around them. Screams and commands rang behind him, but whether from his companions or from their enemy he didn't know, and he didn't care. Not about them, not about the fight. Not even about the mission.

All he cared about was reaching her side as fast as humanly possible.

No, nononono!

His sword had been blasted out of his hand somewhere back near the battlefield. His hand was bleeding severely. His arms and face were covered in soot and little specks of burnt skin, and his legs and lungs felt as though they couldn't go on for much longer, his vision starting to blur from the pain and exhaustion.

He forced himself to keep moving, fueled by nothing but fear.

Not you, god, please not you…

The attack had reached her in the one second he'd let his guard down. Sid had told him to cover their left flank, and their enemy had used that moment of distraction to focus their weakest link. By the time he'd turned his head back to her, it was already too late. The volley of stones sharp as spears were already upon her.

Even through the flames and explosions, Ryan had heard it. The unmistakable sound of something sharp and jagged piercing flesh. She'd been thrown back by the momentum of the attack, rolling down the small cliff and away from where he could see her.

Please, please, she can't be… She wasn't even supposed to–!

Ryan found her. Even amidst this hellscape, the bright red of her hair was unmistakable. He froze in place for a moment, heart in his throat. Then he threw himself at her and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"SAMMY!"

Something in him gave away as he fell to his knees beside her, hands reaching for her arm, her face, any part of her that he could grab onto. Any part of her that he could pull back from the brink.

But there was nothing left.

"No, no… p-please, god…"

Sammy had never looked so peaceful, had never felt so fragile and weightless in his arms. Blood ran down her forehead toward her lips from the spot in which her head had bounced against the ground, and dark, deep red spots bloomed petals of blood against her chest and stomach, where she'd been pierced. Ryan didn't need to look at the wounds for more than a moment to know they were lethal.

"Sammy… S-Sammy, please…"

The girl did not answer, but her dark red eyes continued to look up at him, empty, cold.

Lifeless.

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"Why do they call it Pewter Prison if it's not even in Pewter?"

Sammy was the first to break the silence. The group stood atop one of the many rocky cliffs overlooking the dull and grey valley west of Pewter, in the middle of which stood the prison they were looking for. Were it not for the black windows and roof, it might have camouflaged itself perfectly, being the same shade of gray as everything around it. The land was dead, barren, as though something foul were emanating from the prison itself, sucking out all life.

"Luckily, it doesn't appear as though it'll be hard to enter," Siegfried pointed out. "Look; the fence on the front has been blasted off its hinges."

"Must have been the other group of trainers," muttered Muffin.

Sabrina sighed. "Whether them or not, it shouldn't keep us here. Come on, let's get going."

The building grew and grew in the distance as they walked, and soon they realized it was a lot bigger than it had looked from their outpost. It had the shape of a tall, bulky rectangle, with a couple of guard towers on each side and a tall, fenced wall around the back. On the front–

"One moment…" Mycroft stopped, frowning at something in the distance. "Is that...?"

Sammy looked up at one of the smaller cliffs near the fence, and nodded. "We're not alone."

There was a figure in the distance. A man, tall and lanky, wearing what looked like a white shirt and black cargo pants that cut off at the knees. He held something in his hands.

"Doesn't seem like one of them," said Mycroft.

"Then why should we care?" shrugged Ñako. "Come on, let's just go."

"Hold on, just…"

Mycroft walked away from the group and toward the man, followed closely by Sammy. Once he was close enough, he placed his hands around his mouth and let out a yell.

"Hey, you!"

"H-hu–Ghyaah!"

The man jumped and turned on his feet, and that was enough for him to slip off the edge of the small cliff, tumbling down and away from their vision.

"Merde!" yelled out Mycroft.

"What a moron," muttered Sammy.

By the time they reached him he was still flat on his butt, painfully attempting to push himself up. Yet he didn't seem angry at all when he noticed them. And as Mycroft reached out and offered him a hand, he just smiled and took it, rising to his feet.

"Ah… haha… Man, these rocks are slippery." His voice was tall and deep, yet somewhat childish. "Sorry about that, guys."

From up close, Mycroft could make out his appearance more clearly. He was indeed quite tall and handsome, although strangely pale and sickly-looking. His hair was short and messy, a deep, rich black.

Mycroft raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Oh, yes! Don't worry about it, I'm fit as a fiddle," he smiled. "This kinda thing happens to me a lot, trust me."

"I can imagine," Sammy whispered.

"What were you doing in a place like this anyway?" asked Mycroft. "No offense, but this isn't exactly a tourist spot. It might be dangerous."

The man blinked and tilted his head to the side, like he didn't understand Mycroft's point. He just shrugged and pointed down at the camera hanging from his neck.

"Right, right. Y'see, I'm actually a photographer. I heard about this place from an acquaintance of mine and I thought I'd come check it out!" he exclaimed happily. "There's just… something about this place, y'know? Makes you feel like there's something to be gained here."

"That is…" Mycroft tried to find the words. Foolhardy? Idiotic? "Interesting. But I–"

"Hey!" Ñako yelled out ahead of them, his voice booming through the valley. "Stop with the socializing already, this prison ain't gonna ransack itself!"

Mycroft rolled his eyes. Damn barbarian…

"Right. Well, apologies, but we really must get going," Mycroft told the man. "It was a pleasure meeting you, however!"

"O-oh? W-well, I…!"

"Until next time!" yelled Mycroft, already walking away, being dragged by Sammy. "Take care of yourself!"

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

The man kept staring at their backs, expressionless, until they vanished past the next cliff.

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"Aha. It seems as though this entrance is blocked by some kind of anti-intruder material," Vard pointed out.

Siegfried raised an eyebrow. "Do you mean bricks?"

It looked like, at some point, someone had blown open an entrance on the side of the prison, but then someone else had filled it out with a thick layer of bricks. They'd looked around, but there didn't seem to be any other way in. There was a moment of consideration amidst the group before Vard took a step forward and spoke.

"Very well, my leadership is clearly needed here. Attention, team! Gather up!"

Silver and Ñako rushed to stand in front of him, giving the man a perfect military salute. The others, Vard supposed, were so shocked by the sheer determination of his voice that they couldn't quite understand his order.

"Here's what we'll do," he said, folding his arms. "Ninja-man, go around the building and use your ninja eyes to find us a way in. Bird-man, use your man-bird to survey the area and make sure we are not surrounded by the enemy. And you, woman-man, I see you are still wounded. Come, and let your leader ease your pains."

However, as Vard took out his first-aid kit and approached a very hesitant Sabrina, Muffin decided to chime in.

"Or... we could have Siegfried's Tyrogue use Brick Break and open a way in."

"Oh. I suppose that is also acceptable, yes."

With a tired sigh, Siegfried produced a Pokeball from his belt. "You heard her, Itsuki. Please open up a path for us."

And while the Tyrogue was busy demolishing the wall with a series of consecutive punches, Vard finished examining Sabrina's arm, and nodded to himself. He took a small vial full of liquid from his afro and applied a few drops to the wound. He then proceeded to replace Silver's makeshift toilet paper bandages with actual gauze, sealing it properly.

"W-what?" Sabrina's eyes went wide as she felt sensation return to her arm. "How the hell did you…?"

"Worry not, my dear vice-foreman," Vard reassured her. "Vard's magic touch never fails."

Sabrina continued to tentatively move her arm, getting used to the pain as the last of the wall of bricks finally came down. A cloud of dust and dirt marked the way inside, and once the wind blew it away they all gathered around it and stepped inside one by one. Due to the wall of people in front of her it took Sabrina a moment to see what was inside.

"Hm. This place seems abandoned," muttered Vard.

"That's because it is," said Siegfried.

"Exactly as I suspected."

The inside was about as wide in both directions as the inside of Silph Co., only there was much less in the way of decorations or… well, anything. At first sight, there were only two things in the room. First was the square row of empty prison cells lining up the walls not only around them, but on the upper floors as well. The bars were bent and brown, rust peeling off them in flakes and flying through the air, much like the crusty swabs of paint coming off the walls.

The second was a hole. It stood in the middle of the room and took at least seventy percent of the floor, looking more like a sinkhole than any kind of man-made path. They could barely make out a wall of dirt and debris that went down a few feet before darkness overtook everything. It was impossible to tell at first sight just how deep it went.

"So… Cursed Hellhole of Death," muttered Ñako. "Sounds good! Who's coming with me?"

"W-wh… you can't be serious!" protested Mycroft.

Sabrina approached the hole, almost reaching the edge, and remembered what that bastard Mullac had told them regarding the mission.

An underground dungeon…

"There's nowhere else to go," she said. "We can probably get down if we use all of our flying Pokemon. So come on, get to it."

She produced a Pokeball and, after a moment of hesitation, a few of the rest did the same. There was a triple flash of light as Carrie, Pogo and Yamikarazu materialized above them, waiting for their orders.

"Two people can ride on Fearow's back, and two more can hang from his talons," she pointed out. "Carrie can carry two, and I figure Murkrow can carry someone small… so kitty girl." She didn't need to turn around to feel Muffin's glare on her back. "That's all of us."

Silver clicked his tongue, although he did it with a smile. "Pogo has to carry four? Y'all gonna give him a hernia!"

"You'd be surprised by how strong those things are," Sabrina replied with a smile of her own.

After a minute of weight allocation, the seven of them grabbed on to their respective flying Pokemon and only took a single moment to breathe in before jumping down into the darkness.

Not a second passed before they could see nothing. The shadows under them rose up like a wave, so thick and deep that it didn't seem as though their vision would adjust any time soon. Not that they had much time to worry about that, holding on to dear life as Pogo, Carrie and Yamikarazu struggled to keep them afloat, lowering them slowly instead of having them plummet to their death.

"J-jumping head-first into this darkness…" Muffin's words were barely caught by the rest. "Aren't we being a bit too rash?"

"A calculated risk, my good vice-admiral!" yelled Vard. "But fear not; my greatness shall light the way!"

Carrie was the first to land with a deaf thump, and Sabrina wasted no time returning her to her ball, no thanks given. She put her hands in her pockets and started walking around tentatively, unable to see anything around her. The floor felt solid under her feet, made of tiles instead of dirt, so they'd probably arrived at the right place.

"This really is a Pyroar's maw," Siegfried said behind her.

"Maybe this isn't the right way?" asked Ñako.

Sabrina shook her head, only a moment after realizing they couldn't see her do that. "No, this has to be the way. Princey Boy, I saw you have a Tangela; make him use Flash so we can see around."

Mycroft grumbled, but he didn't complain. "Yes, I suppose we sh–"

A loud bonk of body against body echoed throughout the room, followed by pained grunts and the sound of someone falling atop someone else. Sabrina was the first to yelp.

"Gh-fuck!"

"Agh!" yelled another, male voice. "Who the fuck-?"

"W-what happened!?" yelled Muffin, terrified.

"Stalker, use Flash!"

At Mycroft's behest, Stalker emerged from his Pokeball and the device's flash of light was preceded by a longer-reaching and more lasting one. A powerful green glow poured outwards from the Tangela's body, blinding everyone for a moment before their eyes could adjust.

Once they did, they all stared forward in silence, gormlessly. Sammy was the first to speak.

"R-RYAN!?"

The swordsman blinked rapidly, shaking his head from the pain as he pushed himself slightly up with his hands. Under him, Sabrina let out a cough and did the same. Their eyes met, and the two trainers froze in place, shame and redness rising up their cheeks.

"…Wow. Just… wow." Ñako said, shaking his head. "I'd make a joke, but I think it's too obvious."

Ryan jumped up to his feet as though pushed by a spring, immediately turning around and clearing his throat. Sabrina did the same a second after. She said nothing, murder clear in her face as she adjusted her hat and wiped the dust off her clothes. Neither of them could quite hide the flush in their faces.

"Look where you're going next time, jackass," she muttered under her breath.

"W-what the hell are you doing here!?" Sammy demanded, her face similarly flushed.

Ryan didn't turn around, simply huffing. "It'd be easier if you stopped appearing literally everywhere I go."

Sammy's eyes went even wider as she glared at Ryan and Sabrina intermittently, which made the latter realize something.

Ah… I'm pretty sure Sammy wants me dead.

"W-well, for your information…!"

But Sammy's voice was drowned out as another group of footsteps resounded not too far from them. Everyone but Ryan turned around sharply as seven other silhouettes appeared on the edge of Stalker's light, their faces hidden in shadows for only a moment before they stepped forward, revealing themselves.

"Heh. Funny running into you guys again," said Travis, raising one of his drumsticks and pointing at the other group. "Almost seems like fate, don't you think?"

Beside him, Nancy huffed and adjusted her glasses. "Stop talking like that, Travis. We all knew we'd find each other here."

"Oh… my gosh! It's you guys!" Caroline waved at them from across the gap between the two groups, a huge smile on her face. "It's so nice to see you! Y'alls style is still, like, totally awesome to the max, y'know?"

"I… what?" muttered Mycroft. "What did she…?"

But he was cut off as one of the other trainers took a step forward, hands on his pockets and a cigarette hanging from his mouth. Sid took a drag and let out the smoke before speaking.

"Hm. Looks like your group is missing… three members," he said with a raspy, snake-y voice. "What a shame to be separated from your friends, hm? Yet such a joy to find each other in a place like this. Oh, by the way…"

Sid looked up at Siegfried, who instantly took a step back at the sinister gleam behind his eyes.

"Did the waste of space finally crack out of his egg?" he asked. "If so… heh. Congrats."

A sharp, controlled inhale later, Siegfried replied. "...Indeed he did."

The two groups of trainers stood across each other, staring the others down with caution, only Ryan and Sabrina in between them. The silence was thick enough to be sliced with a knife.

Finally, it was Dexter who broke the silence."Ya-ha! Look who it is!" he yelled, staring down at Silver. "Still playing with the other boy scouts, I see!"

Silver held his scythe in front of him and chuckled. "Heh, we'll see after I cut you in half if you're still talking lik–"

"Enough."

The voice reverberated throughout the entire room, instantly silencing both trainers with its weight. It came from the tall, grey-haired man in the back, the one that had spoken the least during their previous encounter. Whatever the case, as soon as he heard his voice, Dexter clicked his tongue and put his weapon away without complaint.

"Mike is right," said Nancy. "This is not the time for a fight."

"Oh, isn't it now?"

Despite her previous commanding tone, even Nancy involuntarily shivered at the sound of Sid's voice, and she couldn't help but go stiff as the man took a few steps in her direction.

"I think we all know it's no coincidence that we've met again in a place like this," he said, his thin lips spreading into a smile. "Now, as for the question of the day… Which one of us will end up taking the prize? Us? Or you, and your team of worthless Pokemon?"

That was all it took for the tension to shoot up to the roof once more. Silver and Ñako instantly grabbed onto their weapons, while the rest hovered their hands over their Pokeballs. At least until Sammy stopped them from killing each other.

"Sorry to kill your murder boner, Sid, but a battle in this place is completely out of the question."

All eyes turned toward the redhead as she walked forward toward the other group, hands casually in her pocket. There was no hint of fear or nervousness in her eyes.

"Oh?" asked Sid, raising an eyebrow. "And what exactly do you mean by that, Samantha?"

Sammy's nose scrunched up for a moment at the sound of her name, but she chose to ignore it.

"It's just as Nancy said. There's no point in trying to hide the fact that we're both here for the same object, but it makes no sense for us to fight over it right here and now," she explained. "Even if one group kills the other, they'll be left too weak and tired to deal with whatever is surely down there, protecting our prize."

The two groups chewed over her words, tension slowly dropping and various looks of consideration crossing the trainer's faces.

"I… I see what you mean," admitted Siegfried. "Then…"

"Wait, you're saying we should work together?" asked Sabrina, disgust in her voice.

Sammy nodded. "A temporary truce is the most logical course of action. We'll reach the depths of this place together, and when we finally find what we came here for… then each one of us may do as we please."