Ten Days Later
The land of Hisui slept peacefully. The townspeople of Jubilife Village had returned to their houses for the night. The region’s other inhabitants had done the same, each one fast asleep.
In the trees, grass, and ocean, the region’s many Pokemon all rested too. A few nocturnal ones stayed awake, instead choosing to spend the night hunting.
The cycle of life in the region remained intact. In its entirety, the night was picturesque and normal. Peaceful.
But in the middle of the region, up atop the peak of the highest mountain, things were different. Strange. Anomalous.
Frenzied Alpha Pokemon, scarlet eyes aglow, fiercely battled for territory. This particular night, a massive Garchomp and Electivire dueled to the death. All other Pokemon in the area had fled, sensing the danger.
But even higher above the mountain, things were even more abnormal. A great crack split the normally clear and cloudless sky. It looked as if a large glass dome had been placed over the land by the great Almighty Sinnoh, and a nail had been driven through the center. White spiderweb cracks fractured out from the middle, leaking their energy down to the land below. Dark clouds spilled from the rift, swirling around it. The great blemish in the sky looked like the eye of a hurricane, crackling with dark lightning.
The humans of the land recognized the rift as the doing of the gods they worshipped and were wary of it. The Pokemon of the land instinctually knew that something was wrong and dangerous about the rift. The gods of the land, that the people and Pokemon prayed to, had long since deserted them to fend for themselves.
This particular night, the space-time rift, in its infinite wisdom, decided to break the peace of the night. The tempestuous winds riled up, ruffling the leaves of the largest tree in the region. Grandtree, the humans had called it.
The rift grew unstable and released its energy like a dam springing a leak. The passive energy leak crescendoed into a mighty bolt, charging the air with powerful lightning and arcing down.
Out in the woods, one child who had already experienced a great dose of the rift’s energy awoke with a start. He woke just in time to hear a shout in the distance, barely audible above the wind. The lightning struck its target with a powerful crash like the symphony of the heavens reaching the climax of its song, fortissimo, and the percussionist finishing the piece with their cymbals.
A few moments later, the boy judged himself to not be in any immediate danger and rolled back over to sleep.
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The following morning, when Alec returned to the village to restock on supplies, he found an extra guard at the village gate. When he approached to ask why patrol had been doubled, the guardsman told Alec that Kamado had issued a recall for all the Corpsmen in the field.
“Why?” he asked.
“I don’t know, he didn’t tell us why,” the guard said. “He’s in his office right now.”
Shrugging, Alec decided that the day’s activities could wait for now. He headed toward the city hall. He’d only been in the building itself a handful of times—primarily to purchase his satchel and schedule his lessons on how to use it. Need he reiterate how pricey that was?
Atop the building, two mighty and majestic gargoyles of Magikarp stood as testaments of the Galaxy Team’s might. Alec never quite figured out why they picked Magikarp.
Maybe it was to symbolize something that started small and was easy to underestimate, but eventually grew into an unstoppable force? But wouldn’t that imply that the Team seemed weak on the outside? Why not just go with Gyrados from the get-go?
Entering the building, Alec pushed open the massive dark wooden doors. Following protocol, he had recalled both Auster and Tricky when entering, as loose Pokemon were against the rules for inside the Hall.
He took a brief second to wipe the mud from his shoes before starting the climb up the three flights of steps to Kamado’s office. On the first floor, Alec could hear some classes being taught to various townspeople about agriculture or other useful topics.
After a minute or so of climbing, Alec eventually reached the top. For some reason, Kamado’s office had just as big - if not bigger - doors than the front door of the hall. Intimidating, he thought.
Inside, he could hear two voices arguing, one male - Kamado’s - and an unknown female. Alec rapped his fist on the door.
The voices stopped. “Come in,” Kamado said from inside.
Complying, Alec pushed the door open. Inside, he saw a woman who appeared to be about twenty to twenty-five years old arguing across from Kamado.
She had short blonde hair and wore an elegant red and white kimono. She seemed to be serene and elegant as if she was floating instead of standing. Still, a thick miasma of worry hung around her, weighing her down.
“Is this him?” she asked.
“Yes. This is Alec, the one who fell from the rift. Alec, this is Irida, chief of the Pearl clan.” Irida nodded in greeting.
“What’s the Pearl clan?” he asked.
“Huh, you weren’t kidding about him not having any current knowledge,” Irida said, stepping forward. “The Pearl clan is my tribe. We’ve lived in Hisui for generations.”
She turned to face him, letting any semblance of friendliness drop from her body. “I’ll cut to the chase. Does the name Sinnoh mean anything to you?”
The region? Alec wondered. “Name? Like for a Pokemon?” he asked, tilting his head. “Never heard of that species.”
“Not a Pokemon,” Irida said, a little too quickly. “Sinnoh is our God, with almighty power over all space. And we think your arrival has angered them, somehow.”
“Last night,” Kamado interjected, “A bolt of energy from the rift struck Kleavor, one of the Pearl clan’s Noble Pokemon. It’s in a frenzy right now, attacking everything that moves.”
Irida closed her eyes in prayer and lowered her head. “Oh Sinnoh, where must we go to please you?” she recited in a whisper. “Wherever you bid, from this vast space to the next, I will be.”
“And since it happened so soon after your arrival, we think you must be related to it somehow,” Kamado said matter-of-factly. “I’m sending you on your first mission. Consider any current tasks you may have to be superseded.”
“Go survey Grandtree Arena, Noble Kleavor’s domain. Report back by nightfall.”
Alec blinked. “Survey the area?” he asked, confused. “And do what?”
“To see if you have any sort of connection with Sinnoh.” Kamado’s eyes bore into Alec. “When you first arrived, you mentioned that you remembered floating in a dark void with a bright light. That bright light was Sinnoh Themself.”
Irida stepped forward and took a deep breath. “The only written description we have of Sinnoh is from generations ago, from the autobiography of the Ancient Hero. He described a dream of his, where he found himself in a great black void. Sinnoh showed Themself to him in the form of a blinding light, even brighter than the sun. That night, his Pokemon were struck just like Kleavor and rampaged. Luckily, they calmed down as soon as they saw him.”
“I know that we do not have the grounds to ask such kindness from you,” Irida said, her voice breaking. “But you must try to quell Kleavor. I- We don’t know what we’ll do if he continues to rampage. Anything you need, we’ll get it for you.”
Alec’s breaths grew slightly more rapid as he grew nervous. He subconsciously took another step back.
Arceus - who he now knew was known by the name Sinnoh here - had told him that He would protect Alec on his journey. Was that a way of implying that Alec would have some grand duty to uphold? But He had said that Alec would have to decide for himself what to do. It didn’t make any sense to Alec.
“Slow down a second,” he breathed. Kamado and Irida both took a step back, sensing that they were encroaching on his personal space. “You don’t even know for sure that your myth even applies to me. I don’t even know what a Noble Pokemon is! I want to help, I’ll do what I can, but know that I’m nothing special. I’m not some chosen savior or some valiant warrior like your hero.” His voice cracked with fear as he tried to steady his breathing.
Kamado’s poker face remained ever-present and Irida’s gaze softened slightly. “Of course,” she said. “It is not our intent to overwhelm you, far from it. Come, I will explain.”
She gestured toward a map of Hisui hanging on Kamado’s office wall. A drawing of a large tree marked a forest near the lower-right corner of the Obsidian Fieldlands subsection.
“Here is Grandtree. The tree itself is going on a hundred years old. That’s where Noble Kleavor lives. A Noble is a Pokemon blessed by Almighty Sinnoh. Generations ago, Kleavor’s ancestor was the first to be blessed by Sinnoh. It was one of the Ancient Hero’s partner Pokemon, alongside nine others. Since then, the Nobles have used their great power to protect Hisui.”
“At Grandtree, you’ll meet Lian, Kleavor’s Warden. They’re the ones tasked with taking care of the Nobles. He’s rather, um…, ardent with his duties.” said Kamado. “Kleavor’s frenzy drove it to attack all the Scyther, Heracross, and other Pokemon living in the area. We’re looking at mass ecological devastation.”
“Kamado!” Irida hissed. “Don’t stress the boy. Being realistic is one thing, but you don’t have to be so brutally honest all the time. Anyways, Alec, no one in our clan is strong enough to get close. We’re thinking that because you’ve seen Sinnoh too, it’ll come to its senses once it sees you.”
Alec definitely was not an optimist. He believed that while the glass-half-full mentality had its upsides, there was far more to gain by being realistic. He wasn’t overly negative or anything, he just appreciated looking at situations with a practical lens. And this situation didn’t look good at all. Even in the future, he’d never heard of a Pokemon by the name of Kleavor.
But then he considered all the dangers of this. Protect those who cannot protect themselves. That command kept repeating itself in Alec’s head like a broken record. All those Pokemon were losing their homes and dying as Kleavor rampaged. His gut twisted as he considered all the people and Pokemon panicking.
There’s no way he could live with himself, with this voice urging him to protect, for the rest of his life. Every morning, waking up and regretting his decision.
“I’ll do it.”
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“Kleavor?” Laventon asked.
“Yeah. I need as much info as you have on the species. Urgent mission from Kamado.”
“Good heavens, this sounds important,” Laventon said. “Coming right up!”
He hurried over to the table where the massive Pokedex rested. Leafing through the pages, he quickly reached a page.
“Kleavor, evolved from Scyther via unknown methods. Hypothesized to be some sort of external stimulus as opposed to age. It gains the Rock type in addition to Bug upon evolution, losing the Flying type. Scyther’s blades became massive axes on its arms upon evolution that can, excuse the pun, cleave through boulders like a hot knife through butter. My goodness, what on earth could Kamado want to do with this?” He shuddered. “I fear the day when I have to examine one to complete its entry.”
“Thanks, professor,” Alec said. “It’s confidential, I think. At least it sounded secret. Though, he never told me to not tell anyone.”
“In that case, I shant ask any more questions, my boy. Good luck on your mission!”
“Thank you, professor. See you soon,” he said grimly.
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After Alec had left Kamado’s office, Irida and he continued to discuss important matters.
“Thank you for telling me about him,” Irida said. “Do you think he’s the one the Hero spoke of? I dare not doubt Sinnoh’s judgment, but he doesn’t seem like the one.”
“No,” Kamado said. “Just a kid who stood at the right place at the right time. Thank you for not telling him what the writings actually say, by the way.”
“Of course. He’s a child. He shouldn’t have to deal with such things.”
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Alec released Auster and Tricky as soon as he left the village gates. His discussion with Kamado and Irida and his meeting with Laventon had only taken about forty-five minutes. He checked his watch. 9:57.
As they materialized, Auster and Tricky happily cried out. They came to a rest, each one on one of his shoulders.
“We’re not doing any Corps work today,” he said. “Well, not the usual Corps work. We’re going there.”
He pointed toward the massive bulge on the horizon. Originally, he had taken it to be a large hill but he now knew that it was Grandtree. One foot in front of the other, he started the hike.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
“See that tree, way off in the distance?” Auster and Tricky both voiced their affirmation. “There’s someone in trouble over there. A Pokemon named Kleavor’s on a rampage, and I think that I’ll be able to help him.”
Alec sighed, fearing what was to come. “And I’m worried about you guys. This’ll be really dangerous, like deadly dangerous. But I know that I have to do this.”
A bead of sweat dripped down his forehead. Alec recognized his role as a trainer which put him as the leader of his team. So far, his Pokemon had seemed ecstatic about following his direction, recognizing that he was their best avenue for growing stronger. He’d take care of them and help them grow, and in return, they’d help him and protect him; It was a symbiotic relationship.
But Alec didn’t feel comfortable rallying them straight into Kleavor’s den, where they could easily die or be permanently injured if they were lucky enough to escape. Yes, he believed it was the right thing to do but he couldn’t just ask them to help.
“You can stay here if you want, with Akari or Rei or Laventon. I’m sure they’d be happy to let y’all stay with them for a day or two while I take care of this.”
Alec glanced over at Auster, who he felt shuffle his talons on his shoulder. He chirped at him, sounding distraught.
“I don’t feel right making you help me with this. You’re welcome to come if you want to, but I can’t endanger you guys like that.”
Auster chirped again, this time sounding determined. He feels upset that I even had to ask, Alec guessed. “You want to come, Auster?”
A chirp in agreement. Alec somberly smiled. “We’re in for a journey, then. Irida said that it was about a two-hour-long hike, so you can rest in your balls if you want. I’ve got lunch in my satchel so we can stop halfway and eat. Rest up, because once this is done, we’re going right back to the usual routine of gathering.”
He tried to project as much confidence into his voice as he could. The weight that Irida had loaded on his shoulders at the meeting felt like a steel ball that he dragged with every step. He wanted so badly to slip off his responsibilities and return to his normal life.
Which even is my normal life now? Alec thought. Back home, with my mom, or here?
He hadn’t been in Hisui long enough to consider it normal but he figured that he would be here for long enough to. He shuddered, promising to keep his eyes fixed on accomplishing his goals.
“Rowww,” Auster chirped, nuzzling against his head. He seemed to sense Alec’s unease at the task at hand. ‘What’s wrong?’ he seemed to say, reassuring Alec’s unease.
“Thanks,” he whispered. “I know you’ve always got my back.”
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Once they crossed Tidewater Dam, the landscape began to look different.
“What happened here?” Alec asked rhetorically. He kept his voice low from shock. All around him were felled trees, chopped clean in half. Their logs lay on the ground, discarded and left to decompose.
What had once been a dense forest was now reduced to a mere grassy plain with the occasional stump or sapling. All the work of a single Pokemon, in a single day.
Alec exhaled, trying to calm himself. He couldn’t ignore the mental picture of his body falling like one of those trees, his insides spilling out and covering the ground like the fallen and withering leaves. He shuddered in anticipation of what was to come.
“You there!” a high-pitched voice shouted. “What do you think you’re doing here?”
Alec spun to the side, seeing a figure approaching him, presumably the Lian Irida spoke of. He wore a white cowboy hat over his red curly hair, alongside a jacket with a similar style to Irida’s kimono.
“What’s your name and what business do you have?” the Warden asked, pointing a finger at Alec.
“Uh, Irida sent me,” Alec stuttered. “I’m with the Corps.”
“The Corps? And what does Kamado expect to do about Kleavor’s rampage? Go send a handful of scientists to observe the Noble’s might? Maybe publish an article informing everyone that Kleavor is stronger than they could’ve possibly imagined? What did Irida say?”
When they gave him his mission, neither Irida nor Kamado had instructed him on what to tell Lian. No sane civilian would willingly approach a rampaging Pokemon.
“She thinks I can stop it,” Alec simply said, hoping it would suffice. He wasn’t too eager to drop his entire backstory at the moment.
“Stop Kleavor’s frenzy? Tell me, which is more firm? Your flesh or a boulder? How do you intend to stop it?” Lian asked, voice dripping with venom. He seemed entertained by Alec’s insistence, not sending him away for its own sake.
“Plus,” Lian continued, “Irida’s convinced herself that this blessing is a curse. Look around!” He spread his arms, gesturing to the fallen trees around them. “Kleavor’s domain has never been greater. More power for the Pearl clan!”
Just then, off in the distance, a great roar startled the nearby Flying-types from the trees. The voice was gravelly and ragged from strain. It seemed to crack and fluctuate in volume as it died off in the end, though not for lack of breath. This was the type of scream where the pain of using one’s voice outweighed the release of screaming itself. The hair on Alec’s neck stood straight up, unnerved by the sheer emotion of the roar.
If that was Kleavor, it was clearly in agony.
Alec, still offset from the scream, couldn’t speak. Lian, however, said, “You hear that? Kleavor’s war cry before it conquers more of Hisui’s great space!”
That did it.
“You call that a war cry?” Alec shouted, growing angry. “Wake up! Can’t you hear the agony in its voice? It’s not thinking about territory anymore, let alone thinking at all. How can you, as Kleavor’s Warden and guardian, rationalize this? I don’t know if I can, but I’m going to save it.”
He lowered his hand to his Pokeballs, earning a glare from Lian.
“Stop,” he said forcefully. “I’m the Warden; you aren’t. Kleavor may not be thinking right, but its instincts are always perfect. It may have diced my offerings of its favorite foods, but Sinnoh would never use its power to do such harm. I won’t hesitate to force you to leave.”
“Sorry, then. I’ve got to do this.” Alec grabbed Auster’s Pokeball and threw it forward. His partner emerged with a cry and flew up in a spiral.
“Kricketune!” Lian shouted. “Drive this intruder away!”
Alec’s head snapped to the side and he jumped backward just in time to dodge a red blur aimed toward his upper body.
Lian’s Pokemon, Kricketune, stopped in between him and Alec. It swiped its blades together, making an eerie scratching sound that almost sounded harmonic.
“Fury Cutter,” Lian said, crossing his arms.
Kricketune sliced its arms across with a shink and dashed forward. Alec’s muscles tensed.
“Leafage!” he said as quickly as he could. Auster complied, swirling the Grass-type energy around his wings. He had been getting better at the move over the past week, allowing him to use it far quicker. It wasn’t instantaneous like Gust was but it was far faster than the several-second-long charge time it had initially.
Alec hoped Auster’s attack would be a little quicker than Kricketune's. The leaves shot forward but instead of drawing cuts through its carapace, the leaves deflected off with metallic sounds.
“Look out!” Alec shouted as Kricketune leaped into the air and drew its arm back, preparing to slash. Auster squawked and ducked low, barely swooping beneath Kricketune’s blade. Alec swore he saw some of his plumage fluttering to the ground, freshly shaved off. He winced, digging his fingernails into his palms. This was off to a bad start.
“Focus Energy,” Lian said, quirking a grin at Auster’s undignified dodge. “I’ll show you for messing with the Pearl clan.”
What am I thinking? Alec mentally shouted to himself. Kricketune’s a Bug type! A Grass-type attack is barely going to scratch its shell! Auster’s only other attack, Tackle, requires him to get in too close, so it was off the table. Flying-type attacks it is, then.
Alec grit his teeth. With how fast Kricketune moved without Focus Energy, he seriously doubted Auster’s ability to dodge. And the slash would likely be devastating. He hoped he was making the right decision.
Once it landed back on the ground, Kricketune turned around and lowered its blades. It shut its eyes and Alec could see its antennae quivering in the breeze as it focused its power.
“Gust!” he shouted in retaliation. “Blow it off balance!”
“Row!” Auster agreed. The winds around them picked up as he poured the Flying-type energy into his wings. The gale slammed into Kricketune, causing its stance to break and forcing it to stagger a few steps back. Its antennae, blown like reeds in the breeze, disoriented it with their feedback.
Hopefully, it would be down and disoriented for long enough. “It’s staggered!” Alec triumphantly shouted. “Go in with Peck!”
From the air, Auster tucked its wings to its sides and dive-bombed the Bug-type. Alec could’ve sworn he saw a glint of predatory might in his eyes as he attacked. His beak, aglow with Flying-type energy, drilled into Kricketune with a crunch, sending it reeling and drawing a spiderweb of cracks across its chest carapace.
Once it regained its composure, it shook its head and reluctantly looked at Lian. Making up its mind, it turned around and flew away. Huh, Alec thought. I expected it to be a bit stronger.
Lian, seeing his Pokemon admit defeat, uncrossed his arms. “Huh,” he said. “No matter. Scyther! The battle’s not over yet! Come defend Kleavor!”
Kleavor’s pre-evolution soon appeared, bursting from the nearby brush.
Alec rolled his neck and his shoulders, steadying his mind. “You still good, pal?” he asked. Auster chirped, not ready to throw in the towel yet.
“In that case, Growl!”
Alec saw the predatory gleam in his eyes again as he spread his wings wide. While there was still a massive size difference between the two, Auster still biologically had the advantage of being a Flying-type. Alec knew Scyther was a Flying-type too, but its Bug half would instinctually make it fear Pokemon like Auster.
Scyther only swiped its blades together, producing a far more ear-piercing sound than Kricketune had. Its gaze seemed to lighten a bit but it betrayed no weakness.
“Hone Blades,” Lian commanded. Alec noted a sharp edge to his voice, betraying his growing irritation.
“Gust again! Disorient it like Kricketune!” Alec said. If it worked the first time, he hoped it would work again. In the heat of the battle, the time needed to think up a new strategy would cost him and Auster dearly.
Scyther’s blades glinted in the midday sun as it brandished them, swiping them back and forth. The blades themselves seemed to be made of some kind of membrane, meaning they would be extra-sharp.
Auster’s gust of wind crashed into Scyther. It raised both blades in an X shape to block any debris from hitting it, grimacing in discomfort as the wind blasted it.
Once the wind died down, Lian shouted, “Slash,” and Scyther flew forward. It infused its blades with Normal-type energy, causing them to glow a vibrant white. Lian smirked as it grew closer and closer to Auster.
Unluckily, neither Alec nor Auster could react in time to dodge the move. Scyther’s blade slashed right through Auster, rending several of its feathers and sending it flying.
“Auster!” Alec shouted. His stomach dropped as his partner cried out in pain, barely able to keep in the air. He turned in the air a few times before snapping his wings out with a grunt. With him reeling, Lian pressed the advantage.
“Hone Blades again,” he said, gritting his teeth together and clenching his fist. He had clearly expected this fight to be over with just Kricketune.
Alec was in a terrible situation here. Auster’s cry wrung his gut like a wet towel and he felt uneasy at letting his partner take such a hit. His logical half tried to think of a counter-strategy but his emotional half could only fixate on Auster’s situation.
He wants to finish this in one fell swoop, Alec thought. Lian clearly isn’t practiced in battling any other trainers. He’s used to making great displays of strength to wild Pokemon to scare them off.
“Can you keep fighting?” Alec shouted. “Just keep on for a little longer! Use Gust, as strong as you can!” He’ll spend a second preparing for another strong attack. This one has to finish Scyther, or he’ll knock out Auster for sure.
He felt awful for even asking Auster to push himself further than he’d already gone. In his eyes, Auster had already given more than enough in this battle, and asking anything more of him would be remiss. But something, deep in his gut, told him that Auster would be dissatisfied with being tagged out right now.
Auster’s expression hardened as he prepared the strongest Gust he’d ever managed. The air hardened into glowing teal blades, a different color than before. Something’s different about this, Alec thought.
Auster’s voice was ragged as he released his final attack, desperate to emerge victorious. This move was second nature for him, allowing him to reach deeper than he’d ever reached before. He felt his energy evaporate like ice in a volcano as he poured his entire soul into Gust.
He cawed as he released it, a sound far more guttural and primal than any simple chirp. Where his previous Gust was a storm, this was a hurricane. The tidal wave of Flying-type energy assaulted Scyther as it prepared its own finishing move, picking it off the ground and blowing it back.
It cried out in pain as the wind assaulted it. This time, raising a blade wasn’t enough to shield it from the wind. It flew back several feet.
Once it recovered, it looked at Auster with a new face. Where previously it looked murderous and fearsome, it now looked afraid. Quickly, it backpedaled until it reached the end of the thicket, where it dove into a bush and disappeared, defeated.
Alec looked back at Auster, who could barely keep himself in the air. It seemed this stronger version of Gust left him exhausted and vulnerable to future attacks. Perfect for a finishing move but awful to use regularly in a fight.
Was that a Strong style Gust? Alec wondered. “The danger’s gone, Auster,” Alec said. “You can rest. Thank you.”
He returned his Pokemon, who gratefully vanished to rest. Once he had fastened Auster’s ball back on his belt, he turned on his heel and faced Grandtree.
“I’m going to Grandtree,” he said over his shoulder. “Whether I die or not isn’t your business. But you can control whether you help me or not. If you’re too blinded by pride to see it, I’ll stop it alone.”
Alec felt a strange feeling on his palms. He raised them up and was shocked to notice thin streams of blood running down each one. During the battle, his fingernails had broken skin and drawn blood; he hadn’t noticed because he had been too immersed in the battle. The wounds were thin and would be fine by the end of the day. Not wanting to betray any weakness, he shoved his hands into his pockets.
Face hardened with resolve, Alec walked past Lian towards the massive tree. He had to appear strong, as a last-ditch effort to gain Lian’s support. He kept going, not looking back, for several seconds. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Lian staring at the ground. His fists were clenched, fingernails digging trenches into his palms.
“Wait,” the Warden said.
Alec stopped and turned to face him.
“What I said earlier still stands. You’ll get diced to bits if it gets to you. As much as I’d like that, I’ll tell you this: Kleavor’s favorite foods are Springy Mushrooms and Dazzling Honey. It ignored them when I left them, but the taste might be enough to slow it down. I can’t get through to you, so I’ll leave it to Sinnoh. You’ll see that Kleavor can’t be stopped. It would take an act of Sinnoh Themself to end this.”
Alec nodded. “Okay,” he said grimly. “I’ll be back tomorrow. We’ll see if Sinnoh’s got my back.”
“I look forward to it.”
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Back at the village, Alec returned to Laventon’s office.
Maybe he’ll have some idea for how to take advantage of Kleavor’s favorite foods, Alec thought.
He knocked on the front door. Laventon opened it and his expression immediately brightened upon seeing Alec.
“Alec, you’re alright? Goodness, I was worried about you! How’d your mission go?”
“Thanks, professor,” Alec shrugged. “I didn’t encounter Kleavor yet. I’ve got a problem that I think you can help me with.”
Laventon shuddered. “I heard a nasty rumor that the Pearl Clan’s Warden Kleavor is on a rampage, attacking anything that moves. That lines up with your questions about the species. Don’t tell me…”
“Yes,” Alec said resolutely. “I’m trying to quell its rampage. I spoke with Lian and he told me about Kleavor’s favorite foods. We think that if we can somehow get it to eat them, it’ll calm down.”
“I’m following,” Laventon said with his hand on his chin. “But you can’t get close enough, right? You need some sort of ranged delivery for it? Curious.”
Alec nodded. He could basically hear the professor’s mind at work.
“What might its favorite foods be?”
“Springy Mushrooms and Dazzling Honey. I’ve got one of each here but I’m sure I can buy more.” He rummaged in his satchel and presented the items to him, who snatched them and hurried to a lab table.
“Fascinating,” Laventon muttered. “I’m thinking we start by crushing up the mushrooms in a pestle and making them into clumps with the honey. Yes, that should work for an initial test.”
He turned back to Alec. “Yes, this will work quite alright. I’ll get started on a hypothesis. You go bring back as much as you can.”
Alec smiled at the professor’s antics. He watched for a second as Laventon dashed around the lab, grabbing various glassware and apparatuses to experiment.
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“Volo!” Alec shouted, waving an arm.
The blonde-haired traveling merchant whirled around. His face broke into a grin when he spotted Alec waving at him.
“Alec! Good to see you again!” he smiled. “Finally come to your senses? You’re in luck; I’ve still got that vial of Aux Evasion! Or can I interest you in anything else?”
“I need as many Springy Mushrooms and as much Dazzling Honey as you can get me. It’s urgent, ideally today.”
Volo quirked an eyebrow, wondering why Alec needed so many strange items. Well, it wasn’t a merchant’s job to ask questions, only to deliver results.
“Alright,” he smiled. “Let me go talk to Ginter. I remember seeing a shipment of those earlier in the week.”
Alec grimly nodded, his face hard as stone. He knew that the only thing standing between him and an excruciatingly painful death were these items.
“Tell you what,” said Volo. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a familiar-looking vial. He gingerly held it out, prompting Alec to take it. “As an incentive. For you to keep coming back and doing business.”
Alec tilted his head.
Volo laughed at Alec’s confusion. “Don’t get used to it though; You won’t be getting many freebies like this one. Consider it an incentive to keep using the Gingko Guild for all your future endeavors. We keep our profit margins razor-tight to bring you the best deals in all Hisui.”
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Back at Laventon’s lab, Alec grunted as he gingerly set down a wooden crate. It rattled and clinked as the glass jars inside it, each one full of Dazzling Honey, bumped against each other.
They’d nearly emptied his pockets of all the excess money he had saved up from his work as a Corpsman. Kamado had promised to reimburse him for any expenses, within reason, so Alec wasn’t worried about the cost momentarily. It still felt weird to spend that much money in one place, though.
“Success!” Laventon cried, overlooking his lab table. He turned around, brandishing a clump of chopped mushrooms and honey.
“Quite the appetizing smell, if I do say so myself,” he chuckled, wafting the sweet aroma to his nose. “The honey’s got the perfect levels of stickiness to hold the balm together while staying viscous enough to still give off the optimal scent.”
Alec smiled and breathed in deeply through his nose. Laventon was right, it did smell very sweet. Hopefully, it was enough to get through to Kleavor.
He went to bed early that night. After all, he had a big day ahead of him tomorrow.