9- The Kingdom of the Land

Haruka led the two weary travellers away from the light, down a twisting tunnel that descended deeper into darkness. As they began to lose sight of her, discerning only her footsteps, a sudden flare-up of light announced her lantern being lit. Her face was thrown into sharply lit contrast by the unsteady light.

Light reflecting off of the rocky walls in insane patterns, Haruka continued walking, clearly knowing the path very well. Easily navigating some obstacles such as ledges and pitfalls that gave Jacqueline and Quentin pause, she gained a small amount of distance by her brisk walking.

This only became a problem when she turned a corner, taking the light with her.

"Haruka?" called Jacqueline. "You took the light..." The lack of a response was deafening.

Quentin began to pick his way through the tunnel, moving faster than Jacqueline would have dared. "Quentin, how do you know where to go?"

"My night vision's always been a little better than most. I can see things in my peripheral vision pretty well, so-" his half-serious boast was interrupted as he tripped, falling on the floor hard.

"...ow."

The noise alerted what sounded like a flock of zubat, screeching and flapping their thin wings.

His grin invisible in the darkness, he cautiously stood up and moved forward further. "Haruka?" he called, his voice echoing down the passage he knew lay ahead. He began to try to run, ending up in a sort of half-shuffle; the lack of light was really irritating.

It seemed like hours of bruised knees, battered elbows, and cursing before they caught a hint of light again. This lay in a shaft of light that lanced down into the passageway, from some borehole far above most likely; they rushed towards, longing for the light as much as to learn where they were.

The need for light came as a sort of nameless desire, causing Jacqueline and Quentin to rush heedlessly towards the bright circle. Quentin surged forward, seeking that painful brightness, wanting to be freed of the blind tunnels beneath the earth. Pebbles crunching beneath his feet, he stepped into the circle of brightness, closing his eyes for a second to feel the familiar warmth on his eyelids. The only problem with that was that the borehole didn't stop where it intersected with their path.

It went down deep, far below the surface, and Quentin unwittingly stepped into it. To give credit where it is due, his reaction was extremely fast; he'd been through a lot in the past week. But that means he merely teetered on the edge, flailing wildly, rather than falling straight. Gravel slid off in front of him, falling soundlessly.

Jacqueline was approaching more cautiously, unsure of how the hell she was supposed to grab a wildly flailing, contact-averse boy when she herself was approaching at not inconsiderable speed. Her problem was solved for her as red filled her vision, and a pair of strong arms wrapped around Quentin's waist in a sure grip, pulling them both backwards to fall on the path.

"Haruka?"

-Idealism-

"In recent news, famed sailor Mr. Briney has been found dead in his seaside villa, with his famed ship missing as well. Accident? Assassination? Something more or less sinister? The investigation is still in its beginnings. Mr. Briney, in his long and illustrious career, was known to have affiliated himself with the ocean conservation group Team Aqua and participated in its charitable restoration works; most notably the attempt to restore the SS Cactus. In this period, he gained the enmity of the eco-terrorist group opposed to Aqua, calling itself Team Magma. This reporter speculates this to be their work, striking at vocal Aqua supporters too weak to defend themselves!"

The television screen panned to several gruesome shots of Mr. Briney's corpse, alternating with clips of the genteel sailor waving to crowds in Slateport City.

"Stop the terror of Team Magma! Protect the weak and infirm from their cowardly depredations! Here are the addresses of the nearest Ranger and Aqua recruitment centers..." the screen displayed the given information. "This is a Hoenn TV special report coming to you straight from Petalburg. This is Gabby, signing off."

-Idealism-

"Haruka, is that you?" gasped Jacqueline, kneeling beside the two now lying on the ground just short of the precipice.

"Yeah, keep it down will ya? This place isn't the most friendly." spoke a sarcastic voice.

It was Haruka who lay on her back under Quentin, muscular arms locked around his waist, eyes shut after the close call. Quentin stared sightlessly upwards, still in a state of slight shock, until Haruka loosed her arms from their soft but tense grip against him and rolled them over so that she could get up, brushing off her red shirt and dusty shorts.

"You just have a penchant for getting into trouble, don't you Quentin?"

Grumbling, he rolled over and pushed himself to his feet, adrenaline still flowing fast through his systems. Then, a sound broke their panting, stones finally splashing into water deep deep below. The gravel they had kicked off the edge had just reached the bottom, and a wild thrashing greeted it, with the sound of something heavy slapping against the rock walls.

"The old crawdaunt down there has grown gigantic in the dark, and he sounds angry. Shall we go?"

"Hold on, Haruka. Why did you abandon us there? I don't think we can trust you until we know why exactly we were left alone, in the dark, dozens of meters below the earth." hissed Jacqueline. Her hands were balled at her sides, and her entire posture screamed danger.

If Haruka was affected by this confrontation, she didn't show it. "You guys are too clumsy to be my dad's goons. Camp's this way."

Rekindling her lantern, she led them once more into the dark, the travelers twitching at the ordeal and the slight against their skills.

Stopping before a drop-off, she spoke, "This is our base camp." She indicated with a wide spread of her hand.

Both Jacqueline and Quentin paused, taken aback. Haruka had taken one of the few places in the cavern system that was open to the air and cleared it out, giving it a very different atmosphere from the claustrophobia-inducing caves they traveled through to reach the place. It was immediately evident that Haruka had been staying here for some time.

The hard rock and stone of the tunneling paths they had traveled through had been replaced with soft, pale sand that shifted underfoot, a welcome change. The camp in the center of the room was kitted out with a small fireplace, a single ceramic pot resting upon it. Nearby lay a single bedroll, still messy from recent use; and despite these items being present, there was no evidence of any large bag or other supplies. In the airy, natural light, Haruka leaped forward, tucking into a forward roll and emerging laughing in a cloud of golden motes, the sun above shining through her hair and lighting up her smiling face.

A boulder stirred by the cook-fire, revealing itself to be Rono, Haruka's Lairon. He unrolled himself, trundling over to his mistress and received a happy knock on his shell in return. Jacqueline poked the transfixed Quentin in the cheek, waking him from his half-trance, and threw him off the drop-off to sprawl in the sand.

"Jacquelineeeee, why?" groaned Quentin.

"You were distracted, moron. You'd never have gone down if I didn't throw you." Having said her piece, she jumped down easily onto the sandy floor, walking forward to offer him a hand.

"So, Haruka," spoke the taller of the two girls. "How long have you been down here?"

"A while," the shorter replied evasively. "Came down because I needed some space."

Quickly changing the subject, she clapped her hands and asked, "Who wants some cooked Makuhita?"

-Idealism-

"Got any twos?"

"Nope. Go fish."

Sighing, Jacqueline reached forward to take another card. "Why am I so bad at this game?"

Given that they were young teenagers trying to make friends, and that Haruka had a worn set of cards, they fell immediately to Go Fish. They couldn't agree on the rules for any other card game. Dysfunctional kids, don't even know their card games.

"Maybe you aren't paying attention;" volunteered Quentin, patting his own two books of cards. "I already have all the twos."

Haruka giggled lightly, hand covering her mouth; Quentin's eyes slid her way, as if dragged by magnetic force, before returning with a conscious effort to Jacqueline's plight. "Haruka's turn," he said, still consciously not looking at her.

"Quentin, got any jacks?"

"Arceus damn it! How are you so good at knowing what I have? This isn't fair!" The boy sat down with a huff, arms folded.

"You still need to give me the card, Quentin."

Making a disgruntled noise, he handed her three jacks.

Turning to Jacqueline, Haruka asked, "Now, the other jack please?"

Pouting, Jacqueline slowly and reluctantly dragged a card upward and out of her hand, before flicking it in Haruka's direction. Of course, since none of them knew how to throw cards, it didn't go right to her. It curved, and landed in Quentin's lap, Haruka close behind. The impact knocked him over.

"Jeez, Haruka, it's just a card," choked out the one boy of the group. "Can't... breathe..."

Readjusting herself, Haruka appeared to consider his plight for a second before turning and completely sitting on his stomach. "Nah, I found a better seat."

"Quentin, got any sevens?"

"no. get off."

"No need to be such a jerk about it. But nah, I'm not moving. I'm comfortable here."

Turning back to the central card stack, Haruka caught sight of Jacqueline's lips twisting into a smile. "What are you laughing about?" demanded the shorter girl irritably.

Out of Quentin's sight, Jacqueline brought her hands to chest height and formed her fingers into a heart. Ignoring Haruka flipping her the bird (an impressive feat), she spoke calmly, "Quentin, got any tens?"

Jacqueline couldn't see Quentin's upper torso behind Haruka, but she did observe Haruka jump a little before turning and passing Jacqueline a card. Quentin may not have been able to speak at any meaningful volume due to the girl compressing his diaphragm, but at least her current position offered him easy access to her sides. And as his latest way of getting her attention revealed, she was very ticklish.

The card game quickly devolved into helpless laughter and a mess of teenage limbs. It would be hours before they all fell asleep smiling for the first time since the whirlwind of events that brought them to this cave began.

(Christ, Quentin. It's been a week.)

-Idealism-

The following morning, quite close to Haruka's base camp, a lone man dismounted from a vast glittering shape. Raising his hand, he pointed a pokeball at his blindingly bright pokemon.

"Return, Skarmory."

It screeched its challenging cry before dematerializing into light, with its plain pokeball falling onto the ground.

Not deigning to pick it up himself, a long metal arm extended from a brace on his upper arm to snatch it and deposit Skarmory's ball neatly into his hand. Pocketing the ball, he removed a sleek white rectangle from his immaculate pockets and brought it to his ear.

"Yes, I've arrived in the south. Are you quite sure that the reports indicate this cave? This island is notorious for unchecked wild pokemon, and Skarmory is tired from the long trip from the north."

Listening for several seconds, he nodded once, beginning to walk more briskly. "I've sighted an aboveground entrance, I'll be losing reception soon. Tell her I'll bring her a gift, kay? A nice Shiny Stone."

After another short pause, he uttered "I'll contact you once I exit the cave." and removed the white device from his ear, replacing it in his pocket.

A few dozen long strides took him to the edge of the entrance he had seen, and he crouched on the edge, peering in.

-Idealism-

Jacqueline was the first to wake, stirring and stretching. The early morning light hadn't pierced down into the cavern, and so she opened her eyes immediately. Untangling herself carefully from the other two (apparently the three had rolled into a pile sometime while she was asleep), she rolled to her feet quietly. Cracking her back, she stared upwards at the ring of light that led to the surface. She blinked twice.

The face staring back blinked as well.

So, of course, she did the natural thing. She asked the person if they wanted breakfast.

When Haruka next woke up, she found her face in the crook of someone's neck. She wasn't terribly surprised. But when she sat up, rubbing her eyes, she was quite surprised. Something smelled really good.

Turning, she found Jacqueline and a stranger conversing in low tones by her fire, and munching something that smelled heavenly.

"What are you eating?..." she mumbled sleepily.

"Baked apples!" chirped Jacqueline happily. Too happily. Didn't she realize some people just woke up?

"Who the hell is that..." was her next laconic thought to be expressed.

"This guy was just passing by and I thought I'd invite him down. He showed me how to make these!"

Rolling her eyes, she turned around and poked the last sleeper. "Sleepyhead."

He muttered something unintelligible and rolled away.

Jacqueline and the man were witnesses to a grin stretching its way across Haruka's face before she jumped on Quentin, attacking his sides mercilessly.

The man simply sipped his thermos of coffee, choosing to ignore the less-mature teenagers rolling around the floor and giggling like five year olds.

"So... Why are you three staying in Granite Cave?"

Taking a sip from her water bottle brightly emblazoned with RUSTBORO TRAINER SCHOOL, Jacqueline mulled over her answer for a second or two, swishing the water around in her mouth. "Quentin and I ran an errand here, but don't really have anywhere in particular to go afterwards; we met up with Haruka down here. She's hiding from someone or something, I'm pretty sure." She shrugged and took another bite of her apple.

"I'm looking for something at the bottom of this cave, would you three wish to accompany me? Many hands means light work, and I'm sure you are all itching for something to do."

"I'll ask them once they can get their hands off each other."

"We heard that!"

Author's Note:

Meh, kind of a filler chapter. Team bonding, so exciting. However, the guy who has not been named but we all know anyway has shown up, and he's looking for something at the bottom of Granite Cave.

I lost access to my computer for about two weeks in there, and then took the SAT a little after that, so this chapter is not all it could be. Considering how long it's been for the last two updates. It'll only be another chapter or two before Haruka hits the gym and drags the other two along for the ride.

On another note, between the last chapter and now, Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire were announced! I'm getting very excited for this prospect and just wish I wasn't broke. November 2014 is when we can get our Mega Swampert and Sceptile, and get to see allll our favorite Hoenn personalities again. I have so many things to say about this, but they basically amount to HYPE. As this is a Hoenn-centric story, I'm sure the characters are looking forward to being relevant again.

And, as always, review to help me improve the story!

MAIN CAST

Quentin

Badges: 0

Pokemon:

Turnus (Mudkip). Known moves: Water Gun, Growl.

Brasidas (Ralts). Known moves: Confusion.

Jacqueline

Badges:0

Pokemon:

Terry (Vulpix). Known moves: Ember, Tackle, Tail Whip.

Haruka

Badges: 1

Pokemon:

Rono (Lairon). Known moves: Roar, Metal Claw.

Chic (Torchic). Known moves: Peck, Flamethrower.

That Guy Who Hasn't Been Identified for Dramatic Porpoises

Badges: 8

Known Pokemon:

Skarmory. Known moves: Fly.

MINOR CHARACTERS

Sam: Recovering in Petalburg Hospital. Complications with poison causing localized swelling: muscle necrosis possible. Nurses working sixteen-hour shifts to try and fix him.

Ranger Norris: Patrolling the woods, as usual. Confused about why there are so many young teen corpses in the woods this week.

Mr. Briney: Got to meet Giratina in the afterlife. Fun experience.

Norman: Still wondering why Haruka hasn't come home. Not very good at realizing why not.