Later
Guildmaster's Office
Victor stares blankly at the guildmaster and the vice-guildmaster while the rest of his teammates share his expression. Victor honestly had no idea how things could end up like this.
His secret isn't something that should be easily leaked, but then again, he could only blame his carelessness. Victor wonders what's wrong with him, thinking he could casually discuss his secret in front of someone's room. And that recklessness causes a domino effect, where his boss knew, and he accidentally spoiled it for his newest team member.
The only positive aspect of his current situation is that Buizel lacks knowledge about humans, which is understandable since he was unaware of many things about the outside world due to being trapped in the dungeon for a long time.
Not a very long time, according to Guildmaster William, but a long time for Buizel. Things get very confusing with dungeons involved.
"…We are terribly sorry," William says, having at least the decency to look Mareepish. "It's your secret to tell, and yet both of us had recklessly spilled it out to others. We have broken your trust."
Okay, now Victor feels a bit creeped out by how formal William is. The mon's supposed to be happy-go-lucky, cheerful goofball with a huge desire for Perfect Apple, seeing him acting like this weirded Victor out. But again, it's another proof that canon and real life are different.
"C-calm down, guildmaster," Victor says as he waves his hands. "It's…not very serious. I am a bit mad at how my secrets were spilled like it was just a random glass of water on a table, but it's not something that serious."
"R-really?!" William drops his formality as he asks in a hopeful tone, causing Victor to sweatdrop.
"Yes…" Victor replies before William pulls him into a hug. Tesla, Sabo, and Thorn feel a bit awkward at the situation, Charlie sighs in relief, and Buizel is oblivious as always.
"Now that it was resolved," Tesla says, getting all their attention. "What discussion did you guys have in mind regarding Victor being a human?"
"It's…more of an investigation, and we would like you guys to be part of it," Charlie explains, getting the entire team's attention. "You all must at least know the disaster that might happen and how the human was sent to our world to stop such a disaster, right?"
"Yeah," Almost the entire team nods in unison, knowing what the vice guildmaster was referring to. Buizel, as usual, simply tilts his head cluelessly.
"This investigation is about figuring out what the upcoming disaster was that forced whoever it was to send Victor into this world, right?" Thorn explains as William nods.
"Back then, we were all faced with a very close call involving the falling star, and it was thanks to the human and his partner convincing Rayquaza that we're able to see tomorrow," Charlie explains. "We…would like to be more prepared to face such conflict, avoiding any unnecessary trouble if possible."
'I guess this is one of the good things of having a reasonable authority figure to hear my secret. But that still doesn't excuse my carelessness,' Victor thought with a frown.
"We…don't mind helping with the investigation. In fact, I would like to know as well," Victor says as William and Charlie look pleased. "But, there might be a possibility that the reason I'm here doesn't involve any…world-ending threats."
"That might be true, but it's better to be safe than sorry," William replies, which Victor can't exactly argue with. Unfortunately, he knows that his appearance was not involved in the disaster, as there's already a human chosen to be involved by fate itself roaming around the continent seeking Time Gear with their partner.
"May I ask a question?" Everyone's attention went to Sabo, who meekly raised his hand. "Are…you gonna bring other Pokémon to be involved in this investigation, like other guilds?"
"…" The entire team silently stares at William and Charlie with a questioning glance.
"We're…not going to do that," Charlie admits, surprising everyone. "This type of secret, it should be only you who chooses who you want to tell. It's not our choice."
"Not to mention, we're…not in friendly terms with other guilds," William says nervously. "Also…those places are a huge danger for you, Victor."
"…is it due to the discrimination, the stuck-up know-it-all bastards, or the survival-of-the-fittest brutes?" Victor asks in a deadpan manner.
"That, and…they will use you to be involved with any of their political matters," Charlie coughs, holding his laughter at Victor's accurate description of the three guilds.
"…yeah, I'd rather if we didn't involve them with this," Victor deadpans before rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"Trust me, politics are the worst," William says while nodding sagely, which causes Charlie to facepalm while the rest of Team Dawn can't help but laugh. "So…we're good, right?"
"Yes," Victor says, half exasperated, half amused.
"Then, if you don't mind, we could move to our next topic," Charlie says, getting Victor's attention. "You're lying about not having more information regarding Miraidon, are you?"
"…to be fair, I try not to raise too many suspicions. If I provide too much info, Pokémon would suspect me as a secret acquaintance," Victor says while rubbing his head Mareepishly.
"No offense, but you already raised suspicion by your appearance alone," Charlie says bluntly before getting smacked by William.
"Don't be rude to someone who has the information we need!" William exclaims before apologetically looking at Victor. "I'm really sorry about my friend here."
"It's…fine," Victor says with a sweatdrop. "He wasn't wrong, thou. No other Pokémon exists like me since I'm not exactly a Pokémon, but a Digimon."
"What's a Digimon?" Both William and Charlie ask in confusion.
"A lifeform born from data existing through any world varies from one with the appearance of a monster or even inanimate objects, to one that resembles a human," Victor explains.
"Interesting…." Charlie muses.
"I would love to hear more," William says. "But please, help us provide information regarding Miraidon first."
'Yeah, I would never get used to Polite Wigglytuff.' Victor sweatdrops. "As I mentioned before, Miraidon is an Electric/Dragon Pokémon who can maneuver around different terrains, either due to his legs or both his throat sacs and tail that can turn into wheels. You guys know wheels, right?"
"…pardon me, but how primitive you're expecting us to be?" Charlie asks as Victor flinches before looking away, twiddling his finger. "…I'll just sum up that answer as yes."
"Sorry," Victor winces. "A-anyways, Miraidon has an unique ability where he could summon an Electric Terrain despite not even learning the move, and can increase his long-ranged Electric moves' power further than normal Electric-Type in an Electric Terrain. Also, he's fast, very fast, and unlike most speed-oriented fighters, he's quite durable. Another thing to note is that they have limited stamina, and when they run out of stamina, their body would be forced to conserve its strength, reducing their attack power by a huge margin."
"That's quite a lot of information," Charlie muses.
"Oh, another thing. That Pokémon could be considered a Legendary." This silences the entire room as they stare at Victor in disbelief.
"…and yet you choose this time to tell us!?" Charlie squawks in disbelief.
"To be fair, it slipped off my mind, focusing too much on not getting my secret discovered," Victor says Mareepishly.
"At least we gain the information before we could act," Charlie sighs as William simply chuckles. "Guildmaster, please take this a bit seriously. I know you're powerful, but don't underestimate other Pokemons."
"I am not," William says with a huge smile, earning a deadpan stare from Charlie, as he didn't believe him. "Anyways, I think we've both kept you all here for far too long. You all still have missions to do, after all."
'I was hoping we could just have a day off today and talk about everything that happens, but oh well, duty's call.' Victor thought before nodding as everyone left the room. They all went to their room without saying a single word, and the majority of the Guild members misunderstood that they had just been scolded by the Guildmaster or, even worse, the Vice Guildmaster.
The entire Team Dawn can't help but be confused by the sympathetic stares given to them, but they dismiss them and go to their room. After another second of silence, Tesla decided to speak up.
"So, we can all agree Victor's secret is the worst-kept secret ever?" Tesla asks dryly.
"Yes," Victor, Thorn, and Sabo respond in a similar tone.
"What's a human?" Buizel couldn't help but ask as the team looked at each other before looking at Buizel.
"Humans are creatures from legends, told in a tale of the Ninetale's curse since ancient times. But…apparently, humans also exist in another world." Thorn muses before looking at Victor.
"Why are you looking at me?" Victor asks in confusion.
"I don't get it," Buizel says cluelessly.
"We can talk more about this after the job," Victor suggests. "Besides, if you guys plan on joining the expedition, we're gonna keep up our performance."
"Can we just take a day off? I mean, we at least deserve one after going through that exploration." Tesla groans.
"Unless you want to stay in the guild while we possibly might go to the expedition, I suggest you suck it up," Victor deadpans, which earns a glare from Tesla. Victor didn't give in as he simply stared blankly at the Pikachu, who relented by turning his head away and pouting.
"…congratulations, Vic. You manage to tame my brother," Sabo says in amusement, earning a look of betrayal from Tesla while Thorn and Victor chuckle in amusement. Buizel still feels locked out of the loop, but he didn't seem to mind.
As they reach the bulletin board, the team can't help but sweatdrop upon seeing the huge number of jobs pinned on the board.
"So… anyone planning to clean this board by doing the jobs?" Victor asks as everyone shakes their head with a traumatic expression. Victor sweatdrops as he remembers how the first day of the job truly had ruined everyone.
Well, except for Buizel, of course.
"Oh, you all are here!" Team Dawn turns around and sees Larry greeting them, along with Sally behind him.
"Hi, Larry," Victor greets as Larry gets closer to them, catching the entire team off guard.
"So, can I ask what's going on?" Larry leans closer and whispers to Victor, which is quite ironic given how loud Larry has always been for these few weeks. And the look made by Tesla and Sabo is priceless, in Victor's honest opinion. "I mean, what happened in the Guildmaster's office? Did Vice Guildmaster Charlie give you guys any trouble?"
"No, no," Victor says reassuringly. "It's not something you guys should be worried about. It's…mostly investigation involving my newest teammate and his situation."
"But, that's not-!" Buizel attempts to speak, but Sabo shuts him down while shaking his head. This only further confuses the little orange weasel.
"Oh, right, your newest teammate," Sally says as she greets the little weasel. "Hi there, I'm Sally. I hope we can be good friends!"
"R-really? You will be my friend?" Buizel asks, which breaks Sally's and Larry's hearts a bit. What kind of things did this child go through to say such things?
"Yes, I'll be your friend," Sally says softly, causing Buizel to beam.
"Yay! Then, let us fight!" Buizel exclaims, causing the seniors to blink.
"I beg your pardon?" Sally asks while blinking Noctowlish.
"Buizel, you don't need to fight to become friends here," Victor says as he places his hand on his forehead in exasperation.
"Eh? But Poliwag told me that's how to make friends, Boss. We also fight and become friends," Buizel says innocently.
"Not…every Pokémon wants to fight just to make friends," Thorn says with a sweatdrop. Larry and Sally feel a bit confused by all of this, wondering who this Poliwag is and why he would teach a child such old traditions that most Pokémon used to recruit Wild ones to be a team member.
"Oh…" Buizel mutters before looking at Sally. "Sorry…"
"…well, if you want to fight, then sure," Sally says, which makes Buizel perk up. "But, I need to see if I have time. Being in the guild keeps me busy with the constant mission piling up on our bulletin board."
"…huh?" Buizel didn't recognize some of the terms used by Sally.
"…is this 'Poliwag' his caretaker?" Sally asks with a sickly sweet smile, sending shivers down everyone's spine. "I would like to have a good little chat with them."
"Yes," Team Dawn nods hastily, slightly scared of the sentient sunflower's change of tone.
"May I ask where he is?" Sally asks, still with her sickly sweet tone.
"No idea," They all say in unison, which makes Sally sigh as her tones return to normal.
"I truly like to have a word with this Poliwag for his…questioning parenting," Sally mutters.
"…to be fair, he admits he's not good at it," Sabo says while rubbing the back of his head.
"At least he knows his flaws," Sally grumbles before looking at Team Dawn. "I hope neither of you guys teaches this young mon anything bad."
"…we can't promise you there won't be accidents," Victor says.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Sally asks with a questioning glance.
"Well, there will be moments where we curse, and Buizel just happens to hear it, which…" Victor didn't finish it as Sally sighed. "B-but, we make sure it won't happen anytime soon."
"Well, all I can say is you guys got your hands full," Larry says with a slightly amused tone.
"Oh, you have no idea," Tesla grumbles silently, which Thorn hears and elbows the electric mouse with his vines. "Hey!"
"Anyways, there's something I would like to ask you guys," Larry says, catching their attention. "I have some missions I need to finish with Douglas and Sir A-aron, so I was hoping if any of you guys would be willing to take over the Sentry Duty."
Out of all team members, Tesla is the only one raising his paws, which surprises Sabo and Thorn. It's even more surprising that even after noticing Sabo didn't raise his paws, he still raised his. Over the week, everyone assumed Tesla to be a clingy big brother who refuses to leave Sabo's side, so this is quite surprising.
"…don't misunderstand, I want Sabo to join the expedition, so contributing even more in Guild activities will increase the chance of us getting chosen," Tesla says while rolling his eyes.
"…well, then. Thank you for volunteering," Larry decided not to look at the gift Ponyta in the mouth and let Tesla substitute for them. He decided not to tell them that their chance of being chosen is based on individual performance. Without more words, Tesla decided to walk down the stairs as everyone silently watched him.
"…the chance of being chosen is based on an individual's performance, isn't it?" Victor asks in a deadpan manner.
"…how did you?" Larry can't help but be surprised that the leader, whom he found out from Sally that he's a year older than him, figures out so easily.
"You hesitate when hearing his reasoning for accepting the Sentry Duty," Victor says dryly. 'It did help that I used to deal with students who wanted duties just to get extra credits when in reality, it's just a trick used by the teachers to discipline everyone.'
"Ah…" Larry scratches his side while everyone simply gives him a look of disapproval, while Buizel simply remains oblivious.
"…oh well, big brother did say he didn't want to go after yesterday's exploration," Sabo sighs.
"Oh, that explains why you guys were not in the Guild for almost an entire day, and that explains why the jobs on the bulletin boards remain untouched," Larry muses.
"…you guys didn't do any job yesterday?" Sabo asks incredulously.
"The entire guild was too busy cleaning up the Guild, looking through letters arriving in our guild, and even doing chores," Larry explains. "It always happens at least once every two weeks."
"…how come we never heard of this?" Sabo asks in confusion.
"Well, it's not an official guild activity. Most seniors voluntarily choose to do this," Larry explains. "It helps to keep the guild neat and tidy."
"Ah…" The group simply nods in understanding.
"Anyways, I kept you all long enough. Go finish some jobs to get the chance of being selected," Larry says before grinning. "But, let me warn you. I won't let you guys select just because you guys are newbies."
"….oh, it's on." Victor, Sabo, and Thorn give their seniors a challenging gaze and a feral grin. Sally, meanwhile, simply watches from the sideline and sighs in exasperation.
"Males,"
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Later
With Tesla
The resident's Pikachu can be seen sitting in the underground while looking grumpy, sipping his coffee, and looking through the book. To think he had assumed his contribution would've helped his little brother to get the chance of being chosen for the Guild's expedition when, in reality, it's only based on an individual's performance.
Well, it's not entirely individual performance. If any Guild members choose to do their job as a team, all team members increase their chances together.
"And that loudmouth chose to withhold their information from us," Tesla grumbles, not knowing Victor had figured it out. "…I would have complained even more, but given that I get the chance to stay in the Guild, I should take my chance to relax…"
Tesla leans on the wall while sighing. It has been crazy weeks since he and Sabo met the human, who turned to Digimon or whatever it is, and ironically, he had helped him more than he expected, especially with his relationship with Sabo. He almost ruined it, but that human had helped him, despite he was being hostile and distrustful towards him.
'…damn it, to think I would try to find a way to repay him…' Tesla thought before groaning. '…fine, mom and dad didn't teach me to be ungrateful, especially involving Sabo...'
He silently glances at the cup of warm coffee as he dives deep into his memory. He remembers the day when his parents showed him Sabo's egg and explained how he would be a big brother in the near future, the day when he hatched, and everyone celebrated, and the days he and Sabo spent together with their parents.
'Mom…dad…did...did I raise my little brother right…?' Tesla can't help but think, reflecting on everything he has done for his little brother. After hearing about it through Victor's perspective, he wondered if he had been a proper big brother for the young Pokémon over the years. But his thought was interrupted when the entire room started to get dark.
'…can't have a moment of peace, huh?' Tesla thought in a deadpan manner before letting out a sigh and opening the book. "Oh, well. Let's just get this over with. Now, whose footprint is that?"
Tesla looks up again before blinking. Instead of seeing a footprint, he sees an oddly shaped ball with two tails and a pair of wings. This immediately made Tesla frown as the shadow reminded him of that bastard who beat his asses with his partner in crime.
'Calm down, Tesla. Don't get angry, for Sabo's sake. It might be other Zubats.' Tesla calms himself before shouting. "It's Zubat's shadow! That thing doesn't have any legs!"
After reporting, the room lit up once again before shadows started covering the room again. Tesla furrows his brow as he didn't expect another guest, but when he looked at the top, he froze. The shadow shapes like a ball with tumors growing left and right in it. This causes Tesla to growl before he tries to calm himself.
Unless he sees their face and hears their voice, he should calm himself down.
"What's taking this process so long?" This made Tesla freeze once again as he heard a familiar voice, and his blood ran cold. It was unmistakable to him that the voice belonged to that bastard Zubat!
"What do you guys expect from the lowest-ranked guild on the continent? Their services were known to be terrible." Another familiar voice speaks, and Tesla growls even louder, instantly recognizing that Pokémon's voice belongs to Koffing from before.
"Calm down, now." Tesla hears an unfamiliar voice as they speak. "All of us here are for an official business, so let's keep the insults to a minimum, however true it is."
'An unknown figure?' Tesla thought in confusion. Why would those scums visit the Wigglytuff's Guild of all places? Also, he doubts they're here just for some 'business', given that Zubat and Koffing are blatant criminals.
Not to mention, these bastards stole his little brother's treasure. He needs to do something about it. Reporting William should be a good-!
Tesla froze slightly as he processed his thoughts. Did he just consider reporting to someone whom he isn't remotely close to, and believing it to be a good idea? Tesla can't help but frown slightly as he didn't expect himself to lower his guard too much.
Is it because he was proven wrong multiple times over these few weeks? By Victor, who helps him reconcile with his brother? By his seniors, who have proven to be helpful and lack any malicious intent? By William, who lowers his guard around his guildmates and genuinely tries to socialize with them? Tesla isn't sure anymore, but he is a bit concerned about how easily he trusts people, when he has always been distrustful.
But, after he thinks about it, he realizes that now is not the time to think about his trust issue, and focus on the current problem, preventing these criminals from entering the guild before his brother returns with his friends.
'I need to report this first…' Tesla thought before he slowly crawled out of the Sentry Post, and he immediately encountered Helena.
"Tesla, is there-!?" Before she could finish, Tesla cut her off.
"Helena. Zubat and Koffing are in front of the gate. Those two are the same Pokémon that mugged my brother and beat us for trying to retrieve it." Tesla admits the last part with slight reluctance. This alarms the Psychic as she frowns a bit, a blue glow emits from her eyes, before her frown deepens, and she looks at Tesla.
"Let us report this to the Guildmaster."
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Not Long After
"…we all agree to never speak of these missions ever again," Victor says in exhaustion as he and his teammates slowly crawl up the stairs leading to the guild.
"The escorts or the rescue?" Sabo mutters.
"Yes," Victor says, leaving zero arguments.
"That bas-, I mean, idiot wasted our fully stocked Reviver Seeds, taking a quarter of it, all because he refuses to stay with us and keeps splitting up!" Thorn exclaims in frustration.
"Then, the rescue…oh, Arceus, the stupid rescue!" Sabo groans in frustration.
"Guys, please don't talk about it anymore." Victor groans, which is copied by everyone. Buizel, on the other hand, is unconscious while being carried by Thorn.
"…I wonder how Big Brother is doing being alone for quite a long time…" Sabo mutters in concern as Thorn and Victor glance at him.
"I think he'll do fine-!" Without warning, a huge explosion occurs at the top of the Guild. This shocks everyone as they didn't expect any incident to happen in the Guild, and it's more shocking to see a Pokémon sent flying upward before it descends like a falling star.
Victor might've mistook it, but the flying Pokémon might perhaps be Skuntank, and that Pokémon isn't someone he expected to see soon.
They all rush towards the Guild, and to their disbelief, the entire Guild surrounds the front yard with three unconscious Pokémon lying in the center, completely injured from head to toe.
"Oh, hi Team Dawn!" William greets cheerfully as he clears some dust from his paws. "You all had missed the show."
"…what in the Distortion World is going on!?!"
To Be Continued