Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: The Azure Sun Rises (Ch4)

[previous: http://pastebin.com/wU7TUJYT]


	After looking at his former companion for a few moments longer, Stoutland took a deep breath and said what he had been wanting to say for a while now: “I’m so sorry, Lurantis. Abandoning you was a terrible idea, and I’m a terrible person for doing it. I must’ve caused you so much pain.”

	Lurantis felt glad to hear his apology, and wanted to tell him not to worry about it, but she hesitated. Truly, she had been through a lot of pain as a result of Stoutland’s choice. Her wounds still had not healed, and she still had not forgotten the hurtful things he said to her before he left.

	“You did,” Lurantis said. “You did cause me a lot of pain.”

	“I know,” Stoutland said, “But still, can you forgive me, Lurantis? I don’t know how I can make it up to you, but believe me, I regret what I did. If you don’t forgive me, I understand completely, but I just want you to know that I’m sorry for leaving you behind.”

	Lurantis and Stoutland held each other’s gaze while Lurantis considered Stoutland’s words, unsure whether to forgive the Normal-type or condemn him for his actions.

	After a long pause, Lurantis spoke, and her former companion listened to her intently. “Stoutland, I want to forgive you, but I’m not sure if I can. I mean, you left me behind back there, all alone, even though you knew I didn’t stand a chance in this place. I only made it through because of luck. I happened to find enough light to photosynthesize and regain my energy, and that let me fight back and make it to the end of the dungeon and reunite with you. But before I found that light…”

	Lurantis’ voice faltered, and she started to tear up once more. The confidence she had gained after the incident with the Donphan and the Phanpy was cracking, and she was filled with memories of the icy terror that had paralyzed her mind and sent her running through the dungeon, trying in vain to flee from not only the abundant wild Pokémon but also her own fear.

	“It was the most terrifying ordeal I’ve ever been through,” she said, barely able to force her words out past the lump in her throat. “The darkness, the cold, the wild Pokémon everywhere attacking me… It hurt, Stoutland. It hurt so much.”

	The last few words were hardly audible, as emotion overtook Lurantis and made it difficult to speak. She looked down at the ground and let her tears fall, cradling her head in her sickle arms as Stoutland watched her with drooping ears and a lowered head. After a short while, Lurantis recovered and, wiping the tears from her face, looked up at Stoutland.

	“Lurantis,” he said softly once she had stopped crying, “like I said before, I used to be afraid of mystery dungeons too. And even though I’m sure that the fear I used to feel isn’t anywhere near the amount you felt here, I can still get a grasp of what it must have been like for you to be all alone in here. And I know that it was wrong to leave you. I hope you believe me, and I hope you can forgive me.”

	Lurantis looked up, wiping tears from her face and gasping for breath. “I don’t know,” she said. “I made it through the dungeon, but it still hurt. I’ll never forget what happened—especially since this antenna of mine might never grow back. I’ll always have some of the fear I felt back there in the dungeon, and I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to forgive you for putting me through it.”

	“I would understand if you didn’t,” Stoutland said. “I don’t know if I’d forgive myself if I was in your place. Even now, I still haven’t forgiven myself for leaving you behind. So, you do what you want. If you don’t want to accept my apology, I understand.”

	Lurantis fell silent as she stared at her former companion and tried to decide what to do. But before she could make a choice, both Pokémon were distracted by a loud groan from the center of the room, and they looked towards Camerupt. The Fire/Ground-type had recovered from the attack that had defeated her. She was getting to her feet shakily, stumbling and staggering as she tried to stand. She looked at her opponents, and frowned.

	“It appears you have bested me,” she grumbled, gasping for breath between each word. “I cannot defeat you. I cannot protect my treasure. If you desire it, you may take it. But please, do not come back here once you leave.”
She stepped over to a specific place in the chamber and stomped the ground, causing a piece of the floor to shatter under her hoof and reveal a hidden space below. She leaned down and picked something out of it with her jaws, and Stoutland and Lurantis stared in awe at it.

	It was a glowing blue orb, shining like the crystals scattered throughout the dungeon. The orb seemed similar to the Wonder Orb that Stoutland had set in his collar, but smaller and brighter, and it glowed with a lighter blue hue. Camerupt lumbered over to Stoutland and Lurantis, who feared that she might attack suddenly, but she did nothing of the sort. She simply placed the orb on the ground and stepped back, looking back and forth between the two of them. Lurantis and Stoutland examined the orb closer, noting its perfectly spherical shape and the occasional shifting hues perceptible in its center, shining like a rainbow amongst the sky-blue color of the rest of the orb.

	“This is my treasure,” she said. “I call it the Azure Sun. It seems to be a natural gemstone, but unlike any I have seen before. I found it in this dungeon the first time I came to Azure Caves, and I took it out with me, but apparently other Pokémon caught wind of it. Ever since, I have been hiding down here, trying to protect this stone from anyone who would take it. I wanted to stay here until everyone forgot about me or lost interest in the orb, but that has been impossible, as a great many Pokémon have been coming here and trying to take the treasure. All have failed, but you two put up a strong fight. I have no energy left, and I cannot fight against power like that blade of energy you struck me with. If you want the treasure, take it.”

	Stoutland and Lurantis paused for a moment. “Are you sure about this?” the former asked.

	“Please, take it,” Camerupt said, her eyes lowered. “This stone has caused me enough trouble already. I have been losing interest in it ever since I started hiding out here, and this final fight against you has caused me to not care for it at all. I now just want someone to take it away from me. I have had enough of it. And if anyone is to take it from me, the two of you seem to be good candidates.”

	“Because we beat you in combat?” Stoutland asked.

	“Partially. But also because you are respectable Pokémon. I can tell that you are good of heart.”

	“Good of heart?”

	“Indeed. As far as I can tell, that is.” She turned to Stoutland and said, “I heard your words after your partner had struck me down. I could hear the regret in your voice. I do not know exactly what happened between you two, but clearly, you care about her enough to regret leaving her behind. And as for you, Lurantis, I saw how you protected him in his time of need, defending him from me despite the type advantage I have over you, and also despite whatever conflict previously arose between the two of you. Clearly, you two share a close bond. I respect that as well as your power in battle. That is why I offer this stone to you.”

	Stoutland smiled. “Well, if you insist, then we’ll gladly accept it.” He looked over to his former companion and gestured towards the stone with a paw. “Go ahead, Lurantis. You can have it.”

	Lurantis looked over at him in surprise. “Really? Are you sure? I thought that finding this dungeon’s treasure was your goal more than mine.”

	“Yeah, but we agreed to split the profits, remember? Back when I met you and convinced you to join me back in Azure Village? Maybe you forgot about that during all the stress of this expedition, but believe me, that was the deal. But now, I think I’d be fine with letting you have that gem for yourself. Go ahead.”

	Lurantis crouched and picked up the stone, holding it between the claws that tipped her arms. She was mesmerized by its glow, which seemed to shine brighter as she held it, and its myriad colors glowing inside it appeared all at once as she looked at it. It looked just like a rainbow in the blue sky after a rain had ended, shining as if it were under the bright sun that she loved. It reminded her of being aboveground, with the clear sky above and the sun giving her its energy. Something about the Azure Sun stone made her feel happy and at peace. She hugged it close to herself, and smiled at Stoutland.

	“Thank you,” she said, before turning to Camerupt. “And thank you, too, for your generosity. I’ll take good care of this.”

	“I hope it causes you less trouble than it caused me,” Camerupt said. “It would be a shame to see such kindhearted Pokémon as yourselves suffer like I did. But I think you will be safe. In order to help you, I will return aboveground after you leave and try to spread the word that I lost the stone to another unknown Pokémon. Some might pester me to reveal its location, but I will keep your secret. Hopefully, in time, everybody will leave all three of us alone.”

	“I hope so, too,” said Stoutland. He then faced Lurantis. “Ready to go? We’ve got what we came here for.”

	“Yes, let’s get going,” Lurantis said.

	“Take that tunnel over there to exit,” Camerupt said, nodding towards the tunnel that Stoutland had noticed earlier, when he first entered the chamber. “It leads to the shores of Azure Lake, close to Azure Village.”

	With one last expression of thanks to Camerupt, Stoutland and Lurantis hurried to the tunnel, following it as it gently sloped upwards towards the surface. Glowing blue crystals lined the walls, but became less numerous as the tunnel progressed, until its walls, floor, and ceiling became completely ordinary stone. Despite the disappearance of the crystals and their light, the tunnel as not completely dark, as Stoutland’s Wonder Orb gave off light and illuminated the tunnel well.

	In addition, the Azure Sun began to give off a very noticeable amount of both light and heat once the tunnel grew darker, as if being brought to a dark place triggered some reaction and made it produce energy. Lurantis began to feel herself photosynthesizing, and realized that the Azure Sun was the cause. She felt that the stone might possibly be used to power her up in a pinch if she was away from the real sun. As such, it seemed like it would be a good item to hang on to. She clutched the orb close to her as she followed Stoutland through the tunnel, relieved to finally have found a path out of the dungeon as well as an item that she would find useful.

	The tunnel meandered lazily back and forth, and Stoutland and Lurantis expected to see the outside world at any moment. And sure enough, within moments, the tunnel curved slightly, and they went around its curve to see blue skies ahead. They ran faster, reaching the end of the tunnel and stepping out into the light, smiles on their faces as they returned to the surface world at last.

	Just as Camerupt had said, taking the tunnel brought them to the shores of Azure Lake. The tunnel came out of a hillside facing the lake, and the duo was treated to a view of the shimmering water beneath the cloudless afternoon sky. Across the lake stood a forest, and somewhere within it was the entrance to Azure Caves that the duo had gone into what felt like so long ago. They took in the view before looking around, and realized with a shock that the tunnel they had left through was no longer there. All that stood there was a blank hillside, covered in dirt and grass.

	“That’s why they’re called mystery dungeons,” Stoutland mused. “They’re mysterious, and don’t follow logic. One second the exit is there, the next it’s gone.”

	“We’re close to Azure Village, right?” Lurantis said. “That’s what Camerupt said.”

	Stoutland nodded, and climbed up the hill, Lurantis close behind him. They stood atop it and looked north over the fields that stretched west of Azure Lake. A small cluster of teepees and wooden buildings stood on the plains, close to the lake. In the distance, forests obscured the horizon. They stood atop the hill, taking in the view as the wind blew across them and the warmth and light of the sun drifted down to them. Lurantis closed her eyes and basked in the sun she had missed so dearly, glad to be out in the open again.

	“It feels so good to be out of that dungeon,” Lurantis said.

	“Same here,” Stoutland said. The duo stood in the breeze and looked out over the fields in silence, taking the chance to observe the tranquil scene, neither of them willing to break the peace. But Stoutland recalled the discussion that had been postponed in the crystal chamber, and felt that he needed to conclude it here.

	“Lurantis,” he said, “you never did let me know if you forgive me.”

	The Grass-type looked over at him. “You’re right,” she said. “I still haven’t really figured it out.”

	She crossed her arms and looked down at the grassy ground of the hilltop, deep in thought. Stoutland shifted his weight back and forth, glancing nervously about and waiting for her to speak again. After a minute, she looked over at Stoutland and gave her verdict.

	“As much as I hate to admit it,” she began, “you had a point when you called me useless. I was unable to help you fight and too paralyzed with fear to assist you in any other meaningful way. And that incident with the Pangoro could have been avoided if I hadn’t been so afraid. So I can understand your anger, and I can understand how that would have led you to do what you did, even though that doesn’t make it hurt any less. But at the same time, I can tell that your regret is true. And you had an understandable reason for what you did, even though I don’t support it. So, with that in mind, I think I can forgive you.”

	Stoutland stared at Lurantis for a few seconds, before smiling broadly. “Thank you, Lurantis. That means a lot to me. I still feel bad about abandoning you, but knowing you forgive me makes me feel better. I’ll remember this, and try to be a better partner on my future expeditions.”

	Glad to hear that, Lurantis gave him a smile. But his next words wiped it from her face.

	“And now that that’s over with, I think it’s time we go our separate ways.”

	Lurantis stared at her companion with wide eyes. Surprise rooted her to the spot as the Normal-type turned and began to walk down the hillside.

	“Goodbye, Lurantis,” he said. “Good luck with whatever you do next.”

	Lurantis watched him go, mouth agape. He had left her so suddenly that she had trouble registering what had just happened.

	“After all we’ve been through, he’s leaving just like that?” she thought. “But, wait. Why do even I care? He hurt me so much. I should be glad to see him leave. But still, for some reason, I don’t want him to go.”

	She took a moment to compose herself, and then shouted for him to stop, even though she did not know why. “Hey, wait! Stop!”

	Stoutland turned around. “What? You want me to stay? Why?”

	Lurantis paused. “I’m not too sure, but it just feels wrong for you to leave so suddenly. Could you at least tell me why you want to leave?”

	“I’m leaving because I hadn’t planned to drag you along with me on whatever other expeditions I did,” Stoutland replied. “At first, I was just looking for a companion to help me get through this one particular dungeon. I didn’t have any plans to bring that companion along to more dungeons. And now, after seeing how you handled that dungeon, it’s clear that exploring mystery dungeons isn’t really your thing. So now, I couldn’t bear to force you into another one with me. That’s why I think it would be best to go our separate ways now, because I’m planning to explore many more dungeons, and I don’t want you to suffer any more than you already have.”

	He turned and began to walk down the hill, but Lurantis hurried down after him, shouting again for him to stop.

	The Normal-type sighed and turned to face the Grass-type as she caught up to him. “Lurantis, please. Like I said, I’m going to explore more dungeons, and I don’t think you’d like joining me.”

	Lurantis crossed her arms. “Well, you thought wrong.”

	“What.”

	“You heard me. I’m coming with you.”

	Stoutland narrowed his eyes and looked inquisitively at the Grass-type. “Lurantis, you do know that means you’ll be going into more mystery dungeons, right? Including ones that are underground? Away from the sun? To be fair, if you were to join me, I wouldn’t abandon you again, but I can’t ensure that we’d be able to stay together all the time. We might get separated at some point, and you’d be all alone. And that didn’t end well for you in Azure Caves.”

	Lurantis hesitated. It was true that she had panicked in Azure Caves, as it was the longest time she had been underground and away from the sun, surrounded by enemies, and unable to draw up the energy to defend herself. Fear had paralyzed her before, but she refused to let it happen again. Against all odds, she had survived, even regaining her strength to the point where she could fight. And in the end, she had been the one to save Stoutland by distracting Camerupt, coming up with the stone umbrella idea, and dealing the final blow.

	She was not useless.

	“I know how it went last time, Stoutland. In fact, I feel like I’ll probably have nightmares about it for weeks, even though it turned out alright in the end. But even so, for some reason, I don’t want to just hide from dungeons forever. Even though it went badly last time, I feel like next time will be different. I’ll be braver, and I won’t panic again.”

	“Are you sure, Lurantis?”

	“Hey, just like you told me in the dungeon, it’s okay to be afraid the first time you’re doing something new and dangerous, but what’s important is that you overcome that fear eventually. And I know that I can. And that’s why I don’t want you to leave. I want to join you and keep exploring dungeons, so I can overcome that fear. So please, let me go with you!”

	The Normal-type stared at Lurantis, surprised by the confidence she showed. His surprise only lasted a moment, though, and then he gave a hearty laugh and grinned at her. “So, this is your true side, eh? Without the darkness and the cold and the fear to hold you back? Looks like you really are a brave Pokémon, Lurantis. You’ll go far. And I’d be glad to have you join me. We can make a good team, I think.”

	Lurantis grinned, and laughed happily. “Great! Let’s go, Stoutland!”

	The Grass-type began to run past him, down the hill, but the canine did not move. Lurantis paused and looked back at him, asking what was wrong.

	“Not to be a killjoy,” he said, “but there are some things we need to do before we’re officially a team. For example, it would be a good idea to register with the Dungeon Delvers Guild, and then there are some other matters to think about, like whether or not to join the guild or act independently, whether we want to act as a rescue or exploration team, and stuff like that. We don’t need to focus on that right now, though. For now, we should just focus on coming up with a name. Any ideas?”

	“I have one,” Lurantis said after she paused to think. She held up the Azure Sun stone, letting its rainbow light shine out. “How about we call ourselves ‘Team Azure Sun’?”

	Stoutland looked at the stone, and grinned. “You know, that actually seems pretty fitting. We formed our team after finding the Azure Sun stone, for one.”

	“And your fur is kind of blue, and I like the sun. It’s a perfect name, I think.”

	Stoutland nodded. “I like it. From now on, we’re Team Azure Sun. Now, let’s get going, Lurantis. Adventure awaits, and all that. Ready?”

	Lurantis nodded quickly. “I’m ready. Time to explore!”

	And with that, Lurantis and Stoutland hurried down the hill side by side, heading towards Azure Village on their way start their adventure in earnest.

	The Azure Sun had risen, and showed no sign of setting.


[the end]