Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: The Azure Sun Rises (Ch1)

Azure Caves
B2F


	“Remind me why we’re here.”

	“You know why. I wanted someone to join me and help me look for the treasure at the end of this mystery dungeon, and you took my offer.”

	“Remind me why I did that.”

	“Beats me.”

	That wasn’t the answer Lurantis was looking for. She’d been exploring this mystery dungeon with this Stoutland for what felt like hours, and both the novelty of entering such a place and the thrill of seeking out its treasure had worn off long ago. Now, the oppressive darkness surrounding them, held back to a radius of just a few feet by the glowing blue Wonder Orb that Stoutland wore around his neck in a collar, was starting to get to Lurantis. This was the longest amount of time she had spent underground in a while, and being away from the familiar light of the sun for so long had made her distraught. Her legs felt heavy, and a headache had set in from stress. She did not know how much longer she could last.

	“I think I’m starting to forget what the sun looks like,” Lurantis said as she glanced about. “I hate the dark. It’s not good for a Lurantis to be in such a place for so long.”

	“Hey, I warned you it would be dark in here,” Stoutland barked, his gruff voice echoing down the tunnel, “so don’t you go complaining. I told you, and you still said you wanted to come along.”

	“And I can’t for the life of me remember what possessed me to do so. The allure of treasure, most likely, but even then…” Lurantis’ voice trailed off into a sigh. “Clearly, I wasn’t thinking straight. It must have been that Berry Juice I was drinking when you approached me back in that tavern. It must have been left to ferment too long.”

	“Well, it’s too late to turn back now,” said Stoutland. “If you want to escape, we need to make it to the end of this place. Either that, or get knocked out—but I don’t think either of us wants to do that.”

	“Nonetheless, I think I might anyway,” Lurantis said with a groan. “This whole mystery dungeon business is more trouble than I was expecting. My Leaf Guard is down, I can’t summon my Solar Blade, and I also can’t feel my legs. Why can’t I feel my legs?”

	Stoutland sighed as the Lurantis’ voice grew steadily more panicked and high-pitched. “Calm down. We can rest a bit if you feel tired.”

	“I think I’d rather get out of here as soon as possible,” Lurantis said quickly. “The prospect of spending any more time in this cave than is absolutely necessary doesn’t appeal to me in the slightest.”

	“Then let’s get a move on,” said the Normal-type, sounding irritated. “Don’t waste time.”

	The Grass-type nodded, following close behind him as they made their way down the tunnel. While Stoutland kept his ears standing up tall and twitched his nose occasionally as he tried to detect enemies, Lurantis simply stayed close and kept looking around nervously, unable to sense what her companion could. She had no idea what lurked beyond the ring of light cast by Stoutland’s collar. Although she was confident that he would be able to sense any threats ahead of time due to his strong senses of smell and hearing, she was still afraid enough of ambushes to quiver in fear. She did not feel capable of putting up a fight under these conditions, away from the sun.

	As she followed Stoutland down the tunnel, a gust of wind blew past and sent a chill through Lurantis’ body. Stoutland barely even noticed it due to his thick fur, but the cold wind left his companion shuddering violently for a few seconds. That was another thing she hated about this place, besides the darkness and threat of enemies: the dungeon was very, very cold. Having spent most of her life under the sun, or at least in places where the sky was visible, she found being in a dark cave hidden away from the comforting heat and light of the sun distressing. So far, Lurantis had managed to maintain the relatively collected demeanor that was characteristic of her kind, but with every step, she could feel herself slipping. The stress of the situation was starting to take its toll. She kept telling herself that at least she still had a companion, one who was more familiar with mystery dungeons and more capable of fighting under these conditions, but she continued to worry nonetheless.

	She was pulled from her thoughts and fears with a jolt when she accidentally bumped into Stoutland, who had unexpectedly stopped walking. She tried to apologize, but the Normal-type shushed her before she could finish saying “Sorry”.

	“Quiet!” he said in a low voice. “There’s a wild Pokémon approaching.”

	Within moments, something appeared on the edges of the circle of light cast by Stoutland’s collar. As it stepped into the light, Lurantis and Stoutland recognized it as a Sandslash, approaching slowly with its dark eyes narrowed as it glared at the two newcomers in the tunnel. Lurantis raised her sickle-shaped arms defensively, eying the Ground-type cautiously.

	“Lurantis, try one of your Grass-type moves,” said the Normal-type. “It’ll be more effective than any of my attacks.”

	Lurantis hesitated. If she were under the sun, she could defeat this Sandslash without much trouble. She was a decent fighter, but she had never fought without the sun shining on her and giving her its energy, and without the sun’s energy, she felt weak. She wasn’t sure if she could use any of her moves at all.

	“I don’t think I can,” said Lurantis, her voice shaky. “Without the sun, I’m afraid can’t do much.”

	Stoutland stared at her. “Seriously? Fine then. I’ll handle this.”

	The Normal-type lowered his head, and charged at the Sandslash, striking the Ground-type in the chest. Though the blow made it stumble back, it quickly regained its footing and, with a cry, slashed at its foe. Its claws sliced Stoutland’s forehead, leaving a shallow cut, and the Normal-type stepped back with a grunt of pain. The Sandslash’s claws began to glow as it readied another attack, but it didn’t get the chance to strike before Stoutland lunged forward again, tackling the Ground-type and knocking it over onto its back. The Sandslash struggled to get up, but then fell back down, unconscious.

	“Lurantis,” Stoutland grunted once his foe had fallen, “grab an Oran Berry out of my pouch.”

	The Grass-type hurried to the canine’s side, reaching up to the large brown bag strapped to his back. With some effort, she managed to find and grasp a small blue berry with her sickle arms. She offered the berry to Stoutland, who thanked her and ate it. The cut on his face closed up within seconds, leaving only a small scar in its place barely visible through his fur.

	“There we go,” he said. “Now, let’s keep moving. Hopefully we won’t run into many more enemies in here, because if you can’t do anything to help me, I don’t know how far we can make it.”

	Lurantis detected a hint of scorn in his voice, and she lowered her eyes as she followed the Normal-type down the tunnel. She had joined Stoutland to help him make it through this dungeon, but clearly, she wasn’t cut out for fighting under these conditions. She believed the main cause of her weakness was the darkness and cold resulting from the lack of sun, but something told her that was not completely it. She did not want to admit it, but as she thought about it more, she felt as though the real reason for her inability to use her moves might be simple fear. After all, this was the first time she had entered a mystery dungeon, and despite Stoutland briefing her on what such places were like before they entered it, she still didn’t feel confident. She found it to be a harrowing experience walking through narrow tunnels deep underground with hostile Pokémon everywhere, very limited visibility, and a lack of the sun she craved so much. Even so, the Grass-type tried her best to keep her composure, and followed Stoutland closely, wanting less than anything else to be left behind in the shadowy tunnels of the mystery dungeon.


Azure Caves
B3F


	The sound of dripping water echoed as Lurantis and Stoutland stepped down the stone staircase leading to the next floor of the dungeon. They found themselves in a rather large room, and Lurantis was pleasantly surprised to see that this cavern was lit up, albeit faintly. She looked for the source of the light, hoping against hope that the sun was somehow shining down into the dungeon. However, the fact that the light had a distinctly blue hue to it quickly convinced her otherwise, and upon closer inspection of her surroundings, she confirmed that the light came not from the sun but rather from a multitude of small glowing crystals set in the walls. By their dim light, she could see most of the cave, which held nothing of interest except a small trickle of water pouring from a crack high in one wall and forming a puddle that covered about half of the room’s floor.

	Looking at the crystals, Lurantis began to wonder if their light would be sufficient for her to photosynthesize with and gain the energy to call on her attacks. She approached one of the crystals and closed her eyes, concentrating on drawing in its light, but it soon became apparent that the light was too dim to help her. Dejected, she returned to Stoutland’s side, finding the Normal-type glancing about with a concerned expression.

	“I smell something,” he said, his nose twitching. “Probably an enemy. I can’t hear any footsteps, though, so it’s most likely a hovering Pokémon.” He looked over at Lurantis, and after seeing her worried expression, he continued, “Lurantis, if you can’t fight, just stay out of my way. I can handle it myself. You can just get some healing items ready and help me if I take too much damage.”

	With a nod, Lurantis reached into Stoutland’s bag and withdrew another Oran Berry, holding it at the ready to heal him if need be.

	“I hate to make you do all the fighting yourself,” said Lurantis, “but until I get some sunlight, I’m afraid I won’t be of much help.”

	“Y’know, I’m not too familiar with Grass-type Pokémon,” Stoutland said. “I’m from Northport Town, and there aren’t many Pokémon of your type there. Do all of you need sunlight to do anything, or is it just you?”

	Lurantis took a moment to collect her thoughts before responding. “Well, the thing is, my kind needs lots of sun before we evolve, and even after we do evolve, it’s still important to get plenty of sun. When I was a Fomantis, I spent most of my time photosynthesizing under the sun. Now that I’m a Lurantis, I don’t need to do that constantly, but I still grow weak in darkness. If we happen to find any sufficient light down here, I’ll definitely be able to fight alongside you, but for now—”

	“For now, you’re useless,” Stoutland muttered under his breath. But despite his attempt to hide what he said, Lurantis still heard him. The Grass-type’s eyes widened, and she stared at her companion in stunned silence, hurt by his comment. He seemed to notice this, and looked at Lurantis nervously. “I didn’t mean that, Lurantis. You’re not useless. You can take care of healing. That’s really useful. Just because you can’t fight doesn’t mean you’re useless.”

	Lurantis held his gaze for a few seconds, until his ears twitched and he broke eye contact, having heard something to distract him. He turned towards a tunnel leading out of the room, while Lurantis stood behind him and to the side, looking down the tunnel warily. A few moments later, out of the darkness of the tunnel and into the light of the blue crystals in the room came a lone Carbink, hovering a few feet off the ground and eying Stoutland cautiously.

	“Oh, that’s not good. It’s a Rock/Fairy-type,” Stoutland growled. “I really wish you could help me out here, Lurantis. My Tackle won’t do much to this thing, and even my Bite won’t hurt it much.”

	The Normal-type held his ground as the Carbink approached, and once it was close enough, he lunged forward and tackled the Carbink. But just like the Sandslash from earlier, it only reeled for a moment before retaliating quickly, summoning and launching a small cloud of sharp rocks at Stoutland. They stabbed into him, and he growled as he tackled his opponent again. As they continued to trade blows, it became clear that the Carbink, despite being diminutive, had the advantage, as its resilient body and Rock/Fairy typing helped it resist Stoutland’s attacks. The Carbink continued to shoot rock shards at its foe, and although Stoutland’s thick fur prevented any of them from causing serious damage, he was still wounded.

	As she watched this scene, Lurantis could tell that Stoutland was in danger. Although she stood rooted to the spot, her thoughts were racing.

	“I have to do something!” she said. “I’m just standing here doing nothing while he’s out there getting beaten up. If I could use one of my Grass-type attacks, that Carbink would go down easily, but I just can’t get up the strength to do it!”

	Lurantis focused, raising one of her arms and trying to summon any kind of Grass-type attack. She closed her eyes tightly, a grimace forming on her face as she concentrated intently on calling up an attack that could assist Stoutland. But despite her best efforts, nothing happened. Without the sun, she was too weak to summon any of her attacks. But was it really the lack of sun, or her own fear?

	“I really am useless, aren’t I?” she murmured. “But I’m not a Fomantis anymore. I should be able to fight without the sun. I shouldn’t be this afraid! What’s wrong with me?”

	Lurantis took a deep and shaky breath before closing her eyes again, making another effort to summon up enough energy to fuel an attack. But like her last attempt, she failed. She could not access a single one of her moves, no matter how much she tried. And Stoutland was suffering without her help. If she didn’t use a move, he could faint, and then all their efforts making it through the dungeon so far would be useless.

	Useless. The word struck her hard. If she didn’t do something, Stoutland could be defeated, and then everything they’d done, all the progress they’d made, would be useless. Just like her. But even that revelation failed to give her the determination to do anything.

	She was still frozen, unable to summon her moves and help her companion.

	She opened her eyes again, staring at the struggling Stoutland.

	She breathed quickly and heavily, hyperventilating.

	Fear gripped her, rooting her in place.

	Something ran down her cheek.

	Tears.

	Why can’t I fight?!

	“Lurantis!” Stoutland shouted suddenly. “Berry! Now!”

	His cry startled Lurantis, and she almost dropped the Oran Berry she held. Seeing Stoutland looking back at her, with the Carbink reeling from a hit he had just dealt, she threw the berry as hard as she could. The canine bit it out of the air, healing his wounds and restoring his energy. He turned back just in time to notice and dodge another attack by the Carbink, and follow it up with several Tackles in quick succession. The Carbink, having grown weary from the length of the battle, could not withstand the attack of the revitalized Stoutland, and so it was launched backwards into a wall. It fell to the ground in a faint, and the Normal-type stood still, breathing heavily for a few moments. Having caught his breath, he turned to Lurantis and gave her a weak smile, which fell when he noticed the tears on her face.

	“Are you alright?” he asked. Lurantis turned her head away to hide her tears, and tried to say that she was fine—even though that was a lie—but she felt a lump in her throat that made it impossible to speak. She simply nodded, too choked up to say anything, and Stoutland watched her before giving a sigh.

	“Well, if you’re ready, let’s keep moving,” he said before turning and heading for the tunnel from which the Carbink had emerged.

	Lurantis stood still for a few seconds, taking the chance to focus on slowing her rapid breathing. She took some deep breaths and wiped the tears from her face, regaining some semblance of the calm composure that had been her default emotion prior to this whole ordeal. She looked towards where Stoutland had gone, and with a start, saw that he was already quite some distance down the tunnel. Frightened, Lurantis chased after him, running down the tunnel and away from the illumination of the blue crystals. Cold darkness surrounded her as she entered the tunnel, causing her to shiver as she ran to catch up with her companion. Fortunately, she reached him quickly and finally, breathing heavily form exertion, she stepped into the comforting light that his collar gave off, though it was far from sufficient to calm her completely.

	Stoutland pricked up his ears, hearing his companion's heavy breathing as she caught up with him. He glanced back at her and asked again if she was okay, and she quickly nodded in response. Accepting her reply, he looked forward again as they emerged into another large room, this one similarly lit by glowing blue crystals. And a hole in the ground revealed the next set of stairs, the next step towards leaving this horrid place.


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