ToT Chapter 2: Kidnapped Kiddos + Witchy Woods

The sky was gray, clouds covering the sun as it rose above the hills. The chilly dawn air made Gary shiver as he stood waiting for a briefing on their next mission. Gemma walked up and down along rows of apprentices, giving each their tasks. As they got their orders, teams filed away from the crowd to get to work. Gary could only hope their orders were given before she got to the issues in Mosswood.

“Teams Pathfinders and Harvester!” Gemma called. Both teams stood at attention. “You have been tasked with searching for the missing children in Darkhowl Woods! It’s up to you how you go about looking for them, or at least for clues to their whereabouts. Dismissed!”

The two teams separated from the group, Gary silently thanking his lucky stars that Mosswood hadn’t come up. Gary wanted to get right down to the business of the lost kids, but of course Horace wanted to… introduce himself to the other team.

“It’s a pleasure to be working with two lovely ladies such as yourselves. I am Horace, musician extraordinaire. What might your names be?”

The Mienfoo, her limbs blue instead of the usual red, blushed and stammered out a reply. “Oh, um, I-I'm Y-Yang.” Gary felt a twinge of sympathy for her. Talking to new people was always a challenge, and she seemed to be as shy as he was.

Horace turned to her Eevee partner, grabbing one of her paws and kneeling down in front of her. “And you, my dear?”

She regarded him for a moment with annoyance, as you would a mosquito that had landed on your hand, before throwing a solid headbutt right in his face. Horace reeled backwards, holding his nose.

“I'm Sonya, and I really don't like it when people touch me.” She huffed and walked away, her partner hobbling behind her. “S-Sonya! You should a-apologize!”

Gary helped Horace sit up. “Y-you probably shouldn't try it again.” Horace just grinned. “Oh, but I can't resist a challenge. She'll come around, I'm sure.” He hopped up and ran after their new partners. Gary just sighed. Today is going to be a long day.

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The four apprentices walked in relative silence, Horace sporting several bruises and a swollen jaw from his continued flirtations with Sonya. The road through the forest was winding and rough, nothing more than a footpath that was only wide enough for them to walk single file.

After several minutes of walking, Sonya groaned. “We’re never going to find them by following the path. If they went missing, they’re not somewhere easy to find. We need to go deeper into the woods.”

Yang glanced around nervously. “B-but Sonya, wh-what if we got l-lost? How would we f-find them then?”

Horace rubbed his chin, wincing slightly at its soreness. “I have to agree with the lovely Eevee here.” Sonya glared at him, causing him to flinch backwards before continuing. “This path goes straight through the woods. If we keep following it, we’ll leave the forest. It would be best to search around in pairs, so we don’t get lost. How does that sound?”

“Th-that would probably work. One team takes the right side of the path, the other takes the left.” Gary suggested. The others nodded, though Yang still looked apprehensive. “So, who’s g-going to be with who?”

Horace smiled slyly. “I say we get to know each other better. Miss Yang, would you accompany me?”

Sonya’s eyes narrowed. “Oh no you don’t, buster. You’ll stay away from her.” With that, she grabbed him by the back of the neck and dragged him into the forest, not without several protests to the indignity of it all.

Both Gary and Yang sighed at their partners’ antics before turning to their side of the woods. “W-well,” Yang stammered out, “I g-guess we should get g-going.” The two headed off in the opposite direction, both watching the treelines closely.

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“Ow! Sonya, do you have to keep dragging me? It’s not exactly the most comfortable ride, you know!” Horace complained. Sonya just kept walking.

“Do I look like I care if it’s comfortable for you?” She grumbled as she continued to ignore his pleas for release.

“Couldn’t you at least be a bit more gentle? The ground is not exactly soft, you know. Besides, I can’t help you search like this.” Sonya stopped walking, which Horace took opportunity of to stand up again. “I’m glad you were able to see reason, my de-”

Sonya whirled and shushed him, before turning back to scan the trees. “I saw something moving just now. I’m sure of it.” Her head swiveled around, trying to catch another glimpse. “It looked almost like a green shimmer. Keep your eyes out.”

Horace was about to point out that they were surrounded by green, and that she might have only been seeing a passing leaf, when a small green blur darted through the trees in front of him. An almost neon green, moving much faster than any leaf he had ever seen, this shape was most definitely not a rustling plant.

“There!” He pointed to where the blur had passed. “It flew by, maybe a foot off the ground. Something’s in here with us.”

Both crouched, ready to spring into action. They unconsciously moved to stand back to back, ready to fend off any enemies that might leap from the woods around them.

So when the Woobat flew through the trees, straight at the two, she was surprised when Sonya pounced her. The Woobat was pinned, her wings flattened by Sonya’s paws. She let out a frightened squeak and desperately began flapping her wings in an attempt to get free.

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” Sonya demanded. When the small green bat didn’t answer, Sonya leaned in close. “I won’t ask again,” she growled. “Who are you, and why are you here?”

“Eep! Please don’t hurt me!” The Woobat whimpered. “My name is Molly, and I, uh… I’m here to, ah…” She began looking around nervously. “I’m just here to… gather some firewood! Yeah, that’s it! Firewood, for my, ah, my uncle! He’s, um, very sick, so he asked me to come and get it.” She grinned sheepishly up at Sonya, who just glared at her.

“Wait a minute. I recognize you.” Both of them looked at Horace, who was frowning in thought, trying to remember where he knew her from. Finally, it came to him. “You were on that wanted poster. You’re suspected of being behind the thefts and kidnappings that have been happening recently.”

Molly squirmed, trying to free herself, but still couldn’t get out of Sonya’s grasp. “N-no! You must be mistaken! I’m just…” She started struggling again, before crying out. “Morgan! Miss Morgan! Please, help me!”

A jet of flame suddenly struck Sonya, knocking her backwards and freeing Molly. Horace turned to see a Vulpix, anger in her eyes as she glared at Molly. “You!” She barked. “You’re supposed to be bringing me those two children! Where are they?”

Molly quailed in fright. “I’m sorry, Miss Morgan! They wandered off, and I was going to find them, but these two attacked me!” Morgan’s glare turned to Horace and Sonya.

“Grr, you’re from the Guilds, aren’t you? I knew they’d come after me! What do they want now? Don’t they know I’m busy?” Her left paw reached behind her back, emerging once again with a small vial, a glowing green substance contained within. Her right began to glow with energy.

“Go, you idiot!” She snapped at Molly. “Find the brats! I’ll take care of our uninvited guests!” Molly hastened to comply, flapping her way through the trees and out of sight. Morgan turned back towards the two apprentices. “Now, let’s see how you enjoy a fireworks show!”

Another flame shot from her right paw, shooting towards them at high speeds. Both of them disappeared in a blur of movement, and the bolt slammed into a tree, igniting it instantly. “Come out kiddies!” She cackled. “You can’t hide forever! These are my woods!”

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Even after a good twenty minutes of searching, Gary and Yang had found nothing. There were no traces of the children, or any habitation, for that matter. The forest seemed almost devoid of life. And yet Gary couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched.

“M-maybe we should go back. Maybe S-Sonya found them already, and th-they’re waiting for us back at th-the path.” Yang looked around nervously. “I d-don’t like it here. Something d-doesn’t feel right.”

Gary nodded. There was certainly an element of danger in the air. He couldn’t quite explain it, but he could tell that something powerful was lurking in these woods, and it was not happy that they were there.

“Believe me, I w-would love to go back, b-but we need to find those p-poor lost kids. If we’re n-nervous in here, imagine how s-scared they are.” Yang nodded thoughtfully.

“I suppose you’re right. L-let’s keep looking.”

They searched every bush and tree they came across, but none of them had any trace of the missing twins. Gary was starting to believe that, if they were in the forest at all, they were on the other side of the path.

Just as he was about to suggest they go back, Gary heard a quiet sniffle, like someone was crying. He wandered over towards a shrub at the base of a large, twisted tree, and parted its leaves. Inside the bush were two small children, a Plusle and a Minun. Both looked up at him with teary eyes. “Are you here to help us?” The Plusle asked.

Gary nodded before calling out. “Y-Yang! I f-found them!” He turned back to the children. “D-don’t worry. We came to r-rescue you.” Both children began crying in relief and hugged Gary’s legs tightly. He blushed a little. “It’s ok now. W-we’re here for you.”

Yang appeared from behind a tree and saw the two kids, both bawling their eyes out but otherwise unharmed. “Thank g-goodness you’re both safe. Your p-parents have been worried sick! Why did you c-come here?”

The Minun sniffled. “There was… There was a Woobat, and she told us she had sweets, and that she wanted to play with us. So we followed her here, and she said she was taking us to her home, but then we got scared, and…” He began to cry again. Yang leaned down and gave him a hug.

“It’s ok. W-we’ll take you out of here.”

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Fwoosh! Another tree went up in flames as Horace dodged through the trees. Incinerated almost on impact, the flames quickly extinguished themselves, no doubt a result of the witch’s magic.

Horace leapt from tree to tree, trying to find an opening for a counterattack. Unfortunately, she had already managed to predict and dodge an Acrobatics, as well as Sonya’s Quick Attack and Shadow Ball, and his Energy Ball would have almost no effect.

Suddenly, the tree Horace had just left exploded behind him, sending him flying across the small clearing that had been created during the fight. Landing hard in the dirt, he closed his eyes and braced himself for a powerful Flame Burst.

When none came, he slowly opened his eyes again to see Sonya, desperately trying to distract Molly from hitting him. He quickly rolled to his feet before launching his last resort move: Attract.

A small pink heart flew towards the Vulpix, seemingly unnoticed. It almost hit her, but at the last second evaporated. She's got some kind of magical shield! No normal attack can penetrate that! Which means…

Horace grimaced at the thought of what he was about to do. He had mostly gotten control of his magic since leaving Mosswood, but had never tried using it in combat, much less against another witch. But they were running out of options.

“Sonya!” He called. “Distract her for me! I have an idea.” Not waiting for a reply, he pulled out his Grass Whistle and began to play, a slow, peaceful melody wafting from the end of the leafy flute.

Immediately, both Morgan and Sonya began to slow down, moving more sluggishly, their eyelids drooping. Sonya collapsed on the ground with a yawn and began snoring softly. Morgan swayed on her feet, looking ready for a nap, but didn’t fall.

Horace continued to play, frantically trying to put the witch to sleep. Unfortunately, her magical barrier was blocking out the full effects of the song. Even now, she was shaking off the weariness that had overcome her.

“I’m impressed, boy. Not many other witches are able to penetrate my shield. Then again, it has been a while since I’ve had to throw it up, so I might be a little rusty.” She cackled with delight.

Horace flinched, bringing his tune to an end. “How… How did you know about that?”

Morgan leered. “Oh, dearie, didn’t you know? Witches can sense each other if they’re strong enough. Anyone with an affinity for magic can sense other magic, that’s just common sense.” Her eyes narrowed. “Are you telling me you haven’t even learned the basics of magic?” When he didn’t respond, she began cackling wildly again. “Oh, that is rich! You thought you could take on me without any knowledge of how to use your most powerful weapon?”

Horace frowned, placing his flute to his lips yet again. Morgan grinned. “You’re going to try putting me to sleep again? Don’t bother, it won’t work.”

“Wasn’t planning on it.” He replied flatly, beginning to play.

This tune was more intense and angry than the last one had been. Morgan frowned, sensing the upped ante, and fired off a Flame Burst. Immediately, a wall of soil erupted from the ground and blocked the bolt of fire. The earthen barricade then rushed towards Morgan, slamming into the witch.

Or at least, it would have, if she hadn’t launched herself out of the way. Using her tails like a spring, she managed to leap out of the way at the last moment, wildly shooting flames at Horace, who just blocked them with more dirt barriers, each of which rapidly approached Morgan.

Eventually, they surrounded and trapped the Vulpix in a prison of soil, binding her too tightly to weave magic. Horace stood, breathing heavily. Morgan glared at him. “Such weak magic, too. Am I really getting so rusty?” She muttered before speaking to the Treecko in front of her. “Not bad boy, but playtime’s over. I have business to attend to, so I’ll be leaving now. Just know that next time, I won’t be so merciful.”

With that, she began wildly thrashing around inside the barrier, eventually managing to claw out enough room to use Dig and tunnel through her earthen prison. Horace raced his flute to stop her, but winced in pain. He’d overextended himself. He collapsed to the ground, clutching his sides in pain.

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“So the two of you took on Morgan all by yourselves and survived? Quite impressive for new recruits, especially since one of you is weak to Fire attacks.” Gemma sounded rather relieved that they had actually made it out of the fight in one piece.

“Well, to be fair,” Horace said with a dismissive wave, “Sonya did most of the work, I just helped distract Morgan, since I was the easier target.” Sonya shot him a curious glance. He winked and she turned back to Gemma.

“Um, yeah, it was a tough fight, but she said that she had more important things to do than battle us, so I guess that saved us.” Gemma frowned thoughtfully at that line.

“More important things, hm? I’m not sure what she meant by that, but it can’t be anything good. We’ll have to send some more experienced Guild members, maybe some Trackers, to flush her out of those woods once and for all. It’s unsettling having her so close to us anyhow.”

She smiled at the two battered recruits. “Good work, both of you. Especially you, Sonya. Taking on a witch like that is very brave. Both of you can go now, I have to discuss this with Lady Sela.” With that, the older Lucario ushered them out of her office.

Once outside, Horace began to walk away, but Sonya called out to him. “Hold it. I want to ask you some questions.”

Sighing, Horace turned to face her. “Yes, my dear? What do you want to know?”

Sonya glowered at him, but didn’t rise to the bait. “Why did you lie to Gemma like that? I was knocked out for most of the fight. You could have gotten credit for fending off the witch, so why didn’t you? What happened back there?”

Horace shook his head. “Trust me, it’s better if I don’t say anything about it. Just forget about it, okay? It would really put my mind at ease if you did.”

Sonya regarded him curiously for several moments. “Fine,” she finally answered, “I won’t say anything about it. But just know that I’m watching you.” She tilted her head slightly. “There’s something different about you.”

Horace grinned. “Thank you, m’lady. There’s something special about you as well.”

Sonya blushed furiously. “No, that’s not what I-! Ugh, let’s just go meet up with our teammates.”

The two walked through the halls of the Great Tree, passing rows of rooms with various functions and occupants. An enormous library, spanning several floors, sprawled off to their left. On the right, several lectures were being given by experts on different fields. Horace watched Graham, the Kricketot teacher from the Scholars Guild, demonstrating various moves that he had learned from his studies, and hoped he wouldn’t get carried away and start using Draco Meteor. He had heard that it usually ended with a lot of damaged property.

Finally, he spotted Gary and Yang, waiting at the end of the hallway, both fidgeting anxiously as they held a rather awkward conversation.

“So, um…” Gary stammered. “Wh-what Guilds d-do you want to j-join? I-I’m looking to j-join the Scholars.”

“Um, well, I, uh…” Yang mumbled.

Horace laughed. “Come on,” he said to Sonya, “Let’s go save them from having to talk to each other.

The two more nervous initiates smiled with relief as they saw familiar faces approaching. “Oh, S-Sonya! You’re back!”

Sonya smiled at her partner. “Did you two get the kids dropped off?”

Gary nodded. “Y-yeah, their parents were r-really happy to see them. We brought that W-Woobat into custody too. She t-tried to lure the children away when we were l-leaving, but we caught her.”

Horace grinned widely. “Well, all in all, a job well done. If you lovely ladies ever feel like working together again, just know that we’ll always-”

SLAP!

Team Pathfinders headed home, leaving Horace to rub the paw-shaped mark where Sonya had hit him again. Gary gave him a pat on the back. “O-one of these days, Horace. You’ll l-learn eventually. N-now let’s go home.”