[PKMN] SPACE CASE!

[skinstealer]

LAST TIME...on SPACE CASE!

this doesn't feel right anymore

EPISODE 20: Mt. Moon Caverns (Pt 3)

---

By the time you've gotten your composure even relatively together, your claws and teeth have shrunk- not entirely, but enough to not feel like ever-present reminders that you maimed someone






for the first time since






You shake it off.

Save it for later.




Rappel and Minerva have cleaned everybody off, Frond and Filigree propped up inside the alcove.


....out cold, both of them.


A cursory exam of Frond, the best you could do in this lighting, did not look good. He wasn't in lethal danger, but the bruising was...




familiar


Severe.




Had to have been vice grip.

That kind of force doesn't get slapped with a lower power move registration, if he was even licensed to use it in the first place.



You have to pull back from touching him, adjusting his petals and posture a constant and incomprehensible compulsion.


You don't know what to make of it, your instinct to never touch anyone ever ever ever ever because you are dangerous overridden with the terror that maybe he would do better positioned differently, or maybe he's uncomfortable, or-





You catch Rappel's stare from outside, flinching at the omastar's indiscernible expression.


Her cheery demeanor is gone now.




And yet she still sees you.



.....




You remember the needle, and how quickly and brutally she had dispatched the kangaskhan.


You wonder


how similar your expressions were.



During and after.




And whether your own faces reflect each others' now.










Packing up was thankfully easier than you expected, most of your supplies having already been stored before what little rest you managed to get, with Frond and Minnie having scrambled the rest together in case you needed to escape.

You and Rappel secure Minnie, Filigree-




-and now Frond, the sled getting rather crowded between that and your packs.

STRETCH: ....

 

You must look like shit, Minerva giving you an exhausted, yet still ever-warm, smile.

MINERVA: I've got this.
MINERVA: They'll both be safe, and I've already gauged healing for the next leg.
MINERVA: Rappel and Eerie get priority.
MINERVA: A potion's already sealed Rappel's wounds over, even if the internal damage is still there...
MINERVA: And Eerie says she's ready to keep going.
MINERVA: Unfortunately...without a revival shot, we can't do much for Frond or Fili.
MINERVA: But I'll have them close.

 

She gives both of the mons a pat- Filigree strapped against her chest again, Frond equally nestled up and tied down in her lap.

STRETCH: ...right.
STRETCH: Th.
STRETCH: Thank you.

 

The golbat gives you a determined nod.

 

RAPPEL: ...

 

The omastar is squinting at her map, mumbling to herself.

RAPPEL: ....can't go- no, too deep....shit...
STRETCH: ....

 

You hesitate before gathering your courage, hovering over with arms folded over yourself and a guilty posture.

STRETCH: c
STRETCH: Can I-
STRETCH: help.

 

Rappel glances over her shoulder for a moment, and then back to her map.



Shit. shit shit you probably freaked her out or pissed her off or-

RAPPEL: How do you handle falls?

 

Uh.

STRETCH: I
STRETCH: Uh
STRETCH: ....
STRETCH: By myself, I can.
STRETCH: ....fall without impact.
RAPPEL: So a float?
STRETCH: Nnnnnot quite.
RAPPEL: A splat, then.

 

You wince.

STRETCH: More of a. Bounce.
STRETCH: My body-

 

You swallow.
Now isn't the time to balk.

STRETCH: ...It falls at a standard rate-
STRETCH: But unless I'm holding, weight, of some kind-
STRETCH: I won't hit the ground.
RAPPEL: ...
RAPPEL: Interesting.
RAPPEL: Then, yes, my friend.
RAPPEL: You can help.

 

The slightest bit of enthusiasm sneaks back in, but not enough to warrant an exclamation.


Then, she points to a particularly



uh

treacherously labeled



part of her map.

RAPPEL: See this?
RAPPEL: If we manage to go for one more hour, and really hoof it-
RAPPEL: There's a drop straight down to the Cerulean campus.
STRETCH: ....

 

You glance over at the scale markers and pale.

STRETCH: H.
STRETCH: How far is it if we don't-
RAPPEL: Six hours if we take other shortcuts.
RAPPEL: They're less dangerous, but more of them.

 

She rolls up the map, sighing for a solid second.

RAPPEL: It's a difficult choice.
RAPPEL: I'm more confident that I can spare more casualties if we can cut down on time possibly spent running into these creeps.
RAPPEL: For every safe route we take-
STRETCH: ....
STRETCH: they probably will too.
RAPPEL: Corrrrectamundo.

 

Her voice falls flat.

RAPPEL: I wouldn't take the drop we're going down if you paid me a fortune.
RAPPEL: However, it's likely none of these goons would either.
RAPPEL: It's clear we could take on a couple more, but the more of a body trail we leave, the easier we are to track.
RAPPEL: Last thing we want is to get stuck on a longer path with Osteo on our tail.

 


 

The words "casualties" and "body trail" sink in.





You gag.

Rappel doesn't flinch, patting you on the back as you lose the contents of your stomach.

RAPPEL: ...get it out now.
RAPPEL: If you agree to this-
RAPPEL: You and Sweetpea go down first, and secure the wounded.
RAPPEL: Me and Eerie go down last.
RAPPEL: ....your call.

 

You wipe your lip.

STRETCH: ...I'll do it.
RAPPEL: Good.
RAPPEL: Now I gotta convince our intern companion...








 

You watch as Rappel walks over to Sweetpea, leaning against the cave wall closest to xem.

Xey're still staring at the marowak, sniffling occasionally.

RAPPEL: ...it's not easy.

 

Sweetpea opens and closes her mouth, only to nod.

When xey do speak, xey do so after sliding down the wall, leaning over to say something so quietly to Rappel you can't make it out.

The omastar nods, wiping away more budding tears on xer face.

RAPPEL: ...you've got a lot of guts, Sweetpea.
RAPPEL: Doin' this for your family's about as brave as it gets.
RAPPEL: I can't guarantee we'll all get outta here in one piece-
RAPPEL: But I think we can give it a damn good try.

 

Xey take a moment to think it over, tipping xer head back against the cave wall.

SWEETPEA: ....
SWEETPEA: okay
SWEETPEA: I-
SWEETPEA: I'll do it.
SWEETPEA: Even if I-
SWEETPEA: f
SWEETPEA: fall
SWEETPEA: I'm, I think-
SWEETPEA: ...durable enough.
SWEETPEA: more than the others, anyway....

 

Rappel nods.

RAPPEL: Atta girl.





 

The hour drags on.





You can feel Eerie's stare against your back, making you clutch your elbows tighter in an instinctive, protective stance.

EERIE: ...'m not gonna kill you, dude.

 

You flinch, hunching over as you float along.

EERIE: You saved Frond's life.
EERIE: And...

 

She trails off, unsure how to word it it.

EERIE: I. Don't.
EERIE: Blame you.
EERIE: I was just as bad with Fili back on Route 3.
STRETCH: ....
STRETCH: ......did you know him?
STRETCH: Either of them?
EERIE: Does it matter?
STRETCH: ....
STRETCH: Guess that's up to you.
EERIE: Yeah.

 

Silence.

EERIE: ... at least we won't die in this shithole.

 

You finally dare to look over.




Her face is haunted- but determined.

EERIE: 'Cause if you eat shit and leave us all for dead, I'll haunt your ass and you don't want that.
EERIE: You have my express permission to bash all their Osteo brains out if it means everybody sees the sun again.

 

You give her a dead stare.

STRETCH: ....why do you assume I want t-
EERIE: It's not that you wanna, it's that you can.

 

She gestures to your claw-tipped fingers digging into your hoodie.

EERIE: Same as my club.
EERIE: Hate the weapon, hate using it-
EERIE: But it's the card you got dealt, or whatever.
STRETCH: ....

 

It's
oddly resonant, coming from her.


It'd been such a short time, and yet her, everyone, they're all-



you had been isolated for so long




alone in your cell




and the equally, overwhelming, profound realization of your own hits you in that moment-

RAPPEL: We're here.

 

You're both startled out of your thoughts.

STRETCH: ...th.
STRETCH: thank you.

 

 

It's all you can muster, trying to clear your troubled mind as you set Minerva down carefully.
She had been quiet, not intruding on your conversation with Eerie- or piping up for any reason, really.



Every time you had looked over, she was


doing the motions you had started and pulled back from following through on with Frond


to comfort him.





Your lip twitches.





....



Up until Rappel lights a flare, dropping it down the hole in front of you.




You watch as it sinks down





further






further








and further











until you can finally see the bottom.

EERIE: R
EERIE: Rappel-
EERIE: this is starting to look like a REALLY stupid plan-
RAPPEL: That's because it is, my friend.
RAPPEL: We call this sucker a death drop for a reason.
RAPPEL: If you even make it this far, you've gone off the path too far to be saved.
SWEETPEA: S-so if-
SWEETPEA: if we die here-
SWEETPEA: n. no one would ever f-

 

 

Rappel says nothing.




.....

STRETCH: We won't die.


 

Minerva looks up at you, her own eyes full of worry as she clutches your unconscious party members close.

STRETCH: We won't.

 

You meet stares with Eerie.

STRETCH: ...I promise.
MINERVA: ...
MINERVA: I trust you.

 

 

You swallow.






Time to make good on that.












You know there's very little risk to yourself

height


wise.




You've taken off your pack, as well as your sweater, shirt, pants, uh-


Basically just in your underwear now.




Normally you'd consider this a shameful display, but now that you're actually at the edge of a cliff, you don't feel too keen on killing yourself over it.




This is the best way to guarantee the bounce wouldn't make contact with the ground.
You'll plunge, badly, but with effectively no added weight, you'd survive with minimal to no issue.





....




As long as you didn't touch the walls.





It's a big enough hole that Sweetpea could comfortably go down with some help- well, "comfortably", so as long as you go STRAIGHT DOWN AND DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES BOUNCE AGAINST A WALL, this will work.





It has to work.







Ohhhh this sucks.

RAPPEL: You ready to dive, champ?

 

You shake your head violently.

RAPPEL: You gonna do it anyway?

 

You nod just as hard.

RAPPEL: Best we can do right now.
RAPPEL: Remember your plan?

 

A thumbs up, your claws digging into your palms enough to draw pinpricks of blood.

RAPPEL: Right on.
RAPPEL: Let's get you down to the bottom.




 

Breathe in.






Breathe out.




Launching yourself sideways was your usual way of "jumping", and that wasn't going to work here.
Actual vertical push was pretty hard unless something pushed you down like a spring, and that, also, was a terrible idea.



Which is how you end up clinging onto Sweetpea's massive tree tail, trying not to hyperventilate as you're suspended over the pit.






Straight drop.
Just a straight drop down.







You sit on the edge of it.




Just like tree climbing as a kid.


Just.
Slide off of the tree



straight


down.

RAPPEL: On go-
RAPPEL: 1-
RAPPEL: 2-

 

You hear Sweetpea gag from the pulse.

RAPPEL: fuck okay GO!

 
 

You slide off





and plunge.




















You don't know how deep you get before you start screaming.




Feral panic, having to grip your own sides to resist the urge to scrabble against any rock you'd even remotely get purchase on.



You thought, maybe, the glow off of your body would help you feel better!

It'd be less dark!





But no, oh no, seeing the rock rush by is so so SO SO SO MUCH WORSE AND YOU CAN'T BRING YOURSELF TO CLOSE YOUR EYES AND HOLY GOD THIS IS











You hit the bottom, letting out a proper yowl as you bounce a dozen feet into the air-




and then back down

and up a few feet again




and back down

and up





and thank fuck you're finally on the ground, collapsing to your hovering knees.



You do not have anything more in your stomach to empty out, hyperventilating-




but thankfully unharmed.

EERIE: YOU GOOD?

 

You look back up at the faint light at the top of the cliff, wiping bile and snot off of your face.

STRETCH: FUCKING FANTASTIC.
RAPPEL: EXCELLENT WORK, MY FRIEND-
RAPPEL: ROPE COMING DOWN!

 
 

A series of climbing ropes get tossed down, as well as a far more slowly lowered flashlight.



You make quick work of the ropes, muttering Rappel's instructions on loop as you secure them tight.






....this looks like a much simpler setup than you'd like.




Surely there- has to be more gear than some tied ropes- securely tied, yes, but, Rappel is- a professional-

STRETCH: ...YOU SURE THIS'LL WORK?
RAPPEL: UNORTHODOX SOLUTIONS FOR AN UNORTHODOX SITUATION!
STRETCH: GREAT.

 

There's silence from up above-


or, rather, far too high for you to hear-


before what you can only assume is Sweetpea's head looming over the edge.

SWEETPEA: SHE'S GOING TO LOWER ME DOWN PSYCHICALLY FIRST!
STRETCH: THAT
STRETCH: SOUNDS LIKE AN EXTREMELY BAD IDEA
RAPPEL: HERE WE GO

 

You back the fuck up as Sweetpea slides into the hole, deliberately hugging one of the cave walls by the look of it-



-Rappel's shade creating spiral steps,


one at a time,


around the tube-like pit.






This is not fast.




The lower Sweetpea gets, the more Rappel's shade struggles, growing smaller, thinner-

STRETCH: YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO JUMP!

 

The venusaur hesitates- but she's close enough you can see her features, twelve feet up at best.

SWEETPEA: O
SWEETPEA: OKAY!
SWEETPEA: HERE GOES.

 
 

She leaps-







-landing with a proper thud as she manages to get to the bottom, falling rolling onto her side with a pained croak.





You rush over, only for her to nod and give an affirmative, terrified smile.

SWEETPEA: i i did itttt

 

 

You take a horribly deep breath, trying not to think about that awful prickly feeling back in your fingers and gums.

STRETCH: T. TWO DOWN.
RAPPEL: ANY INJURIES?
SWEETPEA: S-SOME BRUISES, BUT-
RAPPEL: WORKABLE!
RAPPEL: SECURING THE SLED-


 

Your heart rate spikes.


Jumping was terrifying, but proper execution had meant a guaranteed victory.
This was not that.
All three of them could die, and easily.




Rappel had already told you the plan.

You hate this plan.
You hate it a LOT.


The sled was going to be secured on as tightly as possible, and slowly fed down.

Sweetpea would be positioned to catch them, with your job being a far more stupid, reckless-

RAPPEL: WE'RE GOING!

 

They're lowered down.




It's far slower than Sweetpea, but at least they aren't stepping down.




Still, every second is-

They go a bit too fast, nearly dropping


before you send a quick pulse through the rope.



They're jostled, but don't fall further.


The sight of them jiggling is enough to make you want to pass out.

MINERVA: WE'RE DOING OKAY!
STRETCH: fffucking






 

It takes three more pulses before you can make out faces, and another two before Sweetpea cradles the sled, hyperventilating just as much at this point.

SWEETPEA: ohhh my god oh my god you made it you

 

Minerva tries a brave smile






before breaking into tears, only quelled when the venusaur sets the sled down and lets you rush in for a hug.

STRETCH: Shh, sh-
MINERVA: i was so scared i
STRETCH: I know I-
STRETCH: m, me too-

 

She wraps you in a death grip, squeezing you enough to make the pulse hurt her wings-


-only to gesture to the still resting mons in her lap.

MINERVA: T-they're going to be okay...

 

You nod, realizing you started crying all over again.


It doesn't take long, however, for the next interruption.

RAPPEL: YOU GOOD FOR US NEXT?
EERIE: UH
EERIE: GONNA BE REAL
EERIE: I DUNNO IF I'M GOOD FOR THAT

 

There's silence again, the two clearly deliberating.

RAPPEL: WE'RE READY WHEN YOU ARE.

 

Minerva is unstrapped from the sled, helping get Frond and Fili safely out of the landing zone.

SWEETPEA: ALL CLEAR!

 
 

The remaining packs are slid down, having to resume your post as team bouncer (haha.)

Small potatoes compared to what was yet to come, Rappel gripping Eerie from behind and extending her wings.





You and Sweetpea have the same worry, no words needed.



Rappel had been overextending, hard.




You have to imagine that this kind of power usage wasn't typical for her.




It didn't seem innate and passive like your pulse, at least not gauging by the fact that she needs to summon it.




This would be far beyond regulation usage.



Any slip-up-




The silhouette above you wobbles, your eyes widening.

SWEETPEA: S-STRETCH-
STRETCH: ON IT

 

You pull back-


using a stalagmite as a springboard-


-wall bouncing yourself up the tube


a last resort option that none of you were hoping to need.



They had gotten more than halfway down- a distance way less likely to injure you if you ended up ping ponging around for a bit.


Rappel wobbles again, your breath catching as she slams against one side,
Eerie's crest hitting against the wall hard.

STRETCH: SHIT-!

 

You reach them in time to tackle Rappel, Eerie's eyes widening-





-as you spike her down into Sweetpea's arms, the venusaur gripping her tight as xey collapse on impact.




It takes you some severely risky downward bounces to close the distance, tucking and rolling into a ball once you hit the ground.


You're panting, Rappel peeling herself off of you as she tumbles to the side.

RAPPEL: h
RAPPEL: Is-
RAPPEL: shhe okayyy

 

Sweetpea has to take a moment to collect xemself, pulling into a sitting position.


Xer eyes are wide, tears welling up again.




Eerie stirs, one side of her crest badly chipped-






-but alive.

SWEETPEA: ohh my god
EERIE: ugfhgfhhh

 

She tries to sit up, only to fall back down into the venusaur's arms.


Minerva slowly treads over, her breath catching.

MINERVA: E-eerie...
EERIE: D. Don't
EERIE: stop on my account.

 

She manages a weak smile, clearly disoriented- concussed, likely.




Shit.

STRETCH: Don't fall asleep-
EERIE: I'll be fine, j-just like Frond-
STRETCH: You will not be fucking fine.
STRETCH: Concussion was an analogous term for his condition, it-
STRETCH: You have a brain.

 

 

She looks directly at you, her eyes exhausted and energy fading fast.

EERIE: ...you promised, right?
STRETCH: I-
EERIE: Right?



 

Your head is pounding.



The revving is back.





It's hard to breathe.







Your mouth is TOO SMALL

MINERVA: S-stretch, h-hey-

 

Eerie doesn't break eye contact.




She watches as your claws extend, arcs even more prominent as they come off of your bare skin.

EERIE: ...g. give em
EERIE: give 'em hell for me.
 

 

You nod, Sweetpea having to hold back a wet croak as Eerie curls up in xer arms.

STRETCH: ...Rappel.

 

The omanyte's up on her feet, enough to brace herself against the wall.

STRETCH: Strap Minnie back in.

 

Your eyes bore into hers, returned in kind.



Nonjudgmental.



You understand each other- this much.

RAPPEL: ...looks like you got a stupid plan of your own.






 

You nod again.

 

STRETCH: I'm gonna bash their fucking brains out.
 

 

---

what's every lie you've ever told?