Chapter I: Shinba Forest

Growlie glared at Wade through the bushes, about to roar again. "You'll get hurt in this fight, is that what you want?! Don't bother coming in unless you want to get snatched up again!" She cried, looking back to see Volt stuck between the spiders pincers. Growlie then pounced at it, forcing it to release its grip on Volt. Seems like it was getting weaker by the second.

"Hey, I'm stronger than you think I am!" Wade clasped his claws together above his head, entering his drill formation. "Just you watch!!" He dug straight into the ground and rushed toward the battle, and after taking a deep breath, shot out of the ground with a Drill Run, slamming into what he hoped was the Ariados.

A sharp, petrifying scream came from Growlie- Wade clearly rammed into her and not the Ariados. One of the 10 million reasons she didn't want him fight! Isn't that just GREAT? But soon enough, she toppled to the ground. Growlie hadn't fainted in a long time, so it seems like she'll be knocked out for a long time before regaining consciousness. All because of Wade... His 'help' turned out wrong.

His partner was quick to jump into the fray- but just as quickly knocked back out. Cecil watched from the shade as Wade attempted to help(?) the other two rescuers, only to be rejected. He almost got a word in before his partner shouted back in protest. His seemingly overflowing confidence almost made the ghost want to participate, as well… but why, when the others seemed to have it under control? He felt more secure to the side, watching from where it was safe. He immediately regretted that decision.

Wade disappeared from his side, and Cecil was left to stare down into the tunnel he left behind. He glanced back to the battlefield with a look of confusion. Which turned to realization, and finally, utter horror. The expression was frozen on his face as he made his way to the other rescuers, eyes drifting down to the knocked out Growlie, then her enraged partner, and finally staring at the Pokémon he happened to call his teammate.

Volt was so angry that he could scream.
His fleece puffed up and rather frazzled, he looked toward unconscious Growlie, and then glanced at Cecil, who still had that shocked look on his face. Kicking up dirt angrily with his foot, he growled, mumbling angry things to himself. The only thing that was actually audible was, "The mission was going so well and then-" Volt kept his muzzle shoved into the fleece around his neck, angry mostly that the enemy had escaped, Wade ran off once more, and that he stupidly tried to stop Wade with an electric attack.

Cecil blinked, watching his partner flee the clearing. At first he had been too stricken with disbelief to properly react. But now his mind drifted elsewhere, back into the present and back to the situation at hand. He frowned at the sorry scene- three team members without their partners (well, Growlie was technically present). But that didn’t mean the mission was ruined, did it?

“Well on the bright side…” The ghost tried to force himself into halfhearted smile, “… a giant bug type wasn’t exactly part of the job description.”

He wasn’t wrong- their objective was to find this “Montgomery” fellow, obstacle or not. So, even though the mission had taken a sour turn, it was still far from ruined. Cecil still didn’t know where to go from here- with Growlie’s trail leading to a dead end and most of the rescuers somehow absent. Soon enough his thoughts were interrupted by a faint rustling sound.

A few stray leaves fluttered down in front of his face. But oddly enough, there was no breeze. Perhaps he shouldn’t have given up on Growlie’s path so soon. Cecil’s brow furrowed, and he stared up at the canopy above him. He reached out to tap Volt’s shoulder, hoping that he wouldn’t be shocked. “Did you hear that?”

Wade finally burst out of the soil near the edge of the forest and trudged out into the now-fading sunlight of the town, eyes wet and arms tired. He slowly walked toward the guild's entrance, still sobbing slightly. As he slipped down the ladder and walked down the steps to the housing hall, he tried to dry off his eyes with his scarf when he realized it was gone. Again. Ugh. Where could it have gone? It could be anywhere in that awful forest. It could even have landed somewhere in one of his tunnels! He flopped down onto his bed as he continued to count up all of his failures from that day alone.