Big and Small - Joy for All!

First topic message reminder :

The sun was shining brightly onto the rugged, sharp cliffs of the Black Mist Mountain, as a small, white spot was crawling across these black plains, an easy target for any Flying type choosing to attack.
"Why...why did my clan...no, the clan have to live that far away from anything resembling civilisation again? Couldn't they - I dunno - live in a town or something?", the white spot asked himself, breathing heavily. It was Ned the Nincada, having recently fled from his old clan and now searching for a place to stay. On his journey, the Ground type had traversed much of the land, but a civilized Pokémon he hadn't encountered yet. He had no idea, where Grassveil Town was located, but he couldn't just return to the clan either. They would just continue their dirty work, without any concern for morals or truth.
Who knew, maybe he would even take them out one day?
That was if he would manage to find the guild or any Pokémon for starters.
Hopefully that would happen soon - the little bug wasn't sure, whether he would be able to carry on  much longer.

Proteus was unsure of how to respond, but luckily a shape had walked up to them and saved him from having to reply. The atrocious pokemon blinked as the pokemon spoke, "Uh...hi...erm...I was...uh...wondering if you would help me. I'm looking for a friend of mine, we got separated when a rampardos went into a fit of rage after we accidentally touched an item of its and we ran away...you seemed like nice pokemon...and uh...yeah..." The pokemon seemed nervous speaking to them. Proteus had assumed that it was because it was strange to just come up to some random strangers and ask for help.

This dice is not existing.

Lowering his tone of voice to a whisper, Ned addressed his gigantic friend:
"Uh, I'm not too sure about this. If that Pokémon needs help finding a friend, then it shouldn't be here in the first place. But then again we can't just leave it alone, can we? So, what's your opinion on this?"
Why was this Pokémon wandering around here with only one friend? Didn't it know of the dangers of the place? The nervousness was something easy to understand, as Proteus didn't look like the most amiciable character, but that would be quite a good reason to keep as far away from them as possible in an area such as this. Either the Pokémon was innocent beyond belief, or there was something else to this. But what?

"I don't see a problem with lending a hand, they could have brought the friend because they couldn't handle here alone," Proteus reasoned. It would have been rude to turn the poochyena down. The pup looked rather innocent with its watery eyes as if it were concerned for its friend.
"What pokemon is your friend?" Proteus asked the small hyena like canine that was known to chase enemies from dawn till dusk.
"Um...A uh...Mawile....she uh...has a special ribbon so we'll know its her from a distance...it's kinda hard to describe, but I'll recognize it when i see it," the poochyena responded.

"Eh, you're the boss I guess. So where should we start our search? You should know the area better than I do."
Still Ned was wary of the situation. Proteus' explanation did make sense and the Nincada couldn't find another point to criricise, but yet a bad feeling reamined for some reason.
Maybe that was the case, because he was used to so much treachery and trickery with the clan, so he had forgotten to put some trust in others.
"So, can you think of any place that Mawile could have fled to?"

"Y-Yes..but it's on the other side of the mountain...she had said there was a secret place on the other side we were going to go and rest at once we got over there and go back to exploring. It's supposed to be some sort of cave made by huge boulders that a large pokemon must have put together a long time ago.." The poochyena explained walking a bit ahead of them before turning around, "If we search over there we might be able to find it..."
Proteus grinned, "Well I guess this isn't going to be so difficult, we just have to go on the other side of the mountain and find a mawile with an obvious bow from what you've described!"
The large pokemon had coiled comfortable into a ring despite knowing they were going to be moving soon, it just felt more comfortable this way somehow, like he was less in the way.

"Yeah, I guess that's the best course of action to take. But what if your friend has wandered off to somewhere else already? Maybe we should check at a place they would likely wander off to as well."
This was going to get interesting. Ned's eyes really weren't the best, so he probably wouldn't be able to help much. But if the Dark type in front of them was telling the truth, then they would be able to help another Pokémon without a reward in sight. The Nincada liked that thought.
Somehow he felt, that doing such a thing would finally separate him from the clan he had fled from.
They would never have done such a thing.
If it was lying however, then...well, they would have to see.

"Yeah but she said it was really safe there, i doubt she would go anywhere else!" The poochyena plead. Proteus shrugged, "I see no harm in going there first, but we probably should look around in other places before making a combeeline for the cave. We might catch them on their way there as well!"
The poochyena seemed reluctant, but agreed. Proteus looked to Ned, waiting to see if he agreed with his plan was well. He also noticed an item in the corner of his eye in the distance of where they were going to head soon..

This dice is not existing.

"Well, I guess you're right there. Still, I've seen scared Pokémon do crazy things before. I just hope your friend's still alright. At least the Steel type should help against most attacks. So, please lead the way. This is my first time here, so my knowledge of the area is comparable to my power in combat. I think we should get going though. We shouldn't waste time in a situation such as this."
While he was talking, the Nincada had been using Harden a few times to protect himself from the battles, in which they would be thrown on their search. It was obvious, that they would have to fight something, so why not prepare for trouble?
And make that double, as Ned also attempted to find Pokémon, that might be trying to sneak up on them.

Proteus nodded, and quickly passed over the blinker seed he had seen earlier, deeming it useless and unnecessary to their situation. He thought it just would have been a waste of space and he would just have to trash it later anyways. He was confident he would find...whatever he was looking for. The atrocious pokemon spoke, "So, what brought you to the mountain in the first place?" due to the type of question, it seemed as if it were directed towards the poochyena.
"Um...we're looking for treasure we heard was buried here..we didn't think the pokemon around here were strong..what about you? What did you come here for? Surely you guys must have known better than to come here...." it seemed to be asking the nincada that more than the gyarados, seeming to indirectly call it weak..

Although Ned noticed the hidden implications, he did not mind them at all, he himself being convinced to be weak.
"Well, I fled from the clan I was in before. They're a band of mercenaries of the worst sort. They take on the jobs of questionable legality, lie, steal and attack. There's no way I could accept something like that, so now I am on my way to Grassveil Town. Watch out next time though. Maybe you could check, which areas are mentioned in the missions of the guild in your hometown and steer clear of those."
The Nincada felt a wave of relief wash over him as he once again noticed, that he had managed to distance himself from the atrocities the clan had committed.

"I heard the guild has some kind of treasurey they keep all to themselves guarded by strange key creatures with tangela and a three headed houndoom..." the poochyena said bluntly. Proteus blinked and looked down at the Poochyena, he had heard of rumors growing outrageous, but that was just ridiculous. The gyarados decided not to comment and just moved on with a glance of disbelief at the poochyena before saying, "I highly doubt that..."
The large creature spotted another item close by, excusing himself to go grab it, although he never really left due to his length so his tail was still there when he reached out to inspect the item.
"Is he looking for something?" the poochyena asked, bemused by the pokemon's behavior.

This dice is not existing.

"Uh, I think I read that story somewhere. Going by that logic, there's probably some chamber 10 4/5 involved, isn't it? I don't think any guild would adopt a tactic out of a book, as it would be too easy to figure out for anyone, who has read it. And yes, he is looking for something, but for what not even he himself knows. Strange, isn't it? But it's his choice I guess."
The Poochyenna seemed to be less and less mentally stable by the minute. Not only had they decided to venture into a clearly dangerous area without being prepared enough, but the Dark type seemed to actually believe these rather otherworldly claims. Hopefully that wouldn't cause them any problems...

Proteus had bagged a TM Focus Blast before returning, not quite what he had expected, but he doubted his friends would want to learn such a powerful move. He figured it would probably be more beneficial to sell the TM and buy something with the poke. The gyarados returned to the duo, "Just a TM," he mumbled.
"Aren't TMs rare?" The poochyena asked.
"It's one that I doubt my partners would use," he explained, only to have the poochyena speak up once more.
"Why would you need partners? You're huge!"
"Size doesn't make strength," he responded, rather annoyed with the poochyena.

"Well, size not neccessarily, but some species are inherrently stronger than others in my opinion. And sadly there is little we can do to overcome the boundaries biology has set for us. Of course one can train, but there will always be a maximum performance an individual can not exceed."

Ned was beginning to get slightly worried. In the time he had known him thus far, Proteus had appeared to be a friendly and ressourceful Pokémon, but of course the Bug type was intimidated by the Gyarados' size and obvious power. And now all signs were pointing towards a battle between him and the small Dark type. Hopefully it wouldn't come to this...

Although Proteus disagreed, he remained silent, not desiring to argue the subject. The poochyena on the other hand seemed to be eager, "But if you keep trying you'll get better at something, and the more things you master the more powerful and resourceful you are and since there are countless things to master, there is no boundary right?"
The gyarados had decided to disconnect himself from the conversation, looking forward and focusing on the task at hand. He kind of wondered why the poochyena wasn't more worried about his friend, but just dismissed it as his own annoyance speaking.