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Soft, ethereal filtered sunlight dappled the mossy ground as Caleb tread carefully forward through the thick underbrush of Petalburg Woods. Or, at least, he thought he was still in Petalburg Woods...it had been an hour at least since he'd last stopped at the Moss Rock for a drink. What had started out as a simple expedition into the area at the behest of his superiors had turned into a rather rigorous hike through unfamiliar dense trees and dark thickets. Zero padded silently behind Caleb - the man's quiet little shadow - and even he seemed to be growing concerned about their lack of progress finding anything, worth, well, finding. As if being pulled forward by some sort of magnetic force - or merely his frustration at having been sent out on this stupid, pointless patrol mission - Caleb felt compelled to keep going.[break][break]

All of a sudden, a break in the trees revealed a small meadow ringed on one side by large stone pillars of some kind. Caleb crept forward to get a better look and sure enough, they were pillars...and they belonged to an ancient, decrepit building, covered in ivy and weeds. The structure gave off the distinct feeling of something from the past: old and forgotten, a relic of a bygone era. The shape of the sloping roof reminded Caleb of some of the temples he'd read about in Ecruteak City in Johto, with their wooden interiors, golden paint, red ropes, and shrine bells for waking various Pokémon spirits. Caleb circled around the ruins, noticing that there was indeed an entrance - though half caved-in - and stairs leading down...into the ground. "What is this?" He asked aloud, annoyance replaced by genuine curiosity.[break][break]

Just then, a snapping of branches caused Caleb to whip around, heart racing, as if expecting an ambush. Through the rush of adrenaline, he noticed the wide grey eyes of a young woman who seemed just about as shocked to see him as he did to see her. "What the hell are you doing here?" He asked, perhaps a little too harshly as a result of his surprise.[break][break]

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NOTES

+ Mission: Raiders of the Lost Archeops

BY GUNSMILE