The morning air in Ternstone was unusually still.
Shion stood in front of the mirror inside his small rented room at the inn, adjusting the strap on his new shoulder guard. He pulled his scarf tighter around his neck Miya's bracelet gently clinked against the buckle as he finished preparing. His satchel was packed with essentials: food, his journal… and, of course, a certain snoring, round-bodied Pokémon who was currently stuffing his cheeks with dried berries.
"Couldn't have eaten earlier?" Shion asked as he fastened his leather boots.
Bidoof swallowed audibly, his whiskers twitching. "Breakfast is sacred."
"Right."
With a light chuckle, Shion tapped Kiba's Pokéball at his side and headed downstairs.
The common area of the inn was quiet. No sign of Dunlin, Fena, or Jareth. Either they'd gone out for errands or were still asleep. Shion didn't mind he was used to moving quietly now.
Today was the day.
He exhaled and left the inn behind
---
The Ternstone Guild was already buzzing when he arrived. Sunlight filtered through the high windows, casting golden lines across the stone floors. Miners, adventurers, and merchants moved in organized chaos voices mingling with the sound of Pokémon footsteps and shifting equipment.
Shion followed the directions given the day before and waited at the designated post near the side wing of the main hall where escorts usually met with adventurers assigned to special zones.
He waited.
And waited.
He was beginning to wonder if something went wrong when a familiar voice called out.
"There you are."
Shion turned and saw Jareth approaching, already in full gear: pauldrons strapped, short sword sheathed, and his heavy boots echoing slightly as he walked.
Shion blinked. "Jareth? What are you doing here?"
"Right I forgot to tell ?" Jareth smirked. "I'm your escort."
"…What? How?"
"I asked my old man. Told him I'd handle it myself."
"You… volunteered?"
"Better me than someone who doesn't know what we're dealing with. Besides, it gives me an excuse to stretch my legs."
Shion stared, a little overwhelmed. "I… wow. Thanks."
"Don't get mushy," Jareth said, clapping a hand on his shoulder. "Let's go before I change my mind."
---
The barred gate of Mine 5C creaked open under the guild worker's control, and the two of them stepped through.
The same Golett from the day before still stood nearby its gaze locked on the mine's dark entrance.
It didn't move.
Didn't blink.
It simply… stared.
Shion slowed, feeling a strange chill.
"Still there," Jareth muttered. "It hasn't left that spot in weeks. It's like it's watching something."
Shion nodded, then pressed forward.
The mine's mouth swallowed them whole as they stepped inside.
---
At first, the tunnel seemed normal a typical mining shaft. Timber supports braced the stone walls. Iron rails curled along the ground for cart usage. Occasional crystals sparkled dimly in the gloom.
"Pops said the Golurk didn't start acting up until about two days ago," Jareth said as they walked. "Before that, they were just dormant. Watching. Now they patrol like they're expecting something."
Bidoof poked his head out of Shion's bag, no longer snacking. His whiskers were tense. His gaze flicked toward the deeper dark.
"It's getting stronger," he muttered.
"What is?"
"The Plate."
They moved deeper.
Still nothing.
Jareth lit a small crystal lamp and held it out. Shadows danced along the stone.
"You seeing anything?" he asked.
Shion shook his head. "No. But… something feels off."
"Let's not stay too long. This place gives me—"
Suddenly, the ground shuddered.
A low rumble echoed down the corridor, shaking dust loose from the ceiling.
"…That wasn't normal," Jareth said, eyes narrowing. "We should head back."
"Wait," Shion said. "I.....want to observe more.. "
"We can't risk a collapse—"
Before Jareth could finish, a second, more violent quake rocked the mine. The wall to their left cracked. Loose stone and dust poured from the ceiling.
"Move!" Jareth shouted.
They turned and sprinted back down the tunnel but it was too late.
CRASH.
A chunk of the ceiling gave way and collapsed between them and the entrance. Stone and dust burst into the air.
Jareth skidded to a halt, coughing.
"…Damn it."
"I'm sorry," Shion said, trying to see through the cloud. "I should've listened."
"It's fine," Jareth growled. "We'll wait for rescue. Might take time, but the guild will notice."
He released his Lairon and Boldore, ordering them to start chipping away at the rubble.
"Can we ?"
"No good. That's reinforced stone. It'll take hours even with two Rock-types."
Then came the stomp.
Both of them froze.
A deep, echoing step sounded from deeper within the tunnel. Then another. And another.
Then… silence.
Shion turned slowly.
Two Golurk stood at the far end of the tunnel massive, looming figures bathed in blue and green glyph-light.
Then they moved.
"Get ready!" Jareth shouted, drawing his sword. "They're charging!"
---
The first Golurk hurled a Shadow Punch, its arm expanding unnaturally as it shot forward. Kiba's Pokéball burst open in a flash Shion had called him without thinking.
"Kiba, dodge and use Accelerock!"
Kiba blinked into motion, narrowly avoiding the strike and slamming into the Golurk's side. But it barely flinched.
Jareth sent in Lairon. "Iron Head, now!"
Lairon rammed forward, smashing into the second Golurk's chest, pushing it back but the titan gripped Lairon by its armor and threw it across the chamber.
"Rock Slide!"
Kiba responded, kicking up jagged stones that pelted the Golurk's legs, finally making one stagger.
But then
CRACK.
The ground under Shion's feet trembled violently.
A deep rumble.
"No—!" Jareth shouted.
The floor beneath Shion and one of the Golurk collapsed, opening into a jagged chasm.
Shion's world tilted.
He reached for Kiba
"SHION!" Jareth's voice echoed
And then Shion was falling.
---
Shion couldn't scream.
The wind tore past him, the walls of the shaft blurring into streaks of dark stone and glowing veins of crystal. Gravity seized him in a choking grip. Somewhere beside him, the massive silhouette of the Golurk fell toosilent and still like a statue hurled by the gods.
And then
Impact.
The world exploded in dirt, dust, and stone.
Shion struck a slope rolled, tumbled, pain flaring along his shoulder and hip. He crashed against something rough and came to a stop with a gasp, the wind knocked from his lungs.
It was dark.
Not pitch black strange blue-green bioluminescence pulsed faintly through the stone around him, as if the walls themselves were breathing. The air smelled of earth and damp iron
Shion groaned and pushed himself up, coughing.
His scarf was torn. His left arm ached badly but didn't feel broken. Cuts lined his palms from the fall, and one of his gloves was shredded.
His voice rasped out. "Kiba…?"
No answer.
He reached for the Pokéball, fingers shaking. It was intact.
He released it.
A flash of light lit the cavern as Kiba appeared, panting, bruised, but on his feet.
Shion fell to his knees in relief. "You're okay…"
Kiba padded to him and licked his arm.
"You—ow—don't do that, that stings."
From the bag behind him, Bidoof rolled out with a disgruntled grunt.
"…Okay, first of all," Bidoof muttered. "That fall? Rude."
"You're alright too?"
"Physically, yes. Emotionally? I demand compensation. Preferably in the form of honey-glazed berries."
Shion exhaled a shaky laugh, but it died quickly.
Because something else moved in the gloom.
He looked up.
The Golurk.
It had landed too embedded partly in the wall of the cavern, one arm pinned under rubble. Its glyphs were sparking, flickering like broken runes.
It didn't rise.
Shion swallowed.
"…It's down?"
"Maybe," Bidoof said, voice tense. "Or waiting."
Shion stood, wobbling slightly. The cavern was vast wider than he expected. It wasn't part of the mine, that much was obvious. This place was older, untouched by pickaxe or pulley. The walls curved inward, as if shaped by something ancient.
He stepped forward, limping slightly, as Kiba stayed close and alert.
And then he saw it.
A raised platform at the center of the cavern. Upon it sat a stone pedestal, carved with swirling patterns, worn with time but unmistakably sacred.
And resting atop it, gently glowing…
A Plate.
Shion's heart skipped a beat.
The energy radiating from it wasn't violent, but it was powerful—like standing before a sleeping storm. He stepped closer, lips parting in awe.
It shimmered with a sandy golden hue, its surface etched with triangular glyphs.
"…The Ground Plate," Bidoof whispered.
Shion looked down at him.
"Are you sure?"
"I'd know my own skin anywhere."
Shion approached slowly.
But then
A crunch.
Behind them, the Golurk stirred.
Its trapped arm flexed and then broke free of the rubble.
Kiba spun around, growling.
Shion turned in time to see the Golurk rise, hunched and sparking. Its eyes glowed brighter now but not red. They pulsed with confused blue light, like a machine caught between orders.
"It's not berserk," Bidoof muttered. "It's bound."
"Bound to what?"
The Golurk stepped forward, one leg dragging. It raised its hand and pointed.
At the Plate.
Shion tensed. "Does it… want it?"
"No.." bidoof said " it's guarding it "
Kiba stepped forward, hackles raised.
The Golurk's chest runes flared as it charged, one massive fist glowing with Dynamic Punch.
"Kiba, dodge right!"
Kiba leapt barely missing the shockwave that splintered stone where he stood.
"Use Accelerock!"
Kiba vanished in a streak and slammed into the Golurk's side but it absorbed the blow with its sheer mass.
It responded with a Heavy Slam, crashing its full body downward Kiba rolled away, his back legs kicking up dust as he regained his footing.
"It's slowing," Shion muttered. "The fall must've damaged it."
"But it's still standing," Bidoof replied.
The Golurk opened its mouth and charged Flash Cannon, the beam illuminating the chamber like moonlight.
"Kiba, Rock Slide!"
Stones crashed down from the ceiling some hitting the Golurk square in the chest. Its attack discharged off-center, blasting the wall behind Shion.
The Plate pulsed.
The ground trembled faintly beneath their feet.
Kiba stood firm, breathing heavily.
The Golurk raised its arms one last time… and then
Stopped.
Its eyes flickered. Blue, dim… and then dark.
It fell backward like a felled statue, crashing into the earth with a deep, final thud.
Silence returned.
Shion stared at the fallen guardian. Then he turned to the Plate.
He approached the pedestal slowly. Each step echoed.
He reached out his hand hovered just above the Plate. He could feel it now. Warm, grounding. Like a heartbeat in the stone.
"Is it… safe to touch?" he asked.
Bidoof nodded. "It knows you."
Shion grasped the Plate.
The moment his fingers closed around it, a rush of sensation hit him.
He saw images.
Sandstorms sweeping ancient deserts.
Massive beasts of stone and earth marching across distant lands.
The cry of a creature that echoed through the tectonic plates of the world.
And then… silence.
Shion gasped and staggered back, clutching the Plate.
"Wh..what was that?"
Bidoof's eyes narrowed. "Memories. Fragments. The Plates remember what they once shaped."
Shion stared at the object in his hands.
The first Plate.
One step closer to his answer .
One step deeper into something vast.