Down the Buneary Hole [Senri]

Honestly, Senri wasn't sure what happened. It was a blur when they fell in, but he could feel that his shirt had been pulled so that he collided into a wall that provided some level of friction. Before he knew it, he was sort of sliding down to the ground, hitting the earth with a loud thump and a sore bottom. "Oww..." he groaned, letting out a pained exhale before he tried to get his bearings. The trainer looked up and realized that they had fallen from quite a height. Was it Lori that pulled him to the side? It was her chipper voice that at least clued him that she was alright. "Hikaru? Mitsuru? Kuchu? Where are you?" he called out, hoping that his Pokemon were alright.

"(H-here...)" Hikaru shakily answered, mostly traumatized than anything else. He had been clinging onto Lori since she was the closest person that he could reach out to, so he got out of the fall relatively unscathed. Senri breathed a sigh of relief before noticing that there was now a huge pile of rocks and dirt right in front of them. Suddenly, the surface was starting to shake, and for a moment the trainer feared that it was a Geodude that got caught in the fall. No, it turned out to be his Wooper, who popped out of the pile of dirt with a goofy smile. Mitsuru emerged from the pile as well, albeit worse for wear. He decided that it would be better to return the penguin back into his Poke Ball but let his other two Pokemon stick around.

"Thank Arceus all of us managed to make it." he said, relaxing his shoulders. "Now, where the heck are we?" Senri realized that they were not just in a hole, but a cavern that led to other caverns. A network of tunnels, in other words. It reminded him of Sinnoh's underground actually, though it was very rough, which meant that barely any people went down here. "You think that these tunnels will lead to an exit eventually?" he asked Lori, hoping that she had an idea of the place.

---

Lv 12 - Minus - Discharge, Nuzzle, Play Nice, Spark, Quick Attack, Encore

Lv 13 - Aftermath - Constrict, Minimize, Astonish, Gust, Focus Energy

There was a stream of light that illuminated the dirt pile in front of them, but other than that...well, Senri figured that the further away they move away from it, the more likely that they were going to be submerged in total darkness. That was not good, and while the trainer did not have an irrational fear of the dark, there was of course the lingering risk of being ambushed and whatnot. They would need something that they can set light to, like a piece of wood, but it didn't seem like anything of the sort was available to them now. After feeling a little bit better about himself, Hikaru moved away from Lori to rejoin his own trainer, to which he quickly jumped onto his shoulder in an attempt to calm himself.

"Well, I guess nothing will happen if we just stay here." he muttered, trying to stand up. He felt some pain in the lower half of his body, but thankfully it did not seem that anything was twisted or broken. He should be able to walk and look for the exit, granted if it took less than an hour or something to get there. He let out a groan as he stretched his back a little before looking around once more. It was then his Wooper let out a whine. "(Water...)"

"Oh right, it's been a while, hasn't it?" the trainer reached out for his water bottle, opened the cap, and sprinkled some water on his Pokemon. It wasn't a lot because he needed to save it for himself and the others, but Kuchu seemed to appreciate it, letting out a happy cry as he danced around a little before suddenly sniffing the air. Without warning, he then ran off into one of the tunnels; his cries echoing through the cavern walls that clearly ask for the rest to follow him. "Wait, Kuchu--!" the young man let out a sigh. "He said he smells...water? Maybe there's an underground lake somewhere, or it could be a lead to an exit." he presumed, offering Lori a hand to help her stand. "Kuchu wait for us!"

He then faced Hikaru briefly, "Do you have enough power in you to light up your cheeks as a guide?"

The Minun let out a whine, "(I guess I can try...)" he jumped off his trainer's shoulder to catch up with his teammate, all the while charging up some electricity onto his cheek pouches. He made sure not to release them so that the glow would be contained. It did not light up the whole cave, but it at least allowed them to see where they were stepping. "Come on, Lori, my Wooper isn't one of the most patient Pokemon ever." he coaxed, putting his arm over her as they moved further away from the hole they fell from.

---

Lv 12 - Minus - Discharge, Nuzzle, Play Nice, Spark, Quick Attack, Encore

Lv 13 - Aftermath - Constrict, Minimize, Astonish, Gust, Focus Energy

Senri let out a small yelp when Lori grabbed onto his arm; it was stronger than he anticipated but he soon got used to it. The glow from Hikaru's cheeks was enough for the pair to make sure that they didn't stumble on any big pebbles, but the Minun soon dispersed the electricity as soon as he saw some kind of light source at the end of their path. Curious and confused, he ran ahead to find that the path didn't end there, but there were now crystals dotting the cavern walls. "(Woah.)"

Senri echoed his Pokemon's reaction as soon as they caught up. He had heard that the Grotto here had some crystals deep within its network, but he didn't think that they'd stumble upon one so soon. Sheer luck, he'd like to think, but he was happy to oblige. It didn't take long for the group to reach the end of the tunnel, which opened up to a wide, crystal lake area that seemed to resemble a secret garden. Crystals jutted out from the ground with flora growing around it. The ground soon gave way to cave grass (if that was a thing), and the place was well-lit enough for the trainer to be able to see without a flashlight. Has no one discovered this place before? It looked pristine and untouched, and what surprised him even more was that there was a bustling, diverse Pokemon community living here.

It was then Senri spotted his Wooper already in the lake itself, swimming around and looking very much content. Lori soon removed her death grip from his arm to meet with a Nidoran M that was apparently not originally part of this community. So he supposed that lost Pokemon come here as well if they end up getting stranded in the Grotto. Majority of the Pokemon here either seem to be normal cavern dwellers or water type Pokemon. He wondered if that meant that the lake was actually not a lake; there could be some way out of here if they followed it. It was much too risky to take a dive and look for the bottom, however. It might be better to ask around.

Hikaru jumped onto his trainer's shoulder again as the young man tried to look for a friendly Pokemon to ask for directions. To his surprise, a Pokemon decided to approach him first. "(Hey, where'd you come from? Haven't seen humans down here since forever.)"

"We came from the mountains. I think the Geodude planted a trap hole and we fell in."

The Oshawott looked pleasantly surprised, "(You understand PokeSpeak? Even rarer.)" he commented before continuing. "(Yeah, the Geodude do not take kindly to trespassers. Who even had the bright idea of trying to walk through their path?)"

Senri did a sideward glance to the little girl who seemed enamoured by her new friend. The Water type followed his gaze and let out a small, "(Ah.)" he then let out a hum in thought. "(I guess you're looking for the exit?)"

"That would be ideal."

"(Good, because I'd like to go to the surface too. My destiny as a performer will not be realised here!)" the Oshawott did a proud pose; his head pointing towards the ceiling, "(So I'll cut you a deal. I'll help you find your way out but you gotta take me with you.)"

"Uh, alright, sure. I don't mind."

"(Are you sure about this?)" Hikaru piped up from his shoulder.

"Well, we already have two water types. I don't see any problem having a third one." the trainer responded nonchalantly.

"(Cool, cool. Glad that you see my awesome worth as the next big Pokemon star.)" Senri wasn't sure whether to react with a small smirk or a twinge of regret. Oh well. "(So most of us water types actually came from the lake, which has a tunnel that leads to...well, I guess another lake. I haven't made the trip in a long time so I don't really remember, but I'm pretty sure it leads to the surface. It's a long swim though, you're going to need to hold your breath for a while.)"

"I was afraid of that. Is there any other way to get out that doesn't involve water?"

The Oshawott looked thoughtful, "(Noot sure. Maybe ask the others? That Nidoran is one of the newbies; he's been here for a few weeks.)"

---

Lv 12 - Minus - Discharge, Nuzzle, Play Nice, Spark, Quick Attack, Encore

Lv 13 - Aftermath - Constrict, Minimize, Astonish, Gust, Focus Energy