CB is about to find himself in trouble. Regi trouble specifically.
So, after little to no walk, me, Krysta, and our new traveling companion Colress reached Lavender Town!
Traveling with Colress is proving to be fantastic! He knows a lot about Pokémon, and has enough theories about what he doesn't know that make a surprising amount of sense to make even the most ludicrous conspiracy theorist cry! For example, I asked him about why he supposes some Pokémon only evolve when traded, and he went into this long-winded explanation about various electrical signals and the like. Then I asked him about Inkay's evolutionary method, he explained how he thinks being turned upside down at just the right moment can cause certain chemicals to rush to it's head, and that triggers the evolution. It was fun to shoot theories back and forth!
...Unfortunately, Krysta doesn't speak science. But, now we were here in Lavender Town. I took in the sights. The Pokémon Tower, the Name Rater tent, the Battle Pyramid, Mr. Fuji's house, the Pokémon Center...
Wait. The BATTLE PYRAMID!?
I rubbed my eyes, and double-checked to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Yep. That's definitely the Battle Pyramid. What the crap is it doing here!? Well, whatever. It's not like I'd stand a chance if I tried to fight against Brandon anyway...so we simply went to the Pokémon Center.
After our Pokémon got a well deserved rest...
"So..." Krysta started. "...I don't recall the giant pyramid being around last time I was here. Anyone know what that's about?"
"That's the Battle Pyramid," I explained. "It's supposed to be a top secret battle facility, part of the Battle Frontier, where Elite Four-level trainers take on elite challengers to put their skills to the ultimate test. "
"Whoa, awesome! We need to check this place out!" Krysta decided.
"If the trainers are really this tough, then I should do research on how they train their Pokémon," Colress mused.
"And I want a battle!" Krysta cheered.
"...the Pyramid King is the strongest of the seven Frontier Brains," I pointed out.
"So?" Krysta asked.
"The Factory Head, the weakest of the seven, uses an Articuno," I explained, giving them a moment to let that sink in. "And like I said, he's the weakest, and the Pyramid King is the strongest. Do you really think you'd stand a chance?"
"...No," Krysta reluctantly agreed.
"Even if that is so, I must still do my research," Colress stated. "And if he is the strongest of the seven, and the weakest of them has a Legendary Pokémon, that's even more of a reason to get some research done."
"Alright then," I agreed. After we gathered our bearings, we headed towards the Battle Pyramid. And when we got there...
"He's not here?" Colress asked.
"No. The Pyramid King went to go explore some nearby ruins," the man guarding the Pyramid, who I recognized from the anime as Samuel, the assistant at the Battle Pyramid, informed us.
"I see...in that case, I'll have to come back later," Colress sighed. We walked off...and I spoke up...
"Why don't we go to those ruins?" I asked. Something about ancient ruins, and the history I can learn always gets me thrilled...
"Hmm...I suppose that going to meet this Pyramid King as soon as possible would be best..." Colress said. "Plus, the ruins could have something to do with Pokémon as well...so I should explore them, for the sake of my research."
"Eh, why not? It could be fun," Krysta decided. So then we all headed towards those ruins, which Colress said were near the Rock Tunnel. We silently went in, Colress calling out an Elgyem and having it use Flash once we did.
"Any ideas what these characters on the wall mean?" I asked, gesturing towards the walls, which had several drawings and characters I didn't recognize on it. Colress pulled out his laptop.
"Give me a second..." He said, when Krysta cut him off.
"They detail a civilization that used...special rocks to...boost their Pokémon's skills...I think." We shot Krysta a questioning glance. "These are what all the texts Grandpa forced down my throat were written in, so he made me learn the language. I haven't used it in a while, though, so I might be a bit rusty."
"An ancient civilization, huh...?" I asked, thrilled.
"Using special rocks to boost their Pokémon's skills...? Could they be talking about evolution stones?" Colress wondered.
"The drawings look more like pictures I've seen of Mega Stones," I said. We shot a few other theories back and forth, until Krysta told us we needed to keep going. We kept talking as we continued onward.
"Hmm...I can't help but wonder where the Mega Stones originated from..." Colress wondered.
"Based on the data I've seen, the first recorded Mega Evolution dates around three thousand years ago, around the time a terrifying weapon was used to end a war in Kalos," I explained, recalling my experiences with Pokémon X. "So, since that weapon was powered by Xerneas and Yveltal, I came up with a theory of my own, which builds off one Professor Sycamore came up with."
"Oh? Do explain."
"Well, Sycamore theorized that the Mega Stones were originally normal evolution stones, like Fire Stones, Dawn Stones, and their ilk, that mutated since they happened to be close enough to the weapon. Sort of like metamorphic rocks."
"Yes, that makes sense...the heat and pressure caused by being close to a weapon of that magnitude could cause that kind of reaction..."
"But I think there's a bit more to it than that, specifically dealing with Xerneas and Yveltal's energy. Each of the Mega Stones was filled with some of each, and then resonated with the aura of a nearby Pokémon, which is why the Mega Stone is specific to that Pokémon," I explained, before taking a breath. "Then, the Life Energy from Xerneas causes it's cells to grow faster, thus resulting in the Mega Evolution itself, while the Destruction Energy from Yveltal gives it the amazing power. Then, that same Destruction Energy balances out the Life Energy, so the cells aren't immortal, and which is why it returns to normal when the Pokémon finishes the battle, since it's body can't handle that energy without the adrenaline rush, and thus disposes of the cells when the battle is done."
"Hmm...it sounds feasible...I still haven't looked into Mega Evolution too extensively yet, so there may be hole I can't spot, though," Colress said. "But where do the Key Stones fit into this?"
"The Key Stones are either stones that weren't close enough to a Pokémkn to lock on to their auras, or ones that resonated with humans," I explained, continuing along my previous theory. "I haven't worked out all the specifics as to 'why' yet, considering I don't have any Key Stones or Mega Stones to work with, but I think the Key Stone acts as a magnet, drawing out the Life and Destruction Energies from the Mega Stone, thus allowing for the Mega Evolution." I took a breath, then sighed. "I still can't figure out why the close bond with humans is necessary, though..."
"Hmm...it is a mystery, isn't it?" Colress mused. Before we could continue, Krysta interrupted us.
"Uh, guys?" We looked, and Krysta was pointing at the wall in front of us. It showed a crude picture of a Pokémon I felt like I recognized, though I couldn't quite remember, and there were characters under it too. There were torches all around us, in an 'H' formation.
"What does it say?" I asked. It was a dead end, so this is probably a way to continue...
"It says...'when the pillars are topped with burning warmth...it will...open...the...path...way,'" she translated. "Although there are two characters I recognize, but can't quite put my finger on..."
"I'm guessing it's saying that lighting the torches will open the door..." I suggested. "Though-"
"That must be it!" Krysta decided. "Lila! You know what to do!"
"Krysta, wait-!" My pleas fell on deaf ears, as Lila fired potent Incinerates that lit all the torches, as orange light began shining underneath them. "...Well, I suppose that wasn't so bad. But for all we know, those to characters could have meant something bad would happen to us." Krysta seemed to ponder this for a bit.
"Ah! That's it! Those two characters mean 'to hell!'" She realized. "So put together, it means 'When the pillars are topped with burning warmth, it will open the pathway to hell!'" Krysta then realized what that meant. "Oh sh-" before she could finish, the ground beneath us gave out, and we fell down.
"Elgyem! Catch us with Telekinesis!" Colress called, as his Elgyem began lifting us psychically, and we landed on the ground safely, two paths in front of us. I got to say, being grabbed by psychic powers can be a bit disorienting...but I shook it off.
"Well, that could have gone better," I muttered. "One of those caverns likely leads out, while the other leads to a trap. I see no ancient runes to give hints. Which one should we take?"
"Obviously, the right way is the right way!" Krysta shouted running through the path on the right.
"Krysta, wait! Bad puns are never the answer!" I called again, running after her. Colress soon followed as well, sighing. Suddenly, we found ourselves in another room with glowing, circular lights in the floor arranged in an 'H' pattern...then the way behind us was closed off by a sudden doorway.
"Again...?" Colress muttered.
"Sorry..." Krysta sighed, before pulling out a Pokéball. "But hey! We can just Dig our way out with Rocker! At least these ruins don't have some ancient guardian or something!" Suddenly, the lights on the floor flashed brightly, and the wall in front of us opened up. Suddenly, I realized what all the 'H' patterns meant, and what the Pokémon drawn on the wall was, as another Pokémon, with that same 'H' pattern on it's face, walked out, beeping as the 'H' flashed.
"Way to jinx it, Krysta!" I shouted, fear lacing my voice more than anger...as the Pokémon stomped clearly into view, somehow visibly pissed even though it's face was a bunch of flashing dots. We were in for the battle of our lives, now...!
...Welp, we were screwed. For standing in front of us was...well, I'll let my Pokédex do the talking.
"Regirock, the Rock Peak Pokémon. This Pokémon was sealed away by ancient people who were afraid of it's amazing power long, long ago. To this date, the place where it was sealed remains unknown. Very little is known about this Pokémon due to it's status as a Legendary Pokémon. This Regirock has no gender."
"...Well, I think we found the 'unknown' location where it was sealed!" Krysta said, before we all scattered as it fired a Stone Edge, and the door behind it closed.
"I might be happy, if it wasn't trying to kill us!" I snapped back.
"There's no time for that! We have to send out all of our Pokémon and get ready for what may be the toughest battle of our lives!" Colress shouted, sending out all of his Pokémon. Excluding the Elgyem he already had out, that was Magneton, two Klangs, a Bronzong, and Metang.
"Right!" Krysta and I both agreed, sending out all of our Pokémon. For me, that was Turbo, Rei, and Spear, in addition to Mel who was already out, while for Krysta, that was Rocker, Lector, Jackie, Maggie, and Booster, in addition to Lila, who was already out.
"Start with your stat-lowering attacks! It will make this thing easier to take down!" Colress shouted.
"No it won't!" I interrupted, remembering from the games why that wouldn't work. "According to my Pokédex, Regirock has Clear Body!"
"What!?" Colress gasped. Seeing that stat reduction was not an option, we all silently agreed on plan B: Slam it with everything we've got and hope something works.
"Melanie, Iron Head! Spear, Drill Run! Turbo, Water Pulse! Rei, Razor Leaf!"
"Lila and Booster, double Flare Blitz! Rocker, Hyper Beam! Lector, Thunder! Jackie, Dynamic Punch! Maggie, Overheat!"
"Magneton, Zap Cannon! Klangs, double Hyper Beam! Elgyem, Psychic! Bronzong, Flash Cannon! Metang, Meteor Mash!" All of our Pokémon gave and affirmative shout as they fired their respective attacks.
"REGI-GIGI-ROCK," Regirock beeped, before it began glowing red...and all the physical moves somehow had the damage reflected back into the special moves, causing most of them to get cancelled out, while the ones that did hit barely did a thing...as a matter of fact, I don't think they did anything at all! Not to mention, the Pokémon that were trying to attack physically took damage, both from their own attacks and from the special attacks they were thrown into as shield.
"Okay, so it knows Counter..." Krysta summarized. "...crap."
"...Crap," I agreed. Okay, time for plan C! Status problems! Which in retrospect, should have been plan B...whatever!
"Turbo, use Yawn!" I shouted. My Slowpoke yawned, causing a large bubble to come from it's mouth and pop in Regirock's face. Soon enough, it collapsed and fell asleep.
"Now's our chance! Use-" I was cut off as a Charge Beam slammed into Turbo, knocking it out instantly. "It's got Sleep Talk too!?"
"And Charge Beam," Krysta added, while I recalled Turbo.
"Well, now we know all of its moves, since wild Pokémon can only learn four-" Colress started, before being cut off as Regirock slammed one of his Klang with a Dynamic Punch, knocking it out. "...But...that's not possible...!"
"It's a Legendary Pokémon," I said grimly, having been told of how the move limit works in this dimension by Krysta a while back. "I don't think normal rules apply to it." Colress recalled his Klang.
"I'd be fascinated if we weren't in so much danger..." he muttered. Then, Regirock's eyes flashed, letting us know it was awake again.
"REGI: ROCK ROCK REGI!" Regirock beeped, before firing an Ancient Power at Rocker...only for the Onix to vanish with a poof.
"You remember what Rocker does when I have him use Hyper Beam on an opponent with enough energy to survive, right?" Krysta asked rhetorically. That's right! That means...! Sure enough, Rocker burst from directly underneath the Regirock...only for Regirock to once again activate Counter, causing the damage to go right back at Rocker, and doubled. Rocker fell to the ground nearby us, unconscious.
"Well, there goes that plan..." I muttered sadly. Krysta recalled Rocker.
"Nothing we do seems to be working...!" She moaned.
"Rei! Try using Secret Power!" I shouted, as Rei began glowing pink, before unleashing the shockwave at Regirock, although it didn't seem to cause any pain...though it did flinch. "NOW! While it's flinching!" All of our remaining Pokémon fired their strongest attacks without a word, causing an explosion. When it cleared, we saw that Regirock was paralyzed, thanks to Magneton's Zap Cannon.
"ROCK...ROCK...ROCK..." It stuttered. Great! We were weakening it!
"Rei, try Absorb!" I shouted, as Rei began absorbing energy from the paralyzed Legend...until it hit her with a Mega Kick that sent her flying into Colress' remaining Klang, knocking them both out...if it Mega Kicked Rei with enough force to KO Klang, we're probably doomed...not like we didn't already know that. Me and Colress recalled our Pokémon, as Regirock fired a Hyper Beam.
"Metang! Elgyem! Bronzong! Stop that Hyper Beam with Psychic!" Colress shouted frantically.
"Lector! Maggie! You help with your Psychic!" Krysta called, as her Magmar and Electabuzz's eyes began glowing blue, as did Colress' Elgyem, Metang, and Bronzong's, as blue aura surrounded the Hyper Beam...only for it to break right through and slam into Maggie, knocking her out instantly. Krysta recalled her, before her Hitmonchan flew into a frenzy.
"Hitmonchan!" he declared angrily, running towards Regriock with a Dynamic Punch, and since Regirock needed to recharge, it was a direct hit.
"Actually, he's got the right idea! Strike back with everything you've got, now, while it's recharging!" I shouted. Our Pokémon once again hit it with their strongest attacks, causing it to collapse to the ground.
"Did...did we actually do it...?" Krysta asked tentatively...until Regirock sprung up with a Dynamic Punch of it's own, knocking Jackie into the ceiling, knocking it out. "Nope...return."
"Hmm...even if it is still fighting...we have weakened it considerably..." Colress noted. Wait...that's it! Actually, that probably wouldn't go so well...but it may be our only hope!
"This is probably a stupid idea, but..." I trailed off, pulling out a Pokéball. "...We have no better options! Go, Pokéball!" I threw the ball at Regirock, and it was sucked in. But it didn't even shake at all before popping open, as Regirock burst out and crushed the Ball under its foot.
"REGIGIGIGIGIGI..." It beeped, obviously even more pissed.
"Way to go, Leo!" Krysta said sarcastically. Regirock raised it's foot high.
"This is bad..." Colress warned us. "It's preparing to use Earthquake! And most of our remaining team is weak to Ground attacks!"
"Not on my watch! Mel, Sucker Punch!" I shouted, as Melanie warped behind Regirock, punching it from behind, causing the Rock Peak Pokémon to lose its balance and fall to the ground. It got up to it's knees, before freezing in place thanks to paralysis.
"Another opening! Now!" Our Pokémon once again fired their strongest attacks with no commands, sending Regirock to the ground again. It stood up on it's feet...before once again falling to it's knees, using it's arms to support itself.
"I...I think we did it..." Krysta gasped. Sure enough, Regirock wasn't moving anymore.
"Woohoo! Yeah! We did it!" I cheered as well...until a familiar white light began flowing around Regirock, removing the paralysis and healing all of it's injuries. "...Oh crap."
"It's using Rest..." Colress cursed. Sure enough, the damage we'd gone through hell and back to inflict all healed without a trace as Regirock slept. It then used Stone Edge in its sleep, probably thanks to Sleep Talk. It impacted Spear and Booster, knocking them both out, as Krysta and I recalled them. It then leapt to it's feet and hit Bronzong with a Mega Punch, knocking it out, before it's eyes flashed and it woke up again. It once again raised it's foot into the air.
"Sucker Punch!" I cried out frantically, as Melanie warped behind Regirock again, only for it to jump up and slam her with a Mega Kick instead. I gasped in terror as I saw my starter, who was my last Pokémon standing, hit the wall, unconscious. I ran over to her, but before I could, Regirock triggered Earthquake, the resulting tremor knocking all of Krysta and Colress' remaining Pokémon out.
"It looks like this is the end..." Krysta muttered softly, while I crawled over to Mel and cradled her up in my arms. I then noticed the cracks in the walls, caused by Earthquake...we might have been able to escape, but all our Pokémon were unconscious, so we couldn't take advantage of these cracks...Colress and Krysta recalled their Pokémon (of course, Krysta scooped up Lila in her arms), each bearing their own nervous expression as Regirock approached them...we need a miracle...wait, that's it! I whipped out my phone. I had no signal, but I knew the person I was texting would still get it. I texted A:
'I'm pretty sure you're watching, so with that in mind, please! We need a miracle!' I waited for the response, as Regirock charged its Hyper Beam...it looked like it wouldn't happen in time when...
"Ninjask, use Quick Attack!" The wall behind me burst open, as a yellow blur sped through, before slamming into Regirock, and to my surprise, it sent Regirock flying, clean through the wall into another hallway. I looked behind me to see who had commanded that Ninjask...
...and I saw Pyramid King Brandon standing there.
"...Am I seeing things, or did a Ninjask of all things just slam that Legendary hunk of rocks through a wall? With a Quick Attack?" Krysta asked.
"...A Ninjask just slammed Regirock through the wall with a Quick Attack," Colress repeated, likely not able to comprehend what he just saw.
"Well, the man commanding it is the Pyramid King," I pointed out. For those who don't know, the Pyramid King in question was a tall, older-looking man wearing a green outfit. Anyways, Brandon raised an eyebrow, likely wondering how I knew that, but put it aside and focused on Regirock, which was now getting up. I saw a red crosshair appear on Ninjask, indicating it had just used Lock On. It then proceeded to fire its Hyper Beam.
"Here comes a Hyper Beam!" Krysta warned.
"Ninjask, charge through it!" Brandon commanded calmly.
"What!?" Colress, Krysta, and I gasped, as Ninjask charged into the Hyper Beam.
"Ninjask!" The ninja Pokémon shouted.
"Giga Drain!" Brandon added, as Ninjask's claws began glowing green...and the multicolored light of Hyper Beam also turned green and...no. Flipping. Way. Is it...?
"Is it...absorbing Regirock's Hyper Beam!?" Colress gasped. And sure enough, the now-green Hyper Beam was being absorbed into Ninjask's claws, making it stronger! And since Regirock needed to recharge after using Hyper Beam, it couldn't do anything as Ninjask flew closer and started absorbing Regirock's energy as well. Regirock fell to it's knees again, before the white light of Rest surrounded it.
"Solrock! I need your assistance!" Brandon shouted, sending out his Meteor Pokémon. "Use Heal Block!"
"Sol...!" It droned, before releasing a wave of black light, causing the white light of Rest to become grey, before shattering away in a manner that reminded me of when a monster is destroyed in the Yu-gi-oh! series. Brandon then pulled out another PokéBall, taking advantage of the fact that Regirock was sleeping, even though it's Rest was no longer healing it.
"Dusclops! I need your assistance!"
"Dusclops!" The Beckon Pokémon shouted as it emerged from it's PokéBall.
"Use Nightmare!" Dusclops' eye began glowing a murky purple, before the same aura appeared around Regirock.
"...It used Rest to try and heal the damage it had taken, but thanks to Heal Block and Nightmare, it's only taking more..." I mused. I thought that Heal Block prevented the sleeping part of Rest, though...oh well, anime logic I guess. And by anime logic, I generally mean 'throw logic out the window and use whatever the crap works'. This was especially true in Gens I and II. Anyways, Regirock activated Sleep Talk...except it tried to hit Dusclops with a Mega Punch. Considering Dusclops is a Ghost, that didn't go so well.
"That's gotta be some crappy luck..." Krysta muttered, watching Regirock's fist pass right through the Beckon Pokémon.
"Solrock, Fire Spin!" The Pyramid King shouted, as his Pokémon created a spiral of flames around Regirock, trapping it in place. It took more and more damage from Nightmare, before firing Ancient Power with Sleep Talk. "Ninjask, Fury Swipes!"
"Ninjask!" Ninjask shouted, moving it's claws at impossible speeds and...slicing the Ancient Power into little tiny bits, before lunging at Regirock, and scratching it too, making visible scratch marks on it's body. Suddenly, Nightmare's aura dissipated, as Regirock woke up.
"ROCK ROCK REGIROCK: REGIROCK ROCK," it droned. "REGI: GIGIGIGI..." Regirock began spinning at incredible speeds, shaking off the Fire Spin, before going underground with Dig. Even for a Legend, that's a crapton of moves...
"Dusclops, use Bulldoze, followed by Mean Look!" Dusclops slammed it's foot into the ground, creating a tremor that forced Regirock above ground, before shooting a ring of darkness from it's eye that surrounded Regirock and flashed before disappearing.
"Regirock can't escape now..." I muttered. But, aside from these occasional stating the obvious moments, Krysta, Colress and I were shocked speechless from watching a Legend get curbstomped.
"Now Dusclops, Sunny Day! Ninjask and Solrock, double Solar Beam!" Brandon shouted, as Dusclops through a ball of light into the air that began shining as bright as the sun, before Solrock and Ninjask both fired green beams of light at Regirock, which impacted and exploded, sending it to the ground. Brandon then pulled out another PokéBall. "Now go, Pokéball!"
"REGI...ROCK...ROCK..." Regirock stuttered, before getting sucked into the Ball. It shook once in midair, before falling to the ground and shaking again.
*PING!*
"Well, that was cool," I said.
"That thing kicked our asses into next week, and then you show up and kicked its ass into next year!" Krysta added.
"What are you doing here in the first place?" Brandon asked sternly, as he picked up the PokéBall of his newly caught Pokémon.
"A bit of research...and also, looking for you," I explained nervously. Colress spoke up next.
"My name is Colress. I'm a scientist researching the true potential of Pokémon," he explained. "I heard some rumors about how strong the Frontier Brains of the Battle Frontier are, so I wanted to come and do some research."
"I see...and how did you find out the Battle Frontier existed in the first place?" Brandon asked.
"The internet," I cut in, holding up my phone, showing him a page about the Battle Frontier on this world's version of Wikipedia. Of course, I made that page on this world's Wikipedia myself, but I'm not gonna tell him that.
"We must have a security breach...I'll have to talk to Scott about that..." he muttered.
"So..." Krysta cut in. "What do you suppose is down the hallway Regirock was protecting?" She pondered a bit, and before anyone could answer, she started running through the hallway. "I bet it's treasure!"
"Oh for the love of-! Again!?" I shouted, before giving an exasperated sigh and explaining to Brandon. "She triggered the traps that got us down here and woke up Regirock...though I suppose it's slightly my fault for suggesting we explore these ruins in the first place..." We then ran after her. Thankfully, there were no traps between here and the next room, which had a small box in the center. Krysta was trying (and failing) to open it.
"Nooo!" Brandon shouted, startling Krysta a bit. "Don't be so reckless! Unless you want to risk triggering another trap."
"Er, right," Krysta agreed sheepishly. "So, how do we open the box?" Suddenly, the Pokéball Brandon had caught Regirock in began glowing, as did the box, which opened up. We looked and the box was filled to the brim with...
"...Key Stones?" I gasped. Sure enough, there were several green gems with the DNA double helix sign inside them. I picked one up, as did Krysta and Colress, before Brandon had his Solrock lift the entire box with Psychic.
"So, these are the Key Stones that allow a Pokémon to Mega Evolve..." Brandon noted. "I shall send these to the owner of the Battle Frontier and see what he wants to do with them. You may keep those three if you desire. I already found the way out, so I will head back. You may follow if you wish." After that we stashed the Key Stones, and Brandon lead us back to the surface, recalling Dusclops and Ninjask while Solrock used Flash.
A few hours later, at the Pokémon Center...
Thankfully, Nurse Joy was able to heal our Pokémon without any trouble, so now we were resting in the Pokémon Center after what we just went through...
"That was brutal..." I muttered, my shiny new Mega Pendant (made to look like Wally's, except with a blue strap instead of a green one) hanging from my neck.
"But we got Key Stones out of it, so that's a plus!" Krysta cheered with her usual enthusiasm, her Key Stone attached to a red anklet with a fiery design that she put around her left ankle.
"Indeed. That's one of the things I need for my research on Mega Evolution down," Colress noted, having replaced the green gem in his glasses with the actual Key Stone.
"Of course, we still need Mega Stones before we can actually use these..." I pointed out. I had found a lavender-colored jacket similar to the blue one Wally wore in ORAS, which I buttoned up so that it covered the Mega Pendant. I'd prefer to keep it hidden until I can actually use it. To my knowledge, for the Pokémon I have, Mawilite can be found in Verdanturf Town and Camphrier Town, Beedrillite can be found at the bottom of Sea Mauville, and Slowbronite can be found at Shoal Cave...then again, I haven't decided what Turbo will evolve into...anyways!
"Yeah..." Colress trailed off before standing up. "In any case, I'm off to continue my plan of gathering data from the Pyramid King's Pokémon. You may come along if you desire." Krysta and I nodded, before getting up and going with him.
At the Pyramid...
"You want a battle?" Brandon asked.
"Yes," Colress confirmed. "I need to gather data from strong, well-trained Pokémon like yours for my research." Brandon thought for a minute.
"Very well then," he agreed. "But in exchange, I ask that you keep the Battle Frontier a secret."
"That is agreeable." Krysta and I were both speechless. Colress wanted a battle with this guy!? Regirock crushed us into the ground, and then Brandon crushed it into the ground, and Colress wants to battle him!? Well, in any case, we ended up in the stands, watching intently.
"This will be a four-on-four battle between the Pyramid King Brandon and the challenger, Colress!" Samuel decreed. "Battle begin!"
"Magneton, come out!" Colress declared, sending out his Magneton.
"Ninjask! I need your assistance!" Brandon declared, calling upon his Ninjask. "Use Double Team!" Suddenly, where there was one Ninjask before, there were five...then ten...then twenty, and counting!
"Magnet Bomb!" Colress declared, as Magneton fired the silver lights, knowing they'd always hit their mark, which they did. "Now Lock-On and Zap Cannon!"
"Magneton!" Magneton declared, the red target appearing on Ninjask's forehead, before Magneton fired the large orb of electricity.
"Ninjask! You know what to do!" In a flash, Ninjask was behind Magneton, as the Zap Cannon went in reverse.
"That won't work," Colress said with a smirk, as Magneton burst into three Magnemite...
"Oh won't it, now?" Brandon shot back, as Ninjask moved at incredible speed, pushing Magneton back together and forcing it to take it's own Zap Cannon anyway.
"What!?" Colress gasped.
"Now use Fury Swipes!" Ninjask repeatedly scratched Magneton with it's claws, scratching it's steel body, before it fell to the ground.
"Magneton is unable to battle! Ninjask is the winner!" Samuel declared. That was fast...but believable, considering what I saw that thing do to Regirock. But...
"It...it created visible scratch marks? On a Steel-type? Using Fury Swipes?" I gasped. I knew Brandon was strong, but this is insane!
"Magneton, that was some good data. Return," Colress said, recalling Magneton to its PokéBall. He then pulled out another one. "Klang, come out!"
"Klang!" It declared.
"Ninjask, return!" Brandon declared, recalling his Ninjask, before pulling out another PokéBall. "Dusclops! I need your assistance!"
"Dusclops!" It shouted.
"Klang, use Gear Grind!" Klang split into its gears and slammed into Dusclops...who caught the two gears. "What!?"
"Dusclops! Use Fire Punch and slam it back together!" Dusclops' hands lit ablaze, before it slammed the gears back together, before punching it back, knocking it to the ground, unconscious.
"Klang is unable to battle! Dusclops is the winner!"
"Your Pokémon are just as strong as I was told..." Colress mused, recalling Klang, and silently sending out Bronzong.
"Dusclops, return!" Brandon shouted. "Hmph. This battle is proving to be less entertaining than I hoped. But I shall at least finish it. Solrock! I need your assistance!"
"Bronzong, Light Screen!" Colress immediately declared, as a wall of light formed around Bronzong.
"Solrock, use Fire Spin!" Solrock began spinning at incredible speeds, creating a spiral of flames that ensnared Bronzong. However, since its ability was apparently Heatproof, combined with the Light Screen, it was able to survive, but just barely.
"Flash Cannon!" Colress shouted, as Bronzong shot off a silver stream of light.
"Psychic!" Brandon shouted, as Solrock sent the Flash Cannon back with Psychic energy. Bronzong was sent to the ground.
"Bronzong is unable to battle! Solrock is the winner!"
"Yet again, I failed to even lift a finger against you," Colress noted. "Though a bit on the boring side, science is like that, sometimes." He sent out his Metang, while Brandon recalled Solrock, and pulled out another PokéBall.
"Regirock! I need your assistance!" Brandon called, sending out his newly-caught Legendary Pokémon.
"REGI: ROCK? ROCK...ROCK...REGIROCK!" It declared.
"Metang!" Metang shot back, though it was obviously nervous.
"Use Meteor Mash!"
"Counter!" Metang's arm began glowing with a blue light as it surged towards Regirock, though Regirock began glowing red.
"Switch into Flash Cannon, now!" Metang halted in place, before shooting a silver stream of light at Regirock, getting right past Counter and doing super-effective damage...not that that meant much. Once Counter faded, Metang continued the Meteor Mash, not that Regirock seemed to feel it.
"Use Mega Punch!" Brandon shouted, as Regirock punched Metang into the wall behind Colress.
"Metang...met...metang...!" Metang roared, as it struggled up, before falling to the ground.
"Metang is unable to battle! Regirock is the-...huh?" Samuel stopped mid-declaration...because Metang was glowing with a bright blue light, and beginning to change shape!
"It's...!" I gasped.
"It's evolving...!" Krysta finished, as the light burst away, revealing a large, four-legged metal Pokémon with two red eyes and a silver X across its face.
"Meta!" It shouted.
"Fantastic! Metang has evolved into Metagross!" Colress gasped, before focusing back on the battle. "Now use Flash Cannon!"
"Counter with Charge Beam!" Brandon shouted, as Metagross shot a silver stream of light, and Regirock shout a beam of electricity. Unlike before, where Regirock was completely demolishing everything, it actually seemed evenly matched with Metagross...such is the power of a pseudo-Legendary, I guess.
"Now use Meteor Mash!" Metagross flew at Regirock with a glowing blue fist once again.
"Counter!" Brandon commanded, as Regirock got ready to send the attack right back.
"Aim at the ground below Regirock's feet!" Colress shouted, as Metagross switched targets and slammed it's fist into the ground, sending Regirock flying from the explosion. "Now use Rain Dance!"
"Meta!" Metagross declared, as it began raining inside the pyramid.
"ROCK REGI...REGIROCK...!" Regirock beeped, as it was soaked by the downpour.
"Now Thunder Punch the ground!" Metagross roared and slammed the soaked ground with an electrified fist, not only causing an explosion that sent electrified, rocky shrapnel flying at Regirock, but zapping it and paralyzing it as well.
"Well, Colress, your Metagross has certainly put up a better fight now that it's evolved," Brandon complimented. "But without the drive to win, it stands no chance! Regirock, use Zap Cannon!" Regirock fired a large orb of electricity at Metagross, using the Rain Dance it caused against it as the Zap Cannon electrified Metagross, paralyzing it as well.
"Hyper Beam!" Both of them shouted, as their Pokémon charged up multicolored beams...only for Metagross' paralysis to act up at the last second and prevent it from firing, while Regirock's Hyper Beam slammed into it, sending it flying. When it hit the ground, it was already unconscious.
"Metagross is unable to battle! Regirock is the winner! Which means the match goes to the Pyramid King, Brandon!" Samuel declared.
"Thank you Metagross. That was some fantastic data," Colress said, recalling his newly-evolved pseudo-Legend, while Brandon recalled his Regirock.
"Was that enough for you?" Brandon asked.
"Just one question," Colress said. "How do you train your Pokémon?"
"I'm afraid that's classified information," Brandon said simply.
"Please?" Colress asked. "I need this data for my research."
"I can't answer that question," Brandon insisted.
"But the way you train may contain valuable information about ways to bring out a Pokémon's potential!"
"Nooo!" Brandon shouted. "If you really want to discover a Pokémon's potential, you must find your own path! Imitating someone else will never yield the same results as them!"
"Very well then..." Colress sighed, obviously not really caring about what Brandon just said, but realizing Brandon wouldn't tell him anyways, turned around and got ready to leave. Me and Krysta hurriedly got up to follow.
As we headed out of town...
"Well...that was...something..." I said, referring to the events of today.
"We explored some ruins, got our butts kicked by a Legendary Pokémon, saw that Legend get it's butt kicked, then Colress got stomped by the guy who caught it, although his Metang did evolve into Metagross," Krysta summarized.
"It's a shame Brandon wouldn't divulge his training methods..." Colress sighed sadly.
"Today might have been more fun if the Regirock encounter wasn't so life-threatening..." I muttered, before feeling movement in my backpack. "Hmm?"
"What's going on in there?" Krysta asked, unzipping my backpack before anyone could say anything, and pulling out the egg she gave me, which was glowing.
"It appears it's about to hatch!" Colress stated, as we pulled it out of its case and it began to change shape, before the light burst, revealing a Magby!
"Magby?" It asked looking around a bit, before. I crouched down to eye level with it.
"Hello there, little guy. Welcome to life," I said.
"Mag...?"
"I guess I'll be training you from now on...what do you say?" I asked, holding out my hand, which had a Pokéball in it.
"Magby!" It cheered, before curiously looking at the Pokéball, probably not quite knowing what it is.
"I've never been good with kids..." I groaned. "Krysta? A little help?" Krysta silently called out Maggie, who the Magby instinctively recognized as its mother. They talked for a bit in PokéSpeech, before Magby cheered excitedly, and ran over to me, tapping the Pokéball and getting sucked in. It pinged to signify the catch. "Well, looks like I caught a Magby!"
"Wi~le maw!" Melanie cheered along. I pulled out my Pokédex.
"Magby, the Live Coal Pokémon. If a Magby is spouting yellow flames from it's mouth, it is in good health. If it is fatigued, black smoke may be mixed with the flames. This Magby is male, it's ability is Flame Body, and it knows the moves Mega Punch, Thunder Punch, Mach Punch, and Ember."
"Well, someone's punchy..." Krysta said.
"Shut it," I snapped, Krysta rubbed her head sheepishly and recalled Maggie. I turned to the Pokéball in my hands, before clipping it to my belt. "Anyways...welcome to the team...Marcus." That makes five Pokémon...one more and I'll have a full set...wait, crap. In the anime, didn't they say that the seventh Pokémon and beyond would get transported to wherever your Pokédex was activated? And mine was activated in the middle of a forest...crap. Then again, I'm sure A's worked something out. He's not that stupid. Right?
...Right?
"Well, on to Saffron then!" Krysta cheered breaking me out of my train of thought. That reminds me...how the crap am I going to fight Sabrina without being mentally scarred for life? Crap, how am I going to even get out with my life? Scratch that, how am I going to get out at all!? Ugh...Melanie's a Steel-type, so she resists Psychic attacks, and she's got Sucker Punch to get the jump on her Psychics, but against Sabrina, will that really be enough?
Meanwhile, in the Johto Region...
Right now was a rare occasion. A swarm of Ralts was hanging out around Route 34, so of course trainers were flocking from all over to catch them. However, one particular Ralts wasn't making it easy.
"{That's right, I win again!}" It declared, as it fired a Disarming Voice attack that knocked out the trainer's Cyndaquil, forcing the trainer to recall it. A Pidgey rushed at with a Peck, but the Ralts fired a Magical Leaf that knocked that out as well. "{And agai-hey!}" The Ralts was interrupted as a Rattata Tackled it from behind. The Ralts looked up angrily. "{That hurt, you little rat!}" The Ralts' eyes began glowing, before it picked up the Rattata with Confusion, and sending it flying into the distance. The Trainer panicked and ran towards where the Rattata was sent. "{Hah! If any of you lousy trainers actually want to catch me, you should probably get some skills first!}"
"{Um...}" Another Ralts piped in, shyly walking up towards the other. "{Big brother, don't you think that was a bit mean? Those Pokémon only hatched a few days ago...}"
"{They were trying to help those humans stuff us into those metal spheres and enslave us, little brother,}" the other Ralts explained, crossing his arms. "{I think a bit of meanness is fine,}"
"{...But...Dad said that humans would make us more powerful if we joined up with them...and it was thanks to humans that he learned that special move of his, and thus was able to teach it to us...}" the younger Ralts pointed out.
"{Pfft! If those humans would really make us stronger, then why are the Pokémon they fight us with so weak?}" The older Ralts laughed. "{Whatever. This place is getting boring...hey...I just got me an idea...}"
"{Oh no...it's never a good thing when you have ideas...}"
"{Excuse me, dearest little brother, but what was that you just said?}" the older Ralts questioned. "{You didn't say anything that would make me have to hurt you, did you?}"
"{What! No, I said 'it's always a good thing when you have ideas!' Ehehe...}" the younger Ralts laughed nervously.
"{Good. Because my idea is this: those humans always describe that metal jungle-}"
"{City.}"
"{What?}"
"{Those metal jungles are called cities.}"
"{Do I care?}"
"{I don't know, do you?}" Seeing the glare his older brother was giving him, the younger Ralts realized the obvious answer. "{...Shutting up now...}"
"{Good. As I was saying, those humans are always saying that that metal jungle called Goldenrod is a fun place, right? So why don't we go in and see what's so fun about it?}"
"{Um...I'm not sure-}" the younger brother stopped when he saw his brother glaring again. "{I mean, it's a great idea!}"
"{Good. Let's get started..."} the older Ralts laughed darkly, an evil smirk on his-
"{Um...could you not smirk like that? You look a lot like dad when you do that...}"
"{Oh, fine...}"
Well, those Ralts look interesting...but they're in Johto. How're they supposed to get to Kanto?
Anyway, CB has a Key Stone now, but no Mega Stones. ...Damn it, I want a Key Stone...