Episode 25: The invisible connection
As Olivia had told them, the journey to Ula'ula Island took only a couple of days. Niko, Charlotte, and Warren took a different approach to their journey to the third island in Alola—via Pokémon instead of via a boat. Charlotte's Lapras didn't seem to mind ferrying them to Ula'ula. The island was to the southeast of Akala, and there were several smaller, less inhabited islands along the way for the trio—and the Pokémon—to rest.
At the end of their first day, the group stopped on an island hardly big enough for the entire group of Pokémon. Nevertheless, Niko and Charlotte took some time to train. They restricted their Pokémon to using only ranged moves directed out towards the sea, for fear of accidentally hitting one of their teammates. This was relatively easy for the flying types—Trumbeak, Noibat, and Dartrix—who simply performed their moves high in the air.
Noibat was working on learning the move acrobatics and failing spectacularly. Rotomdex suggested the move for the Sound Wave Pokémon, whom Charlotte realized needed to learn something new, as the trials on Ula'ula were expected to be more difficult than the Akala ones. She also focused slightly more on Salandit and Lapras, hoping to possibly find a trainer to challenge while in Malie City as a means of testing her newest Pokémon.
Niko, on the other hand, focused on Ribombee and Vaporeon. The former had difficulty keeping up with Olivia's Lycanroc—in speed and in power—and he wanted to not only match that but improve on it as well. So, while they were on their way to Ula'ula Island, Niko would have the Bee Fly Pokémon perform speed exercises, usually around Lapras while on the water or around the island they were stopping at along the way.
Warren was taking notes on a lot of this. In particular, he noticed a slight difference in how Niko and Charlotte battled against Olivia. At least, to him it felt different. There, both had won with relatively inexperienced Pokémon (against a Kahuna, of all people), and noticed a pattern with that, particularly as it related to Charlotte. Two of her three trials were won based on Flaaffy, very much a new Pokémon at the time, and her Grand Trial was won by Lapras, with whom she hadn't trained with a lot, either.
It made him wonder whether it was more due to Charlotte's improvement as a trainer, or the Pokémon's inherent abilities? They all knew Flaaffy was unusually strong compared to others in his species, and that Lapras was naturally strong as a species, but was that the entire story? The more he considered this as a theory, the more he wondered how often it had happened with Niko. In Unova, he certainly had a moment like this, with his Tynamo taking down a Gym Leader's ace without any training whatsoever. His Trumbeak—as a Pikipek—defeated Hala's ace Pokémon as well. While Niko was indeed an experienced trainer on his own, at least one of those cases could be almost entirely attributed to his skill as a trainer than to the Pokémon itself.
More importantly, and this is where Warren ultimately confused himself: was there a possible "invisible connection" between humans and Pokémon that strengthened them? Surely there had to have been, as it's long been thought that wild Pokémon were not as strong as their counterparts owned by a trainer. But why? Besides training, was there another factor at play? He pondered this—and other things—while they floated along the Alolan sea towards Malie City.
"Cousins!" a familiar voice shouted as Lapras and the trio approached a port in Malie City. Professor Kukui stood on one of the many concrete decks protruding from the port. "And wow! What a Pokémon you've got there! A different colored Lapras!"
"Thanks, Professor," Charlotte said as she dismounted her Pokémon, "it's mine!"
"Lucky catch, dude! By the way, congrats on clearing the Akala trials! Are you ready for Ula'ula's?"
"Absolutely," Niko said, "where do we begin?"
"Wherever you want, cousin! Trials don't have to be completed in a specific order, but it does help to have an idea of where you want to go first. C'mon, I want to introduce you three to Nanu. He's the Kahuna of Ula'ula Island."
Kukui led them away from the port and towards the city proper. Niko and his friends hadn't seen a city quite like this in some time. It was a large city, to be sure, and possibly the largest they had seen since Hau'oli City on Melemele Island. However, the architecture was oddly familiar to him, but in a different way. It reminded him of the Johto region, specifically Ecruteak City.
Professor Kukui seemed to notice this as well. "Niko, you've been to Johto, right? Did you know much of Malie City is based on Johto architecture?"
"I didn't, but it's not hard to see," Niko said in awe.
"It's beautiful," Charlotte said as she stopped briefly to admire a pagoda-style apartment building. "I didn't know you could design buildings like that!"
"Then you'd really like the Johto region," Niko mentioned as he put his arm around her and pulled her along. "We should go sometime."
"I'd like that a lot," she said, continuing to look at the different buildings. The shops along the streets even looked different. The food carts lining sidewalks were made of bamboo and styled similarly to the buildings.
"So how have you been, Professor?" Warren asked, stepping ahead to keep up with Kukui.
"Been fine, cousin. Busy, but doing well. And you?" Kukui asked, tilting his head to the right, staring directly at Warren through his tinted glasses.
"I've been alright," Warren said, "just a lot on my mind."
"Yeah? I hear ya. The burdens of youth, as people far smarter than I might say," Kukui said with a laugh. "But really, now—something got ya down?"
"Nothing in particular. I've just got a lot to think about—with myself and with those two," he said in obvious reference to Niko and Charlotte, walking behind them.
"Ah, problem with being a third wheel? I never seemed to have a problem with that when I was your age."
"No, no! It's not that," Warren said, "we've been friends for a while now, we're all very comfortable with each other."
Kukui smirked, indicating to Warren that he was merely joking. "I know. If you need someone to talk to, you've got me. But I suggest you start with your friends, especially considering you three are so close."
Warren nodded. He knew all of this already. But his problem seemed to evolve more into a question of how to explain what was on his mind, rather than the mere concept of it. This was true for both his future career options, as well as his theories on the "invisible connection" between people and Pokémon.
"Actually," Warren said as Kukui stopped at the front of a gate leading into a massive garden, "I do have something I wanted to ask you."
"Let's talk about it in a bit, Warren," Kukui said when they approached a large arched gateway, "I'd like you three to check this place out—it's Malie Garden."
Niko, Charlotte, and Warren all stepped forward to view the sight before their eyes. It was a large pond with arched wooden bridges connecting several smaller landmasses to the outer part of the garden. The bridge directly in front of them was adorned with golden statues on each corner of the bridge and was gold-plated. In the far-left corner was a small tower that again reminded Niko of the Johto region.
"This is incredible," Niko said in awe.
"Yup! I like to take Island Challengers here to catch a glimpse of it, especially if they're not from Alola. It's a place to come and relax; to calm down and reflect on life or the world around us. I figured you three might appreciate having the opportunity to do so," Kukui paused for a moment, "I'm sure you'll need it for the trials ahead."
"Olivia mentioned that they're pretty difficult," Niko said.
"Well, there's a reason why the Island Challenge takes a certain path through the islands, cousin. They get progressively more difficult. So, yeah, Ula'ula's trials are more difficult than Akala's and Melemele's, but not necessarily more difficult than Poni Island's," Kukui then looked around, as if trying to find someone. As a matter of fact he was, and began eagerly waving towards a brooding figure in all black clothing sitting at a bench under an overhang nearby. "Nanu!"
The man stood up and approached them. His back was hunched slightly, and his facial expression suggested either apathy or exhaustion—or both. He was of medium height, only slightly shorter than Warren. His hair was gray, and he had red eyes and thick eyebrows. He wore a burgundy shirt with a black jacket that had two yellow emblems on each side that looked like police badges. His pants and sandals were also black. Lastly, he wore a necklace with a black crystal on it—presumably a Z-crystal of sorts.
"Ah, hey Kukui. You're late," Nanu said in a bored tone. "These the kids you wanted to introduce me to?"
"Yes! Nanu, meet Niko, Charlotte, and Warren. Niko is from the Kanto region, and Charlotte and Warren are from Unova."
"Ah. Kanto, eh? We knew a guy from Kanto. Ash, wasn't it? Interesting kid. Very lively."
"I've met him as well," Niko said with a smile, "pleased to meet you."
"Hey. And all three of you are challengers?"
"Nope, just Niko and I," Charlotte said as she reached her hand out as well. Nanu glared at her and returned the handshake.
"Very well. I'll be brief, as I have somewhere to be soon—as do you, Kukui," Nanu said, briefly turning his eyes to the Professor, "Ula'ula has two required trials—Mount Hokulani and the Megamart. Clear those two, and you can face me…or whatever."
"Which one would you suggest we go to first?" Niko asked.
"Hokulani. It's that mountain right there," Nanu said, pointing to the west. Niko and his friends turned to see a massive mountain sitting off in the distance. Even further was another, snow-capped and taller, mountain. "The other one is Lanakila. That's where the Alola League is based."
"So, we'll be coming back here when we've clear the trials?" Charlotte asked for confirmation.
"Yeah, guess so. If you make it that far," Nanu said, his tone more serious. "Kukui, we need to leave now."
"Gotcha. Enjoy the garden, cousins! I'll catch ya later—maybe a Mount Hokulani!" Kukui said, waving in a friendly manner as he and Nanu crossed through the arched gateway and out of Malie Garden. Within a minute they were out of sight. Afterwards, Niko looked around for a bench to sit down at. Finding one near where Nanu was sitting previously, he led Charlotte and Warren over to it, and the three sat there for several minutes in silence.
"So, what'd you think of Nanu?" Niko asked his girlfriend.
"He seems out of it," Charlotte said, looking more confused than anything, "like…that he doesn't even want to be a Kahuna."
"Kahunas are chosen by the Island Deity, right?" Warren asked, to nods from his friends, "well, then there had to have been something of note, right? Something that made him particularly suited for the job."
"Possibly," Niko said. He didn't know what to think of Nanu. He knew that Olivia was certainly correct—Nanu was not an enthusiastic person by any stretch of the imagination. But what was it about him that made him formidable if he was disinterested in being a Kahuna? Was he even a strong trainer to begin with? "I now wonder what makes Kahunas worthy of being chosen. Hala I can understand—he's basically the authority in Iki Town, where Tapu Koko lives. Olivia also seems to make sense, in a way. But Nanu?"
"Either way, we should begin planning out trip to Mount Hokulani, right?" Warren asked the other two. "It'll certainly be a trek there."
"Bzzzt!" Rotomdex began in a whizzing sound—the first real sound it had made that entire day, "There are buses that take travelers and tourists up to the top of the mountain!"
"Oh, great," Niko said, "when do those generally leave?"
"Bzzzt…the schedule I'm looking up in my files says every few hours or so. It takes some time to arrive at the top, and there aren't a lot of busses to begin with."
"Then let's spend some time here in the city?" Niko suggested. "I'd like to check out more of this place. Rotomdex, what's there to do in Malie City?"
"Niko, you'd find the library fascinating. It had hundreds of published books and articles on the Alola region. There's also a famous malasada shop, a salon, a recycling plant, an apparel shop…"
"I'd like to check out the apparel shop," Charlotte said, looking down at her clothes, "I think it's time I changed my wardrobe a bit, don't you think?"
"You look fine in whatever, Charlotte," Niko said, being entirely sincere in his comment. Charlotte thought so, too, even though it wasn't much of an answer to begin with. "Would you like me to go with you?"
"If you want. I know you'd like to visit the library. I do think we should check out that malasada shop together, if we can."
Niko and Warren both agreed and stood up to leave Malie Garden. As they did and turned onto one of the main streets in the city, they noticed a trio of young men and a woman tipping over a food cart made of bamboo. The owner—a frail old man who was understandably upset—began berating them in a loud and shrill voice, but the three delinquents seemed unfazed. Meanwhile, much of the nearby block, full of people, all stopped and stared. Some of them even whispered amongst one another, mentioning something about a "Team Skull."
"What's Team Skull?" Charlotte asked a nearby middle-aged woman.
"You've never heard of Team Skull?" she asked. When Charlotte shook her head in response, the woman continued. "They used to be a group of delinquent Island Challengers who banded together to get revenge on the Kahunas, or whatever. They steal Pokémon from people, and only seem to want to cause trouble in Alola. However, a long time ago they disbanded. Not sure why they're back at it, but those three definitely look the part."
Upon a closer look, Niko and his friends noticed the young Team Skull members wearing caps with skulls on them, black shirts with white skulls; the two men wore baggy black shorts and the woman wore incredibly short white pants. He briefly looked at Charlotte and Warren, both of whom nodded—might as well do something about it.
"Hey!" Niko shouted from across the street, failing to get the attention of Team Skull. He shouted a second time—this time closer—and caught the attention of all three.
"What do you want, kid?" one of the men said, "Buzz off, this food is ours."
"No, it's not," Charlotte said with only mild surprise, "you have to pay for it!"
"We totally don't if we don't have to!" the other man said. "And you can't make us!"
These three are pathetic, Niko thought. Here he was, someone who had challenged men like Ghetsis and Hunter J, now dealing with three delinquent young adults. Not that he was upset by it, just that he found it amusing. "I think we can," he said as he withdrew a pokéball. "Ribombee!" he shouted, throwing a pokéball into the air and summoning the Bee Fly Pokémon.
"Salandit!" Charlotte commanded, also summoning a Pokémon of her own.
"Poliwhirl!" Warren shouted. The Team Skull members each threw out a Pokémon of their own—a Rattata, Salandit, and something that looked similar to a Grimer—in response. "Use ice punch on the slimy one!"
"It's a Grimer you moron!" one of the men spat back defensively.
"He's right," Rotomdex added, showing a picture of the Pokémon. "Grimer, the Sludge Pokémon. Poison and dark type. Brought to Alola to solve the garbage problem, Grimer seems to relish any and all kinds of trash."
"Apparently some Team Skulls wannabes are among them," Niko said, "Ribombee, use pollen puff on rattata!"
"Salandit, dragon rage!" Charlotte shouted as the three grunts—now furious with Niko's quip—ordered attacks of their own.
The battle didn't last long—each of Niko's and his friend's Pokémon took down their respective targets with only a couple of moves. Finally accepting defeat, the trio of Team Skulls grunts began to turn away in a huff when Niko began speaking to them, this time in a kinder tone.
"Isn't Team Skull disbanded?" Niko asked curiously.
"They were. But we're under new leadership," the female explained with a shrug. "It was only recent, and we had friends who were part of Team Skull and loved it. We—" she pointed to her two male friends, "were pretty young last time around, and couldn't really join yet. But when they disbanded we tried to put something back together. Eventually, someone discovered us and helped us build up a new Team Skull."
"Well, either way—stealing isn't okay in any circumstance."
"It is when you can justify it," one of the men said. "People are struggling in Alola. You might not see it here, on this street, but we have. In the slums of Malie City and Po Town, Alolans are hurting. We're some of those people, and we need to find ways to survive."
"There are ways to go about that without stealing, though," Niko said.
"No there's not!" the same man said, startling Niko. "You wouldn't understand it. You're some Island Challenger."
With that, the three members turned and left, their shoulders all slightly slumped. Niko and his friends continued to stay in the middle of the street as the onlookers cheered them. Niko didn't exactly know what to think. What did that guy mean? Was Alola in a crisis that they didn't know about? Was he finding himself getting sucked into another skirmish with some villainous team that he was so wont to do? He truly had no idea.
The trio spent the rest of their day visiting the sites in Malie City. At first, they decided to split up—Warren went with Niko to the library while Charlotte took her Pokémon to an apparel shop.
Niko found the contents of the library as fascinating—just as Rotomdex predicted. He spent time casually reading passages from a variety of books on Alolan history and mythology. Specifically, he found himself engrossed in a book on this thing called "Ultra Space," where Pokémon alien to us have visited Alola via wormholes on multiple occasions in the region's history. There was a picture of a small creature—called an "Ultra Beast"—that was a few shades of purple and had a pin-like spike sitting atop its head. Niko found it oddly adorable.
Meanwhile, Warren was reading books dealing with the spiritual connection between people and Pokémon—choosing to rent a couple of them for their stay in Malie City. Hopefully they could answer the question he was looking for.
Over an hour later, they walked outside of the library to see Charlotte standing there waiting for them. She was wearing different clothes—now her shorts were forest green and her shirt was sky blue. She got a new pair of sandals that were also forest green.
"You look great, Charlotte," Niko said with a sincere smile. She thanked him, and the trio made their way to the malasada shop to try the local island flavor. Sending out Noibat—who loves malasadas—the trio and a few of their Pokémon sat outside near the water, gazing out onto the seascape and exchanging stories about their respective adventures in Malie City. When they had finished, Niko and Charlotte noticed Warren was particularly silent.
"Warren?" Charlotte asked, catching her friend's attention. "You alright?"
"Oh, yeah," Warren replied with a smile. "Just reading."
"What about?"
"This idea of a spiritual connection between people and Pokémon. That's all."
"Sounds interesting. Any reason why?" she continued to inquire. Warren then sighed and explained his seemingly confused ideas about the different strengths of her and Niko's Pokémon, and his theory of an "invisible connection." Niko and Charlotte seemed interested in this but didn't say much on the topic when Warren had finished.
"That's sort of like how I react to mega stones, right?" Niko finally replied after a few minutes of mulling it over. "It's a special connection that I have with my Pokémon. "And you're saying Charlotte has it too?"
"I'm saying all trainers have it," Warren said. "Like, why did Vaporeon and Lapras do so well against Olivia? It wasn't just their strength, right? Of course, that was part of it, but there had to be another factor involved."
"Maybe trust?" Charlotte added. "Lapras clearly trusts me—enough to stand out of water for what was going to be a tough battle. Most Pokémon wouldn't do that. Same with Flaaffy—he's a cloned Pokémon and he's sticking around with me as well. As for Niko, he was literally the first thing Vaporeon saw when she hatched from an egg—that's a special connection, too."
Warren nodded. Everything Charlotte was saying made complete sense. Maybe there wasn't an "invisible connection" after all. Maybe, if there was one at all, it was based entirely on love and trust—in the same way parents feel about their children and vice versa, or a mentor and their mentee. He certainly felt a level of affection and trust towards his Pokémon—in varying degrees, but not very far off from one another.
"So…I'm reading all of this for nothing, I guess," Warren said, closing the book. He didn't seem upset, but he certainly had a revelation. Charlotte was the only one at the time who realized it, but she chose to keep that to herself.
"Did you at least enjoy reading it?" Niko asked.
"Yeah," Warren replied, "I really did."