Chapter 34:
The Bell of Celestial Tower
Location: Celestial Tower
Inside the giant white marble tower on the first floor where multiple blue flat graves. Many people were putting flowers beside them.
"My dear Bisharp, we knew we would have to part someday."
"Stoutland, thank you for all you've done."
"I'm sorry Minccino. I just couldn't save you. It's my fault."
I knew how it felt losing a loved one. My father died when I was seven, it was a lot to take in. I decided to let them grieve; no point me stepping in. I'm not a Funeral Director. Plus, I needed to get to Skyla. She was at the top floor, which was floor 5f. To get to the next floor, I had to walk up a staircase that spiralled around the rim of the building.
As I walked up, I got a good look of the graves below me. This place was mad depressing, but I wasn't exactly here for a Birthday party was I.
"Excuse me," shouted one of the grieving Trainers. "When you get to the top, could you please ring the Spirit Bell? It will send a message to all the spirits of Celestial Tower."
The next floor had those gravestones that stood up. Around me were multiple Trainers, mainly Psychics in what I could only conclude was the world's most depressing training session. So, I decided I might as well join in.
I walked in front of a Psychic.
"I'm just a rookie Psychic, but I predict I will win."
Hilbert Vs. Psychic Doreen
"I choose Scraggy!" I shouted.
"Elgyem, I choose you!" Doreen replied. She sent out a small blue Pokémon with a chunky head and three multicoloured fingers.
Elgyem (リグレー)
111
Psychic Type
Cerebral Pokémon
1'08" (0.5 m)
9 kg (19.8 lbs)
This Pokémon had never been seen until it appeared from far in the desert 50 years ago.
Before I could give a command, Scraggy lunged forward and kicked Elgyem. Whilst it wasn't very effective, Elgyem took a lot of damage. "High Jump Kick!" I shouted. "One of the strongest Fighting Type moves there is!"
"Elgymen, Hidden Power!" Elgyem fired some green balls at Scraggy. It did neutral damage, making it hard to tell what Type it was.
"Scraggy, Payback!" Scraggy was surrounded in black energy, then attacked Elgyem. This was the final blow.
"Nice one Elgyem. Okay Solosis, go!" The green blob entered the other end.
"Scraggy, High Jump Kick!" Scraggy lunged forward again, but missed. It kept going and crashed into one of the grave stones. I forgot. High Jump Kick does damage to the user if it misses.
"Solosis, Charm!" Solosis fired hearts at Scraggy, lowering its Attack.
"Payback!" Scraggy attacked Solosis, but it didn't do a ton due to the lowering of Attack.
"Charm again!" Solosis fired more hearts, but thankfully it missed.
"High Jump Kick!" Scraggy once again kicked Solosis. Thankfully, this one hit. Solosis was almost down.
"Endeavor!" Solosis charged into Scraggy, bringing it down to almost a knockout. Clever; Endeavor is a move that brings the opponents HP to the same amount as the users.
"Payback!" Scraggy attacked Solosis, knocking it out.
"Sigilyph, you're up!" The, whatever it is flew into battle. Since it was a Flying Type, I recalled Scraggy.
"Okay Unfezant, go!" It was an air battle.
"Sigilyph, Air Cutter!" Sigilyph fired streaks at Unfezant. It was a direct hit, but not a Critical one thankfully.
"Unfezant, Air Slash!" Unfezant cut the air in front of Sigilyph. It hit it for almost half.
"Sigilyph, Light Screen!" Sigilyph created a wall of golden light in front of it, halving the damage of the next Air Slash. "Unfezant, use Quick Attack instead!" Unfezant dashed into Sigilyph for not much.
"Sigilyph, Psybeam!" Sigilyph fired a colourful beam at Unfezant, confusing it in the process.
"That's enough!" I shouted as I sent Unfezant back. "Excadrill, finish this weird one off!" Excadrill entered the fray.
"Reflect!" Sigilyph created a clear wall of light in front of it.
"Excadrill, give it a dose of Rock Slide!" Excadrill made rocks fall from above Sigilyph managed to survive thanks to the Reflect.
"Air Cutter!" Not even streaks of air could get through Excadrill's Steel Typing.
"One more Rock Slide!" Excadrill made another bunch of rocks tumble onto Sigilyph, giving me the win.
"My vision was incorrect. Seems I need both Psychic training and battle training."
That was a tough battle, so I healed up Scraggy. I decided that Unfezant and Excadrill had took damage that should sustain them till I find a Nurse or Doctor.
I tried to walk onwards, but then I ran into a Pokémon. It was small, white, and waxy. The most notable feature was a blue flame flickering on its head.
Litwick (ヒトモシ)
113
Ghost/Fire Type
Candle Pokémon
1'00" (0.3 m)
6.8 lbs (3.1 kg)
Litwick shines a light that absorbs the life energy of people and Pokémon, which becomes the fuel that it burns.
"Scraggy, you're up!" I yelled. "Use Payback!" Scraggy attacked Litwick for a surprising amount. Litwick then fired a Flame Burst back at Scraggy. "This one might be useful. Ultra Ball, go!" I shouted. I threw it and Litwick went inside.
It only took one shake for Litwick to break free. Litwick fired some blue flames at Scraggy. Scraggy was burned. "Will-O-Wisp?! I need this! Let's try again!" Another Ultra Ball. And get this? THIS STUPID CANDLE WOULDN'T STAY PUT! Litwick opened its eyes when it came out, and Scraggy seemed to get hurt by quite a bit. It was Hex, a move that does more damage if the opposition has a status condition like burn. "YOU'RE MINE!" One more try. The Ultra Ball shook once. It shook twice. It shook a third time.
It stayed in!
"Yeah, I caught a Litwick!" I shouted, dancing.
"Can you please not be so disrespectful? Some of us are trying to mourn bub!"
I apologised as Litwick's Pokéball was sent to the PC. I checked through my Bag to see if I had any Full Restores, but I forgot to stock up before I went out yesterday. So, I just gave Scraggy a Burn Heal and told it to hang tight.
Soon, I climbed the next large staircase to 3f. It looked like the previous floor, just the graves were ordered differently. I looked over the graves to see a Nurse in the distance. It was almost like Arceus itself was shining upon me with luck. Well, if it was it wouldn't have taken three Ultra Balls to catch Litwick.
Another Psychic spotted me. "I sense, something big will happen during this battle."
Hilbert Vs. Psychic Micki
"Yamask, go!" Micki shouted.
"I choose Foongus!" I replied.
"Yamask, Curse!" Yamask opened its eyes and put a Curse on Litwick. Doing this cut its own HP. In response, Foongus fired purple sludge at Yamask, badly poisoning it. "Hey Foongus, you just learned Toxic! That'll come in handy!" Foongus however couldn't really celebrate. It was getting hurt by the Curse.
"Yamask, Ominous Wind!" Yamask spiralled up a black wind that blew Foongus off the spot. Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse, all of Yamask's stats raised. Like, what are the odds of that happening? About 10%? Actually yes, that is the case.
"Foongus, Giga Drain!" Foongus fired a green beam at Yamask. It was brought down to red health.
"Yamask, Ominous Wind again!" Yamask whipped up some more wind. Foongus was almost down, but the Curse finished it off.
"Dewott, finish things off!" I yelled. "Use Razor Shell!" Dewott sliced Yamask with its scalchops and it was finished.
"Golett, come on out!" Micki sent out a round blue Pokémon with chunky arms and a pointy head.
Golett (ゴビシト)
128
Ghost/Ground Type
Automaton Pokémon
3'03" (1 m)
92 kg (202.8 lbs)
The energy that burns inside it enables it to move, but no one has yet been able to identify this energy.
"Dewott, Razor Shell once again!" Dewott took its scalchops and sliced Golett, almost taking it down in one.
"Golett, Mega Punch!" Golett punched Dewott in the face. It flew across the room and skidded across the floor.
"That's the strongest Mega Punch I've ever seen!" I responded.
"That's because Golett has the Iron Fist Ability. It powers up any punching moves."
I knew I had won this match anyway. "Dewott, Razor Shell!" One more slice and Golett was done for.
"Hmm, thank you. But was my vision correct?"
Potentially so. Because to my delight, Dewott started glowing. "Dewott, it's finally time!" Dewott got bigger and bigger. The glowing instantly died, and it was bigger and bipedal. It was dark blue, had a glorious white moustache and, best of all, a giant spiky golden horn. On its front legs were two scalchops that were longer.
Samurott (ダイケンキ)
009
Water Type
Formidable Pokémon
4'11" (1.5 m)
208.6 lbs (94.6 kg)
One swing of the sword incorporated in its armor can fell an opponent. A simple glare from one of them quietest everybody.
Oshawott -Lv 17- Dewott -Lv 36- Samurott
"Samurott, you've did it!" I hugged its bag leg. "The dream you've had to evolve since you were an Oshawott, has finally come true!"
Samurott grinned. In that one moment, how far I had come truly hit me. "Congratulations!" Micki said.
I wiped a tear from my eyes. "Okay Samurott. What do you say? Let's take on the Gyms, beat Team Plasma and become the very best, like no one ever was!"
I needed to keep going, squeezing my way through the tombstones. Of course, a Psychic was hiding behind one of them.
"I predict that a Pokémon will evolve this battle."
Hilbert Vs. Psychic Bryce
"I choose Samurott!" I shouted.
"Duosion, lets read some minds!" Bryce sent out a Pokémon that looked like a slightly bigger Solosis. There were two bulges on the bottom half, as well as a bit of membrane floating above Duosion inside the goo.
Duosion (ダブラン)
084
Psychic Type
Mitosis Pokémon
2'00" (0.6 m)
17.6 lbs (8 kg)
When their brains, now divided in two, are thinking the same thoughts, these Pokémon exhibit their maximum power.
Solosis -Lv 32- Duosion
Samurott took on of its scalchops. It then sliced Duosion with its newest move, Slash! Wow, maybe luck was upon me!
"Duosion, Psyshock!" Duosion fired blue psychic balls at Samurott, doing a lot of damage. It was almost down. (Make your mind up luck!)
"Samurott, Slash!" Samurott sliced Duosion again, this time for a Critical Hit. Duosion was down!
"Wait, your Pokémon evolved the last battle! I need more training."
My team was starting to get clearly tired. Thankfully, I had reached the Nurse.
"My team needs healing," I told her.
"Well, okay I'll do it. But on the condition that you beat me in a battle! Let's do this!"
Hilbert Vs. Nurse Sachiko
"Pansear, go!" I shouted.
"I choose Gothita!" Sachiko replied.
"Pansear, use Acrobatics!" Pansear cartwheeled and jumped into Gothita, doing a lot.
"Psychock!" Gothita fired balls at Pansear. Half of its HP was taken away.
"Flame Burst!" Pansear fired a ball of flames at Gothita, finishing it off.
"Time for my other Pokémon, Alomamola!" Sachiko shouted, sending out a pink aquatic Pokémon that looked like a heart.
Alomomola (ママンボウ)
100
Water Type
Caring Pokémon
3'11" (1.2 m)
69.7 lbs (31.6 kg)
Floating in the open sea is how they live. When they find a wounded Pokémon, they embrace it and bring it to shore.
Alomomola has no known evolutions.
"Come back Pansear!" I said. It wasn't going to be put out by a Water Type. "Unfezant, come out!"
"Alomomola, Water Pulse!" Almomola fired a ball of water at Unfezant. Unfezant was also confused.
"Air Slash!" Unfezant managed to get in an attack on Alomomola.
"Use Water Pulse again!" Another Water Pulse almost finished Unfezant. Not that it mattered anyway; Unfezant hurt itself in the confusion and went down.
"Samurott, you're up!" Out came my beast of a partner.
"Okay Alomomola, Wake Up Slap!" Alomomola slapped Samurott multiple times.
"Slash it!" Samurott sliced Almomola, but it didn't quite finish it.
"Another Wake Up Slap!" Alomomola slapped Samurott once again. It was finished.
"Excadrill, come out!" I yelled. "Use Rock Slide!" Excadrill made some rocks fall from out of nowhere, burying Alomomola. I had won.
"Congratulations! As promised, I will heal your Pokémon. You're almost at the top of the tower. Don't forget to ring the Spirit Bell!"
Floor 4f, I was almost there. Thankfully there were only two Trainers on this floor, and my team of course had been fully healed.
I wanted to get this over with. Both were Ace Trainers. The Male was the closest, so I took on him.
"Well, I say. Not many get up this far. You must be determined."
Hilbert Vs. Ace Trainer Beckett
"I choose Stoutland!" Beckett shouted.
"Excadrill, you're up!" I replied. "Start with Hone Claws!" Excadrill sharped its claws.
"Stoutland, Fire Fang!" Stoutland's teeth caught fire. Then, it bit Excadrill. Flames flew off as it made impact.
"Slash!" Excadrill swiped Stoutland. It was a Critical Hit and, thanks to the Attack boost, Stoutland was down in one.
"Well, I must say. Not everyone comes up to ring the Spirit Bell. Good on ya!"
The female Trainer was my last obstacle.
"Regardless of whether you've lost someone or not, ringing the Spirit Bell is the appropriate thing to do."
Hilbert Vs. Ace Trainer Kassandra
"Scraggy, I choose you!" I yelled.
"Go Gothorita!" Kassandra replied.
"Scraggy, Payback!" Scraggy attacked Gothorita with its dark energy.
"Use Hidden Power!" Gothorita fired energy at Scraggy for Super Effective damage.
"Scraggy, High Jump Kick!" Scraggy ran up to Gothorita and kicked it hard. It was down in one.
"Urgh. Nice one. Okay Swoobat, come out!" Swoobat flew onto the scene. "Air Slash!" Swoobat slashed through the air. It hit Scraggy for a Critical Hit and took it down.
There was no need to worry, I had five more! Excadrill was of course one of them.
"Swoobat, Air Slash again!" This didn't do much because Excadrill is a Steel Type.
"Use Rock Slide!" Excadrill made rocks fall from above us and knocked out Swoobat in one.
"Congratulations Trainer! Okay, you may go up to the top floor!"
At long last, I was at the top of the Celestial Tower. I'd describe the view, but it was a cloudy day so I couldn't see much below me. That was because I was above the clouds. I also saw the Spirit Bell, the big brass bell on the stone handle.
Immediately, I found Skyla looking after a black feathery Pokémon with a bone in its hair.
Mandibuzz (バルジーナ)
136
Dark/Flying Type
Bone Vulture Pokémon
3'11" (1.2 m)
87.1 lbs (39.5 kg)
It makes a nest out of bones it finds. It grabs weakened prey in its talons and hauls it to its nest of bones.
Vullaby -Lv 54- Mandibuzz
"Everything's alright now!" Skyla said, petting Mandibuzz on the beak. "Mandibuzz, you know you shouldn't fly into the cloud. You could have been zapped or blown away by one of the Legendary Pokémon. You should go back to your babies."
Mandibuzz flapped its wings, flew up and then down into the clouds. Skyla noticed me.
"Mandibuzz's pre evolved form is Vullaby, which can't fly. For that reason, Mandibuzz have to feed them for many years. It takes a lot of work, but the Mandibuzz are able to do it. But sometimes, they can work too hard. That's what it's like being a Gym Leader."
I noticed the Spirit Bell again. "I should probably ring this," I said. "I promised a grieving Trainer. Actually, quite a few."
I walked up the stairs and pulled the string. The sound of the bell echoed across the sky.
"Thanks for checking up on me," Skyla said. "I'm ready to battle tomorrow!"
I put my thumb up. "You're on Skyla. I'll race you back to Mistralton City!"
Skyla sent out her female Unfezant. I knew it was female because it didn't have the pink plumes that my male one has. It also had a brown pattern on its chest rather than green. Yeah, Skyla won.
Oshawott's dream came true. It is now a Samurott. It's good to know that everything is alright on Skyla's end, as exhausted as she is. Man, working in Unova is difficult. Probably not as difficult as tomorrows match though.
