Mt. Moon (Part 1)

The majority of people I met in the common areas of the Pokemon Center were understandably people who were planning to go through Mt. Moon towards Cerulean City. There were small kiosks that offered guided tours of the natural wonders of the mountain caves.

I also learned that unlike the games, the main cave path was well maintained and well-lit with electricity, so that safe passage was quite guaranteed. The issue was that there are hundreds of side branches that lead to other cave paths, and each of these branches off into dozens and dozens more and so in effect you have a fractal of potentially infinite caves that are impossible to fully explore and map out. Mt. Moon didn't get its name for no reason. It was a humongous piece of rock. Legends say that it is the dead remains of a massive ancient Pokemon god, but no way for anyone to verify this.

Anyways, the safe passage was to take an 8-hour hike, and I wasn't about to pass by my chance to explore the crevices of the caves. I purchased a map of the main passages that have been explored, and also a small beacon machine not unlike GPS.

"The machine will keep a track of the path you took," the salesman demonstrated. "Most of the paths nearby have been explored, as you can see. If you press this button, in the case of an emergency, others can see you on their machines and could come to your aid."

So I started off on the main path for about an hour, with a small group of people, then slipped out into the place where the bearded man showed me I could catch a Zubat (they're not so populous on the main path, due to their sensitivity of light).

In this world, it was so much more convenient to have my Pokemon out of their Pokeballs than to keep them confined. There was no reason (legal or otherwise) for me to keep all of them in my Pokeball, except to bring my bigger Pokemon (which I caught later) through small rooms, etc. This is why I had my Rattata and Nidorans out to scout out ahead, and Mankey was on my shoulders, holding my flashlight with his tail. Charmander was guarding the rear, just in case there were wild Pokemon stalking us to steal my food. I used all my Pokemon, using their naturally given abilities here in the wild. They loved it.

I spent a good 2-3 hours in the first branch I went into, letting my Pokemon tell me where to find wild ones. Their perception (hearing, sense of smell) were so much better than mine, so why would I waste my time trying to track wild Pokemon myself, right?

I caught a Geodude of my own (and dude, did he love to eat rocks), and a Paras (whose ability to find edible wild mushrooms meant that I could easily find a good source of nutrition out in the wild).

We all ate a snack and took a nap in a small cave with three sides covered by the walls (you can't sneak up on me), except for Pidgey and Spearow who I left on sentry duty. They surprisingly got along well. Afterwards I returned to the main path and went down another hour or so, then ventured off into another side branch passage. I had already decided that my main goal on this trip was to catch as many new Pokemon as possible, and continue my training regiment with my main fighting team.

I set some of Bulby's leaves on fire with Charmander's fire and threw it down a burrow hole, smoking a Sandshrew out of its hiding spot. I caught it easily after my rat crew (Rattata and Nidorans) gave him a three-way tackle. Don't worry, I used a potion on him afterwards.

All this time, I had been looking for an Onix. Due to its large size, it doesn't really inhabit the small passages that I've been exploring. I told my Zubat to use his echolocation to find larger passages, or large, empty spaces. No luck. I didn't want to go too deep into the unexplored paths, so I doubled back to the main passage.

At the halfway point of the main passage, between Route 3 and Route 4 entrances, there is a small marketplace and some shacks at which you can rent a bunk. Due to the size of Mt. Moon and its tourist attractions (namely being able to catch certain Pokemon), these designated rest areas were created. Pokemon battles were banned here, due to there being no Pokemon Centers nearby. There was running water and street-food (cave food!) vendors that served hot and fresh food. Since I had not been able to hike and camp out like this in my previous life due to my ill health, this was something I particularly enjoyed. I still didn't know how this afterlife was possible, or if it was all real, but as long as I was in this new reality, I was going to enjoy it to the fullest.

The co-ed bunk bed rooms were a good place to exchange information about where to find Pokemon in Mt. Moon. Luckily, no one here seemed to know my feats back in Pewter, so I was not bothered by any of them. I did have to pretend, however, that I hadn't caught a Zubat, a Paras, a Geodude, AND a Sandshrew in the past 4 hours, so that none of them would pester me with a million questions. One of the trainers, however, did see a Clefairy. She had everyone's attention.

"I know a lot of people claim to have seen a Clefairy," she said. "But I have proof. Look at this picture."

It was blurry and taken from far away, but it still showed the silhouette of the pink body of a Clefairy, and her brown-tipped ears. It was undeniable.

"Woah!" a trainer shouted in envy.

"Where did you see it?" another asked.

I was also listening in carefully.

"Ha! Trade secrets, yo," the girl said. "It's gonna cost each of you if you wanna get the info."

Clever girl.

She named a price that was at the high end of reasonable and when everyone (including me) paid up, sent us a GPS location to our trackers. It was off into one of the passages that lead upwards. Since Clefairies and Clefables were known to enjoy moonlight, it made sense. Perhaps the one she saw was a stray that ventured down near the main path.

Once everyone went back to their bunks, satisfied with the GPS locations, I saw the girl walk out of the room, so I followed her.

She was at one of the store vendors, looking alternatively at a bunch of Pokemon potions, Pokemon food, and ready-made meals for people. She was rubbing her stomach, trying to appease the pangs of hunger. She looked at the money from the trainers. It was not little, but it wasn't enough to get everything. Everything in the Mt. Moon passage was more expensive than in the towns, because they've been marked up with location premium. It was difficult to bring everything into this camp.

I reached in front of her to grab 4 potions, a medium pack of Pokemon food, and a bento box. She turned to look at me in surprise.

At this point I'd made so much money from all the Pokemon battles I'd won easily with my overpowered team. I paid for the goods and the vendor put them in a plastic bag. I held it out in front of her but didn't say anything.

"I already told you where I saw the Clefairy!" she said angrily.

"I know."

"I- I don't need your charity!" she said, trembling with anger.

"I know," I said.

Tears formed in her eyes, that still looked at me with suspicion and anger.

"Take it. Your Pokemon need it, and you shouldn't have to decide between you and them."

She didn't take it, but couldn't turn it down, either. She started crying silently, her face facing the ground and covered by her long black hair.

I took the plastic bag and put it into her hand. It closed over it.

I didn't say anything and walked away. I turned back and saw her still crying with the bag firmly held in hand.

This is how I met my second best friend in this Pokemon world.