Chapter 16 – Rest Stop Resolutions
For those that read the interlude (i.e. last chapter), keep in mind that content was cut from the middle of this chapter. The following section continues where Ch 14 left off, not Ch 15.
Note: The challenge formerly in this chapter violated FF ToS, so I've removed it. I don't want this story taken down out of the blue. Future challenges will be handled in forums or AO3 or somehow else; I have not yet decided on a method.
Rest Stop Recreation: Lunch Line
When the Rest Stop came into view, the noon sun was at its highest point in the sky, shining brightly on picnic benches, grills, a water pump, a small building with bathrooms and vending machines, and camping tents. The many Trainers who owned these tents were strewn about, forming cliques, making friends, and enjoying themselves.
One group stood in two long lines facing each other and playing Red Rhydon. Another group of scattered Swimmers and Youngsters were splayed out for Spearow Says (if this had been the Sinnoh region, it would be Chatot Chats). Yet another group sat in a circle, staying in place but for one Trainer who was tapping heads and saying "Psyduck, Psyduck, Psyduck... Golduck!" ("Ducklet, Ducklet, Swanna!" would be the words if this were Unova). Some Trainers raced each other. Others chased their pokémon. One spaced out under the shade of a tree, tracing shapes onto a notepad, face half-covered with a helmet. The vines of his Bulbasaur were laced under the base of his body, placed in a makeshift swing seat. As the Bulbasaur paced back and forth, the vines rocked in a rhythm and the swing swung to and fro.
All-in-all, everyone seemed to be having fun.
Amber knew that wouldn't last long now that Ex had arrived.
As soon as he saw an empty spot, Ex rushed over to the cooking area, tore off his backpack, flipped it over, dumped all the Pidgey he'd collected, then made a mad dash for the toilet building. Amber rolled her eyes, walked to the grill he'd chosen, and began emptying her own backpack of Rattata.
The idea had been a simple one: cook and sell a bunch of food. It would be like opening a lemonade stand, only without the stand. And with food instead of lemonade.
Ex claimed this could help Amber catch up to him. When she asked why he was helping her, he said he was Fainting the pokémon for training anyway, so gathering all the ingredients she needed wasn't a hassle. His only condition was that he would get a "free lunch".
She agreed, "but only if it actually works."
Amber looked around herself as she started preparing.
The Rest Stop of Route 1 wasn't very big.
It had a Fresh Water pump which Trainers could use to restore their pokémon to full health (but not restore their Moves or heal Fainting); it had a small, unmanned building in the center; it had a place for cooking and eating; it had a place for tents.
That was it.
No Pokémart. No Pokécenter. No stalls to buy or sell things. No cabins for sleeping.
Amber had been to a few of the bigger Rest Stops with her mom, and those were way different from this. On the longer Routes – the ones that got more traffic from better Trainers – there would have been a lot more to do. Stores, playgrounds, carnival rides, and other fun places were always open and ready for business. Sometimes Rest Stops became little towns of their own. But other than a few vending machines, Route 1 didn't have much in the way of recreation, other than what Trainers could do without equipment. According to her mom, the smaller Routes were mostly ignored because only new Trainers traveled them regularly, and new Trainers didn't have much money, so businesses didn't bother setting up shop. But new Trainers did have some money, especially when they'd been battling each other for Experience for two weeks.
That was the money Amber should be shooting for, according to Ex, and he'd made a plan to give her the best chance of getting it. For part one of the plan, she would make a lunch line, put her cooking skills to the test, and be ready to feed a bunch of hungry stomachs. For part two Ex would tire out Trainers with battles. For part three, Ex would be her first "customer" (if nobody else had tried her food by that point), then go around telling all the other Trainers how good it was.
But Ex had to come back from the bathroom before he could play his part.
Rest Stop Recreation: Deadly Decision
A boy in a bathroom stall sat quietly and contentedly. It was the first time in a while that he could truly, completely relax. He didn't even have his Pokédex out; his brain could wait until he was done before reviewing his team's lunch battles.
A few minutes earlier, he'd given permission to his team to hunt their own lunches in the Tall Grass – whatever they felt like eating, be it Pidgey or Rattata, they could eat. The only thing they weren't allowed to touch, he warned, were pokémon that looked like they belonged to Trainers. If the intended target for lunch seemed smart, or stood near a Trainer, it was off-limits. Otherwise, they were free to eat whatever they could Faint.
With that handled, Ex now had a few minutes to himself.
While he was busy relieving himself, his Pokédex – which was inside his backpack – made an alert he'd never heard before. It was even more blaring than the low Health alarm, but didn't last as long. He was so surprised he almost fell into the adult-sized toilet. He'd entered this particular stall on instinct. Next time, he would enter a stall sized for adolescent Trainers.
Ex tore through his bag, scrambling to find the source of the sound. He'd yet to do anything that would make his hands unsanitary, but he would still clean the Pokédex afterwards. (And his hands too, of course.) That was why he didn't have it out in the first place, but emergencies were emergencies.
He flipped open the Pokédex and looked at it.
The screen displayed four words.
Your Rattata has died.
Rest Stop Recklessness: Friends and Foes
"WHAT THE SHIT?!"
The phrase was uttered the instant Ex understood the alert, bypassing his habit of substituting something less vulgar when he wanted to curse out loud. (He was, thankfully, the only one in the bathroom, so no one else heard.)
Ex nearly dropped his Pokédex then and there, which would have been bad, considering where he was holding it. During his scramble not to drop it he must have pressed a button because by the time he'd gotten his grip under control again the first message had disappeared and a new one had taken its place.
Cause of Death: Crushed Trachea
Location of Death: Route 1
Time of Death: 11:48:25 AM
Level at ToD: 3
Intelligence at ToD: Almost Fully Wild
Trainer Culpability: Low
His brain barely had time to memorize the statistics before Ex's trembling fingers pressed the same button, again by accident. The list of facts was replaced with a final message-
We at Silph Co. are sorry for your loss. We are returning Rattata's Pokéball to your Pokédex.
-at the same time that a Pokéball materialized in the Pokéball Scanner.
...
Ex took out the Pokéball and held it.
...
He looked at the Pokéball, staring numbly and dumbly.
...
(The screen had returned to its ordinary list of battle statistics, showing the pokémon his team had most recently defeated:
Wild Rattata (lv 2) fainted! Flawless Victory! Stinky gained 20 Exp. Points!
Wild Pidgey (lv 2) fainted! Flawless Victory! Charmander gained 17 Exp. Points!
Foe Rattata (lv 3) fainted! Flawless Victory! Winky gained 60 Exp. Points! Winky grew to LV. 10!
Wild Rattata (lv 3) fainted! Flawless Victory! Prime gained 37 Exp. Points!
Wild Rattata (lv 2) fainted! Flawless Victory! Pinky gained 20 Exp. Points!
Wild Rattata (lv 4) fainted! Flawless Victory! Blinky gained 62 Exp. Points
But he wasn't looking at his Pokédex. He continued staring blankly at the ball in his fingers.)
...
Ex was speechless. Even his brain had nothing to say.
Rattata might not have been as important to Ex as the rest of his team, but it had still helped him learn about pokémon sapience. It was thanks to Rattata that Ex learned the truth in the face of uncertainty. Even if Rattata had only spent a few minutes with Ex, Rattata had been his pokémon and his responsibility, despite what the Pokédex claimed about low culpability. It still mattered to him.
Well, Rattata had mattered to him.
Now Rattata was dead.
A stone settled in Ex's stomach, heavier and harder than the time he'd thought Ash's Pikachu had died.
For a moment, there was complete silence in the bathroom.
Then, not due to any button pressing, a new message – along with an alert sound that brought Ex's attention back to the Pokédex – appeared on the screen.
Would you like to see Rattata's final battle through its eyes?
Ex hit Yes_ without hesitation. If he could not Revive Rattata, the least he could do was avenge him. Seeing this battle would let him see the killer.
A new window appeared, showing video footage of... nothing?
No, of the ground.
No, of Rattata sniffing the ground.
Then of Rattata sniffing some grass.
Then the ground again.
Then, without warning, the screen faded to black and the recording ended.
"THAT'S IT?!" Ex exploded. Before he could say or do anything else, the Pokédex prompted him with another question.
Would you like to review the Battle Statistics?
The Battle Statistics would reveal the species responsible, Ex realized.
Yes_
Two sentences appeared on the screen.
Meowth used Bite, read the first.
Rattata Fainted, read the second.
For a moment, he mentally stumbled.
A Meowth had killed his Rattata?
There weren't any Meowth on Route 1, except...
Then Ex became livid. His body went rigid, his blood frigid, like he'd been Frozen in place.
Did Silph put Rattata too close to Viridian? Or on one of the more difficult Route paths containing species unknown? Did a clerical oversight get his Rattata killed?!
Then he thought of a different hypothesis, and it only made him madder.
If it wasn't a clerical oversight, that means a Trainer found and killed his Rattata. Could random Trainers even know that Rattata was a Captured pokémon in the first place? If Ex somehow did track down who did this, could they get off scot-free by claiming genuine ignorance?
And that was when the final hypothesis crossed his mind, worse than all the ones that had come before.
Rest Stop Realizations: An Awful Answer
The following section is not supposed to be overly gross, but it's also not meant to be pleasant. I had to isolate Ex somehow, so I decided the bathroom was a plausible idea and the rest just wrote itself. I try to be as vague as possible whenever alluding to bodily functions, and that's especially true in what you're about to read. But in the end, I will have to allude to them. I apologize in advance if that bothers you. I try to be PG about it, even though this story is rated T and I could've been grosser in theory. Blood, sweat, and tears I'm happy to describe, but toilet stuff? Ugh. Again, sorry.
Ex quickly tabbed over to the recent 'Records: Wild Battles' of his own team. The stone in his stomach strengthened as he searched, solidified as he selected, and grew heavier as he gathered evidence. According to his Pokédex, it seemed that all of his Meowth, being cats, preferred Rattata for lunch.
A single battle in particular caught his attention. Where all the other battles concluded with Wild Rattata fainted!, this one was slightly different:
FOE Rattata (lv 3) fainted! Flawless Victory! Winky gained 60 Exp. Points! Winky grew to LV. 10!
His brain pointed out that Rattata had been level 3 when it died. His brain also observed that, here and in the games, whenever you defeated a Trainer's pokémon, the Pokédex would preface a pokémon's name with "Foe" instead of "Wild". His brain also calculated that 60 Experience points was the expected gains for a Trainer Battle (of conditions Flawless lv 9 Meowth vs. lv 3 Rattata), not a Wild Battle.
And the timestamp of Winky's most recent victory, when Ex queried the Pokédex for that information?
11:48:15 AM
Ten seconds before Rattata's reported Time of Death.
Rest Stop Realizations: Noticing Neglect
His own pokémon.
Rattata had been killed by his own pokémon. Rattata had been killed by a teammate. Rattata had been killed by an ally.
If learning about Pikachu had felt like a Mach Punch to the stomach, this felt like a Giga Impact to the Guts.
Or worse.
Ex's first instinct was to blame Winky, the obvious perpetrator, but his second instinct was to notice the stupidity of putting blame where it doesn't belong. Winky had just been hunting lunch, as Ex ordered, and cats eat rats. Winky had even followed Ex's instructions to a tee:
Winky had found a Rattata that wasn't near any Trainer;
Winky had found a Rattata that didn't look like it belonged to anyone (no identifying tags or ribbons);
Winky had found a Rattata that wasn't intelligent.
Winky had eaten for lunch a Rattata that appeared, for all intents and purposes, completely Wild.
Unfortunately, appearances can be deceiving.
Ex's next instinct was to blame Silph and the Pokédex for not alerting him to the fact that Rattata was in the area- for not doing something to prevent this.
But his brain wondered if there had ever been a need, in the past, to invent a warning system to prevent members of the same team from killing each other. Barring that, his brain mentioned that Silph "doesn't interfere with natural battles that occur in the wild", according to one of the many articles it read.
Either way, his brain pointed out, the battle was fought 'inside the PC' – i.e. at Rattata's natural habitat. That might have made this situation unusual enough for it to fly completely under Silph's radar, even if there were warning systems in place to prevent team killing and "betrayals".
Not to mention Rattata had been killed ten seconds after Fainting, and that isn't much time for a human to react, let alone an system responsible for monitoring every Captured pokémon in the region. Computers, his brain said, could only go so fast when they had to parse that much information. So there was no way to know if Silph really could be blamed, given their current technology and resources.
Ex's fourth instinct, after his first two targets fell flat, was to blame Professor Oak or some other authority figure for not warning him that Rattata was at risk...
But his anti-stupidity instinct kicked in again.
Professor Oak had warned him. Professor Oak had warned him this very morning, the instant he suspected that Ex didn't know about the PC's inner workings.
In the end, there was only one person Ex could blame. And there were many, many reasons to blame that person.
If that person had bought rations like normal Trainers, that person wouldn't have needed to kill pokémon for food. If that person had overseen all his team's battles directly, like normal Trainers, that person would have been able to prevent Winky from killing Rattata. If that person simply had his Pokédex out at the time of the battle, like he usually did, that person's brain would have seen the 'Foe' part of the statistics in real time, not just after the fact. It could have worked out what that meant in time to press the 'call Winky' button before it was too late. If that person had trusted the scientific consensus on Pokémon sapience and hadn't Captured Rattata in the first place...
As Ex thought of this final nail in Rattata's coffin – i.e. his direct influence on Rattata's life – a massive weight released itself from his body and he automatically began reaching for the toilet paper.
He put his Pokédex back in his bag first, and Rattata's ball right next to it. He needed some sort of distraction, because he had just realized how much he was personally at fault for this, how much of an idiot he'd been, HOW MUCH of a COMPLETE MORON he had-
No, his brain interrupted with sudden intensity. I REFUSE to accept that. You were NOT an idiot then, but you're being one now. I won't accept faulty reasoning.
'Faulty'? Ex demanded hotly. HOW in the name of ARCEUS is that reasoning FAULTY?! If there was such a thing as mental volume, Ex's was currently set to maximum.
His brain's volume, on the other hand, was medium and steady. All those actions were sensible at the time, his brain said sternly. And they STILL seem sensible.
Oh REALLY? Ex's mental voice, still loud, now dripped with sarcasm.
Yes, really, his brain thought mildly.
Care to explain HOW?
1st, we didn't have the money for rations, and we didn't have any other options for food. It was hunt Rattata or starve.
Ex, having nothing to say to that, didn't respond.
2nd, we wanted our pokémon to think for themselves and level quickly, which is NOT a stupid goal. Having our pokémon battle for themselves – which will help them survive when they return to the wild and have to hunt for food without us – was ALSO not stupid.
Ex didn't respond to this either. He was waiting for the first moment his brain said something objectionable, at which point he would pounce.
3rd, we can't be expected to have our Pokédex out ALL the time, and even if we WERE expected to do that, and even if I HAD pressed the 'recall Winky' button in time, Winky might have finished killing Rattata anyway before responding to the pokéwhistle.
Still waiting...
And 4th, you think you should have "trusted the scientific consensus in the first place"? I thought YOU were the one that had a problem with the scientific community.
What problem?! Ex demanded, not really caring about how little sense it made. He was angry and his emotions demanded he disagree with his brain, regardless of the facts.
Two hours, five minutes, and thirteen seconds ago, his brain recalled with precision, YOU were the one to think that I should be more skeptical, using those ridiculous Pokédex entries going unanswered for so long as an example to validate YOUR OWN skepticism. And NOW you're thinking you should have TRUSTED the scientific community in the first place? Regardless of how ACTUALLY TRUSTWORTHY they are, you can't flip-flop whenever it's convenient for you. Skeptical or trustworthy. Pick one and stick with it.
And what about YOU then? Ex accused immediately. YOU could have stopped me from Capturing Rattata in the first place, what with all the trust YOU'VE got for scientists!
His brain gave the impression of a shaking head. MY opinion is that we should trust but verify. YOUR opinion is that we should distrust and disprove. Either way, testing Rattata's intelligence directly was the sensible thing to do, and EITHER WAY, you can't suddenly decide THAT ONE MOMENT was the ONE time you should have thought differently. Believing you should have trusted them for no other reason than because, in retrospect, it could have prevented current problems is NOT sensible fault-analysis. Using that line of reasoning, you could argue yourself into believing that you should have never entered Route 1 in the first place. That, too, would have kept Rattata safe. Do you see the problem?
Ex didn't answer this rhetorical question.
I refuse to believe, his brain concluded, that we acted irrationally, given our available options. I even recall you thinking to yourself "I should train Rattata once I reach Viridian's PC". You were ALREADY being as cautious as you could have been, you just weren't able to enact that proactivity.
Ex didn't care. He was still trying to think of anything else he could have done, anything sensible that could have prevented this, or would prevent it from happening in the future. But he was coming up blank.
It was a blankness that stretched on and on, as blank stretches of paper were measured out, folded, used, and discarded.
Rest Stop Realizations: Sensible Strategies
If you want strategies, his brain offered into the silence of their mind space. I can think of a few.
Ex didn't say anything in response. He was still stewing, still sulking, and still wiping.
His brain took that as acceptance. In Pokémon Let's Go and Pokémon Sword and Shield, Nintendo introduced the Mobile PC. If that exists HERE, then we'll be able to access the PC from anywhere, even the middle of Routes. We should be able to set it up so that we can retrieve any PC pokémon before they're killed, so long as we're alerted whenever they're Fainted or reduced to low HP.
Ex, currently thinking some very negative thoughts, shot back, And what if the Mobile PC DOESN'T exist here, huh? Or we CAN'T find a way to be alerted? What THEN?
Idea #2, his brain continued calmly. We only Capture pokémon when we have an empty space in our party. That way, we can train them to the point where they can survive in their natural habitats BEFORE we ever put them in the PC, like we've done with Charmander and our Meowth.
Ex scowled. His anger easily fueled his pessimism as he thought, And if we come across a Shiny while we ALREADY have a full party? Or we encounter some other rare pokémon? OR we Capture a pokémon we DON'T want to level? You know, LIKE RATTATA?!
There was a pause.
Idea #2.5, thought his brain, undeterred. We still Capture them, but we only REGISTER them when we have an empty space in our party. Pokémon only get teleported away when they get registered. If we hadn't registered Rattata in our Pokédex Scanner, he wouldn't have been teleported away from us and we could have trained his INTELLIGENCE – but not his Experience – alongside our party's intelligence. Brains are arguably more important than brawn for increasing survival odds. I should know.
Maybe, thought Ex. But his grim stream of thoughts quickly conjured a counterexample. Or maybe not. Even the smartest pokémon can be ambushed. And there might be Silph systems in place to prevent Trainers from bypassing the Party of 6 limit that way. Even if there aren't, the thing about low-level pokémon, regardless of intelligence, is that they will never be able to run away from a determined opponent if they don't have a higher Speed... or the ability Run Away, but that would only work with Rattata, not any other species we want to Capture.
There was another pause as Ex angrily threw a clump of paper into the toilet, then reached for some more.
Idea #3, thought his brain. And I think this one will actually work.
Oh DO you? Ex thought with extreme skepticism.
We could exclusively...
Rest Stop Resolutions: A Shiny New Idea
...Capture Shiny pokémon, his brain offered.
What? Ex asked, confused.
We could exclusively Capture Shiny pokémon, his brain repeated. Their bad taste means we wouldn't have to worry about Wild pokémon killing them, and I don't think we'd have to worry about other Trainers either. It's probably illegal/impossible to steal Captured pokémon, and nobody would kill a Shiny outright. And we've already instructed our own team to Faint Shiny pokémon and bring them back to us, NOT kill them. So if we exclusively Capture Shiny pokémon, we could put them in the PC and let them return to their habitats without much risk, even if we didn't train them.
Ex, realizing the problem with that, thought, But what about-
And before you say we can't optimize IVs or Natures this way, his brain thought quickly, interrupting the first objection that came to Ex's mind, keep in mind that we only need to worry about IV breeding and Nature selectivity if OTHER Trainers know how to optimize them. If the current competitive meta doesn't involve breeding perfect pokémon, then our future opponents will be using pokémon of mostly randomized IVs and Natures, meaning we can do the same.
And what if other people DO know about perfect pokémon?
His brain gave the impression of shrugging helplessly. I tried searching for "EV", "Effort Values", "IV", "Individual Values", "perfect pokémon", and "breeding" earlier. Nothing relevant to battling came up. It's possible I didn't get any search results because those mechanics are called something else in this world... but I don't think that's the case. I think it's more likely they haven't even been discovered yet, or simply don't exist here. I couldn't find a single mention about breeding as a means of making powerful pokémon. "Breeding" just seems to be a general term to describe keeping pokémon happy and healthy, and occasionally hatching Eggs, like Brock did in the anime.
And the competitive meta? Ex asked, still skeptical.
Most tournaments at the moment seem to revolve around getting a full team to level 100 if you can, or as high a level as possible if you can't. The most in-depth theory-crafters that I've found so far discuss Move combos, species match-ups, and Hidden Abilities. In short, catching and using Shiny pokémon won't put us at a competitive disadvantage, and it solves all our current problems.
With his main rebuttal shot down, Ex actually had to think about this one for a while. The "Sparkle Reflex" would prevent his pokémon from dying to predators in the wild...
But once again, Ex's pessimism prevailed and he resumed his angry wiping. Your whole strategy relies on ONE thing: scientific consensus. Shiny pokémon PRESUMABLY taste bad, according to a SINGLE article you read, which is accepted by the scientific community, which you know FULL-WELL that I DON'T trust. It's not GUARANTEED that Shiny pokémon will be safe in the Wild after we Capture them.
There you go, his brain sighed, flip-flopping AGAIN. Despite his brain's tendency to remain logical and Analytic, annoyance began seeping into its mental voice. So what do you WANT us to do about it? Kill the first Shiny we have a chance of Capturing, just to taste-test it?
Ex threw the paper into the toilet, then grabbed more. He wiped, looked, then threw the completely clean paper behind him and flushed.
No! I WANT something that's GUARANTEED to work‼
Ex stood up, grabbed his backpack, and slammed open the stall door.
His brain crossed a pair of imaginary forelimbs. Well, as you like telling Amber so much, "tough." There aren't any "guarantees" – not when using standards of proof THAT strict. At some point, you're going to HAVE to trust other scientists, or at least not DISTRUST them when they make reasonable claims based on verifiable video evidence. Different coloration serving as a warning to predators. What's unreasonable about THAT?
Ex started the sink and started scrubbing his hands shakily.
I DON'T KNOW! SHUT UP!
(Neither Ex nor his brain explicitly remembered the fact that bright colors warded predators away from the Poison Dart Frog, various venomous snakes, and other hazardous animals. But Ex's memories had still retained a 'gut feeling' about the topic.)
His brain, ever the emotionless optimizer, responded in a deadpan. If you aren't in the mood for being reasonable, there are some Trainers you can battle to work out your Frustration. And maybe you can find a river to cool your head. Or the water pump outside. Or the sink.
Ex gave a wordless shout, then thrust his head beneath the flowing faucet.
It really was rather lucky he was alone.
When he was done washing his hands, his head, and his Pokédex (using a water-soaked paper towel, of course, not directly soaking it, though it was theoretically water-proof), Ex slammed open the door and stormed over to an area that looked like it was used for battling.
But in all honesty, he wasn't in the mood for a fight. He needed time to think. So he surrendered control to his brain, then spent the next hour doing exactly that.
Rest Stop Resolutions: Serious as the Plague, Solemn as the Brave, Silent as the Grave
# (Cut content: Battles at the Rest Stop)
Beating the other Trainers had helped, but not enough. Or maybe it helped in the wrong direction. By the time his brain finished with the final Trainer, Ex's mood had only worsened. He'd gone from frustrated to downright foul.
Selling Revives to the defeated Trainers hadn't improved his mood either, nor had eating a free, tasty lunch, nor witnessing the mass-exploitation that came with it. Not even tracking his grinding progress had managed to cheer him up. His Charmander and Meowth got plenty of Experience, which his brain was happy about, and he'd built a reputation as the strongest young Trainer around, which he should have been happy about, not to mention the battle money...
But his thoughts were still on his Rattata, his mind was still frustrated, and his heart still felt heavy.
Amber asked if something was wrong after he violently threw away his paper plate into a trash bin.
Ex's brain lied with a simple "No."
Amber didn't look like she believed him, but she also didn't pry. She was occupied by the food she was selling and the money she was earning – from the other Trainers, not Ex. Most of the children relaxing at the Rest Stop were willing to pay out of pocket for rotisserie Pidgey and Rattata stew, as opposed to their own bland rations. But even the pride Ex felt for Amber didn't fill the Dark Void festering inside his mind.
As Trainers milled about playing tag, as Pickups filled his bag, as pokémon trilled and tails wagged, Ex sought out a quiet plot of ground beneath a tree, brought himself to his knees, and thought quietly.
He remembered Rattata's final moments.
He remembered how he'd wanted vengeance.
He remembered his pokémon's killer.
He remembered who was responsible.
He thought of what he could do.
It wasn't until Amber had sold out of all her stock, cleaned her cooking utensils, thanked the older Trainer who provided the paper plates, paper bowls, and plastic utensils, and finished packing everything away in her bag that Ex finally realized what had to be done.
"Amber?" he asked, unzipping his bag. "Could you wait here for a few minutes? I'm going into the Tall Grass for a while. There's something I have to do."
Amber tilted her head. "You already went to the bathroom."
"No," he shook his own. "Not that. Something else. I'll be back soon, okay?"
"Okay," she shrugged.
Ex reached into his bag, retrieved Rattata's empty Pokéball, found Winky's ball, picked up his Pokédex, and hit the 'call Winky' button. Then, on second thought, he took his whole bag with him as he headed off to the edge of the Rest Stop and waited.
When the Meowth emerged from the Tall Grass, it was holding an Item.
Ex added it to his growing stock, then asked the Meowth a question.
The Meowth nodded.
He asked a different question.
The Meowth nodded again.
He asked one last question, causing the Meowth to say "Me!", turn around, and head back into the Tall Grass.
Ex followed, but first he sprayed a Repel. He didn't want any interruptions.
Trainer and pokémon walked through the Tall Grass. The Meowth occasionally said something in pokéspeak, and Ex occasionally understood. Even if it was impossible to interpret the language instinctively, he could often intuit the intent. Ex stooped to pick up a few rocks along the way – the larger and heavier, the better – and put them in his bag. The Meowth eventually began to help; Ex smiled sadly and pet it on the head.
Eventually, the Meowth stopped walking and his brain informed him they were in the right place. It was secluded, remote, and silent, which was perfect. Ex knelt down and began emptying the rocks from his bag. The Meowth sat in the center of the little clearing, looking curiously at the rocks, and after they were all emptied, looking at Ex expectantly.
Once the large rocks were ready, Ex leaned over, pet the Meowth once on the head, then picked it up...
...and gently set Winky down again, a little to the left.
Ex started gathering the stones and arranging them around where Winky had been sitting – the same place Winky had fought and eaten lunch. Ex made a small circle as neatly as he could, making it clear that this collection of stones was NOT there by accident. He then took out Rattata's Pokéball, enlarged it, clicked it open, and began twisting the top and bottom halves away from each other. Breaking a Pokéball wasn't easy – Pokéballs were extremely durable, especially when closed, shrunken, and/or containing a pokémon. But if a Pokéball was open, enlarged, and empty...
The two halves snapped apart.
Ex carefully placed them in the middle of the stone circle, then closed his eyes.
No tears came, for he had not known Rattata well, but he felt a small impulse to cry as he remembered those few minutes he'd spent with it. This, he knew, was helping in the right direction. He placed a hand on the grave, wishing he could write out a message, or some other sign to let other Trainers know not to disturb the site... but hopefully the broken Pokéball would say it for him.
He took in a deep breath.
Held it.
Let it out again.
When he opened his eyes again, they were resolved.
When he spoke, it was in the tones of someone taking a solemn oath. "From this day forth, I, Pokémon Trainer Ex, shall exclusively Capture Shiny pokémon."
Unless the mobile PC box exists, his brain added.
Ex paused at that addition, then nodded. "Or unless I can otherwise ensure that no pokémon I Capture will ever again die prematurely under my care." He couldn't do anything about old age or disease, but he could do everything about natural threats. He could, and he would.
Even if it meant only ever Capturing Shiny pokémon.
Rest Stop Resolutions, Aftermath: Amber
When Ex returned, he was looking... more like himself again. Amber thought so, at least.
"Do you want to talk about it now?" she asked. "Whatever it is?"
He did.
She slung her backpack over her shoulders.
He did the same.
They walked away from the Rest Stop.
He spoke.
She listened.
Rest Stop Resolutions, Aftermath: Trainer Culpability
Sender: ProfessorSamuelOak(atsymbol)pokéweb(period)net
Subject: Culpability Regarding Rattata
Timestamp: 2:04 PM
Dear Ex,
Your Pokédex should have already informed you, so I hope I am not the bearer of bad news, but I have just received word that your Rattata died today around noon.
I am sorry this had to happen so soon. It is a lesson all Trainers must learn at one point or another, and I wish you had more time to enjoy your journey before learning it. For your sake, I have submitted an appeal to Silph to reduce your culpability in your Rattata's death from 'low' to 'none'. Silph uses an automated algorithm to determine a Trainer's culpability in the deaths of their pokémon, and that automatic process is not prepared for situations like this. I have included below the list of factors that were used for the original calculation in your case.
Time spent Captured: 2 days
Strength of Rattata Relative to Original Habitat (Route 1): Low
Mortality Rate of Rattata in Original Habitat (Route 1): High
Trainer PC Visits Between Capture and ToD (Time of Death): 0
Level-ups since capture: 0
Number of Battles since capture: 1
Win/Loss Ratio: 0/1
Hours spent training Rattata: 0
Typically, the longer a pokémon spends Captured without receiving training, the greater a Trainer's culpability in the event of its death. Other factors can reduce it, including the number of opportunities a Trainer has had to train them (i.e. number of PC visits), the extent of a pokémon's intelligence at the time of their death, and the mortality rate in their original habitat. Even strong and smart pokémon can be ambushed in their sleep if they are a prey species, or succumb to disease.
A factor Silph did NOT know about, in this case, was that you caught Rattata before you knew how the PC operates, and you already had a full party when you Captured him, so you had no options available to you for training him after you were informed of the risks involved with not doing so. Based on the facts of the battle, I suspect your Rattata strayed too close to Viridian's stray cats, which would be a problem on Silph's end, not something that would in any way be your fault.
I can almost guarantee that my appeal will go through, and even if it does not, there shall be no marks on your permanent record. I wish I could do more.
My Sincerest Apologies,
Prof. Samuel Oak