He placed Chansey's egg on the windowsill of the Pokémon Centre, among some flowerpots, as a beacon of hope to future trainers. The sun had turned from golden to yellow, clouds drifting over it as if turning the light on and off. Nick and Elekid stood outside the building, and with a nod and a grin to each other, set off once again. His sense of accomplishment, despite not defeating Cain in battle, was large, and he was ready to give training and adventuring a full-hearted start. His smiles were returned by passers-by in the grimy streets; the people of Oreburgh, despite being ridden with dirty surroundings and a bustling mining industry, seemed to share a working class unity. The lips from one of the smiles suddenly opened.

'Hi, Nick!' said Gerald.

'Oh… hello!' he replied, slightly startled. Gerald was still wearing his white lab coat.

'Glad I caught you. I wanted to thank you for saving me last night.'

'You already thanked me,' smiled Nick, 'Don't worry about it.'

'I was too shaken to properly give my thanks.' nodded Gerald, firmly but kindly. 'I want you to have this.'

He held up a Pokéball. It was blue, and emblazoned with a large letter M.

'What… is it?' asked Nick, inquisitively.

'The Master Ball.' affirmed Gerald. 'It is a prototype of a ball that some of my friends in the Pokémon Science world have been working on. Its success rate certain.'

'Success rate?'

'The chances of a ball capturing a wild Pokémon.' said Gerald instantly. 'Usually, a wild creature must be weakened until it cannot resist capture. This ball, however, is guaranteed to be successful regardless of the physical state of the target.'

'Great!' chirped Nick, ideas of how easily it would now be to catch more companions. Gerald saw this look though, and his tone changed to a sterner one.

'It should not be used lightly.' he scolded. 'Only use this during a once-in-a-lifetime encounter; a Pokémon that is your heart's desire.'

'I understand.' replied Nick, truthfully.

'I shouldn't really be giving it to you, as it's a classified item, but please accept it as a sign of my heartfelt thanks.'

Nick took the ball, enjoying its cold, metallic feel for a moment, and then putting it deep into his bag.

'You know,' continued Gerald, 'You remind me of Professor Drasil.'

From Nick's facial expression, the bespectacled man guessed that elaboration was required.

'He was the Pokémon Researcher who I studied under until he disappeared ten years ago.'

'He disappeared?' asked Nick, his eyebrows rising.

'Yes. His assistants said he had left to do special fieldwork; to find an elusive, legendary Pokémon. But he never returned and hasn't been seen until this day.'

'And… in what way do I remind you of him?' frowned Nick.

'The look in your eyes. That burning ambition and drive to do better in your training. Drasil had the same demeanour, right up until he disappeared forever.' smiled Gerald. Nick couldn't help but smile too.

'Where should I go from here?'

'Well…' began the scientist, stroking his chin, 'Since you're challenging gyms, maybe you should visit Mauheru Town. There is a small gym there that specialises in fire-types, if I remember correctly.'

'How do I get there?' asked Nick, sheepishly.

'Oh, it's easy. Just head through the caves outside of Oreburgh then follow the river on the other side. You should be able to track your way there with your Pokétch.'

He had almost forgotten about the fantastic technology at his disposal. He said fond goodbyes to Gerald and set off in the direction the museum worker had indicated. The road became more and more clean as he went.

x x x x x x x x x x x

He found a stairway of grassy ledges at the edge of town, ascending towards a cave entrance in the hills. It was easy to climb to the top, and the wind blew a chill through his bones as he peered into the tunnel. The thick darkness as black as a Murkrow's wing, and a sense of foreboding seemed to emanate from it. He looked to his companion.

'Could you light the way for us?'

'El!' cried the Pokémon, and with a clench of its fists created a halo of electric light around its antennae. It walked several yards into the cave and, to Nick's delight, the floor and walls became visible.

'Alright, good job!' he cheered. 'Oh, and this will help too!' he added, pulling a torch from his rucksack. He had packed it at home for such occasions. With a deep breath, he followed Elekid.

x x x x x x x x x x x

The tunnel was cramped, with strange moss that seemed to breathe growing on the walls above a muddy, rock-strewn floor. The ventured further and further, to the point where Nick was having doubts – should they turn back and find another way to the next town? But before he could put any such contingency plans into action, their respective flashes suddenly extended to illuminate a vast cavern, with cold water dripping from its stalactites into small streams that branched into several other routes. There was a scuttle, and moving shadows escaped into the larger, static shades of the surroundings. Nick gulped, but the ground looked well-trodden, as though many travellers had passed through before him.

'Why don't we take this tunnel?' asked Nick, pointing to and approaching a path opposite them. Surely continuing straight ahead was a good idea. Elekid skipped along after him, as they trudged over the marsh-like terrain, their feet occasionally sinking into the mud or slipping on loose stones. A few steps into the passage, he accidentally kicked a rock further into the darkness. A distant squeaking sound and then the approaching flapping of wings followed its echoing rattle.

'What… is that noise?'

'Elekid… El…' growled the Pokémon. It grabbed at Nick's hand and begin to motion him back. As the sound grew louder, Nick began to take quick steps back and the broke into a run. No sooner had they both dived to the ground than a flock of blue bat Pokémon zoomed overhead, their fangs glistening in the torchlight, their shrill cries reverberating around the room.

'Those are Zubat!' exclaimed Nick, pulling himself up to get a better look. Perhaps he could catch one of them for himself. However, Elekid dragged him down again, and they lay in silence until the creatures had disappeared from sight and sound.

Dusting themselves off, trainer and Pokémon looked around to choose another route. Although there were many passages to explore, he reasoned that he should follow the one that most footsteps and eroded ground led to. And so they did.

'This place is huge, huh, Elekid?'

'Elll…' muttered the Pokémon. It had a vigilant look in its eyes, as though it had sensed a presence in the surroundings.

The tunnel that they followed was larger than the one through which they entered, which somehow made it more sinister. There was more room to move… or for something else to move closer to them. Suddenly, the reach of their lights stopped extending and highlighted a large pile of rocks. It completely blocked any advancement.

'No! Now what?' shouted Nick, frustrated and feeling defeated like he had at the Oreburgh Gym. Elekid, however, grinned beneath its static charge, and began shattering the rocks with punches and kicks, as well as throwing others aside at a rapid speed.

'Elekid, that's great!' laughed Nick, 'We'll be through in no time if you keep that up!'

He watched his Pokémon pummel the rocks, and as the minutes went by, the rest of the tunnel came into sight.

'Okay, Elekid! I think if you just destroy that large rock in the middle, that should do.' he commanded, pointing at a large, strangely-coloured and pointed boulder.

'Elekid!' cried the Pokémon, and wound back its fist. It delivered a huge blow to the target, but strangely, it only slid back a few feet and did not shatter.

'Huh?'

'El?'

Nick stared at the strange object, trying to figure out why it had not broken like the others. An explanation came when it slowly began to move by itself; it wobbled to and fro, and then two smaller flapping rocks extended from its sides.

'Nuuuuuu…' came a guttural, growling moan.

'W-What's… going on?' cowered Nick. Was this rock haunted? Were there ghosts in this cave?

The rock suddenly began to spin round slowly, revealing a large, protruding nose-shaped appendage, which was pinker in colour compared to the blue hue of the rest of its surface.

'Is that… a Pokémon…?' stuttered Nick.

'Elek!' snapped Elekid, as though motioning Nick to check his Pokédex. He complied:

'Nosepass, the Compass Pokémon. Its body is comprised of rock, and its nose serves as an electromagnetic compass that it uses to navigate caves.'

'Wow!' grinned the trainer. He would not let this Pokémon get away. 'Elekid! Thundershock!'

Elekid leapt into the air and crashed down on Nosepass, firing a bolt at its large nose. The rock-type looked injured, but its perpetually-closed eyes were difficult to read.

'And again, Elekid!'

His Pokémon aimed another attack at Nosepass, but this time the latter grabbed the former by the fist, swung it around and sent it crashing into the wall of the cave. The light on its head flickered and died as it fell to the ground.

'Elekid!' cried Nick, his torch becoming the only source of light. Moments later, however, its shine was rejoined with Elekid's, as the electric-type pulled itself to its feet.

'Alright!' he exclaimed. Pearl's words echoed in his head:

Electric attacks won't do much against rock-types, so make use of Elekid's fighting-type moves.

He commanded Elekid to aim punches and kicks at Nosepass. His partner began to beat the opponent, which did not seem to defend. Suddenly, however, it raised its stubby arms and in a flash of light, several floating stones appeared around its body. These flew in all directions and knocked Elekid away from it and onto its back at Nick's feet.

'What was that?' wondered Nick, beginning to panic. The Pokédex answered his question:

'Stone Edge. Nosepass uses the magnetism of its nose to control stones around it, as well as ones that it can break off of its body at will. It is difficult for an opponent to avoid this move.'

As Nick looked up from the screen, he saw Nosepass gather more rocks around itself.

'Elekid, get ready to swing a Thunderpunch!'

'El!'

Seconds later, one of Nosepass' rocks was soaring towards Elekid. Obeying its trainer, the electric-type whacked the projectile with a charged fist, and sent the rock flying back at the target. Nosepass was struck by the thundering stone, shuddered, and fell backwards. Nick instinctively withdrew a Pokéball from his pocket; he had been waiting for this moment. Taking a second to aim, he threw the ball through the damp air of the cave and hit Nosepass' squarely on its large nose. In a flash of red light, it was sucked inside the ball. Overcome with joy, Nick began to approach the ball, but stopped when he noticed that it was wriggling from side to side, with a small noise emanating from it. Nosepass was obviously trying to escape.

'Come on…' he prayed, through gritted teeth. Both trainer and Pokémon were clenching their fists.

What seemed like an eternity passed, wrought with fear, anticipation and cold sweat, before the ball stopped, and remained motionless. Then what seemed like an eternity passed before Nick accepted that he had been successful in his capture, picked up the ball, and smiled down at the new friend that lay inside.

x x x x x x x x x x x

They continued along the tunnel in a proud silence. Nick polished the Pokéball containing Nosepass with fondness. Obtaining a powerful creature as your own was like nothing he had ever felt before. His gaze was not stolen from the ball (which he purposefully illuminated with the torch) until a cry from Elekid indicated to him that they had reached a fork in the road.

'Oh…' muttered Nick, his senses returning to him, 'Looks like we're a little lost.'

He thought for a moment, before Elekid helped by pointing at the Pokéball in his hand. Nick instantly knew what his original companion meant.

'Of course!' he laughed, 'Nosepass uses the magnet in its nose to get around caves! Maybe it can help us get out of here!'

His stomach shook under the weight of nerves as he prepared to unleash his new Pokémon for the first time. Eventually, he plucked up the courage, and tossed the ball into the air. The light that heralded its appearance illuminated the cave. It turned to look at its new trainer through the light from Elekid's head.

'Uh… hi, Nosepass.' greeted Nick, forcing a faint smile. 'I'm Nick, and this is Elekid.' He thought it would be appropriate to introduce himself, and he hoped that the creature had understood his words.

'Nuuuu… Nosepass!' it replied, still standing motionless.

'Could you help us find our way out of the cave towards Mauheru Town?' he asked, the voice in his dry throat breaking slightly from nervousness.

Several seconds of uncertainty passed before Nosepass nodded, spun around on the spot, and began walking briskly down the left-hand way. It did not stop to check that its partners were following it, so they began to hurry along behind the stony monster, Nick shouting his thanks.

x x x x x x x x x x x

The tunnel continued in a straightforward manner until light became visible a few hundred yards away. Nosepass toddled along in a happy-go-lucky fashion; it had helped Nick greatly, but he was unsure if the creature actually cared whether or not he had followed it. Was it just trying to get away from him?

'Thank you for helping us, Nosepass!' he called ahead to it.

'Nuuuu…' it chimed.

As they got closer and closer to the outside world, another flapping noise suddenly interrupted. Nick and Elekid turned and shone their lights back into the pitch-black they had came from. Nosepass stopped and slowly turned too; apparently it did care about them.

'Is it more Zubat?'

It did not sound like there were as many this time… but somehow the wings were heavier and more intimidating. A rapidly-moving figure suddenly came into view; it was a much larger bat Pokémon, with a gaping mouth lined with four fangs, from which protruded a long tongue which dripped with a dangerous looking substance.

'That's not a Zubat…' mused Nick, lifting his Pokédex.

'Golbat, the evolved form of Zubat.' it began. 'It drinks the blood of its prey after piercing its skin with its extremely powerful fangs. It can also secrete toxic.'

'Don't let that thing come near us!' shouted Nick to his Pokémon, a little scared by the flying creature after what the Pokédex had just informed him. He wracked his brain trying to remember the name of the attack that Nosepass had used earlier; Elekid would surely be too weak to battle after keeping the cave lit for so long. Just as Golbat got into swooping distance, he clicked:

'Nosepass, use Stone Edge!'

A moment passed in which he worried that the rock-type had ran away while his back was turned but, thankfully, stones then shot over his head and hit the attacking poison-type.

'Golbaaaa-!' it cried, as it was knocked backwards and out of sight.

'Good job, Nosepass! You too, Elekid! Now let's get out of here!'

He returned his team to their Pokéballs and began to sprint towards the exit.

x x x x x x x x x x x

The fresh air hit his face and a sense of relief washed over him as he looked out at the grand river cascading from the mountain. A wide path ran parallel with it, covered in pink-green grass and dotted with trees that swayed in the tranquil winds. He found it difficult to remove the smile from his face as he followed the trail; it was wider than that of the Wooper that occasionally popped their heads out of the water as wild Starly flew overhead.

A short while later, a small mountain town came into view, and a nearby signpost confirmed that it was Mauheru. With a grin, Nick began to run down the steep hill leading down to where he would hopefully attain his next badge.