Granbull and Claydol

Smokey the Granbull didn't see them move, so he went up to one of the two statues to sniff it. It smelled of clay and Pokemon. Was it a Pokemon? In his travels with his human partner, he had seen many strange Pokemon. This one had a large head with many eyes, on a body with detached arms. On the other side of the ruin entrances, there was an identical Pokemon statue. If they were statues. They were about his size, but they might just be heavier.

"It doesn't look like there's any traps just to get inside," his partner Toma said. The human shifted his hat, then patted Smokey. "Come on, let's head in. This is going to be our biggest adventure yet."

Wagging his tail, Smokey followed after Toma. These adventures were often crazy and dangerous, but they could be fun too. He mostly loved that his partner let him explore around too, seeing the world in full rather than just limited to battles and small fragments. True, it would be better if his partner didn't insist on exploring all these scary old places. But Smokey knew he was lucky to be where he was, so he didn't complain much.

They walked cautiously down a staircase, straight at first but then curving to the left after several feet. It wasn't a safe staircase, Smokey noticed. There was a wall on the right, but a large pit to the left with nothing to keep them from falling off the stairs. Except for the lantern Toma carried, there was no lights in here. The further they went down, the older the air smelled.

Smokey heard a hum somewhere behind and above them. Feeling a shiver up his spine, the Granbull paused by the wall and looked back into the darkness. For a moment, he thought he saw a yellow ring of light. But it vanished, if it was really there. So creepy.

"The scans of materials we gathered outside suggests that this place is nearly twenty thousand years old, if not older," Toma said. "I wonder if it was made by humans or Pokemon. The outer grounds doesn't offer much evidence, one way or another. There are theories floating around that Pokemon may have once been capable of making such buildings. If that's so, what happened to you?"

Hurrying down a few steps to keep up with his partner, Smokey wasn't sure what Toma was talking about. Pokemon didn't make things like humans did. But that didn't matter. It was important for him to protect Toma however he could. Although, there wasn't much a Granbull could do against falling down a dark shaft.

Eventually, they came to the end of the staircase, a circular room with one doorway. Past that, there seemed to be a larger room with many items in it. It could be one of those tombs they often explored. Although, they hadn't run into any Ghost Pokemon. Ghost Pokemon usually hung around old tombs.

It was then that Smokey realized that they hadn't come across any other Pokemon since the two maybe-Pokemon maybe-statues. There had been only one other ruin where they hadn't found other Pokemon and that was an experience that Smokey did not wish to go through again. Knowing that Toma might not notice due to looking for visible traps, Smokey tugged at his partner's arm.

"What?" Toma asked, looking at him right as four beams of light shot right by them. None of them hit, but they were too close for comfort. Warning shots?

They turned around and soon found the source of the attack: the two clay Pokemon statues from the entrance. Both were floating in midair, their many eyes glowing bright yellow. Poised with their arms pointing at the explorers, one fired again while the other caused many stars to appear in the darkness. These stars swirled around, blurring to Smokey's vision.

For a moment, he wanted to run away. He never did like being confrontational. But as an explorer's partner, he would invariably end up battling with other Pokemon in ruins, to protect Toma. Smokey clenched his paws into fists, trying to hold his heavy chin up.

Then the stars blasted outwards, causing the darkness to overtake the lantern's light. Smokey wasn't sure what was happened, just that he could only see stars. He couldn't even see the floor he could feel beneath his paws. What kind of attack was this?

One of the two clay Pokemon appeared then, floating downward. It pointed to the side and fired a different beam of light at something. With that, the starry field changed into a huge city. Strangely, there were no plants on the ground and ugly gray clouds in the sky. There were many humans around with cars going down the road. But no Pokemon other than the two of them.

A voice that was neither of them began to speak. "In the beginning of the third era, the humans had grown too powerful, ignoring the damage they did to the planet. They ignored the many signs that the planet's love and patience was being pushed to the limits. And so, to stop the humans from destroying the planet and themselves, a curse was laid upon all of the animals to turn them into Pokemon and punish the humans for their sins. The third era was one of destruction and death as what the humans had built up was destroyed."

As the voice spoke, the city turned into a burning disaster, then to rubble and char. Smokey wondered what this was about. This kind of thing didn't happen in most battles.

"Many millenniums have passed, many more generations have passed. The humans forgot what happened then. The Pokemon forgot why they came about. Granbull, do you see what must be done? Destroy the human with you."

Destroy Toma? That was never going to happen! Smokey couldn't tell where the voice was coming from, but he could tell what had triggered it. He launched himself at the clay Pokemon, leaping up and punching all four paws wildly into it in hopes that at least one attack connected. As the clay Pokemon got knocked onto the floor, the illusion of the ruined city and the stars broke. Smokey ran over and kicked his opponent. The other clay Pokemon paused, pointing an arm down at them but not shooting yet.

"Smokey, use Crunch on it," Toma called.

Crunch was a biting move; Smokey's jaw had grown incredibly powerful, painful to those he bit even when he tried to bite lightly. He tried to avoid using bite attacks whenever possible. But if Toma asked for it, it had to be the right time. Smokey bit the clay Pokemon, breaking a hole in its side. It didn't bleed, but a yellow glow filled the spot to protect it.

The voice spoke again. "Good. Pokemon have forgotten about their origins because the third era is over. The humans have learned to be more mindful of the planet. As is normal with their nature, they have turned what was a curse into a blessing. But they are in danger of forgetting the lessons of history once again. More on the story I told you is within this place. Make sure that he finds it. The guardian Claydols will not attack you now."

Backing off, Smokey watched as the injured Claydol righted itself. A glow appeared around its arms, then it put them to its sides. The other made a similar show of non-aggression. They might be okay now.

"Did something change?" Toma asked. It seemed like he hadn't heard the voice.

Smokey turned and headed back to his partner's side. He took his hand in his paw and tugged at him to enter the next room. Since there was something of great importance in here, they needed to explore this place. It would be their greatest adventure yet.

After a glance to make sure the Claydols wouldn't attack, Toma smiled and walked with Smokey further in. "A change for the good, it seems. Let's get exploring, buddy."

…

Sapphire entry: Claydol is an enigma that appeared from a clay statue made by an ancient civilization dating back 20,000 years. This Pokemon shoots beams from its arms.

Granbull Heart Gold entry: It is actually timid and easily spooked. If attacked, it flails about to fend off its attacker.

POS is five years old today! I've been at this a long while... and now I've covered 600 Pokemon! And just as I get close to conclusion, new Pokemon are being announced. Hah, well the gap is smaller than when Black and White came out, so that's good.

With Claydol, all current Psychic type Pokemon are covered.