Outsiders (ZnT/Pokémon Reverse Summon)
Season 1, Episode 13, Chapter 2
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"This is a battle between the challenger, Saito Hiraga, against Gym Leader Grant Lino," the referee announced. "It will be a Singles match, four on two. The challengers reserves the right to exchange Pokémon at any time, while the Gym Leader cannot. Eliminations are by either knockout or ring out. Are both trainers ready?"
"I am," Saito called out, reaching for his belt as Grant did the same.
"As am I," Grant said, flashing a confident smirk in Saito's direction. Saito nodded, while at the same time thinking over what his first move should be. He had the numerical advantage, but as Louise's battle proved, that was no guarantee of victory. Neither would the three Pokémon he had with type advantage against Rock Types. If he wanted to win this, he'd have to play it smart. So, when the referee raised a green flag into the air, Saito tensed himself.
"Begin!" the referee shouted, and Grant immediately tossed a Pokéball of his own.
"Amaura, I choose you!" Grant shouted, releasing a light-blue sauropod Pokémon onto the arena. On the sides of its body was a blue crystal that reminded Saito of ice, and small iridescent sails extended from the top of its head above its eyes. Deep blue eyes stared at Saito as he pulled out his Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon.
"Amaura, the Tundra Pokémon. A Rock/Ice-Type, Amaura thrived over 100 million years ago in prehistoric tundra, arctic, and sub-arctic regions, only to become extinct when the Earth warmed and destroyed much of their habitat. Their bodies are superbly adapted to the cold, however moderate to high temperatures have proven to be discomforting at best to revived specimens."
'A Rock/Ice-type, huh?' Saito thought as he went over his choices. Right off the bat, Shogun and Tengu were out simply due to the massive type disadvantage they would be subject to. Ronin and Maindo were valid options, but it wasn't hard for him to decide that Tanuki was his best bet.
"Go, Tanuki!" Saito declared, tossing the Riolu onto the rocky arena. With a confident flourish, Tanuki rested his entire body's weight on his toes, one arm extended towards Amaura and the other slightly raised behind him. In response, Amaura swayed her head and long neck from side to side while staring him down. Grant quickly seized the initiative, throwing his arm forward.
"Icy Wind!" Grant ordered. Amaura reared her head back and inhaled, then released the supercooled breath out towards Tanuki. The cold blast of air sent chills across Tanuki's body, and small ice crystals formed on the top layer of his fur, but he withstood it. Saito smiled, then pointed towards Amaura.
"Quick Attack, then Force Palm!" Saito shouted. In the blink of an eye, Tanuki disappeared then slammed into Amaura, rocking her back slightly. Tanuki then pulled his arm back, his paw glowing white just before he thrust it into his opponent. Amaura squealed in pain, but in a testament to her training under Grant, she was able to remain standing and immediately counter with an Aurora Beam straight into Tanuki's face. Not expecting such a quick response, Tanuki flipped head over feet and flew back, carried along by the Ice-Type attack, but he was able to land on his feet and dig his paws into the rock, halting his momentum and bringing him to a stop.
The Riolu glared at Amaura before smirking confidently. In response, the Tundra Pokémon huffed and lowered her head, matching Tanuki's intense gaze with her own.
"Amaura, use Avalanche!" Grant shouted. The ice crystals on Amaura flashed blue and she reared back, standing upright on her back legs and balancing herself on top of them. At the same time, a dark, ominous cloud formed over Tanuki, prompting both him and Saito to stare warily at it. Yet, to Tanuki's visible surprise, Saito did not order him to take advantage of the open state Amaura had left herself him. He was looking at Saito for direction, who shook his head.
"Wait, Tanuki. Wait until I give the word," Saito insisted, keeping his palm facing the ground. Tanuki grew impatient and huffed, then decided that if his trainer wasn't apparently willing to seize the generous opening Amaura offered, he would take it instead.
Before Saito could even react, Tanuki disappeared in a blur and used Quick Attack to close the distance between himself and Amaura. He followed the attack with a Rock Smash onto Amaura's back, sending her back down onto all fours with enough force to send clouds of dust shooting into the air. Satisfied with himself, Tanuki looked back at Saito hoping to see a look of approval, but instead he saw only fear.
"Tanuki, get outta there now!" Saito shouted. Tanuki was confused as to what Saito meant when he heard a rumble come from overhead. He looked up and saw the cloud that Amaura had formed not only followed him but also somehow grew even heavier than before.
Then, with a loud crash, the cloud gave way to a sudden onslaught of ice rushing straight towards him and Amaura. Amaura merely smirked in satisfaction as Tanuki tried to get away, but he was too late. The ice consumed him, the sound of rushing ice drowning out Saito's shouts and sending blasts of cooled air in every direction. After nearly a minute of non-stop momentum, the cloud finally dissipated, leaving behind a small mountain of snow and ice in the center of the arena.
"Tanuki! Are you okay?!" Saito shouted, clenching his fist and hoping that his Pokémon would emerge safe and relatively unharmed. When a section of the ice gave way from underneath, Saito allowed a spark of hope to take root, but it was dashed when he saw Amaura emerge tail first. She was dragging an unconscious Tanuki out by the scruff of his neck, gently depositing him at the base of the ice mound and looking towards both Grant and Saito in satisfaction.
"Riolu is unable to battle!" the referee declared, raising a red flag in Saito's direction. Saito frowned and looked sharply to the ground next to him, then sighed and pulled out Tanuki's Pokéball.
"Come back, Tanuki. You deserve a rest," he said, shooting out a red beam towards his Pokémon that sucked him right back into the capsule.
"Wait, what just happened?" Louise asked from the viewing stands, slightly shivering from the unexpected cold. Luckily for her, she had just finished applying medicine to her Pokémon, so Brennaraki was able to hop into her arms and heat both of them up.
"It was Avalanche," Saito answered, a grim look on his face. "An Ice-Type attack that takes some time to build up, and somehow, if the user takes a hit while it's growing, it gets even stronger."
Louise's eyes widened while Grant nodded.
"So that's why you tried to wait!" she realized.
"Yes, but it appears Tanuki didn't quite understand that. Judging by your expression, I'm guessing his isn't the first time he has done this?" Grant noted, and Saito reluctantly nodded. Grant nodded back, then added, "I can see that the bond between you and Tanuki is strong, and he looks up to you, but if you if you want to be your best, the two of you need to settle this."
Saito nodded glumly. He thought he and Tanuki had settled it, but apparently not. He was willing to admit it wasn't all Tanuki's fault, either- Saito could've been clearer in his intent- but that was a problem for later. Right now, he had a battle to win.
Quickly coming to a decision on his next Pokémon, Saito pulled out a Pokéball and threw it onto the field, "Maindo, I choose you!"
Maindo emerged onto the battlefield, yawning in boredom as he gazed upon the mound of snow that separated him from his opponent. Trickles of water flowed down as it slowly melted, forming a growing pool of water along its base. Saito hoped that Maindo would, for once, listen to him, but he knew that wouldn't be the case. Maindo was too stubborn for that, and so Saito made the decision to wait.
His patience was rewarded when an Amaura climbed over the side slope of the ice mound and fired an Aurora Beam, taking advantage of Maindo not paying attention to strike him in the head. The air was knocked from the Ralts' lungs, but he was able to recover and teleport back to his feet. He snarled angrily, and Saito nodded.
"Come on, Maindo! Let's win this!" he yelled out. If Maindo acknowledged his words, he didn't show it as he instead teleported to the top of the ice mound to gaze upon Amaura, who looked up at him with a determined look in her eyes.
"Confusion!" Saito ordered. Instead of following his command, however, Maindo, with a snarl plastered across his face, cupped his hands together and formed a Shadow Ball, then shot it towards Amaura. The attack was too fast for the Tundra Pokémon to dodge, and so it stuck the side of her body and sent her skidding back a few feet. She retaliated with a Powder Snow, sending a gust of icy wind in Maindo's direction. He tried teleporting away, but he didn't go far enough to escape the wide-area attack, and when he reappeared a blast of cold greeted him. His teeth chattered and he couldn't help but hold his body close, but the sheer heat of his anger kept him going.
Before Saito could even begin to shout a command, Maindo's eyes flashed as his horn briefly lit up. A purple sheen covered her body, and she slowly picked up into the air. With wide eyes, Amaura kicked and flailed her legs to try and find purchase, but Maindo then violently hurled her away and smacked her into the ice mound. Part of it collapsed from the force, sending more snow onto the field like a blanket as Amaura picked herself back up. She turned to face Maindo, who quickly noticed that there was a strange glint in her eyes. He smirked evilly in recognition, but neither of the trainers noticed.
"Aurora Beam, Amaura!" Grant ordered. She moved to follow his command, but she never got the chance to as she lost balance and began stumbling around. Amaura was tripping her own feet in almost no time at all, and she even accidentally smacked her flailing head into the mound of snow next to her.
Saito pumped his fist in jubilation, recognizing the tell-tale sign of Amaura being confused. When Maindo lazily fired a taunting Shadow Ball towards her, one that she otherwise would have easily been able to dodge, instead she accidentally walked straight into it and sent her skidding back slightly. Grant tried to regain control of his Pokémon, but neither Saito nor Maindo were willing to give them that chance.
"Shadow Sneak!" Saito yelled. Having already decided to use that move, Maindo shot his shadow towards Amaura in the blink of an eye, then jumped upwards to strike her in the head. She was knocked off-balance, giving Maindo enough time to form a Shadow Ball as he flew upwards. He shot it into Amaura's back, sending her crashing into the ground with enough force to make the snow and rock around her to scatter into a thin cloud. Maindo teleported back, waiting for the snow that obscured his view to settle. When it did, he let out a smile as he looked upon Amaura's collapsed, immobile form. The referee waited a few seconds, then called it as he raised his flag towards Grant.
"Amaura is unable to battle!" the referee called out. Saito pumped his fist in victory as Maindo stood up straighter and haughtily looked towards Grant as the gym leader returned his Pokémon.
"Good job, Amaura. Take a long rest," he soothed, then looked out towards the battlefield. The ice was nearly melted now, almost flooding the field. If he was concerned, he didn't show it as instead he pulled out his final Pokéball.
"Your Ralts is strong, but I can tell he has quite the rebellious streak," he said, enlarging the sphere. "Tell me, will he be powerful enough to handle my friend here?"
"What?" Saito asked, raising an eyebrow. "Who?"
Grant smirked, then yelled out as he toss the Pokéball high into the air, "Aerodactyl, I choose you!"
Saito's, Maindo's, and Louise's eyes widened as the Pokémon emerged onto the field. He was a large, grey pterosaur with violet wing membranes that had clawed hands on the ends. A single spiked horn rose up from atop its head, and a long tail that ended with a spear flittered behind it. Hungry red eyes bored into a suddenly nervous Maindo, and when it screeched it exposed its beak filled with razor sharp fangs. Both Saito and Louise pulled out their Pokédexes to scan the creature.
"Aerodactyl, the Fossil Pokémon," Saito's Pokédex read out through an electronic voice. "A Rock/Flying-type, Aerodactyls were apex predators that lived among ancient mountain ranges. They ruled Earth's prehistoric skies and feasted upon fish and other forms of prey."
"An Aerodactyl…that's what was in the amber, wasn't it?" Saito asked, and Grant nodded.
"Well…yes, actually, but not this one," Grant corrected. "This Aerodactyl has been with me for years! He's been helping the one from the amber adjust."
Just as Grant finished speaking, Saito saw from the corner of his eye a flash of grey moment along the stalactites. He shot his head towards it, where he saw a much smaller Aerodactyl clinging to the rocks and staring at the elder Fossil Pokémon with undisguised awe. He couldn't help but laugh at the oddly cute display, which Grant also noticed and joined in on. Then, the Gym Leader's eyes focused and he shot his arm towards the battlefield.
"Aerodactyl, use Screech!" Grant ordered.
Aerodactyl flew up into the air high above Maindo, then released a shriek worse than nails on a chalkboard at him. The horrible noise left Maindo shuddering and trying in vain to block it out by covering his eyes. Saito had to as well, and had no more luck. The trainer then saw Aerodactyl swoop down towards Maindo with his maw opened wide. He shouted for Maindo to move, but the Ralts didn't hear him and so was scooped up and brought high above the battlefield. Aerodactyl bit down as hard as he could, and Maindo screamed in pain before firing a Shadow Ball point blank into Aerodactyl's head. It didn't loosen his grip, however, and before Maindo could teleport away, Aerodactyl hurled him out of his jaws and into the floor with enough force to form a crater. Dust and snow flew upward, and when it settled everyone could clearly see Maindo was unconscious.
"Ralts is unable to battle!" the referee announced. Saito frowned as he watched Aerodactyl circle overhead. He returned his Pokémon, giving a few soft words of encouragement before thinking over his next move.
He had three Pokémon left. Shogun, Tengu, and Ronin. Tengu was right out as she would be under a massive disadvantage, both in speed and typing. Shogun was possible, but with how fast and powerful this Aerodactyl was, he didn't trust that Shogun was strong enough to win the day. That left only one option, and he nodded to himself as he pulled out the first Pokéball he ever received.
"Ronin, I choose you!" Saito shouted. Ronin exploded onto the arena, standing in place while staring at Aerodactyl. Rather than be intimidated, he calmly pulled out his scalchop and held it at the ready, narrowing his eyes and lowering himself into a crouched stance, waiting for his opponent to make the first move.
"Rock Tomb!" Grant shouted. Small particles of rock floated up from the floor and accumulated into large boulders around Aerodactyl, who then shot them towards Ronin with enough force to form a small cloud of dust in its wake. Rather than try to dodge, Ronin stood still, keeping his scalchop at the ready.
"Use Razor Shell…now!" Saito shouted at the last second. In a blinding burst of speed, Ronin swiped his scalchop through the first boulder like paper, cleaving it in half and allowing them to pass on either side of him. He repeated the action against the other boulders hurtling his way to the same result, and he soon found himself surrounded by a wall of rock that obscured him from Aerodactyl's view.
That didn't last long, however, as Saito barked out an order, "Aqua Jet!"
A column of water, with Ronin in the middle, shot out of the enclosed space straight towards Aerodactyl, slamming into his chin hard enough to snap his head upward. Aerodactyl was able to remain aloft with flaps of his mighty wings, and with an angry glare in his eyes he flew after Ronin and tried to snap him up in his jaws. Ronin was too fast, however, and Aerodactyl only bit into cold, slightly salty water.
Landing on the opposite side of the melting ice mound, Ronin sharply turned around and sent whip-like splashes off water shooting around him. He heard Saito yell out for him to use Focus Energy, and so Ronin concentrated. He felt his muscles tense and build in strength, along with a sense of clear focus. When he looked back up at Aerodactyl, every muscle in his body was primed to fire.
Aerodactyl, meanwhile, narrowed his eyes towards Ronin, and upon hearing Grant issue a command, used Agility on himself before swooping down towards Ronin. He pulled up at the last second to avoid hitting the ground, skimming just above it and slammed one of his wings into Ronin as the Oshawatt attempted to get away. The much smaller Pokémon was sent flying back, bouncing along the ground and only barely stopping himself from going out of bounds by dragging his scalchop along the rocky floor.
Ronin breathed deeply, feeling a sharp pain where Aerodactyl's wing struck him. He was still able to fight, though, and with confidence born from all the trials and tribulations he had experienced up until this point, he stood up straight and held his scalchop in front of him.
Saito nodded, happy to see his starter was still in the fight, then yelled, "Revenge!"
Ronin's body glowed red for a moment as he ran towards Aerodactyl. The Fossil Pokémon was making another pass, clearly trying to stay away from his opponent and let the Revenge attack go to waste. Furrowing his brow, Ronin used a quick Aqua Jet to bring himself closer to Aerodactyl, then slammed his scalchop into the Aerodactyl's right shoulder. Aerodactyl let out a screech of pain as the shock made the appendage go limp, and he spiraled downward and crashed into the ground. Ronin, meanwhile, managed to angle himself towards the snow mound then use his scalchop as a snowboard, bringing him safely at rest at the bottom.
Shaking his head, Aerodactyl slowly tested his wing as feeling returned to it. Once it was now freely able to move, Aerodactyl rested his body on his wings and turned himself towards Ronin. He snarled and hunkered down as Ronin kept his scalchop at the ready, both opponents waiting for the other to make the first move.
"Water Pulse!" Saito shouted, his voice faintly obscured by the mound of ice. Ronin was able to hear him clearly, however, and formed a pulsating orb of water in front of his face before shooting it out towards Aerodactyl. The Fossil Pokémon, however, used his still functional wing as a shield and dashed forward into the attack, and before Ronin even had a chance to dodge he was snapped up in Aerodactyl's jaws. He bit down as hard as he could, and Ronin let out a shout of pain as Saito desperately tried to think of a way to get his start of this.
"Aqua Jet!" Saito desperately ordered, hoping that the sudden stream of water would allow Ronin to get away. Aerodactyl's grip was too tight, however, and only served to send water shooting through his teeth and get everywhere. As the water died down, Aerodactyl began thrashing his head from side to side, causing Ronin to lose his grip on his scalchop and send it flinging way across the battlefield.
Saito was beginning to panic, not wanting to see his starter have to spend the next two hours in Nurse Joy's care, when he noticed Ronin's body slip slightly from all the thrashing. An idea took shape, and he quickly acted on it.
"Use Water Pulse in Aerodactyl's mouth!" Saito shouted. Ronin, despite his flailing body, managed to shoot his trainer a confused look before complying. He formed another pulsating orb of water in front of his face, then shot it as hard as he could into Aerodactyl's upper jaw. The impact loosened Aerodactyl's jaws slightly while continuing his momentum, allowing Ronin to use Aqua Jet once again to shoot away to safety. He landed next to his discarded weapon, and turned around on the heels on his feet to glare defiantly at Aerodactyl.
"Yes!" Saito cried out, pumping his fist as Ronin turned on his feet to face Aerodactyl. "Use Aqua Jet, followed by Razor Shell!"
Ronin immediately complied with Saito's orders, surrounding himself in a veil of water that shot towards a recovering Aerodactyl. The Fossil Pokémon only had time to turn his head towards his opponent when Ronin slammed into it, sending it rearing back. Stopping his Aqua Jet immediately, Ronin formed a blade of water on the upper edge of his scalchop then delivered it into Aerodactyl's body with an upward swing. Refusing to relent, he kept swinging, slamming Razor Shell after Razor Shell with a ferocity Aerodactyl was not expecting. It only relented with a quick swipe of its tail slammed into Ronin's back, sending him flying into the snow and half-burying him under it.
"Ronin, are you okay?" Saito asked. A moment later, the snow parted from Ronin's body as he slowly lifted himself up to his feet. Saito sighed in relief, then narrowed his gaze as he noticed both Ronin's condition and Aerodactyl's. Both Pokémon were pretty banged up, with scratches and bruises all around their bodies. They were both panting heavily, and it wouldn't be much longer until they were out for the count.
Despite being heavily injured, however, Aerodactyl managed to find the strength to fly back up into the air. Saito and Ronin stared up at him, trying to determine what to do when both Pokémon and trainer looked into each other's eyes. A silent conversation ensued, and finally they both nodded then turned their attention back towards Aerodactyl.
"Alright, buddy! Let's finish this!" Saito ordered, barely seeing the excited and proud smile Grant beamed in his direction.
"Rock Tomb!" Grant shouted. Large boulders formed around Aerodactyl as Ronin formed as large of a Water Pulse as he could. At the same time, he could easily see that he was in worse shape than his opponent as the Rock Tomb Aerodactyl formed was much larger than his Water Pulse. Refusing to let fear cloud his judgement, Ronin reached down to tap into whatever reserves of power he had left. When those ran dry, he reached deeper still, refusing to let himself be taken down after giving his all. The Water Pulse slowly grew larger and larger, and he was so focused on it that he never noticed a faint white glow cover his body.
Before anyone could comment on what they were seeing, both attacks launched towards each other. The Water Pulse slammed into the Rock Tomb, and to their surprise managed to shatter the boulder. A fine cloud of water and dust formed around the impact, clouding Aerodactyl's vision long enough for Ronin to dash forward with another Aqua Jet. As soon as he impacted Aerodactyl, he swung his scalchop into his opponent's chest. Ronin's momentum carried them forward, sending them head over heels through the air until they crashed into what was left of the ice mound. Ice, snow, and rock flew out in all directions, and gasps of pain could be heard as rubble landed on both Pokémon before they went silent.
"Ronin!" Saito shouted in fear as a cloud of dust and snow obscured his vision. When it finally settled, he found Aerodactyl laying unconscious inside a small crater, his body limp and unresponsive. Before he could let out a small cheer, he noticed his Pokémon laying on the ground face first, surrounded by chunks of frozen rocks. To his surprise, it was not an Oshawatt. Instead, the Pokémon he saw half-buried under the rock was larger, his hips covered in a layer of dark blue fur that had a pair of scalchops attached. What used to be freckles was now large, pointed whiskers, and at the back of his head was a raised tuft of fur that almost looked like a mohawk. Already knowing what had happened, Saito pulled out his Pokédex and scanned his newly evolved Pokémon.
"Dewott, the Discipline Pokémon and the evolved form of Oshawatt," the Pokédex declared. "Dewotts are highly renowned for their disciplined and orderly personalities, which made them popular companions for ancient warriors across the world."
At the same time the Pokédex finished speaking, the referee raised both of his flags towards Saito and Grant.
"Both Aerodactyl and Dewott are unable to battle!" the referee declared, taking Ronin's unexpected evolution in stride. Part of Saito wondered if he was used to that sort of thing. "Grant is out of Pokémon while Saito still has one, meaning Saito Hiraga is the winner!"
Saito let out a broad smile and jumped into the air in victory with a loud cheer. From the stands, Louise and her Pokémon, alongside Derflinger, joined in, but as soon as Saito landed he ran out across the field towards Ronin. He carefully scooped up his Pokémon in his arms, rummaging through his pockets for medicine when he heard a pair of footsteps walk towards him.
"Here," Grant offered, holding out a potion bottle. Saito looked at him and nodded thankfully as he took it, then he carefully began to spray the medicine onto Ronin's wounds. The Dewott flinched as the medicine stung, but it did its job. His eyes began to open, slowly at first then completely wide. Saito smiled proudly then held his starter close, who at first surprised then allowed himself to smile and return the affectionate gesture. Grant watched this with a smile on his face, and only when Saito and Ronin separated did he cough to catch their attention.
"Well done, Saito," he declared, pulling out a black box containing a Cliff Badge. "I think you've earned this."
Saito nodded, then hoisted Ronin atop his shoulder and gratefully took the box from Grant's hands.
"Thank you, Grant," Saito said, a proud smile on his face. Grant nodded, then continued.
"You and your team, despite some hang ups, fought well. I can tell that the bond between you and Ronin is powerful. Is he your starter?"
"He is," Saito confirmed.
"I figured." Grant smiled wistfully and shook his head before looking into Saito's eyes. "Even if you capture a hundred Pokémon, there's nothing as special as the bond between a trainer and their starter. That bond is what allowed you to win today, Saito, and what allowed Ronin to evolve into a Dewott when you two needed it most. Keep that bond strong, and it will carry you far."
Saito nodded, then frowned. "I'll keep that in mind. Hopefully, I can work on my bond with Tanuki and Maindo."
"Tanuki, I believe, shouldn't be much an issue. Maindo, however, has me concerned," Grant said, his happy expression warping into a small frown. "I know an unruly Pokémon when I see one. Has he always been this difficult?"
"Ever since I caught him, yeah. He only seems to listen to me when there's a life or death situation. Outside of that, he does what he wants."
"I see," Grant murmured, rubbing his chin. "More than anything else, you need to find out why Maindo is doing that. I suspect that it's more than him being rebellious for the sake of it."
"All I know is that his mother died when he was young," Saito admitted.
"That might be a cause," Grant suggested. "Regardless, I recommend that you and Maindo, before your next Gym Battle, work on bridging this gap between you two. If you don't, it only going to grow wider and wider until it is too late."
Saito nodded, heeding Grant's words. The Gym Leader nodded back, then handed Saito the technical machine for Rock Tomb. He didn't bother describing it, knowing that Saito already knew what he was getting. The two trainers then walked out of the arena as the worker Pokémon came out of the crevices and holes to repair the damage, and Saito joined Louise near the lift doors.
"Congratulations, Saito!" Louise said, smiling for her friend. Saito smiled back, then both of them turned back towards Grant.
"Where will you two be going next?" Grant asked. Louise already had an answer.
"We're going to Shalour City to take on the Gym Leader there," she revealed.
"Ah, you're going to challenge Korrina!" Grant realized. "She's a tough opponent who uses Fighting-Types, but I'm certain you two can handle her. If you want my advice, take Route 10 to the north through Geosenge Town, then continue on through Route 11 and Reflection Cave. There's a lot of wild Pokémon along the way to train against, and when you get to Shalour City, take a look at the Tower of Mastery. The man who runs it, Gurkinn, can be a little harsh at times but no one else in Kalos knows more about Mega Evolution than he does. Except maybe Professor Sycamore, but don't tell him I said that."
Louise and Saito nodded, their faces blank as they remembered the last time they had an encounter with Mega Evolution. That was a harrowing experience, one that they didn't want to repeat, but at the same time they were intrigued. Despite their unique circumstances, Mega Evolution was still something they were very interested in, and if this Gurkinn knew as much about it as Grant said, it would definitely be worth it to check it out.
They bid Grant farewell and went down the lift to the ground floor, turning their Pokémon before it stopped. As they walked out, they saw a small but growing collection of would-be challengers, all eager to compete against Grant and continue their journeys. Saito and Louise smiled at the scene before moving past them and into the outside world once again. For a moment, they covered their eyes from the blinding noon sun, then the two of them adjusted and looked at each other.
"So, want to head out now or tomorrow?" Saito asked.
"Don't get me wrong, but I've been in Cyllage long enough," Louise replied, to which Saito chuckled.
"Amen to that," he said. Then, adjusting his backpack with a short bounce, he and Louise continued down the rocky road back into Cyllage. They wouldn't leave immediately; they still had to check in their Pokémon at the Pokémon Center and check out of their hotel, but once they were done, they'd set out on the phase of their journey, fully prepared to take on whatever came their way.
[~][~]
Hello, everyone! Welcome to the latest chapter of Outsiders! Special thanks to Darwin Candidate, Grendel4823, and Yuri Combat for all their help in bringing this chapter to life.
The Cyllage Arc is now officially complete, and both of our heroes have their second badges under their belts. What will happen on their way to Shalour? Stay tuned and find out.
Now, for the Q&A:
.549: Thank you, I really appreciate that. And yeah, the sandstorm was something I enjoyed doing as well. As for how Onix heard, he's a rock type and is adapted to it.
keybladelight: Yep, but unfortunately Grant's team wasn't the best for him to face off against. As for Halkegenia, we do plan on showing what his happening over there eventually.
Chronos0305: We will not be using Missingno in our story. We want to try and stay close to Pokemon canon for our story, and since Missingno is just a glitch and not actually a real Pokemon, he wouldn't fall into that category.
That's it for this time. We hope you all enjoy and let us know what you all think! See you next time!
