A/N Welcome back to Pokemon Omega Loud! Sorry for the late update, I've been recovering from an illness for the better part of the last week so things ended up getting delayed on my end. In this chapter we find out what Lincoln was doing while May battled Drew and exactly how Lynn evolved into Combusken. I hope you all enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it.
While May and Lana were having their encounter with Drew, Lincoln was in another part of Route 116 doing some intensive training with Lynn in order to prepare for his rematch against Roxanne.
Currently the white-haired teen was battling a wild Skitty, with his starter having taken almost no damage during the fight.
"Lynn use Ember to finish it!" he cried. The Torchic quickly inhaled and blew out a flurry of searing embers at the opposing Skitty, causing patches of fur to become singed as it tried to hold its ground. However it wasn't enough as the Skitty soon collapsed having been overcome by the damage it had received in battle.
'That should do it,' thought Lincoln as he pulled out a Pokeball and tossed it at his downed opponent. The ball struck the Skitty on the head and quickly sucked the Pokemon into it before locking with a click after one shake. Soon the Pokeball disappeared as it was sent to storage, where Lincoln made a note to have it sent to the Loud House as soon as possible.
The two then began to wander around the area with Lincoln keeping an eye out for any new Pokemon to add to his team. He soon added a couple Whismur and an Abra to his collection with the intention to use one of the Whismur for Wonder Trading.
As the two wandered around Lincoln kept thinking back to the battle with Roxanne, especially in regards to how Lynn was brought to a standstill with Thunder Wave.
'I really need to make a plan so that we can deal with that,' he thought. Eventually the two of them decided to take a short break by sitting on a nearby rock. Lincoln took out a bottle of water for the two of them to drink as well as an Oran Berry for Lynn to regain her strength.
While they sat, Lincoln felt a strange tickling feeling on his hand. Thinking it was just a bug, he instinctively slapped his hand without looking only to immediately feel an intense shocking pain as electricity began to course through his body. The boy shrieked in pain before falling off the rock, his hair and clothes singed and his body twitching slightly.
As he jumped to his feet he was surprised to see Lynn angrily chasing after a very small yellow spider-like bug with four small blue eyes and tiny blue feet.. Realizing that it was a Pokemon, Lincoln quickly took out his Pokedex and scanned the tiny yellow thing.
Joltik, the Attaching Pokemon, Female. Since it can't generate its own electricity, it sticks onto large-bodied Pokémon and absorbs static electricity.
"What's a Joltik doing in Hoenn!?" Lincoln cried. He knew that like his Phantump and Lana's Paras that Joltik was not native to the Hoenn region, but was most commonly found in Unova and a couple other Regions. The fact that he was encountering so many non-native species was intriguing and he quickly made a note to get in contact with Professor Birch when he next visits a Pokemon Center.
Meanwhile, Lynn was trying her best to get revenge on the Joltik on behalf of her trainer but the tiny bug-type was much faster than the little Torchic could handle. Eventually she collapsed in exhaustion while the Joltik stopped a few inches from Lynn and gave out a tiny buzz sounding giggle.
Lynn glared at the Joltik but realized that she couldn't match the bug-types speed. A mischievous grin grew on her face as she quickly blew out a small stream of embers at the Joltik, startling it and causing it to run off.
As Lincoln watched the interaction, an idea popped into his head. Checking his Pokedex he saw that the Joltik knew Thunder Wave. Thinking quickly, he took out an empty Pokeball and began to chase after the bug-type.
"Come on, Lynn!" he cried while glancing over his shoulder. "I have an idea on how to beat Roxanne!"
The Torchic was confused for a moment but immediately chased after her trainer, confident that whatever plan he had would give them an advantage against the rock-type Gym Leader.
What followed could only be described as a Looney Tunes like chase as the Joltik led them around Route 116. They crawled through mud, ran through thorn bushes, and hopped across streams of water (and occasionally slipped and fell into them).
The tiny bug-type seemed to be playing with its pursuers as it never seemed to disappear from sight and if it got too far away from them, it would seemingly stop and wait for them to catch up.
After what felt like hours, the trainer and his starter came upon a tree with small red berries growing from it. On a branch lower to the ground, the Joltik was sitting, waiting for its pursuers with two berries next to it.
As soon as it saw them, the Joltik buzzed with excitement as it gently tossed the berries down towards Lincoln and Lynn. As Lincoln caught them he recognised the berries as Cheri Berries which could heal Paralysis.
Looking up at the Joltik, Lincoln noticed it watching the two of them closely, almost as if it was waiting for something. Realizing what it wanted, Lincoln looked down at Lynn and handed her one of the Cheri berries, motioning for her to eat it. He looked back up at the Joltik and smiled as he popped the berry into his mouth, wincing slightly at the spicy taste. Lynn however chirped in happiness as she ate the spicy berry.
When he finished he thanked the Joltik for the berries, which seemed to make the Joltik happy as it jumped off the branch and landed on Lincoln's shoulder before nuzzling against his cheek. Remembering his plan from earlier, Lincoln turned to Joltik and asked it a quick question.
"Joltik?" he asked, "Do you think you could help us with our training?"
Joltik cocked its head to the side, staring at the white-haired teen for a moment before nodding its head vigorously.
-=0=-
By the time Lincoln had set everything up for his training, he and Lynn were absolutely filthy. While Joltik watched, the trainer and his Pokemon had built a life size dummy of Nosepass out of rocks and sticks.
"Okay Joltik," Lincoln said as he pointed at the dummy. "I want you to sit on top of the dummy's head and when I give you the signal I want you to try and hit Lynn with your Thunder Wave, okay?"
Joltik nodded and quickly scampered up the dummy's body before taking its place on the top of its head.
Lincoln then turned towards Lynn who was looking at the dummy with curiosity, while simultaneously giving Joltik a dirty look as she still wasn't happy about Joltik having electrocuted her trainer.
"Now then, Lynn, I want you to try to avoid Joltik's Thunder Wave as much as possible." He then pulled out a large handful of Cheri Berries. "Don't worry about getting hit, I picked loads of Cheri Berries from that tree so we can deal with the paralysis."
Lynn nodded, instantly getting what Lincoln had planned. Quickly taking her position in front of the Nosepass dummy, she gave Joltik a smug look. Joltik just cocked its head in confusion but otherwise made no reaction.
"Joltik!" cried Lincoln, "Use Thunder Wave!"
Joltik nodded and immediately began firing off bursts of electrical energy. With each blast, Lynn would attempt to dodge either by dashing off to the sides or by attempting to jump over the current. Several times the Chick Pokemon would be hit by a stray bolt of electricity at which point Lincoln would toss her a Cheri Berry in order to get back to the training.
Eventually Lynn was dodging the energy with little to no effort upon which Lincoln called for a halt to the training.
"All right, so we've got your evasiveness up, so now comes the next part."
He looked right at Lynn and gave her a confident smile.
"Lynn, this time I want you to try to hit the dummy with your best attacks, while also trying to dodge the Thunder Waves, ok? Just be sure to not hit Joltik while you do so."
Lynn nodded enthusiastically before once again taking her spot in front of the dummy.
Lincoln looked back at Joltik, who was patiently waiting for the signal to use Thunder Wave again. He gave Joltik a thumbs up and a grin which made Joltik buzz in agreement before sending out more waves of electrical energy.
Once again, Lynn began to dodge the electrical energy but was soon struggling to use her moves and dodge at the same time. It became apparent that the energy was moving too quickly, hitting her in the split second during which she was preparing to launch her attacks.
As Lincoln watched he began to think about how to help Lynn better. Soon an idea came to him and he called out to his starter.
"Lynn!" he called out, "When you use a flame attack try to charge it as you move!"
Lynn nodded and dodged just as another Thunder Wave headed towards her. While she was in mid dodge she inhaled and as soon as she cleared the attack she fired off a flurry of red-hot Embers.
Soon she was able to both dodge and attack with relative ease. At one point she decided to get up close and personal with the dummy and ran forwards to use the strongest Scratch attack she could manage.
As she ran she began to feel a strange pressure in her core that began to build and build and just as she leapt forward, twisting herself around a jolt of electricity in mid-air, her body began to glow with a blinding light.
Lincoln gasped in surprise, which quickly morphed into a feeling of extreme happiness as he watched his starter evolve. As he watched, Lynn's barely visible silhouette began to grow taller as her body lengthened. Her short stubby wings grew longer and longer as three sharp looking claws grew from the ends, becoming a pair of powerful looking arms. Her legs grew longer as well, her thighs becoming rounder and more muscled as her torso lengthened. Her neck and head grew as well, becoming less round and the feathers on her head grew longer.
When the light faded, Lynn was still in the air about to launch an attack at the training dummy, but instead of a Scratch attack, she struck out with both of her feet, one after the other, unleashing a series of strong kicks that shattered the dummy, turning it into a pile of rubble. Joltik jumped clear of the rubble, landing on Lynn's head as the fire-type let loose a crow of victory.
Lincoln was amazed, quickly taking out his Pokedex in order to scan his starter's new form.
Combusken, the Young Fowl Pokemon, Female. Combusken toughens up its legs and thighs by running through fields and mountains. This Pokémon's legs possess both speed and power, enabling it to dole out 10 kicks in one second.
Lincoln rushed forwards, embracing his Pokemon as he congratulated her on evolving. He was shocked to see that Lynn was not taller than Lana and, when she returned the embrace, was just as strong as her namesake.
"Lynn!" he happily cried, "I can't believe you evolved!"
Lynn once again crowed in happiness as Joltik buzzed excitedly from atop her head.
"Hang on one second while I rebuild the dummy, we HAVE to see how much stronger you've become!" said Lincoln
Soon the trainer and his Pokemon rebuilt the dummy, made much much easier as Lynn was not strong enough to lift large rocks with relative ease.
As they resumed their training, with Joltik once again using Thunder Wave from atop the training dummy, it became very apparent that evolving had greatly boosted Lynn's strength, stamina, and speed as she was dodging the electrical attacks and launching counter attacks much faster than before.
After destroying multiple training dummies, Lincoln called a halt on the training for the day. Both him and Lynn were confident that the next time they battled Roxanne things would end very differently.
As they sat and drank some water, Lincoln still had a grin on his face. Lynn was next to him looking at her clawed hands with a satisfied smirk on her face. Joltik was currently nestled on top of Lincoln's head buzzing contentedly as it sat.
Taking a deep breath Lincoln took Joltik off his head and addressed both Pokemon.
"I want to thank both of you." he said, "You both did your best and I can't be any prouder."
He then stood up returning Joltik to his head where it nestled into his hair once again.
"Let's go see if we can find out what May and Lana are doing."
With that Lincoln and Lynn walked off down the trail towards where they had last seen May and Lana. After just a few minutes they eventually came upon the two girls who were deep in conversation. Lincoln grew momentarily concerned when he saw that May looked slightly upset but his concern turned into a grin from the shocked looks on their faces once they noticed the boy and his newly evolved starter.
"Did you catch a new Pokemon, bro?" asked Lana.
Lincoln grinned again as he looked at the Pokemon at his side.
"Nope. This isn't a new Pokemon." he said, "Allow me to re-introduce you to Lynn the Combusken!"
With that Lynn gave a massive crow of happiness as it let loose a stream of burning flames.
Lana and May stood in stunned silence before both of them shouted out.
"WHAT!?"
Lincoln then explained what he had been doing for the past couple hours. May was ecstatic to see her friend so happy and Lana was busily gushing over Joltik which was nuzzling the blonde-girls cheek.
"I think we've all had an eventful day," said Lincoln. "Why don't we head back to the Pokemon Center and get a bite to eat?"
When his companions agreed, Lincoln gently took Joltik back and took out an empty Pokeball from his belt.
"Thank you so much for your help, Joltik." he said, "Before we go though, I was wondering if you'd like to join us?"
The bug Pokemon's small blue eyes widened in excitement as it gave an enthusiastic buzzing noise. Quickly it ran down Lincoln's arm and across his body to the hand holding the Pokeball. It quickly tapped the button in the ball's center and was immediately sucked into the ball, which clicked shut with zero issue.
Lincoln smiled and immediately let his new Pokemon out where it immediately took its place on his head, as the group smiled.
"Welcome to the team Joltik!"
-=o=-
Meanwhile in Royal Woods, the Loud family was getting ready to turn in for the night. Bounsweet was resting in Lisa's room as the young scientist was helping the Fruit Pokemon recover from Lola's 'training' regimen.
At the same time Lola was in her and Lana's room crawling into her bed as she began to cuddle with all of her stuffed animals.
"Good Night, Eunice!" she said as she gave her stuffed unicorn a kiss on the head.
"Good Night, Mr. Sprinkles!" she said as she kissed her Teddy Bear.
"Good Night, my little -" she began until she noticed that the stuffed animal she was holding looked unusually shabby compared to her other stuffed animals. Her confusion turned to fear as the 'stuffed animal' turned towards her revealing two beady eyes on its torso and a pair of long shadowy arms coming from the bottom.
Lola screamed in terror before passing out from the shock, her eyes white and foam coming from her mouth.
Moments later, the bedroom door opened and Lucy came in in her sleepwear. She looked towards her younger sister's bed where the 'stuffed animal' was sitting looking quite pleased with itself.
"There you are Mimikyu." Lucy said. "Come along now, it's time to say Good Night to the rest of the family."
Mimikyu giggled mischievously.
A/N So Lincoln has a made a new friend and come up with a battle plan to deal with Roxanne's Nosepass during their rematch. In the next Chapter May will finally compete in her first ever contest. While Lana and Lincoln support her as best as they can Lincoln will come up with a plan on how to reconnect with his estranged family.
P.S. I had originally wanted to have Team Aqua make an appearance in this chapter as the reason why Lynn evolved but I couldn't figure out a way to make it work. Hopefully I can work something up in an upcoming chapter especially once the group begins making their first water crossings as they make their way to Dewford Town and Slateport City.
Lincoln
Pokemon on Team: Lynn (Combusken (F)), Ralts(F), Wrath (Taillow (M)), Phantump(F), Dratini (M), Joltik(F)
Pokemon in Storage/Loud House: Bounsweet(F), Mimikyu(F), Zigzagoon (M), Wingull(M), Slakoth(M), Shroomish(M), Skitty(M), Abra(F),
May
Pokemon on Team: Mudkip(M), Beautifly(F), Skitty(F)
Lana
Pokemon on Team: Lizzy (Treecko (F)), Scar (Poochyena(M)), Wormy (Cascoon(F)), Nincada(M)
Pokemon in Storage/Loud House: Paras (M)