章 46: 55,56
"How about... Watt?"
A considering look, and a head shake.
"Come on!" Max said, with a sigh. "Watt was cool. James Watt invented the steam engine, he developed the concept of measurable power, and the Watt is a unit of power – as in electrical power."
Electrike cocked his head, then shook it.
I think that's a no, Kris vocalized.
"Fine." Max scrunched up the paper, and threw it at the bin. It missed, and there was a little crackle of sparks as Electrike pounced on it and brought it back over.
Smiling, the little Electric-type deposited the paper at Max's feet. "Got it! Let's do this instead of a name!"
Max glanced at Kris, who dutifully supplied a translation on her main screen.
"Sorry, boy," he said, shaking his head. "I want to get this sorted out now."
"Awww..."
"Right," Max said, looking at the next sheet. "Hey, what about Volta?"
Noticing Electrike's frown, he elaborated. "Not Volt, Volta. Alessandro Volta invented the battery, after studying the cheek pouches of a Pikachu."
Electrike did not seem particularly impressed.
"Ah well. Coulomb?"
Another no.
"Not even going to give it a think?" Max asked. "Coulomb developed the definition of electro... electrostatic force."
"What's electrostatic force?" Electrike asked.
"It's kind of... you know, when your fur all stands on end?" Max tried, reading the translation off again. "When you're charged up. That's electrostatic. It's why your fur needs to be kept nice and even, because that way you can charge up more electricity at once."
Electrike nodded, slowly. "I don't think I like that name, though."
"Come on..." Max wheedled. "We've already done ten... what about Amp? Ampere was really important in working out how electricity works."
Electrike yawned. "I'm bored. Can we go for a walk?"
Max shrugged. "Guess so. I'm nearly out of ideas anyway..."
He got up off his bed, pulled his jacket on, and picked up Electrike's Pokéball.
That still surprised him, sometimes – that he had a Pokémon.
And, at the same time, he couldn't wait until Ash was done with the Silver Conference. He wanted to meet his other friends, and see if they wanted to travel with him.
"Okay, Electrike..." Max called. "Ready?"
Electrike nodded, jumping back and forth.
Max threw the stick. "Fetch!"
The Electric-type coiled up for a moment, and launched himself forwards. Eyes on the stick as it fell, he picked it up a moment after it landed and came running back over.
"Right," Max nodded, patting him and taking the stick back. "Good. Now – catch!"
Electrike jumped, a faint bzzzrt coming from his rear legs as he pushed off from the ground, and his jaws snapped closed on the length of wood.
Which promptly broke.
The slightly startled canine landed, looked at the bits, then spat the remainder out. "Pfah! Whoops... sorry..."
"It's fine!" Max reassured him, crouching down. "Really. I guess we just used that one a bit too much... is there another one?"
"Uh..."
"Wait, here's one," Max added, finding one within arm's reach. "...huh, this looks like it was broken deliberately."
Electrike cocked his head on one side, sniffing it, then shrugged.
"No idea-"
There was a bright flash of green light from a little way into the forest, and several more sticks came raining down.
"...I guess we know where they came from," Max said. He reached into his pocket, and took the bronze octagon of Kris' projector. "Ready?"
Stand by... ready. Set up.
Kris materialized, and Max moved cautiously forwards with Electrike just ahead of him.
There was another bright flash, this one closer. Max peered through a bush, and saw what was going on.
"Good!" May said, nodding. "Now, let's try it a bit faster!"
Blaziken stood up straight, arms by his sides.
"Go!"
On her command, the Fire-type jumped backwards. He skidded along the floor, shedding momentum as he did, and crouched with his clawed hands together by his right side.
A green light flashed into being, cradled between them, and he brought them up before making as if to fling the globe of energy towards an imagined foe.
Intense yellow-green light blasted out, hitting a tree trunk, and made it creak ominously.
"Great! You're really getting the hang of Solarbeam, Blaziken!" May said, satisfied. "That'll surprise any Water-types!"
"May?"
May turned, and blinked. "Max? What are you doing-"
"I saw the light," Max explained. "Pretty cool, Blaziken."
Blaziken stood straight again, and inclined his head in a respectful nod.
"The idea's supposed to be that we can throw it into a routine no matter which way it's moving," May told him. "It looks good, and it's useful too – especially because, if it's weaker, I'm pretty sure I can have Wartortle's water stream or even Beautifly's scales shimmer in it. Should look nice."
"I guess you have to think about that," Max nodded. "I'm mainly working on speed and jumping with Electrike, at the moment."
"Weren't you going to nickname him?" May asked, bending down to scratch Max's starter.
"I've been trying... no matter what I come up with, he just doesn't like it." Max sighed.
"Ah, I know what's been going on!" May winked at her brother. "You're overthinking it!"
"Overthinking it?" Max repeated.
"Yeah, I bet you're trying to come up with some big, meaningful nickname," May said. "And that's fine! But I'd guess he's just not all that interested in that kind of thing."
"That would explain a lot..." Frowning, Max considered Electrike. "Is that what's been going on?"
Electrike nodded, looking a bit ashamed.
"No, it's fine!" Max hastened to reassure him. "It's just... yeah, okay, I'll try and think of something simpler. Unless you've got any ideas?"
"Hmmm..." Blaziken murmured. "Arc."
Electrike hummed. "...not sure... but I like it a bit. Better than all the other boring names, anyway."
Max glanced at Kris for translation, and snorted. "Thanks..."
"Rai?" May suggested. "Or maybe something like Shocker?"
Electrike's ears perked up. "Ooh, I like that one!"
"Shocker? Really?" Max asked, blinking. "It seems kind of... generic?"
"But I'm shocking!" Electrike insisted. "I shocked you when I appeared, and I shock enemies!"
He frowned. "Or maybe Arc would be best. I don't know... can I think about it some more?"
"Guess so..." Max agreed with a nod.
"If you two are finished," May said, a little tartly. "Blaziken and I were practising."
Blaziken nodded, considering, and stood. He brushed off his hands, and walked to the centre of the clearing.
"Okay, this time let's try coming out of a spin kick," May suggested. "Oh, and try not to hit my brother, I've only got one... thank goodness."
"Hey!" Max called.
"That looks good," Tracey said, pencil flying over the paper. "Lovely... right, can you turn left a smidge?"
The shiny Entei complied, shifting his angle so the spikes on his back were differently lit.
"Lovely." Tracey frowned slightly, pencil slowing, and shaded in one of the spikes a bit more. "Right, I think that's done!"
"May I see?" the Legendary asked, and Tracey flipped the sketchbook around.
"I like it," he said after a moment. "Interesting you did my mask in colour – it does stand out."
"Well, it's one of the ways to make you distinct in sketch from your doppelgänger," Tracey agreed readily. "I mean, a lot of the colouring differences are subtle."
Entei nodded. "All three of us are a bit more subtle than most. Well, Suicune and I – Raikou is a little more striking."
"It's the lack of the purple bit," Tracey agreed. "He's the easiest to do in pencil sketch, actually..."
He stood. "Well, thanks for your time."
"The pleasure is mine, really," Entei informed him. "It's partly a case of... wanting to leave mementoes behind, for when we go off to do our duties."
Tracey nodded. "I can understand that, yeah. I mean, I don't travel much any more – keeping the mob under control is a full time job..."
"Possibly several," Entei noted, deadpan.
"Fair," Tracey agreed. "I was actually thinking of making sure I've got sketches of everyone who comes here, you know... well, and Pokémon like Umbreon and Pikachu who never seem to be here at all."
"That sounds great!"
Tracey looked up at the voice. "Oh, hi Marill. Have a nice swim?"
"I did," Marill nodded. "There's a nice group of Buizel and Floatzel offshore, I had a play around with them. They're a bit excitable, but really nice!"
"Floatzel? Really?" Tracey looked interested. "I wonder... where are they?"
Marill pointed. "Just over there."
Tracey flipped his sketchbook open again, and opened a fresh page. "Okay, the rock they're on is shaped like... that..."
As he drew, he smiled. "I know Ash is going to get a Buizel at some point, but Floatzel's one I wasn't sure I'd get a chance to draw from life."
"You like drawing a lot, I can tell," Entei murmured.
"It's relaxing," Tracey agreed. "It's kind of... well, I guess it started as a joke. You know – sketch it!"
"No, I had managed to completely miss that," the Fire-type informed him sardonically. "Really? A joke? Perish the thought."
A smile tugged at Tracey's lips. "Yeah, yeah. But... I don't know, it just seems like it's possible to really connect with a Pokémon when you draw them. The best pieces of art aren't like photos – art, like a painting or a sketch, shows the essence of the subject."
He frowned a little, erased a line and started to redraw the Floatzel's tails. "And... yeah, I kind of go back and forth between drawing and studying Pokémon anatomy, but drawing's the thing I love the most."
Entei looked closer at the drawing taking shape. "You've put an interesting expression on his face."
"Her,"Tracey informed Entei casually, shading the arm-fins.
"...okay, how did you tell that exactly? We've not seen the back."
The artist shrugged. "Couldn't tell you, but she is. It's the kind of thing I'm talking about – you get to know the tiny little differences."
"I'll take your word for it."
Finishing his rough sketch, Tracey drew in the ripples of the sea state and closed the book again. "I'll tighten that up later. What's the time..."
He glanced at his watch, and blinked. "Whoa, we took longer than I was expecting."
"Sorry I'm a bit late back, Professor," Tracey said, as he came through the door to the main building.
"Eh?" Oak looked up. "Oh, don't worry about it, Tracey. Most of Ash's team is resting at the moment – the battle in Altomare was quite tiring, as I understand it. Have you seen this?"
He passed a magazine over to the confused Tracey.
"No, actually..." Tracey admitted, taking it. "What's... wait a minute. Isn't this the stuff Gary's been working on?"
His eyes flicked to the title, and widened. "This is Pokémon journal?"
Professor Oak sat back, blinking at his eyes. "I... I'm so proud..."
"Gary got published in-"
"Even counting the time travel, he's so young it's really impressive," the Professor continued. "Back before... well, before Ash straightened him out – I suppose I can say that – I was a little bit worried, but since then... I'm very impressed with him, I really am."
Tracey smiled. "I guess that's a great reason to be proud. Have you told him?"
"Oh, I have," Oak said. "I think he was a bit embarrassed, but I'm sure he was happy for it."
He shrugged. "I'm not sure when I'm going to tell him what Ash said about Mega Latias and Mega Latios, though."
"What's – oh, right, the bit about them looking basically identical." Tracey shrugged. "Whenever you want, I guess. It's not like Latias and Latios look all that different."
"A fair point, Tracey, a fair point." Oak made to continue, but there was a knock on the door.
"I'll get that," Tracey volunteered.
He opened it, and was greeted by Molly and her Eevee.
"Oh, good afternoon, Molly!" he said, smiling. "I guess you're coming around for your usual lesson?"
"Yep!" Molly nodded. "What's today?"
Tracey frowned. "Let's see... I think it was Water-types. Does that sound right?"
Eevee turned into a Vaporeon, tail wagging, and Molly nodded. "That sounds about right!"
"Let's head over, then – I'll go pick up Marill from wherever she's gone, and then we can see how Ash's Squirtle and Gary's Poliwrath and Cloyster are doing."
Another nod. "That sounds good. Thanks, Mr. Sketchit!"
"...so the important thing for just about all Water-types is to pay attention to how hydrated they are," Tracey said, playing the hose over Cloyster. "Most of them can do alright out of the water – though some like Finneon and Goldeen do need to stay wet all the time – but they do need to keep damp."
Molly absorbed the information. "And Squirtle?"
"He has his own rules," Tracey sighed. "Anyway. Most Water-types can keep themselves a bit wet, but they can end up dehydrated if they rely on themselves for too long."
Vaporeon briefly dissolved into a puddle, then reformed with a giggle and flirted her tail. "I don't!"
"I think you might, you've just never been a Vaporeon for long enough that it matters," Tracey replied. "Oh, the other thing is that Pokéballs keep the Pokémon in the same condition as they went in, for this. So a Pokémon won't dry out in the Pokéball."
"I see," Molly frowned. "And I guess that's for hot or cold weather, too? So... a Pokémon which didn't like being hot could be in their Pokéball?"
"That's right!" Tracey nodded. "You're catching on!"
Charizard's wings beat steadily, as he climbed a little to get over the ridge and turned south for the Valley.
Not far to go now.
Of course, it wasn't as if he'd be staying particularly long. The Silver Conference was only a week or two away, and he'd most certainly be participating – the question was how much.
The big Fire-type had certain opinions on that. So what if Ash didn't want to flatten less experienced trainers? Surely there'd be someone worth the battle. (Preferably three and the entire Elite Four.)
An orange shape leapt from the rim of the ridge as he approached, and he followed it as it climbed steadily to meet him.
"Hail the conquering hero," Charla said with a chuckle, turning and pulling up into formation with him. "So, how was your latest trip?"
"Not bad," Charizard replied. "Sorry about the timing."
Charla nodded critically – it really hadn't been a good time, they'd been out on another of what were technically not dates when Dexter's emergency summons had come in.
If anyone asked, Charizard would deny taking it out on the Tyrantrum.
"We saw what was going on," Charla volunteered. "On the news. Well, not you except for the bit at the end, but your trainer and his friends – fighting through the horde of fossils. That looked pretty amazing."
"I was somewhere else," Charizard shrugged, waggling his wings a little and shedding speed. "Punching Tyrantrum in the face, mainly."
Charla snorted in amusement. "You know, that sounds kind of cool."
"It was..." Charizard admitted. They came over the valley wall into the Charific Valley itself, and he blinked.
Most of the Valley population was turned out to greet him. Again.
"Didn't you say I mostly wasn't on television?"
"Mostly," Charla stressed. The two flared, dropping down to land, and touched down in the middle of the Charizard.
"What did you do this time?" one asked.
"Did you use your special Blast Burn?"
"Did you do that cool transforming thing again?"
"I didn't use Blast Burn or Mega Evolve, no," Charizard said, to a couple of disappointed sighs. "But I did beat a super-powered Tyrantrum in single combat."
Most of the other Charizard contemplated fighting a super-powered Fossil Rock/Dragon type three times their mass.
"Okay, nice," one admitted.
"In a narrow city street," Charizard went on. "In under two minutes."
"Steady there, Pyroar," Charla coughed, to general laughter.
"What else happened?" one of the younger Valley members asked.
"My trainer rescued a Legendary," Charizard hinted. "Again."
"Okay, you're telling us all about this now," one of the elders decided. "Start with why the Fossil Apocalypse was happening."
"I might need to go back a bit for it to make sense..."
"Congratulations," Charla said to him, some time later once the crowd had finally dispersed. "You managed to get through all of that without mentioning the time travel thing."
Charizard sighed, relieved. "Good, I was wondering... it's hard to remember to, sometimes."
Charla nodded sympathetically. "I think I understand."
After a moment, she looked up. "Who's that?"
A middle-aged Charizard approached, a little hesitantly. "Sorry to be a bother – what did you say your trainer's name was?"
"Ash," Charizard supplied.
"Right..."
The other Charizard looked a little preoccupied, for some reason.
"What is it?" Charizard asked.
"I just... okay, there was this thing about forty years ago. I don't remember seeing a Charizard there, but... seeing that boy and his team on TV just then..."
A deep breath. "Have you heard of Celebi?"
"Pardon?" Charla said, a little thrown by the topic switch.
"...wait. Was your original trainer Professor Oak?" Charizard asked. "Ash said he had a Charmeleon during the-"
"-the time jump, yes," Sammy's Charizard went on. "I've not been back to my trainer's house in years... I should go, some time. Sorry for-"
"No, it's fine-"
"Boys!" Charla said, tail blazing up slightly. "Can you stop apologizing to one another and just have a proper conversation?"
"...yes'm," Ash's Charizard said meekly.
"Hey!" Terrakion called, looking up the scree slope at his fellow Swords. "Did you guys see the news last night?"
"I'm afraid I didn't," Virizion shrugged. "I was busy – there were some Petilil who wanted me to choose who got a Sun Stone they'd found."
She shrugged."Fortunately I knew where to get two more. So that was nice."
"A very even, just approach," Cobalion complimened her. "And no, Terrakion, I didn't see it either."
"I'm gonna have to show you two this," Terrakion said firmly. "Keldeo was on it."
"He was?" Virizion asked, and Cobalion looked about as interested as she was. "Great – hold on a moment."
She stepped forwards, controlled her skid down the scree slope as fragments of hard shale avalanched to the bottom around her, and stepped off next to her comrade. "What was he doing?"
"You know that Ash kid?" Terrakion asked. "The one who helped Keldeo? Well, he was riding Keldeo to the rescue. Literally."
"I'm surprised Keldeo would be alright with that," Cobalion admitted, halting himself next to the others. "It sounds a little... well, I'm surprised."
"Lighten up, Cobalion!" Terrakion chuckled. "Keldeo was fine with it – hey, I'd be fine with it if it was someone I respected! And it looked pretty cool."
He shook his head. "Anyway, they saved a Latias and a city full of people and Pokémon, that's what I can tell. And there was a huge fight against loads of Fossils."
Virizion nodded. "He is doing us all proud, then. A Sword of Justice, pure and true."
"Indeed," Cobalion agreed. "Perhaps we should ask about it in the next letter?"
"That does sound a good idea," Virizion smiled. "We can tell him about that unpleasantness with the Klinklang."
"Do we have to?" Terrakion asked, ruefully. "I hate Metal Burst..."
Lance walked, slowly, to the end of his office.
He turned, and walked slowly back.
Glancing up, he saw Dragonite looking at him.
"What?"
Dragonite shrugged.
"I'm not worried, of course I'm not," Lance said, then shook his head. "Okay, maybe a bit. We saw the news, but... what happened in Altomare? What went wrong?"
The Dragon-type shook his head, raising his arms.
Lance glanced up, then returned to his pacing. "Okay, I get your point... but still. We should have had someone there in time."
Dragonite had barely begun to speak before Lance interrupted him. "I know! We're stretched thin as it is... I can't ask more of my riders. This is why I'm so glad Lorelei agreed to help run patrols..."
He frowned. "Actually, we should consider... hm. Perhaps-"
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in!" Lance called, and the door clicked open.
A young woman in thick riding clothes came through. "Sir? I've got the report."
"Ah, good," Lance smiled. "I was wondering... let's hear it."
"Right." The dragonrider took off her overcoat, and wiped her brow. "Hotter here than it is at altitude... right. You were right, that was the Indigo Champion from last year leading the charge – and his companions were Brock of Pewter and Misty of Cerulean."
She paused for a moment on seeing Lance's interest. "Sir? Any questions?"
"Not for now, Lola," Lance told her. "Keep going."
"Right." Lola nodded. "It took a while, but I managed to get some information beyond what was on the news. First off – Raikou was confirmed to be in the city, alongside Entei and Suicune."
"So, he's got all three..." Lance nodded to himself. "Very impressive. Well, that's good to know. Let's remain on the topic of Mr. Ketchum for now."
"Yes, sir." Lola frowned. "Well, it seems a lot like he had all his Pokémon in the city – I counted well over a dozen, and I could match his entire Indigo team to observed sightings."
"Right," Lance said. "It sounds a lot like we were lucky they were there."
Lola nodded. She took her riding gloves off, putting them on the chair on top of her overcoat. "We don't know much about what happened in the museum, but the place was a wreck. The DMA was clearly missing some parts, there was one window gone and a giant melted hole in the floor – we don't know what did that."
"Right." Lance frowned. "Did you see the Eon Pokémon?"
"I'm afraid not," Lola said, shaking her head. "I did hear that they were seen coming out of the museum with Mr. Ketchum, though."
"I see..."
After a moment, the Grand Champion sat down and tapped his fingers on the table. "You mentioned the Beasts. Can you confirm what they were doing?"
"Roaming the streets, along with a lot of other Pokémon, and knocking out Fossils wherever the two groups intersected." Lola shrugged. "The streets are a bit of a mess, battle scars everywhere, but the museum plaza where that big battle took place is the worst."
She switched topics. "There was a confirmed Mega-Evolution out in the open – Mega Gyarados – but fortunately Pokémon journal broke the silence before then so it's not too much of an issue...?"
Lance nodded a confirmation of her interpolation. "That was fully approved, we had news that Rocket agents had gained access to a Mega Stone and Key Stone combination, so it was hardly giving much away... right, my other question. The Moltres?"
"Several people said the Moltres was working with people wearing Rocket uniforms," Lola told him. "I'm not sure why-"
"No, it does make a kind of sense," Lance sighed. "Especially if this was some kind of rogue Rocket operation, whoever's in charge would want to make it clear they were rogue – and what better way than sending a team with a Legendary? It's excellent PR for them, actually..."
He shrugged. "Well, never mind that. Perhaps... no, that's for later. Thank you for your time, rider Lola."
After she left, he drummed his fingers on the table.
"It keeps coming back to Ash, doesn't it..." he mused. "Gringey City. New Island. Shamouti. Greenfield, Arborville, the Whirl Islands, the Lake of Rage... and now Altomare."
He glanced over at Dragonite, reading his expression. "I know, but it's a heck of a string of coincidences. I think... hmmm."
Lance reached out, and picked up the phone. He dialled a number, waited a minute, then smiled. "Ah, Lorelei! Good. I was wondering if we'd be able to hold the discussion about our candidates before the Silver Conference... I know it's short notice, but I've got an item to add to the agenda... oh, and someone extra to invite."
There was a pause.
"How would you feel about going out with a bang?"
"Hey, doc!" Akiyama called, banging on the door. "Doc!"
"He'll notice eventually," his friend Noguchi sighed. "You should know what he's like by now."
"Yeah, but Fraxure and I are getting cold out here. Open up, doc!"
Katou rolled her eyes. "You'd think we'd never done this before."
"I'm sure he's doing something worthwhile," Tachikawa volunteered. "Or he'd better be, at any rate."
"I'm not so sure..." Akiyama muttered. He made to bang on the door again, and it opened. "Whoa!"
His Fraxure picked him up and set him back down on his feet.
"Thanks..." the young trainer said, wincing. "What was that for, doc?"
"What was what for?" Doctor Akihabara asked, frowning. "I heard you knocking, I opened the door..."
"We've been out here for twenty minutes," Tachikawa said, tapping her foot. "In the wind. My hair looks-"
"It's fine," the eccentric genius waved her off. "I was working on the Up-Grade project. I'm nearly there!"
"You've been nearly there since you formed our team," Akiyama muttered. "Okay, what's it today?"
"Ah!" Akihabara raised a finger. "I hope you're ready for an urgent mission!"
"How urgent was it before you kept us outside for-" Katou began.
"No time!" Akihabara interrupted her. "Right! Through here, quickly – there was a cyber attack on Silph corporation, it's your job to go sort it out!"
Akiyama gaped for a moment longer, then sighed. "Okay, whatever. Let's get going. Guys?"
"Ahem?" Katou coughed pointedly.
"And girls. Let's get ready!" His Fraxure moved up behind him, ready to go.
Tachikawa sent her own Lilligant out, and the elegant Grass-type bowed slightly.
"We really need a bigger room, Doctor..." Noguchi sighed. "Since Rufflet evolved."
"This is the room the transfer device is in," Akihabara replied, with a shrug.
"Fine." Noguchi released Braviary, and the room got a great deal more cramped. When Katou sent out her own Pyroar, the Fire-type found himself with barely enough floor space to sit – somewhat uncomfortably.
"Ready?" Akihabara asked.
"Just get on with it!" Akiyama implored.
"Your elbow's in my face..."
"Okay!" Akihabara tapped a few controls. "It's Porygon number five this time! Off you go!"
The transfer device flashed, digitizing the quartet of trainers and sending them on their way.
Bianca leaned back on her chair, glancing between the window and the easel, and steadily applied stroke after stroke of paint.
It was a glorious May day in Altomare. A bit breezy, the white clouds scudding across the sky, and with the sun shining steadily down on the city of canals.
Rebuilding and repair work was already going on on the damage sustained the previous day, which was nice as well. No-one had been much more than bruised – amazingly – and so everyone was surprisingly optimistic for the recent site of a horde of rampaging Fossil Pokémon.
There was a squeaky sound from beside her, and Bianca glanced up. "Latios?"
Feathers shimmering, Latios decloaked and nodded. He gave another quiet, hooting call, and Bianca got the rough gist.
"Yeah, I know Ash said Latias told you to stay right next to me at all times. I guess I'm not used to it..."
She looked at the Latiosite glittering on the dresser, and swallowed – one arm reaching up to touch the Key Stone she'd gained the previous day. "I'm not much used to this, either."
Latios nodded silently.
There was some shouting outside. By the sounds of it a couple of workers had accidentally knocked a cement mixer another group was working with into the canal.
Bianca sighed, and got back to painting. "Sorry, Latios, I'm being a bit melancholy. I'll try to paint something nice and sunny..."
She paused, looking at what she'd already done – mainly the skyscape – and blinked. "Wait, I've got an idea. What about if I pack this up, we head to the grotto, and then I paint you – just overhead."
Latios tilted his head, cooing a question.
"Well, I was thinking I could add Latias to it, and you'd both be on there," Bianca explained. She sighed. "I miss Latias already."
Another coo from Latios. The Dragon-type made an expansive shrug, then waved over at the window – indicating the sky.
Bianca nodded. "Yeah, I guess she is happier. I mean... yeah. I'm glad she's getting her chance."
Latios nodded.
"Do you think you're going to enjoy it?"
That produced a more uncertain shrug – she got the impression Latios just plain wasn't sure.
"I guess it does matter what it turns out to be like..." Bianca shrugged. "Well, anyway, I'll pack the easel up. Don't forget the stone."
Latios nodded, and picked it off the dresser. He concentrated, and light bent around his form to make him invisible again – as well as the stone, which seemed to have the same properties.
"Good," Bianca said, bundling up her paints. "Okay, let's get going. Hey, maybe we could try out that transformation, too, I could paint that..."
56
"Ah, I love this part of the trip," Ash said, breathing in the sea air.
"The bits where we're by a beach?" Misty asked.
"No, not that-"
"The bits where we've just saved the world?" Brock suggested.
"Well, kind of, but I mean..." Ash shook his head. "Where it's not long to go until the League. I mean, I love arriving in a new region, and going out to battle a gym, and meeting new friends... about the only bit I don't like is after the League, when everything seems to be leading towards leaving friends behind."
Misty frowned. "Well-"
"No, no, don't worry!" Ash hastened to say. "I know my friends are still there, and I'll make sure to stay in touch. It's just... one of those things."
He shrugged. "Sorry. Okay, where now... back to New Bark, right?"
"I think so," Brock agreed. "We're a bit ahead of schedule, though."
Ash nodded. "Well, I guess we should sort one thing out..."
He took an unusual red Pokéball from his belt, and opened it.
"How was that?" he asked, looking Latias over carefully. She'd been in the 'ball since they left Altomare – it had taken Ash a while to find a good one to use, but one of the marts had been doing a special on gorgeously-coloured Cherish Balls and he'd bought two.
Latios' one was blue – he hadn't been able to resist how closely the colours matched their feathers.
Latias shook her head, a little dizzy. "Is it like that every time?"
"Yes," Pikachu said firmly.
"Don't listen to Pikachu," Ash advised the Dragon-type. "He just really dislikes Pokéballs generally. Everyone else says it's fine once you're used to it."
"Not convinced..." Pikachu muttered.
"Right. I'll take your word for it," Latias decided.
She looked around, brightening. "Apart from that – this is lovely! Very different to Altomare – even the sea breeze, I've never felt this much breeze in the grotto!"
"No, I suppose you wouldn't," Brock mused. "The buildings would be in the way."
Latias nodded, then floated a little way into the air. She bent her wings back, then shot off – looping, whirling, spiralling in the sky. Exulting in being able to fly free – and openly.
Ash and his friends watched, shading their eyes occasionally when Latias flew in front of the sun.
After several minutes, reluctantly, Latias floated back down to the humans. "I suppose we have to do the boring bit now," she said, sighing.
"Oh, you'd be surprised. Boring is not the word..." Pikachu told her.
"Really?" she asked, surprised.
"I try to..." Ash paused. "Actually, maybe you could see how I do it with the others first. I do need to work out training for Raikou and Mawile. It's been a bit hectic the last couple of days."
"Looking for me," Latias nodded, deflating a bit.
"It's not your fault!" Ash hastened to reassure her. "Really, it's not – you staying undercover was the most sensible thing to do."
The Eon Pokémon absorbed that, but didn't look convinced.
Ash sent out Raikou first. "Okay, Raikou – you already heard from Suicune and Entei what I said to them. If you've got some reason to leave urgently, leave and let me know later."
He looked up at the hovering Latias. "That goes for you, too, Latias. If you need to head back to Altomare, the only reason I'd stop you is if I knew it was dangerous to go – and if it was, only so I could come with you to help."
"Thank you, Ash," she said, nodding.
"Oh, don't worry!" Raikou chuckled. "I'll be sure to do what I can to keep everything above board. Now, can we get onto the training schedule?"
He emitted a crackling rumble-purr. "I've already been waiting long enough..."
Ash shook his head. "Alright, I get it... okay. The obvious one's Volt Crash, you've been after that one for months. But!" he added, seeing Raikou's expression. "Not just that. There's other things I'd like to see you learn too – the counter shield, for one, you've got a good element for it."
Raikou nodded, considering that. "Go on..."
"How are your coverage moves?" Ash went on. "Do you have something for dragons?"
"Now you mention it... hm, Ice fang?" Raikou mused. "Questions, questions..."
"And the other one is Shock Wave. Pikachu knows... what? Twenty? Thirty?"
"Thirty-four," Pikachu supplied.
"-different kinds of Shock Wave," Ash picked the explanation back up. "None of them are perfect, but they mean he's got a lot of different options to get past a Pokémon's ability to dodge."
Raikou frowned. "Hm. I see."
"But I guess Volt Crash should be first. Pikachu, do you mind starting that?" Ash requested, and got a nod. "Good."
He glanced up at Latias. "Any thoughts so far?"
"I... think so," Latias said slowly. "You're trying to work on the areas the Pokémon's weak?"
"Not just that," Ash told her. "I'm also trying to use their strengths. You notice half of what I gave him was Electric-type?"
She nodded.
"That's because of how powerful Raikou's electricity is. It's usually going to be a good option for him, so long as he's got other ones for enemies strong against it."
Latias took that in, thinking.
I already told you, I don't want to learn to swim.
"Though an explanation was kind of obviously absent..." Misty muttered, then shrugged. "Okay, whatever. Let's look at the other stuff first. What Golduck are known for."
She frowned, tapping her foot. "Well, firstly, Golduck are often mistaken for Kappa."
"What's a Kappa?" Togekiss asked.
"...actually, I don't know," Misty admitted. "Any ideas?"
Golduck shrugged. Is it Unovan?
"I don't think so," his trainer frowned. "Hmmm... no, I can't think of what it might be..."
She shrugged. "Oh well. Anyway, that's not the only thing. You're also a more powerful telepath and telekinetic – as if you hadn't noticed."
Yes, it is a bit obvious. Golduck shrugged. It's a lot like my headache boost, but it's not painful and always on. Very peculiar.
"It'll be interesting getting used to you not having to use the headache," Misty admitted.
It'll be much more pleasant on this end, I assure you... anything else?"
"Yes," Misty said, sounding positively gleeful. "The most widely reported thing about Golduck is that it's one of the fastest swimmers of all Pokémon."
Really? Golduck blinked. What about... you know. Sharpedo. Or Buizel.
"Nope, it's you," she repeated. "Golduck, you seriously do need to learn to swim sometime – having a Water-type who can't is just getting ridiculous."
I beg to differ! Golduck pointed over at Ash, now talking with Mawile. I've never seen Suicune go swimming.
"That doesn't mean she can't, it just means running on the water is easier for her," Misty sighed. "Okay, we'll leave that for now... the other thing is that that forehead gem of yours is quite a good focus."
I think I've heard of what you mean.
"Yeah, I've seen Golduck using moves like Hyper Beam, Signal Beam, Focus Blast or even electrical attacks from it – as well as it being a good amplifier for psychic powers." Tapping her foot, Misty clicked her fingers. "And that means you're good for handling Grass-types, especially ones who have a good counter to Ice Beam."
Huh. Golduck looked interested. That is interesting. So I could be the-
Starmie picked him up with Psychic. Startled, he was slow to react, and the Psychic-type dropped him unceremoniously in the water.
What the heck!? Golduck snapped, flailing. What was that for?
"Sorry!" Misty said, not sounding very sorry. "But you're in about two feet of water, you know, you could just stand up."
...I knew that, Golduck muttered unconvincingly. He stood up, shaking the water off, and shuddered. Ghastly stuff. Why do people swim, again?
"It's fun, as you'd know if you gave it more than about three seconds before panicking," Misty informed him. "Fun, relaxing, a good way to get fit, and... okay, you know what?"
What? Golduck asked, worried.
"I'm going to ask Dexter if your species can breathe underwater. After I get the result, either I'm going to see about getting you a rebreather or just get Corsola to open your Pokéball at the bottom of a suitable lake..."
A scuba tank would help... the Water-type admitted. But I'm just... okay. He took a deep breath.
I'll give it a go, Misty. I might be no good, but I'll at least try.
Misty smiled, sighing. "Thanks, Golduck."
I can't promise I'll be able to do it without floats, though...
"Okay, Mawile," Ash said, sitting on the crisp grass to put himself more on Mawile's level. "I was wondering – do you want to take part in battles?"
Mawile frowned, one hand going to her chin as she thought. "Would it be hard?" she asked.
"Well, it really depends," Ash told her. "Some opponents are a lot tougher than others, you see – if we're facing a really tough opponent, even Pikachu finds it hard."
The Steel-type considered that, then nodded. "Okay, I see."
She pursed her lips, moving one foot in a small circle. "I think – yes," she decided, seriously. "I'd like to do something fun, and if everyone else thinks it's fun then I should do it!"
"Makes sense to me," Ash said with a grin. "Okay, you already know Ice Fang and Iron Head... oh, I'll just explain a bit about battling," he decided. "First off, most Pokémon use mainly moves in battle – like your Ice Fang, that's a move."
"Right."Mawile nodded, still serious, then giggled and chomped her horn-jaws together with a faint crash of ice. "That always feels funny!"
Her trainer smiled too. "Right. Moves have Types, and so do Pokémon – so Ice Fang is Ice type, and you're Steel and Fairy type."
"Does that mean it's wrong for me to use it?" Mawile asked, concerned.
"No, it's fine!" Ash assured her. "It's just that it won't be quite as powerful as if an Ice-type Pokémon used it, they have better control and power when using Ice."
The young Pokémon absorbed that. "Does that mean I'm better at... uh... Steel and Fairy attacks?"
"That's right!" Ash nodded. "You're catching on fast."
Mawile beamed.
"One of the important things in a fight is to make sure you're in the right place – that matters more for Pokémon like you, who have close-ranged attacks a lot. You have to make sure you can attack your opponent and avoid being hit yourself."
"Can I ask a question?" Latias asked.
"Sure," Ash nodded.
"Uh – am I more one of those or one of the other kind?"
"I fought a Latios once, up in Sinnoh – I've no idea where the trainer got him," Ash began. "He was good at both... I've got some ideas. But for Pokémon who use ranged attacks, they have to try to avoid being somewhere their opponent can hit."
"So they kind of have to dodge?" Mawile asked, nodding seriously. "I see!"
"That's it exactly!" Ash told her, smiling. "So – we can probably leave working on moves for a bit. First I'd like you to get a bit of practice at moving – it'll get you fit, as well."
He reached to his belt. "Totodile?"
"Yes?" Totodile asked, jumping from foot to foot. "Oh, I know what's coming! It's going to be a game!"
"That's right," Ash nodded. "Okay, Mawile – I think you've met Totodile?"
"Yep!" Mawile nodded. "I've met mister Totodile! He's funny!"
"I'm funny?" Totodile beamed. "That's nice of you!"
Latias couldn't restrain a happy giggle.
Ash glanced up at her, then back to the two smaller Pokémon. "Okay, Totodile, here's what I want you to do. You and Mawile are going to be playing tag – but you're allowed to keep her away with your water blasts. Go easy on her at first and don't use too much water. Got that?"
"I got that!" Totodile assured him.
"I'm it!" Mawile announced. "When do we go?"
"Three, two, one... now!" Ash counted down, and the two Pokémon jumped into action.
Water went everywhere.
"Okay, so – first, can you sustain a single layer of electricity across your whole body?" Pikachu asked.
Raikou shrugged, rolling his body back and forth. "That's easy!"
Putting action to words, electricity snapped between his fangs before spreading in a great crackling curtain across the whole of his body – from mask to mane to jagged tail.
"What now?" he demanded, prancing back and forth. "It can't be much effort, you-"
"Don't finish that sentence," Pikachu warned. "Anyway. Can you collapse that layer down to a single ring?"
Raikou blinked. "You what?"
Pikachu demonstrated, forming a crackling layer of electricity before drawing it together into a single ring. "It's important because of the resultant magnetic fields – they're much stronger, and that in turn amplifies what we're going to do next with it."
"...right." Raikou frowned, concentrating, and the curtain of electricity surrounding him quivered – then it shot off and blew a divot out of the grass.
"Whoops!" he said, wincing. "This is a lot more bothersome than I was expecting..."
"Good luck, you're going to need three of those at once," Pikachu advised him. "This wasn't exactly easy."
"Three of-" Raikou's question choked off into spluttering. "HOW many?"
"Three," Pikachu repeated.
"Can't I do it with two?"
"Impossible, sorry," Pikachu assured him, not sounding very sorry. "The whole idea is that independently rotating and crossing the three rings ties the magnetic eddies up in knots, and if there's only two then when the rings cross there's two routes for the blast to discharge straight off – the third ring's needed to make sure it doesn't fire until it's ready."
Raikou stared.
"Ash and I sat down with Dexter, a copy of Maxwell's equations, and a nice colourful visualization package," Pikachu added. "Ash is surprisingly good at understanding things explained to him with colourful visualizations."
"...right," Raikou muttered. "That's me told, all right..."
He sat back, and started to try to create an electric ring again.
Pikachu? Dexter asked. Do you have a moment?
"Sure, I think Raikou's occupied for now. What is it?"
I was going back over my records. You electrocuted that Excadrill several times in Altomare.
"So?" Pikachu asked. "That happens occasionally, right?"
Very occasionally. From you, and you alone.
Pikachu blinked. "...I wasn't... but... how?"
I see you take my point. Dexter's form briefly shattered, before reforming itself from vectors. It's not something about the Electric type, at least as far as I can tell... Trace.
Dexter's highlights changed, becoming yellow-tinted. Hm, no, that's not it... that's Lightningrod.
"You think it might be an Ability?" Pikachu asked, as behind him Raikou started cursing overly delicate techniques. "I've never... wait, there is that one that Pokémon like Miltank have, isn't there? Scrappy?"
Exactly, Dexter agreed, highlights going back to the initial colour. Trace.
This time the highlighting was slightly different, a bit more orange and less yellow. I think this is Static.
"Should I get someone to test it?"
No, I'm pretty sure... hm. Ash does have Donphan, though – can you get him? I think we might need to look into this more.
Pikachu nodded, and headed over to his trainer. Halfway there, he got hit by a wet slap of water from Totodile, who apologized hastily before jumping out of the way of a giggling Mawile.
"Right," Ash said, frowning. "I'm afraid there is quite a lot to work on, for you."
Latias nodded slowly. "I guess there would be – I've never really had formal training."
"Formal training's boring," Ash shrugged. "Training as a whole, though... okay, let's start with what you already know."
"I've used... well, I have... a couple of Psychic attacks. I know Dragon Pulse, too, but I'm not very good at it, and I can do Safeguard."
Ash waited a moment, then grinned. "That's not all you know – you can go invisible and disguise yourself, as well as fly. Those are just as useful."
"Oh, right." Latias blushed. "Sorry, I'm not used to thinking of those as... okay."
"It's fine, this is the kind of stuff everyone has to learn," Ash assured her. "Okay, so you know how to tackle, how to..."
He frowned for a moment.
"First, there's attacks with your two Types. I think it would help if you learned Psychic, if you don't already have it-"
"I don't," Latias informed him.
"Right." Ash nodded. "That's a good one... so is Dragonbreath, that can be quite good for a counter shield because you could use your Psychic to shape it as a shield."
Seeing her bafflement, he elaborated. "Counter shield is a trick I worked out in Sinnoh, last time. It's not easy, but it basically uses an attack for a combined defence and offence – forming a shield of the attack, so that it can be used to counterattack."
"Oh, I get it," Latias squeaked. "That sounds neat."
"Thanks," Ash chuckled. "Okay, the other thing I was thinking of, move-wise, was things like Light Screen – the Latios I fought up in Sinnoh did that."
Latias nodded. "Right. That would be helpful – Safeguard isn't always enough, I – yeah."
Ash shrugged. "It certainly worked on me... without that, Pikachu would probably have knocked him out earlier, though I've no idea what the rest of Tobias' team must have looked like. With a Latios and a Darkrai..." he shook his head.
Latias giggled, glancing over at Raikou trying to do something Electric-type and failing. "You're one to talk..."
"Good point," Ash admitted. "I'm going to try not to use Legendaries much in the Silver Conference, though."
Another nod. "What else was there?"
"Staying on moves for now... you need to be able to handle Dark, Fairy, Bug, Ice, Ghost and Dragon types. Your Dragon Pulse is good against Dragons, but you need something for the rest..."
Ash thought for a bit. "Okay, there's a few moves I think would work to help you out. There's Shadow Ball, I know that one and I think I can teach you... Pidgeot and Quilava are just two of the Pokémon I have who know Aerial Ace, you're a natural for it with how fast and manoeuvrable you are-"
"Thanks!" Latias said, beaming, and prompted a chuckle.
"It's only the truth," Ash assured her. "Right, on top of those there's also Steel Wing – that's good for handling Ice-types and Fairy-types – and I think you could learn Aura Sphere as well, which is a good move to use while invisible because it can be made to home in."
Latias looked a bit lost. "That's a lot of moves to learn..."
"I'm keeping track, don't worry."
Ash was about to continue when a slightly wet Pikachu came over. "Ash?"
"What is it, Pikachu?" Ash asked, glancing down at the bedraggled Electric-type. "Did you get in the way of Totodile and Mawile practicing?"
"Gotcha!" Mawile announced, managing to touch Totodile's tail. "Now you're it! Come and get me!"
Totodile frowned, then used Aqua Jet to shoot after Mawile. She jumped to the side, giggling, and he hit the ground with a splash of mud.
"Yes, I did," Pikachu reported. "But that's not the important bit. The important bit is-"
The next words were drowned out by a loud shout of triumph. "HA!" Raikou announced. "Done it! Now-"
There was a BANG.
"Don't make the second ring on top of the first, especially not going the other way!" Pikachu snapped, exasperated, as Raikou blinked wide eyes and felt to make sure he still had a mane. "Honestly..."
He turned back to Ash. "Can we borrow Donphan?"
"I don't have a problem with it," Ash shrugged. "Donphan?"
Donphan emerged. "Hi, Pikachu – no, I don't have a problem either. What's it for?"
"We want to test how I keep electrocuting Ground-types," Pikachu told him.
"...can I change my mind, please?"
Once Donphan was assured they'd only be trying out low-powered electrical attacks and the two had headed back over to Raikou and Dexter, Ash resumed. "Right. I mentioned invisibility – that's a huge advantage, since your opponent has to know you're there to hit you at all. You'll have to stay out of the way, stay invisible, and keep them guessing... but there's another thing you could do, too. I saw a Pokémon do this in... uh... I think Sinnoh first."
"What's that, then?" Latias asked.
"There's these Pokémon called Zorua and Zoroark. They disguise themselves as humans, like you do, but they also disguise themselves as other Pokémon. It makes them able to pretend to be that Pokémon, at least until they make a mistake." Ash shrugged. "I think maybe if you could learn a few attacks that, say, Lucario or Pikachu know, then you'd be able to pretend to be them for a bit – and that might be really helpful."
Latias blinked. "That sounds pretty useful, yeah, but it sounds like a lot of work... and my disguise has a bit of a problem, because I can't speak."
"That's the other thing I was thinking of," Ash told her. "Other Psychic-types I've met – some of them – can use telepathy, which could fool people into thinking you're another kind of Pokémon."
Nod. "That's clever! And it would mean I can speak to Bianca, too – great idea!"
Ash pushed himself up. "Okay, let's start with-"
"Ash," Latias interrupted. "There was... something I wanted to speak to you about. I talked about it with Meganium, but..."
Ash looked worried. "What is it?"
The Dragon swallowed, taking the plunge. "I... think I might... possibly... have a sort of... crush on you," she managed, blushing gradually as she spoke until she was the same red colour as her Cherish Ball.
The boy blinked. "...does that mean it was you who gave me that sketch, last time?"
"Yes," Latias confirmed. "I kind of wish I'd done it again – oh, blast!"
She shook her head, trying to hold back tears. "It sounds so..."
"Latias."
Latias looked up at Ash, swallowing again.
"I don't know what to... right," Ash began. "I know why Meganium was probably a good choice to talk to you about it. She... never mind."
He took a deep breath. "I don't think that I'm old enough to know what to think about this. I'm... It's flattering, of course, but I don't..."
Ash gave a helpless shrug.
Latias nodded. "I see. And... yeah, I guess that's about..."
She trailed off.
"Thanks," she added, after a moment. "For helping me in general, I mean – and for handling that well."
Ash smiled, a little uncertainly. "Okay, I guess."
He snapped his fingers. "Right – let's see... oh, perhaps we can start with stealth and illusions. Noctowl, do you have the time to work on that with Latias?"
Noctowl shimmered into existence on Ash's shoulder. "Should have known you'd notice me."
"You do weigh a bit," Ash told him, as Latias blinked in surprise.
"Ash – how are you doing that? He weighs forty kilos!"
Ash shrugged, and Noctowl used the momentum to take off with a clap of his wings. "I think it's Aura or something."
Okay, so I think I've got it this time. Dexter's form shimmered and changed, unfolding into a four-petalled flower with his glowing projector in the centre. Please hold still.
"I don't like this experiment," Donphan said.
Charge Beam.
The bolt of electricity hit Donphan, and skirled off – then, as Dexter sustained it, Donphan frowned.
"That's actually starting to hurt."
Dexter ended the blast, reforming back to normal. Interesting. The voltage seemed to be part of it, but not all of it...
"Sorry?" Pikachu asked.
Charge Beam ups the voltage and current going through it as it goes on. The attack didn't work at first, but it started to affect Donphan later on.
Dexter hummed, then spoke up again.
Okay, I think I have a theory.
Graphs and plots appeared, including one marking voltage and resistance.
Firstly – the how. No insulator is perfect, just as no conductor is perfect. You're able to cause electrical breakdown, meaning that what's normally an insulator becomes able to take current – and, so, you're able to shock Ground-types.
Pikachu nodded, frowning. "Right. So that's how it's happening – but that doesn't explain everything else."
Yes, the why is the trickier question. I've checked my records, and it shows that the first time you did this you'd been overcharged by a power station.
"He was what!?" Raikou asked, blinking.
"Back to work!" Pikachu told him. "Your mane has stopped smouldering, you should be doing the next attempt!"
Muttering about rodent slavedrivers, Raikou got back to trying to produce more than one electrical ring at once.
As I said, Dexter resumed. Overcharged by a power station. That meant your voltage output was higher than normal, and you were able to reach the breakdown voltage of Geodude.
"But a lot of Pokémon have Lightningrod, and a lot of them are just more powerful than I was at the time," Pikachu said uncertainly.
That's just it. It's not Lightningrod that was the key – it's this other ability. It would seem Pikachu have three possible abilities, not two.
Dexter shattered briefly and reformed himself again. Pokémon without this ability – which lowers breakdown voltage to something attainable – will almost never get this effect, no matter how powerful they may be.
As if to punctuate that, Raikou's latest attempt exploded. This time the grass caught fire, and he stamped it out hurriedly before it spread.
"But – so that means that you'd need to be a Pikachu – or otherwise have this ability – and be really powerful, or this would never even come up."
Correct, Dexter confirmed. This must be how abilities are discovered – something just doesn't make sense.
He paused. I'm thinking we should call it Zappy.
"Call it what?" Pikachu repeated, blinking.
Zappy. Like Scrappy, but with a Z.
"That name's stupid," Pikachu stated bluntly.
A few hours later, everyone reconvened.
"How'd it go, Misty?" Ash asked.
"Oh, alright," Misty said with a shrug. "Golduck's not exactly taken to water like, uh... a Ducklett, but he's certainly better with psychic powers."
"Neat," Ash said with a nod.
"And he's actually quite good at lifting huge amounts of water into the air. I'm thinking that we could work out a way to have Kingdra or Seaking fight in a big water bubble..." Misty raised her hands. "Worth a try..."
"Sounds cool!" Brock said, sitting down. "Main thing we were doing was trying to teach Steelix how to use Aqua Tail. It could be quite useful."
"I'll say," Ash agreed. "How about you two?"
Pikachu rolled his eyes. "Well, there's been less explosions now..."
"This is much harder than I was expecting," Raikou informed them all. "Still, it's going to be worth it, by thunder!"
"I caught Totodile lots!" Mawile said, tired but happy. "He caught me lots too, though..."
"Yeah, I saw – looked like you were really starting to get the hang of it, though," Ash nodded. "And Latias – I saw how you were doing. You're definitely getting faster at vanishing, and at moving without making quite so much sound – which helps. Have you decided on a move to practice first?"
"Well, Noctowl was starting to show me Aerial Ace," Latias said, frowning. "I think we should just keep working on that, though I'll practice Dragon Pulse and Psybeam as well since I've already got those working."
"Okay, that sounds like it worked fairly well." Ash frowned. "Oh – I was going to try to make sure everyone got at least one go at the Silver Conference. Mawile, do you want to give it a to?"
"That sounds fun!" Mawile agreed with a nod. "If I'm able to, then I'll give it a go!"
"Atta girl," Ash smiled. "Now-"
Ring ring, Dexter interrupted.
"Who's calling?" Ash asked, as he picked the 'dex up and flipped his main body open.
"Ah, Ash!" Professor Elm said, appearing on the screen. "Good, I was hoping you were available. There's a Marine Pokémon Research Centre not far down the coast from Altomare – between there and New Bark Town. I understand you're near there right now, could you go and pick something up for me?"
"Sure," Ash replied quickly. "Where is it?"
"I'll send the location to your Pokédex," Elm told him. "Sorry, I'm a bit busy, I can't spare time to chat – thanks for doing this for me!"
For a moment before the call cut out, there was a voice in the background shouting.
"What was that?" Latias asked, a little startled.
The other voice said, and I quote, 'no, Typhlosion, that's flammable!'
Ash, Brock, Misty and the Pokémon exchanged glances, and decided there was probably an explanation.
"Ash, remember, that's where Larvitar's egg came from," Misty said. "That means his mother still got poached."
"Poachers?" Raikou asked, shaking his mane out. "Well, I think we all know the appropriate response to that!"
"Actually, the appropriate response depends on if Larvitar's one of the Pokémon I can remind," Ash said. "If he is, then we can sort this all out pretty quickly – and early – but otherwise it's going to mean giving him therapy first. I mean, I can do it, but we have to wait until he hatches."
The two Legendaries nodded, understanding.
"Well, let's get going!" Misty said, after a moment. "Dexter, how far is it?"
A few hours' walk.
"Let's go, then!" Ash decided, jumping to his feet.
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