Chapter 73 – Rocky Conclusion

  With Mr. Moore leading the conversation we congregated into a circle to discuss our plan for dealing with an ancient, isolated Pokémon who had good reason to hate humans.

  “I propose we capture and relocate Regirock into a more controlled environment for further study. Celadon University has multiple secure facilities suited for rock type Pokémon.”

  Dusty’s bias towards his own place of work notwithstanding, I sincerely doubted a Hoenn elite four like Mr. Moore would allow a foreign country to take possession of one of our native legendary Pokémon. His consequent reply confirmed my expectations.

  “That’s not going to happen, any solution that would put this Pokémon under the ownership of foreign forces is off the table. It’s probably for the best if we let the kids think of a proper answer.”

  “Can we keep Regirock as our travel friend?”

  ‘If there’s no other alternative. I’d rather not be put in the limelight even more than I already am. Besides, I am a fire type specialist. I haven't the first clue on how to properly take care of a rock type Pokémon.’

  Roxanne and I exchanged glances before I hesitantly put forth my own proposition.

  “Isn’t it just better to have Roxanne look after Regirock for the time being? I’d say she’s the most qualified among the four of us. If it turns out that Regirock would rather not be around any humans even after having gotten to know Roxanne better than we could have it placed in some kind of wildlife reserve like the safari zone.”

  “Noooo!”

  ‘You can make friends with Regirock all you like. Nothing is stopping you from teleporting over for playdates at Roxanne’s home. The girl and her team will be staying at Sootopolis City training to beat Juan, so we’ll have plenty of opportunities to hang out.’

  Roxanne seemed overwhelmed at the prospect of catching the legendary Pokémon herself. Knowing her she’d probably been thinking that Mr. Moore would insist on capturing the Rock Peak Pokémon himself, but I knew the man better than that. It was a well-known fact among the Lavaridge gym’s staff that he was already planning to retire from the trainer life. Moore hadn’t added any new additions to the gym’s Pokémon roster for years, focusing most of his spare time mentoring Flannery.

  “Uhmm… yes, I’d like to try making friends with Regirock.”

  Dusty seemed disappointed for not receiving the chance to study Regirock with the rest of his colleagues. Mr. Moore on the other hand seemed strangely satisfied with this outcome, his opinions on Roxanne’s capabilities as a trainer have already exceeded that of my own and her friendly relations with his granddaughter were the Cheri berry on top of the proverbial pie.

  “I see, these two have come to a decision and as a third party I have no right to interfere.”

  ‘As if! Something tells me that you’ve been angling for this exact outcome.’

  “The first step to winning the loyalty of any Pokémon is to defeat them in honorable battle. Prove your worth as a trainer to this Pokémon who has every right to be distrustful of humans.”

  “Ehh!? Can’t I just introduce myself and see where it goes?”

  “…If you prefer. Make sure to have at least one of your own Pokémon out to protect you if the exchange of introductions falls flat.”

  Heeding Mr. Moore’s advice Roxanne opted to release the ambassador of her team Probopass. The newly materialized Pokémon worriedly looking on as Roxanne inched closer and closer to the dormant legendary Pokémon. Once her dominant foot crossed the now defunct seal Regirock’s eyes started glowing bright yellow, a sign that the process of waking up had commenced.

  “Hello, my name is Roxanne. It's nice to meet you!”

  “üN üN üN üN üN!”

  ‘What’s it saying? Please also translate for Roxanne.’

  “REBOOTING… PLEASE HOLD ON.”

  “AAAOOOORRXT”

  “HUMANS RECOGNIZED, ENQUIRY: DESIGNATE STATUS.”

  “Status? Uhmm… I am a Pokémon trainer who also works at the Rustburo gym!”

  “üN üN üN üN üN!”

  “PROFESSION: TRAINER UNKNOWN. TRESPASSERS NOT ALLOWED, COMMENCE BATTLE PROTOCOL.”

  ‘Oh boy.’

  “Please listen to me! The people who have sealed you away have long passed on! This is your opportunity to decide for yourself!”

  Talking it out no longer seemed to be an option but as Regirock moved to engage, Probopass used its two remaining mini noses to move his trainer out of the way. The compass Pokémon despite not being in the best of conditions was resolved to squaring up against this potential threat to its trainer.

  “This is no time for doubt! Prove your intentions by showcasing the bond between you and your Pokémon!”

  ‘Mr. Moore being in the battle maniac group as per usual. I guess that’s the minimum for making it as an elite four. Still, he isn’t exactly wrong.’

  “Flash Cannon!”

  Probopass’s two remaining mini noses circled together and inside the empty space between them a ray of light formed jam packed with steel type energy. While all of this was happening Regirock’s amber colored face dots turned green flickering on and off like a calculator before eventually Probopass’ Flash Cannon connected hitting Regirock square in the chest. The legendary Pokémon reaction to being hit by the super effective move was minimal not even being interrupted from performing its calculations.

  ‘This must be Lock-On; the next move is sure to hit.’

  “No reaction?! Let’s push ourselves to the limit! Steel Beam!”

  Steal Beam was a suicidal move that shared many commonalities with it’s lesser cousin Flash Cannon but whereas the latter solely relied on steel type energy Steel Beam actually gathered up iron particulates in the user’s body which are then fired off together with the typed energy. This was extremely draining for steel types because they needed iron to function properly. Using this move was therefore not something one could do twice without fainting their own Pokémon.

  However, before Probopass could fire off its next move Regirock conjured up a retaliatory move of its own. Regirock lifted its stumpy armlike appendages up while pointing them in Probopass’ direction and between those arms an orange ball of energy formed which I could recognize with but a glimpse.

  ‘Focus Blast!’

  Focus Blast was notorious for its great power and horrid accuracy causing many trainers to win or lose matches. Since Lock-On was used previously this attack was sure to hit no matter what. Focus Blast was a common enough move now but in an era where technical machines were not available, I couldn’t help but wonder which fighting type took the time to teach Regirock how to perform this move.

  The orange ball of light flew off on its own as if it were a homing projectile, hitting Probopass right on the tip of his large nose. Following the large explosive aftermath, I was expecting to see Probopass knocked out on the floor. There’s no way that wouldn’t be enough to KO a Pokémon who was both a rock and steel type but contrary to my expectations after the dust had cleared Probopass while worse for wear was still holding on.

  ‘Probopass’ ability must be Sturdy. No matter how powerful the attack, Sturdy guarantees the user is left standing after the first blow.’

  “You can do it, Nosey!!”

  With its trainer’s staunch encouragement, Probopass unleashed his most powerful attack. Blinding white light illuminated the secret chamber as the Steel Beam was unleashed upon Regirock’s unmoving figure.

  This time the impact caused some serious damage, a crack had formed at the point of impact and Regirock was visibly staggering from taking on such a powerful super effective move. On the other hand, the Steel Beam had taken its toll on Probopass, the magnet Pokémon was completely spent lying prone on the bedrock floor.

  “Return! Go Golem!”

  This time Roxanne had decided to call upon a ground type a solid pick as any for facing off against a rock type like Regirock. Her golem was giving Regirock a stare down in an obvious attempt to suss out her opponent, but the legendary rock type Pokémon remained as inscrutable as ever.

  In the same manner as before Regirock’s orange face dots turned green again signaling its use of the move Lock-On. However, this time Roxanne was prepared to avoid the same outcome.

  “Dig! Hide yourself quickly!”

  ‘Smart! It’ll be hard for Regirock to lock onto Golem while it's hiding underground.’

  “AAAOOOORRXT”

  “EMPLOYING SECONDARY STRATAGEM.”

  Purple smoke started billowing off Regirock’s body while it switched to a defensive posture.

  “Is that?! What’s Regirock doing?”

  ‘Curse, when not used by a ghost type this move increases a Pokémon’s physical attributes in exchange for lowering its speed. No doubt Regirock learned this move to fend off tangible threats like Golem.’

  Not long after that Golem emerged from behind Regirock bashing the legendary Pokémon’s face in with her body weight. Which again proved to be not very effective despite Golem’s channeling of ground type energy while she did so. Regirock quickly retaliated with a move of its own, its silhouette glowing orange as the legendary Pokémon got Golem on the backswing.

  “Gooooooo!”

  ‘Superpower, coupled with Curse’s power up was strong enough to break through Golem’s defenses. I was expecting Golem to have also developed the sturdy ability, but Roxanne must have chosen to invest the effort into developing another one of Golem’s possible abilities.’

  Golem laid there completely passed out after receiving a direct hit from a powerful fighting type move.

  “Return! Go Shuckle!”

  “Shuckle?!” ‘Shuckle?!’

  What appeared in front of us was either Roxanne’s secret weapon or the start of a cruel joke. The little bug type was a highly socialized creature having quickly gained my team’s approval during their very first meeting. Shuckle got along best with Halo most likely because both of them shared a common bug typing it also helped that the Mold Pokémon held vast stores of berry juice inside its shell.

  Wild Shuckle are shy creatures who hide themselves underneath rocks or between nooks and crannies. When any predator does eventually manage to uncover them the Shuckle’s shell would keep them safe from being on the menu, and the bug types didn’t mind offering up their berry juice as a token tribute.

  Finding videos or any type of information on expert trainers using Shuckles in battles was difficult. The species as a whole had a dislike for battle, I’d only ever seen one video of an Azalea City trainer using that Pokémon in a serious competition.

  “Is Shuckle going to be okay?”

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  ‘I can’t tell, but let’s trust Roxanne’s judgement.’

  Shuckle slowly poked its head out of his shell and proceeded to give Regirock a scrutinizing look before…

  “Shuckle! Luckle?”

  “Hello there friend! Care for some berry juice?”

  ‘Diplomacy at this stage?!’ “Can I have some too?”

  “üN üN üN üN üN!”

  “REASSESING THREAT LEVEL; MINIMAL. PROCESSING REQUEST… PEACE OFFERING DEEMED ACCEPTABLE.”

  “It WORKED?! Wait, can Regirock even consume liquids?”

  Roxanne didn’t seem as baffled as the rest of us, seeing as she pulled out a cocktail shaker out of nowhere before handing over the receptacle to Shuckle who promptly filled it with the berry juice it had stored within its portable home shell. Shuckle handed the filled shaker back to Roxanne who proceeded to place a filter on top before pouring the berry juice inside a porcelain cup.

  “Regirock...uhmm here you go. Would you like something else with that? I carry with me all sorts of mineral supplements.”

  Regirock accepted the cup and used its fingerless limbs to splash the contents

  “AAAOOOORRXT”

  “HUMAN PLEASE STATE REASON FOR TRESPASSING.”

  So that’s what Roxanne did, explaining the entire process of first finding the engraved tablet followed up by breaking into the ruins and solving the puzzle which granted us access to this secret chamber. While this was happening all of us got the chance to simmer down after seeing Regirock remain placid for the entire duration of Roxanne’s story. When Roxanne got to the part of explaining the reasoning behind why the ancient humans decided to imprison Regirock we got a glimpse of the emotional being that was hiding underneath its cold calculating exterior.

  “üN üN üN üN üN!”

  “DOES NOT UNDERSTAND! FOLLOWED COMMANDS ACCURATELY.”

  I suppressed my urgent need to assuage Regirock’s insecurities regarding the ancient humans whose settlement he once guarded. Stepping in now might screw up Roxanne’s chances of making friends with the legendary Pokémon. In contrast Victini could no longer contain herself, the rabbit Pokémon did away with her concealment and floated up towards the hurt and confused Pokémon.

  “Vi!” “It wasn’t your fault!”

  “…AAUOOOOOO?”

  “Vi Vi! Vi.” “Ancient humans are all dummies who only think about survival and nothing else! Modern humans like Roxanne are kind and loving to all Pokémon.”

  Victini’s outburst was shared with all of those who were present including Roxanne. Who after hearing Victini praising her quickly turned red from embarrassment.

  “AAAOOOORT?”

  “NEED NEW OBJECTIVE: INPUT?”

  “Vi Vi Vi! Tini.” “Find a human partner who will share all his berries with you! Traveling together, making friends and experiencing all the sights of this beautiful world.”

  Regirock took an auspicious amount of time to process Victini’s feedback but eventually the seven dots on its face lit up. The legendary titan turned towards Roxanne, the first human it encountered since waking up from its ages old slumber.

  “REQUESTING COMPANIONSHIP, RETURN OFFER: PROTECTION FROM BRIGANDS AND PREDATION.”

  “Yes! But uhmm we don’t have many dangerous brigands running around these days.”

  Roxanne, eager to close the deal, pulled out a heavy ball. The sleek metallic design caught my eye immediately.

  “This is a poké ball. We humans use them to carry our Pokémon partners with us wherever we go. Would you allow me the privilege of capturing you Regirock?”

  “üN üN.”

  “AFFIRMATIVE.”

  “Go Heavy Ball!”

  Roxanne demonstrated her pitching skills accurately, letting the thrown ball fall on Regirock’s head after which the rock titan was sucked up inside. The damage dealt to Regirock during Roxanne’s battle with it wasn’t in any way extensive but coupled with Regirock’s permission she should have no trouble catching the legendary Pokémon on the first try.

  The heavy ball shuddered only a single time before confirming the capture, letting out signature noise all poké balls made following a successful capture. Once the capture was confirmed we all sighed a breath of relief, a moment of silence followed to commemorate this special moment.

  “Vi Vi!” “Do the thing!”

  “Ehh? The thing?”

  “Vi Vi!” “The special pose all trainers make when capturing a new partner! Egon does it every time we make a new friend! Like this!”

  Victini whirled around in the air before finishing off with a cutesy victory pose. She had learned much over our long period of traveling together.

  ‘That was an amazing demonstration Tini, I couldn’t be prouder of you!’

  Contrary to my enthusiasm both Dusty and Mr. Moore gave Victini a puzzled look but Roxanne seemed to get the special importance of the capture pose. Signified by her awkwardly trying to imitate Victini’s expert twirl before eventually striking the signature pose.

  “Like this?”

  “Vi! Vi!” “That’s good! Not as expertly done as mine but it’s the thought that counts!”

  It was at this moment that both Mr. Moore and Dusty felt comfortable enough to close distance and join in on the merrymaking. The Paleontologist seemed fascinated by Victini, the Pokémon we’ve kept hidden from him until now. Mr. Moore had other plans, sharing his thoughts with us after witnessing Roxanne’s efforts battling against Regirock.

  “This Regirock seemed a good deal weaker than Brandon's, undoubtedly being trapped inside this place for so long has affected its overall strength. It’s a good thing that you caught Regirock with that heavy ball. Custom ordered from Azalea Town I presume?”

  “Yes, my parents gave this to me as a going away gift for my journey.”

  “Good, since that is an artisanal foreign ball it won’t have any tracking software installed. That means you get to be the one that decides when the world learns of Regirock’s existence. Egon, it will be your responsibility to guide Roxanne on the ins and outs of keeping the Pokémon’s anonymity. Now, with the matter of Regirock having been settled we’ll need to discuss how to distribute the earnings of this venture fairly among all parties.”

  “Earnings?!”

  “Indeed, in cases such as this one the league association reserves the right to lay claim on any of the historical artifacts found within its borders. However, it will compensate the discoverers of such items with half their monetary value.”

  “Wait, that means!!!”

  “Don’t get your hopes up. By the look of that first chamber, split four ways it amounts to little more than vacation money.”

  “Four ways?!”

  “Surely, you don’t think you can call me in for every situation without giving the gym its due?”

  “No, maybe…”

  “Excuse me sir, I’d like it if Egon takes my share!”

  “If that’s what you desire.”

  “Roxanne!?”

  “The Professor’s partner found the engraved tablet, while Egon’s expertise correctly deciphered the artifact and furthermore, he even helped us get past the barrier and the ensuing cryptograph. In comparison I’ve brought nothing of worth to the team.”

  When she put things like that, I couldn’t really argue against the point she was making, and I did need the extra money. Still, I didn’t like it when Roxanne put herself down like that. She did help us by safely capturing Regirock, both my and Mr. Moore’s team consisted of only fire types. If it came down to it, I couldn’t guarantee either myself or him winning against a legendary rock type Pokémon inside its home territory.

  “Don’t put yourself down like that Roxy. In just a few short hours we’ll have to rely on your Pokémon to get where we need to go on time. Not to mention anything else that might come up while we are climbing that tower. Actually, we should probably get some sleep in, it is already way past my bedtime.”

  For a while there I thought I had screwed up by even mentioning the mirage tower in Dusty’s presence, but the old paleontologist seemed to be too engrossed by his surroundings to even pay attention to our conversation. The old man kept busy by taking pictures of the ancient wall paintings that furnished this chamber. Now that our business had concluded I figured Mr. Moore no longer had any reason to stick around but my boss seemed to have other plans.

  “You’re staying?!”

  “At least until the bozos from the league association get here. I’ve already informed my people on the inside to come and secure this place. They should be here tomorrow afternoon.”

  The following morning*

  The sound of my Xtransceiver alarm app woke us up early the next morning much to the chagrin of those who had made camp with us. To avoid the desert raging outside we all decided as a group to spend the night inside the desert ruins. Mr. Moore’s foresight to bring his own camping supplies saved all of us from the prospect of sharing our tents with the elderly man.

  I quickly moved to shut off the sound of my alarm and proceeded to open the zipper of my personal tent. None of my team members were out and about since all of them had unanimously agreed to spend the night inside their poké balls preferring that over the cold rocky floor of the desert ruin. The moment I crawled out of my tent I was greeted by the sight of Roxanne sitting all by herself eating a ration bar. The older gentlemen of our party having spent the night going over our shared loot were still tuckered out in bed despite my alarm going off.

  “Hey.”

  “Hi.”

  “…So how have you been holding up?”

  “I want to make friends with Regirock but I don’t know if…”

  “…It’s fine, isn’t it? You’ve already demonstrated your capabilities as a trainer despite Regirock probably having never met one before until now. After you and I finish up at the Mirage Tower, we’ll make a quick visit to the Lavaridge gym. There you can spend as much time as you need getting to know Regirock better.”

  It was at this moment that Roxanne’s Pokégear alerted us of an incoming call. Which she quickly answered, I didn’t need precognition to figure out that it was Birch’s lab calling her to discuss the matter of her Pokédex scanning a Regirock that wasn’t Brandon’s.

  “Hello?”

  “Roxanne! When I woke up this morning we couldn’t help but notice a certain anomaly being picked up by the Pokédex. Did you encounter the legendary Pokémon Regirock last night!?”

  I could recognize the voice of Joshua professor Birch’s assistant on the other line.

  “Uhmm… Yes?”

  ‘As I thought, she’s too strait-laced to attempt an obfuscation.’

  “Really?! It says here that the scan was made inside the desert of route 111. Please tell me all about this mystical encounter!”

  “Could we have this discussion another time? I am currently navigating through an active sandstorm.”

  “Fine… but make sure to call us back as soon as possible! The discovery of such a rare Pokémon would be tremendous for the lab’s prestige!”

  Turning off her pokégear she shoved the communication device back where it came from before attempting to continue our previous conversation.

  “I almost forgot about the fact that you are a lab sponsored trainer. Aren’t you legally obligated to tell them pretty much everything?”

  “I know… but there’s too much going on right now. I’ll tell them after we arrive at Flannery’s place.”

  An old croaky voice joined in on the conversation emanating from Mr. Moore’s closed up tent.

  “It’ll be fine, girly. By all my accounts Birch seems to be a stand-up fellow. He’ll certainly request for the chance to have Regirock be examined but that’s about it. He’ll be sure to reprimand any of his overeager lab assistants looking to make a name for themselves.”

  During my heart to heart with Roxanne another figure decided to join in disregarding conventional manners. My own workplace’s head honcho. Mr. Moore seemed to have been listening in on our conversation from the insides of his own tent. I felt a bit miffed from being interrupted again but I couldn’t help but let it slide after realizing it was a bit too much to expect that a war veteran like him would just sleep through me and Roxanne whispering.

  “Good morning, leader Moore!”

  “Just call me Grandpa Tim, as Flannery’s friend you’ve earned that right.”

  ‘What the?!’ “Can I do so as well?”

  “No! The gym’s staff workers still have to call me with the proper form of address. Like it or not I am still your supervisor.”

  “Got it Sir.”

  “Now, how come the two of you are up so early?”

  Roxanne was first to answer the old man’s query.

  “We are set to explore the infamous Mirage Tower, Egon’s initial purpose for bringing me along was to go treasure hunting.”

  “Hmm the Mirage Tower eh? Make sure to keep your wits about you at all times. Many a trainer have been looking for that damned tower to the detriment of their own health. Keep track of time and make sure to return to this base camp before the sun reaches its zenith. That’s when the association’s bozos will arrive to canvas the ruins.”

  “Sir?”

  “Yes?”

  “Dusty saw Victini the other day. Could you perhaps request him to keep silent about her? I would have done so myself, but it was way past my bedtime, and we had to get up early in the morning.”

  “I’ll talk to him about it, just don’t get your hopes up. Eggheads like him can’t help but brag about new discoveries especially so with similarly minded colleagues.”

  Near the Mirage Tower*

  We had left our base camp behind and navigated ourselves back to that same spot where we buried one of Probopass’es mini noses. Roxanne’s Pokémon being of great help as Onix provided our means of transportation while Probopass guided us to the missing part of his body with its acute senses. In almost no time at all we managed to reach our target destination just as the sun was starting to come up.

  “Woow!” “Amazing!”

  What greeted us there was a giant structure completely made out of hardened sand. It bore striking similarities with the architecture present at the relic castle. Which all but confirmed for me this structure’s unlikely origins.

  ‘Tini, can you sense any baltoy or claydol around? Only psychic and ground types like them working in tandem could produce such a work of wonder.’

  “Maybe? I don’t know. It feels like the energy that’s holding the tower together doesn’t do so with express intent.”

  After ruminating on Victini’s observation for a bit I decided that it ultimately didn’t matter if Pokémon were responsible for spawning this tower. As long as our reward for scaling this tower was still safely kept at the uppermost floor.

  “We’ll need to be fast without damaging the structural integrity of the tower. I don’t fancy myself being buried beneath all that sand if and when the tower collapses.”

  “…Egon?”

  “I can go get the items we are looking for and if it’s too dangerous, teleport outside. Flying over the quicksand and other traps would be a cinch for me!”

  ‘Well… But… Exploring a world wonder like this one is a man’s romance!’

  “I know that look. What are you and Victini talking about?”

  Roxanne growing curious as to the topic of our mental discussion poked my shoulder to have it be known that she did mind being left out.

  “Victini is confident of being able to safely extract the fossils without our help. However, I am curious as to what the insides of this place look like.”

  “That’s logical but I think I’ve got a solution!”

  https://discord.gg/9RfHV7r3f4