Chapter 42 – The Evolution Solution
“Egon, how do you control this thing?!”
“You don’t, just hang on tight! This isn’t a wide river by any means we’ll be there within a minute or two!”
It was obvious that these Wailmer have never ferried humans before in their life. They kept bouncing up and down. I was lucky that my grandparents bought that hippity hop for me when I was little else I’d be having the same difficulties that Flannery was experiencing. Roxanne was having no problems at all balancing on top of her Wailmer; she actually looked pretty cool while surfing on top of the Pokémon’s back.
“How come you are so good at this Roxy!?”
“I spent a lot of time playing on top of my golem, this isn’t much different from that, Flanny.”
‘They are already close enough to start calling each other by their nicknames? Maybe I should be learning how to make friends from her instead of the other way around.’
“Oh, I think I can hold on with this thing!”
“Waail!”
“That’s Wailmer’s blowhole he needs that to breathe!”
“Waaah! I am sorry!!”
Getting wet was inevitable in this sort of situation. I just hoped that we could avoid getting soaked. One dip in these turbid waters and we would have to waste time undressing, drying off and changing into new sets of clothes not to mention being at risk of developing a cold. Luckily there were no wild water type Pokémon eager to pick a fight with us. Wailmer were pretty much the strongest Pokémon to be found in this route’s river except for the rare stray gyarados.
The wailmer trio eventually beached on the other side of the river right underneath the cycling road. We stepped out on dry land, one of us more grateful than the others that our voyage on the waters of route 110 is finally over.
“Wailmer, can you and your friends stick around this side of the river for a bit? We’ll need you to ferry us back when we are done with this place.”
“Meeer…?”
“Well, I still have some figy and aspear berries. Have you ever tried one of those?”
As me and the wailmer trio tried working out another deal the oldest person in our group seemed to be vehemently against taking the wailmer for another ride across the water.
“No! I won’t survive another round of that!”
“Do you know of another solution aside from going across that river?”
“We can teleport right? I am sure that Vic…?!”
“Ssshhhhh!”
Before she made the mistake of revealing Victini’s existence to Roxanne I closed the gap between us and held my finger over her mouth. It was too late though Roxanne was eying us weirdly, but by some miracle she didn’t seem to be invested to press us on the subject.
Before leaving I paid the wailmer in advance with my final berries disappearing in their mouths. This time I made it a point to have the leader’s followers paid as well for doing such a good job. The trio of wailmer whose diet consisted mainly of microscopic organisms were very happy with the taste of juicy berries.
“Waaail!”
“Now now, this won’t take long unless somehow we run afoul of the Pokémon that have made this place their home.”
We walked inside the cave and the first thing I noted was that the insides are completely furbished. There wasn’t a trace of nature’s natural beauty to be seen. New Mauville looked to be some kind of underground residential complex, the exact inverse of a high-rise building going down instead of up. Our first obstacle was a steel fence covered with red warning signs meant to keep out trespassers. Roxanne pulled out the key she got from Wattson to unlock the gate and the three of us walked inside.
Roxanne and I started having a casual conversation as we made our way further into new Mauville.
“We are fortunate that Wattson keeps the reactor running so all the lights are still on. Do you think Pokémon like living in such an unnatural environment like this?”
“Only electric types that can live solely off of the power grid. Voltorb, magnemite and the like. If we are really lucky, we might be able to spot a rotom.”
“Rotom?”
“Ghost types that like to live inside mechanical appliances and wreak havoc. You could compare them to off brand porygon. It’s going to be a hassle to navigate through this upper floor. Do you think your Nosepass would be able to feel the general location of the reactor?”
“That’s a great idea Egon! Come on out Nosey!”
“Passss!”
Her Nosepass materialized in front of us and immediately its front facing nose adjusted itself facing away from one of the side corridors. Roxanne gave us a heads up of what was going on with her Pokémon.
“Nosepass’ nose works like a compass always facing the north pole. When in proximity to a stronger magnetic field his nose can’t directly face its source.”
“So, we just need to head in the direction where Nosepass’ nose can’t point to?”
“Yes! Just follow me and Nosey.”
Just like that we as a group braved the well-lit halls of the new Mauville underground complex. With Nosepass’ help we were quick to figure out that the reactor was on the upper floor which was great news. That meant we didn’t have to brave six stories of treacherous voltorb infested territory and possibly get crushed by falling debris from the resulting explosions. Strangely enough the first corridor we traversed was free of any wild electric type Pokémon.
“Nose!”
“Nosey says it’s inside this room.”
“The reactor rooms must be filled with all kinds of electric type Pokémon. My Camerupt is still at the Pokémon center could you…?”
“No problem! Go Golem!”
Roxanne in addition to her nosepass who was already out but incapacitated by what the magnetic fields influence called out her Golem. Having her Golem out put me at ease. Their rocky exterior are tough enough to withstand dynamite blasts. We now had a ground type on our side if things started going downhill.
The automated doors slid open, and the interior of the reactor room was revealed. There floating in the air was a group of magnemite being guarded by a single magneton. It was obvious what they were doing seeing as the group of magnet Pokémon were clamped on to the reactor’s core. While the magneton kept a watchful eye.
“Flanny, now it’s your turn to shine.”
“Eh?! Me?”
“Yes, learning how to get along with wild Pokémon is part of being a successful trainer. We just need Magneton to let Nosepass get close enough to that reactor to induce his evolution. If these were voltorb and electrode I’d try to handle this myself but magnemite and magneton aren’t known for being aggressive.”
“Uhmm okay… Roxy will you…”
Luckily Roxanne was with me on this also determined to see Flannery use her social skills on this Magneton.
“You can do it Flanny, I believe in you!”
Having lost her last exit strategy, Flannery gathered up her wits and confronted the Pokémon standing guard over its brethren.
“Uhm hi there Magneton.”
“Ton?!”
Magneton, not having spotted us before, was startled by Flannery’s unexpected approach but quickly found its measure, giving my red haired protegee a questioning gaze.
“My friend’s Pokémon needs to get close to that reactor. Can you please allow Nosepass to pass you by?”
“Ton…”
The magneton looked like he had a hard time deciding whether or not we would pose a threat to his kinsmen if allowed to get closer to their source of food.
Roxanne, being a witness to magneton’s indecision, came up with a genius plan to convince the electric type Pokémon to let Nosepass have a go at the reactor.
“Psst! Flanny try asking Magneton if he would like his body polished.”
----------------------------------------
A short while later*
“Tooon! Ton!”
“Like this Roxy?”
“Yes, circular motions.”
Somehow or another Roxanne had the insight required to notice Magneton’s body was coping with rust spots. An affliction some steel types might experience when living in areas with high amounts of humidity. Naturally it would take ages for any type of corrosion to form on a steel type’s body but eventually it would. The condition wasn’t life threatening by any means but not even a wild Pokémon could tolerate having their body cooked in rust.
“I am really impressed that you can accurately gauge Magneton’s bodily problems with just a look Roxanne. And to be carrying a steel wool sponge and vinegar solution at the same time.”
“This is nothing for someone who has been interning at the Rustburo gym and it’s only appropriate that I carry a steel type brushing kit for my dear Lairon.”
Flannery gave an affirming nod to the notion that being an intern at a gym helped you spot early onset of corrosion.
“Wait, how would that help?”
“Egon silly! Everyone knows Rustburo’s gym specializes in steel type Pokémon.”
“Really not rock types? I figured with Roxanne’s typing preference…”
“I do plan to change the gym’s specialization when I take over. It wouldn’t be that difficult to do. Even now the gym’s stables are filled with a good amount of Onix and Aron and I am sure that Wattson and Winona would love to take care of our gym trained skarmory and magnemite.”
“What about the mawile and beldum?”
All the mawile living in the gym are personally owned by their respective trainers. Those Pokémon are just too temperamental to train them any other way. The same goes for any beldum although only Mrs. Stone holds the privilege of training that particular Pokémon species. Their family is famous for training up award winning metang and metagross.
“Mrs. stone…? That must be Steven’s mother.”
“You know Steven as well? He was my upperclassman at Rustburo’s trainer school. I’ve heard he’s been preparing himself to beat this year’s Ever Grande conference and to personally challenge our reigning champion.”
‘Not if I have anything to say about it, damn rich kid.’
“Egon!”
‘What? He is one!’
“Language!”
“Sorry you are right but it’s still weird that I have to be mindful of my own thoughts.”
Flannery finally finished giving Magneton his much-needed sponge bath. The Pokémon now positively glowing and having grown comfortable with our group allowed Nosepass to touch the reactor.
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“This is it Nosey… are you ready?”
“Nose!”
The rock type Pokémon awkwardly shuffled his short and stubby legs into the direction of the reactor before giving the massive hunk of machinery a light but decisive tap with his nose. Like magic his evolution into his final form started. The glow was so bright I had to shield my eyes from the spectacle but one side glance in Roxanne’s direction told me that the girl was braving having her retinas burned just to save the picture of her Pokémon’s evolution into her memory. The light subsided and standing in the place where her Nosepass first touched the reactor stood a brand new Probopass.
“Probo!”
“You look amazing, Nosey!”
Roxanne pulled out her Pokédex to record the newest addition to her team. While her Golem walked forward to clap Probopass on the back and congratulate its teammate on achieving his new form.
Probopass, the Compass Pokémon, and the evolved form of Nosepass. Its body acts as a powerful magnet. It controls three smaller units called Mini-Noses. No further information available.
“Probopass aren’t naturally found inside Hoenn. It’s no wonder the Pokédex holds so little information about them. You’ll have better luck asking Sinnoh professors for details about the species.”
“You are right, Egon, but this is also an opportunity for me to fill my own discovery journal. Professor Birch will surely be interested to know how I managed to evolve him inside our region’s borders. This place could offer amazing opportunities to trainers wanting to evolve Pokémon who need special magnetic fields to do so.”
“Don’t forget about me and my expert Pokémon handling skills!”
Both me and Roxanne praised the older technically more mature girl, who was pining for attention and feeling left out with all our ‘sciency nerd talks’. Seeing as me and Flannery were on a tight schedule I let the girls know that it was time to get back to the wailmer pod waiting for us outside the compound.
“Let’s go back to Mauville. If we are fast enough, we can still buy some traveling supplies and make use of the center’s teleportation services.”
“Are you leaving Mauville already?”
“Yeah, I have an outstanding appointment with the Fortree City gym. They even emailed me a voucher for a one-time teleport to the city. What are you planning on doing once we get back to Mauville Roxanne?”
“I’ll be following your advice and heading on over to Sootopolis City. Catching a relicanth will surely help me earn a gym badge at the Sootopolis gym. If I look around long enough, finding a water type specialist able to help me catch one should be a possibility.”
Flannery was not a big fan of Roxanne’s plan.
“No way! Roxy you got to stick with us. We could be having so much fun together!”
“Flanny… I am flattered but I have to fulfill the expectations Mrs. Stone has for me. We can still exchange numbers, and I am sure we can hang out again if we meet up while on our respective journeys.”
I threw in my own two cents into the conversation.
“How about we all meet back up later? Roxanne still needs to earn her mind badge and rain badge, right? If you and I hurry up, we can book a boat and catch up with her later. Training up a wild relicanth for a seventh badge gym match will take up loads of her time. We can see her again in a month tops.”
“Fine…”
----------------------------------------
Back in Mauville*
We made it back to Mauville, the wailmer dutifully bringing us back to the other side of the river. The trio giddily splashing up and down as they did so much to Flannery’s chagrin. After entering the city proper Flannery hugged Roxanne goodbye having exchanged numbers with her new BFF. I was not looking forward to Flannery discovering the personal messaging application of her pokégear and losing focus during lesson time. The two of us made it back to the Pokémon center where I was busy sending videos of Halo to both Burgh and Dianne while Flannery was getting bored watching me work.
“Flanny, we'll have to visit the market after this. I’ll show you how to pick the best tasting berries from the local vendors.”
“Can’t we just order Pokémon food online?”
“Vi Vi!” “Berry picking is the most important skill!”
“We could… but what I am about to teach you will also be useful when you find yourself alone in the wilderness. Picking fresh berries is a skill most trainers will have learned by the end of their first journey. Now follow me, my young apprentice.”
“Hey! I am older than you! You should be listening to me; I went through all of the extracurricular courses in trainer’s school!”
“They let the students go berry picking at the Lavaridge open market?”
“No… but we had several bushcraft expeditions. I know how to spot ripened berries.”
“Perfect, we will be relying on you to buy our supply of berries. After all, it is ultimately Mr. Moore’s money we use to purchase our groceries.”
“Hmpfff! I’ll pick out the tastiest berries you’ll see.”
I finished up my business in the center’s computer booth and together we walked in the direction of Mauville’s open market. Mauville’s marketplace was much more sterile and professional compared to what could be found in Slateport City. The stall owners set the price and there was no haggling, the commerce culture being completely regulated in contrast to any other city in Hoenn. This would delay my lesson on haggling with the only upside being that there was no chance that Flannery would get duped into overpaying.
The first stall we visited was manned by an elderly lady who looked kindly upon the two of us. This stall would be Flannery’s first step into food budgeting.
“See here Egon. These Tamato berries are just perfect for eating. Torchic will love these for sure.”
“How many berries does Torchic eat each day and how many days’ worth of food do you think we should buy?”
I guided her through the required calculations adjusting for her Pokémon’s size and needed caloric intake. Smaller Pokémon didn’t need to eat as much, especially if they didn’t need to battle. Flannery wouldn’t be competing this year so all the battles she’d experience would be with unruly wild Pokémon and passing trainers looking to challenge her. Eventually we both agreed Torchic would only need half a berry’s worth per day together with the usual vitamin supplements and premixed pellets. Flannery’s Torkoal, Slugma and Ponyta all had differing requirements; the one who would ultimately be the most expensive to feed was her Ponyta. The fire horse Pokémon would be riding her trainer around while we traveled, and she quite enjoyed the occasional racing game. Her stellar pedigree ingrained into her the need for speed. Mr. Moore never explained which breeding facility sold Flannery’s prized partner, but I was sure that she didn’t come cheap.
“Most Pokémon also tend to prefer one flavor while disliking another. Making sure not to put in the type of berries that they dislike will actively endear you to them. Have you ever discussed this with the gym’s staff?”
“Yes! Torchic likes spicy food and dislikes sweet tasting berries. That’s why I am buying Tamato berries for her. Ponyta likes sweet berries but dislikes sour ones, Torkoal has no preferences and Slugma doesn’t eat berries but needs way more mineral supplements.”
Impressed by her knowledge so far, I left Flannery with the responsibility of buying berries for her own team. Which I determined was about a week’s worth of food after eying the number of purchases she made. When she was done picking out all of her own purchases it was finally my turn to make a few of my own. Naturally I had my handy berry picking assistant help me out.
“Rena come on out!”
My Vulpix materialized on the market’s paved road actively looking around and taking in her surroundings. It was the norm to walk around with at least one of your Pokémon out so the surrounding people barely even gave her a glance.
“Rena, I need you.”
“Vuuuul!”
“Yes, afterwards. We are in the market right now, aren’t we?”
Rena tried to remind me of my promise to let her pick out something for waking up Flannery this morning. Naturally with two fourth badge gym challenge payouts and Mr. Moore continuing to fund our food expenditures I was currently flush with pokédollars. Enough money that I didn’t mind indulging my little fox Pokémon.
Picking up Rena in my arms I hovered the little Diva’s nose over the fresh produce. Her expert sniffing skills working their magic yet again.
“Pix Pix!”
“It’s all good? Even the Kelpsy berries?”
“Young man, I pride myself on my work. Mauville isn’t like those other cities, we have rules in place. If you are looking to buy my store’s stock of berries that are closer to expiring, I could come up with a more favorable pricing. We keep them in the back for customers looking to get berries on the cheap.”
“Hmmm how cheap are we talking here?”
“Egon!?”
“Relax Flanny, we still need to eat dinner for today. It doesn’t negatively impact the taste of said berries if we eat them the same day.”
“30% off”
Not wishing to test the store’s no haggling policy I accepted the price as is. Buying all the foodstuffs my team needed in addition to shoring up our supply of Custap berries for Victini’s sake. The little sneak tried to stealthily smuggle a few extra berries into the shopping bag with her expert use of confusion. I didn’t know she could control targets outside of her line of sight but it seemed staying inside my backpack proved no hindrance to Victini at all. We thanked the storefront owner for the goods and made our way further into the market this time with Rena eagerly leading the way. The little Vulpix was amazed at the sight of all the storefronts that had their wares on display. Before she had the chance to walk into one I took her aside for a short moment.
“Now I said you could pick out something nice for yourself but keep in mind that we only have around 15.000 pokédollars to spend, okay? So, don’t go too overboard.”
“Pix!”
She huffed in annoyance before walking into the nearest jeweler’s store. The fancy establishment had glass cases showing off every type of evolutionary stone known to the masses. As well as a standard inventory of precious gems used for rings, necklaces and bracelets. Naturally mundane jewelry wasn’t as expensive as evolutionary stones so I should be able to afford all the moderately priced trinkets.
“Egon, what are we doing in this place? Don’t think for a second that I’ll let you use grandpa’s card to buy all of this expensive stuff!”
She reprimanded me while at the same time eying a set of firestones being displayed near the
“Naturally I am using my own money for this. Besides Rena knows the limits of our spending budget.”
The fox Pokémon swept through the store’s wares eager to pick something that she could wear in combination with her tiara. The other customers coming in as well as the store owner were bemused by Rena’s actions, content to let her wander about freely.
“Egon, why don’t you buy a nice fire stone for her? They are beautiful as well as useful.”
“We already have one. We decided together that she would tell me when she feels ready to evolve. Maybe she can buy an adjustable necklace or ankle bracelet that can be resized after she does so.”
At the mention of all the different jewelry pieces in the store, another one of my Pokémon decided to pop out of her ball, lured by the promise of luxury goods.
“Veeeesss!”
‘Oh no, the worst thing has happened.’
The errant bug type took one look around the store and excitedly hoisted herself atop of the counter table. By the look of Halo’s flaring horns she was undoubtedly preparing to order up the store owner’s most expensive piece of jewelry.
“Mommy what kind of Pokémon is that? It looks really pretty.”
The customers inside the jewelry store took the liberty of taking pictures of Halo with their Pokégears. In part due to their scarcity Larvesta was not a widely known species of Pokémon even inside of the Unova region. And as most people tended to do when coming across something novel, they wanted to make recordings of the unknown Pokémon.
“Come on down Halo it's Rena’s turn to pick out something nice. She’s earned this.”
“Ves!”
Halo’s response must have ticked off Rena because the aggravated fox Pokémon jumped on top of the store counter and butted heads with the bug type in retaliation. I was thankful that they weren’t resorting to using actual moves. Even in this situation Rena knew to limit her strength in consideration of the hatchling Pokémon.
“Halo, how about this? You’ll be the next one that gets to pick out something when budget allows.”
“Vess…”
Victini now awake due to all the commotion helpfully translated this last sentence.
“How can I a Pokémon of royalty not have a treasury deserving my status.”
I picked up the frustrated bug type and swaddled her inside my arms.
“Don’t sweat the small stuff. Your mother has a whole sunken kingdom to herself, but I bet she didn’t start off with that right out of the egg. Once you grow up a bit You’ll be able to start earning yourself some winnings in tournaments. I am sure you can save up even more than her with enough dedication.”
Rubbing her fuzzy mane in combination with some encouraging words seemed to do the trick. The flames produced by her horns simmering down and eventually being extinguished. The little girl visiting the store with her mother took this opportunity to ask me for permission to be allowed to touch the calmed down Larvesta in my arms.
“Can I touch your Pokémon? She looks really pretty and soft.”
The lass was about my age and didn’t seem to suffer from the bug type phobia that was all too common from other girls in her age range. Halo registered the request and assented by wobbling her head up and down mollified by girl’s earnest remarks. With an outstretched hand she patted Halo on her white fuzzy mane, apparently enchanted by the softness of the bug type’s fluff.
“What kind of Pokemon is she? I’ve never seen one like this before.”
“This is a Larvesta, a bug and fire type from the Unova region.”
Having satisfied the girl’s curiosity the mother took it upon herself to distract the girl so we could complete our shopping in peace. Flannery wasn’t all too happy though.
“How come you let a complete stranger pet you but not me? You’ve known me for way longer!”
“Ves!”
Not having the patience to sort out their rocky relationship I left Halo on a chair to be watched by Flannery while I went to help Rena pick out something nice for herself.
The fox Pokémon had narrowed it down to two choices: an elegant silver necklace sporting a gilded flower or an anklet made out of the same material with an empty socket where a gemstone could be inserted. Both were in the same price range. I waved at the store’s owner to let him know we were ready to make a purchase.
“What can you tell me about these two items?”
“Both excellent choices shipped straight out from our supplier in Kalos. Both are made out of sterling silver. The flower is actually gilded bronze and the anklet came to us as is and can be resized to fit any Pokémon. If you are looking for the setting to be filled, we have various options.”
“Pix Pix!”
“The anklet? Fine… but without the setting.”
“Vuuuuul!”
Rena’s amber eyes started watering while holding my gaze.
“Ugh…! Baby-Doll eyes!? When did you learn that move? Okay, but no more buying new jewelry until you have worn out your current ones.”
The owner, having seen my first hand defeat at the hands of my overtly manipulative pokémon, spared my dignity by acting as if the embarrassing interaction with my Vulpix never happened.
“What are some of the cheaper options?”
“We have a wide range of gemstone fittings in all price ranges.”
The store owner showed me all the options their store had on offer. Not buying into his claim of his store offering gemstones in all price ranges I requested to see the cheapest he had on offer.
“Dear customer, we do have some alternatives that we don’t show to the public. Some reasonably priced quartz or piece of citrine could be what you are looking for.”
“Show me.”
The store owner did so, he opened up one of the drawers inside it were trays each filled with a different looking gemstone. Scanning its contents my eye was immediately drawn to a clear looking marble with a yellow and red pattern inside.
“This is?!”
“Is everything okay sir?”
“I am alright can you show me that one please?”
I pointed at the now fully revealed mega stone.
“This one? We’ve been sitting on it for a while… this piece of quartz was shaped into a marble with an interesting looking pattern inside. If you want this one, I’d be happy to give it to you for free. The fitting will still cost a bit extra though.”
“Vuuul!”
“It's fine I’ll pay the extra fee.”
“Excellent! The total cost of the anklet and the extra fitting will be 16.399 pokédollars will you pay in cash or card?”