Poll Results: Ghost/ Ice. Nexon will end up with a Froslass! Thank you to all who answered the poll.
Chapter 17- Setting off.
After registering with the reception, we were each given the key to our own room. And the best way to describe those rooms was simply normal. It was more reminiscent of dorm rooms or studios than an actual hotel. Not that I would complain about that since it was actually perfect, encouraging people to travel light.
I also took the time I had in my room to release Nike, making sure that she was feeling better and Skoll too. Having one hour before I had to meet back with Sera, I also took my time to relax a bit more and even took a shower.
“How are you feeling Nike?” I asked the psychic type.
I noticed that she still seemed a bit uncomfortable, but it was still better than how she looked at the harbor. The only positive point was that we would not stay long in Castelia this time. I ended up spending time with both her and Skoll, simply relaxing while waiting for Sera to text me. and that did not take long as I soon received the text confirming that she was ready.
“Skoll, since Nike is a bit taxed, do you want to walk with me?” I asked my Pokemon after returning the psychic type.
His red eyes met mine and he seemed to hesitate for a bit before shaking his head and opting to be returned as well. I can’t say I wasn’t disappointed, but I will give him his space. Eventually he will come around. At least that’s what I kept telling myself. I wasn’t a fan of how he was out of his capsule only when he wanted to train, eat or fight.
Something to work on, I guess.
I met Sera in the corridor, and we made our way to the lobby together. Luxio was the only one with her, seemingly fascinated by the big city. The little fire lion apparently content to sleep in his capsule this time around.
The city itself only had one word to accurately describe it, massive. Sure, compared to cities I was used to it was on the small size but compared to the global standard it was pretty big. What’s more, it seemed we caught the rush hours when people were getting off work, translating in a sea of people moving in different direction. Men and women in business casual, kids in what seemed to be school uniforms and other people from all background seemingly blending together. Yet despite the crowd, the depressed and isolated atmosphere that I half expected to see in this metropolis was absent.
I was dragged out of my stupor watching the city by Sera literally grabbing my arm and dragging me onto the streets.
“Quit acting lost! Come on we have to make use of the time we have before the sun goes down.” she said, marching forward.
I was still looking at my surroundings before her words fully registered. “You have something you want to do?” I asked. From my understanding there was nothing that we really needed to do except wandering about.
“Of course there is,” she began, sounding a bit exasperated. “don’t tell me you intend to traverse the desert dressed like that. I also have some stuff I want to buy before leaving.
When she mentioned I looked down to see what the problem was. I must admit it took me longer to realize what she meant. I was wearing mostly black clothes, which in a desert was a good way to get cooked inside-out.
“Okay, good point. I should probably grab something lighter for that. Do you have a list of what you want? Also, where we can grab it?”
“Why, glad you asked,” she answered while wearing a sweet smile. “I took the time in the room to locate a small mall not far from here that should have everything we need. Plus, it shouldn’t take long.”
As soon as she spoke these words, I realized my mistake. I should have been the one to prepare that. Because one thing I learned on back on Earth, and that was confirmed by Nana, is that when an errand ‘Shouldn’t take long’ it usually does. Before I could protest further, she already had her phone in hand and following the map not far from where we stood.
It took us a few tens of minutes to reach the location she selected. The mall itself was nothing impressive, just a collection of different shops gathered together in the same building. Some would argue that this is the basic definition of a mall but it’s mostly semantics really. An interesting thing was the number of what I would consider outdoor shops, shops specialized in selling items for outdoor exploration. Then again it is to be expected, I guess.
It was in one such shop that we made our first stop.
“Bigger bottles, lighter color clothes… am I forgetting something?” she asked as she checked items off of her shopping list.
I took a moment to think about what we might need not only in the short term but also as we travel in general.
Something you don’t realize you are missing until it’s too late… Ah.
“How about goggles?” I proposed.
“Goggles?”
“Yep goggles,” I said making sure to pop the P. “we might need it in the desert with the sandstorm but also since winter is coming, we might need them again.”
“They will provide us with some if we need it during the expeditions…” She mused to herself. “But then again it’s true we might need them on a long term.”
“Yeah, these kinds of climates are no joke. We never know when they will come useful once more.” I added.
“Did you see some in the shop?” she craned her neck to look around even while asking me that.
“No, but we can ask someone.” I answered nonchalantly after strategically locating an employee of the shop we were in. “excuse me.”
The employee in question simply wore a blue shirt and black pants. He turned around upon hearing me and put up a customer service face on.
“Hello sir, how may I be of help to you?”
“I am looking for goggles or glasses that can help against weather conditions” I asked simply.
“Certainly, are you looking to go through the desert to the north?” He asked and once I nodded, he led us to the alley. “In that case I can recommend this one. It not only helps in protecting your eyes from sand particles but is also polarized to take on taint and reduce the amount of sunlight. It is perfect for traversing the desert while also being useful for other instances such as blizzards or even casual flight on your Pokemon. It is also our most popular product!”
While he was going on about his sales pitch, Sera and I took a pair each in order to look closer at them. The design was definitely pleasant with simple glasses covering and protecting the eyes, making sure that no gap existed. It also has the option to come with a face mask but…that might be a bit too much. As for the tint, since there was no sunlight inside, there was no way to test it so I had no choice but to trust them.
My only concern was the price tag.
My funds were running pretty dry, despite the increase I got from the victory against Roxie. I could technically get them, just that it will be a bit tighter until the next gym badge. Or the end of the month depending on which one came first to receive what allowance Nana and Pops agreed to send me. Something about experiencing true travel. Then again, the pay from the expedition should help with that. So, after careful consideration there was only one real solution to the dilemma in front of me.
You know what? fuck it!
Before I could second guess myself, I already grabbed one of the pair and put them in my basket. Because I knew that if I started to rationalize it, I would leave them here.
And that was how I ended up buying one of the best items I bought to date.
We continued to walk around the shops in the hope of finding something that would be useful. Sera was very much willing to buy anything she thought she might need while I decided to wait a bit before buying anything. That was the problem with impulse purchase: You always ended up with some regret. That was not to say that I found nothing interesting. Simply that I opted to wait once I get paid before spending said money. We went to the register and paid for our items before heading back.
“It shouldn’t take long huh?” I questioned a particularly sheepish Sera.
“Well, you know…” she trailed off while refusing to meet my gaze.
By the time we left the shopping center, the sun had already long set behind the horizon. It was not even that it was dusk or soon after dusk, but completely nighttime. I kept hounding her just for the sake of it until we reached the pokemon center. And even there, it was still funny to mock glare at her. Once we entered the center we temporarily split, just for the time to organize the different items before going to the lobby to eat, because truth be told, I was starving!
Because our pokemon were still relatively small we decided to stay indoors to eat together. Also, being a metropolis, there wasn’t much view to enjoy in Castelia. Which brings us to the slightly more problematic element of the group: Nike.
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The number of people around were hard on her and she was unusually meek. Usually, Hatenna only reacted this way when someone with too strong emotions tried to interact with them. But the sheer volume of emotions around her was enough to trigger the same response. And I was glad she hadn’t evolved yet. Both of her evolutions have much less… tact when dealing with strong stimuli.
Thankfully it seemed that staying closer to me helped her to somehow mute it for her, enough that it was at least bearable. I think as she develops her psychic abilities, she will be able to more effectively deal with this kind of situation.,
As we were eating, we watched the news that the pokemon center shared to all trainers in the hall. It usually contains forecasts of weather and the like, which are useful information for traveling trainers to have. Most trainers had an app on their phone or even their pokedexes, for the lucky few that have those, to notify them of any news regarding their surroundings. Even so it never hurts to be prepared in advance.
One of said broadcast that were rotating was a situation Sera and I took particular interest in, however.
The news anchor sat in front of the camera with a red band at the bottom of the screen. The content of the band was what caught our interest,
[Pinwheel Forrest temporarily closed for access]
Then came the words from the individual.
“The surroundings of the Pinwheel Forest and the forest itself have been designated as temporary no trespassing zones due to unusually high levels of pokemon activities. The cause for the agitation is as of yet unknown, but the Pokemon League has issued an official statement assuring that the situation was under control and under investigation. In the meanwhile, the access has been restricted to ensure the safety of trainers and local pokemon alike.”
There were murmurs coming from the people who hadn’t heard of the news before now. The others simply ignored it or discussed it in lowered voices. We were very much in the latter group.
“Do you think…?” I started.
“Most definitely.” Sera answered before I was even done talking.
“I hope everything will be over soon. I wanted to visit the forest at some points.” I continued.
“Yeah, me too. I heard you could find some Eevee there.” Sera sighed.
I was curious at that because as far as I knew there was no such thing. Then again that was from the game, so the information was only half credible.
I simply nodded. “Eevee, huh. I always thought that it was easier to get one from breeders to be honest.”
“Well, it’s true that it’s the easiest way but I don’t really care that much. I already have two fluff balls to take care of.” She said while hugging both felines, much to their delight judging from the chorus of purrs. “Speaking of team members, I am guessing the ball you bought is for the Sandile you are aiming for?”
“Yeah, that’s the plan. I bought the safari ball because I thought as a ground type in might like it. Worst case I still have a pokeball and I can always change it later. I am also planning to do the same for Skoll once I have a bit more leeway.” I shrugged.
That caught the fighting type attention as his ears perked up. He ultimately shook his head but the fact that he at least reacted shows that he at least considered the idea. I will look for fitting balls for fighting type.
“I wonder if maybe we should go check it out” She joked.
“Yeah right! not like we have an expedition or anything.” I scoffed.
After that we continued our discussion while eating. Our pokemon also seemed to be having fun in their own way. As in, I saw Nike floating a kibble from Litleo’s portion and put it into Skoll’s, resulting in the fighting type choking on the spicier meal. This caused a commotion with Nike acting innocent while Luxio just snickered.
I shook my head at that, and decided to let them continue their shenanigan between the four of them, as long as they didn’t bother the people around us. Unfortunately, there was no spectacle during the meal this time. Oh, well!
After we were done eating, we moved back to our respective rooms. Instead of going to bed immediately, I first decided to call Pops and Nana. It’s been a while since I talked to them after all. The phone barely rang that Nana’s voice could already be heard.
“Hello dear! How is everything going? Did you have a safe travel to Castelia? Also, we saw your match against Roxie! Congratulations! You, Nike and Skoll have already made a lot of progress! Ah, yes! That girl Seraphina as well, she seemed way more relaxed than before, say hi to her from me. Also…Hey! Give that back!” She started to ramble as soon as she picked up the phone before I was even able to say anything. At least until Pops got a hold of the phone.
“Hi there cheapskate! I hope you guys enjoyed the upgrade. And sorry for your Nan we were relaxing a bit when you called.” He said jovially while Nana continued to protest in the background.
Their relaxation usually consisted of drinking wine together, something they apparently picked from their travel in Kalos. And let’s just say that Nana is not the heaviest of drinkers and gets tipsy very fast.
“Jeez, you geezers should slow down a bit.” I teased before answering him. “Yeah, thank you for the upgrade by the way. Sera and Mathew also send their thanks. Ah! Mathew is a Ranger that is traveling with us for now. By the way how exactly did you manage that?”
“My means are beyond your understanding young man!” he declared. “But yeah don’t mind it, we actually wanted to change the ship but it was too late for- wait! Stop! Don’t bite me! Klint you could help instead of just watching! Wait I meant help me what are you-“
“Hello dear it’s me again! I won Ha!” she barked out a jovial laugh.
With all the ruckus they were making, I couldn’t stop myself from laughing. And I meant laughing hard. So hard that I started tearing up. I had to stop eventually to wipe away my tears and that’s when I noticed that the other side fell silent.
“Hello?” I tried.
“…”
“Are you guys still here?”
“Ah yes it’s just… is that really you dear?” Nana asked surprisingly calmly.
“Of course it’s me, the one and only. Actually, I’m the one who called so…”
“Yeah kiddo, can’t blame us for double checking after that laugh.” Pops voice came from behind.
I was actually puzzled by what they meant before I realized I just had another extreme reaction.
“True. Let me explain what happened, that’s part of why I called anyway. So, after the Gym battle in Virbank I…” I proceeded to tell them what happened during my meeting with Caitlyn, drawing surprised gasps at the mention of the name of one of the Elite 4. Of course, I skipped the part related to Plasma to not worry them.
From there, I continued my tale, including the invitation to the camp at the end of the league year and her assessment of Nike’s potential. Then I also told them about the travel to Castelia, with my story about the storm making them chuckle.
“So, what are your plans for now?” Pops asked once I was done.
“Tomorrow, I have to go to the research center that posted the expedition job to notify them of my arrival. From there, I’ll just wait for the actual expedition. I am also planning to get my third pokemon on route 4 or the Desert Resort or the Expedition Site. I am aiming for a Sandile to add some coverage, but I can always adapt on the fly.” I explained. “I wanted to possibly go to Pinwheel forest and maybe even Nacrene City but-“
“Don’t!” both Pop’s and Nana exclaimed surprising me a bit.
“…from what an acquaintance told us the situation is actually pretty serious. The league is even considering increasing the requirement to be able to enter the area permanently. We weren’t able to get the details but something about the pokemon changing habitat resulting in stronger one closer to the Route. Anyway, stay clear of the area for now. If you absolutely want to go to Nacrene just tell us and we will teleport you there. But you have to stay far from that place for now.” Nana explained seeming to have sobered some.
That was incredibly suspicious. Sure, it is not unusual for them to propose help or outright doing it, like the ferry between Virbank and Castelia, but to go out of their way to have to come all the way here and offer a teleport presumably back and forth… I narrowed my eyes a bit.
Something told me that they know more than they tell me. But I don’t understand why not say it. Unless it is something they cannot reveal. Even to family.
I had to admit the fact that it was stated so much that I should not go did pick my curiosity, but I was not nearly suicidal enough to try and go there. Not that I would be able to anyway since the security was probably upped several levels.
“Alright. Thank you for the offer. I will keep you updated. Also, Mathew got called probably there, so if I learn something I will let you know.” I compromised.
“Oh yeah, how the heck did you manage to have a Ranger to travel with you. I hope for you that you are not in trouble.” Nana said, obviously trying to change the subject. Not that I minded.
“Fine, fine, let me explain that part.”
I continued to talk with a both of them for a few more minutes before we decided to call it a night. The last point they mentioned was they had planned to send me my allowance soon, which was neat. Although I would only be able to spend some of it after the expedition. With that out of the way I settled down with both of my pokemon opting to stay in their capsule for the night.
The next morning, I woke up fairly easily, feeling far more refreshed than I thought I would be. Probably due to the fact that I was no longer worried about falling off my bed because of a storm. The morning was fairly quiet, as for once both my pokemon were not here to wake me. After getting ready, I went down to have a quick breakfast for the whole team. Once Sera joined me and had her own breakfast, we went together to the research center.
The building itself was much like the other high rises in the city and the research center seemed to occupy several floors of the building. We presented our IDs to the reception and were let up to the actual objective of our visit. The man at the desk seemed to have been informed of our arrival since he looked to be expecting us.
“Welcome to the Genesis Society. You are Nexon and Seraphina, correct?” He smiled at us.
“Good morning, yes that’s us.” Sera answered for the both of us. “We are here regarding the expedition beyond route 4.”
Saying so, she pulled out her ID and I did the same.
“Certainly. Give me a few minutes.” The man said, typing furiously on his computer. After a while he handed us our card back. “All is set. Miss Seraphina is marked as a researcher assistant while Nexon here is one of the hired trainers. Do you have any question?”
I actually had one that I decided to ask. “ Yes, can you explain some of the details please?”
“Verry well, starting from the beginning, if you have not been informed, the expeditions will last for a total of 2 weeks but can be extended or shortened depending on the findings. For each day you will receive 200 pokedollars, with the possibility of earning more depending on your actions. The aim of the expedition is to explore a network of underground tunnels recently discovered, and help mapping them out if possible. Also, even if the expedition is cut short, you will receive the amount for the full two weeks it was supposed to last.” He explained.
“Do we know what species of pokemon can be found in the cave?” I asked curiously. Hopefully I can find the Sandile there.
However, the man shook his head. “We explored the beginning areas, but the deeper areas have not been mapped. But you can expect the regular in caves, such as Woobat and possibly Roggenrola and its evolution. The presence of a Gigalith is a possibility which is why we would advise you to not go too deep, unless accompanied by a more experience trainer.”
I nodded at that. It wasn’t ideal that there might not be ground type there but maybe it the surrounding areas I could find some. With that out of the receptionist told us that we were free to leave, which surprised me a bit. I was half expecting to have to go through a test or something like that, but it seems like it wasn’t in the card. Or maybe they just assumed that I would play a scouting role with both of my pokemon specializing in detecting auras/ emotions. And well, that wasn’t wrong given that there would apparently be more experienced trainers.
Regardless, that was our only task today, so we were left completely free until the departure two days from now. The rest of the day was spent training behind the pokemon center. Although, I refused most of the trainer’s challenges this time, because of how weakened Nike was. Instead, we focused on her training of psychic ability. Skoll did have a couple of battles here and there, mainly from other trainers with fighting type who wanted to have a light spar.
That is how we spent the two days before the start of the expedition. Nike was more than glad to get out of the city and be able to hangout with us once more. She also made progress in her control the orbit of the ball was still a bit strained. But it was already a lot rounder. When she got impatient, I had to remind her that we were here for progress, not perfection. Which worked for a while before becoming impatient again.
Skoll was similarly becoming impatient but for other reasons. The last time we had a proper battle was against Roxie which is apparently too long a time for my fighting type. Placating him was a bit easier since I told him that we would be able to battle other trainer and wild pokemon alike during the expedition. Frankly I doubted we would be working constantly, and it should have been a question I asked the other day, but hindsight is 20/20.
“Alright people! Is everyone ready?” the leader of our group asked.
There was a total of 21 people in the group, with 3 being Ace trainers, 9 researchers including Sera and 10 trainers. The group leader for the travel portion was an Ace trainer named Natalie sent by the league with her two colleagues to accompany us. I wondered if 3 people were enough to protect 19 others but apparently that’s not really a concern with more experienced trainers filling in.
Speaking of, I thought I would end up being the least experienced with my two badges but there were two trainers with one badge each and another trainer with 2 like me. One other had 3 badges with the remaining 5 trainers having more than 5 badges of Unova or badges from other regions. There was even one guy with 18 badges total, 8 from Kalos, 8 from Sinnoh and 2 from Unova. I was definitely going to ask him for some advice when I have the time. Fingers crossed he agrees to it. Also, we obviously didn’t get the same rate. I can’t imagine him being strapped for cash enough to accept 200 pokedollars per day.
Double checking everything I needed; I nodded my head much like the others in the group. Instead of my usual black outfit, I shifted to a light grey ensemble with shorts and shirt. No way I was gonna opt for white, and wearing light clothing was the only acceptable clothes in the desert. I did make sure to have some heavier clothing for the night though, because it apparently got really cold. Well, If I really got too cold, I would go sit next to Litleo.
The other main concern, water, was a non-issue because the expedition camp was not far from the river. Meaning I just have to get enough water for the day of travel. And between Sera and I, we brought more than enough water. The silver-head in question was currently standing next to a man with brown hair and discussing something quite passionately I might add. We split earlier because the different groups had to make sure everyone was present. I would probably go up to her later or maybe try to strike up a conversation with someone from my group.
With the preparations complete, the whole group started to move in unison. Making our way to the northern sector of the city, I was expecting that we would draw the attention of the people around us, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. In fact, we kind of blended in with the people going about their day. Soon, we approached what seemed to be the limit of the city, with an oddly familiar sight in front of me.
What acted as an exit for the city was a relatively big, boxlike building with two large openings. The Connector, as they were called, served a pretty simple purpose, making sure to have at least a record of people going through. It helped in case of unfortunate disappearance; in case a search has to be launched. On the right side were three booths with officials responsible for writing down the traffic of people. On the left, there was a large screen that went from floor to ceiling and showed images of Route 4. On the top of said screen was an informative band regarding the route in question, showing the time, date and even meteorological conditions, which by the way were clear today, amongst other information.
Going through took a bit of time due to the size of our group, but in the end, we were on the other side. I was expecting to see the desert immediately after but was disappointed, seeing instead sparce trees scattered around. Well, I could already see the Desert even from here and the transition was so abrupt any doubt I had was put to rest. The desert was definitely not natural, given how in a few hundred meters we went from greenery to sand.
Yeah, that is some pokemon business for sure.
With that we were finally setting off, directly toward the expedition encampment.