Chapter 10- Sandgem Town 2

  Erdd decides to break the silence with the professor “When will the Pokedex be ready for me? I have quite the many things to research on there, and a friend to call.”

  “It will be at the front desk when you leave.” He answers curtly before continuing “If you have someone to tell you’ve arrived here, you could have done it before coming to the lab, why did you wait?”

  “I couldn’t.” Erdd replies

  “Huh?” the professor is surprised “What do mean? Even the outskirts of town have reception so your phone would have worked no problem.”

  Erdd has a realization “Ah, I believe I have misrepresented something. I don’t have a phone. That is the source of my fixation on the Pokedex.”

  Rowan slowly blinks as he processes that, before promptly ignoring that in favor of other business. “Say, how confident in your battling skills are you?”

  Erdd’s eyes narrow “I am confident Sever could beat any member of a team that has just beaten its first badge.”

  “Oh ho?” Rowan expected confidence, but not this much. “What say you test that? A pair of trainers I’m sponsoring and my newest assistant are set to receive their first pokemon tomorrow, a week before the Gym Challenge begins. Would you be interested in testing them?”

  “Hmm. I would but on a condition” He replies

  “Go ahead.” Rowan replies

  “I want you to teleport me to the start of Route 203 from Jubilife” Erdd says, wanting to save the backtracking and having to deal with their restrictions.

  Rowan lets out a raucous laughter at the small favor he would have granted for no payment. “Sure, sure, I can do that for you whenever you wish. How about this, if you get them fired up enough I’ll add some helpful reading material to your Pokedex.”

  “Very well sir” Erdd is happy at the professor’s agreement “When should I be here tomorrow?”

  After getting the time from Professor Rowan, Erdd leaves the laboratory, picking up his Pokedex on the way out.

  When Erdd enters the Pokemon Center, there are surprisingly other people in the waiting room, three kids the same age as Erdd having a conversation about pokemon, not even pausing to look at the person coming into the Center

  The blond boy with a striped shirt and green scarf energetically explains “Chimchar is obviously the best! Their firepower is unmatched and nothing can catch up to their speed! The power of infernape’s Flare Blitz or Close Combat will knock the socks off any pokemon in no time!”

  “Come on Barry,” The blue haired girl with the white hat replies “Infernape is such a hard pokemon to use because they’re frail. Piplup is the much better starter because their abilities are much better balanced between attack and defense, and empolion is a Steel type to boot.”

  “Now, now Dawn,” The last member of this troupe, a boy with short hair under a red cap decides to give his own two cents “Turtwig is obviously the best because they are so tough they can’t be defeated, and a torterra’s Earthquake or Wood Hammer pack a serious punch too.”

  Barry retorts with a "Torterra aren’t impenetrable, Lucas. Plenty of pokemon can punch through their defenses! Infernape among them!”

  Erdd finishes checking in and getting a room key as the trio continue to squabble over what he deduces is the pokemon they will be receiving from Professor Rowan tomorrow.

  Just as Erdd takes the door to the back where the practice area is, he glances back and the two boys are fiercely debating, but Dawn glances over noticing him and Sever as he closes the door behind him.

  Once in the practice field Erdd instructs his pokemon “Sever, you have been training your slicing moves since we were in the Ravaged Path, so I think it’s about time to learn some other moves.”

  Sever nods enthusiastically “Gib~le”

  “Good, we will try to learn Dig. It is a move where you use Ground energy to move the earth out of your path so you can go underground and surprise attack your opponent. To do this you will do the opposite of what you do with Sand Tomb. Instead of constricting and hurting your opponent your goal is to open a safe passage for yourself to move through. Try to open a hole you can climb in using Sand Tomb.”

  Sever’s first attempt consists of picking up the ground as if he was using Sand Tomb and moving it elsewhere, resulting in an indent in the ground that covers about half his body.

  After a few more tries Erdd has another suggestion “How about instead of trying to move the ground out of your way one chunk at a time create a steady movement that pushes the dirt around you away into the walls, reinforcing them at the same time?”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Sever attempts as his trainer suggests, concentrating intensely Sever pushes the ground at his feet aside and slowly inches into the ground. After Sever is fully under the surface, Erdd calls for him to resurface and refill the hole.

  After trying for a little more, Erdd finally decides to switch things up. “Well, Sever, you understand the technical side of the move now, and so it’s time for actually learning it.”

  Sever tilts his head, confused at this. Erdd continues “Ground energy. Bury yourself. Unbury yourself and attack over there.” And he gestures at the other side of the field.

  Sever blinks at Erdd a few times before sand crashes in all around him, swallowing him up instantly. Shortly thereafter the ground explodes open on the other side of the arena as Sever uses Dig!

  “Dig back, without attacking this time.” he calls across the field.

  Sever buries himself and surfaces right next to Erdd with a proud expression on his face. Erdd crouches to pamper him for doing so good and learning Dig so quickly. Yes, he’s such a powerful and talented Dragon and deserves all the love in the world. And other such praises.

  When the sun sets, Erdd is exhausted from his own workout and Sever is sleepy from his own training with his new move.

  After dinner, Erdd shoots Michel a message explaining he’s made it to Sandgem and that this is his Pokedex’s number. After that he goes to sleep. Erdd a wakes at dawn, as he is used to.

  Just before he leaves the Pokemon Center dorm he remembers something and checks his Pokedex and notices two messages. One from Rowan reminding him about the time he needs to be at the lab and that this is how he will reach out when work is to be done. The other is a message from Michel saying hi.

  Not feeling the need to reply to either he sets out with Sever by his side, returning the dorm key he heads to the field in the back.

  “Sever,” Erdd says “Continue practicing Dig. Focus on speed and accuracy. I will be scattering pokeballs around the field and your job is to hit them from underground without breaking them as fast as you can and immediately using Dig again to go after the next while keeping track of the ones you’re throwing around. Do you understand?”

  “Giiib..” Sever tilts his head quizzically.

  “Use Dig to juggle the balls but keep track of them. And do it fast. Better?” Erdd tries again.

  “GIBLE!” Sever lets out in agreement, excited at this new game that will make him stronger.

  Erdd prepares the field by rolling a handful of Pokeballs evenly spaced on the field and telling him to start.

  Sever hops in and out of the ground rapidly, throwing Pokeballs around wildly, and chasing after them. Overall having a blast figuring out how to use the earth better to swim through it and listening to what it tells him while underground. Sometimes he misses and has to recalibrate but not often, Sever is in his element.

  Meanwhile, Erdd sits down and peruses his Pokedex. The first thing he looks for is recordings of Champion Cynthia’s battles, mainly the ones with her garchomp. The one spread far and wide was the year she became Champion. That year the previous Champion retired and announced the next Champion would be the winner of that year’s Sinnoh League Conference.

  Such a proposition led many old monsters to come out of retirement and back into the spotlight, people the public thought were killed by their own pokemon or had sworn off battling entirely. Even the Sinnoh Elite Four were allowed to compete.

  But the winner was none of them. It was Ruin Maniac Cynthia.

  She was incredible her first Conference, top ranked among her year but not more. Yet the passion she had for mythology and conservation drove her to lead, and she had developed such deep bonds with each and every one of her pokemon, driving them to be incomparably more powerful than any of her public appearances would suggest.

  Nobody else stood a chance.

  The finals were magnificent. Up until that point she had only led with her garchomp, so her opponent led with his best counter, glalie. But Cynthia led with her lucario. With Mean Look preventing a switch Cynthia’s advantage snowballed and she won 2-6 with the third pokemon she sent out being garchomp and her sweeping the last three team members of the other team.

  That garchomp. Her Giga Impact was hard to record, the immense power it radiated.

  With Erdd’s ambition lit brighter than ever and his determination sharpened, the time has come for his second meeting with the professor. Erdd collects the training aids and walks over to the lab.

  He is directed to the correct room and there Professor Rowan and three kids stand. The kids Erdd recognizes from the night before.

  Barry is dramatically describing something to the chimchar on his shoulder.

  Dawn holds her piplup in her arms and speaks to her gently.

  Lucas is sitting down and feeding berries to the turtwig in his lap.

  Rowan notices Erdd’s appearance and clears his throat to get everyone’s attention “My apprentices, let me introduce you to my fourth sponsee, Erdd. Erdd, these are Lucas, Dawn and Barry.”

  “Well met” Erdd replies “I am interested in you who the professor puts his eyes upon.”

  Lucas stands so all of them can exchange greetings with Erdd. Dawn asks “I haven't seen that pokemon following you before, can I scan him with my pokedex?” and he says “Of course.”

  When the girl takes out her Pokedex a mechanical voice emanates from it “Gible, the Land Shark Pokemon. It attacks using its huge mouth. While its attacks are powerful, it hurts itself out of clumsiness, too.”

  “Wait, gible?” “The Dragon type pokemon?” “That's so cool! Can I pet him” a cacophony of voices ring when the three learn Sever’s origin.

  “Now now class,” Rowan interrupts. “Erdd here has agreed to battle you so you’ll be sure to learn about his pokemon along the way. He has been training with his pokemon for how long?”

  “About a week, sir.” Erdd provides

  “That may not seem like a long time,” Rowan continues seamlessly “but at your level pokemon growth is explosive so don’t think little of the difference. Follow me.”

  Barry, Lucas and Dawn talk excitedly about their first battle as Pokemon Trainers while Rowan leads everyone to the field behind the lab to use it as a makeshift arena.

  The chatter is lost on the little man and little monster, their only thoughts are on the battle to come.