And so, the days passed quickly.
In the blink of an eye, half a month had already gone by.
During this time, in addition to the Sonic Boom move it already mastered, Vibrava had learned three new sound-type moves: Supersonic, Screech, and Uproar.
Furthermore, after directly communicating with the Zubat, Vibrava had also preliminarily acquired some basic ultrasonic detection skills.
"I've troubled you a lot these past days, Professor Ackerman."
At the entrance of the Secret Kingdom, Ethan was bidding farewell to Professor Ackerman.
"It hasn't been any trouble at all."
"Your Vibrava has great talent, make sure to keep training it well."
Professor Ackerman smiled as he gently patted Vibrava's head, then looked at Ethan with kindness.
After saying their goodbyes, Ethan and Vibrava left the Secret Kingdom.
Then, after quickly greeting Nolan, Ethan let Vibrava carry him into the sky.
Besides sound training, Vibrava had also practiced carrying weight during this time, and now it could already carry a person without issue.
That was why Ethan planned to return to the Sky Secret Kingdom riding on Vibrava. Though, just in case, he released Pidgeot to protect him during the flight.
Fwoosh, fwoosh...
Vibrava's wings fluttered gently; thanks to its Levitate ability and its control of wind, the flight was very stable.
"You're doing great, Vibrava."
Ethan praised with a smile, prompting Vibrava to chirp happily.
Smiling lightly, Ethan took out Vibrava's training notebook to plan the next phase.
With Professor Ackerman, Vibrava had already completed the basic training for sound-type moves. Sonic Boom, Supersonic, Screech, and Uproar would continue to be the main focus for now.
On the other hand, the move Boomburst—an extremely powerful sound-based attack—was still out of Vibrava's reach. This left Ethan a little disappointed.
Originally, he planned for Vibrava to learn Boomburst and then attempt to evolve it into Flygon, but it seemed he would have to postpone that.
Besides sound training and ultrasonic detection, Ethan wanted to begin specialized vibration training for Vibrava.
Sound-type moves, ultrasonic detection, and vibration were all strongly linked, so he planned to train them together.
While Ethan thought about all this, he felt a slight tremor in his body; immediately after, he heard Vibrava let out a somewhat embarrassed sound: its stamina could no longer support carrying someone.
"Good work, Vibrava."
Ethan comforted it with a smile and called Pidgeot, riding on the large bird while letting Vibrava rest in his hand.
"Viiibbrra!"
But Vibrava didn't seem to have reached its limit just yet; it stubbornly flapped its wings.
"Okay, I get it."
Ethan petted it and took a rope from his backpack, tying it to Vibrava so it could continue flight training while being towed.
Fwoooosh!
The wind roared; Vibrava's small body swayed as it flew, feeling the force of the air.
Once mounted on Pidgeot, Ethan released Shuckle and Charmander.
It was winter, the weather was cold, and when riding Vibrava, its body blocked the freezing wind; but now on Pidgeot, the air was icy.
That's why he released Charmander—to regulate the temperature and keep him warm.
With Charmander warming his arms, and Shuckle serving him a cup of still-warm juice, the moment was quite comfortable.
Thanks to Pidgeot's speed, they quickly reached the Sky Secret Kingdom.
This time, Ethan left Professor Ackerman's lab for two reasons: first, because Vibrava's sound training had hit a bottleneck; and second, because the guild president had asked him to return.
"Ethan, you're back already."
When Pidgeot landed in the square of the Pokémon Researcher Guild, President Beckett appeared immediately.
From the dark circles under his eyes and the barely contained joy in his expression, it was clear that some experiment had made major progress.
"President."
Ethan greeted respectfully.
"No need for formalities, come with me."
Following President Beckett, Ethan entered a laboratory.
"Roooaar!"
As soon as he entered, he heard an enraged roar.
Looking toward the source, he saw a Primeape running wildly around the room.
"Primeape?"
Ethan frowned in confusion.
"Exactly, Primeape."
"We've discovered a very interesting energy inside it."
The tired-looking President Beckett revealed a smile, then looked at Ethan expectantly.
"An interesting energy?"
Ethan's eyes lit up.
Mentioning Primeape made Ethan recall its description: A Pokémon that is always angry; it attacks upon seeing a human, with fast punches and powerful kicks. Its anger speeds up its blood circulation and strengthens its muscles.
"Could it be... the emotion of rage?"
Hearing his words, President Beckett froze.
Did he just... guess it like that?
"It seems so—the force of rage."
Ethan looked at Primeape and remembered emotional bonds.
It didn't matter whether it was rage or emotional connection—both were mysterious forces that, if classified, fell into the realm of emotional energy.
"Exactly."
"We've precisely observed the force of rage in Primeape."
"And not just in Primeape..."
As he spoke, he threw a Poké Ball, and a Kirlia appeared inside the laboratory.
"The Emotion Pokémon, Kirlia."
Ethan's eyes flashed; he already had a good idea of what President Beckett wanted to show him.
And indeed, President Beckett ordered: "Use the move Return!"
Upon hearing the command, Kirlia nodded happily. It looked at President Beckett with affection, and a strange energy surged from its body before it dashed at full speed toward a testing device.
BOOM!
Although Kirlia was a psychic-type Pokémon and didn't have high physical strength, under the effect of the move Return, the impact was surprisingly powerful.
(End of chapter)