Bzzz… bzzz… bzzz…The button on the Poké Ball flickered three times as it shook.
Thud.
Gastly was successfully captured.
"This is my fourth Pokémon," Nozomi thought, feeling that he was catching Pokémon at a decent pace. He might not be as fast as Gary, but compared to that Ash guy, he was far ahead.
Of course, the main reason was that Nozomi didn't want to capture too many Pokémon.
He had no intention of going to the extreme—focusing on just one or two Pokémon to build his team—but he also didn't want to haphazardly capture a bunch of random Pokémon and irresponsibly leave them aside.
Capturing Gastly was justified because it had good potential, and besides, Gastly itself was relatively rare.
"Come out, Gastly!"
Nozomi pressed the button on the Poké Ball, and Gastly's gaseous form appeared before him.
"Gyaa~!"
Gastly looked utterly dejected when it saw Nozomi.
It had clearly realized that it had lost! Wild Pokémon were usually straightforward. Even cunning Ghost-types like Gastly, after agreeing to a battle with Nozomi and losing, wouldn't regret their decision.
"All right, no more sulking. From now on, we're partners!" Nozomi ruffled Gastly's head.
Now that Gastly was his Pokémon, Nozomi felt it was necessary to strengthen their bond.
Many examples had proven that Pokémon who shared a strong connection with their trainer fought with greater power. And if Gastly's final evolution, Gengar, ever wanted to Mega Evolve, Nozomi would need a solid rapport with it.
Hearing Nozomi's reassurance and feeling his goodwill, Gastly began to accept the fact that Nozomi had become its trainer.
"Gyaa."
Gastly nudged Nozomi's palm with its head. Cold and slippery to the touch, it was an oddly satisfying sensation.
"Come on, meet your new teammates!"
Nozomi released Eevee and Bulbasaur to introduce them to Gastly.
Eevee was fine, but timid little Bulbasaur was so frightened by Gastly that it cowered behind Nozomi, refusing to come out no matter how much Nozomi called.
"…" Nozomi sighed.
Bulbasaur's cowardice hadn't improved at all.
Interestingly, Gastly seemed rather taken with this scared little Pokémon, constantly trying to nudge it and occasionally transforming into its ghostly form to spook Bulbasaur.
Bulbasaur panicked and ran around, calling out in panic.
"All right, that's enough. Let's go!"
By now, the sky was dimly brightening. Nozomi wanted to reach Pewter City's Pokémon Center for breakfast.
He recalled Metagross and the frightened Bulbasaur back into their Poké Balls, letting Eevee and Gastly follow by his side, and continued along the path deeper into Viridian Forest.
As Nozomi left, the area where Gastly had battled Metagross fell silent again. Scared Pokémon returned, finding suitable places amidst the wreckage of the forest to rest.
Viridian Forest regained its peacefulness.
…
The next day, Pewter City.
Nozomi moved quickly, guided by his excellent sense of direction, and after just one night, he had crossed the part of Viridian Forest that lay between Viridian City and Pewter City.
Of course, the Viridian Forest between the two cities was only a small portion of the entire forest.
The true Viridian Forest spanned the Kanto and Johto regions, located between Viridian City and Dark Gray City. It was vast, and crossing it would take more than a day or two.
"Miss Joy, please heal my Pokémon."
Nozomi handed his Pokédex and Poké Balls to Nurse Joy.
"All right!" she said politely, scanning the Pokédex and returning it. "The data has been registered. Which Pokémon would you like me to heal?"
"Bulbasaur, Eevee, and Gastly!" Nozomi handed over the three Poké Balls.
After more than a day of intense training, Bulbasaur and Eevee were exhausted, while Gastly was still recovering from its battle with Metagross.
Nozomi could have taken care of them himself, but entrusting them to a professional like Joy meant a faster recovery.
"All right. Please come back in the afternoon to pick them up."
After leaving his Pokémon in Joy's care, Nozomi walked along Pewter City's streets, observing his surroundings.
Because of its proximity to the mineral-rich Mt. Moon, Pewter City's primary industry was mining.
The city wasn't bustling like Saffron, famous for commerce, but it wasn't dilapidated either.
Due to the mining-based economy, the air quality wasn't perfect, but still acceptable.
Most commonly seen were miners wearing hard hats, accompanied by Rock- and Fighting-type Pokémon. Years of labor had developed their Pokémon's muscles impressively.
As Nozomi considered asking someone for directions to the Pewter Gym to prepare for his first Gym challenge, a voice suddenly called out nearby.
"Hey, kid! Want some rocks?"
A middle-aged man spoke with a sleazy tone, as greasy as someone trying to sell pirated DVDs.
Nozomi turned to look and saw a scruffy man sitting by the roadside. He had laid out a cloth with a bunch of rocks, each labeled with a price.