The blue-white light of evolution didn't just illuminate the clearing; it felt like it was humming in my very teeth. The air around Mt. Coronet was always thick with magnetism, but this was like someone had suddenly turned up the volume on a radio.
As the glow faded, the blocky, stoic Nosepass had been replaced by a creature that looked more like a piece of ancient, sentient architecture than a Pokémon. Probopass stood nearly five feet tall now, its massive red nose glowing with magnetic heat.
On its sides and back, three smaller "mini-noses"—its magnetic units—hovered and hummed, while a thick "mustache" of black iron sand clung to its lower jaw, twitching in response to the mountain's pull.
"It's finally starting!" Marcus, the young Trainer, shouted with a fist-pump that nearly knocked his own hat off. "Look at that! Total evolution! We're unstoppable now!"
The crowd was buzzing. Evolving a Pokémon in the wild like this was always a spectacle, especially one as specialized as Probopass. But while the other Trainers were admiring the new "beard" of iron sand, I was looking at the way the magnetic mustache was vibrating. It wasn't pointing north. It was pointing directly at the sealed tunnel entrance.
Marcus turned back to the crowd, his eyes sparkling with that dangerous, infectious brand of eleven-year-old confidence.
"Alright, listen up! Why are we all just sitting here like slowpokes?" he called out, his voice cracking slightly with excitement. "The police and the Rangers are just gonna keep us waiting for days. We're Trainers! We've got partners that can smash rocks and fly over obstacles. Why aren't we investigating the Geodude riot ourselves?"
I felt a twinge of "Oh no" in my gut. I knew this speech. This was the "Protagonist Speech" that usually led to people getting chased by a swarm of angry Beedrill.
"As long as we gather a few more people, we'll sneak in!" Marcus continued, pacing like a little general. "Who's with me? Who's brave enough to see what those Geodude are actually hiding?"
The reaction was immediate. In a world where kids are encouraged to travel alone at ten, "safety first" isn't exactly the most popular motto.
"I'm in!" a guy in a black tracksuit stepped forward, looking bored and eager for a fight. "Me too," a girl with thick glasses added, adjusting her backpack. "It would make for an amazing research paper." "Count me in!" another two joined, nodding firmly.
Marcus's grin was wide enough to rival a Gengar's. "That's five. We just need one more to make it a solid even number for rotations. Anyone else?"
He scanned the crowd. People were looking at their shoes or suddenly finding their Pokédexes very interesting. I was standing near the front, still trying to analyze the magnetic frequency of his Probopass, when his eyes locked onto mine.
"Hey, you!" he said, pointing a finger. "You've been watching for a while. You look like you've been on the road a few years. You're definitely a veteran, right? Why don't you join the 'Tunnel Investigation Squad'?"
I blinked, startled out of my thoughts. "Me? Uh..."
I looked at the group. Most of them were clearly younger than me—roughly twelve or thirteen. Since I was closer to fifteen, I probably did look like a "veteran" to them. I pinched my chin, my mind racing.
On one hand: Sneaking past a police cordon into a tunnel full of aggressive, organized Geodude was a terrible, horrible, no-good idea. On the other hand: I had Aura. I had a Sylveon who could sense emotions and a Floette who could probably translate "Geodude-speak." If I went, I might actually solve the mystery and get to Celestic Town a week early. Plus, if these kids got into real trouble, I was probably the only one with enough experience to keep them from getting pancaked by a Rock Slide.
"Alright," I said, giving him a small nod. "Count me in."
"Yes! Six people! We're a full squad now!" Guang Ren cheered.
At that exact moment, a random Psyduck waddled through the middle of the group, holding its head and blinking slowly at us with a look of utter confusion. Quack? The silence was deafening. It felt like a bad omen, but Marcus just ignored it. "Okay, let's huddle up over here before the Rangers spot us! I'll tell you what I know."
The 'Newbie' Misunderstanding
We moved to a secluded clump of pine trees near the rock face. Marcus started laying out the "plan," which basically consisted of "Go in, release everyone, and blast anything that looks like a rock."
"We need to be ready," the guy in the black tracksuit said, crossing his arms. "The Geodude move in groups of twenty. Everyone should have all six of their Pokémon out and ready to go the moment we cross the threshold."
"Uh, one small problem," I raised my hand sheepishly. "I only have three Pokémon on me right now. And technically, one of them—the 'baby'—doesn't have any direct offensive moves yet."
The group went dead silent. The black-tracksuit guy turned to me, his lip curling into a sneer.
"What? Three? How long have you been traveling to only have three Pokémon? Did you lose the others in a bet or something?"
"Actually, I've only been on the road for about two months," I replied honestly.
The girl with glasses gasped. "Two months? But you're... how old are you, fifteen?"
"Just about," I said, shrugging.
"No way," the tracksuit guy laughed, a harsh, mocking sound. "You waited until you were fifteen to start? And you only caught three? Wow. I thought you were a veteran, but you're just a late-bloomer coward, aren't you? Afraid to leave home until you were big enough to not cry?"
I felt the heat rise in my cheeks, but I stayed quiet. It's hard to explain to a group of twelve-year-olds that I was busy being a Research Assistant and that I prefer quality over quantity. To them, a Trainer's worth was measured in the number of Poké Balls on their belt.
"Hey, give him a break," the girl with glasses interrupted, though her tone was more pitying than supportive. "Maybe he just had family stuff to take care of. It's fine. We have five strong Trainers; we can probably carry one newbie who's late to the party."
The others murmured in agreement, their eyes filled with a mix of dismissal and "Oh, we have to babysit the old guy."
"Right," Marcus said, looking a little disappointed that his 'pro' recruit was actually a beginner. "We'll just put you in the middle of the formation. Just keep your... whatever you have... out of the way of my Probopass's magnetic units."
I didn't bother correcting them. I didn't mention the Forest Badge in my pocket or the fact that my Sylveon had just soloed a Gym Leader's senior team. If they wanted to think I was a scared "late-bloomer," let them. It would be easier to keep an eye on the situation if they weren't expecting me to do the heavy lifting.
"Alright," I said, putting on my best 'nervous beginner' face. "I'll do my best to stay out of the way."
Inside my pocket, I felt Sylveon's ball vibrate slightly. She was definitely annoyed on my behalf. Don't worry, girl, I thought. We'll show them who's 'carrying' who when the rocks start falling.
I checked my thermal gear one last time and made sure Togepi's luxury ball was secure. We were about to break the law, enter a dangerous cave, and babysit five overconfident children.
"Just another day in Sinnoh," I sighed.