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LNOEW Chapter 59
🕑 Added 2025-02-20 04:30:13 +0000 UTCThe Pokemon Center within the Dalizapa Passage was a fair bit larger than the others I had seen, with a small building past the pavilion built up against the rocky walls, looking like it could house at least a dozen people. They must get more Trainers lost on this route than on other ones and have them be in desperate need of a safe haven. Probably still have the underground structure part too here, but hopefully don’t need it too often.
There was also a good deal of grass around the Center and building, due to how this intersection of the passage was open to the sky above. There were large openings high, high above us, letting the sunlight and rain occasionally stream down the stone passage. Off to the West was the route to Medali, the tunnel there fully ensconced from the elements until you reached the end. My destination was to the north, amidst a series of broken, winding paths up.
As the Nurse Joy (one whom my keen eyes detected was just wearing a pink wig as part of the job uniform and likely not a member of the Joy clan) took in my Pokemon, she asked me, “Do you need to rest here?”
Shaking my head, I replied. “Nah, I’ll just get my team healed up, maybe have a snack, then be on my way up.”
She pursed her lips, looking a little worried for my sake (especially since I confirmed I was going up the mountain and not the easy path across to Medali). That expression changed to one of a bit more consideration as she saw my full team, especially the seventh Pokemon. The machines are designed only to heal six Pokemon at a time, so she must have seen the note on my file that I have permission from Hassel to carry seven at once.
“Alright, your Pokemon are all healed up; we hope you enjoy your stay. Be safe out there.”
“Thanks,” I said, before setting up a small picnic at the edge of the Pokemon Center. There were plenty of wild Pokemon wandering about the caves, but even the most mischievous or aggressive of them, like the Salandits or Sableyes, refused to get close to the Pokemon Center. Some of them are eyeing me up, though, like it’s a game and I’m in the ‘safe zone.’. I wonder if that’s how the Rangers or whoever explained it to them? Probably not, but it could be how the message has twisted over time.
Wild Pokemon were often taught to avoid certain human paths, both through direct and indirect experience, but Rangers hardly had time to constantly reteach such things to each generation of Pokemon. Clearly, the older Pokemon teach the newborn Pokemon those things, alongside other facets of life. But I have to wonder how those messages get distorted from how they were first taught, like a game of Telephone. The result might be similar, but is the reasoning different?
Such things would be fascinating to study, but unfortunately I didn’t have nearly enough time to spend more of it here. After our quick lunch, I packed things up and started hiking up the passage. The few Pokemon that seemed like they might be willing to make a move towards challenging me were warded off by Notch and Nightwing flying by my side, at least long enough that my quick strides took the decision out of their hands as I moved on.
As I reached the quarter mark and used an Aura-assisted jump to make it up to the next part of the ‘path,’ I wondered. How did they expect people to climb this without Aura? A second later it hit me, and I felt dumb for not realizing otherwise. Oh right, they expect the Pokemon to help them. Still, some of these jumps are pretty steep; something just like a standard rental Cyclizar wouldn’t be able to traverse them.
“Hmm,” I mused aloud, drawing the attention of Notch (Nightwing was busy ‘guarding’ me by dive-bombing nearby Pokemon and frightening them off). “Oh, I was just thinking about this passage,” I said as I pulled myself up to the next level, climbing up the next section of the path.
They chimed, and I continued. “This place is broken up and clearly in need of maintenance, so I wondered if it was even really meant to be a pathway for people to use heading up. But then I look and see things like that,” I said, pointing at a faded bootprint on the ground. “Clearly people have used this, not too long ago either. So maybe it’s left like this on purpose? As a challenge for those seeking to ascend this way?”
My words were proven true as I saw a hiker man standing by the side of the path, who waved at me. “‘Ello there, Miss. Fancy a batt-”
“Sorry,” I interrupted his request, Nightwing swooping up beside us to catch up. “I’ve gotta keep on going. I’m set to have a Gym Challenge with Grusha soon, and I’m running a bit behind.” The words ‘maybe next time’ or ‘we can fight later’ hung on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t say them. There’s no backtracking in the route I set out, and I really should try and speed things up. The future won’t wait forever.
Thankfully, he took the denial with good grace, easily waving me off. “No problem, good luck with your challenge and be careful up there; this climb is steep, but it gets pretty frigid on the top of the mountain.”
The warning just seemed like standard fare and not that he was underestimating me. In fact, he gave my clothing an approving nod as I passed by. “Be careful about climbing up too fast. You’ve got some youthful vigor, Miss, but you’ll find that you need to take a break at times when you ascend. Don’t try to push past it when you get a headache or dizzy, even if you’ve got a Gym Match on the line.”
I frowned for a moment, trying to figure out what he meant before it hit me. Oh, he’s talking about altitude sickness!... I don’t think I have to worry about that with my Aura. “Will do, thank you,” I replied before continuing the climb.
It was a long trek, but eventually, I made it to the top. Exiting out through one of the openings, I found myself standing on a snow-covered path. It led further up the mountain, a cold wind racing down its slopes. The path was steep, twisting around several snowy caps up and up and up.
To my left, the lands were covered by grassy plains that were somewhat flat before a steep dive down (though I knew there were a few large holes I couldn’t see from this angle that opened to the passage). It was strange to see such a hard line between the two environments until I considered what effect Pokemon could have on the terrain around them. Even if none of the guys are weather setters, I can totally buy that so many Cubchoos, Snorunts, and other Ice Types could ensure the snow doesn’t melt on their side, while the Gogoats on the other let the grass thrive.
Despite the snow drifting down around me, the sunlight reflecting off the path made it difficult to make out anything as I climbed it. Thankfully, I was still able to see enough to avoid any Pokemon wandering across the path, without a care in the world. These more rugged trails are truly dominated by the Pokemon; I’ll have to be careful.
I could avoid any Snorunts or Frigibax wandering carelessly on the path, but as I made it higher, some more aggressive Pokemon actively sought me out, attempting to drive me off, or perhaps just looking for a challenge. Most of them were defeated easily, but a few proved a tad more troublesome.
One of those was a Cryogonal. As we passed the corner, turning out of sight of the Dalizapa Passage, they were there at the top of the long path, right before the next turn. Rather than wait for my approach, they surprised me with a Solar Beam, carving a devastating beam across the icy path.
Diving to the side, I avoided the beam at the cost of snow in uncomfortable places (not that I was overly focused on that at the moment). “Power Gem!” I shouted as I pulled myself out of the snow. Notch floated ahead valiantly, blasting out beams of the Rock Type energy up at the large blue snowflake-shaped Pokemon floating well ahead of us.
Despite the distance, Notch managed to clip the Cryogonal with the beams, my ears picking out the distant wail it gave, its glowing blue eyes glaring down at us. Yeah, well, you started this.
Calling out “Light Screen,” we began racing up through the thick snow, trying to close the distance with Cryogonal. The Ice Type blasted beams across the wide path, freezing even more of it over, but with Notch’s screen and a few well-timed Aura-enhanced jumps, I was able to avoid getting frozen over as we closed the distance.
They should have used Blizzard; it would have frozen everything down the path. It’s funny; such Moves are obvious to me, and despite this Pokemon clearly being quite experienced and powerful, it didn’t see things the same way, simply shooting out Aurora Beams and the like as we made our approach. “Stone Edge,” I called out, those thoughts in the back of my mind as we moved to take them out.
With only a few dozen meters between us, Notch was able to use their strongest Rock Type attack, pulling a jagged spike of stone from the ground and clipping hard into Cryogonal, sending a small crack through their frame.
Off to the side, Nightwing laughed at the wild Pokemon’s misfortune, earning her a few Ice Beams, which she narrowly avoided. I made it a policy not to use all of my Pokemon against a wild Pokemon to better give the team one-on-one experience, but I couldn’t help it if our enemy decided to split their own focus.
Something that Notch took great advantage of, burying the Ice Type under a barrage of rocks. Eventually, the Cryogonal gave a cry of pain and floated away. “Well done,” I told Notch as I turned my attention away from the wild Pokemon once we were safe.
Or so I had thought, the other Pokemon on the mountain, like the Sneasels and Snovers, ducking for cover when Cryogonal rampaged. But apparently, that was just the weaker Pokemon, as a shadow fell over my head. Whipping around, I saw a Beartic on the cliff above, crashing down towards me.
Nightwing threw herself in front of me, the Avalanche crashing down on top of her and burying her in the snow. The large bear raised her arms back and roared in defiance, which left her slightly off-balance. A blast of wind sent her toppling over, my Aura catching her by surprise and giving me a moment to escape, recalling Nightwing as I did so.
I’m tempted to let Notch take out the Beartic too, but… Glancing over, I saw the fury in the polar bear-like Pokemon’s eyes as she pulled herself up. No need to take chances here. “Go, Lucario!” I shouted, tossing her out in front of the Beartic.
Even evolved, the Beartic still towered over my Pokemon, and upon seeing the obstacle in her path, swung a heavy arm down upon Lucario… who caught the blow with ease.
With a smirk, she began wailing into him, blasting him with a flurry of Aura Spheres and Flash Cannons with her free hand while still holding the Beartic in place. When the wild Pokemon lunged at her, jaws snapping, she simply flipped the Beatic over, crashing her through the snow once, twice, then spinning around and tossing her through the air well above the cliff she had dropped down from.
Not that she was done, my newly evolved Pokemon was reveling in her newfound prowess, jumping after the Beartic, soaring high above the clouds. A heavy sigh escaping my frigid lips, I marched up after her, climbing up to the next flat stretch of snow.
I rounded the bend just in time to watch her land down, foot first into Beartic’s gut, knocking the wild Pokemon out. “Had your fun?” I shouted across the windy space, to which she howled an affirmation.
Trudging up beside her, we moved on toward our goal. The sun was setting, with the road long having disappeared, any sign of the earth buried under piles of snow way back around when we first started fighting Cryogonal. And the Gym isn’t in sight.
Grusha’s Gym didn’t have a city around it or anything like that, but there were a few buildings designed to host traveling Trainers, as well as some ski lodges, from what I had heard. Yet they’re nowhere in sight…
“Alright, we’re going to rest up for the night,” I told Notch and Lucario. Part of me was tempted to press on, but visibility was falling fast, and the cold picked up with it. I think I might be able to make it if I pressed on, but there’s no need to. My match isn’t till the afternoon tomorrow; I’ll have time enough to make it there in the daylight.
Finding a somewhat secure edge of the mountain, I began clearing a patch of snow to set up my tent. With Notch erecting a wall of stone to further shield us from the elements, I pitched the tent with enough room to make sure any snow falling off the cliff likely wouldn’t land on top of it. Then I brought out the special insulated sleeping bag I’d bought in Zapapico.
Even with all of that, it was still cold, and sleep came slowly, but eventually I drifted off. I woke up to find I was much warmer, due mostly to Dun having squeezed in beside me. “Silly snake,” I said fondly, something he hummed at, likely meaning something like ‘Silly Trainer,’ in response.
“Ha, guess you’ve got me there,” I said with a yawn as I wiggled out of the sleeping bag and got dressed. The tent was opened from the outside, Lucario poking her head in, and I hissed from the sudden chill.
‘Sorry,’ she sent to me, and I waved her off before getting fully bundled up again and braving the outside.
“It’s fine. I take it you had some thoughts about what we talked about last night?” As we had set up the tent, I had posed two important questions to her. The first was which of the following Gyms she wanted to take on; with her evolved strength and Type advantage, I was sure she could dominate most of either Gym, but the rest of the team needed to train too. The other-
‘Virtue, Battle, Strategy. Wisdom.’ The concepts were hard for me to grasp solely from her empathic pulses, but with the body language, I was able to piece it together and understand what she meant by it all.
“Athena, is that the name you want?” We had gone over a variety of different names, fictional and mundane, but nothing seemed to click until I started going over some of the mythological ones. I’d left her to sleep on it, and apparently she had.
Athena gave a happy yip and smiled at the name. She added an empathic sense of solidity and hardness coming through our bond to further confirm her decision, an impression of solid ground almost. Aha!
“And you want to face Tyme? Sounds good.” A scrambling sound nearby had me turn to the stone barricade, watching Fraxure scramble over the top, flopping down in front of me with a ‘whump.’
Shaking the snow off of him, he piped up eagerly. “Frax! Axure!”
“You’ve thought of your name? Alright, let’s hear it.” Fraxure, being my first Dragon Type (and one of the few Dragons that was solely Dragon Type), a Dragon name seemed perfect. The problem lay in just how many fictional dragons there were in my old world. We’ve spent the past few months discussing everything from Smaug and the Hobbit to The Inheritance Cycle to even human characters given the title of ‘Dragon,’ like Rand al Thor and Iroh. It’s been fun discussing all those stories, but I was worried I was overloading him with options.
Fraxure mimed out some actions trying to convey the name to me, something that was one of the more difficult things to understand when listening to a Pokemon speak. Common feelings or actions, like ‘I’m hungry, feed me,’ or ‘I’m so mad I’m going to break something,’ were easy to understand. From there, context clues could help me figure out what they meant more specifically. Proper nouns, however, were far trickier to decipher.
After many tries, Fraxure switched tracks, making bird-like motions with his claws. “Umm, a bird? A Canary!” He nodded eagerly, making more gestures and singing a little. “Bad Canary?” Fraxure shook his head. Wrong series. And I didn’t even bring up Lung; that guy doesn’t deserve the title of Dragon.
“More than one canary, seven of them? Oh! Bahamut! Is that the name…?” He nodded eagerly, cheering. “Well, that’s definitely a fitting choice. The Platinum Dragon, known for his goodness and nobility, and a god, high aim there.”
Bahamut looked a little bashful at that, and I waved him off. “No, no, that’s a good thing. All Pokemon are strong. Hey, did I ever tell you the story of why I liked Haxorus’ so much?” He shook his head, and I nearly cursed myself. Gah, can’t believe I missed something so obvious.
Athena looked on interested, and my words had piqued even Dun’s interest, enough that he stuck his head out of the tent. “Alright, let’s pack things up, and I’ll tell you on the way.” I released the rest of the team as we began the final leg of our hike.
“So, I told you all that Pokemon existed in several forms of media in my former world, right? One of the most popular was the games. Several spin-off games existed, but the mainline games were the biggest thing the franchise had. Every few years they’d release a new one, showing off a whole new region, with new Pokemon to capture, and a new ‘evil team’ for your character to beat, on their path to becoming the Champion.”
“Black and White were some of my favorite games - oh right, they released the games in pairs each ‘generation,' exploring a new land and a bunch of new Pokemon in that region, with certain exclusives to each one of the pair to get kids to buy more. Anyways, I had Pokemon Black, and it had a great story, with engaging characters and a different take on the evil team. In the game, Team Plasma had tricked this empathetic kid, N, your rival, into denouncing owning Pokemon. And N was a special kid indeed, able to reach many people. Even more so after he convinced the Legendary Dragon Reshiram to join him.”
“So, eventually I confronted N in his castle, which had shot out of the ground and taken a hold of the Unovan League Building.” I had them fully enraptured now, and even a few wild Pokemon seemed to be listening with half an ear at my strange tale. “After fighting my way through Team Plasma, with the help of the Gym Leaders I fought along the way, I confronted N. Before we could fight, though, the other Legendary Dragon, Zekrom, appeared.”
“Catching it was difficult due to the low catch rate, but I had to in order for the plot to move along. But then, as the game gave me the choice of which Pokemon to swap out to have Zekrom on the team of six to fight N, I refused, thinking about the team I had built up so hard on the way here. Emboar, Zebstrika, Throh, Cofigarius, Archeops. And finally, Haxorus, which I was only able to catch near the end of the game, and training him up was hard, but I brought him all the way up to a Haxorus before this fight.”
“So I refused, and the game actually let me. So there I was, facing down N and his Legendary Dragon, with mine not on the team. But as we fought, Haxorus hit Reshiram hard, doing a good chunk of Reshiram’s health. Reshiram’s counter nearly took us out, but Haxorus just barely hung on, and in the following turn, we struck first; Haxorus was faster than Reshiram, and- we won.”
In the silence that followed, we rounded the bend and gained the first glimpse of the Gym, the blocky white building at the end of the path almost blending in with the rest of the mountain. The arena off to the side was slightly more colorful, with a few other buildings, like a Pokemon Center off to the side.
Better wrap this story up now that we’re getting close to other people. “So yeah, I managed to beat N - before losing to Ghestis’ overpowered, underleveled Hydregion - but it was my first time really seeing a non-Legendary beating a Legendary. Of course, later on I saw stuff like that from Ash in the anime, and I always knew that any Pokemon could be strong with enough effort,” I said, glancing down at Dun.
He raised his head slightly and gave a determined hiss. “Yeah, that’s right, you’ll definitely be stronger than any random Legendary, stronger than anyone. All of you guys will. Thank you, for believing in and trusting me this far. I promise not to let you down.”
This prompted a bunch of my team dogpiling me and the sound of a camera clicking. Pushing my head out of the pile, I saw my Dad, bundled up in a thick golden jacket and matching ski pants, holding up his Rotom Phone and frantically taking photos of me. Beside him was Mom, dressed much the same, with a golden scarf around her face that couldn’t hide the delight in her eyes.
“Ah! How incredibly cute! Your Glitterati adorability knows no bounds!” She squealed as I managed to get myself up.
“Mom, Dad!” I ran over and gave them both a hug. “I didn’t mean to make you guys wait out here; the trip just took me a bit longer than I thought.”
“I can see that,” Billy said, eyeing up some of my new Pokemon.
“Right, this is Athena,” I said, waving a hand out at my Lucario, who nodded ‘stoically’ even as her tail wagged behind her, soaking up the praise and awe from my parents. “And you haven’t met Bahamut before,” I added, gesturing to the Fraxure in question, who awkwardly waved at my parents, shivering slightly from the cold.
We quickly headed over to the hotel room they had rented out, getting out of the cold. Over lunch, I regaled them with all of our exploits. I had tried to keep them up-to-date on my journey (at least for the poacher event I deliberately hid), but there were little things missed in the messages I sent. Quirks of my Pokemon, funny events (or at least events that felt funny in hindsight), and more detail explaining some of the incredible stuff that had happened to me.
“... And then Athena managed to evolve, nearly beating her old sensei!” I said excitedly between a mouthful of fries (thankfully, Leah was not here to scold me for my lack of manners).
“Impressive,” A new yet familiar voice cut into our conversation. Turning around, I saw Grusha striding forward to the pub. He was looking far more like what I remembered from the games, wearing a fluffy yellow jacket with a blue and red woolen scarf obscuring most of his face.
His icy eyes locked onto mine as I stood up and eagerly greeted him. “Grusha! How’s it going?”
“Hmph, you’re awfully carefree before a big match. Do you have no fear of losing?” His arms were crossed over his chest, likely in an attempt to appear ‘cool’ and intimidating, but I sensed a hint of uncertainty within him.
He’s only just become a Gym Leader, and a lot of expectations come with that title. Some part of him must not feel like a proper Gym Leader yet. I wonder what it’s like to have a job or title like that? To the point where everyone views you through that lens first and foremost.
“Nope!” I said with a big grin, which quickly changed to a smirk. “I don’t go into a match thinking I’m gonna lose, ya know?”
Slowly, the young man nodded. “An appropriate attitude. I don’t plan on losing either. Still, before we fight, you’ll need to take on my challenge. The Snow Slope Run.”
Stuffing the last of the food in my mouth, I said, “You ready, buddy?” Dun gave an affirmative cry as he slithered by my side. The Gym Leader looked on curiously before once more adopting his stoic mien.
“Don’t take the mountain casually. The trial is just as serious as the challenge,” he warned.
“I won’t. I just have every faith in Dun,” I explained. There are ride Pokemon I could use that are trained for the challenge, but they would be Pokemon I don’t know. Plus, when else am I going to get the chance to snowboard on Dun’s back?
Grusha nodded and swiftly turned away. “I’ll meet you at the arena when you’re done.”
To my parents, I added, “Sorry, gotta do this now. We can catch up after?” I asked hopefully.
“Yes, we have the whole week off,” O’Nare clapped her hands, and my eyes widened. Whoa, that’s a lot of time for them to both get off at once. We might be able to get Montevenera done as well before they have to go back… assuming they don’t try and cancel my journey for the whole poacher thing.
That thought loomed heavily over me, and I knew I had to tell them at some point, but I couldn’t deal with that distraction right now. I really do want to give Grusha an awesome battle. In some part at least, I inspired him on this path, so I should try and directly demonstrate how incredible being a Trainer can be.
Focused on the battle ahead, I left the hotel, climbing up to where the slope began. One of the gym staff was waiting for me there. “Are you ready to begin the Snow Slope Run?”
I nodded. “Just have to go down the slope on my Pokemon and hit all the flags.”
A small sweat drop formed on her face. “Well, you’re supposed to go around the flags,” the attendant clarified.
“Ah, right. Anything else?” I queried, releasing Dun and climbing atop his back.
“You’ll be judged on your time and deducted for any flags you miss in boarding around, but don’t worry overly much about that. Try to be safe and cautious above all else.” She said, offering me a helmet, which I quickly fitted on. Yeah, I guess it would look really bad on the League if anyone got hurt during a Gym Trial - the Gyms are supposed to be tough, but not dangerous to the Trainers, not like life on the road could be.
The slope was steep, but not overly so. “On your mark,” I said, bending my knees and getting ready. “Get set,” Dun flapped his wings softly in anticipation. “Go!”
My Dudunsparce launched ahead, barreling down the icy path. Snow sprayed up around us as he began carving a way down, and I raised an arm, both for additional balance atop Dun and to keep the frozen water particles out of my eyes.
With his three-segment body, Dun was able to put his Training to good work, using the same flexibility he had in Hyper Drill to make tight turns around the flags sticking out all around the path. I had to pull my body in to avoid brushing into them as we made those sharp corners.
“Woohoo!” I shouted as we shredded down the mountain, my arms waving semi-wildly to keep balance. Any other time I rode Dun, I’d be clinging tightly onto his back. This is a very different experience than I’m used to. My Aura helped a little in keeping my balance, but it was my martial training more than anything that stopped me from flying off Dun’s back as we raced down.
It wasn’t a long or particularly difficult track, fitting for Trainers that might not have any experience skiing or snowboarding before, so we soon found ourselves near the end. As we passed the last flag, I told Dun, “Wanna try something fun?”
He gave me a skeptical hiss but agreed. “There are cameras all over the track, but let’s go for a cool finish. Do a jump and spin three sixty over the finish line.”
“Du… Dun!” He shouted, leaping up as we neared the flat stretch. He spun himself around, and we went so high I had to duck under the very tall arch that marked the finish line as we passed by.
“Woohoo!” I cried out as we spun once and then almost another full rotation before landing down well over the finish line. That was too much for me to keep my balance with, and I went flying into the powder-soft snow.
“Hahaha, again!” I cheered as I popped up, Dun slithering over to me. Okay, Grusha, that was pretty fun. It might not have been exactly like real snowboarding, but I see why you liked it.
A/N: The Snow Slope Run was one of my favorite Gym Trial/minigames in the game, and I felt like it was a trial so significant to Grusha that it was unlikely that he’d have changed it, even with 7-6 years difference between now and canon.
Next time: Battle against Grusha!
