Legend: Mirage Tower

Standing at the entrance of the desert, Yuga once again asked Ash and the others, "Are you sure you want to come with us to Fortree City?"

To reach Fortree City as quickly as possible, Yuga and Luvia didn't take the normal route. Instead, they planned to cut through part of the Hoenn Great Desert and head straight to Fortree City on the other side.

Although they would only be crossing a small portion of the Hoenn Great Desert—far from the desert's main body—this area was still one of the most dangerous regions in Hoenn. For the young and inexperienced trainers like Ash and May, it would be a challenge, especially since they had Max with them.

Looking at the endless expanse of yellow sand, Ash swallowed nervously. He couldn't help but glance at May and Brock standing beside him. When he saw them both nod at him, he finally answered Yuga with determination, "Yes, we're sure! We're going together!"

Seeing that Ash had made up his mind, Yuga glanced at the excited Max standing off to the side and nodded in agreement, "Alright then, if that's the case, let's get going!"

And so, the group set off into the desert!

Considering the unpredictable weather in the desert, Yuga and Luvia decided to forgo using Flying-type Pokémon. Instead, they chose to ride land-based Pokémon.

Yuga, with Max, rode on his Sawsbuck. Ash and Brock rode together on Brock's Onix, while May, not having a mount of her own, shared Luvia's Mudsdale.

There are hardly any suitable Water-type Pokémon for land travel, but as an elite member of the Supervisory Bureau, having a land-riding Pokémon was essential. To meet the demands of daily missions, Luvia had specially trained a Mudsdale with exceptional stamina and endurance.

Luvia's Mudsdale wasn't trained as a battle Pokémon, so its combat abilities weren't extraordinary. However, as a mount, it was top-notch, and crossing the desert was a breeze for it.

Additionally, its ability was Stamina. As the name implies, aside from boosting its defense during battles when attacked, it also grants Mudsdale exceptional endurance and strength in everyday tasks.

If Mudsdale had any downside, it would be that its speed was considerably slower than most other mounts.

The daytime temperatures in the desert were extremely high. The group had been riding their Pokémon for only a short while when they were already drenched in sweat. For the kids, who were all experiencing the desert for the first time—except for Yuga and Luvia—this was particularly challenging, especially since they had encountered several sandstorms along the way.

At first, the kids found the desert journey somewhat novel. They were excitedly shouting as they spotted desert-specific Pokémon like Cacnea or Cacturne, but it didn't take long before they felt like fish out of water.

Yuga glanced at the blazing sun overhead and then at the flushed face of Max sitting in front of him. He asked with concern, "How are you holding up? Are you okay?"

Max gritted his teeth and stubbornly shook his head. "I'm fine. How about you, sister?" As he spoke, he struggled to turn around and check on May's condition.

Yuga chuckled to himself: Wow, I didn't expect that despite usually being sarcastic towards his sister, he's pretty reliable in a pinch.

After adjusting Max, who was leaning to one side, to sit more steadily, Yuga said, "Don't worry; Sister Luvia will take good care of May. Just sit tight and don't move around."

Actually, given Luvia's age, it wouldn't be inappropriate for Max to call her "aunt," but since Max called Yuga "brother" and Yuga was of the same generation as Mikoli, he had to call Luvia "sister."

However, for women, being called "aunt" is often less preferable than being called "sister." Moreover, Luvia looked quite young, so Max calling her "sister" didn't feel out of place.

"Okay, got it," Max replied, sounding a bit defeated, as children tend to dislike the heat.

They didn't know how long they had been walking when they suddenly spotted a patch of greenery in the distance. May exclaimed, "Look, it's an oasis!"

Brock calmly responded, "It might be a mirage!"

Exhausted, May countered, "It's definitely not a mirage! It must be an oasis; let's go rest over there!"

Having never seen a mirage in his life, Yuga said, "Whether it's real or not, let's head over and check it out." After all, the oasis was generally in the direction they were heading.

So, the group began moving toward the oasis.

However, as Brock had suggested, what appeared before them was indeed a mirage. No matter how close they got, they couldn't reach that oasis, and in the end, they could only watch helplessly as the mirage vanished.

The revelation that the oasis was just an illusion hit May hard, and Yuga smiled to comfort her. "Alright, keep pushing! We'll probably get out of this desert by tomorrow."

"Ah… we have to wait until tomorrow?!" May wailed in despair.

Just then, Max suddenly shouted, "Sister! Brother Yuga! You guys, look!"

The others followed Max's pointing finger and were astonished to find a tall and magnificent pyramid had appeared not far from them.

Ash gulped nervously. "This… can't be another mirage, can it?"

Brock shook his head. "It doesn't look like one."

Yuga curiously asked the group, "Did any of you notice this tower before?"

"No," everyone shook their heads; the tower seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

"What should we do? Should we go check it out?" May asked hesitantly.

"Let's go and take a look; it doesn't seem too far from us," Yuga replied after a moment of silence. It might be real, or perhaps it was an undiscovered ruin.

Ruins of various kinds were a favored destination for many adventurous trainers, as they often meant wealth and treasure for them.

This time, they found that it was indeed not another mirage. After a short walk, they arrived at the base of the giant pyramid.

"I can't believe… it's real," Max said in disbelief as he looked at the pyramid before him.

"But this tower appeared so suddenly; don't you find it strange?" Brock frowned and said.

"I wonder if you all have heard of the legend of the Mirage Tower?" At this moment, Luvia suddenly spoke up.

"The Mirage Tower?" Yuga had indeed never heard of it.

The children also looked at Luvia with curious expressions.

Luvia cleared her throat and explained, "It is said that there is a magical Mirage Tower in the Hoenn Desert. The exact time of its appearance is unknown, but according to legend, this tower moves on its own. Ordinary people can hardly find it; only when it reveals itself can others enter."

"That's so amazing!" Yuga exclaimed in surprise.

"No wonder we hadn't noticed it before," Brock said quietly.

"Do you know anything specific about the Mirage Tower?" Yuga asked Luvia again.

Luvia shook her head. "It's called a legend for a reason. I've only heard the name of the Mirage Tower; I don't know any specifics. Besides, whether this is really the legendary Mirage Tower is still uncertain."

"It definitely is! There's no doubt about it!" Max said excitedly; he was quite interested in this kind of legend.

"Should we go inside?" May asked.

"Of course we should! This is a rare opportunity!" The passionate Ash was getting excited.

"I think it's better to be cautious," Brock, who was a bit older, said more calmly.

"Why don't we go in, and May and Max can wait outside?" Yuga suggested. He was more concerned about May and Max's safety than exploring the Mirage Tower.

"No! I don't want to stay outside!" As soon as Yuga said this, May immediately became unhappy. She would rather be with everyone than be left alone outside.

"I don't want to either! What if it's even less safe outside?" Max protested as well.

Seeing that May and Max were adamant, Yuga had no choice but to compromise.

"Gengar, Mismagius, come out," Yuga said, and as soon as his words fell, Gengar and Mismagius emerged from the shadow space.

Everyone was startled by the sudden appearance of Gengar and Mismagius, but only Ash and Max exclaimed in unison, "Wow, that's so cool!"

"You two will stay with May and Max to ensure their safety," Yuga instructed Gengar and Mismagius.

After nodding, Gengar and Mismagius disappeared into May and Max's shadows. Although there was no shadow space in May and Max's shadows, it was a ghost-type Pokémon's innate ability to lurk in shadows.

Max stepped on his shadow and said in awe, "That's amazing." As the child of a Normal-type Gym Leader, it was his first time closely interacting with ghost-type Pokémon.

May, however, looked at Yuga worriedly and said, "Yuga, you're leaving Gengar and Mismagius with us. What will you do?"

"You don't need to worry about me," Yuga said with a smile. "My Sawsbuck will protect me, right?" He gently patted the cheek of his Sawsbuck beside him.

"Sawsbuck."

Of course.

Sawsbuck affectionately nuzzled Yuga's palm.

"But how are we going to get inside?" Brock asked after circling the edge of the pyramid.

Yuga looked up at the top of the pyramid and then released Charizard. "Charizard, go check the top."

Charizard spread its wings and flew to the top of the tower. A few minutes later, it returned.

"Most likely, the entrance is at the top. Let's go take a look," Yuga told everyone.

Seeing Yuga communicate with Charizard effortlessly, Ash's eyes widened. "Mr. Yuga can… can understand Pokémon speech?"

"Sort of. To be precise, I can understand the meanings expressed through their cries," Yuga explained with a smile.

"That's awesome! I wish I had that ability too!" Ash, who loved Pokémon immensely, was envious of Yuga's ability. The more time he spent with Yuga, the more magical he found him.

With the help of their flying Pokémon, the group arrived at the top of the Mirage Tower.

From a distance, the Mirage Tower looked like a pyramid, but the top wasn't pointed; it was a large platform with a dark hole in the center, which was likely the entrance.

Looking at the dark entrance that led down into the abyss, Yuga said, "Let's go down."

Upon hearing this, Charizard automatically moved to the front, using the flames on its tail to illuminate the path for everyone.

With Charizard's assistance, the group finally saw the path beneath their feet and began to descend the staircase one by one.

The staircase was long, and in the flickering firelight, Yuga noticed faint murals on the walls beside the stairs. However, they were likely weathered by time, and the patterns were too blurred to discern what the murals were meant to convey.

Most ancient murals were used for storytelling rather than mere decoration, as they are often used today.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp…"

After descending for a while, a sudden flurry of wings and shrill cries came from above them. They looked up to see a swarm of Zubat that had been startled by Charizard's flames, frantically fleeing into the darkness.

May was startled by the sudden noise, but she knew she couldn't be a bother, so she covered her mouth to suppress her scream and tightly held onto Max's arm with her other hand.

Max's arm hurt from his sister's grip, but feeling her trembling, he quietly endured the pain.

Yuga sensed the tension in the darkness and released his Flabébé. "Chimecho, use Heal Bell," he whispered.

As soon as Yuga finished speaking, a clear and melodious chime emanated from Chimecho. Under the influence of Heal Bell, everyone's emotions began to relax involuntarily, and May gradually loosened her grip on Max's hand.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp…"

After walking a bit further, they finally reached the bottom of the long staircase, entering a spacious area within the tower. A few Sandshrew, startled, hurriedly scurried into the holes in the walls, disappearing from sight.

"It seems like there's nothing here," Ash remarked as he surveyed the empty space.

"Then… what's that?" May suddenly pointed in a direction and asked.

Following May's gesture, the group squinted into the flickering light of Charizard's flames and vaguely saw a pile of white objects.

Luvia released a Starmie, and a bright beam of light shot out from the gem at its center, illuminating the pile of objects, revealing them to be a heap of bones—human bones!

Ash, Brock, May, and Max all swallowed nervously.

"Hehe… heh… that must be fake," May said, forcing a laugh to reassure herself.

However, Luvia replied, "In the legend of the Mirage Tower, some people who entered never came out…"

Yuga interjected, "Regardless, everyone stay alert. May, Max, Ash, Brock, don't stray too far from me."

As soon as Yuga's words fell, a series of chaotic scraping noises suddenly echoed in the darkness, and soon their view was filled with Sandshrew and Sandslash.

Countless Sandshrew and Sandslash surrounded them from all sides.

"Stay alert!" Yuga whispered sharply.

Just as they alerted their Pokémon to be on guard, the Sandshrew and Sandslash launched their attack on the intruders.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp…"

The Sandshrew and Sandslash rushed forward, claws at the ready, aiming to pounce on Yuga and his companions.