Chapter 15 The Snowy Rift and a Shocking Encounter

[Pokemon: Articuno(Galarian)(??????)

Ability: Competitive

Type: Psychic, Flying

 Aptitude:??????

 Strength:??????

Moves:??????]

Faust felt a sinking feeling looking at the beautiful pink feathers and the majestic purple crown on the Pokemon's head. It was a legendary Pokemon! The system could not detect its moves but Faust knew. Faust knew that it was the one thing psychic Pokemon with strong abilities were capable of.

But controlling hundreds of Pokemon to enter a rift was not normal, Faust couldn't think of why it would do so. Not that it mattered, Faust couldnt care less for its diabolical plans even if it included taking over the world. He had one objective, rescuing Kyle and his Pokemon.

Faust thought hard and fast. There was absolutely nothing he could do. Being a psychic Pokemon it probably knew that he was nearby but sensing no threat it just ignored him. Faust had read up on the information this world had on Psychic Pokemon.

They were considered the most dangerous types. While Ghost types could be considered dangerous, it was only because of their nature of taking a joke too far. Dragon types were powerful enough to wipe cities off the map, they weren't ones to actively seek out humans to hunt.

Psychic types were the most dangerous because they were able to utilise their minds and were smarter than other types and quite often even humans. They were capable of planning and execution, most terrifying of all, they were aware of what they did. They could choose to forgive and forget or they could choose to be cruel and decimate everything. Faust wasn't just up against any Psychic-type, he was up against a legendary psychic type. The Galarian Articuno, Faust recalled, belonged to a species called Cruel Pokemon. As to why it was called that, Faust did not wish to find out.

As Faust was trying to process the threat he was faced with, the Galarian Articuno ignored the insignificant human it had detected hours ago and flew into the rift. It had a more important objective to achieve.

Watching the Articuno fly into the rift, Faust let out a sigh of relief. It didn't even consider him a threat. That was good. If anything it was an indication of acceptance, Galarian Articuno didn't mind Faust being in the same place as it was. Trying to boost his confidence with rational thoughts, Faust somehow managed to get himself to the rift, he hesitated for a bit second-guessing his decision.

'Argh…fuck it!'

Faust walked in cursing his luck. This was the first time Faust had entered a rift and he was greeted with a faceful of snow. Quickly picking himself off the ground, Faust vigilantly looked around and only let his guard down when he saw nothing but the snow. Surprisingly the weather inside the rift was also the same as in the world outside and it was snowing. He was currently in a clearing that separated a forest and what looked like a small hill. Scanning his surroundings once again Faust didn't see any of the Pokemon from earlier and was confused before he suddenly realised what had happened.

'It seems as if the explorer knowledge my predecessor painstakingly researched was not wasteful.'

When entering a rift, explorers bound themselves to one another using ropes or the like or simply held hands. Since the rift itself didn't technically have an entrance the spatial gateway would leave one stranded in random places across the rift. This is why explorers were also recommended to train different types of Pokemon. 

Gathering his thoughts, Faust headed towards the base of the hill. Even though he knew that he had to find Kyle and his Pokemon urgently, he was exhausted. Being tired wouldn't help and Faust decided to rest before climbing up the hill to get a lay of the land. He didn't set up a tent, instead, he just took brought out the CT warmer and called out Wimpod. Thinking about it, he decided to call out Kyle's Roggenrola as well. Wimpod wasn't aware of what had transpired and simply scurried to the top of Faust's head. Roggenrola on the other hand was looking around trying to find Kyle.

"Kyle's around here. Don't worry we'll find him, for now, eat", said Faust holding out a Pokebloc for the Roggenrola. The Pokemon didn't think too much and simply did as Faust asked.

Faust lay down to rest but not before telling Wimpod to keep watch and wake him at the slightest sign of movement or anything out of the ordinary. Roggenrola wasn't his Pokemon and Faust recalled it back into the Pokeball since there was a chance that he wouldn't follow Faust's instructions. 

As he closed his eyes, Faust suddenly remembered that he hadn't checked the Item List. Opening the list he looked through it without much hope until his eyes fell on item number 7 for the day.

[....7) Team Rocket Ghostly Gadget Mecha ….]

'What the fuck.'

Reading the name, Faust's lip twitched for a second before he decided to check the details.

[Team Rocket Ghostly Gadget Mecha

A high-efficiency robot that was used by Team Rocket to capture a group of Psychic Pokemon in the series. Is capable of withstanding Psychic and Electric attacks. Can bear the attacks of Pokemon up to the Peak Elite Level. Come equipped with robotic arms and a large storage to store captured Pokemon. Also included are normal guided missiles, glue bombs and net traps. It has been modified to be solar-powered and is capable of sixteen hours of use on a single charge]

Faust was genuinely surprised. The system somehow always came through, it always managed to list an item that was oddly required in real-world situations. Faust didn't have the slightest idea of fighting head-on with the psychic bird and its army of mindless Pokemon. But the mecha was best designed to steal Pokemon and that's exactly what he needed. Since the mecha was built for theft and the subsequent getaway, Faust would need a plan and had to make sure Kyle and his Pokemon were in the same place.

Faust knew that was asking for too much. If there was such a miraculous coincidence, Faust would willingly start worshipping Arceus. But there was a high probability that the army was being led to a single place, after all, no one would mind control an assortment of Pokemon into a rift only for them to frolic around randomly inside it. Thinking of the possibilities and a bit relieved at receiving the mecha, Faust drifted off to dreamland.

Faust was awoken by Wimpod's constant nudging. Faust's eyes flew open and he immediately shot to his feet. Looking around and seeing no attackers, he sighed and turned to look at Wimpod who was gesturing at Faust to look in the distance.

Faust turned to the direction Wimpod was pointing at and saw two groups of Pokemon facing each other. He noticed the familiar members of the Cubchoo group who were facing a group of three Amaura and two Aurorus. At first, the two groups didn't do much, Faust noticed that unlike before the Cubchoo and Beartic didn't have dim vacant eyes. This time their eyes were rather lively and they were growling at the group of Amaura. The stalemate broke when a Beartic let loose a flurry of Fury Swipes at the closest Amaura. Seeing this, an otherwise gentle-looking Aurorus flew into a rage and let loose an Aurora Beam at the opposite group. 

The two groups clashed fiercely and Faust watched them silently, slowly moving towards the two groups that were too occupied with one another to care about their surroundings. He found a tree, crouched behind it and used the identifier. The Pokemon were all mostly below the Elite level, except for the Aurorus who had used the Aurora Beam. Quite surprisingly it was in the Early Elite Stage and also had a Green aptitude. Other Pokemon mostly had Red, Orange or Yellow aptitudes. While the Aurorus and Amaura were less in number, they managed to hold their own against the Cubchoo faction. But the sheer amount of Pokemon in the enemy group managed to overwhelm the Amaura and Aurorus. It was over when three Beartic simultaneously used Superpower to grievously injure the two Aurorus. Just as the Cubchoo faction was about to finish off the defeated group, the five Pokemon disappeared in a flash of light.

The Snover and Cubchoo faction stared in confusion at the five red and white balls that were lying at the spot where their adversaries had been earlier. A Beartic roared and kicked away a Pokeball that hit a tree and fell to the ground without any reaction. Unable to figure out where their enemies had gone and what the Pokeballs were, the Beartic turned and walked away roaring in frustration. The rest of the group followed and soon all that was left were the five Pokeballs.

Faust sighed in relief and came out walking towards the five Pokeballs. He picked them up and deposited them in his system inventory. Amaura and Aurorus were rare Pokemon, in fact, he hadn't heard of them being revived after RL had completed the fossil technology. Capturing them was something that Faust had come up with on a whim. Worst case he would've been discovered but Faust didn't fear that, after all the mecha was capable of dealing with the Pokemon below Elite Peak Level.

Satisfied at his harvest with little to no effort, Faust decided to climb the hill and finally survey the area. Walking on the path leading up the hill, Faust couldn't help but think of the Cubchoo group that had regained control of their body. There were only two explanations for this, either the spatial energy had managed to wake them from their trance or that the Galarian Articuno had let them go. Either way, this meant Kyle and his Pokemon were conscious now and they were in more danger than before. There was a possibility that made Faust's heart tighten, that they had possibly been killed by all the wild Pokemon around them. Faust immediately pushed such thoughts out of his mind. Unless he saw for himself, he wouldn't give up. 

Reaching to the top, Faust for the first time had an idea of the situation he was in. The hill overlooked the clearing which led into a forest, on the other side of hill was a rugged terrain filled with large rocky outcrops that seemed to stretch on for quite a distance until it disappeared into a thick fog that enveloped a tall mountain with only parts of it visible along with a peak. 

Now Faust was faced with another difficult choice. Whether to head into the forest or towards the mountain. Kyle and his Pokemon could be in either direction or even both directions. He could choose to go into the forest, after all the trees could provide some sort of cover in case of a Pokemon attack. But at the same time, the forest could have extremely aggressive Pokemon adept sat hunting in the terrain. Meanwhile, the rugged terrain and rocks didn't provide as much cover as trees but as far as Faust could see, there were no Pokemon in the path leading up to the mountain. Moreover, in case of confrontation, the Team Rocket mecha would have higher mobility in the open environment. Weighing the pros and cons, Faust finally decided to head towards the mountain shrouded in the mist.

Glancing at his watch, Faust sighed. He had been walking for almost two hours now and his feet hurt like a bitch. He had the idea of using the mecha, it would definitely be warmer inside and he could save himself a lot of pain. But looking at the overcast sky he had dismissed the idea. Sixteen hours were a lot, but in the present situation, they weren't enough. There was no sun to recharge the mecha and he didn't want to draw unwanted attention by summoning the it. Faust gritted his teeth and continued walking.

Resting himself against a stony outcrop with what looked like icy crystals protruding from it, Faust panted and tried to catch his breath. He was finally at the foot of the mountain and surprisingly the fog wasn't as dense as he had thought it would be. He couldn't see very far ahead but it was definitely more navigable than the strange fog earlier in the Grand Grove. Luckily he hadn't encountered too many strong Pokemon that Wimpod couldn't take care of. In fact, it was quite a harvest of experience for Wimpod who had broken through into the early intermediate stage. Now Faust found himself in what looked like a mineral vein. 

It was a beautiful sight. Numerous light grey rocks in all shapes and sizes jutted out from the ground. There were some cold blue crystals embedded in the rocks and some rocks had what looked like a strange fluffy white moss growing on it. Faust was thinking and planning his next course of action when the rock beneath him moved. 

He was caught unaware and sent down tumbling into the snow. Faust got up and spit out the snow in his mouth while loudly cursing his bad luck ever since entering the Grand Grove.

"Seriously…an earthquake! What's up with this endless series of unfortunate events!? I just came to the forest for an Applin! Okay…two Applins! Even those not for myself! That doesn't deserve any heavenly retribution! Why am I in th-"

"Carbink!"

Faust heard a soft fairylike voice that interrupted his frustrated monologue and froze. He slowly turned only to come face to face with a pair of striking blue eyes. 

"Oh fuck my miserable life."

Seeing the Carbink in front of him Faust couldn't help but curse out loud. 

"Carbink!" "Carbink!" "Carbink!" "Carbink!"

"Carbink!" "Carbink!" "Carbink!" "Carbink!"

"Carbink!" "Carbink!" "Carbink!" "Carbink!"

The entire mineral vein around him exploded and started sprouting out Carbink like popcorns popping. Faust didn't make any movements and looked at the countless blue eyes observing him. Wimpod wouldn't be able to take them on even though he had entered the intermediate stage and most of these Carbink were only in the junior stage. Not to mention there were a few in the mid intermediate stage as well. 

"Hey umm…can we talk it out, please? I'm really not having a good day and I know I trespassed onto your turf. But honestly, I thought you were just rocks", Faust tried to talk to the Carbink seeing how they weren't attacking but just observing him.

All he got was silence in return. Just as he was about to speak again and possibly offer them a Pokebloc treat, the nearest Carbink on top of whom Faust had been sitting let loose an energy beam from one of the crystals on its body.

Faust was hit straight in the stomach and sent flying backwards. Luckily it looked like the Carbink had held back and all the shot did was rough him up a bit and tear a hole in his coat. Faust stood up wobbly and saw a sight that nearly made him wet his pants. All the Carbink were charging their crystals to shoot their laser beams.

Faust immediately summoned the mecha in front of him and just in time as a loud explosion rang out as the laser beams hit the hard metal covering of the mecha. Suddenly a hatch popped open on the side and Faust quickly scurried into the mecha.

The mecha definitely had indoor heating as a stream of comfortable heat descended upon Faust. But not in the position to enjoy the same, Faust quickly took a seat in the mecha and booted up the manual system.

A screen displaying the situation outside came to life and multiple touchscreen options popped up on the screen. Faust quickly grabbed what looked like a joystick and began moving it around. The mecha moved and knocked back quite a few Carbink in the process.

Faust then began clearing the Carbink in front of him tossing them aside as he made his way to the base of the mountain. He didn't have the slightest idea what he was doing, he just didn't hit any of the red buttons and used the joystick-like control to move the mecha forward.

Suddenly Faust noticed the Carbink gather around and start to charge the crystals on their body. He thought they were about to shoot a supercharged beam at him so he braced himself. Surprisingly the beam was shot, but not at him, instead of into the sky forming a light pillar that pierced through the fog blanket.

As Faust was wondering what had happened, a loud avian screech rang out through the mountain. Faust suddenly paled at the idea of who the screech belonged to. Just as he was frozen in fear, Faust heard the screech again, louder this time and much closer. The snowing magnified and the weather grew much more intense. Faust was too occupied at the moment to notice this. 

Faust decided to ditch the mecha and have it act as a diversion. Quickly climbing out of the mecha and began running towards the mountain. He had barely made it a few feet when he felt an unnaturally intense chill go through his body as a shadow fell upon him. Shivering at the sudden cold and slight fear of what was about to come, Faust looked up to find a large bird descend down on him.

Faust was blown back as a large blue bird landed kicking up a miniature snowstorm. As the storm created by the large bird subsided, Faust was shocked at the sight of the creature in front of him. 

'What the fuck!?'

[Pokemon: Articuno(??????)

 Ability: Pressure, Snow Cloak

 Type: Ice, Flying

Aptitude:??????

 Strength:??????

 Moves:??????]