Chapter 42-56 (1)

"Trio, trio, trio." (AN: LOL)

...

'Diglett?' Edward thought.

Suddenly the earth trembled as if they were being dug through underneath. Then, the ground burst open, similar to how a mole would dig out of the soil. Although in this case, the Pokemon that appeared only revealed its head. A dozen more heads popped out of the ground following that.

"Diglett, dig!" Numerous animated cries sounded in the cave.

"Huh? Didglett dig?" Falkner said, watching the fuss with a dumbfounded look.

"Well, at least we don't have to rack our brains about their name," Edward said jokingly.

"Diglett!" Rosa called them out amicably.

"Diglett, dig!" They answered cheerily after hearing Rosa speaking their name.

Diglett is a tiny, brown Pokemon that seems to be perpetually buried within the earth, leaving only its head visible. It has beady black eyes and a large, round, pink nose.

"Diglett dig?" After the flurry of excitement had died down, one of them twittered inquiringly.

They are seemed confused as to why Zubat would want to meet them. Usually, they keep to themselves due to Zubat's carnivorous nature and them, well, being a look-alike to its usual prey, rats.

Yes. There are small animals living on the whole island, such as small birds, rats, bugs, and even wild sheep and cows, though they ranked at the bottom of the food chains and were not even qualified to be called Pokemon.

But, because of the island's unique features, they can still survive and breed numerously, not worrying about their population due to overhunting and perfectly balancing its natural ecosystem. This significant point was discovered by many scientists after multiple observations.

...

Back to the matter at hand

To their surprise, they received a call from Zubat today while they were resting inside their tunnel. Despite the fact that they only knew each other in passing, they still decided to head toward the place where the signal was coming from after discussing among themselves.

"Bat!" Zubat said something, but it sounded unintelligible to their ears.

"Diglett dig!" It replied to Zubat.

'No matter how many times I see this, it never gets old,' Edward thought amusedly, watching the interaction.

...

"Bat! bat!"

"Diglett dig!"

The two kept talking back and forth several times until Zubat finally nodded its head at them.

Diglett then informed its group about their current plight. Thankfully, all of them agreed to lead Edward's team out of this maze.

Next, it returned, nodded its head, and moved ahead of them, followed by the other Digletts.

"Diglett, dig!"

"That's it? But I don't even understand what it is saying just now," Falkner stood blankly, watching the Digletts marching figures.

"We don't have a choice anyway," Rosa said, walking past him.

"Come on, let's go," Edward beckoned to Falkner.

...

"Diglett, dig!"

They were following the Digletts throughout the whole day, leading them out of the maze along the path full of twists and turns. Every so often, one of them will pop out in front of them, making sure that they are on the right track before burrowing back to the ground, leaving a raised earth in its trail.

Edward trekked along the trail while watching it thoughtfully. He recalled that Diglett is a pretty popular Pokemon among the locals, especially those working in the farming sector.

Many farmers welcome them because they regularly dig through the earth at a shallow depth, leaving perfectly tilled soil in its wake.

'Hmm, farmer. I think I can try growing some berries in our base if they are willing to follow us,' he mused.

"Guys, I see someone lying over there!" Falkner's shout snapped him out of his thought.

He followed Falkner's outstretched hand, pointing towards a figure lying prone at the far corner of the tunnel. They would totally miss it if Falkner didn't see it before.

Quickly, they began to run towards the figure, intending to help them.

As soon as Edward pushed the overturned figure to the front-side, their stomach began to feel nauseous.

The face of the man, as they identified him based on his clothes and build, had already finished decaying. Even the bones can already be seen. There is hardly any flesh left on its body, scavenged by rats and maggots.

(AN: Sorry, I don't know how to describe this!)

...

"Quick! Pause the live stream!" In a broadcast control room, a man clad in a white shirt roared at the technicians scrambling on the master distribution consoles.

"There's a dead body in Edward's live stream!" The man yelled again. None of them dared to say anything to the director, afraid of angering him further. They can only complete their work silently.

...

[Official notice: Due to numerous complaints we have received, Edward, Rosa, and Falkner's live stream are temporarily closed for the time being.]

Richland County

In a rundown district, a small house stood next to the driveway.

"Mom? Edward is going to be okay, right?" The little girl looked away from the television and asked worriedly.

A slightly stout but still attractive woman who bore a resemblance to Edward walked out of the kitchen and picked the little girl into her arms, "Don't worry about your brother, Elaine. He'll be just fine," she consoled her.

As she said that, she bit her lips in worry.

...

"Blaargh!"

In the end, they couldn't hold it any longer and threw up next to the wall. Although they knew that this island was dangerous and many people had even died on their journey, they never saw it with their own eyes. And experiencing it first-hand is an entirely different matter.

"Huhu," Edward soon regained his composure. He took a long and deep breath, trying to soothe himself. Then, he braced himself and inspected the body once more. Maybe he can find a clue about the cause of the man's death.

'Hmm?' Edward squinted his eyes.

"Edward, did you find anything?" Rosa said, standing a few meters away from him. It looks like she is still in shock due to the horrible ordeal.

"Yeah. Let's move away from this body first," Edward said, looking at the corpse one last time before leaving.

...

"Edward, how is the,, corpse?" Falkner faltered.

Currently, they are resting on the ground at a distance from the dead body.

"The victim is a thirty-two years old male, and he appears to be a soldier based on his clothing and this," Edward took out a military dog tag from his pocket.

"So, he is one of the people who went to explore this cave," Rosa picked it up and examined it closely.

"Yeah, it seems they suffered some sort of accident. I found a trace of burning on the corner of his clothes. So, we can assume the assailant must be one of the fire-type creatures like Torchic here," Edward patted Torchic's head, who was dozing off next to him.

"Okay, so where are the rest of them?" Falkner asked the main question roaming in their minds.

"I have no clue," Edward shrugged his shoulders. "But I found something else. Apparently, someone else had come here and found the body. They only took his ration, water, and first aid kit before leaving," he added.

"Have you figured which way did the person go?" Rosa asked.

"Yeah, I saw many shoe marks left on the ground, heading that way," Edward pointed his finger towards the back.

"Let's take a breather first before we go," Falkner suggested, plopping himself on the ground.

...

"Diglett, we need to find someone else first. Are you willing to help us?" Edward asked the Pokemon while giving it some berries as their reward.

"Diglett, dig!" Diglett accepted the offering and agreed to help them once more.

"Thanks," Edward smiled.

Then he stood up and went toward the side path where Falkner and Rosa were waiting for him.

"Alright, let's go. I'll guard the rear with Torchic, and you'll lead the way with Timburr. Rosa, you'll remain in the middle with Bidoof and Beautifly. Be aware of any danger," Edward reminded them.

As they walked slowly into the tunnel, Edward thought while looking at his hand, 'What are they doing in this place?'

In his hand, there is a small R-shaped badge in red color.

...

"Torchic, use Low Kick on its body," Edward shouted.

Torchic slid on the ground kicking the crab-like Pokemon, flipping it over.

"Quick Attack!" he continued.

"Chic!" It launched itself quickly toward the enemy and tackled it to the ground, knocking it out.

Bang!

"Falkner, are you okay?" A clashing sound was heard coming from the front.

"I need some help here! There are too many of them,"

Bang! Another crash sounded.

"Coming!" Edward shouted, then turned to the side, "Rosa, stay here and hide with Bidoof and Digletts. I'm going to help Falkner," he said to Rosa, who was hiding behind a big rock.

"Umm," she hugged the egg closer to her chest and nodded.

"Follow me!" he said toward his Pokemons and ran ahead.

"Chic!" "Burr!" "Bree!" They released a loud cry as they followed behind Edward closely.

...

'Shit, I'll bet those Rockets must have done something here,' Edward cursed in his heart as he ran.

They had been attacked constantly by wild Pokemons since they ventured away from the main path. Although there was some attack every once in a while, usually there won't be this many. However, it seems many of these Pokemons are agitated, attacking everyone who crossed into their territory indiscriminately.

Soo, he saw Falkner's figure up ahead, but he wasn't doing very well currently. As of now, he is carrying Zubat's wounded body, backing against the wall while being surrounded by the enemies.

Pidgey is facing them squarely, unwilling to back down, although it is barely holding up by the looks of it.

"Timburr, open the path ahead," Edward pointed towards the enemy's formation.

"Burr!" It bared its teeth in a grin and charged towards the enemy. As soon as it reached them, it swung its staff around it, knocking them away.

"Edward!" Falkner spotted them as they were causing mayhem at the back.

"Falkner, thank god you are safe," Edward sighed in relief as he arrived next to him.

After saying that, he turned his attention towards the enemies who were surrounding them from all sides.

They look like a hermit crab, orange coloring with a gray rock shell, concealing their hook-like tail. It has large pincers and dark, oval-shaped eyes.

'Troublesome, we have no advantage against these Dwebbles,' Edward thought, assessing their current situation. 'Looks like I'll have to rely on you, Timburr.'

It took only Edward a few moments before he finished his plan. He then turned towards Falkner and said, "We need to make a cover for Timburr, it'll be our main striker."

"Alright, I"ll follow your plan," Falkner decided to trust Edward.

"Torchic! Flame Charge towards them," he said determinedly.

A flame cloak shrouded Torchic's figure before it rushed towards the nearest Dwebble. The charge was quite effective in pushing the advancing Dwebbles several meters back.

"Beautifly! Use Absorb, don't get close to them," he commanded as their Smack Down can hurt it significantly.

It obeyed, fluttering its wing, and raised its hands into the air. Tiny green bubbles escaped from the Dwebbles as Beautifly absorbed their energy, weakening them further.

"Pidgey! Use Sand Attack!" Falkner shouted next to him.

It flapped its wings on the ground, raising a small cloud of dust towards the grouping Dwebbles.

Bang!

Pidgey's raid managed to obscure their vision and cause confusion among themselves as they missed their attack, hitting their partners.

"Timburr, Rock Throw on them," Edward continued, seizing the opportunity.

Using both hands, it picked up the rock from the ground and threw it with all its might at the enemy.

Bang!

The large rock broke into smaller pieces and hit one of the unlucky Dwebbles, knocking it out. Then, the other Dwebbles screamed in pain as they got struck by the shrapnel.

"Dweb!"

"It's effective!" Falkner's eyes lit up upon witnessing the effect caused Timburr's Rock Throw.

Then, he picked up the rock and threw it towards the Dwebbles, trying to copy Timburr's action. "Yah!" Except, his attack did nothing to them.

"..."

"What are you doing?" Edward stared at his friend dumbfounded.

Meanwhile, Falkner was left red-faced after the debacle.

Edward shook his head, "Wild creatures are using energy as they attack. It's not just some random action like throwing a rock or normal tackle. In this case, your attack basically did nothing to them." He lectured.

Timburr is having a blast as it threw the rocks non-stop while being guarded by its companions. A wave after a wave of rock shower bombarded the cast of Dwebbles until finally, all of them collapsed on the ground.

...

"I wonder what happened to them," Edward wondered as he stepped over an unconscious Dwebble.

"I don't have a single clue. What I do know is they hate us," Falkner replied, then he added, "Don't you see the look on their face. It looks like they were aiming for us specifically, not our creatures.

"Yeah, I think they mistook us for someone else," Edward stopped to think for a moment before saying his piece.

"What? Who? Oh, you mean those-" Before he could finish his words, a shout interrupted him.

"Guys!" Rosa rushed over with a happy look on her face, followed by Bidoof and Digletts.

...

"So, what you guys are saying is those people did something wrong to those creatures," Rosa placed a finger on her chin as she recited their opinions.

They are currently walking through a cavern, following the trails after leaving the Dwebble's territory.

"Yes," they both replied at the same time.

"And, what should we do now?" she suddenly stopped her track and asked them.

Both of them can see that Rosa wanted to give up on this exploration mission by the worried look on her face.

"I think we should at least look for this missing person first. The shoe markings left on the ground only belong to one person," Edward explained patiently. "Who knows, this person might be the only survivor," he continued after taking a sip of water from his canteen.

"Alright," she slumped her shoulders as she walked behind them.

This matter had escalated from being a simple mission to a highly difficult situation. Edward didn't blame Rosa for being scared. Besides, he still need find a way to get inside the volcano for Torchic's sake.

...

"Hey, don't you guys feel it's a bit cold here?" Rosa rubbed her shoulders as she tightened her jackets closer.

"Yeah, there is something wrong here," Edward said as he signaled Falkner to be cautious.

As they walked deeper through the cavern, the tempaersture is getting colder as if they were walking through a freezer. It appears that this unusual phenomenon was caused by a wild pokemon. His aura sense was sweeping through the place, trying to locate its presence.

Falkner nodded knowingly and whispered to Pidgey before letting it fly into the air to scout for potential threats.

'I know there is a Pokemon here, but I can't sense its location,' Edward wiped away the beads of sweat dripping down his temple.

"Arghh!" They quickly spun around as soon as they heard Rosa's scream.

To their surprise, Rosa was being suspended in the air, held by a pair of gaseous-like hands as they stared in shock.

Click!

Suddenly, a sound of a bullet being loaded into a gun rang from the side.

"Now, tell me your real names, and what is your purpose here?"

A feminine voice appeared as she aimed her gun at them.

...

"Don't do anything stupid, or I will pull the trigger," The woman said as she turned the safety pin off, not letting them out of her sight.

The woman holding the gun looks to be in her late forties, with an average height at five foot three and short blonde hair that is turning grey.

She was holding a makeshift crutch as she leaned on it to support what appeared to be her broken leg. She limped her figure slightly as she rested her back against the rock and sighed in relief. All this was done without leaving her eyes on them, her gun at the ready.

'Isn't this Agatha? One of the Kanto Elite Four?' Although she looks younger than what he remembered in the anime, he still recognized her appearance.

Agatha is one of the oldest Pokemon trainers in Kanto and a Ghost-type master. In the comic, she was also known to be a short-tempered old witch.

'I hope she isn't the same as the one in the comics,' Edward prayed.

'So, that must be her Gastly then,' he peered his eyes towards the levitating Pokemon in the air that was holding Rosa hostage.

"You boy! Eyes on me," the woman growled, noticing Edward's wandering eyes.

'I take that back. She is a grumpy old witch,' he cursed in his heart.

Edward swallowed as he stared at the gun in the woman's hand. He is quite certain that she will shoot them without hesitation if they ignore her warnings.

"And, tell your creatures to calm down," she added after noticing their Pokemon were getting restless.

"Calm down, guys. We are going to be fine," Edward soothed their nerves. Then, he raised his hands in the air as a gesture of surrender.

"We're one of the participants in the island's exploration organized by the UN," he said loudly and paused for a second before resuming, "One of the tasks we have is to explore this cave, and we also received a word about the missing team that went into this cave."

She breathed a sigh of relief after hearing Edward's explanation, but she still didn't relax her finger on the trigger.

"Alright, place your IDs on the ground and move ten steps back," she ordered.

Both Edward and Falkner placed their bag on the ground and took out their ID given by the officials. Next, they gently moved further back at her bidding.

After that, she limped forward and scooped the two IDs into her fingers, and skimmed through them. Recognizing the IDs were genuine, she nodded satisfyingly.

"Alright, Gastly, you can let her down," she said as she holstered the pistol to her leg.

Finally, they released a huge sigh of relief.

Luckily, the woman chose to believe their explanations. There was no way they could avoid gunfire at point-blank range, even with the help of their Pokemon.

...

In a middle of a small tunnel, hidden beneath a boulder, a fire is burning brightly.

Four people were surrounding it while conversing among themselves. Meanwhile, several Pokemons were sleeping next to them, sprawled on flat stones as their bedding. They were out like a light after experiencing many ordeals.

They had to take turns protecting Edward and the others from the wild Pokemon as well as scouting for potential threats during their whole journey through the cave. It's a miracle they can last this long.

"Amazing, isn't it? They are a miracle of nature," Agatha smiled as they were watching the Pokemons snoring in their sleep.

"Yeah, we will not be able to reach this far without them," Edward replied as he rubbed Torchic's head softly.

"What happened here?" Edward asked the main question that had been running through their minds.

She placed the plate of food down on the side and said, "I used to work as a lead researcher in the energy department. Then, an offer came to me, and I couldn't refuse it because of the potential gains that could be explored on this island. As you guys know, the island appeared suddenly a few months ago, and many countries sent their military forces to explore the island, but the causalities suffered by them were too high."

She paused for a moment to let them sink into their thoughts before continuing.

"So, after the catastrophe, the higher-ups proposed to send small-scale teams into the island as it is much safer than sending a troop of soldiers.

A few weeks later, I was assigned as a leader to a team with a dozen more people, and soon we were sent to explore this cave because of the strange readings we detected on our radar.

Initially, it was going great as we managed to record many creatures and took many samples for testing back at the labs later, but before we could leave, a company of unknown soldiers rushed at us with their guns blazing.

A fierce confrontation took place as we tried to resist, but there were too many of them. In the end, we decided to split up and hide and patiently wait for support. It had been almost two weeks since I last saw the others.

They must have been following us for quite some time and decided to ambush us after seeing our gains."

All of them sat in silence after hearing Agatha's experience. Only the sounds of their Pokemon's snoring and the fire flickering can be heard in the small hideout.

Suddenly, Rosa broke the still silence, "But, how did they get into the island? The UN is guarding the only entrance into the island."

"I'm guessing it must be through the dense mist," Edward knitted his brows.

"I agree with Edward," Agatha nodded slowly and slowly spoke out, "Although the water inside the mist is treacherous, filled with numerous vortex, it is not impossible to pass through it."

"So, now we have another potential illegal intruder on the island? Great!" Falkner snorted to himself.

They fell into silence as they realized that there's an unknown hostile roaming inside the cave.

A minute later, Edward pointed his finger towards Agatha's right leg and asked, "How did you break your leg?"

"They tracked me as I was running through the tunnel. Unfortunately, I tripped on a large hole as I was running, breaking my left ankle. And the three people who tracked me noticed my broken leg and laughed in derision, mocking me. Then, as they aimed their guns at me, Gastly came out of nowhere and saved me from their clutches." Agatha smiled at the Pokemon hovering in the air.

"Gastly," It spoke.

Gastly has no proper form due to most of its body being poisonous gas. However, it consistently appears as a black, spherical Pokemon surrounded by a purple haze.

Gastly has a wide, pink mouth with two visible fangs. Though its eyes seem to extend past its round body, visible eyelids surround them. Its gas produces a faint, sweet smell similar to how a ghost would appear in folklore stories. (AN: I don't know about you guys, but this is how they will appear. The smell is similar to Kemenyan or Benzoin in English.)

It can phase through solid objects and form tangible hands out of its gasses as it had done so earlier by holding Rosa in the air.

Then, Falkner yawned and said, "I'm going to sleep, guys... I'm tired."

"Mmm," Edward nodded as he tended the fire. "Let's rest first. It's been a long day," he said to Agatha and Rosa.

...

"Is it them? What do you think they are doing?" Falkner whispered.

Currently, they were hiding behind a large rock, peeking over it. On the other side, a company of soldiers garbed in their combat uniforms was gathering and pushing many steel cages as they moved deeper into the caves.

Every so often, a group of men patrolled the perimeter of the company, repelling the wild Pokemon that strayed into the periphery, drawn in by the commotion they were causing or capturing them if the Pokemon looked interesting enough that they might have some value.

"Huu~"

Many Pokemon were caged inside those cages as they cried in sadness, their eyes filled with despair as they banged on the bars weakly, powerless to do anything.

Clank!

A vicious-looking man clanked on the bars with his rifle as one of the Pokemon was making a loud noise.

"Hey! Pipe it down, will ya!" The man who appeared to be the company's captain roared at the Pokemon.

"Ling!" The Pokemon bawled at the man in reply as it kept slamming the bars.

"Oh, a feisty one, ain't ya," he grinned at the Pokemon with a sadistic smile.

"Hey, you!" he shouted toward one of the guards who was keeping watch over their captures.

"Yes, boss?" the guard hurried over after hearing the captain's call.

"Give this one a small shock, alright. And don't overdo it. It might have some use later," he said evilly.

The guard nodded, hearing the captain's order. Then, he pulled out a stun baton from his leg strap and switched it on. A thick blue arc of electricity flickered on its front pin. It seems that this device had been modified to suit Pokemon.

"Enjoy yourself," the captain smiled to the Pokemon, who was still trying to break free of its cage, unaware of the suffering it would be put through soon.

Zzzz!

"Ling!" The Pokemon screamed in agony as the high voltage coursed through its whole body.

"Hahaha! Hahaha!" he laughed as he left the prison, listening to the scream let out by the Pokemon that was music to his ears.

...

"Edward! We must stop them!" Rosa whispered, her voice sounding furious as she saw the cruel torture being inflicted on many Pokemons in their capture.

"Not now," Edward shook his head after assessing the enemy's current strength, "There are too many of them, and they have some heavy firearms too. I even saw a few RPGs," he added.

"Our only best bet is to follow them and call for help," Agatha said reasonably.

...

After resting at their hideout last night, they decided to look for other people that might have survived the attack. Sadly, they only discovered more dead bodies left on the ground, shot in the head after scouring through the entire place under the lead of Digletts.

It was only after a whole day of searching that Agatha finally stopped their search and rescue operation. Apparently, we had already found them all. Without a doubt, all of them had perished in the hands of Team Rockets. Their bones will rest in this cave forever, never to see the light of day again.

They left Agatha alone while she grieved in silence as everyone she knew in her team had died. The next day, she comes out of her isolation with a renewed spirit and a more solemn face. Only the sight of her Pokemon, Gastly, could induce a small smile on her face.

Gastly in the anime has shown willingness to preserve or pass on the memories of departed humans. Who knows? Maybe her friend's memories are what led it to save Agatha from a near-death situation before.

At the same time, Edward managed to train his Pokemons while searching for Agatha's missing team. A lot of wild Pokemon were agitated due to Team's Rockets action. Edward had to repel many attacks as they went through the tunnel one after another.

Bidoof had reached level 9 as of now and had learned a new skill, Rollout. Although it is a good skill when combined with Defense Curl, Bidoof is not a suitable Rollout user due to its body shape. It doesn't have the proper build needed for it, such as Sandshrew and Venipede. Most of the time, Edward trained Bidoof's jumping ability more, preparing for its evolution to Bibarel. Although they are great swimmers, they are not good at ramming their enemy. This training will help to boost its leg strength and increase its acceleration speed.

Timburr had also managed to reach level 12 after many fights. It is still having some trouble learning its inherent skill, Focus Energy which can make it achieve higher focus in a battle. Although, due to Timburr's ability, Sheer Force, this skill is a bit pointless. He only told it to train using its staff more and showed a few examples that he learned from watching movies.

In addition, Torchic has reached level 16, right on the verge of evolution. It only needs a little push to cross that last barrier. He can feel that Torchic is accumulating a massive amount of energy as they head deeper into the cave, getting closer to the lava cave.

Actually, Beautifly had made the most progress, reaching level 15 in one fell swoop. It even learned to proficiently use its crowd control skill, Stun Spore. Although its numbing effect wasn't powerful yet, it is still effective for humans. As they are many enemies in the cave fully equipped with firearms and grenades, having Beautifly's Stun Spore by his side assured him.

Not long ago, the Digletts warned them about a commotion happening in the far distance through the vibration on the ground. Coupled with the trails they had found left on the ground, they knew it was the mercenaries who had killed Agatha's friends.

They followed the tracks carefully until they had finally caught up with the company.

...

"Have you called the organizer?" Edward asked.

"I did, but they said it's going to take a long time before they can send help to us," Rosa replied.

"Tchh, bureaucrats! These men will be long gone by the time they arrive," Agatha sneered.

"Do we follow them?" Falkner asked.

"Yeah, but we need to know their main goal first. It's impossible to rescue without knowing what these men wanted to do," Edward replied, motioning his hand to the convoy ahead of them.

"How? There are too many sentries set up around the camp. I doubt we can just sneak past them easily," Rosa interjected from the back.

'Sneak!' A light bulb went off inside their heads.

Then, everyone turned towards Gastly, who was hovering in the air.

"Gastly?" It spoke after noticing that everyone's eyes were staring at itself.

...

Two soldiers are walking through the tunnel as they patrol the surrounding camp. Passing by an empty section of the path, the two flashed their lights on the surrounding for a few minutes, confirming the area was clear before resuming their guard routine.

Suddenly, a hazy purple ball phased through a blank section of the wall as the two guards disappeared from view. The spherical Pokemon nodded in satisfaction after seeing there weren't any more soldiers in the immediate area.

"Gastly," He whispered.

Yes. This Pokemon in question is our resident ghost-type Pokemon, Gastly. His master, Agatha, had given him a mission to sneak into the camp to obtain some clues regarding their main motive.

He moved forward as he hovered in the air while releasing a white mist from his body and obscuring his appearance as a precaution in case there were more patrol guards.

Phasing through one of the tents, he was met with a few dozens of steel cages.

'So this is where they kept the creatures locked,' he thought while surveying the prison's condition.

Many Pokemon were locked inside it, and most were inflicted with many injuries such as bruises, swellings, and cuts. A few rebellious creatures will be constantly shocked by the guards until they have submitted under their torture. He also noted a few rock-type Pokemon were submerged under the water to restrict them.

Most of the Pokemon captured were still in their infant or juvenile stages. It seems that they were kidnapped from their parents, making many wild Pokemon agitated as they searched for their children.

One of the Pokemon, who was still awake, noticed the presence of a stranger in their midst.

"Help us! Ling!" She cried as her dull eyes suddenly radiated with hope.

"Shh! They'll hear you, Gastly," he placed his now tangible finger on his lips.

Then he continued, "I can't save you right now, Gastly. And we don't have enough strength to rescue you. There are too many of them."

"Huaa!" She cried loudly.

"Hey! Do you want another taste of that shock?" The guard shouted outside the tent.

"..."

Gastly is covering the Pokemon's mouth as he attempts to stop her from exposing his presence.

"Uuu~" she whimpered.

Finally, the man left in satisfaction after her crying subsided.

"Phew~" He wiped away the beads of sweat on his forehead.

Turning his head at her, he explained, "I never said that we would not rescue you. It is not the right time."

"Really?" She asked happily.

"Yeah," he nodded, then added, "Right now, what have you to do is to recover your energy and tell the other not to cause much trouble. Help is coming soon. We'll try to find a suitable opportunity to save you all later."

"Yeah!" she jumped happily.

"Shhh!" Gastly shushed her once more.

Shortly after, she ceased her action, realizing she was about to cause another stir.

"I'm sorry," she said with a sheepish look.

"It's okay. Remember, don't cause any more trouble and stay patient. We will save you. You have my word," Gastly promised to her.

"Umm!" she nodded her head repeatedly, her ribbon waved wildly in the air.

He took a final look at her as he phased through the cage before exiting the tent.

'Now, which one is the captain's tent?' he thought as he phased from one tent to another.

'Hmm? What's this?' he wondered.

Inside a small tent, a few dozen monitors are placed on a table. They were showing the live feed caught by the security cameras placed outside. A lone guard was manning it currently.

Poke

Poke

"Huh? Hey, What's up?" the man turned around, feeling someone was poking his back.

"Hypnosis, Gastly,"

He stared at the man's eyes as purple ripples emerged from his body and shrouded the man in it. A few seconds later, the guard fell asleep as he sat on the chair after being affected by his Hypnosis.

'Take that, you prick,' Gastly scolded as he stared at the guard's sleeping figure.

'Now, how do I use this, Gastly,' he scratched his head, looking at the numerous switch on the panel.

...

"Captain, the captives were quiet all of a sudden," A soldier respectfully stood while reporting the strange situation to his superior.

"Hah! Let them be, isn't is much better now," The captain laughed in contempt after hearing the report from his man.

"Just leave them be, as long as they don't cause any problems," he waved his hand, then asked, "Let's get back to the point. How's the progress on the laser weapon so far?" He tapped his fingers on the table.

The soldier took out a folder from his arms and placed it on the table.

"It's going quite well, sir. The engineers are assembling it now as we speak. We can proceed with the current mission in about two more days, sir," he stated.

"Hm. Alright, tell everyone to get ready. We'll be moving our camp near the lava cave later," he ordered after reading through the report.

"Yes, Sir!" the soldier saluted as he left the captain's tent.

Meanwhile, Gastly's figure was hovering beneath the table as he eavesdropped on the conversation unbeknownst to the two men.

'I must tell them about this,' he thought as he left the captain's tent.

...

"So, did you know what they are going to do," Agatha asked.

"Gastly," It nodded its head repeatedly.

"What is it? Tell us, tell us," Rosa said eagerly.

"Gastly, gas, gas, gas, gastly," It replied. Well, it speaks in the Pokemon language, a language that is incomprehensible to anyone besides Pokemon.

"..."

"Gastly?" It tilted its head confusedly.

"It's no use. There's no way to understand what it said just now," Rosa sat on the ground helplessly.

"Hmm, let me try something," Edward spoke as he placed his hand on Gastly's head.

He quickly accessed the System's shop and went through the list until he finally found the skill he needed.

[Aura Telepathy] (AN: Long time no see System, lol)

'Luckily, I saved enough points to buy this skill,' he thought as he instantly bought it. Watching the hard-earned points that he frugally saved go missing in the blink of an eye made his heart bleeds in tears.

(AN: Goodbye again, System, your help in fixing plot holes are much appreciated)

He then connected his aura with Gastly with the guidance of the skill.

'Why is this taking so long? The skill should only take a minute or two at most to activate.' Edward frowned.

It was only after a few more minutes that he was able to tap into Gastly's mental picture.

"Concentrate on the conversation you heard earlier," he told the ghost-type Pokemon as he sat in front of it. His right was hand hovering above it as a blue aura kept pouring off his hand and bathing both of them in its light.

"Wow," The others opened their mouths wide as they watched the vivid light show dumbstruck.

Soon, Edward saw the mental image seen by Gastly, and he immersed himself in the memories.

'Phew! It's so tiring. No wonder aura doesn't work very well on them. Aura is life energy, and Gastly is a ghost-type Pokemon that represents death energy. The two don't mix very well with each other.' He took a deep breath as he panted exhaustedly.

"Edward, what did you do just now?" Falkner asked with a stupified look on his face.

...

"So, you can use this type of energy that you called Aura?" Rosa asked surprisingly.

A few minutes later, they sat on the ground as Edward explained what he had done to Gastly before.

"Yeah, I discovered it when we were journeying through the cave a day before," he lied. There was no way he would tell them about the System's existence.

"But how?" Agatha interjected.

"I don't know. If I want to guess, it is probably because of the island's unique environment," he said. This time he didn't lie. Even Falkner and Rosa can feel their strength are increasing at a slow rate. They may not beat a Pokemon with this bit of strength any time soon, but it is not a problem to go toe to toe with a UFC Champion back home.

"So, you are a superpower now?" Falkner said jokingly.

"I don't think I can beat a wild beast anyway," Edward replied as he shook his head.

"It is still an enviable ability," Falkner said.

"Guys, let's focus for now. Edward, what did you see in Gastly's memories," Agatha said seriously.

Everyone else also straightened their back as they listened to Edward's retelling.

...

Two days after,

"Who do you think they will attack with that huge weapon?" Falkner said as they stood far above them, as they watched the soldiers bellow them scrambling to set the giant laser beam weapon on the ground.

"I've been wondering about the same thing," Edward replied.

'This aura? So strong?' Edward suddenly sensed a tremendous aura swept by the cavern while they were busy watching the preparation.

There!

He noticed the figure of the Pokemon as he took out his binocular and peeked through it.

A moment later, a smile appeared on his face as his mind ran through several options.

"Why are you smiling?" he asked curiously.

"We have found our opportunity," Edward said, then he continued, "Come on, let's leave first. The others are waiting for us."

...

"Pidgey! Use Sand Attack on them!" Falkner said loudly.

A small cloud of dust was hurled towards the peculiar creatures by Pidgey as it flapped its wings on the ground. They closed their eyes as they tried to prevent the dust from entering. Then, they retaliated by breathing multiple fireballs towards their opponents.

"Dodge it!" he shouted.

Pidgey and Zubat flew nimbly in the air, avoiding the small fireballs as they weaved through all of them effortlessly. It also helps that the enemy's visions were obstructed by the dust cloud currently.

"Nice!" he shouted.

Then he continued, "Zubat, distract them with Supersonic!"

It nodded in agreement. Next, it flew above the enemy and shrieked loudly. High pitched sounds repeatedly struck their enemy as the pain caused by it made their minds confused.

"Now! Pidgey, end it with a Quick Attack!" he said determinedly.

"Pek!"

It stopped momentarily in the air, readying its momentum before diving. A white light gradually enveloped its body as it plunged towards the enemy.

Critical Hit!

The creatures were knocked away as Pidgey charged through them one after another. Then, it returned to the air as it waited for its enemy to stand up. Only to be met with their opponents' bodies lying on the ground with swirling eyes.

"Yes!" Falkner pumped his fist in the air.

"Finally, it's over," Rosa sighed in relief as she went out of her hiding place.

"Yeah, I guess we probably had encountered ten of them in just a few hours?" he guessed, then continued, "I still can get over the fact that there's a living creature roaming inside the hot lava."

"Me too. I was surprised when I saw it at first. What did Edward call them again? Slugma? Yep. It's Slugma." Rosa said as she examined the Pokemon.

"So, where are we right now?" Falkner asked after ensuring that his Pokemon were fine and didn't suffer from many injuries.

"Wait for a second," Rosa halted her steps as she took out a map from her bag and read it.

"Um, Ah! Got it!" She shouted, "We just need to walk a few more hundred meters ahead. Then we can let the Digletts dig the ground and make a tunnel underneath the prison so that we can rescue them one by one," she circled a section of the wall on the map while showing it to him.

"Okay, let's get there quickly. Edward and Agatha will distract the enemy for us," he urged.

"Yes, Come on, Bidoof, Digletts, let's go," Rosa called out to Bidoof standing next to her and the Digletts hiding underneath the ground below her.

"Doof!"

"Diglett, dig!"

...

"Do you think that the creature they are up against can handle that high-tech weapon?" Agatha asked as they hid behind the rock not far from the camp.

"Yes," Edward nodded, then said, "I perceived its strength before. Its Aura almost overwhelmed my senses just by its feelings. Heck, I'm pretty sure the creature is already aware of our presence."

Agatha went dead silent after hearing Edward's answer.

A few minutes later, they saw the captain giving orders to his men as they prepared their equipment.

"It looks like it will start soon," Agatha said, watching the soldiers pushing the weapon out into the open.

"I'm going to get a bit closer. You'll cover my back," Edward said towards her.

"Yes," Agatha nodded as she lay her body on the rock and took out her pistol from the holster.

"I got your back," she added while sliding a fully-loaded magazine into the gun.

"Okay," he replied, then called out to his Pokemon, "Come on guys, follow me," as he sneaked into the enemy camp.

"Roar," they gave a clear cry as they walked alongside Edward.

...

"Captain! The weapon is fully charged and ready to be fired upon your permission," the soldier reported the current situation.

"Send a few men into the lair to draw it out into the open," he ordered, not caring about the lives of the soldiers who were unfortunately selected to carry out this suicide mission.

"Yes, sir!" the man saluted before leaving to complete his orders.

An hour later, large explosions can be heard in the distance as they unleash hell inside the beast lair.

"Run!" "Fuck! It doesn't work." "Shit! Shit! I wanna go back home!"

The unfortunate soldiers cursed as they threw the weapons away as they tried to flee the area. They watched in terror as a few of the unlucky men died miserably, incinerated to ash in a blink of an eye.

'It is coming,' the captain thought as he saw the soldiers running away as if the devils were on their asses. (AN: I don't know about this. Is this correct?)

"Get ready! Fire as soon as the beast comes out!" he shouted, his voice filled with anticipation.

The weapon's muzzle lighted up as tiny lights began to appear slowly and coalesced into a red ball of light. The particle-beam weapon is now fully ready to be fired towards its target.

...

"Fire!" the captain shouted after seeing the beast's figure stepping out of its lair.

Boom!

The red ball of light turned into a ray of light as it discharged towards the creature, creating a massive explosion and filling the entire cavern with smoke.

'Did we succeed?" he thought as he waited for the smoke to clear out.

...

'Fools!' Edward thought, seeing the Team Rocket's assault.

As the smoke dispersed, all of them were shocked to see the Pokemon standing upright, not injured in the least after being hit by the high-caliber weapon.

Its red eyes glared murderously at the mercenaries who had disturbed its rest, causing their bodies to shiver in fright, affected by the pressure it released.

Roar!

[Entei]

Level: 100 (Mythical)

Ability: Pressure

Entei is a massive Pokemon possessing several mastiff-like features. It is covered in brown fur and a long, light gray cloud of smoke running along its entire back.

It has several faceplates on its face, colored red, gray, and yellow.

Its main faceplate is red and shaped like a six-sided star with a gray plate covering its muzzle. At the same time, the yellow crest on its forehead is shaped like a crown with three curved points.

The magma around the cavern started to stir, and bits of rocks fell off the ceiling as the whole cave rumbled. Shortly after, the magma erupted upwards, creating many pillars of magma that reached several feet high as if they were answering its call.

"Don't be afraid!" The captain shouted to his men, who looked terrified and were ready to hightail it out of the cave.

"It's just a beast, and if you run away now, the boss won't let you get away that easily," he said, threatening them at the same time.

The men hesitated for a moment. Their face struggled as they thought about the consequences of running away now, only to be caught by Team Rocket and killed later or face the terrifying creature coming for them. Who knows? They might succeed in doing so and might be rewarded by the boss later.

They thought of this as they convinced themselves.

"Good."

The captain nodded satisfyingly after seeing the determined expression on his men.

"Alright, get the weapon ready once more!" then he roared at the engineers, who were frozen stiff after witnessing the failed attack.

"Heavy gunners, stand your position!" he shouted at the soldiers holding the frontline.

"And send more men to support them," he added.

The soon-to-be battlefield was bustling with noise as the soldiers ran around to their positions, scrambling for cover as the Pokemon began its attack.

...

'I think it is time for me to act,' Edward thought, seeing most of the soldiers were currently occupied by the Mythical Pokemon, Entei.

(AN: I ended up making Legendary > Mythical. As several trainers can have Mythical Pokemon in the anime. Nurse Joy's Latias, Tobias's Darkrai and Latios, Ash's Melmetal, etc.)

He moved slowly with his Pokemon towards the camp, seeing that most men were currently staring at the battlefield, unaware of Edward's presence in their base.

'Beautifly, use Stun Spore on those men,' he sent a mental picture to Beautifly through his newly learned skill, Telepath.

It nodded and began to flap its wing slowly as sparkling orange dust released from them as they landed on the distracted soldiers.

Slowly, the soldier began to fall on the ground one by one as they were confused by the sudden happening.

"Enemy attack!" Unfortunately, several few men managed to cover their noses as they retreated from the paralyzing mist.

"There!" One of the men managed to find Edward's location and shouted at his partners.

Bang!

Rain of bullets passed over his head as he ducked behind a rock for cover.

'Fuck!' he cursed.

He then took a deep breath before closing his eyes and trying to connect his Aura with his Pokemon.

'Torchic! Use Ember now,' he sent a message to Torchic.

At first, Torchic was confused hearing a voice inside its mind. But after recognizing it was Edward's voice, he released a group of fireballs at the shooting men.

"Take cover!" One of the men shouted.

Boom!

Several small-scale explosions occurred as the fire managed to graze their grenades.

Argh!

"Throw your grenades at them!" the leader shouted.

'Gust Beautifly!' he sent a message through their telepath link.

Bree!

With a beat of its wings, a powerful gust of wind was blown out towards the grenades in the air, propelling them back at the enemy.

Boom!

Argh!

'Great! That's another two more down,' he thought as he saw through Beautifly's eyes.

"There he is!"

His heart skipped a beat as suddenly a shout sounded next to him.

Bang!

Before he could move, the man carrying a gun fell to the ground with blood running out his head.

Turning his head to look at his left, he saw Agatha was giving an OK signal saying she got his back.

Phew!

He breathed a sigh of relief as he flashed a thumbs up to her as his thanks.

...

Argh!

Many soldiers were incinerated to ash as the Pokemon strode toward the company's main center.

Fire Blast!

It roared a massive stream of intense fire that set the vast frontline ablaze.

The temperature was so high that the captain felt the fire was right next to him and was burning his skin even from far away.

"Fire again!" the captain shouted madly.

It squinted its eyes at the man-made weapon that had struck it a few times was lighting up once more.

Boom!

The Pokemon suddenly appeared at the top of the machine as it stomped its foot down, smashing the large weapon into pieces.

Extremespeed!

'So fast!' the captain thought as he wallowed in despair, seeing the Pokemon destroy their trump card like a piece of paper.

Then, it turned its eyes to the captain. It felt like every fiber of his being was screaming at him to get the hell out of there.

Suddenly, a pillar of lava mixed with smog erupted and enveloped the man's figure, dying miserably.

Dead!

...

'Diglett dig?'

A head popped out of the ground, making sure the coast was clear before going back into it.

Soon, a large hole was opened as Falkner and Rosa climbed out of it.

"We better rescue them quick," Falkner said as he peeked out of the tent, looking for any guards that might hear the loud sound caused by the ground caving in.

"Alright," Rosa replied, patting off the dirt from her clothes.

Walking towards the cages, she peeked inside only to see many Pokemons were watching her closely with a wary look.

"Look, guys, I'm rescuing you. Not trying to hurt you, okay?" she said while raising her hands, showing her friendly intentions.

"Bidoof, can you help me open the cages?" she said to the mouse-like Pokemon following her.

"Bidoof!" It replied.

Using its powerful front teeth, it managed to break the lock only after a few tries.

"Here you go, guys, escape through the tunnel," she opened the steel cage's door and pointed her fingers to the hole.

The Pokemons slowly walked out of the cage, watching her with a guarded look before they beeline it to the escape tunnel.

Then, they proceeded to move to the other cages and did the same thing, rescuing all the Pokemons from their captivity.

"I think that's all right?" she asked Bidoof.

Before they could leave the prison, suddenly, a cry sounded from the front.

As she heard the cry, she moved towards it. Imagine her surprise when she saw a Pokemon locked inside a small cage with several scars on its body.

"What did they do to you?" she carried the Pokemon out of her cage.

"Ling..," it replied weakly.

"Don't worry, you'll be okay," she comforted the Pokemon as they ran away from the camp.

...

"Timburr! Rock throw!" he said as they ran through the camp, clearing many enemies as he tried to buy some time for the others to rescue the captured Pokemons.

Bang!

Bang!

Few soldiers saw the commotion Edward was causing and opened fire at them.

Ping!

Luckily, Torchic managed to melt the bullets with its fire breath before they could hit him.

"Nice one Torchic! Now flame charge!" he roared.

"Chic!"

It ran towards the enemy leaving trails of fire behind it. It was a really overkill move, but Edward is getting tired of being bombarded by a rain of bullets every time they are spotted.

Argh!

Another one bites the dust~

Suddenly, Torchic's body began to glow as it bathed in the white light that emerged from its body.

Evolution!

Edward and his other Pokemon watched silently as Torchic's figure rapidly expanded.

Finally, the white light gradually disappeared as a mighty Combusken appeared before them.

"Ken!" Torchic happily cried as it went to Edward and nudged his hand.

"You're Combusken now," he said as a faint smile appeared on his face, happy with his Pokemon's successful evolution.

"Ken!" it replied affirmingly.

Most of Combusken's upper body is yellow, while most of the lower body is orange. Furthermore, it still has a lot of similarities with its pre-evolution appearance, Torchic.

The only differences are its now long arms with three sharp claws at the ends and scaly, gray legs with well-developed thighs covered in shaggy feathers.

"Come on, let's finish our job before we leave," Edward said to the others.

...

"Where are they? Why is it so late? Did something happen to them?" Falkner paced around the cavern worriedly as they waited for Edward and Agatha. The other Pokemons watched the humans who rescued them with their heads tilted confusingly.

"Don't worry about them," Rosa said as she finished bandaging one of the injured Pokemon and called the the next injured Pokemon to her.

"Ling!" a cry sounded next to her.

"No, you cannot get up yet. You are still hurt," she pushed the Pokemon down gently on the temporary bed after seeing it was about to get up from its temporary confinement due to its injuries.

"Ling," its ribbon-like hair dropped in disappointment.

"Don't worry, you can leave after you're fully healed," Rosa smiled, seeing the cute expression on the Pokemon.

"Ling!" It laughed with a chime.

Tap!

Tap!

Suddenly, she heard the sound of footsteps coming from the front.

"There they are!" Rosa's shout snapped Falkner out of his worry.

Turning his head, he saw Edward walking towards them with his creatures while carrying what appears to be a big box? And where is Torchic? And who is this new creature?

Meanwhile, Agatha was carried by Gastly as it hovered towards them. It looks like her leg hasn't fully yet.

"Have you all rescued all of them?" Edward asked after he arrived right in front of them.

"Yeah, but who is this, Edward?" Falkner asked confusedly, pointing to Combusken.

"I'll talk on the way," Edward replied, then he added, "Come on, let's leave this cave first."

...

"So Torchic evolved?" Falkner asked for the umpteenth time.

"Yes," Edward replied with a monotone voice, tired of hearing the same question time and time again.

"But it's impossible! The change is too sudden!" he spluttered.

"I know, but that's just the way they are," Edward shrugged his shoulder.

"I find it hard to believe, too, even though I saw Silcoon evolved to Beautifly," Rosa interjected.

"I saw it too. Torchic does indeed evolve to Combus- Combusken? That is its new name now, right Edward?" Agatha said.

They were now walking back towards the cave exit as they led the now freed Pokemon back to the jungle. Some of them parted away in the middle of the journey as they found their way back home. They also left their goodbyes and thanked the party for rescuing them from Team Rocket's clutches before leaving.

Currently, only a few Pokemons followed them as they traveled towards the exit. It appears that these Pokemons were caught outside of the cave by the Rockets.

Meanwhile, Gastly is talking animatedly with the bell-like Pokemon. Well, the conversation sounds more like,

Gastly, gas, gas, gasly,

Ling, ling ling ling,

It sounds rubbish to the untrained ears.

"Hmm, wonder how they both met?" Rosa wondered as she watched the two Pokemon chatting with each other.

'Hmm?' Edward noticed the rare Pokemon walking beside them currently.

"Let me try," as he said that, he sent a mental link to the bell-like Pokemon.

'Hello,' Edward greeted as he tried not to make the Pokemon nervous.

At first, the Pokemon was scared by the sudden voice appearing inside her head but calmed down soon after noticing that it was Edward, one of their savior.

'Calm down,' he appeased it, then continued, 'I only want to know how did you meet Gastly?'

After a few moments, it replied to Edward by sending a mental picture back to his mind. Edward accepted and began to watch the memories.

Although this method looks a bit complicated and tedious, it only took Edward a few moments to complete the whole thing in the eyes of outsiders.

'Not bad. No wonder all Psychic Pokemons are said to have high intelligence. It only took it a few tries to send feedback back to me,' he thought.

"They met earlier when Gastly was sneaking inside the camp. When it tried to inform the others about our help, it had attracted the attention of one of the guards. Then, the guard shocked her several times before locking her alone inside the cage," he said softly.

"Oh and, by the way, Chingling wants me to thank you for saving her," he said towards Rosa.

"So they do have a gender," Falkner murmured while looking at his Pidgey standing on his shoulder.

"Pek!" The bird slapped the head of her foolish master with her wings.

"Ah! I know you're a girl!" he clapped his hand.

"Pek!" Another slap on the head.

"Ow!"

"Chingling?" Rosa asked, ignoring the ruckus happening next to her.

"It's her name," Edward replied.

"Ling!" it chimed, hearing her name.

"You're welcome, Chingling!" Rosa said to her.

"Ling!"

[ChingLing] ♀

Level: 5

Type: Psychic

Ability: Levitate

Moves: Wrap, Growl, Recover

...

"What about the guy who had hurt her?" Rosa said as a vengeful fire blazed in her eyes.

"He's dead," Edward answered blankly.

"Good," she nodded.

Then, she moved next to Chingling, who had recovered enough to levitate in the air, and chatted with her as they ambled towards the exit.

...

In a European-style office room

Knock!

The sound of the door being knocked echoed in the room.

Enter!

Several moments after, a majestic voice sounded, permitting the one standing outside the door to enter the room.

A male in a white suit with a large R logo on his left chest entered the room with his head bowed down. He appears to be in his early thirties with a wiry build. The most striking feature of the man is his blue hair.

Soon, the man arrived in front of the office desk as he stood respectfully.

"What appears to be the matter, Archer?" a deep voice asked.

"Boss, we have lost contact with the team sent to the volcano earlier this morning," he reported.

"Hmm," the voice appeared to be thinking.

"It doesn't matter. Did you have the recordings of that creature?" the voice, who now can be identified as a male, asked as he waved his hand.

"Yes."

"Good," he praised the man, "How's the situation at the yard?" then added.

"We have hit a bit of a snag. Last time, we didn't expect the vortex surrounding the island was that strong, and we barely escaped. So, we'll have to replace the hull with stronger materials," Archer replied hesitantly.

"Go ahead and do it. I don't care how much money it takes. We must get to the island once more. Is that understood?" the man asked sternly.

"Yes, boss!" he shouted.

"Good, now leave me alone," the man ordered.

Klick!

The sound of the door being closed sounded behind him.

"Soon, we will be going back to your home once more. Are you happy, Meowth?" he asked as he rubbed his hand on the back of the feline creature lying on his lap.

"Meowth!" it replied as it licked its claws.

...

"Guys! I saw the exit up ahead," Falkner said excitedly.

"Finally, this mission is over," they all sighed in relief after seeing the sunlight coming into the cave through the cave's mouth.

...

Bye!

They waved to the Pokemons, who were leaving for the woods after escaping from the caves. The Pokemons waved for the final time before they ran towards their home.

Hmm?

"Hey, why didn't you leave," Rosa asked Chingling.

It was standing with a hesitant look as it stared at the woods before turning to Rosa back and forth several times.

Finally, it looks like she made up her mind as she hovered over Rosa's head and sat on her shoulder, rubbing her cheeks at the same time.

"Looks like she wants to follow you," Edward smiled.

"You want to follow me? But what about your family?" she asked.

"Ling!" she shook her head.

"Edward?" she turned her head to him.

"No, it has been living alone all this time," Edward replied after seeing the memories on her mind.

"Welcome to the team Chingling," Rosa welcomed their new companions.

"Ling!"

...

Unbeknown to them, Entei was standing on the volcano's peak as it gazed at Edward's group for several moments. Then, it left toward another direction as the ground was lit on fire on the trails it left behind.

...

The sun was up as its light shone through the cloud towards the sea. Next to it is a town being built as the workers were finishing up the last touches before it was ready for use. In addition, a few dozen construction machines were operating as they worked on the land surrounding it.

Occasionally, a helicopter will descend from the sky in the middle of the base before leaving towards the sea. A few soldiers were seen standing on the watchtower as they stood guard, keeping a lookout over any potential danger.

Inside a lab

Many states of the art instrument were currently running as they were analyzing the data on the screen projection.

A medium build man with greying hair is currently staring at it. He wore purple pants, a beige shirt, and brown shoes. Additionally, he appears to be below average height as he wore a lab coat over his current attire.

Suddenly, the door was pushed open abruptly, causing the whole room to shake.

"Professor!" a young man draped in a lab coat barged into the room with great haste.

"Calm down, Sorrel," the man with grey hair said and continued, "You're going to break everything," he admonished the young man as he looked at the instrument worriedly.

"I'm sorry, Professor Oak," he said sheepishly.

Then he remembered the reason he came here quickly and banged his hand on the table, "Professor Agatha is still alive!" he shouted.

Crash!

The whole instrument fell to the floor and broke into several pieces.

"..."

"Hehe. Oops?" Sorrel swept his green bangs upwards as he saw the mess he inevitably caused.

"Haa. Never mind," the middle-aged man sighed.

After calling someone to clean up this mess, they both sat on the chair as they resumed their previous conversation.

"Professor Agatha is still alive?" he asked curiously.

"Yeah, Edward's team rescued her from the cave," he said eagerly.

"Edward? Interesting young men," he smiled with relief that his friend managed to survive the exploration, then he added, "How are they doing now?"

"Well, right now, Edward has tamed four creatures, while Rosa had tamed one, and Falkner had tamed two," he took a report from his file and read the paper to Professor Oak, "It appears that one of his creatures has evolved again," he paused momentarily. His eyes widened as he couldn't believe the statement on the paper.

"And? Many participants have evolved their beasts on the island. He may be the first, but he isn't the only one," Professor Oak replied

"Yeah, I know that. But this time, the change is too significant compared to previous evolutions," Sorrel added, "Many participants decided to tame some weak creatures following Edward's footsteps. And most of them managed to evolve into a pupa or a butterfly, etc."

"Okay, go on," Professor Oak said as he sipped his coffee while listening to his statement.

"But Torchic's evolution doesn't follow the natural selection process. In only two days, its body grew almost twice compared to before," Sorrel said excitedly.

"Can't you see it, Professor? This is a fantastic discovery! Previously, we thought that only insect creatures could evolve. Edward's Torchic had overturned all of that!" he said as he leaned his face towards Professor Oak.

"Alright, alright. I get it," Professor Oak pushed the excited young man back to his seat.

"Where are they right now?" he asked.

"They are on their way back to their camp," Sorrel replied.

"Good!" he nodded as he finished his coffee.

Placing the cup down on the table, he continued, "Let them know that we will send someone to pick up Professor Agatha back to the base."

...

[Official announcement: Edward's team live streams are now back online.]

Everyone quickly went online after seeing the official notice in their notifications.

[Hahaha! Finally, we are back! It's been so long since I saw Edward's live stream.]

[Me too. It's a pity that we miss a lot of things.]

Edward and the others noticed that their navigears were blinking once more, indicating that the live stream was back online. They flipped open the watch screen as they scrolled through the live commentaries, reading the comments and answering some of their questions.

[Hey! Is that Torchic? Why does he look so big?]

[Edward: Torchic had evolved. By the way, he is Combusken now.]

[Wow! He looks so cool.]

[Who is that?]

[Rosa: That's Professor Agatha. We rescued her from the cave two days ago.]

[So many new creatures!]

[Falkner: Yeah. The one standing on my left arm is Zubat. Those are Digletts-]

Falkner introduced their new companion one by one to the audience. Everyone was surprised as there were many new types of creatures never before seen on the island, especially Chingling and Gastly. Both Pokemon managed to attract everyone's attention because of their appearance. They all thought there must be something unearthly about the two Pokemon.

Finally, they managed to answer all of their questions as they rested before resuming their journey back to the camp. In addition, they didn't talk about the illegal intruders seen inside the cave as Agatha reminded them to keep a tight lip. She didn't want to cause widespread panic among the challengers.

It's better to report this matter to the higher-up first before proceeding with the next move.

...

"Mom!" A little girl's excited voice sounded.

She ran towards the kitchen and said, "Mom! Brother Edward is back! He is back!" Elaine jumped excitedly.

"Really?" the little girl's mother asked.

"Follow me!" she pulled her mother out of the kitchen to the living room and showed her Edward's figure on the television.

The woman let out a happy smile as if a huge burden was lifted off her shoulders after seeing her son safe and sound.

"I'm home!" The door being shut sounded from the front as another familiar shout greeted them.

A middle-aged man with a stocky build walked into the living room while placing his yellow hard hat on the table beside him. Then, he took off work clothes as they were dirty due to his job at the construction site.

"Why are you guys so happy all of sudden?" he looked at the mother and daughter pair as they smiled.

"Mia?" he asked his wife.

"Ethan, Edward is safe," Mia said as she showed him their son's live stream.

...

"Finally, we are back at the camp!" Rosa shouted happily.

After walking through the woods for a whole evening, they have finally arrived at the camp before dark.

"I missed this place," Edward said as he enjoyed the view as the sun set below the horizon.

"This place is not bad," Agatha remarked as she observed the whole lake.

"Let's go, guys! It's getting dark soon," Falkner shouted as he ran to the small cabin.

"Hey, wait for us!"

...

The next morning

Edward walked around the lake, enjoying the fresh air with Combusken and Beautifly as he searched for suitable land to grow berries and medicinal herbs.

Timburr and Bidoof were back at the cabin building some furniture for ease of living, seeing that they had a lot of empty space in the cabin. Anyway, a few pieces of furniture shouldn't be a hassle for them.

Falkner is training his Pokemon somewhere in the woods. The last time he saw them, Falkner was challenging a few low-level Pokemon as he patrolled the lake's periphery. Falkner is probably the best guy for patrol duty due to his Pokemon's aerial advantage and his keen eyesight.

Meanwhile, Rosa was back at the cabin looking after Agatha as her leg wasn't fully healed yet. She also had to sort some of the gains that Edward looted from Team Rockets previously.

'Hey, this place is not bad,' Edward thought as he surveyed the land.

The place that he is standing at right now is only a few hundred meters away from the cabin. Moreover, it was close to the woods. They can act as a windbreak to protect the growing crops from strong gusty wind that may cause damage to them.

He can also ask Timburr to build a water tank to collect rainwater and irrigate the crops. However, he might have to ask someone in the live stream about how to create a water pump so they can pull the water from the lake.

'Or I could just ask Bidoof to water them,' he tapped his head.

He had forgotten that Bidoof would change to a Normal/Water-type Pokemon when he evolved to Bibarel. Furthermore, plants only need to be watered once or twice a week, depending on the rain.

"Beautifly, can you call the Digletts here?" he asked.

"Bree!" she nodded her head as she flew back towards the camp.

"Alright, wanna do some training while we wait for her?" he asked Combusken as he turned to him.

"Ken!" he let out a loud cry.

"Show me your Double Kick," Edward pointed to the tree beside them.

"Ken!" he roared as he swung his leg, then turned around and delivered another kick at the tree with his other leg.

As Torchic evolved, they became more proficient in using physical attacks compared to their pre-evolved stage. Most of their attacks now are mixed of special and physical attacks, and they gained another secondary type, Fighting.

But, Edward planned to train his Combusken mainly in physical attack because of his ability, Speed Boost. This ability gradually increased Combusken's speed during a fight, abling it to outspeed most of his opponents.

This is not the same as in the game where the one who has the highest speed move first. No, it is different. Having a higher speed will allow Combusken to dodge enemy attacks and land an accurate strike easily.

Bang!

The tree shook heavily as many pieces of tree bark fell to the ground due to Combusken's powerful kicks.

"Great!" Edward praised him.

"But, it is too slow," he added.

"Ken?" he asked confusedly.

"The power doesn't matter for this skill. What is important is that this move is more useful to push yourself away from the enemy and hurt them at the same time," he explained.

"Ken!" he clapped his claws after hearing Edward's explanation.

"Now, practice this move until you can use it in a few seconds," he ordered.

"Ken!" Combusken then resumed his training.

...

Bang!

Bang!

Thirty minutes later, a loud cry appeared from the cabin's direction.

It attracted the attention of Edward and Combusken, who stopped their training after hearing the familiar cry.

"Bree!" she shouted to them.

"Hello, Beautifly. Did you find them?" Edward smiled as the butterfly hovered around him.

"Bree!" she nodded her head.

"Where are they?" he asked curiously.

"Diglett, dig!" A Diglett popped out of the ground first, followed by the others.

"Can you help me tilt this land?" Edward asked as he sent a mental picture to the Diglett leader.

He had asked a few farmers in the live commentaries on how to cultivate the land. Moreover, Digletts can help to shorten the process massively.

"Diglett, dig!" the leader nodded in agreement.

"Diglett, dig!" Then, he called out the other Digletts and went back under the ground.

A few minutes later, several rows of plowed land were being raised as they stretched forward for several hundred meters and followed by another row.

Everyone in the live stream was surprised as they watched a perfectly tilted land was created in just a few minutes.

[This! So fast!]

[These guys are natural-born farmers.]

[Is this why you asked us about the land before?]

[Edward: Yeah. I got the idea after seeing how they dug through the ground. They are amazing, right?]

[You can't imagine how long it takes to cultivate a land perfect for farming.]

[Look! Even the weeds and rocks were thoroughly cleared.]

'This is good,' Edward nodded, looking at the field.

Then, he turned and walked back to the cabin, not before

"Hey! Keep on working. I'm going back to pick up some stuff first," Edward shouted towards the field.

"Diglett, dig!" a muffled reply came.

...

A few minutes later, Edward reached the cabin. He saw a few pieces of furniture such as chairs, tables, and beds on the front porch. Timburr and Bidoof are working hard on the side, turning logs into lumber as there are a few missing pieces left on the furniture before they are ready to be used.

'Not bad,' Edward thought, seeing their craftmanship.

"Timburr!"

"Bidoof!"

They greeted Edward after noticing his figure and went back to work.

Edward waved his hand in reply before walking into the house.

"I'm back," Edward said.

"Edward," Rosa called while placing a small box in the living room.

"Where's Agatha?" he asked.

"She's resting in the bedroom," she replied.

"Did the official say anything yet?" Edward asked, scooping a few bags of berry and herb seeds from the storage.

They had contacted the UN to report the sighting of Team Rockets in the cave yesterday. However, they didn't say anything about their involvement in their demise. It was mainly done to hide their strength.

And, it might as well be true. They really didn't do anything besides rescuing the Pokemon from their captivity. It was Entei that did most of the work.

"They are still discussing it apparently," Rosa frowned in reply, then she continued, "But, a friend of Agatha said they will come to pick her up in two days."

"Okay," Edward nodded, "I'm going out tomorrow to explore the surrounding lake a little," he said.

"Do you need us to follow you?" Rosa inquired.

"No. I won't go too far from the campsite," Edward shook his head.

Before he walked out of the door, Rosa stopped him.

"Wait!"

"Huh?" Edward turned to her with a curious expression.

"I sorted the stuff that you looted from the intruders, and most of them belonged to Agatha's team. These are the only ones left. Agatha said they didn't belong to her team, so the illegal intruders must have gotten them somewhere along the cave," she explained while showing the contents inside the small box.

'Huh? Isn't this Charcoal? And this one must be Hard Stone,' Edward recognized the two items in the box.

Charcoal is a held item that boosts the power of fire-type moves, while Hard Stone increases the power of rock-type moves. Although most of the Pokemon Items are born naturally, some items can be created artificially, such as Magmarizer, Thunderizer, etc.

"Hmm," Edward picked both items and pretended to inspect them.

"I don't know, though the creatures might know something about it," Edward lied.

"Alright, suit yourself," Rosa shrugged her shoulders.

"Okay, I'm going to see the progress on the field now," Edward said as he carried a box filled with the seed crops out of the cabin.

...

"Hm," Rosa hummed a song while plucking off a berry from a tree.

"Ling!" Chingling let out a cry as she sat on her shoulder.

"Do you want to try one Chingling?" she asked the bell-like Pokemon.

"Ling!" she nodded her head eagerly.

"Here," Rosa picked an oran berry from the basket and gave it to her.

She held the berry that was almost half the size of her body and took a big bite. Then, she happily cried after swallowing it.

"Ling!"

"It is delicious, isn't it?" Rosa smiled, seeing the Pokemon hovering in the sky happily.

"Ling!" she replied and finished her fruit in one bite.

"Come on, let's go and pick the other trees," she called as she walked towards the woods.

...

Thirty minutes later, she sat on the ground with a basket full of berries next to her. She took a deep breath as she enjoyed the scenery of the woods.

Chingling was hovering next to her as she tried to steal an oran berry while Rosa was not paying attention.

Snap!

"Ling!" she cried as Rosa slapped her grubby hands.

"You already ate a lot today. You'll spoil your dinner later," Rosa admonished her.

"Ling," her ribbon dropped in disappointment.

"Don't worry. I'll make your favorite meal tonight. I already asked Edward the recipe for it," Rosa consoled the sad-looking Pokemon.

"Ling!" she cheered after hearing Rosa's promise.

"Let's go bac-" Before Rosa could finish her sentence, a growl appeared from the bush ahead of them.

"Chee!"

A wild Pokemon appeared!

"Uh uh oh," Rosa stammered after seeing the wild creature's red eyes leering at them.

The rodent noticed that the two figures were unmoving, shaken by its stare. Then, it rushed at Rosa first, recognizing her as the weakest link out of the two.

...

[Be careful, Rosa!]

[Watch out!]

Everyone on the live stream closed their eyes in fright, not wanting to see the figure of Rosa getting mauled by the wild creature.

...

Bang!

Just as its tackle was about to hit Rosa, it was pushed back courtesy of Chingling, who jumped ahead of Rosa, protecting her from the creature's attack.

...

[Good job! Chingling!]

Everyone cheered for Chingling, who managed to block the attack in time.

"Chingling!" Rosa worriedly shouted after seeing Chingling standing in front of her.

"Ling!" she yelled, assuring her.

She then screamed to the enemy, showing a brave front. Although she is scared right now, she is not willing to back down. Especially after the wild beast almost hurt Rosa.

Rosa took a deep breath to calm herself, clearing her mind of the near-miss incident. Next, she started to examine the creature that attacked them just now.

'It's a Rattata,' Rosa thought, remembering Edward's explanation about this particular creature.

"Chingling! That's a Rattata. Watch out for its teeth," Rosa reminded her.

"Ling!" she nodded her head in understanding.

"Chee!" It threatened her.

Seeing that Chingling wasn't moved, it charged at her with a Tackle. However, Chingling dodged the attack by hovering in the air as the Rattata misjudged the distance and tumbled to the ground.

"Hit it, Chingling!" Rosa yelled after seeing an opening.

"Ling!" she jumped on the body of the Rattata, causing it to squeal in pain.

"Chee!"

Not wasting this opportunity, Chingling used her rope-like hair to wrap the stunned Rattata and repeatedly smash it from side to side.

Bang!

Bang!

(AN: I think I made a mistake here. It is supposed to be rope, not ribbon.

Finally, Chingling released the Rattata from her grasp after several hits to its head. The Rattata was left dazed and confused for a few seconds before falling to the ground unconscious.

[Wohoo! Chingling is the winner!]

[Chingling smash!]

[KO!]

Everyone cheered after seeing the small Chingling defeat the enemy brutally.

...

"Nice one, Chingling!" Rosa praised her.

"Ling!" she puffed her chest proudly as she hovered over the Rattata's body.

"Rosa!"

Suddenly, Falkner's voice came from her back.

Turning her body around, she saw Falkner was running to her with his Pokemons.

"Are you okay? Those guys in the live streams told me you were attacked by a creature just now," Falkner panted.

"It is fine. Chingling already solved it," Rosa pointed to Chingling next to her.

"Thank god. I was quite far from the lake just now. It took me several minutes to run all the way here," he explained.

Then he asked, "Where is that Rattata?"

"Over there," Rosa pointed to her back.

"Tch, tch," Falkner shook his head after seeing the big bump on the Rattata's head.

"So ruthless," he commented.

...

Several minutes later, they walked along the road to the cabin. Falkner had already moved the Rattata's body away from the camp before heading back.

Although it is still alive, it will take a few days to recover from its injuries.

As for whether it can survive in the meantime while being injured, it is not their problem. Who cares? It was the one who attacked them first.

It also served as a lesson to it, not to intrude another person's territory in the future.

"Oh, by the way. Edward told us to buy some supplies and deliver them to us tomorrow while they are going to pick up Agatha," Rosa reminded Falkner.

"Did he write a list for the stuff we need?" Falkner asked curiously.

"Yeah, just a sec," Rosa put her hand into her inner left jacket and took out a small piece of paper.

She then held it to Falkner and said, "Here you go,"

Taking the paper from Rosa, Falkner then read it silently. A minute later, his calm face gradually turned to bewilderment as he finished reading the list.

"I can understand the need for a cast-iron stove, the beddings, and the daily essentials. But what about the ones at the bottom? Bricks? Cement?

Generator? Septic tank?" Falkner turned to her with a perplexed expression.

"Is he going to make a house?"

"Haha," Rosa laughed, then continued, "No. At first, he only wants to build a shed for storage. But the generator was my idea. It's tough to live without electricity. Anyway, we can also exchange our diamonds with the official for money later."

Rosa shrugged her shoulders as she entered the cabin and sat on the chair that was built by Timburr and Bidoof yesterday.

...

"What do you guys think? Should we check out that area before going back?" Edward asked his Pokemon.

He had finished exploring the surrounding lake a few minutes ago. There wasn't anything that managed to catch his eye except for recording two new Pokemon for some rewards.

Both Pokemon were Spinda and Skwovet. There weren't any altercation between them as both Pokemon were friendly and did nothing to disturb them, only looking at them curiously before going on their way.

Although Edward gave a few berries to the Skwovet, who then stuffed all of them into its mouth, making its cheeks bulge before going on its merry way.

And Spinda just teetered past them as they stood aside, watching the Pokemon move in a confusing and dizzying pattern, not caring about the strangers beside it.

[This creature is weird.]

[My head is already confused just by watching it walking.]

[Edward: Why don't we call it Spinda, as in 'spin' for it like to spin around and 'da' for it look a little bit like a panda.]

[Hey, it's not bad. Spinda.]

Everyone commented on the two new Pokemon that they saw today.