Into the Depths

Fearing for their safety, the duo quickly entered into the dark cave, its entrance emanating a menacing aura—almost as if it were a beast swallowing them whole!

If possible, Gunne would have liked to avoid the cave, considering there were too many unknowns as to what lived inside. But in the current situation, he preferred taking a chance with the unknown over fighting with what was outside.

Just outside, a swarm of wild pokémon had arrived, all screaming out in anger upon seeing the two injured pidgeys.

Gunne wiped the sweat from his brows, sighing in relief, "Thankfully, we finished our battles quickly, Riolu!"

"Arh!" Riolu nodded vigorously in agreement.

The inside of the cave wasn't very welcoming; it was spacious inside but far too empty. Water dripped eerily from the ceiling, forming into small puddles along the cold ground.

Straining their sense of smell was a strong musty scent formed from the damp environment, one which would have made Gunne's previous self lightheaded.

At they very least, they managed to find a suitable shelter, but despite being safe for the moment, the duo felt an ever-present fear gnawing at their minds. What if something was just lurking in the shadows? Waiting for the right time to strike?

After a moment of thought, Gunne was hit by a sudden realization, "Riolu, can you sense any auras nearby?"

With Riolu's sensitivity to auras, he should be able to sense if there were any living beings in his surroundings.

"Rio!" Riolu nodded as he closed his eyes to concentrate; his face was calm without the slightest bit of movement—

Abruptly, his eyes snapped open as he shot forward with incredible speed towards Gunne. He jumped into the air, sending a high jump kick directly behind Gunne.

Bam!

A shrill cry echoed out within the cave as something crashed onto the ground. Gunne looked back vigilantly, spotting a small blue bat with purple wings.

Gunne immediately activated the system's Pokédex, only seeing its most basic of information as it was still a wild pokémon. Riolu stood by his side in caution, his eyes locked on to the bat in case it might try anything funny

[Entry Number #041]

• Zubat • Type: Poison/Flying • Bio: Zubat has no eyes, so to check its surroundings while flying, it emits ultrasonic waves. When exposed to sunlight, they suffer burns.

The zubat flew back up from the ground, staring at the two in alert. After suffering a harsh kick from Riolu, it decided to refrain from making any further moves.

A long staring contest had commenced, despite the fact that zubats didn't have eyes.

Gunne looked back at its typing, and seeing that it was both poison and flying, he reached in his bag to pull out a Poké Ball. He called out gently, "Zubat, would you like to join the two of us on an adventure?"

A new addition to the team was always welcome, and despite having no prior bond with this zubat, one could form over time.

Having just been hunted by several wild pokémon, he came to the conclusion: he needed both companions and strength if he wanted to survive in this world.

The zubat continued facing in his direction in skepticism.

After a short while, it ushered a relaxed clicking sound. Riolu cried back at it, and the two were clearly communicating.

Gunne couldn't help but feel left out, 'Technically, I'm a pokémon as well now. So, why can't I understand pokémon?'

[System Alert]

[You have yet to reach the necessary qualifications to clearly speak with and understand pokémon. This ability has been specifically locked by Arceus as it can't give you too easy of a start. When it feels you've proved enough, you will be rewarded.]

'Well, that's pretty vague,' Gunne sighed in disappointment, quickly turning back to the matter at hand.

Riolu was still chatting with Zubat and the two seemed to be getting along.

'Is Riolu coaxing it into joining us?'

Zubat suddenly cried out in what seemed to be laughter, as Gunne watched what looked like a game of tag, sitting down and resting his head on the hard cavern wall.

'It's late, I guess I'll take some time to rest while they have fun.'

***

About thirty minutes had passed, and Riolu had grown even more familiar with Zubat.

"Rio?" Riolu called out once again, and by now Zubat had already come to a conclusion.

"Zu!" It chattered happily, flying down in front of Gunne and directly in front of the Poké Ball.

Gunne lifted the Poké Ball, lightly pressing it against Zubat's head. The Poké Ball shot forth a ray of pink and white light, instantly enveloping the Zubat and pulling it in.

The Poké Ball's button flashed white instantly with a successful catch!

[Mission Completed!]

[First Catch] • Reward: 500 Poké Points

[Current Balance: 700 Poké Points]

The sudden influx of Poké Points was a welcome surprise, and he felt very thankful for Riolu's assistance.

Firstly, in saving him from Zubat's surprise attack, and secondly in recruiting Zubat to the team.

After all, the Poké Ball often wobbles three times before successfully capturing the pokémon and it's not uncommon for the pokémon to break out of the ball on or twice, destroying it in the process.

And with Riolu's help, Gunne only had to use one Poké Ball from his set of sixteen.

Gunne quickly sent Zubat out of the Poké Ball, letting it continue its games with Riolu. Then he opened his jacked, slotting the Poké Ball into one of six slots before looking at its information.

[Entry Number #041]

• Zubat • Gender: Male • Type: Poison/Flying

• Ability: Infiltrator - Pass through opposing Pokémon's barrier, substitute, and the like.

• Moves: Quick Attack, Supersonic, Wing Attack, Astonish, Mean Look

• Bio: Zubat has no eyes, so to check its surroundings while flying, it emits ultrasonic waves. When exposed to sunlight, they suffer burns.

As Riolu and Zubat readied their next game of tag, a loud humming sound echoed out, piercing the trio's eardrums.

Gunne covered his ears, looking towards Zubat who had lived in this cave. It should have some clue as to what's going on.

Zubat squeaked out urgently, painting a bad picture for what was about to happen.

As the humming got closer, Gunne heard what sounded like a fan's blades spinning, or even more accurately, like the rotor blades of a helicopter! But considering their location, it had to be the whirring of a pokémon's wings!

And not just five or even ten pokémon were enough to produce such a loud sound... there had to be hundreds of them!

Riolu suddenly shrieked out in pain, grabbing at its head with its paws, "Arh! Arh!"

Gunne nearly went into a panic as he thought the worse, but then a thought came to mind.

Considering how many pokémon were approaching in this closed-in cave, Riolu's mind was overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of auras!

Pulling out the red cherish ball, he retrieved Riolu at once.

"Zu! Zuu!" Zubat desperately cried out for Gunne's attention.

Gunne shot it a glance, seeing Zubat fly into the darkness as it beckoned him to follow. Gunne stuck closely behind in fear of getting lost in the darkness.

Shortly after, they arrived at an open yet shallow tunnel that only led even further down into the unknown depths. It looked like this was the only way forward and considering his lack of vision, Gunne put all of his faith into Zubat.