Route 28

After a brief ceremony for the fallen I-

Brief? You spent hours making graves and then you just stood there for another hour!

- I’d thank you to not read my diary as I write it.

I picked up Palindrome and Nevermore from the box and headed towards Mt. Silver.

On the way I take the opportunity to try and recruit. A sneasel! Pokeball go!

Sneasel: It looks like it’ll cut your throat in your sleep! Box it! Box it now!

- We’ll box you for now. Welcome to the team, Stanley!

Stanley ♂ Lv. 42

Mt. Silver

Before I make the climb proper, I take this last opportunity to recruit. A larvitar! Pokeball g-

- … err…

What’s wrong? Catch it!

- … I’m out of pokeballs.

You dumbass.

With that mishap behind me it’s time to start probably the ultimate training montage as I climb this mountain!

Zuul ♀ Lv. 84

Nippy II ♀ Lv. 83

Nevermore ♂ Lv. 83

Tremors ♂ Lv. 84

Jam ♀ Lv. 83

Palindrome ♂ Lv. 85

Mt. Silver Summit

It sure is cold up here and this hail storm isn’t helping with visibility.

- Well I’m here. The guy in black said there’d be answers up here and I don’t see any answers, do you?

Maybe that guy in red over there knows something?

- What guy?

I peer into the distance and see a lone figure standing and facing me. I step closer.

- Hello?

Hello there! I don’t get many visitors all the way up here. What brings you here?

- The guy in black told me to come here, that I’d find out what happened to my lost pokemon.

Is that so? Then we must battle!

- What? But I’m not here to-

I choose you, Pikachu!

- Tremors! Looks like we’re in for a battle!

- Earthquake!

Iron tail!

Pikachu’s tail glimmers and shines as if it were metallic, it leaps at Tremors and swipe’s it’s tail across Tremors’ face. Pikachu bounces off with a loud clatter as if someone had just dropped a spoon on the floor. Tremors hits the ground with his tail and triggers an earthquake, the violent shaking causes pikachu to lose it’s footing and tumble down the mountain.

Tremors is battered by the hail storm.

Blastoise go!

- Tremors return! Go Zuul!

Focus blast!

Blastoise focuses a form of energy in it’s cannons and fires it at Zuul. The blast passes through Zuul harmlessly and continues onwards into the distance.

Both pokemon are chipped away at by the hail.

-Thunderbolt!

Blizzard!

Zuul points a single finger at blastoise and fires a bolt of lightning from it. Blastoise is thoroughly electrified but stays standing and adds to the hail by focusing a blizzard and blowing it at Zuul. Small blocks of ice and clumps of snow batter and stick to Zuul. The hail storm makes it a little worse but at least it’s indiscriminate, it’s starting to hurt me too.

It’s time to try out Erika’s gift.

- Giga drain!

The guy in red uses a full restore on his blastoise. Zuul steps up to blastoise, jams her ghostly hand into blastoise’s chest and drains life force from it. The hail storm continues it’s assault. I should have worn a better hat, my ears are especially painful right now.

- Giga drain!

Blizzard!

Zuul drains more life from blastoise and blastoise focuses another blizzard at Zuul, covering her in more snow and frost. The relentless hail continues, blastoise succumbs to the punishment.

ZUULLL!

Go Lapras!

- Giga drain!

Blizzard!

Zuul grabs lapras and begins to drain the life from it. Lapras shakes Zuul off and blows a mighty gale carrying ice and snow at Zuul. Battered bruised and completely covered in ice, Zuul becomes frozen solid. The hail hacks away at both pokemon but lapras seems unaffected.

- Zuul come back! Go Jam!

Brine!

Lapras sprays Jam with briny water. The hail storm hurts Jam but she shakes it off.

- Sludge bomb!

Psychic!

Jam launches a sludge bomb at lapras, it’s so cold up here the sludge freezes in mid-air and smacks lapras over the head. Lapras’ eyes glow, Jam is forced off the mountain but she clings to the edge and climbs back up. The hail storm keeps hurting everyone, including me.

- Sludge bomb!

Psychic!

Jam launches another frozen sludge bomb into lapras’ face and lapras once again tries to throw Jam off the mountain with it’s psychic attack. Jam scrambles back up again and endures more from the hail storm.

- Sludge bomb!

Psychic!

Jam launches another sludge bomb, it freezes so fast it shatters and peppers lapras with shards. Lapras slumps to the ground. After more battering from the hail Jam slumps to the ground too.

- Jam! Return, quick! Jam!!

Jam’s pokeball doesn’t respond.

- … sorry Jam…

It’s a guessing game as to what pokemon he’ll choose next.

- Go Palindrome!

Go Snorlax!

I guessed wrong.

- Palindrome return! Go Nippy!

Crunch!

Snorlax grabs ahold of Nippy and chomps down on her shell. The hail just keeps on battering everyone. My clothes seem to be taking the worst for me but they’re starting to look a little frayed, not to mention that rip in my jacket that happened on the climb here.

- Rock smash!

Shadow ball!

Nippy grabs a boulder in her claw and hits snorlax over the head with it. Snorlax roars or yawns, it’s hard to tell the difference, and launches a shadow ball from it’s mouth. The shadow ball implodes in Nippy’s face.

Hail persists and keeps hurting everyone.

- Crabhammer!

Shadow ball!

Nippy leaps up, raises her claw high and brings it down onto snorlax’s skull. Snorlax spits another shadow ball at Nippy, she barely manages to cling to the ground as the shadow ball tries to take her with it when it implodes.

The hail storm add more injury to both sides.

- Nippy, you’ve done enough! Go Tremors!

The guy in red uses a full restore on snorlax and the hail storm keeps on attacking.

- Earthquake!

Blizzard!

Tremors slams the ground with his tail, the violent shaking causes snorlax to tumble over onto sharp rocks. Snorlax stands up and blows a gale of ice and frost at Tremors.

It seems the hail will never stop here.

- Earthquake!

Blizzard!

Tremors hits the ground with his tail again, snorlax loses it’s balance and falls off of the summit but still manages to cling to the edge. Still clinging to the side of the mountain, snorlax peeks it’s head above the edge and blows another icy blizzard at Tremors.

The hail keeps hitting everyone but it seems to be too much for Tremors, he flops to the ground. The sheer weight of his body causes Tremors’ body to start slowly sinking into the ground.

- No! Tremors! It’s… all my fault… I’m sorry… I misjudged to situation…

A fitting place for him to end up. There’s lots of wild onix and steelix in the mountain, I’d bet they’d know where to bury him.

- Nevermore!

- Wing attack!

Blizzard!

While snorlax is still clinging to the edge Nevermore swoops down and knocks snorlax off. Snorlax begins to gather snow as it tumbles down the mountain and literally snowballs as it keeps rolling further down and beyond as far I can see.

The hail begins it’s work on Nevermore too.

Charizard!

- Sucker punch!

Air slash!

Nevermore indicates to something behind charizard. Charizard falls for it and looks in that direction, Nevermore takes the opportunity to fly beak-first at full speed into charizard’s jaw. Enraged by this, charizard flaps it’s wings and sends a precise gust at Nevermore. A few black feathers are caught in the wind and Nevermore slams into the ground.

Charizard is buffeted by the hail.

- I’m so sorry… it probably wasn’t the best idea to test you against a charizard… I’m so sorry Nevermore…

- Go Palindrome!

- Zen headbutt!

Dragon pulse!

Charizard breathes dragonfire at Palindrome. After enduring the hit Palindrome channels energy to it’s skull and smacks heads with charizard. Reeling from the impact, charizard falls backwards and the flame on it’s tail goes out.

Everyone is still suffering from the hail falling on us.

Go Venusaur!

- Zen headbutt!

Sludge bomb!

Palindrome channels more energy to his skull and slams it into venusaur’s face for a critical hit. The angle and force of the impact forces venusaur’s head to hit the ground with considerable force.

At last the hail stops.

Mr McCaldarson

- Huh?

Is your name Caldar McCaldarson?

- … yeah.

I’ve got something for you.

The guy reaches into his jacket.

A letter!

- A letter for me? That’s impossible!

Who the hell are you?

Hoenn Deliveries! Actually a bunch of us at the office were hoping maybe you could shed some light on the subject. See, we’ve had that envelope in our possession for the last twenty years!

It was given to us with the explicit instructions that it be delivered to a young man with your description, answering to the name of Caldar, at this exact location, at this exact minute, and could beat our best trainer.

We had a little bet going as to whether this Caldar guy would be here, looks like I lost hahaha

- Did you say twenty years?

Yeah, twenty years two months, er… twelve days to be exact. Sign on line six please, here you are.

- …… It’s from the Doc!

- “Dear Caldar, if my calculations are correct you’ll receive this letter immediately after defeating the deliveryman. First let me assure you that I am alive and well these past eight months in the year-”

- !!

Hey kid, wait a minute! What’s this all about?

- He’s alive! The Doc’s alive! He’s in Old Hoenn but he’s alive!

But kid, are you alright? Do you need any help?

- There’s only one man who can help me…