In the end, Leo never told Daisy about his meeting with Celebi. While it was sure to be an interesting conversation with the Professor, the way he saw it that meeting was private, and Daisy wasn't liable to actually believe him all things considered. To her, he was just a twelve-year-old, albeit a strangely smart one. Either way, the next morning the two left for Azalea, the short two-hour flight spent in relative silence; each left to their own thoughts.
Which led them to where they were now; standing outside of the Azalea gym, Daisy's Pidgeot standing proudly next to them as they rubbed their arms in an attempt to return feeling to them. The cold morning air turned to freezing when flying.
"This is as far as I go," Daisy said, squinting up at the tall stadium. Leo nodded, watching a troop of wooper waddle their way from one pond to the next, the decorative water features providing the playful water-types with plenty of room to splash about in.
"Thanks for the ride," Leo said through chattering teeth, nodding to Daisy. "I appreciate the company too. And don't forget to go back to Pallet," he told her.
She rolled her eyes. "Yes mother," she teased. Leo gave her a lopsided grin and waved her off. "You be careful, and make sure to call Victoria once you get your third badge. Bug type gyms may not be overly challenging in these regions, but they make up for that by dragging you down and wearing your team ragged. Oftentimes the test is battles of quantity over quality," she reminded him, laying one hand on Pidgeot's side as the big avian nipped at her hair impatiently.
"Will do. Thanks for the tip," he said, nodding. Daisy smiled and, taking a deep breath, clambered back on Pidgeot.
"See you around," she said, and Pidgeot, with a shriek and flap of its mighty wings, lifted into the sky and disappeared as nothing more than a brown blur in seconds.
Leo watched them go for a moment, frowning slightly, then turned his attention back to the gym. The green paint was faded and chipped, while the large sliding glass doors were covered with what looked like the drawings of toddlers, mostly of bug type pokémon and normal bugs. He idly wondered if that was the work of Bugsy, who was undoubtedly too young to be training at the moment. Leo didn't remember just how old he was in the games, but that was a question for another time. After all, he'd be battling Bugsy's predecessor instead.
He confidently walked into the building, reveling in the wave of warm air that washed over him as he did so, and glanced around the surprisingly busy interior. A dozen or so trainers milled about the lobby, most looking young – almost like rookies with their clean shoes and unmarked clothes. It was a sharp contrast to Leo's already worn clothes and shoes, barring his newly purchased coat. They probably are rookies, trying to get their last badges in before the season ends, he mused, walking up to the front desk where an elderly gentleman with a trim goatee sat, watching him approach.
"How may I help you?" the man asked, eyes flicking to the three pokeballs on Leo's belt.
"I'd like to register for a gym battle of the third badge level," Leo announced. The older man just snorted and extended a hand, accepting Leo's pokedex as form of identification and pulling up his trainer record. His expression remained unchanged as he stared at the screen for a moment, reading something. "Is there an issue?" Leo asked, furrowing his brows.
"Normally I would advise you to not challenge this gym as a Youngster – the current gym leader is staunchly opposed to the Youngster Liscence Law – and while your official battle record leaves much to be desired your gym challenge record is…acceptable," he said, tapping on the table. Leo frowned. There was a lot to unpack there.
"My official battle record?" he asked.
"Yes. Your win loss ratio in official battles. Though you haven't lost a challenge in a gym yet, your ratio is heavily skewed to the losing side," he said, peering at Leo.
"Ah. That. Yeah, I challenge a lot of people above my badge level," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "They're usually pretty nice about it, and even veterans have new pokémon that need training," That he didn't really care about his win loss ratio went unsaid. It was gym challenges and tournament wins that actually mattered for serious trainers.
"Hmm. Well, regardless, let me warn you. This gym challenge will be difficult for you – by law the Leader must give you a fair challenge, but that doesn't mean he won't make it as difficult as possible," he said. "I suggest perhaps going to another gym," Leo frowned at that, rubbing the back of his neck. Did he have time to go to another gym…?
"How difficult are we talking?" he asked instead.
"Difficult. It will be above third badge level," he said.
Leo hummed and considered his options. It would be hard to beat this gym, arguably, but he held a distinct advantage here with both Zuko and Diana having major strengths against the bug type. And while type wasn't everything, at his current level it did make a big difference. On the other hand the only other gym he could reach in time was Goldenrod, and that might be cutting it close. It'd take a good week to hike back to the city unless he managed to get a ride there, and even then it posed a similar problem in that he might not be able to get a rematch…no, his best bet was to try this gym and, if he lost, train as hard as possible so he won the rematch.
"I'll take the gym challenge here," Leo said. "If it is required that the challenge at least be passible, then I still have a shot,"
"Don't say I didn't warn you," the receptionist said with a sigh, typing on the computer for a bit. "The first available test date we have is two days from now, and, assuming you pass, your badge challenge will be a week after that. Gym Leader Art will most likely challenge you personally. If you fail the test, it will be scheduled exactly two days after your initial challenge. If you fail your battle, it will be scheduled three days after your loss. Is this acceptable?" he asked. Leo nodded.
"Yes," he said, and just like that, he had the date for his third gym battle.
The Professor's face flicked to life on the video screen, a kindly grin on his face as he answered the call. Leo had splurged a bit on this video call, paying for a private line in the back of the Pokemon center – something he hadn't known had existed until he asked the Nurse about private calling booths – so the quality of the call was both better, and the small, square room was completely secure, the only occupant being himself, Santiago, and the video booth. He wanted the extra privacy for the conversation he was about to have.
"Hey, Professor," Leo said with a small wave, scratching Santiago's head with his other hand. The slowpoke had placed his front paws on Leo's lap, his head resting on his thighs and tongue lolling out as he panted like a dog, drool soaking Leo's left leg. He didn't mind though.
"Leo, I see you made it to Azalea! Fairly quickly too, by my estimates," Professor Oak said.
"I did. Daisy gave me a ride, then left for the Tohjo falls – heard a rumor about moonstones there and went to go check it out," Leo explained, not even flinching when Santiago turned his head and engulfed his hand in his mouth. Calmly he removed the appendage from the slowpoke's mouth and continued to pet him, the sticky feeling of slowpoke slobber a familiar feeling by now. It wouldn't go away until he washed his hands anyway, there was no point in getting grossed out.
"I see. I do wish she would call every once in a while," the Professor said, shaking his head. Leo snorted.
"I told her to visit the ranch once she got done, made her promise to do so in fact. She should uphold her end of the bargain, I tried to guilt-trip her pretty hard," he said. The Professor smiled at him, then shook his head.
"Thank you, but I doubt you called just to talk about my wayward granddaughter. Is it something with Spiritomb? I must admit I am itching to get another read on it," the Professor said, hands twitching in greed at the thought. "Professor Rowan has been quite helpful in sending me information on the species as well. I'll update your pokedex with the relevant lore next time we meet,"
"No, Spiritomb's fine. I've got a theory on how to improve its cohesion, but I need to test it before I submit any actual thoughts or results to you," Leo said, almost scratching the back of his head with his slimed hand before thinking better of it. Santiago grunted and butted his head against Leo's stomach, demanding more scratches, which Leo obliged.
"Is it about Jack then? I did just receive word from Professor Juniper this morning, she received your letter and will aid in our search for your friend. She was actually very amenable to the idea – she focuses her research on pokémon mythology, you see, and the Alolan myths are among the more observable of all the regions," he continued. "I sent your letter to her via email the moment I got the response. All I needed was for you to call to tell you the news,"
"Really? That's great!" Leo beamed. "Keep me updated on that, but it's not about that either,"
"Hmm? Then what is it? Training advice? Want me to come watch your gym battle? Or – oh, have you visited the slowpoke well yet? I highly recommend that," the Professor continued, Leo's grin widening as he continually spat out thoughts. He was having fun building up the suspense like this, considering what he had to tell the Professor.
"No, but the slowpoke well is a good idea. I'll put that on the list," Leo said, nodding and scratching his chin thoughtfully. That was where a King's Rock was located in the games, which meant that, if Santiago was ready for evolution, he could potentially evolve. That was assuming his starter was ready for that. Leo…wasn't actually sure of that answer.
"Well don't keep me waiting. There are tauros pens that need mucking," the Professor said, and Leo waved his hand dismissively.
"Isn't that what you keep Gary around for? Make him do the mucking," he said, and the Professor laughed. "No, the reason I called you is because I met Celebi in the Ilex Forest last night," he said in the most casual tone he possibly could.
Leo had been expecting more of a response from the Professor. Maybe something like when he showed him the Articuno scans – a knee jerk "you what?" sort of reaction followed by excitement or shock. He hadn't been expecting the slow blink, frown, and for Oak to lean back in his chair and simply motion for Leo to continue.
Leo wet his lips, caught off guard a little, and regaled the Professor with as much detail as he could…leaving out some bits and pieces of the Future Sight that he could only vaguely recall. It had been a lot to throw at him, after all, and his memory wasn't perfect. Santiago, of course, occasionally interrupted the storytelling when Leo got too distracted and stopped petting him – groaning loudly until he resumed the scratching of the slowpoke's ears.
In the silence that followed the conclusion of the story, Leo found himself growing increasingly uncomfortable. The Professor was simply staring at him expressionlessly, his eyes seeming to bore straight into Leo's as if all his secrets were laid bare.
"You're not joking, I see," he said, and Leo shook his head. The Professor sighed and ran a hand through his greying hair. "I expected you to run into a Legendary eventually but not so soon. Most who are capable of sensing aura beyond what the average person is capable of will at some point. Your…vision, while concerning, isn't unexpected. Many Kantoan gym leaders have voiced their concern over Lance's rise to Champion, Giovanni among them. But unlike what you seem to think Giovanni is not the leading cause of this discontent, nor is Lance wholly to blame. They are just the current figureheads of the two political sides of the coin,"
All of that Leo could see, and he felt almost ashamed to have phrased the vision in such a way that it seemed like Giovanni, and to a lesser extent, Lance, were the cruxes of the potential issues he'd seen. If his learning in the history and politics of Johto and Kanto were any proof, it was that the problems behind the current…potentially tumultuous political situation in the Indigo League were far deeper than issues between two men. Remove either and another was likely to take their place. Which, he realized with slowly dawning horror, was why Celebi told him there was nothing he could really do.
Even if he could go challenge Giovanni or discredit the man by revealing the existence of Team Rocket (who he still had heard nothing about, suspicious as that was) Leo could not oppose all of those who sided with him. Nor did he know who those people were.
Still, one thing about Oak's speech did stick out to Leo beyond the political side of things, and that ended up being what he voiced his comment on.
"You believe in aura?" Leo asked suspiciously. Most scientists he'd met from his old world almost violently opposed esoteric concepts like aura or qi – which were essentially the same concept if Leo's understanding was correct – whenever said subjects were brought up. The same could be said about certain religious groups of course, but only the former was currently relevant. Oak casually mentioning aura like that threw Leo off.
"You have some funny misconceptions about what a researcher like myself does, Leo," the Professor said, amusement coloring his voice as Merri, his Alakazam, poked her head over his shoulder to smile at Leo. "Most regional Professors agree that some concept like aura exists, even if we cannot observe its fundamental, physical form in most capacities and disagree on its base functions. Where do you think pokémon get their abilities from? What about the energy from evolution? Or why do new species of pokémon appear at random, like magnemite did once power plants started being built en mass? Our best guess is that it stems from aura somehow – the fundamental, binding energy of the universe,"
"That's…" Leo started, trailing off when he realized he didn't know what to say. Vaguely he recalled an anime episode where the Lumoise City gym leader in Kalos was measuring energy output between Ash and Greninja, and he furrowed his brows in confusion. "You can't observe it?"
"Yes and no. We can detect and observe certain forms of aura – such as electricity, energy from evolution, or even, arguably, the power from the Alolan Z-moves, but the true base form of aura is beyond the grasp of modern technology. Despite there being people who can see, hear, smell, or feel it. All energy is, allegedly, a different expression of this aural building block," the Professor explained. "Though I will admit I am biased towards this theory, as other researchers doubt that is the case,"
"Biased how?" Leo asked. The Professor was many things, but Leo did not count biased among them.
"I can see aura to some degree. It's not actually much, but it's enough," he said, tapping the side of his head with a knowing smile. "It's what helped me get to where I am today, in the forefront of researchers investigating pokémon-human relations," If Leo's jaw could have dropped any further, it would have. As it was he felt like it was about to fall off. The Professor could see aura?! What in the blue blazes?!
Oak chuckled at Leo's expression. "Just don't expect to be going around throwing 'aura spheres' around just because you can feel aura now. That kind of thing is a storybook fantasy. It will, however, help you grow closer to your pokémon in a way you cannot imagine,"
"How so?" Leo blurted, mind reeling.
"Well I can't prove it scientifically yet, but the bond between pokémon and human is aura-based in nature. Think of it like a symbiotic relationship – we connect our human aura to theirs, and fuel their growth. That's why trained pokémon tend to be stronger, smarter, and evolve quicker than those in the wild. On the flip side, the pokémon aid us in the growth of our aura – though the effects are far less noticeable with the exception of psychics trainers, whose power grows marginally alongside their pokémon. I'm still researching the nature of aural growth outside of psychicsy, so I hope you don't mind if I use you as a case study. Not that you actually have a choice, since I gave you a pokedex and shelter for two years," the Professor teased, tone hinting that he was just giving Leo a hard time.
"Fair. The guilt tripping was unnecessary, but fair," Leo said, shaking his head and allowing a grin to overtake his face.
"I guess what I'm trying to get at with this long-winded speech of mine is this – don't worry too much about what's out of your control, and that aura, while cool and the subject of many myths and stories, is not going to give you superpowers," Oak said simply. Leo huffed and nodded, scratching the back of his head. Telling him not to worry was a fool's errand, however; those visions were sure to keep him up at night for a while yet. Either way, Oak was right in that there was little Leo could do – in fact, the only way forward he could see now was to train harder and get stronger. Strong enough that people might listen to him, or he could at least better protect those he cared about, as cliché as that sounded.
Further training was, honestly, the only way he would be able to have an impact on the things to come. I really will have to kick it up a notch. He thought, jaw setting as the image of Victoria on a hospital bed flashed through his mind, as well as thoughts of what may happen to the rest of the Oak family. Then he shook his head and smiled at the Professor, changing the topic to lighter topics. It may take some time for my team to get strong enough, but there's no way I can just sit back and let bad things happen. Especially since I think I know what might be coming. Stupid sense of responsibility. Why must you make things so hard?
Azalea was truly a beautiful city, Leo thought as he walked through the outskirts with a purpose. The inner city itself was your typical fare – with tall buildings and too many people intermixed with pokémon of all sizes – but the outskirts made it plain and clear that this was the home of generations of bug-and-grass-type masters. Pines lined the roads, silken threads from Kakuna and Metapod populations that made the trees their home lining the lower branches and giving them an almost gothic look. Butterfree flapped through the air, the scales that fell from their wings glimmering in the mid-morning sun, while a lone Ariados eyed them from a bush that poorly hid its large red body. None of the civilians seemed to mind the giant red spider either, simply passing the bush by without a care in the world – it was likely a trained 'mon.
Leo was heading to the Slowpoke well, given that there were a few hours left in the day after his talk with Oak and some training in one of the Center's private training fields. He wasn't sure what he'd find there – he doubted it was like the games, where a King's Rock was waiting in the very back of the cave for the player to get – but considering that it was the one place in the entirety of the games dedicated solely to Slowpoke as a species he was hoping it would have something for Santiago.
The gem from Longinus' crown could only go so far, after all. Santiago hardly reacted at seeing the psychic gem anymore, and Leo couldn't figure out what else it might be good for yet besides sentiment. He was sure there was something, though.
A Ledyba buzzed by Leo's head as he walked, circling back around and staring at him curiously, its little white hands clenching and unclenching as the bug watched him, before it buzzed off towards a playground covered in screeching children and brightly colored flowers – where the drone of regular bugs was loudest. Leo swatted at a fly that buzzed in his ear. A part of him knew that bugs were important for the ecosystem, as bug type pokemon couldn't fill all roles that regular bugs could, but another part of him wished they didn't. Flies were annoying.
Still, despite his distraction with observing the city, Leo soon found himself leaving the outskirts of town – marked by a tall green hedge that, if Leo were to hedge his bets, was home to even more bug-type pokémon – with the Slowpoke Well on the horizon. It took another thirty minutes of walking to reach the well – situated next to a small, mesa-like rise in the forest outside of the city limits in a clearing of trees. The grey-stones and red-roofed well cover were clearly worn from age, paint chipping from the "roof" tiles while a copper plaque, turned green from years outside in the weather, told a small folktale from hundreds of years ago.
"Supposedly Azalea was saved by the Slowpoke who once inhabited this area, because they brought rains that ended a drought," Leo muttered to himself, fingers tracing the lettering. He leaned over the edge of the well – calling it a well was a bit of a misnomer, though, because the townspeople didn't actually draw water from it out of respect for the Slowpoke population that inhabited it – and peered down into the darkness below where the sounds of dripping water echoed.
"Great, enter at your own peril indeed," he muttered, testing the wooden ladder that led into the depths of the well and recalling the Nurse Joy's words to him when he had asked her for directions. She hadn't seemed thrilled at the idea of him coming here, but…well, disapproval hadn't stopped him before, much less from someone he didn't know. "Down we go," he grumbled, and slowly descended into the well, placing each foot carefully on the ladder rungs.
His hiking boots splashed in a small puddle of water on the stone floor, goosebumps running up his arms from the chill. He flicked on a flashlight and let Santiago out of his pokeball, the Slowpoke immediately perking up at their surroundings, his pink head swiveling back and forth and nostrils flaring. A low whine rumbled out from the back of his throat and Leo bent to lay a hand on his starter's head.
"Hey buddy. You sensing where we are?" he muttered, vague hope blossoming in his chest. Santiago didn't respond, staring into a wide passage, tall enough for a grown adult to easily walk through, with blue light gently shining from his eyes. "Alright, let's go," he said, and trudged forward, flashlight trailing the slick cave walls. Santiago followed behind him sedately, quiet, but alert. Not once did he get distracted or stop to sniff at something, or just lay down because he was feeling lazy.
That, in and of itself, was an impressive change from his normal behavior.
Maybe twenty feet into the passage the cave opened up into a massive cavern so large the light from Leo's flashlight could not reach the far end, and only barely glinted off the long stalagmites hanging from the ceiling. Long pools of water sat like ominous patches of inky blackness all across the ground in front of him, with no telling how deep they went or what was contained within. For a moment Leo did nothing, not even following the beaten path that led further into the cave – undoubtedly created by centuries of visitors. He just stood there, unsure of what to do next.
A rock moved off to his right and he jumped, whipping his head and flashlight around to find, lo and behold, a Slowpoke staring at him.
"Sloooow?" it said, tilting its head to the side curiously, large eyes staring unblinking at Leo.
"Pooooke," Santiago responded, his call prompting dozens of responses from deeper in the cavern. Glowing blue eyes blinked open in the darkness, sitting atop large mounds and all turned towards the intruders in the cavern. "Sloooow," Santiago called again, though the eyes showed no change.
Sweat beaded on the back of Leo's neck as he met the gaze of several dozen Slowpoke, all staring directly at him and flaring their psychic powers. The Slowpoke in this well were supposed to be harmless…weren't they?
After a few tense moments, during which time Santiago never left his side, the glowing eyes faded as the Slowpoke lost interest, and Leo let out a sigh of relief. That had been far more intense than he had been expecting for an introduction. Was it because Santiago was a foreigner, by all rights, and the Slowpoke had wanted to see if he was a threat? He shook those thoughts from his head and continued forward, letting Santiago take the lead this time as his partner nudged his way forward, pushing past Leo and ambling along the trail.
Dripping water echoed through the chambers, the only sound beside the occasional shuffling or call from a Slowpoke and Leo's own footsteps. Santiago forged on ahead, leading the way further into the caverns despite Leo occasionally stopping to admire some of the cave formations. Stalactites and stalagmites hung from the ceiling and rose from the floor, while the dark water pools remained utterly calm in the silence of the cavern. Leo could almost imagine meeting some monstrosity from a fairy tale down here…he shuddered and shook his head, dismissing the notion and rising from where he was examining a pool of water, imagining a giant tentacle rising from it, covered in suction cups and dripping water.
Sometimes having an overactive imagination wasn't the greatest thing in the world.
"Where are you going, buddy?" Leo asked in a stage whisper, walking quickly – albeit carefully on the slick rocky ground – to catch up to Santiago, who was slowly climbing up a rocky mound. Leo was starting to get a little worried. The path was still plain and clear, but he had absolutely no desire to go off said path and wind up lost in this cave. That wouldn't end well.
"Sloooow," Santiago replied, slipping on a particularly slick patch of stone as he struggled his way up.
"Oh, gee, thanks, that clears everything right up," Leo grumbled, rubbing his face with his free hand and slowly climbing up as well. They wandered about the cavern for at least ten minutes – not covering a lot of ground due to Santiago's lack of speed, Leo's caution, and the trail winding back and forth around the deep pools in the center – before finally coming to the end of the trail, where it led straight into a long pool of water.
Santiago walked straight up to the water's edge and peered into it while Leo looked around, not content to think this was the extent of the well.
There was a second floor to this thing in the games. Leo mused, twisting his head this way and that and, to his surprise, spotting the light from the entrance off to his right. At least I'll be able to find my way out that way. He thought, fixating his gaze on three Slowpoke that lounged lazily nearby.
"Sloooow," Santiago called, sniffing and snorting as he stood by the edge of the water.
"What are you doing?" Leo asked, moving over to crouch next to him. Santiago glanced at him briefly and he sucked in a breath at the harsh blue glow that burned in Santiago's eyes – a glow that was mirrored in the water before them. A giant Slowbro emerged with nary a ripple from the placid waters, its greying, scarred hide glistening in the light of Leo's flashlight and glowing blue eyes locked onto the duo unblinkingly. Its expression was as intense as a Slowbro's expression could be – the dopey smile replaced by an intense frown, even as its jaws still hung open, its tongue lolling.
Leo immediately stood and splayed his free hand in a non-threatening manner, making sure the light from his flashlight wasn't pointed towards the Slowbro's eyes.
"Brooooo," the Slowbro called, ignoring Leo in favor of Santiago. The rest of the Slowpoke in the cavern responded with low calls of their own, and Santiago responded with a simple grunt. The two locked eyes, and did absolutely nothing else.
It wasn't very exciting at all, despite the implications of the aging Slowbro appearing. As their name implied, the Slowpoke line was almost universally uninclined to do thing with any speed – with the exception of Santiago, who was always quick to jump into battle. Which meant Leo was standing there for a solid ten minutes while the Slowbro and Santiago stared at each other before anything actually happened, the chill of the cavern seeping through his clothes, and the dripping water and slowly shuffling Slowpoke the only noise to accompany him.
He had been kneeling next to a particularly curious Slowpoke that had approached – it was exceptionally dull even for its species, having bumped into his leg and stared up at him as if wondering when he got there – when something finally did happen. There was a burst of power that washed over Leo, water droplets flying through the air and stinging his face, emanating from the Slowbro as it rumbled dangerously. Santiago growled back, squaring his feet and eyes burning with psychic power. Another massive blast from the Slowbro had Leo reeling back on his heels, the Slowpoke he had been petting merely cocking its head to the side in confusion, not even realizing the war of psychic powers going on in front of it.
Santiago launched himself forward, skull aglow with psychic energy as he bashed it into the stomach of Slowbro, doubling it over with the force of the strike. Slowbro whirled, bashing Santiago with its spikey tail, but he remained unmoved, a jet of water blasting up into Slowbro's face and temporarily blinding the beast. A short burst of psychic power blasted from Santiago in a straight line at Slowbro, only visible from the way water droplets flew off of Slowbro's body in a glimmering arc in the light of Leo's flashlight.
Slowbro reared back and roared, a massive ball of water forming in its maw that vibrated and pulsated with rhythmic power, the water pulse far bigger than anything Santiago had ever created. Leo opened his mouth to give a command – Santiago was too close to be able to take that attack head-on, so he had to counter it somehow – but his starter beat him to the punch.
Another concentrated burst of psychic energy deformed the water pulse as it formed, a concave indent forming that was swiftly pierced by a thin jet of water – the water gun bursting the bubble violently. Leo shielded his eyes from the spray, standing and taking a few steps back from the ensuing battle and nearly tripping over yet another Slowpoke that had laid down behind him. He took the risk of turning his eyes away from Santiago's battle to scan his surroundings, only to stare in surprise. When had he been surrounded by Slowpoke? A loud thud had Leo turning back to the battle, Santiago sent stumbling by Slowbro's fist.
Slowbro roared and spat a stream of bubbles at Santiago, who tanked the violently exploding bubblebeam without even flinching and responded with a water gun that pierced straight through the bubbles to splash harmlessly against Slowbro's belly. This was bound to be a war of attrition and, if Leo's guess about this Slowbro was right, one that Santiago was bound to lose if he didn't pull off some miracle. Slowbro probably knew heal pulse, after all.
Leo opened his mouth to give a command, but found the words stuck in his throat as Santiago barreled forward, smashing his thick skull into Slowbro's leg and sending the behemoth down onto one knee. The tell-tale glow of curse suffused Santiago as Slowbro once again punched him, grunting in pain this time. He wanted to intervene, but…something told him not to. There was definitely something about this place that, while it didn't hold the same awe-inspiring wonder and mysticism of Celebi's shrine, it did inspire a sense of respect.
Whatever this was, it didn't feel like a normal battle. But that could be just him projecting his desires onto the situation. Santiago could have, in all honesty, just picked a fight rather than this being some rite of passage thing. Either way Leo would stay out of it. This was Santiago's problem to solve. He wouldn't take the risk of intervening unless Santiago was going to get seriously hurt.
Santiago tanked another blow from Slowbro, still glowing with the energy of curse, then suddenly burst into action, raising his head just as Slowbro brought its fist down one more time, flesh meeting the thick bone of Santiago's skull with a resounding crack. Slowbro grunted in pain, recoiling and staring dumbly at its obviously mangled hand – and the pink glow of heal pulse began to emanate from it.
Then Santiago made his move – his eyes flashed red, just briefly, and Slowbro found itself rendered immobile by disable, albeit temporarily.
It was a chance Santiago did not capitalize on, instead backing off and calling lowly to the Slowbro who, now freed of disable, continued to heal its broken hand. Then, ever so slowly, it turned back to Santiago and opened its maw once more, a water pulse forming in its mouth. Santiago's eyes flashed red again, disabling the attack and responding with a water pulse of his own, then waited for Slowbro to respond. It tried once more, and the process repeated itself once. Then twice. Then thrice. It took seven whole tries for Slowbro to finally get the picture – that Santiago could cancel its attacks and just wail on it in the meantime.
Though he was obviously wearing thin on his uses of disable. He'd gotten pretty good at it recently but it was still taxing on him, and would be hard to consistently use until he evolved.
Slowbro blinked slowly at Santiago, water dripping from its open mouth and cocked its head to the side. "Sloooow?" it asked.
"Sloooooooow," Santiago responded.
"Pooooooooke," the legions of Slowpoke gathered around Leo responded, almost rattling the cavern with the sound of their voices. Leo blinked and swung his flashlight around again, eyebrows raising high into the air upon noticing the number of Slowpoke around him had at least tripled. Since when were these little pink buttheads so stealthy?
Slowbro rose up to its full height and bobbed its head up and down, clearly unharmed despite the many attacks Santiago had pushed upon it – or perhaps that was the work of the heal pulse it had used. Either way, in a war of attrition it was clear to Leo that Slowbro would have won the battle. The gap evolution made between the two was too big, and neither had a reliable way to damage the other (which made Leo really want to give Santiago the shadow ball TM he had received from Morty, for added versatility). So Slowbro would have won by sheer tankiness alone.
What Santiago did was outsmart the Slowbro.
It was clever, the trick he pulled with disable, fooling Slowbro into thinking it was helpless against Santiago, and the thought made Leo's heart swell with pride. His starter was finally starting to grow up. Queen would be so proud.
Another bellow from Slowbro had the entire cavern echoing his call, Leo wincing at the noise as he slowly and carefully approached Santiago, his starter never having looked away from Slowbro, the latter of whom fixated its gaze on Leo blankly. He knelt next to his starter and laid a hand on his head, scratching his head fondly and eyeing the massive Slowbro. It was truly an impressive specimen, bigger than any other Slowbro he'd seen. It was too bad he wouldn't be able to see the beast in full sunlight – he was sure it was a sight to behold.
Slowbro's eyes suddenly began to glow with a furious blue light, eyes narrowing dangerously and a low growl rumbling in the back of its throat as it stared at Leo, who blinked at it in surprise. Psychic power pressed at his mind angrily and, after a moment's consideration, Leo refused the Slowbro entry. It didn't feel very friendly.
It blinked, then growled again, water bubbling in the back of its throat, and Leo's eyes narrowed as his heartrate skyrocketed.
"Hey," he protested, splaying his hands, but his intervention was unnecessary. With a furious wail Spiritomb made its presence known, the pitch black of the cave roiling in the light of Leo's flashlight, the ghost in its home turf now. Slowbro recoiled reflexively as a strand of black shadow wrapped around its torso and legs, glowing green eyes appearing in the dark and glaring furiously at Leo's would-be attacker.
Slowbro stumbled backwards as Spiritomb screeched again, wisps of ghostly purple energy, only visible due to the pitch-black surroundings of the cave, filling the air.
Santiago chuffed in irritation and spat a jet of water into Spiritomb's face, halting any further retaliation as the ghost blinked at him in surprise, even as Leo patted his pocket and whispered soothingly to the keystone therein. He appreciated the ghost's intervention, he did, but he also didn't want to pick a fight with the entirety of the Slowpoke well, despite Slowbro apparently taking issue with his presence. Had it just not seen Leo earlier, or had it forgotten he was here altogether?
"Calm, I'm not here to interrupt or harm you," Leo whispered in his best soothing voice, keeping his voice down. "But Santiago is my pokémon, and I am allowed to support him,"
Slowbro stared at him for a moment longer before snorting and turning on its metaphorical heels, grunting repeatedly as it slid into the water. In an eerily synchronized movement all the Slowpoke stood and ambled forward into the water Slowbro had disappeared into, each slipping into the inky black pool and swimming off into the darkness. Leo watched silently until the last one entered the water, and he was gently pushed forward by Santiago butting his head against his back.
"What? You want to follow?" Leo asked. Santiago grunted and shoved once more, sending Leo onto his hands and knees from the force. He glared at his starter, then looked back at the water. But….but…this was going to suck, wasn't it? The water would be so cold. "I hope you know what you're doing," Leo grumbled, slipping off his backpack and setting it next to the cavern wall, along with his jacket. He wanted something warm and dry for when he got out of the water.
Santiago grunted again and ambled into the water, turning around to wait patiently for Leo, only his eyes visible above the waterline like some absurd pink crocodile. Leo shivered, suppressed his paranoid imagination, and stepped into the frigid waters with a shiver and his flashlight clenched tightly in one hand. With a firm grasp he gripped onto Santiago's tail, his starter presenting the appendage for him, and allowed himself to be drug along the water's surface deeper into the cave, through a water channel where paths did not lead. As the cold firmly settled in he shuddered, thanking the legendaries above that he had a fire-type to warm him up later, and praying to those same legendaries that whatever was down in these caverns was worth it.
It was worth it. Five minutes of swimming, another disagreement with the Slowbro that was swiftly resolved by Santiago alone this time, and a gently sloping path leading further underground later and Leo could safely say that despite his constant shivering and incessant cold, it was absolutely worth it to be down here.
This was no mere well. This was a mausoleum.
Graves built exactly like the one Longinus, Archibald Oak's champion Slowking, had been buried in minus the ice, lined the small inner cavern. There were at least twenty in total, built with methodically stacked, flat stones. The battle-scarred Slowbro and multitude of Slowpoke accompanying them dared not enter the room further, standing at the entrance to the small room as Leo and Santiago entered, the former of whom gawked at the graves.
It took him a moment, but eventually he spotted the carvings on the walls, naming the graves of Kings long past. King Meiji. King Akihito. King Shinichi. More names, placed above carvings of various Slowking of different builds dotted the walls, each perfectly legible even in the dim light of Leo's flashlight. Metal torch holders, devoid of torches, were nailed into the ground at the base of each grave, marking the presence of humans once upon a time. At the far end of the small cave lay an off-white Slowbro, its hide faded with age.
Leo wondered if this place was even remembered anymore, beyond being called the "Slowpoke Well." It didn't seem like any humans had been down here in a long while.
Santiago inspected each grave individually, sniffing the stones for a minute before ambling to the next, and the next, and the next. It was a slow process but Leo tamped down his impatience, which was mostly rearing its head due to the cold. He could wait while Santiago did his thing.
Eventually Santiago reached the white Slowbro, the beast far smaller in stature than the other if its relative size to Santiago was anything to go by. It opened on eye to stare at the Slowpoke before it, regarding Santiago coolly as he continued his slow walk up to the Slowbro. For a brief moment nothing happened, then Santiago froze mid-step and the Slowbro turned its head to Leo. A gentle pressure tickled Leo's mind, asking for access, and this time Leo relented.
The psychic presence did not seem malicious this time, and he was rewarded with a simple message formed not with words, but with feelings and impressions. The Slowbro nodded once after its message was relayed, and with an astounding display of psychic finesse for creatures usually locked into brute forcing their psychic abilities, the Slowbro gently lifted a spiked rock into the air from where a pile of them lay in the corner of the room and floated the stone onto Santiago's head. When nothing happened it proceeded to float the crown-shaped rock over to Leo, who gently grabbed the small, round crown-shaped rock and stared at it with a frown.
The Slowbro closed its eyes once more and turned away from Santiago, who blinked a few times and waddled back over to Leo, gaze locked onto the King's Rock in his hands.
Leo sighed and shook his head. The impression he got from the Slowbro had the same meaning as the display it had just put on. A simple crown did not a King make – it was a symbol of leadership and power, not proof. There was another key they were missing. Still, at least he had a King's Rock now, and Santiago had finally made a decision about what he wanted to evolve into. Leo smiled down at his starter and started to walk back up the slope, shivering in the cold and intent on returning to his pack and the surface.
Still, Leo thought to himself, passing by the slowbro Santiago had battled and carefully stepping over the horde of slowpoke that now lined the passage, even as Santiago barreled through them without a care. We've got our first step forward now.