Drake, the current head of the Hoenn Elite Four and a true Dragon-type master.
As Johan walked toward the Lavaridge Gym from the Pokémon Center, he reviewed in his mind what he knew about Drake.
Most of this information was from his previous life. After coming to the Pokémon world, he learned more through the internet. Not only was Drake the head of Hoenn's Elite Four, but he also oversaw the region's officer corps, granting him significant authority.
An Officer!
Johan knew that people like Lance were also officers of the Kanto League, and in time, Lance would become the Dragon-type Elite Four of Johto (well, "Dragon"-type, at least).
The fact that the incident with Camerupt had caught Drake's attention indicated that this situation might be more serious than Johan had initially thought.
"Ka-kah?"
Gastly, hiding in Johan's coat, sensed his concern and asked softly.
"Nothing to worry about," Johan replied.
But Johan wouldn't share these burdens with Gastly. Even if he talked about it, nothing would change—it was all just speculation anyway. Besides, there was no point in adding extra stress to Gastly, who already had plenty on its plate with training and battles.
In fact, Johan wouldn't force Gastly to train or battle if it didn't want to. Taking care of a Gastly without having it train wasn't much of a financial burden for him.
"Oh, by the way," Johan added, "we're about to meet another very powerful Elite Four member. Try to behave yourself."
"Ka-kah?"
Another Elite Four?
Gastly's mind flashed back to the image of Flannery and her grandfather arguing.
Are Elite Four really that amazing?
Meanwhile, Johan decided that if things got too complicated, he'd assist as much as he could, but otherwise, he would steer clear. He had no desire to get swept up in events that could crush a small-time trainer like him.
Before long, Johan arrived at the Lavaridge Gym once again.
In front of the grand red-tiled, white-bricked gym with wine-colored pillars, several police cars were parked.
"Officer Jenny." Johan greeted Jenny politely as he entered the gym.
She looked up from the report she was studying, her faithful Growlithe sitting obediently beside her. At the sound of Johan's voice, her expression softened slightly, and she nodded.
"You're here, Johan."
She gestured toward a corner of the gym's courtyard.
There, he could see the large figure of Camerupt, along with two older men.
One was, of course, Flannery's grandfather, the gym leader of Lavaridge, Mura.
The other was a man wearing a white captain's hat, a long black captain's coat with a high collar, and a floor-length hem.
This man was none other than Drake, the Elite Four's Dragon-type master!
Led by Officer Jenny, Johan walked toward the two men.
Their approach was soon noticed.
Mura introduced them with a smile, "Drake, this is Johan. Johan, this is Drake of the Elite Four."
Buzz—
Immediately, Johan felt a sharp gaze shoot out from under Drake's hat brim.
It was a look that spoke of someone who had weathered many storms, mixed with a hint of appraisal.
However, the intense scrutiny quickly faded, and the atmosphere returned to normal.
Johan maintained his composure and nodded politely. "Mura, Drake."
But inside Johan's coat, Gastly was a bit tense.
"Ka-kah..."
Whoa, this old guy means business.
"Haha!"
Drake laughed heartily, his voice rough but full of energy. "I heard you and the son of Mr. Stone handled the situation together? Not bad, not bad."
"And don't forget Flannery and Roxanne," Mura added from the side.
Drake shot Mura a sidelong glance. "You, be quiet. You're still the Elite Four."
"I'm retired!" Mura snapped back.
"You're still an Elite Four! And as the Lavaridge Gym leader, you didn't even notice the trouble at Mt. Chimney. You left it to a bunch of young folks to clean up after you! I'll be telling Phoebe about this—she'll deduct points from your gym's performance rating this year!"
Mura glared back. "Deduct points? Let her come here and say it to my face!"
"She will, and you'll lose points for sure!"
"You—"
Watching the two elderly men bicker, Johan felt a headache coming on and glanced at Officer Jenny.
She gave him a helpless look.
This is why I was standing so far away.
"Roooaaar!"
The bickering grew so loud that Camerupt, already unsettled, became agitated, stomping its feet and causing small flames to sputter from the volcanic hump on its back.
At the same time, Johan's Pokédex displayed Camerupt's details once again:
[Camerupt]
[Type: Fire/Ground]
[Ability: Magma Armor]
[Moves: Rock Slide, Fissure, Flamethrower, Roar, Tackle, Ember, Focus Energy, Stomp, Lava Plume, Amnesia, Smokescreen, Earth Power, Take Down]
[Mood: Uneasy, in pain (It misses its home and family)]
[Condition: Weak (Its body has some anomalies and may never fully recover)]
[Friendship: -20 (Even though it doesn't remember you, it clearly doesn't like you)]
"Rooooaaar!"
Camerupt's body started to heat up, but neither Drake nor Mura seemed to notice or care about its distress. They continued arguing as if completely oblivious to the Pokémon's growing agitation.
Seeing that Camerupt was on the verge of attacking, Johan sighed softly.
"Gastly."
"Ka-kah!"
Black mist swirled out from Johan's coat as Gastly floated into view, laughing mischievously as it faced Camerupt.
The two Pokémon locked eyes, and Gastly cast Hypnosis.
Camerupt's movements began to slow, and Johan approached, placing his hands gently on Camerupt's neck and head, speaking to it in soft whispers.
It was like painting a picture.
Dusk settled on a golden meadow, bathed in the soft light of the setting sun. A warm breeze carried the gentle hum of Camerupt and Numel as they grazed lazily under the sky, surrounded by peaceful evening hues.
Camerupt slowly calmed down.
It closed its eyes.
A soft smile of contentment appeared on its face.
The sounds of the bickering behind them faded into silence as Drake, Mura, and Jenny watched Johan release his hold on Camerupt, each with different expressions on their faces.
Gastly, satisfied with the results, turned around to see—
Salamence, wings blood-red and exuding a murderous aura, standing to the left. And Typhlosion, arms crossed, flames licking its body, standing to the right.
Both stared at Gastly and Johan with scrutinizing gazes.
"Ka-kah?! Σ(ﾟДﾟlll)"
Gastly was utterly shocked.
These two... no, these two mighty ones...
Could they be... Elite Four?!
Johan, however, remained calm, grabbing the stunned Gastly and walking right past the two towering presences.
"Ka...ka-kah?"
Gastly whispered nervously, its voice barely audible.
How are you so calm, Johan?
Johan gave it a sidelong glance and slightly raised his hand.
His hand was trembling.
"Not bad. I heard you're a Pokémon psychologist? You've got some skill," Drake praised, admiring the now-calm Camerupt. Then he added, "But... is that Hypnosis legit?"
It was the first time Drake had seen a Pokémon affected by Hypnosis look so... happy. That contented smile—it was unsettlingly soothing.
"Ka-kah!"
Before Johan could respond, Gastly jumped in indignantly.
What do you mean, 'legit'?
What kind of question is that?
Is there even a 'legit' way to use Hypnosis?
Johan felt that this was going in a strange direction and gently pushed Gastly behind him.
"Ahem, sorry, Drake. We've already told Mura everything that happened. Is there anything else you need to know?" Johan asked, steering the conversation back on track.
"Well, as you might have guessed, Camerupt isn't the only Pokémon affected like this. But we haven't found a good way to deal with the others. I was hoping you and your Gastly could..."
"I refuse."
Johan cut him off without hesitation.
"Drake, you know this is no simple matter. Calming one enraged Pokémon is not as easy as it looks. Gastly and I are just ordinary trainers—we want to help, but we don't have the energy for something this big."
"Ka-kah!"
Gastly nodded vigorously, as if its life depended on it.
It's exhausting, okay? And those Pokémon are really scary!
"I'll pay you 10,000 Pokédollars per Pokémon."
"Deal."
"Ka-kah?! Σ(ﾟДﾟlll)"
Wait... what?!