Rustboro City, Eastern Outskirts.
"Come out, Aerodactyl," Lance called as he tossed a Poké Ball. In a flash of red light, a powerful and majestic Aerodactyl appeared.
"Rooaaar—"
Its roar echoed through the woods, a true sight of a Flying-type Pokémon!
"Ka-kah!"
It can fly!
Gastly's eyes twinkled with excitement. Say what you want about anything else, but Lance's Pokémon sure were cool.
"Johan…" Lance glanced over at Johan.
From what Johan could observe so far, Aerodactyl didn't seem to have any obvious problems. However, it was evident that since Lance had only recently captured it, there wasn't much trust or connection between them yet.
Of course, with only a brief look, Johan couldn't possibly diagnose the problem. Otherwise, he wouldn't be a Pokémon psychologist—he'd be a miracle worker.
"Can you have it use a move? Anything will do," Johan requested.
Lance nodded.
"Alright, Aerodactyl, Dragon Dance!" Lance commanded firmly.
"Rooaaar!!"
Aerodactyl let out a piercing roar, flaring up its imposing presence. Its massive wings beat the air, propelling it skyward as a powerful gust shook the surrounding trees and bushes.
Johan couldn't help but twitch his mouth slightly.
Was the "Dragon Dance" necessary just to show off?
Nevertheless, while Aerodactyl executed its move, Johan's vision shifted, and he observed a Pokédex-like display appear in front of him:
[Aerodactyl]
Type: Rock/Flying
Ability: Pressure
Known Moves: Bite, Ancient Power, Supersonic, Wing Attack, Scary Face, Rock Slide, Roar, Crunch, Iron Head, Take Down, Stone Edge, Dragon Dance, Thunder Fang, Ice Fang, Fire Fang, Dragon Breath
Emotion: Neutral/Disheartened (This isn't its era.)
Condition: Excellent (It's recovering well.)
Friendliness Level: 0 (Look at me, you ground-crawling insect!)
The fierce survivor of a bygone age. Johan noted.
His gaze shifted to Gastly hovering beside him. This little guy is over a thousand years old too, isn't it?
"Ka-kah?" Gastly cocked its head, noticing Johan's stare.
Licking its tongue with its usual eerie grin, Gastly looked positively adorable.
Returning his focus, Johan gently rubbed his chin. "It's not a severe issue. It's likely that the changes in the era and environment are overwhelming it. Its primal nature and long slumber have caused it to experience bouts of heightened emotional instability."
"Can it be cured?" Lance asked, concern evident in his voice.
"Given enough time, it would likely recover on its own, though this might take three to five years."
"Three to five years?"
Before Lance could react, Johan continued, "However, if combined with psychological treatment and physical interventions, it could be much quicker."
Lance exhaled in relief.
While restoring Aerodactyl's combat effectiveness was a secondary concern, what mattered most to him was alleviating its pain.
"What should we do?"
"If I were you…"
"Ka-kaah!!" Gastly suddenly cried out.
It's flying away!
"Huh?"
Both Lance and Johan turned to look at Aerodactyl.
The mighty Pokémon, still empowered by its "Dragon Dance," was now rapidly flapping its wings, heading towards the distant mountains with increasing speed and urgency.
The sudden development made both men's expressions darken.
"What's happening?"
They were already well beyond the capture range of the Poké Ball.
"That's the Green Hills range up ahead."
According to the map of the Hoenn region, Rustboro City was located in the far west, with the Green Hills to the east, followed by Verdanturf Town. If Aerodactyl flew into those dense mountains, it would be nearly impossible to track it down.
"I'll chase it!" Lance immediately jumped onto Charizard's back and turned to Johan, who advised, "Don't try to stop it; let's see what it's after."
Lance hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"Alright!"
With a powerful beat of its wings, Charizard also executed a "Dragon Dance" and took off, gradually catching up to Aerodactyl.
"Ka-kah," Gastly swallowed nervously.
Do they not get dizzy?
Each Pokémon had its own style for performing "Dragon Dance," but all involved some degree of movement, like spiraling upwards. Charizard had spun around so many times while accelerating earlier—how could it not be dizzy?
Johan's face darkened slightly.
Is dizziness really the problem here?
After a brief pause, Johan said, "Let's follow them."
The wild areas in the Pokémon world are not safe—far from it. As a Pokémon Academy instructor, Johan was fully aware of this. However, they were still near Rustboro City, and given that Devon Corporation had been driving wild Pokémon away while working on the Rusturf Tunnel project, as long as they didn't wander too deep, the danger shouldn't be too high.
Still, there were bound to be some lower-level, more docile Pokémon around.
In the thick grass, Johan could see numerous wild Pokémon moving about.
He even noticed several Bug Catchers squatting near the tall grass. They seemed eager to "battle" him, but Johan wisely decided to pretend not to see them.
We're all struggling here—no point taking their allowance money.
And they don't have much anyway.
Fortunately, Aerodactyl didn't fly too far. It landed in front of a recently excavated tunnel entrance before reaching the deeper parts of Green Hills.
There were quite a few large machines around, and the forested area and nearby hillsides had been significantly disrupted.
There were hardly any signs of wild Pokémon in the vicinity anymore.
Johan frowned slightly.
This is the damage humans and their activities cause to nature and the wild Pokémon.
Aerodactyl's sudden arrival seemed to have startled many Devon Corporation workers, as several Machokes and Golems stood on alert around the perimeter. The construction crew leader was busy on a phone call.
Johan quickly approached and pulled out the "Devon Corporation Consultant" ID that Joseph had given him the previous day.
"Sorry, we won't be here long," Johan reassured.
Seeing the badge, the crew leader hesitated briefly, then nodded and spoke a few more words into the phone before hanging up.
"Consultant… sir, this—"
Johan shook his head, opting not to go into details.
He continued forward, where he saw Lance and Charizard standing nearby, both with complicated expressions.
Aerodactyl had already landed.
It was clutching a piece of dirt-covered amber in its claws, letting out low, sorrowful cries that carried a sense of melancholy and helplessness.
Aerodactyl had a known fondness for amber, perhaps because it reminded them of their ancient comrades.
After all, unlike Lance's naturally awakened Aerodactyl, most of the others nowadays had been revived from amber extracted for their DNA.
Perhaps this amber contained traces of one of its kin.
"Ka-kah," Gastly murmured softly, feeling a slight resonance with Aerodactyl's situation.
Johan patted Gastly's misty form, feeling the tingling in his fingers as he offered a reassuring look.
"Ka-kah~~" Gastly's eyes became wavy.
I have Johan—I'm not alone!
"Johan, Aerodactyl…"
Lance opened his mouth, struggling to find the right words.
"I know someone who might be able to help it," Johan sighed as he pulled out a Cheri Berry.
Lance's eyes lit up with hope.
"However, that's only a temporary fix. Aerodactyl still needs to regain its confidence—or rather, establish a new goal."
"A new goal?"
Crunch. As Johan bit into the berry, he continued speaking clearly, "For a former ruler of the skies like Aerodactyl, the best method is to find it a strong opponent!"
"Should I use Charizard, or perhaps Gyarados?"
"Your Pokémon won't work. They're too familiar, and that won't help. And if the opponent's too distant in strength, it could create internal conflicts. You need someone else."
Hearing this, Lance subconsciously glanced at Gastly.
Gastly shivered nervously.
"Ka-kaah?!"
What are you planning? Why are you looking at me with those scheming eyes?
Sending it against Aerodactyl would be overkill!
"Gastly isn't strong enough," Johan noted. "Besides, if Aerodactyl is a sky ruler, its ideal opponent should also be a Flying-type."
Gastly exhaled a sigh of relief.
That almost scared the life out of me.
Lance scratched his head, deep in thought.
Maybe Winona? But she's still not quite strong enough…
"Don't worry, I've already got someone in mind," Johan assured as he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
"Johan?" came the voice from the other end.
"Hey, Steven, do you want an opponent? I'll bring one over in a bit."
"Huh?!"
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