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Chris was ready to let Onix evolve into Steelix. At level 40, it was the perfect time for the evolution to take place.
The key item for this evolution was the "Metal Coat," a booster for steel-type moves. Chris had decided to give Onix a treasure-grade Metal Coat as its evolution item.
However, before leaving, there was one more task to complete. Chris used Gardevoir's Teleport to return the protagonist in his handheld game to the Pokémon Center, healing the big-rock snake.
After the treatment, Chris released his Shiny Onix in the real world. Onix's Shiny form gleamed like crystallized diamond, making Chris wonder if the Pokémon had once lived in an area rich with diamonds.
Could it be Stoneclaw Mountains? Or maybe there were diamond veins in the Rocky Mountains?
Chris speculated, thinking about how diamonds start as rough stones before being polished into gems. If he could find a diamond mine, he could find plenty of rough stones.
So, Chris decided to let Onix guide him back to its former home. He brought an oxygen tank along, storing it in his secret base in case of any emergency.
With Onix and Gabite—both at level 40—on either side of him, Chris didn't worry about getting trapped underground. Still, to be cautious, he sent out Gardevoir. At level 38, Gardevoir could Teleport up to 100 meters, and its Confusion would be powerful enough to hold off a rockslide if necessary.
Indeed, Chris knew that his Pokémon's strength was his greatest asset in this adventure.
Onix burrowed into the cave it had emerged from earlier, leading the way downward at an angle. Chris followed, sitting on Gabite's back, while Gardevoir floated alongside, using Confusion to carry a ball of light from Flash to illuminate the path.
They were headed underground to search for diamonds!
What kind of adventure was this? Chris marveled. If not for living in a world where Pokémon existed, he would never have believed his life could unfold in this way.
Who knows? Maybe one day he'd even explore space!
Excitement bubbled up in him as Onix moved swiftly. Chris noticed that many sections of the tunnel they traveled already existed and were much larger than Onix itself.
It wasn't a path Onix had carved out.
But then, which Pokémon had created it?
After all, the Onix he'd just caught was 30 meters long, with a head 3 meters wide. And yet, the tunnel was wide enough to accommodate three Onix at the same time!
Chris thought about it for a while. No known Pokémon seemed to match the size of the tunnels.
"Could it be Steelix?" he wondered.
But he quickly dismissed the thought. Steelix was naturally larger than Onix, but being several times larger? That seemed unlikely.
"Totem Steelix?" he pondered, but even that didn't feel right. Could there be an Onix's mother deeper underground? The idea made Chris uneasy, but he reminded himself that Onix typically live alone. After breeding, young Onix venture out on their own. Their large size and formidable defense give them a high chance of survival—unless they encounter predators like Aggron or Metagross.
With an uneasy feeling, Chris pressed on. After descending 500 meters, he entered a massive, open area.
The ball of light from Gardevoir's Flash barely pierced the darkness, its glow spreading out in all directions but failing to reach the walls.
"Gardevoir, lift the ball of light higher and increase its brightness," Chris instructed.
Gardevoir raised its hand, and the ball of light floated higher, growing brighter as it ascended. In the vast darkness, it shone like a star, casting a faint light across the expanse.
As the light revealed more of the area, Chris's eyes widened in shock.
Before him lay a massive, open expanse—so large that the light only illuminated a fraction of it. What the light revealed, however, was thousands of Onix.
No, not just Onix—**dead** Onix.
Huge, stone-serpent bodies were lined up in neat rows, their giant heads resembling train cars arranged in a station. It was unmistakable—these were deceased Onix.
"How did so many Onix die here?" Chris murmured. He didn't believe they had been killed by the Shiny Onix he had recently captured. After all, the Onix he had battled earlier was merely defeated, not killed. Onix were generally good-natured creatures. They rarely fought to the death, even in the wild. Most of their conflicts were territorial, with battles ending in the expulsion of intruders, not death.
Moreover, many of the Onix in this cavern were larger, rounder, and darker than Shiny Onix. It was said that as Onix aged, their bodies became more rounded, their stone-like skin harder, and their color darker.
"Roar..." Shiny Onix let out a low, soft cry, urging Chris onward. It continued moving, though much more slowly now.
Chris jumped off Gabite's back and followed Onix on foot, studying the scene. Many of the Onix showed no signs of injury, and their arrangement was orderly, like trains lined up on tracks. It didn't seem like they had been killed in battle.
"These Onix weren't killed. It's almost like they were placed here after they died, or they came here to die," Chris speculated. The second possibility seemed more likely.
As Chris continued forward, the light from Gardevoir's Flash advanced with him, gradually revealing more of the cavern.
And then, something else appeared.
Scattered among the Onix were Steelix—dead as well. Not a single one had survived.