The Palto Adventures

Part 7: A Heated Battle at Mag Mountain
( Guest starring FallingHawk as Hawk )

Kazuki and Hawk had circled the Remoraid Lake for an hour, and they saw no passing ships. They could use Kazuki’s Golduck, but there wasn’t even an island in sight, and they wanted to get to Bacillus Town as soon as possible.

“ Hey, I see one! “ Hawk yelled.

“ Where? “ Kazuki asked.

In the distance a big, flat riverboat was puffing along. It had men in lab coats running around on board. Hawk took out his Cyndaquil’s pokeball. Kazuki realized what he planned on doing and took out his Pichu.

“ You want to do a combo attack? “ Kazuki asked excitedly.

“ Sure, it should get that ship over here if we do it right. “

“ Cyndaquil…” Hawk yelled.

“ Pichu…” Kazuki yelled.

“ Bright Flare! “ They said in unison.

The two pokemon leapt out of their balls and Cyndaquil got up on Pichu’s back. While Pichu used its Flash attack, Cyndaquil’s back exploded with flames, creating a huge blast of light in the sky.

“ I think that did it. “ Hawk said, shielding his eyes.

Sure enough, the boat had begun to turn towards them. Kazuki and Hawk congratulated each other on their successful collaboration. When the boat got there, scientists swarmed off to great the two boys.

“ Hi, I’m… “ Kazuki started.

“ Oh, a Cyndaquil! How interesting! “ A scientist remarked.

“ Uh, nice to meet you, I’m the owner. “

“ You own this incredible fire pokemon? “
“ Might I run some tests on it? “

“ Tests? “ Hawk asked.

“ HOLD ON! “ Kazuki yelled.
“ We tried to signal you guys because we needed a ride to Bacillus Town. Can you take us there, or are you going swoon over Cyndaquil all day? “

Everyone stopped talking.

“ Uh, we’d love to give you a ride, but we aren’t going to Bacillus Town. “
“ Our team of scientists are headed to Mag Mountain, just north-west of here. The reason we were so excited to see Cyndaquil was because Mag Mountain is home to some volcano dwelling fire types, and we wanted any opportunity to we could get to bone up on some research. “

“ Can we come with you? “ Hawk asked.
“ We could try to hitch another ride after you did your research. “

“ Oh, alright. I think that a public ferry goes by every so often, so you should be fine. “

So Hawk, Kazuki, and the Research Team all took of towards the mysterious Mag Mountain. Kazuki and the scientists talked along the way about their research and what they’d be doing there.

“ We’re not so curious about the pokemon themselves, but rather why they act so aggressively. The have been acting very strange for some time now. “

“ What do you mean? “

“ Well, Maybe I should start from the beginning. “ The man said.
“ About eight months ago, a brilliant, young scientist and his small research team went to Mag Mountain to study the pokemon that lived there. He was only there for a short while, but his studies helped revolutionize the way we look at pokemon. He found everything on that island, from new pokemon fossils, to facts that no one knew about volcano-dwelling pokemon. He was quiet a man.

“ Well what happened to him? Are we going there to meet him? “ Kazuki asked inquisitively.

“ No, unfortunately. You see, he was very interested in the Magmar and Magby, and their natural rivals, Slugma and Magcargo. The pokemon lived on opposite sides of the volcano, and fought fiercely with each other all day long. He decided to intervene in order to stop their fighting, and sent in his Cyndaquil to play peacekeeper. They grew very fond of Cyndaquil, and they were so happy to have him around, that they stopped fighting, and enjoyed life. Then, one day, it happened.

“ What? “ Hawk asked, hanging on the words.

The scientist sighed. He cleaned his glasses off on his shirt and put them back on his face.

“ The funds for his research quickly dried up, and the scientist, although he didn’t want to, had to pack up and leave. He tried to have Cyndaquil break it to the volcano pokemon, but they grew so angry that they… “

Kazuki and Hawk were silent.

“ They, killed the professor, his aides, and his pokemon… “

“ What! “
“ Oh my god, are you serious! “ The boys asked.

“ Yes, its true. “ He muttered.

Everyone was silent. A man in the front of the barge yelled back to the crew that the island was in sight, and Kazuki and Hawk took the opportunity to break the silence by commenting on it.

“ Wow, that’s a huge volcano! “ Kazuki said.

“ Uh, yes. “ The scientist said.
“ It is one of the largest in these islands. “

As the ship drifted steadily towards the Mag Mountain, Kazuki and Hawk started to talk.

“ Hey Kazuki, what is your battle strategy going to be when you battle Sonny? “

Kazuki looked at him confused.

“ Sonny, the Insect Island gymleader. “
“ The guy who owns the gym your trying to get to! “

“ Oh, yeah. Well, I’m gonna go in, beat his pokemon, and leave with the badge… “

“ WHAT! YOU IDIOT! “ Hawk screamed.
“ If you don’t have a battle strategy, then you’ll lose. It’s as simple as that. “

“ Sorry, I don’t really know anything about him, so I couldn’t come up with anything. “

Hawk fished a Palto Handbook out of his backpack. He thumbed through the pages and came to a map of the Forgotten Archipelago.

“ It says here that Sonny uses mostly bug types, but also throws in pokemon like Aipom and Krabby, the kind that live on Insect Island. If you find out more about the pokemon on the island, you will have an idea about how to counter his pokemon. “

“ Good idea. I guess he uses local pokemon.“ Kazuki laughed.

“ This is interesting. It says here that the Palto Pokemon League had an official gym on Mag Mountain Island, but the threat of eruption closed it down. “
“ It also says that each region has more then one gym, and you can only count one gym badge per region towards the sixteen required to compete in the Palto League. “

“ So if I got two badges from the Forgotten Archipelago, only one would count towards competing? “ Kazuki asked.

“ Yeah, that’s right. “ Hawk answered.

“ There are two or three gyms here in the archipelago, and they are scattered all around the region. Uh, look. Here’s one here. “ Hawk pointed.

Kazuki looked at Hawk’s finger, pointing to the upper tip of Insect Island, where a small Island branched off. It was labeled in bold text as “ The Ruins of Zett “.

“ Hmm, the Ruins of Zett? What kind of pokemon does the gymleader train? “

“ Well, it doesn’t say. The Pokemon League says it’s an official gym, but the gymleader wouldn’t disclose what pokemon she trained, or what her name was. That’s weird that they let someone who wouldn’t give out her name and pokemon have a gym. “

“ We’re almost here! “ The scientist yelled from the front.

“ Oh, I guess we can talk more about it later. “ Kazuki said.

Hawk and Kazuki both thought it was strange that the boat landed on the beach instead of a dock, but because of the unpredictable eruptions, the ferry services decided it wasn’t worth it to build a dock that could be destroyed so easily. The team gathered their equipment, and started off in to the jungle, and the heat was almost unbearable. The combination of sulfur-filled air, and the humidity made the walk very tiring, but they finally reached a clearing. The ground was hard and flat, from exposure to lava, and small clumps of withering grass jotted out of the cracks in the ground. In the middle of it all, the remnants of a charred building stood like black bones.

“ That was the lab. “ A scientist said glumly.
“ They lava pokemon burnt it to the ground. “

“ Well, time to set up camp. “ Another man said.

Kazuki and Hawk helped put the desks and computers up, and raised the tent that covered the “ HQ “. Afterwards, the scientists told them that they could look for pokemon on the island, but they had to carry walkie-talkies so they could always contact the team. Kazuki and Hawk agreed, and went off. An hour or two later, they had found no pokemon.

“ Uh, I’m so tired. “ Kazuki moaned.

“ I know, but we can’t lave the island until the research is done, so lets just try to find some pokemon.

“ But we’ve looked for hours. Maybe the heat is too much for regular pokemon to live here.

“ That’s an interesting theory. “ Hawk remarked.
“ If your right, then only powerful pokemon live here. “

“ Yeah, but I must be wrong. We haven’t seen any pokemon. “

“ No so fast…”

Hawk and Kazuki watched as a Weedle and Caterpie wormed out of the bushes and stared up at them, wide-eyed.

“ Whoa, I can’t believe pokemon this small can take the heat. They must be exceptionally strong to live here. “ Hawk said.

“ I call the Weedle! “ Kazuki announced.

“ Alright, the Caterpie is mine. “ Hawk announced.
“ Go, Cyndaquil! “

Hawk let the ball fly, but Ivysaur came out instead. He was caught off guard by his mistake and returned the pokemon.

“ Oh, I forgot that the scientists kept Cyndaquil for some research. “ He laughed.
“ Go, Charmander! “

Charmander appeared on the battlefield. Her flame was a beautiful blue color.

“ Go easy with a scratch. “ Hawk ordered.

The fire pokemon leapt at Caterpie, who spun Charmander’s claws in a String Shot. The pokemon could only rub the bug type with its tangled up nails. Hawk had Charmander burn the material away with an Ember.

“ That pokemon’s crafty, but it cant use String Shot against a Flamethrower! “

Charmander’s Flamethrower was almost half way to the tiny Caterpie, when it summoned up an equally large Flamethrower from its circular mouth! The attacks clashed in the small clearing, and Kazuki dodged out of the way as the attacks began to grow.

“ This is impossible! “ Kazuki yelled.
“ A pokemon lime that isn’t capable of using Flamethrower. “

Hawk was stunned as well. Maybe being in an environment with constant heat would allow a Caterpie to possibly use an Ember, at most, but Flamethrower! It didn’t seem real at all.

“ Dragon Rage! “ Hawk ordered.

The Caterpie’s Flamethrower was pushed back by a small, blue tornado. The pokemon was swept up and tossed around, until falling back to earth, unconscious.

“ Pokeball, go! “

The Caterpie was absorbed in to the pokeball, and it wiggled only once before the button turned green. Hawk picked it up, and placed it in to his backpack. It was still hot.

“ I’d better help you with that Weedle, Kaz. “

“ Fine by me. “

The Weedle sneered (as best as a Weedle can) and the battle began. Hawk and Kazuki released both of their pokemon at the same time.

“ Go, Chikorita! “ They said in unison.

Kazuki admired Hawk’s Chikorita. The seeds on its thick neck were beginning to open in to small leaves, and its body had a gold tint to it. It would evolve pretty soon.

“ Okay, we’ll use combo attacks until we’re sure how powerful it is, the you can go it alone. “ Hawk said.

“ Sounds like a good battle plan. “
“ Seed Barrage! “ Kazuki ordered.

The two Chikoritas fired seeds like bullets from their mouths. The Weedle jabbed its horn in to the soft earth and dug in to the ground. Kazuki and Hawk grimaced.

“ It knows dig. That’s strange, isn’t it? “ Kazuki asked.

“ Yeah, it is. “

The Weedle came up under Hawk’s Chikorita, and stabbed its horn deep in to its stomach. The Chikorita cried out as the poison sank in to its veins.

“ No! Kazuki, you have to take over. “

“ Chikorita, Tackle! “

The Weedle bounced back as the Chikorita leapt forward.

“ Use another, with Reflect! “ Kazuki ordered.

This time, the Weedle was a little too slow. The reflective barrier in front of her hit just as Weedle had began to dodge. It crashed in to the dirt.

“ Pokeball, go! “ Kazuki yelled.

The ball sucked up Weedle, and the light turned immediately green. Kazuki picked it up, and walked to Hawk.

“ We’d better get your Chikorita to the scientist’s temporary lab. They’ll have some antidotes. “

“ Yeah, let’s go. “

The walk was faster, since they were running, despite the heat. As they got back to the lab, the sun had started to set.

“ Where is everyone? “ Hawk asked himself.
“ I can’t imagine that they’d get a lot of research done in the dark. “

“ Well, I found what we were looking for. “

Kazuki produced a spray bottle from his hand and applied it to Chikorita. It winced as the solution seeped in to its pores.

“ And, I found something else. I’m not sure what it means. “

“ What do you mean? Let me see. “ Hawk said.

Kazuki handed him a professional peach folder. The top label read:
Lava Pokemon Research. He opened it up and scrolled down the pages, stopping every so often when he saw something interesting.

“ Oh my gosh! It says here that they planned on using a fire pokemon to communicate with the Magmar, Magby, Slugma, and Magcargo. “

“ So? “

“ So! They still have Cyndaquil. If we don’t get it back, those pokemon are going to attack us when we try to leave. “

“ Let’s get to the summit! “

After racing along a blackened path, Kazuki and Hawk finally reached the top of the mountain. The scientists huddled over the edge of the volcano, staring down.

“ HEY! “ Hawk screamed.

The scientists turned, stunned.

“ We thought you were out catching pokemon. “
“ We were, uh, just doing some research. “

“ Yeah, I know what you were doing. “
“ Give me Cyndaquil, and stop the charade. “

The scientists looked at each other apprehensively and then back at Hawk. He was redder then the lava bubbling below the mountain.

“ Your Cyndaquil is down there, but if we take him out, the pokemon will get very angry. “

Hawk and Kazuki watched as Cyndaquil played with the Magby and Slugma on a cliff below the crater played with Cyndaquil, who seemed happy as well.

“ Cyndaquil! Get out! “ Hawk beckoned.

Cyndaquil looked up at Hawk’s eyes, and something happened. It was like his carefree frolicking was totally forgotten as he tried to climb up to his trainer. The Magmar began to run to the cries of the Magby, and the Slugma whined when their playmate left, and needed to be consoled by the Magcargo. The parents were very mad indeed.

“ OK, now we gotta leave! “ A scientist screamed.

A wall of lava pitched and yawed below. The molten liquid started to rise. The volcano was erupting.

“ Come on Cyndaquil! “ Hawk yelled hoarsely.

A Magmar latched on to the pokemon’s foot, and when Hawk made a desperate attempt to grab him, a Magcargo latched on to its entire body, making rescue impossible. Kazuki released Sudowoodo. Its body flaked as the heat hit its rocky frame.

“ Vine Whip, and get Cyndaquil! “

Too late. The pokemon cried out, as it was drug beneath the lava. When Sudowoodo’s vines reached in and pulled Cyndaquil out, it was glowing white. The pokemon had fainted from the heat, but it also evolved it! Hawk was confused but, returned the pokemon anyway, and started to run. Kazuki could only keep staring down.

“ What are you doing, Kaz?! “

“ Look…At…That! “ He stuttered.

The Magmar and Magcargo had started to drop off in to the lava. Hawk first thought that they were giving up, but then a burst of hot air blew out of the crater, singing their skin, and out of the ebbing lava came an enourmous pokemon, bright red as the lava that birthed it. It had huge, red, staring eyes that made your temperature rise when it simply looked at you. Where its lags should have been was a mass of yellow liquid fire, belching flames from the constantly popping bubbles. The spikes that ran down its back ran up its rock-like shell, which reminded Kazuki of an Omastar shell he’d seen in a museum once, and its long tail lashed from side to side, spreading embers from its fiery tip.

“ What is that! “ Kazuki cried.

“ That is Magmargo! “ A scientist answered.
“ It’s the creature that destroyed the scientist that worked at the lab before! “

That is when our heroes ran. They raced down the hillside, almost losing their balance and spilling down on to the jags below. Magmargo was right on their heels, spewing fire in all directions, and withering the plant life as they bolted through the forest. When they got to the beach, they were momentarily relieved to see a boat out on the sea. It jumped over the waves in great leaps.

“ Over here! “ They all cried.

Magmargo tromped on to the sand and the lava moved slowly behind him. He roared in anger and seemed to vomit a fountain of fire ten feet in to the air. Kazuki and Hawk started to sweat as he came forward.

“ Look! “ A scientist cried.

A trainer from the boat was riding out on a Wartortle, and he was riding out fast. The trainer jumped a few feet before shore, and the Wartortle raised his arms above his head. As he did so, thick, black clouds started to brew above the beach. One drop of rain fell on Kazuki’s nose, then two. Before he knew it, he, Hawk, the scientists, the trainer, and Magmargo were all drenched. Magmargo didn’t seem particularly weakened, just annoyed.

“ Raindance. “ Kazuki mouthed.

“ Alright. “ The trainer said.
“ Someone shock him. I don’t have an electric type. “

“ Okay, use Pichu Kaz! “ Hawk commanded.

“ Alright. “ He responded.

Hawk sent out Elekid, while Kazuki used Pichu. The pokemon gathered electricity in their bodies as Magmargo charged them. The two pokemon easily dodged it as it turned to come back around.

“ Fire your Thunder Shocks! “ They yelled.

The two pokemon let the bolts loose, and they stalled just before blowing the pokemon back in to the ocean! They all cheered as it sank in the water. But the cheering was stopped prematurely as it lumbered from the boiling water. It rasped and coughed, shuffling forward.

“ Impossible… “ A scientist said.

“ No, look! “ Kazuki pointed out.

When lava flows from an island volcano and reaches the water, the island becomes bigger, because the lava automatically hardens and becomes stone-like. This pokemon was no exception. Although not as automatic, its puddle of legs started to turn a jet black. It flaked away as he went ashore slower and slower. It eventually got right in front of Hawk, raised its enourmous arm, and stopped. It had now become a statue.

“ Wow, I can’t believe it. “ Hawk said.
“ I was inches from death. “

“ Are you guys okay? “ The trainer asked.
“ I saw that thing, and I figured you needed help. “

“ Yeah, we’re fine now. “ Kazuki said.

But everything wasn’t okay. The trainer offered them a ride to Chelicerae Island, which would get them closer to Bacillus Town, but they still were some ways away. The trainer said that he planned on competing for the Scorpio Cup, a trophy won in the Bug Hut, where a yearly competition is held in which trainers only use bug types. It is very challenging. Kazuki and Hawk decided to go with him, and leave when the competition was threw, but something worried Hawk. Cyndaquil was forcefully evolved in the volcano, and he hadn’t awakened since then. What would his Quilava be like? Would he hate him? Love him? For all he knew, it would be a totally different creature. He was worried indeed…