With the sunlight strengthening it, Heatran's Magma Storm certainly looked impressive. To Groudon, however, it was merely an appetizer.
Boom!
Magma Storm struck Groudon head-on. Waves of lava slammed into its body with enough force to knock out almost any other Pokémon, but this was Groudon, the creator of the land and one of Hoenn's major Legendary Pokémon.
The attack did not cause Groudon the slightest pain. If anything, it felt as though Heatran were merely scratching an itch for it.
In the next instant, Groudon stomped down hard.
Countless jagged blades of stone erupted from the ground and shot toward Heatran. The surrounding rock walls shattered on the spot, and even the streams of lava running through them were split apart.
Heatran was launched through the air.
Fortunately, Groudon had held back considerably. Otherwise, Gardevoir would have been waiting at the gates of heaven to welcome Heatran into the afterlife.
"Ultra Ball, go!"
Grey hurled an Ultra Ball.
Thud!
The ball struck Heatran and pulled it inside. It shook only a few times before falling still.
Heatran had been caught!
"All done."
Caitlin waved at Grey, letting him know that she had finished recording the video.
Once she sent it to her parents, their wedding would practically be set in stone.
"Perfect. Bianca, is there anything else you need to do here?"
Once Bianca finished taking her photographs, Grey planned to take Caitlin to Lentimas Town.
Bianca thought for a moment and lightly tapped her forehead with one finger.
"I still need to examine the volcanic rock around here, so I'll be staying for a while. I won't be going with you."
"All right. Goodbye, Bianca."
"Bye, Gym Leader Grey! Bye, Caitlin!"
Bianca smiled as she watched Grey and Caitlin leave.
There were many Trainers inside Reversal Mountain, most of whom traveled in pairs. The entire place was known primarily for Double Battles.
Grey and Caitlin encountered plenty of different team combinations along the way, but they steamrolled every one of them.
They continued battling until seven in the evening before finally emerging from Reversal Mountain.
"I heard there's a haunted house somewhere near Reversal Mountain," Grey said. "Do you want to head directly to Lentimas Town, or should we explore the haunted house?"
Grey remembered that there was indeed a haunted house near Reversal Mountain in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2. Its name had been rendered in several different ways, but its official name was the Strange House.
"A haunted house? You want to explore a haunted house at night?"
Caitlin stared at Grey in disbelief.
What kind of decent man took a girl to explore a haunted house after dark?
How could words that cold come from such a warm mouth?
Although Caitlin was a psychic, she was actually rather afraid of ghosts. Ghost-type Pokémon did not bother her, but if they encountered an actual ghost...
The mere thought made Caitlin swallow nervously.
A Fighting-type Trainer and a Psychic-type Trainer entering a haunted house together was already a terrible combination. What would they do if they encountered a Legendary Pokémon with the Ghost type?
Wouldn't they both be wiped out at once?
"It'll be fine. Groudon is invincible as long as it's standing on the earth."
Grey shook the Master Ball in his hand. He then took out the Ultra Ball containing Heatran and Annihilape's Poké Ball.
"We also have Heatran and Annihilape. With all three of them here, a haunted house is nothing."
Hearing that, Caitlin had to admit that Grey had a point.
That was right!
Grey had even caught Groudon, the creator of the land.
What could they possibly have to fear?
"Miu?" Little Riolu whispered as it drifted eerily close to Grey's ear. "Grey, are you really planning to go in there? The resentment surrounding that place is rather frightening."
"Resentment? Tell me more."
Grey raised an eyebrow.
He only knew that a Lunar Wing could be found inside and that something had happened in the past, causing the building to be abandoned.
He did not know exactly what had happened. His knowledge of the Strange House was incomplete at best.
"Miu. I don't know either. But there's a Lunar Wing inside, and several areas are saturated with powerful resentment. Also, if you find somewhere you can't pass through, don't try to force your way forward. Otherwise, you might pay a terrible price!"
After saying that, Little Riolu suddenly hissed.
"Why did you hiss like a cat?"
Grey scratched his head in confusion as he looked at Little Riolu, who was behaving like a cranky old feline.
"Miu. How else were you supposed to understand how frightening this is? I'm only looking out for you, buddy. Still, the haunted house isn't as terrifying as you're imagining. The greatest problem is the overwhelming resentment inside."
Little Riolu gazed toward the Strange House, its eyes filled with emotion.
"I see. In that case, we have even more reason to go."
Grey rubbed his nose and turned toward Caitlin.
"We've already come this far, so let's take a look. Don't worry. I'll protect you."
"A-All right! You have to protect me!"
Caitlin hugged Grey's arm tightly, took several photographs, and sent them to her best friend Cynthia.
[Sleeping Beauty: Cynthia, babe, my hubby Grey and I are going to explore the Strange House!]
[Sleeping Beauty: Image.jpg]
At the Sinnoh League headquarters, Cynthia was not working today. Instead, she was resting in the League's main hall.
Garchomp was drinking juice beside her when it suddenly felt a bone-chilling cold spread through the room. It hurriedly turned toward its Trainer.
"Garch?" Garchomp asked. "Cynthia, what's wrong?"
This was the first time Garchomp had ever seen Cynthia make such an expression. It had no idea what had happened, so it could only ask.
"N-Nothing."
Cynthia placed her phone beside her and steadied her breathing before replying to Caitlin.
[Cynthia Cabbage: Caitlin, babe, stay safe. Do you need me to lend you Spiritomb?]
[Sleeping Beauty: No need! My hubby Grey has Groudon, and he just caught a Heatran too. That's more than enough for the Strange House!]
After reading Caitlin's message, Cynthia had just typed, "Oh, okay," when she suddenly realized something was wrong.
Grey had caught Groudon?
Wait, what?
Wasn't Groudon one of Hoenn's major Legendary Pokémon?
How had Grey suddenly caught it?
Cynthia's fingers froze above her phone.
Grey suddenly seemed a little less like the sleazy womanizer she had imagined him to be.
The story about Reshiram might possibly have involved some luck or exaggeration, but there was no way anyone could fake having Groudon.
At that moment, Cynthia's opinion of Grey underwent a dramatic change.
After replying to Caitlin, she contacted Steven to ask about what had happened.
[Cynthia Cabbage: Steven, I heard Grey visited Hoenn recently and even caught Groudon. Is that true?]
[Steven Stone: That's right. Grey is truly a Trainer worthy of everyone's trust. It's a shame that he isn't from Hoenn. Otherwise, I'd even want him to become Hoenn's Champion!]
Whenever Grey came up in conversation, even Steven, who was normally reserved and careful with his words, became unusually talkative.
Grey had played an enormous role in protecting Hoenn, and Steven had always felt that he owed him a great deal.
Now Cynthia had contacted him specifically to ask about Grey.
Steven instinctively began praising him without holding anything back.
There was nothing he could do about it. Grey was simply too good a person.
He was so outstanding that Steven began wondering whether Cynthia intended to recruit Grey and wanted a private character reference before approaching him.
As Grey's close friend, Steven gladly vouched for him.
Steven even revealed that Grey had not only caught Groudon, but had also caught Kyogre, the creator of the seas.
When Cynthia read his message, she wondered whether she had misunderstood something.
Grey had single-handedly caught both Groudon and Kyogre?
What?
Was he the emperor of Hoenn now?
If that was true, then the fact that Grey had not become a power-mad tyrant practically made him look like a saint.
When Cynthia remembered Caitlin's blissful expression, she realized that Grey had never really been involved in any major scandals.
Only Sabrina and Caitlin seemed to have any romantic connection with him.
Perhaps that was not so terrible.
Had Cynthia spent so long looking at Grey through the lens of her own prejudice that she had failed to realize he was genuinely a good person?
The thought refused to leave her mind.
In any case, Cynthia no longer seemed to dislike Grey quite as much as before.
"I'll reserve judgment for now."
Cynthia thanked Steven, opened Caitlin's latest social media post, and gave it a like.
"Cynthia, I'm ordering bubble tea. Do you want to pick something?"
Aaron walked out of the office and saw Cynthia sitting on a sofa in the main hall. He immediately moved closer.
Over the past few days, Aaron had felt himself drawing closer and closer to the Champion title.
At this rate, it might not be long before he became the strongest member of the Sinnoh Elite Four after Lucian!
Flint and Bertha were nowhere near as hardworking as he was. As long as Aaron could outlast Lucian, wouldn't the Champion title eventually be his?
The thought made Aaron increasingly excited.
The miserable expression he had worn while handling League affairs had completely disappeared.
The mountain of League paperwork was finally finished. Now it was time for the reward stage!
Cynthia, Sinnoh is safe with me!
"Let me see."
Cynthia took Aaron's phone and began scrolling through the delivery menu.
"Cynthia?"
After a full minute, Aaron gradually sensed that something was wrong.
"Should I choose the Strawberry Popping Boba Taro Swirl, or the Chewy Squishy Meow-Pop Milk Tea?"
"They both look delicious..."
Cynthia's difficulty making decisions had returned.
At the southern foot of Reversal Mountain in Unova, there was an inconspicuous trail.
Following the path led to a secluded valley surrounded by cliffs on three sides. A two-story house stood in the center of the valley. Years of wind and sand had eroded its walls, leaving them faded and mottled beneath a layer of gray dust.
The building had clearly been abandoned for many years.
Whatever it had once been called no longer mattered.
Now, it was known as the Strange House.
From the outside, the small two-story house appeared to have been constructed from mud bricks. It looked exceptionally plain.
As they approached the property, Caitlin's eyes gradually brightened.
"There's an incredibly powerful Psychic presence inside. It might not be any weaker than Heatran."
"A Psychic-type Legendary Pokémon? Could it be Cresselia?"
Grey immediately thought of that possibility.
The item inside the Strange House was the Lunar Wing, so it would not be strange for Cresselia to be living there.
"I can only sense its lingering presence. The strength of that Psychic power is continuously fading."
Caitlin concentrated on the sensation.
"It feels like a candle flickering in the wind, faint, but still refusing to go out."
Caitlin had originally started getting cold feet, but now she felt that she had no choice but to enter.
Seeing her reaction, Grey sent out Volcarona.
There was no special reason behind his decision. Despite the Strange House being close to Reversal Mountain, the place was dark, gloomy, and strangely cold.
Volcarona was the perfect Pokémon for such an environment.
After all, Volcarona was revered as an embodiment of the sun, and Grey's Volcarona was even Shiny. By generously rounding things up, it was practically no different from bringing the sun itself.
With Volcarona accompanying them, Grey and Caitlin entered the Strange House.
The interior was every bit as plain as the outside.
A great deal of furniture had been placed across the various passageways, seemingly to prevent outsiders from advancing.
"Should I use my psychic powers to move them?"
Caitlin raised her hand, preparing to force a path open.
"Wait."
Grey remembered Little Riolu's warning and stopped her.
He looked around and noticed a staircase on the left that led into the basement.
"Let's go that way. It's the only accessible route. A place like this wouldn't present us with an unavoidable death trap immediately after we entered."
It was similar to the rules-based horror stories people shared online.
In most of those stories, nothing would happen as long as a person followed the written rules.
Of course, Grey was not counting the stories that claimed some of the rules were deliberately false.
At the very least, there should never be an unavoidable death trap immediately after entering.
Besides, this was the Pokémon world.
Whether they were actual ghosts or Ghost-type Pokémon, they usually appeared because of unfinished business or because they enjoyed playing pranks on people.
Cases in which they genuinely harmed others were exceedingly rare.
They might not even have caused as much trouble as those malicious Malamar over in Kalos.
Caitlin had no objections. She linked her arm through Grey's, and the two of them descended into the basement of the Strange House.
The basement resembled a library.
However, most of the books were scattered haphazardly across the floor. Their yellowed pages lay everywhere like fallen leaves, all covered beneath a thick layer of dust.
Grey moved closer to investigate.
Caitlin suddenly stopped walking and began quietly reading aloud.
"In the distant Sinnoh region, there is a Pokémon called Cresselia. Its wings shine like the crescent moon, and it possesses the power to drive away nightmares."
"In the distant Sinnoh region, there is a Pokémon called Darkrai. To protect itself, it plunges everything around it into terrible nightmares."
"There is also a Pokémon called Drowzee..."
Caitlin continued reciting all the information she had found on that floor.
Every piece of it was connected to dreams.
Whoever had written these notes had clearly devoted an enormous amount of effort to the subject.
"Let's keep going. The layout outside has changed."
Caitlin's mood suddenly became subdued. She leaned against Grey's shoulder and spoke in a gloomy voice.
"Grey, what would you do if I became trapped in a nightmare one day and couldn't wake up?"
Grey answered without hesitation.
"That's simple. I'd find the Darkrai responsible, drag it out, and beat it up."
The moment those words left his mouth, the gloomy atmosphere seemed to tremble.
Even the furniture drifting through the air appeared to shudder.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.