Once Kirlia was ready, a sudden, intense Psychic fluctuation erupted around them. In a flash of pink light, David and Kirlia vanished from where they stood.
A moment later, they reappeared on a rocky outcrop several hundred meters above the ground. Kirlia had Teleported them both there in an instant.
This was the method David had thought up on a whim — having Kirlia carry him up the mountain using Teleport, just as she had during the inter-school joint exam. The only real difference was that back then, they had been descending from a cliff. Now, they were climbing from below.
After a few more Teleports, David reached his destination.
"This Thousand Wind Mountain must be at least five or six thousand meters high!" David said, looking down at the landscape shrinking beneath him. "If I didn't have Kirlia, I really don't know how I'd have made it up here."
He turned to look at Kirlia, who was breathing a little harder than usual after several consecutive uses of Teleport. David reached out and rested a hand gently on her head.
"You've worked hard, Kirlia. Take a rest."
He brought out her Poké Ball and recalled her inside.
David straightened up and looked around. The summit of Thousand Wind Mountain was remarkably still. It was nothing like the Gale Corridor below, where he had spotted trainers scattered all over. Up here, there was only the low, constant howl of the wind. He nodded to himself, satisfied with the wide, flat expanse of the mountaintop stretching out in front of him.
Most trainers came to this Secret Realm to train their Flying-type Pokémon in the four outer areas. Thousand Wind Mountain itself — the source of all air currents in the Secret Realm — rarely drew visitors, and almost none ever climbed to the very top.
The booking records had shown a good number of trainers in the area, but it was clear they were all here for regular training. None of them, it seemed, had come for the same reason as David — to take advantage of the mountain's exceptionally rich Flying-type energy.
That suited him perfectly. The quieter it was, the better. A Shelgon's evolution was not something that should be interrupted.
"Come on out, Shelgon!"
A red light burst from the Poké Ball, and Shelgon's heavy, armored body materialized on the summit. The sheer weight of it caused the rock beneath to shudder.
"Roar~"
Before Shelgon could take another step, David spoke up.
"Well? This is the spot I chose for your evolution. What do you think?"
Shelgon lumbered toward the center of the summit, its wide body moving slowly but steadily. It stood still for a moment, taking in the thick Flying-type energy drifting through the air around it, and let out a low, rumbling growl. It seemed content.
Good. Now for the next step — helping Shelgon complete a perfect evolution using this environment.
While Shelgon began quietly gathering energy at the center of the mountaintop, David reached into his bag and pulled out a small bottle containing a thick, paste-like substance.
He walked up to Shelgon and carefully poured a portion of the paste out, then began spreading it across Shelgon's chest plating in slow, even strokes.
The substance was a secret recipe passed down through the Moore family. When applied to Shelgon's outer shell, it made the armor significantly harder and bolstered its resistance to Ice-type energy. What David was using today was a more refined version — made from rarer ingredients, and noticeably more potent than what he usually applied.
His hope was that Shelgon would fully absorb it during the process of evolution. According to the records in the family's training manual, the more carefully Shelgon was prepared at this stage, the stronger the effect would be afterward.
In the best case, this should give it roughly half the effect of my father's Dragonite, David thought as he worked.
The technique itself was an adaptation of Multiscale — simplified so that it could work on Pokémon without that Ability. The result wasn't quite as powerful as the original, but it was far more versatile and accessible.
Once the preparation was done, David released Zorua and Lucario and asked them to keep watch around the area. It was unlikely any trainer would make it this far up the mountain, but he wasn't taking chances. The last thing he wanted was for Shelgon's evolution to be interrupted by something unexpected.
It didn't take long.
Shelgon, still drawing in energy at the center of the summit, gradually curled into itself. The energy fluctuations around its body grew stronger and more intense with every passing second.
There was no reason to hold back now.
A brilliant white light blazed outward, and Shelgon's curled form was swallowed entirely by a radiant sphere of energy. The ball of light began to shift and stretch as if something inside was pushing outward, changing shape.
Then, a pair of massive dragon wings tore free from the light.
David, watching from a safe distance, let out a slow breath. A wide grin broke across his face. His Shelgon had done it.
"Roar — Roar — ROAR!!!"
A deafening dragon cry rang out across the mountain peak. Where Shelgon had stood just moments before, a massive red-and-blue creature now circled through the open sky above the summit, its wings beating powerfully against the wind.
It was the flying partner David had been working toward all this time.
Salamence.
[Name: Salamence (Superior Overlord)]
[Type: Dragon / Flying]
[Gender: ♂]
[Energy Level: 39 (Superior)]
[Ability: Intimidate]
[Aptitude: Crimson]
[Held Item: None]
[Moves: Dragon Dance, Dragon Rush, Outrage, Twister, Dragon Pulse, Fire Fang, Hydro Pump, Ember, Glare, Bite, Rage, Dragon Breath, Flamethrower, Headbutt, Focus Energy, Crunch, Dragon Claw, Scary Face, Zen Headbutt, Fly, Air Slash…]
The stats were impressive — a true reflection of everything Shelgon had built up over time.
And Salamence's size was extraordinary. Its body had already been large as a Shelgon, but evolution had taken that further still. The Salamence circling overhead was nearly as long as a small aircraft.
After a few sweeping passes through the air, Salamence seemed to have settled into its new form. It banked downward in a wide arc and descended to the summit, landing in front of David and lowering its body.
David understood immediately.
He had been waiting for this moment, too. He walked forward and climbed onto Salamence's back. A moment later, the two of them launched into the sky together, rising straight up into the clouds.