Chapter 49: Did You Just Buff Your Pokémon Right in Front of Me?!
Akala Island.
The Ruins of Life — a sacred site dedicated to the Land Spirit Pokémon Tapu Lele, revered by the people as the place where life itself was born.
One of the oldest ruins on Akala Island.
"Deidei~"
A pink shell hovered above the hillside overlooking the ruins. Black upper body, deep pink tentacle-like hair — this was Akala Island's guardian deity, Tapu Lele.
Tapu Lele's big, glittering eyes gazed into the distance. It had sensed something odd recently — Tapu Fini seemed to have wandered into Tapu Koko's territory?
How strange. Tapu Koko had a terrible temper. Wasn't Tapu Fini worried about getting zapped?
Even Tapu Lele didn't dare provoke Koko. They were all guardians of Alola, sure, but Tapu Koko's neurotic personality made it someone you kept at a respectful distance.
Tapu Lele was getting antsy. If Tapu Fini could go gallivanting off to Melemele Island, why couldn't it go visit the others for some fun?
Among the four guardians, Tapu Lele was the most innocent and carefree. Compared to staying cooped up on Akala forever, it much preferred the idea of island-hopping to play with its "colleagues."
But something else caught its attention first. Tapu Lele turned and looked down.
There was a dirt path below, lined with yellow wildflowers and trailing vines.
A young woman in a pale pink dress was making her way toward the Ruins of Life at an unhurried pace. A Metagross floated silently behind her, following in her wake.
"Diedie?" Tapu Lele spun around, tilting its head curiously at the human girl.
It could sense that this human had come specifically for it.
And it could also sense something else — the psychic power contained within this girl was… extraordinary.
Tapu Lele was intrigued. It didn't share Tapu Fini's deep wariness of humans, so it actually flew down from above the ruins, closing the distance between them.
At close range, Tapu Lele confirmed it: the psychic energy inside this girl surpassed the vast majority of Psychic-type Pokémon.
"Tapu Lele, Island Guardian of Akala — my name is Caitlin. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Caitlin wore a flawless, gentle smile, the guardian's cute form reflected in her eyes.
"Die?"
Tapu Lele let out a bright, curious chirp. Perhaps because of their shared psychic nature, its first impression of this human girl was actually quite positive.
"I received word that you'd appeared at the Ruins of Life, so I came as quickly as I could."
Caitlin stood with her hands folded neatly at her waist, her tone soft and refined.
"I have a goal I must achieve — no matter what. And for that, I need strength. Great strength."
"I know this is forward, but — Tapu Lele, would you consider becoming my partner? Your power is exactly what I need."
The golden-haired girl extended a sincere invitation.
"?" Tapu Lele responded with a visible question mark.
"Die~ diedie~"
Although somewhat baffled by the sudden proposal, Tapu Lele followed its instincts and shook its head in refusal.
Still, given this human girl's uniqueness — and her excellent manners — its attitude remained quite friendly.
"I thought as much. You wouldn't agree to something like that." Caitlin sighed softly.
"In that case, I'll have to take a more… direct approach."
"?" Tapu Lele poked most of its body out of its shell, tilting its head at the girl.
"Regardless — I need you, Tapu Lele. Let's battle. I'll show you everything I have, and all of my resolve."
The conviction blazing in Caitlin's eyes was so fierce that Tapu Lele almost flinched. It stared at this human, taken aback.
How long had it served as Akala Island's guardian? It couldn't even remember anymore.
It had seen countless humans come and go — every generation's Island Kahuna and Island Queen had been personally chosen by Tapu Lele itself.
But determination this absolute, this unbreakable? That was genuinely rare.
Without question, this was an exceptional girl among humans. If she'd been from Akala Island, Tapu Lele might have even anointed her as the next Island Queen on the spot.
But there were no "ifs."
"Diedie~ (Your Metagross is strong, but it's no match for me. Go home.)"
Tapu Lele floated upward slightly, glanced at the Metagross behind Caitlin, and shook its head with a melodic cry.
Its temperament wasn't as cold as Tapu Fini's. It had a cruel side, sure, but among the four guardians, Tapu Lele was easily the most approachable.
"Maybe so. But I'd still like to try. If I can beat you — become my partner."
Caitlin smiled gently. She understood what Tapu Lele was saying, and she knew perfectly well that her current strength fell short of the guardian's.
But she wanted to try anyway.
"…Die~"
Tapu Lele scratched its head, a little conflicted. But at the end of the day, its impression of this girl really was good.
If that was the case, giving her one chance wouldn't hurt. It wasn't as if Tapu Lele had never accepted a human's challenge before.
"Diedie~"
Tapu Lele zipped backward into the air. Layer upon layer of psychic ripples radiated outward from its body like waves across still water.
In the blink of an eye, the shimmering light blanketed the ground below. Psychic Terrain — active.
"Psychic Surge, is it?"
Caitlin observed the transformation spreading across the battlefield, her clear eyes glinting.
Tapu Lele's ability: Psychic Surge — automatically deploying Psychic Terrain.
Psychic Terrain boosted the power of Psychic-type moves for any grounded Pokémon, and — crucially — blocked all priority moves from affecting grounded targets.
Those were its two most potent effects.
Psychic-type move amplification, and priority move nullification.
As everyone knew, most Psychic-type Pokémon were glass cannons — high offense, low defense. Textbook examples were Alakazam and Gardevoir, whose physical bulk was practically nonexistent.
Metagross, the pseudo-hexagonal juggernaut, was a rare exception.
For fragile, defensively weak Psychic-types, Psychic Terrain was invaluable protection.
"Metagross!"
"MITA!"
Metagross drifted in front of Caitlin, then slammed down with a ground-shaking impact. Its heavy gaze locked onto Tapu Lele.
"This is… my trial!"
Defeat and capture Tapu Lele — this was step one.
Deep, luminous blue light welled up in Caitlin's eyes. Torrential psychic energy erupted from her like a storm, pouring into Metagross without the slightest reservation.
Metagross's presence began to swell visibly. The same deep blue glow ignited in its eyes.
"????"
Tapu Lele's eyes went wide with shock, staring at the rapidly powering-up Metagross.
Hold on — girl, did you just BUFF your Pokémon right in front of me?! Is that even LEGAL?!