The Ghost Specialist

Sam was hit with howling winds and a biting gale. The world turned white from ice and snow. The freezing temperature saw him pull his jacket tight around himself as he turned to Will’s Xatu in shock.

“Where are we?”

There were no obvious ruins in sight, and the green Pokémon next to him remained silent, tilting its head back to stare up at something ahead. Sam followed its gaze toward a snow-covered slope that disappeared into mist that obscured the sky.

“Ah.” Sam shivered and tried to pull his jacket tighter. “You’re telling me we have to climb?”

He couldn’t see how tall the mountain was, and there was no obvious trail leading up. The ongoing snowstorm wasn’t a blizzard, but the constant powdering and the surrounding mist didn’t help him see too far ahead.

He wasn’t dressed for this. Yes, Johto could be colder than Hoenn, but his jacket lacked the thickness needed to resist this weather, and jeans weren’t good enough for a mountain climb. He needed boots. An actual thick jacket. Probably thermal underwear.

Or I could actually be teleported.

But when he glanced back at Xatu, the Psychic Type was gone.

“Are you kidding me?” Sam hurried to pull out his team’s Pokéballs. He didn’t even have gloves. “Quilava, Primeape. We need heat. Please.”

Upon appearing on the ground, Quilava didn’t hesitate to ignite her flames. Primeape bashed his hands together to cause them to spark with fire, but Fire Punch only lasted so long.

At least, Primeape belonged to a mountainous species covered in fur. He wasn’t bothered by the cold anywhere near as much as Sam.

“We need to—” Sam looked around to double check but found no one else. “We need to climb this mountain.”

He knew there was an easy way out. Redi was staying in a city, safe, so she had refused to let him head here without bringing the PokéGear for himself. A single phone call would see help arrive and his quick rescue.

But...

Sam knew the Sinjoh Ruins were at the top of this mountain. Will’s Xatu wouldn’t have taken him anywhere else. Sure, he had already received permission to come here, but, in a way, climbing up would be as though he was proving the worthiness of himself and his team.

He was here to give Quilava the chance to evolve. He didn’t want to turn back now.

“Come on,” Sam said, forcing himself to not grumble. “Let’s go.”

So, he climbed.

Each footstep sunk into the snow, the freezing material covering his shoes and moistening his socks. Quilava was quick to move close, and her months of training meant her control over the heat saw Sam stay warm and his clothes quickly dry. Primeape, however, seemed almost solemn to be back on a mountain. There was a faint bit of joy that came from being so high up once more, but rather than anything celebratory he stayed focused.

It was as if traveling next to Sam was letting him prepare.

Thankfully, travel didn’t include the need to find footholds or handholds. Sam was able to keep his hands under his armpits, his hood on his head, and Primeape served as a guide while Quilava acted as a mobile campfire just strong enough to let Sam resist these temperatures.

Haunter and Misdreavus came out at one point. This wasn’t just a short hike, and Sam didn’t want to keep them in their Pokéballs all day. Xatu had placed Sam somewhere where he’d need to work hard to reach the Sinjoh Ruins, but at least it still felt possible. It would just take concerted effort and time.

Upon appearing, Haunter shivered and dived into Sam’s shadow, whereas Misdreavus stayed out next to him to serve as moral support.

They helped. Climbing became a full team effort. Haunter’s position in the floor let him warn Sam of unsteady or slippery terrain ahead of time, and Misdreavus would occasionally split off to float high, high into the sky to move past the clouds. When she came back, she always confirmed they were going the right way, and she could confirm there weren’t any aggressive, wild Pokémon ahead, too.

They made sure to take breaks. Without a source of wood nearby, Quilava helped heat up their food, and once it was warm, she was able to drop her fire to take a break and let the warm meal heat everyone up instead. Sitting behind large boulders helped block the wind and snow, and Sam found himself being pushed harder than he had ever been pushed before.

Thankfully, wherever he had been dropped saw all of his time being spent hiking up snowy slopes rather than any more exertive climb. Unfortunately, he did not reach the top in a single day. A shallow cave provided shelter for the night, and Haunter and Misdreavus piled up snow at its front to help insulate the area and prevent warmth from being lost.

But they also made sure to leave a small gap at the top to allow for circulation and prevent suffocation.

“Did Will plan this?” Sam mumbled. “Or did his Xatu go behind his back to put us at the bottom of the mountain?”

Quilava wiggled in his arms. He held her close, as even without her fire running, she was still quite warm. She said her name to respond to Sam, and Misdreavus nodded in agreement.

“So you think he was aware of the possibility, then, but he just didn't do anything to stop his Pokémon.”

Misdreavus nodded grimly, and Sam scowled.

Will was a Psychic Type specialist. When Sam got the chance, he was going to show that jerk why Psychic Types were weak to Ghosts.

But as he plotted his revenge, Quilava squeaked and looked up at him with a grin. Haunter came out to smirk alongside her, and even Primeape, who was staring at the snow blocking the mouth of the cave, grunted in agreement.

Inside here, surrounded by his Pokémon, Sam let out a laugh and shook his head.

“Yeah!” he said. “At least we’re doing this together. And we’ll get our revenge against Will together, too!”

His entire team cheered.

Sam spent the night there, emerging the next morning. In a somewhat better mood, he swore the weather had improved, but it still felt just as bad as it had been the day before.

His group wasn’t the only group of creatures on this mountain. No other humans appeared, but Sam caught sight of other Pokémon living here. Sneasel, with their sharp claws, scaled up and down in groups that were only warded off due to the threat posed by Quilava’s flames. Geodude, half iced over, would shift out of the way to avoid Primeape when the Fighting Type climbed rocky areas by punching his fists into the stone. At one point, Sam hiked past a lone Jynx standing on an outcrop and staring into the mist-shrouded horizon.

She was singing, but the lone Ice Type Pokémon did keep her eye on him as they passed.

And there were other shapes. Large, indistinguishable ones that did not approach. Their bulky silhouettes were only barely visible in the snow storm, and given Sam only ever saw sketches of species in the New Pokédex, he was not familiar enough with how they looked in real life to identify them.

(But he never once wished to have the scanning ability of an electronic Pokédex. Not even a single time—absolutely never. Sure, it would have been helpful to identify a species with the push of a button, but Sam didn’t need that. He just needed to hone his skills and become more familiar with the Pokémon species of the world.)

His legs were burning from the constant climb, and he was thankful that he had been teleported here from Blackthorn City, which was already high up in the mountains. It made adapting to the thin air a bit easier. Quilava’s bubble of heat was also one of the only reasons this was possible, too. Humans weren’t as sturdy as Pokémon, but he knew from both Hoenn’s Drake and Indigo’s Bruno that they were still capable of great things if they pushed themselves.

He didn’t give up. He only ever slowed to take breaks. And just before the second day of climbing came to its end, Sam realized he was already at the top.

All at once, the mist disappeared. It was like he had just broken through the surface of a pool of water. At his side, Quilava let out a breath, and Misdreavus turned and stared behind them with visible awe.

Sam had never been a fan of heights. He hadn’t fully realized it until he had been taken into the sky by Morty’s Drifblim. Falling was the real worry that came from being so high up, but when he turned around here, his breath caught in his throat.

A sea of white stretched out into the distance. Rocky peaks poked through the clouds to form a sky-high archipelago. He could not see the cliffs or the slopes he had just moved through. No, stepping this high onto the mountain was like he had entered a fantasy world. A view this grand didn’t seem like it should exist.

“...Come on. We’re so close.”

Misdreavus made a disappointed noise when Sam turned away, and he purposely slowed down to let her continue to stare out over the clouds. As the ground beneath his feet flattened out and created an obvious path through a crack in a rocky, stone wall, Misdreavus floated backwards and moved close to him. She let herself press against his arm, silently thanking him for bringing her with him and allowing her to see a view like that.

The sky was perfectly clear, and the lack of snow made it warmer, though a persistent chill remained. Moving into that gap between the natural stone walls saw a bit of the cold leave. Quilava let her flames die down given they were no longer as necessary.

Only a bit longer, and they pushed through the snaking pass to emerge into an area surrounded by cliffs. It wasn’t exactly a valley, but it wasn’t exactly a crater. An extraordinarily flat space stretched out before them, otherwise hidden unless someone wanted to scale the last, remaining bit of rock.

A single, stone structure sat in its back. It was some sort of temple based on how six, crumbling pillars lined a path of grey bricks before it. It honestly reminded Sam of the buildings he’d seen within the Ruins of Alph, but it wasn’t alone in this space. However, it was the only thing that was obviously ancient; a series of log cabins had been built not too far away.

Some had lights on inside, but others had their frosted glass darkened by the lack of anyone inside. There were researchers here. Sam and his team weren’t alone. He longed to enter the warmth of a building’s interior, but the Sinjoh Ruins were right there.

Hope for Quilava’s evolution burned in his chest as Sam took the final steps forward.

“Hold it, mister.”

Sam winced as he heard a door creak open and a woman’s voice call out.

So close to his destination, he didn’t want to turn around. Yet, the only reason he was here was thanks to a recommendation by Spencer Hale—he couldn’t exactly ignore the shout of any researcher here. Tensing, Sam shuffled on his feet to see who had called out to him. Annoyed, Primeape snorted.

They had come all this way only to be stopped at the last minute.

Approaching Sam’s group was an older woman wearing a thick, furry coat, hugging herself while taking Sam in. Her clothes were actually designed to resist the cold weather, too. She had the start of wrinkles on her face as well as a greying, dirty-blonde bob cut, but her eyes were sharp. She had the same, experienced look that most experienced trainers had, but she wasn’t a trainer. She had no Pokéballs on her belt or anywhere on her body.

“Who are you to walk around dressed like that? It’s freezing out here! You shouldn’t be outside without wearing something thicker.”

“It’s what I have,” Sam grunted. “Quilava helps.”

She supported his statement by briefly bringing her flames to full blast. Sam felt like he was standing next to a furnace for that short moment, but she let them die down to the same, low smolder that she’d been maintaining before.

“Hmph.” The woman’s eyes flicked to the Fire Type. “She looks just as exhausted as you do. How did you get here?”

“We climbed.”

“You climbed?”

She opened her mouth as if to further express her disbelief, but she ended up just shaking her head instead.

“No, no. This won’t do. Come with me. I’ll give you a way to warm up.”

In unison, Sam and every member of his team glanced over their shoulders to stare at the sole building of the Sinjoh Ruins naught but a dozen yards away. If there was anything that’d reveal the secrets behind Quilava’s alternate evolution, it would be inside, yet—

“Are you coming? You’ll have plenty of chances to do what you need to do later,” the woman called out. “Let yourself warm up before you get sick! And ask around for a better coat! At least someone here has something you can wear. Now stop dawdling and follow me.”

Sam slumped, recognizing the tone used as one used by his mother in the past—it was one that left no room for arguments. It was better to follow along and visit the ruins later, but he had to admit he wasn’t too against the idea.

He and his team were exhausted. They absolutely needed a warm, safe place to rest and take a break.

“Coming,” Sam sighed.

He chased after the woman as she made her way back into the cozy interior of one of the cabins set to the side.

“I’m Carolina. A Professor, but not a Pokémon Professor. I’m here on behalf of the Celestic Town Historical Research Center, Sinnoh’s second most knowledgeable organization on the region’s space-time legends.”

Professor Carolina placed a series of bowls and cups in front of where his team sat at a low table. Quilava immediately began to lap at her bowl of Pokémon-safe cocoa, whereas Primeape immediately tried to chug his down. However, the second the steaming liquid hit his mouth, he yelped from how hot it was.

As a Fire Type, Quilava had no such problem with her scalding drink.

“The second most knowledgeable organization? Who’s the first?” Sam asked.

“The Galaxy Organization,” Professor Carolina said, sitting across from Sam at the same table while holding a cup of cocoa of her own. “Named after the original settlers of Sinnoh, it’s led by Cyrus—a rather wealthy businessman. He can be a bit stubborn at times, but he’s poured his wealth into furthering our knowledge of Sinnoh’s history and legends. Without him, we wouldn’t know anywhere near as much as we do. I’m lucky to call him a family friend.”

She chuckled.

“Among other things,” she mumbled, sipping at her cocoa.

As Professor Carolina drank, Sam tried to sip at his cocoa too, but he winced the second its flavor hit his tongue. It was so overwhelmingly sweet that he couldn’t taste the chocolate in the slightest. Yet, Quilava was drinking hers without any problem. Sam did like sweet things, except this was barely palatable.

“But you don’t need to know my personal history,” the Professor continued. “I’m just another researcher among so many others here. Who are you? And what brings a trainer as young as yourself to the Sinjoh Ruins?”

“I’m... Sam. A Ghost Type specialist. And I’m here to figure out... We’re here to figure out how to evolve my Quilava into a Hisuian Typhlosion.”

When Sam mentioned his preferred Type, Professor Carolina’s eyes flicked to both Primeape and Quilava, and she replied with a simple “Mhm” while taking another sip of her drink.

Misdreavus and Haunter were out as well, but Misdreavus wasn’t interested in hot cocoa. She floated between Sam and Quilava, waiting for Quilava to be finished. Haunter was... elsewhere. Sam purposefully ignored how one patch of shadows on top of the cabin’s cabinets seemed darker than the rest.

“Evolving into a Hisuian Typhlosion is a big goal. You aren’t forcing your Pokémon into anything, are you?” the Professor asked.

She got her answer when Quilava outright growled at her for that implication.

“Alright, alright!” The old woman chuckled. “But what makes you think you need to be here of all places to achieve that evolution, anyway?”

“We—Quilava and I—have been working on her final evolution since we first found out about it,” Sam said, staring into the dark liquid within his cup. “We’ve been training together since the start of this Johto’s League season, trying whatever we can to guarantee it. Quilava knows Curse, and she’s an expert at using its Ghost Type energy. I’ve talked to Morty and have been doing a lot of research into Hisui, ghosts, and Ghost Types, too.”

Carolina hummed.

“Interesting. And how did you learn about Hisuian Typhlosion in the first place?”

“Research,” Sam said all too quickly.

She cocked a brow but didn’t comment on his immediate reply.

Instead, after a few seconds of considering his words, she sighed and put her cup down, leaning back on her cushion and placing her hands under her arms for warmth. This log cabin was cozy, only consisting of a main room, a bathroom, and a small bedroom, but even with the slight chill that remained, it was still much, much warmer here than it was outside.

“Truthfully, I knew who you were when I first saw you,” Professor Carolina admitted. “Everyone here received a notice that a trainer like you intended to visit. Something about that fool Spencer providing a recommendation?” She shook her head. “Really, you should have waited.”

“Why?” Sam asked, suspicious.

“Because there’s simply nothing for you here,” she said.

Professor Carolina adjusted her posture to sit upright.

“The Sinjoh Ruins has its temple, yes, but it only deals with legends that affect both regions as a whole. It predates all of the events of the Hisui Crisis, which is the short period in which Hisuian Typhlosion only ever appeared. I doubt that you’ll get information about Quilava’s evolution here. This might be a sacred place with close ties to Johto and Sinnoh, but—”

“Does it matter?” Sam interrupted. “All I know is that a Quilava evolves into a Hisuian Typhlosion when evolved in ancient Hisui. That’s what I read, at least. Even if this place was built earlier—even if there isn’t any obvious information here—we should be able to find something, even if it's just a carving, or a mural, or just some sort of feeling in the air!”

He huffed, annoyed.

“What else are we supposed to do?” Sam said quietly. “There isn’t anywhere else we can go.”

Quilava whined, and Sam leaned over to rub her head. Professor Carolina blinked at Sam, caught off guard by his impassioned argument.

And, as Sam comforted Quilava, she looked up at the Professor. She adjusted her expression to send the woman the biggest puppy-dog eyes she could muster.

“I can’t believe this,” Professor Carolina mumbled, pinching the bridge of her nose. She followed that with a chuckle, somehow sounding both defeated and amused at the same time. “You’re lucky begging like that reminds me of my granddaughter. She can really be so single-minded at times.”

Professor Carolina brought her hands back into her lap, and she stared at Sam and Quilava, taking both of them in. Sam could see her jaw move back and forth while she chewed on her thoughts. It took several seconds for her to speak up next.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have many ways to help you. You’re treading new ground, even if evolving into a Hisuian Typhlosion was possible in the past. Only two species have ever been brought to the Sinjoh Ruins to evolve—Nosepass and Magneton. Unfortunately, both times it was due to a misunderstanding. Those species evolve into Probopass and Magnezone when trained within Sinnoh’s Mount Coronet, but their evolutions stem from the mountain’s electromagnetic field rather than the presence of the mountain itself. They’re more likely to evolve in a power plant than somewhere like here.”

“But what about us?” Sam asked.

Professor Carolina rubbed her chin.

“Well, there is one species...”

“Yeah?” Sam asked, leaning forward.

“In such a high-up, snowy location like this, I believe we have the perfect conditions to evolve one of Alola’s Crabrawler into a Crabominable, yes?”

Sam’s head hit the table as Professor Carolina laughed to herself. He could hear Quilava sigh in her seat next to him, and Misdreavus tried to nudge both of them to cheer them up.

“Are you sure there’s nothing in the temple? Can’t I head in and look around?”

“Ah, sorry. Unless you’re being escorted by a specifically-trained Psychic Type that can reduce the impact of your feet, you won’t be allowed inside due to how fragile the carvings in the floor are.”

“So I need a Psychic Type.” Sam brought his head back up. “Can I borrow one of yours?”

She laughed again.

“Oh, you're a cheeky brat, aren’t you? No, I don’t train Pokémon, and I doubt the other researchers here would be willing to loan out one of their partners so easily.”

Sam groaned. After so long of waiting, it felt like a punch to the gut to be told it was all for nothing.

“But...” Professor Carolina continued. “Tell you what—give me a few days. I doubt I’ll be able to find anything explicit, but I’ll ask around to see what information I can gather for you. The Sinjoh Ruins might not have anything directly helpful for Quilava’s evolutions, but we’re surrounded by some of the foremost researchers of Johto and Sinnoh’s shared history. I’ll see if I can find a way to at least bring you through the temple’s front, too.”

“Thank you,” Sam said genuinely.

She waved him off.

“Us older folk have a duty to support the younger generation, and, besides, your problem is interesting enough to gather some of these old fogeys' interest. For now, feel free to claim one of the empty cabins for yourself and be patient. When you see me next, I’ll be giving you good news.”