The Ghost Specialist

Four days later, Sam was back at the mountain’s edge. Every day so far, he’d returned to where mist and snow turned the world white to give his team a challenging environment in which to train. To withstand the mountain’s harsh conditions, he hadn’t exactly been loaned a new outfit so much as he had been outright given clothes from the settlement’s lost-and-found. A puffy jacket covered in far too many neon stripes kept his upper body insulated, and he wore a second layer of pants over his jeans to keep his legs warm.

The clothes were a bit oversized, as both were intended for someone older than him. He also still didn’t have boots. His running shoes were designed to handle the wear and tear that came from the constant travel of a trainer’s lifestyle, but they weren’t exactly suited for a snowy mountain.

At least I was able to put in an order for a pair of boots. They should arrive the next time this camp gets its supplies delivered.

Whenever that’ll be.

“Does everyone know what they’re doing?” Sam called out, standing beside a stone outcrop that protected him from the wind.

Quilava replied with her name from where she stood next to Primeape, who also responded with a grunt. Both Misdreavus and Haunter faced them, the two Ghost Types floating in the air and appearing almost blurry due to the mist.

They replied with acknowledgements as well.

The ground beneath them wasn’t flat, but this section of the mountain was only a gentle incline. The powdery snow helped coat the stone to prevent any slippery patches of ice. If someone fell, there was no risk of them tumbling down the entire mountain. However, this was just meant to be a practice bout. Sam and his team still had their double battle with Redi coming up, and even though she wasn’t around, they still needed to train and prepare.

“Present Ghost Types versus future Ghost Types,” Sam announced. “Quilava and Primeape versus Haunter and Misdreavus. I want you all to treat this like a serious battle, but also listen for my voice and pull back if things get too intense. For you, Haunter, I know you’ve been practicing your new moves, but no Nightmare in this fight. Stick to Dream Eater. It’s a bit too cruel otherwise, okay?”

Haunter voiced his complaints, and Sam crossed his arms. The Ghost Type did relent, if only due to the glare Misdreavus sent.

Both of Haunter’s new sleep-based moves were still a work in progress, and Sam didn’t want him to cause any long-lasting harm from an improper use of Nightmare. While a Pokémon like Chansey could treat that, the settlement at the Sinjoh Ruins only had a first aid station rather than a dedicated Pokémon Center.

One last look around at his team, and Sam nodded once. This would be a test of strategy as much as it was a test of battle instincts for his Pokémon. He’d only be stepping in to stop the worst.

“On my count!” he shouted. “The battle will begin in three—”

Haunter took off, and Sam felt an eye twitch.

That’s on me for saying “begin” while I’m muffled by the snow.

“Go! Start the battle!” he yelled right after. With that shout, the rest of his team lurched into action.

Haunter had already used that slight moment of advantage to disappear into the mist. He didn’t know Shadow Sneak, so he couldn’t control a shadow to move around, but he could at least leap from shadow to shadow to move unseen. With the current lack of light caused by the weather, he had ample room to approach Quilava and Primeape.

Probably.

Sam couldn’t exactly tell where Haunter was.

Misdreavus, however, didn’t bother to hide herself. She stayed in the air and charged a Shadow Ball only for the attack to fail when a Flamethrower forced her back. But even though Quilava’s attack missed, the little Fire Type didn’t give up. Her second Flamethrower came out to harry her opponent more than to damage, and Misdreavus was forced to focus entirely on dodging rather than any further attacks.

Sam hummed.

I know I’ve talked about Double Team with Quilava, but maybe Misdreavus would benefit from that move, too. It would give her a way to avoid attacks while giving her room to prepare her own.

On Quilava’s side of the field, as she continued to harass Misdreavus, Primeape hopped between his feet and punched at the air. A Bulk Up passed through his body to boost him up.

And, once Quilava had stalled for long enough to give him time to finish that self-enhancement, she took off to get closer to Misdreavus. Reducing the distance between them meant less travel time for her attacks and a greater chance of her moves actually landing. She smirked as her Quick Attack brought her forward. Sam knew she and Misdreavus were friends, but even friends could have a bit of a rivalry between them.

Another Flamethrower tore through the air, but Misdreavus avoided it by diving into the floor to turn into a splotch of darkness. Shadow Sneak brought her away with a speed similar to Quick Attack, but Quilava was still faster.

She was slowly catching up.

Their chase snaked around the battlefield, the two speedy Pokémon darting around with the momentum of their moves. So pushed, Misdreavus was never able to retaliate with an attack, but Quilava was also too focused on running to unleash a move of her own.

Eventually, Misdreavus was forced to the edge of the “field,” the corners of which were marked with purposefully placed stones. Being knocked out of bounds would see her eliminated from the match, and she was forced to come out of the floor as the chase finally came to a halt.

Quilava’s flames blazed. She squeaked out some kind of taunt. Misdreavus looked nervous—but only for a second.

She smirked.

When Quilava looked down, a black splotch remained on the floor where Misdreavus had left her Shadow Sneak, and Haunter lunged out of it.

Quilava was immediately caught utterly off-guard. Before she could think about closing her eyes or looking away, the jump-scare Hypnosis had already landed, and she slumped to the ground.

Haunter cackled, causing Misdreavus to roll her eyes, but there was a slight smile on her face at the sight of a successful strategy. Shadow Sneak had created the shadow, and Haunter had been carried along.

Without Quilava conscious enough to be a threat, Haunter was able to move in, his hands glowing blue. He carefully brought forward the energy required for Dream Eater so that he could damage Quilava while reinvigorating himself. Unfortunately, the move was still in practice, and it wasn’t used that quickly.

So just like how Quilava had forgotten about Haunter during that chase, the two Ghost Types forgot about the other Pokémon on the field.

Jumping out from the mist covering the snow, an ice-coated fist smashed into Haunter’s face. Misdreavus cried out, an in-progress Nasty Plot interrupted by the surprise, and Haunter was sent spinning out of the field. He didn’t faint, but by leaving, he was eliminated from the match.

“Ape.”

Primeape huffed and placed himself right in front of Quilava’s sleeping body. A vein throbbed on his head out of annoyance at being forgotten, but at least he seemed smug to have taken advantage of that opening.

“Great job!” Sam yelled. “To all of you! But just don’t forget to keep track of your opponent!”

Out of the battle, Haunter quite literally dripped with disappointment and slunk back to Sam’s side. Sam chuckled and made sure to treat him with a Potion while continuing to watch the ongoing match.

“Try to more carefully listen to others in the future,” Sam whispered. “I know getting a head start at the beginning of this battle didn’t really matter, but I want to know I can trust you, okay?”

Haunter avoided Sam’s eyes and slumped apologetically. Sam could tell that Haunter genuinely felt guilty about it—the Ghost Type wasn’t one to hide his emotions.

Back on the field, Misdreavus stayed in the air, far above Primeape’s reach, and she was doing her best to pepper him with Psybeams. However, Primeape’s boxing-like movements meant he was nimble on his feet. Her attacks were never more than glancing blows.

Unfortunately, his own moves weren’t much better. Misdreavus had enough control over the way she floated that Primeape’s tossed Rock Slides only ever sailed past her. The outcome was quickly becoming clear; Primeape was taking damage. Misdreavus was not.

But Quilava woke up.

The noise of the battle let her snap her eyes open, and she locked her gaze onto the Ghost Type above her. Before she’d even adapted to her surroundings, she’d already unleashed a reflexive Ember, the move coming out faster than Flamethrower.

Misdreavus was struck, but only by the initial barrage. Her eyes reflexively glowed blue to let a telekinetic Confusion grab the sparks. In a not-quite-a, but still effective mimicry of Will-O-Wisp, those same flames were reshaped and redirected to hit Primeape, inflicting a burn.

With Primeape so weakened, his Rock Slides would be even worse than before, and he didn’t have any other ranged moves that might be able to hit his opponent. However, Quilava would still be able to attack, but Misdreavus would be able to do the same.

Sam shook his head. Quilava hopped to her feet and breathed in to prepare a Flamethrower. A sphere of darkness appeared before Misdreavus’s mouth.

“We’re stopping the battle here!” Sam shouted.

Groans of disappointment echoed out. Quilava’s flames died down, and Misdreavus dropped her Shadow Ball. Sam could tell the Ghost Type especially was tired. She’d put in a lot of effort to effectively carry the match and avoid most of the damage.

“First off, that was a great battle,” Sam said as the members of his team approached. “You all had a great show of teamwork at the beginning. Quilava, Primeape, that was a perfect stall to let him get in a Bulk Up. And Misdreavus, that was an inspired use of Shadow Sneak to set up an opening for Haunter.”

Gathering around him, his Pokémon cheered their names at the compliments. Misdreavus wiggled happily with a blush, and Quilava squeaked out praise of her own.

But then Haunter spoke his name.

Hiding in the shadow like that was his idea. Misdreavus glared at him for ruining the moment—taking credit wasn’t the point.

“Teamwork is based on both Pokémon contributing,” Sam interrupted. “Haunter, Misdreavus, you were both key to pulling off your plan.”

Misdreavus smiled proudly, and Haunter gained one of his classic grins. Unfortunately, before Sam could continue, a cold wind blew through the gathered group. He couldn’t stop his shiver.

“Do you all mind if I give the breakdown back at the ruins? I’ve got more feedback to talk about.”

His team didn’t object, and Sam looked over all of them. Misdreavus was injured, Primeape was burned, but Quilava had only been subjected to a Hypnosis, and Haunter had already been healed. Still, that was half that needed to be treated, and Sam didn’t want any of them to get worse in the cold weather.

Slowly, he began moving up the mountain. Misdreavus and Primeape were returned, and Haunter dived into the floor to be carried along in Sam’s shadow. Quilava moved to Sam’s side, but she didn’t pick up her flames. She needed a break after all that running, and so close to the mountain’s top, they didn’t need to warm up given the ruins’s settlement was so close.

And, as they hiked back up, Sam went over the battle in his head.

For a double battle, working together was key, but he felt his Pokémon had split up too easily after the first few moments. Quilava had run away from Primeape too willingly, which forced the Fighting Type to give chase and effectively do nothing but follow while she ran around with Quick Attack. Misdreavus and Haunter had worked well together, but they focused on Quilava far too much and outright forgot Primeape was there.

Even more, Sam’s team had a level of status immunity they could have abused but failed to acknowledge. Primeape’s Vital Spirit meant he was too angry to be put to sleep via Hypnosis, and Quilava’s Fire Type meant she was immune to being burned. If those two had stayed together, neither Misdreavus nor Haunter would have been able to inflict conditions. All it would take is a single lunge for Primeape and Quilava to take ineffective attacks on one another’s behalf.

But Quilava had only just woken up when Misdreavus tried her makeshift Will-O-Wisp, so she wasn’t prepared to block it in the first place. Yet, if Primeape had gone out of his way to wake her up, they could have outnumbered Misdreavus right away and finished her off.

But then Misdreavus also did nothing when Quilava was unconscious. A single, well-aimed Psybeam could have forced Primeape to choose between taking a super effective attack or letting his vulnerable team member be hit. That could have won her the battle if she had been clever enough. Instead, Quilava woke up and effectively had her pinned.

Sam found it much easier to pick out mistakes when he wasn’t directly involved, which was why he’d been having his team focus on spars so much the past few days. It was nice to have a team of Pokémon that could work together, and they were improving in leaps and bounds when it came to their skills in double battles.

But, he couldn’t forget something else that was becoming more and more prevalent in his mind: the potential for every Pokémon on his team to evolve.

Primeape “only” needed to learn and master Rage Fist. Misdreavus “only” needed to be exposed to a Dusk Stone. Haunter could be traded, but Sam wanted to push him and bait out an evolution into Gengar, instead.

And then there was Quilava. Her evolution was why they were here in the Sinjoh Ruins in the first place.

Sam’s thoughts briefly paused as he broke through the mist to emerge at the peak of the mountain once more. He returned to that vista over the sea of clouds, where Quilava paused to stare out over it. Sam couldn’t resist, as well.

It really is an incredible view.

But he quickly turned around to pass through the narrow opening in the stone. Quilava chased after him as they moved to return to the ruins’s camp.

“Aha! I knew you’d be coming this way soon. Come on, kid. I told you it’d only be a few days.”

After passing back into the Sinjoh Ruin’s settlement, Sam looked up to see the smiling face of Professor Carolina only a few feet ahead. Her hood was up, but today was warmer. Her jacket wasn’t as thick as before.

“It might be a bit longer before I can give my feedback,” he whispered to the Pokéballs at his waist.

“Walk with me,” the Professor said. “I got us an opening to head into the ruins. I'll also share what I found out about your Quilava’s evolution, but I want to start with a general overview, first.”

She turned on a heel to walk toward the stone temple, and Sam’s heartbeat picked up in his chest. Hurried on by the brisk, outside temperature, Sam fell behind her, and Quilava raced after him to walk at his side.

“How much do you know about variant evolutions?” Professor Carolina asked.

“Like branched paths?”

“Pokémon that can evolve into more than one species? Sure,” she said. “Think of species like Slowpoke or Clamperl—species that generally require items, not ones that branch due to an inherent quality, like Burmy or Wurmple.”

Sam had to think about it for a moment. Slowpoke’s evolution he was greatly familiar with.

Unfortunately.

As for Clamperl, he knew a bit about it but not much. The information he did know came from his skim-throughs of the New Pokédex and the talks Wallace would give to advertise Water Types on television.

“Slowpoke evolves via training or a King’s Rock, and then Clamperl evolves with Deep Sea items,” Sam said.

Professor Carolina smiled.

“Incorrect,” she said.

“What? How!? I’m right!”

“Mostly,” she said. “In most cases, a Slowpoke can evolve into a Slowbro with enough training. Using a King’s Rock means one can evolve into a Slowking, too. As for Clamperl, it evolves into a Huntail when exposed to a Deep Sea Tooth, and a Gorebyss when exposed to a Deep Sea Scale.

“However.” Professor Carolina stopped walking to face Sam. “Those are not the only ways these species evolve. In fact, the same is true for the vast majority of item-based evolutions, as many can be achieved via environment, instead. Outside of the obvious connection with Shellder, individual Slowpoke occasionally evolve into Slowking when they take on a leadership role within a large enough herd. And Clamperl don’t always need Deep Sea items. Spend enough time in the deep ocean, and a Clamperl will eventually evolve into one of its later forms.”

She cleared her throat, clicking her heels together to stand at attention. Sam felt as though that was her normal stance for lectures.

“Pokémon don’t need items,” she declared. “Items only speed up the process. Primarily, Pokémon need the energy contained within those items, and sometimes an environment is a suitable replacement.

“But in your case... This information isn’t actually helpful. Only ancient Hisui contains the correct environmental energy for an evolution into a Hisuian Typhlosion. Except Hisui is now Sinnoh. That environment doesn’t exist.”

“So what was the point of all that?” Sam asked flatly.

The Professor grinned.

“The point was to introduce the concept of evolving a Pokémon through alternative means. You won’t be able to evolve Quilava through anything obvious,” she said. “But that was just the lead-up to the point I want to make. Before we get any further, however, do you want to head inside?”

Sam blinked and turned to his right. The entrance to the Sinjoh Ruins’s temple was right before him.

He didn’t say anything to answer Professor Carolina. Instead, he took an almost reverent step forward, and Professor Carolina chuckled before stopping him with a hand in front of his chest.

“I managed to arrange some Pokémon support, so we can move inside, but not more than a few feet. There are carvings on the floor that risk being damaged. All of the restrictions here are to make sure this place stays as intact as possible.”

Sam eagerly nodded, wanting nothing more than to head inside. Professor Carolina led the way, and Sam followed with Quilava trailing behind.

Immediately, Sam understood the need to limit visitors. Almost the entirety of the floor was taken up by an intricate carving detailing a triangle he couldn’t quite understand. It was filled with geometric symbols and tiny engravings that almost looked like sentences—mathematical ones. He would have expected this place to be filled with Unown script, but there was nothing.

Just those carvings.

He squinted his eyes, trying to figure out at least part of them, but everything was far too interconnected for him to understand anything specific.

“And the walls, too,” Professor Carolina pointed out.

Bringing his gaze up, he took in how the walls were almost as detailed as the floor.

While the very back of the room was too faded to make anything out, the side walls had what used to be paintings once upon a time. They were difficult to decipher with how aged they’d become over the centuries, but Sam could at least see countless figures representing both people and Pokémon. On them, those geometric shapes were less common, replaced by images that seemed to tell a story. Yet, it was inconsistent. Impossible to follow. But common between each “stage” of the drawings were strange, yellow limbs that came from nowhere.

For some reason, Sam knew in his gut that there were exactly a thousand.

Other than that, the only repeated imagery was a pair of centaur-like Pokémon and a trio of red gems. It was only after he’d been staring at the walls for a while that he noticed another piece to the images—what seemed to be a spiked, black serpent that lurked behind everything else.

“If you look closely, we can map out the corners of the floor’s triangle to Sinnoh’s great lakes—Verity, Valor, and Acuity,” Professor Carolina said, speaking up. “However, I’ll admit that each corner can also be mapped to Sinnoh’s three Pokémon of Myth rather than the Lake Guardians themselves. If you look at the walls, too, you can see depictions of the Legendary Dialga and Palkia, though they aren’t in their most commonly sighted forms. The appearances depicted here have only a single witness account from across all of recorded history. They only took on these forms during their descent at the end of the Hisui Crisis.”

“The Hisui Crisis?” Sam asked, taking in the faded paintings. “Hold on, wait. You only mentioned two Pokémon. What about the serpent?”

“The Serpent?” Professor Carolina blinked then shook her head. “Ah, it’s probably for the best that I don’t mention that third one. As for the Hisui Crisis itself, that’s a detail for an entirely different story.”

As Sam looked around, he realized that something about this place felt off. It took him a few moments, but he soon came to understand why this place was so utterly disconnected.

The chill of the mountaintop was gone.

No wind passed through the open doorway.

The faint whistling that came from around the mountain was silent, as well. He could only hear the sounds of his breath and the faint heartbeat in his chest.

Despite feeling warm, Sam shivered. Quilava moved close enough that she leaned against his leg. He tried to pull his jacket tighter around him, but no matter how he moved his arms, its bright colors were still visible underneath. He felt exposed, standing just past the open entrance to this large room.

“Do you feel anything here?” Professor Carolina suddenly asked.

“Uncomfortable, mostly,” Sam grumbled.

Quilava responded the same way next to him—disappointedly.

“Well, I suppose a sudden evolution here was too much to hope for,” the Professor said, chuckling. “If it were that easy, someone would have already managed to evolve a Hisuian within this temple.”

Her gaze flicked away from Sam and Quilava, returning to scan over the room. There were a series of grey pillars near the entrance that were at one point carvings or statues, but they retained no obvious shape to them after wear over the years.

“I still haven’t given you my conclusion yet,” she said quietly. “You’ve done a lot of good work so far, but everything I’ve discussed and gathered from other researchers seems to come together into a single idea.”

“And what idea is that?” Sam asked in a whisper.

“You need to work backward.”

Sam let himself digest the words before glancing back at the Professor. She didn’t turn to face him, choosing instead to continue staring out into the room.

“So far, when training up your Quilava, you’ve taken the idea of a Hisuian Typhlosion and tried to build her up to that. It’s a Ghost Type, so you’ve been training her mastery of Ghost Type moves. It’s a Hisuian Pokémon, so you’ve been learning everything you can about Hisui’s history. And, of course, since it's an evolution, you’ve been making sure Quilava becomes stronger.”

Professor Carolina shook her head.

“While those are good steps, there has to be something more to it. Tell me about Hisuian Typhlosion. Other than being an extinct Pokémon, what does that species do?”

Sam had to think. The New Pokédex was sparse with its details, describing the species with only two sentences. On the other hand, the “base” Typhlosion received a full page of information, the same amount as any other species common to Johto and Kanto.

However, Sam had done his research. The gaps were easy to fill in. All of the details he’d picked up from research, his theory about a missing niche, the strange, occasional behavior Quilava had exhibited in the past, and the sole purpose the New Pokédex seemed to describe.

“Hisuian Typhlosion is...” Sam licked his lips. “The species is a sort of guide. Without Pokémon partners being common, humans didn’t often act as spiritual mediums, and the species isn’t really a ghostly ghost, more of a Pokémon that influences the Ghost Type, if that makes sense.”

Professor Carolina was looking at Sam, now. He kept talking. He knew in his gut he was close.

“When Hisuian Typhlosion were around, I think they tried to direct lost spirits. Either as a way to lead spirits into the afterlife or as a way to consume them and grant them a sort of rest," he said. "As a species, while they were around, Hisuian Typhlosion served as spirit guides.”

He waited to hear the Professor’s response, but the Professor seemed to be weighing his words, taking a moment of consideration as if she had needed that last clue for herself. Slowly, she brought her gaze back away from him and resumed looking around the room.

Briefly, Sam wondered how often she’d entered the temple, herself.

“If you want to evolve your Quilava, you need to work backward,” she said again. “Rather than fulfill some unknown quality, find some rare item, or bathe Quilava in specific environmental energies, you need to make it so she’s acting as a Hisuian Typhlosion before she’s even evolved.

“By piling together as many small details as you can, you have her fulfill the role of her evolved form. If you’re successful, then maybe, maybe, you might be able to trick her body into thinking she’s already a Hisuian Typhlosion. In essence, doing that might force through an evolution into the variant you seek.”

Sam glanced down at Quilava, who stared out into the temple with just as much focus as Professor Carolina herself. However, her ears were pointed up, and she was listening with rapt attention.

She was still considering the idea. Chewing on Professor Carolina’s words.

But Sam had already come to a conclusion. He knew exactly what they needed to do.

“Quilava needs to guide a ghost into its final rest,” he said. “Everything else is already fulfilled. To evolve into a Hisuian Typhlosion, she needs to fill the role of a Hisuian Typhlosion. That’s the solution to our problems and how she’ll be able to evolve.”

To Sam’s comments, the Professor just shrugged. The tense moment seemed to break at her show of forced casualness.

“Or something similar,” she offered. “Most importantly, I think she needs to do something like that by herself. As in, if you step in to assist, she’s not exactly fulfilling her evolution’s role. That’s where the challenge will be.”

Sam stayed quiet. The idea had merit, and they had already done something similar in the past.

He remembered that ghost of a Slowbro. He remembered how they had worked together to help it. And he remembered its final moments. Even now, just recalling those events, he had to fight to keep his expression neutral.

He didn’t exactly want to cry.

To make Quilava go through that again, and on her own, too...

He glanced down at her.

Her expression was serious.

He had a feeling she felt the same way he was feeling right now. In his heart, Professor Carolina’s idea rang true.

“But that’s just a theory. An evolution theory,” she said with a chuckle. “Specifically, it’s my hypothesis. We haven’t actually tested it yet!”

She laughed to herself and took a step back toward the door. Even with the mysteries of the temple around him, Sam watched her go.

“In the meantime, don’t leave the Ruins just because you got an answer. Stay here! Rest a few days! You’re surrounded by some of the foremost researchers of Johto, Sinnoh, and Hisui’s history. Hang out, talk to them, and learn everything you can,” Professor Carolina said. “Very few trainers at your level get the chance to come here. Take advantage of the opportunity you were given and use it to fuel your team’s growth.”

Sam nodded. She was right. Even if he didn’t talk to any of the resident researchers, the mountain’s environment was still great for training. It was even better now that he had clothes to resist the cold.

But they now had a plan. They had an answer. They had a specific goal they could work toward instead of flailing around and hoping for the best.

“I’ll do that,” Sam said. “Thank you. Really.”

“Ah, it was no problem. It’s always nice to use my knowledge for something practical,” Professor Carolina said with a shrug. “Feel free to linger in the temple as long as you like—there’s a Kadabra monitoring us somewhere around here—but if you do choose to stay at camp, check the cafeteria. You’ll be put on chore duty soon. Everyone has to do their share.”

She laughed again as she stepped outside. The noise of her footsteps vanished the second she passed through the entrance.

Sam crouched down to pick up Quilava, still watching the Professor go.

“Your evolution, huh?” he mumbled.

Quilava wiggled in his arms.

Now, they knew what they were doing.

Now, they could evolve her into a Hisuian Typhlosion.

But how are we supposed to find another ghost, let alone help one enter its final rest?