The next day.
On the beach by Bill's Lighthouse.
Giselle and Suzie were sprawled out on deck chairs in their swimsuits, soaking up the sun.
Not far from them, Tyranitar and Charizard were stretched out, "sleeping" side-by-side. Charizard was in a deep sleep following its breakthrough, while Tyranitar was quietly absorbing the faint Fire element that Charizard radiated after its advancement. He could never master Fire himself, but elemental energy was the most powerful force in this world—there was no harm in exposing oneself to it as much as possible.
The one suffering the most was Pikachu. While everyone else relaxed, Pikachu was still toiling away under Silas's watchful eye, running laps on the shore with a weighted belt. And not just running—he was bounding on his tail instead of his feet, so all his weight pressed down on his tail, giving it extra bounce training.
The ordeal was tough. Each time Pikachu finished a lap, he would cast a longing glance at Tyranitar and Charizard, then shoot Silas a resentful look, as if to say: Why do we all have the same Trainer, but such totally different treatment...?
Silas, of course, noticed Pikachu's complaints, but chose to ignore them. If it were before, maybe he would have given Pikachu a break, but things were different now. With Tyranitar on his team at last, he was ready to kick off his wild new plan—a plan that simply had no place for Pikachu the God. So if Pikachu wanted to remain, he had to get stronger—as quickly as possible!
"Suzie," Giselle couldn't help but feel sorry for the miserable Pikachu. Lying on her chair, she turned to Suzie and asked, "Does Silas always train Pikachu like this? Can a Pokémon with Pikachu's low base stats even take it?"
"It can," Suzie nodded.
"Why?" Giselle was genuinely confused.
"Because of its Trainer." Suzie gave a warm smile as she explained, "The kind of Pokémon you have depends on the kind of Trainer you are. Silas is incredibly selective, so every one of his Pokémon is freakishly gifted."
"..."
Suzie's answer left Giselle speechless, but she honestly couldn't find any argument against it.
The rest of Silas's Pokémon really were special. One was Tyranitar, the so-called guardian of Kanto, and the other a Charizard who reached the peak of Champion power in just five years. To command either, you wouldn't bother with a run-of-the-mill Pikachu—unless that Pikachu was something extraordinary.
While Giselle and Suzie chatted, Tyranitar stirred. It lumbered over to Silas. "Trainer."
"Hm?" Silas turned, a bit puzzled. "What is it?"
"Nothing in particular." Tyranitar hesitated, then continued: "I just think the way you're training Pikachu might not be ideal, so..."
Tyranitar trailed off. No Trainer likes being criticized on their methods, especially not by their own Pokémon. If Tyranitar wasn't genuinely concerned about the way Pikachu was suffering, it never would have spoken up.
"Go on."
"Here's the thing..." Seeing Silas's face hadn't darkened, Tyranitar relaxed and spoke up, "I specialize in the power of earth. While I'm not quite at the level of a Legendary Pokémon, I can generate a localized gravity field—and continually adjust the gravity right at Pikachu's limit, so he's always at peak training intensity."
"Pikachu~" Pikachu collapsed right there on the sand. This kind of weight training was already torture; he couldn't even imagine how he'd survive if things got even tougher. He tried to run over to Silas to protest.
But Silas was already questioning Tyranitar: "You're sure this won't cause any lasting harm to Pikachu?"
"Absolutely," Tyranitar said with conviction. "Anything within my gravity field is fully under my control. I can adjust according to breathing and other vital signs."
Silas was stunned. If anything, he wanted to hug Tyranitar right there—this ability was almost more valuable than Tyranitar's battle power. With enough crystals, Silas could mass-produce Champion-tier Pokémon!
If Silas could create a Champion army, even the Legendary Pokémon would turn and run.
Of course, that was just wishful thinking. Every Champion-tier Pokémon needed at least one top-grade crystal to groom. And to get one to the very summit would take two crystals. With Silas's current crystal income, forming a full-blown Champion army was just impossible.
"Tyranitar..." Tyranitar mistook Silas's silence for displeasure and apologized: "If my suggestion upset you, I'm sorry."
"Not at all!" Silas shook his head immediately, looking at Tyranitar with utter seriousness. "I'm not that petty. I was only thinking things over. I'll leave Pikachu's training to you from now on!"
"No problem," Tyranitar answered solemnly.
"Pikachu~"
Listening to Silas and Tyranitar, Pikachu let out a feeble whimper from the sand. He was completely defeated—Silas and Tyranitar hadn't considered his feelings at all, and had already sealed his fate...
Ten days passed.
The evening sun glowed on the horizon, casting its last rays over the beach, turning the sand into gold.
On that sun-drenched beach, Silas quietly enjoyed the sea breeze while fishing, with Tyranitar and Pikachu sitting on either side, keeping him company. Charizard slept a little ways off. Suzie and Giselle were busy with dinner prep for four people and three Pokémon. Since it was a barbecue, even Giselle was willing to help out.
Everyone was focused on their own tasks, reluctant to disturb that rare moment of peace.
Suddenly, a cry echoed from the far side of the beach: "My Krabby!!!"
He's finally here.
The corners of Silas's mouth lifted as he fished, a spark of anticipation in his eyes.
He'd stayed at Bill's Lighthouse mainly for one thing: the legendary, ancient giant Dragonite said to be a thousand years old. After a millennium, even a pig would become a monster—let alone a Dragonite! Who knew what kind of abilities that Dragonite possessed?
While Silas ran over the Dragonite data in his mind, Ash and his friends arrived.
"Silas!" Ash's spirits soared at the sight of Silas on the beach, and he ran over with excitement.
"Long time no see." Silas smiled, greeting Ash as he came closer.
"Yeah!" Ash nodded eagerly. "What are you doing here?"
"Waiting for you."
"Waiting for me?" Silas's answer left Ash confused for a second, then his face split into a grin: "I get it! Silas, you want to travel with us, don't you?"
"No, not at all." Silas shook his head and changed the subject before Ash could press further. He couldn't exactly say, "You're just lucky and stumble onto things most people never see, and the Pokémon I want is right here, so I'm waiting for you." Instead, he said, "I thought I heard you mention Krabby?"
"Oh, right." At the mention of Krabby, Ash's excitement faded to anxiety. "I caught a Krabby just now on the beach, but it was sent straight to Professor Oak's lab. I'm worried that he might have cooked it for dinner..."
Cooked it...
Ash's concern made Silas's mouth twitch. His Grandpa had spent years campaigning against anyone ever eating Pokémon, so there was no way he'd do that. But Silas didn't bother explaining—sometimes it was easier just to check. Plus, it had been a long time since he'd called his Grandpa, so he said to Ash, "Want to give my Grandpa a call?"
"Sure!" Ash nodded eagerly.
Seeing this, Silas turned to Misty and Brock. "Want to join us and make a call?"
"No, thanks," both declined politely. Brock gestured to Suzie and Giselle. "We'll help get dinner ready."
...
At Bill's Lighthouse.
The call connected quickly.
"Professor Oak!" Ash was the first to shout hello.
"Hello, Ash." Professor Oak grinned at the video screen. "You seem excited—what's the matter?"
"Nothing, really..." Ash shook his head quickly, then blurted out, "Professor Oak, you haven't... you didn't eat the Krabby I sent you, did you?"
"Krabby?" Professor Oak instantly remembered. He grabbed a little aquarium from the side and held it up to the camera. "See? Your Krabby is right here."
"Great!" Ash exhaled in relief at the sight of Krabby safe in the aquarium. Silas, on the other hand, could only shake his head. He knew this Krabby was dramatically underdeveloped, but seriously, why keep it in the smallest tank? Silas couldn't fathom why Ash had bothered to catch it.
"Alright, then," Professor Oak said with a warm smile, "Anything else, Ash?"
"Nope, that's it." Ash shook his head.
"Well, then I'll hang—"
"Grandpa." Just before Oak could hang up, Silas hurried to get Ash's attention and grabbed the handset. "Ash, would you mind heading outside for a minute? I need to talk to my Grandpa alone."
"Sure," Ash agreed, urging, "But don't take too long."
"I won't."
Silas nodded, waiting until Ash was gone before turning back to the monitor—with an apologetic smile. Professor Oak's face, though, had turned stormy. Clearly, Oak was not happy.
"Hi, Grandpa." Silas greeted him sheepishly.
"Hmph!" Professor Oak snorted, icy as could be. "Why would I be fine? You haven't called me in over half a month! Have you forgotten you even have a grandfather?"
"Not at all!" Silas replied quickly, guilt in his voice. "I'll make sure to call you every time I get to a new place!"
"Hmph." Professor Oak's frown gradually lightened, though he was far from pleased. "So? What do you need?"
"Well..." Silas's voice turned serious as he got to the point. "Here's the thing—tonight, I need you to help me arrange..."