"Hmm? The trail markings disappear right here?" Steven muttered, staring down at the hole at his feet.
There were no navigation marks anywhere on the surrounding cave walls anymore.
"And there aren't any stairs leading down either, so this must be a new opening that formed after a recent cave collapse..." Steven reasoned aloud.
As this realization hit him, Steven's eyes suddenly lit up with excitement!
"That means there's a very high probability of finding many undiscovered rare stones down below!" he said eagerly.
"Metang, let's go explore!"
With those words, Steven carefully estimated the distance to the bottom, then jumped directly into the dark hole without hesitation.
Thud!
Steven landed steadily on his feet, even striking what he thought was a cool, handsome pose upon landing.
"Metang!" his Pokémon called out.
Metang descended right after him. However, it decided to imitate Steven's method exactly—instead of using its natural magnetic levitation to float down gently, it chose to fall straight down and slam its metallic arms into the ground.
Crack...
Hearing an ominous sound coming from beneath his feet, Steven's confident expression immediately turned to one of alarm.
"Metang, you really don't have to copy everything I do next time—!" Steven shouted.
Suddenly, the ground beneath Steven's feet began cracking apart rapidly. He instantly lost his balance and fell through to the level below.
BANG!
"Ow, my back..." Steven groaned, lying sprawled across a pile of rubble.
Luckily, none of the sharp, pointed ends of the broken rocks were facing upward toward him. At worst, he would have some nasty bruises. At least he hadn't been impaled by any of the jagged rubble pieces.
Steven looked up to see Metang still floating suspended in its original position above. The Psychic-type's bewildered eyes met Steven's frustrated gaze.
"I..." Steven was about to curse out loud but managed to swallow the words back down.
Can't get angry... Metang didn't do it on purpose... He reminded himself to stay calm.
Steven took several deep breaths, carefully working to adjust his emotions and regain his composure.
Only then did he properly realize that this lower level was actually about four or five meters below where Metang was currently hovering.
"That's pretty high. Is my physical condition actually this good?" Steven wondered aloud, feeling somewhat incredulous.
Although people in this world generally had naturally higher physical capabilities than one might expect—there were even legendary martial arts masters who could fight Pokémon bare-handed—Steven really didn't think his own physical strength had developed to this exceptional level through simple training alone.
He propped himself up with one hand to stand, only to realize he had pressed down on something unexpectedly soft beneath his palm.
"Hmm?" Noticing the unusual texture against his hand, Steven immediately looked down.
In the beam of his headlamp's light, he could clearly see a Pokémon lying underneath him.
It looked somewhat like a small yellow doll, with a distinctive long, black, large jaw-like appendage growing from the back of its head.
"Uh, this looks like a Mawile, doesn't it?" Steven said with recognition.
He quickly scrambled to his feet, rubbing his sore backside as he stood up.
"No wonder only my back and butt hurt when I fell..." he muttered, putting the pieces together.
"My sincere apologies," Steven said respectfully.
He pressed his palms together in a gesture of apology toward the unconscious Pokémon. Then he moved closer to carefully check on the Mawile's condition.
Fortunately, it had only fainted from the impact and wasn't seriously injured otherwise.
Steven "considerately" swept away the loose rubble that was pressing down on the small Pokémon's body. He then gently dragged it over to lean against the nearby cave wall, positioning it safely out of the way to prevent other wild Pokémon from accidentally stepping on it while passing through.
After finishing these tasks, he finally called down to Metang above.
"How long are you planning to just hover up there?!" Steven shouted upward.
"Metang?" his Pokémon responded with confusion.
Didn't you specifically tell me not to copy you? What do you want me to do?
Steven pulled out a Potion spray from his bag and had Metang apply it to his various wounds and bruises several times.
He immediately felt much more refreshed and the pain subsided considerably.
"I honestly can't even imagine how monstrously strong those people who can actually fight Pokémon hand-to-hand must be," Steven mused aloud.
He himself was bruised and battered all over from a simple fall, while the Mawile he'd landed on was completely fine despite cushioning his entire impact.
Steven gripped his trusty pickaxe firmly and began leaving clear marks on the cave walls at regular intervals. This would help him avoid getting hopelessly lost on his way back out later.
When it came to the cave's intricate network of branching passages and openings, Steven simply decided to trust his instincts. He would choose whichever path felt right at first glance and go with the flow.
"Wait, what?!" Steven suddenly stopped in his tracks.
He stared intently into the darker depths of the cave ahead, where an unusual, mysterious glow was emanating from the shadows.
It looked exactly like the beautiful light that would be emitted by a precious gemstone!
Just as Steven excitedly moved closer, using his flashlight's beam to illuminate the area and see the full picture more clearly, he discovered that the source was actually a Pokémon with a distinctive purple body and what appeared to be crystalline gems growing naturally on its eyes and chest.
"Ah? So it's just a Sableye..." Steven said, his excitement deflating instantly.
He watched as the startled Sableye hurriedly scampered away into the darkness. With nothing else to do, Steven had no choice but to continue moving forward.
By all logical reasoning, there should be many high-quality stones and valuable mineral deposits deep within Granite Cave's lower levels.
So why hadn't he encountered even a single one anywhere along his path?
Could it be that he would have to dig even deeper into the cave system?
That shouldn't be necessary! Most of the Pokémon living in these caves literally ate rocks and minerals as their primary food source. There should at least be some exposed ore veins visible somewhere.
Just as Steven was beginning to feel genuinely disheartened by the complete lack of ore deposits, a faint gnawing sound echoed from somewhere around the corner up ahead.
Steven immediately began tiptoeing carefully along the cave wall, trying to move as quietly as possible. He widened his flashlight beam's angle and lowered its brightness significantly to avoid startling whatever Pokémon was making that noise.
Having made all necessary preparations for stealth, Steven cautiously peeked around the corner to spy on whatever was there.
He spotted a small, silver-colored figure earnestly biting down on a perfectly round, smooth, transparent stone.
No matter how hard it bit or chewed, the resilient stone showed absolutely no signs of wear or damage.
"Aron?" The little creature suddenly noticed the shadow being cast on the ground.
It released its bite with confusion and looked back over its shoulder, directly spotting Steven who was attempting to spy on it.
"Ah? An Aron?!" Steven blurted out in surprise. This was exactly the Pokémon species he had been actively searching for!
Aron's body and head were both pleasantly round in shape. Its limbs were short and sturdy, and it had a distinctive short horn protruding from its back. Its body was primarily dark gray in color, with six dark circular holes visible on its surface. The silver-colored parts were its natural steel armor plating.
"Aron Aron!" The little Aron immediately adopted an aggressive battle stance upon seeing this stranger intruding on its territory.
It looked completely ready to fight at a moment's notice.
"Metang, go over there and say hello," Steven instructed, turning to give his Pokémon the command.
Metang didn't fully understand what Steven's true intention was, but it was just supposed to say hello. That seemed easy enough!
Metang floated around the corner, waving its metallic arms in a friendly greeting toward the Aron.
However, Aron's light blue eyes showed an unusually resolute and determined expression.
Its short hind legs suddenly kicked backward, sending the stone it had been gnawing on flying into the darkness. Then it charged forward resolutely toward Metang without any hesitation.
Are you trying to steal my food? Absolutely not! Not on my watch!
Aron, acting just like a stubborn, possessive child, headbutted Metang directly with all its might. The impact only succeeded in bouncing itself backward across the cave floor.
Metang stood there looking thoroughly puzzled. Its eyes shifted downward to examine the spot on its body where it had just been hit.
I simply came out here to say hello politely. Why are you immediately trying to attack me?
Aron scrambled back up from the ground where it had fallen. It shook its dizzy head vigorously to clear it, then immediately charged forward again with the same determination.
It bounced off harmlessly. Got back up. Charged again. Completely ineffective. Bounced off again. And again, and again...
While watching Aron's seemingly foolish behavior repeat itself, Steven was actually carefully assessing and evaluating the wild Pokémon's various abilities and characteristics.
Its physical stamina and endurance were clearly excellent. It was just perhaps a bit too stubborn and single-minded in its approach.
Regardless of that minor personality quirk, this particular Aron—despite having its attacks fail repeatedly so many times—still persistently chose to continue attacking without giving up. That kind of indomitable spirit was genuinely commendable and impressive.
Aside from being somewhat stubborn-headed, everything else about this Aron thoroughly impressed Steven. It had real potential.
"You're the one I want, Aron!" Steven declared.
Seeing that Aron was now panting heavily from complete exhaustion, Steven simply threw a Poké Ball without any additional preparation or warning.
BANG!
The Poké Ball struck the completely unsuspecting Aron squarely, immediately pulling it inside with a flash of red light.
The Poké Ball wobbled twice on the ground as Aron struggled inside. Then suddenly, Aron broke free from the attempted capture with sheer determination. The failed Poké Ball split cleanly into two useless halves.
"Aron Aron!!!" The absolutely furious Aron cried out indignantly.
The angry Steel-and-Rock-type tried to kick the broken Poké Ball on the ground with its short legs. However, its first kick completely missed the target.
"Aron Aron?" Aron paused, looking momentarily confused.
It took two small steps forward to get closer, then once again displayed an angry, offended expression. This time it successfully kicked the failed Poké Ball pieces away into the darkness.
How dare you ambush me like that! How utterly despicable and sneaky!
Nobody is taking my precious rock away from me!!!