Pokémon: Above the Top-Chapter 259: Hit and Run

Actually, Sato had initially intended for Mark to use his special ability to "sense" whether this trip would be worth it.

But seeing his current state, Sato had already given up hope.

Then let's just go.

Once the three finished their discussion, Steven walked over. "So, have you decided?"

"We have. We're going."

"Mark and Joseph too? The Seafloor Cavern could be filled with unknown dangers, you..."

The meaning was obvious. Steven hadn't originally planned to include Joseph and Mark, worried they might not be able to protect themselves.

"My teammates are all strong. You don't need to worry. If they weren't coming, I wouldn't have agreed either," Sato said softly.

"Alright then. I'll have someone pick you up tomorrow, we'll head straight down in a submarine. I'll prepare all the supplies you don't need to worry about anything," Steven replied, taking full responsibility for the cost and logistics.

"Sounds good. Do it however you think best." Since they'd chosen to cooperate, Sato saw no need to be polite.

After the conversation wrapped up, it was about lunchtime. They enjoyed a delicious meal at Steven's house before heading back to the Pokémon Center.

There, Sato asked the ever-reliable Nurse Joy to help prepare three sets of diving suits and some diving equipment.

While the chances of Steven turning on them were close to none, one could never be too careful. After all, they really didn't know each other that well.

That night, Sato finally managed to get in touch with Lance, who had just returned from a mission.

Lance didn't seem to mind at all that Sato planned to share part of the Mega Evolution research with Steven.

"If he's not the first to know about Mega Evolution, being second or third makes no difference. Do whatever you want."

Sato nodded in acknowledgment, though something about Lance's tone made him feel like there was more hidden between the lines.

"By the way, did your clan agree to trade me the Tyranitar Mega Stone?"

"The clan head agreed, yes... but it still depends on what you can offer in return. If it's worthless, no deal."

"A Mega Stone that's very valuable to your clan... and a piece of intel." Sato had already decided on his offer.

"A Mega Stone that's valuable to us? Is it a Dragon-type one?" Lance's eyes lit up in excitement.

"Uh... it's a 'Gyaradosite'. I know a bit about your clan's situation," Sato teased a little.

Although the Dragon Clan was known as the "Dragon Masters", true Dragon-types were rare. They mostly used oseudo-Dragon-type Pokémon.

Among them, Gyarados had the highest usage, practically every member had one.

"Ahem... So Gyarados can Mega Evolve too? That's definitely good news," Lance said, a bit flustered at first, but then realized something was off.

"But wait... you didn't have a 'Gyaradosite' before, did you?"

"Actually, the first Mega Stone I ever obtained was a Gyaradosite. Don't believe me? After Mega Evolution, Gyarados changes from Water + Flying to Water + Dark."

"It loses its Flying type?" Lance was in disbelief, only now realizing just how valuable that Mega Stone would be to their clan.

"Yep. Gone!"

The double damage from type weakness was already deadly, and Gyarados was four times weak to Electric-type moves.

Its massive size also made it hard to dodge those high-speed Electric-type attacks, its vulnerability was obvious.

Moreover, Gyarados could only learn two Flying-type moves total, and one of them was the utterly useless Bounce.

So in the eyes of many, the Flying-type was like a shackle placed by Arceus to hold Gyarados back. Doing more harm than good.

But after Mega Evolution, Gyarados lost its Flying-type and gained the much more practical Dark-type. It was a qualitative leap.

"This Mega Stone is really important for us. Now I can't wait to hear what information you have."

"It's a bit complex. You should come see me in person if you have time. It's better said face to face."

"That serious? I happen to have a couple days off, so I'll come find you," Lance replied without pressing further.

"Not now. I'm heading out to explore a place completely off the grid. I'll contact you when I'm back."

"...Flirting and running? What about my dignity?" Lance muttered dramatically.

Sato curled his lips into a grin and hung up.

---

Their day off passed quickly. On the day of departure, Steven's team showed up at the Pokémon Center at 7 a.m. to pick them up and head to the shore.

After circling around Mossdeep City for a while, they arrived at Steven's private beach, where a submarine awaited.

It wasn't large, only four crew members operated it. Steven, Sato, and the other two had already changed into their dive gear, ready to depart at any moment.

The submarine slowly descended. Through the massive glass viewport, they enjoyed a stunning view of the underwater ecosystem.

Schools of Remoraid swam alongside the submarine, as if something about it was drawing them in.

Groups of rare Luvdisc also occasionally passed by, but all Sato could think of was how many of them might be hiding Heart Scales on their bodies.

Wailmer, Gorebyss, Starmie, Huntail... countless ocean-dwelling Pokémon dazzled the travelers.

"Better not let Pichu know how pretty the ocean is," Sato muttered while admiring the view.

Since this trip was deep-sea territory, bringing Pichu wasn't practical. So Sato had temporarily left it in Nurse Joy's care.

But as the submarine sank deeper, the number of Pokémon around began to drop dramatically. Aside from the occasional Tentacool or Chinchou, the surroundings darkened rapidly.

With the marine spectacle gone, none of them kept watching outside like wide-eyed kids.

"Steven, how long until we reach the destination?" Sato turned his attention to the serious matter.

"Estimated travel time is thirty-six hours. If you get tired, feel free to rest. There's a computer and a game console in the rooms if you get bored."

"A game console?!" Mark's eyes lit up. Without another word, he dashed back to the room.

The deep-sea voyage was monotonous, but a day and a half in the submarine was bearable.

Halfway through the journey, they encountered a pod of Wailord diving into the depths. The chorus of booming whale songs made everyone nervous.

Thankfully, they managed to steer clear of the Wailord and arrived at their destination right on schedule.

As they gazed at the pitch-black cavern ahead, illuminated only by the sub's spotlight, Mark shivered and said, "Are we... really going in there?"

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.