"Whoa, it's really cold."
They stepped into the Seafoam Islands and the chill hit on the very first floor.
Even in a down jacket, Green hugged herself and shivered.
She glanced at Grey, who only wore a long-sleeved shirt, and blinked. "You're not cold?"
"I'm fine. Feels like it's warming up already."
Without a fuss, Grey sent out Blaziken. It understood at once—flames rolled off its hands, pushing back the cold and lifting the temperature around them.
"Ahh—yeah, that, that's perfect. So comfy~"
Green squinted into a pleased smile, sinking into the warmth.
"Careful. The locals don't look friendly…"
Grey stepped in front of Green, scanning the Pokémon closing in and touching the Poké Balls at his belt.
In the wide cavern, Blaziken was one of the few sources of light.
Which, of course, drew a crowd.
Mixed in with Ice- and Water-types were others—like a Nidoqueen.
"Nido…"
Nidoqueen took a step forward, pressure rolling off it in a wave. It was no weaker than Blaziken—looked like a dead even match.
Fighting here wouldn't be wise.
"We don't mean you any harm."
Grey hitched his backpack forward and, like pulling off a magic trick, produced a handful of Wiki Berries.
There was nowhere to grow trees inside or around the Seafoam Islands; the moment those berries appeared, every eye locked on them.
They wanted a taste…
Grey saw the hunger in their eyes.
He chuckled, gave his arm a light shake, and a hundred little gazes followed the motion.
"Want some?"
He set the berries on the ground, still smiling.
"Ehhh—Grey, you look so sketchy right now~"
To Green, he looked like some weirdo sweet-talking kids over to see his goldfish—like he'd done this before.
She edged half a step back, then felt the cold wind tear past and sidled right up again.
When the roof hangs low, you bow your head.
"You don't get it. This is called building rapport with the locals."
Grey shot her a look.
Sketchy? Please.
This is called greasing the wheels.
"Nido!"
Nidoqueen bent down, grabbed a berry, and popped it into her mouth—three bites and it was gone.
Flavor burst across her tongue; she rubbed her cheeks, and a smile crept over her face.
Delicious.
Seeing her expression, the others could hardly wait to snatch up a Wiki Berry of their own.
"Form a line. One at a time—there's plenty."
Grey counted heads: twenty in all.
He had the stock, so he handed them out.
Everyone got one; happiness bloomed on every face.
As long as they'd lived, it was a first taste of a real tree-grown berry.
"Rio rio!" (Grey, I want one too! You've been hiding good stuff!)
Riolu nudged up to him, big eyes blinking, hopeful for a share.
"Next time. Promise."
He put the little glutton back on his shoulder and looked over the crowd again.
Satisfied now, the earlier anger was gone like smoke.
Truly, there's nothing a handful of berries can't fix.
And if there is—two handfuls.
"So, can I ask you all something?"
Grey's "fox tail" finally showed.
They glanced at each other and nodded together.
"Nido!" (Sir, please command me!)
Nidoqueen laid it on thick, a complete reversal from that earlier, imposing aura.
With a leader set, the others gathered close.
If they could speak human words, the first would've been:
"We've drifted half a lifetime, never meeting the right master! If you don't disdain us, make us yours!"
Of course, Grey wasn't here to recruit them.
"Seen a blue-looking bird fly in recently? If so, could you take me to it?"
He laid out his purpose.
"Nido?" (Blue bird? What's that?)
Nidoqueen scratched her head.
Ask about Lapras, sure—but a blue bird? She had nothing.
Not just Nidoqueen; most of them squinted in thought, trying to dredge up any memory that matched.
Then shook their heads.
"Cloy—" (No idea.)
"Slooow~" (Nope~)
A dozen voices at once—same meaning: nothing.
"Wuu! Wuu!" (I know! I've seen it!)
A clear chirp from within the herd pulled Grey's gaze.
Out hopped a round blue Pokémon with no arms. A black spiral marked its belly, and its feather-like tail swished.
Poliwag.
One of its final evolutions, Poliwrath, gained the Fighting type—one of the rarer Fighting-types in Kanto.
Poliwag bounced up to Grey, pink mouth opening and closing, urgent enough you'd think it would grab his sleeve and tug.
"Can you take me?"
Grey crouched to ask.
"Wuu!" (Of course!)
Poliwag bobbed a nod and hopped to the front to lead.
Grey followed; Green knit her brows and went too.
On the way, she tried to speak several times but couldn't find the words.
A blue bird… that's Articuno, right?!
Grey came to the Seafoam Islands to catch a Legendary bird?!
A bird… unbeatable…
Green swallowed. She wanted to shout for Grey to stop—turn back now.
"Green."
Grey spoke first; in the firelight, the hard line of his profile filled her vision. "Don't be afraid. If I'm here, nothing's going to happen to you."
"Grey…"
Her fingers pinched her collar. A thousand thoughts thinned to a single word. "Okay."
Poliwag led them down flight after flight. The dark thickened until you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.
Half an hour passed.
"Wuu!" (Over here, kind trainer!)
Poliwag stood at the rim of a pit. The bottom was lost to darkness, but the sound of running water drifted up.
"Wuu." (I saw it dive straight in. It should be below.)
To prove it wasn't lying, Poliwag jumped first—vanishing into the shaft.
Only Grey and Green remained, staring at each other.
Through aura, Grey could feel it: a powerful presence below.
But…
How were they supposed to get down?
Neither of them had a flyer.
"I—I have a Jigglypuff. I don't know if it can carry two."
Green turned, rummaged in her bag, and pulled out a Poké Ball.
A pink puffball popped out, a cute curl on its forehead.
"Let's try."
At this point, Grey figured they had to make it work.
Worst case, he still had the little glutton on his shoulder—if things went south, keeping them alive wasn't a problem.
"Jigglypuff, I'm counting on you! Use Fly!"
Green called out. Jigglypuff took a huge breath—its round body swelled several times and floated.
Grey grabbed one of its feet and eased into the shaft.
Once it was inside, Green slipped in, hugging Jigglypuff's head, and they drifted down.
The depths of the Seafoam Islands were viciously cold.
Unlike the gloom above, it was bright here.
An ice-blue great bird stood on a pillar sculpted from crystal ice, looking down on the intruders.
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