Half an hour later, Agent Zhou left. Before he did, he completed Basalt's induction into the bureau, which basically amounted to downloading an app onto his Pokédex and submitting an application. Basalt noticed, however, that his status was "intern."
"Only Professional-Rank trainers and above are official members of the Weather Bureau," Agent Zhou had explained. "You have great potential, but your strength is still too low. You'll have to be an intern for a few years."
Although he was slightly disappointed, Basalt was fine with it. From now on, he was part of an organization. Agent Zhou also gave him his contact information; he would be Basalt's handler from now on.
"Your rewards should arrive within five days. I'll make another trip to deliver them to you personally. As for the Pokémon... you're the one who asked for a pseudo-legendary, so that will have to wait until after the provincial tournament."
With that, Agent Zhou mounted a magnificent Charizard and flew away, leaving Basalt staring after him in envy. A Charizard! I should probably consider raising a Flying-type. Getting around is a pain without a flying mount.
The rewards from the Weather Bureau would arrive in five days. The rewards from the training camp, in two. For now, all he could do was wait.
Humming a little tune, he returned to his private training room. So much had happened this morning; he needed some time to process it all.
Back in his training room, Basalt released his two partners.
"Drilburr!" Drilbur appeared, full of energy. Not only had it won the battle, but it had also mastered a new burst technique for Bulldoze and learned a new move, Rock Slide. It was in high spirits. It had no idea that it was about to hit the jackpot.
"Bronz..." (╯︵╰)
In contrast to Drilbur's cheerful demeanor, Bronzor was in a terrible mood. It had trained so hard, only to be crushed again, completely powerless to fight back. Against Gastly's stealth, its powerful psychic senses had been useless.
But Bronzor had a way to increase its psychic power: Calm Mind. It knew a special, secret technique for the move, unique to its species. But the technique required a continuous, uninterrupted period of intense meditation. If it was interrupted, it would not only fail but could also cause a dangerous backlash. That was why it had never attempted it before.
But now, it felt a little risk was worth it.
"Bronz..." It glanced at the happy Drilbur, a flicker of resentment in its "eyes." If it didn't get stronger soon, it would be completely left in the dust.
After a moment of thought, it made its decision. I'll do it. So what if there's a backlash? A few weeks of paralysis? It's worth the risk. If it didn't take a chance, it would be stuck under Drilbur's shadow forever. And that, it could not tolerate. Bronzor will never be a subordinate!
"What? You're saying you need to meditate for a few days and don't want to be disturbed?" Basalt was stunned. A few days? Don't you go trying any funny business.
"Bronz..." Bronzor nodded seriously.
"This..." Basalt didn't know what to say. It seemed a little far-fetched, but Bronzor looked completely serious. And considering its mysterious origins, he figured it must have its reasons.
After getting Basalt's permission, Bronzor found a corner and began to enter a deep meditative state. Not wanting to disturb it, Basalt quietly left the training room with Drilbur.
"Looks like this training room is out of commission for a while," he sighed. That meant Drilbur would need a new place to train.
Just then, his Pokédex rang. It was Mr. Leo.
"Hello, Mr. Leo."
"Basalt, come to the B-group training room. To celebrate your promotion to Group A, I'm going to teach you a new move, if you're interested," Mr. Leo's cheerful voice came through the speaker.
A free move? Basalt couldn't refuse.
In the B-group training room, Mr. Leo was already waiting. "I knew you'd make it to Group A eventually, but I never expected it to be this fast," he said with a smile. He had thought it would take Basalt at least a few weeks to adapt to Nosepass's Gravity. But in just one week, he had not only made it to Group A but had shot straight to the upper tier. And he had learned Sandstorm? It was incredible.
"I was just lucky," Basalt said, scratching his head modestly.
"Alright, enough with the pleasantries. We may have only been teacher and student for a week, but you were still my student. As a parting gift, I'd like to teach you a claw-based move," Mr. Leo said with a smile.
It was a personal rule of his. He always gave his students a parting gift. It was a way to help them grow and to foster a good relationship. After all, the trainees in Group B were all future stars. Most of them were destined to become Professional-Rank trainers. And Basalt... his potential was even greater. He had a real shot at becoming a Gym Leader. After seeing his Drilbur's Sandstorm, he was convinced.
In seven or eight years, Basalt might be a big shot. It was a good idea to get on his good side now.
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