The Aron on the screen was a bit larger than usual, with a shining, solid gold shell instead of its typical silver-white hue. It wasn't just any kind of gold—it was bright, almost glowing, like it was radiating light on its own. (The Aggron color scheme in the game was always so ugly)
"I finally got it. All this time, it wasn't a waste." John muttered to himself.
Although it had taken him half a month to find it, his luck had held out. No other Pokemon had appeared shiny during that time.
John took a deep breath, ready for the battle. But he knew the real challenge wasn't over yet.
Catching a shiny Pokemon wasn't as easy as it seemed—before he caught it, it wasn't truly "caught."
"Come on, how many unlucky trainers have encountered a shiny, only to have it run away, or worse, kill itself? Luckily, I've never had that happen... Well, at least I haven't yet. Ugh... Why does that thought suddenly make me sad?"
The usual Pokeball wouldn't be strong enough to hold Aron. For a Pokemon this special, John planned to use a Premier Ball after catching it. Unfortunately, Premier Balls weren't available in this world—at least, not the way John was used to them. So he would just have to settle for his own unique version of the Premier Ball.
John threw the first Great Ball. It wobbled, but Aron broke free and used Tackle.
"Not great," John sighed, but at least Aron hadn't dealt any major damage yet. However, he couldn't afford to let his guard down. If he encountered a shiny Beldum next time, he might not be able to catch it, but at least it would end up knocking itself out.
He threw the second Great Ball. This time, Aron nearly broke free again, and it used Tackle once more.
The third time was the charm. The ball wobbled three times, and the red light flashed before the ball clicked shut.
"Phew." John exhaled in relief.
Every time he encountered a shiny Pokemon, his heart raced. It didn't matter if he didn't plan to train it—he could always store it in the Pokemon storage, but that rush never changed.
John quickly saved his progress before releasing Aron from the ball.
The moment Aron landed, a loud "crack" sounded, and John watched in disbelief as the floor beneath Aron broke into pieces.
"Aron~~" Aron cried happily, completely oblivious to the damage it had caused.
John's lips twitched. He'd just had the floor repainted a week ago, and now it was cracked. It felt like he was studying decoration instead of breeding Pokemon. But Aron wasn't at fault—after all, it had been born in the wild, where this kind of roughness was normal.
Still, the floor damage made John wonder about its Ability.
He quickly pulled up Aron's stats to check.
[Aron (Steel, Rock-Type)-Shiny]
[Ability: Heavy Metal (Doubles the Pokemon's weight)]
[Individual Values: HP (31), Attack (31), Special Attack (27), Defense (31), Special Defense (31), Speed (26)]
[Moves: Tackle, Harden, Metal Claw, Rock Tomb, Roar, Headbutt,Iron Tail]
[Held Item: Hard Stone]
John smirked. Aron's stats were impressive, especially with 4 IVs in critical areas like stamina, attack, and defense. The Heavy Metal ability was expected, too.
Normally, an Aron weighs around 120 pounds. But this one—this shiny Aron—was likely heavier, at least 150 pounds. With the Heavy Metal ability, its weight had probably doubled, bringing it to over 300 pounds. No wonder it had broken the floor.
But the weight wasn't the only thing the Heavy Metal ability affected—it also boosted strength and endurance.
As Aron evolved into Lairon, then Aggron, the weight it carried would only increase. But that would only make it stronger over time.
John chuckled, imagining the future. "If one day, Aron loses its Heavy Metal ability, I wonder just how powerful it could become. It's going to be a beast."
Afterward, John took the Hard Stone from Aron. It was a treasure-level item that granted a 27% boost, which saved him 14 million. Another pleasant surprise!
"Welcome to the team, Aron." John said, tossing a Pokeblock. He smiled as his other Pokemon came over to claim their share of the reward.
Makuhita was the first to show up, waddling out from the living room and raising its head to get fed.
Delibird and Togepi, still off work, were peering through the window, drooling at the sight of the Pokeblock.
"Come on, you two." John called, and Togepi immediately hopped over with small, eager steps.
"Toge-togepi" Togepi squeaked, as if to say thanks. Delibird followed, taking a few more steps before joining in.
After everyone had their share, John got back to business. He equipped Aron with an Exp. Share and began training it up for its future role in his team.