Previously on Pokémon FireRed:
Chapter 24: Life Finds a Way
Been so long since I've been to a new Pokémon Center.
Hmm, that's odd. But where?
Burned out mansion? That sounds ominous. And who was the Gym Leader's friend?
This island is tiny and remote. Smaller than Pallet almost. I have a weird feeling about it...
Hmm....why am I so uneasy about this place...
This must be the place everyone was talking about resurrecting fossils...I may as well check it out, even though I'm not sure how good an idea this is.
I'm sure they do. Hey...wait...that picture...
The old man in Lavender who runs the home for lost Pokémon?!? Went from experimenter to caregiver in the span of a few years, that's something...
Hmm, I see people playing with a Seel and a Tangela in here.
....you honestly don't remember fighting me over these? Okay then...
It does sound interesting, but nobody who can learn it has a move I want to get rid of for it...
Maybe someday I'll be back.
Who are you trying to convince?
So you read what others had done, and then you took the next step.
Yeah, cool, and also this guy at the Pewter Museum thinks this Amber might have some DNA...
You can tell just by looking at it what's in this bug's stomach?
This is all happening so fast and we're all running to catch up. How can we have the slightest idea what to expect?
But how can I stand in the light of new Pokédex entries and not act?
Well, as long as you're taking your time and not rushing.
Oh wait, I forgot to ask you something. Before you start, can I...
....I've been gone literally fifteen seconds...
.....you just have these ready-made, don't you?
Fine, give them here.
I mean that's kind of the shape, right?
[[Nilbog Notes:
Kabuto
#140
Rock/Water
"A Pokémon that was resurrected from a fossil found in what was once the ocean floor eons ago"
While its stats don't support its typing and movepool as much as its counterpart, I always really loved Kabuto and its evolution far better, and I always pick up the Dome Fossil (except for the very first time I played and didn't know which fossil was which).]]
Not the Dark Lord from Tolkien's books, but the Marvel Comics Pterosaur-man....who canonically named himself after the Dark Lord from Tolkien's books...
[[Nilbog Notes:
Aerodactyl
#142
Rock/Flying
"A ferocious prehistoric Pokémon that goes for the enemy's throat with serrated saw-like fangs."
One of my favorite Pokémon. It's movepool improves in each Gen though it takes a while to reach its full potential.
I adore fossil Pokémon in general, and the only reason neither of these two were candidates for my team in this run is because rather than being revieced at Level 30 like in Generation 1, in these games you get them at Level...5. Yes, we have the Experience Share, but damn. You'd either have to find a way to sequence-break by coming here before doing the seaside routes and Saffron, or just keep them in your back pocket until the final stretch.]]
So now that's over and done with, let's check up on the Gym here.
Sounds fiery to me...
About what I expected, but worth a try.
*deep exhale* All right guys, hold onto your butts.
This place is even more run down than the Power Plant. There's burns everywhere, a huge part of the ceiling is exploded. Some of these pieces of furniture are in shapes that they should not be...
And these keep popping down.
Surgeon General's Warning: Smoking irrevocably messes up your body in a number of really gross ways and nicotine makes it addictive so don't ever freaking start we've been over this for decades, come on now.
[[Nilbog Notes:
Koffing
#109
Poison
"Because it stores several kind of toxic gasses in its body, it is prone to exploding without warning."
Never been a huge fan of Koffing in general, but it evokes feelings of nostalgia in me because of it and its evolution's prominence in the anime.]]
This was in a smashed display case...
Let's clear some more air...
Oh, and don't think vaping is any better. It started as trying to be a step down from smoking to quitting, but it still carries addictive nicotine and health risks. Don't even start, Seriously, do we need to bring back the lame anti-smoking specials from the late 80s and early 90s?
[[Nilbog Notes:
Weezing
#110
Poison
Evolves from Koffing at Level 35
"Where two kinds of poison gasses meet, two Koffngs can fuse into Weezing over many years"
They just always look like they're in massive pain. I feel bad.]]
I should explore thoroughly here before heading upstairs.
I just snuck up on this thing fighting with a Growlithe.
Leader of the rats indeed.
[[Nilbog Notes:
Raticate
#020
Normal
Evolves from Ratatta at Level 20
"It uses its whiskers to maintain its balance. It apparently slows down if they are cut off."
Raticate is in a weird place where it's really tough to fight against at the levels when they start throwing it at you,but using one yourself gets tough because it's stats don't necessarily support the admittedly massive movepool.]]
I didn't think there's be anyone else in here, but if the Gym key is in here I can't be the only one looking for it.
Now to check out this statue. I don't think I've ever seen a Pokémon like that before. It's...majestic, but unnerving...
Hey, there was a gate there that's gone now...
Wow, these statues must be connected. I should see what is or isn't open before switching them off.
I mean I can't fault you for looting a ruin like this. That's what I do.
That was lucky, not taking another chance with this flower.
Thanks, but I think I kinda figured it out.
Hmm, have to come back up this way after.
Ooooh ruined books in abandoned buildings are never a good sign...
Why haven't I heard of this? Also, why is this chair stuck to the floor?
[[Nilbog Notes:
#088
Poison
"Appears in filthy areas. Thrives by sucking up polluted sludge that is pumped out of factories."
Grimer is disgusting, but its sprites and artwork are oddly endearing. In Blue and LeafGreen, the encounter rates of Koffing and Grimer are switched, and you can find Muk instead of Weezing.]]
This little alcove next.
Okay, next room then.
Definitely haven't heard of a Mew. Sounds cute. But I still have a bad feeling about this...
Thi Pokémon has a vaguely catlike look about it...
I can see this staricase only leads to a little broken-apart section, so I'll have to find another way up to explore the rest.
I think I saw another looter on the floor before.
Live birth? But I thought Pokémon hatched from eggs. Ugh, the hair stood up on the back of my neck. Mew'Two'...I feel like that lab might have had something to do with this. Genetic power is the most awesome force the planet's ever seen, and they wield it like a kid that found their parent's gun.
Okay, back down and into that alcove I just opened up.
Ooh, more stairs. Perfect
Okay, take out this switch.
Spared no expense, I bet.
Short them out before they electrocute me, that's my motto.
Those are some holes there, dang. Okay, that little hole takes me to a floor I've been to, but I don't recognize the area in the biggest hole. But before I CLIMB DOWN CAREFULLY, thank you...
That was worth it. Now...
I could ask the same of you!
All right, do you know where the Gym Key is before I kill myself jumping through more floors?
Okay, there's a backdoor over there so I can get out later, but first, let's keep going down this time.
Wow, this place looks like a lab, but the equipment is older. The equipment that isn't smashed to smithereens anyway.
I see glass tubes and smashed PCs here....
Where something bad happened...
The journal over here is hastily scrawled, its pages singed and stained with what I unfortunately suspect to be dried blood...
It may seem odd that I'm saying this while carrying living creatures in tiny capsules but...if there's one thing the history of evolution has taught us, it's that life will not be contained. Life breaks free, it expands to new territories and crashes through barriers. Painfully, perhaps even dangerously, but...there it is.
I have a new theory about some of the strange happenings I've been privy to lately. Mewtwo...
Uh oh, there's still something in that canister over there!
I may as well try to get it into a better lab environment (Oak strikes me as someone who would never do anything like this). So, let's have Drake do his thing to help - what is it doing?
They're quite silly-looking, actually.
[[Nilbog Notes:
Ditto
#132
Normal
"Capable of copying an enemy's genetic code to instantly transform into a duplicate of the enemy."
Two things elevated Ditto from just an interesting but disposable gimmick mon. 1. Starting in Gen 2, Ditto can breed with any breedable mon allowing you to clone rare Pokémon. 2. It was realized that Ditto has the same height and weight as Mew, and is the only Pokémon other than Mew to learn Transform by level up. Coupled with the fact they are found HERE, it opens up interesting dark implications of its origins.]]
Gah! Eyes in the dark!
The lack of humility before nature that's being displayed here staggers me.
Because you startled me and said a stupid thing.
Okay, let's get the hell out of here.
Okay, this has easily been the single creepiest place I've visited in my journey, and it raises some very unsettling questions and ideas in my head.
Let's clear them with a Gym battle...
***
[[Nilbog Notes: This one ended up on the "very late" side. In order to finish this story as timely as possible without suffering burnout during this tumultuous time, I'm not going to set myself to a release schedule for the rest of the run. I am going to be working on this at least one hour a day, but not forcing myself to go more than that if I'm not feeling it that day. Thus, episodes will be out when they are out.
In the meantime, here's our current party:
Tune in next time! Coming Soon (tm)]]
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