"Fearow, Aerial Ace! Poliwag, Bubble beam!"
Eric was currently battling a horde of ghost pokemon. Gastly, duskull, shuppet...
The moment he reached the 3rd floor, he was assaulted by numerous ghost types. Eric doesn't want to use Gastly for fights to delay his evolution. If evolution is the best moment to increase potential, then he wants to maximize it as much as he can.
Eric's current goal was the 4th floor. That's where the expert on the Gastly line lives. He wants to ask him the best materials for Gastly to increase his potential.
The third floor mostly has beginner level Pokemon. The higher he goes, the stronger the Pokémon.
Eric stayed on the third floor for an hour. In this hour, they've fought about 100 Pokemon. Both Fearow and Poliwag leveled up. Poliwag leveled up twice and reached level 20, and Fearow was level 22.
Both Pokemon had gained a lot of experience fighting much stronger Pokémon in the tournament. So now, they were in a rapid growth phase, digesting everything that they've gained.
The moment he stepped onto the fourth floor, the air changed.
The Ghost-type energy thickened, doubled, pressing against his skin like an invisible tide. It was so intense that even Eric, who normally shouldn't be able to feel it, was being affected by it.
On this floor, the Pokémon were stronger. Most still beginner, but scattered among them were intermediate‑level threats.
Eric wasn't alone though. There were many other trainers alongside him, both on this floor and the third. They were mostly Ghost type specialists. And now Eric understood why they had such a strange reputation.
There was this old woman for example, who came up to Eric, tugged his sleeve, and whispered, "I see it! Darkness. A dark future awaits…"
Then she released him and muttered the exact same words to the next trainer who passed by.
Then he saw a young girl, sitting cross legged as a Gastly floated near her. She just kept laughing creepily alongside her Gastly.
Even Eric, who prided himself on keeping his cool, felt uncomfortable.
These people are insane.
----
At the far end of the fourth floor, Eric found it, a wooden house. Just like Maverick told him.
The house was covered in strange symbols, that seemed to shift and move, the moment he averted his gaze from them. The Ghost energy around the house was also much more denser than anywhere else on this floor.
As Eric approached, the door creaked open on its own.
Of course it did.
"Hello? Is this Mr. Alka's place?"
A voice emerged from the darkness inside, low, resonant, dripping with theatrical mystery.
"You who seek me. Tell me… what is the difference between being alive and being dead?"
Black lines formed on Eric's face. From the old woman, to the laughing girl, and that creepy guy on the bench, Eric had enough of these riddles.
"Seriously?" he called out. "I'm not into philosophy. Being alive is being alive. Dead is dead. Don't complicate things. I just want to talk about Gastly."
The voice chuckled
"The answer to that...is the key to understanding ghost Pokemon. If you're not interested in that...then you have no business meeting me. "
Eric sighed. Looks like he won't be able to meet him without coming up with an answer. Besides, if it is related to Gastly, he doesn't mind gaining more information.
"Ghost Pokemon are born from the souls of Pokemon who have died, in the presence of ghost energy. In a way, these Pokemon are dead. Yet, they've been born. So they are alive as well. Is that your point? That the Ghost Pokemon are both dead or alive at the same time?"
"Bahahaha"
The mysterious tone was gone, replaced by an energetic laughter.
"Well, that's a start. The existence of Ghost Pokemon puts into question what being dead or beling alive means. If you're training Ghost Pokemon, it's important to think about this. Now come on in."
The door swung open the rest of the way, and Eric stepped inside.
---
The inside of the house was surprisingly normal. There were no strange ghostly things as Eric expected. Just a normal urban house. He then saw Alka, who emerged from the back room and walked towards him.
The only thing that wasn't normal in this house was his appearance.
A long black witch's hat, pointed and slightly crumpled, A black robe embroidered with a strange gold symbol, long gray hair that curled and twisted as if they had a mind of their own, a golden monocle over his left eye, a necklace, and a bracelet, both having strange symbols carved into them.
"Are you Mr. Alka? I heard about you from a guy named Maverick, that you're an expert on the Gastly line, and I wanted your guidance on something."
Alka walked towards Eric. He was tall, so he dramatically bent down, his face inches away from Eric's.
"To demand something," he said softly, "you must offer something of equal value. What do you have for me?"
"…Not much. I can pay you with a tier 2 Ghost crystal."
"That's something of no use for me." He waved his hand dismissively.
He turned and moved towards the fireplace, his face unreadable.
"Here's my offer, boy. I'll tell you what you want to know. In return, you do something for me. Not now. Later. In the future"
Eric opened his mouth, but Alka cut him off.
"Before you refuse, don't worry. I won't ask anything unreasonable. And if you don't want to do it at that time, you can say no. I'll still tell you what you want, if you agree right now."
Eric's eyes narrowed. "That sounds too good to be true. I get the information for free if I reject your favor later. What's the catch?
"No catch." Alka shrugged. "It's a gamble I'm taking, that you'll pay your debts."
Eric considered. It was a good deal. Suspiciously good. But he needed that information now.
"…Deal."
"Bahaha! Knew you had sense!"
Alka's entire demeanor shifted. The mystery melted away, replaced by the manic energy of an overly energetic old man.
Now, let me see your Gastly!"
He pointed dramatically at Eric's shadow.
Slowly, hesitantly, Gastly emerged from the darkness, hovering beside Eric.
Alka circled around him like a mad scientist looking at his new specimen.
"Ohoho… quite the potential you've got here. He's close to evolving, isn't he? That's why you came. You want to know the best resources."
Eric nodded.
"Hmm. First, Take this."
Alka pulled a worn, leather‑bound book from one of his shelves and thrust it into Eric's hands. The cover had no title, just a name stamped in faded gold ink:
Alka Korvet
"This contains years of my research on the Gastly line. It is not all of it, but it is a damn good starting point."
Eric stared at the book. Most trainers guarded their insights like state secrets. No elite family, for example, would just hand out what made them strong. Even if it is incomplete, to just give something like this away…
"Are you sur-"
"It's fine. It's not even close to all my insights. Consider it a down payment on our arrangement."
Eric took the book and stored it in his spatial watch.
Alka then smiled.
"Now, for the reason you came to meet me...tell me kid. Why does Lavender Town have such a high concentration of Ghost energy?"
"...Isn't it because of the Pokemon Tower?"
"That's what most people assume." Alka's voice dropped back into that mysterious cadence.
"But Lavender Town was thick with Ghost energy long before the tower was built. The real source… lies in the Lavender Woods."
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