Geeta had first heard of Lugia because of Lucas's extraordinary actions during the Shamouti Island incident a few months ago. That piqued her curiosity and led her to research a great deal of related literature.
But—
She'd thought Lucas might know Lugia. What she hadn't expected was that he could literally summon Lugia from the seas on the other side of the planet—all the way to the waters near Paldea!
For Lugia to do something like this... What exactly was the nature and depth of their relationship? Geeta didn't even dare to guess.
Lucas felt Geeta was making a bit too much of a fuss.
Wasn't it just summoning Lugia?
If she knew he could also summon Mewtwo, and even chain-summon Mew and Calyrex's whole family, just how shocked would she be?
Honestly, this wasn't even the time to be surprised.
Lucas gave Geeta a mysteriously knowing smile, then turned to Lugia and greeted it, "You're here!"
He hadn't expected Lugia to arrive so quickly. By rights, it should have been slumbering in some deep-sea trench closest to Shamouti Island.
Maybe it was just that Lugia moved through the ocean faster than Dragonite could fly—or maybe it hadn't actually been sleeping and was already in a sea not far from Paldea. That was the only way it could have arrived within two hours.
"I'm here."
Lugia nodded gently. Its magnetic, resonant voice transmitted directly into Lucas's mind via telepathy.
That made Lucas's face light up with joy.
No matter how Lugia got here…
Wonderful! Finally, I have someone to translate!
After the Shamouti Island incident, Lugia had intended to go back to sleep. But it suddenly sensed something odd about the aura of the Sea God—subtle, flickering.
After much deliberation, Lugia decided to take the risk and visit the other's slumbering territory. Coincidentally, Lucas called for it while it was in a nearby sea, so it was able to arrive quickly.
Lugia looked around at the scene.
Geeta—ignored.
Helicopter—ignored.
Aside from Lucas, whom it acknowledged, and the half-student Dragonite, there was only this abnormally massive Dragonite left.
Not talking about combat strength, but a Dragonite whose body dwarfed its own was truly rare. The aura it gave off didn't match this era at all.
"From the look of things, you're not in danger or in need of me for battle. Is there something else?"
Lugia was wise. Without Lucas's help, it quickly deduced the situation and calmly inquired.
"Yes, I do need your help with something," Lucas nodded, his gaze falling on the huge, absent-minded Dragonite.
"It's looking for a companion, so I wanted to ask if you know anything about that."
Perhaps because it was mentioned, the huge Dragonite snapped back to attention, looking at Lugia with curiosity and hope, letting out a cry.
"Roar—?" (Do you know where my companion is—?)
"A companion?"
Lugia carefully observed the huge Dragonite, then glanced at the Dragonite Lucas rode.
So, the companion wasn't just "another Dragonite," but something else entirely.
In Lugia's mind, long-buried memories awoke. It recalled legends of colossal Pokémon from ancient times.
But compared to those beings' chaotic auras, the huge Dragonite before it was completely different.
This Dragonite appeared to have mutated by chance into its current form, but was still, at its core, a Dragonite.
So—did its companion even exist in this world?
Lugia wasn't sure. But it wouldn't lie to a junior. Sending out a wave of psychic energy, it transmitted its thoughts to Lucas, Dragonite, and the huge Dragonite.
As for Geeta and the helicopter pilot above, Lugia didn't know them, nor did it have any interest in communicating.
Though Lugia's views differed greatly from Ho-Oh's, one thing they shared: aside from a handful of humans they currently acknowledged, they still hadn't forgiven the rest of humanity.
So Lugia just… ignored them.
As the Paldea League's president, Geeta had high emotional intelligence. She could clearly sense Lugia's indifference toward her.
She didn't force herself into Lugia's presence. It didn't matter if Lugia wasn't interested in her; as long as she maintained her connection with Lucas, she'd have an indirect link to Lugia. Whether she'd need to use that in the future was another matter. Who knows, maybe she'd succeed in persuading Lugia to move from Kanto's capital to Paldea one day?
After Lucas, Dragonite, and the huge Dragonite received Lugia's psychic transmission, they fell silent for a while, digesting the information.
Disappointment flickered in the huge Dragonite's eyes. Even this white bird, which felt strangely familiar, didn't know where its companion was?
But Lucas, recalling Lugia's suggestion, asked the huge Dragonite tentatively, "Were you this big when you were born, or did you suddenly become this big?"
Huge Dragonite wasn't sure why Lucas asked, but after some thought, it managed to recall the answer.
"Roar—"
Apparently, its body had started growing uncontrollably after evolving.
Lucas's eyes widened instantly.
Could it really be, just as Lugia guessed, that the huge Dragonite mutated into this form all of a sudden?
If memory served, there was a Tentacruel in the Kanto region near Porta Vista that mutated after evolving—growing even taller than a building and able to lead a swarm of Tentacruel to flood a city!
Would that Tentacruel count as a companion to the huge Dragonite?
That would depend on how the huge Dragonite defined "companion."
With that in mind, Lucas had Lugia relay his message to the huge Dragonite.
To think there was, somewhere in the world's oceans, another Pokémon perhaps as big as itself…
The huge Dragonite's eyes immediately lit up.
But Lucas's question sent it deep into thought.
It had searched for a companion for so long, but had never really considered what kind of companion it wanted.
Maybe, as long as the other was as big as itself and not so fragile, that would be enough.
"Then, for now, let me take it with me," Lugia said, flapping its wings and glancing at the huge Dragonite obediently waiting in the sea.
"If you need me, just summon me with the Silver Wing. I shouldn't be returning to my usual waters for a while—I'll be in a different sea nearby."
"Alright, got it."
Lucas nodded gently.
In the end, Lugia, the huge Dragonite, and Lucas reached an agreement.
Lugia would take the huge Dragonite to roam the seas together, while Lucas would search for the giant Tentacruel and take care of other important matters.
The Tentacruel's location would be easy to find—if Lucas was willing to "cheat."
But the other important matter would take some time.
"Roar~"
Despite the pain, the huge Dragonite plucked two scales from an important spot under its neck and handed them to Lucas.
"Wasn't just one enough? And—"
Lucas stared at the scales, each about half his size, momentarily at a loss.
These could be made into shields!
Fortunately, Lugia, as a legendary Psychic Pokémon, though it couldn't teleport, still had some unique abilities.
Lucas didn't know how it did it, but Lugia sent out a psychic wave and instantly shrank both scales to normal size.
Lucas was dumbfounded.
Is this the versatility of psychic powers? So envious! Why am I not a Psychic-type?
When Lucas opened his palm and caught the scales Lugia sent his way, its telepathic voice carried a hint of amusement.
"One scale is for your task; the other is a thank-you gift."
"It's lived for a very long time. Its dragon blood is among the purest in the world."
"Scales from near the Rage Scale are especially rich in energy. Give one to your Dragonite—it'll help boost its strength."
With that, Lugia didn't linger. Without waiting for Lucas's response, it let out a clear, ethereal cry and dove into the sea.
The huge Dragonite went with it—soon, both were gone.
Staring at the quickly vanishing shadows beneath the waves, Lucas held the dragon scales, still a little confused.
It felt like he'd forgotten to ask Lugia why it was lingering in nearby waters.
The seas connected to Paldea were either part of the Kalos or Hoenn regions. Why was Lugia hanging around in one of these two seas?
He couldn't figure it out.
Lucas carefully stored the two scales. He planned to have one made into an accessory for Dragonite, to replace its Dragon Fang.
This world wasn't exactly "fantasy," but it did have the concept of "dragon blood."
Dragons, in most works of fiction, are always linked to the purity and concentration of their blood, which affects their power.
With a scale from a "primeval dragon" like the huge Dragonite, his Dragonite would surely benefit—perhaps catching up a little in dragon-attribute growth, compared to its flying skills.
Lucas had Dragonite fly over to Geeta and apologized, "Sorry for leaving you out, President."
"No worries at all."
Geeta smiled and waved her hand, genuinely unconcerned.
"They're gone, and I can finally relax. It's all thanks to you for resolving things so smoothly."
Lucas nodded. "Good thing it had a nice temperament, or a battle would have been unavoidable."
"I'm heading back to deal with the aftermath. How about you?"
Geeta waved to the hovering helicopter, signaling it to lower, then looked at Lucas.
He glanced at the sky, "I'll go find those four kids. It's already so bright—they must be awake by now."
Geeta nodded, smiling. "I heard about Nemona clearing the Alfornada Gym. You've taught a great student."
"She's got real talent—and most importantly, she loves battling. That's her passion."
Lucas replied modestly.
"Your guidance matters too. After all, you're her inspiration to become a trainer."
With a meaningful look at Lucas, Geeta didn't linger any longer. Last night's chaos would take a lot of work to resolve.
She'd have Larry help her later. He'd worked a night shift until noon, so he should have had eight hours' sleep.
Geeta soon transferred to the helicopter. As the rotors thundered, she left behind two final remarks:
"I heard from Tulip that you have some ideas about the upcoming Contest?"
"In that case, why not represent the Academy as a teacher and spar with the Coordinator Master, Wallace? Wouldn't that be fun?"
Though the helicopter was already flying away, Lucas heard her perfectly.
He fell silent immediately.
Wait, why do I always have to be the one fighting?
His phone buzzed in his pocket.
He checked—it was a message from Geeta.
[Geeta: Heard you want to build an apple orchard? I happen to have some connections.]
Lucas paused, quickly typing a reply.
[Lucas: Deal!]
The waves kept crashing against the shore, and the salty ocean breeze blew by.
Upon hearing Lucas's news, the four kids who'd slept in late all cried out in unison:
"The giant Pokémon is already gone!?"
Their faces were full of disbelief—and some hidden regret.
If only we hadn't gone so wild last night…
At least Nemona and the other two had seen its shadow through the mist. Ash, the only one who hadn't, was scratching his head in frustration, like a hyperactive monkey.
Even Pikachu was just as restless—its pudgy little body moving more nimbly than Ash's Snorlax.
"I really did try to wake you guys; you just wouldn't get up."
Lucas grinned, lips curled in schadenfreude.
After enjoying their expressions, Lucas took out his camera and showed the four excited kids the photos he'd taken—carefully leaving out any too-close shots that revealed the huge Dragonite's species, and only showing those misty, indistinct ones.
One particular photo, taken from far away, captured both the looming shadow of the giant Dragonite in the fog and the huge rock by Alfornada Town.
Knowing the size of that rock, the kids' faces flushed red with excitement.
They all regretted sleeping so soundly—what a waste!
….