Calling the vessel a ship might have been too generous. It was more like a boat. A fishing boat to be more precise, based on what Nina had seen in the past. A mid-sized one with a sizable hull to store the fishermen’s catch, but not enough room to comfortably accommodate a full crew.
The hull in question however, was violently breached, with a nasty gash to the side. It was hard for Nina to tell what exactly had caused it amidst rust and rot. But she could see signs of a sharp tear in the metal caving inwards. So whatever it was, it did so with significant force.
The girl swam around the vicinity of the sunken boat with illumination from her flashlight, even snapping pictures with her Pokedex for posterity. “My first ever underwater find, how exciting!”
Once she determined that nothing would suddenly pop out to surprise her, Nina and Poppy swam a little closer to examine their find.
The boat had clearly been here for a very long time, judging by how deeply buried it was in sand, leaving only about a third of it poking out, gash side up.
But more interestingly, Nina could not see any signs of growth around the boat, which was what led her to be so cautious to begin with. Usually there would be barnacles and coral latched onto the hull after such a long time.
Pushing down her paranoia, Nina put on a pair of gloves and swam up to the captain’s cabin, using the rubbery surface of her gloved hands to wipe at the dirty glass windows and peer inside the tiny room at the helm.
“Hmm… I don’t see the steering wheel. Has it fallen off maybe?”
Nina was hoping to grab the wheel as a memento of her adventures today, so she swam around to the door of the cabin which she tried but failed to open, either due to the water pressure or all the rust and sediment gunking up the hinges.
The girl groaned, propping a leg against the cabin wall to pull. Even Poppy helped out by swimming against Nina’s chest for some extra oomph, but to no avail. Nina was only left exhausted and panting by the end of it.
“Po-po!” Poppy swam up to Nina’s eye level and pointed towards one of the glass windows, which were still miraculously intact after all these years. The Popplio was proposing that they break in through the glass.
However, after some thought, Nina shook her head in denial. Ruined or not, it didn’t feel right to desecrate such a storied relic. She would just have to procure a souvenir from the wide open hull.
“Yes, I know. This is coming from the girl who just had her Clodsire muck all over the Sprout Tower just less than a week ago. Nina is a hypocrite yada, yada…”
The girl chuckled in amusement at her inner thoughts when one of the Pokeballs on her utility belt shook and a telepathic message came through from Espy.
“What is it, baby girl? Kaipo sensed something in the hull?” Nina frowned, thinking she was right to be cautious. There was indeed something using the boat as a lair.
So just as a precaution, she released Sir Clodington in a flash of light and whale-like grace in the water. Clodsires were, for all intents and purposes, amphibious and could stay underwater for a very long time.
That was the whole of Nina’s retinue for this venture. Alongside Poppy and Haunter in her shadow, she also brought along Espy, Sir Clodington and Kaipo the Marowak. Mainly because those three didn’t have anything better to do.
Nina had the tanky Sir Clodington lead the way and dive into the hull via an open hatch on the deck. She didn’t want to go through the gash on the side and risk cutting herself, hence why she also put gloves on.
Poppy dove in after him and Nina followed suit after breaking a few glow sticks and tossing them inside for light.
The interior was mostly barren, save for a few broken implements floating about as well as empty shells and hollow skeletons, likely whatever remained of the boat’s catch before it sank.
The girl looked around in fascination, determined to find something to commemorate the occasion. And as she was rummaging through a pile of shells, hoping to find a wayward pearl, she was abruptly pushed aside by her shadow who cried out in pain.
“Haunterrr!!!” The haunting agony of her bodyguard echoed in her mind as Nina struggled to regain her bearings. But before she could, she was washed away again by a powerful shockwave in the water from Sir Clodington, who dove in front of Nina to intercept a follow up attack from their mysterious assailant.
Amidst all the chaos, Nina would have crashed against the metal hull were it not for Poppy who manipulated the Water around her to cushion her momentum.
Nina nuzzled the Popplio in affection, checked on Haunter — who had now retreated into Limbo for rest — and squinted her eyes to see what was going on, only to be met with a baffling sight.
“Is that… an anchor?”
Indeed, their assailant was a massive sentient anchor covered in rust and seaweed, and crowned by, presumably, the boat’s steering wheel on one end, complete with a broken compass adorning the wheel’s stainless steel face.
“So that’s where the steering wheel was?! And is that thing supposed to be a Pokemon?”
Another shockwave burst out as Sir Clodington’s tail clashed with the sharp end of the anchor clad in Steel Type Energy. But this time, Poppy was ready and stood in front of Nina to disrupt the tide.
Meanwhile, Nina was racking her brain, trying to recall where she had seen that sentient anchor before, her spotty memory rearing its ugly head again.
“Oh screw it!” And with that, the girl pulled out her Pokedex to scan the mysterious lifeform.
[Dhelmise, the sea creeper Pokemon.]
[The soul of seaweed adrift in the waves became reborn as this Pokémon. It maintains itself with new infusions of seabed detritus and seaweed.]
[Swinging its massive anchor, it can KO a Wailord in a single blow. What appears to be green seaweed is actually its body.]
[It wraps its prey in green seaweed and sucks away their vitality. It only likes to go after big prey like Wailord.]
“Well apparently not, since it’s going after us for some reason!” Nina exclaimed. That said, she doubted there were any big prey comparable to a Wailord in these waters. “Maybe a Gyarados? And I suppose Clody is quite chunky.”
Regardless, she continued reading whatever limited information was provided to her. Apparently the mysterious Pokemon was a Ghost and Grass Type with a healthy arsenal of Steel Type moves — a fact that was enough to set Nina’s heart ablaze. “I want it!”
A low maintenance Grass Type who could bash someone’s head in with a Steel infused anchor? Nina likey~ And it was super rare as well, almost A rank in rarity and only native to Alola and Galar. “So what the heck was it doing here then?!”
“CLOOOD!!!” Nina’s thoughts were soon interrupted by Sir Clodington’s baritone voice reverberating throughout the hull, telling the girl to “Get the heck out of here!”
Nina jolted and flashed an apologetic look towards her guardian knight as she quickly and carefully slipped through the sharp gash by the hull — the closest exit she could find.
“Was this gash caused by the Dhelmise I wonder…” The wounds certainly matched the massive anchor she saw earlier. “A Grass Type capable of knocking out a Wailord in a single blow. This was a very powerful Pokemon that could give even Nitey a run for his candy.” Nina was suddenly filled with intense worry for Sir Clodington.
But at the same time, she also couldn’t help but feel an intense desire to catch that Dhelmise, earning her a wave of exasperation from Espy in her Pokeball.
“Sorry, Espy.” Nina responded sheepishly. “Do you think you could get through to that Dhelmise perhaps?”
The response was a negative one. Not only was Dhelmise a Ghost Type, it was also very hungry and hostile. Even with Kaipo’s help, Espy was struggling to establish a link.
Bubbles expelled from Nina’s mouthpiece with a sigh. “Seems we’ll have to subdue Dhelmise for a talk then.” She wasn’t a big fan of forced captures, but this was a rare opportunity that her sponsors, Bill in particular, would kill her for letting go.
Shortly after, the whole boat shuddered as Sir Clodington broke free from the hull, followed by Dhelmise in tow, who had to further pry apart the gash of the ruined vessel to fit its massive frame.
Then, Nina locked in as a stream of minds touched hers — Espy had established a Psychic network between the girl and her Pokemon.
“Alright Clody, I want you to take the lead in this subjugation. Dhelmise is a Ghost and Grass Type, so make sure to keep your Aura up. You’re at a disadvantage here, but try your best and try not to pollute the waters too much.”
Nina would have Pokemon Rangers on her in no time if the Clodsire went all out with his Poison.
“Poppy, you’re on support. Remember what Nitey taught you? Keep your distance and keep up with Icy Wind. Try to avoid Clody as best you can, but don’t worry if you do. Clody’s our team’s toughest tank. Ain’t that right, buddy?”
“CLOOOD!!!”
“Alright, Clody. Let’s start off big and test out your new move. Giga Impact!”
That telepathic exchange only lasted a few seconds. And before the Dhelmise could find its prey again, Sir Clodington crashed into it in a surge of pure Type Energy and smashed it against the rocky seabed, churning sand and sediment to further obscure the murky waters.
“Try to aim for the seaweed, that’s its true body! Poppy, Bubble Cloud to clear away the sediment!”
“Pooo!!!” Poppy did a little twist and blew bubbles from his nose. The pockets of air popped to further disperse the murky waters and restore their sight to reveal a Clodsire all tangled up in sinister looking seaweed.
“Get in there with an Icy Wind, Poppy!” A bit of frostbite was preferable to having her stalwart Clodsire be drained of all his energy.
The Dhelmise shuddered as ice crept up its vegetal body, allowing just enough leeway for Sir Clodington to protrude his back spikes and shred the seaweed entangling him, Poisoning the Dhelmise along the way as the sea creepers took on a sickly purple hue.
“Set up for a direct Earthquake with Mud Shot, Clody! Poppy, keep it up with the Icy Wind and slow it down.”
The Icy Wind was having an inordinately large effect on the Dhelmise as its movements slowed to a crawl. The seaweed entangling the anchor, originally as lively as a Tentacool’s tentacles, were now wrapped tight in a bundle to shield against the frost. Which in turn, hampered its overall mobility and left it vulnerable to Sir Clodington’s assault.
“CLOOOD!!!”
And after a couple of Mud Shots for good measure, Sir Clodington moved in and slammed an Earthquake into the massive bundle of algae, causing the eldritch vegetable to let out a piercing screech in each of their minds as it squirmed and writhed in pain.
If not for Espy’s mental protection, Nina and the rest of her Pokemon would probably have been incapacitated by the Dhelmise’s macabre cry by now.
“Go in with another hit to soften it up, Clody!”
And once the messy bundle of anchor, seaweed and steering wheel was lying limp on the seafloor, Nina swam close to throw an Ultra Ball at it. The Ball spun sluggishly and veered off course a little from the water, but ultimately still hit its mark.
She would have liked to try out her artisanal Heavy Ball from Maizie. But it was being kept safe in her backpack at the moment. Besides, Nina wasn’t sure if she was even able to tame the Dhelmise, so better to use a generic store bought Pokeball in case she needed to release it.
The Dhelmise, along with all of its accompanying accessories disappeared into the Ultra Ball as it trembled and shook. Once… twice… thrice, and a flash of light.
“Gotcha! Dhelmise was caught! Da-da-da~ Dadadadadada~”
***
Author's note:
Remember how I said I had Nina capture a very troublesome Grass Type Pokemon on a whim last time?
Well, tadah! Did anyone managed to guess?
Anyways, I made up my mind on the break. This upcoming Saturday will be the last release before the break. Meaning we have two more chapters to go.
After that, I'm thinking two weeks should suffice. Hopefully.