13.Ash's Rikoto Story

Chapter 49 Rainbow Reef

Without Delia and Red, Ash, Alice, and Gina are now surfing along Route 10, a Water Route in the region. Alice, feeling the breeze against her face, smiles brightly. "I never knew that surfing could be so much fun."

"You're right," Ash agrees, sharing in her excitement. "It feels so freeing... and ever since my father was revived, I feel like my heart is lighter."

Gina glances at the couple, noticing something unusual. "Yeah, I can see that you two are glowing as well."

Ash and Alice exchange confused looks. Alice asks, "What do you mean by glowing?"

Gina tilts her head, realizing she may have said something odd. "Did I say something wrong? I could see a glow coming from your backs."

Curious, Ash and Alice decide to stop on a small island to check their backpacks. To their surprise, they discover that their eggs are about to hatch. Ash, amazed, exclaims, "Finally, wow, this egg took forever to hatch!"

"Yeah," Alice agrees, watching as her egg begins to crack. "You got it after the third gym, and now we're on our way to the sixth gym. It really took a long time." As they watch, both eggs hatch before their eyes. "Cool, mine's a Guppish."

"And mine is... it looks like a small dragon," Ash says, quickly scanning the new Pokémon.

Finflix: The Hidden Pokémon. Water and Dragon type. Finflix are a recently discovered species once thought to have been a hoax. Investigations have shown that they were much more commonly found in the past.

"A Finflix? That's such a rare Pokémon," Ash says, as the little dragon affectionately hugs him.

"You're right. Even Wade had a hard time finding that Pokémon," Gina adds, impressed.

Alice then takes out an Ice Stone and uses it to evolve Guppish into an Orcail. She smiles down at her new Pokémon and says, "I'm going to name you... Cain. Is that okay with you?"

The Orcail jumps happily in her arms, and with their new Pokémon happily swimming beside them, the group continues their journey along the water.

As they approach a giant rock adorned with a vibrant array of corals, Gina announces, "And we've arrived at the Rainbow Reef."

"Wow, this place is absolutely beautiful," Alice marvels, her eyes wide with wonder. "Ash, look over there!"

Ash turns to see what Alice is pointing at and spots two mermaid-like Pokémon playing together. One has blue hair and blue fins, while the other has pink hair and pink fins. The two Pokémon notice the group and are intrigued by the closeness between Ash and Alice. After a brief moment of observation, the mermaid-like Pokémon decide to approach Ash, wanting to learn about relationships and eventually choosing to become his Pokémon.

Merkid: The Merkind Pokémon. Water type. Once believed to be myths until their discovery in Rainbow Reef, Merkid move in schools, using their hypnotic voices to protect themselves from humans by making them leave.

"That's really interesting," Ash comments as he recalls the two Merkid into their Pokéballs. "Hypnotizing people with their voices to protect themselves isn't something you hear about every day."

As they continue walking along the Rainbow Reef, Alice admires the scenery. "This place has so many colorful coral reefs."

"I know, it's truly a wonder," Gina agrees, looking around. Suddenly, she spots something ahead. "Hey, is that Brother Wade over there?"

Ash and Alice look ahead and see Wade, accompanied by Reisa, both confronting Team Solar. Their attention is drawn to a Pokémon trapped in a cage nearby.