Ash's Story (Part 5: Modern Sinnoh)

Chapter 44: Bogsunk Cure

Pastoria City smelled like rain, mud, and battle waiting just around the corner. The streets shone with moisture even when the sky was clear, and every direction seemed to point toward either the Gym, the marsh, or the sound of Pokémon moving through reeds.

Crasher Wake's Gym stood proudly over the water, loud even from outside. I wanted to go in right away, but a sign near the entrance said official challenges would resume the next day because the water platforms were being inspected after morning maintenance.

Buizel stared at the sign like it had personally insulted him.

Buizel's meaning came sharp and restless. "Water Gym waiting is worse than losing."

"You will get your battle," I promised. "One more day."

Lillie looked toward the other side of Pastoria, where the Great Marsh stretched beyond the city.

"Then maybe today should be for the marsh," Lillie said. "We have been hearing about it since we arrived."

Tox adjusted Chansey's medical pouch, then glanced at the wet streets.

"A controlled marsh visit before a Gym challenge is reasonable," Tox said. "Different terrain, Poison types, mud hazards, and exposure risks. We should treat it as field preparation, not sightseeing only."

Dawn gave him a nervous smile.

"You make sightseeing sound like a medical exam," Dawn said.

"Sometimes it is," Tox replied calmly.

The Great Marsh building rose near the edge of the wetlands. Inside, the second floor held binocular stations overlooking the wide Safari-style areas below. Reeds swayed in long rows, muddy pools reflected the clouds, and distant Pokémon moved like shapes half-hidden by water.

I leaned over the binoculars and remembered the Safari Zone back in Kanto. Back then, I had been younger, louder, and probably worse at thinking before running.

"Trying to find Pokémon before wasting steps?" Dawn asked.

"Yeah," I said, adjusting the view. "But not just to catch them. The marsh has paths, and some of those paths look crowded."

Daniel looked through another set of binoculars.

"Area Five has a pattern," Daniel said. "Several Pokémon are avoiding one reed channel, but not fleeing entirely."

"That usually means a defensive Pokémon is holding space," Tox said.

A familiar voice answered from behind us.

"Or it means the marsh is asking whether you know how to enter without making things worse."

We turned, and Emily smiled from the stairs with a Grand Underground satchel over one shoulder. Cynthia's daughter looked older than the last time I had seen her, but the confident warmth in her eyes was the same. She knew all of us from childhood, so there was no awkward stranger greeting.

"Emily!" Lillie said, brightening at once.

Emily hugged Lillie first, then Dawn, then gave me a quick grin.

Emily's presence changed the mood more than I expected. She was not a stranger explaining a tourist attraction. She was someone who had known us when battles, badges, and journeys had still sounded like things waiting far away.

Dawn looked between Emily and Cynthia's name stitched on her satchel.

"So you are guiding this trial yourself?" Dawn asked.

"Mother trusts me with the underground badge routes now," Emily said. "Not all of them, but the ones where the lesson matters more than the battle."

Gladion studied the satchel without touching it.