Morning sunlight streamed into the room.
Outside, several Pidgey chirped as they hunted Caterpie in the grass.
Inside, Caster slept soundly with Pikachu nestled in his arms. Five Poké Balls sat in a row on the table.
The room in the competitors' village was too small for Pokémon as large as Gyarados and Dragonair, so they had to rest in their Poké Balls.
Shellder needed to stay in its ball too. Too much time out of the water would dry it out, but that wasn't a problem inside the ball.
There was also a little pink hippo in the room.
Slowpoke wasn't asleep. Like Alakazam, it floated cross-legged in midair, deep in meditation. Faint psychic power surrounded it.
Eventually, Caster woke. He gave the electric mouse in his arms a pat on the rear, then carefully climbed out of bed.
"Slow..."
At that moment, Slowpoke opened its eyes.
"Slowpoke, are you done meditating?" Caster asked, delighted.
"Yes! The secret meditation technique Ms. Sabrina taught me really works. I feel great!"
Slowpoke took stock of its psychic power and smiled. "I think my control has improved again."
"Then when can we evolve?"
Slowpoke had finished its deep meditation. That meant it was ready.
"Right now. Within the hour would be best," Slowpoke said. "The meditation made my psychic energy more active, but that effect will fade until it returns to normal."
"What? Then we'd better hurry."
Startled, Caster fumbled for Shellder's Poké Ball.
The commotion woke Pikachu on the bed. "Pika pi!"
It spotted Slowpoke and waved excitedly.
But Slowpoke stopped Caster before he could release Shellder.
It spoke telepathically. "Trainer, this room is too small. Let's find somewhere outside with no one around. I want to test my strength after I evolve, too."
"Good idea. Let's go!"
Caster dressed, gathered his things, and fastened all his Poké Balls to his belt.
There were still plenty of people around when he left the competitors' village.
The Indigo League Conference semifinals were tomorrow, and the final would follow in three days. The entire Indigo Plateau was packed with spectators.
"Dragonair, let's go!"
Caster released Dragonair and flew dozens of kilometers to make sure no one disturbed Slowpoke's evolution. They landed at the foot of a secluded mountain.
Greenery covered the area, and towering trees rose above the forest. Wild Pokémon lived among them. At a glance, Caster spotted Nidoran♂, Nidoran♀, Mankey, Butterfree, and Beedrill.
The wild Pokémon paid Dragonair little attention at first. Then they saw the human on its back and scattered into the underbrush.
"Am I really that scary?"
Caster jumped down and touched his face. Pokémon deep in the mountains were clearly wary of people.
"Come on out, everyone!"
He shook his head and released all his Pokémon.
"Gyaaaar!"
Gyarados raised its head and let out a fierce, dragonlike roar. Pokémon for miles around could probably hear it.
It was a warning. Any wild Pokémon that couldn't stand up to Gyarados would keep its distance. They would be too busy fleeing to bother the group.
"Slow..."
Slowpoke looked oddly mature for such a little Pokémon.
"Shel!"
Shellder looked thrilled. Even its pink tongue seemed to have grown thicker. Caster had told it about the evolution before they set out.
Shellder had spent so long trying to win Slowpoke over, and now they were finally going to evolve together. It was getting everything it wanted!
What a deal!
Caster took the King's Rock from his bag and looked at Slowpoke and Shellder. "Are you both ready?"
The two Pokémon exchanged a glance and nodded.
Caster summoned his Rotom Phone to record the evolution. "Rotom, start recording!"
"Leave it to me, Roto!"
Rotom gave a salute, switched on the camera, and floated up until every Pokémon was in the frame. It didn't want to miss a thing.
As Caster set the King's Rock on Slowpoke's head, he joked, "With that crown on your head, you're a king now, Slowpoke."
"Don't worry, Trainer. I won't let you down. I'll be the king of all Slowpoke, and someday, the king of all Pokémon!"
Slowpoke grinned, then spoke to Shellder telepathically. "Come on!"
"Shel!"
Shellder stuck out its tongue, looking blissful.
Here I come!
It sprang into the air and bit down on Slowpoke's head, right where the King's Rock sat.
Something went wrong at once.
"Slooow!"
Slowpoke cried out in pain. Its face twisted, and its body began to convulse uncontrollably, as though it were having a seizure.
"What's happening?"
Caster rushed forward to check on it.
Then a blinding white light flared.
"It's evolving!"
Caster shielded his face and backed away, his heart pounding. Something had clearly gone wrong, but the evolution had already begun. There was no stopping it now.
"Slowpoke! Shellder! Please be okay!"
He clenched his fists and prayed that both of them would come through safely.
Inside the brilliant light, their forms began to change. Slowpoke's body swelled as if it were filling with air.
It rose from all fours to stand upright on two legs. Shellder's scalloped shell transformed into a huge spiral shell shaped like a crown.
Before long, the light faded.
Slowpoke and Shellder were gone. In their place stood a Pokémon with an orange and white ruff around its neck, shaped like an umbrella.
A spiral shell crowned its head, with what looked like a red gem on the front.
It was Slowking, the Water and Psychic type Pokémon known as the Sage of the Sea!
Slowking looked like a supervisor inspecting the place. It even stood with its hands clasped behind its back.
Thankfully, it no longer looked to be in pain. Whatever had happened during the evolution seemed to have passed.
Caster couldn't be sure, but Slowking's shell crown looked larger than usual, and the red jewel on it shone more brightly.
Suddenly, Slowking dropped to one knee.
Caster caught it before it could fall. "Slowking, are you okay?"