257 The Sleeping Dragon and the Awakened Dratini

What's going on here? Why did the Guardian Orb fly into Dragonite's hand?

The expression on Yuga's face was utterly bewildered.

Then Yuga saw a faint green light on the Guardian Orb slowly spreading along Dragonite's skin, gradually enveloping it.

From the sudden appearance of Spectral Celebi to the light orbs floating out of him and Florges's bodies, to the healing of Dragonite and Dratini, and finally the disappearance of Spectral Celebi—everything happened so suddenly that Yuga couldn't make sense of it.

Where did Spectral Celebi come from? Does this mean that Spectral Celebi was the guardian deity of the Arus Empire? What about the green light orbs inside him and Florges's bodies? Why could they summon Spectral Celebi? Does Florges's special ability come from these green light orbs? Then why didn't Yuga gain any special abilities?

Yuga was filled with questions, but Spectral Celebi had already disappeared, leaving him with no answers.

Yuga approached Dragonite, squinting his eyes and peering at the Guardian Orb, but he couldn't see anything.

"Dratini, Dratini!"

Just then, the unconscious Dratini opened its eyes and let out a gentle cry.

"Dratini, you're awake!" Yuga exclaimed joyfully.

"Dratini, Dratini!"

Dratini slowly swam over to Dragonite's side and gazed at it with teary eyes.

"Don't worry, Dratini. Your mom will wake up soon. Look, her injuries are all healed!" Yuga comforted Dratini in a soft voice.

Yuga speculated that Dragonite's injuries might not have completely healed yet and needed the nourishment of the Guardian Orb. After all, Dragonite's injuries from before were extremely severe.

"Dratini, Dratini."

Dratini nodded, reassured by the peaceful expression on its mom's face.

Yuga carefully examined Dratini's body once more to make sure it was truly unharmed. It appeared that Dratini had suffered much lighter injuries compared to Dragonite.

Then, Yuga and the other Pokémon worked together to carry Dragonite, who held the Guardian Orb, into the Sub-Ecopark. It wouldn't be right to let Dragonite lie in the main Ecopark like this. Plus, if she had to remain in slumber, it was best to choose a beautiful environment for her rest.

Looking at Dragonite, who lay asleep in the flowerbed, Yuga turned to Dratini and said, "Dratini, we don't know when your mom will wake up. For now, you can live with us."

"Dratini, Dratini."

Dratini looked up at Yuga with its big, watery eyes, and even nuzzled Yuga's leg with its head, looking incredibly adorable.

Yuga gently picked up Dratini and activated his Insight ability.

...

<<Dratini>>

Type: Dragon

Gender: Male

Ability: Marvel Scale

Potential: Indigo

Level: 38

Moves: Thunder Wave, Dragon Rage, Dragon Tail, Water Pulse, Ice Beam, Blizzard, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Extreme Speed.

...

This Dratini perfectly inherited its mother's talents: a Indigo potential, a rare hidden ability, and even the Extreme Speed from its mother.

During Dragonite's battle with Zapdos, Yuga noticed that Dragonite excelled at using Ice-type moves. Dratini had also learned Ice-type moves smoothly, indicating that its Ice-type talent was exceptional.

As for Dratini learning Thunderbolt and Thunder, which didn't align with reality, Yuga suspected it was related to the light orb thrown into its body by Spectral Celebi.

After all, Dragonite itself couldn't use Thunderbolt or Thunder.

While the level requirement for Dratini to learn Thunderbolt and Thunder wasn't high, mastering these moves in reality was quite challenging. Typically, Pokémon learned these moves after evolving into Dragonair, and only with guidance, as Dratini's body couldn't easily handle such high-intensity electrical output.

However, this Dratini had learned them, even without anyone teaching it, which made Yuga wonder if it was due to the light orb Spectral Celebi had tossed into it.

Nevertheless, this was undoubtedly a good thing, so Yuga didn't pay too much attention to it.

Furthermore, Dratini's level was higher than Yuga had initially imagined. Yuga had assumed it was just born, but it was already approaching level 40.

With such exceptional talents, it would be challenging to find anywhere else. Even in the hands of a champion, it would be treated as a trump card.

In time, this Dratini would undoubtedly become a powerful Dragonite, the second of its kind.

But when Yuga considered it, if Dratini had just been born when in Zapdos's possession, it would likely have perished.

Without hesitation, Yuga decided to cultivate Dratini as his fifth main battling Pokémon.

As for the future when Dragonite awakened, and Dratini had to leave, Yuga didn't even consider it. Pokémon that came into his hands were not meant to be given up.

Through Vespiqueen's account, Yuga learned why Dragonite and Zapdos had clashed.

Both Dragonite and Zapdos had long lived in the depths of the Petalburg Woods, each dominating their respective territories without interfering with each other.

Dragonite's territory was a deep forest lake, where Dratini had lived since birth and never left.

One day, while Dragonite was out hunting, Dratini sensed that the entire lake had been covered in golden electric currents. Shortly after, it lost consciousness.

When it woke up, it found itself flying high in the sky, held by Zapdos, while its mother chased after Zapdos relentlessly.

As for why Zapdos had captured it, Dratini had no idea, and Dragonite probably didn't know either.

Like this, Dragonite and Zapdos engaged in both pursuit and battle, gradually flying out of the Petalburg Woods and eventually having a fierce confrontation not far from Verdanturf Town.

The rest of the story, Yuga had witnessed: Dragonite, weakened and injured, somehow managed to reclaim its child.

After suffering injuries, Dragonite persevered for several days until it realized it couldn't hold on any longer. It had no choice but to seek help from the Great Flygon that happened to be patrolling near Verdanturf Town.

Hearing the account, Yuga was perplexed. Zapdos, a legendary Pokémon, why would it bother capturing a Dratini, a Pokémon of no significance to it? Perhaps it was due to hunger? But Yuga hadn't heard of Zapdos having a taste for Dratini!

The specific reasons, Yuga thought, only Zapdos itself knew.