Gary stared at the strange, gleaming black sphere resting in the padded white case.
"What is this?" he asked, his voice tinged with surprise.
Professor Oak smiled knowingly. "This, Gary, is a Tera Orb — a tool developed by researchers in the Paldea region, in cooperation with the Paldea League. It allows a Pokémon to undergo a transformation known as Terastallization."
Gary's eyebrows shot up. "Terastallization? I've never even heard of that. What is it?"
"Terastallization," Professor Oak explained patiently, "is a unique phenonon where a Pokémon's body becos encased in crystalline energy, transforming into a dazzling, jewel-like form. When Terastallized, a Pokémon can temporarily change its type — sotis to match its natural type, but in certain cases, to an entirely different one. This transformation can dramatically alter a battle."
Gary leaned forward, intrigued. "So… it's like ga Evolution or Dynamax, but with type changes?"
"In a sense," Oak nodded.
"But the origins of Terastallization go much further back. About one hundred and forty years ago, explorers in the Great Crater of Paldea discovered wild Pokémon that exhibited this radiant crystalline state. Strangely, once they were taken outside of the crater, the light faded away. For decades, the phenonon remained a mystery — researchers simply couldn't reproduce it outside that environnt."
"So how'd they figure it out?" Gary asked.
"Around ten years ago," Oak continued, "the Paldea League perfected a thod of collecting and storing the unique energy responsible for Terastallization — what they call Tera Energy. The Tera Orb you see here is the product of that research. By absorbing ambient Tera Energy from the environnt, it can channel that power into a Pokémon, triggering Terastallization at will."
Gary frowned slightly. "Wait — so it needs Tera Energy from the environnt? Does that an it only works in Paldea?"
"Exactly," Oak confird.
"Just like Dynamax, which can only occur in areas with strong Dynamax Energy — primarily in the Galar region — Terastallization relies on Tera Energy. This energy is believed to originate from a mysterious Pokémon known as Terapagos. Outside Paldea, there's virtually no ambient Tera Energy, so the orb won't function. Without energy to draw from, the Tera Orb is little more than a keepsake."
Gary nodded slowly, rembering how the Dynamax Band he'd once borrowed in Galar beca useless the mont he left. "So… basically, I can only use this if I go to Paldea."
"Correct," Oak said with a slight chuckle. "But if you do visit, you'll already be prepared."
Gary's gaze returned to the orb, its glossy black surface gleaming under the lab lights. "Grandpa… is it supposed to be this dark? It doesn't look like it's charged."
Oak laughed awkwardly. "Well… I may have tested it. Once."
Gary blinked. "You used it?"
"Of course! I wasn't about to hand over a tool without at least understanding how it works. I tried it with one of my own Pokémon — the results were fascinating. But yes, now that the energy has been expended, it will remain dormant until recharged in Paldea."
Gary sighed, half amused. "Figures. I guess I'll have to wait until I'm actually there to try it myself."
Still, he couldn't help imagining the possibilities. What would his Blastoise's Tera Type be? Probably Water, given that most Pokémon's Tera Types matched one of their natural types.
But there were exceptions — rare and potentially ga-changing ones. If he could change a Pokémon's Tera Type, the strategic advantage in battle would be enormous.
He rembered reading that to change a Pokémon's Tera Type, you had to feed it fifty Tera Shards of the desired type — items found only in Paldea.
There were no such materials in Kanto; without a Paldea supply chain, they were impossible to obtain elsewhere.
"Well," Gary said finally, closing the case and slipping the Tera Orb into his pocket, "I'll hang onto it for now."
"Good idea," Oak agreed. "And speaking of hanging onto things — you've just co back from Hoenn. You should take a day or two to rest. Traveling like that, even with Latios, has to be exhausting."
"Yeah," Gary replied with a small smile. "I'll rest later."
Gary stepped out into the lab's backyard, the cool Pallet Town breeze brushing against his face. He wasn't in the mood for downti.
"Pidgeot!" he called, tossing a Poké Ball into the air.
With a sharp cry — "Pidgeot!" — the majestic bird erged, wings spreading wide.
"Go round up everyone," Gary instructed. "We're having a training session."
Pidgeot gave an affirmative nod before taking off, circling above the lab before disappearing into the distance to summon the rest of Gary's Pokémon.
Fifteen minutes later, they began arriving one by one: Blastoise, Tyranitar, Arcanine, Scizor, Electivire, Rhyperior, Umbreon, Charizard, and more — each of them greeting their trainer in their own way.
Gary imdiately began distributing the technical machines and move tutors he'd earned from the Hoenn Gym challenges. One by one, he worked with each Pokémon, teaching new moves, refining old ones, and making ntal notes of their current progress.
The growth curve was slowing.
For months, his team had been pushing past the level 50 mark, but now progress was incrental.
Pokémon over level 50 were gaining only one or two levels in half a year unless they had champion-level potential — those could sotis gain three.
Elite-level Pokémon above level 60 were even slower to improve, and only his top-tier, champion-potential mbers were breaking past those limits.
Three of his partners stood above the rest:
Blastoise — Level 73, his highest-level Pokémon, a powerhouse with legendary potential.Zapdos — Level 71, an electric force of nature.Tyranitar — Level 71, an unstoppable tank.
Even so, legendary-potential Pokémon like Blastoise and Zapdos had only managed to gain a single level in six months. At that rate, reaching level 80 could take close to a decade.
Gary couldn't help but compare them to wtwo.
According to Professor Oak's research, wtwo had spent ten years in stasis after its creation, only to awaken at level 70 — growth that defied normal training rates.
A legendary's natural developnt far outpaced even the most dedicated human effort.
Once the move training was complete, Gary dug into his rare candy reserves.
He fed three to Charizard, boosting it to level 70 — a respectable feat for a champion-potential Pokémon.
Another four went to Latios, bringing it to level 70 as well. The rest he set aside for future use, particularly for the upcoming Sinnoh League season.
He wasn't about to draw suspicion from Professor Oak or Tracey by skyrocketing levels overnight.
Most of the Pokémon in the lab's yard wouldn't even be part of his Sinnoh roster, so there was no need to rush.
Potential boosts could wait, too. The system's missions often dictated where he focused his efforts, and until he knew whether the Sinnoh League's Lily of the Valley Conference would require specific team mbers, there was no point in using rare items prematurely.
Still, so potential upgrades tempted him.
Rhyperior's Lightning Rod ability could be swapped to Solid Rock with an Ability Capsule — but that technology hadn't reached Kanto yet.
Electivire's Motor Drive was similarly situational, relying on electric attacks to trigger. For now, both would remain as they were.
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