Part 32: Milliseconds Under the Sea

Music: Ranger Base


Our mechanic was saying it's a pleasure fixing the Aquamole knowing he's doing it for you. The Aquamole shouldn't take long to get seaworthy now. So, here's your next mission. Circe, your mission is to take the Aquamole to Wintown. I'll contact the Ranger Base there. The Leader there is a lady named Elita. She's aloof and chilly... ...Whoa, whoa, whoa, never mind that! Good luck with your mission!



Finally, we're free from that godawful side trip!

One of our Leader's gifts is finally going to be useful... It's really cold in Wintown, so make sure you don't catch a cold.
Our mechanic is klutzy, but it looks like he's doing a great job with the Aquamole's repairs.
Take the Aquamole through the undersea tunnel in the Safra Sea. The tunnel leads to a small lake. There, you'll find a cave that will take you to Wintown. It's straightforward.



But the big difference from our Stylers is that the Go-Rock Squad's Stylers don't have a release function. It must be because they haven't given any thought to the idea of releasing Pokemon.

Music: Summerland


Oh, sorry, I'm just overjoyed. It's finally ready! Your Aquamole's ready for a dip! We're ready to launch anytime at the end of the center pier. Come as soon as you're ready! *runs away*

At least someone is excited about this whole thing.
Is that the same mechanic from before?
Yep.





Far be it from me to spend any more time growing dull and complacent in a resort like this. I've given up on exploring the Jungle Relic for now, but that doesn't mean I'm done. I hear there's a place called the Fiore Temple near Wintown. I'm definitely going there. Maybe two days from now, three at most.
Ayup, I'm a man of the sea all right. ...But I don't think I can sail in that wee submarine of yours.



I can easily understand how a submarine can turn into a pile of scrap, but...



Every summer, I come to that very same conclusion.

I'd call him dumb, but I have the exact same reaction every time I go to the beach and get in the ocean.



I've lived for ninety years, but even I don't know if it was formed naturally or if a Pokemon dug it through.







I'm guessing it's just one of those cheap inflatable "submersibles" you get as a prize from something.
Doesn't our son ever get hungry? He's been playing outside this whole time...

I'm not exactly filled with confidence here...
I really hope their son isn't a stowaway on the submarine.
I kinda doubt he'd fit, what with its small size.



Is he busy with work? That'd be a real change!



That actually looks safe.

I've programmed the autopilot system to where the Leader said, so it will just take you there. I also made room so your Plusle can ride, too!

You actually considered Plusle, so you're almost forgiven for the whole escort mission ordeal. ALMOST.
Full forgiveness would require him to just let us pilot our own way. So we can explore the underwater.



Cool! Awesome! That can go underwater!
Don't give me that scared look. It's safe! Just get on board.

Aquamole The Aquamole was repaired through the expertise and diligence of one mechanic. It operates on an autopilot system.

Right... Let's see if the mechanic actually does a good job

Music: Mission Start!


Music: Krokka Tunnel


Looks like we actually made it safely

Spoiler: We're never going to get to explore Safra Seafloor.


From: Cameron
To: Circe

How was your Aquamole voyage? I hope it was pleasant at least. When you make land, go through the Panula Cave and head for Wintown. I also got a message from our mechanic for you. "The Aquamole was loaded with only enough fuel for a one-way trip. It was my oversight. Sorry!" So there you have it. It's pretty klutzy of him, I'd say.



Welp. We're trapped here. Not like we could do anything else if we can go back, but still



That's a lake! How did you bring that weird boat here? Hunh? This lake is connected to the sea outside, you're saying? No wonder the fishing is so good!

Sign This lake's water is salty. It is not recommended for cooking.

I always love that Magikarp's "dialogue" is just flopping
Karp karp karp!



Good thing Wintown rangers are actually competent. Unlike our last batch...



A winding path near water... Why does this seem familiar?

New Music: Panula Cave


Yeah, sure, enjoy Jynx's dance...



That's not a Jynx!
Kill it with fire!



Of course there's Golbat here. This is a cave, after all. Golbat attacks twice in a row.

This mission introduces us to a new mechanic: Pokemon's reaction after a failed capture. In Golbat's case, it's getting frightened (moves faster and won't attack).



Required Loops: 7
Possible EXP: 32/37/42/49



All the Jynx here are located in hard-to-reach areas, so we'll catch the other Pokemon first.



Snorunt only attacks after a failed capture.



Required Loops: 6
Possible EXP: 25/31/37/45



This place is a ledge maze. We have to go all the way back up if you fell, with Jynx's dance accompanying us.
A ledge maze doesn't sound like a good time, not gonna lie.
At least if we don't want to bother with all these Pokemon we only have to jump over a grand total of 0 ledges.



Whismur also only attacks after a failed capture. They really want you to recognize this mechanic.
At least they're going out of their way to tutorialize it.
This mechanic will become a usual part of the Pokemon's AI. I won't point out every time this comes up (because I'm too lazy to test this for every single Pokemon).



Required Loops: 4
Possible EXP: 25/28/31/35



Oh look, a full heal!



Raichu has the exact same attack as Magneton, but it heals a lot more!




Required Loops: 3
Possible EXP: 15



Pictured: Circe enjoying Jynx's dance. Circe is so entranced that she can just fall off a ledge if she isn't careful.
Confusion!



We have to take a huge detour to get to Jynx here. There's one at the end of the mission right in our path, though.



Jynx's attack has a huge but kinda random range, so it can be annoying to capture.



This is always welcome, though



Required Loops: 9
Possible EXP: 68/72/76/82



I'm choosing to read that "hurry" as him being impatient with Circe for taking so long.
Sorry... Got distracted by all these Pokemon

*The screen shakes*

Lots of tremors lately.

Eh, I'm sure it'll fine.



Going left on this fork...



Medicham should be useful with all these Ice Pokemon around.



Medicham's attack has a big range, so make sure to capture it slowly but steadily.
Stands to reason. Huge power, huge attack range!

By the way, we got our third layer of health with our latest level up



Required Loops: 9
Possible EXP: 52/59/66/76





Yep. That sure is a path-blocking Steelix alright.
Water to wake what is arguably the face of the steel type?

Not fire or fighting?
We're trying to wake it up, not make it faint