Pokémon XD: Narrated Gale of Darkness

Chapter 17

Michael made his way out of the ONBS building.
Just outside of it, Trudly and Folly were discussing something with each other.
"Hey, Trudly, don't you think it's too tough for us to pull off anything in this town? Our faces are too well known."
"Yeah, I hear you. If we don't hurry, the boss will get impatient and come looking for us himself."
Folly snickered. "We're okay on that score. I went and snuck a transmitter on the boss. You can tell where he is by checking this radar." Folly showed it to his companion. "So, we can always be ready for him when he blows his top."
"I have to hand it to you, Folly. Way to go!"
One of their other devices made a sound.
"Huh? Trudly, looks like we've got an e-mail."
"Gaah! Is it the boss?" Trudly opened their P⭐DA. "Hmm... Let's see... You two come back right now! It says. Aww, gosh. Darn it all! He sounds like he's fuming! He might dock us on dinner again. We'd better scoot back!"
Folly clicked his tongue. "Well, so much for this radar! It's not much use if the boss is going to page us by e-mail! Oh, man... Why do our lives have to be this tragic?!" Folly mourned before they hurried their way to their boss's location.
'Hmm...' Michael frowned and made his way out of town, keeping an eye on his surroundings to see whether he'd come across Trudly and Folly.

Before he went to the Poké Spot, he made a little detour back to the Pokémon HQ Lab to purify four of his Shadow Pokémon.

---

- Rock Poké Spot -

It took a little while to get to the place. The Poké Spot was even farther away than the Shadow Pokémon Lab. It was located in a rough and rocky area all the way to the east.
Just like Nett had told him, their crew was present here. Michael calmly walked up to them while they were busy with filming their report.

"Hello, people! It's time for Pofty's Fast-Break Report! We bring you news while it's breaking! Today, we're visiting Duking. He discovered some Poké Spots where wild Pokémon appear. Duking is said to be the driving force behind the booming popularity of wild Pokémon in Pyrite. Duking, so is this the Poké Spot that you discovered?"
A tall, muscular man dressed in hiking clothes answered: "Hello, Duking here! Yeah, that's absolutely right! For fifteen long and torturous years I toiled, snatching sleep only grudgingly, to find this Poké Spot!"
Only the last sentence was hearable to Michael since at that moment he had gotten within hearing range of them.
"Fifteen years?! Is that true?!" Pofty exclaimed out of shock.
"Yeah, uh... One shouldn't let details get in the way of the story, isn't it right, Betty?"
"It's Pofty!"
"All right! Let me explain how one goes about attracting wild Pokémon to a Poké Spot. Well..." Duking looked around for a moment, then let his eyes rest on Michael. "Seeing you're here, wouldn't it be better if I got someone to demonstrate? You there!"
"Me?" Michael pointed at himself.
"Yes, you, kid. You'll be perfect. Come over here, mate!"
Michael hesitated for a moment, but then walked up the the man and film crew.
"All right, my friend. Let me show how you attract wild Pokémon to a place like this. First, and above all else, you need these: Duking brand Poké Snacks. Here, I'll give you some." Duking handed over a total of 10 Poké Snacks to Michael. "Now, lay those snacks out on the plate there. Go on now."
A little unsure of how to act in front of a camera, he didn't say much, but followed the given instructions. "Like this?" Michael asked after placing down a couple of them.
"Very good, mate. That's how you do it! When you've laid out the Poké Snacks, leave the area. Eventually, a wild Pokémon will come along. Just you wait. Also, the more Snacks you lay down, the longer a Pokémon will stay to eat, making it that much easier to catch. Oh! This is also important: my specially made Spot Monitor. And I'm sure you'll agree, truly something awesome!"
"My goodness! You developed this device yourself?" Pofty questioned him.
"Yeah, uh... One shouldn't let the details get in the way of the story, isn't that right, Betty?"
"It's Pofty! And by the way, Duking. Can you tell us what a Spot Monitor is?"
"I'm glad you asked that. My Spot Monitor is a dandy! It lets you know what's happening at any Poké Spot wherever you are. Here, my friend. As my thanks for you hearing me out patiently, kid, I'll make a gift of his too! Slot this into your P⭐DA. That's all you need to do to make it work. Simple!"
Michael did as he was told and inserted the new feature.
"All right, now you're set! Now, when a wild Pokémon appears at any Poké Spot, your Spot Monitor will respond and alert you. I've found three Poké Spots in all. There's one to the west of this one here, slightly north of Pyrite. Use these Poké Spots and catch yourself some wild Pokémon. Give it a try, mate!"
"I'll do. Thanks... mate." Michael mumbled the last word. After that, he drove off towards the second Poké Spot.