Chapter 27: Dragonite's Entrustment
After Dratini finished eating the Pokéblock, it called out to Ryan. Ryan said, "I don't have any more Pokéblocks. I still need to go fishing. You and your mother should go home."
Dragonair also landed beside Ryan and called out a few times. Ryan said, "Yes, I can understand Pokémon speech. It's not easy for you to live here, so I won't catch you. Go back quickly, don't get caught by the bad guys. I need to catch some other Pokémon."
Dragonair shook its head and called out again. Ryan had no choice but to let them stay. He tied another Pokéblock to the fishing rod and cast it into the water. After a while, he felt a huge pull. Ryan quickly reeled in the line, and then a massive Gyarados burst out of the water. Ryan looked at it and was immediately delighted. He said, "Is today my lucky day?"
Gyarados—premium quality. Without hesitation, he threw a Safari Ball at it, but it quickly broke free and burst out. Ryan frowned and said, "Mewtwo, subdue it."
Mewtwo emerged from its Poké Ball, its powerful Psychic energy beginning to overwhelm Gyarados. After a full three minutes, Gyarados, with a look of terror on its face, allowed itself to be caught by the Safari Ball, never wanting to face that psychic assault again. Ryan picked up the Safari Ball and examined it.
Pokémon: Gyarados
Level: 24
Gender: Male
Height: 6.5m
Weight: 235kg
Ability: Intimidate
Moves: Splash, Tackle, Bite, Rage, Leer, Twister, Ice Fang, Aqua Tail
It was a healthy Gyarados, and quite powerful. With a good start, Ryan immediately baited his hook with another Pokéblock and began fishing again.
Dragonair stared in amazement at Mewtwo floating in the air. From it, Dragonair sensed an overwhelming sense of danger. And judging by how it had just dominated Gyarados, it seemed like it hadn't even used much strength. Dragonair knew this mysterious Pokémon was one it couldn't afford to cross. But the fact that it was this human's Pokémon—how powerful must this human be?
Dragonair suddenly felt the urge to travel with this human. After all, it also wanted to live freely, not be confined to this small lake. Dragonair looked at Dratini, who was watching Ryan with curiosity, and felt a little conflicted. But it knew this was an opportunity; if it missed it, it might have to wait a long time for another trainer like this.
While Dragonair was struggling with its decision, Ryan successfully recorded Dragonair and Dratini's data in his Pokédex. He also caught a few more Pokémon, but didn't continue his initial success, as they were all average-quality Pokémon, and Ryan immediately lost his desire to capture them.
He released several average-quality Pokémon in quick succession, then caught a premium-quality Krabby. Without hesitation, he captured it.
He also released an average-quality Goldeen, an average-quality Poliwag, and an average-quality Shellder. He then captured six more premium-quality Pokémon, bringing his total to eight. With the exception of the premium Gyarados, all were premium quality. After that, almost no Pokémon took the bait. Ryan realized that all the rare Pokémon in the lake had been caught and wouldn't bite again.
After packing up his things, Ryan prepared to leave. Just then, Dragonair called out to him urgently. He stopped, somewhat puzzled, and asked, "You want me to take Dratini?"
Dragonair called out reluctantly, bringing Dratini to Ryan, nuzzling it softly with its head. Ryan shook his head and said, "It's no use deciding on your own. You should know Warden Baoba, right? If you've decided to let Dratini follow me, come with me to see Warden Baoba and explain everything to him."
Dragonair nodded, and flew after Ryan with Dratini. Ryan began searching for Pokémon suitable for his villa's security, such as Chansey, Scyther, and Growlithe.
After searching around, he finally found the Pokémon he was looking for. Chansey was a rare Pokémon, and since he wouldn't be training them for battle, he'd just use them for healing support, so he didn't worry about their stats and immediately captured two average-quality Chansey, one average-quality Scyther, and four average-quality Growlithe. All fifteen Safari Balls were used up.
Afterwards, back in Warden Baoba's office, Baoba's eyes widened upon seeing Dragonair. After a brief exchange, Dragonair expressed its desire to let Dratini go out into the world with Ryan. After all, it didn't want its child to be trapped in this small sanctuary. They were pseudo-legendary Pokémon, and they needed to have the pride of a pseudo-legendary.
Dragonair and Baoba's bond was clear; although he hadn't caught it, the bond between them was genuine and sincere. So, Dragonair gave up on leaving and decided to stay with Warden Baoba.
After listening to Ryan's explanation of the situation and seeing the request in Dragonair's eyes, Warden Baoba sighed and said, "Dragonair, this is your request, and I agree. After all, Dratini is your child, and I can't interfere too much. Young man, I'll entrust Dratini to your care, but I hope you'll take good care of it. I also hope it grows up to be a trainer of integrity."
Ryan smiled, "I won't let you down. I'll be participating in this year's Indigo League, and Dratini might compete. Even if not, I'll be traveling to the Johto region after the tournament. Dratini will probably have evolved into Dragonite by then, so it'll definitely be competing in the Silver Conference. Remember to watch."
With that, he walked over to Dratini with an poke Ball and said, "Will you come with me on this journey?"
Dratini looked at the human before it, then glanced back at its mother's encouraging gaze. It nodded gently, then touched the button on the Ultra Ball with its head and was absorbed into it as a streak of red light.
Looking at the now-still Ultra Ball, Ryan held it up and said, "Alright, I've caught Dratini!"
"Congratulations, Ryan. It seems I lost our contest, but at least I didn't miss a good show," Lillie said as she walked in from outside.
"Yeah. Did you catch all 15 too?" Ryan asked.
"Yes, I'll teleport them home later," Lillie said. Then she showed Ryan the Pokémon she had captured.
Tentacool, Oddish, Goldeen, Butterfree, Jigglypuff (2), Pidgey (3), Scyther, Psyduck, Vulpix, Charmander, Abra, and Kadabra.
Her captures were quite diverse, but Ryan's were much simpler: Krabby, Magikarp (6), Gyarados, Chansey (2), Scyther, and Growlithe (4).
Yes, the six premium-quality Pokémon he'd captured were all Magikarp. Ryan was helpless; the Safari Zone rules couldn't be broken! He sent the 15 Safari Balls to Professor Oak via the PC system. After some consideration, he discussed with the professor and sent back Beedrill and Butterfree in exchange for Alakazam, keeping Dratini.
Lillie also contacted Professor Kukui and sent back her Safari Balls, but she kept Vulpix; one Ice-type and one Fire-type were a good match.
After bidding farewell to Warden Baoba, Ryan headed for Fuchsia City and continued their journey.
(End of Chapter)
join patreon for update and advance 40+ chapters
https://www.p-atreon.com/c/Soulforger
(Just remove the hyphen to access Patreon normally.)
"If you're enjoying this story, don't forget to drop a Power Stone! Your support keeps me motivated and helps the novel reach more readers."
"100 Power Stones this week = 1 extra chapter release!"
"500 Power Stones = 2 extra chapter release ."