Sam’s heart raced as the realization sunk in. He was making an assumption, but it was an assumption with all signs pointing to it being true.

  He’d come to Olivine to catch a sixth Pokémon, and this was a chance—a chance—to do exactly that. He wouldn’t need to find someone to trade. He wouldn’t need to go out to catch whatever species they specified. He would not have to struggle to convince a wild Pokémon to be trained by someone it didn’t know.

  Somehow, impossibly, miraculously, he could go out and catch an incredibly rare Pokémon within the very city he was in.

  But he would need to find it first.

  “You alright?”

  Sam blinked, realizing he’d been silently staring at the Goomy for the entire last minute. The little Dragon Type had shrunk back from his gaze, and Matilda was now watching both of them in worry.

  “I’m... fine. Thank you. Sorry. I’ve just realized there’s a Pokémon I really want to catch.”

  “The one you were describing?”

  Sam nodded.

  “Well, don’t expect it to be easy,” Matilda said. “Just about you and everyone will be out hunting for it.”

  “To catch it?”

  “Or for the cash,” she said with a shrug.

  Matilda went on to explain her nerves—a lot of trainers were out looking for those Dragon Types. Sam had missed most of them since they were likely staying at the city’s more populated Pokémon Centers, but according to Matilda, those trainers were actively scouring the city for any sign of the escaped Dragon Types.

  “We’ve had to keep the back door locked because Goomy likes to explore,” she continued. “Before, he would slip out, and now that’s too much of a risk. We used to get the occasional person slipping through the back alley just for a shortcut, but ever since news of those Dragon Types spread, we’ve been getting trainers walking past about three or four times a day.”

  “So that’s why you freaked out when I asked for help,” Sam said. “You thought I was here for Goomy.”

  “...Was I that obvious?”

  Matilda winced, and her father laughed.

  “Maddie, you couldn’t act even if your life depended on it! I’m surprised we haven’t had anyone else here!”

  Annoyed, she sent her father a withering glare as he let loose a belly-deep laugh, but when she seemed to remember Sam was still watching, she chose to drop it, saying nothing and simply scooping up Goomy for a hug, instead.

  “Goomy is with us, now. We don’t have a Pokéball for him yet, but we’ll be getting one soon! I’ve already been doing research into figuring out what to do if he ever evolves—”

  “Are you, now?”

  She ignored her father’s question.

  “The problem is that there’s a lot of money up for his capture. With that much, I’m worried that someone might come and take him away.”

  Sam doubted anyone would be successful. Those sailors out there had glared at him for a reason.

  “I’m sure the search will die down eventually,” he said. “And if Goomy ever evolves, being a Sliggoo won’t be a problem. They’re pretty much the same size, and I’m pretty sure a Sliggoo only becomes a Goodra when battling in the rain.”

  “Oh.” Matilda blinked. “Goomy hasn’t expressed any interest in battling, anyway.”

  The little Dragon Type shook in her arms as if to express his disinterest, and then a bit of drool dripped from his mouth when he glanced back at the cooking food.

  Matilda did send Sam a curious look after realizing the level of information he’d just shared, but Sam had already told her he knew about foreign Pokémon in the past. However, slipping the New Pokédex back into his pack probably didn’t help him stay subtle. Matilda thankfully shrugged once again. She seemed to understand that they both had their secrets.

  But Sam now had the knowledge that there was a Dreepy somewhere out there, and he began to struggle with continuing the conversation. He kept drifting off into thought, getting distracted by ideas and plans, so they ended up moving their chat outside.

  There, Sam released Trevenant, and Matilda’s eyes shone. Surprisingly, Trevenant was willing to slowly answer the onslaught of questions she threw his way.

  “Oh, how deep off-route did you live?”

  “Wow! And how were your interactions with other species?”

  “Your leaves—do you photosynthesize or eat real food?”

  “Wait, I have this list here... Have you tried to learn any of the following moves—”

  Though Trevenant tried to hide it, he honestly seemed to be complimented to have someone gush over him so much. However, he started to become uncomfortable pretty quickly, and Sam cleared his throat once it was clear his Pokémon would soon be overwhelmed.

  Matilda blushed.

  “Sorry. You’re so cool, Trevenant. Just, uh, hold on! I know you need to go, but do you mind waiting out here just for a few more minutes?”

  She dashed back inside, likely to catch up on serving the sailors cleaning up plates. From the subsequent, uproarious laughter Sam heard echo out, they seemed more than amused by the delay.

  And just a handful of minutes later, Matilda came back out with a journal. Silently, she hopped onto a crate and sat down while furiously scribbling in it with a pencil. Trevenant watched without making a noise until she suddenly looked up and tore out the sheet.

  Matilda presented Trevenant with a surprisingly accurate sketch of himself.

  “Here. Thank you. I really appreciate you answering my questions,” she said to the Pokémon.

  Carefully accepting it so his sharp claws wouldn’t pierce the paper, Trevenant stared at the sketch, his eye never leaving the page. Matilda sent him a small smile before thanking Sam as well, and then she turned around to head back inside.

  “Thanks for the information, Matilda. If you want to see him fight, we’ll be fighting in the Conference!” Sam called out.

  “We’ll be rooting for you!” she said happily.

  She disappeared through the back door, scooping up the little Dragon Type who had been in the process of absentmindedly wandering out. Trevenant was in a daze until Sam nudged his arm to remind them they were about to walk away.

  “Nice, huh? To have a fan?”

  Trevenant nodded a little slowly. He held his head a little higher than usual, too, when they walked back to the Pokémon Center.

  In the end, Sam knew he had to search for the Dreepy sooner rather than later. The reward for turning in a Dragon Type was simply too much. Other trainers would be lured by that excessive sum, so if he wanted to find and add a Dreepy to his team, he needed to be the one to find it first.

  He still had other tasks to take care of, however, so he quickly stopped at the docks to inquire about boats to Cianwood and checked in with the Gym about a match against Jasmine. Boats to Cianwood left about thrice a week, so he’d be able to buy a ticket the day before or the day of. As for a match against Jasmine, her schedule varied from day to day. The Gym Trainer working at the front desk told Sam to check back whenever he could, but trainers with a Gym Badge challenge took priority.

  His best bet would be to ask each morning to see if she’d be free, and Sam knew he could do that easily enough. For now, with those two important tasks taken care of, he left to join the scores of trainers searching out Dragon Types.

  But unlike everyone else, he had an advantage.

  Unfortunately for everyone else, Sam was likely the most prepared trainer for a Dragon Type hunt on this side of Johto. Not only did he have the New Pokédex, which allowed him to actually know information about the Dragon Types, but he also had an unreasonable amount of Pokémon with him. After all, he had over two dozen Gastly that could phase through walls, which meant his team could cover significantly more ground than “just” a team of six could.

  Not to mention, too, that these Gastlys had been trained to search. Ever since Sam and Redi first hunted down that Stantler herd, they’d frequently left under his command to search other Pokémon out.

  So, his Pokémon split off into groups of three, and then those groups joined together into squads under either Haunter or Misdreavus. Most of Olivine City was already divided up into neat, city blocks, so Sam would choose a road, and Misdreavus’s team would search the block to his left while Haunter’s team searched the block to his right. By the time he reached the next intersection, his Pokémon would be finished and able to report anything they’d found.

  By far, Normal, Dark, and Flying Types were the most common species (like usual). Rattata and Pidgey were the number one Pokémon found, as they were everywhere in Johto. The usual suspects for city Pokémon were also here—the occasional Zubat hanging in shadowed corners, hound Pokémon like Houndoom and Growlithe roaming the streets, and the out-of-the-way Spinarak making a nest somewhere unseen. Honestly, it was surprising to learn just how many Pokémon lived near humans now that his team was searching for them.

  Once in a while, a Ghost Type would come back to report a lone Pokémon from another region, or they’d report another that had snuck here via boat from another city. His Pokémon also found a missing Snubbull at one point, who was then returned to her inconsolable owner, earning Sam a surprising sum.

  But there were also the Dragon Types. The ones that remained, at least. A handful had already been caught, but Sam’s team was skilled. Several were found almost right away.

  An evolved Sliggoo lived in an alleyway behind an old hotel, enjoying the moisture that dripped from the condensation of cooling units and improperly sealed pipes. Elsewhere, a Fraxure practically lived behind a warehouse, using scrap left over from the interior machine shop to sharpen its tusks. Then, on the far side of the city, a lone Druddigon had carved a home into the dump.

  And finally, there was that Gabite, the very same Pokémon that had attacked Sam just last night. The Gastly reported seeing it in the backyard of an abandoned home. Sneaking around, Sam was able to lay eyes on it as well as the stolen take-out meal it carried. It tore open the bag to spill the food onto the ground, and a trio of young Gible rushed to gobble the meal up.

  So what did Sam do with all of this? These Pokémon had time to settle. All of the Dragon Types that hadn’t been able to find a place had already been caught. Likely, no one else knew about these species, and between his team’s stealth, hypnosis, and general strength, capturing any of them would have been an ease.

  But he did nothing.

  He knew about the Dragon Types, and he knew just how much cash he stood to make. His team was competent enough to earn him a solid half a million in a single afternoon, yet he couldn’t bring himself to do such a thing.

  “I don’t know. It feels wrong. Like, it’s so much money that it’s raising red flags in my mind.”

  It was dusk by this point, and it was still the same day that he had talked to Matilda. From late morning to right now, his team had already managed to find that many Dragon Types.

  “I know we stand to profit, and I know this city isn’t really suitable for them, but the idea of capturing them just to hand them over to some mysterious rich person doesn’t feel right,” Sam said. “It’d be different if they were on a Route because Pokémon on a Route at least expect to be captured. But these Pokémon were stolen from their homes and then brought here.”

  He sighed.

  “Did they live on a route? Or did they live elsewhere? And then we’d be handing them over to someone we don’t know. How are we supposed to trust a complete stranger like that?”

  Honestly, if less money was being offered, Sam would have had fewer doubts. But given that each Dragon Type was worth a hundred thousand dollars, it was suspicious. What kind of person had that much cash to throw around?

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  Next to Sam, Typhlosion used the cover of darkness to walk at his side. The shadows obscured her so that from a distance, she looked like nothing more than a darkened, Johtonian Typhlosion.

  Not too many people were out on this side of town right now, so she didn’t bother to keep quiet when she made a noise to respond to Sam’s question, speaking her name to express her agreement—but also to express her doubts.

  She wasn’t the one to fully understand the value of money, but she did know that more money brought better things. Even just catching one of those Dragon Types would let Sam do a lot more with the team.

  “I know, I know,” he said with another sigh. “We could do a lot with that kind of cash, but do we even need it? The Conference is only a month away.”

  That much money would make things easier in the short term, but Sam had a gut feeling his team would get a lot of sponsorship offers. The money would help them now, but they stood to earn more in the future. Waiting just a single month was all that was needed to get the funding to keep training his team, and between Typhlosion, Annihilape, and everyone else, Sam had no doubts that at least one rich person or corporation would want to use them for advertisements.

  “Besides, what would we even do with that much money? Buy some better food, probably. Send some home to Mom, definitely. But other than that? All I can think of is earlier ranching for the Mankey or held items, at least.”

  Typhlosion sent Sam a look and dug into her fur to pull out her Charcoal, which she no longer needed a scarf to carry. She didn’t always use it in fights, but it did passively increase the strength of her Fire Type moves when she bothered.

  “That’s yours. There’s still everyone else,” Sam countered.

  She chuffed and put her Charcoal back. Technically, Trevenant also had a held item, but his were just the berries he could regrow with Harvest.

  As they walked, from the side, a pair of Gastly phased out of a wall. Sam opened up the New Pokédex to let them search for the entry of the Pokémon they found.

  “I think I’ll talk to the nurse tomorrow,” he said as the pair stopped on a sketch of a Raticate. “She had to vet the job, so she might be able to tell us who put it up.”

  In that case, I’ll decide if it’s worth catching these Dragon Types. We might know where they are, but they’re better off staying here in the city if they’d just end up sitting in some rich guy’s collection.

  The sun eventually fully set, and the street lights flickered on. They were close to the edge of the town at this point, and Haunter and Misdreavus kept showing up with their teams.

  This search was technically hard work, but all the Ghost Types were downright eager to help. Not necessarily because they wanted to find a Dreepy, but because they were treating it like a game—and Typhlosion was keeping score.

  Haunter’s team had found more overall Pokémon, but Misdreavus’s team had found more Dragon Types. Either way, even after searching for so long, both teams were still fighting hard to “win.”

  Sam only planned to stay out here for a bit longer, however. A Ghost Type Dreepy would probably be more active at night, but as late as it was, his team deserved to rest after a long day.

  “Hm. So it took less than a day to reach Olivine from Carl’s place, and then we stayed in the Pokémon Center to let Annihilape be checked over. And our conversation with Matilda was also today, so that means... there’s twenty-nine days until the Conference. We’ll head out when there’s around twenty-five left.”

  As much as Sam wanted a Dreepy, he had to acknowledge this was only a chance at catching one. The Conference took priority. If he really had to, he could find a sixth member of his team somewhere else.

  But that hurt. He didn’t want to give up this star-aligned chance. He had to accept the reality of the situation, however, because a Dreepy would be hard to find no matter what.

  ...Unless his Pokémon suddenly found a hint.

  From a block over, Haunter shouted excitedly, and Sam made eye contact with Typhlosion before taking off.

  “Already? Do you think he found it?” he whispered excitedly.

  Typhlosion said her name—there was no way of knowing, but they had found a bunch of Dragon Types today.

  Charging to where Haunter had yelled, Sam cut through an alley, trying to reach him as fast as possible. He could hear his Pokémon speaking excitedly from the other side, so he didn’t hesitate as he ran through.

  But as he burst onto the other street, someone else yelped in surprise.

  “Watch it!”

  A blur of white suddenly jumped in front of Sam to pull its trainer out of the way. A black blade shone threateningly under the moonlight, and separately from it, Sam felt blue pinpricks of energy surround his body as a quick Psychic from Misdreavus pulled him back.

  “Ab,” the Pokémon before him growled. “Sol.”

  Its threat was made clear.

  Sam blinked at the Absol, and then at its trainer. He then looked up to the night sky, where a pair of Haunter were excitedly bouncing around one another in the air.

  “...Oh. You caught your Haunter at the Burned Tower too, didn’t you?” the other trainer asked.

  Sam breathed out in disappointment.

  “Yeah,” he said solemnly. “Looks like these two knew each other from back then.”

  There was enough of a general sense of confusion between the two Ghost Types for Sam to tell that they’d only been acquaintances. Still, Haunter and Haunter knew one another. That shout might have been one of excitement, but it was from Haunter finding someone he knew instead of a Dreepy. The two Ghost Types were too busy rapidly talking over one and sharing stories of their journeys to do anything else.

  And then a groan came out. The other trainer slumped.

  “Don’t tell me you’re searching for those Dragons, too,” he whined.

  “I am. Sorry?” Sam offered.

  The other boy groaned and moved to sit on the curb.

  “Preston,” he said, introducing himself.

  “Sam,” Sam said to do the same.

  “Yeah, there’s no way you’d run through an alley that excitedly just because you heard your Pokémon shout.”

  Checking to the side, Preston’s Absol stared at the alley, its white hair practically standing on its ends. Absol were known for their disaster sense, and Preston was probably trying to use that to help with his search. Right now, however, the Absol was preoccupied with staring at all of those red eyes. Preston might not have noticed, but his Pokémon certainly seemed bothered by the many, many Ghost Types watching their group.

  Preston just seemed bemused by the two Pokémon in the air. He let his head fall onto his fist, annoyed but willing to wait instead of calling for his Pokémon to come back.

  “Well, if we’re going to be stuck here for a while, we might as well chat.”

  Preston looked up at him expectantly, and Sam cautiously joined him on the curb.

  Preston was dressed in what was honestly a pretty generic trainer’s outfit—a red vest, a cap, a pair of travel-ready blue jeans, and running shoes on his feet. Sam could tell his Absol and Haunter were strong, but they weren’t necessarily strong enough to beat his team in a fight.

  “I haven’t seen you around. You aren’t part of that ‘dragon hunter’s club,’ are you?” Preston asked.

  “Huh?”

  “Over in the central Pokémon Center?” Preston blinked at Sam’s confusion. “Ah, no. You’re probably staying at another one, then.”

  Neither of them had anything else to do with their Pokémon occupied, and neither wanted to leave and tear their Pokémon out of such a merry conversation. Both Haunter chatted on and on, and while Sam couldn’t say he was as social as Redi, he could at least recognize what this was—a chance to obtain more information.

  “I’ve been searching every night,” Preston explained, speaking easily enough. “We made the mistake of waiting to take on Jasmine, but this is our chance to turn things around! Her Steel Types are crazy defensive, but catching one of these Dragon Types is exactly what we need for a chance to turn things around.”

  “With a new member of your team?” Sam asked, speaking the question before Preston could ask about his own plans.

  Preston replied with a blink.

  “What? Nah. Only insane people plan to keep whatever they catch. This late in the season? No, Dragon Types take too long to train—but a hundred K? No way I’m passing that up.”

  Tutors. Trainers. People he could hire for tips. Held items made a surprising amount of difference, but when talking about what he’d do with the cash, there was one idea he seemed to be enthralled with.

  “Vitamins,” Preston said, almost dreamily. “Incredibly expensive, incredibly valuable. With just a single week of mixing them into your Pokémon’s food, you can already start to see the difference. They’re completely legal and completely natural—they’re all about proper development and amount of energy, you see? If Absol was just a little stronger, or if Haunter was just a little faster...”

  Doesn’t that mean you should train instead of wasting your time on a search, then?

  But Sam didn’t say that out loud.

  “So then have you found any Dragon Types yet?” Sam asked.

  Preston groaned.

  “No. Only know of one, the same as everyone else. We lost, but have you tried your luck with the beast of the dump yet?”

  “The Druddigon?”

  “Yeah. That.”

  Apparently, everyone knew about Druddigon, and everyone kept trying to catch it. Trainers frequently challenged it to battles only to lose, which meant that experience was making it stronger by the day. The dumps didn’t have much space for maneuverability, which meant special attackers would get caught, and every physical attacker would just be torn up when they got close—either through the Pokémon’s attacks or its strangely rough scales.

  “I just need one. I just need to catch one Dragon Type, and everything will finally work out. That kind of money... It’s all we need. We could finally beat Jasmine, earn our seventh Gym Badge, and move on to our final Gym.”

  Honestly, Sam could see where Preston was coming from, but in his mind, it was a matter of strategy more than anything else. Preston had six badges. He had a month to earn his seventh and eighth. If he was already trying to earn his seventh, he had more than enough time to focus on training and make his way to the Conference.

  But as Sam listened to him talk, avoiding needing to speak for himself by asking Preston leading questions, he got a strange insight into the type of trainer out on this hunt. He doubted that everyone involved had the same mindset, but catching a Dragon Type here represented more than just the money or a new member of the team. These Pokémon were seen as a trainer’s big break. The benefits they could get from catching a Dragon Type meant they’d be able to finish their Gym Challenge in time for the Conference.

  The end-of-season rush always happened for a reason. Trainers saw the dwindling amount of time left and began to beat themselves against a Gym Leader’s team just to try to earn one. More. Gym Badge.

  “What about you? Have you found any?”

  Sam couldn’t distract Preston with questions for long enough. The other trainer looked over to him with a surprising amount of hope.

  But as Sam opened his mouth to say something, he just shook his head.

  “No. I haven’t. Sorry,” Sam lied.

  For a moment, Preston looked genuinely crushed.

  “Guess we have to keep searching, then,” he mumbled. “Come on, Haunter! Let’s head out.”

  Sam ended the first night of searching pretty soon after that. When he got back, he made sure to ask the nurse at the Pokémon Center if she knew who had put up the job.

  Unfortunately, she hadn’t been the one to vet it—that had been a different nurse in the city. Every Pokémon Center had the same job posted on their board, so she couldn’t answer. What she could do, however, was promise Sam that she’d make a few calls and tell him once she found out.

  Sam checked the Gym the next morning, found that Jasmine wasn’t available, and then did some odd jobs for cash. Afterward, once it became later in the day, his Pokémon resumed their search. They were effective, but there was only so much of the city they could cover before needing to take a break.

  To Sam’s surprise, they did find a few more Dragon Types, but he also encountered other trainers searching, and one of them shared a story of a Dragon Type that’d already been found.

  That Fraxure hadn’t been wild. It had been caught by the owners of the machine shop. Apparently, even though it was a Dragon Type now working a “menial” job, it was completely on board, practically in awe whenever it watched its humans reshape steel.

  The amount of other trainers searching was worrying, but Sam’s team didn’t give up. Haunter and Misdreavus continued their competition, Typhlosion continued to keep score, and they continued to push on. Yet, even with all their effort, he could soon tell that any further work wouldn’t help.

  But that was because they found what they were looking for.

  On the third day of searching, early into the night, a Gastly suddenly zipped over to Sam rather excitedly because of course his team found the Dreepy. Not only were they uniquely suited for this task, but Ghosts attracted Ghosts. The sheer number of Ghost Types with Sam meant one of them would have eventually stumbled upon their target no matter what.

  Heart pounding, Sam hurried after the Gastly, running down a cobbled side street located near the docks. As stereotypical as it was, the Gastly led him to a dark warehouse. He went up to its door just to find it was locked, but after a click, Misdreavus opened it from the other side to reveal herself inside. Smug, she sent a cocky look to Haunter, who had joined Sam from behind.

  “...Hello?” his voice echoed after he sent a quiet thanks to Misdreavus.

  Sam stepped into the building and looked around. Technically, he was trespassing, but it wasn’t like anyone was going to find out. Before him, boxes and crates filled with various shipments filled the space. This place wasn’t abandoned, but it didn’t look to be actively guarded by people, either.

  “Hello,” Sam repeated, though he could see no obvious Ghost Type in the room. “My name is Sam. I’m a Ghost Type specialist. If there’s a Dreepy in here...”

  He let his voice trail off.

  Honestly, he wasn’t sure what to say—was he to catch it? To help it? Or to make things alright?

  “I... train Ghost Types,” Sam ended up saying. “But I guess you already knew that since I said I was a specialist. What I really mean is that I know a lot about the Ghost Type, and I also have some experience with Dragon Types, too. So I know how to make Ghost Type Pokémon strong. And I know what Dragon Type Pokémon are like. I can help you get stronger, if you want. Or, if you have a different desire, I can help you with that instead, or maybe just... Ugh.”

  He sighed.

  This didn’t feel right.

  “Alright, look, I don’t know if there’s actually a Dreepy in here, but I don’t want to lie. I want to catch you. I’m selfish. You’re a rare species. I think you’re cool, so you have my interest, except—

  “Except you’re still your own Pokémon,” Sam said, his voice echoing around. “No matter how much I want to train you, I have a responsibility to all Ghost Types. You weren’t brought here by choice, but I can help. I want you to come with me, but even if you don’t, I promise you that I can find a way to bring you home, instead.”

  It’d be complicated, but Sam was pretty sure he could pull it off. He’d have to rely on Morty, and he’d probably have to invest some of his own funds to purchase cross-region boat tickets, too. However, all it’d take was a little work, and he could pull it off. He wasn’t lying when he said he could find a way to bring a Dreepy home—even if he really just wanted to catch it.

  Well, this only matters if there’s even a Dreepy here, at least.

  He looked around once more, searching the warehouse for any sign of the Pokémon. Moonlight trickled in from short windows at the top of the walls, but he wasn’t able to make out much even with that dim light.

  For now, he let his statement hang as he waited for some kind of response, but silence was the only reply. For a moment, he almost began to think this was a prank played on him by the Gastly, but that was when he saw a gleam out of the corner of his eye.

  From behind a barrel, a pair of small, yellow eyes glowed in the darkness. Curious, they stared at Sam, looking at him as though they weren’t sure what to do.

  Sam slowly turned his head to demonstrate he had seen the Pokémon, and it pulled back slightly but no more than that when he didn’t take a step forward. After taking a moment to recognize Sam wasn’t doing anything, it finally made a noise.

  “...Dreep?”

  And that confirmed it. The Pokémon was a Dreepy. Its voice was higher-pitched than Sam expected, but a member of its species was definitely there.

  He could see the flat shape of its head and the dark green of its body. The edges of its flattened horns were tipped with a red that was barely visible in the moonlight.

  The Dreepy then spoke again, repeating its question, and rather than its lower jaw moving down like most Pokémon, the entire upper half of its head moved up. The way it talked made it almost seem like a puppet, but it was clearly a living Pokémon.

  Well, it was a living Pokémon much as a Ghost Type could be.

  “I meant what I said, even though I’m not a fan. I want to catch you, but I can bring you home—or I can even leave you here if that’s what you choose.”

  Something in Sam’s words seemed to cause its curiosity to grow. Warily, it floated up from where it’d been hiding behind that barrel, and Sam was able to see the tail that made up the rest of the Dreepy’s form.

  Slowly, it crept closer through the air, and Sam stayed in the entrance, not taking any steps forward in an attempt to not scare it. When it was just a few feet away, Sam slowly knelt, and it paused at the movement before inching closer.

  “...Hey,” Sam said quietly. “May I?”

  It stared at his hand before nodding, and Sam ran two fingers down its head.

  Scaled, but surprisingly smooth. Everything about its shape is probably to minimize drag.

  Dreepy weren’t capable of much when it came to fighting, but their species excelled at being used as missiles by their evolved forms.

  With this Dreepy not fleeing and not making any aggressive moves, Sam stayed there for a while, just dragging his fingers across the Dreepy’s head. For a Dragon and Ghost Type, it was surprisingly friendly, but Sam’s truthfulness had probably caught its interest. He also knew not to challenge it, and it relaxed to the point where it closed its eyes and let out a low purr.

  Sam still had a small handful of PokéBlocks left over, so he began to reach into his pack to pull one out and see if the Dreepy would eat.

  But that was when everything was flipped onto its head. A sharp hiss pierced through the quiet of the night, interrupting Sam’s actions.

  The Dreepy’s eyes snapped open, and it darted through the air to stare into the shadows. Gesturing wildly, it started to furiously say its name, speaking fast like a child that had just been caught doing something wrong.

  But where it spoke into the darkness, something stared back, and the Dreepy let out a long, tired sigh. It moved forward, latching onto a scaled body and scrambling upward. Once it reached the top, it lowered itself into position on another Pokémon’s forehead.

  And Sam made sure he was completely still. He made no movements whatsoever when he realized the other Pokémon in the room. Much like how the Dreepy’s yellow eyes glowed in the darkness, this one's eyes were apparent under the moonlight. However, they were much, much sharper, and they clearly carried an anger that came from the surprise of Sam’s presence.

  Another hiss, and another threat came Sam’s way. He tried to bring up his hands to show he meant no harm, but all that did was encourage the wild Pokémon to attack.

  “Drakloak!”

  Before he could even realize what it had done, a blast of blue-purple fire left the Pokémon’s mouth to rocket right toward Sam. He almost flinched—almost—but he hadn’t come here alone.

  A flash, and Typhlosion released herself before him. She easily withstood the move, and the Dragon Pulse became nothing more than smoke that fizzled off her body.

  “We really mean no harm,” Sam said, standing up from the floor.

  The Drakloak took one look at Typhlosion and scoffed as if the very act of defending him had somehow proved his guilt.

  Typhlosion growled when it became clear that the Drakloak had no intention of dropping its threat, and the wild Pokémon lowered itself in the air. Sam turned to properly face the Dragon Type as Typhlosion’s back became alit with light.

  The Drakloak didn’t appreciate how it had returned to its hideout just to find Sam there. And from how it began to rear back, it also became clear that it had no intention of letting him leave without a fight.

  It’s not going to be that easy.

  Sam’s Team:

  Badges Earned: 7 (Mineral, Fog, Plain, Hive, Zephyr, Rising, Glacier)

  Approximate Team Strength: 7 Stars

  (Fire / Ghost Type, Female, Timid Nature +Spe/-Atk)

  Abilities: Blaze

  Held Item: Charcoal

  Moves: Tackle, Leer, Smokescreen, Ember, Flame Wheel, Curse, Will-O-Wisp, Incinerate, Detect, Quick Attack, Swift, Flame Charge, Flamethrower, Double Team, Infernal Parade, Confuse Ray, Hex, Shadow Ball, Night Shade, Shadow Claw, Agility, ???

  (Fighting / Ghost Type, Male, Impish Nature +Def/-SpA)

  Abilities: Vital Spirit

  Moves: Scratch, Leer, Low Kick, Karate Chop, Fury Swipes, Assurance, Ice Punch, Fire Punch, Cross Chop, Curse, Brick Break, Rock Smash, Rock Slide, Bulk Up, Rage, Rage Fist, Close Combat

  Haunter (Ghost / Poison Type, Male, Naive Nature +Spe/-SpD)

  Abilities: Levitate

  Moves: Hypnosis, Lick, Confuse Ray, Spite, Mean Look, Hex, Shadow Punch, Night Shade, Acid Spray, Ominous Wind, Shadow Ball, Dream Eater, Nightmare

  (Ghost Type, Female, Hasty Nature +Spe/-Def)

  Pokéball: Friend Ball

  Abilities: Levitate

  Moves: Growl, Psywave, Astonish, Confusion, Confuse Ray, Mean Look, Night Shade, Shadow Sneak, Shadow Ball, Nasty Plot, Psybeam, Will-O-Wisp, Psychic, Hex, Power Gem

  Trevenant (Ghost / Grass Type, Male, Quiet Nature +SpA/-Spe)

  Pokéball: Moon Ball

  Abilities: Harvest, Frisk (Developing)

  Held Item: Sitrus Berry

  Moves: Horn Leech, Tackle, Confuse Ray, Astonish, Growth, Ingrain, Leech Seed, Forest’s Curse, Shadow Claw

  Auxiliary Pokémon: A decent number of wild (only increasing)

  At Home (non-battlers): ,

  At Carl’s Ranch: (more than twenty), (Annihilape’s brother)

  Redi’s Team (at last sighting):

  Badges Earned: 7 (Mineral, Plain, Hive, Zephyr, Rising, Glacier, Fog)

  Approximate Team Strength: 6 Stars

  (Normal Type, Male, Adamant Nature +Atk/-SpA)

  Abilities: Guts, Quick Feet

  Moves: Scratch, Fury Swipes, Fire Punch, Baby-Doll Eyes, Slash, Ice Punch, Focus Energy, Thunder Punch, Hyper Beam, Rock Slide, Swords Dance, Giga Impact, Shadow Claw, Sleep Talk

  Porygon (Normal Type, Genderless, Quirky Nature +-n/a)

  Abilities: n/a

  Moves: Tackle, Sharpen, Conversion, Psybeam, Thunder Shock, Charge Beam, Discharge, Tri-Attack, Charge, Teleport, Recover, Thunder Wave, Magnet Rise, Lock-On, Zap Cannon

  (Dragon Type, Female, Rash Nature +SpA/-SpD)

  Abilities: Shed Skin

  Moves: Wrap, Leer, Thunder Wave, Twister, Slam, Agility, Aqua Tail, Dragon Rush

  Auxiliary Pokémon: x2 (Tibia and Fibula)

  Pokémon included in this chapter:

  / /

  huge thank you to everyone reading! Your support keeps this story going.