The Journey of Chase CH. 11: Dates and Debacles

It was another beautiful day in Celadon city, but Chase was preparing to leave. After his gym battle, the entire crowd of spectators wanted a closer look at his Pokémon. He felt bad about the two that had fought so bravely, but were defeated, so they couldn't enjoy the celebrity. Erika, being the kind soul she was, provided him with a couple of Max Revives to bring them back to full strength and they joined the festivities.
Unfortunately, they ended up staying until nearly midnight, and Chase had to leave in order to have enough rest to start traveling the next day. He made his apologies, grabbed Delilah away from the table of sweets, and they headed back to the Pokémon Center for some sleep.
After Chase was fully packed, he informed Delilah that he would be calling Officer Jenny in Vermillion City for a Team Rocket update. She nodded and continued packing while Chase went straight to the nearest phone. Before he dialed, he thought it would be nice if Nidorino had a chance to stretch his legs too, so Chase released him and he let out a huge yawn.
Chase smiled, picked up the receiver, and dialed the number. The screen in front of him burst to life, and Jenny's face popped up onto it.
"Hello? Oh, hi Chase," she answered cheerfully. "How are you, what's up?"
"Hello officer," Chase responded, a bit embarrassed at how happy she was so early in the morning. "I'm good. Just beat the Celadon Gym leader. I was calling to see if there were any updates on the Team Rocket case?"
"Oh," she said, getting quieter and leaning in towards the screen. "I shouldn't be saying this, but Surge gave up potential locations of other Rocket bases. We are going to be setting up raids for them soon."
"Where are they?" He asked softly, though there was no reason for him to be quiet.
"Well, one warehouse is in on one of the Sevii Islands, and we contacted the local police about that one. And he mentioned another in Fuchsia City, but he was unclear about its location so we'll have to grill him more-"
"Hey, I'm going to Fuchsia!" Chase said excitedly.
"No, don't go there! It's too dangerous right now. Wait until we've-"
"Ah, don't worry," he said with a grin. "I'm only going there to check out the Safari Zone and challenge the Gym. I'm not looking for trouble or anything..."
"Chase, I mean it," she said loudly as she pointed to the screen. "Don't get involved. Leave it to the proper auth-"
Chase started making static sounds, and speaking in a broken way, before hanging up. He sighed and looked over at Nidorino, who was sighing along with him. Then he asked, "Do you think she bought it?" Nidorino nodded and gave out a short "yelp!"
Across the sea from Chase's hometown lay the island of Cinnabar. This island had been demolished from the aftermath of a volcanic eruption that occurred one year before. The only building that survived the onslaught of lava was the Pokémon Center, but the Gym and the research laboratory had been buried under an avalanche of magma. Luckily, no human or Pokémon lives were lost that day, thanks to the heroic actions of a few trainers that were able to get all of the residents of the island to safety.
In order to continue doing their research, the scientists from the laboratory and the trainers from the Gym decided to pull their resources and rebuild their facilities under one roof. However, the land on Cinnabar Island was too unstable to try rebuilding anything on it. The location they ended up selecting for this endeavor was on another island to the East of Cinnabar. It was a part of the Seafoam Islands, which used to act as a resting area for trainers traveling between Fuchsia City and Cinnabar.
Within a year they were able to build a multi-leveled facility on the Westernmost Island. The main floor was composed of a small resting area and the Pokémon Gym, while the levels underneath were for the researchers to conduct their experiments. The man who was able to keep both sides running smoothly was a scientist as well as the Gym's leader: Blaine. He had been running the Gym back in Cinnabar for years, while also conducting research on the volcano and how some Pokémon were able to survive in its scorching environment, unscathed.
A few months after the Gym was reopened to the public Blaine had a visit from one of the other Gym Leaders, to offer him an opportunity to change the world. Initially he had refused, but when this Gym Leader threatened the trainers and other researchers, Blaine could refuse no longer. He began work on a weapon for which the disastrous nature was astronomical, and all he could do was to make sure that he took as long as possible, to delay the catastrophe this weapon would be able to cause...
Chase, having procured a rental bicycle from a shop in Celadon that had a sister shop in Fuchsia, blazed through Bicycle Road like a bat out of hell, and reached Fuchsia city in no time. It was still midday when they arrived, so the sun was high and there were only a few clouds lazing across the sky. After crossing the city limits Chase slowed his pedaling to get a better look at the many quaint shops of the city.
He looked back at Delilah to ask if she would like to do any shopping, but when he saw how furious she was that his wild riding through puddles left mud stains all along the back side of her outfit, he thought that it might've best for them to stop somewhere and change first. So, after a short stop at the Pokémon Center to allow Delilah to freshen up, they decided to make their way back into town.
Of course, upon stepping outside they realized that they were right next to the ocean, and all of a sudden Delilah's mood lifted. She turned to him and asked, "how about just for today we take some time off and go to the beach?"
"I think that's a great-" Chase began saying before a passing couple complaining loudly interrupted him.
"Are you kidding me," the woman said. "We came all the way here from Lavender just for the beaches, and they're closed!?"
"I know," the man responded. "Now what'll we do for the weekend? I'm definitely getting our money back from that damn travel agent!"
Delilah's face fell, and Chase scrambled to regain the happiness she had a moment ago. "Hey, we can still go check out the shops. You know," he said taking her by the arm and leading her back towards downtown. "Fuchsia is famous for some of the best ice cream parlors in all of Kanto. How about we go get a cone? I'm buying."
She turned to face him and her eyes had grown, and she smiled. Then she turned away and said, "You can't buy me with ice cream. I'm still mad at you. That was a cute outfit, and you practically covered it in mud."
Chase leaned in so he could whisper into her ear, and said, "I know of a place that has ice cream, and they sell solid chocolate by the pound..."
Her eyelids dropped a bit as she imagined taking bites of the chocolate then licking the ice cream. Her stomach, as if vocalizing her thoughts, growled loudly. Chase chuckled when he heard it, and she began slapping his arm.
"Ow, ow, stop," he said, still laughing.  "It's not my fault your stomach betrayed you." Delilah went back to pouting until they reached the shop he had mentioned.
It was small, but had a few tourists wondering through it, and buying the chocolate. At the back of the shop was a young man with long bleached hair serving the ice cream. When Chase saw him he immediately thought to himself, "his hair is an impossible color."
After Delilah ordered a triple-scoop cone with varying flavors, and a pound of their semi-sweet chocolate, she was in a good mood again. While she ate them, they slowly meandered through the many small specialty shops. There were clothing and jewelry shops, as well as souvenir shops, and the occasional eating establishment. Although Delilah thought they were just walking around without any end goal, Chase had planned the route so that he could head towards the Safari Zone.
After a couple hours of walking and window-shopping, she had finished the ice cream and the chocolate. Now she was feeling quite satisfied and was very open to suggestion. Chase decided that now was as good a time as any to ask her. So he led her to a bench, and they both sat down.
"Hey sweetie," he said sweetly. "How're you feeling?"
"I'm good," she said slowly, as if in a daze. "But I think I had too much chocolate. You shouldn't have let me eat the whole thing."
"I was not going anywhere between you and that chocolate."
"Hmm," she said closing her eyes. "Probably a wise decision." She smiled, and began leaning on his shoulder. "Hey, do you think I could rest here for a minute?" He didn't want to waste any more time getting to the Safari Zone, but he knew she would be useless until the chocolate was at least starting to get digested. So he let her sleep on him, and soon he began feeling tired as well. He tried to fight it, but he eventually succumbed to sleep.
Chase didn't know how long it had been, but when he awoke the streets were empty, and the street lamps were just starting to light up. He turned to see that Delilah was still sleeping on his shoulder, and decided to poke her softly on the cheek. She shuffled a bit, but returned to sleeping soundly a second later. So he poked her cheek again, and she shifted slightly as if she was going to roll over in bed, but without anywhere else to go, her head fell upon his lap. A shudder ran all the way up his spine as he let out a short, loud grunt.
The sudden fall had jerked her awake, and she was confused for a moment as she oriented herself upright. She looked at Chase then looked down at where her head was just located, and then back at his face. He could almost see her mind processing what was going on as the situation became clear in her mind. Her eyes widened and her face turned bright red as she hopped over to the other side of the bench.
"W-w-were we j-j-just," she stuttered, her whole body shaking from the shock.
"N-no," Chase said quickly. "We were sleeping. Just sleeping.  And until a second ago, your head was on my shoulder."
She heaved a sigh of relief, then looked around at the general emptiness of the streets. She turned to him and asked, "What time is it?"
He looked down at his Pokédex and said, "it says it's 8! We slept for three hours! Ugh!" He flung his head back, and threw his hands over his eyes. "I can't believe we wasted so much time..."
"What do you mean," Delilah asked. She was still a little groggy, but was clearing up quickly. "I thought we were having a day off?" Seeing he was about to get caught, he quickly changed the subject.
"Oh, look," he said pointing across the street. "There's a Pokémon play park. Let's have our guys stretch their legs and wings for a while." Delilah was suspicious at first, but after letting their Pokémon play around until the sky was dark, they just returned to the Pokémon Center without incident.
The next day Chase awoke bright and early, and began to get ready for his trip to the Safari Zone. In preparation of the trip he had read up on the Safari Zone. He read that it had become a National Park after much clamor from environmentalists that wanted the natural habitats of Pokémon to remain untouched by humans. He also learned of the Warden, Mr. Balboa. He was said to be a kind and generous old man, albeit a little forgetful at times. Mr. Balboa was the main advocate on behalf of the Park being made into a Pokémon catching zone, but only for certain times during the year. The National Parks Commissioner decided to grant Mr. Balboa the responsibility of being the Warden in charge of the park, and he accepted.
Delilah woke up just as he was placing his cap upon his head. He turned to her and said, "Ah, you're awake! Good morning. What would you like for breakfast?"
She stretched out her arms above her head and let out a soft groan. She looked at him with squinted eyes and asked, "Why are you up so early? What time is it? Breakfast?"
He chuckled and said, "It's not that early; it's 8 o'clock. I can get you eggs, toast, fruits, berries... What's your preference this morning?"
She let out a yawn and said, "fruits and berries sound so good right now..."
"You got it," Chase said as he stepped toward the door. "I'll be back in a flash." He closed the door behind him, and Delilah was a bit confused as to why he was so excited. She had gotten fully dressed by the time he returned, and decided to ask him.
"Well," Chase began, chewing on the apple slice he just placed in his mouth. "You see, I rushed to get here so I could get into the Safari Zone. It's only open a few months out of the year, and this is the last week of the last month this year. I want to go in and see if I can find any good Shiny Pokémon to add to my team."
"So that's why it felt like you were rushing me yesterday," she said frowning. "I thought we could both enjoy a day off, but if you were thinking about that the whole time, I would have preferred it if we could have taken the day off when you could be more relaxed. Just let me know when you've got stuff like this next time. Okay?"
Chase lowered his head and nodded silently. After they ate breakfast they grabbed their stuff and headed out right away. The gate in front of the Safari Zone was situated at the northernmost point of the city, and the park itself was so large it took up much of the area between Fuchsia City and Vermillion. Undeterred, they stepped through the gates and right up to the ticket counter.
Chase was about to request a ticket into the park, but when he looked inside, there was only a single person leaning back in his chair. He wore cowboy boots, and wrapped around his waist was a belt with a gun holster, cradling a large pistol. There was a hat covering his face, so they could not see if he was asleep or awake, but Chase was wary of the aura he was giving off. This man did not seem like the kindly Mr. Balboa that he had read about.
It seemed that Delilah had not noticed the gun holster, and was getting impatient with Chase's indecisiveness. She decided to ring the bell that was on the counter in order to wake the man up. She pushed the button three times, and his arm came up to lift his hat up, which he then placed on the table beside him. He stood up and stepped over to them; he was at least a foot taller than Chase. His hair was grey, and he had more than a few wrinkles on his weathered face. He had his eyes squinted due to the brightness of the sun, but Chase just thought they reminded him of the eyes of a sniper.
"What do you kids want?" he asked in a deep, gravelly voice.
"Um, uh," Chase stammered, trying to look tough in front of Delilah, but failing to fool even himself. "I, uh, wanted to, you know, catch some Pokémon, uh, in the, uh, Zone, of Safari, Sir!"
Delilah looked at him with an eyebrow raised, and a gaping mouth. He was fighting the urge to just curl up in a ball and lie on the floor. She just shook her head and grabbed his hand in one hand as she slapped him across the face with her other hand. Chase, shocked that she just slapped him, turned to face her as he rubbed his face.
"What the heck is wrong with you?" She said loudly. "You were so excited a second ago. Now you're embarrassing me! Stop it!"
Chase shook his head and turned back to face the man, who had cracked a smile thanks to what Delilah had done. Then looking down at his vest, he saw that the man was wearing a nametag that showed his name was Kaiser. For some reason, that alone loosened Chase up enough to try speaking again.
"Sorry, sir," Chase said with a small bow. "I'd like to catch some Pokémon in the Safari zone, please."
Kaiser nodded and pulled out a form for Chase to sign. Then he said, "Before you go in you must sign this form. It just says that you'll abide by the Safari Zone rules of not disturbing the park in any way beyond just catching the Pokémon, only using the Safari Balls given to you to catch the Pokémon within the park, and not battling any park Pokémon with your own Pokémon. Also, you agree to only visit the park once every other catching season."
"I can do that," Chase said as he signed the document. He handed it back to Kaiser, who looked it over and then placed it within a file cabinet. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Shoot," Kaiser said as he began pulling out the Safari Balls for Chase to use.
"You're not Mr. Balboa, right?"
"That's right. What of it?" Kaiser carefully inserted each of the Safari Balls into a container for easy transport.
"What happened to him?"
"Well," Kaiser said as he placed the container onto the counter. "He thought this 'Safari Zone' idea was so good he decided to put together another one in Johto. That was about a year ago now. I was appointed to look after the reserve right after he left. After all, I looked after the Pokémon in this here reserve for decades before it became an official zone for safaris."
"Oh, you were here before," Delilah asked.
"Yeah, I was a ranger here when I was younger. There's a picture there on the wall behind me," Kaiser said as he pointed to a small photo of him kneeling next to a Dratini. "Now, this thing has a counter that tells me when you've used up all of the Safari Balls. I've got cameras with sensors all over the park, so if you use anything but a Safari Ball, you'll be removed from the park, all Pokémon you'd captured until then would be released back into the park, and you'll be black-listed. You understand?"
"Yes, sir," Chase said saluting to him. "I promise to return as soon as I'm done!"
Kaiser nodded, and pressed the button that opened the gate into the park. Chase took a deep breath, grabbed Delilah's hand and together they marched into the Safari Zone. Their eyes were greeted with a vast expanse of grassland, spreading out for miles in front of them with Pokémon running and playing blissfully. To the left of the grassland were wetlands filled with water-type Pokémon leaping into the air to gobble up the smaller insects flying around, and to the right there was a small rocky plateau where they could see some Ground and Rock-type Pokémon lumbering about doing something, they couldn't quite make out what. The gate closed behind them, and they began to race forward towards the grass. When they reached the first plot, they slowed down and started to sneak through, so as to not scare off the Pokémon within.
Watching from a distance, unbeknownst to Chase and Delilah, was Koga, hidden amongst the leaves of one of the trees lining the edge of the wetlands. In this environment it would be a simple task for him to eliminate his target. He pulled out a long, hollow reed and placed a poison-tipped dart inside. Aiming for Chase, he positioned the reed and inhaled deeply. Just as he blew into it, he heard a gun shot, and luckily for Chase, the portion of the reed that held the dart was blown to bits by a bullet that blasted through the reed.
Looking around to see. Where that bullet came from Koga noticed that the park ranger had his gun trained on him. Deciding that this ranger would be too much trouble to take out, he vanished from his vantage point and began dashing through the park, looking for another spot where he could make another attempt. From behind a large rock he saw them still creeping through the grass. Without his dart shooter, Koga readied a throwing knife. He trained for years to throw these knives from great distances with deadly accuracy. As soon as they hit a clear spot, Koga threw his knife, it sliced through the air and would have hit Chase right in his throat, but a Graveller leaped up during its dance and the knife bounced harmlessly off its tough shell.
Koga began to get irritated at all the invisible obstacles that interfered with his assassination attempts. Once more he dashed unseen through the park. This time he decided to forgo attempts from a distance, and he would try to get close to his target. When he was mere feet away, hidden by the tall grass, he pulled out his sword, which had been handed down his family line for generations, and prepared to slice through Chase. As if by some cruel act of a vengeful spirit, a herd of Tauros stampeded between him and his target, with one of them knocking the sword out of his hand and into a nearby lake.
Koga could not leave his family's weapon behind, so he abandoned his mission to retrieve his sword. He leaped into the lake, and swam as quickly as possible to the bottom. On the way down he passed by many Water Pokémon, including Psyducks, Magicarp, and Poliwags. He soon spotted his weapon, which had perfectly fallen next to a large rock that bore a striking resemblance to a sleeping dragon.
He reached out and grabbed his sword, but as he turned around to swim back his leg got caught on some seaweed. He sliced the seaweed off with his sword, but when he grabbed it from his leg, he saw that it was blue. Suddenly, he felt a disturbance in the water around him. He turned around quickly and saw that what he thought was seaweed, was actually a whisker, and the Pokémon it came from was a Gyrados.
As it stared at him, Koga sized it up in his mind. The creature's mouth was wide open, and at least large enough to fit him, standing comfortably within it. It's body stretched out behind it nearly thirty feet. Its eyes were blood red, and each razor-sharp tooth was the size of a normal person's head. He noticed that it used very subtle fin movements to stay floating where it was, and that it wouldn't need much effort at all to dash forward and eat him.
Without any further hesitation, due to the air in his lungs running out, Koga began to swim furiously towards the surface. The Gyrados let out a roar that sent out shock waves so massive, his ears began to bleed. Then it reared its head as a bright light formed within its mouth, not caring about aim it fired a huge white beam of pure energy straight at Koga. With the foresight only an experienced ninja could have ever accumulated, he spun out of the line of fire just in time to feel it graze the back of his uniform and blow past him.
From across the park, out of the corner of her eye, Delilah saw a flash of light. She turned around to see what it was, but she saw nothing that could have caused it. She shrugged and turned back, seeing Chase raise a finger to his lips as he pointed toward a small oasis a few meters away. They continued to creep silently forward.
Meanwhile, Koga somehow managed to escape the lake, and was running as fast as he could, to get out of range of the Gyrados' attacks. By the time it emerged from the water, Koga was out of sight. It let out a huge roar, and dived back into the lake. Koga decided he had enough with this place, and decided to retreat for the moment. Realizing that Chase was a trainer that would be challenging the Gyms, he headed for the one in this city. His daughter, Jasmine, was the Gym Leader there, and would lend some much-needed aid.
Chase and Delilah had reached the small pond, and noticed there was something strange about it. The water was unprecedentedly clear.  There was not a speck of dirt, algae, or any other contaminants anywhere. Looking from above, they saw that although the pond was small in circumference, it was quite deep. They couldn't see the bottom from where they stood, but they could see a few Pokémon swimming below the surface.
Chase pulled out his Safari Ball container, and noticed that there was some writing on the side:
Safari Zone Rules:
1. No battling.
2. No Pokéballs other than Safari Balls.
3. Do not disturb, or destroy, any of the habitats in the park.
4. Fishing is allowed, so long as the hooks used do not harm the Pokémon.
5. Press button on the bottom of this device to signal the Park Ranger if you wish to end your Safari Session before you use all of the Safari Balls.
Chase sat down on the bank of the pond, pulled a Safari Ball out of the container, and placed it next to him. Delilah sat on his other side and gestured to him, asking what he was doing. He held up a finger, asking her to wait, as he swung his backpack around and pulled out a small but long box. When he opened the box, she saw that it contained a collapsible fishing rod with some Pokémon lures. He then proceeded to assemble the rod, place a lure upon the dulled hook, and cast the line into the water.
At this time, Delilah thought it might be nice to have a quiet picnic. She laid out a small blanket behind them, and pulled out the food they had packed that morning. After she had set everything up, she looked around and was able to fully appreciate the natural beauty of the park. There was a soft breeze blowing through the park, and the sounds of Pokémon playing games drifted in the wind.
She picked up one of the sandwiches she made and gave it to Chase, who scarfed it down quickly. She would have objected, but he began reeling in a Pokémon. She tried to be encouraging, while not being too loud, and gasped when he pulled out a large and beautiful Goldeen. He shook his head when he saw its deep orange color, knowing it was not a shiny Goldeen, and threw it back into the pond.
For two hours it continued on this way. Chase reeled in a Pokémon, seeing it as a normally colored one, and throwing it back into the lake. The sun was directly overhead, and its heat was beginning to affect Delilah. She called out her Smoochum to produce a small flurry of snow to cool them all down, and within seconds they were relieved from the heat of the day, and were able to cool off. Not wanting to overwork her young Pokémon, she returned it to its Pokéball, and sighed.
Another hour went by, and Chase seemed as determined as ever. Finally, she could take the silence no longer, and Delilah whispered to Chase, "How much longer are we going to be here? Are you only going to fish the whole time? What about all of the other Pokémon here in the park?"
"I don't know," Chased said softly. "Fishing is a waiting game, and it was made for those with patience. Also, though there might be other shiny Pokémon within this park, I am looking for a very specific Pokémon that you can only find here, and in one cave in the Johto region. And the only way to find it, is if you dive to the bottom, or fish for it-"
Feeling a tug on the line, Chase began reeling it in, however, this time it really struggled. Chase fought for nearly ten minutes, pulling it in, then feeling it pull back, and before he knew it, a small pink tail splashed out of the water. Once he saw it, he knew that it was the elusive Pokémon he was searching for. After a few more tugs, he heaved and lurched it out of the water.
It was a small snake-like Pokémon, bright pink, with little white ears and a white underbelly. He quickly grabbed the Safari Ball and tossed it at the creature. It was immediately sucked in, and the ball began swaying from side to side. Chase, not wanting to take any chances, pulled another Safari Ball out of the container. The creature burst out of the ball, but Chase had already thrown the next ball, ensnaring it once more. After consuming twenty of his Safari Balls in this way, it finally allowed itself to be captured.
Upon hearing the resounding 'Ding' meaning the capture was successful, Chase collapsed. Delilah rushed over to him and asked if he was okay.
"That was the longest, most nerve-wrecking Pokémon capture I've ever experienced," he said panting. He reached for the Pokéball and pulled it close to his chest. "I hope you're easier to train than you were to catch you little son of a-"
"Chase!" Delilah said disapprovingly. "Don't talk to your new friend that way."
Chase smiled and nodded, attaching the ball to his belt. Then he pulled out the Safari Ball container and pressed the button on the bottom of it. A red light flashed as a voice came from the device.
"Do you wish to end your Safari run? Please, press the button once for yes, and twice for no." Chase pressed the button once and waited for the device to say something else.
"Please, make sure to gather all of your belongings and traveling companions. In thirty seconds we will transport you to the front of the enclosure. Thank you for visiting Safari Zone. Please come again. Transport will commence in: thirty, twenty-nine..."
Chase and Delilah tightly grabbed each other and felt a sinking sensation in their stomachs as the timer reached zero and they disappeared from the spot they were at and appeared once more in front of the gate, where Kaiser stood with his arms folded in front of him. Still a bit shaken up, Chase handed over the device to Kaiser. He checked it out, nodded, and sent them on their way.
After such a long day, and such an odd experience of traveling by teleportation, they decided to just walk back to the Pokémon Center. Chase had no problems with being well rested before taking on the Fuchsia City Gym. Before going to sleep, however, Chase decided he wanted to have a talk with his new partner.
He called out his new Pokémon, and it cried out happily as it wrapped itself around his legs and squeezed. Not expecting such an overly friendly response, Chase was caught off balance, and without being able to move his legs, lost what balance he had. He fell to the floor, and his new Dratini slithered up to his torso and let out a soft cry of happiness.
After seeing how cute his Dratini was, Chase forgot what it was he wanted to say to it. So he patted it on the head and simply said, "welcome to the team, buddy." It cried out again, and hugged Chase tighter. He petted it some more before returning it to its Pokéball. Then he slid into bed, and fell fast asleep, dreaming of the battle he was sure he'd win tomorrow.