The Ghost Specialist

Gambling wasn’t legal in Indigo. If there was a chance-based game that rewarded players with a cash prize, it went against the region’s criminal code.

However, if the game didn’t have a cash prize and instead rewarded “worthless” metal tokens, then everything was fine. It was also fine if someone just happened to collect these tokens, and it was still fine if that same person just happened to operate an exchange counter that “purchased” those tokens in exchange for both cash and physical prizes.

When combined, Goldenrod’s Game Corner and many other places like it weren't gambling; they just were places where people could play luck-based games. And if its reward tokens could be sold in exchange for more impressive items, that wasn’t the proprietor’s fault since the exchange counter wasn’t a part of the same business.

Of course, practically everyone recognized this set-up as abuse of a legal loophole. However, no one was willing to change the law due to the sheer popularity of Game Corners. There would be an uproar if the pseudo-gambling halls were made illegal. Thus, the system was allowed to persist. It was popular enough that tokens were even occasionally earned elsewhere, sometimes as offerings for eating at restaurants, and sometimes trainers even bet them in Pokémon battles.

Sam wasn't too worried when the New Pokédex said Porygon could be found at the Game Corner. Game Corners often allowed people to trade tokens for certain species of Pokémon, which was definitely skeevy but still not technically illegal. While actually playing the corner’s games would just be an abyss that'd suck away all their money, he and Redi could grind away battles to eventually earn her enough tokens to gain the species she wanted.

The only problem was that no one there knew what a “Porygon” was.

“Can you repeat that?” the woman working the counter said.

“Porygon?” Redi repeated. “It's an angular, computer Pokémon? I was told it could be found here!”

The woman frowned and leaned back to read a paper listing potential prizes on the wall. It included items like TMs, a few held items, and a handful of species like Ekans and Abra.

“I'm sorry, but we don't have that species on record,” the woman said, giving Redi a sad smile. “If you instead want to trade your tokens for something else—”

“You really don’t have Porygon?”

The woman nodded, pressing her lips together, and Redi let out a sigh.

Sam stood behind Redi and pulled out the New Pokédex to double check they had the right location. Porygon was indeed listed as being found at “The Game Corner,” but it also listed places he’d never heard of, like the Trophy Garden or White Forest. He was confident that neither of those places were in Johto.

“You sure Porygon is supposed to be here?” Redi said, glancing over her shoulder at Sam.

“I mean, I’m pretty sure. I just don’t get why this book would be wrong.”

It would be the first time it was wrong outside of omission.

However, Redi was still just a young teen, and there was something to her downtrodden expression that made the woman behind the counter wince with guilt. She ended up leaning down and waving Redi closer.

“Look, I really shouldn’t be telling you this, but I’ve heard a rumor that we have a different rare species here.”

“Oh?” Redi leaned closer.

“Uh-huh! I’m not allowed in the back, but I heard some of the guys talking about it. Apparently, we have a trio of Dratini that are going to be given out. If you manage to get the upcoming month’s grand prize—a Dragon Token—you’ll be able to exchange it for one of them!”

Redi suddenly went still, and Sam noticed a forced smile appear on her face.

“Thanks,” she said, nodding slowly. “I’ll keep an eye out for them!”

The woman leaned back up and sent her a smile.

“Glad to help. Cheer up! I’m sure you’ll find the species you’re looking for if you keep at it.”

Before he could say anything, Redi grabbed Sam’s wrist to drag him outside. She pulled him out of the gaudy rewards room and around the corner, hiding them within an alley between the exchange building and the Game Corner itself.

“Alright. There’s something suspicious going on here,” she said.

Sam sighed and put the New Pokédex away.

“I know. I’m sorry. I really thought that Porygon—”

“Not that. The Dratini,” she hissed. “How did a Game Corner manage to get three Dragon Types to hand out as a reward?”

Sam knew the New Pokédex had information on their location, but he’d never bothered to check because he hadn’t been interested in catching one for himself. However, their actual location was a closely guarded secret due to the risks that came with approaching wild Dragon Types’ nests. If the Game Corner had three Dratini, the question was how did they get them in the first place? Either they were caught in the wild—a dangerous proposition—or they were purchased from a specialized breeder.

Except, Sam knew a specialized breeder would never allow the offspring of a proud Dragon Type be put up as a reward for something as crass as gambling. It would be like if Carl sold a set of Cyndaquil Eggs to a Pokémon Center. Stuff like that didn’t happen.

“Lance and the Blackthorn Clan wouldn’t allow this. You know how much flak Goldenrod would get if word got out that the Game Corner had Dratini as prizes?” Redi said.

“I’m not too aware of Indigo’s politics. Is it actually that bad?”

She sent him a flat look.

“Remember what I said about the Fairy Type?”

He winced.

“Alright, you have a point.”

Redi quickly glanced behind her before sneaking up to the street to check that they weren’t being watched. She looked up—there were no cameras here—and she started to drag Sam deeper in.

Meanwhile, Sam was lost in thought. Not about the Dratini, but about Porygon and why it wasn’t here.

Why did the book say Porygon was at the Game Corner, anyway? And, wait, it’s ancient! How did such an old book even know about a computer generated Pokémon in the first place?

The timeline didn't line up. If Porygon existed back when the book was written, surely more people should have heard about it by now. This divide went beyond just the book’s strangely accurate information on foreign species. Porygon’s numerical placement implied it had first been encountered in Kanto, but no one seemed to be aware of it.

“We’re sneaking in,” Redi suddenly said.

Sam snapped back to reality.

“What?”

“We have to check. In and out. It’ll be quick. Something about this reeks, and I want to get to the bottom of it.”

Sam frowned. He remembered what happened in Granite Cave and the month of lectures he received afterwards. Something about this situation faintly reminded him of that, even more so than when they had snuck onto the Gym's battlefield early today.

But Redi was right. Three Dratini, three Pokémon that could evolve into one of the most powerful species around, were being offered as prizes? Something was off. Sam agreed they needed to go in, but he wanted to be smart about it.

“Wait.” He grabbed Redi’s arm to get her to stop, and she snapped her head around, ready to argue. “Yes, we’re heading in, but let’s set some rules. No attacking anyone, and no getting into battles. If we see something off, we pull back and call the police.”

Sam released her hand, and Redi crossed her arms.

“Do you really think we can beat people who managed to capture Dratini?” he asked. “Gastly can go through walls. Let him scout. I don’t want you to get hurt, so let’s stick to just gathering information, alright?”

She scoffed, as if the idea of her getting hurt was ridiculous, but a slight smile still appeared on her face.

“Okay. Thanks, Sam!”

He smiled back as Redi returned to following the building’s wall. Silently, he unclipped Gastly’s Pokéball from his belt before sending the Ghost Type out.

“How much of that did you hear? Do you think you can find us an entrance and help us stay away from any guards?”

The Ghost Type bounced happily, seemingly thrilled to be part of an infiltration. He dipped backwards to phase through the wall of the rewards building before popping out and encouraging them to follow.

The back of the building was open. A small side street led up to it, where a metal garage door sat open above a long truck. The vehicle was parked but provided just enough space to slip past its sides. Entering, Gastly boldly floated in the middle of the room without bothering to hide himself. Since he was there, Sam took that as a sign that no one was around to stop them.

“Surprising lack of security,” Sam whispered.

“Well, yeah? Who would steal from a place like this and not get caught? And then imagine what the people that run this place would do as punishment.”

Both of them shivered. Game Corners might be popular, but it was also common knowledge to never cross them.

Sam and Redi hopped up onto an elevated concrete walkway, heading inside of the garage to reach a door connected to the interior of the building. Gastly floated through as Redi jiggled the handle.

It didn’t move—it was locked.

“Teddiursa.” Redi released her Pokémon. “Think you can get the lock?”

The little bear smiled confidently and stood on his toes to reach the handle. He stuck a clawed finger into the keyhole and jiggled it around before there was a click. The door swung open.

“Teddiursa can pick locks?” Sam whispered, following Redi into the hallway.

“What? No, he just damages them until they don't work anymore.”

So we're breaking and entering. Got it.

He didn't want to say that part out loud.

The interior hallway felt oddly sterile, being made up of featureless, grey concrete and lightbulbs hanging from the ceiling. Scuff marks and dirt crossed the floor. The place hadn’t been cleaned in ages.

As for the walls, there were a few doors along the sides that were locked, but the one that seemed the most interesting was the one at the every end. A crossed window revealed a larger room, and Sam could just barely make out the edge of what looked to be cubbies in the walls.

Gastly poked his head through to tell them the room was unoccupied. Thankfully, this door wasn’t locked like the one that led in from outside.

Passing through, Sam and Redi took in the room. The space was much cleaner, almost resembling a sort of break room. However, two walls were occupied by storage. One had rows of slotted shelves filled with Pokéballs, and the other had several glass-sealed cubbies with holes in them to allow air to reach within.

“The Dratini!”

Redi immediately rushed forward as Sam made sure the door closed behind them. He approached, quietly waving for Gastly to continue poking around before joining Redi in front of three, young Dragon Types.

Just like the counter worker had said, these were Dratini. Each one was a small serpent with blue scales and a white stomach. Tiny wings flapped where ears might have been as they poked up their heads. Pure black eyes stared at them, all three sets full of hope.

“...This isn't right,” Redi mumbled. “Why are they in such small boxes? And look what they’re feeding them!”

Each cubby was only a foot or two across. Pressed against the glass were bowls containing food and water. However, the water looked stale, and the food was Pokémon kibble. Not even Redi was cheap enough to subject a Pokémon to food as low quality as that.

“And why keep them out like this? Why not keep them in Pokéballs?” Sam asked as one of the three Dratini let out a pitiful whine.

There was a silence as he and Redi both paused to process it.

“I think... I think It’s a loyalty issue,” she said.

Sam turned to her, but her gaze remained locked on the Dratini in their sealed cubbies.

“Pokéballs keep Pokémon in stasis. They don’t need to eat, injuries won’t worsen, and Pokéballs let Pokémon have a vague idea about what’s going on around them. Most Pokémon say being in one is comfortable, but what if you don’t want a Pokémon to be comfortable? What if you want a Pokémon to be unhappy? That way, once they are caught and handed over to a proper trainer, they’ll love that trainer that much more thanks to their way better treatment.”

“That’s messed up,” Sam said.

“That’s a technique used by poachers.”

A dark look passed over Redi’s face. She looked between all three of the Dratini and glanced to the other wall of Pokéballs.

“...How many of these Pokémon were obtained illegally?” she mumbled.

One of the Dratini pushed its head towards the holes in the glass. Redi bent to stick a few fingers through, just barely managing to pet them.

“We're freeing them,” Redi said, determination settling into her voice.

Sam could tell Redi wanted to order Teddiursa to attack the glass, but he stopped her by placing his hand on her shoulder and whispering, “Hold on.”

“Remember what I said about the strength of the people here?” Sam asked.

She frowned but nodded. Sam pushed on.

“We only have two-star teams. I don’t think we can win any fights. We have to get out and call for help. If we can get the police involved—”

Footsteps.

Then, voices.

Gastly panickedly popped back into the room.

“...don’t understand. My key didn’t work, but the door still opened.”

“You think the lock broke?”

“Maybe. Or Fred’s screwed with it again.”

Sam quickly took a step back and exchanged a glance with Redi. An entire silent conversation carried out between them before they made the executive decision to head deeper in to hide.

As fast as they could, Redi and Sam moved to a door that led to a different hallway. Teddiursa scrambled, and Redi hurriedly whispered to the three Dratini.

“We’ll get you help. We promise,” she said quietly.

The door clicked behind them only seconds before the door to the storage room opened up. Sam desperately looked around while Redi actively checked the other doors in this hallway. One creaked open. She waved to him to follow.

“In here!”

They dipped inside and closed the room off. Thankfully, the door had a lock Sam was quick to apply.

He breathed out and took the space in. This was essentially an office, complete with a desk, a blocky computer, and a phone on a nearby wall.

Most importantly, there was a single Pokéball next to the computer on that desk.

Sam asked Gastly to continue to remain on guard as he immediately went up to pick up the phone. Redi followed, hand tracing the edges of the desk as she eyed both the Pokéball and the white machine.

Quickly, Sam dialed the number for the police.

“Goldenrod Police. Do you have an emergency?”

“Yes, I—” He cleared his throat to speak with a deeper and gruffer voice. “I’m at the reward building for the Game Corner, and there’s evidence here that their reward Pokémon are poached, or are at least being abused.”

“...Please elaborate.”

Sam started to go into detail about what he had seen. As he did, Redi grinned and plopped into the desk chair to sit behind the computer.

He made a slicing motion across his neck to try to get her to stop, but she cheekily shrugged and turned it on.

Surprisingly, the computer flashed on within only a few seconds.

“Huh. No password,” Redi said.

Sam's eyes bore into her as she grabbed the mouse and started to browse the computer's contents.

“...Yes, glass boxes,” he said, still attempting to disguise his voice. “Little space to move. Poor conditions. All three looked extremely young.”

“We'll be there shortly. Please, stay on the line so we can—”

“Sorry. Gotta go.”

He hung up before the policewoman could shout for him to wait. Frowning, he marched over to stand behind Redi and look at the screen over her shoulder.

“Isn't this evidence tampering?”

“Nah, the police will know we've been here so there's no problem. It makes sense to check for more proof, anyway. Trust me, I've seen a bunch of detective flicks before!”

Sam glared at her, but she wasn't even paying attention. Redi softly hummed as she navigated to the computer’s email program.

It opened up, revealing dozens upon dozens of emails waiting to be read. Most were comments sent by customers. A few were spam. Others involved requests by employees. There was something about shipments with values that made Sam’s head boggle—

“Hold on. What’s that one?”

It was unread, having recently arrived. The subject line had only two words: “A Gift.”

Redi clicked on it.

Sam read it out loud.

“As a bonus, we’ve included an interesting specimen alongside your last shipment. It's one of a kind, a perfect draw to lure more customers. Use it as you wish and remember who sent it to you.

To our ongoing partnership,

-P”

The email lingered as both Sam and Redi stared at the screen. Too many questions flashed through Sam’s mind for him to vocalize anything.

Who is ‘P?’

Why did he send the Pokéball?

What species is it?

...And what did we get ourselves into?

As Sam reread the message, Redi picked up the Pokéball on the desk.

“Hold on, what are you—”

“It’s a Porygon, isn't it?”

She turned to glance up at Sam, a conflicted expression on her face. She looked him in the eye for what felt like minutes before she whispered one question.

“How did you know?”

He wasn't sure how to answer.

Footsteps echoed in the hallway, forcing both Redi and Sam back into silence. The door muffled a voice into indistinguishable muttering. The handle jiggled. There was a pause, and whoever was on the other side grumbled.

The jingle of keys was obvious even from here.

“Hypnosis, Gastly!” Sam whispered sharply.

The door swung open to reveal a greasy-looking man in a button-down shirt that was too tight against his stomach. He had an unhappy scowl on his face, a scowl that froze in place when he locked eyes with Gastly, who was floating at head level.

The Ghost Type loomed closer, eyes glowing blue as the man went utterly still. No one moved until the man’s eyes rolled up into his head, and he fell face-forward on the ground. He laid there and began to snore.

Sam and Redi immediately got up to leave. The police were coming, and they didn’t have a place to hide from anyone who might be nearby. However, as they scrambled out of the office, Sam didn't fail to notice Redi slip the Pokéball into her pocket.

They followed the path they came from before, but it was empty now. The voices they had heard had gone deeper in. Before they left, Redi made sure to shout to the three Dratini that help was on the way. A thud sounded from another room—someone heard her—but Sam and Redi disappeared outside before they could be discovered.

Dashing, they curved back through the alley and hastily returned both Teddiursa and Gastly. They made sure to slow to a casual pace as they joined a few pedestrians headed down the street.

Then sirens. Cop cars barreled down the road. Behind them, a woman riding an Arcanine kept pace. Her blue hair made her easily recognizable as Officer Jenny.

“Should we—”

“I want answers, Sam. And I want to stay safe,” Redi said. “The Pokémon Center will keep our rooms reserved for a few days even if we don’t show up. Let’s camp out, just for tonight. Somewhere private, alright?”

“...Alright.”

Cops entered the rewards building right as Sam and Redi turned the corner. Rather than head to the Pokémon Center, they followed the road to the nearby southern Route and headed a ways into it until they found an obscured grove of trees—a location perfect for a hidden camp.

Silently, they set up camp as their Pokémon helped. Cyndaquil could sense Sam’s nerves and stayed right by his side. It’d been a long day, but as they got a fire going and as stars started to appear as pinpricks above them, Redi asked for Sam to stop.

“Hold on,” she said. “I at least need to check.”

Holding up the Pokéball she had taken from the Game Corner, a Pokémon coalesced from red light. Their team members stood on guard in case it attacked, but it didn’t.

A Porygon floated in the air, staring with blank eyes.