Chapter 158. The Hidden Face

Alex made his way to the Safari Zone with Arcanine and Espeon by his side. Arcanine was essential for the job, while Espeon simply refused to leave his side after the two days he had spent traveling alone with Hydreigon. She had been needy ever since they landed. Along the way, Alex could not help but notice the distinct lack of human supremacists in the city, which frankly amazed him. Normally, it was easy to spot human supremacists wherever Pokémon were present. They either pretended Pokémon didn't exist or glared at them with poorly restrained fury. Most people, however, just watched with mild curiosity, which Alex considered normal. It reminded him of how people often stared at dogs on the street. No matter how common dogs were, people still looked at them. Koga had done a good job removing the human supremacists from his city. He was originally a member of the Elite Four together with Will, Bruno, and Karen, but the disaster caused by the rise of specialized counter strategies against Toxic stall eventually led to his removal. Since then, he stopped aiming for the Elite Four and simply remained as a Gym Leader. Alex soon arrived at the main office of the Safari Zone, where he met the Warden overseeing the entire operation. "Alex Wattson? We've been expecting you," said a balding, portly man as he stood to greet him. "Show me something the culprit touched or the most recent attack site so I can begin," Alex replied without hesitation. "Straight to the point. I like that. The others were more interested in what Pokémon I could 'hook them up' with. Come with me." The Warden led Alex outside to a waiting golf cart, and together they set off, riding through the quiet expanse of the Safari Zone. The ride was quiet for the most part. The only sounds came from the hum of the cart and the faint calls of wild Pokémon settling in for the night. The Safari Zone had already closed to the public, leaving the trails empty and the landscape calm under the soft glow of the setting sun. Alex kept his focus on the surroundings. The deeper they went, the denser the area became. Tall grass brushed against the sides of the cart, and clusters of trees formed natural walls along the path. Every now and then, he spotted the glowing eyes of Pokémon watching from the shadows, but none dared approach. "Has anyone actually seen it?" Alex asked, breaking the silence. "Not directly," the Warden replied, his eyes on the path. "Plenty of rumors, though. The usual. Ghost types, Flying types, some even say it's an experimental Pokémon that escaped from the lab under the park. Crazy stories, I tell you. All I know is something's killing the herds." The Warden didn't sound worried, more annoyed than anything. "How many attacks so far?" Alex asked. "Five. All in the last week," the Warden replied. "It's getting bolder. First, it was just the stray Pokémon near the outer edges. Now it's going after herds inside the safe zones." Eventually, the cart slowed to a stop near a clearing deeper within the zone. "This is the most recent site," the Warden said as he cut the engine. "We cleaned up the mess earlier, but the damage is still there." Alex stepped off the cart. The ground was torn up. Deep gouges lined the dirt, and broken branches hung from nearby trees. The scent of blood still lingered faintly in the air. Arcanine growled low, sniffing the ground as Espeon pressed herself against Alex's leg, watching the area with narrowed eyes. Alex crouched and ran his fingers along one of the claw marks in the dirt. Wide. Deep. Whatever made it was strong. He stood up, his expression unreadable. "It's still here," Alex said simply. The Warden glanced around, visibly uneasy now. "You sure?" Alex didn't answer. He was already scanning the treeline, his instincts sharpening. Somewhere nearby, the culprit was watching, waiting. "Arcanine, sniff it out but stay alert. It's somewhere around here," Alex said as he released the Crobat couple. They flew off into the night sky, silently patrolling the perimeter. He didn't need more than the four he had out. He just needed enough to cut off its escape. Arcanine sniffed around the site, carefully moving through the area while ignoring scents that led back toward the trail. Those likely belonged to the trainers and staff. He stopped and looked around, confused, clearly having lost the scent. He circled the area and ran furiously along the perimeter of the clearing but couldn't find the trail again. There was no scent growing stronger in any direction, which meant the culprit was still here. "Arc…" Arcanine barked in disappointment. "It's alright, buddy. Let's look around and search for clues," Alex said as he began investigating the clearing. There were plenty of rocks and lone shrubs scattered around, enough for a Pokémon to hide in. It was possible the culprit was still hiding somewhere nearby. The Warden eventually grew tired of standing around and sat on a nearby rock to wait. He had seen plenty of other trainers they had hired do the exact same thing. It was starting to look like Alex might not be the one to find their culprit either. They searched for an hour and then two but there was no sign of their culprit. "This is where the other trainers gave up too," the Warden said. "We've searched everywhere, but we couldn't find it." Alex looked at the Warden to reply but suddenly noticed something strange. Between the Warden's legs was a line and two dots that looked like a crudely drawn face. The two dots blinked before the line curved into a smile. Then the smile opened wide into a mouth, ready to swallow the Warden sitting on it. "Arcanine, tackle the Warden," Alex commanded, pointing at him. "What? Are you insane—" the Warden exclaimed, but Arcanine had already tackled him, sending them both flying off the rock. "Gah!" The rock's mouth snapped at empty air before it suddenly turned pink and shrank. It was an Expert ranked Ditto, hiding in plain sight by disguising itself as a rock. "Espeon, Psychic!" Alex ordered, pulling out his guns and firing Thunder Waves and Feint bullets. Ditto jumped, evading the attacks, then used Transform to turn into a Crobat. It tried to fly off, but the Crobat couple quickly swooped in and intercepted it with Quick Attack, striking it midair. Before it could recover, they fired off a coordinated Mean Look and Hypnosis, locking it in place and sending it tumbling down with a soft flop, fast asleep. "There's your problem right there," Alex said, sounding like a professional as he holstered his guns. "It never left. It was hiding here the entire time, and you were sitting on its face." The Warden scrambled to his feet and stared in disbelief at the sleeping Crobat. "I've been sitting on it this entire damn time?" he shouted incredulously. "Well, it could have been worse." The Warden paled and fell silent. It could have been far worse, considering he had been sitting on its mouth the entire time. If he had been completely alone and defenseless, he most likely would have been eaten. "Thank you for finding it… and for saving my life." "Happy to help," Alex said as he tossed a Poké Ball at the Crobat, capturing it. "Now, about that pay." "I just sent it, with a little extra," the Warden replied as he tapped his phone. Alex received a notification confirming a deposit of 1.5 million credits and checked his new total. His balance now showed 36.5 million League credits. Not bad for an easy job. "Pleasure doing business with you." "And you as well." Alex bid farewell before teleporting back to the farm with his new capture in hand. As far as he was concerned, Ditto made excellent bodyguards, even if they were easy to spot. A little extra protection on top of Aegislash never hurt. At the farm, Alex released his Pokémon before calling over Hydreigon and the Crobat couple. Then, he released Ditto, who took one look at Hydreigon before laying flat on the ground like a puddle, clearly submissive. "What do you think about joining my team?" Alex asked. Ditto looked at Alex, then glanced back at Hydreigon, uncertain. It either didn't understand or was simply too terrified to respond. Pokémon at the Expert rank were just starting to develop intelligence, but it was at the Elite rank that they could truly begin thinking for themselves. Alex took out a Pokéblock designed to appeal to Normal types and tossed it toward the squirming puddle. Ditto ignored it at first, but once it caught the scent, it opened its mouth and ate it with delight. It paused for a moment, then stood up and nodded exaggeratedly, almost as if bowing. Alex reached out and petted the little blob, snapping the bond into place. Ditto quickly jumped onto Alex's shoulder and stood there with a proud expression. "You're quite active for a Ditto," Alex commented. "Still, we have some training to do before you're ready to join us on our adventures. Why don't you show me how you transform?" Ditto used Transform, focusing on Hydreigon's form. Its body shifted in midair before it landed, perfectly mimicking the dragon as Alex recorded the transformation on his phone. Name: Ditto, Expert Type: Normal Ability: Limber Moves:  Expert: Transform(Priority +2) Description: Ditto, the Transform Pokémon. Possessing a completely unique cellular structure, it can rearrange its body into the form of any creature it sees. By instinct, Ditto uses this ability to evade predators and fit into new environments. However, its transformations can be unstable, often revealing its true identity through small imperfections. In the wild, Ditto prefers solitude, spending most of its time hidden in plain sight. Ditto only had one move, so it was no surprise that its only move had already reached Expert level. This indicated that this particular Ditto was at least four years old, possibly older if it had been the lazy type, though that seemed unlikely given its hunting habits. Alex planned to train it for HP and Speed. HP was the only stat that didn't change, and Speed would help it transform faster. In their normal form, Ditto were notoriously weak after all. "Now, what item should I carry you as?" ----- Support me on Patreon patreon/babywrath