Chapter Ten: Bill's Dragonite
Crash scrambled about, looking for the Pokéball that held the TinyTurtle Pokémon.
"Where is it?" He stammered, looking everywhere for the Pokéball.
Misty put a hand on his shoulder, attempting to calm him down.
"Why don't you just call Professor Oak?" She suggested. "Maybe he knows?"
Crash jumped up at Misty's response.
"You're right, why didn't I think of that?" He quickly responded. He quickly stood up and ran towards the Pokémon Center at a speed that surprised Misty.
Crash barreled through the crowd of people, worrying about his seemingly missing Pokémon and briefly apologizing to the people he bumped into.
Once he's reached his destination, Crash begins to dial the Professor's number on the video phone.
"Ah Crash, it's good to see you," Oak smiled. "How's your journey going?"
"Not now professor!" Crash nearly shouted. "My Pokémon went missing!"
Oak eyes widened. "Did that Pikachu I give you run away?"
"No." Crash answered frantically. "I caught a Squirtle a few minutes ago, but it's Pokéball went missing."
"Oh there's no need to worry about that Crash." Oak said.
"What do you mean professor?! My Pokémon went missing!" Crash snapped.
"Now Crash, your Squirtle is safe." Oak managed to say. "You already have six other Pokémon with you right?"
Crash calmed down slightly. "Yeah. I have six Pokémon with me. Why?"
"Well you can only have up to six Pokémon on your person at all times. Any other Pokémon you catch will be sent back to me!" Oak explained.
"So that means…" Crash said as he connected the dots.
"Your Squirtle is alive and well." Oak finished. As he said this, Sidon the Squirtle appears on the camera and poses, greeting his trainer.
"That's good to know." Crash sighed in relief. "And sorry for yelling at you professor."
"It's ok Crash, any good trainer would be worried if their Pokémon went missing." Oak smiled.
"I'll see you later Professor!" Crash waved.
"Good luck on the rest of your journey Crash!" Oak waved back as Crash hung up the phone.
Crash stepped out of the Pokémon Center, and was greeted by Brock and Misty whom he had left behind.
/-/
"How much longer?" Crash whined, as he dragged his feet along the dirt path.
"Not much longer actually," Brock replied as he read the map. "We're only an hour's walk away."
Crash gave an exhausted but relieved sigh.
"We're really that close?" Misty perked up. She immediately hung her head down. "But I feel I can't move another step."
"Maybe a quick break wouldn't be so bad." Brock said, putting the map away. He then scanned the area, looking for an ample spot to rest before pointing at a beach near a Lighthouse. "Why don't we rest on that beach?"
Crash and Misty looked at where Brock had pointed, and gave affirmative groans. As they reached the beach, the duo plopped down their backs to rest against the smooth sandy floor.
"Wow, the view here is lovely." Brock commented as he sat crisscrossed on the sand.
Crash and Misty sat up, shaking the sand out their hair. They understood what Brock ment. Half of the sun was missing from view, which only seemed to accentuate the beautiful light shone on the water.
"Wow this is beautiful Brock." Misty gasped in wonder, taking the sight in. She was exhausted but in a good way, which only made the view more beautiful as she continued to gaze.
She felt as if nothing could ruin this beautiful moment.
"GO POKÉBALL!" Misty flinched as she turned to the direction of the noise pollution.
/-/
"GO POKÉBALL!" Crash yelled as he pitched the ball, making contact with its target.
The ball shook once. Twice. Thrice.
Ding.
Crash smiled and picked up the ball.
"Misty's gonna love this." He smiled.
As he approached her, she was already behind him.
"Oh, Misty. I was gonna walk over but, since you're already here," Crash pushed the ball to her. "Here!"
Misty eyed the ball confusedly. She looked back at Crash, trying to find any deception in his expression. She eventually opened the ball and found it held a Krabby.
"Surprise!" Crash smiled as he and Mark added jazz hands.
"Wha-?" Misty stammered as she looked at the crustacean Pokémon in shock, her anger completely evaporating.
"I already have a water type back at Professor Oak's and I figured you could use some new Pokémon, so I caught you that Krabby." Crash smiled. "You like it?"
Misty fumbled with the Pokéball in her hands, returning the Crab Pokémon.
"Don't think I've forgotten about that bike you owe me!" Misty shouted, her face as red as the sunset.
"Geez, is that all you think about?" Crash groaned. "I was trying to be nice and give you a Pokémon. But I guess that was a mistake."
He held his hand out. "If you don't want it, I could send it back to Professor Oak."
Misty's embarrassment quickly turned to horror. "N-no!" She quickly said. "It's fine. I meant to catch a water Pokémon soon anyways."
Crash shot her a suspicious look.
"If you two are done bickering," Brock said, gesturing to the spot where the sun was. "It's getting late."
"You're right. It is late." Crash nodded.
"But what do we do? We're too far from that town and Vermilion City." Misty wondered.
"Well we could stay at that Lighthouse." Brock pointed at the large building on the hill nearby.
"Yeah, that's fine." the younger trainers replied as they followed the Rock specialist to the Lighthouse atop the hill.
/-/
The traveling trainers approach the entrance of the Lighthouse, wondering if the owner would grant them shelter for the night.
"Hello?" Brock knocked on the door."Is anyone home?"
Brock continued to knock but noticed the door was unlocked as he grabbed its handle.
"Huh? It's unlocked." He said as he twisted the handle.
"Then let's go in!" Crash said as he attempted to enter. Brock quickly grabbed the back of Crash's collar.
"Crash, what're you doing?" Brock asked as he raised his voice. "You can't just enter someone's house uninvited."
"Sorry." Crash whimpered.
Brock sighed as he put Crash down. "We'll just have to wait until someone answers or comes back."
"But Brock, it's late." Misty said as she pointed at the already faded sunlight. "And besides, the door's already open."
"That doesn't mean we trespass on someone else's property." Brock scolded.
"Didn't stop Crash, did it?" She snarked.
Brock turned around, noticing that the boy from Pallet was gone.
"Crash!" Brock shouted angrily as he entered the building. "What're you doing?"
Crash looked over his shoulder. "Oh Brock," He approached the rock specialist excitedly. "You gotta see this!"
"Crash, we're not supposed to be here!" Brock said, getting irritated.
"I know but there's something that you gotta see." Crash said as he dragged Brock along, with Misty not far behind.
Crash stopped in front of a rather large machine with a Nidorino guarding it.
"That's what you wanted to show us?" Misty asked incredulously. "This… whatever it is?"
Crash shook his head. "No, I mean the Nidorino." He said, holding his hands out to present the Poison pin Pokémon.
Before the gym leaders could chastise Crash for his seemingly insignificant discovery, the Nidorino did something unusual.
"Hello there." The Poison pin Pokémon said. The Gym leader duo stared in shock at the speaking Pokémon.
"That Nidorino can talk?" Misty gasped.
"Yes, I can talk…" The poison type paused for a moment. "Wait, I'm not a Pokémon! My name is Bill!"
"A Nidorino named Bill?" She asked as her eyes fell on Crash. "And I thought your names were bad."
"My nicknames aren't bad, you just have no taste." Crash rebutted.
"Better no taste than bad taste." She smirked.
"Bill isn't a nickname." Nidorino said frantically. "And I'm not a Pokémon!"
"But you look like a Nidorino from head to toe." Brock commented.
"That's because of this machine I created." Nidorino turned to look at the machine behind him. "This machine is an experiment of mine but as you can guess… it went awry."
"You're a weird guy Bill." Misty commented.
"Better than the last time I tested it like this. I was literally fused with my Kabuto." Bill said, laughing at the memory.
The three trainers visibly cringed in horror at the thought.
"But enough reminiscing, I need your help." Bill said. "I cannot assess the control console with my current height."
"So you need our help to get you back to normal, right?" Crash summarized.
"Yes, just open the door to the teleporter. And activate it when I get inside." Bill explained.
"Ok, that doesn't sound hard." Misty agreed as she approached the control console.
"Ok," Bill turned to Crash. "Can you open the door for me?"
Crash gives a nod and does what Bill asked of him, the talking Nidorino walking into the chamber.
"So what do I press?" Misty asked as she scanned the many buttons before her.
"It should default to "Cell Separation"." Bill answered. "Just press the "confirm" key on the computer."
Misty did so, and the machine whirred to life. The chamber Bill was in began to shake and emit sparks.
"Is it supposed to do that?" Crash asked, worried.
"What?" Bill shouted, unable to hear Crash. "I am sorry, but I cannot hear you through the machines rumbling."
Before another word could be said, the machine let out a huge puff of smoke as its rumbling came to a halt.
The trio coughed as smoke filled their lungs.
"Is everyone OK?" Brock managed to say.
"Yeah. I'm fine." Crash replied in-between coughs.
"Me too." Misty replied. She turns to the direction of the machine as a cry of a Pokémon is heard.
"A Nidorino?" Crash thought aloud.
The poison type ran out of the smoke, causing the trio to move out its way.
"Well, this is a kink that needs to be worked out." A familiar voice said from the smoke. The trio turned back to look as the smoke began to clear up. A young man walked out of the smoke.
The man wore a purple button up shirt, fawn colored pants and ochre colored moccasins. He also had somewhat curly hair that seemed both messy and neat at the same time.
They all stared at Bill, eyes and mouths agape.
/-/
"Thank you three for your help!" Bill said as he shook their hands one by one.
"But why were you a Nidorino?" Misty asked as Bill vigorously shook her hand.
"Oh, that," Bill replied. "I was testing my invention."
"But what does it do, exactly?" Crash asked.
"Oh right," The young inventor stopped and turned to face his machine. "This machine is supposed to allow humans to enter their bodies and minds of Pokémon."
"But who would want to enter the mind of a Pokémon in the first place?" Misty asked.
"It's to act as a way for trainers to understand their Pokémon better by entering their minds and body." Bill explained. "And I was testing it on myself."
"That's so cool!" Crash said, practically beaming.
"But why test your machine on yourself?" Brock asked.
Bill walks over to a window and gazes out at the moon.
"There's a Pokémon that's been coming here recently." Bill started.
"A Pokémon?" Crash echoed.
"And I've been putting my all into researching how it acts, where it comes and goes, and why it comes, "here" of all places." Bill continued.
"That's amazing dedication, Bill." Brock commented.
"And through that dedication, I've discovered that it is a Pokémon that few have seen." Bill quickly moved away from the window and scampered up a flight of stairs.
He then pulled out a projector screen which displayed 150 squares, each one displaying the silhouette of a Pokémon.
"Whoa!" the trio gasped at the size of the screen.
"There! Now to find our friend here…" Bill murmured.
"Look at the size of that screen!" Misty gasped.
"#145, #146," Bill traced his finger across the screen analytically. "There you are! #149!"
Bill turned to the trio. "Come, come, this is the Pokémon that's been coming here!"
They follow Bill up the stairs and look at where he points on the screen.
"No way!" Misty gasped.
"You've seen that Pokémon?" Brock asked.
Crash pulls out his Pokédex and scans the picture.
Dexter: "Dragonite. The Dragon Pokémon. Though it is a rumor, it is said that somewhere in the ocean lies an island where these Pokémon gather. They are known as kindhearted and intelligent Pokémon that lead lost and foundering ships in a storm to the safety of land."
"You've really seen a Dragonite?" Misty wondered.
"Yes," Bill ecstatically replied. "Yes, I have!"
"This Dragonite," Bill shook his head. "My friend has been coming here every full moon. And I've used that chance to study and befriend it."
"That's really cool Bill!" Crash smiled.
"Thank You!" Bill bowed. "If you want I can-" Bill looks down at his watch and scrambles down the stairs in a panic.
"Oh dear!" Bill said as he began to grab a loudspeaker and a microphone. "Dragonite's almost here and I haven't prepared for its arrival at all!"
"That Dragonite's coming here?" The trio asked.
"Yes! If I memorized the time correctly, we have approximately two and a half minutes until it gets here!" Bill rambled as he scrambled to set up his equipment, though was now tangled up in wires.
"If my assistant was here, this wouldn't have been a problem." Bill continued. "But now I won't be able to meet my friend because I didn't set this equipment up."
Bill attempts to reach for an audio recorder, but his ankle gets caught in a cord, causing him to fall.
"Bill, are you ok?" Brock asked, as Bill's face hit the floor.
"I've fallen harder…" Bill replied. "But I won't be able to get all of this ready to meet my friend…" Bill tucked himself between his knees.
"Why don't we help?" Crash offered. Bill looked up at the ten-year old curiously.
"I usually have my assistant help me with all of this," Bill stammered. "I'd hate to have others do my work for me…"
"It's not a big deal," Misty stepped forward. "We'd be happy to help you Bill!"
"Just tell us what to do." Brock said, standing alongside his friends.
Bill's eyes began to water. "Thank-you so much you three!"
/-/
"I thank you three again for your assistance!" Bill said as he wheeled out a large machine. "You have no idea how much this means to me!"
"No problem." Crash said as he strained himself carrying a large speaker. "But is this really necessary?"
"Of course it is!" Bill said gleefully. "How else can I let Dragonite know I'm here?"
"With a speaker?" Crash raised a brow.
"With this." Bill said, pulling out an old and weathered Pokédex.
"A Pokédex?" Crash gasped.
"It looks old." Misty commented.
"I've gone on my own adventures when I was your age." Bill gave a wistful stare at the moon. "Ahh, those were the days."
Bill shook himself before turning to the group. "Ah, I'm sorry. Was simply reminiscing." Bill takes a cord from the large speaker and plugs it into his Pokédex.
" This is how I'll communicate with Dragonite!" Bill said, pressing a button on his Pokédex.
A gentle, yet power roar erupted from the speaker, startling the young Trainers.
"Whoa!" Crash stepped back.
"You're using a Dragonite call from your Pokédex and amplifying it with that speaker." Brock summarized.
"That's correct." Bill nodded. "And now that my equipment is set up, we just wait for my friend to show up."
"How long will that take?" Crash asked. But just as he finished a thick fog rolled in, mostly obscuring their view.
"Ah, it's time!" Bill said, barely able to contain his excitement.
Before the trio could ask the inventor what he meant by that, a roar, very similar to the one Bill had played on the speaker, was heard through the fog. The trio turned to where the sound came from, and were met with two large glowing orbs.
The Pokémon's cry echoed around the group as its shape got a little clearer as it made it to the lighthouse.
"Wow…", Misty gasped softly.
"A giant Pokémon…", Crash said, gazing upon the giant Pokémon's form.
"It's even bigger than the Lighthouse!" Brock gasped.
"My friend!" Bill started. "It's good to see you!" He then pressed a button on his Pokédex which played another Dragonite call.
"How did this Dragonite get so big?" Crash wondered aloud.
"That is a mystery in of itself," Bill gave a thoughtful look. "Dragonite never gets close enough to the lighthouse so I can touch it, so I still don't know."
"Have you tried to catch it?" Crash suggested.
Bill shook his head. "I don't wish to rob its freedom. I want it to stay and live in the wild. It'd be much happier that way."
"Well I think that's very considerate of you." Misty smiled.
Dragonite roars gently, as if listening to their conversation.
"I think Dragonite agrees." Brock smiled.
The Dragon Pokémon began to let out a slow but harmonious howl that commanded the attention of the group.
"Is Dragonite singing?" Crash wondered.
"It is." Bill nodded. "It doesn't sing often, but when it does…" Bill paused to continue to listen to the melody. "It's so heavenly…"
"It sure is…" The traveling trio agreed.
Crash closed his eyes as the wonderful sound touched his very soul.
/-/
Crash woke up, surprised to be in a bed. He began wiping the drool off his mouth and shaking himself awake. He turned to his left and saw his official Pokémon League hat, and his Pokémon trainer's belt sitting on a dresser nearby.
He puts the hat back on and belt back on, and a delicious aroma fills his nose. He traces the smell from downstairs and is greeted by Brock, who wore a bright pink apron as he prepared breakfast, and Misty, who assists him by setting up the table.
"Good morning Crash." Brock greeted as he miraculously flipped three pancakes onto a plate with ease. "How'd you sleep?"
"Like a Snorlax." The still groggy trainer replied as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Crash opened one eye. "What about you guys?"
"Woke up early." Misty replied as she put a plate on the table. "Not as early as Brock, but still early."
"How did I fall asleep?" Crash questioned, fully awake.
"Dragonite's song was what put you to sleep." Brock answered. "I had to carry you back inside on a spare bed Bill had."
"Really?" Crash asked.
Brock nodded. "Me and Misty went back inside too, but as far as we know Bill never came back inside."
As Brock finished his sentence, the Lighthouse door opened, revealing a disheveled Bill.
"Good morning Bill." Brock greeted.
"Morning…" He yawned. Bill inhaled the wonderful smell as he yawned and immediately woke up.
"Oooooo." He said as he sat at the table preparing to pick a pancake off a plate, but his hand was smacked away by a spatula.
"Did you wash your hands first?" Brock asked, pointing a spatula at Bill's hands.
"Ah, right!" Bill said, jumping up from his chair and making a mad dash upstairs.
After a few minutes, Bill came out, and took the same seat as he had before.
Brock finished making his own plate of food and took a seat at the table.
"Thank you for the wonderful meal." Everyone said, hands in a praying motion. They all began to tear into their food which consisted of scrambled Chansey eggs, toast, and pancakes.
"I haven't had food this tasty since my fiancée visited me!" Bill said, as he continued to stuff his face with scrambled Chansey eggs.
"You have a fiancée?" The trio gasped.
"Yes." Bill said, far too casually for the trainers' liking. "A marvelous woman. She's the most powerful and kind trainer I know." Bill paused for a moment before correcting himself. "Personally, that is."
"That's amazing Bill!" Misty congratulated.
"It is…" Brock said with a tinge of jealousy in his voice.
"So when's the wedding?" Crash asked, genuinely curious.
"Not for a while." Bill answered with a lamenting tone. Seeing his new friend's downcast expression he panicked.
"Until I find the perfect present for her!" He amended.
Misty sighed in relief, Crash continued to eat his food noisily, while Brock ate in silence.
After they finished breakfast, and helped clean the table, Crash and company decided to say their farewells to Bill.
"Bye Bill!" Crash waved.
"Farewell my friends!" Bill waved back. "And may all of your dreams come true!"
"They will Bill!" Crash said, giving the young inventor a thumbs up. "They will."
/-/
"Don't worry, Nidorino." Bill said as he twisted a screw in. "This time the machine will work! Without all the smoke this time."
The poison type rolled his eyes as his trainer continued to tune up the machine.
"That should do it!" Bill said, throwing his screwdriver back into his toolbox. "Ok Nidorino, ready to test it out?"
The Poison Pin Pokémon gave a reluctant nod and stepped into the chamber. Though he didn't like the tests his trainer would run, Bill always made sure to take care of him in return.
"Once we finish here Nidorino, I'll give you a big bowl of food to celebrate!" Bill promised.
This made the Poison Type perk up slightly, at least he'd get an extra large bowl of food after this test. Bill turned on the machine and entered the chamber. A few seconds later, the chamber Nidorino was in opened, revealing Bill, who was now in the Pokémon's body.
"It worked! There was no smoke this time!" Bill cheered, jumping for joy. "I can say this was a successful test. Now for me to…"
Bill stopped as he came to a realization.
"I still can't reach my computer." Bill sighed.
30 minutes later, Bill, who is still in the body of Nidorino, naps near the machine. But a sudden opening of the door wakes him.
"Billy, I'm home!" A feminine voice sang as she closed the door behind her. Bill perked up at the voice and ran towards the young woman. She wore a bright green dress, dark green leggings that ended where her socks started. She also wore a green headband which complicated her hazelnut colored hair.
"Ah, my darling!" Bill cried. "You have returned at last!"
The young woman gave a relieved but annoyed sigh. "Billy, you know you can't reach the control console."
"I know my dear." Bill sighed. "But I finally got it to work without all the excess smoke!"
"Really?" She asked, surprised.
"I will show you! Try to separate me and Nidorino!" Bill said ecstatically as he ran up to the machine.
The woman in green activated the machine once Bill was inside, and just like he said, no black smoke was present once he and Nidorino were separated.
"Billy, you've done it!" The young lady wrapped her arms around Bill's neck as she kissed his cheek.
"My beloved Daisy…" Bill scratched his head nervously. He gave a victorious smile. "I really have, haven't I?"
/-/
"We finally made it to Vermilion City, my favorite city in all of Kanto!" Misty exclaimed with a gleam in her eyes.
"Because of the ocean?" Crash asked with a deadpan look.
"Definitely the ocean!" Misty nodded.
"But wow," Crash said, looking at his surroundings. "It's such a big city!"
"That's because Vermilion City relies on their harbor for imports and exports", Brock explained. "The ships first brings goods to the city, then transport them across the region by trucks."
"That's amazing…", Crash smiled in awe.
The happy moment was interrupted as a growl echoed from Crash's stomach.
"Sorry, guys! I'm starving." He laughed sheepishly.
"Didn't we just eat back at Bill's Lighthouse?" Misty asked.
"Yeah." Crash answered,keeping a straight face. "And?"
Misty stared at him, absolutely incredulous.
"Well, we could head to the Pokémon Center so we can get something to eat and get our Pokémon looked at," Brock said, looking at the map.
"And refresh ourselves with a nice warm shower!" Misty added.
"Then head to the Vermilion Gym!" Crash smiled.
With Brock reading the map, the trio eventually find the Vermilion City Pokémon Center and have their Pokémon checked, while Crash gets something to eat.
"It's scary how fast he's stuffing his face." Misty said, staring at Crash blankly as he noisily ate his pasta. All Brock could do was silently nod.
/-/
"Ah," Crash gave a satisfied sigh as he rubbed his stomach. "That was delicious… Now to grab our Pokémon."
The trio made their way to the front desk to grab their Pokémon. As they did, a voice shouts from behind them.
"Nurse Joy! Help me!" a trainer called from behind as he carried a Rattata and Pidgey in his arms.
What happened to this trainer's Pokémon? And does it have something to do with the Vermilion City Gym? Find out, as the journey continues!