The next morning, Eliana awoke before dawn. The soft light filtering through the blinds painted stripes on the opposite wall. Ralts was already awake, sitting cross-legged on the foot of the bed, meditating. Staryu's PokéBall was clipped to the headboard, perfectly still.
She sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. Her mind was a clear, calm pool, last night's irritation replaced by a focused anticipation. Today was about information gathering, not direct confrontation. She needed to see the layout of the Safari Zone, the east perimeter, and understand the security. Rushing in would be foolish, and while Eliana was many bad things, she was not a fool.
She showered and dressed quickly, pulling on a simple pair of shorts and a light green t-shirt. Practical and forgettable, she would blend in with mos tourists that visit.
…
The Safari Zone was just outside the city limits, a sprawling expanse of fenced-in wilderness designed with two purposes. One was to give trainers a "natural" Pokémon-catching experience without the danger of going into the wild. The other was to provide a protected space for certain Pokémon to live without fear of poachers. A quaint idea.
At the gate, a bored-looking attendant barely glanced up from his magazine when she walked up. "Standard rules, kid. Five-hundred PokéDollars for a full day pass and thirty Safari Balls."
Eliana handed over the money, her smile bright and disarming. "A full day pass, please! I'm so excited, I've heard the Psyduck here are just the cutest!"
The attendant grunted, stamping a small yellow pass and sliding it under the glass. "Here you go, directions are on the back. Don't litter, pick up any trash or broken PokéBalls. Don't harass the Pokémon, no battling if you want to catch one. And be back before closing."
"Yes sir, thank you!" she chirped, taking the pass and skipping through the turnstile.
Once inside, the cheerful act dissolved. She consulted the crude map provided at the entrance. The zone was divided into several areas: grassland, forest, a mountainous region, and a large lake. The east perimeter, according to the map, was mostly dense forest, bordering a sheer cliff that dropped into the sea. A perfect, isolated spot for a clandestine transfer.
Instead of heading directly east, she began a slow, methodical patrol of the entire perimeter, her pace unhurried. She wasn't just looking; she was feeling. Ralts, perched on her shoulder, acted as a psychic antenna, after all his senses extended far beyond her own.
( - ᴗ •́ ), Ralts let out a soft snicker but followed his trainer's orders, giving a mental nudge to any Pokémon that got close.
The northern and western sections were exactly as advertised. Tourists with overly-eager faces chased Nidoran through the tall grass. A family had a picnic while a Rhydon snored nearby. A Chansey wandered around offering its eggs to cooing teenagers. It was a carefully curated slice of nature, boring and predictable.
The southern section was more leaned towards trainers. Filled with Pokémon that would attack a person tha got too close, such as Scythers, Pinsirs, or Parasects. These bug types were all very territorial and trainers were warned about the risks if they decided to take their chances.
But as she rounded the corner toward the east, the atmosphere shifted. The air grew cooler, denser. The cheerful sounds of other trainers faded, replaced by the hush of a deep, ancient forest. The path here was poorly maintained, overgrown with weeds. Warning signs, faded and weathered, were nailed to the trees: "DANGER. UNSTABLE CLIFFFACE." "RESTRICTED AREA. DO NOT ENTER."
A normal tourist would turn back, maybe the brave trainer or two would have risked it. Eliana walked on passed. The forest grew thicker, the canopy blotting out the sun. She moved with a preternatural silence, her steps making no sound on the leaf litter. Ralts was a statue, his psychic senses sweeping the area ahead. He suddenly perked up and tapped Eliana's head three times.
(¬_ ´¬ ), Ralts smirked faintly at the situation. What amateurs, not even hiding themselves well!
After a few more minutes of walking they found the first one leaning against a tree, pretending to read a book, but his attention was on the path ahead. Eliana paused, considering what she would do with this man. She obviously couldn't kill him, she didn't want Team Rocket to put a ginormous target on her back. Since Eliana already had the professor under her control, what were three more men added.
She decided to wait until she had scoped out the entire area before taking control of them. Aside from the three lookouts there wasn't anyone else here, not even a wild Pokémon. Confused thinking that maybe she got the wrong place, Eliana decided to check on the professor's location. She closed her eyes and focused, the man was currently making his way to the entrance of the Safari Zone. After confirming that the professor was indeed on his way she walked up to the man to prepare for the next part of her plan. He looked up from his book as she approached, a flicker of annoyance in his eyes at being disturbed.
"This is a restricted area, kid. You should turn back," he said, his tone flat and dismissive.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Eliana's eyes went wide, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I was just trying to find a quiet spot to, you know..." She trailed off, looking vaguely embarrassed.
The man's face flushed slightly. He waved a dismissive hand. "Yeah, whatever. Just get out of here, go do it somewhere else."
"Oh ok, bye!" Eliana gushed, and then promptly turned and skipped back the way she came, disappearing around a bend.
The guard watched her go, shaking his head. Kids these days, always poking their noses where they shouldn't. He settled back against his tree, completely unaware that the girl he'd just sent away was now a hundred feet away, her eyes glowing a faint, almost imperceptible blue.
Ralts body glowed with a faint light as he took the guard over. The man's body went rigid for a second before he relaxed back into the tree. Eliana walked towards him and brushed against his mind, she confirmed that he was indeed a Team Rocket grunt. Happily she put him under a passive control and went back to hiding. Eliana watched the man stand back up, slightly disoriented but then went back to what he was doing.
The next guard was better hidden, perched on a low-hanging branch of a thick oak, binoculars trained down the path. The third was even better, concealed in a small depression in a large boulder, covered with a camouflaged tarp.
She used the same tactic for the second. A lost, ditzy tourist, wandering too far off the beaten path. The grunt, annoyed, shooed her away. As soon as he was 'alone' again, Ralts struck. The man's body stiffened, then sagged against the trunk, a puppet with its strings cut, only to be picked up by an invisible hand. Eliana confirmed the control and moved on.
The third was the challenge. He was hidden, and he was patient. Eliana couldn't just 'stumble' upon him without raising suspicion. She'd have to flush him out. She found a patch of dirt a good distance away and began to 'struggle'. Loud, theatrical sighs. Dramatic wiping of sweat from her brow.
Ralts's horn glowed, and it took a few minutes but a bush started to rustle violently. A sharp horn crashed through the leaves, followed by the head of an angry Rhyhorn, its eyes glowing with malevolent red light. It lowered its head and charged, not at Eliana, but directly at the patch of ground where the third guard was hidden. The tarp was ripped to shreds as the Pokémon barreled through, sending the guard tumbling out into the open with a yelp of surprise.
The grunt scrambled to his feet, reaching for a Poké Ball, but it was already too late. Ralts's Confusion washed over him, and he froze, mid-motion. Two seconds later, Eliana had her third pawn.
She left the three grunts in their positions, now loyal extensions of her own will. They saw nothing, heard nothing, and would report nothing unusual. She continued her trek towards the cliff face, the air growing crisper, filled with the scent of salt and pine. The path ended at a sheer drop of jagged rock, maybe a hundred feet down to the churning sea below.
And there, waiting on the cliffside, was a large, reinforced metal helicopter. It was the color of dull grey, and had no visible handle, lock, or keypad. It was as seamless as a blank wall, an industrial secret embedded in nature. This is where the transfer would be occurring, now all Eliana had to do was wait.