Hey there, friends. Here's chapter three!
And with it come the first poll results—Swinub and Noivern are currently leading the poll. If you like the story, go ahead and vote for who you think should win!
Anyways, it's story time now.
"Stupid lock."
Zoroark kicked the locked chest before letting out a shout of pain; the chest was significantly stronger than his foot. "Damn it! I can't even pick the lock!" Zoroark snarled.
"Having trouble?" Zoroark whirled around to see Baltoy leaning against the Milotics' cabin, smirking.
"What do YOU want?" Zoroark growled.
Baltoy whistled innocently. "Oh, nothing. I'm just entertaining myself by watching you fail," said Baltoy smugly.
Zoroark crossed his arms. "I'd like to see you do better."
Baltoy snorted derisively. "What, do you think I've found the key already? I can't open that chest any more than you can," Baltoy told Zoroark. "But being a Psychic-type does have its perks…I think I can figure out how to get into the warehouse."
Zoroark perked up at this. "Really? How?" he asked.
Baltoy smirked. "You don't think I'd just give up my information willingly, do you? What do you have to offer me in return?"
Zoroark scowled. He had nothing that Baltoy would want. "Why are you even telling me this?"
"Because you seem like the type of Pokemon who won't give up," Baltoy said. "You want that immunity idol, and you won't stop until you get into the chest. So I figured we could make a trade."
"The immunity idol for whatever's in the warehouse? You wish," snorted Zoroark. "I'm not THAT stupid. I'm not giving up the only thing that could prevent me from getting eliminated for whatever's in there."
"True. You don't even HAVE the idol, after all," said Baltoy snidely. "But don't forget the offer."
With that, Baltoy floated off. Zoroark watched as he disappeared around the corner.
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"What's he up to? There's no way he broke into the warehouse that easily," Zoroark said. "I'll figure out what his angle is sooner or later. And if he's trying to trick me, it'll be the last thing he does on this show."
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Tyranitar walked behind the Gastrodons' cabin, glancing around to make sure he wasn't being followed. He saw Clauncher and Reuniclus waiting for him, and he walked over to them, looking confused.
"What's this about?" Tyranitar asked Reuniclus.
"I…think we might need to make an alliance," Reuniclus said. "I picked you two because you seem like the most reasonable Pokemon on the team."
"Wait, weren't you the guy who specifically said he wasn't going to make any alliances in episode one?" Clauncher asked, looking puzzled.
"Uh, yeah," Reuniclus said sheepishly. "I changed my mind."
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"I'm such a hypocrite," Reuniclus sighed.
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"Why did you change your mind?" Tyranitar asked. "It seems a bit early in the game to be looking for an alliance, after all."
"I was going to talk to you yesterday, before the elimination ceremony began," Reuniclus told Tyranitar. "But then Diancie called us down, so I had to wait."
"Go on," Tyranitar prompted. "Something made you change your mind."
"I saw Minun being led behind the cabin by Lilligant. When I talked to Minun after the ceremony, she said she'd allied with Lilligant and somebody else," Reuniclus informed him. "It was the first challenge, dude! Our team is already making alliances! If we don't do something about it, we could get voted out, too! There's strength in numbers, especially during voting, which was something I hadn't considered back when I said I wouldn't make any alliances."
"That is a bit odd," Clauncher said, scratching his head with a claw. "And you didn't catch who the last member of Lilligant's alliance was?"
"No," said Reuniclus regretfully. "Minun wouldn't tell me. So…what do you guys think?"
"I'm in," said Tyranitar after thinking it over.
Clauncher shrugged. "I guess I'm in, as long as we're not sabotaging anyone else. That's not the kind of alliance I want to be in."
"We won't sabotage anyone," promised Reuniclus. "And you can trust me to keep my word on that. You wanna go play some games, Clauncher?"
Clauncher brightened up. "Sure! That sounds great."
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"I'm glad I've made an alliance with some of the other guys already," Tyranitar admitted. "But I was thinking of allying with Kakuna earlier, too. I wonder if they'd be opposed to having anyone join the alliance?"
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Most of the Marvelous Milotics were happily chatting in the center of camp, celebrating their victory against the Gastrodons during the last challenge.
Escavalier was carving her name into a tree with one of her pointed arms. Boldore watched from a few feet away. "What're you looking at, Rocky?" Escavalier said suddenly, turning to Boldore.
Boldore flinched at Escavalier's fierce tone before tapping one of her legs in the dirt a few times. Cryogonal noticed this and his eyes widened.
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"I…I thought Boldore just couldn't speak. It wasn't until then that I realized she probably just thought none of us could understand her," Cryogonal said with realization. "She was using Morse code to talk to Escavalier!"
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Cryogonal floated over to Boldore. "Can I talk to you for a second?"
Boldore looked confused but followed Cryogonal into the woods. He turned around and faced her. "So…I was, uh, watching when you were with Escavalier."
Boldore blinked. Cryogonal couldn't tell what her reaction was. "Okay, I'll just get to the point. You know Morse code, don't you?"
Boldore's eyes went wide before she jumped up and down excitedly, causing slight tremors in the ground. She tapped the ground a few times in a pattern.
Cryogonal watched as she tapped. "'Yes.' So you do," Cryogonal said. "I know Morse code, too. It's probably a lot less lonely when somebody understands you, huh?"
Boldore nodded vigorously. She walked over and performed a series of short and long taps against a tree trunk.
"You want me to translate for you?" Cryogonal repeated, interpreting her message. "Okay, I get it. You want to help the team, so I can help you do that. Sure, I'll help."
Boldore's face lit up with as much excitement as a rock could muster. Cryogonal turned away and hid a smile.
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"What are you reading there?" asked Mawile curiously. She was sitting on a bench not far from where Chandelure was reading a novel.
"Oh, this?" Chandelure asked, peering over the top of her book. "It's something my brother wrote. He likes to write, I like to read. It's a beneficial relationship."
"That's neat," Mawile commented. "So you two talk a lot?"
Chandelure shrugged. "Not as much as we used to. Why does it matter?"
"I was just curious, that's all. I never had any siblings," explained Mawile. "How's the book?"
"Good."
"That's good."
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Jolteon was about to investigate the woods again in search of the key when he heard a voice behind him. "Hey. Can we talk for a moment?"
Jolteon turned and saw Chatot standing there. "About what?" asked Jolteon a bit suspiciously. He had never really talked to Chatot during his time on the island.
"I want ta discuss some game plans," Chatot explained. "I invited Dusclops, Cryogonal, and Druddigon, but I don't know if Dusclops or Cryogonal are comin'. It'll be quick."
Jolteon decided he had nothing to lose by hearing Chatot out. "Okay, so what's up?"
"We won yestahday pretty easily," Chatot said. "But I don't think future challenges are gonna be quite that easy. So I wanted ta have some folks ta back me up in the game. In return, I'll back ya up as well—you in?"
"You mean as in we vote together?" Jolteon asked. "Like an alliance?"
"I didn't want to call it an alliance, really," Chatot said, frowning. "Alliances are usually up to no good; we'd just be votin' together, that's all."
Jolteon thought about it in his head. On one hand, Chatot seemed like a smart player, and he had Druddigon backing him up already, assuming he was telling the truth. On the other hand, alliances and the like were generally targeted because they were too powerful. Jolteon didn't want to get caught in the crossfire just because he was associated with Chatot.
"I'll think about it," Jolteon replied. Chatot nodded his head and tipped his hat to Jolteon.
"Well, if ya decide you want in, we're meetin' tomorrow. Talk to me tonight if you're still willin' to listen."
Chatot left without another word. Jolteon decided to search for the key later.
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"If everyone I invited decides to join and vote with me, I'll have five votes under mah control," Chatot said. "I don't think they will, which is why I invited so many. Having Druddigon already significantly increases mah power."
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Druddigon sat in the confessional with a frown. "I accepted Chatot's offer when he asked me to vote with him," Druddigon said. "It was a bit of a bold move on my part to take sides this early, but Chatot seems smart enough. And if he isn't, I'm not afraid to vote him out if it comes down to it."
"Survival of the fittest," said Druddigon with a smirk. "Chatot's playing a good game right now, gathering players to add to his voting power during elimination ceremonies. I might actually have to vote him out no matter what, because he's going to be a threat sooner or later."
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"You both did good last night. Thank you for voting with me," Mienshao said to Lilligant and Minun. They were meeting in the woods this time. "I assure you that your trust was not misplaced, and I'd like it if our alliance were to continue, at least until the teams are dissolved."
"I don't have any problems with that," said Lilligant. "It worked out well last night."
"And you, Minun?" asked Mienshao.
Minun kicked the dirt guiltily. "Um, Mienshao, I have a bit of a confession to make."
Mienshao's expression darkened. Generally those words didn't mean good news was coming. "What is it, Minun?" the weasel asked hesitantly.
"Reuniclus cornered me after the campfire last night," Minun confessed. "And I ended up telling him about the alliance on accident."
Mienshao groaned internally. She had placed her trust in only two Pokemon, and already one of them had screwed up. "What did you tell him?" asked Mienshao sharply.
"I…I told him I was in an alliance with Lilligant and one other Pokemon. I caught myself before I slipped up again," Minun mumbled. "I didn't mean to tell anyone, I swear! He came asking ME about it."
"Okay, that's not too bad," Mienshao said. "Reuniclus doesn't seem like an idiot, but he doesn't seem particularly threatening, either. Just don't mess up again," she told Minun. "We can't afford to have the whole team knowing about our alliance. If we're exposed, the team will see us as a threat and vote us out."
"So…is this alliance thing even a good idea, then?" asked Lilligant doubtfully. "I'm having some second thoughts here."
"Right now, we're fine. Any more slipups and maybe we won't be," Mienshao said. "Just to be safe, I think we should cover our tracks…we should eliminate Reuniclus."
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Minun groaned. "This is EXACTLY what I wanted to avoid. Me and my big mouth."
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"Despite her performance in the dive, it seems like Minun is the weak link in my alliance," Mienshao said. "If she holds us back, I'm going to have to kick her out of the alliance, or maybe even eliminate her altogether."
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Clefairy pranced around the camp, throwing poisonous flowers everywhere each time she jumped. "Hey everyone, I found some flowers!" she shouted.
"Those are poisonous," Chesnaught said loud enough for her to hear.
Clefairy's laughter slowed down until it died out completely before being replaced by frantic screaming. "I'M WEAK TO POISON! AAAAAHHHHH!" Clefairy shrieked, running for the bathroom. Chesnaught chuckled.
"ATTENTION ALL CAMPERS! REPORT TO THE MULTI-PURPOSE BUILDING NOW!" Jirachi shouted over the intercom. Chesnaught covered his ears as the intercom screeched.
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Clefairy was sitting next to a sack full of Pecha Berries, eating them one by one. "Mmmm," she said. "These are good."
"Clefairy, there's a challenge." Lopunny's voice came from outside.
"Can't you see I'm busy eating?" Clefairy said with her mouth full.
"Clefairy, get out there."
"Okaaaay."
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The campers shuffled into the multi-purpose building one by one. They had never been in it before; it was a huge chamber with empty space from wall to wall.
"Wow, you must have really gone all out decorating this place," Baltoy said sarcastically.
Jirachi smirked at the snarky psychic. "Oh, just you wait," the host said cheerfully. "Is everyone here?"
"It would appear so," Druddigon said from below.
"Wonderful!" Jirachi clapped his hands together. "So today's challenge is a bit more laid-back since I actually felt a bit guilty for throwing all of that hard stuff at you guys yesterday. It's a game of dodgeball!"
As Jirachi spoke, Diancie pressed a button and a court appeared in the middle of the floor. Bleachers popped out from one of the walls.
"Not bad," said Dusclops.
"I try," said Jirachi. "So, here's how the game of dodgeball works, for you dummies out there that have never played it. It's literally exactly what the title implies; you try to dodge the ball. If you don't, you're out! Heads up, Torchic!"
"What?" Torchic said, hearing his name. He was promptly smacked in the face by a ball thrown by Jirachi.
Jirachi facepalmed. "You were supposed to catch that…I said heads up. Anyway, that's an example of what NOT to do. If you get hit, you're out. Chesnaught, catch."
Chesnaught caught another ball thrown by Jirachi. The host nodded approvingly at him. "If you catch a ball that's thrown at you, you get the thrower out! So you can play offense AND defense in this game. And, of course, dodging a ball thrown at you means nobody is out, and the game continues. Questions?"
"Are all of us going to be playing at once?" asked Liepard skeptically. "I'm not sure we can all fit on that court."
"No, you're not all playing simultaneously. We wouldn't be able to keep track of all of you," Jirachi admitted. "Only three Pokemon at a time will be playing, and there will be sixteen rounds. Whichever team wins the most rounds wins the challenge. There's no twists for this challenge; it's a straight-up simple game of dodgeball."
"There are rules, though. First of all, each Pokemon on your team must participate in at least one round," Diancie added. "Nobody can just choose to opt out, or they face automatic elimination. Also, you can't have the same Pokemon participate twice in a row; this prevents you from just using your good players for the whole game."
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"Finally, a chance to show off my skills again!" Minun exclaimed. "I was able to do the dive well last time, but this is more my style. I'm a gymnast, so I should be able to dodge whatever they throw at me."
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"I'm not big on the physical challenges," Reuniclus said. "Hopefully there's something that requires more brainpower coming up soon."
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"This seems pretty straightforward," Lopunny said to her teammates. "Each of us needs to go once, but a lot of us will have to go multiple times."
"I'll go this round to get it over with," Kakuna offered. "I won't be of much use to you guys this challenge. Sorry."
Lopunny shrugged sympathetically. "That's not your fault, so I won't hold anything against you if you don't do too well in today's challenge."
"Thanks," said Kakuna.
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"At first I thought Lopunny might just be a pretty face, but no, she's got some brains to back up her looks," said Kakuna thoughtfully. "She'd make a powerful ally. I doubt she'd want to ally with someone like me, but you never know. She's definitely got what it takes to be a leader."
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"So Kakuna's in this round. Who else?" asked Lopunny.
"I'll go," offered Seviper. "I doubt I can much in this challenge, either. Might as well sssend our bad playersss first to get it over with."
"You think we should lose the first round on purpose?" asked Lopunny.
Seviper flickered her tongue. "We ssshouldn't TRY to lose, but we should sssend the onesss who can't play dodgeball as well firssst so our bessst players can win later."
Lopunny thought about it for a moment. "Okay, fine. We need one more, though."
"Eh, what the heck. I'll do it," volunteered Frillish. "Put me in, coach."
Lopunny rolled her eyes. "Let's win this, everyone! We're not losing to the Milotics again!"
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Chatot studied the opposing team carefully. "They're puttin' in Kakuna, Frillish, and Sevipah. Who do we got?"
"Wait, Kakuna and Seviper don't even have arms! And I'm not sure what Frillish has count as arms," Noivern pointed out. "They're putting in all their bad players first. This is an easy win for us!"
"Or we could send our bad players too so we're not screwed over later," Scrafty suggested. "Everyone has to go sometime."
Druddigon looked deep in thought. "Okay, here's the plan," he said in a commanding tone. "We'll do what Scrafty suggested." Scrafty looked up in surprise. "We put in our weakest players right now so that we can win the matches later. It's best to get this out of the way now. Cryogonal, Castform, and Chandelure should all go first, since I doubt they can throw or catch."
"I resent that," said Castform, but her expression made it clear she was joking.
"Are there any problems with that plan?" asked Druddigon. He looked around at his teammates, and no one spoke up. "Good. Get out there, you three."
"And our first victims have been chosen!" announced Jirachi as both teams took their respective sides of the court. Five red dodgeballs lined the middle of the court. "Three…two…one…go!"
The players surged forward and tried to grab the dodgeballs. Kakuna was still hobbling over to the line by the time Chandelure and Seviper got there. Seviper and Chandelure struggled to pick up the dodgeballs, however, and Frillish was the first to get one by wrapping her appendages around it. She flung it at Cryogonal, who was hit.
"Cryogonal, out!" Jirachi called, jerking his thumb at the Milotics. "Nice shot, Frillish!"
Frillish grinned and flung another at Castform, who barely dodged. She was hit a second later by a ball from Kakuna, who had reached the line and headbutted a ball.
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"I would've rather gotten hit by Frillish's ball," Castform muttered. "Getting out because of a limbless cocoon is kind of humiliating."
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Chandelure swung herself around and knocked the ball back at Kakuna, who was hit easily. Frillish retaliated with another throw of her own, knocking Chandelure out of the game.
"The Gastrodons win round one!" Jirachi shouted. "Congratulations, guys! Pick your players for round two."
"I'm guessing I'm not going back out on the court?" Kakuna asked Lopunny as he rejoined his team. She shook her head. "I think I'll head outside, then. Good luck."
Kakuna hobbled outside into camp, looking around and seeing no one. The coast was clear. He began wandering into the woods in search of the key.
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"If I can't be of any use to my team in this challenge, I might as well try to get myself the immunity idol," Kakuna said. "I don't know how much longer my team is willing to keep me around for. My capabilities are unfortunately limited as a Kakuna."
He frowned. "Tyranitar mentioned that he trained before…maybe I should join him tomorrow. Evolution could be just what I need."
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"Nice job out there, everyone," Lopunny praised her team. "Let's put in some good players next to earn some points."
"I'll do it," said Clauncher, grinning. "I used to play dodgeball all the time!"
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"Granted, I never won any of those games," Clauncher said. "But my team didn't need to know that!"
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After both teams had made their decisions, Clauncher, Clefairy, and Swinub took the court on one side, facing Baltoy, Boldore, and Dusclops on the other.
"This should be a piece of cake," Dusclops told Baltoy and Boldore. Jirachi blew the whistle and the campers sprinted forward. Clauncher reached the balls first and threw one hard, slamming into Dusclops's chest.
Dusclops fell to the ground. "Wow. Never mind, I take it back," he muttered, walking off the court.
Clauncher skillfully dodged a shot from Boldore, who was unable to dodge Swinub's being a big and slow target. Only Baltoy was left. "Bugger," groaned Baltoy.
Clauncher grinned meanly and mashed a dodgeball between his two claws.
"Oy! No destroying the dodgeballs! You're out, Claws!" Jirachi yelled angrily.
Clauncher looked up in disbelief. "What? Come on, there were five balls!"
"Oof!"
"Ow!"
Clauncher looked back at his teammates to see Swinub and Clefairy being pelted by dodgeballs. Baltoy smirked from the other side.
"Nice distraction, Claws," taunted Baltoy. Clauncher groaned and walked off the court.
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"That's…not going to go over well with my team," Clauncher said. "Hopefully someone does worse than I did."
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"The scores are tied! Send in your next players!" shouted Jirachi. He reinflated another dodgeball and threw it down onto the court to replace the one Clauncher had destroyed.
"After Clauncher's stunt, we'll need to put in some stronger players to regain the advantage," Chesnaught said. "How about giving me a shot?"
"Go for it," Vaporeon said. "I'll go, too."
Meanwhile, Torchic was cowering in the corner. Swinub walked over to him. "Hey, buddy," Swinub said. "You're gonna have to go sometime, you know."
"B-but I'm not good at d-dodgeball!" Torchic said. "I used to get h-hit all the time when we played in gym class!"
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"It was traumatizing," Torchic said, curled up in fetal position. "All of the bullies in my class t-targeted ME."
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Swinub sighed in defeat. "Okay, you don't have to go yet. But if you don't go, you'll be eliminated, Torchic," Swinub reminded him.
"I want in, too," Minun said. "Dodgeball's my kind of game."
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"They've got their playahs already," Chatot said. "Who wants to go?"
"Why not you?" scowled Zoroark.
Chatot fixed the fox with a glare. "Okay, I will. Who else?"
"I guess I can go," Azurill said. "It's time to show off my stuff!" Noivern grinned approvingly and stepped up as well.
"I'll fill the third slot," Noivern offered. "Let's make this a good game!"
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Jirachi blew the whistle, and with lightning speed, Minun flew to the center of the court, picking up two dodgeballs and flinging them at Azurill and Chatot before either of them had a chance to even react. Azurill and Chatot were smacked against the wall.
Chesnaught and Vaporeon looked at each other, almost afraid to actually interfere with Minun. Noivern threw a ball at Minun, who picked up a ball of her own and deflected Noivern's shot right at her, hitting the bat in the head.
Jirachi was dumbfounded. "Um…Gastrodons win…yeah."
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"That didn't go so well," said Azurill, rubbing her head. "Minun's a lot stronger than I gave her credit for at first!"
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"Nice work out there, Minun," said Lopunny. "I didn't know you were that good at dodgeball."
"Dodgeball's nothing," said Minun, picking up a water bottle and taking a drink. "I was a lot more worried about jumping off a cliff, to be honest."
"If you're not opposed to the idea, it would be useful if you would play a few more rounds," Mienshao proposed. "You're good at this challenge, and we need to make a comeback after last time."
"Jirachi said we can't play twice in a row, though," Minun reminded her. "So I can't play again until the round after this one."
"That's right," said Chesnaught, growling. "Jirachi doesn't want us using our best players the whole time. It would make this too easy."
"So we'll put you in again later," Mienshao said. "We need some others to go now. I'll go, to get this over with."
"I'll do it," said Reuniclus, shrugging.
"I'll do it again," Clauncher offered.
Mienshao smiled. "Good. Let's get to it."
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"I can't have Reuniclus walking about knowing about my alliance for too much longer," Mienshao said. "And now that we're playing in the same round, if I trip him up, he'll go home if we lose. Now, how do I make him mess up…"
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"Clearly the Gastrodons are bettah at this than we thought," Chatot grunted. "Minun single-handedly destroyed our team last match somehow. We need a plan."
"I'll go in this round," Druddigon said. "Who's with me this time?"
"I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE," Escavalier shouted. Druddigon raised an eyebrow.
"I'll be the third player," said Liepard. "Let's do this."
Both teams entered the court again. Druddigon fiercely stared down the other team. Clauncher tapped his feet impatiently. Liepard tensed up, ready to run to the center of the court.
At the sound of the whistle, the campers ran forward. Liepard reached the dodgeballs first, and she threw a ball at Mienshao, but she missed.
Mienshao grabbed a ball and fired at Escavalier. The armored bug hit the floor hard and the ball sailed over her. Escavalier slid to the center and grabbed a ball, throwing it at Mienshao. The weasel dodged again.
Clauncher picked up a ball with two claws and whipped it at Druddigon. The gargoyle dodged to the right, and he moved left quickly after to dodge another throw from Reuniclus.
"This is probably the most intense match yet," Jirachi muttered to Diancie. "I like it."
Escavalier flung a ball at Clauncher, but the Water-type dodged aside. Reuniclus picked up a ball that had fallen near him, and he threw it at Liepard. She caught it in her tail. Reuniclus sighed in defeat.
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"I didn't even have to mess him up," said Mienshao, smiling. "If I can convince the rest of my team that he isn't worth keeping around, my alliance should be safe."
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"Reuniclus! Out!" called Jirachi. Reuniclus left the field as Liepard dodged a shot from Mienshao. Liepard retaliated with a shot of her own, but it missed.
Clauncher finally hit Escavalier after four shots back and forth, but he was quickly struck down by Druddigon. Druddigon and Liepard faced Mienshao menacingly.
"Bring it," Mienshao dared them. Liepard threw a ball, but Mienshao caught it.
"You got this, Druddigon!" Noivern yelled from the sidelines.
"Come on, Mienshao!" Swinub yelled from the other side.
Druddigon leered at Mienshao. "Go ahead. Take a shot."
"I know you'll try to catch it if I do," Mienshao said. "I'm not falling into that trap. Why don't you throw first?"
Druddigon grunted and threw two balls at once. Mienshao dodged one and deflected the other with a ball of her own. She threw two back at Druddigon, who sidestepped the first and caught the second in one hand.
"The winner is Druddigon!" Diancie called. The Milotics cheered loudly from the side.
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"I didn't know Druddigon could play dodgeball!" Noivern said. "He wasn't bad out there. He's no Minun, sure, but he wasn't bad!"
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The next few dodgeball games passed rather uneventfully. Noivern played again and was able to defeat Lopunny, winning another point for the Milotics. Minun single-handedly destroyed the Milotics again, evening the score. Escavalier managed to beat Tyranitar. Minun beat the Milotics again. Scrafty actually did something and got Reuniclus out, allowing Chatot to win the game. Minun went in again and defeated the Milotics once more by herself.
"I don't know that I can play again," Minun panted, returning to the Gastrodons' side of the court. "I've played four games already by myself, pretty much."
"Take a rest," said Lopunny. "Let's see…everybody's played by now except Torchic. Torchic, you have to play."
The chicken trembled in place for a moment before swallowing. "Okay. I can…d-do this," he said, visibly shaking. He stepped out onto the court before panicking and heading back to his team. "I can't do this."
Lopunny put her hands on her hips. "Torchic, you'll be eliminated automatically if you don't. Besides, it looks the other team is sending weaker players like Zoroark and Azurill this round. You don't even have to play if you don't want to. You just have to get out there."
Torchic gulped. "O-okay. I can just s-stay in the back and I w-won't get in anyone's way."
Mawile, Azurill, and Zoroark stepped out onto the court. "Who's playing us?" asked Mawile.
Chesnaught and Lopunny stepped out, followed by Torchic. Zoroark burst out laughing.
"Torchic? Really?" he laughed meanly. "I thought you were done sending your weak players out!"
"You're one to talk," Chesnaught retorted. Zoroark scowled.
Jirachi blew the whistle. Zoroark darted forward and immediately threw a ball at Chesnaught. Chesnaught, prepared for Zoroark, dodged to the side. Lopunny picked up the ball and flung it at Azurill, who hopped over it.
Torchic slowly moved to the back of the court. The further he stayed from the dodgeballs, the better. A ball flew past Lopunny and smacked the wall next to Torchic. The bird yelped in fear as Zoroark drew a line across his neck with a finger.
Chesnaught was about to throw at Zoroark, but he was pummeled in the chest by a ball from Azurill as well as Mawile. The two girls looked at each other and grinned. One down.
Lopunny threw a ball, but it missed Azurill again. The blue mouse hopped up on her tail and bounced into the air, throwing a ball downward at Lopunny, who didn't see it coming and was hit in the head.
"We won!" exclaimed Mawile.
"Uh, not quite," Jirachi said from the announcer's booth in which he and Diancie were sitting. "The teams are made of THREE Pokemon. You missed one."
Zoroark scowled and picked up a dodgeball, walking towards the center line of the court. Torchic trembled in fear as Zoroark positioned his aim perfectly.
"Torchic, get out of the way! He's aiming for you!" Swinub warned Torchic fearfully. Lilligant frowned as Torchic remained where he was, paralyzed by fear. Zoroark grinned.
BAM!
The ball flew into Torchic, sending the poor bird sprawling across the floor and against the wall. Zoroark laughed triumphantly. The Gastrodons watched Zoroark walk back to the Milotics' side, smiling to himself, almost as if he enjoyed hurting Torchic.
"Are you okay?" asked Lilligant, helping Torchic up. He looked around, dazed. Lilligant placed both of her hands on his hand and transferred her healing energy. Torchic immediately felt better.
"I'm s-s-sorry, guys," Torchic stuttered miserably. "I should h-have gotten out of the way."
"It's okay," Swinub reassured him, but some of Torchic's teammates, like Chesnaught and Seviper, were looking at Torchic disapprovingly.
-static-
"I get it. The guy scares easily," Chesnaught said, arms crossed. "But that's no excuse for essentially throwing the challenge for us. He could have at least TRIED to catch the ball."
-static-
"It'sss not that I don't like Torchic, but he'sss a weak link on the team," Seviper said. "I think I know who I'll vote for tonight if we lossse."
-static-
Kakuna checked his surroundings carefully. There was a small river flowing through the woods that led out to the ocean—he'd followed the river the whole way, so he knew by now the key wasn't hidden anywhere around there.
"This isn't as easy as I thought," Kakuna muttered to himself. "I haven't even finished checking the woods yet, and there's much more to the island than this area. It's possible that the key is hidden somewhere where I can't reach it…"
He glanced up into the trees, but saw nothing there either. "Then again, it would be unfair of the hosts to hide it somewhere where not everybody could get to it."
Kakuna checked the time. "It's getting late—the challenge is probably almost finished. I should get back to camp."
-static-
"While I didn't necessarily profit off of my search today, I did get valuable information," Kakuna said. "I know where the key isn't. And while that isn't as helpful as knowing where the key is, it's a start—and it's more than most of the other campers know."
-static-
By the time Kakuna had reached camp, there were only two rounds of dodgeball left. Kakuna sat down next to Tyranitar.
"So what did I miss?" asked Kakuna quietly.
"The scores are tied right now—seven to seven," Tyranitar told him. "And since there are sixteen rounds, we've got two left. Are you thinking about playing again?"
Kakuna chuckled halfheartedly. "Me? I'd weigh the team down. Dodgeball isn't exactly my forte."
"About time you got back," said Mienshao sharply, looking at Kakuna disapprovingly. "We need to win these last two games to beat the Milotics, and you're out there doing who knows what."
"You wouldn't have put me in the game again anyway," Kakuna said, frowning. "There's no need to get angry. I was out for a walk."
Mienshao looked like she was about to say something, but she thought better of it. "Okay. Well, at least you're back now. I'll play in this game."
"Ooh! Ooh! Pick me!" Clefairy shouted.
Lopunny frowned. "Okay, Clefairy, you can play again."
"YES! I promise I won't let you down!" she squealed.
"I guess I'll fill the last slot," Reuniclus said.
"Good. We're all set, then," said Lopunny. "Let's show them they're messing with the wrong team!"
-static-
"Only two rounds left ta turn the game around," Chatot said, frowning. "I thought that this challenge woulda been more…one-sided, I guess. But we'll need ta give these last two rounds everythin' we got ta win. So who's in?"
"I'll do it again!" Azurill spoke up. "I kinda like dodgeball, actually."
Chatot smiled. "Sure. And who else could we put in…?"
"I'll do it!" Noivern said. "Me and Azurill could make a pretty good team, I think!"
-static-
"I wanted to play again, since Azurill and Noivern were doing it," Castform said. "But I don't have arms. Why don't I have freaking arms?!"
-static-
"I can play, too," Jolteon offered. Chatot gave him a nod, and the three volunteers went out to face Mienshao, Reuniclus, and Clefairy.
Jirachi blew the whistle, and Jolteon reached the dodgeballs first. He grabbed one for himself and threw one back to Noivern, who caught it and lobbed it at Mienshao. The weasel nimbly ducked, and it sailed past Reuniclus, missing him by a hair.
"Watch it!" Reuniclus yelped. "Wait, Noivern's on the other team. She's trying to hit me. Crap."
Clefairy giggled as she picked up a ball and threw it at Azurill. Azurill watched as the ball weakly flew a few feet before skidding across the ground. Azurill picked it up.
"Sorry," she apologized, whipping it at Clefairy. The poor Fairy-type was nailed in the face and sent flying against the wall. Azurill stifled a laugh.
Mienshao flung a dodgeball at Jolteon, which he narrowly dodged. She picked up another and threw it at him, too—this time, Jolteon was hit in the side. He rubbed his side sorely as he walked off the court.
Noivern threw a ball at Mienshao, which she managed to dodge again. Azurill targeted Mienshao this time as well, but the weasel ducked behind Reuniclus, who took a ball to the face. "Argh!" Reuniclus grunted.
"You're out, Jell-O!" Jirachi shouted at Reuniclus. The Multiplying Pokemon shot him a glare before leaving the court.
Noivern high-fived Azurill. "One left," Noivern said excitedly.
Mienshao threw two balls, one at each of her foes. Both Azurill and Noivern dodged and returned the shots. Mienshao dodged the first, but was hit by Azurill's. The Milotics cheered.
"The Milotics win the semifinal round!" Diancie announced. "There's only one round left, so—"
"So to make things interesting, if the Gastrodons make a comeback, we'll have a tiebreaker round!" Jirachi interrupted. "No pressure, Gastrodons!"
"At least we have a shot," Lopunny said. "But we CAN'T mess this one up, or we're going to eliminate someone again tonight. Who wants to play in the finals? I'll go if nobody else does."
"You're a good player. You should go," Vaporeon told Lopunny.
Lopunny blushed a bit. "Uh…thanks. Okay, I'll go. But we need two more."
"I'm in," Chesnaught said. He looked over to Minun, who was sweating a bit from her games before. "How about you, Minun?"
"I said I was done, didn't I?" Minun asked.
"Look, we need you. You single-handedly took out four teams before," Lopunny said. "I know you might not want to play again—you've already done your part. But if you don't play, we might lose."
Minun gave it some thought. "Okay, I'm in," she said. "But if we lose, you guys better not blame me for it. I'm tired as it is."
Lopunny nodded. "That's reasonable enough. Now get out there and win!"
-static-
"We're winnin'!" Chatot exclaimed excitedly. Boldore tapped a few times on the floor, which Cryogonal was able to interpret as 'yay.'
-static-
"The rest of the team doesn't know Boldore speaks Morse yet," Cryogonal said. "I think we should tell them, but Boldore hasn't given me permission to tell anyone yet. It's her secret; if she doesn't want anyone knowing, I won't tell."
-static-
"I'd like to be in the final match," Mawile said. "Any objections?"
Nobody said anything, so Mawile smiled. "Thanks."
Druddigon stepped forward. "I'll go in as well. Who's our final player?"
"I'll do it," Chatot said. "I haven't done much in this challenge yet—now's mah time to shine."
"Both teams take the court!" Jirachi shouted. The players lined up opposite each other. "Gastrodons, this is your shot at redemption! Milotics, this is your chance to secure a victory!"
Jirachi blew the whistle, and the teams charged forward. Minun was faster than any other player on the field, but as she approached the dodgeballs, she slipped and fell. Chatot reached the dodgeballs first, and he threw a ball at Minun, seizing the opportunity.
Minun rolled to the side, and Chatot's throw missed. However, Druddigon had reached the center line by this time as well, and he targeted Minun as well. Minun wasn't lucky enough to dodge his shot.
"Minun…out?" said Jirachi, looking confused. "Dude, didn't you take out four teams by yourself?"
Minun looked humiliated at her defeat, but she walked away wordlessly. Druddigon got nailed in the head by a ball from Lopunny, who looked fiercer than ever with her strongest player out.
Chesnaught dodged to the side as Mawile reached the middle and threw a ball at him. Chatot, however, had already gotten another ball, and he hit Chesnaught with that one.
Lopunny stared down Mawile and Chatot. "Here goes nothing," Lopunny muttered. She dashed forward and threw a ball at Chatot, who tried to flap out of the way, but was struck on the leg. Mawile jumped up and caught the ball Lopunny threw, tossing it back at the bunny. Lopunny was hit.
Jirachi looked disappointed. "No comeback from the Gastrodons? Aw. Okay, well, that's game over. Gastrodons, meet me again tonight at the campfire. Milotics, congrats on the second win!"
The Marvelous Milotics cheered and applauded Mawile as they walked out of the building, joking and laughing with each other. The Gastrodons looked downcast at their second defeat.
-static-
After the Gastrodons had left, Seviper was on her way back to the Gastrodons' cabin to think about who she would vote off this time. She felt a tap on her tail and looked back to see Mienshao.
"I never got an answer from you yesterday. Are you in on the alliance or not?" Mienshao asked. Seviper sensed something in her voice…almost like a threat.
"I don't sssee the point in joining any alliancesss yet. Sssorry," Seviper replied.
Mienshao closed her eyes and took a breath. "Your loss," she said, walking away. Seviper watched as the weasel disappeared into the woods, followed by Lilligant and Minun.
-static-
"I didn't trussst her before, but now? She'sss up to sssomething," Seviper hissed. "I'll find out what, one way or another."
-static-
"It is a shame that Seviper didn't join, really. She's a strong and smart player," Mienshao said. "I guess I'll have to keep an eye on her so she doesn't give us away. Maybe Reuniclus is safe for tonight…I think I have a better target."
-static-
"What were you saying to Seviper before?" Lilligant asked Mienshao as the alliance walked into the woods. "And why are we meeting in the woods now?"
"It's more secretive here," Mienshao explained. "And don't worry about Seviper. I just had to ask her something."
"Okay," said Lilligant, shrugging. Minun eyed Mienshao curiously but said nothing.
-static-
"Hey. Chatot."
Chatot perked up at Jolteon's voice. "What is it?" squawked the bird, holding his hat with one wing so it didn't blow away in the wind.
"I, uh, think I'm in," Jolteon said. "For the alliance, you know."
"Oh." Chatot actually looked surprised. "Well, you're in. Not like I'm picky right now; Dusclops and Cryogonal declined my offer, as it turns out."
"Cool," said Jolteon, smiling for seemingly the first time on the island. "So I guess we'll be voting together, then."
Chatot returned the smile. "You bet, kid."
-static-
Torchic was moping about around the cabin. Swinub and Clauncher watched him with worried expressions.
"Are you okay, dude?" asked Clauncher.
"I'm…going home tonight," Torchic said quietly. "I did h-horrible in the challenge…n-nobody would keep me around after th-that…"
"Dude, don't say that!" Clauncher said. "I can't think of anybody on this team that doesn't like you! You haven't done anything wrong."
"And moping around isn't going to make you feel any better," Swinub added. "Why don't we go to the cafeteria for a snack? That'll cheer you up."
Torchic looked up at Swinub and smiled hesitantly. "Uh…okay. S-sure."
-static-
The sky grew darker as night fell. Soon, the Great Gastrodons were all gathered at the campfire pit. Jirachi leaned on a wooden podium before them, bearing a tray of fourteen Pokeblocks.
"You should know the drill. After all, you lost last time," Jirachi said, smirking. "I thought you'd make a comeback, too! But you guys totally SUCKED today."
Most of the Gastrodons glared at Jirachi. The host chuckled to himself. "So when I call your name, you may come up and take a Pokeblock—it means you're safe. The votes were a bit more surprising tonight than last night—unlike last time, the majority of you didn't all vote for one camper. Anyway, first up is Minun."
Minun sighed in relief. Her performance had been good enough the first four rounds that nobody had been mad about her slipping in her fifth round.
Jirachi glanced down at the box of votes. "Lopunny, Tyranitar, Lilligant, Vaporeon—you're also safe tonight." Tyranitar looked relieved while the girls seemed much more calm. They all went to claim their Pokeblocks.
"Kakuna." The cocoon hopped over, and Jirachi awkwardly placed a Pokeblock on the bug's head.
"Reuniclus. And Mienshao," Jirachi said. Reuniclus flashed a thumbs-up to Tyranitar, and Mienshao took her Pokeblock without a word.
"Chesnaught, Frillish, Swinub," Jirachi called. Chesnaught grunted and picked up his Pokeblock. Frillish smiled at Jirachi charmingly before taking hers. Swinub popped his mouth open and Jirachi flicked his Pokeblock in.
"Clauncher, you're safe tonight," Jirachi said. Clauncher snatched up his Pokeblock. "But don't go popping any more dodgeballs."
"No promises," said Clauncher jokingly.
Only three Gastrodons remained without Pokeblocks. Seviper's tail flicked back and forth anxiously. Torchic looked fearful again, but Swinub flashed him a reassuring smile. Clefairy was counting her fingers to make sure they were all still there.
"So, you're the bottom three," Jirachi said, stretching out the suspense for a dramatic effect. "Torchic, you totally screwed your team over after you didn't even try to get out of the way of Zoroark's shot. Clefairy, you sucked over all today. And Seviper…I guess maybe your team just doesn't like you?"
Seviper cast nasty glares into the crowd. "Apparently being unpopular isn't enough to get you voted off, though. You're safe, Seviper," Jirachi said. Seviper visibly relaxed. Mienshao's eyes narrowed.
Torchic froze up in fear. Last time he had been in a low place too, but final two? He could actually get voted out!
Clefairy was busy thinking about rainbows and not paying attention to the ceremony.
"Any last words, you two?" Jirachi asked, grinning.
"Please don't vote me out!" pleaded Torchic.
"Those are boring last words. What about you, Clefairy?" Jirachi asked.
Clefairy shrugged. "Uh…'here lies Clefairy, she lived a pretty decent life.'"
"Um…wrong kind of last words. But okay," Jirachi said, rolling with it. "The last Pokeblock goes to…"
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
"…Torchic," said Jirachi. Torchic sprang up in relief and ran to get his Pokeblock. Clefairy looked at the ground dejectedly.
"I honestly don't know if you were dropped on your head as a baby or if you're just weird because you can be, but I guess your team was weirded out by you. So long, Clefairy!" said Jirachi cheerfully.
"Aw," Clefairy sighed. "I didn't even get to sing on this show…I wanted to sing a seventeen minute long song for my true love."
"True…love?" Jirachi asked, looking puzzled.
Clefairy laughed and grinned crazily. "Yep! But my true love lives on a different continent, so bye, everyone!"
Clefairy leaped past the Lapras waiting at the dock and into the water, swimming away into the distance. Jirachi watched her with a look of utter confusion before turning to the remaining Gastrodons.
"That's, um, all for tonight. I guess there's no last confessional this time," Jirachi muttered sadly. "Darn."
The Gastrodons all began walking back to their cabins, chatting quietly among themselves. Mienshao watched Seviper subtly from the back of the group.
-static-
Baltoy was on his was to his cabin for the night when he heard grunting and swearing from near the center of camp. He approached slowly and saw Zoroark struggling to pick the lock.
"Still at it, huh?" Baltoy sneered. Zoroark turned and saw the smug psychic watching him again.
"If you have nothing else to say, just leave," snarled Zoroark. "I don't want to listen to you again."
Baltoy rolled his eyes. "Somebody's angry. I'll leave—but if I were you, I'd quit trying to unlock that thing without the key."
"I didn't ask you," Zoroark grunted, but when he turned around, Baltoy wasn't there. Zoroark turned his attention back to the chest.
OOH BOY. THE ALLIANCES. THE DRAMA.
The challenge was pretty laid-back this time so I could develop alliances and character tension without too much trouble. I think I accomplished that pretty well.
Baltoy seems to know something important, doesn't he? Or maybe he's just lying to try to trick Zoroark—who knows?
Mienshao seems to be getting paranoid about having her alliance revealed, too—she even tries targeting Reuniclus to try to eliminate him. That can't end well.
And Clefairy was the loser at the end of the day. She was crazy, she was fun—but she was a nuisance to her team, so her story draws to a close. For now, anyway.
See you next time!
Clefairy: Review, or you'll get hit by a bus!
