Chapter Thirty Seven: How to Piss off Kanto in One Very Easy Step
Screams and sounds of surprise sounded throughout the open room as three jets of fire rose up from each of the generators. Alaska stared in shock, watching as the fire shot up metres into the air and wondered how on earth this could have possibly happened. However, as suddenly as they had appeared, the fire sank back down towards the generators, and it became clear that they were not damaged at all. The stunned reality stars and their shocked Pokemon looked towards a black cylinder on top of each machine, red burning beneath the metal.
"What is this?" Alaska asked, breaking the shocked silence that had arisen since the sudden burst of flames. She turned towards where Amanda was standing with her lips curled up into a smile only a few metres away, the explosion not startling her in the slightest. "Did you do this? Is this part of the challenge?" Amanda glanced over at Alaska, her smile only getting wider at this, and Alaska knew simply from that look that she'd gotten involved in something bigger than she'd expected by agreeing to this challenge.
"Miss Acevedo, we do not reveal the surprises we have planned for our competitions to the contestants," Amanda replied in her most perfectly clipped voice. "I think you should focus on the challenge ahead and see what comes up: Chloe, Damian and Lachlan can handle whatever we set them, so I think you can as well."
"I am sure I can," Alaska replied with a smile wide enough to match the producers, and the two stared at each other with their grinning faces and steely eyed expressions for several seconds, trying to outlast the other. There was no denying the hatred between the two, but Alaska was still trying to work out why the producer dispised her so much: her reactions and attitudes around her hinted that there was more to her rage than simply interrupting a television show, but Alaska couldn't quite figure it out.
Another burst of flames knocked her back into reality, and Alaska turned back towards the scene before her: Paige, Butterfree, Gyarados and Spearow were taking off once more, Nadia, Bellsprout, Charmeleon and Bulbasaur all on their backs. The flames were rising higher than before, forcing the Pokemon to move around to avoid the obstacle, and Alaska was impressed with Paige's quick skill at avoiding becoming roasted.
"Keep up the good work!" Alaska called, watching eagerly as Paige swooped up vertically, Nadia having to dig her claws in to stay tight. Her initial worries and concerns were put aside now that the challenge was properly underway, the Pokemon all flying around trying to avoid the fire that burnt nearby and their competitors. Only Wartortle and Geodude remained on solid ground, and Alaska felt the same feeling of competition and began thinking up a battle strategy that she might have experienced in a gym battle.
"I bet this is pretty intense for a first time," Damian said alongside her. Alaska glanced over and nodded, not wanting to take her eyes off the scene as Paige and Gyarados seemed to tied to reach the walkway. "I wouldn't let it be too overwhelming: sometimes they can be really tough, but than the rest of the time –,"
"I appreciate the help, but in the past week, I've dealt with collapsing bridges, multiple explosions and a brain switching, so I think I can handle whatever this show has to offer," Alaska replied with a sarcastic smile, but instantly felt a touch of guilt as Damian looked affronted. She groaned and clutched her head, trying to ignore the annoying 'bang' the flame cylinders made every time they started up. "I am sorry, I know you're just trying to help, but I am just really annoyed with all that has happened to me lately, and I kind of just want to get this over."
"I can tell," Damian said with a kind smile. "These challenges can get pretty irritating as we do so many, and being thrust into one like this can't really be fun. They get easier over time though."
"Hopefully I never have to experience that," Alaska replied, and Damian laughed. She looked the reality star up and down, staring at his plain blue shirt and denim jeans, and wondered what had sent him down this path. Alaska turned towards Lachlan, who was staring determinedly up at the walkway above, and wondered his motivations as well. Chloe had always seemed like the person likely to become to a front page tabloid darling, and this show was right up her alley, but even after all these meetings, Alaska had no idea what had made Damian and Lachlan join the show.
"Spearow, use Secret Power on Paige, go!" The order rang out through the relatively silent floor, and Alaska was dragged out of her thoughts as she turned around the source of the voice: Chloe was standing with her hands pointed dramatically in the air, the camera crew focussed on her as she gave the order. Once they got the shot they wanted, Chloe turned towards Alaska with the same smile she used whenever she got away with bullying someone at school.
"The little bitch," Alaska hissed, turning away before her anger gave her nemesis any more joy. She looked up at the scene above where the Flying Pokemon were all moving towards the walkway that seemed higher above than she'd expected, and watched in horror as the brown and red feathered Spearow floated towards Paige.
"ROW ROW ROW!" She squawked, and a beam of yellow formed in her open beak. Paige was too focussed on getting up towards the flag before Gyarados did, and had no idea as the attack was fired towards her.
"LOOK OUT!" Alaska cried, but it was too late: the Secret Power struck Paige's tail feathers, exploding and sending her and Nadia spinning up towards the roof. Everyone turned around to have a look at what had happened, and Gyarados and Butterfree stopped moving for a moment, stunned by the attack. Chloe merely laughed, the path now clear for Spearow to go ahead with Bulbasaur.
"Dirty cheating little whore!" Alaska hissed. She couldn't believe that Chloe had just done that, or that she had gotten away with it as Amanda merely stood there smirking to herself, glancing up towards the confused scene above. Any decent gym leader wouldn't let such a sneaky attack go through, nor one so dangerous around the high powered electricity above, and knew that Chloe needed a taste of her own medicine.
"Quick Attack and Poison Sting, go!" Alaska yelled, hoping the two Pokemon were still able to fight. There was no sign of movement near the ceiling, and while Butterfree and Gyarados were moving once more, it was still clear for Spearow to reach the flag first, no one near enough to stop her…
"PIDGEY!" The shrill cry echoed all around, and Alaska silently cheered as white flash high above, and suddenly Paige was rocketing down towards the walkway. Spearow was nearing the flag, Bulbasaur ready to extend a vine and grab it as they passed, and now it was their turn not to notice the attack coming there way.
"OTTO!" Paige yelled as she drove directly into Spearow, smashing the Flying type against the railing as Bulbasaur was thrown off. Nadia leapt off before Bulbasaur had even landed on the path, and instantly purple poisonous stings were being fired from her mouth towards the Seed Pokemon.
"Keep it up!" Alaska shouted. "Take Down Bulbasaur and Aerial Ace Spearow!" Chloe turned angrily towards Alaska and let out an angry cry, but Alaska merely glanced over and smiled back to her. "You're the one that started this, so you'd better be prepared to finish it."
"Oh don't worry, I am!" Chloe hissed. "Bulbasaur use Headbutt, and Spearow counter with your Aerial Ace!" The two sets of Pokemon initiated their attacks, Paige and Spearow flying towards each other with glowing wings while Nadia and Bulbasaur charged towards each other. Alaska looked at the flag lying ignored next to them, but didn't really care about that at the moment: she wanted Chloe to be taught a lesson, and defeating her in her own field would do just that.
"Don't get caught up in this fight again," Damian hissed in Alaska's ear as the three flamethrowers set off again. "If you win this challenge than that will piss them off more than just fighting again."
"I'm not the star of this show, you are," Alaska hissed back, not taking her eyes off her duelling Pokemon. "You win and get whatever the prizes are going to be, and I'll just try and win my own little tournament, alright? Besides, your Pokemon are nearly there anyway," Alaska said, and pointed up to the flag. Gyarados had swooped past the walkway, allowing Charmeleon to leap on to a side clear of any warring Pokemon, and was closely followed by Sandy's Bellsprout.
"Confusion Butterfree!" Sandy called, and Damian gasped as the Butterfly Pokemon swooped down in front of Charmeleon, her eyes glowing pink. Charmeleon halted where he stood and stared around, clearly dazed as to where he was, and allowed Bellsprout to move around with her long, skinny legs moving oddly as she tried to run.
"Great strategy Sandy!" Alaska shouted out, and turned to see her friend smile brightly back to her and give her a thumbs up. Alaska looked back at Damian, who was looking rather annoyed and smirked again. "You have to admit, it was a pretty good idea."
"Possibly," Damian said with an annoyed look in his eyes, but his face softened after a few moments. "We'll just have to try harder than, won't we? Gyarados, keep Butterfree from helping Bellsprout!" The giant flying sea-serpent nodded and swung his long body around, nearly knocking Butterfree out of the sky. The Bug type had to fly quickly out of the way, and was forced to keep moving as Gyarados continued to swing his body around. However, Bellsprout still seemed to have a clear run at getting the flag: Charmeleon was too confused to move, and Alaska and Chloe's Pokemon were fighting too much to notice. Alaska knew that Sandy could do with the boost that would come with winning this challenge.
However, everything changed with a single.
"NOW!" Lachlan suddenly shouted, and all eyes turned towards him. Everyone had forgotten about him and his unmoving Pokemon in all the drama occurring high above, but now everyone watched as Geodude lifted Wartortle's shell into the air, the Turtle Pokemon's head and limbs tucked safely inside, and began to spin around. No one was quite sure what this was going to do, but as Bellsprout reached out towards the brightly coloured flag that lay before him, Geodude stopped spinning and let go.
"Oh my!" Andy gasped dramatically, and this pretty much summed the general reaction up: Wartortle was sent spinning through the air like a rocket, covering a distance in half the time it had taken the Flying Pokemon. Butterfree and Gyarados turned around in shock, and even Paige and Nadia spared a glance as their opponents were left breathless behind them.
"Sprout Bell Bell!" Bellsprout cried happily, unaware of the incoming Pokemon, and happily moved towards the flag with her vine-like arms reaching out to grab it. However, just as she was about to grab it, there was a whoosh and she froze: Wartortle spun over the bar and rose another metre before curving back down. Now all the Pokemon were watching as the Water type came back down to the walkway, head, arms, legs and tail all coming out to help him land perfectly, right next to the flag.
"Tortle War!" Wartortle announced, puffing out the softer part of his chest and smiling at all the other Pokemon, but no one smiled back. It was as if Paige, Nadia, Bulbasaur and Spearow had only just realised they had been so close to the flag this whole time, and it also seemed they were only noticing the other Pokemon around them for the first time as well.
There was a moment of silence, all the Pokemon coming to some degree of halt, nothing moving except for the flag of the wings. Their eyes darted from the flag in between them all to the other Pokemon surrounding them, and they, along with their trainers, tried to think of the most sensible and strategic way to defeat them all and grab that flag.
That moment didn't last long.
"BELL!" Bellsprout shouted angrily, frustrated that her chances of winning had been snatched from right beneath her, and she swung her arms around. A shocked and surprised Wartortle was sent crashing against the railing by the powerful strike, and this seemed to be the call for the other Pokemon to charge forwards as well: Butterfree and Gyarados flew side by side, Charmeleon snapped out of his confusion and took off with glowing silver claws, and Alaska and Chloe's Pokemon took off alongside each other, exchanging more moves as they neared the flag. The jets of flame continued to rise up, but no one paid any attention as they focussed on the scramble of Pokemon on the walkway above.
"Tell your Pokemon to be careful!" Andy cried, staring up at the walkway in horror. "All this commotion could cause it to collapse!" This idea seemed unlikely at first, but a creak and a clang echoed around, and Alaska glanced towards the walls: the metal did seem to be weakening in the middle where all the Pokemon were congregating, the nuts and bolts along the way struggling to hold up their weights.
"The clock is ticking everyone," Amanda called shrilly; "we don't have all day to play this game!" Everyone became tenser as this, trying to think of how to succeed at this challenge, but their thoughts were interrupted as Chloe let an angry screech that rose up in her throat, everyone turning towards her. It was the cry Chloe always used at school on the rare occasions she didn't get her way, and Alaska was pleased to see her get so annoyed.
"Just push them over the sides!" She yelled. "Who cares about their Pokemon, just getting the fricking flag!" Her voice echoed, loud enough to drown out the shouts and cries coming from above, and it was easy for everyone to hear the command.
"Calm down Chloe, it's just a contest!" Lachlan said, rolling his eyes down at Geodude.
"This is more than just a contest!" Chloe snapped, turning towards him with her face screwed up. "I have to win this one whether any of you like it or not, so just back off and let me play it my way! Bulbasaur, Spearow, I DON'T SEE ANY POKEMON FALLING!"
The nine Pokemon on or around the walkway could all hear the shouting, but they were all too focussed on getting the flag to care, with Charmeleon clawing at anyone who came near him, Nadia firing Poison Stings off into the air, and Bellsprout's flailing Vine Whips stopping anyone from getting near. Paige and Spearow were locked in a battle of wings, unwilling to stop until the other was out of the way, and it was clear they were both getting tired from the fighting. Chloe's words were still ringing in their ears, and Spearow was willing to do anything to fufill her master's orders.
"SPEAROOOO!" She cried, knocking Paige backwards behind the railings with an Aerial Ace. The Bird Pokemon flapped her wings furiously, readying to come backwards, and it was then that Spearow noticed what was right in front of them: the wall of cables coming out of the generators, sending electricity all around Kanto. An idea formed in Spearow's mind, and she looked down to where Bulbasaur was, unable to get past an angry Wartortle and his furious Bite.
"Spear Row Row Spearooow!" She cried down to Bulbasaur, and the Seed Pokemon glanced up, a look on his face to show his surprise. "Row Spearow Spearow Spear!" Spearow repeated as Paige swooped around, gathering speed before the final assault. Bulbasaur seemed reluctant, but glanced down at Chloe and saw the determined look on her face.
"Saur Saur Bulba," he replied with a nod, and leapt upwards. Paige wasn't quite sure what she was seeing as she soared down with a Steel Wing, watching as Spearow came out towards her with Bulbasaur on her back. But it was all too late when she, along with the trainers below, realized that Bulbasaur's vines were extending out.
"LOOK OUT!" Alaska shouted, shocked to think that Chloe's Pokemon could be doing what she thought they were about to do.
"OTTO PIDGE PIDGE!" Paige cried desperately and tried to turn around and escape in time. Nadia and Butterfree turned in shock, and Bellsprout stopped thrashing her vines to see what was happening, yet Bulbasaur's only got longer as Spearow took off towards Paige. They wrapped around her, causing her wings to be crushed, and Paige yelled out in pain. Shockwaves rippled throughout the trainers as Sandy, Damian and Lachlan watched the scene unfold in horror, but none of them were as appalled as Alaska, watching as Spearow continued flying and Bulbasaur thrust his vines out, ready to force the Bird Pokemon against the high powered cables. How could anyone do this, how could a Pokemon try something so horrible?
"GYARADOS, GO!" Damian suddenly shouted alongside, and Alaska turned around in surprise to face the trainer, but found Damian ignoring her as he stared up in gritty determination at the scene above, a look of anger across his face she had never seen. Everyone watched as Gyarados charged forwards, covering a lot of ground quickly due to his long body, and floated in front of the cables just as Spearow and Bulbasaur prepared to thrust Paige onto them. Alaska's heart skipped a beat as Gyarados was forced up against the cables instead, letting out an angry roar that forced Bulbasaur to let go: Paige was no longer in danger, unfolding her wings in a pained way as Gyarados took the brunt of the attack instead.
"Thank you," Alaska whispered, and Damian merely nodded in response, casting his angry look over at Chloe. The blonde had remained quiet throughout all of this and refused to look around at the angry trainers on either side of her, merely watching as Spearow flew overhead the walkway, most of the Pokemon still in stunned silence.
However, as most Pokemon came to a halt in shock from what had happened, Wartortle saw this as an opportunity and moved quickly. Bellsprout and Charmeleon were the first to notice as he lunged for the flag, and as Paige and Gyarados moved away from the cables, both hurt from the attempted attack, the Turtle Pokemon grabbed onto the flag and lifted it into the air.
Than the floor collapsed beneath them and the wall exploded next to them.
There was a gasp of shock from everyone, stunned by the sudden change of events. Sandy, Damian and Lachlan watched in horror as about one metre of the walkway swung down, sending Bellsprout, Charmeleon and Wartortle with the flag hurtling to the ground. Nadia had been further away and was merely on the edge, watching as the Pokemon fell below, but she and the airborne Pokemon were thrown as electricity suddenly burst from across the cables. Like with the generators, it seemed at first that something had gone terribly wrong, but Alaska and the others quickly saw this was another one of the reality shows tricks to add excitement to the challenge.
Yet no one saw these tricks as entertaining: orders were quickly unleashed to catch the Pokemon falling through the air or to avoid the bolts of electricity shooting out from. The bolts died down quickly, leaving the only sign of electricity as the whirr from the generators, but the jets of flames were unleashed instead, both traps ready to play havoc with the battle. Alaska was still fuming about what had just happened with Paige, and it was hard to focus on what was happening elsewhere as fury ran throughout her blood: she didn't care at all about the flag that was plummeting towards the ground now. All her attention was on Spearow and Bulbasaur as they remained in the air, and thoughts of how to get back at them.
"Clear the area!" Andy yelled, rushing around in fright as the three Pokemon crashed down towards them, Gyarados and Butterfree moving quickly to catch their team mates. He seemed just as confused as they all were now, something that Alaska didn't find reassuring, and her attention was drawn towards the Pokemon, wondering in the back of her mind who would find three Pokemon plummeting towards a possible death good reality television.
"Geodude, Smack Down!" Lachlan shouted as the walls fired electricity once more, forcing Gyarados and Butterfree to turn around. Alaska had forgotten Lachlan's Geodude remained safely on the ground, and watched as what was basically a rock head leapt up into the air with his hands raised. She had never heard of Smack Down before, and watched in interest as the Rock Head Pokemon greeted the falling Pokemon.
"Geo Geo Dude Dude Geo Geo," Geodude said gruffly, and he smashed his hands against Charmeleon and Wartortle's heads. Brown energy surrounded them as they fell faster towards the ground, and Alaska wondered what sort of attack this was until she saw the two Pokemon land on the ground as if they had only fallen one storey.
"Smack Down is an attack that forces Flying Pokemon to remain grounded for the rest of the battle," Damian explained, back to smirking as he looked at Alaska's horror and confusion. "It is still an attack so they get injured, but I think changing it to this kind of blow would soften it up for them all." Alaska nodded, watching as Bellsprout was sent falling and Geodude moved towards Butterfree and Gyarados, and thought again how a seemingly kind soul had become involved in this type of programme.
"Come on Spearow, don't let them get away!" Chloe yelled angrily, looking up at the sky. Alaska felt the fury rise up again, and while everyone seemed to be focussed on the falling Pokemon that were now beginning to get back up, she turned her attention back towards the walkway where a tired Paige had landed alongside Nadia. Just like how Chloe thought she couldn't lose this, Alaska knew that Chloe and her Pokemon couldn't just get away with the attack. Amanda stood smirking to the side, watching the scene unfold with great delight, and Alaska wanted to make sure the producer learnt a lesson as well. In fact, there were a lot of people that needed to have a lesson taught to them…
"Come on Wartortle, you can do this!" Lachlan called out to his starter, the Water type getting to his feet with the flag in hand, ready to keep on going.
"Bellsprout, stop him!" Sandy yelled. The Flower Pokemon nodded, and her vines shot out again, snatching the flag out of Wartortle's hands and quickly leaping up onto her spindly legs, racing off towards the staircase. Sandy cheered in her delightful way and ran alongside, Lachlan and Wartortle taking off as well with the camera crew not far behind. There were less people around now, and Alaska turned back to her Pokemon, knowing exactly what to do.
"Paige, Nadia," she called, ignoring the others around her and focussing only on her Pokemon. The two glanced over the edge, Paige looking better now that she had rested for a few minutes. "Do you two want to show them how we do things on my team?" Nadia nodded excitedly, eager as always to battle, while Paige shrugged, not overly bothered by whatever happened. "Well sorry Paige, but this one is just for you! I want you to dive down towards the flames using Twister, go!" Paige rolled her eyes, but knew Alaska wasn't going to budge and got to moving.
"What are you doing?" Damian hissed into her ear as Paige took off into the air. "Do you even know what that attack is going to do?" Alaska turned towards Damian with a smirk on her face, glancing towards a breathless looking Andy and a furious Amanda.
"I know exactly what I am doing," Alaska replied sweetly. "I am showing Amanda, Chloe and the rest of them that I am not someone to be messed with: try your little tricks and your twisted little moves, but I am only going to come back from them and show you what I am truly made of." Damian fell silent at this, and Alaska looked back to the air as Paige began to spin around, energy swirling around. "Yo boys," she shouted towards the camera crew that she knew would be following after Sandy and Lachlan, "why don't you catch a sight of this?"
"Stop this at once!" Andy cried, marching forwards but keeping an eye on Paige as the Twister began to take life, coming down towards the cylinder. "This is extremely dangerous and could end you with a very expensive bill for any damages!"
"I know some people that can pay it for me," Alaska said matter-of-factly. She didn't care about the damages or the cost and didn't care how the Power Plant would react, and nor did she really care how Amanda and Chloe would cope with this: she wanted this to end up on camera and get shown around in some way, and she wanted Gideon, Bill, Steven, anyone that she had met to watch it. It was about time they saw what Alaska was properly capable of and why they shouldn't mess with her or try to screw her over, and this was going to show just that.
Silence had fallen throughout the room as all eyes turned towards the spinning purple Twister made of draconian energy, the only sounds coming from the generators that all seemed to be getting noisier and moving around more, almost as if in anticipation or worry for what was to come, and the sparks flying from the wall of cables. Alaska watched with a smile as the tip of the Twister touched the top of the cylinder, hoping that Paige could handle it but knew she had the strength for this, and crossed her fingers that it all came together, watching as the sparks died down…
The result was more impressive than Alaska could had hoped for.
A tornado of pure fire rocketed up into the air only seconds after the wall fell silent once more, red, orange and yellow light casting a warm glow across the entire room. The Twister rose up through the walkway, and Nadia ran out of the way as it began to melt, hot metal dripping onto the ground. Damian grabbed Alaska's shoulder and tugged her away, all the other humans and Pokemon beginning to move as the generator began to smoke from the amount of fire spinning around on top of it. Alaska only glanced around to check on the reactions, pleased by the purely stunned emotions she saw, and was pleased to see it was all being caught on camera. To her the flaming Twister was beautiful, but she knew others would be stunned by it, and Alaska could only hope that it got her message across to Gideon and the 'elites of Kanto' that she had the strength to stand up and fight for herself.
Than the generator exploded before them.
Alaska had had a feeling that this would be a possible outcome, but hadn't really been expecting it when it did happen. It all happened very quickly and suddenly, the Twister seeming to just consume the machine and take away its life. Shards of metal and bits of wiring and machinery were blasted across the room with an echoing bang, but it was really the only sign of any change. Everyone ducked and tried to hide from the bombardment of shards, but Alaska watched transfixed as the cables on the wall began to malfunction as a result, sparks and smoke rising up as if it was all just another trap, and Alaska could only smile to herself at what she was seeing and what she had done, and couldn't be more proud of herself and Paige.
Once Paige came to a halt and the Twister with her, the full extent of the damage became clear: the middle generator was now silent but burning, only half of its original body remaining with flames and smoke dancing up from it once more. The other two were whirring harder than ever as melted metal dripped down from the walkway above, and the cables continued to spark and shoot sparks as they became confused, not quite sure what to do now that their only purpose had been halted.
Yet everyone merely stood there, watching the scene as if the Twister was still going. Alaska savoured the tense silence that had fallen across the scene, and turned towards those that stood around her: everyone, including the technicians that had been working behind, was staring at the melted generator with looks of pure shock and horror, none of them quite sure what had happened. Alaska smiled as she saw the camera was still rolling on the shoulder of the appalled cameraman, while Amanda looked like she was about to faint in shock and explode in anger at the same time. There was a whoosh of wings, and Alaska turned smiling towards Paige as she landed alongside with Nadia on her back, looking exhausted but also wearing a look that read 'Was that what you wanted?'
"You've just cut power to hundreds of homes across Kanto," Andy mumbled, his enthusiasm completely gone in what had to be the worst tour group he had ever taken in the history of his employment. "This is going to cost millions of dollars… I… I… I… I don't even know where to start…" Alaska merely shrugged at no one in particular, turning back towards the generator with the smile on her face getting progressively bigger. This had been a long day full of confusion on top of an even more confusing and exhausting week, and while she savoured being able to sit down for the first time in hours to rest her leg, which she could feel screaming in pain now that her mind was off other matters, Alaska knew that this would definitely send the message she intended to send in the war she had never intended to get roped into.
"If anyone is still interested," Sandy called from behind them all, "Bellsprout got the flag to the top of the stairs first. So… what do we win?"
A shorter wait, I think, for a longer chapter! Hopefully this one has come together better as it was written closer together, but I understand it may be confusing at the moment and seem a bit random. Stay tuned for Alaska's next blog to get a full explanation about her actions that will hopefully clear things up. One more part of this arc left though, and I am sure you are all going to remember that one for a long time to come ;)
