Ilex Forest is big. Trainers should be careful not to get lost. It is also guarded by its protector, so one should stay out of trouble. Don't get lost!

With the Hive Badge in hand, Duncan and Crystal headed off to Ilex Forest the next morning. The trees were very thick, allowing only a little bit of light to pass through. It was also humid. After a few seconds of travel, they found Bugsy again. "Oh man, my boss is gonna be mad! His Farfetch'd ran away from me!"

Duncan asked, "Can't you go looking for it?"

"No, it's too big and scary."

"We'll keep an eye out for it," said Crystal.

After a few minutes of travel, they found a bird Pokémon caught in a trap. Duncan pulled out his Pokédex, which revealed that it was a Farfetch'd! "Just like Bugsy said!" he exclaimed. He pushed the Translator button.

"Kwaa!" was translated to "Help! Pull this trap off of me!"

"That's a nasty trap," Crystal remarked. Duncan then carefully came over to the bird Pokémon, and sprung the trap. Farfetch'd then ran off in pain. "Wait! Come back," Crystal ordered.

They then pursued the bird Pokémon, until they were tired. Then they headed back to Bugsy.

"I found Farfetch'd, but it ran off on us... wait! There it is!"

Bugsy was beaming with excitement. "Yes! Now he won't be mad at me..."

An older man said, "Now we can cut trees for charcoal. Now, let's see. I'll give you this for your trouble." The man handed Duncan an HM. "That's the Cut HM. You use that to clear down trees."

Crystal snatched the HM from Duncan. "Huh?"

"Here you go, Leafy." She pressed the HM to Leafy's head, and then a flash of light. Leafy learned Cut!

Ben was there, too. "Great job for defeating Team Rocket's plan in Slowpoke Well! You sure did 'well' last night." He patted Duncan's shoulder. "With people like you, the future of Pokémon is bright."

And so, Bugsy guided Duncan and Crystal through the forest. They saw a small shrine. "What's that?" asked Crystal.

Bugsy replied, "That's the Ilex Forest Shrine. It's in honor of the forest's protector."

"Maybe someday we'll understand," said Duncan. "But not for a while."

They pushed forward, catching Pokémon such as Psyduck and Venonat, and then they headed into Route 34. "Thanks Bugsy!"

"No problem!"

"Okay, we've got to get to Kamon, before Team Rocket does," said Crystal. She was deeply worried about him. "Huh?" The Egg Crystal was carrying began to rumble a few times, beginning to crack open. Duncan and Crystal stared in awe, as they saw the beginning of a Pokémon's life. Out came a Spike Ball Pokémon! The Pokédex identified it as Togepi. "Hello Spike!" exclaimed Crystal in excitement. They ran to Goldenrod City. Crystal walked, as she wanted to be careful with Spike.

---

Goldenrod City: The City of Opulent Charm

The city was bustling, and it would be very hard to travel without a map of some sort. Duncan and Crystal used their PokéGears as maps through the city, and headed to the city center. Duncan went to the Gym while Crystal went to the Radio Tower.

In the Gym, Duncan was introduced again by Ben. "Yo! Champ in the making! This Gym is home to Normal-Type Pokémon. Try using the Fighting-type Pokémon."

"Wait, I'll be right back." Twenty minutes later, Duncan was back. "I caught this Tyrogue."

The Pokémon was a small (2'04") human-shaped creature which looked like it could pack a wallop!

"Great! You should have no problem!"

And so, Duncan headed to the center, where the Gym Leader was stationed. "Hi! I'm Whitney!"

"I'm Duncan Caliduct."

"Everyone's into Pokémon, so I got into it too! They're super-cute."

"I'm here to claim my Plain Badge."

"So you wanna battle? I'm warning you – I'm a professional! Go, Clefairy!"

"Go, Tyrogue! Hi Jump Kick!"

"Metronome, Clefairy!"

---

At the Radio Tower, Crystal stood in awe. It was huge! So that's where all the radio and TV shows come from! She remembered in history class that it was built to replace the one that was destroyed in the Johto earthquake. As she entered, she told Spike, "This is where everything live on the radio or TV is broadcast!"

Spike cried out, "Togei! Togei!"

"Let's try the quiz." She talked to the receptionist. "Hello, I'm here for the quiz show. My name is Crystal Caliduct." Suddenly she caught the sight of her cousin Hadley! "Hi there!"

"Crystal? It's you! I'm gonna beat you, since I'm so smart!"

"I may not do well in school, but I've raised a Pokémon Egg to hatching! Here's Spike, a Togepi!"

"Wow! That Pokémon never appeared in Kanto! Where'd you get it?"

"Mr. Pokémon gave it to me. Then I gave it to Prof. Elm. Then, at the Ruins of Alph, I- I guess we'd better get to the game!"

"You're right. I bet that I'll win the Porygon."

"No way! I'm filling the Pokédex along with Duncan."

"Where is he?"

"He's in the Gym, battling Whitney."

---

In the contest, the host exclaimed, "Hello! Welcome to the Pokémon Quiz! I'm your host, Mary Kawlet, and here I've got three contestants, Crystal Caliduct from New Bark Town, Hadley Caliduct from Pallet Town, and Misty Archegus from Cerulean City! Ready?"

"Ready," said Crystal.

"Ready to win!" exclaimed Hadley. She stared at her cousin in confidence.

"I'm the boss!" said Misty.

"Here is your first question: Is there a Pokémon that only appears in the morning?"

Hadley pressed her button. "Yes, and it's Ledyba. It appears in the National Park."

Duncan and Crystal entered the Pokémon Center. Crystal used a PC to search for Kamon's address while Duncan called Prof. Elm.

Prof. Elm said on the phone, "Hello, Duncan! How's the Egg?"

---

"Correct, Hadley! Your second question: Berries can't be bought at Marts. True, or false?"

Misty pushed her button. "False."

A beep rang. "No, I'm sorry."

Crystal pushed her button. "True!"

"Yes! Third question: What does HM 1 contain?

A. Rock Smash,

B. Strength,

C. Cut,

D. Flash."

Crystal pushed her button. "Cut!"

"Yes! That's right! Question 4: Who is the Violet City Gym Leader?

A. Falkner,

B. Chuck,

C. Bugsy,

D. Pryce."

Misty pushed her button. "Falkner!"

"Right-o! Here's the final question: Who is the current Viridian City Gym Leader?"

A. Giovanni,

B. Kevin, a.k.a Blue,

C. Misty,

D. Lt. Surge."

Crystal pushed her button. "B. Blue!" Crystal read the news one day that Hadley's boyfriend, Kevin Oak, grandson of Prof. Oak, had taken over as the Gym Leader."

"YES! You win!"

"In your face, nerd!" Crystal yelled to her cousin. She was handed a PokéBall with Porygon. "Another entry in the Pokédex. Don't worry, Hadley. I'm just filling the Dex."

"No problem, Kris. Good luck!"

"Oh, and Misty?"

"Yes?" she asked, in tears.

"You tried the best you could, but Hadley and I are the travelers."

"Well, I'd love to hit the road and travel one day."

---

"Normal Pokémon had one weakness: Fighting Pokémon!" Duncan exclaimed, as he defeated Whitney. The Gym Leader sobbed.

"You meanie! You shouldn't be so mean to cute Pokémon!"

"I'm sorry for making you cry..."

"Don't worry about it, Duncan," Ben assured him. "She'll stop soon."

"Ahem," Duncan said. "Excuse me, weren't you supposed to give me a badge?"

"Oh, yes. Now I remember. Here is the Plain Badge."

"Yes!"

"Come by for a visit again!"

"Well, Ben, you really work out for a tutor."

"I do my best."

In the Radio Tower, Crystal was still amazed that she won her prize. "Spike, I think filling the Pokédex should be a cinch!" Suddenly, she foresees somehow, that Kamon might be captured by Team Rocket later! "Oh, yeah! We need to get Kamon! Let's get Duncan and let him know!"