Hello readers! I hope you liked the last chapter, I mean, I put a lot of effort into it. Feel free to leave reviews but make sure they're not totally harsh (i.e. words like annoying, terrible, etc.). Enjoy!
Chapter 2
"Hey hey hey!" Bugsy exclaims. "What are you doing?"
"Finishing Round 2?" Finn replies. He thinks of it like a tournament. A small one, yes, but a tournament nonetheless.
"No, no. You guys misunderstood! Round 2 in only little battles! All winners receive one point, and that's that! The second part of Round 2, however, is much more interesting." Bugsy paints a devilish look on his face.
"Albert and Wade aren't ruled out, as you may think. They just don't get a point like Liz and Finn!" Bugsy explains to the crowd. "All four of them will participate in the next part, though. Azalea Town natives should know what I'm talking about, but those from far away, listen up! We will place the four contestants in Ilex Forest with their already-chosen bug Pokemon and they will have to find three markers before arriving at the ending point-at which point we'll fly you back to Azalea Town in a helicopter. Sound fun?"
The crowd goes wild. "Hey," Albert pushes Bugsy a little. "You expect us to survive out there?"
"Ilex Forest isn't as big as Kanto's Viridian Forest, and trust me, no where near as scary as it, but it is still a maze and all prizes need a cause. Consider the cause for this one as: 'Please the hungry citizens of Azalea Town.' Are we good?" The four teens look at the floor. "Good. Lets go."
Bugsy takes out a remote and presses one of the buttons. The back wall lights up, like a TV. Several parts of the forest are on the screen.
How did he afford a wall-sized screen? Bugsy isn't just a normal gym leader, Finn thinks as they walk to the entrance of Ilex Forest. His temporary Kakuna friend starts to get all jittery around the forest.
"What's going on?" Finn asks aloud. "Kakuna wants out."
"Heracross too!" Liz yelps. Her Pokeball flies out of her hand. Kakuna follows, then Ledyba and Paras. They all erupt from their Pokeballs, by themselves, and just sit in front of the forest.
"Bug Pokemon love it here," Wade says. He pets his Paras and walks to Bugsy's side. "They'll follow us in, right?"
"Of course they will. Now, you'll all get a different spot to start in. Liz and Heracross, follow me," Bugsy says. The three walk down the dirt path.
"Wow," Albert muses. "This is Ilex Forest? Where has it been all my life?"
Tall, thick-leafed trees sway back and forth with the strong winds above the forest. Their leaves are a variety of colors: Lime green, grass green, forest green, spring green, even olive in some of the places where sunlight doesn't reach. The trees extend across the path, leaves continuously falling in a steady pace. Yes, there are winds around Ilex Forest, but inside, nothing. The trees reflect the wind away from their cove, keeping a totally calm place with not a single breeze.
Bugsy arrives without Liz and this time takes Wade and Paras down a different way. Finn leans against the thick trunk of one tree, falling into the leaves just slightly.
Rustle, a Caterpie makes while squirming into a bush. Rustle rustle, a Butterfree and Beedrill make as they fly together through the thick trees, somehow managing to fly in between all the sticking-out leaves and occasionally thorny branches.
Bugsy finally comes to take Finn. He picks up the Kakuna and follows Bugsy down a third path. "Will we all have the same chances of making it to the ending point and whatnot?" Finn asks in his best clueless voice.
Obviously he helped Liz. That thought came to Finn quickly.
"Of course you will. Over here, this spot." Bugsy points at a speaker looped through some branches. "See that? Wait over by it."
Bugsy leaves Finn and his Pokemon.
"What do you think, Kakuna? You think that he cheated by helping Liz out?" Finn asks the yellow cocoon.
"Kaku. Kaka naku," he purrs.
A glitchy sound erupts from the speaker. Finn steps back a little.
RUSTLE RUSTLE RUSTLE
The teen nearly drops Kakuna as he feels a presence lurking behind him.
A glitchy Bugsy voice comes from the speaker. "Okay Wade, Liz, Albert, and Clark. I expect the challenge to take somehere around-uh oh. I released some of my tougher Pokemon into Ilex Forest on accident. If anyone remembers the way back to the entrance, hurry back. The Pokemon is big and red, with pincers, and is about the size of a tall-ish human. Hurry back."
"Scizorrr!" a metallic voice screams. Finn shoots down the path and takes a sharp right, this time dropping Kakuna for real.
Heavy wings seem to flutter at the speed of sound towards him. Finn quickly picks up Kakuna and sprints down the dirt, but not long until another sharp turn overpowers him.
"Kakuna, Poison Sting that bug!" Finn yowls at the top of his lungs. He stops for a breather and sets Kakuna on a large leaf.
The splinters of poison bounce right off the beast, harmless. "What?! Is it steel or something?"
"Yup!" a feminine voice agrees as she jumps in front of the beast. "Heracross, Arm Thrust!"
Liz's Heracross jumps onto the steel Pokemon calling itself Scizor and whacks it across the face a few times.
"C'mon Clark! Grab your Pokemon!" Liz says and runs farther down the path.
"What's happening?" Finn says as he catches up to his sprinting accomplice.
"Bugsy wants one of the contestants caught. They're apparently wanted in Kanto after running away. The Scizor was probably just a diversion for something bigger." She takes a left and stops. "But I'm not sure if he is in Ilex Forest with us or if he was already ruled out. Most likely the former."
Finn smells something fishy... What's she grabbing from her pocket...?
"String Shot her hands, now!" Finn exclaims. Kakuna follows his orders and shoot the silk across Liz's arms. She sticks to a broken-down tree stump.
"You ass!" she yells in frustration.
"This whole time you and Bugsy were trying to take me back to Kanto?!" Finn says. "Shame, woman, shame."
"I wasn't in on it with Bugsy, you dope!" she smugly says.
"Kaku!" the cocoon warns.
Finn dives to the ground and Kakuna catapults into the air. A Stun Spore flies right past Finn. "Kakuna!" the fugitive cries out.
The cocoon floats down to the ground, now shed. A Beedrill floats in the air.
"Use Stun Spore on the Beedrill," Wade commands. His trusty steed shoots unusually yellow spores at Finn's new Beedrill.
"Dodge them," Finn says while propping himself up on a different stump.
"Heracross, where are you?!" Liz screams aloud.
"String Shot her mouth shut," Finn orders.
"Poison Powder him while he's distracted!" Wade counters. The silk tapes the girl's mouth closed, but Finn's too late to say anything else.
The purple spores latch onto Beedrill. "No~!"
Beedrill breaks free from the spores in a matter of seconds.
"Oh wait," Finn remembers.
"He's poison!" Finn and Wade say in unison, Wade of course being more disappointed than amused.
"Fury Attack the Paras, Beedrill!" Finn stands up and shoves Wade into a bushy tree as his poison bee Pokemon handles Paras.
"Why do you two want me so badly? Do I have a reward placed over my head?!" Finn screams into Wade's face. "Was it Earl?!"
"That's right, Finn Irving, and with your poor momma so depressed, your step-dad owns your life. And he is willing to pay 100 platinum Pokedollars for you back in Kanto, which means you can't trust anybody." Wade's eyes fill with chaos.
Finn looks over at the Pokemon fight. With Paras nearly fainted, Finn declares, "Stop, Beedrill. He was just listening to Wade."
"Mmm-mm!" Liz screams under the silk.
Wade smiles devilishly. He kicks Finn backwards, onto Beedrill, and grabs Paras from the ground. With its claws, the bug catcher slices Liz's mouth trap.
"HERACROSS!" she screams into the forest. "HERACROSS!" Odd noises come from nearby in the forest.
"Stun Spore, now!" Wade exclaims. Beedrill shoves Finn to the side and embraces the yellow spores.
"Beedrill!" Finn cries.
"Bee bee!" he replies. "DRILL!" Finn runs down one of the paths, a small smile on his face. Even as a bad guy, running away and all, friendship still finds its way.
"Stun Spore, Paras! Now now now!" he screams. Finn's footsteps disappear into the rustling Pokemon noises. His hand slaps Paras across the head. "You stupid piece of-my apologies. Paras, I release you into the forest. Go, before I kick you." Wade watches as the Paras walks away sadly.
"It's all up to Albert now," Liz grumpily states as Wade slices the remaining silk with a sharp branch. "Now what to do with this Beedrill...?"