Well, I'm back from my vacation. Pokemon Sun and Moon is exceptional. I recommend that game for all Pokemon fans out there. If you want to play with me, give me your friend code. I got a competitively bred team with two of my favorite Pokemon (Goodra and Porygon Z). To be honest, I could just finish the main story and start working on this chapter but I procrastinate a little.

From now on, Pokemon from the seventh generation will appear in this story so spoiler alert. Finish the game before you read. Enjoy!

Reply to Reviews

Worma-Sir

Sorry about the elimination. It was rushed like you said. It was already very late for me when I'm about to post that chapter. Heck, I nearly fell asleep. I will try to take my time with all the eliminations from now on.

OctoRiter

Ah, a fellow Total Pokemon Island author. If I have time, I will check your story out. Lately, I'm feeling a bit pessimistic about authors not finishing their stories so I made a rule that it either needs to be updated usually or very long in words count. Anyways, I'm glad to see you enjoying yourself with how Darmanitan speaks. Team Skull speaks a bit like him from what I noticed with the berry thief boys with all the "homie". Like I said with Worma-Sir, sorry about the elimination.

WhiteDiamondNinja8484

The Crawdaunt have more tension, of course. The Flygon members are all scared of Lucario so they can't do much. Your ships might come true, I don't want to spoil the surprise.

Episode 13: Can't Handle the Heat?

The camera blinked to total darkness, unusually different from the routine structure of each episode. The image blurred but slowly got its focus on the Flygon boys' bedroom. Three contestants were awake during the night while the others slept peacefully.

The camera zoomed into the first contestant, Meowth. He was scratching a Skarmory token with his right hand. His left hand was used as a pillow, possibly providing comfort.

"Hey, having trouble sleeping?" Houndour whispered. He tried not to disturb others.

Meowth turned around to face him, putting the coin away. "Today was a bit mortifying. A great businessman like me failing to deliver the goods because of a mere balloon? I have no excuses for my poor performance." Meowth replied, his eyes looking grim and stressed.

"Dude, it will be alright. I mean I don't know how you feel as I'm not a businessman but I also make mistakes sometimes. It is great that we can learn from it but don't be too harsh on yourself. Not good for your mental health." Houndour advised quietly. Meowth nodded.

"In a large enterprise, everything is high risk, high reward. I can't afford to make mistakes. While I appreciate your words of encouragement, I suggest you to listen to them yourself." Meowth stared at Lucario's sleeping figure before his eyes returned to the subject. "Lucario did spy on you secretly a few times." Meowth slipped out highly confidential information.

"Why?" Houndour blurted out a bit loudly. Once he realized, he swiftly closed his mouth. "Is it because of what happened in the prison challenge? Is he still mad?" Houndour assumed.

"No idea. However, stay alert just in case." Meowth slid his blanket over him. "We better sleep unless we want to be late to work." Meowth and Houndour agreed to sleep. Shortly after, Shedinja entered the cabin.

"Who cares about waking early? Not me." Shedinja drawled and soon fell asleep as well. Did he hear the conversation? Nah, he probably didn't care.

Confessional

Meowth: "Yesterday, I had a reality check. I planned many things for my business but I didn't take any steps forward. I got a lot of information to work with yet I hide under the radar. Pitiful, if I don't release a new product, the consumers will lose faith in me. I'm ready to play this game hard." Meowth smirked and tossed a coin up into the air before he caught it skillfully without even looking multiple times."

Skarmory was seen on a cruise ship with a silver suitcase behind him. Unusually, he wore black sunglasses. Facing toward the camera on the dock, he removed his sunglasses with his right wing.

"Viewers, I'm going to be on a vacation at a luxurious six-stars hotel. Massages, a scrumptious feast, exceptional spa time, perfect for me. Ah, the privileges of being rich. At the meantime, Chef Drapion will be taking charge as a temporary host. See you later." Skarmory made his absence known before the cruise ship set sail.

On the other hand, Chef Drapion grumbled on the dock. Noticeably, he held some notes. Apparently, Skarmory left them.

"Great, lazy as always." Chef Drapion said the usual. Quickly, he glanced at his notes.

Turning to the camera, he delivered the message. "Last time, the contestants get to meet a new intern." Chef Drapion looked at his notes again. "This time, Chef Drapion gets to do whatever he wants with the challenge…" Chef Drapion gaped. "Is this for real?!" Chef Drapion said, feeling shocked. "Finally, I can do whatever the hell I *beep* want! Opening's over!" Chef Drapion exclaimed and the opening was over like that.

In the Feckless Flygon boys' cabin…

"Wake up, sleepy slackers! Wake up!" Lucario blasted his teammates' eardrums into pieces.

Lucario clapped his hands together loudly. "Wake up!" Lucario repeated, frustration forming in his voice.

The other boys closed their ears and groaned as they slowly opened their eyes, including Houndour (who got Early Bird).

"There is no need to obliterate our eardrums. I thought there was an earthquake outside. Geez." Scolipede complained.

"What's the time, homie?" Darmanitan yawned.

"5AM" Lucario answered and his teammates looked at him as if he was crazy.

"The earlier we get up, the earlier we can hunt for the advantage." Lucario responded once he saw the looks on their faces.

"I suggest a hunt for coffee instead." Shedinja drawled, looking the worse out of everyone. He slowly drifted back to sleep, who knows when he slept?

"This isn't my working hours yet." Meowth fell back to sleep as well, never did he expect Lucario to wake up this early.

"I agree. While I could go out right now, I would appreciate it if we can get a little more rest." Houndour nodded. He didn't seem drowsy like the others but his eyes still droop a little.

Veins protruded out of Lucario's head as he scowled. "Fine! Don't want to come? Stay inactive here! I will go and get the advantage by myself!" Lucario yelled as he exited the door with a slam.

"Homie, wait. I will go." Darmanitan hurriedly followed him out.

"Should I go?" Houndour looked at the others for their opinions. He seemed extraordinary worried especially after what Meowth told him.

"Do you need to ask? Your choice. Either you go out or don't." Scolipede replied in an unfriendly manner.

"I will go then." Houndour told as he left, frowning a bit at Scolipede's tone of voice.

The camera caught Meowth opening his left eye momentarily before closing them down.

Confessional

Scolipede: "I don't know where the guy is coming from but he seems like the type that tries to please everyone. I remember when he shared noodles. Sharing is fine and all but sometimes it is just too much, you know what I mean? I can't imagine him doing all that out of good intentions. It might just be me overthinking but I rather be safe than sorry." Scolipede paused for a moment. "Ledyba also seemed to be very close with him. I saw both of them talk a few times. I want to make sure she is safe from him. She is the type that is too trusting. Don't get any wrong ideas. I'm just trying to help as a friend." Scolipede looked a bit flustered in the end.

Meowth: "Houndour is many things to me. He is my PR manager, establishing many relationships that I hope to take advantage of. He is also a competitor, a big threat that steals my business at the end of the day. In addition, he is also a pretty big target with enemies. I have an idea on how to milk him up for profits." Meowth rubbed his hand together quite sinisterly.

Houndour: "What did I do wrong for Scolipede to not like me? The dude got trust issues."

Lucario stomped over to the girls' cabin next. Darmanitan rushed over to his side.

"Homie, I know that the entire Aura Beast members wake up early but not everyone do." Darmanitan reasoned. Lucario turned to look at him.

"Everyone in my team needs to, no exceptions." Lucario demanded. "Anyone who fails to comply with my rules will be punished accordingly. Iron discipline is necessary if we want to win and we need to win."

Darmanitan apprehensively smiled as Lucario gathered his voice before he shouted deafeningly to wake the girls up.

"Wake up!" Lucario's voice was so loud that it could be mistaken for an Earthquake. Darmanitan shut his ears tightly, the same for everyone in the vicinity.

Confessional

Meowth: "While I like it when Pokemon with loud and clear voice present a product, being too loud can scare the customers away."

Darmanitan: "I'm all dizzy now, homie." Darmanitan was about to lose his balance.

Dedenne: "Did Lucario try to wake us up? I thought he was at our front door… Did he shout from the other side?"

Miltank: "Back at my farm, I thought all the wild Pokemon are loud. I could never be more wrong. The nerve of this guy… He should be arrested for disturbing everyone. Geez, if I'm not in his alliance, I will probably vote him out already."

Skrelp: "For a moment, I thought the Lucario line could learn Boomburst. Regardless, it is very disrespectful and inconsiderate of him to wake everyone up this early in the morning."

Nosepass: "Who is the angel that woke me up? I had a terrible nightmare last night. A crazy Pokemon was about to eat me until that loud voice… saved me!" Nosepass sighed in relief.

After a rude awakening, everyone eventually gathered with half-closed eyelids in front of Lucario.

"I see that we are missing Scolipede and Shedinja. They shall be excluded from the advantage. Next, I want to…" Lucario rambled on about his plan to capture Ursaring. However, everyone didn't seem to pay attention.

They yawned and struggled to keep their eyes open.

"Finally-" Lucario stopped and frowned once he saw the condition of his team.

"What's wrong with all of you sleepyheads? Did you all sleep late?!" Lucario scolded.

"Most of us only get like six to seven hours of sleep. That might not be enough for everyone." Houndour explained, seemingly more energetic than others.

"Great!" Lucario walked away from his team. "Go to sleep!" Lucario turned around and yelled at them for one final time.

Darmanitan thought about following him but decided against it… for now.

Confessional

Darmanitan: "The homie needs to learn that not everyone is like him or his teammates. He doesn't seem to understand that. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with being like him. The homie works hard as hell to bring his team of amateurs to the top. All the other Pokeathlon teams have a higher budget and older, veteran athletes. Lucario got a team with a bunch of no-name high school kids and manage to bring them to the top."

Lucario: "I can't believe that I'm out here babysitting a bunch of losers. I don't want to go through all of that again."

Nosepass smiled as he happily walked out of the restrooms.

"I escape that terrible nightmare. Perhaps, today is my lucky day." Nosepass seemed cheerful and optimistic as he said that.

Nosepass saw Rhyhorn walking straight to the intersection, he was about to greet the fellow rock type until Rhyhorn glanced cautiously behind his back and speeded away out of everyone's sight.

"Wait, where is he going?" Nosepass talked to himself as he quickly followed him.

Confessional

Nosepass: "Where is he going and why?"

In the Feckless Flygon girls' cabin…

"An extra hour of sleep without Lucario, this must be a dream." Cryogonal expressed her joy, relaxing on her bed.

"At least, he is nice enough to let us sleep." Ledyba pointed out.

"And cruel enough to wake us up rudely." Miltank retorted.

"I wonder about Lucario's different sleeping schedule compared to us. It will be a great opportunity to study athletes' sleeping habits." Duosion indicated.

"Sleeping schedules? You must be some kind of weirdo who studied old machines, fossils and all that junk." Miltank mocked. Duosion didn't show much reaction.

"Hey, everyone has different interests!" Ledyba defended.

"Who are you? Her defender to the rescue? Girl, that's none of your business. Don't act like that pipsqueak that butts her head in when it comes to fairness, justice and all that junk. Fair and square! No discrimination! Everyone stands on equal grounds! Life ain't that easy." Miltank jeered.

Ledyba was about to argue back until Duosion spoke up.

"I totally understand your logic and point of view. I'm used to other Pokemon belittling my unpopular hobbies. Therefore, I take no offense to that, considering you are the outspoken type. I appreciate your honesty." Duosion didn't argue or fight back any further. Ledyba looked a bit shocked as she stared at Duosion with slight disapproval.

"Good, I will hit the hay now." Miltank went back to sleep. Instantly, she started snoring and fell asleep.

"Are you okay? Did it hurt your feelings? Why did you take all that crap from her? Be optimistic, we are always here with you so don't think of doing anything stupid, alright?" Ledyba asked many questions.

"I think you are taking this too far. You said it as if she was about to commit suicide." Cryogonal told Ledyba, who returned a confused expression.

"Suicide? I don't know where you get the idea but-" Ledyba was interrupted.

"I'm fine. Ledyba, I'm grateful that you defend me as a friend but don't underestimate my mental capabilities. I'm not mentally weak. I'm immune to most insults and phobias. Before the show, I'm already well aware that I'm in the minority. Back at school, there aren't many that share similar interests to me. Statistically, about 0.7 percent understands what I usually talk about. Don't get me wrong, I'm not socially crippled or lack the ability to make friends either so don't take that into account." Duosion explained in a statistical manner. Ledyba looked a bit dumbfounded as well as Cryogonal.

"I don't really understand all of this witty analysis of yours but did you count everything and change that into probability?" Ledyba asked with disbelief.

"Of course, through many observations and surveys, I manage to create a record of that. As well as things like the ratio of villains to heroes in Total Drama and social politics. I don't want to show off my knowledge or sound like Skrelp but I study into fields of archaeology and statistics heavily and passionately. Sorry, if it confuses you." Duosion looked a bit worried.

"No, it doesn't confuse me at all. I know that you are the intelligent type but you never really show off or boast about it like Skrelp." Ledyba replied.

"Indeed, I wonder if your boyfriend knows about all of this." Cryogonal sounded curious.

Duosion blushed a bit. "He knows. That's why I'm a bit shocked that he decided… to be with me. I'm not used to being with Pokemon like him. He is very accepting and kind. I'm very lucky to meet him."

"Aww, that's great for you two. Anyways, since Aromatisse left… I wonder if you will join in with our conversation from now on to fill in that gap. You seem to be busy and didn't seem to have any interest in it so we didn't invite you." Ledyba requested, anticipating the answer a bit nervously.

"I would like to when I got time to spare." Duosion accepted.

"Great, we will have so much fun-" Cryogonal was interrupted by Miltank's snoring sound. "-together." The three chuckled.

Confessional

Duosion: "I start to understand what I fear the most now after days of thought. It is when I can't put things into perspective of probability. How much… does Houndour love me? There is no way of estimating something like love. It is so… complex and foreign to me. I'm not emotionally ready if bad things happen…" Duosion sighed. "Hopefully, the other girls will cheer me up."

Nosepass saw Rhyhorn heading toward the mountain area. Rhyhorn sprinted ahead with a burst of speed and Nosepass lost him.

Nosepass panted. "Where is h-he going?"

Coincidentally, Lucario passed by him. Immediately, Nosepass apprehensively retreated. Lucario glared at him for a moment before ignoring him soon after. Nosepass sighed in relief.

"I hope he gets eliminated. I would feel a lot safer. Wait… did he wake me up?" Nosepass started to question whether he heard the right voice or not.

Darmanitan rushed over and asked Nosepass a question.

"Where is Lucario? Did you see him?" Darmanitan wanted directions.

"Err… check the gym area?" Nosepass answered, feeling unsure.

"Thanks." Darmanitan said politely before he headed to the gym area.

Confessional

Nosepass: "I wonder if he is going to beat me up if I don't tell him. I'm so scared of so many contestants here. I want there to be weaker contestants like me."

Grovyle held a fishing pole on his hand, extending his legs on the dock and enjoyed himself. Occasionally, there would be nibbles and ripples across the sea and he would reel the water Pokemon up.

"A Gorebyss? I'm so talented." Grovyle complimented himself.

"Err… I just want free food." Gorebyss said before she left.

"Food from me? I feel flattered." Grovyle beamed with joy. This was a moment of stress relief for him. He was free from all the commotion of the game for a short, precious moment. Until, Bisharp came and interrupted him that is.

"Grovyle, I wonder if both me and you are still in good terms. I admit that I should perhaps spend more time getting to know you than I initially did. When I first join the game, I only consider you as a pawn to take myself further in the game. However, I now changed for the better. I want to prioritize our friendship over the game. Don't you agree?" Bisharp tried to befriend Grovyle once again. However, Grovyle didn't face him, only his back was shown. Bisharp looked a bit agitated as Grovyle didn't respond until a short moment after.

"Of course, we can be friends again." Grovyle turned around and smiled at him. Bisharp was delighted as the two shook hands.

"I will treasure our friendship this time." Bisharp assured. Grovyle merely smirked.

Confessional

Grovyle: "I'm fine with being a pawn, serving my king. I willingly be his pawn so the both of us could reach the end together… I want to be a talented pawn that reach the end in a game of chess. Why? Because I know that there exists a rule stating that you can become whatever you want when you reach the end. When I reach the end, I will become a king. I'm pretty sure that is how it works." Grovyle forgot the fact that there can't be two kings in a game of chess. "However, Bisharp ruins everything. I guess that plan is no longer possible…"

Lucario punched a sandbag rapidly. A left hook, a right uppercut and a Bone Rush combo. The sandbag was completely annihilated, sand spilling out of the bag.

Darmanitan entered the gym and recoiled at the beating the sandbag received.

"Homie, chill. Cut them some slack." Darmanitan suggested.

Lucario stomped on the ground. "Ridiculous! I already cut them some slack. You know that it is actually harder and tougher than this. My training! I'm doing this for their own good. I'm trying to give them an advantage for god's sake!" Lucario replied aggressively, anger and frustration written all over his face.

"You need to understand that our teammates aren't always going to be competitive. They might prefer a chill, relaxing lifestyle over winning. Winning isn't everything." Darmanitan tried to convey the message to Lucario. However, Lucario pulled his ears once he heard this. He didn't seem to get the message.

"Winning is everything! Either we win or we lose." Lucario blocked Darmanitan's reasoning out.

Confessional

Lucario: "Winning means you will rise to fame, money and a better life. Losing means you will live pitifully for the rest of your life. These Pokemon might have it easy but in a competitive environment like Pokeathlon Plus, you need to win."

Skrelp read her book inside her cabin once again. However, her eyes didn't move. Clearly a sign that she was planning something instead of actually reading.

"Is that how you normally read? Reading without moving your eyes?" Drifblim noticed and asked jokingly.

"I'm just merely taking a short break to process all the events in this book." Skrelp clarified. Is this true?

"Oh, I see… What is it about? Is now the time?" Drifblim asked. Skrelp said nothing.

"Come on, it wouldn't hurt to tell me a bit, would it?" Drifblim nagged for answers.

"Vacuous curiosity will get you nowhere. Perish that thought. I will only tell when I'm in the mood." Skrelp finally responded.

"Your choice." Drifblim said before she vanished.

"What a pest." Skrelp insulted, clearly annoyed. Heracross looked inside the cabin through the window before she shrugged and left.

Confessional

Drifblim: "I heard that. I just tried to get to know her a bit more, you know? Good for future reference. My curiosity isn't about the book. I can search it up on the internet after the show ends. It is about her personality. I need to write my analysis on all of the contestants for my blog. No worries, I can watch the episodes later even though they are edited."

Heracross: "Bookworm leading the alliance? Not on my watch. I need to find a crack somewhere. Afterwards, I'm going for the ghost bug."

Skrelp: "I got an ingenious plan. No one will see it coming…"

Nosepass waited in front of the mountain area for Rhyhorn to return. He sat on the ground, looking a bit lonely.

"Who am I going to depend on without him? Tyrunt? He is a coward like me." Nosepass talked to himself. After talking smack at his own friend, Nosepass felt guilty immediately. He looked down on the ground in shame.

"I guess I have no right to call him a coward. What a hypocritical statement. I'm a bigger coward than him. The only reason I'm with him is because he looks kind of weak like me." Nosepass continued.

Suddenly, there were footsteps. Sounds of footsteps. Nosepass looked behind to see Rhyhorn exiting the mountain area, entering the intersection once again.

"What did you do?" Nosepass asked.

"Nothing." Rhyhorn refused to tell him. He was obviously hiding the truth.

"You need to tell me or else I will be scared. How am I going to trust you then?" Nosepass trembled.

"Are you scared of me despite everything I have done? You throw away trust that easily?" Rhyhorn said disappointingly.

Nosepass didn't say anything.

"Please trust me." Rhyhorn said simply.

"I guess I need to. I never have a choice or control in the first place. I never have the right to say anything. I'm always bossed around by the big guys. I lost and lost again and again. I never accomplish anything in my life." Nosepass insulted himself, sorrowfully walking away with a bent back.

"...Nosepass…" Rhyhorn muttered.

Confessional

Nosepass: "He wants me to trust him unquestionably? Fine, I can't refuse anyways."

Bisharp laughed with Jumpluff on the dock. The two were enjoying their time together.

"I wish that everyday can be like this. Grovyle now is back on my side." Bisharp told Jumpluff the good news.

"That's great. He also seems cool with me as well." Jumpluff felt happy for him.

Suddenly, there was a strong pull on the fishing rod. Bisharp immediately sprung into the action.

"What in the name of Kyogre can be this strong? Catch it quickly!" Jumpluff excitedly cheered.

Bisharp pulled with all of his might and a giant Sharpedo landed on the dock.

"Yes! A new record." Bisharp looked proud, standing tall at his accomplishment.

"Hold it and take a selfie!" Jumpluff recommended even though they didn't have a camera.

"We don't have a camera." Bisharp reminded.

"I have one." Sharpedo interrupted. "Since, you give me free food. I will take a picture with you. I guess you could sell it for a few P (currency)." Sharpedo allowed them to take picture.

Confessional

Bisharp: "Finally, I have caught something. I'm not a failure of a fisherman after all."

Jumpluff: "I want to post that on my social media account. My friends will be so envious."

Lucario arrived at the mess hall during lunchtime. Other contestants turned to him for a second before resuming their business.

"Chill now, homie?" Darmanitan asked with concern, gesturing him to sit on the same table.

"Chill." Lucario tried to remain calm. He grabbed a plate of chef's special delicacy before he sat down and engaged in a quiet conversation with Darmanitan.

"Skarmory Shop doesn't open today. I'm forced to eat this pile of purple garbage." Tyrunt complained.

"You better watch your mouth, bib boy. It will come back to bite you in the butt today." Chef Drapion grinned maliciously.

"What can you do, chef? I bet that is just an empty threat." Tyrunt challenged, not knowing Chef Drapion will be taking charge of the challenge.

"Maybe, you should keep quiet." Dedenne suggested. "Chef Drapion seems strangely happy today."

"What could go wrong?" Tyrunt jinxed himself with a smug look on his face.

Confessional

Lucario: "I move my hunt for the advantage to tomorrow. My team better be ready by dawn." Lucario looked serious.

Tyrunt: "Chef is just one grumpy chump that tries to look tough. Skarmory is the one who decides everything while Chef Drapion just groans and grumbles about things all day."

Chef Drapion announced through a megaphone that the challenge was about to start to the dismay of a few contestants.

"Attention contestants, your lazy host left for a vacation. Therefore, I will be a replacement host today. Prepare for your worst nightmare and get the *beep* over to the desert area already!" Chef Drapion announced impatiently.

"I have done it now, haven't I?" Tyrunt dreaded the worst.

The contestants made their way over to the desert area. They travelled across the mountain area to the second intersection. Then, they turned right to their destination.

The desert area can be described with a few words like hot and dry. There were cactuses here and there but the area was mostly vacant and isolated. At the very least, there was a desert town in the distance or was it just a hallucination? The town appeared to be huge but upon closer inspection, it was pretty small.

The buildings were built with a mix between sandstones and wood. The doors were quite old-fashioned. Instead of turning a door knob, you push your way through. The majority of the buildings were dull and uninteresting two-floors houses. However, the eye catcher in the town was surprising to everyone-Chef Drapion Grill.

It was no ordinary restaurant. On top of the building, an image of Chef Drapion appeared, holding both a sign and a frying pan. The words written on the sign were 'Chef Drapion Grill'.

The restaurant can be mistaken for a saloon if it wasn't for the fact that it was well painted and clean-looking. The color scheme was purple, creating a sharp contrast to the gray and brown buildings nearby. Some of the other buildings look unfinished though. Construction was still in progress. This area looked the least finished but it could have more stuff later down the line.

All the contestants looked around like foreign tourists in a wild and strange location. Most lay their eyes on the restaurant, wondering about their challenge. It wasn't long until Chef Drapion revealed it.

"If you losers can't handle the heat then you get out of my kitchen! That is my slogan, pretty neat, huh? Anyways, your job today is to feed hungry, unsatisfied interns inside the restaurant. They haven't arrived yet but they soon will. The team that gets the best ratings from the interns will win. Enter inside and you will see two kitchens. One for each team. Prepare to prep your meals. Any questions?" Chef Drapion asked.

Drifblim raised her hand.

"Brahbrahbrah, I don't care. Just start already so I can see you losers failing terribly." Chef Drapion refused to answer.

"That is very professional of you." Drifblim sarcastically said.

"Yes, chef. Threatening poor Tyrunt is also very professional. I find you to be an inferior replacement to Skarmory in every way." Dedenne supported.

"Head the *beep* inside the kitchen already, you *beep*! All of you!" Chef Drapion seethed, his face was red in anger.

Confessional

Skrelp: "Perfect, my team is literally asking for Chef Drapion to rig the challenge. I will not be surprised if we end up as the losing team."

Meowth: "I look forward to interacting with our customers." Meowth rubbed his hands together in excitement.

Cryogonal: "It is scorching out here! I don't feel very comfortable in this area."

Darmanitan: "Cooking is a pretty chill activity. I like it."

Nosepass: "I don't want to cut myself. I can't handle the heat. Help!"

Both teams entered Chef Drapion Grill. On the interior, six giant tables lined up in two rows. Three tables for each row. Each table was surrounded by at least seven chairs. The tables were empty at the moment. There were two kitchens, one to the middle and one to the right.

"I assume one row for each team." Bisharp speculated.

"You got brains, don't you? The answer should be simple enough." Chef Drapion wasn't being helpful.

"That is not cool at all. Think about how the viewers think of you on social media." Jumpluff warned Chef Drapion of his public image.

"Yeah sure, 'Social Media'. Who cares when I can just block their accounts?" Chef Drapion scoffed, rolling his eyes.

Lucario tried to open the door to the kitchen in the meantime but it was locked. He turned to the chef, expecting a key.

"Chef, can you give us the key?" Lucario asked.

"Find one on your own. It is a part of the challenge." Chef Drapion explained before he yawned. "Start already! I want to see you losers get wrecked by my challenge."

Everyone quickly scrambled for the key. The madness that was the Chef's challenge ensued.

"Check those buildings opposite to the restaurant. Hurry up!" Jumpluff shouted.

"Out of my way!" Grovyle pushed Darmanitan and speeded out of the restaurant shortly behind Lucario.

"Chill, homie, chill." Darmanitan frowned and stopped running. Only to be surpassed by the likes of Heracross and fell behind.

Confessional

Dedenne: "The chef's challenge seems to be poorly designed. I expect low ratings for this episode."

Tyrunt: "Cooking? I like eating but I never learn how to cook. I never cook. My parent cooks for me. I'm on the edge of a cliff for this challenge. One mistake and I'm eliminated. It might be worse, what if the chef automatically eliminates me? I wouldn't put anything past him to stoop that low."

While some pushed and shoved each other to get a slight lead, some were more passive than others.

Nosepass tried to search for easy places like under the table or near pots of plants. Safe places that don't require much work.

"Want to search outside?" Rhyhorn tried to encourage him to step outside of his comfort zone.

"I don't wanna-" Nosepass whined but Rhyhorn's condescending glare changed his answer for him.

"Fine." Nosepass obeyed reluctantly.

"It will be good for you." Rhyhorn assured.

Similarly, Tyrunt tried to avoid the spotlight and stayed close to the restaurant. Searching easy places in hopes that his team will not notice his pathetic performance. He resorted to digging the sand outside the restaurant, very sluggishly. Suddenly, Grovyle tapped his shoulder.

"You don't look busy, Tyrunt. I have a job for you. See that truck in the distance?" Grovyle pointed to the truck closing in to desert town. Tyrunt wondered what that had to do with him. "My guts tell me the interns are in there. Go and give them a friendly greeting will ya?" Grovyle ordered.

"Can't someone else like Skrelp do that instead? I'm not the best at talking and greeting." Tyrunt shook his head, trying to avoid the responsibility.

"Oh, I know. However, I can't rely on them as much as you. Our relationship might not be the smoothest but at least you give me more respect than a man in a lottery shop could ask for." Grovyle came up with a weird saying.

"Alright." Tyrunt saw the faithful eyes of Grovyle and decided to go along with it.

"Good." Grovyle patted his back and Tyrunt nervously laughed. The gecko sprinted away to a nearby house and Tyrunt sighed.

Confessional

Grovyle: "I know so many good sayings and they work wonders. For example, don't count your Treecko before they hatch means that don't count something that doesn't really exist yet because someone might eat them or something." Grovyle nodded and gave a thumbs-up to the camera.

Lucario ordered his team to spread out and return to him if they find anything. Houndour returned and reported something.

"There is a truck coming. Maybe, the key is inside." Houndour suggested.

"Check it and if there is anything, return to me. Otherwise, continue searching." Lucario commanded.

"Roger that." Houndour quickly followed his orders and Lucario seemed a bit pleased.

Confessional

Lucario: "I'm keeping my eyes on him. If he is obedient and doesn't do anything stupid, I will keep him around longer."

Scolipede searched inside one of the houses. Under the rug, inside cupboards and drawers… Underneath the sofa, the bathroom, the bedroom… Nothing was to be found.

"Hey, we should work together." Ledyba came into the same house and offered her help.

"That is unnecessary. There is nothing here." Scolipede informed, averting his eyes slightly.

"Are you sure about that? Maybe we just need an extra pair of eyes." Ledyba insisted.

"Can you please stop?" Scolipede said, facing her with an uncomfortable look.

"What's wrong? You still… don't trust me?" Ledyba saddened.

"No, it's just… we are starting to get too close. It reminds me of something in the past." Scolipede corrected, seemingly guilt tripped.

"You mean your old relationship?" Ledyba asked with concern.

"Yes… I meet Leavanny one day. She was crying from her recent breakup with… Muk. I consoled and comforted her then we started out as friends. I didn't know that she used me to get back with Muk. I don't want to explain things in detail. Please understand." Scolipede eyes got a bit teary.

"Are you worried that it might happen again with me? Scolipede, I…" Ledyba tried to assure him.

"I know that I should trust you a bit more but I feel so threatened. After I save you in the quiz challenge two days ago, I feel like I'm about to repeat the same mistake. It isn't that I don't trust you but I also don't trust myself. I'm a horrible Pokemon, Ledyba! I didn't really tell the whole story. After I got together with Leavanny, I ditch all of my friends because they aren't 'cool enough' or so she said. I got tricked like a gullible fool!" Scolipede broke down.

"Scolipede…" Ledyba didn't know what to say at that exact moment.

"It is better if I do things alone…" Scolipede exited the house.

Confessional

Scolipede: "I look so pitiful. Hehe, how pathetic. Now, everyone that watches the episode will hate me. They might very well see me as a villain."

Ledyba: She paced back and forth. "Hopefully, I can clear things up with him and me." She said, looking optimistic or at least tried to be.

"Watch out!" Grovyle ran into Scolipede, who exited out of the house in a hurry. The two crashed into each other and fell down.

"Scolipede, are you alright?" Ledyba hurriedly came to check on him.

"Be careful next time. You got eyes, don't you?" Grovyle looked pissed off.

"Sorry." Scolipede apologized submissively and left. Ledyba lost her grasp on him as he slowly headed by himself. Her eyes slowly descended down to the ground as she landed and stopped buzzing her wings, unlike her usually upbeat self.

Darmanitan saw the situation and approached the two.

"What happened?" Darmanitan asked. Instantly, Cryogonal appeared as well.

"Scolipede crashed the hell out of me out of nowhere. He better watches out or else a Tauros stampede will chew him up." Grovyle brushed his shoulders and left, looking annoyed. Darmanitan furrowed his brows at this.

"Don't mind him, what happened between you and Scolipede? Did he hurt your feelings? I will teach him a lesson!" Cryogonal reacted out of anger.

"No, no! Nothing like that." Ledyba corrected any misunderstandings.

"So, what happened?" Cryogonal asked.

"He is just having a personal issue right now. Please don't bother him." Ledyba explained.

"I see. I hope you know that I'm always here for you like a big sister." Cryogonal comforted.

"Thanks." Ledyba felt much better.

Darmanitan stepped out of the conversation as if was none of his business. However, he still looked annoyed at a certain individual.

Confessional

Darmanitan: "Can't that homie just admit that it is equally his fault and say I'm sorry for running into you or something. Pokemon nowadays need to learn how to chill out and be polite to others."

Cryogonal: "My little sister, not biologically of course, used to run into relationship problems. She had a few mean boyfriends that hurt her feelings. Let's say I taught them a good lesson… That's the least I can do as the adopted one in the family."

Tyrunt reached the truck. It was pretty huge and could hold about two interns in the front. On the other hand, about eight interns could stay at the back of the truck. Apparently, there were two trucks upon closer inspection. Another one was trailing behind. Both trucks were identical except for their color scheme. The first was primarily red, the other was green.

"Red one is for my team, right?" Tyrunt wondered as he approached the driver of the red truck. It was a Druddigon, his eyes sharp and cold, piercing through your soul with intimidation. Tyrunt knocked on the window and Druddigon pressed a button. The window slowly opened with Druddigon giving Tyrunt a death stare.

"Err, excuse me. Do you have anything for me? I'm a member of the Crazy Crawdaunt." Tyrunt asked politely, fear preeminent in his voice.

"Be a good boy and carry these cameras to the restaurants for me!" Druddigon's voice was loud, similarly to Lucario. The driver dragon dropped a bunch of cameras through the window, making Tyrunt collapsed due to the heavy weight.

"My poor arms." Tyrunt moaned in pain. Druddigon snorted and closed the window before he drove away speedily, releasing smoke at the back of the truck. The smoke entered Tyrunt's nostrils and mouth, making him cough severely.

"Tyrunt, what happened? Are you alright, man?" Houndour ran over to check on him.

"That jerk. Even though he has a car, he dropped a bunch cameras on me." Tyrunt showed four heavy cameras, which buried his arms under the sand.

"Dude, let me help." Houndour kindly lifted the cameras off Tyrunt. Eventually, he managed to free his arms.

"Thank you, I better start carrying these cameras now. Ugh, Pokemon Snap looks uncool to me now." Tyrunt groaned as he lifted up one camera with both arms.

"Do you need help? I can carry the rest." Houndour couldn't stand to see Tyrunt struggling with those poor arms of his.

"No, I waste enough of your time. Go and check the other truck." As Tyrunt said this, the green truck passed both of them.

'It's fine, I doubt that we are supposed to meet them now anyways." Houndour persisted on helping and eventually Tyrunt accepted his selflessness.

The camera caught Lucario scowling at Houndour near the restaurant.

Confessional

Tyrunt: "I really like Houndour. He is very helpful. That's why I'm not very pleased with what Grovyle did a few days ago."

Houndour: "He is on the other team and all but I'm not the kind of Pokemon that can just stand there idly, watching him struggle."

Lucario seemed to be in a bad mood until Meowth appeared next to him."

"Any good news?" Lucario asked hopefully.

"There is a suspicious place called the sheriff's office. Miltank is surveying there for results." Meowth relayed the information.

"Good, I expect good news." Lucario sighed.

"Disappointed with Houndour?" Meowth asked him with a sneaky smirk.

"He is out there helping the other team. I couldn't understand him!" Lucario growled.

"Oh, he is too soft-hearted. Not suitable for the business world or the competitive sports world. If you wish, I will put my partnership with Houndour behind our backs and move forward with you, however you like it." Meowth promoted himself.

"We will talk about this later. There is still a challenge left to be done." Lucario didn't lose his main focus.

"Understood." Meowth nodded.

Confessional

Lucario: "I have enough with him. He will betray me in the merge. I can see it coming now. He will ally himself with the other team and play all of us like a fiddle."

Meowth: "Time to work on the deal behind the other door." Meowth smirked.

Houndour finally returned to the desert town with Tyrunt. They dropped off cameras and laid themselves down on the ground for a rest. Their bodies were covered with sweat, more on Tyrunt's side.

"I need water." Tyrunt desperately said.

"There is probably some in the kitchen. Grit your teeth and drink your saliva for now." Houndour suggested.

"Alright." Tyrunt looked out-of-shape from the draining exercise under the scorching Sun.

"Do you know what, Tyrunt? I'm proud of you. You have come a long way since your first day here." Houndour praised him.

"Really?" Tyrunt seemed shocked.

"Yeah, you complain a lot less than you initially did." Houndour stated the truth.

"I guess I got a bit stronger." Tyrunt smiled, feeling satisfied of himself. Houndour words gave him a much-needed boost to his self-esteem.

"Let's go back to work." Houndour lifted himself off the ground and so did Tyrunt.

Noticeably, someone made their way over to both of them. Specifically, it was Meowth who was looking for Houndour.

"I have an appraisal meeting with you. Can you please spare a moment?" Meowth requested.

"Of course, I will. Tyrunt, see you later." Houndour parted ways with Tyrunt and followed Meowth. Tyrunt waved at him before a shadow of someone consumed him. It was Grovyle.

"Tyrunt, you should have asked me to help you carry the cameras. I'm your team leader, you know? Good Guy Grovyle, that's me. You aren't that far from the desert town. You should leave the camera and make your way over to me first." Grovyle lectured.

"I will do it next time, then." Tyrunt replied. However, this didn't seem to be what Grovyle wanted to hear.

Confessional

Grovyle: "Houndour, there can only be one good guy on this island and that will be me." Grovyle pointed to himself.

Meowth and Houndour quickly discussed something behind the restaurant. Judging from facial expressions, Houndour was astonished.

"Lucario is coming to destroy your business, Houndour. If you want, I will keep my eyes on him and alert you if he has any plans." Meowth offered to help.

Meowth didn't expect to hear what Houndour was about to say, not in a million years.

"No thanks. Come and think of it, I kind of deserve that. It is my fault that I don't communicate with Lucario well enough for him to get the message. I don't want you to get yourself involved in that kind of dirty business, Meowth. If he realizes that you spy on him, you will be in trouble." Houndour only thought of the best for his friend.

"But-but." Meowth was clearly shocked, he wasn't prepared to have his offer be rejected.

"I don't want to talk about this anymore. Let's go back to find the key, dude." Houndour left Meowth like that. The business cat clenched his fist and grit his teeth after Houndour was out of his sight.

Confessional

Meowth: "My deal is rejected?! Unacceptable. I thought about saving him from Lucario. I really did, considering the well-being of Treasure Trio. However, he is now only a liability to me." Meowth's expression was dark.

The sheriff's office was a special building with a shiny, golden star badge on top. Otherwise, it looked similar to the other buildings with wood and sandstones as the materials of choice and a few pots of plants for decorations. The most noticeable and distracting thing, however, was its unfinished state.

Inside the first floor, the room was filled with cardboard boxes. Presumably, they held all the furniture. One of the box was opened and a Granbull statue with a police hat was revealed. In addition, rooms without doors can be seen with iron bars on the floor. Surprisingly, dust never collected anywhere.

Miltank rummaged through all the boxes with Heracross alongside her. They both emptied all the contents out such as wallpapers, chairs and etc. Let's say someone won't be happy at the end because the room was now a mess.

"I only manage to find a pile of crap and junk. What about you?" Heracross asked. They seemed to cooperate with each other.

"The same, let's check the second floor." Miltank suggested and both of them went over to the stairs leading up to the sheriff's room. Unfortunately, it was locked.

Miltank banged the door to no avail. "It is locked tight." Miltank told before she moved away so that Heracross can try. The beetle smashed the door but it didn't budge. After seeing their brute force, some decided to intervene.

"Use simple deduction skills. If it is locked, it obviously means we aren't supposed to be here. Leave, Heracross." Skrelp schooled them and gestured for her teammate to leave.

"Are you sure? The Chef might just be tricking us." Drifblim suddenly appeared and commented on the situation.

"Stubborn and stupid, be my guest and feel free to waste your time." Skrelp left by herself.

"I'm smarter than you. Wah, listen to me." Heracross mimicked Skrelp and Miltank laughed.

At the same time, Drifblim tried to pass through the door but she was repelled by a mysterious, unknown force.

"What and why?" Miltank scratched her head.

Drifblim looked confused for a moment until she saw a special cleanse tag on the door. It was specially made to repel ghosts.

"Well prepared, well prepared. Bravo to the production crew." Drifblim complimented.

"Great, what are we going to do now?" Miltank folded her arms.

"Just use raw strength. Watch me do it." Heracross was still persistent with her method. She went downstairs and carried an iron bar up.

"Grab a bag of popcorn everyone, Heracross is about to make a fool of herself. Brawns over brains, they say." Shedinja appeared and mocked.

"Just watch and shut your trap." Heracross got a running start and pierce the door opened with an iron bar. Inside, were two treasure chests. Heracross grinned triumphantly at Shedinja, who remained emotionless.

Confessional

Heracross: "One point for team brawn."

Miltank: "Wow, she made a fool of both that stupid seahorse and that brain-dead bug. This is what I want to see."

Drifblim: "That moment when brawns beat brains, funny and humorous as always."

Miltank and Heracross carried the treasure chests back to the restaurant. Inside each box was a fiery, red key. Lucario seemed very pleased but his smile faded a little once he realized that Heracross got one as well.

"Great, now get back in the kitchen! The interns are about to come." Chef Drapion instructed.

The trucks parked next to the restaurant at the exact same moment and six intern stepped down in total.

The first one was a Druddigon. He stood in the middle as the center of attention, glaring at the contestants.

The second one was a Trumbeak, he walked normally toward the contestants and looked around a little, rubbing his long beak.

The third one was a Lurantis, she held a camera and filmed the area. However, the camera pointed at the Sun most of the time.

The fourth to appear was a Shiinotic, she folded her arms and frowned once sand got on her feet.

The fifth crawled down nervously and slowly, trying to avoid eye contact with the contestants. Standing as far away from the others as possible, he was a Wimpod.

The last rolled out through the back of the truck, still asleep and snoring. He sent tremors through the ground once he landed. He was a Snorlax.

"What? There were supposed to be more interns than this! I'm about to become rich!" Chef Drapion looked furious.

"You charge them for the food?" Bisharp asked with disbelief in his voice. He didn't expect Chef Drapion to charge his own workmates shamelessly.

"Of course! Nothing is free! Where are the other interns?!" Chef Drapion yelled and scowled at the six.

"Chef, you aren't our boss. You aren't the one who write our paycheck or give us credit. Many of us aren't that fond of you enough to come either." Shiinotic explained.

"Whatever, pay me an entrance fee of 1,000 P and get the hell inside!" Chef Drapion shouted, feeling frustrated.

"You deserve that, chef." Dedenne gleamed. Chef Drapion grumbled to himself.

The interns all paid the chef except for Snorlax, who snored and drooled in his sleep. Chef Drapion decided to charge him later and allowed him to get inside. Although, he got stuck because the door was too small.

With the combined, efforts of Lucario, Darmanitan, Miltank and Heracross, Snorlax squeezed through the door successfully.

"That tickles." Snorlax sleep talked.

"Anyways, I already assigned the interns to their teams based on the color of the truck. Crawdaunt, you get Druddigon. This guy is always angry for some reason." Chef Drapion introduced.

"I want to get screen time like the others! It is unfair that a new Raticate brat gets screen time and a robot in a span of one day while I got nothing, working here for a long time!" Druddigon fumed. The contestants didn't seem to like his company except for a few like Miltank and Heracross.

"Crawdaunt, you also get Trumbeak. This guy is boring so I have nothing to say about him." Chef Drapion didn't even bother with Trumbeak. He was slightly offended but shrugged it off.

"I look forward to eating good food that will be worth the money." Trumbeak had expectations that the contestants weren't so sure about fulfilling.

"Don't worry, I'm sure the contestants can deliver." Chef Drapion sarcastically said. "The last one is Lurantis. She is a freak, that's all I know."

"Hi, I work on the camera department. I like to film beautiful sceneries like the Sun and the Sun only. Bless the Sun!" Lurantis obsessively repeated things about the Sun. The contestants either thought she was a weirdo or she was someone interesting.

Chef Drapion now focused his attention on the other team. "Flygon, you get the rest. The Shiinotic is the pickiest eater I ever know so better prepare to cry after you all lose." Shiinotic's eyes showed contempt against the Chef at that statement.

"The next one is the biggest coward and loser of all time, Wimpod. He creates the credits and that's it, can you believe that? Hahaha…" Chef Drapion laughed, making fun of the poor guy. Wimpod averted his eyes from everyone and sobbed a little. Nosepass looked at him with some sympathy and empathy.

"The last one is Snorlax. He tests out the challenges. The biggest eater of all time." Chef Drapion stated. The contestants looked a bit appalled at how he was still sleeping, snoring and drooling on the floor.

Unexpectedly, Raticate sneaked out of the green truck and tried to stealthily made his way to the kitchen while everyone was distracted by the Snorlax. Until, Druddigon alerted everyone that is…

"Chef, Raticate is trying to steal the food!" Druddigon pointed out.

"Yo chef, I just want a few droplets of water and crumbs. Don't mind me." Raticate defended himself.

"No money, no entry." Chef Drapion didn't allowed.

"It's true that I have no money but I have someone to pay for me." Raticate turned to Houndour and the canine looked a bit anxious. Duosion looked at this with worry.

"Hey, you lout of a loser, fork your old man some cash, will ya? Or else I gotta smoke you up again." Raticate threatened.

"Er…" Houndour looked a bit scared. Raticate strode to Houndour and tried to shake him down.

"Ugly kid, pay up." Raticate didn't get his way for long when Duosion used Psychic to lift him up.

"Uncle, uncle! I wish my parents give me that dark typing from birth like some of the Rattata." Raticate tried to resist but it was merely a futile attempt.

"I don't really know who you are or where you are coming from but please restrain yourself from that thieving habit especially against my boyfriend." Duosion really did a number on him. Many gave her looks of respect for standing up to Raticate, even Lucario. Skrelp chuckled a bit at Raticate's predicament while Meowth grinned a little. Rhyhorn's eyes were a bit blank as if he was in a trance.

"Please just let me go, kid." Raticate begged and eventually Duosion freed him from her Psychic. The rat scrammed away immediately, the others laughed at him.

"That was awesome." Cryogonal complimented. Duosion smiled a bit, Houndour smiled at her as well.

Chef Drapion got the attention of everyone back. "Anyways, since I'm not Skarmory, things will work a bit differently. To win, you must earn the most tip for your team or rather me!" Chef Drapion looked greedy as he said that.

"Chef, what happens in a hypothetical scenario of a tie?" Skrelp asked.

"Then, I get to choose the winning team." Chef Drapion played by his own rules. The contestants didn't look happy with the chef's rules.

Confessional

Dedenne: "Chef is the greediest, insensitive, selfish and inconsiderate Pokemon to ever exist."

Tyrunt: "Oh man, I'm starting to miss Skarmory now."

Drifblim: "Skarmory is unprofessional but Chef Drapion has none of the qualifications required to be a host."

Lucario: "I expect the interns to be honest with themselves and pay the appropriate tip or else…" Lucario cracked his knuckles.

Nosepass: "That Wimpod reminds me of myself."

Cryogonal: "What Duosion did was totally badass!"

Duosion: "Well, I got to stand up for him. I hope that doesn't make me look like a huge target in front of everyone."

Druddigon: "Raticate got wrecked by a girl. I can know sleep peacefully. Bwahaha…"

The Feckless Flygon gathered in the kitchen on the right side. They discussed about their plans.

"Personally, I prefer to be a waiter because I don't know how to cook. I prefer someone with experience to be a head chef." Lucario admitted about his poor cooking skills. "The menu only list three things, steak, pizza and bread." Lucario read the menu to his team.

"I can grill a mean steak." Miltank volunteered.

"I want to chill with the pizza dough, homie." Darmanitan volunteered as well.

"I can-" Ledyba was about to say something until someone interrupted her.

"Hurry up! The customers are hungry!" Chef Drapion shouted from the outside and then he left the restaurant to go somewhere secretly.

"I will get the orders. Start prepping up the meals." Lucario rushed outside to see Grovyle hastily jotting down notes. This sparked his competitiveness, making him rushing to the first customer.

The first table had no chairs because well Snorlax was too heavy so all of them were removed for safety. The intern was still sleeping dreamily. Lucario didn't know how to deal with him and just wrote one of each item on the menu down.

Next, Lucario faced the Wimpod. The intern looked nervous once he saw the professional athlete.

"Can I h-have the menu, please?" Wimpod stuttered. Lucario handed him the menu and waited patiently.

"Can I have one s-serving of bread? I p-prefer sweet bread." Wimpod had his preferences. However, a stare from Lucario changed all of that.

"Just bread is fine." Wimpod returned the menu submissively.

Lucario was glad that his scare tactics work and moved on to the last intern. The most troublesome so far.

"I prefer my pizza to be oven-baked. I want only six, thin slices. No onions, low amount of cheese and pepperoni favored. Also, please bring me a glass of water." Shiinotic was one picky customer. Lucario tried to look intimidating but it didn't work on her. Shiinotic just tapped her feet impatiently.

"Fine." Lucario decided to stop wasting his time and gave his team the orders.

Confessional

Lucario: "What kind of customer is that picky?!" Lucario looked frustrated. "The water isn't even on the menu!"

From Grovyle's perspective, he was having an easier time with his customers.

"One order of pizza, please." Trumbeak ordered swiftly and returned the menu.

"I want a spicy and hot pizza like the Sun!" Lurantis exclaimed.

"Hot like the Sun? How hot?" Grovyle asked for specific details.

"Very, very hot." Lurantis said a bit vaguely. Grovyle nodded and walked over a bit obsequiously to the last customer.

"I want a sour and salty steak. Give me bread and water as well. Make it snappy!" Druddigon clicked his claws.

"Yes, sir." Grovyle rushed back to the kitchen only to hear… bad news.

"Grovyle, we got no salt and pepper! Lemons and onions are also missing!" Dedenne told him the bad news. Grovyle bit his fingers a bit. The pressure was starting to get to him.

"All of you, here are the orders. Work on the food and try to serve water as early as possible." Grovyle placed the list down and returned outside to find Chef Drapion.

"Chef, we are missing some key ingredients. Where are they?" Grovyle asked.

"Back at the mess hall, get it on your own." Chef Drapion smirked mischievously.

Suddenly, the door of the kitchen to the right was banged open by Lucario. "Chef, where are the seasonings?!" Lucario said a bit too loudly for the customers' liking.

"Back at the mess hall." Chef kept having that smirk of his. Lucario and Grovyle exchanged a glance before they returned to their respective teams.

Confessional

Lucario: "I want to get it by myself but then who will supervise the team?"

Scolipede wasn't paying attention really. He seemed to be distracted by something. All he did was staring at the pizza dough.

Lucario opened the door and gaped his mouth open, about to say something until he saw Scolipede doing nothing.

"Where are the seasonings, homie?" Darmanitan asked.

"Scolipede, go to the mess hall back at the camp and get some seasonings." Lucario demanded since he didn't do much.

"Fine." Scolipede obediently crawled out of the kitchen.

Ledyba looked extremely worried at him. Feeling distracted, she nearly cut herself as she was currently chopping onions.

"He will survive, don't worry." Cryogonal assured once she saw how Ledyba looked.

"I hope so." Ledyba wished him the very best of luck.

Confessional

Ledyba: "Maybe, I should follow him."

Grovyle entered his kitchen as well. His teammates stopped their tasks and turned to him.

"Who wants to go out and get the seasonings from the mess hall?' Grovyle asked.

"I can." Bisharp volunteered.

"Can I also go?" Jumpluff wanted to do it as well.

"Fine, both of you go out." Grovyle allowed.

"Can I go to the toilet?" Nosepass asked.

"Yes, you too." Grovyle permitted, rolling his eyes.

Nosepass quickly exited the restaurant to see Wimpod outside as well. He was looking around for something.

"Are you going somewhere?" Nosepass asked.

"Oh, I want to go to the toilet." Wimpod didn't seem to be scared of Nosepass unlike the others contestants.

"Really? Me too. We should go together. I mean I don't even know where it is." Nosepass suggested.

"Alright." Wimpod agreed. "The toilet is in a very hidden location for some reason. Skarmory wants it to be under the well at the middle of the town." WImpod explained.

"Is it that well?" Nosepass pointed to a stone well with a wishing bell attached to it. There was a ladder leading down.

"Yes." Wimpod nodded and both of them started to slowly climb up the well before descended down a ladder. Until… a mysterious figure climbed up the ladder and intercepted them. This shocked Wimpod, making the Nosepass nervous as well.

"Is this Pokemon an intern? You make the credits, right?" Nosepass asked.

"Yeah, this Salazzle is not one of them to my knowledge. This means…" Wimpod and Nosepass turned to each other before they panicked and shook the ladder.

"Help!" Both of them screamed.

"Hey, don't shake the ladder!" Salazzle cautioned. Suddenly, the ladder broke and all of them fell down to the bottom of the well.

"Did you hear something?" Jumpluff just got out of the restaurant with Bisharp.

"I'm not sure." Bisharp shrugged and they both made their way to the mess hall.

Scolipede dragged his many legs through the sand. He seemed to be ahead of Bisharp and Jumpluff yet he moved at a much slower pace.

"Ugh, the heat." Scolipede complained as the heat of the desert radiated harshly. He sweated before he eventually stopped to take a break.

Jumpluff and Bisharp passed him during this time.

"Good luck, Scolipede. Just keep on going for a little longer." Jumpluff cheered.

"Don't give up." Bisharp motivated. Scolipede nodded a little before he continued this long, exhausting trip. The customers didn't have enough patience for this. Did Chef Drapion set them up to fail?

Confessional

Scolipede: "I just can't get a hold of myself. I feel like I'm stuck in depression…"

Grovyle paced around the kitchen with a tasting spoon on his hand. He wore a chef hat as well. He tried to look like a professional chef. However, he seemed to be failing pretty badly at his job.

"Why do we need to preheat the oven? Can't we just heat it up after the pizza is inside?" Grovyle questioned Skrelp.

"I prefer not to answer your idiotic questions." Skrelp refused to give him an answer.

"Won't the oven explode by doing this?" Grovyle asked further. Skrelp facepalmed.

"Drifblim, why aren't you grilling the steak yet?" Grovyle asked.

"Because I need the things all the key ingredients first. Can't just cook it and left it cold." Drifblim explained.

"Grovyle, can you reach up to get the rolling pin for me?" Dedenne asked. Now, this is what he is good at!

Grovyle reached up to get the rolling pin for Dedenne since she was too small and handed it to her with a smile.

"Thanks." Dedenne was grateful.

Confessional

Grovyle: "Can't the entire team just be like Dedenne? She is like the sweetest girl ever."

Lucario inspected all the food.

"One pizza without onions, another with onions and two pieces of bread heating up right now. We just need the seasonings for the steak! Where is Scolipede? I knew I shouldn't have trusted him with an important job! Gah!" Lucario kicked the prepping table, his eyes filled with rage and frustration.

"Chill out, he will come." Darmanitan calmed him down.

"I will go check on him." Ledyba told the others before she left.

"Quickly!" Lucario shouted after she left.

Confessional

Ledyba: "I hope that he is okay right now."

Lucario: "If we lose, if we lose… I swear I will…! My team should be winning at least 75% of the time. This is such a disgrace to my name!" Lucario furiously scratched his head, his fur falling a little.

Bisharp and Jumpluff finally reached their destination. However, an unfriendly face was blocking the entrance to the mess hall. It was Raticate standing on top of his spanking, new toy. This time, the Raticate toy had chubbier cheeks and the color was primary black.

"Chef Drapion promised me the leftovers if I stop you ugly kids from getting inside. Prepare to get smoked by my Raticatebot D-type." Raticate told, smirking. The two braced themselves for a battle.

"Stay behind." Bisharp wanted to face Raticate by himself to keep her safe.

"I can fight too. Just distract him for a while." Jumpluff gave Bisharp a reassuring gaze and he nodded.

"Smoking steak, here I come!" Raticate pressed a button and his toy rushed toward Bisharp.

Bisharp danced frenetically to boost his own attack sharply. Then, he slashed the stomach of the Raticate with Night Slash. That left a huge scratch on it.

"Take this Crunch!" Raticate announced as his toy bit Bisharp right arm in return. It dealt minor damage. Bisharp grunted as he pulled his arm off from the fangs of the Raticate. Then, he struck back with Iron Head, making Raticate lost his balance.

"My remote!" Raticate suddenly dropped his remote on the ground. This was the opportunity that Jumpluff was waiting for. Currently, she was absorbing sunlight. Her body shined with energy. Now, she blasted a powerful Solar Beam against his toy.

"Damn it!" Raticate yelled in frustration once he saw smoke rising from his toy. He quickly retrieved his remote control and swallowed his pride before he pressed a button.

"Time to use my hidden ability, Run Away! Bye, ugly kids." Raticate fled in the end, losing twice in the same day.

"What an unamiable fellow." Bisharp commented and Jumpluff seemed to agree.

The two got what they were looking for and started the returning trip.

Confessional

Jumpluff: "Bisharp look totally cool out there in the battle. Together, we form such a great team!"

Scolipede wandered around the mountain area, he was close to the intersection. Just a bit more, just a bit longer and he will finish this job. His ears perked up once he detected a noise. A noise of a blazing machine fleeing. Unfortunately, Raticate got his eyes on an easy prey.

"Sorry kid, I need to pick off stragglers like you to recover from my defeats. No hard feelings." Raticate talked before he pressed a button. Immediately, his toy blazed ahead at Scolipede with a Hyper Fang ready for disposal.

Scolipede tried to defend himself by rolling at the toy with Steamroller. However, he looked awfully weak and suddenly halted. This wasn't the usual Scolipede.

"Ouch." Scolipede yelped once the Hyper Fang bit him near the neck. Scolipede tried to counter with Poison Tail but Raticate got a tight lock on him. At this rate, he will faint.

"I can't take this anymore. Ouch!" Scolipede agonized.

"Don't hurt him any longer. Please stop!" Ledyba arrived and desperately pleaded for Raticate to end this miserable torture.

"You again? A two versus one? How unfair. I have enough with all the ganging up, ugly kids. I will smoke you all!" Raticate dropped Scolipede down, who was barely conscious and charged at Ledyba.

"Reflect." Ledyba used a move that reduces physical damage. A barrier formed and lessen the impact.

"Silver Wind!" Ledyba blasted a silvery powder at Raticate himself. This damaged him decently, increasing his rage.

"SOS mode, activate." Raticate prepared to use his final resort. With a single button press, an army of D-type Rattata were deployed from the mouth of the giant Raticate toy.

"Use Bite consecutively!" Raticate commanded an entire wave of Rattata. They all relentlessly swarmed Ledyba and bit here to no end.

"It hurts. Ahhh!" Ledyba screamed as she was outnumbered severely.

Scolipede opened his eyes and tried to get himself off the ground but he failed and ended up collapsing again.

"Scolipede, are you… okay?" Ledyba looked bruised up as she tried to blast all the Rattata away with Silver Wind.

"Look at yourself. Run away!" Scolipede suggested.

"Yeah, kid. Listen to him. Give up. I don't want to hurt you any longer. You are dragging this battle. Just admit defeat." Raticate reinforced.

"No, if I run away then how can you learn to trust? If I don't demonstrate it to you, I'm no better than a hypocrite." Ledyba was determined to struggle through the very end. A Rattata jumped to attack her from the left side and she struck it with her wings, draining her own energy. "I want to break you free from that miserable past. It's not your fault that you are gullible. We can all be gullible sometimes. Please, trust yourself and oth-" Before she finished, she fainted from another Bite attack.

"Ledyba!" Scolipede mustered all of his strength. He remembered all the times she was nice to him in the past. The flashback of her listening to his story, the flashback of her helping him to socialize more. With all of his energy, he prepared one, final attack.

"Rock Climb!" Scolipede climbed up the Raticate toy extremely fast. Raticate didn't even realize that Scolipede was towering next to him in seconds. With a powerful horn strike, Raticate was sent flying through the air.

"I will be back!" Raticate promised as he disappeared high into the sky. The Raticate toy stopped functioning with no controller.

"Ledyba… I'm so sorry." Scolipede wept, he felt like he was responsible for this. He carried her unconscious body and headed to the infirmary. He didn't care about the seasonings anymore.

In the corner of his eye, he noticed a remote controller on the ground. He decided that it will be faster riding the toy around. It was strong enough to support his weight, luckily.

"Scolipede, what happened?!" Jumpluff asked, holding a bunch of seasonings and ingredients.

"Ledyba got hurt, because of me. I will head to the infirmary." Scolipede confessed.

"You should go to see Chef Drapion, he is the one with medical supplies." Bisharp advised. "Lucario will probably rip your horns off if you don't deliver-"

"Who cares?!" Scolipede responded, shocking Bisharp. "I don't have enough time to go and get the seasonings anyways. I rather rely on the infirmary than chef."

"Please don't be emotional. Chef Drapion is a decent doctor. I know that it is hard to believe but… Do you know how to nurse her back to health?" Bisharp stay level headed throughout.

"I agree with Bisharp, Scolipede. Please, just go see Chef Drapion for your and Ledyba's sake. She wouldn't want you to sacrifice your own game." Jumpluff persuaded.

"Fine, what about the seasonings?" Scolipede asked, eyeing what they were holding.

"We can share a bit. Why don't we ride this Raticate and go back together?" Jumpluff suggested.

"Fine. Let's go, the faster, the better." Scolipede decided to strike a deal with them. All four of them returned to the desert town at high speed. During the trip, Scolipede occasionally looked at Ledyba. The things in his eyes suggested many things…

Confessional

Scolipede: "Ledyba, I promise that I will make you happy from now on."

Cut back to thirty minutes ago, Nosepass and Wimpod fell down the well with a mysterious Salazzle.

"Ow!" Both of them yelped as they landed on the rough sand at the bottom of the well.

"The Salazzle is still here with us!" Nosepass panicked. The Salazzle pushed herself up.

"Do something." Wimpod trembled in fear.

Nosepass resorted to throw sand all over her face.

"Take this and this and some more of this." Nosepass continued to dig the sand up and spray it all over her. Wimpod started doing the same, lowering her accuracy to no end.

"My eyes." Salazzle rubbed her eyes furiously. "Stop!" She desperately pleaded for them to stop.

"We can't listen to a stranger." Wimpod continued to attack her with sand.

"This is the best that I got other than Tackle." Nosepass didn't have any better moves.

"Please, I'm not a stranger." Salazzle begged for them to stop, sand got into her mouth.

"Liar, you aren't in the credits." Wimpod refused to listen.

Nosepass noticed something, a tear in her left eye. That hit him with a sudden realization. By doing this, he is no better than a bully, beating a helpless victim. She mightn't even be a victim. Perhaps, she refused to attack.

"I think we should stop." Nosepass suggested.

"Why? She might be dangerous." Wimpod doubted. continuing to attack out of fear.

"Look at her, she is defenseless. We are now bullies… the ones that we are trying to avoid. I know it when someone is a victim because I'm a victim. Just like you. We are victims, the weaklings of the society. We live through a tough life that makes us scared to step out of our comfort zone. That's because every time we step out, we suffer." Nosepass paused for a moment.

"I'm not happy with how I play this game. I either submit to the bullies or become paranoid of everything. I'm tired!" Nosepass sobbed. "I don't want to take that chance that she might end up doing something bad to us but we should stop buffeting her with sand. Let's that risk." Nosepass stared deep into the fearful eyes of Wimpod. Both of them were scared but they eventually stopped. They looked at Salazzle, hoping that she won't kill them.

"Thank you, guys for letting me explain. I know that I look like… someone you should avoid but I guess outside appearance kills, huh? I'm not an intern here or anything. I'm an external worker. I'm here to finish installing this restroom." Salazzle explained everything and the two eventually understand.

They finished their business and headed up through the broken ladder. Luckily, the ladder was still high enough for them to stand on top of each other and get up that way.

The Salazzle left to find a replacement ladder, leaving Nosepass alone with Wimpod. Both of them sat on the ground. The water bug breathed in deeply and spoke up about something.

"You know what, Nosepass? I'm a big fan of you in this game. I want you to win because if you win it means that even someone like me can win. It gives me hope, you know? That someone like us will be able to accomplish something in this world. I want to move on from creating the credits. I want to do something even bigger. Maybe, I can be a cameraman" Wimpod revealed his dreams.

"I wish to accomplish something as well… I want to be a mineral extractor." Nosepass revealed his dream career.

"Why?" Wimpod asked.

"Well, maybe it is the thought of waiting for something to be delivered in a silver platter that inspires this dream of mine. When you go into the mine, you wish to strike lucky and suddenly become rich. However, it is more complicated than that. When you find minerals and ore, you need to extract it properly first for you to see the true beauty of it. I want to extract myself, I want to find that inner beauty inside me." Nosepass described.

"That's awesome. I want to be a cameraman to film moments like this. When I evolve, I want to capture all the scenes and keep the contestants safe with my Emergency Exit ability. When someone is in danger, I will save them." Wimpod shared this moment with Nosepass.

"Please win for me." Wimpod had faith in Nosepass. However, the latter didn't know whether or not he should be confident just yet.

Confessional

Nosepass: He inhaled and exhaled. After a few deep breaths, he said something. "I'm confident in myself. I can win."

The customers weren't satisfied with the poor customer service and their empty stomachs. Snorlax was chewing on the table. Druddigon slammed his fist, quaking his drink. Lurantis checked her photo album to pass some time. Shiinotic sipped her drink to calm down. Wimpod waited silently. Grovyle opened the kitchen door to check the grimy atmosphere. He stretched his head out a little, trying to avoid the angry faces of his customers.

"Chef Drapion, I want a refund if there is no food." Trumbeak complained.

"Like Skarmory said, the owner is always right. There will be no refunds. *beep* off if you can't wait!" Chef Drapion swore at his customer. Trumbeak grit his beak before he got off his seat and left.

"Please wait a bit longer. How about we give you pizza dough to chew for free." Grovyle begged, clinging onto his shoulder. Trumbeak slapped his hands off.

"This restaurant is too inadequate. I can't stand it anymore." Trumbeak refused to be swayed. He looked adamant as he made the final decision. Trumbeak flew away, leaving the Crazy Crawdaunt with one less customer.

"Where the hell are Bisharp and Jumpluff?!" Grovyle started to look frustrated.

Suddenly, Lucario slammed his kitchen door opened. He seethed and fumed as he exited the restaurant.

"I will drag those lazybones back here!" Lucario made his presence known with a deafening voice. Looking outside, he saw a strange figure in the distance.

Apparently, the four (three technically since Ledyba fainted) on the giant Raticate heard this.

"Hurry up!" Scolipede hastened the process by raising the speed of the Raticate to the max. After several seconds, they reached the restaurant.

"Scolipede, what took you so long?! Why the hell are you riding this Raticate machine?!" Lucario had many questions ready to be slammed at Scolipede.

"No time to answer. Here, take the items." Scolipede snappily said, delivered all the items to Lucario and rushed toward the chef with Ledyba on his back.

"Chef, she is injured. Please help her." Scolipede said with worry.

"Fine." Chef Drapion grumpily said. He wasn't happy that Raticate failed. The Chef carried Ledyba out of the restaurant to retrieved medical supplies in a nearby building. Scolipede followed him out as well.

Meanwhile, both teams rushed to finish their orders.

"Squeeze that lemon and finish that sour steak!" Grovyle yelled.

"Put salt and pepper on now!" Lucario shouted.

"Heat it up quickly!" Grovyle turned on the oven to its maximum capacity.

"You moron. You don't know anything, don't you?" Skrelp scolded.

Confessional

Tyrunt: "After a long day, we finish the food. Hopefully, we win even with one less customer."

Cryogonal: "Scolipede has a lot to explain to us…"

Houndour: "Why is there a Raticate toy outside? It looks creepy."

The customers mumbled and complained among themselves. Finally, the waiters appeared with a large plate containing servings of food.

"Mister Druddigon, here is your sour steak and bread." Grovyle tried to be polite.

Lucario didn't know what to do when he saw that Snorlax was still asleep. He just placed the food down and hoped that the big guy will wake up soon.

"Here is the bread." Lucario served Wimpod a pretty small piece of bread. The bug didn't dare to complain.

Grovyle nervously stepped toward Lurantis with a burned, black pizza. The cheese melted like lava and the toppings turned into crisps.

"Why is it burned? I want hot and spicy, not this inedible piece of cardboard." Lurantis complained.

"The oven overheated." Grovyle made an excuse. Lurantis didn't seem thrilled.

"I told you to don't put in a lot of cheese. I want there to be 6.5% less. No less or more than that! This restaurant is the most pathetic one I have ever visited. The owner is rude. The waiters are loud and noisy…" Shiinotic bombarded Lucario with criticisms. The professional athlete breathed in and out before he dropped the plate of pizza down and left. His face was red with anger.

"I won't eat this." Shiinotic refused, folding her arms.

Confessional

Lucario: "*beep*!"

The restaurant service was over and it was the time to decide the winning team.

Chef Drapion returned by himself, Scolipede and Ledyba were still somewhere together. He held two boxes with a hole on the top with him.

"Here is how it works. I have two boxes with me. One green for the Flygon and one red for the Crawdaunt. The team the receives the most tip for me wins." Chef Drapion explained and the interns started to get some coins out.

The first one to exit was Wimpod. He put 10P in the box and tried to leave. However, Lucario's deadly glare made him gulped. Wimpod placed an extra 1P coin and ran away as fast as possible. Lucario didn't seem satisfied.

The second one to exit was Lurantis. She donated 5P out of pity to the Crawdaunt. Then, she turned her camera on and started filming the area a bit more.

Shiinotic left without putting anything in the box and stuck her tongue out at Lucario. Obviously, he was very mad.

Druddigon also walked past Chef Drapion without putting anything in the box. The Crazy Crawdaunt frowned at this. They were going to lose at this late. Druddigon suddenly stopped walking and turned around to face the Crawdaunt members.

"You know what? I'm pleased with the events of today. From Raticate getting wrecked, Tyrunt delivering the cameras…" Tyrunt's eyes lightened up as he said this. "… to that tasty sour steak. I should give all of you a reward." Druddigon placed 100P inside the box. The Crazy Crawaunt all looked optimistic. They were confident that they were going to win.

"Don't count your Treecko before they hatch." Grovyle used his saying. "However, Snorlax is still sleeping in this case so we win!" The Crazy Crawdaunt celebrated early.

"Yummy!" Everyone turned to face the source of the voice. Snorlax woke up and feasted on the food.

"Chef, here is my payment." Snorlax squeezed through the door and gave him 500P. The Feckless Flygon thought there were going to win for sure.

"Damn it, we lost again." Jumpluff looked down on the ground.

"All that hard work for nothing…" Tyrunt said pessimistically.

"Don't count your Treecko before they hatch." Grovyle repeated.

"In this specific scenario, I must agree with you, Grovyle." Skrelp reached the same conclusion.

"Snorlax, where is your entry payment?!" Chef Drapion reminded. The Feckless Flygon members were in a state of disbelief. What a misfortune. Snorlax scrambled around for something.

"Where is my 1000P coin?" Snorlax announced that he lost the coin. Lucario kicked the sand in rage.

"It's done. We lost! We *beep* lost!" Lucario can't handle the heat anymore. He reached his boiling point.

"Oops, I left it in the restaurant." Snorlax went back inside and returned with a 1,000P coin. Now, the winning team was decided for real.

"Feckless Flygon wins!" Chef Drapion declared.

Confessional

Grovyle: "Unbelievable!"

Lucario: "I won! Hell yes, I deserve that victory after dealing with ungrateful customers."

Drifblim: "Skrelp has to eat her own words twice today. I doubt that she will talk for a while."

Inside one of the houses in the desert town, Ledyba rested on a bed with Scolipede by her side.

Gradually, she opened her eyes. She saw Scolipede's eyes. They were filled with anxiety, guilt, relief and many other feelings mixed into a golden color.

"Scolipede?" Ledyba rubbed her eyes.

"Ledyba, why did you throw yourself away for someone underserving of that kindness like me? Do you know how worried I'm about you?! I don't know what I will ever do without you. I l-love you so please don't do that again." Scolipede confessed and blushed immediately afterwards. In a spur of a moment, everything changed.

"L-love?" Ledyba blushed as well.

"I know that you probably don't like someone like me. I guess I'm fine with just being friends. Go ahead, reject and friendzone me." Scolipede assumed. Ledyba laughed at this.

"What's that for?" Scolipede was baffled.

"Silly Skeptipede, I love you too!" Ledyba reciprocated his feelings.

"Really?" Scolipede said with disbelief. Ledyba gave him a reassuring nod.

"Scolipede!" Cryogonal banged the door open and rushed over to strangle him with her snow chains. "What did you do to Ledyba?" Cryogonal jumped straight into action. Scolipede struggled to breathe.

"Stop, Cryogonal. He didn't do anything wrong." Ledyba tried to fix the misunderstanding.

Cryogonal stopped and then laughed uncontrollably.

"What's so funny about strangling me to death?" Scolipede didn't seem amused.

"You two are really gullible, you know? I heard everything. I'm just kidding for fun." Cryogonal revealed that it was an act.

"Hahaha… very funny." Scolipede sarcastically said and the three of them shared a laugh together. They enjoyed this very moment.

Confessional

Ledyba: "I don't know what I'm getting myself into by being his girlfriend but I will try my best to make him happy."

Scolipede: "I wish for a new beginning and this probably will be my only chance. Hopefully, our love stays strong unlike my past relationship."

Cryogonal: "I wish for them to enjoy their lives together even to the extent of outside the show in a genuine, real relationship."

Grovyle sat with Dedenne near the bonfire. The elimination ceremony didn't begin yet but they seemed to have a conversation together.

"Grovyle, you look sad. Are you disappointed that we lost?" Dedenne asked.

Grovyle stared into the fiery flames of the bonfire.

"Dedenne, I will always be sad when we lose. It is just that… Dedenne, can you promise me that you won't be mad after you listen to what I'm about to say?" Grovyle said, not sounding lively in the slightest.

"Of course, what is it?" Dedenne was willing to listen.

"I feel overshadowed. I don't feel like anyone appreciates my play style or the type of Pokemon I truly am. They all see me as one dumb dude, you know? Back at home, I'm always the hero. The one everyone look up to. The most confident, the smartest and the strongest. Back here, everything is thrown out of the window. Lucario will always be stronger than me and Skrelp will always be smarter than me. Worse of all, Bisharp will always be a step ahead of me in everything. I feel like I'm treated badly by them. I'm the good guy around here and I deserve better! Do I sound insufferable to you?" Grovyle released his innermost thoughts.

"Aww, Grovyle. You will always be the best to me." Dedenne felt touched. "What do you want me to do then? Vote Bisharp off?" Dedenne asked.

"I need some time." Grovyle stood up and left.

Confessional

Grovyle: "I want something to guide me to the right place. What should I do?"

As Grovyle was about to enter the cabin, Drifblim tapped his shoulder.

"Can I have a moment with you?" Drifblim gestured for Grovyle to go into the forest area with her. Grovyle decided to do so after seeing no possible harm.

Once there, Drifblim turned to stare at Grovyle.

"What do you want?" Grovyle asked.

"Leader, I sense how you reacted to Skrelp and Bisharp lately around two days ago. Do you feel disturbed by their presence? Do you wish to get the upper hand against them? Do you wish to know what Skrelp said about Bisharp?" Drifblim's words allured Grovyle.

"What did Skrelp say about Bisharp?" Grovyle seemed to be the most interested by that.

Drifblim leaned closer to Grovyle and whispered. "Bisharp's fatal flaw is Jumpluff." Grovyle widened his eyes.

"Leader, I think of the best for you. In your alliance, how many loyal allies do you have? Only Dedenne, perhaps?" Drifblim planted a seed of doubt into him.

Grovyle averted his eyes, looking nervous.

"I can give you my help, if you did like. However, I'm not in a very good position either. Everyone sees me as Skrelp's underling. Well, that's not true at all. I just temporary seek refuge from her aid since Archeops was voted out. I want to play this game independently but I can't with Skrelp around, bugging me. I only wish to ask one thing from you, leader." Drifblim led everything up to this point.

"What is it?" Grovyle asked, placing his hands on his waist.

"Eliminate Skrelp so everyone will stop associating me with her. I believe that we have the same goal. After a while, Skrelp will approach you about a plan to eliminate Jumpluff. Please discuss things with Dedenne first so she stays by your side." Drifblim said before disappearing.

"Leader, I give you a weapon to use against both Skrelp and Bisharp. Please don't waste it." Drifblim's last words echoed in his ears.

"I won't." Grovyle grinned.

Confessional

Drifblim: "How easy to manipulate. A bit of sweet talking before he was convinced. Like I said in the early days of this island. I will control things from behind the scene. After Skrelp is eliminated, I will take all the credit and supposedly 'turn over a new leaf'." Drifblim winked.

Grovyle approached Dedenne secretly in the mess hall during the night.

"Dedenne, I made up my mind." Grovyle took a few deep breaths.

"What is it?" Dedenne asked, anticipating the answer.

"We should eliminate…" Grovyle paused a bit. "…Jumpluff."

"What?!" Dedenne couldn't believe it, she stepped back slowly from Grovyle.

"Please listen to me first. I don't want to do this but, there is no other way. Bisharp is manipulating Jumpluff. I know it! I know what kind of Pokemon he is! He manipulates others with fake acts of empathy. If we let her stay here, she will end up drowning in depression. We need to do what is the best for her even if it is voting her off. I'm sorry." Grovyle cried a bit, it seemed genuine, or was it?

"Grovyle, did someone manipulate you?" Dedenne doubted that Grovyle would say something like this.

"No, this is my idea." Grovyle strengthened his resolve. He stood up proud and tall, looking deep into Dedenne's eyes. The little mouse averted her eyes.

"Dedenne, if you don't believe me, I'm willing to eliminate myself after Bisharp and Skrelp are gone so that I can possible save Jumpluff with the redemption challenge!" Grovyle improvised.

Dedenne turned around and saw it, she saw his unwavering convictions.

"Fine… Please don't do something like this again." Dedenne believed in Grovyle.

"Grovyle, are you there?" Skrelp called from the outside. Grovyle signaled for Dedenne to hide under a table.

The grass type opened the door to meet the poison type.

"What do you want?" Grovyle asked.

"I have an ingenious plan. I know that you despise Bisharp. Why don't we make him suffer by eliminating Jumpluff? Both of them are nuisances to you, aren't they?" Skrelp suggested.

"As if I will listen to you. If I'm going to eliminate Jumpluff. I eliminate her because I'm her friend and I thought of the best for her!" Grovyle acted masterfully. Dedenne observed the situation and was fully persuaded.

Confessional

Skrelp: "That impudent imbecile, he eventually agreed but he was so adamant and stubborn about the whole do it for Jumpluff thing. Is he still trying to keep up the 'Good Guy Grovyle' façade?"

Dedenne: "Jumpluff, I'm sorry. I will admit that if it comes down between you and Grovyle… I choose Grovyle. He is… special to me."

Grovyle: "I play many lead roles in school drama. Most of the time, I'm the good guy. I know how to say those things."

Dedenne headed with Jumpluff to the elimination ceremony. They walked/floated side by side. Dedenne pointed out the Moon to Jumpluff.

"Look, isn't it beautiful? The silver, shining moonlight." Dedenne asked for her opinion.

"Yeah, totally." Jumpluff agreed.

"Does it look this beautiful on loser island?" Dedenne wondered.

"Why are you talking about that all of a sudden? Are you scared of the elimination?" Jumpluff looked a bit confused.

"No, nothing. It is just that I wonder if the loser island will be more relaxing and peaceful. Who knows? You might be able to start a party there." Dedenne indicated.

"Oh my god, that's true." Jumpluff sounded excited. Dedenne felt better from hearing this.

The elimination ceremony was about to start. The Crazy Crawdaunt members sat in two rows. On the first row from left to right sat: Rhyhorn, Nosepass, Tyrunt, Grovyle, Dedenne. On the second row: Heracross, Skrelp, Drifblim, Bisharp and Jumpluff.

Chef Drapion carried a plate of Leppa Berries to them.

"Alright, If I call out your name, you are a safe loser and you get a Leppa Berry." Chef Drapion explained things in his own style.

"Dedenne" She looked at the berry with bittersweet feelings.

"Nosepass" He looked a lot more confident.

"Rhyhorn" ...

"Heracross" She threw the berry up her mouth and swallowed it whole.

"Tyrunt" Chef Drapion threw it over his head, making Tyrunt frowned.

"Drifblim" She looked excited.

"Grovyle" He shook a little with exhilaration.

"Bisharp" He seemed confident about the result.

"Babababah, the eliminated contestant is…" Chef Drapion created a dramatic pause.

…

…

…

"Jumpluff, you are eliminated." Chef Drapion revealed.

"What?!" Bisharp shouted in disbelief.

"I'm… eliminated?" Jumpluff couldn't believe it herself either.

Elimination Confessional

Well, I guess my time here is over, guys. I'm glad to be able to step out of my comfort zone and make real friends. I guess my team see me as someone useless. Anyways, I'm glad that it isn't Bisharp and instead, me. He deserves to stay here more. I wish the very best of luck to Dedenne, my best friend. We might share a lot of differences but we are still great friends. I like Grovyle and Tyrunt as well. I will say hi to Elekid for you, Tyrunt. Hopefully, I get access to the internet in Loser Island. I want to be able to share this experience with my social media friends.

"Bye, Jumpluff." Dedenne waved at her, as well as Grovyle. The two eventually left, leaving her with the Lapras.

Jumpluff stretched her head out of the Lapras, expecting someone.

"Why isn't he coming?" Jumpluff started to feel nervous.

"I will depart now." Lapras was about to leave.

"Please, just a moment longer." Jumpluff begged and the Lapras decided to give her extra time.

Confessional

Bisharp: "I don't know if I should go and see her… It will make me suffer even more. I'm mad at myself. I should have seen this coming! I know the culprit behind her elimination… It is my fault for being unaware! It is my fault!" Bisharp sobbed a bit. "My fault to… trust him."

Bisharp ran at his full speed to the dock. He accidentally tripped on a rock but quickly recovered and ran as fast as he possibly could. He sweated and panted as he made a last-ditch effort to see her before she left. Once he arrived at the dock, the Lapras already departed but Jumpluff was still in sight.

Bisharp ran over to the edge of the dock and screamed. "Jumpluff, I'm here!"

Jumpluff heard it and turned around. She signaled the Lapras to stop but she refused.

Bisharp jumped off the dock and tried to swim toward her. However, the currents and waves pushed him away.

"Jumpluff, I want to say that-" Water splashed into his mouth. "-I really treasure you as a friend. In fact, I l-" Water splashed relentlessly against him, pressuring him to surrender. It was too late, she was far gone.

Bisharp allowed the waves to carry his lifeless body back to the beach. Looking up, he saw Grovyle looking down on him with that irritating grin of his.

"You!" Bisharp sprang up and strangled his neck. Grovyle didn't flinch at all.

"Big reveal, your little pawn manages to overthrow its king. Now, I guess the throne will belong to the rightful owner." Grovyle talked just fine even with Bisharp strangling him.

"Why the *beep* hell did you do that?! What have I done to piss you off?" Bisharp ragingly interrogated. He knew the culprit but not the motive.

"Think hard Bisharp, think hard." Grovyle refused to answer directly. "What have you done to change Good Guy Grovyle?"

Suddenly, Grovyle got a choking grip on Bisharp as well. The two stared at each other, both with deadly eyes. One with remorse and the other with condescension. The Moon shined at both of them and the episode ended on a cliffhanger.

Votes

Grovyle: Jumpluff

Dedenne: Jumpluff

Drifblim: Jumpluff

Heracross: Jumpluff

Skrelp: Jumpluff

Bisharp: Skrelp

Jumpluff: Skrelp

Tyrunt: Skrelp

Nosepass: Heracross

Rhyhorn: Heracross

Heracross: 2

Skrelp: 3

Jumpluff: 5 (eliminated)

How is it? This is the best episode by far in my opinion. One of the plot points that I want to execute well so the future chapters will be easier to write.

Anyways, Raticate's character is inspired by the game Pokemon Rumble. A fun fact for you all.

Did you see some of the foreshadowing? Anything can happen, I might just put it there to trick all of you.

Jumpluff might return. Who knows? Anyone can return really except Oddish. Sorry, Oddish fans.

See you next time. Let me give you a sneak peek since I disappeared for so long. The hunt for the advantage truly begins! Will Lucario and his teammates claim it first? Will Ursaring gets his bonus? Is there someone who eavesdrop on Bisharp and Grovyle? Find out in the next heart wrenching episode of Total Skarmory Island!