I made a mistake last chapter with the Rubik's cube. I don't think I wrote it properly enough. You can check last chapter to see the changes. I will try to minimize these mistakes. I write this story all alone without any help so it is difficult to spot all of them.
Reply to Reviews
InfernoMaster64
Thank you so much for your continual support. It means a lot to me. I dedicate a lot of time in my stories to make it enjoyable after I realized how badly I messed up in Desire Tunnel. I understand that Skrelp gets a lot of hate. That's the point. Some villains are meant to be funny, some cold and strategic, some likable. Read the title, you get what you want.
Parousia45
I'm glad that you think my challenge is creative. The thing is I watch many game shows, including the obsolete ones. Therefore, I have tons of unique challenge ideas that are all inspired from those shows. Do you mean Trumbeak? Trevor isn't a Toucannon yet. I feel sorry for Scolipede, many don't get his insecurities. Expect more epic battle scenes, courtesy of Lucario. My battle scene skills are getting better. Hopefully, it will show in Desire Tunnel Remake.
Worma-Sir
I already plan Farfetch'd and Aromatisse's return from the start. It is nothing to do with me messing with you. Here is the thing with vocabulary, I use most complex words for the narrative voice. That's myself. The characters' intelligence and vocabulary doesn't match. You need to understand that.
Grovyle stars in his school dramas so he knows plenty of words. Although, he probably can't distinguish the difference between envy and jealous.
Larvitar is supposed to be the type of Pokemon that uses words bigger than himself. He doesn't know the meaning but uses it because he thinks it will make him look good.
Darmanitan got a crippled vocabulary. That's why he uses homie often.
Ledyba likes to remember positive words like optimism. Otherwise, she can't remember much.
Electabuzz is an inventor so it isn't out of character to say things like 'negative energy' and 'denounce'.
Lucario read all the rules and regulations of the Pokeathlon like any adults read the terms of agreement. He is far from stupid. Rather, he is emotionally weak.
You get the point, right? Don't get me wrong, your criticism is valid. Sometimes, I make mistakes but that is because I have 70+ characters in the works. I can't create a unique vocabulary list for all of them and sometimes I just assume that they know it. From my experience, vocabulary isn't an accurate measurement of someone's intelligence.
Episode 18: 1 vs All! Larvitar's Revenge!
The camera zoomed closer to a familiar island, transitioning to many scenery shots.
Pyukumuku littered on the beach, scattering across for any unfortunate victims…
Sounds of wild Oranguru, Mankey and Passimian disturbed the peace…
Stone stairs leading up to a cottage…
It was Loser Island or formally known as Moss'up Island.
In the third floor of the cottage, a room located lonelily near the far-right corner. No one in their right mind visited it, especially when there was a 'Get out!' sign stuck to the door.
Like every room, there was a bed, a lamp next to the bed, some light bulbs on the ceiling and a table that came with a chair. That's it. It was inadequate and very small to say at the very least. That was to be expected as there were thirty rooms like these in total. A moderate-sized cottage couldn't fit everything in, obviously.
Larvitar locked himself in his room, lying on the bed. His head bent up the headboard a little. He stared at the wall, throwing a rock at it out of boredom, only for it to bounce back and hit his forehead.
"Ow, stupid rock! How dare you hurt your great, supreme and mighty overlord? I will make you suffer!" Larvitar raged at a non-living object. He picked it up and compressed it with both hands, trying to break it into pieces. In the end, he only managed to squeeze his muscles tired. The puny bully collapsed on his bed.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
"What?!" Larvitar shouted in an unfriendly tone.
"You got mail from Skarmory. I will leave it here and go away now." Houndour delivered.
"What the heck is it?" Larvitar got down from his bed and walked toward the door in a slouchy manner. He opened it and gasped at the surprise.
He found three present boxes. One was roughly small, around the size of his lower body. It had a red wrapping paper with a green bow on top. Another was as big as Larvitar himself. The color scheme was the exact opposite to the first, green wrapping paper with a red bow on top.
The last one was a bit special. Twice his size, circular shape, black wrapping paper and a dark green bow set it apart from the other two generic present boxes.
"Today isn't my birthday. Am I getting early presents?" Larvitar wondered but shrugged it off and headed to the smallest box first. "The best for last." He expressed his excitement, rubbing his hands together.
Larvitar pulled the bow off and tore the wrapping paper. He opened the box and…
A red glove sprang out and punched his face.
"What the *beep*?! Is Skarmory toying with me?" Larvitar swore as he rubbed his face. The bully stepped over to the next one, hoping that the 'present' will be better.
Opening the present more cautiously this time, Larvitar was prepared to dodge the punch. However, he wasn't prepared for a pie to be flung out at his face.
Larvitar wiped the mess off his face and gritted his teeth, face reddening and temper rising.
"Skarmory better give me a real present this time." Larvitar groaned as he walked with a frown to the last box. This time, the rocky reptile tried to open it from the side.
Standing on his tip toes, he stretched out to uncover the present. Once he did, he jumped back to avoid whatever it had in store for him.
Nothing came out. Larvitar grinned and got closer to the box. Suddenly, a sensor inside the box detected his presence and a pair of red hands ambushed him from the sides. Wow, technology nowadays advanced beyond our imagination.
"Help!" Larvitar screamed as the hands captured and locked him inside the box. Sounds of punching can be heard as well as agonizing cries.
After a minute, the box opened and released Larvitar. Not before it gave him a nasty uppercut to the chin as a farewell present. The bully was covered in purple bruises all over his body. He even got a black eye and softened arms.
"Ugh, argh… *beep* you Skarmory. Ow…" Larvitar moaned in physical pain. He got off the ground slowly, heading inside his room until he saw a silver gift card on the ground.
"What? This isn't here at first. Did it come out of the box?" Larvitar sounded confused. Regardless, he picked it up and read.
"Dear Larvitar, since you got eliminated first in the redemption challenge, I find it naturally fair for you to get a consolation prize. You will return to Skarmory Island, not as a returner but rather the guest of this next challenge. To put it simply, you can get your revenge. Right now, head to the beach." Larvitar lifted his eyes from the card slowly and laughed maliciously with dark eyes. "Mwahaha… They will all cry and beg for forgiveness. They will learn the true meaning of pain!"
He ran out of his room, not realizing his grave mistake.
The sensor detected his movements again and initiated another beating session. Larvitar clawed the ground with a horrified expression, trying to resist his inevitable fate.
"No! Eek!" Larvitar shrieked loudly as the hands dragged him back inside.
Steam rose to the air from a coffee mug. The host breathed in the smell before he took a sip.
"Welcome back, viewers." Skarmory greeted the viewers with a short wave. "Last time, our contestants fought against pirates. Well, most to be exact. Shedinja worked with them while Scolipede suffered from… delays. If you don't understand, watch the previous episode. I strongly suggest that you don't skip to spoilers, you are missing out a lot. Pause your screen now if you don't want spoilers." Skarmory warned, pausing for a few seconds.
"Alright, Skrelp was eliminated. What will happen now that Triple G got exposed? Will Darmanitan steal another immunity from Lucario? What about Duosion? She is coming strong after the previous episode. Find out in this unforgiving episode of Total Skarmory Island!" Skarmory threw his wings into the air out of excitement.
In the Crawdaunt boys' cabin…
Grovyle twisted around his bed uncomfortably, jerking his pillow close. His eyes were tightly shut before they opened up suddenly. He kicked his blanket away in a spasmodic reaction. Afterwards, he rushed out of the cabin.
"Aish!" Grovyle yelled in frustration and swiftly slammed the door closed.
"What's wrong with him?" Nosepass rubbed his eyes and groaned. "I got a good dream for once and he ruined it." The timid coward got out of his bed and dragged his lethargic body to the restrooms.
Rhyhorn smiled slightly at the fact that Nosepass got a good dream for once but it quickly faded away.
Confessional
Grovyle: "Lucario ruined everything! I will kick his butt out of here, once and for all. Or else you can't call me Good Guy Grovyle." He claimed boldly.
Nosepass: "I dreamed about having a few nice friends, enjoying a calm and controlled conversation. Can't I have these things in real life?"
The girls' restroom was less crowded after breakfast served. The only one left was Aromatisse…
She stared at her broken reflection, agonizing over the loss of her beauty. The fairy type placed a soft touch on her face but quickly removed it in fear of worsening the damage.
"I'm not beautiful on the outside but that doesn't mean I can't be beautiful on the inside." Aromatisse said consolingly to herself.
"Aromatisse, let's go and have some breakfast." Ledyba invited cheerfully until she saw the miserable look on her face.
"Oh, I'm sorry for what happened to your face, Aromatisse." Ledyba sympathized, frowning with eyes drooping. "I wish I can help but I'm not a beauty doctor, sorry."
Aromatisse turned to face her friend slowly, a warm smile forming on her otherwise ugly face.
"Everything will be fine. I will have a visit with cosmeticians and they can fix this." Aromatisse hoped.
"If I can help in any way like paying for some of the costs, don't be afraid to ask for it. I'm always here to help you." Ledyba assured, returning the smile. "I'm glad that you are optimistic." Her face lightened up.
"Thank you for your support, I really appreciate it." Aromatisse said, touched and grateful of their friendship.
"Hey, when are you two going to eat?" Both of them turned to the exit to see Cryogonal gesturing for them to hurry.
"Let's go. Eating chef's food is better than starving." Ledyba suggested. Aromatisse nodded and the three soon headed straight to the mess hall. Along the way, Cryogonal eyed Aromatisse's face with concern but a reassuring smile from her washed all of the worries away.
Confessional
Aromatisse: "At least I still have my friends that doesn't care about my outside appearance that much. I wish that everyone in the world can be like that."
Ledyba: "I don't care if her face got damaged. I don't judge someone based on their looks. The personality is what matters the most. I know that she is sensitive with her look so I will try my best to help her as a friend."
The mess hall was packed tightly with Pokemon in the morning. Of course, they weren't thrilled to eat the food at all. Most of them just shoved it down their throats.
The best part about being in the mess hall was socializing with others. Especially when the merge arrived and Lucario didn't mind inter-team interactions that much anymore (or at least that's what his team thought).
Five contestants sat in a circle around one table: Drifblim, Meowth, Bisharp, Miltank and Heracross in order. Peculiarly, Heracross sat with the chair backwards, resting her elbows on the top. Miltank sat with the chair sideways, resting her left arm.
"Glad that Skrelp's gone. All of you don't know how many dirty tricks she played to eliminate all the other contestants. Too many for my arms to count." Drifblim expressed her relief.
"My, my, how horrible of her." Meowth shook his head slightly. "I heard she asked for ransom from some of the contestants." Meowth used his business jargon.
Heracross chortled, banging on the table at his verbal humor. Miltank gave a light chuckle while Bisharp remained silent, flashing looks of discontentment. He didn't seem to enjoy their company, like an undercover cop that couldn't hide his displeasure.
"Trust me, Meowth. You don't know what a real ransom is like. Anyways yeah, she did a number on the other contestants." Heracross stated. Meowth sneered a little at her remark.
"Indeed." Drifblim nodded. "Archeops, Snorunt, Elekid, Jumpluff, Farfetch'd…" As she went on, she noticed Farfetch'd from the corner of her left eye. The anti-social bird sat all alone in a corner.
Drifblim smirked. "I digress, Farfetch'd is looking rather lonely and friendless. Poor bird must feel awkward after receiving an early boot. We should give him some company." She suggested.
"Well, your choice. Do it by yourself though." Miltank got up from her seat. "See y'all later." She bid her farewell and left.
"Yeah, not worth my time." Heracross left as well.
Bisharp glanced at their disorganized seats and decided to take care of the mess for them. He pushed the first one (Miltank's) properly into the table. As he was about to place his hands on the second, Meowth did it for him. The businessman turned the seat around swiftly and with one forward motion, the job was finished.
"Anytime." Meowth gave Bisharp a reassuring smile, trying to convey that his services can be depended on. His eyes were charming like a friendly employee luring his customers for commissions. However, Bisharp maintained a cold stare and left, glancing at Farfetch'd a little on his way out.
Meowth frowned a little before he shook it off and straightened his face. Drifblim placed a hand on his right shoulder.
"Tough crowd that you are trying to please. However, you don't need to please everyone. You aren't in the radar at the moment. No need to be ambitious and try to secure all the votes." Drifblim recommended. "Regardless, you got my vote." She smiled sweetly at him and Meowth beamed.
Confessional
Meowth: "Drifblim is right. It is a hassle to please all of my customers. They are all so different and they demand different things from me. I shouldn't dump all of my resources and play too hard this early in the merge. Rather, I need to target specific demographics. For sure, Bisharp isn't one of them. He is a dangerous competitor, specializing in both physical and strategic fields of expertise. He is also very resistant to my marketing techniques. I can't let him expose my less than legal transactions either. Therefore, I should still act cool around him."
Drifblim: "Meowth is obviously a threat. However, it isn't beneficial for my game to eliminate him right now. It benefits someone like Nosepass who needs to eliminate as many threats as possible for him to even stand a chance in the finale. Obviously, I can't let Meowth keep all of his allies and stride nonchalantly to the finale either." She smirked.
Once Bisharp opened the door, he saw a disgruntled Grovyle stomped past him. The two collided shoulders but Grovyle ignored it completely, no eye contact, no response.
Bisharp closed the door and peeped through the gap discreetly to see Grovyle glaring in the direction of Lucario. Bisharp couldn't hide his grin.
Confessional
Bisharp: "My plan is at its final stage. Let me guide all of you through the entire process in a logical sequence. Initially, I noticed Grovyle's fearful demeanor around Lucario and immediately knew that the professional athlete's intimidation is the only way to expose him." The screen cut to flashbacks with Bisharp voicing over, courtesy of the editors.
The screen changed once again, Ursaring and the contestants were seen emptying their plates. Bisharp eyes were observant.
"However, there was one difficulty, I couldn't do it by myself. I need one Pokemon close to Lucario and Darmanitan can't be the individual. Fortunately, Lucario gave me the information I needed; he helped Meowth during the second part of Ursaring Games. After I joined forces with Meowth, everything else was easy. I planted a seed of doubt into Dedenne and watched as it all transpired, acting a little desperate for revenge just in case." Bisharp articulated.
Lucario lifted Grovyle up in the storage room…
"Do you know what is the best part?" Bisharp asked rhetorically with a wide grin.
Lucario forced Grovyle to steal maps for him, collecting all of it after he got captured and handed them to Darmanitan.
"Grovyle will blame all of it on Lucario. I shot two birds with one bullet." The long confessional finally ended.
Dedenne held her head down on the table inside the mess hall. The Flygon girls (Miltank not included) tried to approach her but she gestured for them to leave.
Suddenly, Grovyle stormed inside the mess hall. He glared at Lucario with clenched fists. The professional athlete only stared coldly at him, furrowing his brows. Grovyle didn't have the guts to face him and instead headed toward Dedenne.
"You and I need to talk." Grovyle said in a serious tone, pointing at the door.
Dedenne frowned and followed after him quietly. Some of the other contestants glanced at them momentarily before minding their own business.
Drifblim approached Farfetch'd in the meantime.
"Farfetch'd and Mr. Stalk, both of you seem uncomfortable with your new surroundings. May I take you for a tour around some of the areas you haven't encountered?" Drifblim offered kindly.
Farfetch'd looked at Mr. Stalk questioningly before turning to Drifblim with firm eyes. "We accept your offer."
Drifblim smiled as she led the way out of the mess hall.
Confessional
Aromatisse: "Poor Dedenne, she is probably hurting on the inside right now. I really do wonder, what is worse between physical and mental pain? For me, both I guess." She recoiled with deep humility at her own reflection.
Farfetch'd: "Mr. Stalk is delighted that someone has acknowledged his presence. Right, Mr. Stalk?" He shook Mr. Stalk slightly. "That's right."
Drifblim: "I'm not trying to ally with him of course. That is impossible with how he plays this game with integrity and individualism. I'm just avoiding being his enemy and placating him in case he realizes that I voted him out."
Grovyle: "Dedenne better make up with me." He folded his arms haughtily, centering himself.
Dedenne followed Grovyle to the beach, dreading every second of it. She felt nervous, scared of what he will say and how to respond. She felt stupid for believing his lies and exaggerated claims the entire time. She grew antsy, struggling to find peace in her mind and her body. Asking, questioning, doubting and reflecting upon herself.
Her introspection ceased once Grovyle turned around just in front of the dock, staring at her with yellow, contrite eyes. Yet, his black, arrogant pupils betrayed what little grace and decency he had left.
"Dedenne, why are you mad? Is it because you thought I work for Lucario? I'm better than that and you know it." Grovyle tried to convince, potentially guilt-tripping her with his tender expressions.
Dedenne believed it for a second until she snapped herself back to her senses. "Grovyle, I want to believe you but… you lied. You lied about saving Jumpluff and everything else. I'm gullible to trust you in the first place." Dedenne responded unwaveringly.
"Are you for real? After everything I have done for you? After I gave you the immunity and everything else?" Grovyle tried to make her reconsider, shaking his hands up and down in a reasoning gesture.
"Yes, Grovyle. I want to forgive you but I can't and I won't. Not until you atone for all of your allegations." Dedenne sounded a bit unconfident at the end, averting her eyes for a second.
Grovyle was dumbfounded by the result, gazing into the void.
"I hope that we can be mature about this. I will go and apologize to Bisharp and you should too. I have made up my mind after a long contemplation. Please, Grovyle. At least, save what little you have left. I still… care about you." Dedenne pleaded, trying to save him. She probably got some feelings left for him.
"No." Grovyle refused simply. "I did nothing wrong and I'm not going to apologize. Fine, do it if you want. However, we are done." Grovyle 'broke up' and walked away, clenching his fists.
Dedenne sobbed a little before she wiped her tears away.
Confessional
Grovyle: "I did everything correctly. I'm calm and composed. I could shout at her but I didn't. So why didn't it work? My words, my persuasion…" His tone changed. "Screw it all! I don't need her! I can take first place all by myself. Good Guy Grovyle is dead! Big Bad Villain Grovyle is here!"
Dedenne: "I thought that he cared enough about me to have a change of heart." She sniffled.
Drifblim guided Farfetch'd to the snowy area, showing him all the interesting landmarks. Farfetch'd glanced around at his surroundings.
"Here we have a Delibird themed workshop. The gift shop is a great place to buy presents for friends, family and loved ones. There is a café as well, enjoy a drink or two there if you like. Want to head inside?" Drifblim asked, directing toward the gift shop in particular.
"We want to but we don't have any tokens to buy any gifts." Farfetch'd said disappointingly.
"Oh, how unfortunate." Drifblim shook her head slightly before pointing up. "How about we check the exhibit on the second floor? A great experience for toy fanatics." She suggested.
Farfetch'd nodded in reply and the two went upstairs.
Confessional
Farfetch'd: "Mr. Stalk appreciates the tour but he can sense some sort of ulterior motive from Drifblim. Regardless, I won't be making any alliances with her and stick to playing solo."
Drifblim: "Hopefully, I placate any anger he has for me or they, whatever works I guess." She shrugged. "Luckily, Mr. Stalk can't vote or else they will have two votes. Am I seriously thinking that his imaginary friend is real?" She pondered. "Maybe."
Dedenne faltered her way sluggishly to Bisharp. Currently, he was viewing the calm atmosphere on a bench. The little mouse swallowed her pride in a single gulp and approached him. Bisharp didn't make any sort of eye contact.
"Bisharp, I'm sorry." Dedenne vocalized her guilt. "I got blinded by my own ignorance and bias. I'm usually better than this, I have never been in this kind of situation before. I-I…" Dedenne struggled to continue.
Bisharp faced her and interrupted. "That's enough. I was once a fool to believe Grovyle as well. Relieve yourself from your guilt. I understand your circumstances. Let us forget about this." He resolved.
"Really? You are going to forgive me this easily?" Dedenne questioned.
"Yes, I want to move on from what happened. It distracted me quite a lot, especially yesterday." Bisharp said, sounding amused at the end.
"I'm glad that we are now on the same page. I should know from the start that you really do love Jumpluff. Anyways, about Grovyle… I tried to persuade him to come here and apologize as well but he didn't seem fond of the idea." Dedenne told.
"I understand. I can comprehend his psychological state and obstinacy." Bisharp could never be more careless. He didn't need or even want his apology. Revenge tasted a lot sweeter.
Confessional
Bisharp: He chortled. "Apology from Grovyle? Dedenne, why did you say such impossible things? Laughable and meaningless."
Dedenne: "It is quite difficult for me to apologize when I'm the one who usually receives the apology. I'm in the right nearly all the time. This is certainly new and mortifying."
Shedinja took a nap under a giant tree in the middle of a clearing, day dreaming carelessly.
However, he was interrupted again to his dismay.
"Shedinja, there you are. I wonder where you disappeared to since the morning." Cryogonal annoyed him again.
"Great, special snowflake tell me what you want and go." Shedinja drawled. Cryogonal frowned.
"Don't call me that, you emo kid." Cryogonal retorted. Shedinja widened his eyes in surprise. Did she just call him an emo kid? Seriously?
"Emo? What kind of lame joke is that? But I digress, tell me what you want and leave." Shedinja sounded irritated. Cryogonal looked content that she got him again.
"I just want to ask you about your job. Heracross thinks that you work in convenience stores or flipping burgers for sale but I know that you are much more talented than that. Prove her wrong." Cryogonal seemed very confident in his abilities.
"Heracross is right. I work in convenience stores." Shedinja revealed monotonously. Cryogonal stared in disbelief.
"What?! I thought that you are talented. Yesterday, you manage to capture nearly all of us and you only manage to find a crappy job like that?" Cryogonal tried to refute.
"You overestimate me. Sure, I'm talented but that doesn't mean anyone is going to accept a high-school drop out with no diploma or college degree." Shedinja explained, there was no humility in his voice. He wasn't embarrassed to share his shortcomings at all. He wasn't proud of it either. He sounded somewhat satisfied as if he didn't want more or less.
"That is horrible. Maybe, I can h-" Cryogonal got cut off.
"Help? Are you trying to force sympathy into my hands again? I don't need it. I earn an alright amount of P in convenience stores if I work overtime." Shedinja rejected.
"Are you really going to work like that forever? Ending your future in convenience stores?" Cryogonal disapproved in a harsh tone.
"Yep, how convenient of my life." Shedinja joked.
"Why?!" Cryogonal yelled. "Don't you care about your life at the very least if your family don't?" She grew frustrated judging from the sound of her voice.
"Of…" Shedinja turned silent for a moment. Should he just say 'Of course' and get this tiring conversation out of the way already? He pondered for a bit longer and realized that he never wanted that. He desired something that will fill his body with elation again just like when Lucario fought Trumbeak. He yearned for that experience one more time.
"Maybe not." Shedinja changed his mind. Cryogonal looked pleased with the answer.
"What should I do?" Shedinja asked, perplexed. "I don't know what I really want. I thought that everything is meaningless since that incident. I thought that I'm as good as dead so what's next?"
"First, you should learn to accept help from others and make friends. I started that way when I was adopted." Cryogonal advised.
"Alright, I will do it. Later." Shedinja said before he left.
"Hey, I'm not done yet." Cryogonal called after him but he already disappeared. "Ugh, annoying bug." She groaned.
Confessional
Cryogonal: "Shedinja is one of the toughest Pokemon to work with. It takes time and effort. A lot of it."
The challenge was about to start. Yet, there was one Pokemon who faced his inner struggles and plight. A Pokemon that saw himself as only a liability, a life leech. It was Darmanitan. He meditated in the dodgeball court, humming to himself.
"Zen…" He chanted. However, the disturbance of zen was clearly presented through his uncomfortable body language. His eyebrows twitched, the position of his legs got adjusted time after time and he breathed in at a faster rate than usual.
Eventually, there was a knock on the door of the gym. Darmanitan opened his eyes.
"Come in!" Darmanitan shouted loud enough for the Pokemon to hear.
Lucario opened the door and eyed Darmanitan before he closed it.
"Homie, what's up?" Darmanitan acted normally, getting up from his meditative position.
"The challenge is about to start. I come here to remind you in case you lose sense of time." Lucario told.
"Thank you, homie. I will head to the camp right away. No need to worry." Darmanitan assured. Lucario nodded and opened the door, waiting for him to exit. The two exited together and made a journey back to the camp.
Along the way, unease crept up Darmanitan's legs, making him wobbled lousily. Lucario noticed this and gave him a questioning look.
"Are you alright?" Lucario asked with concern. Darmanitan knew that he couldn't keep the act up for long.
"Homie, can you promise me that you will take the immunity for yourself?" Darmanitan requested with his head down.
"This is what bothering you? Darmanitan, I already made myself clear. Accept it." Lucario demanded as if it was an order.
"Homie, I'm just a random fanboy. You are a professional athlete. If I lose, it isn't a big deal but if you lose, your reputation will get damaged." Darmanitan persuaded. "Please take it, homie."
"It is true that either I win and enjoy privileges of fame and money or lose and risk losing my job. That is my philosophy, true. However, you miss one thing, Darmanitan. Pokeathlon is a team game! It isn't all about me but my team as well." Lucario spoke fluently.
Darmanitan gaped as he listened, fully absorbed by Lucario's words.
"All of the Aura Beast members are my childhood friends. Many of them are low-life rejects who will probably end up unemployed on the streets without the income from Pokeathlon. To them, I'm their savior, their only hope. My heart doesn't have a room for many. I only treasure my teammates, my family and most importantly my fans, the ones who kept me going. Therefore, don't reject my generosity because I don't have much of it. I don't donate to charity and I don't help the opposing team. My real philosophy is either I win and improve the lives of my friends and families or lose and failing all of them." Lucario ended his speech. It fully captured the heart of Darmanitan. As a side-effect, it made him guilty for doubting his generosity.
"I know that you have the best intentions for me but it hurts to see one of my most loyal fans degrade his own importance. Without you, I will probably explode and burn the entire team down. Take care of yourself, alright?" Lucario's voice was mixed between hard and soft. At times, he sounded like he was scolding Darmanitan. At times, he said in the utmost empathetic and considerate manner it made you forget about all those times he shouted at you.
"Sorry, homie. I should already know. You are the one and only Lucario that read all of the complicated rules and teach your team all sort of strategies as well as dealing with sponsorship. You did everything for them. I'm just worried because everyone else don't think the same as me." Darmanitan expressed.
"I won't get eliminated. Trust me." Lucario smiled as he placed his left hand on Darmanitan's right shoulder. Likewise, the fire type placed his right hand on Lucario's left shoulder. The two saw each other eye to eye, understanding the message without any need for words.
They headed back to the camp just in time for the challenge.
Confessional
Darmanitan: "I don't care about what anyone else says. Lucario is my role model and this experience is so unreal. Getting to work alongside him. I promise that I will take the immunity if you want, Lucario."
Lucario: "I only care about the well-being of my team. The other team can end up unemployed on the streets for all I care."
Everyone followed Skarmory to the dock. The host said that he had a surprise waiting for all of them. Some like Drifblim seemed excited while some like Nosepass dreaded the worst.
"Look into the distance, contestants. You will see the guest for today's episode." Skarmory instructed and they all viewed the approaching boat. Standing on it was no one other than the residential wimpy bully, Larvitar.
"Larvitar again? Returning as a contestant? No!" Nosepass panicked and screamed.
"Nope, didn't I tell you that he is just a guest?" Skarmory corrected.
"Hahaha… I like the sound of my poor victims crying for help. Cry some more, nose minion. The great and invincible Larvitar is here!" Larvitar exclaimed, inflating himself.
"What is today's challenge?" Lucario asked for clarification.
"Getting straight to the point, huh? Let me explain, Larvitar is here to get his potential revenge." Skarmory revealed.
The contestants had different reactions. Some were scared, some were excited, some were bored and some weren't impressed.
Confessional
Nosepass: "Why must Larvitar host a challenge out of everyone? Why can't it be someone like Snorunt? Wait, she likes detective shows. Not her, maybe Houndour? He seems like the sporty type so probably not. Can't anyone host a simple and easy challenge like staying awake for days? I'm pretty sure I can win that. I mean I don't want to sleep anyways."
Miltank: "This coward again? I still remember when he called me a fatty. I guess this is my chance for a real revenge." She cracked her knuckles.
Drifblim: "Larvitar better stay quiet. I'm a bit worried that he might reveal some things that I want buried deep underground inside a coffin."
Dedenne: "This insufferable little brat again? The world just can't stop picking on me." She grumbled.
Farfetch'd: "Mr. Stalk is tired of seeing Larvitar after Loser Island. He wants to get rid of him as soon as possible."
Aromatisse: "Honestly, I'm not scared. Larvitar isn't threatening at all from my experience. He is just a nuisance. I doubt that he can get his revenge let alone stealing food."
Lucario: "Prepare to get destroyed, you son of a *beep*. I will make you regret everything you did to my team." He stretched his muscles, preparing for a fight. (Is this All vs 1, Larvitar's Worst Nightmare or is it his revenge?)
Back in the camp, the two sides faced each other. Larvitar crossed his arms, looking smug. However, his grin was rubbed from his face when Miltank slit her throat using her right hand and Lucario slammed his fists together.
"Here are the rules." Skarmory continued to explain. "There are five minigames that you will all play. These games are similar to the first five challenges. After each round, a certain number of contestants will be eliminated. By elimination, I mean that you lose your shot at immunity. You will either enjoy the games or Larvitar will." Skarmory tried to build suspense.
Larvitar grinned at the scared faces of a few contestants.
"Follow me to the auditorium." Skarmory guided.
Confessional
Larvitar: "Those losers won't see what hit them. I will show them who is the big guy around here, by beating Nosepass. Yeah, that will show them. Not Lucario because I have a mutual respect for him. It's not like I'm scared or anything."
Inside the auditorium, interns sat on their seats with different objects in their possession. For example, Ursaring wore boxing gloves. Alakazam levitated with a book on his lap. Smeargle held a hand mirror.
Most importantly, Raticate stood on the edge of the stage with a camera.
The contestants all observed and speculated on what exactly the challenge could be. However, some like Lucario cowered behind Darmanitan in fear that Smeargle might notice him.
Skarmory turned to face the contestants once he reached the stage. "Contestants, the first minigame has the theme of the first challenge: brain, brawn, beauty. Your objective is to strike a pose that is either beautiful, smart or strong looking." Skarmory started the explanation. Bisharp nodded, starting to get the idea.
"In order to do that, you must hold some sort of prop as well. The interns will give them around randomly." Skarmory emphasized as he stared sternly at his interns. Smeargle nodded in compliance as Dedenne smiled.
"Here is the thing, Raticate will only take a picture on the stage five times. You must hurry because he won't wait." Skarmory informed further.
"Yeah, I'm still waiting for that smoking first pay check." Raticate reinforced.
"Finally, Larvitar will have a different role from all of you. His mission is to intervene with your progress so that you won't move on to the next round. In case you wonder, yes all of you can be eliminated in the first round." Skarmory revealed the terrifying last bit of detail.
"What about the immunity then?" Drifblim asked.
"No immunity and no elimination ceremony. Larvitar gets to eliminate the contestant of his choice." Skarmory told. The contestants looked at each other and murmured. They weren't so sure of who Larvitar wanted to eliminate.
"What?!" Nosepass yelled in disbelief. "This is so unfair."
"Hahaha, which one of you losers will I eliminate?" Larvitar liked the atmosphere. He wanted to spread fear as much as he possibly could. However, most contestants weren't worried about the slim chance of that outcome like the bully hoped for.
"What are the odds that he will win? Impossible!" Heracross shouted and everyone broke into laughter, scoffing at the chance.
Larvitar reddened. "Hey, stop laughing. I can win." Even the interns and Skarmory laughed at him.
"If he wins, might as well give him the million. He is even weaker than the yellow pipsqueak girl." Miltank mocked. Larvitar groaned, clearly annoyed.
"Stop laughing!" Larvitar yelled but no one took him seriously. Well, except for Nosepass, who didn't laugh much.
"Don't get too confident. He has three chance cards to boost his odds like Ursaring." Skarmory pointed out and the laughter died down.
"Aha, my chance cards will push me to victory." Larvitar started to look smug again.
"In addition, if you fail to strike a pose in front of Raticate and get eliminated. You will spin the wheel of punishment." Skarmory worsened. Larvitar placed his hands on his hips as he glanced around at the agitated crowd, beaming in triumph.
"We will start shortly." Skarmory gave them a few minutes to prepare and get into positions.
Confessional
Scolipede: "Punishments? This isn't funny anymore, Skarmory. I'm starting to get anxious."
Lucario: "The other team will get all the punishments while me and my team destroy Larvitar."
Bisharp: "Personally, Lucario is the real threat around here. He will try and make the Crazy Crawdaunt members lose even though this is already the merge."
Aromatisse: "I wonder if I'm going to be picky and fussy about my pose and the prop. If push comes to shove, I will do it the brawn way."
The contestants all lined up outside the auditorium, waiting for Skarmory to open the double door so the challenge begins.
Grovyle tried to sneak up the front but Lucario blocked him.
Nosepass quivered as all he could think about was the punishment.
Drifblim made herself invisible from the crowd.
Skarmory suddenly opened the entrance.
Lucario stormed in first with many behind him. At the back was Nosepass, sauntering as he knew he had little to no chance of winning.
Descending down the rows of seats rapidly, Lucario eyed Ursaring first. The bear threw his boxing gloves to the opposite side of the auditorium. Lucario ignored it and went for something else.
"Anyone want a bucket hat?" Trumbeak asked as he tossed a bucket sideways. Lucario jumped up and grabbed it before heading up the stage.
"Brawn!" He announced as he stomped on the ground with a bucket hat on… only to be disappointed.
"Sorry kid, not my time yet." Raticate didn't even bother opening his camera.
"When are you going to take a picture?" Lucario demanded an answer, growing impatient.
"If I take a picture of anyone that comes to me first then only five contestants will move on, kid. I can't do that. Wait." Raticate made it clear. Lucario groaned in frustration.
Alakazam, who sat on the middle row, was surrounded by three contestants. Duosion on the left, fixing her eyes on the book. Bisharp to the right, running straight to steal the item. Lastly, Drifblim floated behind Alakazam, waiting for the opportunity to snatch it.
Unexpectedly…
"Books are stupid, I don't need them because I'm already smart!" Larvitar leaped out of Alakazam's seat from below and stole the book. He shredded it into pieces.
"Losers." Larvitar blew a raspberry. The three contestants all glared at him with contempt.
Shedinja founded a pink bowtie on the ground. One of the interns must have dropped it. He lifted his eyes slowly, looking unamused.
"I rather spin the wheel." He drawled as he ignored the item. A certain snowflake looked dissatisfied.
"Hey!" Cryogonal called behind him. "Why don't you just wear it? Come on, no one will judge you." She persuaded, trying to hand him the bowtie.
"I rather die." Shedinja rejected as he floated away. Cryogonal frowned.
"Emo, edgy kid." She muttered under her breath as she went up the stage. Apparently, Raticate just turned the camera on.
Darmanitan noticed the boxing gloves and rushed over to it. Grovyle saw the opportunity and speeded ahead. The two got hold of each glove. The grass type glared at the fire type belligerently.
"Homie, let settle this peacefully. We find another one and share." Darmanitan offered, pacifying the situation.
"I agree." Grovyle smirked.
As the two searched for another object. Grovyle unfairly kicked Darmanitan at the back of his head, making him tumbling down. The gecko quickly seized the item and headed up the stage.
"Take that goody-two shoes. Learn to be less gullible." Grovyle insulted.
Dedenne spectated the situation with spite and hurriedly ran over to help Darmanitan off the ground.
"Are you alright?" Dedenne asked worriedly.
Darmanitan rubbed his sore head a little. "I will be alright, homie." He assured, flashing her a small grateful grin.
Grovyle strode over to Raticate, unaware of Lucario's bloodthirsty glare.
"*beep* you!" Lucario swore as he punched Grovyle down the stage. The professional athlete jumped down to beat him up some more. Cryogonal cheered for Lucario, despising Grovyle for what he did.
"*beep*!" Grovyle swore back and tried to punch with his boxing gloves. However, Lucario blocked all of the hits and jabbed him back multiple times furiously.
Grovyle's nose bled, teeth shattered, chin bruised and eyes blackened.
Darmanitan looked appalled as well as many others. "Stop, homie!" He implored, trying to pull him back.
Larvitar recoiled in horror, paling at how brutal Lucario was. Cryogonal no longer cheered for him. Smeargle covered her face in revulsion of the blood.
"You deserve worse!" Lucario scowled, spitting at the softened and tenderized Grovyle before he stopped.
"Chef Drapion, bring a medical kit this instant!" Skarmory alarmed. The chef quickly arrived with a medical kit soon after. Amidst the violent chaos, someone realized that it was time.
"Say cheese!" Raticate gave the signal, placing his hand on the button.
Cryogonal swiftly faced the camera and pointed to her bowtie with her snow chains as a pose. "Beauty." She said as Raticate took the picture.
"Cryogonal, pass. You move on to the next round." Skarmory announced as he checked the picture. Cryogonal seemed content. However, the situation wasn't exactly pleasant for her either.
Lucario seethed as he missed the first photoshoot. On the other hand, Grovyle whimpered in pain as Chef Drapion treated his wounds.
Skarmory glared at Lucario disapprovingly, shaking his head. "Lucario, you will be penalized. Sit out of the game until Grovyle fully recovers." He released the verdict.
"But he hit Darmanitan first!" Lucario tried to defend himself.
"That doesn't justify your outrageous act. You should just stop when you punched him off the stage. Because of your overreaction, Grovyle is now the victim. You are a professional athlete, you should understand the acceptable bounds of physical violence in sports." Skarmory scolded, criticizing him heavily.
Lucario gritted his teeth as he looked around, no one seemed to be on his side. Even his fans and followers alike.
"Accept the punishment, Lucario. Skarmory actually can disqualify you but he is lenient toward your cause." Shiinotic indicated.
"Fine." Lucario said unwillingly, stomping outside the auditorium. His bucket was confiscated by Trumbeak on the way out. Darmanitan looked guilty, staring down in depression.
Confessional
Darmanitan: "It is my fault. Only if I can defend myself a bit better. The homie cares too much about me. I wish I can help him in some way."
Bisharp: "As much as I despise Grovyle, Lucario's actions were unjust. Very unprofessional."
Dedenne: "Even if I no longer have any feelings left for him, I still can't tolerate Lucario's brutality."
Larvitar: "Hopefully, he gets eliminated in the first round so that I have a chance to win. Poor Grovyle, I think I can make a good minion out of him." Surprisingly, Larvitar didn't sound egotistical or insufferable for once.
A new owner of the bucket was on the rise. Miltank quickly sprinted away from everyone else and got up the stage. Larvitar stood there, sweating bullets as he blocked her.
"I'm not scared of you. You are slow and fat." Larvitar masked his insecurities by insulting her weight.
"Oh, you are going to get it! Die!" Miltank roared as she chased Larvitar around. The bully screamed in a high-pitch girly voice and hightailed out of the auditorium. Not before Miltank gave him a good walloping with the bucket.
Nosepass shuddered as he witnessed the situation. He was so scared of all the other competitors that he hid in the corner of the auditorium, not bothering with the challenge.
Rhyhorn noticed this and sighed. He glanced around for any unclaimed items. Drifblim just got the hand mirror from Smeargle. Bisharp received a magnifying glass from Shiinotic. Only two interns caught his eyes.
Druddigon wore a mining helmet, gnawing a bubblegum in his mouth. No one wanted to approach the angry intern when he didn't even give his item away like everybody else.
Rhyhorn noticed Dedenne slowly crawling to him apprehensively.
"Mr. Druddigon, can I have the helmet? Please." Dedenne asked politely. Druddigon only grabbed her head and turned her around 180 degrees.
"Alright." Dedenne said quietly as she left.
The second intern was Lurantis. She wore a long pink and red stripes pants, fooling the contestants. However, Rhyhorn was too observant. He noticed that it was loose.
The silent rhino rammed straight to Druddigon and tackled him without any hesitation.
"What the hell?!" Druddigon exclaimed as he fell down. Rhyhorn stole the helmet and headed toward Lurantis, who was currently checking her photo album.
"You can't trick me, give me the pants." Rhyhorn exposed her trick.
"You want me to strip?!" Lurantis cried out, her face reddened. The other Pokemon in the room gave Rhyhorn dirty looks, especially the girls. However, he remained composed.
"Not funny, Lurantis. Don't force me." Rhyhorn said in a deadly serious manner. Upon seeing his hard and rocky facial expression, Lurantis took the pants off and gave them to Rhyhorn.
Successfully, Rhyhorn went to Nosepass and placed the pants down in front of him.
Nosepass looked at him in shock. "Rhyhorn, no big brother, are you really giving me this thing? I didn't do anything at all. I don't deserve it." Nosepass was hesitant to accept it.
"Take it." Rhyhorn assured, nodding a little. Nosepass grabbed the pants and tried to put them on, only to find out that they didn't fit his body. Instead, he wore it as a hat instead.
At this point, Larvitar returned to the auditorium. He immediately broke down in laughter and chortles as he saw how ridiculous Nosepass looked.
"Is this a new fashion for losers like you? Might as well dress like a girl, nose minion." Larvitar mocked.
Rhyhorn glowered at this while Nosepass removed the pants in shame.
"Anyways, I will be taking it." Larvitar aimed for the pants. However, Rhyhorn thrust his horn forward at Larvitar, sending him flying against the wall.
"Ouch." Larvitar yelped as he quickly scurried away, intimidated by Rhyhorn's presence.
"Let's go." Rhyhorn motioned for them to enter the stage as Raticate was about to take a picture. Nosepass followed and the two accomplished their mission, same for Drifblim, Bisharp and Miltank.
Bisharp held his chin in a thoughtful pose as he looked into a magnifying glass. Brainy enough.
Drifblim gazed over her reflection as she placed two of her arms on her cheeks. Beautiful and fabulous.
Miltank stepped on the bucket and crouched down a little. Cool looking with a brawn element to it.
Rhyhorn rose his horn up and glared at the camera in an aggressive manner. Very tough.
Nosepass wore the pants on his head and covered his face in embarrassment. Fancy and cute for such a timid and shy Pokemon.
Confessional
Nosepass: "I can't ask for a better brother than Rhyhorn. He is like my angel guardian. I feel fortunate to have him around me."
Heracross: "Can't believe that everyone else got all the stuff before me. Hah, at least Shedinja didn't get one yet."
Druddigon: "Can't believe that Raticate got a main role again. Geez, can't some of the older interns get a spotlight? Raticate isn't the only cameraman around here, I remind you. I doubt that he is even properly trained. Lurantis works here as a scenery shooter long, way long before that filthy rat."
Things were intense in the third round. Desperation and panic started to settle in as they all tried to avoid the wheel of punishment.
"Help! Ah!" Scolipede screamed as Palossand squeezed his body tightly. The bug eventually slid out of Palossand's colossal arms and fled away quickly.
"Give me another hug. Pretty please." Palossand pleaded. "I got another bucket hat for you." He showed a new bucket. This one was red and light, suitable for building sandcastles.
"No way, I'm not risking my body for that." Scolipede winced as he remembered the pain.
While Scolipede scrambled, Farfetch'd approached Snorlax. The intern was wearing a giant, white bib.
"Want to trade items? I want that leek stalk in exchange for my bib." Snorlax offered. Farfetch'd gawked.
"What?! Trading Mr. Stalk for a mere bib? No way, not even if you give me a million P. He is more than just a leek stalk, I tell you. He is a professional baseball player, a professional skateboard player as well as a five-stars chef." Farfetch'd bragged.
"Five-stars chef?" Snorlax widened his eyes, gleaming in delight. "I'm a fan, I'm a fan! Take this bib for free! Mr. Stalk, I want your autograph." Snorlax requested.
"Alright, Mr. Stalk never really has a fan before so he is new to this autograph business." Farfetch'd said and signed Snorlax's cookbook with a pen the intern had given to him.
Snorlax squealed as he hugged the cookbook. Farfetch'd took the bib and headed to the stage, wondering whether it was brawny, brainy or beautiful. Remember, the pose needed to be good in order for you to pass. This game wasn't all about getting the props.
"Psst. Mr. Stalk, I got an idea." Farfetch'd whispered to his trusty partner as he secretly sneaked inside the backstage, avoiding any imitators.
Scolipede eventually submitted to Palossand and accepted the pain in exchange for a bucket.
Alakazam returned, wearing glasses after Larvitar destroyed his book. Duosion got to him first and received the item.
Larvitar hid under a front row seat, waiting to pounce on his 'poor victim'. Meowth walked by, glancing around for any items. Larvitar thought that he found an easy target and sprang out… to meet an unexpected surprise.
Meowth slowly side-stepped and Larvitar fell flat with his face on the ground. His attempt was so pathetic that Meowth evaded it effortlessly.
"Classic, original Larvitar. Apparently, it doesn't sell so well. The customers demand a new flavor after they ate your bland snacks for five days. Disappointing." Meowth clicked his tongue, mocking Larvitar's short-lived position in the game with subtlety.
"I don't get what you mean." Larvitar seemed confused. "I never sell any snacks."
Meowth walked away, ignoring him.
"Hey, take me seriously! I'm the real villain around here." Larvitar tried to assert his relevance.
Eventually, Meowth found Trumbeak with his wings behind his back. When Meowth tried to take a peek, Trumbeak rotated his body to conceal something. Meowth smirked.
The cat tilted his body to the left before he swerved in a flash to the right and grabbed both of Trumbeak's wings, turning him around to seize an expensive, metallic watch. It got a black strap, grayish steel case and shining hands inside. The hand watch also looked modern, showing both the digital and analog time.
"That's mine. If you are going to take it, be careful, alright? It is very expensive." Trumbeak warned, anxiety written on his unassured face.
"Oh, I can compensate. I will buy you a more expensive one if it breaks, Trevor." Meowth assured as he put the strap on his right wrist and walked up the stage. Trumbeak followed him worriedly.
"Say cheese, ugly kids. Flash them that ugly mug of yours." Raticate insulted before he prepared to take a photo.
Duosion tilted her glasses a little. Without the glasses on, she already looked brainy enough.
Meowth raised his right arm front and forward, presenting his product elegantly as his left hand supported it from below. He made it seem like it was priceless with his careful demeanor.
Scolipede threw the bucket down the ground and it bounced off the stage. This pose was… below average.
Farfetch'd returned just in time. He didn't put the bib on or pose in a conventional way. Rather, he tied it to Mr. Stalk like a bindle and heaved it up, conveying a sense of great effort and strength.
"Very original." Duosion complimented as they waited for Skarmory to grade the picture. Farfetch'd smiled a little.
"Duosion, Meowth and Farfetch'd, you all pass. Scolipede you fail, big time." Skarmory announced the results.
"What? Why?" Scolipede questioned. "I thought I did well."
"Sure, throwing the bucket. Anyone can do that really. It is certainly not beautiful or smart. Not really brawny either, judging from the amount of effort you put into that pathetic throw." Skarmory evaluated his poor performance.
Scolipede sighed as he failed the task. He still got two more chances, though.
Confessional
Scolipede: "I thought that I look brawny. I practiced the pose once with Ledyba and she said it was pretty good. Skarmory just doesn't get it." He looked disappointed.
The penalty was over and the double door got slammed opened. Grovyle, Lucario and Chef Drapion all returned.
The auditorium was left with only the unsuccessful contestants, they all stared at the three with mixed reactions. Darmanitan was overjoyed to see Lucario again while Dedenne looked terrified.
Grovyle got bandages all over his face, his eyes were twitching with pain.
Chef Drapion carried the boxing gloves back to the auditorium, he kept his medical kit with him as well.
Lucario looked eager to crush the competition, warming on his feet with rapid movements.
Once Skarmory declared the start of the fourth round, Lucario didn't hesitate to force the boxing gloves out of Chef Drapion's grip. The professional athlete rushed over to Darmanitan and handed both gloves to him.
"Are you sure about this, homie?" Darmanitan asked hesitantly, holding the gloves meekly.
"Remember what I told you." Lucario reminded, casting his eyes straight up to Darmanitan. The fanboy gave a reassuring nod and climbed up the stage.
Grovyle dragged himself across the stage, exchanging a glance with Aromatisse. Both of their faces looked equally damaged. Grovyle chuckled at his predicament and wandered around for any items.
Dedenne paced around, struggling to find any props. Most of the interns had nothing left. She foraged through the entire auditorium, including the backstage.
"Should I try to look under the seats?" Dedenne wondered since she had no clue to go with.
Everyone else was in a similar position, Lucario blazed around the entire room. He even threatened some of the interns, only to get nothing.
Ledyba flew up, trying to get an overview of the entire auditorium.
Scolipede practiced his pose to perfect it. However, Larvitar kept distracting him, trying to steal the bucket.
Grovyle smirked evilly as he saw an easy opportunity for a steal. He maneuvered quietly to the back of Scolipede. Larvitar noticed him but got the message through their devious eye contact. The bully decided to stay quiet.
"Stop annoying me and go away. You will never get it." Scolipede lifted the bucket too high for a shorty like Larvitar to reach.
"Really?" Larvitar said in a suspicious manner. Scolipede started to feel paranoid, something was wrong. Larvitar sounded too confident.
"Homie, watch out!" Darmanitan alerted as he saw it coming.
However, it was too late. Grovyle snatched the bucket and scrammed.
"Grovyle has stolen my bucket! He is a thief!" Scolipede yelled, attracting everyone's attention.
"Get him!" Lucario encouraged. Soon enough, everyone pursued Grovyle. The gecko had no choice but to retreat inside the backstage and locked the door.
"Get out of there, coward." Scolipede growled, knocking on the door.
"I can't believe that you resorted to such dishonest means." Dedenne said critically.
"He has no choice but to get out eventually." Heracross stated, leaning on the wall. "I mean he needs to take a picture."
Everyone agreed with Heracross and they all stood next to the backstage door, waiting for his sorry face to come out.
Darmanitan came up to check the situation, feeling sorry for Scolipede.
"What's up homie boy?" Heracross greeted, folding her arms. The beetle glanced at his boxing gloves before she swiftly looked at Raticate.
"Doing good, homie. I just want Grovyle to play a bit nice." Darmanitan replied.
"Nice? Did Lucario play nice in the Pokeathlon?" Heracross asked a difficult question for the fanboy.
Darmanitan considered this question meticulously.
"Don't worry about the question. I don't care if you have double standards. Miltank don't either. I mean I don't play nice as well. Life is a tough place, eh? Either you win or you lose. Is that Lucario slogan or something?" Heracross continued the conversation.
"You don't play nice? I mean I thought you only acted like that in front of Shedinja." Darmanitan doubted.
"Here is the thing, I don't like the emotionless type. Especially, when he screwed me up. If he screws me up and brags about it a little, I wouldn't mind losing. You see? He beat me and act like it was nothing. I can't stand that. Not in here and not where I live. Darmanitan, you should be careful…" Heracross walked closer to him.
"Why?" He scratched his head, confused.
"Because…" Heracross made a suspenseful pause, before she pulled the boxing gloves out of his hands.
"See ya." Heracross bolted away in an instant. Darmanitan was dumbfounded. He couldn't believe that so many Pokemon out here would play so dirty like that.
"Heracross stole my gloves!" Darmanitan alarmed the group and they all left to chase her.
The door creaked open and Grovyle sneaked up the stage.
Shedinja floated around aimlessly, not bothering with the chase at all. He noticed Grovyle but didn't bother telling anyone or go after him either. He seemed bored of the challenge.
"This challenge can't compare to the last one." Shedinja complained. He felt apathy consuming his soul and essence once again. He embraced it for a second.
Until, he couldn't live with it.
"Fine, Cryogonal. You got me. I will keep my promise. Make friends and have some sort of meaning in life. Whatever." Shedinja drawled as he observed the auditorium. He couldn't find an intern with an item. However, that wasn't the focal point. Shedinja thought outside the box and saw that Chef Drapion still got his medical kit.
The ghost bug floated to the grumpy chef.
"Chef, give me the kit." Shedinja said unenthusiastically. Chef Drapion muttered something under his breath before he handed it to him.
Now, Shedinja and Grovyle were both on the stage. The two didn't chat or even look at each other. There was nothing but awkward silence.
"Give that back!" Lucario shouted deafeningly. He no longer cared about Grovyle. He only wanted to keep his fanboy safe.
As Scolipede chased Heracross, he had a cruel realization.
"My bucket!" Scolipede hurried to retrieve his bucket.
"Let me help." Ledyba went with him as well.
Dedenne sweated and panted before she stopped. She couldn't keep up with the speedy Lucario or Heracross.
"I don't think there is a point for me to chase them." Dedenne told herself and decided to look under the seats instead. She started with the top row. Alakazam sat there, meditating.
"Excuse me. Can you move a bit please? I want to check something." Dedenne asked politely and Alakazam floated up for her. "Thank you."
There was nothing in the first row. The second, however…
Back to the chase, Lucario extended his arms toward Heracross and grabbed her left shoulder. The professional athlete twisted her around, striking the gloves away, and threw her against the wall of the auditorium. Heracross collided against it with a loud bang before she fell down.
"Darmanitan, put these on and hurry!" Lucario said urgently and Darmanitan obeyed.
Under the second-row seats, Dedenne could have sworn that she noticed something. She crawled down and investigated carefully. After several seats, she found a certain wimpy intern hiding under there.
"Eek, get out." Wimpod said out of fear, retreating deeper inside.
"Wimpod, do you have anything for me? I'm not scary." Dedenne asked, trying to be reassuring.
"No." Wimpod answered simply. "I have dropped my pink bowtie on the ground already. Why can't I have a manly item? Now, others are going to laugh at me. They are going to call me a loser that can only create the credits." Wimpod manifested his lack of confidence.
"Aw… It is alright. You don't need to fit in with the stereotypes to look good or have a 'cool' job. Just be yourself, no one has the right to criticize you unreasonably. Enough with all the generalizing. Who said that wearing a bowtie is girly in the first place? Who said that creating the credits isn't a respectable job? Your parents?" Dedenne asked with encouragement.
Wimpod shook his head slightly. "Maybe, you are right. Maybe, I shouldn't be so scared. Nosepass can last this long in the show so I should do just fine." He got out of his hiding spot, looking a bit guilty once he gazed at Dedenne's compassionate eyes.
"Sorry, I lied. I got another item." Wimpod confessed as he gave her a blue bowtie.
"Thanks." Dedenne said gratefully and headed up the stage.
Grovyle ducked and dodged both Ledyba and Scolipede. Raticate was about to take a picture. He needed to stall a bit longer.
"Give that back to Scolipede." Ledyba flew straight toward Grovyle's left side.
"Say cheese." Raticate was about to press the button.
Scolipede rammed straight to Grovyle from his right side.
Raticate raised his hand up and pushed down…
Grovyle placed the bucket down. He performed a backflip and inserted both of his legs inside the handle before he landed on his hands. The gecko managed to outmaneuver both of them and posed by doing a handstand with the bucket hanging from his legs.
Dedenne winked at the camera, trying to keep a wide smile with the bowtie on despite what Grovyle did.
Darmanitan flexed his biceps as he showed off his muscles.
Shedinja held the medical kit up in front of the camera. Otherwise, he didn't do much.
Skarmory checked the pictures and they all anticipated the results.
"Grovyle, Dedenne, Darmanitan, you all pass. Shedinja…" Skarmory paused to build suspense. Shedinja looked emotionless while Heracross cheered for Shedinja to fail.
"You pass. I mean doctors usually don't pose anyways. At least I think." Skarmory allowed.
"Yay." Shedinja celebrated unenthusiastically.
Confessional
Heracross: "What?! How the hell did he pass?"
Scolipede: "I know who I'm voting for today."
Aromatisse: "The last round will be hell. We are all up against Lucario."
Lucario: "I'm going to crush all of them." He seemed very confident.
Skarmory exited the auditorium to prepare something while the contestants all waited for the final round of the first game.
"Hey kids, this time it will be first come, first serve. That's what Skarmory told me." Raticate informed. Lucario nodded while the other contestants looked at each other and dreaded the worst.
"Where is the item?" Lucario asked as he realized that none of the interns got anything left.
"It is here with me." The contestants all turned to the source of the voice. It was Skarmory, who just returned to the auditorium. This time, he wore a black cape like he did with the haunted mansion.
"Catch me if you can." Skarmory challenged as he flew away. Even though he tried to look confident, his nervousness was visible.
Lucario speeded toward the host first. He jumped from seat to seat, trying to propel himself high enough to grab the host. Lucario got awfully close to his talons, barely missing by an inch. Skarmory sighed in relief, sweating. Knowing that he couldn't survive with the professional athlete coming after him…
"Interns, if you can stop the contestants, I will quintuple all of your paychecks for this month, except you Raticate. I never really pay you." Skarmory stalled the inevitable. Deep inside, he had the unrealistic hope that Lucario could be stopped. Shaking his head and taming his expectations, he mainly aimed to prevent the final round from being boring and short-lived.
"Dang it! I want my smoking pay!" Raticate fumed. Druddigon laughed, rushing to block Lucario. However, a certain psychic halted him through psychokinesis.
"What the-?" Druddigon seemed irritated, squirming. "You better have a good reason for this, Alakazam! Lucario is going to *beep* catch Skarmory!" The other interns expressed their concerns as well. However, they were a lot less vocal than Druddigon.
Lucario was prepared to make another leap… Druddigon huffed and scowled at Alakazam. The psychic looked indifferent.
"Listen to my plan first before we charge recklessly at Lucario." Alakazam addressed everyone, freeing Druddigon. He snapped his fingers, moving Skarmory away from danger with Psychic. This erased everyone's anxiety. Lucario widened his eyes, riled up. The professional athlete increased his speed as a response. Anger and difficult challenges were the two triggers that break the boundaries of his power.
"Smart-ass." Druddigon muttered, folding his arms. While he sounded resentful, there was a hint of respect.
"Snorlax and Palossand, stay close to Skarmory. Both of you are the walls of this operation." Alakazam started managing the interns.
"I will hug Lucario if he tries to get close." Palossand said and Snorlax nodded.
"Ursaring, Trumbeak and Druddigon. You three will have the hardest job. Fighting against Lucario." Alakazam delegated.
"Finally, some action!" Druddigon seemed satisfied, Ursaring as well. Trumbeak, not so much.
"Wimpod, Shiinotic, Lurantis and yours truly will intercept the other four contestants." Alakazam designated.
"Smeargle, you are our last resort. Try to distract Lucario if you can." Alakazam relied on Lucario's fangirl to do the most important job. Smeargle nodded with a determined expression.
"What about me?" Larvitar tried to get Alakazam's attention. The psychic turned to him as well as the other interns.
"Just don't do anything impetuous and let us handle the job." Alakazam excluded Larvitar and the bully looked heartbroken.
"Help!" Skarmory shouted desperately as Lucario caught the end of his cape. The interns immediately rushed to help and the last round began for real.
Heracross joined in with Lucario to catch Skarmory while the other three stayed close to the stage.
"What should we do?" Ledyba asked, running out of plausible ideas.
"Maybe, we should find an opening somewhere." Scolipede observed the situation. It was so chaotic with Palossand and Snorlax clinging to Lucario's feet. They couldn't do much to stop him and got dragged across the floor like ragged dolls instead.
Heracross got a lucky headlock on Alakazam and threatened the other three interns not to get close.
Ursaring, Trumbeak and Druddigon prepared to surround Lucario with Smeargle next to them as their immunity shield.
Raticate grumbled with the chef about how unfair his internship was.
Lucario kicked both Palossand and Snorlax away. Palossand wasn't damaged as a ghost but Snorlax took a huge blow to the gut.
Druddigon opened his claws and slashed in a swipe motion only for Lucario to duck and countered with an uppercut. Rough Skin activated but Lucario didn't seem to get hurt by the recoil at all.
The professional athlete went all out. He threw Ursaring against Trumbeak. The latter collapsed under the weight of the bear. He then kicked Druddigon away before tailing after Skarmory once again.
Aromatisse trembled in fear as she witnessed all the violence, especially by Lucario. She hugged herself to soothe her delicate body. Every time, Lucario hit one of the interns, she could feel the pain jolting up her skin. This was especially the case when Lucario hit an area near the face. It was very sensitive to Aromatisse. She deplored these things. That's why she didn't want to get involved in the prison challenge. The fairy type couldn't tolerate physical pain. Her entire life was all about beauty and it will always be.
"Aromatisse, are you alright?" Ledyba asked with concern as she saw her friend in a trance-like state.
"I'm fine. It is just that I'm scared. I don't want to get hurt again like the Pyukumuku incident." Aromatisse told.
"Everything will be alright. The three of us can take the punishment together." Ledyba assured and Aromatisse nodded slightly.
Larvitar frowned as he watched the interns having all the 'fun'. Why couldn't he have nice things, too? The bully looked at his three golden chance cards and put them away. This wasn't the time yet.
"Lucario, give me a hug, please. I'm your biggest fan ever! Don't hurt the interns, they are all my friends. You won't do that, will you?' Smeargle implored. Lucario hesitated for a second before he continued to chase Skarmory. Every time Smeargle got close to him, he accelerated in fear that she will catch him. If she does, Lucario couldn't imagine himself knocking his fan away.
The professional athlete decided that it was time to end this quickly. He leaped up to the air for the final time and pulled Skarmory down before stealing the cape.
"Well, time to do my job." Raticate got off his lazy bottom and prepared to take the picture.
"No! My bonus!" Ursaring cried desperately like many of the other interns. They could never catch a break.
Lucario sprinted to the stage. Along the way, he flashed signs of disapproval to Aromatisse, Ledyba and Scolipede. The professional athlete expected much more from his teammates. They basically did nothing.
Aromatisse averted her eyes. She hated it when Lucario did something like this. It made her feel like she was worthless. Lucario was always like this, expecting everyone to perform like a real athlete.
"I'm sick of not even being in your eyes, Lucario." Aromatisse mumbled to herself, following Lucario up the stage. This time, she was different. There was something else, an unprecedented resolution in her eyes.
Lucario was about to tie his cape for a picture until Aromatisse unexpectedly stole the cape and tied it to herself at the last second. Ledyba and Scolipede gasped. Lucario was speechless as he gaped.
The last question appeared: brain, brawn or beauty?
In a spontaneous decision, Aromatisse slapped her cape away with the back of her hand, crossing her arms and glared at the camera before calling out a surprising answer.
"Brawn." She decided.
Confessional
Larvitar: "Before the second game, I will get to punish those four losers, yeah."
Lucario: "She stole it from me? Her team leader?"
Aromatisse: "I made my decision and I won't go back on it."
Aromatisse exited the auditorium, victorious. However, Lucario wasn't about to let her go easy.
"What the *beep* hell?! Why did you do that to your own team?!" Lucario raged, his face boiling.
Aromatisse slowly turned around to face him.
"Team? Am I still your teammate when you chose to kick me out heartlessly? Yes, I might not even try in some of the challenges, but have you ever seriously asked why? Why would Aromatisse choose to stay out of a certain challenge? Have you seriously considered the well-being of your teammate, not just physically but mentally as well?" Aromatisse bombarded Lucario with these questions. He took some time to process them.
"After I got eliminated, I realized something was really off. Why would everyone vote for me? An unanimous elimination is just too cruel, don't you think? You are the one who pressured everybody to vote me off, even my friends! Unnecessary, don't you think? I know that you probably see me as a backstabber, a traitor. However, please realize that this is the consequence of your actions. Anyways, I'm not your teammate." Aromatisse scolded before she left, not turning back at him.
"Aromatisse…" Lucario spoke up. Aromatisse didn't face him but stopped to listen.
"Being a leader isn't as easy as you think. Before the glorious days of the Aura Beast, I need to make many tough decisions. One of them is to kick out the most dedicated and hardworking member only because he just isn't good enough. Do you know the pain and agony that still haunts me to this every day?" Lucario asked. Aromatisse didn't respond.
"Even though it is painful, I won't regret that decision. It is for the sake of the team. These sacrifices are necessary for us to rise to the top. That's why, I didn't object to Machoke's elimination." Lucario tried to convey his convictions to her.
"That's why I can't be your teammate." Aromatisse was steadfast despite his words. "You are the kind of team leader that only cares about the team but not the teammate itself." She left him hanging with that last sentence.
Lucario clenched his right fist. "What the hell was her message? I don't understand!" Lucario yelled out in frustration.
"How immature of you." There was a new voice. The camera turned to focus on a floating Pokemon behind Lucario. It was Duosion.
"What do you want?" Lucario asked, hostility hidden in his voice. "Didn't Houndour tell you to forgive me for eliminating him? It is an honorable sacrifice." His tone was condescending at the end.
"Your arrogance blinds you, Lucario. You might think that you are so open-minded. Always thinking about the team, the bigger picture. However, that is really questionable when you have zero generosity toward everything else in life. You are willing to let someone starve as long as they aren't your fans, friends and family. You only care about those that make you feel less insecure." Duosion rebuked.
"Insecure?! I'm not insecure!" Lucario gritted his teeth, denying the claim.
"Without your fans to justify your actions, you are nothing but a heartless dictator. Houndour doesn't see that because his heart is too pure. However, I'm different. I see all of your glaring flaws. Therefore, despite what Houndour said, I won't be your teammate either. Not until you learn to grow up." Duosion left his side as well. This only escalated Lucario's anger. He clenched his right fist harder and harder.
Duosion noticed this in the corner of her eye before she was about to leave.
"Can't swallow your pride? Punch me then, show the whole world what kind of Pokemon you really are." Duosion said boldly.
"I will prove it to you." Lucario said in a quiet voice before he stomped away. Duosion floated away as well. The two took opposite directions even though their destination was the same.
Confessional
Lucario: "Those two *beep*. Who do they think they are? I will show it to them. I will make them crawl back to me."
Duosion: "Houndour, if you watch this episode eventually… I'm sorry."
Everyone gathered near the first intersection to find a giant spinning wheel in the middle with four colors: red, yellow, blue and green.
Larvitar was grinning next to the wheel.
"Four punishments, four colors." Skarmory told. "Spin the wheel so that you can get your revenge on those four, Larvitar." Skarmory pointed toward Lucario, Ledyba, Scolipede and Heracross.
"With pleasure." Larvitar said as he spun the wheel. The bully jumped up and down, anticipating his well-deserved revenge.
It landed on red and Larvitar's grin widened. Scolipede and Ledyba held each other close. Heracross raised her eyes in question while Lucario was still ruffled by what Duosion and Aromatisse said.
"What is the punishment, Skarmory?" Larvitar asked the host, assuming the color red connoted to something extreme.
"Chef, bring the punishment out." Skarmory ordered and Chef Drapion appeared with a red toy hammer. Larvitar dropped his grin out of disappointment.
"What? A toy hammer? This isn't a proper torture weapon!" Larvitar whined.
"Great, whine. How ungrateful of you." Skarmory sounded annoyed.
Larvitar groaned as he took the toy hammer and walked over to the four contestants. Lucario stomped intimidatingly and Larvitar fled, hiding behind Skarmory.
"Maybe, I will spare them." Larvitar chickened out and all the other contestants laughed at him.
Larvitar face was reddened with both embarrassment and anger.
Confessional
Larvitar: "Just watch, I will make them all submit to my unrivaled awesomeness next time."
Skarmory guided them to the gate of the berry garden. The area of the second challenge. This time, it was locked. Apparently, there were countless number of keys (five hundred and sixty-four to be exact) lying around the gate. They all looked identical. Bland, dull and grey.
"This challenge is very simple. Just find a key. Use it to unlock the gate before time runs out." Skarmory already finished the explanation.
"Saving screen time because the broadcasting station has time restraints?" Drifblim asked curiously.
"Not all minigames can be long, Drifblim." Skarmory replied, rolling his eyes. A mischievous smile formed on his face.
"Start right away!" Skarmory suddenly declared and they all hastened to find the correct key. The host placed a sand hourglass down, pressuring the contestants with how fast the sand flowed down.
Rhyhorn struggled to fit the key inside the keyhole of the gate with the lack of proper arms. Therefore, Nosepass helped him by testing out the keys. They got a match early on and Rhyhorn allowed Nosepass inside first.
"Thank you." Nosepass said gratefully, finishing first. After the nose Pokemon entered, Chef Drapion locked the gate again from the inside. He also confiscated the key.
"Nosepass got first place. That's rare." Skarmory commented. Nosepass grinned triumphantly.
Grovyle threw all of his used keys at the other contestants, messing up their organized pile of keys.
"Stop, you jerk." Dedenne scowled. Grovyle ignored her and continued to sabotage the other contestants until Bisharp dumped a mountain of used keys on him.
"Hey, that's unfair." Grovyle said hypocritically.
"Taste your own medicine, Guilty Guy Grovyle." Bisharp retorted. Grovyle groaned as he sorted out the used keys.
Soon enough, Farfetch'd found a key with Mr. Stalk's detection skill and headed inside.
Larvitar couldn't do much to stop the contestants when Miltank sat on him for trying to steal her keys.
"My back hurts." Larvitar moaned in pain.
The hourglass was a quarter way done already. The entire challenge was mostly luck based, anyone could win.
Bisharp tried another key and got inside successfully. Drifblim followed him soon after.
Rhyhorn struggled to hold the keys properly without Nosepass. The guy must balance it on his horn.
Dedenne was small so reaching the gate was a problem. She got on her tip-toes and tried to fit multiple keys in. None of them made that glorious, clicking sound.
Duosion organized the keys efficiently with her psychic powers and soon found a match.
Darmanitan wasn't aware that Grovyle secretly replaced all of his keys with used keys. Therefore, he kept reusing the same, old ones. Meowth noticed this, however.
"Darmanitan, Grovyle tricked you." Meowth whispered and Darmanitan looked angry. The two decided to get back at him.
When Grovyle went up to test his keys and left his pile behind. Meowth replaced all of it with the used keys he gave Darmanitan. Grovyle was totally oblivious to this scheme.
Miltank found a match and freed Larvitar. The bully's back made a few cracking sounds before it snapped back together.
"Ahaha, time for my revenge." Larvitar rubbed his hands together excitedly as he randomly picked up a key and replace it with one of Dedenne's many keys. Larvitar snickered quietly to himself as Dedenne tested it, only to get inside successfully.
"Lucky me." Dedenne said, thinking that she was just lucky. Larvitar dropped his jaw and scratched his head furiously.
The hourglass was halfway done.
Aromatisse eventually got lucky and survived to the next round. The pressure was on as there were less correct keys and ample used keys.
It was a chaotic mess as the key wars started. Grovyle dumped all of his used keys on Shedinja.
Cyrogonal saw this and got her revenge by dumping all of her used keys on Grovyle. Grovyle got mad and transferred all of the used keys to her. Used keys were passed around so much that nobody knew which ones were which anymore.
"Is this a used key?" Darmanitan scratched his head as he inserted the key inside the keyhole and turned. It didn't work.
Meowth placed a key inside and prayed. He turned it clockwise and the gate opened.
"Time to check the premises." Meowth seemed joyful to be one step closer to immunity.
"One minute left." Skarmory updated. The rest of the contestants now panicked.
Rhyhorn ran back and forth crazily between the pile of keys and the gate. He still got difficulties fitting the keys inside the hole though.
Grovyle stopped testing the keys and kicked them all around, taking everyone else down with him.
Shedinja sighed and stopped trying.
"Worst challenge ever." Shedinja stated his opinion.
Cryogonal nudged for him to continue. Shedinja only groaned in irritation.
"Ten seconds left." Skarmory gave them the final call.
Darmanitan rushed to the gate to test his final batch of key. However, Larvitar blocked his way.
"Take this used key." Larvitar tried to switch things around.
"Homie, stop." Darmanitan pleaded as time was about to run out. Larvitar knocked all of Darmanitan's keys to the ground and gave him a used key?
"Hahaha, try that used key and lose." Larvitar said with a confident tone.
Darmanitan frowned as he tried to open the gate. Shockingly…
It didn't work.
"Haha, told you. Do you think I'm dumb enough to not test it first?" Larvitar said with satisfaction, raising his chin up high.
Confessional
Grovyle: "I don't care if I'm eliminated. As this point, I just want to take everyone down to the mud with me."
Cryogonal: "Shedinja needs to try harder. He can't be picky about challenges."
Bisharp: "That degenerate Grovyle, he is getting worse and worse every single day."
Drifblim: "I'm pretty sure that the majority of this challenge will be edited out. It is pretty unsatisfying from the perspective of a viewer, honestly."
Chef Drapion dragged the wheel into the berry garden and allowed Larvitar to take another spin. The bully was still excited as he watched the wheel taking countless revolutions before it stopped on blue.
"What is it this time?" Larvitar hoped for an extreme punishment only for Skarmory to give him a blue, squirting water gun. Darmanitan shivered a little. It better be cold water or else the homie boy couldn't take it.
"This is it, a water gun?" Larvitar looked disappointed once again. Skarmory gave him an annoyed look and Larvitar stopped complaining. The bully targeted Shedinja as his first victim.
"Mwahaha." Larvitar laughed maniacally as he sprayed water against Shedinja non-stop. "Take this and that." Larvitar continued to attack relentlessly.
Shedinja wasn't fazed by it in the slightest with Wonder Guard in play. Eventually, Larvitar ran out of water.
"Refill." Larvitar demanded.
"Your punishment is over." Skarmory gave him the bad news.
"What?" Larvitar said in disbelief. "Lame."
Confessional
Larvitar: "This is my revenge. It is supposed to be harsh, cruel and torturous!"
Darmanitan: "I luckily survived that. Even though I can swim, I still hate water, especially hot water."
Larvitar folded his arms grumpily, he wanted a real revenge. Maybe, he will get it this time.
"The third minigame has all of you competing directly against Larvitar." Skarmory started the explanation. This peaked Larvitar's interest.
"Do you want to own land, Larvitar?" Skarmory asked, stopping the explanation temporarily.
"Hell, yes!" Larvitar shouted with joy.
"Then you can own this entire berry garden for now. See the contestants? They are all thieves." Skarmory explained the situation to Larvitar and he glared at them angrily.
"Don't take my stuff." Larvitar snarled. He seemed to be taking it seriously.
Skarmory returned his attention to the contestants. "Your objective is to steal Larvitar's berries and put them into your own basket." Skarmory showed nine baskets for each of them to take.
"If you steal at least five Sitrus Berries from him, you move on to the penultimate round. Any questions?" Skarmory asked, looking around a bit. Bisharp raised his right hand.
"What is the losing condition, time?" Bisharp asked.
"Good question. Chef, bring Larvitar the meatball bazooka!" Skarmory ordered and Chef Drapion grumbled a bit before he brought the meatball bazooka to the little bully. Larvitar's eyes shined like diamonds at the sight of real revenge.
The contestants all showed varying levels of fear. Some like Nosepass was about to lose his mind while some like Miltank doubted that Larvitar could do much even with a weapon.
"Prepare to suffer, *beep*!" Larvitar used profanity and Dedenne scowled at him angrily.
"Nine shots in total. If Larvitar runs out of meatballs, you can stride around freely, picking off berries and win. However, if you collect five Sitrus berries before he used all of his shots, you can exit the berry garden and relax right away." Skarmory clarified. They seemed to have no more questions.
"Start right away!" Skarmory initiated the minigame. The contestants all spread out as Larvitar started chasing them.
"Wait for me." Larvitar sweated as he struggled to carry the heavy bazooka around. It was already fortunate that he could lift it up.
The berry garden was vast, yet only Oran Berries, Cheri Berries and Pecha Berries could be found. Sitrus Berries were rare, one required an observant eye to spot them.
Farfetch'd got immersed into the game, hiding beneath big patches of Oran Berries.
"Mr. Stalk, let's steal the berries and redistribute it to the poor." Farfetch'd motivated. He peeped through a small hole warily, looking out for Larvitar. The bully paced around, dragging the bazooka across the floor.
"My berries. Those filthy beggars will get none. They are mine and mine only." Larvitar seemed obsessed with his land, his eyes were all stingy. Lack any sign of generosity,
Nosepass stayed close near the edge of the garden, hugging the fence with anxiety.
"I'm scared. I'm scared." Nosepass repeated these same words again. He was and would always be scared.
"Why can't Rhyhorn be with me?" Nosepass whined. Needless to say, he didn't made any progress.
Larvitar guarded the fountain. Apparently, there were six Sitrus Berries around there at the very least.
Suddenly, a yellow arm touched his right shoulder. Larvitar turned around, frightened. The spectral creature was gone.
"Who are you?" Larvitar said, spooked out.
"Give me the berries or else I will put a curse on you." A mysterious voice threatened.
"Eek. Take all of it!" Larvitar ditched the fountain and ran away cowardly. Drifblim made herself visible and giggled before she took five berries and exited the garden.
Larvitar saw Drifblim on her way out. His face was livid.
Confessional
Larvitar: "How dare she tricked me like that? I will get my revenge one way or another."
Drifblim: "That was easier than taking a candy from an infant."
Larvitar returned to the fountain. The sixth berry was gone as well.
"Great. Time to use my first chance card." Larvitar couldn't stand it anymore. He took a chance card out with the following words:
Guidance- This card summons Alakazam to aid you once in a challenge.
"Minion, come to me!" He shouted out the spell and Alakazam teleported to him.
"May I be of assistance? Tell me your command, master." Alakazam said in a submissive voice.
"Tell me the location-" A berry suddenly hit Larvitar in the face, interrupting him. "Ow, get lost!" Larvitar yelled out carelessly.
"Much obliged." Alakazam understood and teleported away. Larvitar wasted his first chance card.
"Hey, come back! I didn't mean to tell you to get lost. I'm talking about the berry." Larvitar begged but Alakazam didn't return.
"*beep*!" Larvitar exploded in anger and shot a meatball pointlessly at the fountain. It collided and sent a jet of meatball sauce at the bully's eyes.
"Ow, my eyes." Larvitar rubbed his eyes. Once he opened them, he saw Farfetch'd rushing toward his bazooka.
"Are you the culprit behind those unacceptable actions against me? Your supreme and invincible overlord?" Larvitar accused, picking the bazooka up and targeted him before he got any ideas.
"Yes. In the name of Mr. Stalk, I will redistribute your ill-gained berries to the poor." Farfetch'd vowed.
"Drop your weapon down and surrender." Larvitar was about to pull the trigger. Farfetch'd was in a hard spot.
Confessional
Farfetch'd: "No one can separate me and Mr. Stalk. Larvitar chose the wrong time to mess with us. We showed him how a real professional baseball player plays."
Larvitar shot the meatball at Farfetch'd. Using the same old trick like he did against the chef, he reflected it back. Larvitar ducked and dodged narrowly.
Farfetch'd made a sudden dive to the left and plucked Oran Berries of the tree out before tossing them all up to the sky. He swung and struck all of it, all at once, straight into Larvitar's eyes.
"My eyes." Larvitar lost his vision temporarily. Farfetch'd ran for the bazooka again. However, Larvitar pressed the trigger impulsively. Before the meatball got fired, Farfetch'd thrust Mr. Stalk inside the bazooka and made a jumping dive into the bushes nearby.
The meatball got jammed inside the bazooka and backfired on Larvitar.
"Owie." Larvitar collapsed in defeat.
"You did well, Farfetch'd." Bisharp heard the commotion and came to check near the fountain, congratulating the bird for knocking out Larvitar.
"No problem. It's nothing for us." Farfetch'd said, satisfied with the outcome. He pulled Mr. Stalk out of the bazooka and wiped it clean with his right wing. Even though his right wing was a greasy mess now, Farfetch'd didn't seem to care at all. He only cherished his priceless partner and held it with the clean part of his left wing.
"Anyways, we should all hurry and collect the berries. It is highly probable that we all will advance to the next round." Bisharp stated.
The contestants relaxed as they searched for the berries casually. Larvitar was knocked out, it was laughably easy. Soon enough, everyone exited the garden except for… Nosepass.
"I'm scared. Why is it so strangely silent? When will Larvitar run out of ammo? He should shoot nine times already." Nosepass tried to recall how many times Larvitar shot something. It didn't reach nine yet. The coward will hide until he felt safe enough to take the berries.
After a while longer, Nosepass sighed and left his hiding spot.
Larvitar regained his consciousness and glanced around him, steaming with anger.
"Damn it, is it over already? I didn't even get to show my awesomeness yet." Larvitar pouted.
Suddenly, patches of berries rustled and Larvitar picked his bazooka up. Nosepass came out and gasped.
"You are still here?" Nosepass expressed his shock, retreating slowly.
"Bye bye, nose minion." Larvitar smirked as he fired. Nosepass screamed and ran away. The first shot missed.
"Hey, come back." Larvitar chased after him. However, the bazooka weighed him down.
"I don't need this bazooka to finish that loser." Larvitar said overconfidently and dropped it down.
Once Nosepass realized that, he reversed back for the bazooka.
"Hey, that's mine." Larvitar blocked Nosepass and bit his nose to prevent him from heading any closer to the weapon.
"Ow, take my Tackle." Nosepass countered and tackled Larvitar. The bully got knocked away.
"Take my Bite." Larvitar returned with his own attack. The two exchanged weak blows until they both fainted out of exhaustion.
"Geez, when will this challenge be over?" Skarmory wondered as he came and checked on the two. He narrowed his eyes at the result.
"I will call this a tie between Nosepass and Larvitar." Skarmory judged.
Confessional
Nosepass: "Yay, I don't get the punishment. Although, I lost my shot at the immunity."
Larvitar: "Nosepass just got lucky."
The eight contestants and Larvitar met Skarmory back outside the gate. Skarmory handed the eight contestants a camera each.
"Time for the fourth minigame. The objective is simple. Take a picture of Larvitar. However, there will either be one winner or zero winner. If Larvitar survives for ten minutes. Then, he automatically wins. The first Pokemon to show me a picture of Larvitar moves on to the final round. Clear?" Skarmory explained, glancing around for any questions. There were none.
"Good. Larvitar will get a one minute head start. Close all of your eyes." Skarmory ordered and the contestants obeyed. Larvitar smirked as he ran away, taking his second chance card out at the same time.
The bully hid behind a tree and revealed the second card:
Dark Resurrection- Summon an eliminated contestant to be your ally for a single minigame. (Note: The individual may disobey you.)
"Grovyle, come to me, my minion!" Larvitar summoned and the gecko got teleported over to him.
"Wait, why am I here?" Grovyle seemed baffled.
"Because you are now my minion." Larvitar showed him the card and Grovyle nodded. Both of them shared a devillish grin.
"Let's mess the contestants up. Although, you must promise me to eliminate Lucario." Grovyle bargained.
"Fine." Larvitar accepted the deal. The two then headed out for a 'suitable, evil hiding lair'.
Confessional
Grovyle: "I won't ever forgive Lucario for what he did to this handsome face." He pointed to himself.
Drifblim: "This challenge is nothing more than a glorified hide and seek. Disappointing, Skarmory."
The contestants started their hunt for Larvitar, unaware of Grovyle's presence.
Drifblim re-entered the berry garden in case Larvitar was there. Dedenne and Meowth followed her, in case she was right.
Farfetch'd squeezed himself through a few trees as he searched inside the forest. Miltank lifted up a few rocks. Duosion scanned the areas surrounding her.
"Larvitar shouldn't be able to get far." Bisharp thought to himself as he explored the forest. The camera was strapped on his neck and he held it up firmly, readying to take a picture at anytime.
He heard sounds of quiet footsteps and felt alarmed. He tightened his grip on the camera and looked around, only to see Aromatisse behind him.
"Oh, I thought you are Larvitar." Bisharp admitted, dropping his guard.
"I get it." Aromatisse said, looking around for any sights of the bully as well. "Do you have any clues?" She asked, trying to get some sort of information from him.
"Unfortunately, no. He doesn't seem to be fast though. I doubt that he can exit the forest with a given time frame of one minute." Bisharp analyzed.
"What about his chance cards?" Aromatisse brought up a subject that Bisharp totally forgot to take into consideration.
"My mistake, if it is teleportation, he can be literally anywhere." Bisharp speculated. "Perhaps, the snowy area or the desert area, far away places. Although, the odds are still pretty low. I won't suggest that kind of risky move."
"Alright then, I will head my own way now. This is an individual challenge after all." Aromatisse said and Bisharp nodded. The two parted ways, continuing their search.
Seven minutes left…
Aromatisse came across the familiar, torrential stream. Gazing into the water, Aromatisse saw the reflection of her damaged face. It still hurt, no matter how she looked at it. Changing the angle didn't help either. Worst of all, it reminded her of the time she flailed helplessly as Lucario rescued her. She was tired of being dependent on a jerk like him.
"I need to stay strong and find Larvitar." Aromatisse resolved and crossed the stream. She hopped from rock to rock cautiously. It required balance and Aromatisse at least got that.
She eventually got to the semi-final rock, there was only one obstacle ahead of her. The final rock got a sharp edge protruding out, jumping on it will hurt for sure. In addition, it looked pretty unstable. Aromatisse took a few deep breaths but didn't make that jump. Her body quivered in fear. No matter how she tried to convince herself, her body didn't listen. It wasn't used to a situation like this.
Five minutes left…
"Great job, minion. You carried me across that stream successfully. No one will get to us now." Larvitar said smugly.
"Indeed, there is no Lucario to mess up our plan. I doubt that even Bisharp will choose to cross it." Grovyle relaxed and sat down under the shade of a tree.
Four minutes left…
Aromatisee was still struggling in the same spot. She was petrified with fear. She was scared. She couldn't do it.
Therefore, nature forced her into action. A wave of water crashed against her rock. It was about to flip over. She had no choice other than to jump.
"Here goes nothing. Ah!" Aromatisse screamed as she made the courageous jump of faith and landed safely on the final rock. It wasn't that dangerous like Aromatisse imagined it to be. She hugged herself and checked her body for any injuries. There were none. The rock didn't stab her feet either. The fairy type smiled proudly at herself. She did it.
Three minutes left…
"Yeah, *beep* all of them. We don't need any of those losers." Grovyle swore.
"Minion, you got that right. Those losers don't understand us." Larvitar agreed.
There was a white flash covering their faces all of a sudden.
"What's that?" Grovyle squinted his eyes and looked around. His eyes widened once he saw Aromatisse running away.
"Larvitar, Aromatisse got your picture!" Grovyle alerted.
"Get her, minion!" Larvitar commanded and Grovyle ran after her.
Aromatisse stopped near the stream once again, hesitating to do it twice.
"I won't let you ruin everything!" Grovyle pressured her from behind.
"Here we go again." Aromatisse forced her dainty legs to work. She jumped again, faster this time. However, Grovyle was faster. The gap between them lessened and lessened.
"Just a bit more." Aromatisse encouraged herself, pushing herself for the last stretch. Successfully, she made it across for the second time. Unfortunately, Grovyle grabbed her shoulders.
"Let go." Aromatisse growled.
"No way, I need Larvitar to win." Grovyle kept a tight grip on her.
"I warn you…" Aromatisse prompted, performing a backward kick to his groin area. She hit the sensitive spot…
Grovyle held his groin, face twitching and howled in pain as he fell backward into the stream.
"That's for Jumpluff and Dedenne." Aromatisse said, satisfied with her revenge after she heard everything in Loser Island from Tyrunt. She hurriedly went back to Skarmory and showed the picture. She made it just in time.
Confessional
Larvitar: "My minion sucks balls. Whatever, I save the best chance card for last."
Grovyle: His groin was still burning painfully. "That really hurts…"
Aromatisse: "Come on, Aromatisse. You can do it. You are this close to immunity."
Bisharp: "Aromatisse won? Perhaps, this is a rise of a new threat. I must be careful proceeding further in the merge."
Drifblim: "Interesting, Aromatisse isn't some dumb and pathetic fashionista or a valley girl archetype after all."
Back to the berry garden entrance…
Larvitar spun the wheel once again. It landed on yellow this time.
"I hope this one is good, Skarmory." Larvitar expected, crossing his arms like an ungrateful, petulant child.
"Did Meowstic get revenge? Did Skrelp get revenge? God, you are very ungrateful. Be thankful for once." Skarmory said, infuriated.
Chef Drapion appeared with a wooden stick and a pair of yellow boots. The boots looked slippery due to soaps being attached underneath.
"This punishment is called 'Slapstick'. Put the boots on Larvitar, you can hit the contestants as much as you like." Skarmory feigned to give him a real punishment. Drifblim snickered a little when she saw the boots. The other contestants showed similar reactions as well. However, they kept quiet so Larvitar wouldn't suspect anything.
"Awesome, this is what I want. *beep* yeah!" Larvitar seemed satisfied as he put the boots on and grabbed the stick.
However, as he made his way to the contestants, he slipped and fell backward. He even accidentally slapped himself with the stick.
"What the hell?" Larvitar tried to get up again, only to slip, fall and slap himself. Skarmory, Chef Drapion and the presented contestants all laughed at him.
"Hey, don't laugh." Larvitar's face was reddened in embarrassment. He kept slipping and hitting his own face, what a laughing stock.
Confessional
Miltank: "That little brat got what he deserved after calling me fat."
Farfetch'd: "Mr. Stalk can also do slapstick." Farfetch'd faked slipping and hitting his own face with Mr. Stalk.
Larvitar: "This is so unfair! *beep* Skarmory!" As he was about to exit the confessional, he slipped and fell again even though he already removed the boots. (Goodness, take care of your health, Larvitar.)
Skarmory led all of the contestants to the swimming pool, the final area of the challenge. Sixteen Pokemon were presented as spectators with the exclusion of Grovyle, who was recovering in the infirmary. They all sat on benches to the side, anticipating the final challenge.
The swimming pool was currently empty with an artificial cylinder island in the middle. The top of the cylinder was yellow and big enough for a fight to take place. There were two tubes attached to the ceiling, above the swimming pool. One on the far left and one on the far right.
Skarmory appeared alongside Aromatisse and Larvitar, the contenders for the challenge. He started explaining right away.
"Remember when I said that the duel games have three rounds? Well, this is the third round that I promised to showcase sometime in the future. The rule is simple, knock your opponent off the cylinder island and win. Moves prohibited. Any questions?" Skarmory asked the two.
Aromatisse shook her head and breathed in deeply, preparing herself mentally.
Larvitar only flexed his non-existent muscles, showing off. Some of the spectators rolled their eyes at this.
"Alright, head up the island." Skarmory ordered. The two eventually got into their positions, climbing up the island wasn't difficult as there were small steps attached below.
Skarmory clapped his wings together and suddenly mud descended down from the tubes, filling the pool. Aromatisse watched in horror as she was surrounded by the dirty substance. Larvitar only grinned overconfidently. The spectators were all surprised by this twist.
"If you lose, you will probably need a long shower." Skarmory added.
"Disgusting." Aromatisse commented as she looked at the smelly, stinking mud.
"Prepare to lose, you pathetic, ugly weakling." Larvitar insulted with a mocking smile. The spectators glared at him. Aromatisse looked a bit disheartened by the insult, especially the 'ugly' part. However, she was astonished when so many contestants encouraged and supported her.
"You can do this, Aromatisse. I believe in you!" Ledyba cheered.
"Yeah, girl power!" Cryogonal cheered as well.
"It is highly likely that you will win if you remain confident." Duosion stated.
"Just get this over with already so I can do something productive." Shedinja drawled.
"Don't let his pathetic insults get to you." Scolipede helped.
"Beat him fair and square." Dedenne reminded.
"Show him, homie!" Darmanitan clapped.
"Destroy Larvitar. I hate him." Nosepass joined in.
"Crush that little loser." Miltank raised her fist.
"Close his business down." Meowth supported her as well.
"Show me how stronger you have become after the pre-merge elimination." Drifblim said, her eyes were fanatic. She wanted to analyze Aromatisse.
"Mr. Stalk wants you to win." Farfetch'd told. "I want you to win, too." He added.
"Try your best with all of your vigor, effort and determination." Bisharp smiled slightly at her.
"Break a leg." Heracross used an informal term. Aromatisse and some of the spectators stared at her.
"Don't you all get it? It has a positive meaning." Heracross clarified, shaking her hands a little. The contestants soon understood.
"Thank you, everyone." Aromatisse teared up a bit with joy. "Thank you so much."
Rhyhorn stayed silent but observant as usual. His eyes didn't budge from the scene, his ears were widely opened and attentive.
Lucario folded his arms, staring at her in a cold and analytical manner. He wanted to see how strong she became.
Larvitar fumed and seethed at their reactions, he hated it. Why didn't they cheer for him? He didn't understand.
Skarmory started the countdown. "In three, two, one, start!" He blew a whistle and Aromatisse got into a defensive position, eyeing Larvitar's movements.
Larvitar immediately took his last chance card out:
Eternal Blindness- You can blind a single contestant for the entirety of a minigame.
"Prepare to lose!" Larvitar yelled out. Aromatisse gaped at the effect of the card. It was devastating. How is she supposed to win when she can't see?
Skarmory flew to the island and gave Aromatisse a blindfold. The fairy type reluctantly put it on before the game resumed.
"I can do this, I can do this…" Aromatisse repeated under her breath. Larvitar walked behind her, preparing to attack.
Cryogonal wanted to warn her but Skarmory gave a disapproving look, removing any unfair ideas.
Larvitar shoved her and she fell down on the island, luckily.
"Ugh." Aromatisse tried to get up but Larvitar kicked her on the back, sending her tumbling down again.
"You are just a weak girl. Give up now, you can't beat a strong and talented man like me." Larvitar degraded her, trying to assert his non-existent superiority.
Aromatisse rolled to the side, avoiding another kick before she got up and stood properly. She waved her arms around, trying to sense where Larvitar was. However, Larvitar only circled to her back and pushed her down again.
"Pathetic." Larvitar mocked her futile attempt.
Aromatisse got up again, frowning at her incompetence. "This is impossible. I can't beat someone while blindfolded. My face, it will get tainted by the mud for sure." She lost her confidence. The spectators started to feel nervous as the battle favored Larvitar.
"Haha, see. All you got is your look. Now that you are ugly, you got nothing. Your beauty is meaningless." Larvitar continued to offend her, he wanted her to just give up and jump off. The bully wanted that kind of humiliating defeat for her.
"My beauty is meaningless?" Aromatisse contemplated.
Throughout her entire life, she was always an artistic girl. Many praised her for being beautiful and creative. That was why she loathed sports, physical activities or anything that would get her dirty. She was scared that no one will appreciate her beauty anymore if she gets involved in those kinds of activities. She was also scared of injuries and pain in general as well.
Does beauty mean anything in life? It is her passion and sure she can get a job with it but it is frowned upon by many. Beauty is just a superficial concept to them, having a great appearance won't do you any good if you aren't smart or strong enough to survive in this world. However, she also realized what beauty is capable of.
Aromatisse once won in a beauty contest. During that time, she saw the joyful tears of her family and friends. She realized just then that art, appearance and elusive tricks of visible perceptions can invoke great joy and bliss. Just like music, it can't be described. Rather, you need to experience it for yourself. It isn't useless! Beauty can be equal to brawn and brain!
Larvitar pushed her down again.
"Are you going to give up yet?" Larvitar asked, tired of toying with her.
"No!" Aromatisse shouted with sheer resilience and resolution. She recovered from the ground quickly.
Larvitar sneered and went in for the finishing blow. He dashed to her back and prepared for a final push until Aromatisse dodged it by side stepping away.
"How? Gah, you just got lucky." Larvitar said, frustrated. He tried to attack from the side this time. However, Aromatisse turned around to face him and grabbed both of his arms.
"How is this possible?" Larvitar asked in disbelief.
"Your footsteps, I hear them. I listen to heel cracks and many sounds that a shoe can make. Sometimes, even Pokemon feet in general as well. Watching fashion shows isn't useless after all. It was tough at first because I didn't remember the sound of your footsteps precisely. Now, it's over!" Aromatisse spun around and threw Larvitar off the edge.
"No!" Larvitar screamed as he drowned in the mud.
The spectators applauded and cheered loudly. Even Lucario clapped for her, albeit with less enthusiasm than most. Aromatisse lifted the blindfold off and bowed to the crowd, accepting the applause jubilantly.
"Aromatisse, you are the second winner of individual immunity." Skarmory made it official.
Confessional
Aromatisse: "I did it! I did it! This feels so surreal."
Nosepass: "Take that, Larvitar. I will beat you personally myself someday as well."
Lucario: "She has proven herself but that means nothing if she isn't my teammate."
Meowth: "Exceptional performance. Bravo, Aromatisse. Maybe, I will hire you."
Cryogonal: "I'm happy for her. Larvitar, how does it feel to lose to a 'weak and pathetic girl' now?"
Before the elimination ceremony, things were pretty quiet. Everyone already knew who to vote for. It shouldn't come off as a surprise. Grovyle even begged for Drifblim to save him only for her to reject and leave him alone. Grovyle got no one left. He looked down at himself in shame, not bothering to campaign any further.
Confessional
Grovyle: "Maybe, I should watch the show back at home and see what kind of Pokemon I truly am."
Farfetch'd met up with Bisharp in the forest area. The former was worried that Bisharp might plan any schemes to frame Grovyle.
"Don't worry, Farfetch'd. It was all an act. Yesterday and the days before as well. I need to keep it natural. In order to fool your enemies, you need to fool your friends. Remember, I'm a logician. I take most things into account." Bisharp assured.
"Wow, Mr. Stalk didn't even realize that." Farfetch'd admitted. "Anyways, hope that you are now happy. I have done my job, there is no longer a reason for me to stay close to you." Farfetch'd said before he turned to leave.
"Wait." Bisharp stopped him and Farfetch'd faced him again. "Maybe, we can be friends, you know? Jumpluff probably wants that. I can show you around the place." He offered.
Farfetch'd turned around, eyes drooping a little. "I'm sorry, Bisharp. I'm afraid that's impossible. Drifblim also already showed me everything." He rejected.
"Why? Is there any reason for you to isolate yourself in solitude? I can't comprehend it." Bisharp asked, trying to get a grip on the situation.
"There are two reasons. One, you might influence my vote and ruin the promise that I intend strongly to keep. Two, I already have Mr. Stalk. Adding an additional Pokemon to our little group is awkward. Please understand." Farfetch'd explained before he left.
Bisharp looked dejected as Farfetch'd walked away slowly. The steel type stared at his back as it slowly disappeared out of his sight.
Confessional
Bisharp: "I need some time to process everything."
Farfetch'd: "We are sorry, Bisharp."
The elimination ceremony began. Friends sat close together, like Aromatisse, Cryogonal, Ledyba, Duosion, Scolipede and Dedenne also recently joined the group. Meowth sat next to Darmanitan and Lucario. Miltank sat next to Heracross. Rhyhorn with Nosepass. Bisharp, Farfetch'd and Drifblim formed a little group. Although, it was a bit awkward. Shedinja surprisingly stayed above Cryogonal. Grovyle sat alone by himself. Larvitar as well, especially when he smelled like crap.
"Contestants, time for the usual elimination ceremony. I will start right away." Skarmory announced.
He gave the first Leppa Berry to Aromatisse, she got the biggest one.
"Farfetch'd"
"Drifblim"
"Darmanitan"
"Duosion"
"Dedenne" Skarmory got all the D's out of the way.
"Bisharp"
"Ledyba"
"Scolipede"
"Meowth"
"Rhyhorn"
"Nosepass"
"Cryogonal"
"Miltank"
"Heracross"
"Shedinja, someone really hates you but you are safe." Skarmory threw Shedinja the berry. The ghost bug seemed a little more enthusiastic to catch it than usual. Heracross averted her eyes.
"Lucario, you are arguably the biggest threat in this game. Pokemon either like or hate you." Skarmory observed his reaction. Lucario looked calm and confident. The host didn't see any point of dragging this elimination.
"Grovyle, you had a great early game but blew it up. You are eliminated." Skarmory revealed it out of the blue.
Grovyle quietly left to the confessional.
Elimination Confessional
Well, I'm very sorry to my fans. I messed up. If I'm given a chance to compete in season two, I want to perform better. Maybe last a bit longer and play a bit nicer, who knows? Who do I want to win? Dedenne, I feel very bad for her. I think I used her a bit. Oh, well. I guess I will leave now. All of you are probably sick of my face by now.
Grovyle left the confessional, he looked self-aware for once after today's events. He quietly left to the dock and boarded the Lapras.
"Minion, you suck. You are the reason why I lost!" Larvitar blamed him. Grovyle sighed.
"Grovyle, wait!" Dedenne was the only one to see him off.
"What?" Grovyle turned to face her slowly, overwhelmed by guilt.
"I still believe that there is little good left in you, you know?" Dedenne still had a tiny bit of faith and respect in him. "I don't understand why you ruined everything all of a sudden."
"Dedenne, maybe you don't really know me. I made it hard for anyone to know me. Maybe, because I don't really understand myself either. Sometimes, I act completely out of impulse, instinct and intuition. It is hard to explain. I-I…" Grovyle stuttered a bit. "Let's leave, Lapras." Grovyle cut the conversation short.
"Wait, what are you trying to say?" Dedenne called out to him but it was too late. Grovyle and Larvitar left. Dedenne frowned, returning back to the camp.
On the way to Loser Island...
"Minion, you suck." Larvitar poked Grovyle's face. "You are the worst."
Grovyle clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, he couldn't take it anymore.
"I'm not your minion! Give me the respect that I deserve after working hard for you!" Grovyle snapped. He angrily grabbed Larvitar and threw him off the Lapras. The bully got soaked.
"Help! Ah! I think I saw a Sharpedo!" Larvitar screamed but Grovyle plugged his ears.
Back to the dock, Skarmory ended the episode off.
"Well, Larvitar didn't get his revenge. Who could have expected that? Anyways, I'm tired of that thankless brat, I will probably not include him in the second season. A lot of things happened today and I'm sure tired. Too tired to talk about all of it. Let me talk about the future of this show instead. Next time, the challenge will take place outside the island once again. See you all in the next adventurous episode of Total Skarmory Island!"
Votes
Lucario: Grovyle
Darmanitan: Grovyle
Meowth: Grovyle
Drifblim: Grovyle
Bisharp: Grovyle
Farfetch'd: Grovyle
Duosion: Grovyle
Dedenne: Grovyle
Shedinja: Grovyle
Scolipede: Grovyle
Cryogonal: Grovyle
Aromatisse: Grovyle
Ledyba: Grovyle
Nosepass: Grovyle
Rhyhorn: Grovyle
Miltank: Grovyle
Heracross: Shedinja
Grovyle: Lucario
Grovyle: 16 (eliminated)
Shedinja: 1
Lucario: 1
Larvitar: Revenge Failed
Another fun fact, Grovyle is my favorite grass type. The Grovyle from PMD: Explorers of Sky is my childhood hero, actually. Unfortunately, I can't favor him. I guess I lied about not putting favorites in Total Skarmory Island. I couldn't help it. Not all villains are my favorite Pokemon though. I don't like Larvitar. That's why he is the laughing stock of this show.
Is this chapter unexpected? Did you really think that Bisharp acted that emotional genuinely? I write meticulously most of the time so every tiny detail is intentional. You can guess future events if you remember a lot.
What is your elimination list? I want to see how close you are.