Magmar and Electabuzz snickered to themselves and gave each other a handshake that the both of them knew by heart. The loudest two contestants on the show as of right now… were friendly toward each other.
"Nice play in the challenge, by the way." Magmar complimented. "I know we're trying to show we hate each other, but you were laying it on good there on that platform."
"Figured it had to look good. It was your idea about the rivalry in the first place, couldn't make it seem like I was pulling punches." The Electric-type laughed, with him leaning against a tree. "And, I wasn't that in danger tonight."
"Really?" Magmar thought about the challenge. "Oh, right. You actually put up a fight. You had Egg girl lose to a goddamn Magikarp… lemme guess, she went home?"
"Nah, the sleepy guy did."
That surprised Magmar a little bit. "Really? You canned him that fast? Would have kept him a bit, just to see if he could give a damn."
"Planned for future challenges, we might need Chansey in a little bit. She's far more nimble than the big guy."
"True." Magmar sat down on a tree stump and looked up to his compatriot. "So, you remember what we're here for?"
"Duh." Electabuzz would smack the tree with his fist, smiling. "We get to the final two, and one of us wins. Being on separate teams right now kind of screws that up…"
"I don't think so." Magmar smiled. "We're apart, so that leaves us less times to be around each other and give them suspicion. We meet like this every now and then, discuss tactics, then play the game like we did today."
"Yeah, I see your point." Electabuzz closed the distance between them. "So, how often we meet like this?"
"Every day is too risky. Give it like… every other challenge, unless we feel one of us is on the chopping block. If that happens, the other one can try and think of something before the ceremony to get the eyes off the other." Magmar stood up and fist bumped his friend.
"Got it. Remember what we're doing this for."
"How could I forget?" Magmar said, solemnly looking up to the sky.
000
Magmar looked thoughtful about something, and seemed to be in deep thought before realizing he was staring at a camera. "What, you think I'm snitchin' on the details? Nuh uh."
"...not yet. Maybe if you're good."
000
Electabuzz was the same way, but he at least mentioned something. "…let's just say we got real lucky when the both of us got accepted. Two chances at the prize… the other suckers don't need it."
000
Mew and Mewtwo awoke the next morning, and before they went to focus on their hosting duties or even the challenge, had to report to a production tent. The two Psychic-types got to a faraway tent, away from any contestant possibly finding them, and soon sat down in front of a screen.
"So… we have to do this every day?" Mew asked Mewtwo.
"Not from what I heard. It's simple check ins today, and if anything is needed to be discussed, we must report."
"Ever since we all formed these Overseers, it's been nothing but work." The tinier cat grumbled as he floated.
"It's to make sure we're doing our show's duties alongside our actual work. Be lucky we don't report to a higher power yet." Mewtwo advised, Mew shuddering.
"Yeah, I'd hate to have to report to-"
Mew snapped his mouth shut when the TV screen turned on, the Psychics looking to who was staring back at them on the screen. Three gigantic birds looked back at them, each of them controlling a different elemental power. They were Kanto's legendary birds.
"Articuno, Zapdos… Moltres." Mew introduced, seeing where they were. They were at a farther off location, what looked to be a more snow filled tundra.
"Let's not pretend to be pleasant, Mew, alright?" The fire bird snapped. "I'm not wanting to be in this frozen wasteland anymore than I have to."
A chuckle came from the bird of ice, Articuno snickering at Moltres. "Can't handle the cold, Molty?"
"Trust me, I can handle the cold. It's him I'm worried about." Moltres flipped a wing over to Zapdos, who was shivering at the mere mention of the word cold.
"HURRY IT UP!" The electric bird shouted, with the birds agreeing for his sake.
"We're just calling to relay that everything's been set up over here." Articuno spoke for the three of them. "When you're eventually needing to come over here, you won't have to wait long."
"Good to hear." Mew sighed. That cold ass place didn't sit well with a tiny Pokemon like him at all, he'd turn into an ice cube! "Now that that's done, what are you all doing during the show?"
"You think we're getting it easy with the one job?" Moltres fired back at Mew, with the cat smacking his face.
"No, dammit, I meant… do they have you guys doing anything else?"
Zapdos spoke up. "Yeah, preparing that one challenge down the line for your sorry ass." Mew groaned, he thought he and Zapdos were cool! "You have to report over here with us when it happens, but we're in charge of it."
"Eh… I can deal with that then." Mew shrugged, it potentially being much better than what it could have been.
"As for Mewtwo." Articuno added, the clone Pokemon perking up at his name. "You're stated you have to host a challenge by yourself at any point in the contest."
"I remember that clause, yes…" Mewtwo didn't sound too thrilled to be a future host, but he wasn't going to complain.
"They said as long as it wasn't the final challenge, yours can come whenever. Whether you get it out of the way immediately or wait on it is up to you." Articuno finished. "My advice would be to do it when Mew leaves for our challenge."
"I'll look into it." Mewtwo spoke a non-revealing answer, Articuno rolling her eyes before moving on.
"Lastly… the team wants an explanation for bringing an Alolan Sandshrew onto the show." Moltres spoke up, the other birds shaking their heads. Moltres thought it was because of him. "What? If that wasn't asked, they'd be on OUR ass!"
"It's not that." Articuno would dismiss. "We empathize with you on that, Mew, but… how did that get overlooked?"
"I don't know! Her interview had no mention as to her origin! I didn't see any of that until she docked on the coast!" Mew defended himself.
"I can vouch for him on that." Mewtwo spoke up, with Mew breathing a sigh of relief. "We only got files based off the competitors chosen. We'd rather not send her home off of a production error."
"Yeah, that'd look pretty bad for you guys." Zapdos laughed, the other birds casting him a look. "Oh, gimme a break, I'm freezing my ass off here!"
"If the both of you didn't see much… there's not really much that can be done." Moltres shook his head. "I'll give them that report then. Next time I see Arceus, I'll relay that to him."
Articuno looked in thought about that last comment, shaking out of her small stupor to look back to the camera. "With that taken care of, that's the most of it. Anything else you're expected of, someone else from the Overseers will communicate with you. Good luck boys." Articuno signed off with a smile, Zapdos' relief shout being the last thing the screen picked up before the call signed off.
The Psychics shared a look with each other before Mewtwo stood up. "This should be an interesting season. I'll try and give you an idea on when I should host."
"You're telling me…" Mew shook his head. The Overseers planning this extensive series of games sounded like fun when he first took on the responsibility, but now he wanted to kick himself for thinking it'd be this easy. "I should get the rest of the challenge done today."
"Need help?" Mewtwo asked, before Mew chuckled.
"Nah, this one should be good. I'm striving for agonizingly simple today." he smirked, floating out of the tent.
000
"So, what next?"
Meowth didn't think he'd be startled by the Balloon Pokemon this early in the morning, but he could at least deal with it. He had simply walked out of the cabin and got ambushed by the girl. "What do you mean, what's next?"
"Well… last night, after you helped me." Jigglypuff leaned against the railing of the stairs and looked back to him. "I know I have to pay you back."
"I'm not looking for that deal to be paid back right away." Meowth grumbled, shushing her. "And keep your voice down. If people hear that there's deals already being made, that's a target on my back that I don't want yet."
Jigglypuff lowered her voice after that, before asking the cat to follow her into the empty clearing in front of the cabins. Meowth sighed, but followed her anyway. "I wasn't suggesting I do it right away… I just wanted to know the plan on if we lose again, how should I help you?"
"No plans yet. Ideas like that are purely situational. Someone screws up in a challenge? Possible vote. Someone wrongs me? Another possibility. Planning ten steps ahead is impossible right now." What was the deal with this girl? She seemed like she was jumping the gun as hard as she could to pay him back!
"Alright… I'll maybe keep an eye out for anything like that."
"No offense toots, but you do know that it's only one vote, right? You're acting as if we're working together in some sort of-" Meowth got interrupted as she spun around, smiling sweetly.
"Alliance?" she finished his sentence, and when it seemed like she got it right, she continued. "Call it eagerness, or a drive for me to pay back a debt. I don't like owing people favors for long periods of time. I want to make sure I'm always able to provide the same bit of help back that I got in exchange."
"Right… well, just… stay posted. Until then, I dunno, make some friends or something." Meowth went to break away but Jigglypuff called out as he stepped away.
"You too!" her sweet voice replied, which caused the Scratch Cat to groan.
000
"Nah, I don't do friends. In a game like this, acquaintances serve the same purpose, and don't cut into my game too hard if they're cut." Meowth then huffed as he sat up straight. "The nerve of that gal! Leading me around like we're partners in some damn alliance…"
"I'm almost impressed." he couldn't help but smirk just a little bit at how absurd it was to him.
000
Bulbasaur was currently hanging on a tree branch with his vines, similar to how Machoke would look if he was doing pull-ups. It looked a bit outlandish as his entire body was suspended in mid-air from this position, him facing Geodude.
"First, we gotta work on some good vine control." Geodude pushed off of the ground and grabbed onto the same branch. "You're doing good already, but someone of your kind should be using them like a sixth sense."
"And… pull-ups is how that happens?" Bulbasaur asked as he still remained suspended, swaying side to side as he looked over to Geodude.
"It helps you get a good sense over what you're capable of. Say you're knocked off a cliff, those vines can come in a pinch and make sure you don't fall. Less drastic examples… grabbing something from far away, or a good defensive tactic for incoming threats." Geodude pulled up a bit, and hung from one hand. "People won't get one over on you if they know you're capable of messing them up."
"Huh… yeah, I think I get it now." The Grass-type nodded and tried to pull himself up. He strained a little bit, but he was at least able to start raising altitude. It'd take a bit before he got to easily pulling himself around like some spider. And besides, if he eventually became a Venusaur… some of this wouldn't even be possible anymore.
The dual-type then asked a question as he attempted another pull. "So… why are you wanting to help me this much?"
Geodude looked caught off guard from such a blunt question. "What?"
"I mean… aside from me pulling you around a bit when I offered, we don't really have all that much in common. You just sort of… asked to work together with me. What about me made you pick me?"
Geodude adjusted on the branch and looked rather thoughtful to that question. Geodude knew why, of course… but was he wanting to drop that reason onto Bulbasaur when they barely knew each other for more than just one challenge?
No, he'd keep it light for the kid, maybe down the line he'd let him know. "I just… see a lot of me in you, and it reminded me of some stuff. Wanna make sure you're prepared for anything, the same way I wished someone would have reminded me."
"So… you want to be a mentor, for someone like you? When you didn't have one?" Bulbasaur stopped pulling and looked up to Geodude, who had moved onto a nearby branch to hang from.
"…in a way, yeah. Don't trouble yourself too much about it though, just know that I mean what I say here. I'm not gonna ditch you in the game and crush ya." Geodude promised, with Bulbasaur smiling.
"Alright. Although, if we do make it to the finals, that'd probably be the time I try to crush you." He joked, with Geodude laughing.
"Yeah kid? I'd like to see you try."
Before Bulbasaur could retort, the tree branch the starter was on had snapped from the weight and activity on it. Geodude watched as Bulbasaur hit the ground with a low groan, thankfully not having been that high up.
"I'm okay!"
000
"Geodude's probably got something he doesn't wanna tell me, and that's fine." Bulbasaur stated, shaking some grass and dirt off of him as he had recovered from the fall. "I can see him trying to help me means something to him, and I'm not wanting to break any trust by pressing for answers. I'm content with learning for now!"
000
Dragonair slithered across the island, thinking about the events of the game so far. She was thankful her team won the first challenge, but she was a bit upset about her portion. She went fairly late, and had lost to Dewgong.
She stopped in thought a bit when she thought of Dewgong. The Ice-type rubbed her the wrong way, and it wasn't just from the type advantage. The way she talked to her during the challenge made her feel that she was just being buddy-buddy to help her social game. She didn't believe this girl was being genuine.
And as if fate tempted her, she soon heard her. "Oh, Dragonair!"
Dewgong floated forward and smiled at her, the Dragon-type noticing it once more. "I just wanted to make sure the challenge didn't upset you. It might have came off as mocking you a bit, and I just wanted to make sure you didn't get that impression of me."
Dragonair would at least hear her out… it was surprising to her that she was self-aware of that, she figured it would have either slipped her mind or not called attention to it. "It was only one hiccup in a challenge. We're on opposite teams anyway, not like it matters too much to be nice with the enemy team."
Dewgong looked surprised at that comment, with her disagreeing. "You guys are still people, though. If I treat you guys like garbage, that wouldn't be nice. Later in the game, they'd treat me the same way."
Dragonair held back a comment she almost dropped. If Dewgong was generally nice… she didn't want to burn a bridge too fast. She still thought Dewgong was only saving face to be in good graces in the game, however. "I suppose you do have a point." She sighed and uncoiled a bit. "Don't worry about apologizing though, it truly was only a challenge."
Dewgong smiled at that. "Oh, I'm happy to hear that! I promise, something like that won't-"
"Hey, Dewgong!" a teammate called to her.
Dewgong perked up and turned around… only to hear a yelp behind her. She had tail slapped Dragonair on accident! She spun back around carefully and went to check on the slap she gave her. "O-oh gosh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean-"
Dragonair pushed the Ice-type away and shouted. "Ugh! I knew it! Just leave me be if you're here to toy with me!" she pushed past Dewgong with force, causing Dewgong to call out to her.
"It was an accident!" she called out, before pouting as she looked down. She had came here to apologize, and it just made things worse…
"… sooo, is this a bad time?"
Dewgong spun back around and saw that Haunter was looking at her. She didn't look like she was in the best of moods, something Haunter picked up on.
"I'll… come back later then." he left her be, the Ice-type sighing again as she left in another direction.
000
Haunter shrugged. "Wanted to let her know if she wanted my breakfast." he held up an apple, garnished with berries and a sauce. "Mewtwo… was creative today…"
000
"It's going to be a lot harder to get on her good side…" Dewgong pouted, upset from the events that befell her moments ago.
000
Koffing and Ekans were in the Mess Hall with a few other contestants, Koffing sitting farther away from some people. He didn't want to cause people any discomfort… story of his life, honestly.
Sure, the constant emissions help him when it comes to challenges, like causing Jigglypuff to literally throw herself off of the platform in her sleep, but he wanted to be sociable. He didn't have too many friends, the only ones back home being a Grimer. And with Grimer being unable to even touch most things due to being literally made out of poison, he wanted to make a friend that didn't have that much contact with it to begin with.
That, and someone who didn't mind getting into contact with it. So when Ekans slithered over to him with his plate, he perked up. "You don't look like a morning person." Koffing noted, with Ekans having two berry glazed apples on his plate when he sat down next to him.
"I'm not. Makes a sleep schedule a bitch to get used to." the snake huffed, taking a small bite from the apple. "Good job on the challenge, though. Knocking Fairy Girl off was creative."
"Didn't really… mean to." Koffing sighed, before Ekans caught wind of it.
"Alright, spill it." Ekans coiled up and turned his attention over to him.
"Spill what?"
"You've been sighing and moping since the show started, you don't look like you've been happy once. Why?"
Koffing figured it wouldn't hurt to tell him. Ekans, as a fellow Poison-type, would at least get it. "Well… I'd just rather not have the ability to knock out anyone I try to talk to, is all. This constant gas stuff is annoying…"
"Right, you guys do it a lot." Ekans nodded. "Met a Weezing a while ago, he was exhuming like a damn industrial fan."
"And I came here to socialize, since my life back home is rather… boring. But it's hard to socialize to any Rattata or Spearow that gets near me, since they'd rather not choke on bad air." Koffing held back a sigh, to not annoy Ekans with, but he looked upset at himself.
"Ever try covering those holes up?" Ekans asked, just curiously.
"Heh… funny idea." Koffing actually laughed! "If all of them plug up, I'd get bloated… and then my body would try to Self-Destruct without me doing it intentionally. Then I'd hurt everyone around me, and the plugs would come loose."
"Well… maybe you just plug a few? Specifically the ones that face people? Not enough for you to get all bloated and whatnot, but enough to where you don't gas anyone tryin' to talk to you."
Koffing looked at least a bit interested. "Hmm… that could maybe work… not sure how long I'd be able to go with them in, but I'd want to try something."
"Maybe after the challenge today, I'll help ya find some plugs. Maybe put them in too, since… the no hand thing." Ekans offered.
"Right…" Ekans having a tail would be better than Koffing pushing himself into a plug. "You think there's a challenge today?"
"I think they wanna get some stuff done quick. I saw Mew floating around and getting stuff together."
"Oh right, they said this was the first season of something big… wonder what that means?"
Ekans scoffed and went back to eating. "Whatever it is, I could care less."
At the same time, there was a crowd around Lickitung. On his plate was about ten stacked apples, and the crowd consisted of people like Sandshrew, Poliwag, Paras, Tangela and Magikarp. Magikarp was the only one who didn't wish to be there, but the girls had accidentally surrounded him in their attempt to watch Lickitung.
Lickitung looked bashful at the attention. "So you just want me to eat them all? Not that I'm against it, but what's the crowd for?" He directed his question to Poliwag.
"Well, to be honest… I just wanted to be the one to start a chant." She giggled. "I wanna know the feeling when you start a chant and others pick it up."
Sandshrew voiced her honest opinion. "I… wanted to see if you were able to do it. N-not to say I expect you to, of course! J-just, that… I've never seen such a thing."
Lickitung laughed the concern off. "No worries, I don't get offended too easily. I'm a big boy, I can stuff some apples in my mouth with no sweat!"
"I wanted to leave…" Magikarp muttered under his breath, a shush from Paras and Tangela quieting him down.
Lickitung got ready at the plate, and rubbed his hands together.
"And… GO!" Tangela shouted, with a very quick chant of "EAT!" starting at the hands of Poliwag. The chant lasted longer than the Pokemon's eating, as he showed he could eat all ten of them at once with one flick of his tongue to wrap them all up!
000
Ekans looked queasy. "That's… a lot of apples going to the stomach… at once…"
000
Paras was writing something down on a small notepad below her. "Current record: Ten Apples… need more information to see if record can be broken."
000
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, THEY RAN OUT OF BREAKFAST?! WHAT THE HELL AM I GONNA EAT?!" Electabuzz, who had missed Lickitung's feat, stormed around angrily in the box. He left with an angry shout, the camera on the door panning outside to see a confused Chansey.
000
"CAMPERS!" Mew's voice rang out throughout the island. "REPORT TO THE NEXT SMOKE TRAIL, IT'S TIME FOR YOUR NEXT CHALLENGE!"
Machoke had just finished push-ups and leapt to his feet, before seeing a cocky Beedrill float past him. "Got lucky in the challenge, bee. I'll take you down soon enough."
Beedrill stopped just long enough to laugh at him. "If today's like the last challenge, I'd love to see you try. I'm done talking though, keep a conversation with your muscles if you're looking for banter."
And just like that, the bee left without further taunting. Machoke looked gobsmacked that she just fired back like that and left… it wasn't as fun without the cocky talk!
"Talk to your muscles… who does she think she is…" he muttered, before looking to his right arm. "Who does she think she is making fun of these guns?" he flexed his arm as if for it to respond to him, and he nodded.
"That's what I'm saying! She's gonna-" he looked up and saw a confused Chansey staring back at him. He coughed and spun on his heels, heading off to the challenge site without another word.
000
Chansey blinked twice. "I'm not going to judge, but it's a bit alarming when I was on the chopping block the other night after the stuff I've seen today…"
000
The two teams met up with the hosts, Mewtwo putting out the fire that caused the smoke trail. Farfetch'd remained silent about Mewtwo putting the fire out, but he was rather thankful they did that.
He wasn't sure how many caught on to the same thing he did, but it was a very nice way for the campers to be familiarized to the island's topography. If he ever had to come back here later, he'd have an easier time remembering. He spoke up for Mew. "Is this the site for the challenge?"
"Technically right, my feathered friend." Mew nodded, Farfetch'd looking confused at the answer. Mew didn't wait for long to explain. "Today is another challenge, this time testing your overall teamwork with your fellow members. Everyone, look to Mewtwo."
The cast did just that, but they had been able to see two X's around Mewtwo on his left and right. One of them was red, the other blue. "This looks like we have to dig something up." Poliwag asked, looking up to Mew.
"That's where you'd be wrong. Instead, you'll be burying something." Mew corrected, with Magmar speaking up.
"So… what are we burying then?"
"I was getting to it!" Mew whined, Electabuzz chortling from that alone. They had to keep up appearances after all. After Magmar flipped the bird to the Electric-type, Mew continued. "On the island, there will be a red and blue treasure chest for you to find. When they're found, the red chest has to be brought back to the red X. Blue chest, blue X."
He flew over to the X's, hovering over Mewtwo. "Then, once they're here, the teams have to bury them. The chests have to be fully buried, not one inch of it being visible. Once a chest is completely buried, that's when the challenge is over."
"A race to bury treasure rather than dig it up? Huh, that's actually creative…" Dragonair noted, the Legendary basking in the praise.
"Are there any tools to dig with?" Ekans spoke up, and those without arms or legs looked just as curious to that question.
"There are, scattered throughout the island." Mew nodded. "Couple rules on that though. One, no using them as weapons. If I see a shovel get swung, that's gonna be a nasty penalty."
"Drat…" Beedrill huffed about the weapons, Tangela and Sandshrew taking one step away from her out of concern to their safety.
"You CAN however, use moves for fighting. Say someone's trying to knock away your chest, or just cost you some crucial time? Moves against other players is allowed."
"I like the sound of that!" Magmar would punch his fist with excitement.
"Second, once the chest is found, it must be physically carried to the X. No using any powers to help alleviate a workload. And seeing as how there's no Psychic-types other than me and Mewtwo here, it shouldn't apply to many people here."
Machoke could get by that. After all, muscle was his forte, he'd be a cinch for their victory today!
"Lastly, chests must be buried traditionally. No phasing it through the ground, or throwing it in the water around the island. The X must be dug up and reburied. Oh, and no peeking into the chests. If one opens, automatic loss." Mew dropped. For a simple challenge, this certainly had a lot of rules.
And he wasn't done there, as Mew then got a sinister smile on his face. "Actually… let's spice things up. Before we begin, each team has to leave a team member at the X!"
There was a collection of groans, as that hadn't been a factor in any of the contestant's strategies! "Why? Shouldn't we all be able to look?" Asked Paras, who wasn't wanting to stay behind.
"Because I'm getting devious, hush." Mew shushed and tapped his chin. "The people that stay behind are then responsible for digging!"
That… made things a bit more difficult than just a group treasure hunt. One Pokemon had to do the act of digging and burying by themselves? "And… when you mean-" Started Dewgong, only for Mew to finish.
"Responsible for digging, that means they're the only ones who are allowed to dig." Mew answered, and watched the rest of the contestants take that information in. "You get three minutes to decide who's staying behind."
000
"Not me." Machoke would say outright.
"But, you'd be phenomenal when it comes to digging, you'd be throwing that dirt around like no one's business!" Poliwag tried to reason, before Koffing spoke.
"He'd probably be better lugging the chest, though. Not many of us have that ability to physically move the chest, at least effectively." The ball reasoned, with the snake nodding.
"Yeah, I'm more suited lugging than digging." Machoke crossed his arms, before looking at the rock on the team. "Geo-bro, how about you?"
Geodude was a bit surprised at the random nickname he was given, before he cleared his throat. "I mean… I probably wouldn't have too much trouble, but I wouldn't have that much advantage. I'm not that big, and any tool they'd give me would probably take me a bit longer to use."
Lickitung, fresh off of his apple breakfast, would raise his hand. "Actually… I don't mind staying back. My overall strength isn't as good as Machoke's, but I could probably dig better than move that chest."
"He's got the body to do it, too." Dragonair stated, slithering over to see his posture. "I believe he just might be our only available pick."
Machoke spoke over the Normal-type's yelps of Dragonair slithering around him. "So, Lickitung's on duty for digging, everyone else is searching. Get ready."
000
Magikarp would not flop around, instead staying still and giving the camera an eye. "Machoke's got a sense of leadership on him… just a shame he's a bit rough around the edges. Although, he's in a much better sense to lead than I am." He flopped once for effect.
000
"You." Beedrill pointed immediately to Sandshrew. "You're digging."
"W-what? Why me?" Sandshrew asked, not whining but rather… scared at what Beedrill might have had planned.
The bee shook her head and pointed to the X. "Your species is known for digging. You can do it better than their only Rock-type."
"B-but… I-i don't exactly, um…" Sandshrew stammered out, with someone speaking over Beedrill to prevent her from getting nervous any further.
"Calm down dear." Chansey got between them and gently consoled the shrew. "You don't what?" she calmly asked, repeating Beedrill's question.
"I um… don't know… how to dig that well." Sandshrew admitted, the bee shouting in fury.
"WHAT?!"
"I'm an Ice-type!" Sandshrew defended herself, holding her arms out. "I-i haven't had the need to do it a lot!"
Beedrill, fuming, would buzz beside Chansey and gesture to the ground anyway. "You're learning how then, no one else has a good shot."
"Beedrill, don't you think you're being a bit hard on the girl?" Jigglypuff asked, trying to assist in the shrew's plight. "Cut her some slack, I-"
"We're down a member!" Beedrill shouted. "Any further slack is going to get us further behind the other team! And I'm not going to be leading a sinking ship to it's demise!" She firmly grabbed the shrew by the wrist, thankfully not hurting her, and led her to the X.
"Hey, cut it out!" Tangela tried to step forward, before Chansey held her back from their team getting further derailed.
Meowth watched all of that with genuine interest, keeping silent for now.
000
Meowth crossed his arms. "Boom. Opportunity." he smirked, chuckling right after. "I hope Balloon is catching on to this. If we win, Sandshrew gets some new confidence and we get a win under our belt. If we lose… Beedrill has a target on her back."
00o
Chansey shook her head, feeling upset about what had happened. "I'm a firm believer in not forcing people into doing anything they don't want to do… but we had ran out of time to discuss things right when Beedrill did that. I hope the poor girl can find the spirit to dig in time."
000
Mew witnessed both discussions with an excited grin. He would then float into the sky with Mewtwo. "If that's all the questions… the challenge begins NOW!"
The 19 searching contestants ran off at a staggered rate, some surprised from the sudden start but others already breaking off to find their team's chest. Lickitung and Sandshrew had remained by their X's, Lickitung seemingly neutral about today's challenge while Sandshrew was sweating bullets.
000
"A race to bury treasure." Haunter chuckled. "Wonder if this place even has treasure to begin with…"
000
Both teams got it into their head pretty quickly that breaking off into more groups helped their chances of winning. Team Red made sure they'd let Machoke know the moment someone found the chest, as he was the muscle for the team right now. Magmar could potentially help, but it was a benefit for the Fighting-type to be at the forefront.
As for Team Blue, there would most likely have to be a team effort in moving their chest. As much as Beedrill's sudden leadership annoyed her team, they couldn't deny she had a good chance in lifting the majority of the weight. Other than that, Electabuzz and Chansey might be helping the most… Meowth being a last resort.
Poliwag and Paras were a group together, walking along the beaches of the island to try and find if the treasure was "washed ashore" as Poliwag referred to it.
"This was where I landed last challenge, so I'm not sure if they hid something new here." Poliwag told Paras. Paras recalled the sight of Poliwag flying through the air after Snorlax tried to step on the platform.
The small cicada shuddered, as if she took the flight herself. "It was a good idea to come here nonetheless. If we're looking for standard treasure chests, it being on the sand was the first thing to come to my mind."
Poliwag bounced alongside Paras, the tadpole taking note of the mushrooms on her back. Nothing really to say about them, they just caught her attention. "And since they can't be in the water to begin with… putting them on the sand would probably be where they'd hide them anyway. Not a lot of people would check directly next to the water, right?"
"I don't think simple-minded Pokemon like…" she snorted this next part. "Machoke, would, but I wouldn't put it past them."
Poliwag gave a small giggle. "I haven't seen too much of him, but I think he's a bit cute." she revealed, with Paras not sharing the same reaction.
"As much as he can help this challenge, I don't like his approach. He looks as if he'd get out of most situations from his strength than thinking things through."
"You can't really judge that as of right now, though… can you? It's still way too early to tell what people are really like." Poliwag asked, with Paras hesitating on an answer.
"Trust me… boys like him, they're just all about their strength. Give them any tests to their brain, and they fall apart." She said, walking a bit faster.
"H-hey, wait! We're passing where I landed!"
000
"It's not my fault I think this way!" Paras defended herself. "Once, I got paired with a Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee for one of my school finals, and my grade completely tanked! All they did was talk about upcoming battles and girls! I would have taken sole credit for the final myself, but I wasn't allowed to do that, apparently!"
She crossed her pincers and grumbled. "Would it kill for there to be a smart boy on one of these things…"
000
"I mean… I see where she could be coming from, but I think it's a bit early to put expectations on people." Poliwag said, swaying on the seat. "And besides…"
She lost her train of thought and closed her eyes… thinking about Machoke? "Such yummy muscles~" she then snapped awake, her blue face sporting a bit of a rosy tint.
"G-gotta go!" She ran out with speed, blasting the door open and it panning to the outside again. The camera picked up a confused Chansey once again, who had quickly went right back to the challenge at hand.
000
"So, when you came in, I turned around and accidentally smacked her in the face." Dewgong explained to her travel partner, Haunter. "That was like… right after I had apologized for the last challenge."
"Ah, I get it now… explains why you were all mopey." Haunter floated along with her, who both settled on looking around their cabins. He then looked slightly confused. "Wait, why were you apologizing? You won the challenge over her… you weren't apologizing for winning, right?" He wasn't going to tell her what she could or couldn't feel sorry for… just the thought of saying sorry for winning felt odd to him.
"N-no!" Dewgong shook her head. "We talked before we fought, and I thought she thought it had come off as taunting. I wanted to apologize if she got that misconception, and she seemingly didn't mind it… a-and then I went and hit her in the face."
"Which was on accident." Haunter added. "I'm not really one to care about what people think about me too often, but… I take it you don't feel the same way."
"I-i mean… i-if someone doesn't like me, I'd want to know if it's something I can work on?" Dewgong awkwardly admitted. Haunter sighed and shook his phantom head.
"My advice? Try not to sweat about stuff like that. If you're going around, changing your behavior just to not piss people off, you're gonna overwork yourself with all that worry. Just be yourself, and if people don't like it… they don't like it." He then turned back around to try and float faster for the chest.
Dewgong took a minute to think on those words. She had heard them a lot growing up, but… it was always hard to really be that way. She liked being nice to people, she hated if anyone was uncomfortable around her. "Be myself…? B-but what if…" she started to say, before she looked up and saw Haunter had moved on ahead to the Mess Hall. She yelped and floated off after him.
000
"Everyone got a partner… so how the hell did I end up with you?" Machoke asked his partner.
Team Red had eleven people, ten searching since Lickitung was left behind. Poliwag and Paras were with each other, and he saw Geodude leave with Bulbasaur when they broke apart. Koffing and Ekans were also a group he saw… so he thought he'd get someone a little useful, maybe like Magmar.
Nope. Magikarp. "I take enough shit to begin with, alright?" Magikarp fired back. He was currently being held by the Fighting-type as he walked through the forest, the red fish not taking his guff sitting down. "Besides, when the eventual water challenge comes around, you'll see I'm not that useless."
"If it comes around." Machoke didn't seem that bothered, which only annoyed the fish slightly. "Haven't seen anything sticking out then, have you?"
"No… but see that river over there?" he asked, Machoke soon seeing the body of water. "Let me down in there, I can travel down stream and cover a lot of the island like that."
Machoke was impressed he could come up with a strategy. "Not bad, fish." Machoke walked up to the river and dropped the fish into it, Magikarp soon coming back up and looking up to the brute.
"If I find it, I'll make a trail and find a teammate." He stated, Machoke unsure on how he'd leave a trail… he'd also feel worried that an opposing team member could find that trail and mess with their chest.
Machoke though, didn't voice it. "Sounds good to me. I'm going further in." Machoke, now that he wasn't holding the fish, sprinted off into the forest to find the chest. Magikarp rolled his eyes before he submerged himself and went down the stream like he had mentioned.
000
"You caught that too, right? How Beedrill just made Sandshrew stay behind like that?" Jigglypuff asked her travel partner, Meowth.
The cat however, wanted to bang his head against the ground as they traveled the small mountain of the island. Meowth knew this game was going to have strategy, but this girl wouldn't stop talking about strategy! Who to vote for, who to be wary against… just this walk alone, she mentioned Beedrill like five times!
At least he called it in the confessional. "Yes… I saw it." he pinched his nose and turned to the balloon, walking backwards. "Alright, doll, I gotta ask."
"Hmm? What's wrong?" Jigglypuff's eyes met him, and they didn't leave his as they walked like this.
"I mentioned earlier that you're treating this like some alliance. All because of a small favor you asked me, that honestly didn't do much for you anyway." He began. "You weren't gonna go home, even if you didn't ask me to help."
"And…?" Jigglypuff wasn't following along.
"So, favor or not, why are you around me this much? We seem to be on the right page about this being a temporary alliance until you help me vote someone, but you're treating this… very long-term." The more he talked, the more he thought Jigglypuff was impressed with his backwards walking ability.
"I think you're thinking about it all wrong." Jigglypuff smiled back, Meowth feeling… odd. "It's not that bad. You're essentially getting a second vote, and at the very least, an ally who's trying to be dependable. It's like you… want to be alone."
"I didn't say that." Meowth stated, maybe a bit too quickly for his liking. His walking increased, him noting they were going uphill now from the incline.
Jigglypuff caught that sudden reply… but she didn't speak on it. "Just… maybe take a second to realize the hand you have, yeah? I'm not really wanting to play the game for the money."
"What?" Meowth asked, and before he could ask further, Jigglypuff broke the conversation.
"Meowth, look out!"
Meowth couldn't turn around in time, and his heel hooked a protruding object from the ground. He fell backwards, and the weird angle of the hill made him fall down the mountain a bit. Jigglypuff winced from every grunt the cat made on the way down, looking down to him at the very bottom of the cliff.
The Normal-type groaned on the ground, but showed he was okay with a thumbs up. Jigglypuff sighed with relief, turning around to see what he tripped on.
"Wait, this is-"
"AND TEAM BLUE HAS FOUND THEIR CHEST, SPECIFICALLY JIGGLYPUFF AND MEOWTH!" Mew announced over the intercoms of the island. "CAN THEY GET IT TO THE X, OR WILL TEAM RED INTERFERE?"
"...shit." Jigglypuff cursed, a bit unladylike as she tried to pull it from the ground.
000
"Not playing for the money… then what the HELL is she playing for?!" Meowth shouted, feeling like he had even more questions now around the mysterious Balloon wanting to be his ally.
000
Magmar grinned. "You know, Mew said if their chest were opened, their team would lose… he said nothing about forcefully opening the other team's chest."
000
The announcement of Team Blue finding the chest put some vigor into their searches, now trying to find Jigglypuff and Meowth in order to protect the chest. At the same time, the announcement made Sandshrew extremely nervous.
Lickitung noticed this as they were sitting by their X's. "Hey, you okay?" he turned to face the Ice-type, with her looking jumpy.
"H-huh? O-oh… n-not really, no." She admitted, rubbing her shoulder. "Digging… worries me. My family doesn't do it like other Sandshrew and Sandslash, I still practice Alolan customs back home."
"Oh, yeah." Lickitung looked like he had just remembered she was Alolan.
"You… forgot?"
"Hey, I was the last to arrive on the island, gimme a break. I missed a lot of introductions." he chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. Thankfully, it worked.
"Heh… right, you were." She had forgotten there were people that landed after her, in all honesty.
"Anyway… if Alolan Sandshrew don't dig, then what do they do?" he asked, honestly curious about her lifestyle.
"Oh, well… instead of sand and deserts, we… find icy places. Burrowing in ice, and all that. It's um… hard to do that, in Kanto." she awkwardly admitted.
"Yeah, there's not a lot of cold places. You'd have to move on over to Johto, I think. Mt. Silver is probably the closest cold place."
"...why are you being nice to me?" Sandshrew's question surprised Lickitung when she had dropped it like that. "I-i thank you, really… but why? We're not on the same team."
"Do I have to be on the same team to comfort someone?" He asked right back. "I like making people feel better. Not a lot of fun on the island if someone's having a bad day."
Sandshrew liked that response, and she gave him a more confident smile. "… I think you're right. Thanks, Lickitung."
000
"I like making people smile." Lickitung had his own as he sat and carefully rolled his tongue up. "I live by the Safari Zone, and I help this Kangaskhan back home with her son. I like to think of myself as the cool older brother to people." he even gave a fake flex of his arms. "Someone strong to help anyone with what they're struggling with."
000
Jigglypuff had been able to pull the chest out from the ground, but had exhausted a lot of energy in lifting that heavy thing. Thankfully, she was able to pass it off to Electabuzz, who had ran into them. He had traveled alone, with their number of searchers being an odd number. He managed to lift it off the ground and ran with it, heading back to the X while Jigglypuff took care of a recovering Meowth at the cliff.
The Electric-type ran with the chest, thankfully being strong enough to lift it without causing too much strain to him. Although when he heard a familiar shout… he had to drop it and catch a punch.
The chest hit the ground and Electabuzz had spun around to face behind him, catching a flaming punch that otherwise would have hit him. "Nice try, Fire Butt, but you're too predictable."
"Am I? Or maybe I wanted you to catch me?" Magmar grinned back, causing his Electric friend to actually be confused.
It was when a sudden Dragonair snapped by and stole the chest from him made him realize he had been duped. He went to pull free from Magmar, before he was tugged away and tossed to the ground. "I don't think you're getting away that easily!" Magmar kept up appearances. Electabuzz groaned before he had to get into a defensive scrap with his friend, Dragonair slithering away from the scene.
"AND TEAM RED SNAGS THE BLUE CHEST! REMEMBER, IF IT'S OPENED OR THROWN INTO THE WATER, IT'S A FORFEIT FROM THE BLUE TEAM!" Mew announced, which made Dragonair realize. She could just open it!
She set it down and had slithered her tail to the key hole. "Sorry guys, but I'm not looking to eliminate someone just yet." she whispered, and right when she went to open it…
She was frozen solid.
Dewgong and Haunter had got to the scene just in time, Dewgong panic firing an Ice Beam to prevent their team from losing… and she gasped when she saw she had frozen Dragonair in the block. Haunter, out of respect, held back a comment he was desperately wanting to make.
"AND TEAM BLUE IS STILL IN THE GAME, AMAZING PLAY FROM DEWGONG!"
000
Haunter smiled devilishly. "I get Dewgong's struggle… but that was cold of her."
000
"O-oh my gosh, I'm sorry!" Dewgong apologized again and again, shrinking from the icy glare of Dragonair despite her being trapped. "I-it was just for the challenge, I swear! I-i promise, i-it'll melt in about ten minutes, a-and…"
She hung her head when Haunter grabbed the chest. "I'll just… go…" she followed after Haunter, her mind not in the game as she felt bad about what had happened.
000
A shivering Dragonair was seething toward the camera. "S-s-s-s-she's gone!"
000
Bulbasaur and Geodude were desperately trying to find a chest, whether that be theirs or their opponents. They couldn't tell if they were quick to lose or if they were going to fight back Team Blue. Hearing that Team Blue had it back, it made it rough to gauge their time.
"Haven't seen anything, kid?" Geodude took to swinging vines, Bulbasaur launching him up a while ago to where he could provide quick transportation without slowing anyone else down.
"Nothing! All of this foliage blends after a while!" he admitted, the greens and browns of the wildlife having been a blur. One thing was certain though, he didn't see any-
"RED!"
"What?" Geodude asked, turning around and leaping from the tree to land beside him.
Although, the red Bulbasaur saw was Magikarp in the nearby river! Only… why was he wading like he was sleeping? Geodude caught on.
"Oh shit, grab him kid!" Bulbasaur threw some vines out and pulled the fish out of the water, before Geodude tried to wake him up. "Hey, what happened?"
Magikarp groaned awake and saw the new scenery. "A big… sharp bee happened…" he shook awake. "I was swimming, I had just about found the chest I think… then all of a sudden, I felt so drained…"
Bulbasaur looked surprised. "Beedrill has a Grass-type move?" he asked to the fish.
"The only thing that explains what she did to me… Giga Drain'd me or something…"
"Who was she with?" Geodude asked, trying to get an understanding on what they could do. "You remember where you were last, we can try and find that spot."
"Uh… I don't remember who, but I do remember... some giant tree, with a hole in the side…" he flopped back fully awake, before sliding into the river. "Here, follow me!" Drained or not, Magikarp was not going to be a waste to the team!
000
"I still say that was uncalled for." Beedrill had it up to her skull with the comments. Her travel partner, Farfetch'd, wasn't making this challenge easy for her psyche.
"Mew said moves were allowed, deal with it. He would have done the same." she huffed.
"We don't know that, as you pounced him before he even knew what happened." he retorted, the bee stopping on discussion and reaching the tree that caught her attention.
A tall tree that stood above most in the forest, it had a hole in the side that was able to allow most Pokemon to walk inside of it! She peered inside… and she saw a chest! The red one. "Bingo. Take this out, and we win the challenge."
"Not very sportsmanlike." the bird commented on.
That's when the bee snapped. "Oh, shut it already! You might play fair, but that doesn't mean everyone will!" she raised a stinger to the side of the chest. "Playing fair results in vulnerability, and if you want to go home from it, you can be my guest. I'm not going to lose because of your moral code."
Farfetch'd sneered at her, not keen on having his honor being thrown at him like it was nothing. And then… a Vine Whip occurred when she went to strike the chest.
Bulbasaur, Geodude, and Magikarp had arrived. "I believe you have something for us." Geodude remarked with a grin, clenching his fists.
"AND TEAM RED HAS FOUND THEIR CHEST! A STANDOFF BETWEEN BULBASAUR AND BEEDRILL!"
000
Haunter had just dropped their chest to Sandshrew, who got up after a good conversation with Lickitung. "Go, now! I don't know if we're protected from it being here now."
Sandshrew nodded, and awkwardly went to work at the ground. Her claws, while usually designed for ice, were catching the hard dirt awkwardly and providing her a difficult time in hacking the dirt away.
"AND TEAM BLUE HAS DELIVERED THEIR CHEST TO THE CLEARING! SANDSHREW IS NOW BURYING IT, WE'RE IN THE HOME STRETCH!" Mew cheered on, hearing a mess of people try to swarm the clearing in response to that.
"Apparently, it's still in play…" Haunter remarked to Dewgong, the both of them ready to play bodyguard to Sandshrew.
000
Haunter was covered in dirt and bruises. "Screw this challenge."
000
Bulbasaur had grabbed the chest with his vines, and before Beedrill pursued him, he was cut off by Geodude and Magikarp. The Grass-type ran with the chest slowly, the weight a bit much for him, while the two teammates went to take care of Beedrill and Farfetch'd.
"Out of my way!" Beedrill went to buzz past them, but Geodude latched onto her arm and flew away with her. The Bee, not used to carrying a rock like a backpack, flew by much slower than she wanted.
Magikarp and Farfetch'd looked at each other, about ready to go at it… before Farfetch'd looked at the fish. He wasn't in the mood to fight, he was rather wanting to head back to the clearing to help Sandshrew.
"Truce?" the bird asked, holding his leek and offering a wing.
Magikarp was about ready to be offended on his own behalf… and then noted his drained body. He wasn't energized enough to fight. He stopped flopping and took a breath. "...truce."
000
"Why fight when there's no chest around and no objective? Save strength for another battle." Farfetch'd advised the audience.
000
Machoke had ran up to the scene, seeing the bee fly through the air with Geodude on her back trying to mess up her wings. He was able to catch up to Bulbasaur, plucking the starter off of the ground and holding him and the chest while running!
"NO!" Beedrill shouted, fumbling around for that blasted rock! "Let go of me, you pebble!"
"Pebble?!" Geodude grabbed her wing harder at that comment.
Machoke laughed at the scene behind him, not turning around. He was focused on the challenge, Bulbasaur bouncing in his arms. "You did good job grabbing this thing, little guy! Let's finish this!"
"I'll be glad to!" Beedrill shouted from behind, with her soon grabbing Geodude and throwing him at Machoke like a weapon! Machoke had turned around to hear what had happened, only to get decked by Geodude. The Fighting-type collapsed with the rock, both of them groaning as Bulbasaur and the chest spilled onto the ground. Beedrill was able to catch up and grab the chest.
"N-no, don't!" Bulbasaur whined, coughing from the fall before he witnessed Beedrill penetrate the chest with her stinger, breaking the chest open and forcing the lid open.
Inside… was a Heavy Ball. An item specifically designed to make the user heavier. It explained a lot.
"AND BEEDRILL NETS HER TEAM THE WIN! SHE BROKE THE RED TEAM'S CHEST WIDE OPEN!"
There were some distant cheers from her team, Sandshrew collapsing and nursing her sore claws. She had barely done a dent in the ground to begin with. Chansey had just gotten back, and she was quick to help heal her with an egg of hers.
000
"My team should be thanking me. I alone got us this win." Beedrill huffed. "I put the girl on digging, and to prevent her from having to do it, I broke the chest open. They can call me brash or dishonorable, but they can't call me a loser."
000
Farfetch'd looked conflicted, shaking his head. "While I'm happy our team has won… this does not feel earned. I feel as if we've only won from a loophole or a workaround. We did not prove we were the better team."
000
The teams were collected back by the digging site, including a roughed up and sore Red Team in the form of Machoke, Geodude, Magmar, a frozen Dragonair and an exhausted Magikarp. Team Blue had a bruised Electabuzz, a sore Sandshrew, and dirt covering both Haunter and Meowth.
"Crazy challenge! Although, I'm not gonna lie, I loved the teamwork today, people!" Mew complimented. "Goes to show two heads are better than one!" He ignored a challenged grunt from Beedrill.
"Team Red, you're sending someone home tonight at sundown. I'll have Mewtwo provide a smoke trail for you guys for tonight to get there. From now on, smoke trails will only be given to new places you all have yet to see." he announced, before snapping away and allowing the teams to do what they pleased.
000
"Not… the best challenge so far." Geodude winced, nursing his head a bit from being used as a cannonball.
000
Machoke jumped from putting his hand on the bruise Geodude indirectly gave him. "I'm gonna get that bee…"
000
It was a tough elimination to call tonight. No one deliberately messed up the challenge, as they were just screwed out from another rule the opposing team took advantage of. It would prove to be interesting.
One such case, being that Koffing and Ekans were approached by someone as they had been chatting in the forest. Ekans was the first to ask. "What's up?"
Their conversation partner, Magmar, had introduced themselves. "Just wanting to gauge who you think you're voting for tonight."
"Isn't that kind of… well, against the idea?" Koffing asked. "Aren't we supposed to go into it anonymous?"
"I'm not asking if you're voting for me." Magmar replied, crossing his arms. "I just wanted to know if you had anyone in mind. Because if not, I did."
"Oh yeah?" Ekans asked, looking to him. He didn't seem the most trustworthy, but he could appreciate a good scrapper. Him fighting Electabuzz constantly made Ekans at least hear him out. "Who's that?"
"I think we should vote for-"
000
Meanwhile, Paras and Poliwag were enjoying some more girl talk at the Mess Hall. They had invited Dragonair, but she was still warming up from her… meeting, with Dewgong earlier. They didn't want to be on her bad side.
"So, anyone in mind?" Paras asked.
"For elimination?" She wanted to clarify, the cicada nodding. "Oh, I don't know… we all tried our best today, it's not like it was easy like the other challenge."
"Could I suggest someone?"
"Not Machoke." Poliwag spoke a bit too quickly.
"I wasn't really going to- wait, why?" Paras asked, looking confused.
"MOVING ON!" Poliwag loudly declared, before someone spoke up.
"Moving on from what?" Machoke had his dinner plate in hand, sitting down next to them. Paras, sensing bad vibes, excused herself and left the table. Another time, she'd voice.
"O-oh, nothing!" the tadpole responded, before looking to him. "G-good job in the challenge, even if we didn't win!"
"If we didn't win, it wasn't a good job." he responded gruffly, tearing into some vegetables.
"It wasn't a bad one though!" she smiled, Machoke briefly agreeing. "Because of that… I don't know who I should vote for…"
"As long as it ain't me, I don't care."
"O-oh, I wouldn't have… voted for you." she tried to hide her blush as best as possible.
"Appreciate it. I have a couple of choices in mind."
"Like who?"
Machoke cleared his throat. "Not Lickitung, for one. He didn't get to do his part, he shouldn't be faulted." Poliwag nodded, agreeing with that. The guy didn't deserve to be eliminated like that. "Nah, I think it should be-"
000
Magikarp had met up with Bulbasaur and Geodude, who looked a bit concerned about tonight's vote. Geodude sat next to Bulbasaur, who was currently chewing on a nearby leaf while the conversation took place. "So, you want what exactly?" Geodude started off.
"For you guys to not vote me. I mean, I helped as best I could, and I led you to the chest before that damn bee broke it." Magikarp would start to plead his case. "That, and I did good in the other challenge, so I hope that's at least enough to sway you guys."
"You don't really have to sway us though." Bulbasaur spoke after he swallowed his leaf. "I wasn't going to vote for you." Magikarp breathed a sigh of relief as Geodude cast him a surprised look. "What? He's right, he's been dependable in challenges so far."
"I'm not surprised about that, just shocked you agreed so fast." Geodude would pat him by his bulb, the fish continuing.
"Thanks guys, I'm just not sure if anyone else feels the same you do." he looked over to the campsite. "It's already hard enough thinking about who to vote for, I'm pretty much just going off of the last challenge alone."
"The ones that lost their fights, right?" Geodude went to clarify.
"Right. I'm trying to see if they helped today as well. So far… Ekans, Dragonair, Poliwag, Machoke and Paras are on my mind." Magikarp even went to draw some crude letters in the ground to show who and who he wasn't thinking of.
"Dragonair had the other team's chest for a hot second." Geodude spoke in her favor. "I don't think she should be on the chopping block."
"And Machoke was carrying me and the chest before we got attacked." Bulbasaur added. "He worked well with us when he caught up."
"So, that leaves Ekans, Paras and Poliwag…" Magikarp would mutter, looking to the three options. "I'd like to keep the other Water-type around, so maybe not Poliwag."
"Ekans or Paras then?" Geodude would shrug, before pulling himself up on a log. "I'm gonna test the ol' muscles until the ceremony. We ain't gonna vote for you." He promised Magikarp, that being two votes off his back thankfully.
"Try to get the word around." Bulbasaur recommended, before the buzzing of the intercom showed that neither Magikarp or Geodude would get what they wanted. "Never mind…"
"Look for that smoke signal." Geodude would head back, Bulbasaur picking him up and walking with Magikarp to find the ceremony.
As the three left… they had a visitor who had witnessed their entire conversation in secret. They made their way over to the crude letter drawings in the ground, and didn't like what they saw. They didn't think the planned vote had mattered all that much, but now?
Ekans was gonna save his skin.
000
"Step 1 on how to avoid getting caught? Don't leave your evidence behind." He sneered, before looking determined. "I'm not gonna be the first boot."
000
"Great hustle from both teams, but it seems that one got hustled from the hustlers!" Mew announced to the eleven members of Team Red, none of them looking satisfied being here.
"If it was a burying challenge like intended, we would have won." Machoke fired back, still rocking a shiner on his head from Geodude.
"Sorry again about that." The rock apologized, him sitting next to him.
"Ain't your fault. It's that damn BEE."
"I like the drive, but let's save it for another day." Mew then saw his plate of Oran Berries appear, courtesy of Mewtwo. "Now, if I call your name, you are safe from elimination and you can receive your Oran Berry. If not… your time in the game is over."
Most of the team thought the vote was all over the place, as today had made it rather hard to vote for someone in particular. No one screwed up… but that didn't mean there were some people out for blood.
"First up… Lickitung."
The big Pokemon sighed and caught his Berry. "Thank goodness."
"Can't eliminate a guy who didn't get a chance." Machoke shrugged, before he also caught his Berry. Machoke was safe.
"Geodude, Bulbasaur, and Magmar."
Magmar had noticed Geodude and Bulbasaur sharing a smile as they got their berries… Magmar took a note of that, it might be worth to come back to later.
"Poliwag… and Dragonair!"
Dragonair had recovered from her cold spell at the hands… er, will of Dewgong, and accepted her berry alongside the tadpole.
"Four contestants remain, and three berries." Mew started to drum up some suspense. After all, this elimination had a bit of a wild edge to it that the other night's didn't have.
Ekans and Koffing had shared a slightly worried look, while Magikarp was hoping his deals was enough to net him a chance to stay. Paras was the one that felt odd, she wasn't that worried.
She didn't have to be. "Paras! And then… Koffing."
Koffing looked to Ekans, hoping his friend had made it through. At the same time, Ekans cast a glance to the back of Magmar's head, hoping that he hadn't just made a deal with some shot in the dark.
Magikarp looked nervous as all hell, the fish remaining stationery as he dealt with the rising anxiety. Surely he had done more for his team than Ekans, right?
"The final berry of the night goes to…" Damn Mew and his tension building, the two needed their answers!
And then… Mew pointed to the safe camper.
"Ekans."
The snake let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding, but that was nothing compared to Magikarp.
"What?!" The fish cried out, flopping over to the closest "team" member he was next to. "Why?! I won my fight, and I led our team to where the chest was!"
"You did, yes." Machoke nodded, crossing his arms after he had used his thumb to wipe his lips clean.
"So, WHY?!"
Machoke had been spared from making the comment, with Magmar speaking up next. "This game's also a social one."
"And I'm one to save my skin over someone else's." Ekans piped up. "You getting a few votes on me, and leaving that plan in the dirt? I'm not gonna take it lying down."
"In the dirt? Wait… you were there?" Magikarp asked, Bulbasaur and Geodude keeping quiet. Truly, they hadn't voted for the fish… but right now, associating with him might have been bad with this outburst.
"You're a loud talker." Ekans coolly replied.
Magikarp couldn't believe it. Two consistent challenge attempts from him, and they keep the snake who hasn't won them one! How did he lose to such a wily and irritating snake? What did the snake offer to the team?
Was it just truly because he was a Magikarp?! A Pokemon consistently ridiculed for being pathetic over many years of history? Did they see no worth in him?
"You… you all just wrote me aside… you didn't even give me a chance to prove myself…"
"Magikarp, that's not it, man." Geodude was honest in his tone, trying to get him to calm down. "Just take a deep breath and-"
"I'm TIRED of being told that! To take whatever I get from you all and just ignore it! I'm DONE!" he shouted at the top of his lungs… and then he started to glow.
"Uh oh…" Poliwag shrunk, bouncing behind Machoke as the event played out before them. Lickitung looked over to Mew to see if he was going to help separate this, but the host looked like he was enjoying the drama!
The harsh light faded from Magikarp… what used to be Magikarp. In his place, was a very long blue fish instead, more or less resembling a dragon now! Dragonair… she prided herself on being consistent, but dear… suddenly this fish was a bit more attractive to her now. White fins sprouted from the top, and his underbelly became yellow.
A Gyarados stood in his place. An angry Gyarados.
"LOOK AT ME NOW!" he roared, Poliwag and Paras legitimately leaving the ground from his roar and flying back a bit.
"Mew! Shouldn't you step in!?" Koffing shouted, and Mew saw the gas cloud's point. Before Gyarados could do anything truly reckless, he stepped in front of the raging Pokemon.
"I believe they're right." Mew put a hand to Gyarados' side and quelled the rage the Water-type had developed. "Magikarp has been voted out, fair and square."
"...but not Gyarados."
That put a bit of worry into Magmar's voice. "Uh… what?"
Gyarados looked up from that statement, and he gained a very sinister looking grin. "You mean…?"
"Yep! Gyarados remains in the game!"
"WHAT?!"
It set a very dangerous precedent here if they let that happen. If a Pokemon just evolved, it was an instant get out of jail free card?!
Mewtwo stepped up, sensing that precedent. He leaned in and whispered to Mew in his ear, before the smaller Legend grinned. "Good idea, actually! See, that's why I have you as my right-hand." he complimented.
Mewtwo rolled his eyes, but Lickitung spoke up. "What, what's a good idea?"
"Well, to prevent things from being too chaotic… Gyarados, you are now… on Team Blue!"
"You're #bleep# kidding me, right?!" Machoke shouted.
"They gain a member?!" Geodude asked incredulously. How the hell was that any fair?
"It makes for some good television. Besides, why do you care?" Mew gained a grin and taunted Team Red. "Didn't you vote him out, anyway? Regarded him as just dead weight?"
That shut up a lot of Team Red's complaints, Gyarados staring them down and them not really returning any glances.
Bulbasaur though, did. He looked up and tried to talk to the newly evolved Water-type. "I… didn't vote for you. Me and Geodude kept our promise."
Ekans glared a dagger at the starter, but turned away when Geodude returned that glare.
Gyarados heard that statement from Bulbasaur, and looked calm enough to answer him. "I believe that. You two are honest." That, and Gyarados appreciated Bulbasaur looking him in the eye and saying that. He was able to read cues like that… and Bulbasaur didn't falter.
He turned his glare to the rest of the team. "As for the rest of you? Dead to me. I'm sure my new team will treat me with more respect."
He floated away, getting used to his new body. It felt weird being able to float now, rather than just flop around. He left the team's sight, presumably to move his bags over to the other cabin.
"Not to undermine that juicy drama, but you're now free to go. Next challenge will be soon." Mew waved them off, Team Red getting up and dispersing with a lot of uncertainty to their game in the near future.
000
Magmar let out a long series of hastily censored words that will not make the final broadcast.
000
Machoke's censored rant was… longer.
000
Dragonair swooned a bit. "Gosh, that body~" she almost closed her eyes before snapping back to her normal self. "T-that meant nothing!"
000
The dead of night, after such a dramatic ceremony, felt eerie rather than calm. It was only the second challenge, but now toes were being stepped on and lines were being tested. For Team Red, anyway. Blue Team was faring better for now.
Meowth had been able to sneak out from the cabin after their shocking new team member just barged in and took the bed meant for Snorlax. At least the distraction was good enough for him to break away.
Back in the treeline by the campfire ceremony was where he found who he was meeting with. The ever familiar Balloon. Jigglypuff turned around and smiled to him, gently patting the ground next to her as she sat by a tree.
Jigglypuff… annoyed Meowth. The cat had been able to get a good understanding of people within meeting them, but Jigglypuff's true goals evaded him. That, of course, annoyed him more than he cared to admit. She wasn't playing for the money. Those words had replayed when he took a tumble down the hill, and he was able to think on them a lot. He nodded to return her smile, not having one himself, before sitting down beside her.
"Thanks for meeting me out here." She began, with the cat shrugging it off.
"It was either you or listen to Magi- er, Gyarados rant about his old team. You're the one that doesn't give me nearly as big of a headache." he scratched his temple, before looking odd that Jigglypuff… laughed at that.
"Aw, thanks. Must be warming up to you~" she giggled, that response… didn't sit well with Meowth.
He awkwardly cleared his throat. "Why'd you… call me out here, anyway? More about who to possibly vote on? To have you pay back that debt, for the umpteenth time?"
"That? Oh, no, I reckon I must have talked your ear off about that stuff today. Sorry again." she smiled, before sitting up. "I actually wanted to elaborate on what we were talking about earlier."
Meowth knew… Jigglypuff knew as well, she sensed he was stewing on it in his mind. "About the money thing?"
"Yes, about the money thing. I take it hearing that from me wasn't exactly the best impression of me." she lowered her tone and shifted about.
"...in a game where a lot of money is on the line, it did… stick out to me that someone not competing for it is…" Meowth tried to word this carefully, not wanting to annoy a possible alliance mate down the line. As pushy as she was about the alliance, it made his game a bit easier.
"Wasting their time?" Jigglypuff answered for him. "Taking it from someone else who needs it?"
Meowth looked awkward, but he made no effort to clarify. Seems she hit a right chord.
"… I know. I felt the same way."
Meowth was now… super confused. "So… if you're not wanting the money, and you think the same way… the hell are you doing here?"
"I'm not really here on my own choice." Jigglypuff revealed. "Have you heard of the Beauty Contests before?"
Meowth nodded, perking up slightly. "That's a Hoenn thing though… you mean to tell me you're also from another place like that Sandshrew?"
"No, no, I'm from Kanto. I grew up with all of the other Clefairy and Jigglypuff around Mt. Moon. No, the people behind the Beauty Contests are trying to make it to Kanto to spread their reach. They picked a handful of Pokemon to best represent their chances. I… was one of them."
Meowth put his arm over his leg. "So what, you're… a celebrity, then?"
"Sort of. They had scouts years ago come over, and found Pokemon to best represent them. Alongside me, there's a Nidoqueen, Eevee, Lapras… and a Jynx."
Meowth shuddered, and Jigglypuff chuckled at that before she continued. "They're all lovely people, truly. I loved getting to meet them. Anyway, this show came about, and it got to the people. They decided they needed to send one of us to the show and… advertise."
Meowth picked up on her word choice. "But… you don't want to."
Jigglypuff nodded, even lowering her head. "Truth be told… I want out of it. I don't want to be famous or a celebrity anymore. I've been all about glamour and glitz since I was a baby…"
Meowth tensed up when he started to see a tear or two leave her eyes. He wasn't well equipped for situations like this, and it showed. He… tried to make a move to help, by moving his arm. The moment she perked up though, he retracted his hand like she was poison, not wanting to give off the other idea.
"I'm… I'm sorry I've been annoying you, I just… find you very interesting." she sniffled, wiping her eyes.
"Me?" Meowth asked. "Not gonna lie… there's at least ten other people I would have picked over me for interesting."
"No, I mean it." she sat up and looked him in the eye. "That sense of blunt honesty, as well as a chip on your shoulder… you talked to the other team in the fighting challenge as honest as you could, you didn't bother putting on a fake face and play off your actions."
"It's something I've… desperately wanted to know myself."
Meowth felt for her, he really did… but he didn't know why she put that much faith in him to begin with. "What are you really wanting from me here?" he asked, wincing when he realized he could have worded that better.
She sat up more and put her hand onto his, looking him into the eye with a growing rush of determination. "I want to help you win."
000
And… done. Long chapter there (for my standards anyway. 13K words!). Lots of things to go over!
Electabuzz and Magmar are actually friends, more friendships and alliances are being made, and a challenge that will cause some sparks down the line!
Again, it feels great to have everyone get some time to shine. My older work (under a different name) fell victim to that, where I only gave certain characters scenes while others remained obscure. Now, it feels like I have a good sense to give everyone something to work with.
I think the biggest thing, aside from Jigglypuff's true intentions to Meowth, is Gyarados! This was a way to spice up some character interactions for the future, as well as to prevent my boy Magikarp from going home too soon. I had a hard time deciding who was the one to get the boot… so no one did this time. But next time, someone's going home for sure.
I'm not sure if the next chapter will be this long (purely speculation rather than anything affirmative). I have a good challenge idea in mind, but I won't voice them here. I'd rather keep everyone guessing on what could possibly be next.
Also, schedule might be spotty at best for future chapters. I hope they don't get too spaced out, as I do have work and personal life that gets in the way of pumping out papers, but I promise to work on this as much as I healthily can.
000
Now, before I go, time to respond to the reviews I got!
TPReboot: Thank you for both of the reviews! I'm happy my thought of Kanto's Pokedex being the focal point for the story was noticed. Pokemon stories, specifically in Total Drama-esque shows, benefit from the variety, but I did want to give some love to the more underrated Pokemon. Venonat and Paras are some of my favs from Gen 1, but I didn't want to throw in too many of my favorites or else it would have undermined what I was going for.
Also happy you enjoy Geodude! He's a fun one to write for so far, and his partnership with Bulbasaur was something I shocked myself with as I wrote it. As I type scenes out, I'm changing things down the line due to the new things that go in my head. As for your other favorites, I hope I'm consistent with impressions! (Snorlax, though, is 22nd, for overall placement.)
CDW: I can safely say I didn't think someone would keep a Google Doc for my story's stats, but thank you! That means a lot that you'd do that for a story just getting off of the ground. Thank you for the challenge idea as well, I'm starting to get a decent few ideas in mind for both early and late game ones.
InfernoMaster64: Strong choice of early favorites, I might have to agree myself! I'm happy I hooked your interest! The first challenge was definitely a means to try and give everyone significant screen time in order for the audience to gauge them. I had almost caved in with a "montage" moment of battles, but ultimately, that doesn't make for good reading unless the characters are already established.
This level of reviews so far, and so quick, really made me motivated to push out this next chapter. Thank you guys again for your support and critiques!
000
TEAMS
Team Red: Poliwag, Machoke, Koffing, Ekans, Magmar, Lickitung, Geodude, Bulbasaur, Dragonair, Paras
Team Blue: Beedrill, Sandshrew, Farfetch'd, Electabuzz, Chansey, Dewgong, Haunter, Jigglypuff, Tangela, Meowth, Gyarados
Elimination Order: Snorlax
000
Thanks for reading!