Total Pokémon: Maelstrom

by Dark Arcanine 33

Anticipating the backlash from his 'reboot' trilogy, Victini decides that the franchise needs a few seasons that will cushion the blow. And who better to host them than some the most respectable and responsible Legendary Pokémon in Hall of Origins? Who will be the last male standing and win the 1 million Poke? Tune in to find out.

4. Fear and Groaning

000

Roy sat comfortably in the game room, watching with Lee and Simen as KG continued playing the same game he was playing a couple of days prior, before they were called down for the challenge. Like he mentioned before, he wasn't really a gamer or had a huge interest in games, but he felt very positive vibes in there. He had actually been growing a lot fonder of the three 'weaker' guys over the past couple of days.

Lee had offered to help him with his stamina and speed in exchange for defense lessons. It was interesting listening to Simen gush about the history of different regions. KG was very chill and someone you could easily just relax around. It was a very sharp contrast to Travis and Stain, who spent most of their time complaining or isolating themselves from the rest of them, or more specifically, the other guys.

For some reason, the two of them still considered him one of them. Even after the insults that Stain threw his way, the Muk, oddly enough, didn't treat him with as much hostility as he did the others. It was really perplexing to the Throh, but he knew better than to even try and think about the reasoning. More than likely, there either was no reason, or Stain was just trying to delude himself into thinking that Roy wouldn't turn on him and Travis.

He decided not to think about the terrible twosome and just enjoy his time with the remaining guys on his team. As he watched KG's player character get blown up by a barrel for the upteenth time, he chortled, "That barrel really hates you, huh?"

KG growled, clenching the controller handles in his hands, "It's the same… damn… barrel…"

"Hey now, call down, chico," Lee teased, placing a paw over the Fire Croc's hands to lower the controller. "We don't want you breaking anything like in one of those rage videos…"

"Though, I'll admit, that'd be funny," Roy chuckled.

"Alright, break it up, bozos…" a new voice stated.

Turning to the entrance, they saw Travis and Stain starting to enter. The positive vibes slowly dissipated and were quickly replaced with tension.

"...time for the weaklings to go to bed so that the grown ups can talk," Stain stated.

"Excuse you," Lee scoffed. "We're all adults here. So, anything you plan on saying, just say it now while we're all here."

"Your balls have barely dropped, queer," Stain deadpanned. "Now, get lost before Travis tosses you out."

Travis' eyes widened upon hearing that, looking to Stain in confusion. He then straightened his face once the Muk gave him a look. "Y-Yeah. I won't hesitate…"

Lee wore an unimpressed look, looking them up and down. "Touch me and I'll bite your fingers off," the Boltund threatened, hopping off of the couch.

He wasn't interested in dealing with the two of them, so he decided that it would be in his best interest to simply leave the vicinity. He had already proven what he was capable of in the previous challenge, but he knew that it wouldn't be enough to get respect from Stain and Travis.

Simen, not wanting to be left with them, followed after Lee, but not before nudging KG, who was still trying to get past the barrel on the game.

Letting out a grunt of annoyance, the Fuecoco paused and saved the game before turning it off. Mumbling in Spanish, the Fire Croc Pokémon exited the room, with Simen following close behind.

Roy was about to go after them, feeling bad about how the guys were being treated. However, he was stopped as Travis let out a groan and walked to the couch, flopping next to him. "I thought they'd never leave… What stupid baby game were they even playing?"

He picked up the case, looking at the cover. "Bash McCrash…" he read. "Pfft, fucking lame…"

The Throh huffed, prepared to defend the game."It's actually pretty funn-".

"Have those pathetic losers been saying anything?" Stain interrupted, apathetic about the video games around them.

Roy sighed, "Like what?"

Stain gave him a look, "Oh, I don't know… Like… If they're planning on trying to vote one of us out whenever we lose another challenge. Fucking idiot…"

The Judo Pokémon wore a flat visage, answering, "No. KG's just been trying to beat that game and Lee and Simen have just been encouraging him. They're not thinking about you guys as much as you guys are thinking about them."

"Hey, don't say it like that," Travis argued. "This is a competition, and I wanna win. We need to get rid of those weaker dudes if we want a better chance."

"Didn't Lee literally help us win the last challenge? And KG bounced across those pads like it was nothing!" Roy defended. "Those guys aren't weak. Simen and KG just aren't fully evolved, and you guys just hate Lee because he's gay."

Belching, Stain rolled his eyes, "Just because they actually showed some usability in one challenge doesn't negate them from being the weakest links. They're still beta pansies."

Roy scoffed, "Uh-huh… And if they actually evolved?"

"Still weak links," Stain deadpanned. "Are you done trying to uplift them, yet? Whether you like it or believe it or not… Those bozos need to go."

"Plus, most of these competitions are usually won by guys like them, right?" Travis queried. "That's another reason for them to go. Especially the gay one."

Roy turned to him with a look, "He has a name, dude…"

Travis shrugged in indifference. He knew they had names, but he didn't care enough to actually refer to them. If he felt like saying them, he would.

"Same difference. It's always either useless females or weak beta males who win these games. No in-between," Stain followed. "So, unless you're fine with them beating you, I suggest you get your dick out of the Boltund's ass, and work with us."

Roy gave him a pointed look, repulsed by the Muk's pure disrespect and lack of tact. However, despite this, he couldn't help but feel conflicted. He didn't know much about the history of these competitions, but if they really were typically won by women or 'smaller guys'... They may have had a point.

He really despised how they were treating the other guys, but he also needed to play the game for himself. And who's to say that he couldn't disagree with their actions, but agree with their points? He let out a soft sigh. "How about this…? I'll work with you guys… If you stop treating the guys like shit."

Travis groaned, as did Stain, who rolled his eyes. "You seriously are that much of a wuss that you're worried about the words we say?"

"Take it or leave it," Roy stated firmly, folding his arms. "Last time I checked, you guys need me to force a tie. If not, then I'll happily vote with the others and get one of you outta here."

"Do that and you're even dumber than you look," the Sludge Pokémon belched.

"Take it… or… leave it…" Roy repeated, sounding a bit sterner.

Stain and Travis exchanged looks of displeasure. The Throh was right about one thing; they needed him to force a tie. Without him, they were done.

With a disgruntled groan, Travis replied, "Fine...We'll do it…"

Stain grumbled.

"I'll believe it when I see it," Roy huffed.

000

"I don't believe it for a second," Roy scoffed, shaking his head.

"I'm still conflicted anyway," he continued. "Those two may have a point, but at the same time, I prefer being around Lee and the others. I have to worry about my own game, but I don't want the bullies to outlast the bullied."

He groaned, "I hate this…"

000

Rane was doing sit-ups in the gym, with Steve watching on the sidelines, a smirk on his bill. The Toucannon was absolutely delighted to be rid of Martin, and he felt good having Rane on his side. Or at least close to his side, as the Golisopod was still hard for him to get a read on.

As much as the Toucannon wanted to talk strategy, as they were still outnumbered two to four, another question entered his mind as he watched the husky bug exercise. "Y'know… I've gotta ask. I'm already happily spoken for, but… What about you? What team are you playing for?"

The Hard Scale Pokémon paused momentarily, having not expected that question. He threw the Toucannon a pointed look, uninterested in giving an answer despite having one. Seeing the look he was receiving, Steve awkwardly broke eye contact, "Okay, not interested in relationship talk… Got it…"

Rane sighed internally. His goal in this game was to make himself useful, try to keep himself out of the spotlight, and not ruffle any feathers. So far, he felt that he was failing a bit, as he was certain that others were intimidated by him, and rightfully so.

He wasn't even planning on making any alliances or anything, yet he just couldn't keep Steve away from him. So, at that point, whatever happens, happens.

With his initial conversation starter being a bust, the Toucannon decided to focus back on the game. Clearing his throat, the Cannon Pokémon began, "Well, we got rid of the dumb delinquent last time, but now we're at an even bigger numbers disadvantage. We've gotta do something or else we're definitely screwed, here."

Rane shrugged his shoulders in response. He knew that Steve had a valid point, but at the same time, what could they really do aside from win challenges? That was the only practical solution to their dilemma aside from convincing the other guys to keep them around and turn on each other, which felt unlikely.

Steve let out a sigh, "It really does feel like we got the short end of the stick in this deal…"

Rane gave the Toucannon another look, knowing that they were better off where they were compared to the guys on the Machamps.

000

"So… Now that Martin's gone… Our only choices are Rane and Steve, huh?" Dale awkwardly inquired as he floated out in the water with Nick, Lexico, and Tate on his head. "I mean, if we lose again, anyway."

"Yep…" Nick confirmed, rubbing his icy head. "It's kind of a bummer, but like little dude said before, there's more to life than physical strength."

Lexico gave the Eiscue a look of annoyance before rolling his eye.

Dale let out a soft breath, "I dunno. It just seems wrong to eliminate one of them when they're the strongest ones on the team."

"The other team did. Then won," Tate spoke up.

"I mean, yeah… but… Ugh…" Dale groaned. For the Wailord, it just felt frustrating that, because of this alliance, they would potentially eliminate the players who've literally been helping them win. Sure, it was a valid strategy to get rid of the threats quickly, but it just felt wrong to him in this case.

"Don't stress about it, big guy," Nick stated, patting the Wailord's back. "Maybe without Martin we'll be able to win more challenges." He then flopped on his back, continuing, "That way, we don't have to worry about it. I mean, he's the main reason we lost the last challenge, anyway."

"Well, we can only hope," Dale sighed. "It'd be a win-win for everyone if we keep winning."

Nick was perplexed as to what the Wailord was talking about, momentarily turning to Lexico before looking back at Dale. "Little dude asked, 'What are you talking about?'"

"Well, if we win, then that means the other team can vote out Stain and Travis, and then everything will be fine. We can just compete like normal without any jerks."

"Little dude said that Steve is close to the jerk side," Nick responded, scratching his stomach. "You know, with his weird attitude and stuff…"

"I still prefer him over those other two," Dale argued. "So, yeah… Hopefully, with Martin gone we can start winning again."

000

"We'll see…" Tate sighed.

000

At the Hall of Origins, Reshiram and Zekrom were sitting on the couch in their room. Reshiram wore a composed, yet irritated expression, while Zekrom was allowing his frustration to show blatantly. The obsidian drake was hunched over, pinching the bridge of his nose. The reason? Victini.

The Victory Pokémon had decided that he wanted to have a bit of fun, and wanted to run his newest idea by the two hosts.

"So, run this by me again," Zekrom began, sitting up as Reshiram placed a hand on one of his legs to keep him calm. "You want us to do a team swap… two eliminations in."

The Victory Pokémon nodded affirmatively, holding a package. "Yeah. It's no big deal. There's always some sorta shake up in our shows."

The Deep Black Pokémon continued, "And you want us to add whatever is in that box to the show…?"

Victini shook the box before chuckling, "Yep." He tossed the box to Reshiram, with it landing in her large lap.

"Go ahead and open it up," their producer urged.

The couple exchanged looks of uncertainty before Zekrom decided to take it off of her lap, placing it in his. If there was anything dangerous in there, he'd rather take the hit. Tearing the box open, the couple uncovered a… statue of a Poké Ball?

Confused, Reshiram's eyes went to Victini, inquiring, "What's this supposed to be? Is it some sort of prize for the winners?"

"No, no, that is an immunity idol," Victini explained with a smirk. "We had a lotta fun with these in the other seasons, so I decided to spice this season up a bit more, too."

The couple, again, never really paid much attention to any reality competition shows after their own initial trial season. The only other times they took part was when contestants were brought to the Hall. So, needless to say, they didn't really know the significance of the idol. "So… Does someone have to win this or what?" Zekrom inquired.

Victini sighed, giving himself a facepalm. "No," he answered, wiping his face. He then explained, "The immunity idol is something that you hide somewhere on the island. It gives whoever manages to find it immunity. So, say, if they're the one that gets the most votes, they can use that idol to protect themselves and the player with the second most votes gets eliminated instead."

"So… It's a Get Out of Jail Free card in a sense," Reshiram simplified, inspecting the idol.

"Exactly," Victini affirmed. "So, all you have to do is hide it somewhere before you guys make any announcements, and let them know that it's out there. You can also make up clues or give hints as rewards if you so choose."

Zekrom took a deep breath, sitting back on the couch without saying another word. It was honestly whatever at that point. Seeing that her husband was now checked out, Reshiram sighed softly. "Fine, but going forward, please don't bother us with these kinds of things. You said that this one and the next one were our seasons, so just let us finish them so we can move on from this."

Victini shrugged, "Whatever floats your boat."

The Victory Pokémon teleported out of their room, leaving the couple alone. With a groan, Zekrom threw his head back, staring at the ceiling. Placing the Poké Ball statue on the table, the Vast White Pokémon climbed over her husband, sitting in his lap before hugging him, resting her head under his chin. She could sense his frustration building and wanted to keep him as cozy as possible.

Zekrom was an extremely humble and relaxed guy, and he rarely, if ever, got truly angry. The only time that happened was when Kyurem forcefully fused himself with Reshiram a few centuries ago. His fury knew no bounds, and he lashed out a lot. Ever since then, nothing really got him to that point. This was just pure frustration.

Taking another breath, the Deep Black Pokémon wrapped one of his arms around her, leaving the other one on his side. "Why did we agree to this?" he muttered, bringing his other arm around his wife's body.

Reshiram let out a sigh. She honestly was beginning to miss their simpler routine of just relaxing together. Sure, they were seen as 'boring' by some of their fellow Legendary Pokémon, but they never really needed too much anyway.

Stroking the underside of his chin, she answered, "You know why." Placing her hands on the sides of his face, she continued, "We're gonna prove that these shows can be done without intentional malice. Once we're finished, we're finished. So, we just have to keep enduring this for a while."

Zekrom sighed before glancing at the statue, "It's gonna be a long season…"

000

Having been kicked out of their initial hangout spot inside of the house, KG, Lee, and Simen decided to relocate to the field, where they lay underneath a large tree.

"They're such fucking assholes…" Lee grumbled to himself. "...thinking that that they run shit when they're not worth anything."

KG huffed, having not wanted to leave in the first place. He didn't know why they had to submit to the jerks who were treating them like they were worthless. The three of them actually did better in the last challenge than they did! "Okay, if you feel that way… Why did we leave?" he questioned flatly.

Lee opened his mouth to respond, but realized that he didn't really have a good reason, in his mind. If he was trying to stand up to those jerks, why would he just let them boss him and his friends around? Eventually, Simen saved the day, giving a possible reason.

"Possibly because it's not worth the headache. Travis, and especially Stain, have shown that they're very close-minded and don't care about us in any real capacity," Simen explained. "No point in wasting time and arguing in circles against people like that."

Lee nodded along, agreeing with Simen. "Y-Yeah. It's obvious that those jackasses won't like us no matter what, so why would we argue?"

KG started grumbling to himself. The Morris situation reared its ugly head in his mind once again. If he hadn't gotten upset at him and just voted out Stain, they wouldn't be dealing with this. He let out a sigh, "Well, what are we gonna do, amigos? We can't just submit to them, and I'm still a bit wary of Roy."

"There's nothing we can do except hope that we either win, which would still be bad since they would still be in the game with us," Simen began. "Or, we hope that Roy actually helps us…"

"COMPETITORS! PLEASE REPORT TO THE MESS HALL!" Zekrom's voice echoed.

Hearing the call, Lee let out a sigh, rising to his feet. "Well, looks like we're doing another challenge today…" he reasoned. "Hopefully things wind up going well."

"Hey, you never know. Maybe this is just them feeding us again," KG responded, despite knowing he was wrong.

"Wishful thinking, but they only call us when there's going to be a challenge," Simen replied as he and Lee started heading back to the campgrounds. "Otherwise, we just follow the schedule they put up."

Letting out a defeated sigh, the Fuecoco followed his two friends to the Mess Hall.

000

"It just feels like everything is going wrong already, and we're not even that far along in the game," KG groaned. "

"Tan malditamente estúpido," he muttered, rubbing his face.

000

Now in the Mess Hall, all of the guys, minus Dale, sat in wait for their hosts to arrive. When they first arrived, they noticed a sign on one of the tables that read: Pick up a breakfast box, but do not open it until we arrive.

So, they were currently wondering if something was going on. Well, most of them were. Stain, being who he was, simply swallowed his box whole immediately, with Steve shaking his head. "You just have no respect, do you?"

"Hey, they said not to open them, and I didn't. So, get off my dick…" he shot back. "Oh wait, you'd like that… Nevermind."

Steve glowered at the pile of sludge, as did Lee, who overheard the comment. They despised the Muk with a burning passion, but knew that arguing or hurting him wouldn't change anything.

"Ugh, where are they? I'm starving over here!" Travis groused, folding his arms in a huff.

As soon as he said that, the hosting couple entered the Mess Hall, with Zekrom flatly responding to the Electivire's question, "We're here, Travis."

"How are you all doing?" Reshiram greeted, looking around.

"Hungry," the Thunderbolt Pokémon responded, now fiddling with his box. Now that the hosts were there, the Electivire impatiently opened his box.

000

"What? When I'm hungry, I'm hungry," Travis huffed.

000

Upon opening his box, the Machamp noticed a wooden coaster sitting on top of the paper covering the food.

"Uh… What is this?" Travis inquired, holding up the coaster in question. It had a Conkeldurr's face etched onto it.

"Well, if you'd actually waited for us to explain the situation, you'd understand," Zekrom retorted. He then let out a sigh, explaining, "Each of your breakfast boxes holds a coaster with either a Machamp emblem or a Conkeldurr emblem. Whichever one you receive… That's the team you're now on. By producer demands, we're switching things up…"

Nearly all of the guys either gasped or exchanged looks with their friends. This was going to be very interesting to say the least.

000

"Sweet mother of Arceus, my prayers may have been answered!" Lee beamed.

000

Opening their boxes, some more wary than others, the new teams were slowly formed. Lee had a Conkeldurr coaster in his box, much to his immediate chagrin. He was still stuck with homophobic Travis. However, as long as Stain still wasn't on his team, he could work with it.

"So, uh… What'd you guys get?" the Boltund asked, looking across from him. "Looks like I'm on the Conkeldurrs, now."

"Oh… Well, I'm on the Conkeldurrs now, too, I guess…" Simen said, looking in his box.

KG let out a sigh, mumbling to himself in Spanish. Lee and Simen exchanged looks before looking back at the Fire Croc Pokémon. "I'm still on the Machamps…"

Lee gave him a look of sympathy, while Simen let out a sigh of his own. It looked like the three of them wouldn't be able to work together in the challenges anymore.

"Well," Simen began. "On the bright side, you won't have to deal with Travis. You'll have to deal with, uh…"

The Voltorb began looking around, as the others began announcing their new teams as well.

"Well… I guess I'm still on the Machamps," Roy sighed, eyeing the coaster in his hands.

Nick chuckled awkwardly to himself, "Well, looks like we're gonna be teammates." He waved his own coaster, as well as Lexico's, with each also having a Machamp emblem on it. Tate had a Conkeldurr coaster, so nothing was really changing for him.

Roy didn't really know what to make of his 'new team' so far. From what he's seen and heard, he's got Nick, Lexico, and KG, who were all weaker than him. He really didn't want to be the sole 'strong' guy on this team. Anxious, he glanced over to Steve and Rane's table, where the Toucannon wore an expression of irritation, while Rane remained indifferent.

"So, uh… What team are you guys on?" the Throh asked, silently hoping that Rane was on his team. The Hard Scale Pokémon was a damn juggernaut! He'd be perfect for the team.

Rane boredly held up his coaster, which had a Conkeldurr emblem on it. The Judo Pokémon's spirit fell, as the Golisopod was his main want.

While Roy was disappointed, Travis was ecstatic. "Hell yeah! We're definitely gonna kick some fucking ass now!" he beamed, slamming his fists on the table.

Steve grumbled to himself, staring down at the Machamp coaster in his box. They couldn't be serious, could they? They just couldn't be. He was going from a team with his number one ally and a feeling of great strength… to a team of weaklings. It didn't even matter what team Dale or Stain ended up on. To him, he was going to be screwed either way.

000

"So, I'm going from a team with my closest alliance… To a team of weaklings. Lexico can't do anything; Nick is a damn lazy waste; KG could have potential, but he's not even evolved; I don't even wanna talk about Roy; and whether we get Dale or the living shit, we're essentially gonna be a team of five…" Steve groused.

"I guess I got what I asked for, though," he reasoned. "This at least makes things even for us, number-wise."

000

Stain belched, having been unfazed by the news and reactions from his fellow players. "Oh joy, a twist. Totally not just a shitty cop out to try and save the fag from his inevitable fate…"

"You ate your box again, didn't you?" Zekrom deadpanned, ignoring the putrid words escaping from the Muk's maw.

"You know he did," Steve answered. "The bastard has no self-respect or respect for others…"

"Kiss kiss, queer," Stain countered before turning his attention back to the hosts. "So which of these shitty teams am I on?"

"You'd have known if you had just been patient like we asked," Reshiram responded, folding her arms. "But, luckily, or unluckily in a few of you guys' cases, we went to Dale first, and he is still a member of the Conkeldurrs, meaning that Stain remains on the Machamps."

While a few members of the new Machamps gaped and gained expressions of dread and annoyance, Lee beamed, his tail wagging fiercely. "Yes! Yes, yes,yes! Thank Arceus!"

Stain scoffed at the display, "Pathetic…"

"Now, to recap…" Zekrom began. "The new Mighty Machamps include KG, Roy, Lexico, Nick, Steve, and Stain…"

"Joy…" Steve deadpanned. How was he supposed to do anything with this setup?

"And the Candid Conkeldurrs now include Lee, Simen, Rane, Travis, Tate, and Dale…" Zekrom continued.

Travis chuckled to himself, "This is gonna be awesome…"

"Now, in addition to new teams, we are also introducing a new mechanic to the game…" Reshiram began. She held up the immunity statue, causing a few curious looks to form. "This is an immunity idol."

Instantly, everyone's eyes went wide in surprise, aside from Roy. The Throh only grew confused at the sight of the Poké Ball figure. "Uh… a what?"

"It's a statue that saves you from elimination if you find it," Lee explained.

"Precisely," Zekrom confirmed with a nod. "This idol will be hidden somewhere on the island, and if you're able to find it, you'll be able to use it to save yourself, or an ally, from elimination."

Stain huffed, "We know how it works. We're not all stupid."

Once again ignoring the Sludge Pokémon, the hosts moved on. "Now, that's all the news we have for you today," Reshiram relayed. "Be sure to get acquainted with your new teammates, because your next challenge will take place in two hours."

With that, the couple exited the Mess Hall, leaving the players to process the new information.

000

"So not only did these morons put us in new teams for no reason, they gave us the chance to find free immunity," Stain recapped. He belched, "Well played, I guess. It's obvious they only did it because they don't want the fags and women's rights bimbos writing angry letters because one of their token gays is getting the treatment he deserves."

000

Returning to the Sausage Link with his new team, Steve took in a deep breath. He really had his work cut out for him now. At least he had Rane to rely on before, now who did he have?

As the others took their spots on the couch, the Toucannon stood before them. He was disappointed, but knew that he couldn't really show it, lest he lower their spirits. "Alright, well… We've been shuffled around a bit, but hopefully that won't affect the way we all work together," Steve began. "So, I-"

Stain let out a loud belch, interrupting the Toucannon. Steve glared at the pile of sludge, as the others also looked at him with looks of annoyance and disgust. Smacking his lips in the aftermath, the Muk stated, "We don't care, you old fart. This is just a worse team of betas, but now I'm the main alpha."

Steve scoffed in response. He wasn't about to deal with the Muk's attitude. He just didn't have the patience for it. "Please, punk. You're not an alpha. You're the furthest thing from an alpha," he chided, earning him a glare from Stain in return.

"Plus, Simen said that the whole thing about alphas doesn't even exist," Roy spoke up.

Steve chuckled to himself upon hearing that news, "Well, what do you know? You've been spewing absolute fucking garbage since the start. Who would've guessed?"

"Oh, go find a pole to sit on," Stain shot back. "Of course you'd wanna listen to a beta male's explanation as to why us alphas 'don't exist'."

"Those ideas don't exist…" Roy sighed, rubbing his face.

The argument continued, with half of the team engaged and the other half just uninterested.

Letting out a disappointed sigh, KG turned away from the others, resting his head on one of the arms of the couch. He was doing his best to ignore the discord, but it really felt impossible. He felt truly isolated on this new team, for obvious reasons.

Nick, Lexico, and Steve were from the opposing team, Roy was iffy in his mind, and nobody liked Stain. Plus, with him being the only unevolved guy on the team, it felt obvious that if they lost, he'd be an easy vote.

Lexico, growing visibly bored by the argument unfolding before him, glanced over at the Fire Croc Pokémon, who was staring at the wall, facing away from all of them. Nick took notice as well and looked at the Unown for a while before humming to himself.

000

"Maybe if we work with KG, we can still do pretty well on the new team," Nick reasoned. "I mean, Stain and Steve don't like each other, so it could be easy to get a majority!"

Lexico gave him a look, prompting him to add, "Oh, uh… Little dude said that."

000

While the new Mighty Machamps had their discussion at the Sausage Link, the new Candid Conkeldurrs made their way to the beach so that Dale could be included.

Pacing back and forth in front of his teammates of new and old, Travis wore a smile. While he considered majority of this team dead weight, he had Rane working with him instead of against him now. That alone made it worthwhile.

"Alright, as leader of this team-" he began.

Lee scoffed, interrupting him. "Uh, excuse me? Who died and made you the leader?"

Irritated, the Electivire countered, "Oh, I'm sorry twink. Do you have any other options?"

Everyone turned to Rane, who was in the water away from them. The Golisopod was practicing his form, seemingly unbothered by the team shake-up.

Seeing where everyone's eyes went, Travis chuckled, "Yeah, no… Rane is our tank, and he doesn't even talk, so how would he be a good leader?"

"How would you be a good leader?" Dale countered flatly. "Didn't you and Stain keep putting down Lee just because he was gay? I'm pretty sure that's not how a good leader would act."

Travis rolled his eyes, "And what would you know about teamwork? You haven't competed in a single challenge so far."

"It's not his fault he's stuck in the water," Simen defended. "He's one of the biggest Pokémon in the world!"

"Excuses…" Travis brushed off. "Look, whether you all like it or not, I'm the uh… second most strongest guy on this team, so I'm the leader. Don't like it? Too bad."

Everyone wore a look of irritation before exchanging looks with each other. The Thunderbolt Pokémon was already disliked, and him acting like this was definitely not doing him any favors.

"Now, let's go over our strengths and weaknesses," he suggested.

000

"We are literally a team of only Water and Electric-types…" Simen deadpanned. "What does he… Ugh… Nevermind."

000

After about an hour, all of the players returned to their usual groups. For most of them, these new teams already felt worse, and they hadn't even had their first challenges yet.

Rane sat alone in a room in the gym, lifting up a large barbell. He was probably the guy least affected by the team swap, as he wasn't necessarily close to anyone. Well, aside from maybe Steve, as he was the only one making any actual attempts to get to know him.

Otherwise, he couldn't care less about what team he was on as long as he was able to proceed further in the game. He wouldn't mind if he made friends or anything, but it wasn't his main priority. Now, while he wasn't too bothered by the swap in general, the fact that he now had Travis on his team irked him a bit.

The Electivire was nothing more than a cowardly punk as far as he was concerned. Sure, he appeared to be strong, but the Hard Scale Pokémon couldn't tolerate what he saw as bullying and belittling. He wasn't with them when they decided to have their meeting at the beach, but he could just tell by the volume and body language when he did approach afterwards that things were already sour.

He was definitely going to have to take care of that problem. Taking a sharp breath, he lifted the barbell above his head, holding it for a few seconds.

Just then, SLAM! This sudden noise startled the Golisopod, almost causing him to drop the barbell. Letting out a low growl, he began to hear grumbling and could immediately piece together who it was. Sighing to himself, he placed the barbell back on its stand before sitting up, knowing that the Toucannon would be entering the room in 3… 2…

"I hate this…" Steve groused as he kicked open the door to the room. "Now, I'm stuck with the damn petulant blob who wouldn't know respect if he kicked him in the face and the one who was too cowardly to stand up to him and check on the others. How the hell am I supposed to work with that? Not to mention that Lex can't really do anything, I don't trust Nick to do anything, and the little croc is just weak…"

Rane cocked a brow, giving the Cannon Pokémon a look as he continuing complaining. Steve's options were obvious from his point of view. He had Lex and Nick already, at least he'd better hope that he did, and if KG still had resentment from how the others treated him, then he had the easy majority.

Steve let out an exasperated sigh as he flopped on the bench beside Rane, leaning against him. This action surprised the large bug, but he didn't really mind it. He just saw it as Steve just being comfortable with him.

Realizing what he was doing, though, Steve immediately sat back up and moved away from him, clearing his throat. "S-Sorry about that. I'm just used to my husband letting me…" he paused, looking at Rane's impassive expression, before letting out another sigh. "Nevermind..."

Rane could see the disappointment in the bird's eyes, despite his species' usually aggressive expression. Sighing to himself, Rane pat Steve on the back, which surprised the Toucannon. A small smile formed on Steve's face before he let out a short chortle, "Well… I'm sure you're fine with your spread. You just gotta worry about that cowardly frat-head. Otherwise, you'll probably just be carrying them like you helped me carry them before."

Rane shrugged in response. Steve nodded back in understanding. "Well, there's nothing else we can really do aside from wait for the next challenge," he began. A smirk formed on his face, "And, I'm sure that I'll be able to handle you and help my new team get our first victory."

The Golisopod shot a deadpan look in his friend's direction. Was he being serious? He huffed in response, prompting Steve to get to his feet with a competitive look in his eye, "Oh, you don't think I can take you on?"

Rane rolled his eyes in response, giving the Toucannon his answer. "Oh, alright… We'll see whose team comes out on top when they call us down," he challenged as he made his way out of the room.

Rane couldn't help but chuckle to himself before getting back into his lifting position.

000

Steve chuckled, "Just a little banter. Gotta keep him on his toes. Just because my team is full of weaklings doesn't mean I want him to take it easy on us…"

"Do I think I can take him on? Probably so," he continued. "We've been working together until now, so this'll be a chance to see if he's really that good. Especially since I have an advantage over him."

000

Rane shrugged with his arms folded.

000

Back in the Sausage Link, KG was lying on his bed, a handheld game system in his hands. He'd found it in the game room, wanting something to occupy himself as he waited for Lee and Simen to return. He didn't know where Roy or Stain went, but he honestly didn't care.

Eventually, the Fire Croc Pokémon heard the sound of faint chatter, causing him to pause his game momentarily to listen. He heard the familiar voices of Lee and Simen, which made him feel a bit better. Now knowing that they were back and more than likely approaching, he returned to his game, which was a different one from the same franchise as the one he was playing earlier. "Thank Arceus there's no barrels he-" he began before being hit by a random barrel. He twitched, before roaring, "DAMN IT!"

Lee and Simen entered the room a few moments later, initially confused by the sudden outburst. However, once they saw the game system in his hands, it all made sense. Lee sighed as he climbed into the bottom bunk, "KG, you've gotta put the games down from time to time."

Simen concurred, "Yeah, you've been playing them a lot more lately, and it may be causing you more stress than usual."

KG, who'd been grumbling to himself in Spanish as his focus returned to the game, glanced over the edge of his bunk and took a breath. He could admit that they had a point, but at the same time, that's what the games were there for.

He climbed down from his bunk, leaving the handheld in his bed before joining his friends on Simen's. He flopped on his back, letting out a sigh, "I hate my new team…"

"Hey, I mean at least you have Steve and Roy," Lee countered, trying to get him to see the positive. "And I'm sure Nick and Lex are alright, so you really just have to deal with Stain's mess."

Simen chimed in, "Kinda like how we have to deal with Travis, but the others are alright. And hey, we can just vote them out as soon as we lose."

"Won't we be outnumbered by the other team, then?" KG questioned. "And then they can just start voting us out?"

Lee and Simen paused for a moment, as they hadn't paid much attention to that detail. Both new teams were evenly distributed, with three people from each original team. So, whoever got eliminated first on the new teams would set the pace for the rest of the game.

The Boltund let out a sigh, laying his head down, "So we're really gonna have to keep Travis and Stain around and try to get one of the others eliminated instead…?"

"Well…" Simen began. "We can't just assume that their team will stick together no matter what. There could be cracks."

"Emphasis on could be," Lee replied. "We have the two quiet guys and Dale, and we don't know how well linked they are."

Just then, the Boltund had an idea. It was simple, but could easily fail. He turned to the Fire Croc Pokémon, "Okay, KG. Why don't you try to work with Steve and get on his good side? I think I trust him the most out of everyone on the other team…"

"What's that gonna do?" KG inquired with a scoff. "I mean, I'm still the smallest on the team. You think he'll protect me over his original teammates?"

"I mean, maybe," the Boltund answered, uncertain. "I just know that he's trustworthy."

"Why not try to work with Nick and Lex instead?" Simen chimed in. "I mean, I think they'd have more in common with KG than Steve."

Lee preferred Steve due to their close interactions, but didn't really mind Nick or Lexico. Like he mentioned earlier, they seemed… alright at the very least, though Steve obviously didn't like Nick for his own reasons.

"They could work, too," he replied. "Just… Do whatever you can to get in their good graces. If they end up liking you enough, they may want to keep you in, regardless of strength or original allegiances."

KG sighed, shaking his head, "Amigos, I'm just not sure. This is just… Ugh," he groaned, rubbing his face in irritation. Dread and uncertainty were plaguing his mind. He'd already gotten Morris eliminated; he, Lee, and Simen were being treated poorly by Travis and Stain; he was still the second smallest guy there overall; and now he was stuck on a new team.

As he started muttering in Spanish, Lee patted his head, trying to comfort him. "You'll be alright. I'm sure you will," he said in a soothing tone. "We just… have to have faith."

KG gave him a look, as Simen sweatdropped. Having faith wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but in this game… Yeah, they were going to need more than just faith.

000

"We'll see how well that works out…" KG deadpanned.

000

"So, uh… How're we feeling about our new teams?" Dale inquired, his tone oozing with unease. He could already assume that the response from Nick and Lexico would be negative, but he could be wrong. He just wanted to get a general consensus.

His prediction proved to be true, though, as Nick let out a sigh, "Well… We've got Stain now, so…"

The Wailord took a sharp breath. "Yeah, that's definitely rough," he concurred. "Meanwhile, we've got Travis, and he's appointed himself as the team leader since Rane doesn't talk…"

Lexico wore a look of confusion, as Nick rubbed his icy head, "Jeez, already? It sounds like you guys have it rough, too. But, then again… Steve was kinda doing the same thing to us, but-"

"Uneven teams," Tate suddenly stated, getting their attention.

Acknowledging him, Dale replied, "Yeah, I can admit that the teams really do seem kinda… lopsided. I mean, we've got Rane and Travis, and you guys have Steve and… Roy?"

Nick glanced at Lexico before relaying, "Little dude says to remember that Stain is strong, too. He's just lazy… and a nuisance."

"Oh, right… He did kinda wreck Martin with that dodgeball…" Dale recalled. "So, I guess it's not too lopsided after all."

Tate rolled his eyes, as they didn't understand what he meant. "Our team is only Electric-types and Water-types," he clarified. "It could be bad."

"Oh, that," Dale responded. "Huh, I didn't even really notice until you pointed it out. That… actually could be a problem."

"I mean, you guys still have Rane, so probably not," Nick replied, trying to be positive. "It depends on what the next challenges are, but you never know."

Nick glanced at Lexico again, as the Unown nudged him with his 'foot'. "Oh, right… Little dude has a plan for us to be a bit safer. We're gonna try and get their little dude to work with us."

"KG?" Dale questioned. "I mean… It could work. Given that I'm pretty sure nobody on their team even likes Stain, it could be easy to convince KG to work with you and vote Stain out."

"Then vote him out?" Tate questioned, referring to KG. They would have the numbers after that, so why keep KG or Roy around after that?

"Uh… Well, let's not get too ahead of ourselves," the Wailord replied.

He honestly wasn't fond of the idea of just using someone who was being bullied to get rid of their bully, and then just getting rid of them immediately after. It just wouldn't feel right to him. "They've got their idea to get KG on their side. Let's just wait and see how that goes before we try to think about anything else…"

Tate remained quiet that time. He could be patient, but he felt that the answer was right in front of them.

000

Travis, as well as a reluctant Roy, made their way to Stain's room, per the Sludge Pokémon's loud request. Having been around the Muk for a good while now, they had grown accustomed to the foul stench occupying his room, so they weren't trying to hold their breaths anymore.

"Well, these new teams are garbage," Stain stated matter-of-factly, followed by a belch. "I'm stuck with even worse losers, and now I have an old, angry, virtue signaling boomer to deal with."

"You're still not believing that he's gay, huh?" Roy replied flatly, folding his arms.

"Even if he actually is, he's still an old, angry, pathetic boomer," Stain replied. "Him being a shithole stuffer or stuffee just makes him worse."

"Don't remind me," Travis groaned, holding his head. He really didn't need to be reminded that Steve was gay. He didn't buy Stain's conspiracy theory about him lying or whatever; the way that the Toucannon revealed himself made him truly believe it. "Thankfully, I've got the big guy on my team now, and since he doesn't talk… I'm the leader of the team now."

Stain and Roy exchanged knowing glances before looking back at the Electivire. Noticing the looks he was receiving, the Thunderbolt Pokémon questioned, "What?"

"You expect us to believe that the idiots you wound up with willingly let you be the team leader?" Stain deadpanned.

Travis huffed, "Well, it's not like they had any other real options. Rane's a mute, the Wailord is stuck in he water, Potato or… Whatever his name is, barely speaks, and there's no way in the Distortion World that I'm taking orders from a ball or a twink."

"Even if they're smart and have a good idea?" Roy inquired. "Sounds like an easy way to make them all dislike you even more. Hell, honestly… Both of you guys are just sitting Ducklett with these new teams. As soon as either team loses, it's probably a guarantee that one of you is going…"

"Uh-huh… Sure…" Stain burped, his tone oozing with sarcasm. "We're totally boned. It's not like the hosts literally just added something to the game to help with that specific problem."

Roy threw the Muk an unamused expression. Yes, the hosts just introduced a new item into the game, but it had a caveat. "Yes… The immunity thing. That could be a solution to the problem, but the issue lies in the fact that y'know… It's hidden. And this island is pretty big, so I doubt that anyone will be able to find it fast," the Throh opined.

"The hosts of these dumb shows always hide the idols in landmark areas of the island," Stain flatly explained, a fart escaping him. "If they put them anywhere else, they would never be found. So, I doubt it'll be that hard. Regardless, this game is completely open now."

Travis huffed, folding his arms. "Well, if you ask me… The idol is a pussy's way out. If you get voted out, you're out. You just have to take your lumps, not have a-"

"Stop," Stain demanded, his expression unbothered. "You're being too obvious…"

The Electivire's demeanor shifted quickly as he asked, "I uh… I am?"

Roy gave him a look. Did he seriously expect them to believe what he was saying? Eventually, Stain put the Throh's own thoughts into words, responding, "Idiot… We know how you normally talk and act. Plus, we all want that idol. You're not slick."

Travis huffed, folding his arms.

000

"I'm a lot smarter than these guys think…" he huffed. "I'll show them…"

000

"Well, even if one of you does find the idol, that only saves you for one day," Roy followed. "Same for anyone else who may find it. As soon as we know who has it, we just have to put all our votes on them, make them use it and-"

"-and let them, and only them, decide who gets eliminated? Great idea…" the Muk countered. Roy opened his mouth to speak, wanting to clarify, but Stain wouldn't let him. He continued, "So hey, if someone ends up voting for you, and that's the only vote that counts and sends you home, then it'd be your own stupid fault."

Roy rolled his eyes in response. As far as he was concerned, out of the three of them, he was the one who was the safest. He hadn't pissed anyone off, aside from maybe Rane and Steve, but they'd probably gotten over it by now.

"Whatever…" Roy deadpanned. "If you guys think that the idol will do anything, have at it."

"Hey, don't act like you're out of this," Travis chimed in. "We agreed to not bother those losers, so you'd better still be helping us."

"Oh, that's still happening?" Roy inquired, surprised that he mentioned it. "I mean, the teams swapped, so I thought that you guys would say the deal was automatically off."

"Nope. You made a big deal about it, so you're gonna help us, whether you like it or not," Stain responded. "We've got like another hour or so before those dumb hosts call us for the challenge, so let's go try to find it."

Roy groaned, holding his head.

"Unless… You wanna break the deal and not be a wimpy prick," Stain replied.

000

Roy sighed. "I hate my life…"

000

Eventually, another hour passed, with Zekrom's voice echoing from the flagpole, announcing that their next challenge would take place at the field.

All of the able players made their way to the open area, with some feeling more enthused than others. Travis wore a look of confidence, eager to lead his team to a presumed victory.

Meanwhile, Steve wore a neutral expression, still feeling unsure about his team. He would see how well they fared in this challenge and determine his feelings from there. He didn't expect anything from Stain, but from the others… He expected their best efforts.

The pair of hosts stood in wait as the players all made their way towards them. Ahku, and Dale, who was once again seen on a monitor, were also waiting.

Once all of the players were there, Reshiram began, "Hello again. We hope that you all have gotten settled into your new teams."

"These teams suck ass," Stain commented, "but, I guess that's intentional since you just wanna push your dumb liberal-"

"Anyways," Zekrom interrupted. They didn't have the time nor patience for the Muk's politically-charged tirades."Your first challenge as new teams will be somewhat simple and will also act as your immunity challenge for the day."

"Everyone has a fear of something," Reshiram started. "Regardless of it being rational or irrational, we each have something that instills fright and anxiety within us. So, today's challenge will be all about facing those fears."

Immediately, looks of dread spread across the cast, missing a few of them like Rane and Stain. The Golisopod kept an indifferent expression, but was still a bit curious about the challenge. Meanwhile, Stain just rolled his eyes, unimpressed by the challenge concept.

"Lame…" the Sludge Pokémon groused.

"There will be two rounds," Zekrom expounded, still choosing to ignore the Muk's presence. "The first round will involve you all facing your own fears, while the second round will involve you facing the fears of your fellow competitors…"

"This will be handled in a head-to-head format," Reshiram divulged further. "A player from each team will face off and have to confront their fears for a total of ten minutes in order to earn a point. If both players succeed, both teams get a point. If one player taps out before the other, the opposing team gets a point. By the end, the team that has the most points will win the first round."

"Then, we'll run it again, but with you facing a different fear," Zekrom explained."So-"

Recognizing a possible problem, Simen asked, "Okay, so what happens if it's a tie? There are only gonna be two rounds, so-"

He found himself getting cut off by Travis, who posed his own question. "Wait, so we don't get anything extra for winning the first round? Just a notch? That's lame…"

Zekrom let out a sigh. While Simen's question was understandable, Travis' just irritated him as he didn't even get to finish. "If there is a tie, a quick tiebreaker challenge will occur in order to determine a winner," he answered.

Simen nodded in understanding as Zekrom glanced at Travis. "As for the prizes… If you'd let me finish, I'd have said that, alongside immunity, the team that wins the challenge will receive a clue to the whereabouts of the hidden immunity idol."

Stain immediately perked up at the mention of the idol clue. He needed it more than anyone there. They'd spent an hour searching around the house and gym before they were called down for this.

"Now, if there are no further questions, we can begin the challenge," Reshiram stated.

"Wait, so… You dudes have things just set up already?" Nick inquired. "Gnarly…"

"With help from Ahku, of course…" Zekrom confirmed, gesturing to the Iron Hands, who proceeded to walk away. "As well as a few other guests…"

After nodding in agreement, Reshiram looked over the cast once again. "Now, Nick and Tate, you two will be first," she declared.

The Eiscue paled a bit, while Tate's spikes began blinking rapidly.

000

"...They blink fast when I'm nervous…" the embarrassed Pincurchin explained.

000

Another large monitor was rolled into the field by Ahku, which would allow the remaining players to watch what was going on.

"This should be interesting," Roy commented. "Getting to see what we're all scared of can be useful…"

"Oh yes, having to face our greatest fears on television just to earn pathetic points… Very interesting…" Stain scoffed.

"And what exactly are you scared of Mr. 'I'm An Alpha'?" Lee inquired in a mocking tone.

"I see that your balls have dropped since you're not on the same team as me anymore…" the Muk huffed. "You're fucking pathetic. As for your question, you don't need to know. You'll see when it's my turn, just like I'll see that your fear is generic as hell."

Lee glowered at him before being nudged by Simen, whose expression read 'leave it.' The Boltund huffed before turning around to disengage.

KG plopped in front of the monitor with a sigh, far from enthused about this challenge. "Well, let's see how this goes…"

-000-

At the beach, Reshiram and Tate stood next to a tarp-covered object. The Pincurchin's spikes were still blinking rapidly, his fear never letting up.

"Alright, Tate…" Reshiram began. "Your fear is being trapped in quicksand. So…"

She lifted the tarp, revealing a sandbox, presumably filled with quicksand, as it was much darker than usual. Seeing it, Tate's spikes began flashing even quicker as he tried to crawl away.

Seeing this, Reshiram let out a soft sigh. Leaning down, she picked up the Sea Urchin Pokémon before sitting him down on the edge of the sandbox.

"All you have to do is sit in the sandbox for ten minutes, and you'll earn your team a point," the Vast White dragoness explained.

"S-Sink…" Tate replied, staring at the murky sand.

"I'll be right here monitoring you," Reshiram assured him.

That obviously didn't ease the Pincurchin's nerves. Sure, she'd be there to watch over him, but at the same time, he didn't know her. Plus, these shows and their Legendary hosts went overboard all the time.

"Go on and hop in and your ten minutes will start," Reshiram instructed.

Tate looked at the sandbox and back at the pure white host beside him before taking a deep breath.

-000-

"Quicksand…?" Travis questioned with a scoff. "That's tame. If he doesn't do this, he's definitely on the chopping block."

"Uh… Brick for brains, you realize that he's the smallest guy here, right?" Steve replied. "Him being scared of quicksand is reasonable since he'll sink fast."

"Mind your own business, old man," Travis retorted. "Worry about your own team."

"Watch yourself, punk," Steve threatened. "Don't be thinking you're hot shit just because you've got a wall on your team now."

Travis scoffed, "I can think however I want. You've got nothing compared to us, now."

Rane gave the Electivire a look, folding his arms. Seeing this, Steve smirked to himself. "Whatever you say, frat-head…"

Dale huffed, already annoyed by the Thunderbolt Pokémon. "Well, we'll see how he does with his fear," he commented, with Lee and Simen nodding in agreement.

Everyone's attention went back to the monitor. They knew what Tate's fear was, now they wanted to see what Nick would be dealing with.

-000-

Nick stood at the flagpole with Zekrom, fiddling with his flippers. "S-So, uh… Any chance we can just skip over this, dude?"

"Well, if you want to forfeit without trying, I won't blame you. However, I can't be so sure that your new team will appreciate that…" Zekrom countered. "This is a chance to show what you're capable of."

With that in mind, Nick groaned to himself. He was currently on a team with both Steve and Stain, two guys who would, undoubtedly, never let him hear the end of it. While there was a chance that he could have the numbers, he didn't want any conflict.

Taking a deep breath, the Eiscue shuddered. "O-okay… Fine…"

Zekrom nodded, "Alright. We've got ten minutes…"

He picked up the Penguin Pokémon with one of his hands, holding him close to his chest. "Wow… You're strong, dude…"

Zekrom cocked a brow at the compliment, but didn't comment on it. "Alright, hold on…"

The Eiscue braced himself, clenching every part of his body. The Deep Black Pokémon immediately took flight, with Nick screaming the entire way.

000

"Uh… So, what's his fear exactly?" Roy inquired. There wasn't a verbal mention of it, unlike with Reshiram and Tate, so he was a bit unsure.

Stain flatly replied, "Hmm, well considering that he was screaming as soon as the charcoal charlatan started flying with him, I'm guessing the ice beta hates flying…"

"Charlatan…? Really…?" Simen deadpanned, finding the Sludge Pokémon's attempted use of high vocabulary insulting.

"You're not the only one who knows smart words, loser…" Stain belched.

Travis groaned, "Great, so we're just gonna have to sit here, wait, and watch these losers deal with their fears for ten whole minutes each? This sucks!"

"If you've got a problem, take it up with the hosts when they get back," Steve retorted. "I'm sure they'd love to take your feedback into account."

The Electivire glared at the Toucannon.

000

"I'm done taking disrespect from that old geezer," Travis declared, folding his arms. "I'm in charge of my own team now, and he doesn't have Rane anymore. He's nobody now. Plus, I'm just now realizing… I'm stronger than him!"

"Sure, he's intimidating, but I can easily take him down…"

000

"Look, you old, fairy fart," Travis sneered, pointing at the Cannon Pokémon with a sharp glare. "I don't appreciate your bullshit. You act like you're better and smarter than everyone else, especially me, just because you're old and in the military. Well, guess what… You're not!"

Hearing this escalation, all eyes went to the Electivire and Toucannon. Lee scoffed, "Okay, what the hell are you even talking about, Travis? You don't know-"

The Dog Pokémon was cut off by Steve raising his wing, signaling for him to stop. "No, no, Lee… Let the cowardly bastard speak his mind. This could be a step in the right direction for him…"

Hearing himself being called a coward when he was clearly showing the opposite, the Thunderbolt Pokémon fumed, "See! You're proving it! Stop acting so high and mighty! You're probably just bitter than I get more bitches than you because you're too busy taking dick like a slut!"

Everyone was silent for a moment, stunned by how quickly this escalated out of nowhere. Eventually, Stain started laughing, proud of the escalation, "Atta boy. Finally someone is sticking it to this old beta freak!"

Steve blinked in response, flatly responding, "You done projecting? Do you feel better about yourself, now?"

The Electivire was stunned. Had nothing he said made an impact? "Screw you!" he raged.

"Nah, I'm married, and I prefer actual men, not incels like you, and the living shit pile over there, who spend more time sucking each other's dicks over how manly and alpha you are. You're nothing…"

Travis' expression softened as the Toucannon continued. "...and you make it clear that you're nothing by how you treat anyone different than you. Why are you and your shitty boyfriend over there so concerned about what us other males do? Are you insecure?"

Travis' eyes tightened at the bird. He was far from insecure. He had lots of friends and females that wanted him back home. "The hell do I have to be insecure about?! I've got friends and I get bitches, unlike you."

"...and maybe you're scared that you like a little sausage, too?" the Toucannon shot. "Is that your fear, tough guy?"

"Watch it…" Travis growled, stepping forward.

Steve chortled, remaining steadfast, "I mean, you called Lee a distraction because of his appearance… Sounds to me like you may have more sugar in the tank than you realize…"

The Electivire immediately tried to throw a Thunder Punch at the Toucannon, only to have it stopped by…

"Rane?!" Travis exclaimed, yanking his arm out of the Golisopod's grasp. "The hell is your problem?!"

The Golisopod simply pointed away in another direction, his glare tightening.

"Hey, I'm not scared of you ei-" Travis began, before the Hard Scale Pokémon suddenly grabbed him by the throat, hoisting him up.

In response, the Electivire used Thunder, which caused Rane to wince, but he didn't release his grip.

"Rane… RANE!" the Golisopod heard. Glancing back, he saw Steve shake his head.

The large isopod looked back at Travis, who was looking much more frightened given his attack's apparent ineffectiveness. He dropped the sasquatch and walked back to the monitor as if nothing happened, leaving Travis to catch his breath.

Steve approached the down Thunderbolt Pokémon, who was trying to get more breath into his lungs. Firmly, the Toucannon stated, "Learn some respect… and maybe the rest of us will actually respect you in return…"

With that, Steve walked back over to the group. Travis looked over and saw that the others wore looks of disapproval and irritation, aside from Stain who simply rolled his eyes at what just occurred. He stared at the ground, dejected.

000

"Fucking… pathetic," Stain burped. "Losers can't handle when anyone calls them out about their lack of manliness and try to act like actually being a masculine male is a bad thing."

"This is why people hate these faggots and their agenda. They attack anyone who opposes them and play the victim afterwards."

000

Once the ten minutes were up for Tate and Nick, they returned to the field, where they and the hosts could sense that there was a lot more tension than usual.

However, despite this tense aura, the hosts decided to proceed with the challenge.

"Alright, both Tate and Nick managed to last ten minutes against their greatest fears, though Nick was mainly because he passed out a few seconds in…" Zekrom explained. "So, they each earn their teams a point."

"Is there another way to do this stupid challenge?" Stain inquired. "Having the rest of us just sit here for ten minutes watching you losers isn't that fun."

"As much as I hate agreeing with Stain… Yeah, it's not that fun just sitting here," KG chimed in. "Especially with certain… clashes that happen."

"Well, that's just how the challenge is set up," Reshiram replied. "If anything, the main thing we can do is not facilitate and let you all handle your fears on your own."

"I think I'd prefer that," Steve spoke up. "It makes it more challenging when we know that nobody else is there with us."

"Does everyone else agree?" Zekrom inquired.

While no one directly agreed or disagreed, the exchanging of glances told them that some of them really didn't care too much. At the end of the day, the challenge was going to suck for all, or most, of them.

"Okay. So, instead of us being involved, we will simply tell you all where to go and let you know when your time starts via the loudspeakers," Reshiram explained. "With this in mind, we will still let both teams keep their first points."

Tate and Nick both let out sighs of relief. At least they got each team an easy point.

"Now, Dale and Steve, you two will be next…" Zekrom stated.

The Wailord groaned, while Steve chuckled to himself.

000

"I'm not scared of too much," Steve revealed. "I didn't even put anything for that section on my application. So… I'll be able to handle whatever they throw at me…"

000

The Toucannon wore a look of unadulterated dread as he sat in front of a miniature wooden stage on the beach. A red curtain was hanging in front of it, and a sign reading 'Marcellus' Master Show' was propped up next to the stage.

"U-Uh… I didn't put anything on my application for fears…" Steve stammered, as if knowing what was behind the curtain already.

"You're right. You didn't," Zekrom confirmed. "However, you did have your husband's number on there as an emergency contact…"

Steve paled immediately. He looked back at the stage, now knowing definitively what was behind the curtain. He immediately began to twitch as Zekrom patted the sofa chair that he was sitting in. "Alright, sit tight and we'll let you know when your time starts…"

The Toucannon took a deep breath as the Deep Black Pokémon flew away.

000

"Cinder… You owe me when I get home…" Steve stated with a stern glare.

000

Reshiram and Dale were out in the middle of the ocean. The Vast White Pokémon was flying next to the Wailord, who was feeling very anxious.

"Okay, Dale… You just need to stay here for a while," Reshiram explained. "We'll let you know when your time begins…"

Dale gulped to himself, wary of his current surroundings. He eventually responded, "A-Alright…"

With a nod, Reshiram flew back toward the beach, leaving the Float Whale Pokémon well, floating in the sea.

000

"Given how big I am, there's not too much that scares me aside from… them…" the Wailord shivered.

000

Once Reshiram returned from the beach, she gave Zekrom a nod. With this, both hosts turned to the monitor, where Steve was seemingly sinking into the chair he was in, and Dale was still sitting in wait.

Zekrom took out a small device, similar to a walkie-talkie, before speaking into it, causing his voice to echo from the loudspeaker.

"ALRIGHT! STEVE AND DALE! YOU GUYS HAVE TEN MINUTES!" he announced. "IN THREE… TWO… ONE… GO!"

"Okay, let's see what makes the big bad birdy quiver in his boots," Stain commented. He was never intimidated by Steve, but he was interested to see how the Toucannon handled the challenge.

-000-

The curtain on the stage opened up, revealing… a Mr. Rime. Without saying a word, the Comedian Pokémon waved at Steve. The Toucannon's claws clenched as he tried controlling his breathing. The Mr. Rime wasn't paying the Cannon Pokémon's reactions any mind, as it simply started dancing and whirling its icy cane around.

Steve closed his eyes for a moment, trying to compose himself. Opening them back up, he saw that the Mr. Rime was still dancing, all the while just staring at him with no emotion. Its pure yellow eyes were unblinking, staring deep into his soul.

It appeared as if the Comedian Pokémon's head was unmoving, locked onto Steve like a predator stalking its prey. Its body kept moving, though, which was causing Steve to shift in his chair in discomfort. He could feel his eyes begin to water, which was irking him.

"Come on… Come on…" he seethed, trying to keep his cool.

Soon enough, he began hearing circus music. He started looking around for a source, but once he looked back, the Mr. Rime was merely inches away from his face, causing him to squawk out in surprise and fall backward while in the chair.

-000-

"A Mr. Rime… The big bad military fucker is scared… of Mr. Rime," Stain thought aloud. He turned to Travis, "That makes your being scared of him even more pathetic…"

The Electivire didn't bother replying, still reeling from the scolding he'd received.

"Hey, Mr. Rime are creepy, no offense to them," KG opined. "Anything with a stomach face or stomach mouth is just automatically a 'no' from me…"

Stain huffed, rolling his eyes, "Yeah, no. You losers are just sad and pathetic, which I already knew, but this definitely solidifies it."

"Big talk from someone whose fear hasn't been shown yet," Lee scoffed. "We don't know what's happened to him in the past. He probably has a deep reason for it…"

"I'm sure the reason is 'deep'," Stain emphasized.

Knowing what he was implying, Lee barked, "You're fucking sick!"

Stain immediately countered, "Hey, your mind went there, not mine. I was talking about him having some lame-o pathetic backstory since apparently everyone needs to have a tragic life story to explain their stupid behavior."

The other guys weren't buying that excuse, for obvious reasons.

"Well, what about Dale?" Nick inquired, eyeing the other side of the monitor.

-000-

Dale was still sitting in the ocean, waiting for something to happen. The anticipation was killing him, especially since they announced that his and Steve's time had started. Eventually, he could feel another being's presence.

"O-Oh no…"

From the depths, a ship wheel and anchor slowly rose, surrounded by seaweed. Dale paled, slowly swimming backwards. Despite the obvious size advantage, the Float Whale Pokémon was shivering. He felt so small compared to the Sea Creeper Pokémon, somehow.

However, it wasn't alone. Hearing a creaking sound, Dale shakily glanced behind himself and saw another Dhelmise rising from the deep. Soon enough, one after another, fifteen Dhelmise surrounded the Wailord, causing him to panic internally and begin breathing heavily.

Once completely surrounded, the Sea Creeper Pokémon floated towards him, swinging their anchors. As they got closer and closer, some of them began slamming their anchors into the water, splashing water towards Dale. As hard as he tried to remain calm, he couldn't. "I… I can't. I CAN'T! HELP!"

"THE MIGHTY MACHAMPS HAVE EARNED ANOTHER POINT!"

000

"Dhelmise eat us…" Dale emphasized. "Like, they drain us. A-And having that many around me… I just… I couldn't."

He sighed, "The first time I'm actually able to participate in a challenge… and I fail. Great…"

000

Returning to the field, Steve's breathing was a bit shaky as his eyes remained downcast. Noticing this, Lee and Rane approached. "Hey, Steve… Are you okay?" Lee asked.

The Toucannon gulped before taking a deep breath. "Y-Yeah… Just needed a minute," he replied.

Rane pet the Toucannon's back once again, trying to comfort him. Travis, seeing this, simply took a breath of his own. He couldn't bring himself to say anything, as he felt that there would be no point. This was literally a competition, yet his teammates were showing more care for the enemy than their own team's progress.

He glanced over at Dale, who wore a disappointed expression on his face, on his monitor. Tate and Simen were nearby, trying to cheer him up. Thinking about the situation, he could genuinely understand why he tapped out. So, he approached them, rubbing the back of his head, "Hey, uh… You alright?" he inquired, albeit a bit awkwardly.

Surprised, Dale replied, "Oh, uh… Y-Yeah, I'm okay." He then let out a sigh, knowing how the Electivire normally acted. "Look, I'm sorry. I know you-"

Travis lifted a hand to stop him, not needing an apology, "You're fine. I get it, just… Uh… Try harder next time, alright?"

With that, the Electivire walked back toward the larger screen.

Tate and Simen exchanged confused looks, with the latter asking, "What was that…?"

000

Travis sighed, his hands in front of his face. "I don't… I don't know…"

"Just… I… Fuck it…"

000

As Travis went back to his original spot, Stain turned to Steve, jeering, "Well, you faced your 'oh-so horrible' fear of a Mr. Rime. Oh wait, no… the Wailord was scared of being eaten and we got lucky. Just pathetic…"

In response, Steve simply glared at him, as did Lee and Rane. Responding would do nothing, so they just ignored him and turned their focus back to the hosts, who looked ready to continue.

"Do you ever shut up, dude? Honestly…" Roy huffed, also starting to return to the hosts. "He got us the point. It doesn't matter how."

Stain scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Do you have your dick up the boomer's ass now too? Defending these-"

"Stain, shut up," Zekrom brashly interjected, cutting the Sludge Pokémon off. He grew more and more tired of the Muk every time something came out of his mouth. Wanting to move on, he stated, "The Machamps are currently in the lead, but we'll see if it sticks with this next round, which will require a bit of a… trip."

"Stain and Rane, you two are up next," Reshiram revealed.

Rane nodded, while Stain groused, "We actually have to go somewhere else? You people are so sad…"

Once again ignoring him, Zekrom added, "And… Simen and Lex, you guys can tag along as well, since you guys' fears will also take place here."

Knowing what his fear was, Simen's eyes lit up as he stammered, "W-Wait… You mean we're actually-"

000

Returning to the Hall of Origins, Reshiram and Zekrom landed in the foyer, with Rane and Stain climbing off of Zekrom's back, and Simen and Lexico being put down by Reshiram.

Lexico blinked, looking around. His eye shimmered as he felt a sense of familiarity, despite having never been there. Unfortunately, Nick wasn't brought along, so he was essentially trapped in his own mind.

Simen rolled forward, taking in the scenery. He beamed, "T-This… This is incredible! The Hall of Origins! We're seriously at the Hall of Origins!"

Stain groaned, "Shut up, ya beta dork. No one cares about this lame place. Plenty of other shows have brought their shitty players here, it's not special in the slightest."

"To you," Simen countered. "The fact that the ruins of the Temple of Sinnoh were used to help transform this place into an enormous structure for any Legendary to come and go as they please is very fascinating… I would've thought that Arceus would want privacy."

Reshiram giggled to herself, finding the Voltorb's excitement very cute. Zekrom shared the sentiment, smirking to himself. However, Stain spoke up once again.

"S-She's a female," the Muk huffed, actually seeming a bit nervous. "They always act like they're big and bad and independent, but then they always need a dominant male's help. It's nothing surprising, especially since Giratina is the real god…"

Rane just stared at the Muk before looking back at the hosts, wanting to get the challenge over with.

"And that conversation is over," Zekrom immediately stated, glaring down at the Sludge Pokémon.

"Now, we're about to head inside so you all can begin…" Reshiram stated. "And… Now that I'm thinking about it, doesn't it make more sense for Rane to go against Lexico and Simen to go against Stain? Their fears are all pretty similar on a base level, aside from Stain's… sorta."

Zekrom shrugged, "Either way it goes, there's two of them from each team here, so swapping them won't really hurt."

Stain stifled a laugh, "What? So I'm against the ball now? Big whoop…"

"If you say so…" Reshiram responded as they all entered the Hall.

000

"Man, they're lucky," Roy commented. "They get to actually interact with other Legendary Pokémon and essentially visit their house!"

"Eh… Given how some of them are, I don't think they're that lucky," Lee responded, lying next to KG. "I'm glad that Simen's having a great time, though."

"I know, right?" KG chuckled. "Our amigo is like a kid in a candy store right now."

"I just wanna see what the big guy's scared of," Nick commented.

Steve chuckled, "Yeah, that'll be interesting to see. Just as interesting as what that worthless pile of shit is scared of. He's talking all that mess, but we'll see what makes him wet himself…"

While the others continued chatting and watching their teammates and hosts travel through the Hall, Travis remained isolated. He kept finding himself glancing at Lee's rear and immediately swearing to himself. What Steve had said was really messing with him.

"I'm not a fucking fag…" he muttered to himself, folding his arms. "He literally just looks like a bad bitch. How does me thinking that, and it making me uncomfortable, make me gay?"

The Electivire just continued grumbling to himself, irritated by the fact that he was even thinking about this. However, the more he truly thought about it, the more upset he was becoming. He wouldn't say it out loud, even if it was obvious, but he was finding Lee very attractive.

Plus, he never really thought about it, but whenever he saw feminine guys back on his campus, he and his friends would always talk shit and bully them, but in the back of his mind… He would have gone to town on some of them. Nobody could know that, though.

He brought his hands to his face, turning around to try and fight back his tears. He punched the ground, coming to a realization.

000

Travis took a breath, wiping his tears. "I'm a fucking sissy… What the fuck…"

"I mean, I still like girls, but… God, some of these fucking sissy boys can get it, too!" he exclaimed, clutching his head. "What the fuck is…"

He let out a shaky sigh, "My folks are gonna kill me… I just know it…"

000

Reshiram and Zekrom walked the four guys to Arceus and Giratina's room. However, while Lexico, Simen, and Stain entered easily, Rane was frozen in place.

Noticing this, Reshiram attempted to nudge him forward, "Rane… We know. But, we've got to get you guys' rounds started. You know what to do if you can't handle it."

Hearing this, the Golisopod took a breath before slowly walking inside. He could handle anything… Right? Upon entering, joining the others, he set his eyes upon the large bed in the room, which was occupied by the goddess herself, Arceus. The Alpha Pokémon's eyes went through him as he entered, with Reshiram in tow. Rane's legs began to quiver, but he did his best to hold his composure.

Once they were all settled, Zekrom turned to Arceus, "These four are the ones who will be spending time with a few of you for their challenge: Rane, Simen, Stain, and Lexico…"

Arceus looked down at the four players, who each wore a different expression. Simen was beaming, his excitement on full display as he rolled side-to-side; Lexico wore a blank expression; Stain appeared to be unimpressed; and Rane was shivering ever so slightly, which didn't go unnoticed.

Stain, noticing the usually composed bug's reaction, scoffed, "Da hell's your problem? You're supposed to be the biggest alpha of us all."

"No, that would be me," Arceus retorted sternly. "Both figuratively and literally…" Reshiram and Zekrom had already filled her in on the personalities of the four guys, so she was already anticipating Stain's nonsense.

Surprisingly, though, the Muk didn't respond. He didn't even make eye contact with the goddess. Zekrom decided to heckle him a bit, commenting, "Oh. Suddenly, you have nothing to say. What happened to her needing a male's help and Giratina being the true god of all Pokémon?"

Stain's eyes widened before he glared daggers at the Deep Black Pokémon. He then heard Arceus speak again, inquiring, "Yes… What did happen to that?"

The Muk refused to answer, wanting to move on, "Look, can we just get this shitty challenge over with?"

Simen chuckled, "Doesn't feel good, now does it?"

"Shut it, beta," Stain retorted.

"Uh, so Mrs. Arceus!" Simen spoke up again, getting the Alpha Pokémon's attention. "I have a few questions if you don't mind me asking!"

Arceus was surprised by this. She couldn't remember a time when any mortal that was brought to the Hall showed any real interest in her. However, she knew that they needed to proceed with their challenge. "As flattering as that is, you all are here to complete a specific task, so I would advise you to focus more on that. However, I'll allow you one question, since, well frankly no mortal as ever truly showed me any interest."

"Ooh! Okay! Thank you!" Simen beamed. "Okay, okay… Uh… What is the meaning of our lives? I mean, you reign over all of us, even those of us you haven't directly created. So, what is our purpose?"

Stain huffed, "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. You're asking a female what your purpose in life is? Pathetic…"

Hearing someone clear her throat, Stain realized what he'd said and glanced back at Arceus, who was glaring daggers at him, her red eyes piercing right through him. The Muk sweatdropped, but cleared his own throat. No apology.

With a huff, Arceus looked back to Simen, answering, "That is up for you to decide. You all have your own individual identities and mindsets. It is up to you to craft your own path in life."

With this, Simen nodded. "Okay. Thank you for the answer…"

"Alright," Zekrom chimed in. "I think it's about time we actually get the rounds started. Lexico and Rane, you guys will stay in here. Simen, Stain… follow us…"

Despite Rane's anxiety increasing when he first entered, having seen the way the Alpha Pokémon responded to Simen in a cordial manner, he actually felt a bit better. She was still scary, given the amount of power that she had, but she was no longer as scary as he initially thought.

"Your ten minutes begin now!" Reshiram suddenly stated before closing the door behind her.

The Hard Scale Pokémon took a deep breath, taking a seat on the floor. Lexico simply appeared to chuckle to himself as he floated up towards Arceus.

"I don't really see too many Unown decide to compete in competitions such as this," Arceus commented.

Suddenly, a ghostly figure emerged from the ground, startling Rane momentarily before it settled next to Arceus on the bed. It was none other than Giratina, who wore a look of irritation on his face. Upon seeing him, Lexico paled before fainting on the spot.

With that, Rane looked back at the door before looking at the Alpha couple. Giratina, despite his vexation, commented, "Don't know why that happened, but I'm not even gonna ask…"

Hearing his tone, Arceus sighed, "I take it that the meetings didn't go well?"

"The Zarude pack still refuses to associate with us, and Eternatus still… wants me," Giratina flatly explained. "He said the only way that he'll stop and settle is if I go on a date with him somehow…"

The goddess twitched a bit. The fact that she had not one, but two males pining for her husband made her blood boil. However, as long as they didn't act, which Giratina wouldn't allow anyway, she could deal with it. With another sigh, she nuzzled him. "Well, you tried. That's what counts," she stated.

Rane just sat and listened. His fear of Arceus going out of the window completely upon actually witnessing this interaction. This wasn't just some cold, almighty being who could kill you with a blink of an eye. Er, well… she still could, but right now, all he was seeing was a large, powerful female being cordial and supportive of her husband.

No longer feeling a sense of dread, he decided to meditate. Meanwhile, Lexico was still on the ground, passed out.

000

"Wait… So he's scared of… Arceus?" Dale inquired.

"Well, I'd say that staring at the face of an almighty God isn't always pleasant," Steve replied. "But, looks like he's kinda gotten over it…"

"I mean, I can understand fearing Arceus, but Simen wasn't scared at all," Nick chimed in. "That's a bit weird to think about…"

"That's because he always gushes about history and myths," Lee explained with a chuckle. "So, he's not really scared of any Legendaries. Well, uh… except for one…"

"And I'm guessing that since he fainted… Lex is scared of Giratina," Roy reasoned with a sigh. "So, does this mean we don't get the point?"

"Hey, I mean they still gave Nick the point even though he passed out," KG reminded him. "So, unless they change that, I'm guessing yes."

"Well, we'll have to see, then," Travis finally spoke up, deciding to finally join the group. He caught a few glares, which he understood, but continued, "If they make it so passing out or falling asleep means you still get the point, I'm just gonna take a nap."

Hearing this, Lee scoffed, "And not actually prove your worth to your bro, Stain? That's a shocker."

The Electivire rubbed his arm awkwardly, expecting that response. "I don't have to prove anything to him, or anyone else…"

Lee gave him a look before huffing, "Right…"

Feeling like he was getting nowhere, the Thunderbolt Pokémon went over and grabbed Roy's arm, pulling him to the side, much to the Throh's surprise and annoyance. The others saw this, but didn't really pay it any mind.

Once they were away from the others, Roy yanked his arm away, asking, "What the hell, dude? Why'd you pull-"

Travis interrupted, "I think I'm gay… or… bi… or… whatever letter of the ABC mafia."

Hearing that, Roy paused, taking a step back from the shock. "Okay… whoa. What are you talking about?"

The Electivire let out a sigh before sitting against one of the nearby trees. "I… I think I do actually like guys like Lee. All feminine and cute like actual girls, but y'know… not girls."

Roy was surprised to hear that from him. Then again, it was always a common idea that people who were so strongly against gay people were half-gay or fully gay themselves, so he couldn't be too surprised. "So… Do you not like girls anymore or-"

"Wh- YES!" Travis exclaimed. "I'm saying that I'd pipe a guy like Lee and still go down on girls…"

"Oh, so you're just bisexual," Roy said casually. "I mean… good for you, I guess."

"No! Not good for me," Travis refuted. "My family and my friends are all just… really against that kinda thing. They're big breeders or whatever, so if you can't add a new member to the family, you're seen as like… a waste of fluid. Like, one of my cousins is gay, and they just outright disowned him! Haven't heard from him in over ten years…"

"Jeez…" Roy replied. "Well, I mean, you're bi, so… You still have a chance at not being-"

"No, they don't want anything to do with the ABC mafia people," Travis expounded. "Hell, I don't know about all of them. I just grew up knowing: 'Straight is great, Gay's not okay, Bi makes you cry.'"

Roy blinked, "...Wow, your family has issues…"

"Look…" Travis began, getting to his feet once again. "I don't know what to do. I feel like an asshole now, because now I know I'd fuck the shit out of Lee, and I've been a hardass on him. And Steve… Steve was right. The way everyone looks at me… Nobody really likes or respects me…"

"Well, uh… Maybe you should start by y'know… apologizing for all of the stuff you said," the Judo Pokémon suggested, feeling that it was common sense. "And, uh… maybe leave out the 'I'd fuck you' part…"

Travis scratched the back of his head, "Right, right…"

000

"I'm shocked, but not shocked," Roy said, picking up a flower. "It's always guys like him that end up being in the closet, and it's almost always because of their families."

"Does that excuse everything he's done? Nope," the Throh continued, dropping the flower. "Hell, I don't even think Lee, or Steve, will accept or even believe his apology. We'll see, though…"

"Wait a second… Does that mean Stain could be-" he gagged.

000

Entei was lying next to Solgaleo, who wore a deadpan expression. "So… out of everyone else in this damn mansion, and just out of all of us Legendary Pokémon in general… You're scared of me the most?" the Volcano Pokémon inquired. "Not serial killer Yveltal… not nightmare Darkrai… not Eternatus… me…"

The player before him, Simen, was shaking a bit, "I-I… I just… I-I…"

"Calm down, and just explain," Solgaleo decided to speak up. "I mean, I understand…"

Entei gave his boyfriend a look, but knew that he was right. He turned back away.

"...but he doesn't bite. Well, as much as he used to…" the Sunne Pokémon finished, causing Entei to nudge him.

"W-Wait…" Simen began, acknowledging what was going on. "Are you two… a thing?"

"Yes, now answer the question," Entei demanded. "How the hell are you fearful of me the most?"

"Wow… I honestly didn't know that you guys were able to hook up however you wanted," Simen marveled. "I always thought that you stayed within your groups, but then again… I think some of you are siblings, some records said that it vari-"

"Hey!" Entei barked. "Can you stop trying to change the subject! I want a damn answer, because this is fucking stupid!"

"Oh!" Simen replied, realizing what he was doing. "S-Sorry… Uh… It's just… I don't know. Something about you is just a lot more… intimidating than the others. And I used to be told stories of you like… eating people and burning down their houses and stuff, so it's just… Really bad…"

Entei and Solgaleo exchanged looks. With a sigh, Entei replied, "First of all, eating people is Kyurem's thing. As for burning shit down… Yeah, when I'm angry, but I've never burned anyone's house down. In another universe, probably. But here? No."

"Oh…" Simen replied. Now, he felt a bit embarrassed. "Well… Sorry, about that."

"You can't always believe old stories…" Solgaleo stated.

"Okay, so now I'm like… Really curious," the Voltorb began, once again changing the subject. "How do you guys get together here?"

Entei sweatdropped, as Solgaleo turned his head, not wanting to answer.

000

Zekrom and Reshiram stood in front of the entrance to the 'Girls' Club'. They didn't know how many of their female colleagues were actually in there at the time, but that was where the ladies of the Hall all hung out to get away from the guys when they were irritating them.

Stain groaned, "What the hell is this?"

"You'll find out," Zekrom stated flatly, opening the door. They had already filled a few of the ladies in on their plan, so whatever they did was up to them.

The Muk grumbled as he begrudgingly slinked into the room, with Reshiram entering behind him, hiding a smirk. Zekrom closed the door behind them before heading back to Solgaleo's room.

Inside the Girl's Club, the Muk wore a look of irritation as he glanced around. Among the girls inside were Zeraora, Urshifu, Latias, Regirock, Cresselia, Suicune, Celebi, Jirachi, Articuno, and Zamazenta. Noticing who entered, Celebi floated forward. "Oh… So, this is the one…" she acknowledged, folding her arms.

"Can't say I'm too surprised," Jirachi stated. "Some Poison-types take their toxicity to the next level…"

"Especially when they know they can't pull any girls themselves…" Suicune chuckled.

A few of the other girls joined in the laughter, causing Stain to shudder and sweat a bit.

He huffed, stammering, "W-What is this supposed to be? Some kinda circlejerk against me or something?"

"Wow, surrounded by women and yet a group of guys jerking off is what you're thinking about?" Latias teased. "Kinda telling…"

Stain blushed, "Fuck off, skank…"

"Ooo, looks like you got under his skin with that one, Lati…" Cresselia giggled.

Stain growled to himself, turning back to look at Reshiram, who simply smirked back at him. "Something the matter, Stain?"

"You know what the hell you're doing, ya two-bit floozy," the Muk insulted. "You've got me surrounded by a bunch of your bitchy friends and expect me to fold? Well guess what? It ain't gonna happen, ya overgrown cum dumpster! I don't know how your marriage has lasted this long when you're so easy to break."

Reshiram glared down at the Sludge Pokémon, but didn't say anything back. As upset and irritated as he made her, she just… didn't have it in her to stoop to his level, even though she easily could. However, just because she couldn't didn't mean that the others in the vicinity felt the same.

"Uh… Resh?" the dragoness heard, which made Stain turn back around as well. His eyes widened as he saw that all of the ladies had gotten up from their positions and were glaring daggers at him. Reshiram was one of the few Legendaries at the hall that had almost everyone's respect, so Stain laying into her in front of other females at that, was just a no-go.

Cracking her knuckles, Urshifu stated, "You can step out for a bit. We can handle him from here…"

Reshiram smiled softly, but as much as she would love for Stain to be taught a lesson, she felt that it would be unprofessional. Letting out a sigh, she began, "As therapeutic as that would be… I don't-"

"Y-Yeah, exactly," Stain interrupted, still feeling terrified. "Back the hell up! You're not doing anything to me. This pathetic snow bunny doesn't have any authority over a true alpha like me."

With that, Reshiram let out a sigh. She really was just tired of the Muk's constant insults and self-righteousness. As much as she didn't want to do this, she decided to step out of the room as requested. "Ten minutes…" she stated flatly before closing the door behind her.

Stain's eyes widened as he looked back to see that the Vast White Pokémon was no longer there, "W-Wait… What?" He turned back around and saw that all of the females in the room were closer than before.

"You… need to learn a bit of respect," Articuno stated with a glare.

"I-I… Uh… Well, y-you buncha bitches need to learn to stay in your places," Stain retorted, "I mean, it's no wonder why all of the males in your little groups or whatever are more popular than you'll ever be…"

The ladies all exchanged looks, with Urshifu letting out a sigh, "Alright, I'll go first…"

Stain paled.

000

Covered in bruises, Stain grumbled, "Stupid… pathetic… thin-skinned broads…"

000

"Well… Looks like Stain's getting a much-needed lesson," Lee commented with a smirk.

"A lesson that he likely won't keep," Steve commented flatly. "Guys like him will take as much damage as they can, and still not change."

"Well, it's still good to know that he's getting his butt handed to him," Dale commented. "Reshiram seemed really reluctant to let it happen…"

"I don't know why. He's been so rude to the mami for no reason," KG stated. "She's really nice and fluffy. Who would be mean to that?"

"Stain, apparently," Nick chortled.

Just then, after a bit of a pep talk from Roy, Travis approached the group once again, with Roy at his side. Clearing his throat, he tried to get the others' attention, only to get a look from Tate, who promptly looked back at the challenge screen.

The Electivire tried once again, clearing his throat even louder and inadvertently causing himself to start coughing. This got everyone's attention, with Steve groaning, "What now? Choking on your own ego?"

Once he was better, Travis let out a sigh, "No. Look… I just wanna say… I'm sorry that what I said upset you guys…"

Roy facepalmed. He had to be kidding.

"Wow… a non-apology," Lee scoffed. "Just ticking all of the asshole boxes…"

"What?" Travis inquired, genuinely confused. "I'm saying I'm sorry about everything. How is that a non-apology?"

"You expect us to accept that half-assed apology when you didn't even explain what you did wrong and why it was wrong?" Steve deadpanned. "You can take that and shove it…"

Bewildered, Travis began, "But…"

It was Roy's turn to drag the Electivire away, snapping, "What the hell was that, dude!? 'I'm sorry that what I said upset you'?"

"What?! I am sorry about it!" the Electivire argued. "They're just being stubborn…"

Roy sighed, "No, dude. You didn't really apologize to them. You just said the equivalent of 'I'm sorry you feel that way, but I'm not taking it back."

Travis blinked, "Damn it!"

Roy placed his hands on his hips. "Okay, look. Maybe now's not the time for this. Just wait until the challenge is over and then try to apologize for real this time…"

The Thunderbolt Pokémon glanced back toward the group before nodding.

000

"I don't know why this is so damn difficult!" Travis groused. "I mean, I said I was sorry. I didn't know I needed to explain my answer like a math question or something."

000

"Wow… A lot of you guys have interesting relationships," Simen opined. "So, only a few of you consider yourselves siblings, and the rest of you are just open to relationships with each other…"

"Yes," Entei deadpanned, tired of answering questions. "Just because some of us have similarities or were 'created' by the same beings doesn't mean we're blood related."

Simen nodded back in understanding, his fear of the Volcano Pokémon completely gone. "Cool."

Zekrom, who'd been sitting near the door, started to rise to his feet. "Okay, your ten minutes are up, Simen. Congrats, you've earned your team a point…"

"Sweet!" Simen beamed. He turned back to the lion couple. "Thanks for answering my questions and everything!"

"Uh-huh…" Entei replied flatly, admittedly still a bit weirded out by the Sphere Pokémon. The phrase was 'curiosity killed the cat' for a reason.

"And I hope that you feel better, Solgaleo," Simen added, rolling toward the exit.

The Sunne Pokémon simply nodded in return, with Entei nuzzling him a few moments later. Zekrom and Simen exited the room, leaving the couple alone.

Zekrom took a breath, "Well… So much for Entei being your fear."

Simen chuckled sheepishly. "Actually meeting him kinda helped steer me straight. I just heard a bunch of scary stories about him growing up, so knowing that at least this Entei isn't an evil psycho… I'm relieved. Ones in other dimensions though… Still terrified."

"Understandable…" Zekrom responded with a nod, popping his back. "Well, it's about time to get the rest of you out of here. Rane and Lexico's turn has been up for a bit, and…" he sighed. "I guess we have to get Stain as well…"

-000-

Rane was still waiting in Arceus and Giratina's room, and frankly, he was getting bored. Knowing that he wasn't going to talk or attempt to converse with them, the Alpha couple carried on with their standard routine and conversations. The Golisopod had heard them talking about the progress of the shows currently going on, how some arrangements had to be made for those in other dimensions, and a few recaps about what's transpired there in the past week.

Lexico had passed out three different times upon seeing Giratina, so it was safe to assume that Rane would be the victor of this matchup.

Entering the room, Zekrom stated, "Alright, Rane… Lexico… Your time is up…"

Getting to his feet, Rane looked down at Lexico, pointing at his unconscious form. Seeing this, Zekrom cocked a brow. "Oh… Lex is unconscious, huh?"

"Yes, it seems that his fear is of me, and he's fainted multiple times," Giratina explained.

"Oh, well in that case… I guess Rane gets the point here," Zekrom stated.

The Golisopod nodded before picking up the Unown and starting to carry him out of the room. As he did this, Zekrom let out a soft breath as he turned to Arceus and Giratina, "Thank you for playing along."

"It's nothing," Arceus responded. "Just do not make involving us directly a common thing."

Zekrom nodded in response before making his exit once again.

000

"Wait, so Nick gets a point even though he passed out, but Lex doesn't?" Roy scoffed. "That's unfair…"

"We'll ask about it once they get back, because that is a crock of shit," Steve concurred.

"I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that they just gave both Tate and Nick points since they sorta shifted how they were gonna do the challenge by not being there directly," Dale hypothesized.

"That makes sense, but they sure didn't tell us that," KG replied with a huff, folding his arms.

"So, what's the score, now, anyway?" Travis inquired, his arms folded.

"2-3," Tate stated.

"Well, we have to see how Stain did, first…" Nick chimed in. "It may be a tie…"

000

Reshiram remained outside of the Girls' Club, feeling disappointed with herself. She never wanted to stoop to anyone else's level, even if they were cruel to her. She felt that she was better than that. So, leaving Stain alone with her, obviously angry, friends, didn't sit right with her; even though it was warranted.

Eventually, Zekrom and the other contestants approached, with the Deep Black Pokémon immediately taking note of the look on his wife's face. "You alright, hon?" he asked, wrapping an arm around her as she immediately nuzzled him without a word.

Zekrom growled to himself, taking it as Stain had done something. He opened the door to the room, where he saw that all of the gals inside were going about their business. He saw no sign of Stain anywhere. Confused, he asked, "Uh… Ladies, what happened to Stain?"

"Oh, the coward crawled out of here through the vent," Jirachi explained, pointing to a floor vent surrounded by purple ooze.

"So… He's just loose in here?" Zekrom groaned. "Alright. Well, thanks for playing along, even though you didn't get to throttle him…"

"Oh, we still managed to have a bit of fun with him, and considering how he was disrespecting Resh… Well, I think you'll want a crack at him, too," Celebi stated.

Hearing that the Sludge Pokémon had disrespected Reshiram again, a glare formed on his face. He couldn't be surprised, though. He closed the door before taking a breath. "Well, Stain definitely doesn't get a point."

"Damn right I don't," he suddenly heard. Turning around to face the others, he saw Stain sitting behind all of them with bruises on his body. "Your cum dumpster whore over here left me in there to be beat up by a buncha sensitive broads!"

Zekrom growled to himself, wanting his own turn alone with the Muk. However, Reshiram immediately stopped him as he tried approaching. "Leave it," the Vast White Pokémon stated softly. "Let's just get back."

"Oh, now you wanna step in," Stain scoffed. "Just pathetic…"

"The more you insult her, the angrier you make Zekrom…" Simen stated. "Maybe you should stop…"

"Shut the hell up, beta. You're not the one who got beaten by bitches over a few words…" the Muk retorted.

000

"...If he never said the words in the first place… He wouldn't have gotten beaten up," Simen stated.

000

Returning to the glade, Reshiram let out a sigh before recapping, "Alright, the Mighty Machamps currently have 2 points, while the Candid Conkeldurrs are in the lead with 3-"

"Uh… quick question about that," Roy spoke up, raising a finger. "How come you gave Nick a point for handling his fear even though he passed out for most of it, but didn't give a point to Lex?"

"Oh, so you're trying to cheat us, now, too-"

"Shut it, shit face!" Steve growled.

"To answer your question, Roy…" Zekrom deadpanned. "It's because we changed how we were doing the challenge, which you all agreed to."

"But you still gave Nick the point before that happened, anyway," KG pointed out. "So shouldn't Lex get the point, too?"

"Actually, in that case, if Nick passed out, that means that he didn't really face his fear since he wasn't conscious for it," Simen explained. "So, if anything, they'd have to lose a point if we actually want this to be fair."

The few members of the Machamps' eyes widened in realization before looking back at the hosts. Zekrom folded his arms, "Well, Simen does have a point. Nobody said anything when we first erroneously declared that Nick would get a point despite him passing out as well. And with the agreed upon change, we decided that those points would just become freebies, but if you all feel that it's unfair-"

"NO!" KG exclaimed. "No, no… We'll keep the free point. Right, amigos?"

The others nodded in agreement, though Stain grumbled to himself about the situation.

"Well, if there are no other issues, we've decided that there will be no second part of the challenge…" Reshiram declared, with Zekrom nodding in agreement.

"For a long-lasting couple, you two really have commitment issues…" Travis opined.

The couple gave the Electivire a look before Zekrom explained, "We've realized that having you all view each others' fears takes away from the impact. In addition, some of you are conquering your fears, making them defunct. So, this is the only round."

"The Conkeldurrs still hold the lead, and there are two players on each team that still need to participate," Reshiram stated.

"Yep. So, KG and Lee, you two are next," Zekrom stated.

The Fuecoco and Boltund exchanged anxious looks.

-000-

KG and Zekrom were down by the pond, where all of the lilypads were now gone. There was now a single grate sitting in the middle of it, which caused KG to raise a brow, "U-Uh… W-What's that for?"

"Well, while you're not scared of water in particular, you're afraid of drowning, so…" Zekrom began. He picked up the Fuecoco and flew him over to the grate, continuing, "...your challenge will be to float in the water while keeping your face pressed up against the grate."

KG's eyes widened. He'd seen this kind of challenge on a different show, and it was not pleasant to watch. He didn't want to do it, but with his team being behind, he felt like he didn't have a choice.

"Remember, it'll only be ten minutes," Zekrom reminded him, slowly lowering the Fire Croc into the water. "If you can't handle it, just call us."

KG clung to the grate like his life depended on it. He was trembling as he slowly got underneath the grate, pressing his snout against it in order for him to breathe. His breaths were very shaky as he kept his eyes clenched shut.

Zekrom let out a sigh before flying back toward the plains.

-000-

Lee and Reshiram were back at the beach, with the Vast White Pokémon holding what appeared to be a headset in her hands. "Alright Lee, we both know what your greatest fear is, and since it would be rather difficult to emulate realistically, we've had Mewtwo do it digitally…"

"O-Oh… Great," Lee said through grit teeth.

Reshiram placed the headset on the Boltund's head. "Remember, it's only ten minutes…" she reminded. "If you can't do it, take it off."

"Got it…" he said with a whimper.

Reshiram flew away, leaving the Dog Pokémon on the beach.

-000-

"Wait, if you guys had VR headsets… Why couldn't you just make them the main thing for the challenge instead?" Simen inquired. "That would've been cool!"

"Because they're idiots…" Stain muttered.

Deciding to ignore him again, Reshiram explained, "This is our first show after a long hiatus, so we still don't have things as organized as we'd like."

"So, we didn't think about that option," Zekrom added. "We'd like to think that, as time goes on, things will become better."

"Well… Maybe you can start by going back to the pond to keep a closer eye on KG?" Nick inquired, watching the screen and seeing that the Fuecoco was struggling a bit.

Now the couple was becoming irritated. Of course they would go and check on KG, but did they want them around for their fears or not? Scenarios like KG's were why they were on standby to begin with. Deciding to just do what they felt was right, Zekrom decided to head back to the pond.

-000-

In the headset, Lee saw his large mansion home. He couldn't believe it at first, but as he walked toward the front door and knocked on the door, a male Indeedee opened the door.

"Dad…" Lee whispered.

The Indeedee cocked a brow, "Uh… How can I help you, sir?"

Lee grew confused, "D-Dad… It's me, Bailey…"

Soon enough, a female Indeedee approached, asking, "Who's at the door, Horace?"

"Mom!" Lee exclaimed, attempting to enter, only for the male Indeedee to push him back out.

"I have no idea, Lilac…" Horace replied. "Probably once of the mutt's no-good friends…"

Lee gaped, whimpering, "W-What…? Mom, Dad… It's me! It's your son, I-I…"

"REX! COME AND GET YOUR FRIEND!" Horace shouted.

"Rexy…" Lee whispered. "Please, please, please…"

A Mightyena wearing a gold bracelet around his front right paw came from around a corner, with what appeared to be a Dachsbun following him, stopping around the corner. Upon seeing the other Dog Pokémon, Lee growled, "Ryan…."

"Uh… Friend?" Rex inquired, giving the Boltund a once-over. Lee gave him a soft smile, hoping that he would recognize him. "I mean, I guess I've seen them at school, but… They're not really my friend."

Lee's smile dropped in an instant, his legs beginning to tremble as tears began welling up in his eyes. "N-No… No, no… Rexy!" he jumped at the Mightyena, tackling him to the ground. "Rex! It's me! It's your pup! Please!"

"Get off of me!" the Mightyena barked, kicking Lee off of him. "Fucking freak!"

Lee landed back outside, the impact causing him a bit of pain. He was panting heavily, tears streaming down his face as he shakily got back to his feet. He turned back to them. "Guys, please! It's me!"

"Buh-bye, freak boy," the Dachsbun insulted, waving.

Lee growled, sparks jolting from his fur before he rushed toward them again, only for everything to start disintegrating before his very eyes. He continued running, now completely scared as he watched his loved ones… and Ryan, vanish. No matter how fast he ran, he never left the spot he was in. Eventually, as they all turned to dust, the Boltund stopped running, tears falling from his face and dropping to the floor.

"N-No… No…" he whimpered. "I-I…"

Lee collapsed onto the ground, sobbing. He knew that it was all just for a challenge, but… It just felt too real for him. Shaking, Boltund tossed the headset off his head before weeping on the sandy beach.

-000-

Reshiram didn't feel that it would be appropriate to make the announcement, not wanting to make Lee feel worse than he probably already did. However, she knew that she needed to so that Zekrom knew to stop KG.

"LEE HAS EXITED HIS SIMULATION! THE MIGHTY MACHAMPS SCORE A POINT!" she announced.

"Damn it!" Travis swore, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Great… Now they've caught up again!"

"Hey! You don't know what he was going through in that headset!" Simen defended. "Some things are hard to pull through."

"Who cares?" Stain belched. "It's just another point against the grimy fag. Can't do anything right. Luckily, he ain't on my team anymore."

Rane, growing increasingly tired of the Muk, approached him, while others simply looked on. As the Golisopod taught the toxic blob a lesson, Steve chuckled before checking the monitor again and seeing that Lee was no longer visible on it. He looked in the direction of the beach and let out a sigh upon seeing the Boltund gloomily making his way back towards them.

Meeting him halfway, Steve wrapped a wing around him, as Simen rolled up to him as well. "Everything okay, Lee?"

The Dog Pokémon didn't respond. Instead, he just lied down, covering his face with his paws. Seeing this, Travis wanted to say something, but he just felt that it would be taken the wrong way again. So, he decided to leave it alone.

000

"I feel bad for the guy, but… I know that if I said anything at this point, those other guys will jump down my throat," Travis groused. "And given how Rane was beating the shit out of Stain… I didn't want to be next."

000

After Zekrom returned with KG, who was shivering from the cold water, the Deep Black Pokémon took a breath, "Alright. The scores are all tied up: 3 to 3. This last round will be for all the marbles…"

"Roy, Travis… It's you guys' time to shine," Reshiram stated.

Roy swallowed nervously, while Travis held a faux confident expression. They were the last ones for each of their teams, so their teammates were counting on them.

000

Back on the beach, Travis and Roy stood before two large, covered items. Removing the beige tarps cloaking the items, they were revealed to be a VR Roller Coaster Simulator, and… a bed with multiple pillows on it.

Roy blinked, almost fainting on the spot, while Travis cocked a brow.

"Alright, Roy, your seat awaits," Zekrom introduced, gesturing to the Roller Coaster Simulator.

The Throh was shaking like mad. He's had no fond memories of rollercoasters at all. The heights, the speed, the headaches, the number of accidents he's heard about and seen in movies… It all made him terrified to even approach one. However, given that this was only a simulation… Roy hesitantly approached it. He didn't want to cost his team this challenge, so even though he was scared out of his mind, he entered the machine.

Travis chuckled, following the Judo Pokémon. "You're scared of roller coaster's dude?"

"Yes! Have you not seen those damn roller coaster horror movies and documentaries!?" Roy exclaimed. "These things are glorified death traps!"

Travis scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Everything's a death trap if you try hard enough…"

"That… That doesn't help," Roy responded.

"Right… My bad," Travis chortled. "But hey, still a competition, so… Have to spook ya a bit…"

"Travis! Over here," Reshiram called.

The Electivire turned toward the bed, letting out a sigh. "Arceus, damn it…"

He approached the bed, climbing on top of it. He knew what his fear was, but was curious as to how they were going to do it. He inquired, "So, where's my VR thingy?"

"Oh, that won't be necessary," Reshiram explained. "Your fear isn't too hard to replicate in real life."

Hearing that, Travis paled. "W-What…?"

"Mrs. Khori… You can come out now…" Reshiram stated.

Soon enough, from underneath the bed crawled a very slender Mienshao. Travis blushed like mad, as did Roy, who looked back to see what the Electivire would be dealing with. The Martial Arts Pokémon was wearing black, lacey lingerie and had very sensual bedroom eyes going on. "Hey there, big boy~" she greeted, stroking his large furry arm.

Travis shuddered at her touch, a smirk on his face. However, realization struck him as he recalled the context of the challenge. His eyes drifted down the Mienshao's slender form before his eyes widened in shock. "U-Uh… Say, I don't know…" Travis stated, scratching the back of his head.

"What's the matter, handsome? Worried about something~?" Khori inquired, stroking his arm once again. "Just… relax~" she said, climbing onto the Electivire's body.

Travis' face burned a bright crimson as his body trembled in fear. His eyes darted around, looking for nothing in particular, but trying to avoid eye contact.

"Alright, you guys know the drill. You each have to last ten minutes in your current scenarios," Zekrom explained. "Whoever lasts longer will win the challenge for their team. If it's a tie, then we'll have to come up with a tiebreaker…"

"Now, in three… two… one… begin!" Reshiram stated before taking off, with Zekrom following her.

000

"This… is fucking… bullshit!" Travis shouted. "I just accepted that I'm part of the ABC mafia. They can't just use that against me!"

000

"So, Roy is scared of rollercoasters… and Travis is scared of being gay… Why am I not surprised?" Steve huffed.

"Because there's a reason why people don't wanna be like you dirty queers…" Stain coughed, even more bruised than before. Rane had done quite a number on him, but oddly enough… He still respected him. "This bastard just beat me up like a real male and didn't hold back like you beta pansies would…"

Rane held his head in annoyance, as the Muk just wouldn't stop talking.

"So…Wait, are we sure that person's a guy?" Simen inquired. "They seem like, really feminine to me. Not like Lee, but like actually feminine.

"I mean… I think they have a bulge, but…" Dale stated, glancing over at them.

"Little dude says that he'd rather not discuss what a stranger has in their pants…" Nick spoke up, with Lexico giving him a look. "Plus, Travis is still a jerk, either way."

"Isn't a bit messed up to do that, though?" KG inquired, rubbing Lee's back to soothe him. "I mean, the cabrón deserves some comeuppance, but… forcing a guy on him when he doesn't like it, and on national TV at that, just… doesn't feel right."

"No worries," Zekrom replied. "We wouldn't do that. What matters is that he thinks it…"

The other contestants all exchanged looks of confusion.

000

Roy was vibrating like mad in the simulation seat. Unlike what he thought, the experience was actually very fun for him! Not being on an actual roller coaster was making things much better for him. Cool air was blowing at him, he was being taken through different levels like a video game; he was just having a great time.

Meanwhile, Travis was doing his best to hold himself together. The Mienshao, Khori, was straddling him, rubbing his chest, grinding against him. Normally, he'd enjoy this, but given that he was being watched made him extremely anxious. He honestly didn't care what gender Khori was; he was much more concered about the backlash he'd receive from people watching him!

Just then, as he continued bracing himself and waiting for the time to go down, something that Reshiram said beforehand came back in his mind. 'Mrs. Khori… Mrs…'

Travis paled, sitting up, "Wait, wait, wait… Y-You're married?"

Confused by the sudden inquiry, Khori answered, "Uh… Yes? Work is work, though, so-"

"Okaaay, I'm out," Travis stated, waving his arms.

"Wait… what?" the Mienshao inquired in confusion.

"Uh… Okay! The Mighty Machamps have won the challenge!"

000

"Wow… That was actually a lot more fun than I thought it would be!" Roy beamed. "I mean, I'm still not going on any real ones, but if there are ever more of those… Sign me up!"

000

"Travis… What the heck was that, dude!?" Simen exclaimed. "She wasn't even a guy!"

"Look, I refuse to be a homewrecker and possibly get my ass kicked outside of this game by her angry husband," Travis explained. "I'm just… I'm not that kinda guy."

"So, lemme get this straight… You can talk shit about gay people all day long and not really feel bad, but you draw the line at a married female using her body the way that she wants, likely with spousal permission?" Steve inquired. "Wow…"

Travis opened his mouth to retort, but Zekrom cut him off. "Well, regardless of Khori's martial status, Travis tapped out, so the Mighty Machamps have won this challenge, meaning that they receive a clue to the hidden immunity idol…"

Reshiram handed Steve an envelope, holding the clue. The members of the team exchanged a few positive looks, aside from Stain, who rolled his eyes.

"...meaning that we'll be seeing the Candid Conkeldurrs at elimination tonight," Zekrom finished.

The guys all exchanged looks, though a few of their looks were aimed at the same person.

000

Lee, Simen, and KG met back up in the former's room, with Lee still recovering from his experience. He knew that it was only a simulation, but it still hurt him mentally.

"Are you sure that you're alright, Lee?" Simen inquired. "Do you… wanna talk about it?"

Letting out a sigh, the Boltund replied, "No… It's fine. I just… I need to stop thinking about it. It was fake… I shouldn't even be letting it bug me like this…"

"Well… If that's the case, then… Who're you guys planning on trying to target?" KG inquired.

"At this point, I don't care. I want Travis gone…" Lee stated firmly. "I know that it may give the other team an advantage, and I know we'd be losing some strength, but… I just don't wanna deal with him anymore."

Simen nodded in agreement, "Yeah. He was always trying to downplay everyone else's fears, but as soon as he had an easy one, he quit because the lady was married… That just doesn't make sense."

"Are you sure about this, muchachos?" KG inquired. "You guys saw what happened when I let my emotions control how I voted…"

"We understand, KG, but… this is different," Simen explained. "He's the outlier. Everyone else is fine. Plus, we'd be weakening Stain since he probably considers Travis is greatest and only ally…"

KG nodded in understanding. "If you guys insist," he conceded. "You'd just better hope he doesn't end up finding the idol…"

Hearing that, Simen and Lee exchanged looks, having forgotten about it.

000

"I understand that Travis is a huge pain in the nalgas, but I just think that it would be better for them to try and take out Dale," KG explained. "He hasn't been doing anything in challenges, so keeping him around will just make things harder for them."

"But… If they think that Travis is the bigger fish to fry, then… I'll let them have it their way," he stated.

000

"Well… I think it's about time to get rid of that useless twink finally," Stain stated. "He's lasted too long already, and getting rid of him won't do anything but hurt the dumb crybabies watching this show…"

"Yeah, that's likely not happening," Roy replied with a chuckle. "You and Travis spent the whole day still acting like assholes, pretty much invalidating the deal, and making everyone hate you even more."

"Roy, seriously… You know that I was trying to fix things…" Travis stated, folding his arms.

"You were what?" Stain scoffed. "The hell were you trying to fix?"

"My relationships with the others," the Electivire responded firmly. "'Cause guess what, asshole? I figured out that I like females and femboys. So, all that bullshit that I said and the dumb shit that you keep saying… Yeah, I don't agree with it…"

"Oh wow, so you're an undercover beta, huh?" Stain chastised. "You really think that anyone's gonna give a shit if you try to fix things? You fags and pansies are all super sensitive and always eager to tear people down if they don't agree with you. The number of people who the LMNOP losers try to cancel for stuff they said when they were younger is just-"

"Shut it!" Travis exclaimed. "I'm done with that. Alright, I'm not voting out Lee. If anything, I'm voting out that damn useless Wailord."

Stain huffed, "It's your funeral, traitor…"

Travis gave him a look before leaving the Muk's room. Roy followed suit soon after as, like he mentioned before, their deal was over. This left Stain alone, which annoyed him to no end. Now, he definitely had work to do.

000

"These bastards think that leaving me alone will impact me negatively…" Stain huffed. "I've proven that I'm stronger than I look, and I have an ace up my sleeve…"

He reached into his mouth, pulling out a soggy envelope, "The clue…"

"Had to bump into the old geezer and snag it on the way back to the cabin. Probably knows that I have it, but it'll be too late…"

000

Afternoon turned to night as the Candid Conkeldurrs made their way to the elimination ceremony. A few of the guys were irritated at the fact that they were back there, especially since it could have been a tie.

Reshiram took her spot at the sandstone podium as the guys all took their seats. "Okay… Welcome to your first elimination ceremony as new teams. Now, today was definitely one of the more stressful challenge days, but hopefully going forward, things won't be as stressful for any of us."

"We'll see…" Tate muttered to himself.

"Now, you all know how the ceremony works," Zekrom chimed in. "Whoever receives the most votes will head down the Rocky Road to the Dock of Descent and be sent 'home'."

"So, today's challenge was all about facing your fears, which some of you did with some ease, and others didn't…" Reshiram began, wanting to start more dialogue. "Lee? You seemed to have the biggest reaction out of everyone. You don't have to share if you don't want to, but if so, what happened there?"

The Boltund's ears flattened a bit more, "It's just… It's really personal… I… I'd rather not."

Reshiram nodded in understanding, "Dale?"

On the monitor, Dale explained, "I mean, being surrounded by your main predator isn't really something to be calm about, y'know? I mean, especially if they were feral!"

"They wouldn't have hurt you, though," Travis pointed out. "I doubt these two would let that happen."

"Oh? Really? Then what happened with your fear?" Simen inquired, more ticked off than usual. "You spent the whole day berating us for our fears, but as soon as it was your turn, you chicken out over some kinda 'moral dilemma' that wasn't even there?"

"Look, I have my reasons, alright?" Travis replied. "And… There's also something else…"

A few of the others could sense where this was going and gained expressions of irritation. The Electivire stood up, getting in front of them. He took a deep breath, in disbelief that he was really about to do this. "I… I am bisexual…"

Looks of shock and confusion formed on a few of the others' faces. "I'm sorry… Come again?" Dale inquired.

"Yes, I like females and I like femboy twinks like Lee," the Electivire stated, which caused Lee's expression to sour a bit. "I just… I didn't know what to do or say or… Just…. My family is just… I knew that I didn't really care about the gender as long as I was attracted to them, but just being told it was wrong all the time and not wanting to be disowned-"

Lee cut him off, growling, "So, this whole time… You did like me, but you were scared of your family finding out you play for both sides, so you just kept…"

"Lee, I'm sorry, okay," Travis replied. "I'm really am sorry. All of the stupid shit I said, I take all of it back. I mean, I know it may be too late, but… I'm ready to actually make a change and try to be better."

Lee huffed, with Simen looking to the side in uncertainty. The others remained silent, as it wasn't their place to say anything, not that Rane or Tate would, anyway.

"Well, uh… I guess… With that, I guess we should see how things end up…" Reshiram stated.

000

"I said my piece… At this point, whatever happens, happens…" Travis said. "So… I'm sticking with Dale…"

000

Tate sighed.

000

"Is it bad that… I kinda believe him?" Simen queried.

000

"Alright, the votes are tallied," Reshiram stated as she and Zekrom returned. Ahku once again held a tray of Alolan Rolls.

"Now, you've all been through this. If we call your name, you're safe…" Zekrom stated.

A few of the guys exchanged looks. Had Travis' speech changed a few minds? Or were things locked from the start?

"Tate…"

The Pincurchin caught the roll on one of his spikes once again, with Rane taking it off and placing it in front of him.

"Rane…"

The Golisopod boredly caught his roll, tossing it into his mouth.

"Simen… Lee…"

Lee still wore a vexed expression as he roll landed next to him, while Simen's hit him in the head.

Dale and Travis were the two at the bottom, both for good reason. "Dale… Travis… Looks like we'll be saying goodbye to one of you tonight…" Reshiram began.

"Dale, you haven't really been able to participate in any of the challenges, and this time, when you did, you didn't succeed," Zekrom explained.

The Wailord looked down on the monitor. He knew that he'd messed up, but he knew that he had more in him.

"And Travis… Your allegiance with Stain, and overall negative attitude has most definitely soured everyone's opinion of you," Zekrom continued. "But, with your speech… Who knows if you swayed anyone's mind."

The Electivire let out a sigh. He was really hoping to have another chance. He was done with Stain, and while he was still afraid of what others would say, he was ready to be open.

"The player heading home is…

…

…

…Travis…"

Hearing that, the Electivire sighed as Ahku launched the final roll towards Dale. He should've expected that. It was too little, too late. "I… I accept that…" he replied as he rose to his feet. He turned to the others, "Look, I really am sorry about everything. I know you guys probably don't care or don't believe me, but… I really am. So… Yeah, I just… I don't have much else to say."

Lee, as much as he hated to, sat up, "Travis, I can… forgive you… for the shit you said. But that doesn't mean you're excused…"

Travis nodded back in understanding.

"Travis, it's time to go," Zekrom instructed, gesturing for him to go down the dock.

The Thunderbolt Pokémon started making his way down toward the dock, a motorboat starting to pull up.

000

"I guess I shoulda saw that coming…" Travis sighed. "I guess… At the end of the day, I learned something about myself."

He then chuckled to himself, putting his arms behind his head, "Well, now I can fuck whoever I want at least… and honestly… My folks will just have to deal with it. It's my life…"

000

As the Candid Conkeldurrs began making their way back to the campgrounds, Reshiram and Zekrom turned back towards one of the cameras. "And there we have it… Travis is the third one eliminated," Zekrom stated. "I honestly thought he would last a bit longer, but it just goes to show that strength means nothing if people don't want anything to do with you."

Reshiram nodded, "We'll have to see how the game progress now that one of the presumed powerhouses is already gone."

Wrapping an arm around her waist, Zekrom stated, "For now, that's it from us. Tune in next time to see who goes next on Total… Pokémon… Maelstrom!"

000

Votes:

Travis - 5 votes (Dale, Lee, Rane, Tate)

Dale - 2 votes (Simen, Travis)

000

Mighty Machamps - (KG, Lexico, Nick, Roy, Stain, Steve)

Candid Conkeldurrs - (Dale, Lee, Rane, Simen, Tate)

000

And thus, Travis is gone. One of those 'closeted jerk' tropes, only he actually tries to change… but is still ignorant about it. Anyways, this was a pretty standard fear challenge. Not too interesting per se, but the main focus was about the characters, as usual. Learned a bit more about a couple of them, and not much about others.

With Travis gone now, is anything gonna change? We've had a team swap, and now the immunity idol's in play. Makes you wonder if any new allegiances will be made or will we still be dealing with the same groups. Guess you'll have to wait and see. Anyways, see ya guys, BYE!

000

Elimination Order:

14th - Morris Cirria (The Southern Boy)

13th - Jekyll Martin (The Victini Fanboy)

12th - Travis Rashad (The Frat Boy)