Hooray! We've finally reached the end of Challenge of the Samurai!
Hey readers : ) I honestly wasn't sure if there was going to be an update this week, since I have struggled MAJORLY with getting this chapter written up. Seriously, it just did not want to be written, and I literally only finished writing this chapter a few hours ago. Bizarrely, it somehow also turned out to be almost twice as long as a normal chapter. I considered breaking it up into two slightly smaller chapters, but to be honest, I just want to get this episode over and done with now : )
On that note, let's get straight down to business since this is already going to be a longer chapter, so we don't need a long author's note as well XD
I am ECSTATIC to say that the winner of the last voting topic was... Meadow the Ivysaur! Or should that now be, Meadow the Venusaur! I am so, so happy that my starter has survived and has been able to evolve into her final form! Thank you guys for voting for her : )
Beyond that, I'd just like to say a MASSIVE thank you to everyone that has reviewed, favourited and followed this story. I really appreciate all the support that has been shown to this story, so thank you all very much : )
Finally, please remember that Pokemon is not mine, only my OCs are.
I hope you enjoy this chapter : )
Challenge of the Samurai - Part 7
The atmosphere in the cabin was still incredibly tense as day eventually gave way to night, and it was fair to say that not one of the occupants was able to get a decent night's sleep, despite their best efforts. Nolan was still far too worked up from his earlier outburst for his mind to shut off enough to really rest properly, whilst Ash just couldn't stop thinking about poor Metapod, praying to every Legendary Pokemon he'd ever heard of that his friend would be alright. The Samurai was still stewing in his own guilt for having caused all this, and Misty's anxieties due to her Bug phobia were working overtime, which was hardly surprising considering that the Beedrill had kept them under siege until almost midnight. Even the Pokemon were incredibly tense, unwilling to rest for very long, wanting to be on their guard in case they needed to protect their trainers at a moment's notice. Yes, it was fair to say that that night in the cabin was one of the longest Nolan had ever had to endure in his entire life.
But even the longest night had to end at some point. It couldn't go on forever, and after what felt like an eternity, it finally did.
Nolan let out a low moan as he slowly awoke from the light, restless doze that he'd been able to fall into at about three o'clock in the morning. Through the two small holes in the door that the Beedrill had made the previous afternoon, he could see two thin rays of sunlight filtering into the cabin, signalling that the dawn had broken outside.
Yawning, the golden haired boy glanced around the room to ensure that everyone else was alright.
His icy blue eyes quickly depicted Misty and the Samurai both curled up in their respective sleeping bags, though neither of them looked to be particularly comfortable in their slumber. Meadow and Pikachu were in much the same state, lightly dozing whilst huddled up together at the foot of Nolan's own sleeping bag. And Ash was...
Hold on - where was Ash?
Nolan's eyes almost bulged out of his head in alarm when he realised that his best friend's sleeping bag was empty, totally void of the raven haired boy that should still be asleep within it at such an early hour of the morning. Panicking, the golden haired boy frantically swept his eyes about the cabin again, only to take a sigh of relief when he noticed that Ash was just a short distance away.
Unfortunately, that relief was rather short lived though.
At first, Nolan had initially thought that Ash was merely pacing about the cabin. It was a habit that he knew his best friend had developed at an early age after all, particularly when something was worrying him. And with Metapod still out there somewhere, all alone, boy did Ash have something major to worry about. But the golden haired boy quickly realised that that wasn't the case at all. No, the raven haired boy was doing something much, much worse than merely pacing around in the early hours of the morning.
Ash was removing the barricade that was keeping the door firmly shut.
Gasping in sheer disbelief and wondering if his best friend had lost his mind completely, Nolan quickly sprung into action. Scrambling out of his sleeping bag, Nolan hurried across the room towards the only door leading in or out of the small wooden cabin. His movements were hasty, but he was careful to avoid waking any of the others. Nolan quickly reached the door, and immediately pressed his hands against it, keeping it firmly closed. Startled, Ash looked up from his task, and found himself on the receiving end of one of Nolan's glares for what must have been the millionth time in the past twelve hours.
"Just what on Earth do you think you're doing?!" Nolan hissed in a whisper at him, angry, but trying to avoid disturbing the others from their sleep.
"Nolan!" Ash gasped, his russet coloured eyes growing wide in surprise, "I thought you were sleeping! I'm err... I was just..."
"Doing something dangerous and reckless, again?!" Nolan snarled at him.
Ash seemed to practically wilt a little where he stood. If he was honest with himself, he knew that what he was planning to do right now was... risky, if not downright foolish. That wasn't about to stop him though, not when Metapod was depending on him. With that thought spurring him on, Ash squared his shoulders, and forced himself to meet Nolan's stern gaze head on.
"I'm going out to find Metapod, he's been alone in the woods for long enough" the raven haired boy stated in a voice that brooked no argument, trying to push past his best friend so he could leave the confines of the cabin.
Unfortunately for Ash though, he found Nolan to be remarkably impassable.
"So you're going to try and rescue Metapod, on your own, in secret, from a dangerous swarm, without telling the rest of us, and without even taking your strongest Pokemon with you?" Nolan asked him incredulously, gesturing to the spot where Pikachu was still curled up in a ball, snoring lightly, "Let me ask you something Ash - did anything I said yesterday about being impulsive and how it affects those around you actually register with you? Did any of it sink in?"
Ash swallowed hard, knowing that Nolan was right, but he wasn't going to back down on this.
"You're not my mother Nolan" Ash reminded his best friend coolly, "You're my best friend, but that doesn't give you the right to tell me what I can and can't do".
Nolan's face turned an unpleasant shade of red at those words.
"Oh, but you think you have the right to potentially put me in a position where I have to explain to your mother that you got yourself killed all because you were being an idiot?!" Nolan's voice steadily got louder with every word as he felt his temper beginning to boil over again.
Behind the two boys, the Samurai let out a low grunt in his sleep.
"Ssh!" the raven haired boy urged his best friend, before he actually became genuinely apologetic, "Look... Nolan... I'm sorry. I'm not trying to put you in such a horrible position on purpose, I swear I'm not, but... I have to save Metapod. I just have too".
Oh... and if that didn't soften Nolan's heart, nothing else ever would.
Really, the golden haired boy wanted to remain angry with his best friend for the reckless behaviour he kept displaying, but he just couldn't, not after hearing the reason why. Because Nolan got it, and he'd be lying if he said that he wouldn't be doing the exact same thing if it was one of his own Pokemon that was currently missing. He wasn't happy about the situation, not by a long shot, but at last his feelings of anger began to ebb away. So rather than any more heated words, Nolan allowed a forlorn sigh to slip his lips instead.
"Okay... I get it, but after we've rescued Metapod, this has to stop" Nolan told him in a tone of utter seriousness, "I mean it Ash - you can't keep acting so recklessly. It isn't just you that it's dangerous to after all, it effects all of us".
An expression of guilt immediately etched itself into Ash's face upon hearing those words.
"I know it does" the raven haired boy sighed dejectedly, suddenly feeling exhausted, and they'd barely even started what was already promising to be a trying day, "I really am sorry Nolan. I promise that I'll try harder to think things through first moving forwards. And also... hold on, you said 'we'?"
"What?" Nolan was confused as to why Ash had suddenly cut himself off.
"'After we've rescued Metapod, this has to stop' - that's what you said" Ash remarked, his eyes going wide, "Y-you'll help me? After everything, you'll help me get Metapod back?"
Nolan couldn't help but scoff lightly at the question.
"Ash, of course I'll help you" the golden haired boy told his best friend in a tone that suggested that anything else would be ludicrous, "This was never about me being angry with you. This was about trying to make you understand why you can't keep behaving the way you have been. But of course I'll help you when you need it, even if it is a risky situation we're walking into. That's just what best friends do".
Ash almost felt overcome with emotion, he was so touched by Nolan's loyalty.
"Nolan... you're the best..." he smiled, eyes suspiciously bright.
"I know, and don't you forget it" Nolan playfully winked in an attempt to inject some humour into the situation, "Now let's go save Metapod, but first..."
The golden haired boy moved away from the door that he had previously been blocking, and instead quietly crossed the length of the cabin. He knelt down next to his sleeping partner and gently nudged her. The little Grass Type Pokemon's crimson coloured eyes snapped open immediately, showing that Meadow was instantly on alert in case of any potential threat.
"Hey, it's okay" Nolan quickly assured her in a hushed whisper, not wanting to disturb the others who were still sleeping, "Listen, me and Ash are heading out so we can rescue Metapod. I want you to stay here and keep an eye on the others".
Immediately, Meadow was dead set against that suggestion, and she had no qualms about letting her feelings on the matter be known.
"Saur! Bulba!" the Grass Type Pokemon shook her head firmly, staring up at her beloved human with an expression that brooked no argument.
"Yeah, I didn't think that would work" Nolan shook his head exasperatedly, and Meadow smirked at him. Her partner knew her so well, and if she had a choice between following him into danger or waiting safely on the sidelines, following Nolan won every time. The golden haired boy let out a long-suffering sigh before he continued, "Okay, you can come. But I want you to be careful. We don't want to fight any Beedrill if we can avoid it".
"Bulbasaur" Meadow nodded seriously to show that she understood.
Nolan smiled down at her fondly, before he gathered her up in his arms and stood up again. Carrying his beloved partner with him, the golden haired boy then joined his best friend back at the door, who had taken a few moments to scribble down a quick note to the others, explaining their absence. He'd learnt from the fright that Nolan had given him a couple of days prior with his early morning training session after all. The two boys shared a grim look, before they nodded at each other determinedly. Ash finished removing the barricade from the door, and with great trepidation, the two young trainers stepped outside, leaving the safety of their haven behind in favour of the unknown.
Immediately, they fortunately discovered that their fears were misplaced, at least for the moment.
There wasn't so much as a single Beedrill in sight, all of the Poison Bee Pokemon having retreated during the night, no doubt to get some sleep before returning to attack again at a later opportunity. Either way, Nolan and Ash were both very relieved that their way was clear for the time being. It would make their rescue operation a little bit easier, which could only be a good thing in the long run.
"The coast is clear" Ash noted as he quietly closed the cabin door behind them. They had no way of barricading it from this side, so they'd just have to hope that Misty, the Samurai and Pikachu would be left undisturbed until they got back.
"Then let's get moving" Nolan replied, a hint of nervousness creeping into his tone for the first time, "The sooner we get Metapod, the sooner we can get out of this part of the forest. I don't know about you, but I'll feel a lot better once we've got some distance from those Beedrill".
Ash couldn't help but nod in agreement.
With nothing else to say, the two boys quickly turned their attention back to the matter at hand. Hurrying off down the trail that they'd fled down the previous day; Ash, Nolan and Meadow all kept their eyes peeled for any sign of approaching Beedrill as they headed back to the last place they had spotted their missing friend. The trio were all silent, each of them concerned with one singular thing.
Finding their friend before he came to any harm.
It didn't take them long to get back to the tree where they had last seen Metapod, and thankfully they ran into no trouble along the way. Soon enough; Nolan, Ash and Meadow got close enough to actually see the nesting tree, and to their collective relief, a brief scan with their eyes revealed that Metapod was still there. Nolan had been a little worried that the Beedrill might have moved him to another location, but he was glad to see that that wasn't the case. He was also concerned that Ash might forget himself and yell out to his Bug Type Pokemon again, causing a repeat of yesterday's events, but again he was pleasantly surprised to find that his best friend had learnt his lesson on that score, and was at long last showing some restraint.
He pushed those thoughts away for the time being however. Right now they needed to focus on getting Metapod out of there with drawing any attention to themselves whatsoever.
Before the golden haired boy even had a chance to start thinking up a potential plan however, he felt a gentle tap on his arm. Slowly turning, Nolan found himself face to face with his best friend, who currently had a finger pressed over his lips. Ash quickly made a gesture with his hand, before he stooped down low and laid flat on the ground on his stomach. He quietly began inching closer to the clearing with the nesting tree in its centre, shuffling along with his elbows. Understanding immediately, Nolan quickly followed his example, lying down and slowly dragging himself forwards with his arms. Meadow crawled alongside him, all three of them keeping low to avoid detection.
As they got a little bit closer, it was easier to pick out the shapes of the Beedrill. Fortunately, all the Poison Bee Pokemon seemed to be asleep for the moment, curled up in the branches and only occasionally twitching in their sleep. Ash and Nolan both carefully poked their heads up through some tall grass for a better look.
"Hmm..." Ash mused, obviously deep in thought about how best to get his own Bug Pokemon out of there without waking up the others.
Nolan was about to suggest that Ash simply call Metapod back into his pokeball as quietly as possible, and then they could make a discreet exit without the Beedrill even knowing they were ever there. Before the golden haired boy could make his suggestion however, something happened that none of them would have expected in a million years.
"Omph!"
Ash couldn't help but let out a low grunt of pain as something furry collided with the back of his head, forcing his face down into the dirt.
"Ow!" the raven haired boy moaned a little too loudly.
Nolan was about to lightly chasten his best friend, about to remind him for the need for quietness, but when he glanced over at the other boy, he found the words dying in his throat at the... weirdness of what he saw.
The thing that had forced Ash's face down into the mud due to the weight on the back of his head was none other than a Pokemon. And not just any Pokemon. Oh no, this Pokemon was none other than Meowth from Team Rocket!
"Meowth!" Nolan couldn't help but gasp in surprise.
The Scratch Cat Pokemon paid no attention to the golden haired boy or his Grass Type partner, both of whom started glaring at him. Instead, the furry Normal Type Pokemon just inspected his nails in a rather bored manner.
"You know what Meowth's favourite game is?" the talking Pokemon casually asked, as if he wasn't currently standing on the back of someone's head.
Thrown off by the bizarre question, Nolan and Meadow could do little more than just stare at him. Ash on the other hand had apparently had enough of being Meowth's pedestal, and angrily pushed his head back. The action was enough to dislodge Meowth, causing the Scratch Cat Pokemon to fall backwards off of him.
"Get off!" Ash yelled furiously. It was obvious that he was in no mood for games today.
"Ash, be quiet!" Nolan urged in a low hiss, reminding his friend about the sleeping Beedrill that were not too far away from their position.
Ash didn't have any opportunity to respond to his best friend, because before he could, Meowth suddenly lunged towards Ash in response to his earlier manoeuvre. Without any hesitation whatsoever, the cute but nasty creature viciously swiped Ash across the face with his claws.
"Aah!" Ash immediately called out in agony, clutching at his face and whimpering, obviously in a great deal of pain.
"Scratch and Sniffle!" Meowth laughed cruelly as he answered his own question.
Nolan stared at Meowth, aghast by the blatant display of callousness. Then anger took hold, and the golden haired boy glared down at the smug Pokemon.
"What are you doing here Meowth?!" he angrily demanded to know. His irritation only heightened when the Pokemon in question smirked up at him.
"Wouldn't you like ta know, Goldilocks?" Meowth sneered up at Nolan condescendingly, "But Meowth didn't come alone!"
Nolan couldn't help but pale slightly upon hearing those words.
"You mean..." the golden haired boy trailed off, practically able to feel the cold hand of sheer dread closing around his heart.
"Guess who!" an all-too-familiar voice cooed mockingly from not too far away.
Nolan couldn't help it when he immediately grimaced in distain. It looked like their mission to rescue Metapod had just become infinitely more complicated...
"Huh?!" Ash was finally able to remove his hands from his stinging face, and looked over in the direction that the voice had come from. Nolan followed his gaze, and sighed as his worst fears were realised.
For there they were, bold as brass, Jessie and James.
The two human criminals that seemed to be becoming fixtures in their lives at the moment were both standing on the top of a large pillar of stone. They both had incredibly confident smirks on their faces, and whilst Nolan and Ash looked on with trepidation, the two criminals struck dramatic poses as they looked down upon their prey.
"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie started to say, much too loudly as well considering that the Beedrill swarm were still sleeping.
"Make it double!" James echoed, totally oblivious to the nearby danger that his loud voice was at risk of alerting to their presence.
"To protect the world from devastation!" Jessie continued with their infamous motto.
"To unite all peoples within our nation!" James added in a loud carrying voice.
"To denounce the..." Jessie started to say.
"NO! Not again!" Ash shouted in annoyed disbelief, unable to believe that this was happening now of all times. Talk about really bad timing, "Not now!"
A dark scowl immediately crossed Jessie's face as she was cut off. She glowered down at Ash, clearly very offended that he had dared to interrupt her whilst she was giving such a rousing performance.
"Never interrupt the Team Rocket motto!" the female criminal snarled menacingly at the raven haired boy.
"But the Beedrill..." Ash tried to warn Team Rocket in a tone that was on the edge of panic. It was no use though. The gang of criminals were way to stubborn to allow Ash to get away with disrupting their beloved motto.
"Ahem!" Jessie cleared her throat pointedly, before she picked up where she'd left off, "To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!" James picked up where she left off seamlessly.
"Jessie!" Jessie shouted for all the world to hear.
"James!" James echoed just as loudly.
"Shut up you idiots!" Nolan frantically tried to get them to stop, nervously glancing back over his shoulder at the nesting tree, half-expecting the Beedrill to already be swarming out of it, "You're gonna wake up the Beedrill!"
But it was no use.
For all the good it did, Nolan might as well have told the surrounding trees to be quiet. On the stone pillar above them, Jessie and James simply disregarded his urgent plea, and stubbornly continued with their motto.
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!" Jessie exclaimed, unwilling to desist as this seemed to have become a battle of wills.
"Surrender now or prepare to fight!" James sneered down at his prey smugly, backing up his female counterpart one hundred percent.
"Meowth!" Meowth leapt up into the air and also struck a dramatic pose, "That's right!"
Needless to say, there was no way that the Beedrill were going to sleep through that racket.
The golden haired boy could practically feel the blood draining out of his face as he turned his attention back to the nesting tree. His heart leapt up into his throat and his stomach lurked unpleasantly as, just as he'd expected thanks to the sheer stupidity of Team Rocket, every single Beedrill that had previously been asleep had been disturbed from their slumber. And needless to say, they were not happy about it. Nolan could only look on in horror as the cluster of Poison Bee Pokemon began swarming out of their tree.
Within seconds, the air was full of them.
"Aaaah!" Ash screamed, horrified and panicked as the horizon quickly became littered with yellow and black.
"BULBA!" Meadow shrieked, alarmed as well.
"Damn it!" Nolan cursed angrily, glaring up at the smug faces of Team Rocket, bitter that those idiots had cost them their only opportunity to rescue Metapod with minimal danger.
To make that bitterness even worse, the trio of morons hadn't even noticed the troubled that they'd caused. It was like they couldn't see the angry Bug Type Pokemon as they just continued leering down at Ash and Nolan nastily.
"Little boy" Jessie said smoothly to Ash, clearly thinking that the boys were so petrified by their appearance as opposed to the swarm of deadly Beedrill, which she was still oblivious to, "Why don't you give us your Pikachu? There's no use trying to resist us so be smart and hand over the Pokemon!"
Her words were met by two incredulous and furious glares.
"Oh why don't you just get lost, you idiots?!" Nolan snarled back, clenching his fists so tightly in his anger that his knuckles began to turn white, "We're too busy today to be screwing around with a bunch of losers like you three!"
His insult did little to get a rise out of Team Rocket though. Instead, Jessie and James just sneered condescendingly down their noses at him.
"I think you'll find that you're the losers here Blondie" James remarked smugly in dark amusement, "We're the invincible Team Rocket!"
Nolan couldn't help but scoff dryly in response to that particular declaration.
"That would be a lot easier to believe if we hadn't handed your pathetic butts to you on silver platers every other time we've met" the golden haired boy shot back in retaliation.
"And besides..." Ash loudly broke back into the conversation, knowing that with the Beedrill approaching they didn't have the time to get into a slanging match, "I don't have Pikachu with me, and even if I did, I'd never let you take him!"
And so without so much as sparing the gang of criminals a second glance, the raven haired boy caught a tight grip on Nolan's arm, and proceeded to drag the other boy away. He'd seen Nolan in verbal sparring matches before after all, and once the golden haired boy had built up enough steam, he could fling insults and retorts for hours! They just didn't have that kind of time right now. Scowling, Nolan allowed himself to be pulled away. Meadow hastily followed after the two human boys, and together, the trio set off running.
Team Rocket apparently didn't appreciate being blown off by the young trainers in such an obnoxious manner, and in perfect unison, Jessie and James leapt down from the large stone. They gracefully fell down and elegantly landed on their feet on the ground.
"Come back here!" they both yelled after the retreating figures of Ash, Nolan and Meadow.
The two human criminals, along with Meowth, began chasing after Nolan and his friends. The golden haired boy had an annoyed expression on his face, but that quickly gave way to a look of horror and downright terror when he came to an important realisation. For he wasn't being steered away from the vicious swarm by his best friend. Oh no, Ash was steering them all directly towards the murderous Poison Bee Pokemon!
"Hold on!" Nolan cried out frantically, pulling himself free from Ash's grip and turning to look at him in panic, "We're running straight at the swarm!"
Ash grimaced, but sharply nodded his head.
"I know..." he said in a low tone, one that was filled with intense regret, "It's risky, but I have an idea... just trust me!"
And Nolan did.
Deep down, despite all the chaos that had happened since they had set out on their journey together, Nolan did trust Ash. They were the very best of friends, and they always had each others' backs. Because what it boiled down to in the end, was that they simply just wanted what was best for each other. That meant that it was time to rely on that trust, and take a leap of faith. So with a soft smile on his face, Nolan nodded. Ash beamed at him.
"Okay... here we go!" Ash yelled as he regained his grip on Nolan's arm, who surrendered himself entirely to Ash's judgement, "Waaahh!"
Charging towards the nesting tree where Metapod was thankfully still holed up, Ash suddenly threw himself into a dive, dragging a startled Nolan along with him. Meadow quickly realised the plan and followed suit. It was just in time too, for at that exact moment the first line of the swarm were upon them, just barely missing the trio lying flat against the forest floor.
The end reason could not have been more perfect.
Having missed their original targets, the Beedrill quickly found new ones as they ended up dive-bombing towards Team Rocket. The gang of criminals all cried out in alarm and abruptly skidded to a stop as they found themselves face to face with the horde of angry Bug Type Pokemon. Jessie and James were quick to shrug off their surprise at the swarm's sudden appearance though, and the two of them smirked smugly at each other.
"The tank will surely come in handy now" Jessie beamed happily, pleased with her own cleverness.
"It was worth the struggle dragging it here" James admitted, commending his female counterpart for her forward thinking.
Whirling on the spot, James dashed over to the spot where he'd stashed the Team Rocket 'tank' before they had ambushed Nolan and Ash. With a certain amount of effort, the cyan haired man picked up the 'tank' and dragged it back over to where his friends stood waiting. He held it up, and Jessie and Meowth were about to take cover beneath it, when they saw that the outside of it was literally covered with Weedle. They all shrieked in surprise and disgust, whilst the numerous Weedle all happily munched their way through the outer skin of the 'tank'.
"Huh?!" a somewhat revolted Jessie cried out, unable to believe what she was actually seeing.
"Meowth!" Meowth yelled shrilly in alarmed panic, covering his mouth with his paws, "They're eating da tank!"
"Well we made it from cardboard to reduce the weight!" James defended the reasoning behind their choice of material usage.
"Who knew?" Jessie sighed and shook her head.
"Numbskulls!" Meowth screamed at them both for their sheer incompetency.
Jessie and James both looked a little peeved about the Scratch Cat Pokemon's choice of words, but sadly for the human members of Team Rocket, they never got the chance to vocalise their displeasure. Because at that precise moment, the rest of the Beedrill swarm began to close in on them. With no other option, Team Rocket were forced to flee. All of them yelling out in panic and fear, the trio of miscreants all turned tail and set off running through the forest. The Beedrill flew off after them, and after a couple of moments, the faint screams and the intense buzzing finally faded away into the distance.
Well, that was one problem sorted, for now at least.
Gingerly sitting up from the spot where he had fallen, Nolan couldn't help but sigh in relief when he noticed that both Team Rocket and the Beedrill swarm were gone. The blonde haired boy cast his eyes around to the others, and was happy to see that both Ash and Meadow were unharmed as well. He let out another sigh of relief. That had been just a bit too close for comfort.
"Phew..." Ash slowly sat up and wiped his brow, "We made it!"
"Talk about a leap of faith" Nolan chuckled as he gently pulled Meadow into his arms, smiling when the little Grass Type Pokemon affectionately nuzzled his cheek with her own, "I didn't know they could happen so literally!"
Ash laughed, before he smiled fondly at his lifelong friend, the boy he loved like a brother.
"Thanks for trusting me" the raven haired boy said almost shyly, and Nolan smiled.
"Anytime" he said warmly, before he clambered to his feet, "Now come on. Let's go get Metapod and get out of here in case they come back!"
"Yeah!" Ash cheered and quickly jumped to his feet. He was more than ready to reunite with his beloved Bug Type Pokemon, thank you very much.
Without hesitating for even a moment, Ash hurried over to the spot where Metapod was still perched upon the tree root. Nolan was barely half a step behind him, and when the two boys reached the knotted old tree, Ash fell down to his knees beside Metapod, smiling with the deepest amount of relief imaginable.
"Metapod!" Ash cheered in delight, so, so happy to see that his friend was safe, "I'm so glad you're okay and aren't hurt!"
Making haste, the raven haired boy quickly removed a pokeball from his belt. He pushed the button that enlarged the pokeball, and held it out towards his Pokemon.
"Here! Into the pokeball Metapod!" Ash urged his Bug Type friend, "You'll be safe in there!"
The reaction that those words was met with was most certainly not one that Ash had been expecting.
For Metapod simply shook his entire body in a negative fashion, glaring up at Ash in refusal. Even though Metapod could only express his emotions through his eyes, he managed to get his hurt and anger across quite clearly. It didn't take a genius to figure out why Metapod felt that way either.
"Metapod..." Nolan said slowly, kneeling down next to Ash, who looked incredibly saddened by Metapod's less than warm reception of him, "Ash didn't let you get stolen away by that Beedrill on purpose. He feels really bad about what happened".
"Saur" Meadow said softly from his arms, backing Nolan's words up.
"Metapod!" the jade green chrysalis creature merely huffed in response.
Ash looked absolutely crushed in that moment, but he couldn't afford to allow Metapod to believe that he hadn't cared enough to only just now come looking for him. He opened his mouth to try and say something, anything, that might let Metapod be more receptive of an apology, but unfortunately he never got the chance too. For at that moment and quite suddenly, a loud buzzing filled the air around them. Nolan grimaced and felt his stomach drop again. Glancing over their shoulders, the boys saw to their dismay that a Beedrill was soaring through the air directly towards them. Behind it, Nolan could see others beginning to emerge through the trees and bushes. Were they ever going to let up?!
"They're coming back!" Nolan called out fearfully.
"Then let's go!" Ash replied urgently as he quickly gathered Metapod up into his arms.
He and Nolan both stood up, and after sharing a grim look of determined resolution with each other, the two boys then turned and started running, both of them hoping to get themselves and their beloved Pokemon back to the safety of the Samurai's cabin. Unfortunately, the Beedrill didn't appear all too keen on allowing the humans to return to their sanctuary, and promptly began chasing after them again.
"I didn't abandon you Metapod!" Ash yelled over the cacophony of buzzing, pleading with his beloved Bug Type Pokemon to understand the horrible situation that he had also been in, "I just got side-tracked! It was all Samurai's fault..."
At his side, Nolan couldn't help but let out an exhausted sighed. It was clear that he didn't want to get into this again, but also that he couldn't just let it drop.
"Ash, you know that's not strictly true" the golden haired boy said in a sad, tired voice.
Ash glanced over at his best friend, and opened his mouth to respond, but sadly any words that he might have been about to say were cut off when his foot got caught on a stray tree root and he ended up tripping over it.
"Aaaah!" the raven haired boy cried out as he fell.
"Ash!" Nolan gasped in alarm.
The golden haired boy couldn't help but wince in sympathy when his friend landed flat on his face, sprawled out on his stomach. Thankfully he had dropped Metapod, and the jade green chrysalis creature had helplessly rolled away from him, otherwise his fragile body might have been crushed beneath Ash's weight. Nolan hurried over to his fallen friend's side, concern tugging at his features.
"No... Nolan was right. He's been right, right from the start Metapod" Ash said in a low, self-deprecating voice before Nolan could even say a word, "It wasn't Samurai's fault. At least not just his fault. It was also my fault too..."
Ash dejectedly pushed himself to his knees, whilst at his side, Nolan and Meadow just looked down at him with sympathetic expressions on their faces.
"If I was a better Pokemon Trainer, I'd stop making all these excuses" the raven haired boy said guiltily, before he turned to look up at his best friend, "But from now on, things are going to be different" Ash caught the smile that Nolan sent him, and he returned it, before he turned back to face Metapod, "From now on, I swear I'll never run away and leave my friends behind again!"
Metapod stared up at him, his amber eyes brimming with emotion at Ash's sincere tone. And despite still wanting to be mad for just a little longer, Metapod could sense how genuinely upset Ash was for hurting his Pokemon's feelings. It made forgiving his raven haired trainer all the more easy.
"No more excuses" Ash promised, though this time it was to himself.
Hurrying over to where Metapod had fallen, Ash quickly gathered his beloved Pokemon up into his arms, and this time, Metapod went with no resistance. Suddenly, there came the sound of buzzing again from behind the group. Filled with dread and fear, Ash and Nolan both turned around to see that numerous Beedrill were baring down upon them.
"Ash! Nolan!" a wonderfully familiar voice suddenly called out to them.
Nolan spun around at the sound of his name, and saw that off to the side; Misty, the Samurai and Pikachu were all fast approaching. Nolan might have been concerned to see them all there with all those Beedrill charging towards them, had it not been for the fact that they were all inside a large cube shaped net on a wooden frame that was being held up by the Samurai. It was clearly designed to protect them all from harm, from which Nolan drew great comfort.
"Watch out for the Beedrill's Twin Needle attack!" the Samurai exclaimed in warning to them.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu squeaked, anxious about the danger his partner and friends were all in.
Before any of them had a chance to react further however, one of the Beedrill at the head of the swarm suddenly dived towards Ash and Metapod. The jade green chrysalis creature's eyes immediately darkened with a fierce determination.
"METAPOD!" with an enraged battle-cry, Metapod suddenly leapt out of Ash's arms, and jumped up to meet their attacker head on. In one swift motion - which was impressive for such an immobile creature - Metapod threw his entire body weight against the wild Beedrill's, knocking the Poison Bee Pokemon away from Ash, but also suffering a deep cut to his own body in the process.
Ash looked on, utterly stunned by the show of devotion that his Pokemon had just shown him, but he rushed over to catch Metapod before he could hit the ground.
"Metapod!" Ash cried out in alarm.
The particularly aggressive Beedrill quickly retreated and flew away, but it was the only one that did. Ash honestly couldn't have cared less about that right now though. Instead, the raven haired boy could do little more than stare down at the Pokemon in his arms with the utmost concern.
In the background, the Samurai had manoeuvred the netted cage over to Ash, Nolan, and Meadow so that he, Misty and Pikachu were effect stood by their sides.
"Are you hurt?!" Ash asked his beloved green Pokemon frantically, checking him over for any other potential injuries, "Are you okay Metapod?!"
Metapod didn't reply.
The humans and their partner Pokemon all looked at each other in horror, immediately fearing the worst. Thankfully, those fears turned out to be for nought though, because suddenly and without any kind of warning whatsoever, a dazzlingly bright white light began shining out from within Metapod, escaping through the jagged crack in his shell.
"Huh?" Misty blinked in bewilderment.
"Pika pika!" Pikachu gasped in delighted awe.
"Saur..." Meadow whispered in disbelief, though she was smiling widely. Nolan was too, having figured out what was going on as well.
"He's evolving again!" the golden haired boy beamed.
Everyone watched on in awe and joyous surprise as from out of the cracked skin of Metapod, a new creature emerged, bathed in the bright white light of evolution. It was a cute purple insectoid creature adorning a pair of glittering silver wings. It was a Butterfree, and it was beautiful. They all watched on happily as Butterfree unfurled his wings and began softly beating them, hovering in the air as the lights died down. The cracked remains of its former Metapod shell dissolved into a fine film of emerald dust that scattered and floated away on the wind.
"Free! Free!" the newly evolved Butterfree proudly flew through the air in a circle around Ash's head whilst the trainer himself just looked on in stunned amazement, "Butterfree!"
"Butterfree?!" Ash repeated in an awed tone of voice.
"Oh! He's so beautiful!" Misty exclaimed in obvious surprise. Hearing her words, Nolan couldn't help but grin teasingly at her through the net.
"Hopefully now you won't find all bugs so scary anymore" he smiled at her warmly.
Misty blushed slightly, and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that!" she giggled a little nervously.
Ash meanwhile had ignored his two human friends' bantering, and instead had pulled out his pokedex. The raven haired boy quickly pointed the device at his newly evolved Butterfree.
"Butterfree - the Butterfly Pokemon" the pokedex reported upon identifying the new creature, "Butterfree's love of flower nectar draws it to seek out flowers, even if they don't have much pollen".
Ash put his pokedex away, and smiled widely as Butterfree swooped past him. Unfortunately, the happy moment couldn't last forever, which was immediately proven when quite suddenly, they were interrupted as the rest of the Beedrill swarm continued their approach.
"Here come the other Beedrill!" Misty gasped in horror, concerned that her friends were still out in the open and thus were totally unprotected.
Ash and Nolan both glared at the approaching horde of murderous Pokemon charging straight at them, whilst Butterfree fluttered down and hovered next to his beloved trainer.
"Butterfree?" Ash glanced over towards his newly evolved Pokemon.
"Free! Free!" Butterfree nodded vigorously, clearly eager for a chance to test his new abilities and show off his new powers, "Butterfree!"
"Yeah" Ash beamed, pleased that all the issues between him and his Pokemon appeared to have been resolved and left in the past, "Okay Butterfree! Knock them out with your Sleep Powder!"
And with those few simple words, the outcome of the day was decided there and then.
Nolan, Meadow and everyone else watched in sheer amazement as Butterfree immediately shot up high into the air until the majority of the Beedrill swarm were directly beneath him. Once they were, Butterfree began gently beating his newly acquired wings together, scattering a fine silvery blue powder over many of the lethal Poison Bee Pokemon. They had no chance of escape, and they simply couldn't help but breath some of the powder in as it rained down on them.
The effect it had on them was immediate.
It was like a switch had been flipped, and all of the murderous intent was plucked right out of each of the Beedrill, stopping them in their tracks. One by one, they began dropping out of the sky, falling to the ground with soft thuds. And Butterfree just kept going, kept on scattering his Sleep Powder until he had forced each and every single member of the swarm back into dreamland. In less than a minute, every single Beedrill was unconscious at their feet.
After what felt like an eternity, they were all finally safe again.
"YAY!" Ash didn't even attempt to restrain himself, he was so delighted by this most welcome turn of events, and so, so proud of his Bug Type Pokemon. He immediately began jumping up and down, cheering and waving his arms about like a lunatic, "You put all of them to sleep! Butterfree, you're the best!"
Nolan couldn't help but smile fondly as his best friend continued to jump up and down in his excitement, before he turned his attention to Butterfree as well.
"Thanks a lot for saving all of us Butterfree" the golden haired boy said earnestly in a grateful tone, "And congratulations on evolving again! You look... amazing!"
"Free!" Butterfree affectionately brushed a wing over Nolan's head as he swooped past him.
The action scattered a bit of powder over him, causing the boy to sneeze but nothing more than that. Nolan couldn't help but laugh in amusement at the Bug Type Pokemon's antics. Meanwhile, now feeling safe enough to do so, the Samurai had lifted the netted cage, and Misty and Pikachu both stepped out from under it. They and the Samurai all came over to join the others.
"You were able to handle your Butterfree so well, just after it evolved" the Samurai said in a tone that left no doubt that he was impressed by such a feat, "Most impressive!"
"Chu!" Pikachu chattered happily.
They all just looked on as Ash simply continued to express his pride and joy to the heavens above, whilst Butterfree fluttered through the air around him. They both looked so happy, and Nolan was happy for them. The day had started out so harrowing, but had ended on such a positive note...
And that was nothing less than wonderful.
It wasn't long before they were all back at the Samurai's cabin, having gone there so that their new friend could heal up their Pokemon for them before they continued on their way to Pewter City. Of course, during that time Misty had vocalised her displeasure about Ash and Nolan putting themselves in danger without her, but she had quickly forgiven her friends after hearing a sincere apology from them both. Now, the four humans, along with Pikachu and Meadow, were stood outside the cabin, preparing to say their goodbyes. Whilst they had gotten off to a rocky start, they had been through an awful lot together, and the various opinions they once had of each other had now changed drastically, so it was actually quite hard to say goodbye to the somewhat eccentric boy.
"Well... it hasn't been plain sailing, but I am most grateful to have met all of you" the Samurai smiled at them genuinely, before bowing his head to each of them in turn, "And thank you, Observant One, for the most important lesson you have taught me. From now on, I think I shall leave my sword out of the equation when introducing myself to wandering travellers".
"I'm glad to hear it" Nolan smiled warmly at the other boy.
"And Ash, I apologise for my earlier behaviour" the Samurai bowed his head again as he turned to face the raven haired trainer.
"That's okay Samurai, I was in the wrong too, so I'm sorry as well" Ash replied graciously, before his smile turned a little wistful, "I just wish that we could have finished our match".
"Compared to you my friend, I am the Novice" the Samurai said humbly, "I shall stay here in the Viridian Forest to keep perfecting my training of the Bug element, and I shall hone my warriors to be the best that they can be. Then perhaps one day, we will finish our battle".
"I sure hope so" Ash said kindly in response.
"Just promise not to match Metapod versus Metapod again" Misty chimed in with a weary look on her face.
"Yeah, I'm totally with her on that!" Nolan added, and the four humans and their Pokemon all shared a laugh, "Well... we should probably get going. Goodbye Samurai"
He reached out to shake the Samurai's hand. The Samurai smiled as he shook it.
"Goodbye my friend" the Samurai smiled, but when he retracted his hand from Nolan's own, he then reached into his pocket and withdrew a couple of folded up pieces of paper, "But before you go, I offer you a parting gift. A small token of appreciation for all you have taught me".
He all but forced the folded up pieces of paper into Nolan's hand, prompting the golden haired boy to quirk an eyebrow at him.
"What is this?" Nolan asked in a puzzled voice.
"Forgive me for the assumption, but I reasoned that like all the other trainers that hailed from Pallet, you are all also headed towards the City of Pewter" the Samurai said, and Nolan, Ash and Misty all nodded their heads at him, "Well, these are directions on the quickest route to get there! I know this forest like the blade of my sword, and I assure you, if you follow those instructions you shall emerge from the forest before you know it".
"That's great Samurai" Nolan beamed at him as he quickly unfolded the papers and began reading them, finding a step by step guide of how best to cross through the Viridian Forest quickly, "Thanks a lot".
"Thank you" Ash and Misty both expressed their gratitude as well.
And so with their goodbyes said and done, Nolan and his friends all turned and set off further into the Viridian Forest, the Samurai waving them off from the front door of his cabin as they went. And as the new friends parted ways, all four of the young trainers felt their resolve to become Pokemon Masters become all that much stronger. Maybe one day, just maybe, one of them really would become the very best, like no one ever was...
One day...
And that's the end of another episode : D
Wow... just wow - that was a long chapter! Honestly, I don't really like posting overly long chapters like this one, but truth be told, I just wanted to be finished with this episode now, especially considering how much grief writing the end of it gave me to get it finished in time : )
Anyway, let's move on to today's voting topic. This time it's another new Pokemon vote, only this one is a little bit different, and quite a bit special : ) It's finally time to bring my Fossil Pokemon into play. I've been looking forward to this one for quite some time. Now, I've revived them both in my actual game so that I can post their abilities and natures and whatnot, but only one of them will be appearing in my story, so you guys get to pick which one. Here are the two options: -
Pokemon Options: -
Old Amber - Aerodactyl - Male - Careful Nature - Pressure Ability
Helix Fossil - Omanyte - Male - Naive Nature - Shell Armor Ability
Honestly, I actually really like all of the Kanto Fossil Pokemon and their evolutions, so I'd be pretty happy with either one of these on my team : )
On that note, I think we've covered everything for this week, so I hope you enjoyed this rather long chapter, and please consider leaving a review on your way out as I'd love some feedback on what you enjoyed and what I could do better : )
Until the next time, keep on reading : )