The Palto Adventures

Part 8: Cut Down by Scizor on Chelicerae Island
( Guest starring FallingHawk as Hawk and Scizor7777 as Scizor)

The boat ride took a few hours. Kazuki and Hawk decided to break out the Palto Handbook and find out more about the Bug Hut competition and this Scorpio Cup that Sandra, the trainer that had graciously saved them at Mag Mountain, wanted to win badly. She finished teaching one of the scientists how to steer and peered over Hawks shoulder.

“ What are you lookin’ at? “ She asked.

“ Oh, hey Sandy! You scared me. “ Hawk yelped.
“ Uh, the Palto Handbook. “

“ Oh, trying to learn about the Bug Hut competition? Don’t even bother, you have to have a bug type to battle with, and you have to be a good trainer too. “

“ Well, Kazuki caught a Weedle, and I have a Caterpie. “ Hawk gloated.

“ Uh, did I mention being a good trainer? You couldn’t have survived that encounter with Magmargo if I hadn’t come along and doused him down. “

“ Yeah, you’re the one who didn’t have an electric type to finish the job. “ Kazuki muttered under his breath.

“ What was that? “ Sandy said sarcastically, mussing his hair.
“ Anyways, I got to the finals last year, but some rookie and his Scyther totally obliterated my team. It was horrible. “ She whined

“ A rookie beat you? I thought you had to be a good trainer? “ Hawk snickered.

Kazuki and Hawk both looked at each other, and tried their best to stifle their giggles. Sandra was getting a little annoyed.

“ When I say rookie, I mean that he came out of nowhere. He and his pokemon were like one person. It’s, it’s hard to describe.“

“ One person? What do you mean? “ Kazuki asked, bewildered.

Sandra sighed. She tugged at her hair, her eyes went far away, staring in to nothing. “

“ It was like… “
“ Well, during the fight, he followed his Scyther around the perimeter, and he hardly yelled commands. The Scyther would occasionally glance at him, and he’d nod, and Scyther would attack. It was like he was psychic or something. “

“ Wow, if that’s the kind of competition I’m up against, I might just have to sit out. “ Hawk laughed, nervously.

“ What was his name? “ Kazuki wondered.

“ Oh, weird as it may seem, he called himself… “

“ What? “

“ Scizor, that was his name, Scizor. I’ll never forget it. He knocked out my Venonat, Wartortle, and Spinarak without any trouble. “

“ Man, that’s strange. “ Hawk said.
“ So, you only need one bug type to battle? “

“Uh, yeah. You take in three pokemon. Those are the pokemon you use the entire tournament. One of them has to be a bug type, but the other two are up to you. You compete in a eight-person line tournament, and the winner gets a sparring session with the previous champion, plus the Scorpio Cup, and a good chunk of prize money; 1000 bucks. “

“ 1000 bucks! “ Hawk yelled.
“ Maybe I will compete after all. “

The boat rocked up and down, and Sandy went back to the front to check on the scientist steering. He had started to turn the ship off course.

“ Okay, we’re here. “ Sandy called back.

The boat steered in to a small harbor. It stopped close to another small boat, which was parked by a bigger boat, which was parked by over a dozen good-sized boats. Trainers were everywhere, training pokemon, battling each other, and scouring the forest for pokemon. Above the dense woods, a stadiums roof towered over them, casting a shadow on the entire docks.

“ Whoa, that’s where the Scorpio Cup is held? “ Hawk and Kazuki asked.

“ Yeah, intimidating isn’t it. “ Sandy answered.
“ Don’t let it worry you, rookies are always intimidated on their first visit. “

“ I’m not worried. “ Kazuki said, bounding off on the path.

The group ran off towards the Bug Hut. Sandra and Hawk followed, trying to catch up with the energetic kid. The scientist huddled in to a group and started to amble around the beach. They instinctively gathered sand samples and taking observations of the wild pokemon.

“ Kazuki! “ Sandra yelled.
“ The sign up line is over here. “

Kazuki stopped running and walked back over to his friends. He was really excited about competing in the competition. Sandra and Hawk stepped forward and wrote their signatures. Kazuki could hardly steady his hands enough to do so legibly. After that, he asked Sandy how they determined who competed.

“ Well, there are tons of trainers here, but they know that this competition is serious. I starred your names to show that I have referred you for entry in to the competition. That should guarantee you a place. Since I almost won last time, they’ll probabley take my word for it. “

“ Cool, let’s go meet the competition! “ Kazuki cheered.

The group walked around the Bug Hut, shaking hands and finding out who planned on competing. Hawk and him found out when the judges made their decisions for a trainer to compete, they were called by name, and the first bug pokemon in their roster.

“ Kazuki and Weedle “ Kazuki thought.
“ Not very impressive. “

“ Come on Hawk, let’s battle! “
“ I want to evolve Weedle! “

Hawk was about to accept when Sandra intervened. She told Kazuki that she’d battle him, if it would help.

“ Okay, go Weedle! “

“ Go, Venonat! “

Venonat automatically started with a powerful Glare. The size of its eyes helped amplify the power.

“ Use the String Shot! “ Kazuki commanded.

Weedle broke away from the stare long enough to cover Venonat’s eyes in the silky sustenance. It reared back, blinded.

“ No! “ Sandra cried.

“ Ha ha! “
“ Weedle, Dig! “

The Weedle burrowed in to the sand, filling in the hole as it went. When Venonat had gotten the string out of its eyes, the Weedle started to poke up.

“ Look out! “

The horn prodded Venonat, but it jumped back quick enough to escape the poison. It soared to the trunk of a palm tree, then rebounded forward, heading over Weedle.

“ Finish it with Headbut! “ Sandy ordered.

“ Weedle, look out! “ Kazuki ordered.

Weedle began to spray string all over itself, and its small, yellow body disappeared from sight. When Kazuki watched with dawning horror as Venonat loomed overhead. Then, as he was about to Headbut Weedle, a bright flash lit the area, and Venonat fell back, stunned.

“ Kakuuuuuu! “ The pokemon croaked.

“ Hey, Weedle evolved in to Kakuna! “ Kazuki said delightedly.

The Venonat got to its feet and shock off its shock. It raced towards Kakuna.

“ Tackle! “ Sandy yelled.

“ Dodge it! “ Kazuki yelled.

The Kakuna jumped over Venonat, and shot a fine string on to a palm frond. It swayed there menacingly.

“ I was hoping it wouldn’t come to this. “
“ Use the Confusion, Venonat! “

“ What, why is Confusion a last-resort attack? “ Kazuki pondered.

< While the Confusion is technically the weakest psychic attack, its power varies with every pokemon. A Venonat’s Confusion is extremely powerful, but tends to confuse itself too. Wild Venonat rarely use the technique. >

Venonat was wrapped in a purple aura, and rose a foot or two of the sand. It flew through the air, heading towards the suspended Kakuna.

“ Now, Psybeam! “ Sandy ordered.

Before Kazuki could react, Kakuna swung itself backwards with such force, that he thought that the pokemon would throw itself off the tree and in to the ocean. It came back forward and cut itself free from the palm.

“ Pin Missile! “
“ It’s the Pin Missile! “ Kazuki cried happily.

Kakuna pierced through the beam like a knife through butter. The ruby-red ray was sliced down the middle and disintegrated as Kakuna passed through. The tiny thorn on its bottom was razor-sharp.

“ I guess that’s another of my Kakuna’s little traits. When it was a Weedle, it had the Dig technique, and now that it’s evolved, it has an early version of Pin Missile. “ Kazuki sneered.

Venonat was returned to its pokeball with a bump rising on its head. Its eyes were spinning spirals.

“ Yeah, well you got lucky. “ Sandy complained.
“ I’m gonna go meet my competition. I suggest you two do the same. “

“ Why? “ Hawk asked.

“ Well, I told you I had a Venonat. Did that help you decide what pokemon you’d choose to battle me with and what strategy to use? “

“ Yeah, I suppose. “ Kazuki agreed, nodding.

“ Well you know this competition will be fierce, so you should go find the roster, and see who your battling. They have the names, so you could also scour the island and look for your opponent. Watch them battle and learn their strategy.

“ Wow, sounds like to know what your up against Sandy. “ Hawk smiled.

“ Good luck men, I hope to see you in the hut. “

With that, Sandra sashayed away and waved. Kazuki and Hawk waved back apprehensively, and gave each other a smile that meant more then it showed. They both chuckled as they went to one of the roster stations.

“ I think she likes you Kaz. “ Hawk snickered.

“ Yeah, yeah. “

They ran their fingers down the line, and Kazuki read the listed names.

“ Okay, listen up. “ He said.
“ First up is Elise and I. “
“ Second is you and Teddy. “
“ Third is Sandy and Rose. “

“ I guess Sandy will be hunting Rose down right about now. “

“ Yeah. “
“ Finally we have Duncan and... “

“ What? “ Hawk asked queerly.

“ Oh man, you won’t believe it. “
“ Remember that rookie that creamed Sandra in the finals last year? “

“ Scizor? “
“ Scizor is in the competition ?! “

“ You’ve heard of me. “ A voice said calmly.

Hawk and Kazuki turned around to see a trainer standing next to a menacing Scyther. It had a long, red scar on its left eye. The trainer was clad in a green t-shirt, and black and blue shorts. He was holding a heavy red coat over his shoulder and he gave a off a strange vibe.

“ Are you Scizor? “ Kazuki asked, eyes locked on him.

“ Yes. “
“ I didn’t realize that I’d made such a name for myself. Making trainers quiver at my name really wasn’t my intent. I am just like you guys. “

“ Well, we heard some stories that definitely say otherwise. “ Hawk said, rolling his eyes.

“ You remember Sandy? Your opponent in last year’s finals? “ Kazuki asked.
“ She claims you and that Scyther have some sort of psychic link. She spaced out when she had to recollect that battle and thinks of you as something of an unbeatable trainer. I don’t think someone just like me is capable of doing that. “

“ Oh yeah, Sandra. “ He said, pondering.
“ When gets beaten as badly as she did, I imagine that she’d make up stories to make it seem like I had a huge advantage. “

“ So, you don’t have psychic powers? “ Hawk inquired.

“ Well, you’ll just have to see for yourself. “ Scizor laughed.
“ You two are competing, right? “

“ Yeah, we are. “
“ But why do you care, shouldn’t you see who your competition is? “

“ Well, I’m a bit more interested in you. “ Scizor said.
“ You’re obviously a rookie, but you wouldn’t be competing if you were a bad battler. I challenge you to a battle. “

“ Alright Scizor, you remember the name Kazuki. “
“ That’s the name that’ll haunt you in your dreams after I beat you! “

Kazuki motioned to Chikorita, standing at his feet.

“ Go get him! “

Chikorita leaped forward and shuffled her feat, like a bull ready to charge.

“ Okay, I’ll go easy on you. “
“ Meowth, It’s time to fight! “

Meowth appeared from its pokeball, and Kazuki, having never seen one, asked the pokedex about it.

< Meowth. > It said.
< This cat-like pokemon are often seen roaming around in big cities. They use attacks based on their claws, but may even use weapons that it’s stolen from the streets. Meowth are infamous for thieving. >

“ Okay, if it uses a claw-based attack style, then we’ll have to keep our distance Chikorita. It can’t use long-range techniques, so stay far away. “

Hawk raised one arm to meet Kazuki and the other extended to Scizor. He began to speak as referee.

“ This is a one on one battle. As long as the pokemon are active, they can battle. No time limit. Let the battle begin! “

Kazuki pointed forward.

“ Chikorita, Razor Leaf! “
“ We have to keep Meowth at bay. “

Chikorita swung its leaf about, and the leaves blanketed the sky like a green cloud. Meowth was standing on the sand, claw extended.

“ Scratch those leaves to mulch! “ Scizor ordered.

The Meowth growled low and hopped up. Its claws slashed to and fro, and the Razor Leaf attack was reduced to compost.

“ Oh! “
“ Impossible! How can Meowth have such good attack power? “

“ I train hard. In fact, I started to train Meowth after my Scyther suffered a loss to one a few years ago. It gave him quiet a nasty souvenir. “ Scizor laughed.

“ The scar…” Kazuki said breathlessly.

“ Him and Meowth are constantly sparring, and when they’re not fighting, they’re strategizing. “ Scizor said.

“ Man, me and my pokemon are really laid back. No wonder your doing so well, and you said you were going easy! “ Kazuki said, stunned.

“ To be perfectly honest, Meowth has had the least training. “

Kazuki was a bundle of nerves. If Meowth was the weakest of his group, and he could turn a Razor Leaf attack into microscopic plant pieces, then he hasn’t been training hard enough.

“ Meowth, use your special attack! “
“ Midas Paw attack! “

“ What? “

Meowth’s paw was enveloped in a golden light. It jumped at Chikorita and swiped it cleanly, but its claws weren’t out. Kazuki was surprised that it had hit Chikorita, but even more surprised that it didn’t use a claw-based attack. He waited for Chikorita to fall, but he hardly flinched.

“ What, what happened? “ Kazuki asked.

“ I’m assuming your pokemon have some special techniques. That was mine. “
“ I call it the Midas Paw. “

“ Midas…Midas…why does that sound familiar? “ Kazuki asked, ignoring the fact that Chikorita began to shiver.

“ Midas was a king a long time ago. He wished to turn anything he touched to gold, and it turned out that his wish came true. Everything he touched did turn to gold, but he ran into a problem. When he would pick up fruit, it would become gold before he could eat it, and he couldn’t sleep because the bed sheets would change to gold too. One day, as he sat at the table miserably, his child ran up to him to give him a hug. He tried to tell him no, but the child threw his arms around Midas’s waist, and he too changed to solid gold. That’s when he realized that his greed corrupted him. “

“ What’s your point? “ Kazuki asked.

Chikorita’s cheek started to become a gorgeous yellow, as the color spread, the yellow became richer, and it sparkled. Chikorita was turning to gold.

“ My Meowth has harnessed some of that power. Instead of searching out gold, it turns anything it wants into it! “ Scizor boomed.

“ What?! “ Kazuki said, shocked.

Chikorita cried out, but it was too late. Its entire body was enveloped in gold, and all of its limbs stiffened. Chikorita was a bright, shiny statue. The sun amplified its beauty.

“ Oh my god! “
“ Chikorita! “ Hawk cried.

“ It’s only temporary, but it counts as non-activity. That means I win. “

Kazuki ran up to Chikorita, but Scizor thrust his arm out and cut him off.

“ If you touch her before the shine wears off, you’ll start to change too. Not very much, but it can be unpleasant. “

Kazuki wanted to deck him, but he tried to see it from his point of view. It was a real attack, strange as it may seem, and although Kazuki felt like he was hiding some sort of secret, he trusted him. He knew Chikorita would be okay. Kazuki sighed.

“ Okay, I believe you Scizor. “ Kazuki said, raising his hand.
“ Good match. “

Scizor grabbed for Kazuki’s hand and shook it vigorously. Hawk, who stood off to the side with his jaw nearly grazing the ground, smacked himself in the forehead and spoke up.

“ Chikorita is unable to battle. “
“ Scizor is the winner of the match. “

Kazuki and Hawk picked up Chikorita, who was now completely gold, and carried her under a tree. Kazuki was afraid it would get hot inside.

Scizor apologized for what he did, but Kazuki knew it was a fair fight. He couldn’t help but feel intimidated though.

“ Scizor, do you think me, Hawk, and you could battle some more before the tournament? I want to be as strong as you when I compete, and I have a feeling you can help me get to that level. “

Scizor furrowed his brow and thought about it. He pointed out over the water.

“ Across the ocean there is an island shrouded in mist. The natives call it Fog Island. It’s believed that the pokemon there have been so isolated that they’re nearly twice as strong as today’s legendary pokemon, like Dragonite, or Tyranitar.

“ He’s right. It’s not labeled, but it’s there. “ Hawk said, pointing in his Pokemon Guide Book.

“ Scizor, how long until the Scorpio Cup begins? “ Kazuki asked.

“ Three days Kazuki, and it looks like the first is almost over. “ Scizor said.

“ Okay, let’s go to Fog Island. “
“ We’ll battle until we can beat the best! “

“ Yeah, this is gonna be great! “ Hawk yelled, jumping straight up.

Kazuki, Hawk, and Scizor went back to the Bug Hut to find Sandy. When they did, they had Scizor wait behind some trees so they wouldn’t startle her.

“ You’re leaving? “ Sandy asked.

“ Yeah, only until the competition. “ Kazuki said.
“ Don’t worry, we’ll still compete. “

Sandy said goodbye and they got ready to leave. Kazuki sent out Golduck to ride on with Hawk, and Scizor rode his Dratini, although it wasn’t very tini.

“ You guys ready? “ Scizor asked.
“ It’s supposed to be a long trip. “

“ Yeah, we’re ready. “ Hawk said happily.

They mounted their pokemon and off into the sea. Behind the trainers on the island gathered around a giant bonfire to battle by firelight. Later that night, Kazuki turned and saw the fire, a tiny, yellow speck, in the distance.