Chapter 3 - Insert Here a Pun with the Word Bug
Hero was about to battle at Castelia's Gym. Castelia was a big city, crowded from skyscrapers, where hundreds of people lived and worked everyday. It was such an amazing city. There were people from everywhere, what Hero could tell by just looking at them on the streets. They were, looked like, and behaved in different ways. It was so fascinating that there were so many types of people in the world. There are so many different types of Pokémon too, Hero thought. How is this possible?
Hero walked up the street. Castelia's Gym was right ahead. It was at the first floor of one of the many tall buildings. He soon saw the Poké Ball logo of the Pokémon League. He stopped for a moment in front of the door. Beside the Gym's doors there was a cross-dresser leaning on the wall. Hero thought of his way until that place. He didn't know if he was ready, but he had to try.
He walked in.
“Welcome!” said a man very loudly and energetically. It gave Hero a turn.
“Thank you! But don't scare me this way again!”
He passed by the man and looked around. The room was small, there were walls in different angles that seemed made of a yellow rubber., but no sign of a door.
“How am I supposed to meet the leader?” Hero asked out loud.
“You have to find your way!” the man who welcomed him said.
“How? If there's no door.”
“Some doors can be passed through. But other can't. You'll have to find the right ones to get to Burgh, the leader.”
“Thank you. Now how is it possible to pass through a wall?”
Hero looked closer at a wall. He touched it then pushed. He not only passed through it, but he literally fell on the floor on the other room. After cursing, he got up. He was inside of a small room that had six walls. Well, he just had to find the other wall to pass through. He touched the one in front of him. His hand did not pass through. He tried the wall beside it, and it worked. He crossed to the other room. It was a larger one and… he had just returned to the entry.
“You had a good start, but passing through a wall one time is enough.” said the receptionist.
Hero scowled at him then passed again to the other room. He now marked mentally the wall from where he had come, avoiding it when he tested the walls. He found another one through where he could pass, then crossed it. The wall put pressure against his body, as it pushed the rubber-like substance. He managed to pass through, and the wall's hole closed behind him right after he passed. He was at another room that was just like the previous.
He made his way through the Gym until he finally arrived at the foot of a staircase. He began to go up the staircase. A man was standing at the opposite end of the floor. He reached that level.
“I'm Burgh, Leader of Castelia's Gym. Are you a challenger?” said the man with a clear voice. He had light brown, long hair and wore colorful clothes with a pink scarf around his neck.
“Yes!” Hero said. “My name is Hero and I came here to fight for a badge.”
“Very well. Let's see if you can beat me.” Burgh answered, simply.
He picked Pokéball from his belt.
“Go! Leavanny!”
He threw the Poké Ball and it opened, letting Leavanny out. It was a bug Pokémon with part of its body made of leaves.
“Go, Pizza!” Hero said and threw Pizza's Poké Ball.
The Palpitoad got out.
“Uproar!” Hero ordered.
Pizza made the bumps on his head shake, what produced a big sound wave that went towards Leavanny. Burgh's Pokémon got hit.
“Razor Leaf!” Burgh said.
Leavanny threw a row of spinning leaves out of it's scythes. Pizza tried to avoid them, but they scratched him. He trembled, then fell with his eyes closed. Hero felt a pain in his heart. He ran toward Pizza and knelt by his side.
“You're gonna be alright.” he whispered.
“You still have a lot to learn.” Burgh said. “Take your Pokémon to the PokéCenter.”
Hero returned Pizza to the PokéBall and left. As Hero left the Gym, he heard a deep voice calling him. He turned around to see the cross-dresser talking to him.
“So Burgh beat you.” he (or should I say she?) said. “Let me walk along with you to the PokéCenter.”
When Hero looked suspiciously at him/her, she added:
“I don't bite.”
XXX
At the PokéCente, Hero handed off Pizza's PokéBall to the nurse.
“He's gonna be OK!” she said, smiling.
Hero and the cross-dresser sat at the waiting room.
“So, what Pokémon did you use?” the cross-dresser asked.
“Pizza, my Palpitoad,” Hero answered.
“You have a unique style of naming Pokémon. Well, what was Burgh's Pokémon?”
“Leavanny. Why are you asking me these things?”
“Because I wanna help you, sweetie. Look, Palpitoad wasn't the best choice. He's a Water and Ground type. He's two times weak against Leavanny's Grass attacks. You should choose another one.”
The nurse came back and gave Hero the PokéBall.
“Already? That's great!” he exclaimed.
He received the PokéBall and thanked her. She left to nurse other Pokémon.
“Alright. I think I'll choose Tofu instead of Pizza.” Hero said.
Pizza's PokéBall shook.
“What?” hero asked, then opened the PokéBall, letting Pizza out.
He looked angrily at Hero.
“What's wrong?” the boy asked.
Pizza shook his head negatively.
“You don't wanna be switched out?” Hero asked. “But your type is weak against Leavanny. Do you remember how fast you lost?”
Pizza looked away from him, becoming sulky.
“He feels humiliated for his quick loss.” said the cross-dresser. “He won't agree with letting other Pokémon fight in his place. If you ask me, you should give him a chance of proving he can win.”
“But how, if he's in disadvantage?” Hero asked.
“Well, a type weakness can be beat with strength.”
“So if Pizza gets stronger there's a chance of winning?”
“Yep!”
Hero smiled as he saw this new challenge in his mind.
“Alright, Pizza! I'll help you to win!” he said, looking at his Pokémon.
Pizza looke at him happily.
The following week Hero and Pizza trained together all day long every day. At the Saturday Hero went to the Gym. The cross-dresser was standing there again.
“Go and show what you can do!” she said.
Hero smiled and said “sure”. He entered the Gym.
“Welcome!” shouted the receptionist.
“Right!” said Hero, as he marched to the rubber walls. He passed through the Gym's maze and arrived once more at the staircase leading to the stage where Burgh awaited for him.
Burgh was standing there, just like the last time.
“You came for a rematch, right?” he said. “Let's see if you've learned something since our first fight. Go, Leavanny!”
“Go, Pizza!”
When Hero threw the PokéBall, a different Pokémon came out of it: a Seismitoad.
“So your Pokémon evolved!” Burgh commented. “But are you sure you still wanna fight with it?”
“He's the only option.” Hero said.
“All right. Let's begin.”
Hero nodded.
“Leavanny, Razor Leaf!” Burgh said.
“Uproar!” Hero responded.
Leavanny thrust spinning leaves, but the sound waves that Pizza produced vibrating the bumps on his head repelled them. The sound waves kept going and hit Leavanny. Pizza continued to vibrate his bumps, and now Leavanny began to run from the sound waves. Pizza began to aim at everywhere. Pizza's attack hit her again.
“Damn! Struggle Bug!” Burgh said.
Leavanny tried to get near Pizza, but when it did it, Pizza hit her with Uproar. Leavanny was thrown some meters. It struggled to get up, his limbs trembling. Then it fainted.
“Wow! I'm shocked! You won!” Burgh said. “Erm, caham. Sorry. This one was a very sophisticated battle. Your Pokémon dominates a fascinating technique. Come back, Leavanny, you were great.”
“Yeah! You won!” Hero said, rushing to hug Pizza, who was now bigger than him.
Burgh approached him.
“Please take this.” he said, handing over a badge that looked like the wings of a bug. “The Insect Badge. You've proven yourself worth of it.”
“Thank you!”
Hero accepted it and rushed back through the maze of walls, which took him yet a lot of time to pass. When he exited the Gym, the cross-dresser said.
“Congratulations!” she said.
“How do you know I won?” Hero asked.
“Erm… I can tell by the happiness in your face!”
“Ah… Well, thank you! I owe you this win!”
“You're welcome!” she said, and blinked.