— No One POV —
After making preparations and restocking on supplies, Liam reached the entrance of Viridian Forest.
"Alright, Courage! Rattata! Come on out."
When both Pokémon came out, they looked at their surroundings and were enthusiastic about what they were going to do.
Liam had them both wait as he started scanning them to see what moves they could use. Since this wasn't the game world and was real life, he wondered if they had fewer than four moves, more than four, or exactly four.
Beep. Beep.
[#767, Wimpod
Bug/Water
Turn Tail Pokémon
Male
Description:
This Pokémon is a coward. As it desperately dashes off, the flailing of its many legs leaves a sparkling clean path in its wake. Moon. Its habitat varies from beaches to seabeds. A natural scavenger, it will gleefully chow down on anything edible, no matter how rotten.
Ability: Wimp Out
Moves: Rollout, Struggle Bug, Sand Attack, Aqua Jet]
Beep. Beep.
[#019, Rattata
Normal
Mouse Pokémon
Male
Description: Its incisors continue growing until its death. If its Trainer doesn't offer it a file to gnaw on, it will gnaw on door frames, table legs, and so on. It's cautious in the extreme, and its hardy vitality lets it live in any kind of environment.
Ability: Guts
Moves: Quick Attack, Bite, Focus Energy, Tackle]
Liam studied both of their data and was surprised by Courage's moveset.
After a while of deciding what to do before heading into the forest, he took out the TM Wild Charge.
"Hold still, Rattata. You're going to learn a new move, but make sure to forget Tackle, okay?"
"Tatta!"
Rattata nodded in understanding as Liam placed the TM over Rattata's head and took it apart.
Light particles started appearing over Rattata's head as it closed its eyes and opened them once more.
Liam opened his Pokédex to see if it worked.
"Hmm... nice! You forgot Tackle and learned Wild Charge, Rattata."
"Tatta!"
Rattata jumped in excitement at Liam's praise, and Courage did too.
"Okay, now that we've got that done, it's time to think about which Pokémon I should catch next."
Liam thought about which Pokémon to catch in Viridian Forest. Since this wasn't a game, he might have a chance of catching something besides a Bug type, since he already had one.
"I did promise Professor Oak to fill the Pokédex, but that can wait until I have a full team first, since I want to focus on their development. I got it! I'll catch a Bulbasaur here in the forest."
"It might take a couple of days, but I have a whole year until the Indigo League begins. Of course, I shouldn't take too long since I need to go meet Professor Cerise in Vermilion City."
After some thought, Liam decided to search for a Bulbasaur for a few days while going through Viridian Forest.
"If I can't find one, well, I'll just try somewhere else while traveling. Can't stay in one spot forever to catch one. It's not like the games."
While traveling through the forest, Liam had to take cover a couple of times over the past few days due to some Beedrill passing by, and he knew that Beedrill were territorial.
'I swear that was like the twentieth swarm that passed by already. Just how many colonies are in this forest!? Or is it just the same colony?'
Liam thought out of annoyance, with a hint of fear and concern, as the Beedrill's passing had become more and more frequent over the last couple of hours.
'The more I look at them, the stranger it starts to look. Their movements seem to be getting more and more frantic, like they are looking for something.'
"But what are they looking for?"
Liam whispered under his breath until he heard another voice.
"Yes, the Beedrill have been going all over the forest in distress, and other Pokémon and trainers have been caught in the crossfire for a couple of days already."
Liam turned to his side and jumped out of the bush, startled by a boy wearing samurai armor. Before he could say anything, he heard buzzing behind him and saw a small swarm of Beedrill there.
He and the samurai boy started running away from them.
"AAAHHHH! Why did you spook me like that, kid?!"
"I didn't! You asked why they were going around the forest more frequently!"
"I was saying that to myself!"
As both boys argued while running away from the swarm of Beedrill behind them, Liam spotted a good place to hide from them and pulled the samurai boy into the hiding spot.
"Over here. Keep quiet."
Liam covered the samurai boy's mouth until the swarm had passed by them. After a couple of minutes, there were no Beedrill in sight.
Both Liam and Samurai gave huge sighs of relief.
When Liam checked that there were no signs of Beedrill, he got up and waved to the samurai boy that the coast was clear.
"Alright, they're gone. So, can you tell me why they've been so agitated compared to how they usually are, uhhh—"
Liam knew he was called Samurai, or Samurai Boy, but had to act like he didn't know him.
"I'm called Samurai. And you are?"
"My name is Liam Valiant of Pallet Town."
Samurai was a bit surprised to hear that another trainer was from Pallet Town, since he thought he had already met all of them.
"You say you're from Pallet Town?"
"Well, not exactly. I went to Pallet Town to receive my partner Pokémon. It's a Wimpod. Let me show you."
Liam took out Courage's Poké Ball and released him. Courage came out of the Poké Ball.
He looked around and then toward Liam, wondering why he had called him out.
Samurai was impressed that this trainer's partner was a Bug-type Pokémon.
"Amazing. So you partnered with a Wimpod as your first Pokémon. I am very impressed by your choice, Liam."
Liam scratched the back of his head at the praise and was a bit surprised that Samurai knew it was a Wimpod.
"So how did you know it was a Wimpod? Also, his name is Courage."
Samurai had a proud smirk at Liam's question.
"Well, that is simple, Liam. As a Bug-type Trainer, I have to know all the different species of Bug types found in all the known regions, or I can't call myself a Bug-type Trainer."
Liam gave an understanding nod at that, especially at Samurai's dedication to Bug types.
"Amazing, but can you start telling me why the Beedrill are acting like this now? Before you go on again about Bug types."
Samurai felt a bit embarrassed and gave a small cough.
"Okay. Well, if my guess is correct, it has to do with the dwindling Weedle population in Viridian Forest. For the past few days, I've been observing some of the hives and spots where Weedle tend to roam around, and their numbers have been decreasing at an alarming rate each day.
"That is why the Beedrill have been so agitated and distressed, because the Weedle are disappearing somewhere."
Liam thought about it and believed this was a serious matter. It could put other people and Pokémon in danger due to the Beedrill's actions right now if this problem wasn't solved soon.
"I see. So the best way to find where the Weedle are disappearing to is to catch one and see where it goes."
Samurai was amazed by the plan he had thought of and believed Liam might not be like the novice Ash he met a few days ago, but might be similar to the ones called Gary or Red.
"A marvelous plan, Liam, but the issue is finding a Weedle, which might be hard now due to Beedrill staying close by more than usual."
Liam only gave a smirk.
"Not really. Watch and see, because it seems luck is on our side. Courage, use Rollout on that Weedle crawling on that tree behind Samurai!"
Courage immediately used Rollout and was able to knock the Weedle off the tree. Liam threw a Poké Ball at it and successfully caught it.
Samurai was once again amazed at Liam's quick execution in spotting and catching a Weedle in such a short time.
"That was most amazing, Liam. That was the first time I ever saw anyone catch a Bug type in such a short time. So what is the plan now that you've caught the Weedle?"
In truth, Liam hadn't planned on catching Weedle until after he had a full team, since he already knew which Pokémon he wanted on his team first. But he decided to change his plans and just go with the flow for now, hopefully getting a full team by the time he got his fourth Gym Badge.
'Well, it's no Bulbasaur, but I can't be picky about them.'
"Thank you for the help, Courage. Return."
Courage returned to his Poké Ball, and Liam took Weedle out of its Poké Ball and scanned it.
Beep. Beep.
[0013, Weedle
Bug/Poison
Hairy Bug Pokémon
Female
Description:
Often found in forests, eating leaves. It has a sharp stinger on its head that injects poison. Weedle has an extremely acute sense of smell. It is capable of distinguishing its favorite kinds of leaves from those it dislikes just by sniffing with its big red proboscis (nose).
Ability: Shield Dust
Moves: Poison Sting, String Shot]
"Based on Weedle's Pokédex entry, whatever is making the Weedle disappear has to do with a unique smell that only Weedle can smell."
Samurai had his hand under his chin, nodding in agreement.
"That most definitely makes sense, and once we find the other Weedle, this will help calm the Beedrill down and restore the peace in Viridian Forest."
"Yes, Samurai. This should help us find the whereabouts of the other Weedle, so let's begin."
Liam turned toward his Weedle to ask for her help.
"Weedle, can you help us find where your friends went?"
"Scrhcch. Scrhcchh."
Weedle agreed to Liam's request to help find her friends.
"Great! Now lead the way, Weedle."
And with that, they were now one step closer to finding the cause of the disappearance of the Weedle population in Viridian Forest.