After saying goodbye to Violet City, the others and I explored Johto.

"It was nice seeing the little kids have fun with our Pokémon," Nina said, "It was a nice break from the norm,"

"And what exactly is the norm, Nina?" Kat asked.

"Having you-know-who always trying to steal certain Pokémon..."

The others and I nodded in understanding.

We've rarely ever taken out our Pokémon since all of the Team Xenon ambushes and attacks back in Ezonia. We're trying to be as cautious as possible.

As we strolled down the dirt path, I saw an archway.

"Hey, guys," I began, "Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

"If you're referring to the archway, then we see it." Elsu said.

Our curiosity got the better of us, and we jogged up to the archway. When we arrived, we saw a spacious and beautiful park. Flowers of every kind and color were in bloom.

"Wow! What is this place?" Rina asked.

"National Park, my friend!" said a voice behind us.

We turned around to see a young boy with pale skin and matching lavender eyes and hair. He wore a matching green vest and shorts with brown boots.

"National Park?" I parroted.

"Yup! It's a place where people and Pokémon come to relax and play around," he said, "But for me, I come here for the Bug-Catching Contest."

The Bug-Catching Contest?

"Follow me! I was just on my way to sign up to participate!" the boy said.

With a nod, the others and I followed the lavender-haired boy into the park; the sound of people and Pokémon filled the air.

It's really peaceful here, just like Violet City.

"Hello, good sir," the boy said as he walked up to a small booth, "We're here to be a part of the Bug-Catching Contest."

A man wearing a Venomoth costume turned around and smiled.

"Back at it again, I see, eh, Bugsy?" the man asked.

"Bugsy?" Eric parroted.

"Yup, that's me," the boy said, "I'm Azalea Town's Bug-type gym leader! Nice to meet you!"

Is he a gym leader?

"Wow, I never would've guessed that you're a gym leader," Kat said, "You look so young."

"I'm only fourteen, but I get your point." Bugsy said.

Only fourteen?! He's older than me by a year, yet he looks like he would be a year or two younger than me! Well, never judge a book by its cover, I suppose.

After signing up for the contest, the seven of us roamed the area until the competition started.

I'm not a fan of Bug-type Pokémon, but I'm still going to participate in the contest with my friends!

"So, you guys know me, but I don't know you," Bugsy said suddenly, "What're your names?"

"I'm Eragona, and these are my friends Kat, Rina, Eric, Nina, and Elsu," I said, "And this is my partner, Libby."

"My buddy, Angel." Kat said.

"And this is my partner, Snubbull." Rina said.

Our Pokémon let out friendly cries as they waved to the young gym leader.

"Nice to meet you all!" Bugsy said.

Looking ahead, people started to gather in the center of the park.

"Looks like the contest is about to begin," I said, "Let's get going!"

The others nodded, and we sprinted up to join the gathering crowd.

"Welcome everyone to the Bug-Catching Contest!" announced a contest employee, "Here are the rules: trainers are allowed to use one Pokémon each. To catch a Bug-type Pokémon, you must use the special Park Balls. Only one Park Ball per trainer."

Another contest employee soon came around and handed everyone a Park Ball.

"When you think you have a winner, keep it, and when time's up, the judging committee will decide the winner!" the employee said.

This is gonna be so much fun!

"Now, let the Bug-Catching Contest begin!" the employee proclaimed.

With that, everyone ran in different directions around the park.

"Alright, let's win this, Libby!" I said.

Libby cried happily as she clutched my shoulder. I soon stopped when I reached a forest on the outskirts of the National Park.

There's bound to be some Bug-types around here somewhere!

Roaming the small forest, I saw a small group of Weedle and Caterpie nibbling at the grass.

They're Bug-types, but I doubt I'll win with any of them.

I turned on my heel and walked away from the small Bug-type Pokémon. That's when I heard leaves rustling behind me. Turning around, I saw the Caterpie from before, looking around in shock.

That's strange. What happened to the Weedle? The other contestants must've caught them, but why only leave the Caterpie?

Shaking away the thought, I continued hunting for a prize-winning Bug-type Pokémon. When I stumbled upon a large tree, a faint buzzing came from within the foliage.

"Libby, use Swift up in the tree!" I cried.

Libby bounced off my extended arm before releasing star-shaped rays at the tree. After a minute, a red and black Pokémon with multiple appendages came down. I quickly took out my Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon.

"Ariados, the Long Leg Pokémon. It attaches silk to its prey and sets it free. Later, it tracks the silk to the prey and its friends."

Wow! That's a cool-looking Pokémon!

I took out the Park Ball and quickly threw it at the Ariados. The ball hit the Pokémon, opened, and sucked the Pokémon inside. The Park Ball fell to the ground and rocked back and forth.

Please stay in the ball!

The ball stopped moving, and a red light flashed.

"Alright! We got an Ariados, Libby!" I cried as I picked up the Park Ball.

Libby let out a cry as she bounced with joy. Then, I heard furious buzzing. I looked up to see Beedrill and Scyther emerge from the tree.

Guess I angered them...

Libby stood in front of me and growled at the Bug-type Pokémon. Before the Beedrill and Scyther could attack us, a net dropped and ensnared the Bug Pokémon.

What in the world!?

The Scyther tried to cut through the net, but their scythes couldn't cut through.

"Libby, use Swift to cut the net!" I said.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." said a sly voice.

I turned around, and my eyes widened at the sight.

"Team Xenon!? What are you doing here?" I asked in shock.

"Participating in the Bug-Catching Contest," said a female grunt, "Looks like we've won the top prize!"

I growled before taking out a Pokéball.

"Charcoal, light it up!" I cried, throwing my Pokéball.

At my command, my Charizard appeared with a mighty roar. The grunts grinned as their Pokémon came up beside them.

A Seviper and Arbok, huh?

"Double Haze!" the grunts cried.

The serpent-like Pokémon hissed before releasing a thick, black smoke from their mouths. I groaned before shielding my eyes.

Darn it! They do this every time!

"Charcoal, use your wings to blow away the smoke!" I cried.

Charcoal cried before beating his wings, the black smoke gradually disappearing. When I looked around, Team Xenon and the Bug Pokémon were gone.

"Darn it!" I growled, "To think that Team Xenon is here in Johto!"

Charcoal growled before stomping the ground.

"It's okay, Charcoal," I said, "For now, fly around to see if you can find the others. Libby, you go with him. I'm gonna head back to the park to warn the employees."

Libby nodded before hopping onto Charcoal's back. My Charizard soon took to the skies, leaving a gale of wind in his wake. Sighing heavily, I started sprinting back to the park's center.

I hope I'm not too late...

As I ran, I drew a Pokéball and readied for the battle ahead. When I arrived, I saw a large helicopter with a large blue X on the side. Some grunts emerged from the other side of the park with nets filled with different Bug-type Pokémon, such as Weedle, Scyther, and even a Pinsir.

Are they capable of Mega Evolution?

Shaking away the thought, I looked over to see the contest employees tied up and guarded by a Mightyena.

Darn it; they already got to them! Well, it's now or never!

"Jet, take flight, and use Dragon Pulse!" I cried, throwing my Pokéball.

My Garchomp appeared with a mighty roar as it used its attack on the Mightyena. The Bite Pokémon let out a strained cry as it got blown back against a tree. The nearby grunts looked over at me before readying their Pokéballs.

"Get these Pokémon out of here, now!" cried one of the grunts.

That's when the helicopter's blades started moving.

I can't let them get away with those Pokémon!

I looked ahead and saw a battalion of Pokémon in front of me. I took out my Pokéballs and called upon my other Pokémon. Kaiba and Zora appeared on the battlefield a second later.

"Get them!" cried a female grunt.

Two of the grunts Pokémon, an Arbok and Weavile, charged at us with bared fangs.

"Dragon Pulse!" I cried.

My Pokémon obeyed, and all released multicolored shock waves at the advancing Pokémon, knocking them unconscious.

Two down, many more to go!

I looked up to see the helicopter rising higher in the air.

I have to find a way to bring down that helicopter without hurting any of the Pokémon, but how?

The answer soon hit me when I pulled out the Park Ball. I gripped it before tossing it in the air.

"Ariados!" I cried.

At my command, the Ariados I had caught for the contest appeared. I took out my Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon for its moves.

String Shot, Poison Jab, X-Scissor, and Psychic! Perfect!

"Ariados, use Psychic to stop the helicopter!" I commanded.

The Ariados hissed before its eyes glinted blue. Then, the helicopter came to a complete stop.

"Squash that bug, now!" a male grunt cried.

A Manectric and Honchkrow charged up their Shadow Ball attacks and launched them at Ariados.

"Slice threw them with Dragon Claw, Jet!" I cried.

When my Garchomp crossed his claw, they glinted green as they grew larger. Jet jumped in front of Ariados and sliced through the attacks.

"Eragona!" cried a familiar voice.

I turned around and saw my friends, Charcoal, Libby, their Pokémon, and Bugsy. Beside Bugsy was a large red Pokémon. I took out my Pokédex and aimed it toward the Pokémon.

"Scizor, the Pincer Pokémon. This Pokémon's pincers, which contain steel, can crush any hard object it gets ahold of into bits. It has a steel-hard body. It intimidates foes by upraising its eye-patterned pincers."

"Sorry we took so long," Eric said, standing at my side, "We had to deal with some grunts ourselves on the way here."

"Who are these guys?" Bugsy asked.

"Team Xenon," I answered, "They're an evil organization from the Ezonia region whose goal is to liberate every Pokémon capable of Mega Evolution."

"That's awful! Well, count me in on beating them!"

I nodded toward the gym leader before turning back to Team Xenon.

"How are you holding up?" Nina asked.

"Just fine," I said, "Ariados, bring down that helicopter!"

The Ariados hissed before gently bringing the helicopter down to the ground, keeping it in place.

"They have some Pokémon trapped inside," I explained, "We need to get them out of there,"

"On it!" Elsu and Kat said.

"Charcoal and Jet, make a path for them!"

My Charizard and Garchomp groaned before attacking the opposing Pokémon, blocking their path. Elsu and Kat, along with Angel and Yanmega, stormed past the grunts as Jet and Charcoal took care of the opposing Pokémon, trying to get to them.

"Crobat, Air Cutter!" a female grunt cried.

The opposing Crobat beat its wings as it released razor-like wind slashes.

"Counter with Water Gun, Totodile!" Eric cried.

"Ice Beam, Zora! Libby, use Swift!" I said, "And Kaiba, use Dragon Pulse!"

"Bug Buzz, Scizor!" Bugsy said.

When our Pokémon used their moves at the Air Cutter, it canceled the attack.

"Ariados, use String Shot on the helicopter's blades!" I said.

The Long Leg Pokémon clicked out a cry before shooting white silk from its mouth. The white silk entangled its blades, making it unable to rotate.

"U-Uhm, Snubbull, use Shadow Ball!" Rina cried.

Her Snubbull growled before launching a shadowy blob at the Crobat, knocking it out of the sky.

"Nice going, Rina!" Nina praised, "Now, Mawile, use Shadow Ball as well!"

The Deceiver Pokémon turned around before releasing a shadowy blob at a Manectric.

"Dodge it!" the female grunt cried.

The Manectric growled before moving out of the way of the attack.

Gotcha!

"Now, Jet!" I cried.

The ground rumbled before Jet came out from below, knocking out the Manectric.

While Team Xenon was distracted, I signaled Jet to use Dig on the Manectric as soon as it made any sudden movements!

I looked at the helicopter to see Elsu and Kat run up to us along with their Pokémon.

"All of the Bug-type Pokémon are safe and sound, Era!" Kat said, standing at my side.

As she said, all the Bug-type Pokémon that got taken came over and buzzed furiously at Team Xenon.

"Release the helicopter, Ariados." I said.

The Pokémon clicked as its eyes returned to their purple color.

"I'd suggest you leave, Team Xenon, if you know what's good for you..." Kat growled.

The grunts growled before retracting their Pokémon.

"This isn't over yet, you brats!" jeered a grunt.

When one of the opposing Pokémon cleaned away the silk from Ariados, the grunts filed into the helicopter. The blades began to turn and whipped up a strong gust of wind in its wake. The aircraft soon rose into the air and disappeared into the clouds.

"Is everyone alright?" asked a contest employee.

"Yes, we're all fine, right, everyone?" I asked.

My friends, along with our Pokémon, all nodded.

"What a relief," he said, "Thank you, all of you!"

"We truly cannot thank you enough!" said another contest employee.

"Don't mention it," Elsu said, "We're used to this kind of thing."

The Bug-type Pokémon buzzed before returning to the park. The Ariados I caught clicked as it scuttled up to me. I smiled as I kneeled, placing a hand on the Long Leg Pokémon.

"Thanks for the help, Ariados!" I said, placing a hand on its head, "You were awesome!"

The Ariados smiled, letting out a click-like cry as it leaned into my touch.

"That Ariados really likes you, Era." Rina said.

"Yeah, but I can't keep it." I said.

"I wouldn't be so sure, my dear," said a contest employee, "Follow us!"

As we followed the employees, we were led to a large stage with a crowd in front of it.

I didn't even know this was here.

The man asked me to stand beside two other contestants on the podium, and I did. The Ariados scuttled by my side as it let out a click-like cry.

"And the winner of the Bug-Catching Contest is Eragona for capturing an amazing Ariados!" the employee announced.

My eyes widened in surprise.

No way! That's awesome!

My friends, our Pokémon, and Bugsy all cheered.

"And her reward is a Sun Stone, and she gets to keep the Ariados!" the employee said, retracting the Ariados.

The man soon gave me the Pokéball and the Sun Stone.

"Congratulations, my dear, and thanks to you and your friends, National Park and its Pokémon are safe!" the man said.

"You're welcome, and thank you!" I said with a chuckle.

Libby let out a happy cry as she wagged her tail. When the contest ceremony was finished, the others and I met under National Park's archway to bid farewell to Bugsy.

"Congrats on the win, Eragona," Bugsy said, "You've earned it,"

"Thanks, Bugsy," I said, "And thank you for helping us with Team Xenon."

"Anytime!"

"So, Era, what are you gonna name your new Ariados?" Kat asked.

I took out Ariados's Pokéball and breathed out a heavy sigh.

"Y'know what? Why don't you have it, Bugsy?" I said, tossing the Pokéball to the gym leader.

"Really? Are you sure?" Bugsy asked as he caught the Pokéball.

"Positive. You're a Bug-type specialist, and I'm training to be a Dragon-type specialist. You'd know how to take care of it better than anyone."

Bugsy chuckled before extending his hand.

"I'll take good care of it," he said, "And I'll be rooting for your dreams to come true, all of you."

I smiled and grasped the gym leader's hand.

"If you ever want to visit me, come to Azalea Town," Bugsy said, stepping back, "It's to the south past Goldenrod City."

"That's where the fashion expo is said to take place." Rina said.

"Then, we'll be sure to visit you, Bugsy!" I said.

Libby let out a cry, agreeing with my statement. With a final wave of goodbye, the six of us continued down the path.

"So, am I the only one worried that Team Xenon is here in Johto?" Nina suddenly asked.

"No, you're not," Kat said, "It's bad enough that they're in Ezonia, but here in Johto, too?"

"We can't let them get away with whatever plan they have here." Elsu said.

"Right," Eric said, "One way or another, we gonna take them down."

"Still, the fact of them being here really bothers me," Rina said, "If they're here in Johto, who is to say they're not everywhere else in the world?"

What Rina said made us shudder.

I hope that's not true. If it is, then we're just gonna have to stop them, like we always do. The next we see them, we will prevail!