//------------------------------//
// Tangled Web 
// Story: Pokémon: Harmony and Chaos 
// by Banshee531 
//------------------------------//

After a long journey filled with many adventures and meetings, our heroes have finally arrived in Fillydelphia City, the site of Flash's second Equestria Region Gym challenge. Getting into town the previous night, the group headed to the Pokémon Center to rest and mentally prepare for Flash's match. Now, it was morning and the group was up and ready for the day ahead.

"Eat up guys," Flash told his Pokémon as they started chowing down on their breakfast. "We're gonna need all the energy we can get for the gym battle."

"Ri/Chick/Ak/Fay/Scor," the Pokémon replied with their mouths full. Flash smirked before turning back to his friends and started enjoying his cereal.

"You ready for this match Flash?" Doc asked as he finished off his toast.

"Of course I am. I'm ready for whatever this Gym Leader throws at me."

"Any idea which Pokémon you're gonna use?" Spike asked before beginning to slurp the milk out of his bowl.

Twilight rolled her eyes at her brother's table manners before turning to Flash, a look of concern on her face. "Remember, this gym leader is supposed to specialize in Bug-Types. That puts Viper and Skyler at an advantage, but puts Springer and Prongs at a disadvantage."

"So he'll just use Viper and Skyler," Spike commented as he gulped the last bit of milk. "I mean, since it is two on two and-"

"We don't know that," Doc interrupted as he wiped his lips with a napkin. "Each Gym Leader is allowed to make their own rules, so who knows how many Pokémon this one will use."

"So this trainer could use six Pokémon?!" Spike asked in a worried tone. "But Flash only has five!"

"I doubt he would use that many," Twilight told him as she took off her glasses and started to clean them. "Most Gym Leaders only use around two to four Pokémon."

"So Flash might have to pick another one of his team to battle with Viper and Skyler?" Spike added as he turned Flash, "who are you gonna pick?"

Flash rubbed his chin in thought about this. If it was four on four, his best choice would be to exclude Prongs or Springer. Seeing him deep in thought, Doc then commented, "Well since Springer's his strongest Pokémon, he should probably keep him in and have Prongs stay on the bench."

Spike and Twilight nodded in agreement at this, but Flash didn't respond. Instead, a memory flashed in his head as he remembered back when he last faced Lightning Blitz.

"One dues ex Pokémon will only take you so far. I bet without it, you wouldn't be able to do anything. What a worthless trainer."

"I'll show him," Flash thought out loud, making his friends all share a confused glance.

"Come again?" Twilight asked, getting his attention.

Flash looked up at her, only to shake his head. "Sorry, its uh...its nothing. Just thinking out loud." He then glanced at his still eating Pokémon "But you know...I think I'll have Springer sit this match out."

Everyone gave surprised glances as Spike asked, "Why?"

Flash just shrugged at this. "I just...I don't know, I feel like I should. You know, I should give some of my other team the chance to shine in a Gym Battle." Before anyone could say anything else, Flash quickly finished off his breakfast and stood up. "Alright guys, let's go do our warm ups before we head over there." His Pokémon all ate their last few bites of breakfast and walked out of the center's dining hall.

Once he was gone, his friends all shared a concerned look as Spike spoke up, "You think he's okay?"

Doc shook his head. "I'm honestly not sure, but all we can do for now is watch and hope for the best."

"I just hope he has a plan in mind," Twilight commented as she pushed her glasses up her nose. "He's gonna need one if he wants to win."

"You said that when he faced Doc," Spike reminded her. "But he didn't and still managed to win."

"He lucked out that time," Twilight replied as she glared at her brother. "This Gym Leader won't be like Doc."

Doc nodded at this. "Indeed. Flash beat me because I was unable to adapt after my plan failed. If this trainer is like Flash but with a plan, then he's gonna be in for a hard time."

"But I doubt Flash is gonna see it like that," Twilight added as she pulled out her journal, "Flash lives on instinct and improvising in his battles."

Doc nodded again. "He's a 'take it as it comes' type of trainer, but that attitude will only get him so far."

"So you're saying he's gonna lose?" Spike asked as a big frown started to form on his face.

"That all depends on the trainer he's facing Spike. If its one that can think on his feet and be intelligent with their strategies, Flash will be in serious trouble." Twilight told him as they got up with their Pokémon and headed to the reception desk. There, they spotted their new friend Derpy and her Swirleye.

"Morning guys!" she said as she saw them.

"Good morning to you Derpy." Doc replied as he walked up to her, "Are you heading out as well?"

Derpy nodded. "Need to get back to base. They were happy with my report and now they want give me another delivery as soon as possible."

"Did you tell them about what actually happened?" Spike asked with a mischievous grin.

Derpy just blushed at this. "I may have...left out a few details. I told them some Scampie and a Pitchawk tried to get the case, but I was able to keep the case secure. They also asked me to thank you guys for helping me defend the package from harm."

"No problem," Twilight replied before noticing Flash and Springer stepping back inside.

"Alright! We're all warmed up and ready for action. Now we just need to find the Gym."

As he said this, Nurse Redheart and her Chancy had been walking by and overheard everything. She then turned towards him and frowned. "Oh, I'm sorry, but the Gym isn't open right now."

Flash's eyes went wide at this, "What?! Why?!"

"The Gym Leader is currently out of town right now. I'm not sure when he'll be back, but the center received a message to notify all trainers that the Gym won't be accepting challenges right now."

"That's total Bouffalant!" Flash cried, Twilight having covered Spike's ears and frowning at him. "What kind of Gym Leader leaves their Gym?!"

"Ahem!" Doc interrupted, doing a small fake cough. "I left my Gym Flash."

Flash saw this and did a slight gulp. "Oh...yeah. Besides the ones that have a very valid reason of course. Sorry."

Twilight rolled her eyes and turned to Redheart. "Do you know when the Gym Leader is supposed to return?"

Redheart shook her head. "No, but I'll be notified when he does."

"Well that stinks," Spike grumbled as he glanced at Twilight. "What do we do now?"

"You guys could always go sight seeing," Derpy told them. "Isn't that half the fun of travelling around? To see the many different places and learn about the world?"

"She's got a point," Doc added with a snap of his fingers.

"Agreed. I'd like to see how Fillydelphia is different from Canterlot and Trottingham," Twilight said as she turned to Flash, only to see a huge frown on his face. "Flash, I'm sure learning about this leader's home will help you understand the Gym Leader better. It might even help you come up with a strategy for the upcoming battle."

"I already have a strategy: Win." Everyone's face dropped at this, surprised at his arrogant confidence. That is, till he let out a sigh, "But I guess it wouldn't hurt to look around since there's nothing better to do."

Doc leaned over to Twilight and whispered, "I half expected him to say he was gonna train."

"That's what the most serious trainers would want to do," Twilight replied before shrugging, her voice's volume slowly increasing as she turned back to Flash. "Well...if that's the case, guess we'll go out and see what Fillydelphia has to offer."

"YEAH!" Everyone replied in unison.





And so the group all headed out to see the sights of Fillydelphia City. Derpy said her goodbyes, blushing slightly as she gave Doc one last hug before leaving to her home office. As for the group, they headed off in the opposite direction, ready to see the city.

Their first location in their city tour ended up being a place called the Reader Terminus Market, an underground marketplace that was the biggest in all of Equestria. There, they visited the many stores, including one where Flash and Twilight ended up burning their tongues when they tried a sample from a store run by a girl named Saffron Masala, who had a chili that was both delicious and incredibly spicy. Doc found an old antique shop and spent a good deal of time looking over the clocks and other old time devices, while Spike and Peewee found an arcade they got to play in.

Their next stop had been the museum district, which Twilight was super excited about. She went to the city's history museum, a place filled with books so old that simply touching them could cause them to disintegrate. Spike and Peewee found an interactive museum, where they could actually hold and play with the exhibits to learn about them. On the other hand, Flash and Doc went to a technology based museum, which was filled with vehicles and machines from different times and regions. This included a Sharpedo submarine that had been used by a group of criminals in the Hoenn Region, along with a miniaturized version of a pirate ship that was supposed to actually fly.

"So...where should we go next?" Twilight asked as they had lunch in a café outside one of the museums. She had her journal out, with Fillydelphia's page open.

"We could go see that city's special bell, that's supposed to really important for some reason," Spike suggested as he slurped a milkshake through a straw.

Before Twilight could go into a history lesson about said historical artifact, Doc spoke up. "Why don't we go the Fillydelphia Garden?"

"What's so special about it?" Flash asked as he finished his milkshake.

"It's supposed to be a nature preserve for rare Pokémon."

"Really?! Why wasn't this our first stop?!" Flash asked as he glared at Twilight, obviously wanting to see Pokémon over everything else.

Twilight just gave him a flat stare. "You know you can't catch them right? Its a preserve."

"Oh...that stinks." Flash muttered as he looked away, "Well, it still sounds like a cool place and we could get to see some rare Pokémon." He then looked down at Springer, who barked as his milkshake caused a brain freeze. "What do you say bud?"

"Ri..." Springer moaned out as he showed a thumbs up before beginning to rub his head in pain.

"Then Fillydelphia Gardens it is," Flash replied as the others all nodded in agreement. Soon enough, they found themselves outside a large glass dome like building in the center of the city. "Welp, here we are. That was easy to find."

Twilight then noticed a large sign in front of the building and stepped over to it, soon reading aloud.

Welcome to Fillydelphia Gardens, Equestria's first and best environment controlled ecosystem.

Built by Fillydelphia City's first Gym Leader, the domed structure allows endangered Pokémon a place to live in peace and without fear of being captured and contained. Some of the Pokémon you will see in here are all those who have had their natural habitats destroyed or stolen by the greed of mankind, while others are systematically hunted for one reason or another. It is our hope that these Pokémon can one day be released from our care and returned to the wild, free from the dangers that once required their living here.

Visitors are welcome, but we must demand that you refrain from petting, battling or attempting to capture these Pokémon. Any attempts will be met with a fine and immediate banning from the premise.

Thank you and please enjoy the many different species of Pokémon found within. Have a nice day.

Once Twilight finished reading, the group looked up at the dome before turning to one another, all sharing a confused glance before Doc spoke up, "The Pokémon in there must be very special if we get fined for even touching them."

"That's why we're gonna follow the rules," Twilight added as she glared at Flash and Spike. "We go in, look around, and don't touch anything. Understand?"

"Yes mom," Spike, Flash and their Pokémon replied, Twilight's glare intensifying at this. Flash then stepped up to the door, only to feel a blast of heat as he and the others walked inside, "Geez...its like a sauna in here."

"It's probably for the Pokémon," Twilight added as she took off her glasses and tried to wipe the steam off the glass, only for them to instantly fog over once again. Spike, Doc and Springer also seemed to find the humidity unpleasant, with only Peewee seeming to enjoy it. Flash quickly removed his jacket, while Doc took off his coat and Spike his hoodie.

"Hello," the group turned to see a girl aged between Twilight and Spike. She was sitting behind a reception desk and had light blue skin and pink hair with white streaks in it. "Welcome to Fillydelphia Garden. I'm Ocellus."

Everyone quickly said their introductions as Ocellus noted then pointed out a bunch of lockers off to the side. They placed their coats within the locker and soon locked it, taking a key that also functioned as a bracelet of sorts. Twilight placed it on her wrist as Ocellus motioned them to follow her to the main habitat.

"So...do you work here?" Spike asked as the went down the main hallway, "you seem a little young."

"I volunteer. The owner is a friend of my family, and he said it would be good for me to get some work experience."

"And you don't mind the heat?"

"No, not at all." she replied, shaking her head at the same time. "We enjoy the heat. In contrast, anything below thirty degrees is chilly to me and my family."

"Huh..."

After this question was finished, Flash turned to Twilight, "Didn't the sign outside say this place belong to the Gym Leader?"

Ocellus nodded at this, "It is. His mother opened it up and he took over when she...well, that's not important. Anyways..." they arrived at the end of the corridor, causing her to turn and stare at the group, "The habitats are just down here. Remember, no touching, battling or attempting to capture the Pokémon. We have CCTV, just to let you know."

"Don't worry, we'll behave ourselves."

"Good," Ocellus replied before turning back around, "Oh, and no flash photography as well. You can still take pictures, but not with that. It might spook the Pokémon."

"Got it," Flash told her with a nod.

"Thank you," Twilight bowed.

Ocellus did the same before showing them an airlock of some kind, which was a door that led to a small room. This contained a second door, one that would not open unless the first one was shut, obviously as a way to keep the Pokémon inside from escaping. "Now remember to stay on the path," Ocellus explained as she closed the first door. "The Pokémon will leave you alone unless you do that, alright?"

"Okay," everyone replied before she opened the door. If the temperature in the reception was bad, then being in the actual habitat was ten times worse. As soon as the door, a wave of blazing hot air flew into the room. Sweat immediately overcame them as they stepped inside, looking around to see that the whole place was a jungle. They all saw the path they would need to remain on, with a railing keeping them from straying off. The group then started down the path, keeping an eye out to see if they could spot any of the rare Pokémon they came to see.

"Look," Ocellus pointed up at a large tree where they then saw a group of Aipom swinging from it. "Those Aipom were rescued from a forest that was destroyed in a wildfire. It was caused when a trainer made the mistake of having his Charmeleon use Flamethrower in a forest."

"Well that was dumb," Flash commented, only to then avoid a head smack from Twilight.

Ocellus just sighed at the comment, "You'll find that a lot of people do dumb things in the heat of the moment. They're so focused on winning that they don't care about what they have to do for it." A rustling sound then caught their attention, only for them to see a group of Bounsweet step out of some nearby bushes. "For instance, these Bounsweet lost their homes when a group of Rhyhorn took it over. The Rhyhorn kicked them out of their home because a company that had bought the Rhyhorn's land had ran them out as well. Apparently, the company wanted to build a resort there."

"That's horrible," Twilight said as she put her hand over her mouth.

"Disgusting," Doc added, tapping his foot in frustration.

Ocellus nodded as she lead them further into the forest. "Mankind is so focused on making life better for themselves that they sometimes forget that this world doesn't just belong to them. Thinking like that is only gonna lead to problems after all. That's why the one who built this place did so, to show that there were still those who care about nature."

Everyone smiled at this, hoping that one day they might get to meet this person. Ocellus then continued to show them around the gardens, showing them all the Pokémon that lived there. This included some Vivillon, Ekans and even some regional variants like Alolan Diglett and others. And as they reached the center of the dome, they found a lot of the light being blocked by the trees. "This part of the habitat is where some of our rarer species live. Look, over there." She explained as she pointed towards one of the trees.

There, a spider like Pokémon with a black body and six bright blue eyes was climbing a tree. On its back was a large light blue star. It was roughly a foot long, as its spindly legs clung to the tree.

"Whose that Pokémon?" Flash asked as he pulled on his Pokedex.

Name: Starider
Category: Star Spider Pokémon
Type: Bug/Dark
Info: The star on this Pokémon's back in an indicator of its age. The larger the star, the older the Starider. It can create a silk so strong that a single strand could hold up a bus.

"It looks creepy," Spike said as he began hiding behind Twilight.

Ocellus turned and gave Spike a calm kind smile. "Don't worry, the Stariders won't hurt you. As long as nothing antagonises them, they'll keep to themselves."

"How many of them are there?" Doc asked as he studied the Starider, but when he didn't get a reply, he looked back at Ocellus, who was now pointing up. They all followed her finger and saw what she was pointing too. Above their heads in the trees were tons of Starider, each one on a web that was stuck between the trees and branches. They were all the same size, but the stars on their backs were all different.

Spike paled at the sight. "I'd like to leave this area please."

They all nodded and began to continue down the path, only for the sound of a rustling bush to catch their attention. They turned towards it, expecting to see either a Starider or another common Pokémon, but were shocked at what they saw. It was a little black and white grub like Pokémon. It's body had five ball like sections that were white with black spots covering them. It's face was black with bright blue eyes and a pair of black arm-like appendages.

"Grub..." it said as it pulled itself along.

"Oh no," Ocellus gulped as she almost took a step back.

"What's that?" Spike asked as Flash pulled out his Pokedex.

Name: Grubirth
Category: Royal Grub Pokémon
Type: Bug/Dark
Info: Though young, its future is already predetermined. To protect itself, it can release a colorless, odorless dust that can cause hallucinations.

"Nobody move," Ocellus said as she started to slowly step towards the little Pokémon.

"Why? What's wrong?"

"Your Pokedex said what's wrong. Grubirth are easily frightened and will release the hallucinogenic at the slightest sign of danger. That's why we have a separate enclosure for them, but I guess this one must have got out." She ducked down under the railing and slowly crawled towards the Grubirth.

It raised an eyebrow at her. "Grub?"

"It's okay," she whispered. "You know me, Ocellus. I'm one of the people that give you and your friends food." She reached out to try and pet it, "Why don't you come with me? I'm sure your friends are all missing you, so let's get you back to them." Her hand was inches away from the Grubirth, who seemed completely calm, but then-

"Star!" A Starider suddenly popped down on a web string, appearing right between the two.

"Grub!" Grubirth cried in shock, making Ocellus's eye go wide.

"No, don't-"

"GRUB!" The Grubirth cried out as it spat out a strange clear mist that struck the Starider.

Ocellus leapt back and returned to the others as they all watched the mist fill the air. "Don't breath it in!" She yelped as she covered her mouth.

Flash pulled out a Pokeball, "Skyler, use Gust!" He threw the ball into the air, causing it to unleash a red light that soon faded to reveal the Chickling.

"No wait!" Twilight yelled, but it was too late.

"Chick...LING!" Skyler flapped his wings and unleashed the powerful gust, which blew the mist away, only for it to fly up into the trees where the other Starider were.

"Oops," Flash said as he saw this, "I'm guessing that's a bad thing." The Starider all shook their heads as they inhaled the mist, only to glare down at them. "Yup...that's definitely a bad thing."

"Ri," Springer moaned as he facepawed while Skyler landed on Flash's head.

"Chick..." the Chickling gulped, embarrassment now on its face.

"Who knows what they're all seeing right now," Doc commented as he started to backpedal.

What they were seeing was a bunch of shadowy monsters, all with jagged teeth and razor sharp claws. "STAR!" They all cried as they got into a defensive stance, the original Starider rising up to join them as they snapped their talons.

Ocellus rushed over and grabbed the Grubirth before getting back to the others. "We need to get out of here! Now!" In that second, the Starider all started firing their String Shot at them. The silky thread flew towards them like bullets, everyone quickly hopping away to dodge the webbing.

"Gross!" Spike yelped as he just barely dodged the webs.

Peewee then leapt off his shoulder and took a deep breath. Seeing this, Twilight quickly yelled, "Peewee, no! If you use your Ember, you'll set the whole place on fire!" the dragon shoved his mouth shut at this command, only to for a blast of String Shot to hit his legs.

"Terr!" He cried as his wings and tail were webbed up a second later. He then tried biting through the webs, only for his mouth to be webbed shut.

"Peewee!" Spike said as he tried to get to his friend, only for Twilight to grab him.

"No!" Twilight told him, "we'll be no help to him if we get caught too."

"So what do we do?" Spike asked, only for more string to almost hit his foot.

"RUN!" Ocellus screamed before they all rushed down the path, the Starider following after them as more and more webbing splattered everywhere. As they ran, they saw other Pokémon getting caught in the web. Several Aipom cried as their tails were webbed to the rest of its body, causing them to fall to the ground mid-swing. Before it could get back to its feet, another thread hit it and it was pulled into the trees.

"Keep running! Don't look back!" Doc yelled as he motioned the others to keep going. But as he said this, several strings shot out of the trees and hit him in the back and arms. "AAAHHH!" He yelped as he was dragged backwards a second later.

"Doc!" Flash yelled as he spun around. "Hang on!"

"Keep going!" Doc barked back, only to see Flash shake his head.

"I'm not leaving you! Skyler, Steel Wing!"

"Chickling!" Skyler flew at Doc, only for a Sticky Web attack to fly right into the bird, "CHICK!" Skyler cried as the web blasted him into a nearby tree.

"Skyler!" Flash yelled as he tried to run to his bird Pokémon, Springer right behind him. "Hang on, I'm-"

"RI!" Springer interrupted as he tried to push Flash away from another String Shot, only for two more attacks to fly out. Before they could react, the duo were webbed in place as well.

"No!" Flash roared as he tried to pull himself free, but the silk was to strong. The next thing he knew, he and Springer were being dragged away. "AAAHHH!"

"RIOLU!"





"Flash..." Spike cried tears in his eyes as he kept running.

"We can't stop," Twilight told him as they continued down the path.

"Bounsweet!"

"Ekans!"

"Dig!" They turned to see the many other Pokémon of the gardens getting caught in the Stariders webbing, the silk now covering every bush and tree.

"Let's just hope they haven't gotten the exit yet," Ocellus commented as she kept at Twilight and Spike's pace. "We need to-oh!" It was here that she noticed she had just stepped in a Sticky Web. She then tried to lift her foot, but the webbing refused to release her. "Oh no..."

"Ocellus!" Twilight cried as she and Spike stopped and turned back to her.

Ocellus kept trying to pull herself free, but saw it was futile as she saw several Starider getting closer. She turned to the last two remaining and held out the Grubirth, "Here. Get out of here."

Spike quickly took the little maggot, "but what do we do then?"

"You need to find help. Nurse Redheart, Officer Hard Case...anyone. We need to stop the Starider before it's too late. Now GO!"

Seeing the Starider getting closer, Twilight and Spike nodded and ran down the path. The two continued to try to get out of the building, only to the airlock door in the distance. They quickly made their way to it, Twilight soon grabbing the door and opening it up, "come on. We need to-" She turned towards Spike, only to see something coming up from behind him. "MOVE!" She pushed her brother out of the way as the thread that had been aimed at him hit her arm.

"TWILIGHT!"

"GRUB!"

Twilight acted quickly, grabbing him with her remaining arm before tossing him and Grubirth through the doorway. Before they or the Starider could do anything, she slammed the door shut.

"Twilight!" Spike cried as he picked himself up and rushed to the door, only to see more threads begin to hit his sister.

Twilight smiled back, glad that he was at least safe. "Spike, remember what Ocellus said. You need to find someone who can help. Hurry!" Before she could say anything else, she was pulled back and dragged up into a nearby tree.

"TWILIGHT!" Spike screamed as he watched her disappear. The tears he had been holding back finally broke free, his legs giving out as his slid down the glass door. "Twilight..."

The Grubirth looked up at him, crawling over to touch his leg. "Grub."

Spike turned to it, anger immediately appearing on his face. "You...this is all your FAULT!" He screamed, only to then see the Grubirth flinch back in fear. Tears began to go down its eyes, making Spike stop. He wanted to yell more, but the tears he saw made him just sigh and slump over again. "Sorry...I'm just...I don't know."

"Grub," Grubirth moved back over to him and crawled up until he was on Spike's shoulder.

"Right...thanks." Spike said as he picked himself up and looked through the window, watching as more and more of the trees were covered in webbing. "We're the only ones who can stop these things."

"STAR!" A Starider suddenly appeared on the other side of the door, terrifying the two.

"And by stop them, I mean finding someone else to stop them," Spike corrected himself.

"Grub," Grubirth replied with a nod before the two turned and rushed out the airlock. They then headed out the building, looking back to see the glass dome was completely covered in webbing.

The duo then ran down the street frantically as Spike started talking to himself, "Gotta think, gotta think....Think of someone who might be able to stop those things! But...but who?!" His first thought was what Ocellus had suggested, Officer Hard Case or Nurse Redheart. Except he had no idea where to find an Officer Hard Case, and as for Nurse Redheart, he had no idea how to get back to the Pokémon Center. "Augh! Why didn't Twilight give me her journal?" He moaned as he continued running, Grubirth holding onto his shoulder as tight as it could. "No choice, I've just gotta start asking anyone at random for help."

But just as he was about to do that, he turned a corner and suddenly felt himself slam into something hard. "Augh!" He yelped as he fell back and landed on his rear. He quickly recovered and soon saw that what he ran into was a young man that looked to be Flash's age. He had dark green, almost black skin and bright red hair. He was wearing a dark blue button up shirt with a purple branch and leaf patterns on it, along with black pants. The boy was wearing a necklace around his neck that had a large crystal with a smaller crystal on either side of it.

This guy had been knocked over like Spike had, and was now recovering as he stood up and rubbed his butt. He then turned to Spike, an angry look on his face. "Watch where you're going twerp."

"Sorry..." Spike gulped as he picked himself up, "but it's an emergency."

The guy was about to ask what was so important, only to notice the Grubirth on Spike's shoulder. "What the-you stinking thief!" Before Spike knew what was happening, the man grabbed him by his shirt and slammed him into a nearby wall.

"What?!" Spike yelped as he started to squirm from the sudden blow, only to squeak out, "What are you talking about?!"

"Don't play dumb with me!" The guy said as he pointed at the Pokémon on Spike's shoulder. "You stole that Grubirth from the Fillydelphia Gardens, didn't you?! If you think I'm gonna let you do that, you're wrong!" His grip tightened as he then hissed, "Now...tell me how many you stole, you poacher!"

"I didn't steal any of them!" Spike cried as he felt the boy's grip continued to get stronger. Grubirth wanted to help Spike, but it was so scared that it was having trouble simply keeping itself from expelling its hallucinogen.

At the same time, the man didn't look convinced. "Fine, you wanna do this the hard way?" He pulled a fist back, ready to knock Spike's lights out. "Fine by me!" But before he could actually punch him-

"Pharynx!" The man stopped his fist, inches from Spike's face. "Let him go." The two of them turned towards the source of the voice, seeing it be someone who looked very much like the one holding Spike. However, instead of dark green, his skin was light green and he had orange hair. He was wearing a dark orange and white version of Pharynx's shirt, with a dark green overcoat atop it along with light green pants and was waring the same necklace that Pharynx.

The two glared at one another for several moments, until Pharynx let out a long sigh as he loosened his grip on Spike, "You're too soft Thorax."

"Maybe, but it's better than acting like her." Thorax then stepped over to Spike and kneeled down, looking him in the eye. "Now, do you mind explaining why you have that Grubirth with you please?"

Spike nodded before explaining the situation, the two growing more and more concerned as he finished the story "So now I've gotta find someone who can stop those things and save my friends."

"I see," Thorax replied as he glanced at Pharynx. "That's not good."

"No kidding." Pharynx added, "This is bad bro. We need to do something."

"And we will," Thorax said as he helped Spike up, "Come on. We have work to do." With that he walked off, Pharynx close behind with Spike and Grubirth pulling up the rear as Spike wondered what these two could possibly do to stop the Starider.





Meanwhile...

"Twilight!' yelled a voice, causing the girl to stir.

"Wh...huh?"

"Twilight...Twilight wake up!" Twilight's eyes began to flicker open as she heard the voice again, causing her to wake up and see the voice's owner.

She also saw that she was on a web, everything but her head covered by the rope-like thread. Beside her was Flash, Doc, Ocellus, Springer, Peewee and Skyler, all of trapped inside the sticky cocoons. She then let out a moan, "what happened?"

"Those Starider got us," Flash replied as he kept trying to move, only for zero results.

"And they stuck us up here like trophies," Doc added. "I can't believe it got this bad this quickly!"

Twilight looked down and saw that the web was stuck between the two tallest trees in the garden, allowing them to see everything. She too tried to see if she could get loose, but the bindings were too strong. "Urgh...this isn't good. I can't move." She then looked back to her friends, "What do we do?"

"No idea," Ocellus replied as with a long sigh. "At this point, I would even suggest using a Fire-Type, but..." She looked over at Peewee, only to see that its mouth was still wired shut.

"And I can't reach my Pokeballs to get Viper," Flash added as his head wriggled back and forth. "Grrr...I'm getting really annoyed now."

Twilight just blinked in despair at this before turning to Doc, "Could Higear or Tockwork help us Doc?"

Doc shook his head at this. "If that webbing got into their gears, they could seize up and never move again."

"So we're trapped?"

"Until someone comes to save us. Luckily, Spike managed to get away." Ocellus turned to Twilight. "Right?"

Twilight nodded, happy that her brother was safe. "He did. Now we just have to hope he found someone who can help."

In that very moment, the sound of the airlock opening ran out, causing them to all look at it. There, they watched as a person all but one of them had never seen before step inside. "Thorax!" Ocellus cried in joy at the sight, getting a confused look from the rest of them.

"Who?" Flash asked, only to get a big grin from Ocellus.

"Just watch. He'll save us."





Down on the ground, Thorax looked at the now sticky mess that was the preservation. "I'm gone for a few days and this is what happens."

"Told you I should have handled it on my own," Pharynx replied as he and Spike stepped inside.

Spike on the other hand, started looking around for his friends. After viewing the jungle of webs, he saw the two large tree and pointed at them, "There!"

Thorax and Pharynx saw the now webbed up humans and nodded as Thorax stepped further into the room. As he did, he saw the Starider all looking at him defensively. "I know you're all scared, but please, you must stop this." In reply, a Starider fired a thread at him. Thorax quickly sidestepped it, sighing as he did. "Very well." He reached into his jacket and pulled out a Pokeball. "Kingsect, lend me your strength!" With that, he tossed the ball into the air.

The ball opened up and unleashed a red light that took form of a new Pokémon. This one looked like the cross between an insect and a stag. It was light green, with dark green and purple armor on its back. It had dark blue wings and a pair of orange antlers. It stood up on its front legs as it yelled, "Kingsect!"

The Starider all took a battle stance, the hallucination making them see this Kingsect as a dangerous monster as well. "Star!" the cried as they started shooting thread at it.

"Kingsect, dodge them all!" Thorax ordered, causing Kingsect to spread its wings began leaping into the air. It flew over the barrage as Thorax yelled, "Now use Slam!"

"King!" Kingsect flew towards the nearest Starider and used its hoof to buck it away, doing the same with several overs as well.

"Wow! That thing's strong!" Flash commented as the Pokémon knocked out another spider.

Several more Starider fired some webbing, which managed to hit all four of its legs, and started pulling Kingsect in several different directions. Seeing this, Thorax snapped his fingers, "Oh no you don't! Bug Buzz!"

Kingsect nodded as its horns started vibrating, unleashing a high pitched buzzing sound that made everyone who heard it flinch. "Ahhh!" Twilight screamed as her eyes shut at the sound. "Its horrible! Make it stop!"

"Endure it!" Doc yelled as he cringed at the sound.

The Starider also didn't like the attack, flinching in pain as their hold on Kingsect weakened. Kingsect saw this and knew it was its chance, soon using the thread to pull the Starider into the air before spinning them around and making them dizzy. The Starider were forced to let go, causing them all to fall into the ground. Thorax looked around, seeing that the Starider were all defeated as he smirked. "Alright, now's our chance! Aromatherapy!"

"Kingsect!" It cried as its horns glowed a rainbow of colors, the light flowing over the area and hitting the Starider. This lasted for almost a minute, the light soon fading after that.

"What just happened?" Flash asked.

"Aromatherapy. Its a move that cures status conditions." Doc explained as he watched the lights start to dim. "It should have also cured the Starider of the dust."

"Let's hope," Twilight added with a slight gulp.

As the light on the Starider faded, the spiders opened their eyes and began to pick themselves up. Everyone grew nervous as they waited to see what they would do, but breathed a sigh of relief as they just looked around in confusion. Thorax smiled at this as he spoke up, "Starider, you've all be suffering from a hallucination. The danger you feared doesn't exist, so I hope you can all see that now." The Starider all nodded. "Good. Now, could you please release your prisoners?" Again the Starider nodded before getting to work, climbing up to the ones they had caught. Using their talons, they cut through the cocoons like they were butter, Flash and the others soon gaining freedom as they were let down.

"Finally," Flash said as he picked himself up. "My whole body was starting to go numb."

Ocellus moved over to Thorax and Pharynx and bowed her head. "I'm so sorry this happened." She turned to Spike and took the Grubirth in her hands. "I have no idea how this little guy got out."

"We'll have to investigate their room," Pharynx said as he rubbed his head in frustration. "We'll need to make sure they haven't dug their way out...and that's gonna be a ton of work for me. Great. Just what I needed when we got back."

"But at least nobody was hurt. That's what's important Pharynx." Thorax added, only to get a glare from his brother.

Twilight stepped over to him. "Thank you so much for helping us."

Thorax shook his head at this. "No problem. Making sure this place is run smoothly is my job after all."

This caught everyone's attention as Flash asked, "Wait...are you?"

"The Fillydelphia City Gym leader? Yes." Thorax finished for him.

"No way!"

"No wonder your Kingsect is so strong," Doc said before turning to Flash, "you might have your work cut out for you."

"Oh? So you came to challenge me at my gym here?"

This statement made them all blink as Twilight asked, "This is the gym?"

"Were you not told this?" Thorax asked, getting a flurry of shaking heads in return. "Well yes. The Gym's downstairs."

"Ah." Flash added, nodding before asking, "Well then, I want to battle you for your badge. What do you say?"

Thorax smiled before nodding, "I accept of course....but not today." Thorax pointed to the area around them. "As you can see, I've got a lot of work cut out for me. You'll have to wait until tomorrow."

Flash sighed but nodded anyway. "Alright, tomorrow it is."

"Good," Thorax replied before looking over the webbed up garden. The Pokémon had all been freed, the Starider now apologizing. "Now then, let's get this place cleaned up."

"Please let us help you," Twilight told him as her friends nodded in agreement. "I mean, its only fair since we're partly to blame for all the Starider's antics."

Thorax smiled and allowed them to help remove the webbing from the garden. As they did this, the thought of facing Thorax lingered in Flash's head. His Kingsect was incredibly strong, so beating it would not be easy. Flash then smirked at his next thought, as he knew it might not be easy, but he was gonna do it anyway.