//Sorry for another short chapter. I'll get better, I swear.

Over the years, Zetuo had faced an endless array of situations and problems, predicaments that would leave most people crippled both physically and emotionally. He had survived kidnappings, mass murders, lightning strikes, fires, poison, drugs, and a whole slew of other scenarios designed to end his life in one form or another. The black haired youth had been through it all, been to hell and back, again and again, and emerged victorious, gaining experience as he went. Up until that particular point in time, he figured he had been through everything the world could've ever thrown at him, had garnered enough lessons and information to deal with anything his rotten misfortune threw his way.

He couldn't have been more wrong.

Nothing he had ever faced could have prepared him for the dozen, enormous bees with hand stingers as long his entire forearm, bees that remained hot on his trail no matter how many times he juked them. They were fast, much faster then the black haired youth, them being able to fly both rapidly and steadily whilst closing the gap, even despite constantly running through trees and readjusting every time Zetuo switched directions.

(("What kind of damn science experiment are these guys?!")) Zetuo exclaimed inwardly as he switched directions again, switching the large egg to his other hand. Though it slowed him down quite a bit, he just hadn't felt right leaving the egg behind, hence why he was still holding onto it despite running for his life. (("An attempt at making a better honeybee gone wrong? Bees that fell into a vat of radioactive waste?"))

The young adolescent darted through the trees, weaving in and out as best he could, hoping to tire the giant creatures out before hopefully losing them. With little to no information on how the gigantic bees operated, he could only make educated guesses on what to do next. Though he ran the risk of getting himself lost in the process of it all, he had neither the time nor the energy to worry about such things, especially when the bee behemoths were drastically gaining some ground. His options were shrinking little by little, meaning he needed to make a split second decision.

Time seemed to slow to a near standstill, every single one of Zetuo's senses enhancing to the fullest, his brain switching to a much higher processing speed. In do or die situations, it was this state that allowed him to survive.

His awareness expanded far outwards in all directions, his five senses and instincts granting him vision that would otherwise be impossible. The varying smells surrounding the area, the subtle shift of the winds surrounding him, the sound of every single beat of the bee's wings, and even the taste of the air provided enough clues. The world around him became sharper and more clearer then it had ever been before, allowing him to put together a plan of action.

(("A dozen mutant bees. Spread out from my 4 o'clock to my 9, the ones at the end being slightly farther then the rest of them. Pursuers are approximately 12 feet off the ground and likely cant go much lower for an extended period due to the close proximity of trees and the length of their wings.")) Zetuo let out a small breath as everything flew through his head in brief flashes, barely having even moved his next foot forward. (("Outrunning them or shaking them off with standard tactics wont work. Most likely their tracking me by scent, hence why I cant lose them despite having left their vision multiple times. That being the case, let's change up my tactics. Catch them by surprise."))

Skidding to a halt, Zetuo quickly turned on a dime, this time booking it in the bees direction, heading for the enormous yellow beast currently in the lead, one that was slightly larger then the rest. The leader seemed to realize the black haired youths plan almost immediately and, instead of being confused as Zetuo had hoped, seemed to get even angrier, its buzzing getting louder.

Raising its dual stingers, it shot something out the tip of them, long silver pins that looked akin to small missiles.

(("Excuse me?!! When the hell was it able to do that?!!")) Zetuo exclaimed as shielded hinself, moving the large egg out of harm's way and taking the damage himself. One of the pins missed him entirely while the other two projectiles buried themselves into his left shoulder and right thigh. (("Those stingers can shoot? That's one painful way to find out."))

Even with the newly discovered information though, Zetuo continued to run, ducking under the front bee as it descended, avoiding the stinger located on its rear end. As soon as he cleared that enormous yellow creature, he made a beeline for the trees, seeking to take the small window of escape. Even if it bought him a little more time, it still allowed him to continue running away as he took an entirely new direction, heading at a direction perpendicular to the way he had been following previously.

"Come on Zetuo. Just a bit more," the young adolescent muttered as he sprinted along. The pain in his shoulder and thigh were growing by the second, even after he had yanked the pins out of his wounds. The injuries weren't bleeding too much, but Zetuo had reason to believe that he had been poisoned. "Got to reach a safe spot to camp for a bit. Any spot at all."

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Then, as if to kick him while he was down before fucking him in the ass, life threw him yet another curveball. Dashing into another clearing, Zetuo thought he could finally lose his small entourage of yellow jackets, but was quickly faced with the reality, the reality where nothing ever went as planned.

Standing in the middle of the clearing was an abnormally large tree, one that towered above the rest with its sheer height and girth. It was a beautiful tree and one that the unlucky young man would've stared at in awe...had it not been for the number of enormous bees that had made the towering plant their home.

"You've got to be shitting me," Zetuo said aloud, a sigh escaping his lips. "Fate is such a pain in the ass!!!"

It was far too late for the unfortunate youth to turn around as the bees had spotted him the moment he had ran into the clearing, and had already began making buzzing sounds. It was quite clear that they were ordering him to leave, to turn around and retreat, but that wasnt an option. The whole squad of bees from before had caught up, spreading out behind him and blocking off all means of escape. He would need to go around them in order to retreat, of which required time which he did not possess.

"Fine," Zetuo muttered firmly as he charged forward, heading towards the tree with the intent on passing by it. "Show me what you got then you overgrown insects. You're gonna have to work if you want this meal."

In truth, the young adolescent was nearing his limit. He wasnt tired in the slightest, but rather the pain in his shoulder and thigh had reached near unbearable levels, hindering his ability to run at full speed. Though he had faced poison much worse and pain that would cause one to collapse instantaneously, he could only push through it for so long.

At the rate things were looking, he reasoned he had about five minutes before his body refused to move any further.

The buzzing sound reached a new high as every single bee within the tree rose up, womgs fluttering angrily as their red eyes zeroed in on the fleeing Zetuo. Though he hadn't bothered them much, it was him who had trespassed onto their territory and he would have to pay the price for it.

"Charmeleon, hit em with [Flamethrower]."

"Growlithe, [Ember]!!"

Before the entire group of Bees could even fully take off, a wave of broiling hot fire exploded into existence, encompassing the entire top of the tree in red and yellow flame. One by one, the bees dropped from midair, hitting the ground with a thud, either unconscious or just barely able to get back up. Those that had managed to avoid getting hit by the explosion immediately flew away at a pace far faster then they had chased Zetuo with. Their fear of fire was made abundantly clear as even the one from earlier had decided to disperse, quickly fleeing the scene.

Zetuo didn't even have time to feel relieved at the sudden turn of events as one of the unconscious bees fell from the sky and landed on top of him. Though the creature wasn't very heavy, he still found himself unable to muster up the strength to push it off of him. The poison coursing through his veins made it very near impossible to do anything as he slowly passed out, the world once again fading into darkness.

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At the same time Zetuo was being crushed under the weight of his newly acquired poison, a group of three garbed in black clothing moved stealthily through the alleyways of Viridian City. No sound could be heard as the trio traveled swiftly down the intersecting blocks where not a single soul bothered to roam. As this maze of alleys contained nothing substantial or lead to anything in particular, it was widely deserted and became a popular spot for drug deals and gang meeting points. As of this moment however, there wasn't anyone but these three figures who, after scanning the area, took up root in the area.

"This spot should do," The lead figure said, the feminine voice and bright red hair was all that was discernable, every inch of her covered from head to toe. "Spectre #3, radio in the boss. Relay our coordinates and get the go ahead for the mission."

The smallest of the three, standing a foot and half tall, nodded before reaching into the bag that the taller one beside him carried. What he pulled out was a device akin to a high-tech laptop with three buttons on the outside. Setting the device on the floor, Spectre #3 pressed a few keys, turning on the screen.

While the small figure was powering it on, the female figure stood near the alley entrance, her head poking around the corner every so often. A sort of killing aura permeated the air around her, bloodlust so thick that it was almost tangible. If some unfortunate soul were to find themselves walking down the alley at this moment, it would be safe to assume their life would be forfeited, their breath stolen before they even had a chamce to register.

After about a minute of fiddling with the laptop, Spectre #3 pulled up a picture of a unidentifiable man. No details about the person could be made out as the majority of his face was blurred and distorted, preventing the figures from clearly pinpointing his shape of form. When the man talked, even his voice came out in a way that no possible human could ever sound, deep and low with a intimidating echo. "Team Alpha, I assume you have located the target that we have discussed previously?"

"Spectre #2 reporting in with Team Alpha," The figure beside Spectre #3 said, kneeling down to the screen. Besides the blue roots of the mans hair, there were no visible marks to pick him out from a crowd. "We have indeed aquired the coordinates for item #203. According to our spies, the item was shipped here from the Pewter Museum of Science located in Pewter City. A man by the name of David Babao, an up and coming professor in the tutelage of Professor Oak, purchased it in hopes of studying it."

Spectre #1 walked away from the alley entrance and knelt down by the screen, showing her face as well. "Said item has been kept at the local Pokemon center for about a week now. We can retrieve it at any given moment. The most optimal time would be tonight. Awaiting your orders Sir."

The distorted man was silent for about a minute before he finally responded. "I want that item at any cost. If someone gets in your way then feel free to eliminate them if the need arises. You know how I feel about mistakes. As to how and when you retrieve the item, I shall leave it up to your discretion."

The three Spectres gave a bow to the man before the image disappeared and the screen of the laptop went blank.