Chapter 6: The Boss's Spoiled Kid
The squad Will had assembled now numbered five. Besides Will himself, there were Wally and Milly, the two other Beedrill, as well as Frost and Rusty, who were set to evolve within the week.
A small team of five Beedrill was still far from being considered a proper swarm, but it was the beginning of one. In this primal forest, while they weren't exactly overlords, they had at least earned the right to claim a small piece of territory as their own.
And Will was the king of this territory.
He assessed his subordinates' strength. Wally, as always, had evolved into a massive Beedrill, standing at 1.9 meters, 0.1 meters taller than Will. In their current five-member squad, Wally was, without a doubt, the strongest fighter.
And unlike the other three, who had been beaten into submission, Will had saved Wally's life. Even if someone tried to usurp his leadership in the future, it would never be Wally. In fact, any usurper would have to get through Wally first. This meant that the strongest member of his team was also his most trusted companion.
Milly, on the other hand, seemed to have shrunk proportionally. She was only 1.6m tall, 0.2m shorter than Will. However, her good looks were even more pronounced. Her orange-yellow exoskeleton was bright and vibrant, her two large, round eyes were a striking pink, and the black stripes on her body were sleek and glossy. Although Will couldn't fully appreciate it, judging by the way Wally kept stealing glances at her, he determined that Milly was definitely a beauty among Beedrill.
As for Frost and Rusty, he would have to wait until they evolved to see what they became.
"Let's go. We'll check out the area near the lake!"
Will waved a stinger, leading Wally and Milly away from the tree. He could fly now, and he had a squad of three. He didn't dare fly too high to pick fights with the bird Pokémon—after all, the three of them were only around Level 10. But flying low to scout the surrounding terrain should be no problem.
Under Will's lead, the three Beedrill flew forward at a low altitude. They maintained a safe distance from the grass below, while the dense canopy above shielded them from the open sky. The safety factor was high.
Being able to fly is so much better.
Will couldn't help but marvel inwardly. He remembered when he was a Weedle—not only was he weak, but his movement speed was painfully slow, limiting him to a tiny area. Now, he could finally explore a little further.
"Ekaaaanss!!!"
Just as they were approaching the lake, a threatening cry suddenly erupted from the forest nearby.
"Come on, let's check it out."
Will's interest was instantly piqued. He led Milly and Wally and flew quickly in that direction. After flying for a dozen or so meters, his expression changed dramatically.
A massive Ekans, nearly 3.5 meters long, had cornered a Poliwag and a Sandshrew. Ekans were commonly found in grasslands, hiding deep in the vegetation, and their bodies grew continuously with age. The average Ekans in the Era of Leagues was only 2 meters long; he had no idea what the average was in this Era of Primal Beasts. But it was clear this one was a huge threat.
"Attack that snake!"
Without a second thought, Will led Wally and Milly in an assault on the Ekans. He didn't recognize the Sandshrew, but the Poliwag was clearly the same baby he had met days ago. Although it had now outgrown its infant stage, its level was still very low. It was no match for such a colossal Ekans.
Poison Sting x3!
The three Beedrill simultaneously fired their stingers from a distance. They had the natural advantage in the air; there was no need to go down to the ground to fight the Ekans. While Will knew that a poison-type move like Poison Sting wouldn't be very effective against a fellow poison-type, his goal wasn't to defeat it. He first wanted to see if he could scare it away.
"Hisss!!"
The Ekans recoiled, dodging the volley of stingers. It stared up at the three Beedrill with its sinister yellow eyes, hesitated for a moment, and then turned and disappeared into the tall grass.
The Poliwag and Sandshrew trembled as they looked up at the three intimidating Beedrill. They felt like they had just escaped a danger to fall into any other bigger danger.
Will signaled for Wally and Milly to stay put while he descended alone in front of the Poliwag and Sandshrew. Both of them were small creatures, only about 0.6m tall. In the Era of Leagues, that would be an average height, but in this Era of Primal Beasts, they were clearly just little kids who had barely matured.
"Why are you running around all over the place again?"
"...Poli?!"
Hearing Will's voice, the Poliwag froze, then its face filled with shock. It couldn't possibly imagine that the tiny bug who was once its size had now become such a tall and mighty Pokémon.
"What are you so surprised about? Is this your friend?"
"Poliwag."
No longer afraid, the Poliwag quickly introduced the Sandshrew beside it to Will.
"He's from the territory next door?" Will raised an eyebrow. He noticed that the Poliwag seemed to have gotten a little smarter after maturing. It actually understood the concept of 'territory' now. The Poliwag he knew before would run anywhere and everywhere, completely oblivious to whose land he was on.
"Poliwag."
The Poliwag nodded and began to explain its and the Sandshrew's situation. And what an explanation it was. It gave Will a trove of valuable information.
The area around the small-to-medium-sized lake was divided into three major territories.
One part was the domain of the Poliwag's father, a Poliwrath. This territory was mostly inhabited by weak Pokémon, which also made it the most peaceful area. This was because the Poliwrath would proactively drive out any Pokémon before it could grow strong enough to become a threat.
Another part was the territory of the Sandshrew's father, a Sandslash. But the Sandslash lacked foresight. He was lazy and didn't manage his territory, allowing the Pokémon within it to grow unchecked. The price for this was that he was eventually defeated and eaten by a powerful Arbok. The Sandshrew had been on the run ever since. The Ekans they just fought was the Arbok's offspring, which had followed the Sandshrew's scent all the way here.
The final territory belonged to a Nidoking and Nidoqueen couple. Among the three local powers, this couple was the strongest. Their territory was also a sort of neutral ground. Anyone could live there, and anyone could attack other Pokémon. They didn't care what happened, as long as no one bothered the Nido-family.
"So that's why you could run around everywhere without getting into trouble. You're the boss's spoiled kid?!"
Will finally understood everything. At the same time, he felt a wave of relief, realizing he had been lucky enough to be born in the Poliwrath's territory. That explained why he hadn't encountered any truly powerful Pokémon on his journey. If he had been born in one of the other two zones, weak Pokémon like Caterpie and Weedle would have been nothing more than walking meals.
I need to lay low here for a while longer. Once I'm stronger, I'll go out and claim more territory. For now, I'll set that Arbok as my target.
Having sorted things out in his mind, Will turned and led Milly and Wally away. The Poliwag once again tried to get him to stay and play, but he refused.
He still wasn't strong enough. He still didn't have time to play.